chicken » Living Lou

Chipotle Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Apparently I’m all about the sandwiches these days, last week was Bacon Avocado Egg Salad Sandwiches and this week it’s Chipotle Chicken Salad Sandwiches. My creativity for meals and writing has completely been sucked out of my brain and replaced with post-post modernism, codecs and action verbs (which are the secret to directing actors, in case you were wondering). It’s that time of year, friends, finals. I’m officially over the hump, 3 down, 2 to go.

No matter how prepared I am with recipes that are ready to share, when I’m bombarded with 5 exams in 6 days, I hit a major case of writer’s block. I guess it’s because I don’t really have much to share since all I’m doing is studying. And going for gelato. It’s all about balance, people! Two of the exams I wrote were the type of exams that no matter how hard you study, you’ll get in there and be completely floored by the questions. You’re not left with that relief feeling after the exam, it’s more of an oh-shit type of feeling. Then you have a little chat with your classmates and realize that nobody knew what they were doing in the exam and you feel a little better. Then you blast 60′s French pop on the drive home and you’re feeling much better.

In other news, and a great way to end a not-so-great week, I’m heading up to the first Food Blogger’s of Canada conference this weekend…I can’t wait to meet some fellow Canadian bloggers, and enjoy the delicious food of Hockley Valley especially after weeks of not so yummy, bland food. Maybe I’ll even learn a few things along the way. Be sure to follow me on Instagram and Twitter to keep up with what I’m doing and follow that hashtag #FBC2013.

Chipotle Chicken Salad Sandwiches (serves 4)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 chicken breast, poached and shredded
1 green onion, sliced
1 celery stalk, grated
1 medium carrot graed
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon
2 1/2 tsp chipotle hot sauce
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together using a fork. Serve over your favourite bread.

I love to eat these Chipotle Chicken Salad Sandwiches for lunch during busy weeks.

- Lou

Crispy Baked Chicken Wings

I have so many thoughts rushing through my head right now that coming up with a coherent sentence is proving to be a huge challenge. But I want to write about these Crunchy Baked Chicken Wings and how good they are. And how they are healthier than your favourite fried chicken wings. And how they are so easy. But it would be nice if I could put that all in a fluffy, beautiful, compound sentences. Maybe I could even throw a few metaphors and similes in there…

Hmm, not today, my friends.

I have a serious addiction to chicken wings. Which you will know if you’ve been reading Living Lou for a while, I’ve shared recipes for Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings and my all time favourite, Living Lou’s Chicken Wings. I knew that the next type of chicken wing I wanted to was a crispy, baked chicken wing that’s healthier than the deep friend variety. I turned to corn starch to create the crunch and a couple of favourite spices – chili powder and cumin – to create a unique chicken wing.This recipe is simple and I have a feeling that kids and adults alike will go crazy for these wings.

Crispy Baked Chicken Wings (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

2 1/2 lbs chicken wings
4 tbsp corn starch
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare a baking dish with a piece of tinfoil.

Combine corn starch, brown sugar, salt, chili powder and garlic powder in a large bowl. Toss with the chicken wings. Allow to sit for 10 minutes, allowing the spice mixture to absorb into the wings. Toss again, letting to sit another 5 minutes or until most of the spice mixture has been absorbed into the chicken.

Place wings on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and flip over. Cook for another 20 minutes.

Chicken wings are a great way to make something different and delicious for dinner and these Crispy Baked Chicken Wings taste like they’ve been fried without all that added fat.

You see, as much as I love all chicken wings, I have a soft spot in my heart for the crunchy, friend, unhealthy variety…which is not something I want to be eating too often. I set out to create a healthier, alternative and I think I’ve hit the jackpot.

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Tacos

I think slow cookers were made for those periods in the year that are just so busy you don’t have time to think, let alone time to make dinner.

February, March and April have definitely proven themselves to be the busiest months for me. I don’t know what it is, but literally everything happens within these three months. It can definitely be stressful and it does test my level of sanity, but the stress is totally worth it when I can finally spend all day Saturday catching up on all the episodes of Chopped I’ve missed. Which I’ve already marked on my calendar…what can I say, I love Chopped.

These Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Tacos are a slow cooker riff off of my favourite Shredded Chicken Tacos. These literally take 10 minutes to prep and then you can dump it all in the slow cooker and come home to a delicious meal. What I love about this recipe is that it makes healthy food easy and fast to prepare, all you have to do is spend 15 minutes in the morning to throw this all together and you com home to a delicious homemade meal – no store bough, sugar filled, frozen meal for dinner.

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Tacos (serves 4-6)

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp oregano
2/3 cup crushed tomatoes
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Directions

In a pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute onions for 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and spices, cook for another minute or until fragrant. Stir in the crushed tomatoes.

Lightly grease the inside of the slow cooker with a little olive oil. Place chicken breasts at the bottom and cover with the tomato mixture.

Cook on low for 3-5 hours.

Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred using two forks. You will have lots of extra sauce so add in as much as you want to the shredded chicken.

Serve shredded chicken tacos with your favourite toppings – I love to put avocado on mine.

These Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Tacos will be a lifesaver on those busy days.

- Lou

Moroccan Chicken Soup

In our house, there is always a homemade soup in the fridge. When I was a kid, chicken noodle soup was a staple (I would pick out all the carrots and celery!). But you see, having a soup almost weekly means that it can get boring pretty quickly. Experimenting with different soups can be a lot of fun. Some of our favourites are Borscht, Roasted Sweet Potato Soup and Broccoli Soup.

This Moroccan Chicken Soup was inspired by a soup I had at a restaurant back in December. I loved the depth of flavours in the broth and the chickpeas were a nice textural component, I knew right away that I had to recreate this soup for all of you. One of the great things about this soup is that it’s packed with veggies.

A little process photo that I Instagrammed while making the soup!

Plus it’s a great way to use those skinless boneless chicken breasts that I know you have in your fridge right now. Also, it doesn’t even require chicken stock or broth because the soup makes one itself while it’s cooking which means that you get to control the amount of salt in the soup. Hello! Could it get any better?

Moroccan Chicken Soup (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (more to taste if you want something spicy!)
2 medium carrots, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
7 cups water
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
1 15-19oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
chopped cilantro, for serving

Directions

In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook for 6 minutes, until browned. Flip chicken and cook another 6 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside.

Add the onion to the pan, stirring occasionally until soft and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and spices, stirring until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in carrots and celery, return chicken to pot. Add water and crushed tomatoes.

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered for 35-40 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

Next, remove chicken from soup and shred with two forks.

Return to pot. Add chickpeas and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with chopped cilantro.

We loved this soup. And I mean love as in, we-ate-it-for-breakfast kind of love. I hope you love it too!

- Lou

Baked Pesto Pasta

Is there anything better than Baked Pasta? I’m always stuck looking for ways to use all those boring, skinless, boneless chicken breasts in my fridge. So, how would you feel if I told you this Baked Pesto Pasta is a recipe that uses those chicken breasts? Are you feeling great yet? Me too.

Can we talk about how it is already November. I think I say this at the beginning of every month, but for real – why does time seem to go so fast these days? I remember being a kid and hearing adults say how fast time goes, but to me, 15 minutes seemed like an eternity. I guess it’s because everyone is so busy that we just don’t make the time to sit back and think “Wow, that was a great day!”. It’s funny because I always ask the kids I babysit what was the best thing that happened that day, but I never ask myself.

This Baked Pesto Pasta is example of one of those great things we tend to forget. While it wasn’t the best thing that happened to me that day, there is something incredible about creating a simple recipe that works so perfectly.

Baked Pesto Pasta (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients
1 lb Penne pasta
2 cups diced poached chicken breasts
1 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp pesto, divided
2 red peppers, chopped
1/4 tsp hot chile flakes
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large pot, bring water to a boil and cook pasta until al dente. Once cooked, drain and stir in 2 tbsp of pesto.

Meanwhile, in a pan heat oil over medium heat. Add remaining 2 tbsp of pesto, red peppers and hot chile flakes. Cook for 5 minutes.

Next, add red pepper mixture to pasta. Stir in 1 cup of mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Pour into casserole dish, cover with remaining 2 cups of mozzarella. Bake for 20 minutes.

Hope you enjoy this Baked Pesto Pasta as much as my family did.

- Lou