The Best Ever "Oven Beer Can Chicken"

My family can't rave enough about this chicken!!!  It is so tasty that even my husband who is NOT a fan of chicken loves this recipe!  We like it so much that we eat it atleast once a week.  Last week my husband had this great idea of making this chicken and then using the meat to make pita pockets for dinner, it was awesome!!  If you are not a fan of beer, you can use a can of chicken broth instead, and the chicken still turns out so moist and has awesome flavor!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup garlic powder

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 (12 fluid ounce) can light-flavored beer (such as Bud Light®, or your favorite kind)

1 (3 pound) whole chicken

2-3 bay leaves (whole)

2-3 Tbsp of veggie oil or olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
1. Mix the garlic powder, salt, dried oregano, and ground black pepper in a small bowl; set aside. Pour 1/3 of one can of beer into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Place the open beer can in the center of the baking dish.  Pierce holes using a can opener in the can where there is not liquid in the can (you don't have to do the piercing can part, but I found that it gave the chicken more flavor).  Place the bay leaves and some of the spice mixture (appox. 1/2 Tbsp) into the beer/broth.
2. Rinse chicken under cold running water. Discard giblets and neck from chicken; drain and pat dry. Fit whole chicken over the open beer can with the legs on the bottom. With the breast of the chicken facing you, use a paring knife to cut a small slit on each side and press the tip of each wing into the slit to encourage even cooking.
3. Rub the veggie or olive oil all over the chicken.  Rub the prepared seasoning mixture over the entire chicken.
4. Bake the chicken in the preheated oven. If you find that the beer/broth in the pan has dried or no longer there, add additional beer/broth or some water.  Check the chicken after 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Continue baking until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 30 additional minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the chicken from the oven and discard the beer can. WARNING...Chicken and beer can will be HOT, so be careful when trying to remove the can!!!

BBQ Ribs (Slow Cooker Style)

Ingedients:

2 slabs of baby back pork ribs
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups bbq sauce (sweet baby rays, or your favorite kind)
1 cup chili sauce (I didn't have any so I used 1 cup ketchup and 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 Tbsp vinegar (I used 3 Tbsps)
2 teaspoons dried oregano (I used 3 tsps)
2 teaspoons worchestershire sauce
1 dash hot sauce (I used 1 1/2 tsps)


Directions:

Preheat oven to 400*....Season ribs with salt and pepper.  Place in shallow baking pan and brown in oven for 15 minutes.  Turn over and brown for another 15 minutes, drain fat.

In a medium bowl...mix bbq sauce, chili sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, oregano, worchestershire sauce, hot sauce, and some salt and pepper (I didn't add any extra salt and pepper).

Place ribs in a slow cooker, and pour sauce over ribs, turn to coat.  Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until ribs are tender.

When ribs are done cooking in slow cooker place the ribs on a pan and return to oven at 400* to carmalize bbq sauce..approx 10-15 mins

(recipe by Alicia Winborn)

Crock Pot Sesame Chicken

Today was my middle daughter's birthday, and she had a special request that we eat Sesame Chicken.  Going out to eat is so expensive these days, and since we are on a budget, I did what I like to do and found a recipe on the internet.

Ingredients:

12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 lbs)

1 bag (16 oz) ready-to-eat baby carrots

2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger root

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/4 to 1/3 cup honey (depending on how sweet you want it, we added extra)

2 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp dried minced garlic

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 Tbsp cold water

3 Tbsp corn starch

1 Tbsp sesame seed, toasted

2 green onions, sliced with tops

Spray 3 1/2- to 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Place chicken in slow cooker. Add carrots; sprinkle with ginger root. In small bowl, stir broth, honey, oil and dried minced garlic. Pour over chicken and carrots.  Cover and cook on Low heat setting 6 to 8 hours.

With slotted spoon, remove chicken and carrots to serving platter; cover to keep warm. Strain cooking liquid; pour into 1-quart saucepan. In small bowl, mix soy sauce, water and cornstarch until smooth; add to liquid in saucepan. Cook and stir over high heat until thickened and sauce begins to bubble.

To serve, pour sauce over chicken and carrots. Garnish with sesame seed and onions.  

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

So I made this a few weeks ago and meant to post pictures, but I never got around to it. Mike loved it so much that I made it again tonight for dinner. I tweaked the recipe and tonight's dinner was DELICIOUS!!!! Mike loved every bite.

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 package of bacon
1 8 oz package of Philadelphia Cooking cream cheese
salt
pepper
garlic powder
toothpicks

Directions:
Heat oven to 400*

Pound out the chicken to about 1/4 inch thick (so you are able to fold/roll it)

 Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. In the middle of the chicken breast put a good sized amount of cream cheese in the middle.

 Roll the chicken breast up and pin with toothpicks. Wrap bacon around the stuffed chicken breast. I used about half the package on each chicken breasts. I know that sounds excessive and you can do it as you like, it just gives it so much more flavor!

 Pop it in the oven for 40 minutes. Dinner is done!

Dinner was served with sweet mashed potatoes and a cucumber & tomato salad.

Italian Cheese Bread Dunkers with Sauce

Are you looking for a super simple easy meal for your kiddos, and don't really feel like spending tons of time in the kitchen?  My kids love this, keeps them happy, and I love that it only takes me like 10 minutes from start to finish :)

Ingredients:

• 1 French Bread loaf (the kind your grocery store bakes)
• 2 cups (8 oz) of italian style cheese, shredded
• Italian seasoning, or any spice you want to put on it
• Sauce of your choice (We like to use leftover homemade spaghetti sauce, and this time we tried pizza sauce)

First, you will need to slice your loaf of bread down the middle lengthwise using a good bread knife, and place on a baking sheet.

Next, put the shredded cheese all over the 2 halves of bread and sprinkle with the italian seasoning.

Now, you are ready to place your bread into the broiler (my broiler has a HI temp and a LOW temp, my sister's only has one temp setting, so you will just have to adjust the temp to how your broiler works)..using my broiler, I set it on HI temp, and the bread cooks in about 5 minutes!  Becareful not to burn it, so watch it closely ;)

Viola!!! Dinner for your kids is served in a jiffy! :)  I never said it was the healthiest, but it so easy, and they will love it!!

Pork Roast and Sauerkraut

We come from a German family and have grown up with TONS of German cooking. I've made a pork roast before, I don't know why I never published the recipe. It's so easy and within 15 minutes you have dinner cooking in the crockpot and the headache of making dinner at 5:00 is all taken care of for you.

Ingredients:

1 pork roast
1 jar of sauerkraut
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
1 large apple (any color)

I brown the meat before putting it in the crockpot. It gives it a nice flavor. I season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and minced garlic.

Once all sides are browned I put it in the crockpot and covered it with the sauerkraut & apples.

Then I seasoned with caraway seed and sugar and that't it! You are all done. Set it on low for 6-8 hours and dinner will be ready when you get home from work! So Easy!!!!

My version of Red Beans & Rice

Happy Weekend Everyone! I am sure you all saw on the news the gigantic power outage that covered all of Southern California, parts of Mexico and a little piece of Arizona. It wouldn't have been so bad if I didn't have dinner on the stove and we just went grocery shopping. Oh Well...that's life! My dinner turned out amazing regardless of the freak blackout, so I wanted to share it with you.

Ingredients


1 pound dried red beans, rinsed
3 tablespoons bacon grease
1 package of bacon
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
3 bay leaves
1 can of diced green chilis
1 package turkey kielbasa, split length wise, cut into pieces
3 tablespoons minced garlic
6-8 cups chicken stock
white rice (adjust depending on your family size)

Directions:


Place beans in a large bowl or pot and cover with water. Let soak for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and set aside

In a skillet, cook up bacon, set aside and keep approximately 3 tablespoons of the grease. Over medium-hugh heat add chopped onions and bell peppers. Season with pepper. Cook until veggies are soft. Add crumbled bacon, turkey kielbasa, bay leaves, and garlic. Brown the kielbasa.

Add the beans and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow to sit uncovered for appx 2 hours (beans should be tender) and sauce will thicken.

Serve over rice or with cornbread like I did. My family LOVED it and I hope yours does too.

Sorry for no pictures this time around, it was a hectic day.

Guinness Stew

Ok, so I don't always make foods based off the season. To me, food is food no matter if it's supposed to be a fall, winter, summer or spring type meal. I just love to eat. I made this for my husband because he has a passion for beer. I found a recipe online and then tweaked it to my liking. I hope you give it a shot, and if you do, let me know how it turned out for you!

Ingredients:

• 6 red potatoes, skin on, quartered

• 6 carrots, peeled, sliced into thick chunk

• 2 stalks celery, cut in chunks

• 3 bay leaves

• 3 lbs stew meat, cubed 

• 1/2 cup flour

• 1 dash salt

• 1 dash pepper

• 1 dash garlic powder

• 2 -3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium onion, diced

• 4 large garlic cloves, minced

• 8 ounces mushrooms, halved

• 2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce

• 10 3/4 ounces beef broth 

• 1 (13 g) envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon creole seasoning 

• 1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning 

• 12 ounces beer (Guinness, draught or stout)

 Directions:

Put potato, carrot, and celery chunks in the bottom of crock pot. Top with 2 bay leaves.

Season flour with a dash of salt, pepper and garlic powder and coat the beef with the flour mixture. Heat a couple of tbsp of olive oil over med-high heat in a large skillet and add 1 bay leaf. Sauté beef in batches, just until browned.

Add onion and garlic to the same pan and sauté over med heat for a few minutes, then add about half the can of beef broth to deglaze, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan.

Add meat and onions to crock pot, top with mushrooms.

 Mix remaining beef broth with tomato sauce, onion soup mix, remaining seasonings, and add to crock pot. Pour in bottle of beer.

 Cook 8 hours on low heat.

Enjoy! I served it with slices of french bread! Sorry that last picture didn't turn out well. I was hungry and didn't have the energy to remove the flash. 

Stay tuned for a new recipe for stuffed chicken breast wrapped in bacon. Oh man...this one was delish! I am making red beans, quinoa, bell peppers and turkey sausage tonight. I will let you know how it goes! 

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Austrian Beef Goulash

My sis and I grew up eating this awesome meal that our Mutti (Great G'ma) would make when she would come to visit the family from Germany!  This is the first time I have ever attempted to cook this, and to my surprise it was super easy!


Ingredients:

• 4 large onions, chopped small
• 1/4 cup oil
• 5 oz (10Tbsp) Hungarian paprika..I didn't have "Hungarian" style paprika, so I used a "sweet" paprika
• 2 quarts water
• 1 tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp caraway seed
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 clove of garlic, diced
• 3 lbs of beef chuck, cubed
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large heavy pot, cook the onion in the oil over medium-low heat until soft and golden.  Add paprika, and mix thoroughly.  Next, add the water, and the remaining seasonings.  Simmer uncovered for an hour.  Add the beef, and simmer until the beef is tender. 

Steak with Mashed Sweet Potatoes

It was one of those days where you have perfect weather and you want to stay outside as long as possible to soak up the sunshine and warmth. I LOVE those kinds of days!

Dinner Menu:

Steak
sauteed mushrooms and onions
chopped spinach
mashed sweet potatoes


Starting with the sweet potatoes, you cook them almost the same exact way you cook regular potatoes. Sweet potatoes tend to be a lot harder, so pop them in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften them up. I learned this lesson the hard way and one day I cut my finger and had to get stitches. Needless to say, it took a while for me to get the courage to cook with sweet potatoes.

 Once the sweet potatoes are finished cooking (should be fork tender) drain them. I use coconut oil and a tad bit of butter when I am mashing them. I have used just milk and butter. I don't add salt, just because I don't think it needs it. You will know what you like best.

 Got 2 steaks put on the grill. I grill each steak for 7 minutes each side. Make sure your meat is room temperature before putting it on the grill to ensure it cooks evenly.

 Here is the finished product. I cooked up a frozen package of chopped spinach as well as sauteed onions and mushrooms in olive oil and garlic. 

It was delicious. Mike and I barely got any of the mashed sweet potatoes because Mason kept eating off our plate. He LOVES mashed sweet potatoes. 

Here is my little partner in crime. He is trying to eat peas with a fork. Even I can't do that! 

Salmon & Salad

So I don't have a particular recipe to share with you, but in case you needed an easy healthy dinner idea I am posting this.

Tonight I made pan-seared salmon over a bed of quinoa with a side salad.

Tonight I made the quinoa with 2 cups of chicken stock to give the quinoa more flavor. Once fully cooked I stirred in a tablespoon of coconut oil. The salmon was seasoned with salt & pepper and cooked in coconut oil.

It was delicious! Give it a shot!

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts
5-6 small/medium carrots, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 large onion, diced
8 mushrooms, sliced
1 (32oz) box of chicken stock
8 cups of water
1/2-1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup wild rice
1 tsp salt (more or less to your liking)
1/2 tsp black pepper (more or less to your liking)

In a large pot, add water and chicken, and bring to a boil.  Boil the chicken until fully cooked, about 20-30 mins.  Heat a sautee pan on medium (spray pan, or you can use a little oil), add the carrots, celery, and onions.  Cook only until the onion is transparent (do not allow to carmelize).  Remove from heat and set aside.



Once, the chicken is fully cooked, remove from the pot and cut up in to chunks.                              

Finally, add to your pot (the pot should still have the juices/broth from the boiled chicken) the box of stock.  Add the chicken, veggies, garlic, salt, pepper, and wild rice.  Bring to a boil.   Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 55 mins (look on the package of the rice to see how long it needs to be cooked, this will determine the total ramaining cooking time).

**Growing up, we always added dill to my mom's chicken soup, and I have now passed it down to my family, and my kids love it. Don't knock it, until you try it ;)** 

Red Beans & Rice with Turkey Sausage

Ingredients

1 turkey kielbasa (turkey sausage)

1 can dark red kidney beans, drained & rinsed

1 cup brown rice

2 ¼ cup of low-sodium chicken broth

1 medium onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Directions

Pour water and chicken broth into rice cooker or 1 quart saucepan with lid. Add the rice. Cook for 30-45 minutes, until rice has absorbed all the liquid.

While the rice is cooking, place the kielbasa on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake in the oven at 350* for 30 minutes, until heated through and casing has darkened.

Once the kielbasa is done, remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Heat olive oil in large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until onion is translucent.

Slice kielbasa into ¼” slices and add to frying pan.

Once the rice is finished cooking, add to the frying pan. Stir in all ingredients together, cook another 5 minutes stirring often, and serve.

*You can adjust the red pepper flakes for more or less “heat”. I put in ¼ tsp and didn’t even notice it. 

My Helper today in the kitchen!

Homemade Pizza!!!!

I posted a recipe for Spaghetti Squash a few days ago and I ended up having leftover spaghetti sauce. To mix things up around the house instead of the boring LEFTOVERS, I ran to the store and grabbed a frozen  pizza dough and some pepperoni. My original idea was to make calzones, but I didn't have ricotta cheese, so....I made homemade pizzas. How fun this would be if you have kids? Nothing is more rewarding and fun then letting them help with dinner and watching their anticipation of their very own creation!

We often host dinner and Minute To Win It or Wipeout at our house in California with our friends. I think this will be a new trend...make your own pizza night! It is less expensive than ordering pizza and a lot more fun!

Give it a shot! A little mess is worth the memories!

Ginger Chicken with Snow Pea Salad

1 pound snow peas, strings removed (I ate them just fine w/o removing the strings)
1 tbsp plus 2 tsps olive oil, divided
1 tbsp plus 1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce, divided
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 scallions, sliced
2 tsps sesame oil
1/2-1 tbsp minced garlic (optional, the original recipe does not call for garlic, but I added it)

Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil.  Fill a medium mixing bowl with ice and water.  Boil snow peas for 2 minutes, drain, and place in ice water for 1 minute to chill.

Combine 2 tsps of oil, 1tbsp soy sauce, and ginger in a bowl.  Add chicken, toss and coat.

Heat remaining oil in a large skillet over medium/medium-high heat.  Add chicken, cook until golden brown, and no longer pink inside..about 5 minutes per side. 

Combine snow peas, scallions, sesame oil, and remaining soy sauce in a mixing bowl..toss together.  Serve snow pea salad with the sliced chicken.  (I ate my chicken and salad as separate sides..I don't like to mix my foods ;)

Makes 4 servings

per serving = 310 cals

*Recipe from the South Beach Diet cookbook*

Steak Salad

I made this for dinner tonight after seeing it on another blog! I think it would be more fitting for a lunch, but it is all about personal preference. I prefer something a little heavier for dinner so I am not feeling the hunger pangs before bedtime.

It was delicious and SUPER healthy! Give it a try and let me know what you think about it!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb top round steak (or any other lean cut)
• 2 cucumbers cut and quartered into 1-2 inch pieces
• 7-8 cherry tomatoes cut in half
• 2 avocados halved, pitted and sliced
• 1/2 sweet onion, sliced
• 2 zucchini, quartered into 3 inch pieces
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• juice of 1 1/2 lime
• ground black pepper

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in skillet on high heat. Season the steak with ground pepper and cook steak for about 5 minutes on each side (will be about medium rare).

In the meantime, toss the cucumber, tomatoes, and avocado in a bowl with 4 tablespoons of olive oil and top with lime juice. Season with black pepper and set aside. 

Remove the steak from the heat and let it rest for a few minutes to soak in all the juices. While the steak rests, saute the onion and zucchini on medium to high heat until lightly browned. Slice the steak and plate with the veggies! Mmmmmmm....good and healthy. How can you go wrong?

Spaghetti Squash

Want to try something different? Instead of noodles (which I LOVE) we started using squash! It doesn't have much flavor when paired with spaghetti sauce, just a different texture. This is super healthy for you and if you are looking for something outside of the box, give this a try!

Start with one spaghetti squash. 

Pierce squash all around so it doesn't explode in your oven. Cook on 375* for an hour

My meatball ingredients are below. I usually add breadcrumbs, but I didn't have any yesterday.

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. I use ground turkey, but you are welcome to use ground beef.

Here is the infamous coconut oil. I pan fry the meatballs in 2 tablespoons of this.

My meatballs ready to go into the pan.

You can make your own spaghetti sauce. I just throw stuff in a pot with tomatoes and call it spaghetti sauce. I used fresh mushrooms, canned diced tomatoes, onion, green pepper, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper. Once my meatballs are browned I just add them to the sauce to finish cooking on the inside.

Once your spaghetti squash is done cooking, cut open (length wise) and scoop out the seeds. Kind of like Halloween!

Take a fork and remove the squash, which will look just like noodles.

Top with your spaghetti sauce & enjoy!