Sticky Chicky

I have another new recipe.  I'm not a big fan of chicken drumsticks, but saw them in the store, and decided to try this out.  The Babe even ate some of the meat, although she was more interested in her roll (Chebe bread mix). 

Sticky Chicken
3 lbs chicken drumsticks
3/4 C orange marmalade
2 Tbsp Tamari or soy sauce
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground ginger

1. Mix together orange marmalade, Tamari, lemon juice and ginger.
2. Place Drumsticks in slow cooker.  Spoon orange mixture over the drumsticks.  Add a little water to base of crock (about 1/4 cup) to prevent any burning.
3. Cook 4 hours on high.  About 2 1/2 hours into cooking, turn over drumsticks so both sides darken.

Trade offs

Once upon a time I practiced law. As part of my job, I negotiated settlements. Now, I use those skills to negotiate with my toddler. That's right...my kid would do most lawyers proud. Today it was to get her to eat some meat and potatoes for lunch in exchange for a juice box. Other days its eating something or else the t.v. goes off. OK, that's not so much a negotiation as a threat. Whatever it takes, right?

The past few nights she has had no interest in what I've made for dinner. Somehow she still winds up with french fries and hot dogs. Tomorrow I will renew my effort to get her to eat dinner. Part of the recent problem, and greater willingness to cave on my part, is she's been sick. We almost had another trip to the ER Friday night.

Its pretty much Murphy's Law that she gets sick when the doctor's office is closed. She was just easing into a cold in the morning, and by the time her breathing was much more labored, despite giving her the inhaler, the doctor's office was closed. We watched her with bated breath, listening to her breath and moan in her sleep during a late nap. She eventually woke up as if nothing was wrong, although still having a little wheeze. Tonight there is the occasional bronchial cough, but otherwise she is so much better.

In case you were hoping for another recipe, here's the easiest Crockpot chicken dish. It took me three minutes or less to assemble. You may spend more time opening the jar then anything else.

Chicken Marinara
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup jarred marinara
1 cup water

1. Mix the water and marina
2. Place the chicken in the slow cooker, pour the water/marinara mix over the chicken.
3. Cook on high heat for 5 hours.
4. Serve over pasta.

Easy Asian Chicken

Last night I got to go out to eat. While this is a treat for me since I don't take the Babe into restaurants, it does require someone to watch the Babe at home. About once a week the sitter comes and my husband and I have a date night. Last night he was busy at work and I made arrangements to go out with a friend. Hence, the need for our sitter to come over.

This does not let me off the hook as far as cooking for a night. Usually when the sitter comes the Babe gets hot dogs and french fries. I sometimes wonder if our sitter thinks that's all I feed the Babe. However, last night I was also feeding the sitter so I felt she might like something a little more substantive. Out came the Crockpot and some chicken. I had the leftovers today cold, and enjoyed them. So this recipe works well hot or served later cold.

Asian Chicken
1-1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp Tamari (or soy sauce)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp garlic powder

1. Mix together oil, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar and garlic powder.
2. Place chicken breasts in slow cooker. Pour mixture over chicken.
3. Cook on high 4-5 hours. Serve over rice.

Lemon Turkey Breast

Nothing particularly new or exciting to report today, other than I have another new recipe. I am not prolific at being creative in the kitchen, but when I find something interesting, and adjust it to meet taste or food restrictions, and it actually comes out, then I'm happy to share the info.

Another day to be happy to have my Crockpot as the turkey breast I took out yesterday to defrost did not fully thaw. That was fine, since I already knew it was going to be slow cooked. No fuss, no worry. It did mean I had to be up early, but since I've had a touch of insomnia mingled with a restless sleeping child, I was actually up exactly when I needed to start the turkey breast for lunch. When else can I be positive about sleep deprivation? It was most definitely worth it today. The turkey breast was nice and moist, and the gravy that I made from the remaining liquid in the Crockpot was just that, gravy...as in, "something advantageous or valuable that is received or obtained as a benefit beyond what is due or expected" (see dictionary.com).

Ok, vocabulary lesson aside, here's the recipe:

Lemon Turkey Breast
3 lb. Turkey Breast Half on bone
1/2 C Lemon juice
1/2 C Imagine No Chicken Broth
1/4 tsp salt +
1/4 tsp ground Sage +
1/4 tsp crushed Rosemary +
3/4 tsp garlic powder

1. Place turkey breast meat side up in slow cooker.
2. Whisk together remaining ingredients, then poor over turkey breast.
3. Sprinkle additional Sage, Rosemary, and salt on top of turkey.
4. Cook on high for 5 hours. Let meat rest for a few minutes, then slice and serve.

Lemony Turkey Gravy
Liquid from Lemon Turkey Breast
2 Tbsp Corn starch
1 Cup Imagine No Chicken Broth

1. After turkey has completed cooking in slow cooker, pour remaining liquid from bottom of crock into a small sauce pan. Turn heat onto medium.
2. Mix corn starch and room temperature broth in a separate cup. Add to sauce pan, stirring occasionally. Increase heat, bring to a boil, and turn off.