Skillet Coconut Chicken

This dish has a lot of different ingredients, textures, and flavors but they all come together to make an exotic and delicious dinner. Coconut milk is a common ingredient in Indian cuisine and can be found in the ethnic food aisle of most grocery stores. The coconut sauce is creamy and mild with bits of nuts and fruits while the chicken is spicy and flavorful. This dish is easiest if you prep everything beforehand (this includes measuring spices and chopping ingredients). Then just added them to the pan as you go.

Serves: 4 people
Start to Finish: 30 minutes
Recipe By: Better Homes and Gardens Magazine

Ingredients:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 TBSP butter
1 (14-oz) can unsweetened coconut milk
1/3 cup cold water
1 TBSP cornstarch
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 tsp grated lemon peel
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 green onions, thinly bias sliced
hot cooked rice

Directions:

1. Coarsely chop dried apricots and almonds and thinly slice green onions.
2. Grate peel and squeeze juice from lemon.
3. In a small bowl combine water and cornstarch.
4. In a large Ziploc baggie combine 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and chicken until evenly and thoroughly coated.
5. In a large skillet, cook chicken in hot butter for 12 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink, turning once.
6. Meanwhile, start cooking your rice according to packing directions.
7. Remove chicken from skillet; cover and keep warm.
8. For sauce, add coconut milk to skillet, stirring to scrape up any browned bits.
9. Bring to a simmer.
10. Add cornstarch mixture to skillet, stirring constantly.
11. Cook and stir until thickened.
12. Stir in almonds, apricots, lemon peel, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper.
13. Serve chicken with hot cooked rice and coconut sauce.
14. Sprinkle with raisins and green onions.

Angel Pasta with Chicken

I love Alfredo sauce and pasta. It is so rich and creamy! Unfortunately, that rich creaminess is exactly what makes it unhealthy for you. I found this spin on Alfredo Pasta called Angel Pasta that gives you all the rich creaminess but less calories and fat content. In a 1 cup serving there are 460 calories and 17 grams of fat. It is made in the slow cooker which helps create a more complex flavor in an otherwise simple dish. If you like mushrooms, this is a great recipe to sneak them in the sauce.
Serves: 4
Start to Finish: 4 hours (slow cooker)
Recipe By: Kraft Foods Magazine

Ingredients:

4 oz. "Philadelphia 1/3 Less Fat" cream cheese, softened (half of an 8-oz. package)
1 (10-oz) can reduced-fat cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup Kraft Light Tuscan House Italian Dressing (any light Italian dressing will work, so use what you have on hand)
1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 lb. uncooked angel hair pasta
2 TBSP chopped, fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Cut-up chicken into bite size pieces and place in the bottom of your slow cooker.
2. Beat cream cheese, soup, broth, and dressing with whisk until blended.
3. Pour over chicken in slow cooker.
4. Cook on LOW 4 hours (or on HIGH 3 hours).
5. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions (about 15 min. before chicken is done).
6. Chop parsley.
7. Serve pasta topped with chicken sauce and parsley.

Peach Cobbler Cake

Delicious and rich, this cake version of peach cobbler will satisfy even the biggest sweet-tooth. The crumb topping is one of the best homemade recipes I have tried, the toasted almonds add nutty and crunchy. Top the whole thing with a powdered sugar glaze and you have layer upon layer of texture, sweetness, and old-fashioned dessert. This recipe takes some time but is definitely worth the effort. You can mix up the pie filling for cherry or blueberry, whatever your favorite is.

Serves: 15
Start-to-Finish:1 hour + 10 minutes
Recipe By: Amber Brunson

Ingredients:

Cake:
1 pkg white cake mix
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup sour cream
3 eggs
1/4 cup water
1 (21-oz) can peach pie filling

Crumb Topping:
1/2 cup chopped almonds, toasted
1 1/4 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 TBSP milk

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350ºF.
2. Grease and flour a 13 x 9-inch pan.
3. Beat first 5 cake ingredients with mixer until well blended. (You can use a whisk but the batter gets very thick and heavy, making it difficult to stir.)
4. Pour into greased and floured 13x9-inch pan; top with spoonfuls of pie filling. (Spread the filling out the best you can, if you have pockets it will be soggy there after it has cooked.)
5. Bake 25 minutes on the center rack.
6. Meanwhile, make the crumb topping:
7. Whisk together the almonds, flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
8. Melt the butter in the microwave.
9. Remove butter from microwave and stir in the vanilla and almond extracts.
10. Gradually drizzle melted butter mixture into the flour mixture while continuously and gently tossing with a fork.
11. Continue to toss until all the butter is absorbed and you have a uniformly moistened crumb mixture. (If you over mix it will turn into a lump of dough. Stop when you have just about mixed so you don't have to break up the crumbs manually.)
12. Remove cake from oven and sprinkle with crumb topping. Cook another 10 minutes.
13. Cool 10 minutes
14. Mix sugar and milk; drizzle over cake.
15. Cool completely.

Skillet Beef and Potatoes

This is an easy, but incredible, dish that goes together in 30 minutes. Microwaving the potatoes before stir-frying them cuts down on your cooking time so you get dinner on the table faster. The beef has great seasoning and no one would guess it's plain old pepper creating such a savory flavor. If you have ever tasted oven-baked potatoes seasoned with rosemary and olive oil; this dish takes that idea and turns it into a meal by adding steak strips. Serve with green beans and French rolls for a hearty dinner.
Servings: 4 servings (If you have big eaters, add 2 more potatoes for a cheap solution to stretch your meal)
Start-to-Finish: 30 minutes
Recipe By: Taste of Home

Ingredients:

3 medium potatoes, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
1 lb beef sirloin steak, cut into thick strips
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 TBSP olive oil, divided
1 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, minced

Directions:

1. Wash and cut potatoes in half lengthwise and then into 1/4-inch slices.
2. Place potatoes, water and salt in a microwave-safe dish.
3. Cover and microwave on high for 6-10 minutes or until tender; drain. (Drain right away or potatoes will get soggy)
4.
5. Season beef with pepper and garlic salt. (The pepper gives the dish a hot kick, so less pepper = less spicy)
6. In a large skillet, stir-fry beef and onion in 2 TBSP oil for 5 minutes or until beef is no longer pink.
7. Meanwhile, in another skillet, stir-fry potatoes in remaining oil for 5 minutes or until browned.
8. Combine potatoes and beef mixture.
9. Sprinkle in rosemary and serve.