Mix it up! Enchiladas + Manicotti = Maniladas!

I knew I had to try this recipe once I saw Sunny Anderson make it on her Food Network show, Cooking for Real. I think I gravitate toward her recipes because she's younger (I think) than the only FN hosts. Plus, her food isn't too fussy.

This recipe combines enchiladas (my fave!) with manicotti (not so fave). While I love making enchiladas, they don't have a lot of form to them. They're not sturdy, which isn't good when you're trying to eat one-handed with a wiggly baby on your lap. Using the manicotti shells in place of the tortillas gives it a bit more stucture. If you make it, let me know how it was!

(Note: In place of the tomatillo sauce, I used regular tomato sauce spiced with cayenne, chili powder, corriander and cumin. All C's!)

Ingredients
1 (8-ounce) package manicotti shells
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 Vidalia onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 cup sour cream

For the Tomatillo sauce:
1 pound tomatillos, quartered
1 small red onion, quartered
1 jalapeno, halved
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the cheese sauce:
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups heavy cream, room temperature
2 cups grated fontina cheese
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
Salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Boil manicotti in salted water for 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water and set pasta aside.
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Saute onion until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minute more. Remove pan from heat and mix in chicken, tomatoes and cilantro. Set aside.

To make the Tomatillo Sauce:
Place tomatillos, onion, jalapeno and garlic in a baking dish. Toss with oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast until tomatillos turn golden around the edges and are soft, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and blend ingredients together until smooth. Use reserved pasta water to thin sauce, if necessary. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

To make the cheese sauce: In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook 2 minutes. Whisk in heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Add cheese and nutmeg and stir until melted. Season sauce with salt, to taste.

To assemble: Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Stuff manicotti tubes with chicken mixture and assemble in a 9 by 12-inch baking dish. Pour cheese sauce over the top. Bake 30 minutes until cheese is bubbling. Drizzle tomatillo sauce on Maniladas before serving.

Video: How to prevent lumpy gravy

Man, have I struggled with this one over the past couple years! But I will say that after a lot of thin, watery, pale gravies, I've begun to make thick, rich, beautifully brown gravies with easy. Score one for me! Let Food Network's Sunny Anderson help you out if you're still having trouble. (And check out her blog by the way. It's great stuff!)

Tasty tip: Big girls don't cry

I've already featured a few tips on this blog about getting perfectly chopped onions without crying a river. My latest tip? Throw the onion in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes before you chop it. It usually works for me!

Tasty tip: Create some fake-out take-out dinners

Next time you're out at your favorite restaurant, pick up one of its to-go menus. Go home and try to recreate your favorite dish for half the price and none of the waiting.

Thanks to the ever descriptive menu writers, you will have the basic game plan at your fingertips. Tinker with the ingredients a bit, reducing the amount of fat usually found in your dish.

Besides, people have already concluded that eating at home costs less than eating at restaurants. Plus, it's healthier.

Whenever I have a strong Chinese food craving, I reach for this Asian Glazed Wings recipe from Rachael Ray. The glaze is good on chicken breasts, beef, vegetables, pasta and rice. If your kids don't like heat (it's not that hot, really) you can reduce the amount of red pepper flakes you use.

Asian Glazed Wings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
12 whole chicken wings, drummers and tips
Salt and pepper
3/4 cup plum sauce
1/2 cup orange juice, eyeball it
2 inches ginger root, peeled
3 tablespoons tamari, dark soy sauce, eyeball it
1/2 to 1 teaspoon red chili flakes, medium heat to extra spicy
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions
Preheat oven 400 degrees F.
Preheat a large oven safe skillet over high heat with the oil. Liberally season the chicken wings with salt and pepper. Once the skillet is screaming hot add the wings in 1 even layer. Brown the wings for 3 minutes per side.

While the wings are browning, assemble the plum glaze: in a small pot over high heat combine the plum sauce, orange juice, ginger root, tamari and hot pepper flakes. Bring up to a simmer and lower the heat, reserving it until the wings are done browning. Remove ginger from glaze.

Pour the simmering plum glaze mixture over the browned wings. Place the skillet in the oven and roast for 20 minutes, flipping the wings once half way through the cooking time.

Remove the wings from the oven, if the glaze is not syrupy and thick, place the skillet of wings on the cook top and turn the heat on high, allow the glaze to reduce for about 1 minute. Toss the wings around in the glaze and finish with the fresh cilantro and basil.

Serve hot or room temperature.

Not the same ol' chicken!

Chicken is so easy and versatile - I wonder why we end up in a rut all the time. By opening your mind to all the possibilities (and there are THOUSANDS upon THOUSANDS), you'll be able to make the boring chicken dinner into something special.

This week I'll be bringing you five ways to make chicken that won't have anybody sighing, "Chicken again?"


Bacon-wrapped chicken breasts

Serves 4

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Dishes dirtied: 2 (including cutting board)

Even good room temperature

Ingredients:
Cooking spray

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons steak seasoning (I like McCormicks. If you don't have it, just use coarse ground black pepper and reduce it to one tablespoon.)

4 strips bacon (you can use whatever kind you like: thick cut, low-sodium, apple bacon, etc.)


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray the baking sheet with the cooking spray.
2. Put the chicken on the cutting board and sprinkle the steak seasoning all over. Carefully wrap the bacon around the chicken breast and place it seam-side down on the baking sheet.
3. Put the chicken on the top rack in the oven and cook until the juices run clear and the bacon is crisp.

As always, if you tried it, let me know!