College Cooking: Healthy, Cheap, Fast!: Chicken Coconut Curry

College Cooking: Healthy, Cheap, Fast!: Chicken Coconut Curry: Ingredients: 2 Tbs butter, or butter substitute 2 Tbs curry powder  1 can coconut milk  2 large chicken breasts  3 large carrots ...

Breakfast time trial

Breakfast time recipe trial

I decided to try this recipe for a few reasons. The first reason is because it was light, which sounded amazing right after the Thanksgiving. The second reason is because it contains bananas and spinach which are both high in iron. I discovered I was lacking iron after analyzing my diet for a few days and this recipe looked like it would be helpful in overcoming that. In addition, as stated in the blog post, this recipe is high in vitamin C and who couldn't use more vitamin C with cold and flu season upon us. I liked this recipe because it was easy to prepare and it tasted great! I will most definitely make this again. This is in response to trying Mariesa Miller's Breakfast Time smoothie.

Jori P.

1.       Taste: it was absolutely delicious! Me and my husband both really enjoyed it and will          definitely make it into my own personal recipe book! You could really taste the cheese which was my most favorite part!

2.       Preparation: To make this meal it took me about an hour. The preparation was not bad at all, but I will say you have to get it your full attention. Sometimes when I cook I can multi task by maybe folding laundry or something while things are cooking. With this though you are constantly stirring, cutting and mixing things together so don’t walk away from it or something might burn or boil over.

3.       Nutritional value: The main food groups used in this meal are; Meat, dairy, vegetables, and breads which would be your noodles that would go under that category. I would probably say that your biggest source of fat and vitamins would come from the cheese and whatever type of milk you choose to use whole, heavy whipping cream, or half and half. There is 4% calcium in the half and half, I only used a cup of it so you’re looking at about 2% calcium from that. Also in the cheese there is about 45% calcium combined with both types of cheese but again I didn’t use the whole bag of either of the cheese. Other nutritional value would be the protein from the chicken, also there is protein in the dairy products used as well.

4.       Specific nutrients help: The protein from the chicken will help your hair and nails. Also protein helps build and repair tissue so having extra protein in our diets will help with exercise. The calcium from the dairy products helps our body’s teeth and bones stay strong. It will also help our blood clot if necessary and I read that calcium is basically essential for life.

5.       Negative aspects in the recipe: some negative aspects of the recipe would probably be the half and half and the noodles. The half and half is a little high in fat and doesn’t have much protein. The noodles are high in carbs and calories.

6.       Missing food groups: Well an obvious food group that is missing would be fruit, which you wouldn’t put in the dish but you could definitely eat a serving of fruit on the side with your dinner. There is spinach and tomatoes in it but I think your serving could be bigger so maybe adding more spinach and tomatoes and less noodles to make sure you are getting more vegetables. Other than that you get your grains, meat, and dairy from the dish.

I considered this a pretty healthy dish because it called for fresh spinach and tomatoes, I also chose it because of the chicken. I understand that milk or cream can be very fattening and also the noodles. I did think about substitutions that would be good to make the recipe even healthier. For the noodles you could substitute whole wheat noodles or even make your own zucchini noodles that would take out your carb intake and add to the vegetables. I know there are ways to substitute the milk and heavy cream with Almond milk that will cut down on the fats in the recipe.

The Recipe:

Ingredients:

10 ounces dry pasta (I used a combination of rotini, farfalle and penne. Any similar size would work.)

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 ounces chive and onion cream cheese

1 cup sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt)

1 cup whole milk, heavy cream or half-and-half (I used half-and-half)

1/2 cup shredded or grated Parmesan cheese

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Pinch crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1 - 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach

2 cups cooked chicken (cubed or shredded)

1/2 cup fresh tomatoes, cut into large chunks

Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Coat a medium casserole dish with non-stick spray.  (Mine was a 10" round, but a 9 x 13 would work fine.)

Cook pasta in salted, boiling water to al dente.  Drain and set aside.

While pasta is cooking, heat butter in a medium saute pan set to medium heat.  Add in the onion and garlic.  Cook for 3 - 4 minutes to slightly soften veggies.  Do not brown.

Add in cream cheese and stir to melt.  Reduce heat to low.  Stir in sour cream, milk, Parmesan cheese, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes (if using).  Stir until everything is well-combined and melted.  Turn off heat.

Combine the pasta, chicken, spinach and tomatoes in a large bowl.

Add in the sauce and gently stir to coat.

Pour into the prepared baking dish.

Top with the remaining mozzarella.

Bake uncovered for about 20 -25 minutes ... or until casserole is bubbly and beginning to brown.  Top with basil or parsley for garnish.

NOTE:  In order for the pasta bake to not dry out, I place the baking dish on a sheet pan and add 1 - 2 cups of very hot water to the sheet pan once in the oven.  This will create steam during the baking process and will help to keep everything moist.

Turkey Avocado Wrap Snack

    I chose this recipe one being, I love avocados and it sounded like a fast, healthy, easy snack. Its a very simple recipe, all you need is turkey slices,  avocados, and I like to add some lime to add a little flavor. Super easy steps: you cut up the avocado into slices and place them in the middle of the turkey and roll up the turkey like a burrito.

Avocado Nutrition Facts 

Total Fat 21 g

Cholesterol 0 mg

Sodium 10 mg

Potassium 708 mg

Total Carbohydrates 12g

Protein 2.9 g

Deli Sliced Turkey

Cholesterol 15 mg

Sodium 430 mg

Carbohydrates 2g

Protein 7g 

Avocados are a good source of vitamin B, which gives you energy. Low in sugar also has fiber which the body needs and its keep you full longer. Avocados are high in fat, but it's a monounsaturated fat which is good for yo if eaten in moderation. 

This snack can be bad for yo if you eat too much of it considering high in fat, but overall it's nutritional healthy snack that gives you your source of fruit, and protein. 

Taco Salad

I decided to make taco salad. It’s a recipe that my family uses a lot when we need a quick easy meal. We especially make it for when we’re going boating and need a meal that can be prepared ahead of time and just thrown together.

Here is a list of the ingredients you need to make this meal.

1 lb of hamburger

1 package taco seasoning

1/3 of an onion diced

1 can kidney beans

1 can of olives

¼ cup shredded cheese

1 head of lettuce

½ cup of ranch dressing

2 tomatoes diced

½ cup Doritos crushed (optional)

Taste: Taco salad has so many great flavors in it! The taco seasoning adds a little spice to the hamburger. The Doritos give it a hot cheesy taste but when you add the ranch dressing it cools it down to give it a great medium flavor. The texture is also amazing. For those of you who like salad this is a great change up from your normal vegetable or casear salads. However, for those of you who aren’t huge salad fans (like me) it’s a great way to still get the salad feel to your meal but have lots of extra creamy toppings.

Preparation: This is a very easy meal to make. The longest part is having to cook the hamburger. You will also have to wash the lettuce and chop up the onion. The rest of it you will have to open cans or dump cheese, chips, and dressing into the bowl and mix it all together.

Nutritional Value:

Calories 279

Total Fat 15g

Cholesterol 44mg

Sodium 762mg

Potassium 416mg

Total Carbohydrates 24g

Protein 13g

Importance: The variety of food groups within the meal gives you a balanced and healthy dish. It is a balanced meal because it is low in calories but high in proteins. Proteins give you energy and help you build muscle. It is one of the few elements that help makeup are DNA.

Negatives: Some things about this recipe that aren’t so healthy is the chips and the ranch dressing, These ingredients add calories and fats that aren’t the healthiest and probably shouldn’t be consumed too often. However they add great taste and aren’t too bad to eat every once in awhile.

Missing nutrients: There are no fruits in this recipe and there should really be more grains to balance this meal out. To make up for that you could serve some watermelon or your choice of fruit. I personally also add parmesan breadsticks or rolls of any kind to eat with this meal (its especially good to dip your breadsticks in the left-over dressing on your plate).

Nordhoff, W

Pizza Chicken

When I was pretty little, my mom was trying to figure out what to make for dinner. She saw the tomato sauce, and she saw chicken. She decided to get creative and put the two ingredients together. While she was still trying to figure out what else to put in it, my dad told her he was craving cabbage. That really got her creative juices flowing which then became a family childhood favorite. When she served it, my siblings and I immediately called it Pizza Chicken, even though it is nothing like pizza. The name stuck, and a new tradition was born. For the first time, this original family recipe will be available to the public. This was actually my first time making it, and the first time my mom and I wrote the recipe down on paper. It was so fun working in the kitchen with my mom giving me instructions on our family favorite. Now I can pass it down to my own children. You will need:

1 Large onion (chopped)
1 Large green pepper (chopped)
2- 13 oz cans of large mushrooms (keep juice)
2- 15 oz cans of tomato sauce
3 Cups Shredded Mozzarella
5 lbs Chicken without skin (to absorb flavor)

Seasonings (all to taste):
Salt
Black pepper
Italian herb blend
Minced Garlic

Directions
Grease electric skillet. Place chicken in a single layer in the skillet. Don't cook yet. In a separate bowl, mix onions, green peppers, mushrooms with juice, and tomato sauce. Fill empty tomato sauce can half way with water. Poor water back and forth between both sauce cans to get the remaining sauce. Poor tomato water in the bowl with the vegetables. Add spices to taste in the bowl. spoon part of the sauce mixture onto the chicken just enough to cover . Cut cabbage in half. remove core. Cut each half in quarters or smaller leaving wedges in tacked. Remove loose leaves . If desired, roll loose leaves together to add in (note: loose leaves will turn to mush if in the sauce by itself) . Place wedges and rolls in a single layer on top of the chicken. cover cabbage with the remaining sauce mixture. Cover. Turn skillet on to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook until chicken is done. turn off the skillet. Add cheese on top, cover back up until cheese is melted.

This recipe makes 20 servings. We have a large family, so we have to make a lot. But for those who are cooking for one or a few, all you need to do is use the desired amount of each ingredient. There is no magic trick to adapting this recipe for smaller or larger amounts. That is what I love about "to taste" recipes. I love how easy pizza chicken is to make! If you are only making enough for one person, you only need one wedge or one roll of cabbage...unless you love cabbage and want more. The picture below is me with the pizza chicken already half way gone!

 Nutritional Value:

Calories:               184
Total Fats                 4 g            6%
     Sat Fats               2 g           10%
Cholesterol             59 mg       20 %
Sodium                 719 mg       30 %
Total Carb                8 g            2%
     Dietary fiber        4 g          11%
     Sugars                 4 g
Protein                    28 g           50%
Potassium                                   5%
Vit A                                          6%
Calcium                                    14%
Folic Acid                                   2%
Vit C                                          43%
Iron                                              2%

This recipe include protein, vegetables, fruit (tomatoes), and dairy. The food group that is missing is grains. Our favorite side dish is rice (especially rice with cream cheese and mushrooms mixed in it...shhh...don't tell anyone if that isn't considered healthy ;) ). If you want to make it healthier, then just do plain rice. We love to drizzle the sauce on top of the rice. This dish could probably use more fruit as well. Any fruit would do (how about a fruit salad?), or even a homemade fruit smoothie.

Pizza chicken is an excellent source of protein which is a building block for just about every cell in your body to help grow hair, finger nails, build and repair tissues. Protein is a building block for bones, muscles, cartilage, skin and blood. Pizza Chicken is also an excellent source of Vitamin C which helps protect our bodies from immune system deficiencies, cardiovascular disease, prenatal health problems, eye disease, and skin wrinkling. It can help boost our immune system when we are sick. This recipe is a good source of calcium (if you need to have it dairy free, the calcium value significantly decreases to 2%). Calcium is crucial for for bone strength, bone growth, and preventing osteoporosis. It can also help maintain heart rhythm, muscle function, and more. Even though this delicious recipe doesn't go over the sodium limit, I feel the sodium is a little high for one meal.

I hope you all enjoy my mom's family famous pizza chicken recipe! Enjoy!

Paxson, S.

Vegetarian Chili

I love this recipe because it is super easy to make and you can modify it to what your favorite tastes are. The recipe all together takes about 55 minutes: 25 minutes to prep time including cutting any vegetables that you would like to put into it, mincing garlic and preparing seasonings. Then it takes 30 minutes to cook all of the ingredients down to where there flavor is best.

Taste
I love chili, the taste is always good in my opinion but I also like that you can add different kinds of seasonings to change it up for different seasons as well. Also the vegetables you add can go along with whatever season you are cooking in because you can use the vegetables that are best in that season. 

Preparation
The preparation is very easy to do. You don't need to know how to really cook as long as you know how to cut some vegetables and pour in cans of beans, tomatoes, corn and anything else you like you will be prefect for this recipe. 

The Recipe 

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 3/4 cup chopped carrots
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms
• 1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes with liquid, chopped
• 1 (19 ounce) can kidney beans with liquid
• 1 (11 ounce) can whole kernel corn, undrained
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 
  
  Nutrients
  
  
• Vegetables have a great value of nutrients, they have fiber and potassium vitamin A and vitamin C which are all needed for a healthy diet. Beans are excellent for vegetarians because of the amount of protein that are in beans they also contain iron and zinc. Beans are good for everyone to eat not just vegetarians. Tomatoes are valuable because they give us potassium, fiber, vitamin C and folic acid. There are no negative aspects of this recipe, everything is good for you. 
• 
  
  I believe that this is a healthy recipe because there is nothing that is high in saturated fat, there is not sodium if you choose sodium free beans. I think that it can also be made more healthy or someone could make it less healthy as well. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms
• 1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes with liquid, chopped
• 1 (19 ounce) can kidney beans with liquid
• 1 (11 ounce) can whole kernel corn, undrained
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil