Creamy Lemon Chicken with Asparagus and Bacon

My youngest daughter and I were browsing through some magazines the other day when she found this delicious looking recipe from Family Circle March 2014 issue and requested that I make it for dinner. Well, lucky for her, asparagus is in season and I bought two bunches the day before...and we always have chicken breast in the freezer so I really didn't have a reason not to give in to her request. 

So yes, this Creamy Lemon Chicken with Asparagus and Bacon was our dinner last Monday, and it was a big hit! We honestly didn't expect it to be so flavorful, but it was.

I'm truly glad we tried this recipe. It's very simple and super easy to make yet really delicious! The lemon gave it a refreshing taste that we all loved! Definitely a must try!

Chicken Macaroni Soup

So how's 2014 treating y'all so far? For my family and I, the new year started really good...and I'm hoping it's the same with you and your loved ones! We welcome 2014 with so much joy in our hearts...and of course, lots of food! There's abundance, togetherness and love in our home, and there's nothing else we could ask for! The first week of the new year was spent bonding with my brother who was here with us for the holidays. The cold weather brought cough and colds to the hubs, the girls and my brother but thank God, it's nothing serious...they're all well now! The bro has left and it's just me, the hubs, the girls and our dog (Russ) again! I may say everything here is pretty much back to normal, except for the temperature which remains too low for Texas!

For the past week, I've been making soup to give us comfort and warmth. This recipe that I'm sharing with you today is one of our favorites. It's one of those we consider ultimate Filipino comfort food. It's an all-in-one meal in a bowl that has everything in it --- meat, veggies, milk and pasta! I've featured Macaroni Sopas here on the blog before but that one has ground pork. This time, it's Chicken Macaroni Sopas! 

This is a very easy to make comfort food that's definitely delicious and nutritious! Ground beef, as well as leftover ham or turkey will work well as a meat replacement. You should try it!

Chicken Asparagus Roll-Ups

Christmas is in two weeks! If you're still looking for easy recipes for your Christmas dinner, this Chicken Asparagus Roll-Ups is perfect! It's very easy to make yet so tasty and elegant looking. The best thing is you can prepare it ahead of time.

This is very much like the Chicken Cordon Bleu that I have featured here before. The main difference is the filling. While Chicken Cordon Bleu has ham and cheese, this Chicken Asparagus Roll-Ups has asparagus and cheese. I got this recipe from allrecipes a few years back and this has been a family favorite since then. Because I don't usually have tarragon in my kitchen, I use Herbes de Provence as substitute and I must say, it works well. As for the filling, I sometimes add carrot sticks to make it colorful. We usually eat this with buttered mixed vegetables and rice, but it's perfect with salad or mashed potatoes too.

We all love this! I'm pretty sure you will love it too!

Filipino Style Chicken Macaroni Salad

I've been receiving requests for Filipino Style Macaroni Salad...so here it is! 

Unlike the usual macaroni salad which is served as a side dish, Macaroni Salad in the Philippines is mildly sweet and is served as dessert especially during parties and special gatherings. Just like any other Filipino food, it varies from region to region...but there are three characteristics that remain consistent: it's creamy, a little sweet and a little sour and it has three basic ingredients: macaroni, mayonnaise and chicken.

This Filipino Style Macaroni Salad that I am sharing with you is my mom's version. I grew up with this very simple but really delicious macaroni salad which for me has a well-balanced creaminess, sweetness and sourness. For me, this is the perfect one! The combination of ingredients is just right and doesn't overpower the supposedly main star of the dish which is the macaroni! 

Sinampalukang Manok (Chicken in Tamarind Broth)

Just 3 more days and fall is officially here. I am really enjoying the weather! The temperature nowadays only stays in the mid 80's which is a big relief from the scorching 105°F! Though my family love soup all year round, it's during days like this when we enjoy it more....and Filipino soupy dishes like nilaga, sinabawan, sinigang and tinola are very often seen on our dinner table. 

This recipe that I have for you today is what many call the chicken version of sinigang. Sinigang (as some of you may know) refers to any dish with sour broth. The main ingredient that makes it sour can be tomatoes, guava or tamarind, though tamarind (or what is know in the Philippines as sampalok) is most commonly used. This dish here is one of those that make use of tamarind and it is called Sinampalukang Manok.

Unlike in other sinigang wherein only the tamarind fruit is used, in this dish, tamarind leaves plays an important part. Tamarind leaves have subtle tart flavor and is a good addition to this dish. It can be released by stripping them from the stems and then crushing them a little using mortar and pestle. Fresh tamarind leave aren't available here so I content myself with bottled pickled tamarind leaves. They're good enough when it comes to flavor...but they are bottled with the stems which are too hard to eat so I still have to remove them one by one. But that's all right! This delicious and comforting Sinampalukang Manok is worth the effort! ;)

Chicken Biryani from Playful Cooking

Truth be told, one of the few things that my husband and I have in common is our love for food. We enjoy cooking and eating together since our dating years. We've shared the best and worst meals of our lives...but there's nothing about food that we have ever argued about. Back when we were in the Philippines (when we didn't have the  girls yet and didn't care that much about frugality), Ryan and I used to enjoy eating out a lot! We really loved trying different cuisines...but I don't remember being able to try Indian Cuisine back then. Actually, I don't even know if there was as Indian restaurant in Manila that time. It was only here in Texas that we got our first experience with Indian food...and it was like we fell in love with it at first taste! Ryan and I both love spicy food...and with all the different herbs and spices used in Indian Cuisine, we find it perfect for our taste buds. 

For our PiTCC's Favorite Dishes from Around The World series, I want to share with you one of the Indian dishes that have become my favorite. It's called Chicken Biryani. 

Biryani is a dish that's popular in India and Pakistan and is made of rice, herbs, and spices as well as vegetables or meat like beef, chicken, lamb, goat, fish and shrimp. The chicken version is my favorite. I just love the aroma and texture of this dish! It's an all-in-one meal that's so tasty and comforting! 

Today, I am happy to bring you Kankana of Playful Cooking to share with us her Chicken Biryani recipe. Kankana is from India but is now living in California with her wonderful husband. I met her last year when I was just starting to blog. She has become one of my favorite bloggers not just because of her mouth watering recipes and vivid photos that never fail to amaze me, but much more because of her very warm personality that can clearly be seen on her awesome blog. I'm truly glad that she found the time to be here with us today despite her busy schedule! I really can't thank her enough! Without further ado, I give you Kankana Saxena...

Thank you Tina for making me a part of this series and it was my pleasure to prepare the Chicken Biryani for you. Hope you will enjoy it! 

I am a passionate foodie and wannabe photographer who married the most amazing man in the world and I am currently enjoying life in sunny California. My cooking is mostly healthy with little bit of indulgence here and there. We all need that in our lives, don’t we? I like fast and easy cooking and that’s what you can mostly expect to see in my blog :) 

Today, I am sharing a Chicken Biryani recipe that I learned to cook from my brother when I visited home last winter. As a kid, I remember my brother would spend more time in the kitchen than I would but this time, my little brother totally impressed me with his cooking skills. 

One afternoon, he prepared Chicken Biryani and that was the first time that I actually enjoyed biryani. The strong aroma and warm flavors made me crave for it more than ever! 

Biryani is a very popular dish in India made with rice, meat and lots of spices! There are typically two types of biryani - Kacchi/Kutchi(raw) Biryani and Pakki(cooked) Biryani. For Kacchi biryani, uncooked marinated meat and rice are layered and cooked together. For Pakki biryani, both rice and meat are partially cooked. Then, they are layered to cook for some more time and the flavors blend between the rice and meat. 

I prepared Pakki biryani and it's very much like Hyderabadi biryani. It involves a lot of steps but at the end, it will all be worth the effort!

Chicken 'n Peppers Spaghetti

I hate to admit this, but sometimes I'm just too lazy to cook. It's on such days that I make quick pasta dishes like this Chicken 'n Peppers Spaghetti...

...and by quick, I mean less than 30 minutes including prep and cooking time. I'm really not comfortable with serving frozen ready-to-eat food to my family (though I must admit, I sometimes do and that makes me feel guilty)...so even though I'm feeling lazy, I still prefer making a simple meal that won't make me feel guilty. This is an example of that. It is very easy to prepare and cook but it's healthy! The chicken and cheese makes this dish a good source of protein, while the peppers (both the bell pepper and Jalapeño) give this dish added vitamins and nutrients like Vitamin A, C and E, potassium and folic acid. Red bell peppers also contain lycopene, which is a carotene that helps to protect against cancer and heart disease. This is really packed with goodness but is so easy which makes it perfect for lazy to cook days!

How about you, do you have any “too lazy to cook recipe” ? 

Chicken Strips Adobo Sandwich

I don't know about you...but I sooo love stew. Just like any other typical Filipino, I love eating it with rice...but I also enjoy eating it with rolls and bread, especially the leftover. Whether it's beef, chicken or pork stew, making a sandwich filling out of it always excites my taste buds. I remember that when I was little, whenever we have stew for dinner, whether its adobo, afritada, estofado, kaldereta or menudo, I would always ask my mom to make me some stew filled pandesal or pandelemon for breakfast the next morning. Sometimes, I would even bring them to school for snack. Even now, I still love that kind of sandwich. During our road trips, I would usually cook adobo or menudo the night before then stuff them in buns. My family consider it as a very yummy on-the-go meal!

For this month's Kulinarya Cooking Club Challenge, I found the perfect chance to share one of my family's favorite stew sandwiches with you. Thanks to our host, Louie Yan of East and West for choosing "Filipino portable bites offered by food trucks" to be this month's theme. Here in the US, I've only seen food trucks when we were in NYC. If I am to find one here in Texas, I would love if they have Filipino food like those in California...and how I wish they have this Adobo Sandwich!

It looks so good, right??? If there are food trucks selling this here in Texas, I'll definitely be a frequent customer! And if someday I'll have my own food truck or Filipino fast food restaurant, this Chicken Strips Adobo Sandwich will be one of our house specials! This is no ordinary sandwich, I tell you! It has the goodness of the Filipino all time favorite adobo plus the yummy combination of egg and cheese and the added spice of Jalapeño pepper and onions! 

Though I enjoy any kind of stew, adobo is my most favorite because it is the quickest to cook and it doesn't require much ingredients. For the sandwiches that I prepare for our trips, I usually use shredded leftover pork or chicken adobo, but for this post, I used freshly cooked chicken breast strips adobo with Jalapeño pepper and lots of onions. Chicken breast cut into strips cook a lot faster so this will be perfect for on-the-go meals like this.

You should try it! I'm sure you'll love how tasty and filling this is!

Baked Paprika Chicken and Mushrooms

Hi everyone! Did you miss me??? Sorry for my absence in the blogosphere! Our internet connection was down since Thurday. Our new neighbor had their internet installed on that day and for some reasons (that our service provider hasn't explained to us yet), our connection was affected. It really sucks! But the worst part is that it took two days for AT&T to attend to the problem. It was only fixed last Saturday and we didn't even get an explanation about what really happened.

But at least my connection is up now, right??? I am really happy to be back...and I am glad to bring you another family favorite non-Filipino recipe. 

As I've told you many times, my daughters love mushrooms so much. This Baked Paprika Chicken and Mushrooms is one of those dishes that I came up with to satisfy their craving for mushrooms. The combination of chicken, mushrooms and cheese, and the wonderful flavors of garlic, paprika and sake in it make this a very exciting and delicious dish.

We all love this from the first time I cooked it...I'm pretty sure you will love it too!

Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Trumpet Pasta

As we all know, broccoli is a very nutritious vegetable. It is a very good source of fiber, Vitamins A, C and K, calcium and folic acid...and it belongs to the cabbage family, known as Cruciferous Vegetables, which has anti-cancer properties. With all these health benefits that broccoli has to offer, I am truly glad that it is one of the few green vegetables that my daughters love. At least I wouldn't have to force them to eat it. :)

This pasta dish that I'm sharing with you today is one of Clarise & Cherlin's favorite broccoli dishes. I frequently use either macaroni or penne for this recipe...but I have this gluten-free Pappardelle's Trumpet Pasta, so I decided to use it instead. 

The delicious combination of broccoli, cheese and chicken always makes this dish a big hit on our table...but the fun shape of trumpet pasta made it even more appealing.

But let me tell you that whatever type of pasta you use, this recipe will surely bring delight to everyone. If you want your kids to start eating broccoli, you should try this!

Garlic Chicken Wings and Button Mushrooms

Thanksgiving Day is almost here! Whether you have the honor of hosting a Thanksgiving dinner at home, or  you'll just be bringing a dish to a potluck party, thinking of the perfect food to prepare for your family and friends can be difficult. If you're still looking for recipe ideas for your Thanksgiving feast, you should check out Macy's Recipe Share on Facebook. There you'll find favorite Holiday recipes for appetizer, side dish, main course and dessert shared by Macy's fans. And while you're there, and you have your own favorite recipe to share, you might as well do so for a chance to win awesome prizes like $1000 Macy's gift card and a signed copy of Marcus Samuelsson's "New American Table" cookbook.
 
By the way, if you haven't entered our MACY's Thanksgiving Giveaway, you may still do so until   November 21, 2011 - 9PM CST! This is open to all U.S. residents. One lucky winner will be chosen via random.org, and will win a Martha Stewart Professional Cookware of his choice from these three items: 

-  Ceramic Covered Casserole Dish 
-  Hand Anodized Fry Pans (set of 3)
-  Stainless Steel 15” Roaster with Roasting Rack

 

Today, I'm sharing with you another family favorite! Just as I've mentioned before, we all love mushrooms here. But it's not only mushrooms that made this dish our favorite. This has chicken wings too which we love a lot! With mushrooms and chicken wings combined, you can just imagine how happy we all are whenever we have this on our dinner table! This very easy to prepare but totally great tasting Garlic Chicken Wings and Button Mushrooms can be served either as an appetizer or part of the main course. You can never go wrong with chicken wings and mushrooms, right?

Chicken Tortilla Soup

The sudden drop in temperature here in our side of the world is making me and the girls feel a bit under the weather lately. I guess it's that time of the year again when our bodies are having a difficult time adjusting from the extremely hot Texas summer to the cold fall temperature. We've been bothered by cough and cold for days now. This is not a good thing especially for me because a simple cold can really wipe me out, and when cough hits me, it tends to linger longer than it should. In times like this, there's just one thing that kinda help me feel better...and that is a steaming bowl of soup. For me, (and I guess for everyone else), nothing beats a nice bowl of homemade soup when you're down with a cold. It's just so good in helping loosen congestion and  keeping the body hydrated. Everyday since Tuesday, I've been making soup. I cooked Chicken Tinola last Tuesday, then Wednesday we had Ground Pork Macaroni Soup. Last night, I thought of making this Chicken Tortilla Soup. I guess I didn't have enough of it at a friend's party last Sunday, that's why I decided to make my own.

This is actually my first time to cook tortilla soup, and I created this recipe based on how I remember it from last Sunday. We all think that it tasted the same (even better according to Ryan). I guess the only difference is that I used chicken strips instead of shredded, fresh tomatoes instead of canned and I added black beans. I must say that I really find it so flavorful and truly soothing! As I write this post, I am enjoying another hot bowl of it! Want some??? Well, here it is...I am sharing it with you virtually right now...:)

Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry with Dried NM Red Chiles

Last month, I got 6 cans of Hatch Diced Green Chiles and a pound of dried New Mexico Red Chiles for winning in MJ's Kitchen's New Mexico Red and Green Chile Giveaway! The hubs & I both love spicy food so we were both excited to try how hot these New Mexico Chiles are.

The first I tried using are the red ones. I thought of adding three pods of it to my classic version of Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry. Since the package says "Medium", I assumed that the red chiles would be just sweet and mellow, so I didn't take out all the membranes and seeds from the pods. And I was right! 3 pods of the dried NM Red Chiles just gave my Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry the perfect kick which my daughters called "kid-friendly". Clarise and Cherlin loved the sweet flavor it added to the dish.

If you want it "hotter", leave all the seeds and membranes to the pods or double the number of the red chiles you will use. :)

Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu

Ohhh, how time flies!!! My youngest daughter, Cherlin, turned six last Sunday! As she requested, we had a Hannah Montana themed party for her last Saturday. Making the party decorations and favors, as well as the pabitin and her personalized piñata...

...and preparing and cooking all the food which includes 7 entrees and 4 desserts...

...wasn't easy at all. It's great that I have a friend who is an amazingly good cake decorator who made Cherlin's requested cakes and cupcakes! If not, I'm sure Cherlin could have insisted on me making her a cake and some cupcakes just like I did for Clarise's party last April. Cherlin was getting a little jealous and she said that I love Clarise more because I put more effort on Clarise's birthday! But I was able to calm her down after I explained to her that mommy is really not into cake decorating, and if she wants a better looking cake, she should go for Tita Christy's cake. :)

Hosting a party at home can really be a lot of work! It really did take a lot of time and effort for me to set up everything...and left me so tired in the end! But knowing that Cherlin had so much fun made everything worth all the effort! Hugs and kisses from her were enough to take away the tiredness I felt after the party.

But after cleaning up, I felt so exhausted and felt I needed a break...so I took a day off from blogging yesterday. But I am back now, feeling recharged and ready to share with you one of the 7 entrees I cooked for Cherlin's party which is Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu. 

Chicken Cordon Bleu is a French-inspired poultry dish that was developed by chefs in the United States in the effort to imitate stuffed meat dishes from Europe. Cordon Bleu which means "blue ribbon" in French has chicken, cheese such as Gruyere or Swiss, and prosciutto or ham as the basic ingredients. As crust, many chicken cordon bleu recipes include breadcrumbs. Chicken Cordon Bleu most often appears in a rolled presentation, with the chicken pounded flat and the ham and cheese wrapped up inside. The tightly rolled Chicken Cordon Bleu can then be dipped in breadcrumbs and fried, grilled, or baked.

Chicken Cordon Bleu has been my favorite since the first time I tried it at a wedding reception in the late 90's. I like it so much that I made it part of our wedding menu and Clarise's baptism menu as well. Though it is the baked version that I first tried, I remember that it is the fried version that I made for the first time in Christmas 1999, mainly because we didn't have an oven back then. It’s been several years since I last made Chicken Cordon Bleu, not because I don’t like it, but because it’s something I’ve done dozens of times before and I want to try so many new things. But when I was thinking of a chicken recipe for Cherlin's birthday, the ease of making Chicken Cordon Bleu inspired me to  whip some up. The best thing about it is it can be prepared ahead of time!

Chicken Cordon Bleu is certainly a dish your family will love! With the tender oven baked chicken and a soft cheesy core, you will find this chicken dish irresistible!

Ingredients:
*Makes 10 rolls

• 5 chicken breasts, split into two
• 4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup regular bread crumbs
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbsp Herbes De Provence
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 5 Tbsp olive oil
• 10 thick slices deli ham (or 20 thin slices)
• 10 slices Swiss cheese
•  salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Melt butter in a bowl and mix with olive oil. Set aside.

2. Mix regular and panko bread crumbs with Parmesan cheese, herbes de provence, and 2 tsp garlic powder. Set aside. 

3. Wash and clean chicken breasts. Pat dry and cut each breast into two pieces. 

4. Place a chicken piece on a cutting board. Lay a plastic wrap over the chicken piece and pound with a mallet to about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Be sure not to pound too hard because the meat may tear or create holes. Do the same thing with all the chicken pieces.

5. Season each chicken piece with a bit of salt/pepper and the remaining 2 tsp garlic powder. Be careful not to over salt the chicken as it is quite thin and the cheese and ham are also salty.

6. Take a chicken piece and place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese. I used very thin ham so I put 2 slices.

7. Roll chicken, making sure you tuck the sides in as much as possible to prevent the cheese from oozing out too much while baking. Secure the roll with toothpicks.

8. Dip each chicken roll into the melted butter and olive oil mixture, then roll it in the breadcrumbs and Parmesan mixture. Make sure all the sides are well coated. 

9. Place in a casserole dish or plate.  Place in the refrigerator for at least an hour to ensure that the breadcrumbs stay put on the chicken.

10. Preheat oven to 375F. When ready to bake, place each chicken roll on a rack on a dripping pan, making sure you don't overcrowd them.
11. Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle. The time depends on how thinly you pounded the chicken. 
12. Remove from oven and allow to cool down a little. Slice and serve with rice, bread rolls or salad.

 

* I made a sauce for it using about a cup of drippings, milk, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, pepper, herbes de provence and cornstarch to thicken the sauce...but I'm so sorry I wasn't able to take note of the exact measurements. :)

Chicken Tinola

Among the first recipes I've featured here is Tinolang Tahong (Mussels Soup)...today, I am sharing with you Tinolang Manok (Chicken Tinola). Are you wondering what "Tinola" is??? Well, Tinola is an authentic Filipino dish, which is a ginger based soup that can be cooked with either meat or seafood. Though "tinola" is more famous with manok(chicken) as the main ingredient, many Filipinos also use baboy(pork), isda (fish) and tahong(mussels). In Luzon provinces though, fish in ginger based soup is commonly known as pesang isda, but in Visayas and Mindanao, it is called tinolang isda. Are you enjoying your tinola lesson??? Let me go a little further...

Tinolang Manok, being the famous version of tinola was even referenced in Chapter 3 of Jose Rizal's book, Noli Me Tangere where Capitan Tiago ordered the said dish after he missed eating it for a long time when he extended his stay in Europe. Manok in tinola is best complimented with green papaya wedges and chili pepper leaves. I remember how I love Chicken Tinola when I was young. My mom used to cook it a lot and most of the time, she used home-raised native chicken instead of broiler chicken. This type of chicken has a stronger taste and tougher meat and has to be cooked for a longer time. But I'm telling you, it is a lot flavorful compared to commercially raised chicken! 

Here in Texas where papaya and chili leaves aren't usually available, I've learned to use different substitutes for them. Sayote (pear squash) is the best substitute for papaya and during times when even sayote is unavailable, potatoes will do. For the chili leaves, greens like bok choy, spinach and napa cabbage will be good...but I must say that nothing compares to the flavor that chili pepper leaves add to tinola.

Just like  Tinolang Tahong, this dish is best served during cold and rainy weather. But I love soup and whether it's spring, summer, fall or winter, I find it so comforting! Check out this Filipino favorite dish and let me know what you think...

 

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. chicken, cut into serving pieces
• 1 medium sized green papaya, peeled, seed removed and cut into wedges
• 1 bundle spinach, wash and trimmed
•  4 heads baby bokchoy, washed and trimmed
• 2 thumb-sized ginger, crushed
• 1 medium sized onion, sliced
• 6 gloves garlic, chopped,
• 3 Tbsp fish sauce
• 3 Tbsp pure olive oil, for sauteing
• 5 cups water
• salt and pepper to taste

Chicken Curry - My Nanay's Favorite Chicken Dish

Losing someone we love is really very painful...and though I always knew that it’s something all of us will experience at some point in our lives, I never realized how hard it would be to lose my own mother. It's exactly four years since I lost my mother from gastric cancer, but everything still seems so fresh in my mind…from the day my father told me that she would be admitted to the hospital for a complete check-up which led to the diagnosis of her stage IV gastric cancer, up to the time she left…

The passing away of my mother in July 19, 2007 is really heartbreaking for my whole family. Though it may seem like a blessing because it ended her pain, losing a loving & kindhearted mother --- a wonderful woman who touched every life she came in contact with, is truly a big loss for us. Personally, losing her meant losing not just my mother but my best friend --- my greatest phone pal, my best shopping & movie buddy, the only person who knows me inside out, the only woman I’m most comfortable to confide to, the only friend who accepts me and keeps on loving me despite all my flaws, the woman I owe my life to, the wind beneath my wings.

Just as always, so many wonderful thoughts of her linger in my mind today. We're still here in Kansas, but I want to take the time remember and honor her by sharing with you her favorite chicken dish. She used to cook chicken curry a lot when I was little using the curry powder that is available in the Philippines. When I first cooked chicken curry for her using the curry roux Ryan brought home from Japan, she loved it and said that it's a lot better that her version. Since then, she never used curry powder again. And whenever we visit them in Batangas, she would request me to cook chicken curry for her. If she's still here with us, I'm sure she'll still be requesting for my chicken curry over and over again...

 Ingredients:

• 6 pcs. chicken legs, chopped into 3 pcs.
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium sized yellow onion, quartered
• 1 thumb-sized ginger, julienned
• 1 green bell pepper, cut into triangles ( I used ½ green and ½ orange bell pepper to add more color)
• 2 pcs. carrots cut into ½ " thick
• 2 large potatoes, cubed
• 2 cubes Golden Curry Sauce Mix
• ½ 14-oz. can coconut cream
• 3 Tbsp light olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Chicken Afritada

Two days after posting my Foodbuzz 24x24's Salo-salong Kamayan sa Tag-araw which included 3 additional recipe posts, I'm ready to share another Filipino recipe with you...

Chicken Afritada is a tomato based dish that Filipinos really love. This is another one of those dishes that we've adapted from Spanish Cuisine. Afritada came from the Spanish word "Fritada" which means fried. Chicken Afritada which is basically pan-fried chicken stew with tomato sauce has become a very popular dish in the Philippines with many regional variations. But chicken, potatoes and tomato sauce or fresh tomatoes are always the basic ingredients. I personally prefer using tomato sauce instead of fresh tomatoes, only because it's easier and quicker that way. :)

This version of Chicken Afritada that I'm going to share with you is the one I grew up eating. This is how my Nanay used to cook it, and for me, there's no better way than this. I've loved it since I was a child...and my daughters love it now...so it must be good! (^.^)

Ingredients:

• 2 lb chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup pineapple juice or juice from 1 lemon
• 9 cloves garlic, minced (3 cloves for marinade and 6 cloves for sautéing)
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 3-4 medium-sized carrots, cubed
• 3 potatoes, quartered
• ½ cup green peas
• ½ red or green bell pepper, cut into strips
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup water (if you want it with more sauce)
• salt and pepper

Another Award and Chicken & Cream Cheese Egg Rolls

Last Saturday, which was my blog's 4th Monthsary, was a lucky day for me. Finally, I got my Red Gold Cookbook which was the raffle prize I won when I joined A Latte with OTT,A's March Iron Challenge. I've waited for almost a month to get it...the first one OTT,A sent got lost in the mail...and the 2nd one took two weeks to get here...so pardon me if I seem so excited! I'm just happy to have another addition to my cookbooks! :)

I also got a message from one of my favorite bloggers, Elisabeth of Food and Thrift Finds that she has another award for me --- The Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award! She's so sweet to be thinking of me and once again choosing me for an award. Thanks so much Elisabeth!

I'm so glad that in my four months of blogging, I've found people who despite of our differences in culture, language, traditions, and tastes, have been so nice and supportive of me...people who I can consider my blogosphere sisters. I really do appreciate how much they've all made me felt so welcome since my early blogging days. With all their frequent visits to Pinay In Texas Cooking Corner and all their kind words, I feel I belong, and I'm so glad to be sharing this Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award with them:

Chris of Gourmet Fashion
Eizel of Eizel's Everything Cullinary
Kankana of Sunshine & Smile
Katerina of Cullinary Flavors
Lin-Ann of Vittles and Commitals
Lu of Cusina Di Casa Da Lu
Manu of Manu's Menu
Nava of Nava-K
Sarah of Homestyle Cooking Around The World
Sharlot of E-Sharlot

♥♥♥ Thank you ladies for all the love and support you never fail to give me! ♥♥♥

About a month ago, Miriam of Meatless Meals for Meat Eaters featured a recipe which caught my attention --- Cream Cheese Egg Rolls. Egg rolls are my family's favorite and I always make them! I've already posted two Egg Rolls recipes here: the Filipino Egg Rolls (Lumpiang Shanghai) and Vietnamese Egg Rolls. I've also done cheddar cheese egg rolls in the past...but cream cheese in my egg rolls is something I haven't tried. I wanted to try it...but I knew that there's no way I can make my husband eat plain cream cheese egg rolls! So I decided to add chicken and vegetables in the recipe. I made Chicken and Cream Cheese Egg Rolls instead! My goodness...it turned out awesomely delicious! Thanks to Meriam for the idea of using cream cheese on egg rolls! The cream cheese and yellow onions plus the celery taste so good together...and combining it with chicken and carrots make it perfect!

Crispy on the outside and so creamy in the inside! Definitely a must try!

* I'm linking this up on Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Mangia Mondays, Hearth and Soul Hop Hub, Delectable Tuesday, Tuesdays At The Table and Made From Scratch Tuesday.

Prep Time:~30 mins              Cook Time:~10 mins              Yield: 22 pieces                   

Ingredients:

• Spring Roll Wrapper (150mm x 150mm)
  
• Vegetable oil for frying

Filling:

• 1 ½ cup chicken breast (sprinkled with salt & pepper, cooked and flaked)
• 12 oz cream cheese (1 ½ packs)
• ½ cup celery, chopped
• ½ cup carrot, julliened
• ½ cup yellow onion, minced
• 2 Tbsp garlic, minced
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

Chicken Enchiladas

Tomorrow is May 5, and in line with Cinco De Mayo celebration, I just thought of posting  one of my family's favorite Mexican dish --- Chicken Enchiladas. I found this recipe on Taste of Home magazine years ago. I've been revising it since then, omitting and adding ingredients that will best suit my family's taste buds. Last night, I came up with this one...and I used homemade tortillas! Ryan said it's a lot better than those chicken enchiladas I made before. Clarise and Cherlin both requested me to make this again "very soon"...so I guess they loved it! 

I'm sharing this on What's Cooking Wednesday,  What's on the Menu Wednesday, Real Food Wednesday, Foodie Wednesday, Recipes I Can't Wait to Try, Let's Do Brunch,  Miz Helen's Country Cottage's Full Plate Thursday and It's a Keeper Thursday.
And by the way, two of my recipes are featured today on two fabulous blogs...Pecan Sandies on This Chick Cooks by Katie and Pasta With Chicken & Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Alfredo Sauce on My Sweet and Savory by Chaya. Drop by these two blogs! You won't regret what they have to offer!
And now, here are the Chicken Enchiladas and Homemade Tortillas recipes. I wish you all a Happy Cinco De Mayo! Have fun!

Prep Time:~15 mins                 Cook Time:~15 mins                  Servings: 6        

Ingredients:

• 4 Tbsp butter
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 ½ cups chicken broth
• 1 tsp dried coriander
• 3 cups chicken breast, cooked and cubed
• ½ cup Jalapeño pepper, chopped
• ½ cup yellow onions, chopped
• ½ cup sliced black olives
• 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 12 pcs. warm flour tortilla

Pasta With Chicken and Sun-dried Tomatoes in Alfredo Sauce

It has been a very busy weekend for me and my family...and I'm so happy to go back to my weekday blogging with this award I got from Wit, Wok and Wisdom. She gave my Siopao the MOST SAVORY BREAD AWARD after I joined her event, Let's Break Bread Together which is a link party where you can link up any veg or non-veg dish which has a hint of bread or bread-like thing in it. I linked up my pandesal and siopao for the said event...and my siopao was chosen for the Most Savory Bread Award. Thanks Wit, Wok and Wisdom! I'm truly so grateful!

Yesterday was my dear friend, Carmi Remmers, 30th birthday. I brought this pasta dish to her overnight birthday celebration at her mother-in-laws' lake house last Saturday. I call it Pasta With Chicken and Sun-dried Tomatoes in Alfredo Sauce. I started cooking this last year for our Memorial Day potluck...and it has been my family and friends' favorite since then. This creamy pasta recipe combines chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, whipping and table cream and parmesan cheese for a truly satisfying main dish. 

It is always a big hit at parties and it's so easy to make. Everyone is always asking me for the recipe...so here it is! Try it for yourself with the pasta of your choice! I'm sure you'll love it too! 

* I'm linking this up on  Melt in Your Mouth Monday , Mangia Mondays, Hearth and Soul Hop, Delectable Tuesday, Tuesdays At The Table, Made From Scratch Tuesday, Recipes I Can't Wait To Try, Let's Do Brunch and Foodie Friday.

Prep Time: ~25 mins               Cook Time: ~20 mins                Servings: 10-12              


Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. spaghetti or any long pasta of your choice
• 5 cups chicken breast, cut into thin strips
• 2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1 head garlic, minced
• 1 medium -sized yellow onion, minced
• 2 cups sun-dried tomatoes, julienned
• 2 cans Nestle table cream
• 1 quart heavy whipping cream
• 1 Tbsp ground basil
• 2 Knorr chicken cubes
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp water
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• ground chives for topping