Recipe for Spiced Chicken with Creamy Horseradish and Cabbage Slaw

I live in a family that loves meat. My husband and two boys would be horrible vegetarians. They will put up with vegetables being in a dish or a meal or two during the week having no meat. However, anything more than that and I begin to hear complaints. When my husband is left to take care of my two boys they seem to eat a lot of bacon with chicken or pork as a side. Needless to say meat seems to always be center stage in my house. Sine meat is such an integral part of my family's diet I try to make sure we eat a large variety of protein sources and I switch up my menu plans so no one gets bored. Yesterday I tried a new recipe for Spiced Chicken with Creamy Horseradish Cabbage Slaw from the July 2012 issue of Woman's Day magazine.

This recipe has 8 ingredients in the chicken and 9 ingredients in the slaw. It takes 1 hour 15 minutes of total time for the chicken, 20 minutes of which is active and 30 minutes of total time for the slaw, 15 minutes of which is active. Both recipes make 12 servings. The only change that I made to the chicken was to take the skin off of the thighs and I used honey instead of the brown sugar called for in the recipe. For the slaw I left out the carrot that was used in the original recipe. Instead of the granulated sugar I used agave syrup. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

The slaw used in this recipe is delicious. My husband and two sons loved it and they are picky about slaw. The chicken was okay. It needed more flavor that it had from the rub. I would suggest adding 1 tsp of garlic powder and 1/8-1/4 of cayenne pepper to increase the flavor and add a little bit of kick. I think with the changes to the rub the chicken could be a lot better. The slaw would be delicious with a blue cheese burger or anything with blue cheese. The flavors would blend very well together.

For the recipes go to Spiced Chicken and Creamy Horseradish and Cabbage Slaw.

Slow Cooker Pulled Beef Sandwiches with Cabbage-Cilantro Slaw

My husband loves BBQ. I have had to listen to endless hours of conversation revolving around why his charcoal grill is better than gas. The sad thing is that my father had similar conversations growing-up, so apparently I am surrounded by men with BBQ obsessions. I don't mean obsession as a joke, my husband reads books, watches cooking shows and searches the Internet for new BBQ recipes and ideas. While I love BBQ, I don't have the patience to wait all day for BBQ on the charcoal grill. I love the taste, but would rather have something that takes less effort and still has great flavor. One method that I have found for BBQ pulled sandwiches is the crock-pot. The crock-pot is quick and easy and is great for making large cuts of meat. Today I tried a new recipe for Pulled Beef Sandwiches with Cabbage Slaw from the June 2012 issue of Woman's Day magazine.

This recipe has 9 ingredients. It takes 8 hours 15 minutes of total time, 15 minutes of which is active and makes 4 servings. I made a number of modifications to this recipe. First the magazine recipe is actually for pulled pork. However, when I arrived home from the grocery store and started unloading my items I noticed that I had bought beef shoulder. Rather than going back to the store and spending more money I decided to substitute the beef for the pork in the recipe. I did brown the beef in the skillet before adding to the slow-cooker. I always brown meat before adding to the crock-pot it helps to seal in the juices and makes for more tender meat. Since I am trying to limit granulated sugar, I substituted molasses for the brown sugar called for in the recipe. Finally, since I eat gluten free I did not eat my serving on a potato roll, but instead ate the BBQ pulled beef as is with the coleslaw as a side. Make sure to adequately salt the coleslaw it will need it.

I was surprised by how well the beef turned out in this recipe. Pulled beef oftentimes turns out dry and tough, especially when made in the crock-pot. This pulled beef came out tender and using molasses in the BBQ sauce lent a nice flavor. I wasn't a big fan of the sour cream in the coleslaw, I would have preferred using olive oil mayonnaise. However, the cilantro in the coleslaw was delicious.

For the recipe go to Pulled Pork Sandwiches.

Black Bean Soup

Today was the last day of school for my oldest before winter break. My younger son spent the day unhappy that his brother was having a party at school and believing that our new puppy was getting more attention than him. I have a feeling it is going to be a long break. Due to last minute changes I will be hosting Christmas this year so tomorrow is going to be spent cleaning and prepping. I am planning on keeping things low key, so it should be an easy holiday. I hope. As I seem always be since having kids I will be spending the weekend getting last minute gifts that I fully intended to buy weeks ago and time just got away from me. And wrapping. My mother was a beautiful gift wrapper. She would buy fabric and make handmade bows. They really were works of art. I seem to have inherited none of this gift. When I was younger I worked in the executive office of a dept store and had to fill in at the gift wrapping counter during the holiday rush. I was horrible at it and was told to help costumers, not to wrap. That was when I decided that I was destined to be someone that is great at picking out the perfect bag, no wrapping involved. So wish me luck with my gift wrapping this weekend. This week's meal have been mostly stews and soups, since it has been cold and rainy. I have really not been in the mood for much else with the end of my cold still sticking around. Last night I tried a new recipe for Black Bean Soup from the December issue of All You magazine, which with 3 grams of fat and 12 grams of protein looked like a great pre-holiday meal.

This recipe has 8 ingredients. It takes 1 hour 45 minutes of cooking time, 10 minutes of prep and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. Instead of quick cooking the beans, I soaked the black beans overnight. I find this method much easier and requires less effort. I let the beans cook for longer than the hour and a half suggested, probably closer to two full hours. Adding the citrus juice at the end of the cooking time really does add to the dish and I definitely suggest adding the step. I did not add sour cream to my serving, but I did to my boys. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

With only 217 calories and 3 grams of fat per serving this recipe is a great healthy meal option. It is especially great given that next week is Christmas and I will inevitably be overeating, so something light and filling this week is essential. My two boys were skeptical until they ate their servings and then loved it. My husband's only complaint was that he would have preferred not to have the tomato chunks, but he never likes chunks of tomatoes in recipes.

For the recipe go to Black Bean Soup.

Taste of Home Spinach Mushroom Enchiladas

My oldest son is on a serious mushroom kick. I have made more mushroom recipes in the last couple of months than I have in years. I'm lucky that my five-year-old is a great helper and has become my kitchen side kick during dinner prep. I love spending time with my two sons in the kitchen and it provides a great way to teach them fractions, math and general science lessons. My five-year-old now is able to dump in ingredients and is beginning to understand how to read recipes. In order to help him appreciate the food that he eats, I have been preparing recipes involving ingredients that he loves, such as mushrooms. The November issue of Taste of Home magazine had a recipe for Spinach Mushroom Enchiladas using lime juice and mushrooms, which looked delicious and a great recipe to have my son help to prepare.

This recipe has 16 ingredients. It takes approximately 35 minutes of prep and 14 minutes of baking, and makes 6 total servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. I do wish that my store had baby portobello mushrooms by the pound, they are a great deal more expensive when sold pre-packaged. I did make one modification, I only had beef bouillon granules, so I substituted it for the chicken bouillon granules called for in the recipe. Finally, I chose to add the red pepper flakes, my family likes a little kick in our food. Make sure to adequately cook the spinach in order for all the water to be cooked out. I let my spinach cook a good 15-20 minutes. Letting the water cook off is essential to avoid soggy enchiladas. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

The lime in this recipe gives the enchiladas a great citrus taste. Everyone in my family enjoyed this dish and the leftovers re-heated great for lunch the next day. The serving size is large and I was able to make two meals, making it very economical at only 4 dollars a serving. Overall, a great inexpensive enchilada recipe.

For the recipe go to Spinach Mushroom Enchiladas.

Taste of Home Lemon-Thyme Bread

I remember when I was younger helping my mother pick fresh herbs from the herbs pots she had all over the yard. Pretty much any type of herb she could get to grow we had. I loved all the smells and tastes that they created in the recipes my mother would make. There is something so delicious about baking and cooking with fresh herbs. When I moved out on my own I kept a herb garden on my window sill to mix fresh herbs into eggs and the other simple dishes I made on a limited budget during college. When my husband and I got married we lived in a small apartment with no space for herbs, so for the first time I utilized the local grocery store to buy fresh ingredients. Today my biggest homegrown herb deterrents are my three cats and no window or yard space. So I have bought fresh herbs from the grocery store for many years now. Luckily the selection is relatively large and I have always been able to find what I need. Recently, the November issue of Taste of Home magazine had a recipe for Lemon-Thyme Bread which looked easy, delicious and full of fresh herbs.

This recipe has 11 ingredients. It yields one loaf with 12 slices and takes approximately 25 minutes of prep and 40 minutes of baking. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. I found with the ceramic dish that I baked the bread in, that I had to add an additional 10 minutes to the baking time and tent the top with foil after the first 30 minutes or so. Without the tenting the top of the bread loaf would have burnt; with the tent it turned out perfect. I chose not to sprinkle confectioners sugar over the top, I try to avoid additional sugar if possible and this bread was delicious without the addition. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

I was very impressed by how well this bread turned out. Normally, I make non-savory breads about once a month and I tend to make banana or fruit bread. Previous to this recipe I had never tried making a lemon bread with fresh herbs and I was pleased with how well the flavors blended and complimented one another. This bread would make a great hostess gift or as a breakfast with melted butter. Overall, a sweet and delicious bread recipe.

For the recipe go to Lemon-Thyme Bread.