Good Eatin'

When I say I'm a beginning cook, I mean beginning. But part of my new healthy kick has been trying new recipes, and I thought I'd share the good ones with you guys. Yes, I'm a novice, but I'm okay with that. Everything I put on this page has been made by me and deemed to be good, so take that for what it's worth. This page will be updated (hopefully a lot!) with new stuff. There's nutritional info included for everything as well. I got most of these from Cooking Light.

And in case you start noticing a recurring theme, yes, I'm a chicken girl. I don't eat a lot of red meat, but not for any particular reason... I love hamburgers at barbecues and spaghetti and meatballs, but I just don't have it all that often. I also don't like potatoes, cheese (although a little of it is okay if it's melted) or beans, so you'll notice the absence of those below (if any recipes say to add grated cheese, for example, I don't, but you feel free to rock the parm). I haven't tried cooking fish yet but I will sometime. Ooh, and I just found a recipe for watermelon margaritas. Yum! When's summer getting here?

Chicken Marsala

1 lb. boneless chicken breast
4 cups of egg noodles
3 portobello mushrooms caps, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 teaspoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup marsala wine (The recipe actually calls for 1 1/4 cups, but the consensus was that the finished product was a little too marsala-y so next time I'm cutting back. However, I used actual marsala wine because I couldn't find cooking wine, so maybe when you use cooking wine you need more of it, I'm not sure.)
1 tablespoon cold water
1/4 cup lemon juice
Salt and pepper

Stir together the water and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth. Stir in the marsala wine, lemon juice and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and set aside.

Combine the flour, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and dash of salt in a shallow bowl. Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces. Flour chicken by lightly pressing both sides of each chicken piece into the flour mixture.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Arrange chicken strips in a single layer. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side or until they are lightly browned but not cooked through. Transfer chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring and turning the mushrooms occasionally, for about 3 minutes or until the mushrooms are lightly browned but not tender. Stir the sauce and pour it over the mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 1 minute or until the sauce becomes clear and thickens slightly.

Stir in the chicken. Cover and cook for about 8 minutes or until the chicken is done. While the chicken is cooking, make the noodles. Spoon noodles onto plate and top with chicken-mushroom mixture and sauce.

Makes: 4 servings

Nutritional info per serving:
CALORIES 494; FAT 12.8g; PROTEIN 42.5g; CHOLESTEROL 141mg; SODIUM 87mg; CARBOHYDRATE 52.3g

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce (served with garlicky green beans, see below)

4 ounces uncooked medium egg noodles
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried taragon (or basil or parsley)
1 (8 oz) package presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fat free less sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and keep warm.

Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces. Place chicken breast halves in a shallow dish. Combine 1 tablespoon flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Sprinkle flour mixture over chicken; toss to coat.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned. Remove chicken from pan. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Add garlic, tarragon, and mushrooms to pan; sauté for 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates and mushrooms darken. Add white wine to pan; cook 1 minute. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently.

Return chicken to the pan. Cover and simmer 2 minutes. Uncover; cook 1 minute or until chicken is done. Stir in noodles; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Place about 1 1/2 cups chicken mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.

Makes: 4 servings

Nutritional info per serving:
CALORIES 350(29% from fat); FAT 11.1g (sat 2.6g,mono 6.2g,poly 1.4g); PROTEIN 34.3g; CHOLESTEROL 99mg; CALCIUM 91mg; SODIUM 502mg; FIBER 1.2g; IRON 2.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 26.5g

Garlicky Green Beans

2 cups green beans, trimmed
1 teaspoon butter
Cooking spray
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground sea salt
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Cook beans in boiling water 2 minutes. Drain and plunge beans into ice water; drain. Melt butter in a small nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add beans, salt, pepper, and garlic; cook 2 minutes or until heated.

Makes: 2 servings

Nutritional info per serving:
CALORIES 54(35% from fat); FAT 2.1g (sat 1.2g,mono 0.6g,poly 0.1g); PROTEIN 2.1g; CHOLESTEROL 5mg; CALCIUM 45mg; SODIUM 170mg; FIBER 3.8g; IRON 1.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 8.4g

Peach-Glazed Chicken

Cooking spray
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 pound chicken breast tenders
1/2 cup peach preserves
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 green onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; add oil, and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken, and saute 5 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken, set aside and keep warm.

Reduce heat to low; add preserves and remaining 3 ingredients. Cook, stirring constantly, until preserves melt and onion is tender. Spoon preserves mixture over chicken.

Makes: 4 servings

Nutritional info per serving:
CALORIES 238 (10% FROM FAT); FAT 2.7g (SAT 0.6g); PROTEIN 26.3g; CARBOHYDRATE 26.4g; CHOLESTEROL 66mg; SODIUM 95mg

Black Pepper Citrus Chicken

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1/4 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper
1/4 tablespoon salt
4 (6 oz) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup sliced onion
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1/4 cup white wine
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon pepper and salt over chicken. Add chicken to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Add remaining 2 teaspoons oil to pan. Add onion and garlic to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add wine; cook 1 minute. Return chicken to pan. Add remaining 3/4 teaspoon pepper and juices. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 4 minutes or until chicken is done. Sprinkle with parsley.

Makes: 4 servings

Nutritional info per serving:
CALORIES 240(22% from fat); FAT 5.9g (sat 0.8g,mono 2.6g,poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 39.6g; CHOLESTEROL 99mg; CALCIUM 29mg; SODIUM 259mg; FIBER 0.5g; IRON 1.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 3.8g

The Obliterate Your Friends Bay Breeze

3 shots cranberry juice
3 shots pineapple juice
2 shots Grey Goose

This is the perfect amount to fit in a martini glass. Shake well, and use the Goose! It makes a difference. Also, have lots of pillows and blankets on hand, because nobody's going home after a few of these.