C3TV: Super Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This dish is so simple to make, yet it will make you look like you’re a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu! In fact it is so quick and easy, you can make a mid-week meal feel as if it was a special occasion!! This recipe is bursting with flavor, and sure to become one of your clan’s favorites. You can also give it a whirl with some thick-cut Boneless Pork Loin in place of the chicken, if you’d prefer.

Episode 201

©2013 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at https://cavemancooking.wordpress.com authored by Caveman. This may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Super Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I can’t believe that I haven’t posted this recipe yet! We have been enjoying it for several years around the Cavehold. Plus, it is about to make an appearance on a new episode of C3TV. So, I figured I’d better get it up on here, PRONTO! Enjoy!!

INGREDIENTS

4 Skinless, Boneless Chicken Breasts
8 Fresh Basil Leaves
4 Slices Semi-Soft Cheese
4 Heaping Teaspoons Pine Nuts
3 Garlic Cloves – Minced
Salt & Pepper to taste

RECIPE

Rinse basil leaves, and pat dry. Toast pine nuts until lightly golden (add a pinch of salt, if desired).

Mince garlic, and slice cheese.
NOTE: While just about any semi-soft cheese will work well, smoked Gouda is a very good choice for this dish. If you want to take it up several rungs on the evolution scale, try some aged Cougar Gold White Cheddar from the Washington State University Creamery.

With a sharp knife, cut a pocket into the chicken breasts … taking care not to slice all the way through. Stuff each breast with one slice of cheese, two basil leaves, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic, and a teaspoon of pine nuts. Then, with a turkey lacer, seal up the hole (sometimes, it takes two lacers).
HINT: You can substitute the chicken for some thick-cut boneless Pork Loin. That’s all about the YUM!

Place finished breasts onto a greased cookie sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Place into a 400° preheated oven for 35-40 minutes.

When finished, remove from oven and, with a couple of forks, remove turkey lacers.

That’s all folks! Serve them alongside some rice pilaf or Garlic Mashed Taters and some Sautéed Veggies and you’ll be eating like a King … while only putting in the effort of a Neanderthal!!

Prep Time = 20 minutes
Cook Time = 40 minutes
Serves 4

©2013 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Roasted Red Balsamic Potatoes

Yeah, I know … been a while since I posted a new recipe. Been dealing with a family emergency. So, I deserve a little slack. 😉 To make up for it, I’m giving you a very tasty dish that really compliments just about any main course … beef, chicken, pork, fish, you name it!

INGREDIENTS

4 Medium-Large Red Potatoes
2-3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Garlic, minced (approx. 4 cloves)
1 Tablespoon Fresh Basil, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper To Taste

RECIPE

Preheat oven to 420°. Scrub and rinse potatoes. Then, cut them into bite sized wedges. LEAVE THE SKIN ON!

Mince garlic and chop basil.

In a large bowl, place potatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well until all ingredients are evenly combined.

Evenly coat a large cookie sheet or baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Evenly distribute them, trying to keep the skin side down. Place into oven.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until potatoes become golden brown along the edges (These probably could have used another 5 minutes, but everyone was starving and all the other dishes were ready 🙂 ). Remove from oven, and immediately drizzle balsamic vinegar over the potatoes. The vinegar should begin to sizzle and caramelize. Toss the potatoes until they are completely basted in the vinegar.

Serve potatoes with other dishes of choice. Pictured here with Steak ala Cave and a steamed artichoke.

HINT: Got leftover taters? Just cover and refrigerate until morning. Then, in a skillet, saute some onions and minced garlic in olive oil and, when onions are translucent, add the leftover potatoes. Continue to cook until taters are thoroughly warmed. BOOM … now you have some incredible home-style Breakfast Potatoes!

Prep Time = 10 minutes
Cook Time = 30-35 minutes
Serves 4-6

©2010 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at https://cavemancooking.wordpress.com authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Shrimp Avocado Rolls

This recipe won Post of the Day for 1/19/10!

Thought Shrimp Rolls were only for restaurant dining? Think again!

INGREDIENTS

8 Medium-Large Shrimp
1/2 Avocado, ripened
2 Medium Carrots
2 Medium Celery Stalks
2-3 Green Onions
2 Tbsp. Fresh Chopped Basil
4 Egg Roll Wrappers
Vegetable Oil

RECIPE

Rinse and drain shrimp. Remove tails, shells, and veins. Re-rinse and drain. Cover and refrigerate until ready for cooking.

Sliver carrots, celery and onions. Chop Basil. Slice avocado. Set aside.

Next, set up your prep station with a prep plate, another plate dusted with corn starch, a cup of water and, of course, all your ingredients.

Place egg roll wrapper on prep plate and put 1/4 of all ingredients onto wrapper.

Fold one horizontal-to-food edge of wrapper over ingredients. Then, using 3-4 fingers, gently pull folded side back towards ingredients, making sure wrapper is snug against them.

Next, fold over both open ends of roll up to the point where the ingredients are. Roll the wrapper with ingredients toward the opposite horizontal edge. Just before reaching the end of the wrapper, run a wet finger along the edge of wrapper, then continue to finish rolling to the end. Lightly pinch the edge to the roll so that it doesn’t flop open. Place onto plate with corn starch. Repeat process until all rolls are made.

You can either deep fry or pan fry your Shrimp Avocado Rolls. Either way, heat your oil to about 375°. If pan frying, make sure you have enough oil in the pan to cover at least half of the roll. When the bottom half turns golden brown, flip over the rolls and continue until evenly cooked on both sides.

When done, remove rolls from oil and place onto paper towels to absorb excess oil. Allow to cool several minutes before serving.
HINT #1: Cut rolls in half with a sharp knife. They will cool quicker that way and won’t burn your mouth if you get have an unexpected hot-pocket of oil inside the roll.

Serve with your favorite Asian dipping sauce. These were served these with a spicy Plum Sauce – just 4 tablespoons of store-bought Plum Sauce combined with a heaping teaspoon of Ground Chili Sauce.
HINT #2: You can serve this as an appetizer, or plate with some Asian noodles to make it part of your main course.

Prep Time = 20 minutes
Cook Time = 10 minutes
Serves 2-4

©2010 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Freezer Food Fest #8 & #9

It’s official! We’re moving!! So, I have been given a “request” by the Cavewoman to empty the freezer before we hit the road. The pressure is on!

Freezer Food Fest #8

Some folks may call this cheating. I call it full disclosure. I was forced, by overwhelming Cave-family demand, to use the same recipe on two consecutive editions of Freezer Food Fest. That’s right! The Garlic Shrimp in Creamy Tomato Sauce used on the Florentyna’s linguini in F3 #8 was such a hit, it was brought out for an encore performance in the 9th installment on some of their Ravioli. The family even wanted a do-over of the Sauteed Yellow Squash that went so well next to the Black Linguini.
I admit it, I “caved” under the pressure. But, who am I to deny my family their deepest desires. Besides, shrimp and yellow squash were on major sale at our local Vons. 😉 So, just two nights removed from one version of this meal, we went for another go of it. Though, I just had to throw in a twist. Instead of the linguini from our first rendition, I went with a pair of Ravioli choices: Black & White Striped Lobster Ravioli and some Portobello Mushroom Raviloli.

Freezer Food Fest #9

At first, the Cavekids were a bit uncertain about the shroom version. However, after their hesitant beginnings, they were mowing them down almost as fast at the Lobster filled versions they were annihilating like a fryer chicken in a Piranha tank.
While I was quite pleased about their love for this dish, it was their reaction to the squash that has blown me away. The Cavegirl was heard to say, “I looooooove squash!”. Caveboy was too busy chewing to say anything intelligible.
I guess I kind of killed two proverbial birds with one stone here. Two different pasta genres with the same gravy. I am not aware of any Freezer Food Fest rules that prevent me from using the same recipe on more than one dish. I wasn’t cheating, being lazy (though, that is my nature ;)), or forcing my family into a redux. Just responding to popular demand, and happy to be taking two more steps in this icy odyssey.

©2010 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Garlic Shrimp in Creamy Tomato Sauce

This a warm, savory dish that the whole family will devour!

INGREDIENTS

3/4 Pound Raw Shrimp
1 15 oz. Can Tomato Sauce
3 Tbsp. Sour Cream
4 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. Minced Garlic
1 Tbsp. Fresh Chopped Basil
1 Large Tomato
1/2 tsp Red Crushed Pepper
Salt & Pepper to tatse

RECIPE

Rinse and drain shrimp. Remove tails, shells, and veins. Re-rinse and drain. Cover and refrigerate until ready for cooking.

Mince garlic, chop tomatoes and basil. Set aside.

In a sauce pan, heat 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil. When ready add 1 tablespoon each of garlic and basil. Saute for about one minute.

Reduce flame and add tomato sauce.

When warmed, whisk in sour cream. Add red crushed pepper. Salt & pepper to taste. Allow to simmer on very low flame.
HINT: I like to substitute garlic salt for the plain variety.

While sauce continues to warm, add remaining oil to a large skillet and saute remaining garlic about one minute. Add shrimp to pan and saute until just cooked.

Reduce flame to very low and stir in sauce. Reduce slightly.

Just before serving, gently fold tomatoes into sauce. Just long enough to warm the tomatoes.

Serve over your favorite pasta. Pictured here over Florentyna’s Black Linguini along with a side of Sauteed Yellow Squash.

I was going to show you a couple of pictures of the Cavekids enjoying this dish. But, nothing attests to their overwhelming approval of this recipe better than this ;):

Prep Time = 15 minutes
Cook Time = 15 minutes
Serves 4-6

©2010 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

Creamy Pine Nut Pasta Sauce

Put this one together on the fly. Turned out to be a real crowd pleaser!

INGREDIENTS

1/2 Stick of Butter
3 Tbsp Artichoke Infused Oil (you can use the oil-based liquid from marinated artichoke hearts)
3 Large Garlic Cloves
2-3 Tbsp Pine Nuts
2 Tbsp Sour Cream
2 Tbsp White Wine
1 tsp Dried Basil

RECIPE

Mince garlic. Set aside.
BTW, is it just me or is there nothing better than the smell of fresh chopped garlic?

In a medium sauce pan melt butter, add oil. Saute garlic and basil.
Then, whisk in sour cream. Add wine and reduce slightly until creamy texture desired is reached. Don’t overdo it! (I sound like my Mother, don’t I?) Add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in pine nuts until warmed – about a minute.

Serve over ravioli or fettucini noodles. Pictured here with Florentyna’s Fall Harvest Squash Round Ravioli.

Prep Time = 5 minutes
Cook Time = 10 minutes
Serves 3-4

©2009 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.