Showing posts with label chicken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chicken. Show all posts

Monday, February 23, 2015

Chicken Hugs

My apologies, it has been quite a while. You can catch up on my cross-country move, change in professions, puppy adoption and travels here.


Right now, I've got a creation that was inspired by mean post-workout hunger and very little time. We used 3 chicken breasts, a cup of cheese, 6 slices of ham (you could use any sliced deli meat) and 4 slices of bacon. It made 4 entrees, we each had two and we were very full after!

I'm not sure what to call this; "Chicken Hugs" comes to mind or "Reverse Chicken Cordon-Bleu" (I realise it is a different). Regardless here is what you need to do to make this meaty treat for yourself.

1. Cook yourself up some chicken. I blackened mine a little with some chili pepper spices and hot chipotle salt, but if you want to go a more Italian route you can season with garlic powder and traditional Italian spices.
On a separate ban half cook a piece of bacon for each entree you plan on making. Remove when half cooked.
2. Let your chicken cool after cooking and then rip it up into strips. I was able to use an entire small chicken breast in one of my entrees but it was tiny.
3. Lay out an entire piece of sliced ham on a baking sheet.
4. Lay down a bed of shredded cheese.
5. Lay down a layer of chicken with an inch or so to spare on each side to allow the ham to wrap over top.
6. Sprinkle more cheese on top of the chicken.
7. Wrap the layer of ham over the top of the chicken. As you can see for some of mine I double wrapped using two pieces of ham. Stick a toothpick through all the layers to hold it together.
8. Wrap your half cooked bacon around the ham with the ends coming together at the top.
9. Sprinkle more cheese on top.
10. Place pan in oven and allow to cook until the bacon is crisp and the cheese has melted.
11. Remove from heat and enjoy!


Bam, there you go! My unnamed chicken creation! To simplify the process we stuck out bacon I our George Foreman grill for a quick half cook and used chicken breasts we already had made. We had plenty chicken left over from the 3 breasts to make a salad as well!






Tuesday, June 24, 2014

"Protinis" A Great Snack When You Are In A Pinch!

I was in a pinch on Saturday. I had locked myself out of my office and had a meeting a half an hour after working out, I did not want to leave my protein needs in the hands of the gym staff and pay an arm and a leg for a carby protein shake. I hustled around town to the grocery store where I thought I would find a premixed shakes that are hot right now but Safeway only had cold chocolate milk.

I geared up to by some meat and dig in when I happened to pass by a new product called “Protinis” by Maple Leaf Foods. I was in awe. There are multiple flavours of “Protini” but I have stuck with the Glazed Oven Roasted Chicken & Apple flavor because out of all of the varieties at my local Safeway it is the one with the lowest amount of carbs.

I quickly downed both of the “Protinis” in the package; I was impressed at how good the cold chicken and dried apples were. Nutritionally there are 80 calories in each of the Glazed Oven Roasted Chicken & Apple packs with 5 grams of carb, 1 gram of fibre and 4 grams of sugar. Protein wise they definitely do not measure up to a shake but there are 11 grams of protein in each pack of the Glazed Oven Roasted Chicken & Apple.

They are a little pricey, but nice little treats when you are in a pinch. I plan on packing them for road trips, hikes and any instance when I know I am going to be hard-pressed to find low-carb quick food fixes. I hope gas stations start stocking them!

Here are all of the different flavours of “Protini” on the market right now:
 
From http://www.protinis.ca/en/product.html

Try them out and save a little money with this "Protini" coupon




Saturday, November 2, 2013

Almond Flour Chicken Strips

We make these bad boys all the time, they are so easy and quick to make. Perfect for after work or a quick lunch. We usually cut up chicken breasts into strips but you can also use pre-cut chicken from your grocer too (this tends to be more expensive). We like them to be a little spicy, so we add a teaspoon of chili powder to the mix, if you are making this for children you may want to nix that part of the recipe. 

When we started making these chicken strips we would give them an egg bath, but we have actually found that it doesn't help breading them and that it is just as easy to dip them in almond flour. 

Ingredients: 
2 Chicken Breasts 
2/3 Cup of Almond Flour
1 Teaspoon of Chili Powder (optional)
Salt & Pepper to Taste

Procedure:
1. Cut chicken into strips or bites, whatever size you would like. 
2. Heat coconut oil in a pan on medium heat.
3. Mix almond flour and seasoning in a medium bowl. 
4. Press both sides of each chicken strip in the dry mixture. 
5. Fry in coconut oil until full cooked inside and golden on the outside. 
These are great with pretty much any dipping sauce! 

Nutritional Information (per serving, makes two servings):
Calories: 355
Fat: 21.7g
Carbs: 8g
Fibre: 4g 
Sugar: 1.3g
Protein: 34.7g  

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Super Simple Pork Rind Crispy Chicken Drumsticks

I like to make these chicken drumsticks as a snack, like jumbo chicken wings.  I like them to be spicy, but you can easily season them differently (salt & pepper or honey garlic for example).


Ingredients
200g of crushed up pork rinds
4 chicken drumsticks
1 egg
2 tsps of hot sauce
seasoning (to taste)
a dash of salt and pepper.


Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, grease aluminum foil on a pan (I use coconut oil).
2. Crush up pork rinds. I like to use a spoon to crush them in a medium bowl.
3. Add dry seasonings (except salt) to pork rinds.
4. Crack egg in a separate bowl.
5. Add 1/2 tsp of hot sauce to the egg mixture (optional).
6. Add a dash of salt to the eggs mixture.
7. Let the chicken drumsticks sit in the egg mixture for about 5 minutes.
8. Roll chicken drumsticks in the crushed up pork rinds. Try to coat as much of the drumstick as possible. This will depend on how crushed the pork rinds are.
9. After you coat the entire drumstick place it on foil and bake for 15 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and flip. Spoon hot sauce over the drumstick.
11. Bake for 15 more minutes.
12. Remove from heat. Spoon more hot sauce onto the chicken (to taste).
13. Wrap foil over chicken until you are ready to serve.

Nutritional info to come...

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Pork Rind Breaded Chicken Bites

We made these amazing pork rind chicken bites on a night when we had run a little tired of our normal
grilled chicken breasts.

They are super easy and you can vary the recipe by using different sauces.

For this batch we used Guy's BBQ Sauce (0 carb) and cut it with hot sauce.

We wanted hot bites, if you are making 'salt and pepper' bite or garlic bites you may not want to spice the egge mixture with cayenne pepper and chili flakes.

Ingredients
1 Egg
1/2 Teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon of Chili Flakes
2 Chicken Breasts
A Dash of Salt and Pepper
1/2 Bag of Pork Rinds
2 Tablespoons of Coconut Oil

Procedure
1. In a small bowl mix together salt, pepper, egg and spices.
2. In another small crush up half a bag of pork rinds for breading the chicken breasts.
3. Cut chicken breasts into bite sized portions or strips.
4. Heat one tablespoon of coconut oil at medium heat in pan.
5. Dip chicken in egg mixture.
6. Coat chicken with crushed pork rinds.
7. We make them in two batches, frying half the bites at a time. Fry for about five minutes. Flip and fry for an additional 2 minutes.
8. Plate the bites and then spoon sauce over the bites.


You may not want to use sauce at all for coating the chicken bites. You can alternatively just use a dipping sauce.

Nutritional Information 
(will be updated soon)

Monday, June 3, 2013

Beer Can Chicken

Beer can chicken is a favourite in my household.

Seriously, when all else fails there is 'Beer Can Chicken'.

The best park about it is how much it meat it makes, it is perfect for a supper for two or gour (depending on the size of your chicken) and you will most likely have left overs the put in your salad the next day.

We typically feed four adults with one beer can chicken and have enough leftovers to cut up for a salad the next day!

This recipe is pretty versatile too, you can spice the chicken to enhance different flavours. We use chicken rubs to spice it up a bit, but in this posting I will stick to the basics for a great low-carb/high-fibre 'Beer Can Chicken'.

We have started making this classic in our new smoker, but you can also make your 'Drunken Chicken' in the oven or on the barbecue. We prefer the barbecue, it is such a great summer dish!


Ingredients
1 Chicken (aim for a 4-5 pounder)
2 Tablespoons of liquified (heated) coconut oil
2 Tablespoons of salt
*3 Tablespoons of your favourite spices (I like a mixture of paprika, thyme, cayenne peppers, garlic powder, chillies and a dash of cinnamon) or use your favourite rub
1 Teaspoon of black pepper
1 Can of low carb beer (I use canned Michelob Ultra)

Procedure
1. Heat your BBQ to medium-high or your oven to 350F. If you are using gas try to use only half of your burners. If you are using coals that you move the chicken to an area free of coals.
2. Mix together your spices in a small bowl.
3. Remove and discard the chicken's neck and giblets.
4. Rinse the chicken inside and out.
5. Pat the chicken dry with paper towel, inside and outside.
6. Coat your chicken with coconut oil, inside and out.
7. Give your chicken a good rub with salt, your spices/rub and pepper. Again, both inside and out.
8. Empty half of your beer.
9. Insert your beer can into your chicken. This is easiest if you have one of the devices pictured below, but if you dont you can place your beer can on a counter and then thrust your chicken into it.
10. Place your bird in the center of your BBQ or oven and let cook for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Keep your chicken away from direct heat.
11. Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Keep an eye on your chicken and make sure you test the temperature in the breast and thighs before serving.




You can buy the beer can chicken holder here:
http://www.kitchenniche.ca/beer-can-chicken-roaster-p-1061.html



Monday, May 20, 2013

Pork Rind Nachos

This is such a simple snack, one of my favourites for sure! Before I cut carbs out of my diet nachos were my go-to snack. I missed them so much! So, once a week I will treat myself to some pork rind nachos to quell  my snacking needs.

Ingredients
-1 bag of pork rinds
-1 cup of grated cheese
-100g of deli chicken (or cut-up bacon, steak etc.)
-sauces for garnish to taste (salsa, sour cream, ranch)

*I recommend tomatilla salsa, it tends to have fewer carbs than other salsas.

Procedure (I microwave mine, but you can oven back them the same way you would bake tortilla chips)
1. Spread pork rinds over a plate.
2. Sprinkle half the cheese over the pork rinds.
3. Spread the meat over the cheese and pork rinds.
4. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the meat.
** I drip chipotle sauce over the top as well for a little more spice.
5. Microwave for 1:30 to 2:00. Keep an eye on it and pull the dish if all of the cheese has melted to a gooey point. You may need to rotate the plate half-way through if your microwave does not rotate well.

Nutritional Information To Come...

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Prosciutto Parm Chicken

Ingredients
-1/3 cup, graded parmesan cheese
-1/3 cup, herb and garlic cream cheese
-2 teaspoons, almond meal (use more for more breading)
-8 to 12 slices of prosciutto 

Procedure
1. Preheat oven to 425. 
2. Grease glass pan with coconut oil (or whatever you choose).
3. Soften cream cheese in microwave. 
4. Coat chicken with cream cheese.
5. Sprinkle one teaspoon of almond meal over each side of the chicken breasts.
6. Cook for 12 minutes.
7. Remove chicken from oven and sprinkle with the other teaspoon of almond meal. 
8. Cook for 12 more minutes. 
9. Remove chicken and sprinkle half of the parmesan cheese over chicken breasts and wrap the chicken with prosciutto. 
10. Sprinkle the rest of the parmesan cheese inside the prosciutto wrap and on top. 
11. Return the chicken to the oven for 5 minutes to crisp the prosciutto. 




Nutritional Information (per chicken breast):
*Will update
Calories: 310
Fat: 14.8g
Carbohydrates: 2g
Fibre: 0g
Sugars: 1.3g
Protein: 40g

I used two slices of prosciutto per chicken breast, but as you can see you could use a third to fully cover the chicken. I calculated the nutrition with ten slices, I only used eight.















Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Low Carb Chili Con Carne

The first recipe here is the quick and easy recipe using a Club House packet of seasoning. I used the slow cooker and it took about 2 hours on low to get it to the consistency that I wanted.

It is very filling, but it is not completely homemade.

I love to add in leftover meats as well, chicken breast etc. And, I always put cheese on top of the chili (this is not included in the nutritional information).

I know the pictures are not very enticing. These were the best ones I could muster.




Ingredients
-100g of deli chicken (or use desired amount of chicken breast)
-1/2 Teaspoon of salt
-1 Packet of Club House 'Hot-n-Spicy Chili Mix'
-1 Can of Pizza Sauce (213 ml)
-1 Can of Kidney Beans (540 ml)
-3/4 LB of Cooked Ground Beef
-1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
-1/8 Teaspoon Paprika
-3 Cups of Water
-1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
-2 Tablespoons of Hot Sauce

Procedure

1. Ensure all meats are cooked.
2. Add all ingredients to crock pot/slow cooker. Cook on low for around 2 hours*.


Nutritional Information (it makes 6 servings)
Calories: 281
Total Fat: 8.2g
Carbs: 19.7g
Fiber: 5.2g
Sugars: 2.2g
Protein: 30.5g


Here is the recipe for my homemade chili. Its an all day affair, I really like to leave it cooking for all the flavours to set in. There isn't much difference in calories but there are fewer carbs.

Ingredients
-1LB of Cooked Ground Beef
-100g of deli chicken (or use desired amount of chicken breast)
-3 Strips of Bacon
-1 Teaspoon of salt
-1 Can of Pizza Sauce (213 ml)
-1 1/4 Cup of Kidney Beans
-1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
-2 Teaspoons Paprika
-5 Cups of Water
-1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
-2 Tablespoons of Hot Sauce
-1 Tablespoon Cumin
-2 Teaspoons Oregano
-4 Tablespoons of Tomatillo Salsa
-4 1/2 Cups of Water


Procedure
1. Ensure all meats are cooked.
2. Add all ingredients to crock pot/slow cooker and cook for around 8 hours on low* (cook until it is your desired consistency).




Nutritional Information (it makes 6 servings)
Calories: 278
Total Fat: 11.8g
Carbs: 13.5g
Fiber: 4.1g
Sugars: 1.6g
Protein: 28.2g


*From all of my experiences, slow cookers vary cook times. Make sure you keep an eye on it the first time you make it.





Sunday, March 24, 2013

Low Carb Pulled Chicken

Step One: Root-beer and seasoning! 
I make pulled every week. It is the perfect meat ingredient to have kicking around the house, we put it click here to check out that recipe).  But, we wanted to switch it up a little bit and made the switch to chicken. Now, it is a bit more expensive, but it is just as tasty and a great way to change things up a little bit. 
in everything and eat it on its own for a quick lunch (

We did not buy a jumbo pack for this experiment, one family pack of boneless skinless chicken thighs made a of shredded chicken for two hungry adults. We used chicken thighs because they are cheaper than chicken breasts and hold the flavour better than chicken breasts.

This recipe is basically the same as pulled pork, we just switched up the meat and times.

Ingredients

Fully cooked!

-One can of diet or stevia root beer
-Seasonings (we used paprika, chilli powder, pepper, chilli flakes)
-Hot sauce
-One package of chicken thighs

Procedure

1. Place chicken thighs in slow-cooker set on low heat.
2. Pour root-beer over chicken.
3. Spice to taste.
4. Stir/flip chicken every 2 hours (not really necessary, if you are leaving it overnight)
5. After 7 to 8 hours drain the leftover liquid from the crock-pot.
6. Pull apart chicken.
7. Season and sauce to taste. 

-Depending on what taste you are going for you can use different sauces. We have used everything from 0 carb sweet Hawaiian sauces to salsa. You can mix it up, I tend to use chipotle sauce and Kraft low cal barbecue sauce.




It is pretty hard to make pulled chicken look pretty.
But, damn it is tasty.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The Glory Of Eggs

"Messy Eggs"
When living a low carb lifestyle, one of your staple foods will be eggs. You can add eggs to many meals or have it has the main part. Eggs are amazing, they have incredible filling powers and can help you feel full for long amounts of time. Every time I have experienced periods of weight loss I have consumed eggs regularly.

One of the first ways I started integrating eggs into my diet further was to ensure I had a breakfast style meal everyday. The picture to the left is what I call 'Messy Eggs'. These eggs are fried, seasoned with cajun spices and chilli peppers and topped off with cheese.

"Chipotle Loaded Chicken Breast"
This meal was consumed as part of supper. I ate fancier sausage with bacon and "Messy Eggs". The seasoning is what helps make the meal versatile and more than just a breakfast style meal. 

Another one of my favourite ways to add eggs to my meal outside of breakfast is to add one to my burgers. Just like bacon, you can use a fried egg as garnish for a burger. Why not add cheesy scrambled eggs as a side too? 

 An egg is the prefect way to add a little something to a meal when you are really hungry but do not want to eat two servings. I recently added a fried egg to one of my favourite entrees, "Chipotle Loaded Chicken Breasts" (right photo).


"Loaded Chicken Breasts" are simple supper entrees. Cook a chicken breast in the oven, season to taste. I stick with Chipotle because I have a great PC 0 Carb sauce (left) and I season with a little Italian seasoning, grated parmesan cheese, chilli pepper and sometimes I throw a little bit of almond flour breading on. When the chicken breast is finished add a slice of bacon to the top and grate cheddar cheese on top. Above, I simply added a fried egg underneath. 


Do you have any secret egg additions you live off of?