Chicken Skewers

Today since it was quite nice outside, I decided upon a simple tasty dish for lunch. I looked in my fridge and found that I had some Chicken that needed to be cooked soon and thought that skewers were something I have not had in quite awhile.

Ingredients:
1 lb Chicken Breast, cubed
7-10 sm Bamboo Skewers
1/2 cup Caesar Italian Salad Dressing
1/2 cup Italian Roast Red Pepper Salad Dressing
Olive Oil
2 Scallions, diced

I began by cubing the Chicken. This works a little better when you freeze the chicken, or get it close to frozen, and cut it then. I find it a lot easier to cut then.



I got the two bottles of Salad Dressing.



I poured them in with the cubed Chicken. Mix together. Put in fridge for about 30 minutes. You could probably leave out of the fridge, it's up to you.



Now get your Bamboo Skewers and soak them in water. This tends to make them less likely to burn or splinter during this entire process. You can leave them in water for an hour if you would like, however I only left them in for about 15 minutes.



Now once you are ready around 15 minutes later, use your Skewers to put 3 or 4 pieces of Chicken on each Skewer.



Now using a saucepan put in some Olive Oil and turn the heat to MEDIUM.



My saucepan is a bit deeper than usual saucepans and most likely has a different name but I treat it like a saucepan. Anyways, I put four Skewers in at first.



Once they are done, which I tested by cutting open one as the cooking process went on. I turned them over every few minutes in an attempt at a thorough cooking.

So I took them off once they were cooked properly and plated them. To them I added a diced Scallion. Enjoy.

Lentil Soup x2

Lentil Soup is a very easy and tasty dish to make. I made it two different ways and will have both represented here. Originally I made a simplified version only consisting of Lentils and Onions. The second version has more in it. I will explain Version 1 first and follow it with Version 2.

Ingredients:
Version 1:
1 White Onion
1 cup Red/Orange Lentils
1 cup Green Lentils
Italian Seasoning
Celery Salt
Perfect Pinch Cajun
Garlic Salt
6 cups Water
1/4 stick Sun Dried Tomato Basil Butter

I began by getting my spices together.

I then got out my White Onion and proceeded to dice it up.

Oh my, found some tasty Butter to caramelize the Onion in.

Now put Onions in with the melting Butter.

Once Onions are caramelized, add in 2 cups of Lentils.

Pour in your water.

Let it cook, stirring once in awhile, until done. The Lentils will be like little sponges and soak up almost all of the water.

I served this on Wild Rice with some shredded Cheese on top. Enjoy.

Version 2:
1 White Onion
1 cup Red/Orange Lentils
1 cup Green Lentils
Italian Seasoning
Celery Salt
Perfect Pinch Cajun
Garlic Salt
Ground Black Pepper
6 Celery stalks
8 Sm Carrots
1/4 stick Butter
6 cups Water

Alright, this recipe mainly follows Version 1 with a few changes.

First off, like no pictures. Sorry but it's sort of redundant. You begin by dicing up your Onions, Carrots, and Celery stalks.

Then you caramelize the Onions in regular Butter.

Add in the diced up Carrots and Celery when the caramelization begins. Stir together thoroughly.

Add in Lentils once Carrots soften up a bit.

Add in Water at same time. Stir.

Once Lentils are soft enough to eat, turn off heat and serve. Enjoy.

Asian Tequila Lime Shrimp

I began this recipe intending on just doing Tequila Lime Shrimp, however a thought came over me about halfway through cooking the Shrimp. I should change this up a little bit. That's where the Asian inspiration happened. I can't take all the credit for the inspiration though...I was watching Jackie Chan on tv at the time.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb Shrimp
2 Limes
1 Lemon
Italian Seasoning
Perfect Pinch Cajun
Teriyaki Sauce
Soy Sauce
Tequila

Alright, so I began by gathering the spices and Limes. The Lemon was an afterthought.

I then got my Tequila. For cooking purposes, I use Camarena as it is tasty and cheap enough to not break the bank. Take a shot of it to make sure it's still good.

I put the spices in a Ziploc bag. I don't have an exact amount since I just eyeball it. I do believe it was about 2 parts Italian Seasoning to 1 part Cajun. I then sliced the Limes and Lemon up into small pieces. Add in Tequila. Use as much as you want. I used around 1.5 cups worth. Add shrimp. Mix together. Take picture and think how awesomely tasty it looks.

Get a skillet on your stovetop going with the heat set at MEDIUM. Toss in everything in the marinade Ziploc bag. Take another picture...or shot of Tequila. Your choice.

Now I let it cook for a few minutes, pretty much until it was boiling and then changed it up. I poured out everything but the Shrimp. I added in about a 1/2 cup of Soy Sauce and 3/4 cup of Teriyaki Sauce. Sorry about the picture quality, a lot of steam was produced in this part.

Now once they turn pinkish-red the Shrimp is done cooking. Turn off heat and get ready to serve. I used a small plate with some spring salad mix to accent the Shrimp. Enjoy.

Cajun Styled Steak

I call this a Cajun Steak. I know there are a lot of people out there, most likely every chef known to humankind, that will disagree with my name for this steak. I call it that because I used a Cajun spice with this recipe. I ended up using a bit too much that caused it to be almost overpowering...although adding Mesquite seasoning to it might have emphasized the spicy flavor.

Ingredients:
1 lb NY Strip Steak
1 cup Vegetable Oil
0.75 cup White Vinegar
Garlic Salt
Celery Salt
Perfect Pinch - Cajun
Mesquite Seasoning
Italian Seasoning

First off begin by gathering all your spices.

Now I chose two of them to be more present than the rest. I'd say for I used twice as much of these two as the other spices used.

Place the spices in a Ziploc bag and pour in your Vegetable Oil and White Vinegar. You can use any kind of Vinegar instead of White Vinegar, but that is what I generally use for marinades. Seal bag and mix thoroughly so the spices don't clump up too much.

Now get your steak. It looks so pretty.

Put steak in bag and seal it closed. I pushed the air out and rolled the bag up around the steak so the marinade covered every part of it.

Now you can use a grill or a skillet. I chose a cast iron skillet since I do not own a grill. Living in an apartment does not provide a lot of use for a grill these days. Make sure your skillet is ready to go and turn the heat to MEDIUM. Once it begins to get warm to the touch...well hot to the touch, put the steak on.

I choose to flip it every few minutes for an even cook through. You can flip it every 5 minutes if you want, it's up to you.

I served it with it with some delicious Quinoa I made in my Rice Cooker, topped with Scallions. Enjoy.

Clams in Broth

Alright, so I am not really known for my taste for seafood. Today I decided to twist that up and cook up some Clams. I've done this once before and I love how easy it is to do.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb Clams
1 Yellow Onion
1/2 stick Butter
Garlic Salt
Garlic Powder
Perfect Pinch: Cajun
Ground Black Pepper
Italian Seasoning
White Wine

I began by putting my bottle of White Wine in the fridge. I then gathered the other materials. Make sure to scrub your clams with a brush or something since they most likely have some grit/sand/dirt on them still.

Dice up your Yellow Onion. I used about 3/4 of the Onion in this recipe. Put Butter in a saucepan and turn the heat to MEDIUM. Once the Butter starts to melt, add in the diced Onions.

I did my seasoning at this point as well. I did a healthy pinch of everything listed, with a little more emphasis on the Italian Seasoning and Garlic Powder.

Now grab your chilled White Wine.

Pour some in the saucepan once the Onions have caramelized.

Now find your clams.

Put them in.

Turn them every so often if you want. I did but I also have no idea if this helps them cook properly or not. When they are done, they will open up. Take them off pretty quickly once this happens.

I chose to serve them in a bowl along with a portion of the broth they were cooked in. Enjoy.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Today I was feeling a little under the weather and thought how I would feel better. Then I remembered the cure all for all ailments, Chicken Noodle Soup. I had some Chicken in the fridge that I had to use for something soon, so I threw it in the freezer and went to the store. I needed more materials. This recipe is the delicious result.

Ingredients:
3 Chicken Breasts, diced
1 bag Whole Wheat Egg Noodle Pasta
4 Carrots, diced
1 White Onion, finely diced
4 Celery stalks, halved and sliced
1/2 stick Butter
Caesar Salad Dressing
Italian Herb Mix
Ground Black Pepper
32 oz Vegetable Broth
32 oz Chicken Broth
1 cup Water (optional)

So, I began at the store for this recipe. I knew I wanted to make Chicken Noodle Soup and all I had for it was the Chicken and Carrots. So I picked up some White Onions, Celery, and the 2 Broths.

I put the Chicken in the freezer first because when it's partially frozen it is a lot easier to cut into small pieces.

I then added some Caesar Salad Dressing to it and set it aside since it comes into play much later on.

Now dice up your Carrots, White Onion, and Celery stalks.

Alright, put a stockpot on the stove. Throw or lightly toss your Butter in there.

Once the Butter is mostly melted, throw in your diced White Onion, Celery stalks, and Carrots. Stir and add a few pinches of an Italian Herb Mix with a single pinch of Ground Black Pepper.

Let cook for about 6 minutes or until the Carrots are somewhat softened and Onions have caramelized.

Then you find the 2 Broths.

Pour them in. Stir.

Add Noodles.

Stir and then put a saucepan on a different burner with heat on medium. Put the Chicken and Dressing on in.

Make sure to keep stirring them around in the pan so they do not burn to it at all.

Now add in 1 cup of Water to the stockpot if you think the liquid level is low. I did and it turned out amazing.

Alright, once the Chicken is done cooking you strain out the excess Dressing and put the Chicken into the stockpot. Stir it in well.

Once the Carrots are soft enough it is done. For the entire recipe, I want to say this took me like 30 to 45 minutes total. I am sure if I let it cook longer it would taste a bit different, however as is it is a very rich soup. Enjoy!