BLT+C=Happy Me

Tonight’s menu called for “Grilled Chicken Sandwiches.”  It was going to be ho-hum until I got it in my mind that bacon goes awesome with chicken and so does tomato.  While Jeff and I were at the grocery store on Monday, I bought a pound of center-cut bacon (tried to get some with minimal fat, but, c’mon, it’s bacon…)  I also picked up 1 beef-steak tomato so that we could have it on our sandwiches.

It was after assembly that I realized that we basically had BLT’s + Chicken.  It doesn’t matter, though, what you call it–I call it delicious dinner.

BLT+C

This recipe can be scaled based on the number of people it is intended to serve.  Basically just cook chicken, cook bacon, assemble on a sandwich with your favorite fixings.  More direction given below:

• Mrs. Dash Italian Seasoning (to taste)
• Salt (to taste)
• Pepper (to taste)
• Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
• Center-cut Bacon
• Beef Steak Tomato
• Lettuce
• Sargento Colby Pepper Jack Cheese
• Miracle Whip
• Silver Spring Beer n’ Brat Horseradish Mustard
• Pepperidge Farm Dark German Wheat Bread

If the chicken breasts that you bought are anything like the ones that I bought, you can easily cut them in half and still have a good-sized portion (4-5oz).  I bought a pack of 5 chicken breasts on sale for $5 and got 10 servings out of it.  We have definitely got more than enough to last us for a while.

After adjusting the portions of your chicken, go ahead and start cooking it.  I used a covered skillet on the stove-top over medium heat, but if you like to grill–tis the season!

Go for it.  Speaking of seasonings–season the top of the chicken before you cover it and then let it cook for about 5-8 minutes per side. I cook mine until the juices run clear and the center is no longer pink, but if you’re the “just so!” kind of chef, cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.  The length of time needed will vary depending on the size of your chicken breasts.

While your chicken is getting started, fry up the bacon.  Be careful to watch for grease splatter–that stuff hurts!  If you prefer, there are methods of cooking bacon in the oven or in the microwave, but I didn’t go that route.

While you are waiting for the bacon and chicken to cook, slice the beef steak tomato and ready leaves of lettuce!  We used this dark wheat bread that is hearty and soft at the same time.  Check it out: Pepperidge Farm Dark German Wheat Bread

Spread with a little bit of miracle whip, some spicy mustard, lettuce, tomato, cheese…. then bacon and chicken!  Serve with summer fruit on the side.

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Here’s the daily summary from http://www.myfitnesspal.com:

What I’m Digging Wednesday

And one thing I’m not digging:

I was startled to look up and see this spider on my wall last night.  I found out by searching the interwebz (namely, bugguide.net) that this ‘beaut is apparently a “Parson’s Spider.”  Once I read a little bit more about it, it was less er.. scary? Repulsive?  Apparently this little guy hunts by crawling on the ground and overpowering its prey.  What’s more is that its prey is usually other spiders.  The best part is that they do not spin webs to catch their food–so no messy cob webs to deal with. 🙂  I’m glad I didn’t squash him!  Now if only he’ll stay out of sight, out of mind…

 

Winter Kabobs

So, I realized something today.

I frequently start my sentences with the word “So.”  Also, I like to begin secondary sentences with the word “also.”  Hopefully this pattern is not nearly as annoying as the “like” phenomena of the 90’s or uptalk.

Moving on!  Saturday was fabulous and I need to shout out to Runa for inviting me, and to Kris and Meredith for really making me feel welcome at the Potluck on Saturday.  Fun-fact:  if the people I met on Saturday really become good friends, they will be the only friends I would have currently that did not originate on the internet. HA! Related item: 3/4 of my bride’s maids are internet-friends-turned-real-life-friends–and the 1 who is not? Is my sister.♥

The Weight Watcher’s meeting on Saturday kind of sucked.  I don’t feel like anything was accomplished.  Sure! “Members of the congregation” accomplished something–66 pounds down for the week for our group–but all we did for the whole meeting was clap for other people’s accomplishments.  I received no external motivation to make good choices this week.  Guess it’s up to me to find some boots with straps so I can pull myself up by them.

Oh! That reminds me… Be right back.

[intermission]

Ahem.  Now that I’m back from sending some love over to krisgetshealthy.com and doing some things to get signed up with the group, it’s back to business around here!

As a student/bride on a budget, I came to a realization today.  Split Chicken Breasts with Ribs cost less than a dollar per pound.  Boneless skinless chicken breasts cost over $3/lb.  for savings like that, I think I can remove the skin and bone myself thank-you-very-much.  It actually wasn’t hard at all.  I using a paring knife to separate the skin and remove the chicken from the bone.  The “finished” product was better than I buy at the grocery store because I had 2 huge breasts cuts of meat and some smaller bits of rib-meat to work with.

All this meat for just $2.40.  If I were to buy the boneless/skinless breasts that we usually get, the same amount would have come to $8.73.  Lesson learned?

Spend the time, save the money.

It’s about this time of year that I usually get a little stir-crazy and convince myself that winter is going to end very very soon and that summer is just around the corner.  That must be what influenced tonight’s meal: Winter Kabobs.

• 2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts (may also use other types of meat such as pork or beef if preferred)
• Bell Pepper (get a variety of colors, if possible)
• Onion (I prefer the sweet yellow variety)
• 1-2 pinches Paula Deen’s “house blend” seasoning [1 cup salt, 1/2 cup pepper, 1/2 cup garlic powder]
• Cast Iron grilling skillet over medium-high heat, coated with a thin layer of canola oil cooking spray.

Start by chopping up your favorite veggies into 1″ sq pieces.

Funny story: there was supposed to be a green bell pepper included, but I lost it somewhere between the grocery store and my kitchen.  Whoops! 

Next, prep your chicken and cut that into 1″ cubes.

Now, I’m not sure about your skillet, but mine is too small for skewers and so for Winter Kabobs, I just alternated the ingredients as if they were on skewers, making sure that each piece of chicken was flanked by a pepper and onion.  I sprinkled a little bit of the seasonings around the pan and just let them grill up for a while.

Tip: If you are using a cast iron skillet as I am here, be sure to use your exhaust fan and/or crack a window.

While I let these start to cook up, I took the opportunity to unload the dish-washer.  By the time I was done, they were ready to be flipped.  It should only take about 15-20 minutes, but be careful to make sure your meat is cooked through.

Serve hot with a side-salad topped with blueberries and pretend it isn’t freezing outside 🙂