Creamy Lemon Butter Garlic Chicken

 

This chicken dish is so good! The original recipe calls for heavy cream but I didn’t have any on hand so decided to try making cashew milk. I ended up going with a paste instead of milk texture so that it wouldn’t be too watery.

I have tried this with different side dishes like spinach casserole, couscous, quinoa, and broccoli.  The pasta in this picture was inspired by a simple recipe my friend suggested, which was just pasta, butter, and feta cheese.  I decided to add some Italian seasoning, olive oil, and crushed red pepper to my version.  Yum!

Here’s how I made the chicken.

Crock Pot Creamy Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken

Ingredients:

• 4-6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 10 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
• 1 cup water
  
• 4 Tablespoons butter, sliced into smaller pats
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 Tablespoon corn starch
  

Directions:

1. Soak cashews in water.
2. Put chicken in slow cooker. 
3. Combine lemon juice, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper flakes, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic, chicken bouillon, and water. Mix well.
   
4. Pour mixture over chicken.
5. Cut butter into smaller pats and place on chicken.
6. Cook chicken on high for 3-4 hours.
7. When chicken is close to being done, make the cashew cream sauce. Pour the water out of the soaking cashews.
8. Add cashews and 1/2 cup of water to blender.  Blend for a few seconds.
9. Check the texture and adjust thickness to your liking. If you want it thinner, add more water and blend.
10. Remove chicken from slow cooker and set aside.
11. Add cashew blend and corn starch to the slow cooker and stir it in.
12. Add chicken back into the slow cooker.
13. Serve and enjoy!
    

IG: @abundanceofvegetables

YouTube short: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/QjXVD6g6OU0

YouTube full video: https://youtu.be/d8eOLO90-Yk

Garlic Fried Cauliflower Rice with Bangus

 

I got a craving for bangus. This was one of my favorite childhood dishes that my grandmother would cook. The bangus I purchased came pre-marinated with a vinegar flavor.

Filipinos also love their garlic fried rice. So to veggie it up, I used cauliflower rice. It’s not the same, I know. But sometimes you gotta try to be healthy and accept that this is the “rice” you’re going to eat.

Here’s how I made the Cauliflower Garlic Fried Rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 bag frozen riced cauliflower (12 ounces)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 10-12 cloves garlic, chopped 
• Dash of salt
• Scrunch of pepper (yes, I’m a fan of the pasta queen)

Instructions:

1. Empty contents of bag of cauliflower into large pan.
2. Stir for 5-7 minutes until defrosted and most moisture came out.
3. Add oil, garlic, salt, and pepper.
4. Stir until incorporated.
5. Serve and enjoy!

As for the bangus, it came boneless and pre-marinated and is commonly sold in this fashion. Fry in oil to your desired brownness and crispiness. Drain excess oil, serve, and enjoy!

IG: @abundanceofvegetables

YouTube short: https://youtube.com/shorts/Y5b5ZBx58UM

YouTube full video: https://youtu.be/-oWrwqcSO-Q

Steak Burrito

I got a request to make some steak burritos, found a chipotle copy cat recipe online, and followed that.

Some things I’d do differently from the first round of burritos I assembled:

• Smear avocado directly onto tortilla instead of on the side.
• Smear sour cream directly onto tortilla instead of on the side.
• Cut steak pieces much smaller so you can take nice bites and don’t have to tear it off with your mouth.
• Cut burritos in half diagonally instead of straight. It looks better and the eyes eat first. (Then the camera, lol.)
• Omit the rice because it’s just a filler.
• Serve with a vegetable side. I always try to add a veggie.

Enjoy!

 Here’s the link to the recipe I followed https://bellyfull.net/chipotle-steak-burrito/

IG: @abundanceofvegetables

Youtube short: April 13, 2024 https://youtube.com/shorts/3yqosPtxhlg?feature=share

YouTube full video: https://youtu.be/ptJF_LesLEE?si=-AWx7uxyh8ykmbcd

Zucchini Lasagna

 

This experiment turned out super watery.  I found an inspiration recipe and modified it a bit according to what I liked.  Perhaps that was the reason it turned watery, as I didn't follow the instructions exactly.  I drained whatever excess liquid I could and the flavor was still good.  I honestly would probably not make this again because of how watery it was.

Here is the link to the inspiration recipe. https://downshiftology.com/recipes/zucchini-lasagna/

Here's what I went with for my watery experiment. LOL!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Italian sausage
• 1 lb ground beef
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 cans tomato sauce
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• dash of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup water
  
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 block cheese, shredded 
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
  
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1 egg
• 5 zucchini, sliced
  

Instructions:

1. Prepare ingredients - slice, chop, etc.
   
2. Brown italian sausage and ground beef.
3. In a separate pot, add olive oil, garlic, and onions. Stir until translucent.
4. Add tomato sauce, basil, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, water, and butter and heat through.
5. In a separate bowl, combine parmesan cheese, cottage cheese and egg.
6. Add tomato sauce to browned meat and mix.
7. Layer ingredients in pan - sauce, cottage cheese mix, zucchini, grated cheese and continue until you use everything up.
8. Cover with foil and cook at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes.
9. This came out watery so scoop out as much excess liquid as you can, unless you like it that way.
   
10. Spoon out, serve and enjoy!
     

IG: @abundanceofvegetables

Youtube short: https://youtube.com/shorts/f3WzxcC0Y7M?feature=share

Youtube full video:  https://youtu.be/brbdoenhU5s