Recipe #94 - Pesto Chicken Thighs with Italian Creme Sauce Over Parmesan Couscous

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I can't believe I found this website at the very end of my Year of 25. It's called Picky-Palate.com: Original Family Style Recipes for Even Your Pickest Eaters.

Place chicken and pesto into a large ziplock bag, seal and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place chicken thighs onto a large baking sheet that has been greased. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

Place cooked couscous, olive oil and parmesan cheese into a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to combine. Cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low.

Warm Philadelphia Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Creme into a small saucepan over medium-low heat until warmed. Reduce heat to low.

To serve, place couscous onto a serving plate and top with chicken. Drizzle with warm cooking cream.

Now me, I prefer to have all the extra veggies, but my picky father and siblings loved this dish!

Rating: 7
Time: 2 hours
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
1 pound boneless chicken thighs, fat removed
1/2 cup prepared pesto sauce
2 cups cooked couscous
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cups freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup Philadelphia Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Creme (can be found in the cream cheese section at your local grocery)

Recipe #66 - Chicken Curry with Veggies on Whole-Grain Couscous

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Because I love curry...

Combine the oil, onion, ginger, garlic, turmeric, curry powder, and brown sugar in a large skillet and cook over medium heat until onions turn clear and smell sweet, about 5 minutes.

Add the sliced chicken breasts and cook until the meat is done, about 5-7 minutes.

Add 1 cup of water along with the broccoli, cauliflower, and carrot. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Add water as needed to maintain a saucy consistency.

Serve over hot, freshly cooked couscous.

Rating: 6
Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon peeled and chopped ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 (5- to 6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, sliced into 1-inch pieces
1 floret broccoli, chopped
1 small floret of cauliflower, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 cup whole-grain couscous, prepared according to instructions on the box

Recipe #62 - Moroccan Chicken Stew w/ Sweet Potatoes

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"Cinnamon and ginger complement the sweet potatoes in this easy but exotic-tasting chicken stew. Fluffy couscous absorbs the aromatic sauce." - Everyday Food

Place flour in a wide, shallow bowl. Season chicken with salt and pepper; dredge in flour, shaking off excess.

In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high. Add chicken and cook until browned, 4-6 minute per side; transfer to plate.

Add onion, ginger, and cinnamon to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion starts to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.

Return chicken to pot. Add broth, sweet potatoes and, if using, saffron. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer until chicken is cooked through and sweet potatoes are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Discard ginger and cinnamon. Stir in lemon juice, and season stew with salt and pepper.

While stew is simmering, prepare couscous according to package instructions. Serve chicken stew with couscous garnished with cilantro, if desired.

Rating: 8
Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 pounds)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 piece fresh ginger (2 inches long), peeled
1 cinnamon stick
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound total), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
Pinch of saffron, (optional)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup couscous
Cilantro springs, for garnish (optional)

Recipe #38 - Pork Chops with Tropical Salsa

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I thought I'd try two low calorie dinners from the Weight Watchers program this week. My father and mother have been off and on this diet for years with very successful results. I've always appreciated the idea of portioning and exercise that they promote to help lose weight. Over eating and inhaling large portions are a huge issue here in the US. Everything is "Super Sized" and "Fast Food". If we ate our food slower, the brain would get a chance to tell us that we are full before we overindulged. We need to train our minds and stomachs to realize we don't need as much food to be full.

"The core philosophy behind the Weight Watchers program is to use a science-driven approach to help participants lose weight by forming helpful habits, eating smarter, getting more exercise and providing support."

This first recipe was off of a recipe card from "Week 10" in the program.

Rinse pork chops and pat dry with a paper towel. Lightly coat the pork with olive oil. Then season on all sides with a basic meat tenderizer.

Grill or broil pork chops until cooked through. I broiled mine. About 18 minutes, flipping once about halfway through.

This was my first time preparing kiwifruit. They smelled so sweet! Though proved a little difficult to dice after the skin was peeled off. Slippery little suckers.

While pork is cooking, prepare the salsa. In a medium bowl combine kiwifruit, pineapple, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Serve pork chops with salsa. I also served long grain wild rice. (The recipe suggests cooked couscous though.)

The salsa was amazing! The pork chop was a little dry, but the juiciness of the salsa balanced out the dryness perfectly to where I barely noticed.

If I did this recipe over, I would leave the pork in about a minute less on each side and serve the recommended couscous as the side. The rice didn't pair as nicely as I had hoped.

Rating: 5
Time: 35 mins
Serves: 4
Per serving: 244 calories; 7 g fat; 2 g fiber
Weight Watchers Points: 5
Ingredients:
4 (4-oz) trimmed boneless center loin-cut pork chops
3 kiwifruit, peeled and diced
1 cup drained, canned, unsweetened crushed pineapple
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil for drizzling
Meat tenderizer of choice for seasoning