Weeknight Mu Shu Chicken

For some reason I had it in my head that my mother loved Mu Shu Chicken. I had big plans of impressing her with this make-over. BIG PLANS.
All the ingredients were purchased when I told her about my incredibly awesome dinner plans. "What's Mu Shu Chicken?" was her response.
REALLY?!  After all these years you'd think I'd know her favorite Asian meal.
Fail Melissa.

Mega mega fail.

At least the dish didn't fail.

Weeknight Mu Shu Chicken

1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons hoisin
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 14 ounce bag coleslaw
3/4 cup chopped scallions
2 cups leftover chicken, shredded
10 small whole grain tortillas
Combine soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and hoisin in a small bowl. Whisk in cornstarch.  Set aside. In a large frying pan or wok stir-fry the ginger and garlic in the sesame oil for about a minute. BEWARE OF GARLIC MISSILES AND GINGER BOMBS. Add coleslaw mix scallions and stir-fry until wilted. Add chicken and soy sauce mixture. Cook until heated through. To serve spread this heated mixture over some small tortillas and drizzle with hoisin.


Nutritional Info Makes 10 Servings
Calories: 176.1, Total Fat: 4.6 g only .5 g Saturated Fat, Cholesterol: 21.1 m, Sodium: 316.3 mg, Total Carbs: 21.2 g, Dietary Fiber: 3.4 g, Protein: 11.5 g

Nothing beats super good, super nutritious and super fast. Nothing.
Oh hey, mom? If you're reading this can you please tell me your favorite dish so that I can redeem myself here? Pleeeeease?

Checkout other great recipes at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

Roasted Cajun Broccoli

One question... why do roasted vegetables taste soooo much better than  un-roasted vegetables?!
Ok, fine, two questions...why didn't I learn about this sooner?
With Mardi Gras around the corner I've been on a bit of a Cajun kick. This was inspired by the Cajun Green Beans I made for Mardi Maigre. It's an amazingly quick side dish that can be thrown together during the week.


Roasted Cajun Broccoli
3 cups broccoli, chopped
Olive oil spray
1 tbs garlic
1.5 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1/2 to 1 tbs Cajun Seasoning (depending on your preference)
1/2 cup water
Arrange broccoli in a single layer in a baking dish. Toss with garlic, spray lightly with olive oil. Place under low broiler until broccoli tops are browned. The time varies depending on size of the broccoli cuts, fresh or frozen and your particular oven. Just keep an eye on it. While that is cooking add the turkey bacon to a large saute pan and cook until crisp. Add roasted broccoli to the saute pan along with Cajun seasoning and water. Simmer until all the water has evaporated.

Check out more tasty deliciousness at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

Cajun Green Beans

I had my first experience with Cajun Green Beans at a friends house. This is the same friend who sparked The Great Smoked Cream Cheese Obsession of 2011. I'm not sure if she is evil or wonderful for introducing me to these things, but I will SURELY keep her around to find out.

I decided these NEEDED to be made at our Mardi Maigre blogger night. We enjoyed them along side delicious open faced Po Boys and Kings Cake that Bree made and the Gumbo I wrote about earlier this week.

Cajun Green Beans
1 large family size can of french sliced green beans
1.5 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1 tbs garlic
1/2 to 1 tbs Cajun Seasoning

Cook turkey bacon until crispy, add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Drain almost all the liquid from the can of beans. Add beans to the sauce pan along with Cajun seasoning. Cook until all the liquid has evaporated.

It's kinda like the taco meat procedure. I always hated adding water along with the seasoning and having to wait FOREVER for it to evaporate. I didn't understand the purpose until the day I got lazy and didn't add it. The depth of flavor just isn't there, so trust me. Let it cook for a bit.


These beans were so good it inspired a very similar creation.
I'll tell you more about Roasted Cajun Broccoli next time.

Gumbo with Habanero Chicken Sausage & Shrimp

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I LOVE blogger nights. I know I sound like a broken record but I don't care. Seriously, if you take ANYTHING from my blog it should be that cooking healthy foods together with a friend is good for the heart, soul and tummy.


This month we avoided all that mushy gushy Valentine's stuff and went straight for a New Orleans Mardi Gras Celebration. Mardi gras is French for Fat Tuesday, which is basically the practice of gorging yourself one last time before Lent. We chose some terrific, but traditionally high calorie, dishes to makeover for Mardi Maigre (Skinny Tuesday) and they all turned out amazing. No gorging needed because they are all healthy and delicious year round.

Check out the Cajun Green Beans, Po Boys and of course, delicious nutritious Gumbo we made!
Gumbo with Chicken Sausage & Shrimp
1/3 cup flour
3 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1 pound peeled and de-veined raw shrimp
1 package Spicy Chicken Sausages (I used a Habanero Monterrey Jack type), sliced in bite size pieces
2 tbs olive oil
1 green bell pepper
1 red or orange bell pepper
1 large onion
5 stalks celery
3 tbs garlic
1 bag frozen okra
28 ounces chicken broth, divided
1 cup water
1 tablespoon Tony Chachere's® Famous Creole Seasoning
5 cups cooked brown rice
Dice all the veggies.  Add flour to a dry saute pan and cook until it appears brown, stirring constantly. Place browned flour in a bowl to cool. Saute turkey bacon in oil until bacon is crisp, add veggies. Cook until they are tender then add the water. Bring to boil. Whisk 14 ounces of chicken broth into the cooled flour. Add this mixture to the veggies slowly. Also add in the seasonings, remaining broth and okra. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add shrimp and sausage, simmer until shrimp are cooked thoroughly.  Serve 3/4 cup gumbo over 1/2 cup cooked brown rice.

Makes 10 Servings.
Each serving is 310.9 calories, 10.5 grams of fat total but only 3 grams of saturated fat.
Here's a little more info in case you were wondering:
Potassium 475.3mg; Total Carbs 35.1; Sugars 3.5; Protein 19.5. And it's loaded with vitamins!

Isn't okra nasty? Why should I eat that stuff?

1. First of all, it is very low in calories (only 18 in half a cup) and it contains no saturated fats or cholesterol.
2. It's considered by many to be a superfood. (Am I the only one that envisions people getting super powers from eating a superfood?)
3. It is a rich source of dietary fiber, minerals, vitamins so it's often recommended in cholesterol controlling and weight reduction programs.
4. The pods are loaded with vitamin A and it is one of the green vegetables with highest levels of anti-oxidants such as beta carotenes, xanthin and lutein which helps to protect from lung and oral cavity cancers.
5. Excellent source of vitamin-C.
6. Rich in B-complex group (niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid).
7. Good source of many important minerals such as iron, calcium, manganese and magnesium.

Moral of the story:
Make gumbo.
Eat okra.
Smile.

PS: Do you observe the Lenten practice of giving things up? If so what are you doing this year?

Check out more tasty deliciousness at Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.