Pintastic: Hearty Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash & Quinoa Recipe

I tried this recipe back in the fall, to rave reviews and it has now become a comfort food staple in our meal rotation. Hearty, delicious and healthy. It is a multi-step recipe that takes time but, is so worth it! It feeds the four of us for 2 meals.

Original pin here...Hearty Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash & Quinoa

I took this photo as soon as I finished cooking this stew on this very cold New York afternoon. Notice the lack of olives in my version (because, well, gross).

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lb. butternut squash, peeled, seeded & chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 3 1/2 cups chicken broth (I use the full 32 oz carton)
• 1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt (I use Penzy's 4S seasoned salt)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 can (14 oz) petite diced tomatoes
• 2/3 cup uncooked quinoa
• 3/4 cup pitted and quartered kalamata olives (I omit)
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Steam the butternut squash until barely tender, about 10 minutes. Remove half of the squash pieces and set aside.
2. Steam the remaining squash until very tender, an additional 4 to 6 minutes. Mash this squash with the back of a fork. Set aside.
3. In a large saucepan set over medium-high heat, bring the chicken broth to a simmer.
4. Add chicken thighs, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
5. Transfer the chicken thighs to a plate and allow to cool. Pour broth into a medium-sized bowl.
6. Return the saucepan to the stovetop and lower heat to medium. Add olive oil.
7. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is starting to turn brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
8. Add minced garlic and oregano. Cook, stirring, for 1 additional minute.
9. To the saucepan, add tomatoes, butternut squash pieces, mashed butternut squash. Stir to combine.
10. Stir in reserved chicken broth and quinoa. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook until the quinoa turns translucent, about 15 minutes.
11. Shred the chicken with your fingers or a fork.
12. Stir the chicken, olives and pepper into the stew and simmer, uncovered, to heat, about 5 minutes.
13. Stir in parsley and serve.

Notes: Calories 329 / Total Fat 14.1g / Saturated Fat 1.0 / Cholesterol 15.2mg / Sodium 1209mg / Total Carbohydrates 32.8g / Fiber 5.4g / Sugars 3.0g / Protein 19.4g / WW (Old Points) 7 / WW (Points+) 9

Enjoy!

Jen

Baked Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

Last night I decided to try this recipe for baked garlic brown sugar chicken. I followed the recipe to the 

Click for original recipe

letter. It's a super easy and simple recipe that only takes four ingredients (including the chicken!) It smelled amazing. The brown sugar/garlic mixture was more like a rub texture than a sauce, so we rubbed it into the chicken on both sides before putting it in the oven. I cooked the chicken for the recommended amount of time. It came out great. As you can see from my pictures, the sauce around the chicken burnt.  I think this could be rectified by adding water to the pan.

The chicken was good. On the outside. It was pretty bland inside though. My husband and I both decided that it would be better if the chicken were marinated in this mixture for a few hours before baking it (or grilling!). The sauce is delicious, but you don't get the full flavor of it by cooking it on the chicken for twenty-thirty minutes. I'll keep the sauce recipe, but next time we'll try marinating the chicken first.

Spicy [Chicken] Tortilla Roll Ups

 I was really excited about this pin for Spicy Chicken Roll Ups found on this blog. I literally had pin-nesia and pinned it four different times because every time I saw it, I wanted to eat my screen. As the resident Vegetarian of our board, I knew I was going to have to make a few changes to the recipe.

The first time I made it, I subbed a can of drained black beans for the chicken. It made my wraps watery and they were difficult to roll up but they were still delicious. The second time I made them with refried beans and they were a thousand million times better! They rolled up nicely, they stuck together well, and they were like crack. I made them for a game night and every single roll up was gone by the end of the night. Even our non-vegetarian friends were obsessed with them. They are just the right kind of spicy. Not burn-your-mouth-hot, but completely flavorful. They are so easy to make, even my husband can do it!

Super Delicious Spicy Roll Ups

Verdict: Super Pintastic and a hit with everyone.

-AM

Chicken 'N Dumplings

As a true Southern gentleman, my husband loves chicken and dumplings. As a true Southern belle, I should know how to cook it, right? Well, I've always been too scared. I remember my grandmother rolling out dough for hers, and that alone intimidated me enough to not try it. My other grandma makes her dumplings by cutting out tortilla strips, soaking them in water, and covering them in flour. My sister has started making her chicken and dumplings this way, and although I couldn't taste the difference, my husband wouldn't let me try it that way because he wanted it ROLLED OUT like his MAMA did it! I called his mama close to his birthday to get her recipe, because he requested it for his birthday dinner, but she advised against making chicken and dumplings because I would be cooking for a crowd and she said that it didn't always turn out right. This further intimated me. So I made something else and took him to Cracker Barrel later on to get his chicken and dumplings fix.

I pinned this recipe immediately when I saw it, because the description promised a chicken and dumpling recipe done in the crock pot, and my goodness, does it look delicious. One cold February morning when my whole family was home, I decided to attempt these crockpot chicken and dumplings for our lunch.

Recipe

I clicked on the picture to look at the recipe. And guess what, IT'S NOT A CROCKPOT RECIPE. I don't know who originally put that description, but I've seen a million of my friends pin this recipe since then, and it ALWAYS has in the description that it's a crockpot recipe. I used to comment on everybody's pin and correct them, but I got tired of doing it, so I decided they could learn the hard way like I did.

And I forgive whoever posted that description in the first place. Why? Because this recipe is friggin' delicious. So much so that my husband now brags about my chicken and dumpling cooking abilities, and I feel like a rock star because I can make this shizz from scratch, JUST LIKE MY MAW MAW. :) The recipe I linked is accompanied by a wonderful picture tutorial, and it managed to ease the anxiety and stress I felt over making dumlings before I even attempted them. If you like Cracker Barrel's chicken and dumplings, make this recipe. NOW!

To Note:
-I would say that J's mom is wrong and they do turn out the same if you make them following this recipe.  I've made them several times since I first tried it and they always have turned out well.
-My sister insists her way with the tortilla strips is easier, and although it tastes the same, I don't think it's any less work. Both recipes use a lot of flour and make a huge mess.

My Version, served over rice.
Not as juicy looking as the original picture, but damn delicious!

Verdict: Pintastic x100!!!
-Betsy

White Chicken Enchiladas

I found this pin a few weeks ago and loved the step by step directions. It reminded me that I used to cook chicken enchiladas for my husband all the time using his mom's recipe, but I haven't done it in quite a while because I stopped liking to cook. Well, Pinterest has renewed my interest in cooking, so I decided to try this recipe:

Recipe

It turned out pretty good. As Louisianians, we love very spicy food and this wasn't as spicy as we would have hoped for. Maybe Rotel would add a lot to the sauce. Also, I didn't add the corn. I don't think it's something we'll have ALL the time, but it's good once in a while. Great weeknight dinner!

My Version

Verdict: Pintastic!

-Betsy

"The World's Best Chicken"

I don't have any pictures of this chicken from what I made, but it looked just about spot-on to what the picture from the pin looked like. (Don't get all excited, though, it doesn't look particularly pretty!)

"The World's Best Chicken"

This recipe was very easy to follow, although the ingredients seemed a little odd to me. Maple syrup and dijon? On chicken? Really? Anyway, go HERE for the original pinner's blog to find the recipe.

The Verdict: Pintastic, although I would not go as far as to call it "The World's Best Chicken". It graces the pages of my recipe book under the title "Dijon Syrup Chicken".