Ever get tired of chicken?

I get tired of chicken. Meat in general. I guess I am just not much of a meat eater (unlike my husband). Although the thought of going completely without it, all the time, isn't necessarily something I want, either. I just need to think of a more methods of cooking it. So last night, even though my husband acted like he wouldn't be hungry for dinner, I was going to cook that thawed chicken. AND use some of that fresh produce before it went bad! That's not only healthy food waiting to go into our bodies, but good money I don't want going down the drain!

So a big meal I did cook. With it being over 90 degrees outside, I was in no mood wanting to use the oven. And since my husband hinted at having eaten not very long ago when we had met in town, I figured he wouldn't want to grill (aside from the searing hot sun). I cannot stand meat with no texture - it's as plain and boring as a big 'ol blank wall is to an artist. I even find that big, blank and an eyesore and I am no artist!

After opening the package and NOT rinsing the chicken (I read an article that argued it might actually spread more germs in rinsing the meat, whereas cooking it kills the germs anyway, and I have always thought this anyway), I poked holes in it and tried out some brand spanking new spices. Not new or new-to-me spices. But spices I have not tried together before. Remember, I am typically a recipe FOLLOW-ER so branching out on my own was a bit nerve-wrecking! Click on the Menu tab to see the recipe.

Then I tossed them in the skillet, in a bit of pure virgin Olive Oil, turned the burner up on mid-high to high, and browned them. Once they were nicely seared on each side, I turned the burner down to mid-low to cook them the rest of the way and added some more stuff for flavor and sauce (click on Menu tab for info).

I ended up using the oven for about 15-20 minutes (I know, I know...). But the asparagus and radishes turned out yummy! (Menu tab!) We also had some potatoes with the meal. These may not be on the 'healthy' part, but they sure were a nice addition. One small step at a time for my family. Must use what we have and do what we can. :)

How are YOU doing? Better than us? :)

Hockey Game and Mexican food for Dinner - YES!

Last night my husband went to watch the hockey game, which meant I could, without internal guilt (he never gives me any), make Mexican food! I was excited. Instead of hiding away the 40 bucks I found in my pocket to put into our trip fund, I handed him half and admonished him to go have fun. 

Then I realized that I had no peppers to go with my idea for fajitas. So I just kept it simple and made 'chicken tacos' instead. Not the same with such few ingredients, and not near as healthy, but sometimes it comes down to using what you have, right? 

The chicken I used was not Tyson - I hate the ever-present gristle and stopped buying it for that reason and my husband is certain it is unhealthy, so we began purchasing any other grocery-store brands, pretty much - which is very difficult to find in this area. Now that we are working hard to be healthy - and we'll see how long we can stomach the prices - the 'least expensive' healthiest brand is the frozen one at the local 'healthy' store - Ozark Natural Foods. We would prefer fresh but it turns out the local farmers have frozen meat too from when they have it butchered, due to USDA or FDA regulations or something. Anyway. 

I haven't made the switch to pure/goat/natural/non-homogenized sour cream or anything. Not sure I ever will. But if you have, or if you do - congratulations to you and wish me luck! I do, however, make my own taco and fajita seasoning (so no MSG), but since I had planned on fajitas AND didn't realize I was out of taco seasoning, well, you guessed it! 'Chicken tacos a la Christina' made with fajita seasoning! That's the link to the Menu tab - you can get the seasoning recipes here, too, if you like. Oh yes, I served it with
Sage Valley Blue Corn Tortilla Chips, but I'm not sure if these are GMO-free or not... the corn is organic, but who knows which oil is used? Apparently not the makers of the product, for it reads: "Expeller pressed Safflower, and/or Sunflower, and/or Canola Oil..." Doesn't Canoloa Oil have GMOs? Comments are much appreciated!

Please do not think I conjured up these seasonings on my own, by the way. I am quite typically a huge recipe FOLLOW-er! Only I cannot remember from whence they came (Grandma, website, a mixture...?) I admit, though, I am becoming much, much better at adapting. For instance, like last night. Had my husband needed to adapt, however, he would have been much more creative... But not near as healthy!