Italian Panko Parmesan Baked Chicken

I had some boneless skinless chicken breasts in the refrigerator that were begging to be cooked.  Being a Southern girl who grew up with fried chicken, I decided to do something that would "feel" kinda like fried chicken but would be a healthier option.  So here is the recipe that I made and will make again! 

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups Italian seasoned Panko bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons water
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray lightly with cooking spray.  In a shallow dish combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, herbes de Provence, salt and pepper to taste.  In a separate shallow dish, combine Dijon mustard, water, salt and pepper to taste, and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil.  Coat each chicken breast with mustard mixture.  Then dredge each in bread crumb mixture.  Place on prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until chicken is golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Excellent served with fluffy white rice and green beans almondine!

Hawaiian Slow Cooked Kalua Pork

Easy and tasty!  That works for  me & this just may be my new favorite way to cook pork roast!

I couldn’t believe that something with only 3 ingredients could be so yummy!  It’s great for serving a crowd.  I think it would make an excellent Super Bowl Sunday supper!  This is a recipe that originated in Hawaii and is a popular luau food.  It’s traditionally roasted in pit called an imu.  But if you don’t have that sand pit, you can make this in your slow cooker or oven.

1 4-5 pound pork butt roast (sometimes called Boston butt)

2 Tablespoons Hawaiian red sea salt (you can use regular sea salt)

2 Tablespoons liquid smoke

Pat roast dry and pierce all over with carving fork.

Place in slow cooker.

Rub sea salt all over the roast and then rub with liquid smoke.

Cover and cook for 10-12 hours on low.

Remove meat from slow cooker & remove fat & bone.  Shred the meat with two forks and add drippings as desired to season & moisten.  You don’t want to use all the liquid as it may be too salty.  You can return it to the slow cooker to keep it warm or do so in the oven.

I served this with my favorite bottled barbecue sauce… or you can make your own!  Or you may like it just “as is”!

Tradition dictates that kalua pork is served with Hawaiian macaroni salad, sautéed cabbage and sticky rice. 

It makes great leftovers served as pork sliders using King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls.

Hawaiian Pineapple Baked Beans

Want to try something different than your everyday baked beans recipe?  I've done a couple of fruity versions that are worthy of publishing!  I made a Hawaiian version to accompany the kalua pork that I made for this past Sunday's supper.
Note:  this is easily doubled or tripled to serve a crowd... but be sure to use a 9x13 or larger baking dish!

Serves: 6

Ingredients:
1-2 T olive oil
1 small onion, chopped (optional)
1 28-oz can of your favorite baked beans (I used Bush's homestyle)
1 can pineapple chunks, drained
2 to 3 tablespoons molasses
1 Tablespoon worcestershire sauce

Directions:
Saute the chopped onion in olive oil.  Mix the onion and remaining ingredients together and pour into lightly greased 8X8 baking dish.  Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, or until bubbly!

Patti's Slow Cooker Chili Mac

I love chili and I love pasta!  What could be better than a combination of the two?  This is a very versatile dish.  You can make it vegetarian by omitting the ground beef and adding a couple more cans of beans.  You can make it with less beef by using only one pound… or even a half pound and adding more beans.  Being a cheese lover, I like to top mine with cheese but you can also omit the cheese if you’re so inclined.  This is not an elegant dish to serve on your fine china, but it makes a wonderfully “bowlfull” Sunday supper…no pun intended but it’s football bowl season!  Serve it with cornbread hot from the oven and a tossed salad and you’re all set for smiles all ‘round!

 

2 pounds lean ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 cup matchstick carrots

2-3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 cans petite diced tomatoes with green chilis

1 can tomato sauce, chili style

1 can fiesta corn, drained (or whole kernel corn or frozen corn)

1 can black beans, undrained

1 package taco seasoning (I used Old El Paso mild)

Caramelize the onion in olive oil; add ground beef and cook until it’s well browned and crumbled.  Use a potato masher to make smaller crumbles.  Add celery and carrots and cook for another minute or so.  Pour this ground beef mixture into a greased slow cooker.  Add remaining ingredients (except for elbow macaroni) and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Cook elbow macaroni per package directions.  Drain well & add it to the slow cooker.  Give a stir and cook for a few minutes.

Serve in bowls, topped with corn chips and your favorite shredded cheese. 

Hoppin' John, Slow Cooker Style

What is Hoppin' John?  Well, it's a dish from the American South that features black-eyed peas, rice, smoked bacon, a splash or two of hot sauce and it can include greens (such as collard or turnip greens or kale).  It is a Southern tradition  to serve on New Year’s Day... and it's mandatory in my family to eat black-eyed peas, greens, rice, cornbread, and pork on January 1st!  From the very first New Year's Day that I can remember these were all on our New Year's Day menu for a year of good luck and good fortune. 

From Southern Living Magazine regarding greens and peas:  "These two Southern classics all but guarantee a prosperous year. Some say the greens represent dollar bills and the peas, coins, ensuring wealth and luck.

According to folklore, this auspicious New Year’s Day tradition dates back to the Civil War, when Union troops pillaged the land, leaving behind only black-eyed peas and greens as animal fodder. Rich in nutrients, these were the humble foods that enabled Southerners to survive. Details of stories differ, but each celebrates a communion of family and friends bound by grateful hearts and renewed hope for good things yet to come."

Makes about 12 servings

1 pound dried black-eyed peas, soaked     overnight, drained, and rinsed* 1 package frozen collard greens, thawed 2 cans diced tomatoes and green chiles 1 cup chopped onion ½ cup chopped green bell pepper ½ cup chopped celery 3 cloves garlic, minced 2 (32-ounce) cartons chicken stock 3/4 - 1 cup bacon pieces  1 cup instant brown rice, uncooked 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning  1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste) salt to taste 2 teaspoons hot sauce*

1. In your 6 quart or larger slow cooker, combine all ingredients except rice and hot sauce.  Cover and cook on high for 6 to 8 hours or until peas are tender. 2. Add rice, cover, and cook for at least 30 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir in hot sauce before serving. *If you forget to soak the peas overnight, then here's a fix: Rinse and drain them.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add the peas and boil for ten minutes.  Remove from heat and cover.  Let sit for an hour.  Drain & add to  your slow cooker! Voila! *I served hot sauce along with the hoppin' john so that everyone could add as much as they wanted or none at all.

Shrimp and Grits Tarts

Ready for another grits recipe?  My sister made this for a Christmas dinner; it's based on a recipe from Southern Living magazine.   It's easy and makes a wonderfully special appetizer!  What fun to make and then enjoy the taste explosion of tiny shrimp & grits cakes!  You will need three twelve-cup mini muffin pans or 1 24-cup pan and 1 12-cup pan.

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk

4 Tablespoons butter (divided)

½ teaspoon ground white pepper

1 cup uncooked grits

2/3 cups shredded Parmesan cheese

2/3 cup diced bacon or ham

3 Tablespoons flour

1 ½ cup chicken broth

3 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

¾ Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

36 medium shrimp, shelled, deveined, and cooked

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine chicken broth, milk, 2 Tablespoons butter and white pepper in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Gradually whisk in the grits; return to a boil.  Reduce heat to simmer & cover, stirring occasionally for 5-7 minutes until thickened.  Add the Parmesan cheese and stir until melted and blended.

Spoon 1 rounded Tablespoon of grits into 36 greased mini muffin cups.  Bake at 350F for 25 minutes.  Make an indentation in centers of warm tarts with back of small spoon.  Let cool completely.  Remove from muffin pan and place each tart on a jelly roll pan or cookie sheet.

Melt remaining 2 Tablespoons butter and saute bacon in skillet for a couple of minutes, sprinkle flour evenly over bacon, stirring frequently about 2 minutes or until lightly browned.  Gradually add broth, stirring until smooth. 

Reduce heat and cook 5 to 7 minutes or until thickened, stirring often.  Stir in the parsley and Worcestershire sauce.  Spoon evenly into tarts.  Top each tart with 1 shrimp.

Bake for 5 to 10 minutes or just until warm.  Garnish with chopped parsley.

Pecan Pie Mini Tartlets

In the opinion of this GRITS gal (Girls Raised In The South), pecan pie "takes the cake" when it comes to dessert!  This is a recipe for mini pecan pies or tarts that can be served as a finger food.  It also uses the divine Karo syrup... so if you can find the green label Karo pancake syrup, then  you can substitute 2/3 cup of that syrup for the 1/3 cup light & 1/3 cup dark syrup.

Ingredients for Crust:
1/2 cup sugar (or 1/4 cup Splenda baking blend)
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Ingredients for Filling:
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/3 cup dark corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar (or 1/4 cup Splenda baking blend)
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans

Directions:
for crust:  In a medium bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup butter, and cream cheese.  Beat at medium speed with mixer until smooth.  Add one egg, beating until smooth.  Gradually add flour.  Beat at low speed until just combined; your dough will be quite sticky.  Cover and chill dough for about an hour.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls; press in bottom and up sides of each cup of a mini muffin pan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

for filling:  In a medium bowl, combine corn syrup, 1/2 cup sugar, melted butter, 2 eggs, and vanilla.  Whisk to combine.  Spoon this mixture into each crust.  Top with chopped pecans.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Makes about 36 tartlets