Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Molly Woo's Inspired Chicken Lettuce Cups



Last weekend we met our son and his girlfriend for lunch at Molly Woo's Restaurant at Polaris.  For an appetizer we ordered lettuce cups that were absolutely fantastic!  With the very first bite we all became huge fans of this healthy and delicious chicken lettuce wrap.  Here is our inspired recipe of this popular dish :

2 chicken breasts, or about one pound cut into small pieces, no bigger than 1/2 inch
6 to 8 lettuce leaves rinsed, we used Romaine, but Molly Woo's uses regular head lettuce
1 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
4 ounces of water chestnuts, cut into thin strips
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons of hoisin sauce
4 tablespoons of reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon finely chopped scallion or green onion
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice, extra lime and/or juice for garnish
rice noodles
brown rice

To save time, we use microwavable rice, minced garlic and ramein noodles.  For a healthier meal, we use low sodium soy sauce.

Precook your brown rice and rice noodles.  

Saute garlic in olive oil and sesame oil then add chicken and cook about 8 minutes on medium high heat until almost cooked through.  Add red pepper, brown sugar, hoisin sauce and soy sauce, finish cooking until chicken is no longer pink and all ingredients are well mixed.  Add lime juice and garnish with scallion.

At this point taste your chicken and add any of  the above ingredients to adjust the recipe to your liking.

And now the fun part:  Start with a lettuce leaf then layer with rice noodles, brown rice and top with chicken mixture.  Sprinkle your creation with juice from a fresh lime if desired or garnish with lime wedges.  Roll like a burrito and enjoy!

For dessert, try fresh pineapple, yum!


Monday, March 12, 2012

Mike's Greek Pasta Salad


Wow!  Dear hubby, (Mike), created this healthy, yummy recipe in an effort to eat healthier.  A delicious healthy meal, quick enough for a weeknight dinner.  I'm packing the leftovers for lunch, and we are making a fresh batch for dinner again tomorrow.  That's one smart guy I married.  We love it, and hope you will too! 

Ingredients:
1 medium onion chopped 
2 small chicken breasts, or one large, cut into 3/4 inch pieces  
10 red, orange and yellow mini sweet peppers, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 lb of angel hair pasta
olive oil
Toppings:
feta cheese, reduced fat
tomato, diced with seeds removed.
black olives
Greek dressing vinaigrette

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions and toss with 1 teaspoon of olive oil.  While the pasta is cooking, saute onion in olive oil until lightly browned, then add chicken and cook 8 minutes or until done.  Drizzle 3 Tablespoons of Greek dressing over the chicken then add peppers and saute for about 3 minutes, or until heated thoroughly, but not mushy.

Now for the fun part, start filling up your plate!  Layer your salad starting with the pasta, next layer the chicken, onion and pepper mixture.  Finish off with your favorite toppings listed above, then sprinkle on extra Greek dressing, if desired.

Note:  you can substitute regular sized red, orange and yellow peppers for the miniatures.