Quisine and Quirks

In January, my company decided to realign some of our sales territories. My counterpart and I were awarded lovely Louisiana, and no I am not talking about New Orleans. We received the less known areas that people do not frequent. Despite my initial dismay, Louisiana really has stolen my heart with their rich cuisines. So much so  that I gained 10 pounds from consuming étouffée made with sticks of butter. That’s right. I said sticks with an “S.” Everything tastes better with butter, and obviously the natives of Louisiana discovered that well before anyone else.

Tonight for dinner, Louisiana cuisine inspired me to create my own healthy version of jambalaya. No sticks of butter here. I can’t give all of the credit to Louisiana. I was partly inspired by the Texas heat to utilize items I had readily available in the fridge. With the heat index, I wanted to avoid any unnecessary grocery store trips. Plus, we are trying our best to prevent food from spoiling which means becoming more creative when I cook.

Lucky me, I had chicken and sausage in the fridge. What did that scream to me? Jambalaya!!! Using only what I had on hand, I came up with my own healthy Jambalaya recipe served over a bed of Jasmine rice. It’s quick and easy and under 30 min. Move over Rachel Ray! Don’t worry if there isn’t a lot of sauce as you are making the dish. There is definitely a ton of punch even without all of the excess sauce. My recipe is perfect for serving two. Double the recipe if you are making it for a larger group. Let me know what you think. Bon appetit!

Healthy Zesty Jambalaya

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup chopped white onions
• 1/2 bell pepper finely chopped
• 1 stalk of green onion chopped, discard the root
• 1/8 cup of cilantro chopped
• 1 chicken breast seasoned well with lemon pepper seasoning
• 1 smoked sausage link
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp cayenne
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp chopped garlic
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/2 a lemon
• 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• Jasmine rice

Directions:

1. Cook the rice according to the instructions.
2. While the rice is cooking, slice the sausage and chicken. I cut each sausage slice into quarters to make it easier to cook through.
3. Heat 1/2 tbsp of EVOO in a skillet. Add the 1/2 tsp chopped garlic. Brown the garlic until it is  a golden color. Add the chicken and sausage.
4. Cook the meat until it is cooked through. Then add all of the veggies (cilantro, onion, and bell pepper). Sautee on medium heat until soft, about 3 minutes.
5. Add ketchup, cayenne, paprika, pepper, crushed red pepper, garlic salt and onion powder to the veggies and meat. Mix thoroughly and heat for 2-3 minutes.
6. After turning off the heat, squeeze the lemon over the jambalaya and stir to distribute the lemon juices.
7. Serve over a bed of rice.

I nearly burned down my bf’s apartment making this dish. Let’s just say that on certain days, my brain is not wired to multi-task. Honestly, it was a really stupid mistake. I turned down the heat on the wrong burner. As the chicken blackened at a wickedly fast pace, I started to panic.

Me: Babe, I think the chicken is burning, but I am following the recipe. I don’t know what I am doing wrong.

BF: (looks at the stove) Are you supposed to cook it on high?

Me: What do you mean it’s on high?

Cue smoke alarm, a smothering fog and a not so happy BF. The good news is that it’s blackened chicken. Blackened…a teensy bit charred…what’s the difference? Anyhow, the meal turned out fabulous, and I have to say I really liked the spices on the chicken. Plus, now we know the smoke alarm is fully functioning.

Blackened Chicken with Lime Cous Cous

(Adapted from www.sarcasticcooking.com)

Ingredients

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

1/2 tsp of Paprika

1/4 tsp of Salt

1/4 tsp of Pepper

1/4 tsp of Cayenne Pepper

1/4 tsp of Onion Powder

1/4 tsp of Cumin

1 tsp of Olive Oil

2 cups of Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1 box of Cous Cous

Juice from Two Limes

Directions

1. Combine all the dry seasonings in a small bowl.

2. Season each side of each chicken filet. Add a tablespoon of olive oil  to a large pan or skillet. Heat on medium/high heat. Then add the chicken breasts. Reduce heat to medium so you can avoid my smoke alarm mishap. Cook on 7 minutes covered on each side.

3. Follow the directions on the cous cous box. I used chicken broth in place of the water to make my cous cous a little more flavorful. Cook the cous cous. Once complete, transfer the cous cous to a large bowl.

4. Then slice two large limes. Squeeze the limes over the cous cous, mixing after each lime half. Stir thoroughly. Salt and pepper to taste.

5. Serve chicken over bed of cous cous. I sautéed some red bell peppers to add a little extra color and flavor. You can do the same if you like. Enjoy!

Spring has arrived! You know what that means…Spring Cleaning. Here at Quisine and Quirks, we take spring cleaning a step past tossing out old, unwanted material items. Spring cleaning also includes cleaning out our eating habits. While winter gave us an excuse to warm up with heavy stews and chowders, spring’s dresses and shorts dictate we eat a little lighter.

No worries. Eating lighter does not mean bland. You can still eat extremely flavorful foods while getting our bodies in shape for soon to be bikini season.  A Quisine and Quirks personal favorite is the Vietnamese Spring Roll. It is a great alternative to the staple salad selection. The fresh mint and hoisin sauce provides such a powerful punch of flavor that you will forget how healthy this meal is. This recipe is extremely easy to modify so you can change up the type of protein you use. Pork is the normally used, but a chicken version has become quite popular. Feel free to sub out pork with chicken if you prefer the original white meat. This can be served as an appetizer with one or two per guest. For a full meal, 4-6 of these rolls will have you stuffed and smiling ear to ear. Welcome spring with a spring roll!

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb of boiled pork, sliced (you can also use shredded chicken)
• 1/4 lb boiled, deveined shrimp, cut in half
• romaine lettuce
• bean sprouts
• mint
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut lengthwise (rectangle shape)
• rice paper
• vermicelli noodles
• hoisin sauce
• Sriracha

I love Carribean Jerk Chicken! I found this recipe that made it super easy to tackle the marinade piece. The homemade marinade was delicious. I made a couple of modifications to the recipe after the first go round. The recipe originally called for split chicken leg quarters. I decided to use drumsticks, or drummies as I like to call them.

It’s also still pretty cold out. Instead of grilling these drummies, I decided to bake them. I was worried that the recipe wouldn’t turn out as well since I skipped the grill. Despite my worries, the chicken turned out moist and extremely flavorful. The best part is that this recipe is low carb. Only 7g of carbs and about 335 calories. Can’t beat that. Check out my adaptation of this Taste from Home recipe!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Marinade Time: 2.5 hours

Cook time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs chicken drummies (approx. six)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

• Place chicken in a large resealable plastic bag.
• In a bowl, mix all the other ingredients to make the marinade.

• Pour the marinade into the plastic bag. Seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 2.5 hours.

• Once marinaded, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken in a baking pan. Make sure to coat the baking pan with cooking spray. Drip the remaining marinade over each drummie for extra flavor.

• Bake for 30-35 minutes. Check chicken to ensure chicken has cooked through. Chicken cooking times will vary based on size of drummies.

I couldn’t figure out what to make for dinner tonight. I searched different recipes, some simple and some hard. I also debated going to the grocery store. I finally decided that I would concoct my own recipe using the items we had in the pantry. I thought this would allow me some creative room to explore my culinary “talent.” I also was too lazy to brave the chilly weather in order to make it to the store.

I decided to make my version of chicken tenders. It turned out fantastically yummy according to my boyfriend. I’d say I have to agree with him. Feel free to use my recipe.

 Ingredients

• 2 cups of bread crumbs- I used Italian bread crumbs
• 1 tsp Siracha salt
• 1 pinch of basil
• 1 1/2 tsp of garlic salt
• 1 tbsp kickin’ chicken seasoning
• 1 cup honey
• 6 chicken tenders

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8×11 inch pan with baking spray. Set aside.

2. In a bowl, combine bread crumbs, Siracha salt, basil, garlic salt, and  kickin’ chicken seasoning. Mix thoroughly.

3. In a separate bowl, pour 1 cup honey. Coat each chicken tender in honey. Then coat each chicken tender in the breadcrumb seasoning mix. Place chicken tenders in the pan.

4. Place in oven for 18-20 minutes.  Then serve.