One Pot Dominican Chicken and Rice

I've made this dish 4-5 times already and it is TERRIFIC.  It's got a great blend of favors.  And, it's nice that you can cook it all in one pan.  It takes a bit of time, but it's totally worth it.  They pretty much had me at "olives."

• 1 small onion
• 1 large green bell pepper
• 1 TB canola oil
• 3 cloves garlic
• 4 large pimento stuffed green olives (OK, I used more than 4)
• 2 TB tomato paste
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 2 1/4 c low sodium chicken broth
• 1 c quick cooking brown rice
• 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 1 pound)

Thinly slice the onion into half moons and chop the bell pepper. Heat the oil in a large skillet that has a tight fitting lid, at high heat.  Add the onion and the pepper and cook until softened and browned around the edges, about 5 min.  Meanwhile mince the garlic and slice the olives.

Add the tomato paste to the skillet and cook, stirring, until it is incorporated and slightly darker in color, 1 min.  Add the minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper and cayenne, and cook, stirring, for 1 min. Add the broth, rice, olives and then the chicken.  Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.  Then, lower heat to medium low, and simmer until nearly all the liquid is absorbed, the rice is soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 15 min.

Serves 4, serving size = 1cup rice mixture and 1-1.5 chicken thighs.

Calories - 410, Total fat - 18g, sat fat 4g, mono fat 7.7g, poly fat 4.5g, protein - 36 g, carb - 26g, fiber 3G, cholesterol - 110 mg, sodium - 600 mg

Beef Bourguignonne with Egg Noodles

This recipe takes a while to make, but is AWESOME.  Best stew recipe ever, and doesn't taste the least bit "diet-ey."  This is a great Sunday dinner kind of dish to make.  Everyone loves it.  But, as I said, fair warning, it is a lengthy process.

• 1/3 c flour
• 2 tsp salt, divided
• 3/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper, divided
• 2 1/4 lbs lean beef stew meat
• 4 bacon slices
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 1 cup sliced carrot
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 c dry red wine
• 14 oz low sodium beef broth
• 8 c halved mushrooms (about 1.5 lbs)
• 2 TB tomato paste
• 2 tsp fresh chopped thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 16 oz package frozen pearl onions
• 7c hot cooked medium egg noodles (about 6c uncooked)
• 3 TB chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

Combine flour, 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper in a zip plastic bag.  Add beef, seal and shake to coat.  Cook half of bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp.  Set aside.  Add half of beef to grease in plan.  Cook 5 min, browning on all sides.  Remove beef from pan, cover and keep warm. Repeat with remaining bacon and beef.  Remove and keep warm.  

Add chopped onion, sliced carrot and minced garlic to pan.  Sauté 5 min.  Stir in red wine and broth, scraping browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add bacon, beef, remaining salt & pepper, mushrooms, tomato paste, chopped thyme, bay leaves and pearl onions.  Bring to a boil.  Cover reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes.  Uncover and cook1 hour or until beef is tender.  Discard bay leaves.  Serve beef mixture over noodles.  Sprinkle with parsley.

Yield 9 servings, 447 calories, 14.6 g fat, 5.1 g sat fat, 32.7 G protein, 45.7 g carbs, 3.9 g fiber, 117 mg cholesterol.