Balsamic Chicken with Pears

Copy and Pasted from www.whatscookingamerica.net Definitely something that will be used over and over.

6 chicken breasts halves (3 to 4-ounce each), boneless and skinless*
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot or green onion, chopped
2 medium pears, peeled, cored, and sliced
1 cup chicken broth or stock (all fat removed)
1/4 cup good-quality aged balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 cup dried tart cherries

* The U.S. Department of Agriculture, as well as food agencies in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, advises against washing poultry. Rinsing chicken will not remove or kill much bacteria, and the splashing of water around the sink can spread the bacteria found in raw chicken. Cooking poultry to 165 degrees Fahrenheit effectively destroys the most common culprits behind food-borne illness.

Pat chicken dry with paper towels. One at a time, place the chicken breast between two sheets of plastic wrap. Using a meat mallet, carefully pound the chicken breasts to a uniform thickness of approximately 1/2-inch. Season on both sides with salt and pepper.

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and saute, turning once, for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove from heat and transfer to a platter, cover, and keep warm.

To the same pan, add the shallot and saute over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until soft; decrease heat to medium and add the pears. Continue sautéing, stirring occasionally for 3 to 4 minutes, until the pears are soft and golden brown.

To prepare the sauce, combine chicken broth, balsamic vinegar, sugar, and cornstarch in a small bowl. Pour over the pear mixture; add the cherries. Increase heat to high and simmer, stirring frequently for 6 to 8 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. Return the chicken and any juices to the pan. Bring the mixture back to a simmer; decrease heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (juices will run clear when cut with the tip of a knife). Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Remove chicken from heat.

This is the type of thermometer that I prefer and use in my cooking. I get many readers asking what cooking/meat thermometer that I prefer and use in my cooking and baking. I, personally, use the Thermapen 5 Thermometer (show in the photo on the right). Originally designed for professional users, this super-fast thermometer is used by chefs all over the world. To learn more about this excellent thermometer and to also purchase one (if you desire), just click on the underlined: Thermapen 5 Thermometer

Place the chicken on individual serving plates or on a large platter. Using a slotted spoon, mound the fruit over the top. Spoon the sauce over the fruit and around the chicken. Serve immediately.

Makes 6 servings.

Balsamic Chicken with Pears - Nutritional Information

I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the below information. All information is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician before starting a new fitness regimen.

Item	Amount	Fat Grams	Carbohydrate Grams	Calories	WW Points
chicken breast	6 halves	9	0	778.9	16
olive oil	1 TB	14	14	40	2.4
shallot	1	0	1.7	7	0.6
pears, medium	2	1.4	50.2	196	4.5
chicken broth	1 cup	0.5	0	20	0.9
balsamic vinegar	1/4 cup	0	2.4	20	0.9
sugar	2 tablespoons	0	24	96	2.4
cornstarch	2 teaspoons	0	3.6	26	1
cherries, dried	1/4 cup	.4	43	217	4.8
Recipe Totals		25	150.9	1400.9	33.5

Recipe makes 6 servings.

Each Serving Totals - 4 Fat Grams, 26.2 Carbohydrate Grams, 233 calories, 5.5 WW Points

Sam's Special

For Michelle's Birthday we wanted to do a Low-Fat, High-Fiber Birthday Cake. Either we have watched too much Wiggles lately or Michelle was being very kind and not making Daddy sit and watch her a super yummy High-Fat, Low-Fiber Ice Cream Birthday Cake. Either way, it was a good change. We looked up tons of recipes and finally made this one up ourselves.

Ingredients

Two Packages of Crescent Rolls (We even found Low-Fat ones)

Two small boxes of Jell-O Cheesecake flavored pudding

Skim milk as called for on pudding packages

Fruit (we used blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, mandarin oranges, and pineapple tidbits-save the juices)

2 tablespoons cornstarch

So we unrolled all the packaged crescent rolls, placed on a cookie sheet, and pressed the seams together and baked as directed on the package. Meanwhile we made up the pudding. Now, since we used Skim Milk it didn't set up well so we added about 2/3 cup of low-fat sour cream. Afterwards, I saw on the package that for pies they recommended using less milk, I would definitely try that next time, but it might still need some sour cream (low-fat of course) to give it a better consistency. Then take the fruit juices and bring to boil, add cornstarch take off heat and vigorously whisk for a fruit glaze. After the crust is done baking we put it in the freezer to cool quickly (probably could have baked it earlier or the night before, but I love working under pressure.) After it was cooled, covered it with pudding until it was covered to my wishes (Ryker was excited for the left-over pudding) then topped with the fruit (next time I am getting kiwis, just forgot this time) and then the glaze and put back in freezer until it was time to eat (it was only an hour later, so the fridge would probably work).

SO very yummy, and not super dense, heavy, and rich so it was pretty guilt free. I am sure there are ways to increase the fiber, but I figured I did pretty good since we didn't go with the traditional DQ ice cream cake.

Zucchini Bread

I love this recipe because it doesn't use butter or oil but it is still moist.

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups grated zucchini squash

1 1/2 cups cinnamon chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together. Set aside.
2. In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla together. Fold in the sour cream, oil, and zucchini.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Stir in the cinnamon chips. Do not continue stirring.
4. Pour the batter into two well-greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pans. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until done. Cool for ten minutes on a rack before removing the loaves from the pan.

steel cut oats

A post about oatmeal?

I eat it every day, so why not.

I just love this stuff so much I think everyone should at least give it a try.

When I started my new diet last year (40 lbs. ago) I stopped eating regular cereal for breakfast (aka Captain Crunch). For a long time I ate plain shredded wheat with skim milk. I lost most of my weight with that as my breakfast. After a while I switched over to plain oatmeal.

Instead of getting sick of it, I LOVE IT. I look forward to a steaming bowl every morning, and seriously the only thing I usually put on top is some wheat germ. I have also given 5-grain and 10-grain cereals a try. YUMMY, YUM, YUM.

So I thought I would let you know that this stuff is wonderful, and let you know it is also easy to cook. Steel cut oats have kind of a satisfying little nutty texture like a tapioca or acini de pepe. And it keeps well in the fridge so you can make a bunch and eat it every morning for a couple days.

Also BUY BULK! It is so much cheaper to get a big bag of this at Winco that to buy a little container of it off the shelf. It is a bit more expensive than regular oats but the serving size is half of that of regular oats so really you get twice as much.

Directions for Cooking Steel Cut Oats:

The ratio of oats to water is 1:4

1/4 cup dry oats is one serving

Bring oats and water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Make sure to stir it occasionally to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Serving suggestions: In the picture I put some banana slices and sugar-free maple syrup on it.

Another delicious treat is to put on some vanilla yogurt like Dannon Light and Fit and top with berries. That is like a dessert to me.

Healthy Banana Drop Cookies

These cookies are not going to win any awards for beauty, or taste for that matter. But, if you are on a diet, or want to give your kids something healthy these are good cookies. I enjoyed them, and the kids would eat them if they were hungry, but Scott was done with them after his first cookie.

I made them to take on vacation so I would have something to eat while everyone else ate the more fattening (fun) food. I might experiment with the recipe to see if adding some baking soda or something would make them bake up a bit bigger. They pretty much just stayed exactly the same glob of dough on the pan, only baked.

Healthy Banana Drop Cookies

(recipe from food.com formerly known as recipezaar.com)

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

5 tbls. softened margarine

1 cup mashed bananas

1/4 cup orange juice

(I also added 1/2 cup of raisins)

---Process oats in food processor or blender until finely ground.

--- Combine first six ingredients

---Use a pastry cutter to cut in the margarine until the mixture resembles crumbs

---Add banana and orange juice and mix well

--- Chill 20 minutes in the freezer

--- Drop teaspoon sized cookies on well greased baking sheets and bake at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes