Pretzel Chicken with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce (Gluten Free)

Chicken soaked in honey mustard, dredged in pretzel crumbs, and baked to perfection. What more could you want? The honey mustard dipping sauce is divine. You won’t want to use store bought honey mustard again.

Ingredients

• 1 pound of chicken
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 tbsp water
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 16 ounces pretzel sticks (gluten free if needed)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. If you have a food processor, pulse the pretzels until they’re broken into very small pieces, you don’t need it to be a fine powder. If you do not have a food processor, pour the pretzels into a large Ziploc bag and gently beat with a rolling pin, mallet, or the flat end of a meat tenderizer. Be careful not to poke holes in the bag, you don’t want pretzel dust everywhere. Pour the pretzels into a bowl.

3. In a small mixing bowl, or food processor, combine the oil, mustard, honey, water, and vinegar. Divide the mustard into two bowls. Put one bowl to the side for dipping after the chicken is finished cooking.

4. Dip the chicken strips into the honey mustard bowl, making sure every inch is covered in honey mustard. Remove the chicken from the honey mustard and place in the bowl of pretzels. Roll the chicken around until all edges are covered in pretzels.

I used my fingers, but feel free to use tongs for this step if you prefer. If you need more honey mustard, pour a little bit from the bowl you set aside earlier. Be sure to keep the clean honey mustard away from anything contaminated with raw chicken. When you’re finished dredging the chicken, toss the remaining honey mustard and pretzels since they’ve touched raw chicken.

5. Place the chicken on the cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake for 15 minutes, flip the chicken, then cook for 5 – 10 more minutes. The chicken should be white throughout. If you’re not sure, cut open a piece of chicken and make sure it’s not pink in the middle.

Serve with remaining honey mustard.

Based off of the recipe found on Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice

 

Rustic Chicken and Herb White Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 pkg Betty Crocker Pizza Crust Mix (or your favorite pizza dough)
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 garlic cloves, minced, or 1 tsp garlic paste
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 cup milk (I use fat free)
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup shredded 2% mozzarella
• 3 chicken breasts
• 3 cups spinach leaves, packed
• 8 oz baby bella mushrooms
• Salt
• Garlic powder
• Ground thyme
• Italian seasoning

*Note: If you’d like to add another layer of flavor: remove the ends and the shell from a few cloves of garlic and wrap in foil. Bake for 30 minutes at 425. Remove from the foil then mince. Sprinkle over the sauce.

1. Prepare dough as directed – do not cook – then press into a round pizza pan. Preheat oven to 450.

2. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter. If you’re using minced garlic, add the garlic now and cook for 30 seconds, then stir in the flour. If you’re using garlic paste, stir in the flour first, and then add the garlic paste. Stir with a whisk until combined.

Add 1 tbsp of milk and whisk until combined. Repeat with another tbsp and whisk. Slowly pour in the rest of the milk, constantly stirring with the whisk. Raise heat to medium-high and cook until thick, about 10 minutes, stirring every minute or so. Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan cheese.

3. Trim the chicken. Lightly season both sides with salt, garlic powder, and ground thyme then rub in the seasonings. Preheat a George Foreman or grab a large medium skillet. Cook the chicken for 3 minutes in the George Foreman or 5-7 minutes per side over medium-high heat. Remove to a cutting board when cooked throughout. While warm, cut the chicken into 1/4 inch slices, then into 1/4 inch chunks.

4. Gently wash the mushrooms, remove the stems and set aside. Slice the mushrooms into 1/4 inch slices then into pieces about the 1/4 inch wide slivers. Slice the stems into 1/4 inch wide circles, then cut in half.

Place the mushrooms in a medium skillet – if you cooked the chicken in a skillet, use the same skillet – season with salt, garlic powder, and ground thyme, and cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes or until brown and juices have been released. Pour off the juice and save for later.

5. Remove the stems from the spinach. Stack a few laves, roll them up, then slice into thin ribbons – this technique is called chiffonade.

6. Since your sauce has been sitting while you cooked the chicken and mushrooms, it’s probably thickened up a lot. If it has, stir in the mushroom juice 1 tbsp at a time until you’ve reached your desired consistency. The mushrooms juice adds depth to the sauce and gives it a rustic taste.

7. Starting in the middle of the dough, spread the white sauce over the pizza dough leaving a 1/2 inch boarder around the edge. Sprinkle the sauce with Italian seasoning*. Top with the chopped chicken, mushrooms, spinach, and mozzarella cheese.

8. Bake 10 – 15 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese has melted.

Enjoy!

Based off of the recipe found on Foodie Misadventures

 

Grilled Zucchini Roll-ups with Herbs and Cheese (Medifast & GF)

Another classy and quick appetizer for any occasion!

For those on Medifast, this recipe equals about 7 greens and 4 healthy fats. The amount of greens depends on the amount of zucchini that you use. I’m not including olive oil in this calculation, since you can use PAM instead. This recipe doesn’t divide evenly, but you can split it into two servings of about 3 1/2 greens – slightly more than you need for a lean and green meal – and 2 healthy fats. You would need to add a lean to round out this meal.

Ingredients

• 3 small zucchini
• 1 tbsp olive oil or PAM for Medifast
• Salt
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 2 ounces baby spinach, stems removed
• 1/3 cup basil leaves

1. If you have a George Foreman, preheat for 5 minutes. If you don’t have a George Foreman, you can use a grill or a grill plate over the stove. Using a mandolin, or a sharp knife, carefully slice the zucchini into 1/4 inch thick slices. You’ll probably want to discard the outermost slices, but leave on the skin. If you don’t have a mandolin, I suggest you invest in one. They’re inexpensive – I bought mine from Aldi for $4 – and versatile. I use mine regularly.

2. Lightly brush both sides of the zucchini with olive oil or lightly spray with PAM. Lightly season with salt. Grill the zucchini until tender, about 3 minutes for the George Foreman or 4 minutes per side on a grill. You don’t want the zucchini to be fall-apart-tender, you still want it to be a little firm. It needs to be tender enough to bend without breaking and firm enough to hold the filling.

3. In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, parsley, rosemary, thyme, and 1/2 tsp salt.

4. Spoon about 1 tsp of the cheese mixture on one end of each zucchini slice. Gently spread the cheese mixture as best you can. I found that fingers work better than spoons, but it’s also a lot messier. Top the cheese with a few spinach leave and a small basil leaf.

Roll up the zucchini and place seam side down on a platter. I added a toothpick for easy distribution and eating.

Enjoy!

Based off of the recipe found on FoodNetwork

 

Cream of Mushroom Soup from Scratch (Gluten Free)

I’ve wanted to find a recipe for cream of mushroom soup for a while now. I’ve always hated using canned cream of mushroom soup, it’s just so unhealthy. I’m proud to say I now have a viable alternative and it’s oh so simple to make!

Let me warn you though, while this soup is great for baking, I wouldn’t suggest eating it like a soup. I’m working on another recipe for that.

Also, if you plan on using this for a baked dish that involves watery vegetables like spaghetti squash, cauliflower, or even shiritaki noodles, I’d suggest making the soup thicker. The soup will thin out while baking, since the vegetables will release water. If you’d like to do so, combine 1/4 cup cold water with 1 tbsp corn starch, stir well, then add to the soup. Cook over medium-high heat until thick. This should only take a minute or two. If the soup is hot enough, you should see a change almost immediately.

If you’re a huge fan of mushrooms like I am, feel free to double the amount of mushrooms while cooking or toss in more mushrooms once you’ve added the soup to your dish.

Makes 1 2/3 cup of soup.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp flour or corn starch if you’re going Gluten Free
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup fresh baby bella mushrooms, diced small
• 1/2 tsp ground thyme
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp celery flakes (optional)
• 1 tsp salt

1. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir until a paste is formed. Add the mushrooms and stir to coat the mushrooms in butter/flour mixture. Stir in the seasonings.

2. Starting with 1 tbsp, slowly whisk in the milk. Once the tbsp of milk has been incorporated, add a little bit more. You’re adding the milk in slowly so that clumps are not formed.

3. Once all the milk has been added, cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook until bubbling and thick, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Based off of the recipe found on A Proverbs 31 Wife

 

Unbelievably Delicious Grilled Chicken Tenders (Gluten Free)

These are hands down the best chicken tenders I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. They’re so good that my family requests them weekly! On the George Foreman, 4 tenders take 3 minutes to cook, about 15 minutes for the entire batch. Can’t beat that! If you don’t have a George Foreman, you can use a skillet, but it will take longer to cook.

This recipe is for one pound of chicken breasts. If you increase the amount of chicken, be sure to increase the amount of marinade as well. I usually double this recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken breasts
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp course ground mustard
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp lime juice

1. Slice the breasts into 1 inch wide strips. Put the tenders into a large Ziploc bag.

2. In a small bowl, combine the oil, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, course brown mustard, garlic powder, and lime juice. Stir until combined. Pour the marinade into the Ziploc bag. Gently shake to distribute the marinade. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the George Foreman for 5 minutes with the lid closed. Add the chicken tenders, about 4 at a time, and close the lid. My George Foreman cooks faster on top than the bottom, so I flip mine after 2 minutes then cook for another minute. Remove to a plate and cook the remaining tenders..

Based off of the recipe found on Foreman Grill Recipes