PF Chang Lettuce Wraps and Fried Rice

 4 servings

LETTUCE WRAPS 

prep and cook time 20 min

1 T olive oil
1 lb ground chicken
2 garlic cloves
1 onion diced
1/4c hoisin sauce
2 T soy sauce
1 T Rice wine vinegar
1 T grated ginger
1 T sriracha
1 (8oz) water chestnuts (could use grated carrots, broccoli, peppers
2 green onions
salt and pepper
I head butter lettuce (or ice berg lettuce)

Heat oil in sauce pan on medium high. Add and cook ground chicken til brown 3-5 min. Drain fat

Stir in garlic, onion, hoisin, soy, rice wine, ginger, sriracha.

Stir in chestnuts and green onions, 1-2 min

To serve, spoon several tablespoons

My friend Dayna says she doesn't like water chestnuts so she uses other veggies in their place

FRIED RICE

4 cups white rice at least a day old chilled in the refrigerator.*
4 TBS sesame oil divided (I used bacon oil)
1 TBS peanut oil (I used olive oil)
1 tsp minced garlic

1/2c chopped celery
½ cup diced onion
1 cup Slivered carrots
½ cup frozen peas
2 TBS soy sauce
¼ tsp ginger
2 eggs
pinch of sea salt
1 tsp sesame oil
Green onions to garnish

1. Cook the eggs:
2. Heat 1 tsp sesame oil in a large skillet (at least 10”) over medium heat.
3. Beat eggs with a pinch of sea salt, then pour into heated pan and spread evenly into one thin, round layer.
4. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until the egg is firm and bubbles appear on the top.
5. Flip and cook and additional 2 minutes until the egg is cooked.
6. Remove from heat, transfer to a cutting board and cut into thin pieces. Set aside.
7. Make the friend rice:
8. Sauté onion, garlic and carrots in 1 TBS sesame oil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook until vegetables are soft and just starting to brown (about 5-7 minutes).
9. Add 3 TBS sesame oil and 1 TBS peanut oil to the vegetables.
10. Add rice, stir and cook on high for 9-10 minutes, or until the rice just begins to brown, stirring occasionally.
11. Add peas, soy sauce and ginger, stir to combine.
12. Carefully add the egg and gently stir it into the mixture.
13. Cook on medium-high heat for 5 minutes, or until the rice is lightly browned.
14. Serve immediately and garnish with green onions.

To make rice for the fried rice:

1. Bring 2 cups salted water to a boil
2. Add 1 cup white rice, stir.
3. Bring mixture to a boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer.
4. Simmer 15-20 minutes until water is absorbed.
5. Turn off heat, let rice sit for 10-15 minutes, fluff with a fork or spatula.
6. Let rice cool, then transfer to an airtight container in the refrigerator. Store in the refrigerator overnight, then use the chilled rice in this recipe. (I didnt make the rice the night before. I cooked it the day I was making the fried rice. After the rice was completely cooked I put all the rice on an oiled iron pan. I flipped the rice every 5minutes so it would get crunchy, but not burned. I kept flipping the rice for probably 20 min or so) I love the crunch/toastedness of the rice

Chicken Jumbo Shells

Need two 9x13 pans, serve with french bread

12 oz Jumbo Shells
2 Chicken Breasts (chopped food processor)
1 onion chopped and sauteed
1/2lb chopped mushrooms (not necessary, but I love them)
3-6 chopped garlic cloves
1 24 oz can of spaghetti sauce

White Sauce-
8 oz cream cheese
3 T butter
1/2c parmesan
1/2c milk
2 c shredded mozzarella (1 cup for white sauce and 1 c for top of prepared shells)
Cottage cheese filling-
8 oz cottage cheese
1 T basil and parsley
1 egg
salt and pepper

This was more work than I usually like to do. But we don't have them much and I wanted something different for dinner. This recipe uses 3 different pans- 1. to cook pasta, 2. to saute onion, chicken, mushrooms, and red sauce. 3. warm up the white sauce

Saute onion for 7 min, then add garlic and mushrooms with salt and pepper cook for a few minutes. Add chicken till cooked thoroughly, add spaghetti sauce.

In separate pot heat up and stir the white sauce. Turn off the heat, In same pot combine cottage cheese, basil, parsley, egg

In separate pot boil the jumbo shells.  in 9x13 pan lightly spray the pan and then add red sauce to the bottom of the pan. Place the empty shells on top of the sauce . Assemble the shells with the white sauce cottage cheese filling first, then on top of the cottage cheese add the meat red sauce. After all the shells are filled pour the rest of the red sauce over the top.

Cook 350 for 30 min. Last 5 mintues add 1 c of mozzarella to melt on top of shells.

Weirdly enough, I actually noticed these prepared shells tasted much better on day 3 of sitting in the fridge. Initially on the day I made them we had them for dinner and I honestly didnt really enjoy them so much, but my family almost ate one whole pan (so it passed their taste buds).  Next time make this a few days ahead and place foil/wrap on top and let sit in fridge for at least 3 days.

chicken zucchini poppers

One Lovely Life
This made about 20 meatballs

2 lb. ground chicken breast (raw)
4 c. grated zucchini (leave peel on and squeeze out some of the liquid with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel) ( i only had 2 c)
3-6 green onions, sliced ( I did 3, next time I did 6)
4-6 Tbsp cilantro, minced  (I use one bunch of the stems)
1 t garlic powder or, 2 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

I didn't add-

3/4 tsp cumin (optional, I didn't add)
Optional (if pan-frying): avocado oil, for cooking (or coconut oil, or ghee)

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INSTRUCTIONS

I chopped up the zucchini in the food processor, take out, squeeze out liquid, and put in big  bowl. Then chop green onions (chopped celery, if applicable) and cilantro stems in food processor, take out and put in same bowl as zucchini. Chop up meat in food processor, then add to big bowl.
In a large bowl, mix together chicken, zucchini, green onion, cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin (if using). Mixture will be quite wet. Scoop meatballs with a small scoop or heaped tablespoon and gently smooth with your hands. I can usually get around 20-24 poppers. You may be able to get more or less, depending on how large you size them.
To cook on the stovetop:
Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium-low heat. Cook 4-5 at a time for about 5-6 minutes on the first side. Flip and cook an additional 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown and the centers are cooked through.
To bake:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle a bit of olive or avocado oil onto a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake at 400 degrees 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through. If desired, place under the broiler for an additional 2-3 minutes or until browned on top.

Serve with Guacamole and I added 1/4c of cilantro, I made it in the food processor. Make the guacamole first so you don't have to completely wash out the food processor b/c there was raw meat in it.

11/29/18
I didn't have zucchini, so i used
3 chopped sauteed celery sticks
1 c cooked brown rice

12/18 one time i used just the stems of the cilantro b/c i had other recipe plans for the leaves, still turned out great with just the stems.

1/2019
i used the whole bunch of cilantro (leaves and stems) b/c i knew it would all go rotten if i didn't use it up right then.