Cavey’s Chicken Ziti

Been so long sice I answered the bell for a new recipe, I’m feeling a lot like Ferris Bueller … “Caveman? Caveman? Caveman?”. But, I am coming out of my self-imposed hiatus with a true winner – my baked chicken ziti. Super easy to make; incredibly delicious; freezable for future meals; and, with Fall setting in, it is a meal that will stick to any Neanderthal’s ribs. What else could you want? For those that replied, “You to make it for me.”, dinner is at 6:30pm. 😉

INGREDIENTS

6 Cups Cavey’s Italian Sauce
1 Pound Ziti
2 Boneless Chicken Breasts
6-7 Slices Provolone Cheese
2 Cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1.5 TBS Shredded Parmesan Cheese
1.5 TBS Dried Italian Herbs
1 TBS Minced Garlic
1 TBS Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper to taste

RECIPE

Prepare 6 ups worth of Cavey’s Italian Sauce and set aside. Shred mozzarella cheese and set aside.

Cook the Ziti according to directions on package. Be sure to cook it “a la denté” … slightly underdone, as it will continue to cooking when we get to the baking stage. Drain well.
NOTE: If you can’t find Ziti, Penné, Rigatoni, or other short pasta tubes will work just fine.

Return Ziti to pot, add 1/4 to 1/2 of a cup of the Italian sauce, and gently stir in evenly. Set aside.

Cut chicken into large bite-sized pieces. In a large skillet, warm olive oil, quickly sauté garlic, add chicken, Italian herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until almost done.
NOTE: Don’t overcook or it will get dry during baking.

Add 1/4 to 1/2 of a cup of the Italian sauce and continue to sauté for another minute. Then, remove from heat and set aside.
HINT: Once you have your sauce simmering, most of the remaining steps above can be done simultaneously. It’s a real time saver!

Take a large, deep baking dish butter it well. Place a layer of half the pasta evenly into the dish. Evenly distribute half the cooked chicken and cover with half the remaining sauce. Completely cover with slices of Provolone cheese.

Now, evenly distribute the remainder of the pasta, chicken and sauce (in that order). Cover with Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.

Preheat oven to 350°, cover baking dish, and place into oven for 20 minutes. Then, uncover baking dish and place back into the oven for another 10 minutes.

Remove from oven when cheese begins to bubble and the edges are golden brown. Let stand for 5-10 minutes (Yes, I realize it’s difficult to not just dig in. But, you need to let it set up).

Spoon into plates and serve with garlic bread and a salad. YUMMMMMMMMM!

HINT: For a vegetarian version, just remove the chicken from the equation, or add Gardein meatless chicken strips, instead.
HINT #2: This is a great dish to make ahead of time. You can either refrigerate it unbaked for up to 3 days, or freeze unbaked for up to 3 months. Just be sure to cover it well.

Prep Time = 45 minutes
Cooking Time = 30 minutes
Serves 6-8

©2017 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.

Week 4 Winner!

Congratulations to Dana Rodriguez! She is the week 4 winner in our Summer Grilling Review & Receive Series. Cricket will be receiving a Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster with Pan which we reviewed last week.

Didn’t win? Don’t fret! We will be reviewing and giving away another great grilling accessory from Broil King on Monday (8/31)! Be sure to check back to read the review and enter for your chance to win it.

REVIEW: Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster

This is the fourth of five reviews & giveaways we are conducting as part of the Summer Grilling Review & Receive Series. At the end of this report are all the details of how you can win the item we are field testing this week. Be sure to read the rules.

Another staple of the Cave people’s menu is our Juicy Beer Can Chicken. We love how a half-full beer can stuffed up the derrière of a pullet slathered in spices can produce some of the tastiest, tenderest, toothsome farm fowl we’ve ever eaten. The outside is crispy and, if you add some wood chips into a smoker box, full of barbecue flavor. While the inside remains juicy, succulent, and scrumptious.

Though, the process of making this delectable dish can be fraught with pitfalls. If you don’t have a beer can chicken stand (which can be a pain in the butt to clean), the whole thing can easily tip over spilling beer into your grill and ruining your main course. You also need to remember to place a drip pan under the bird, or your grill will be filled with renderings and subject to a major flareup, or even full on fire. Plus, removing the can from the bird can be a real challenge, as can cleanly removing the drip pan from the BBQ. That’s where the Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster with pan promises to be a major step up in the world of suds-steamed poultry.

When you remove the chicken roaster from the packaging you, once again, immediately notice the solid construction of the heavy-duty stainless steel Broil King seems to utilize in all of the grilling racks, roasters and tools they make. Along with the base pan and beer can holder, you’ll find instructions which include a beer can chicken recipe and a note that this grilling accessory is washable by hand or machine. Of course, we opted for the hand wash option when we were done putting the Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster to the test and found that it was easily brought back to a pristine state with warm soapy water and a soft scrub sponge.

Next, the pan and beer holder must be threaded together. According to some early reviews of this roaster on the Broil King website the screw was prone to snap off if tightened too much. While we feel that those individuals probably tried to lock it down tighter than a lug nut on an Indy car, Broil King claims to have had some manufacturing issues with that part that have now been corrected (they even offered to send them the new version, gratis). To be sure, we tightened it down pretty snug and had no snap off. However, since you will be removing the beer diffuser each time for cleaning, and the bird shouldn’t be spinning in a counter-clockwise rotation while cooking, it really doesn’t need to be overly secured.

One of the things we really like about the Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster is the fact that you can pour your brew (or wine, or juice, or …) directly into the diffuser. With all the health concerns these days about aluminum leaching into our bodies, the stainless steel beer holder no longer makes that issue a worry. The venting at the top of the holder also helps disperse the steam more evenly inside of the hen. We used to poke holes into the top half of the beer can to achieve the same result … a step we no longer need to take. That said, because of the heavyweight steel employed, we found it was important to make sure your liquid was at least room temp when added in order to get the steam going in a timely manner. Also, any chicken under 4.5 pounds will probably have some problem fitting over the diffuser. We used a 4.75 pounder here.

Another great feature is being able to load the pan with fresh fruits to ad flavor complexity to your fowl. For our test we added Fuji apple slices and black grapes. The entire thing was easily loaded into our Broil King Baron 440 Grill, which readily could have accommodated another of the loaded 9.5″ square roaster pans over the two center burners – turned off for indirect cooking. A mere 80 minutes later, the chicken was roasted to perfection, easily removed from the grill with the oversized 10 millimeter handles, and then effortlessly separated from the beer holder. It came out so moist and flavorful the Cavekids couldn’t eat it fast enough.

So, if you are a fan of beer can chicken, or would like to give this delectable dish a try, the Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster is a grilling tool you will certainly appreciate. The ease it adds to the process, alone, makes it worth the price of admission. Add in the health benefits, eco-friendliness, and amazing results and this Broil King grilling accessory has earned a spot on your BBQ tool roster.

MSRP – $46.95, seen online as low as $42

Cave Club Rating: 5 Clubs

Cave Club Scale
5 Clubs = The Missing Link
4 Clubs = Rock Solid
3 Clubs = Better Than Sharp Stick
2 Clubs = Not Fully Evolved
1 Club = Should Be Extinct

WANT TO WIN A BROIL KING IMPERIAL™ CHICKEN ROASTER?
This Friday 8/28/2015, one lucky person will win their own sample of the Broil King Imperial™ Chicken Roaster! To enter, you’ll have to read the above review here on the C3 blog and comment below with the words “I WANT ONE” by 11:59:59PM PDT this Thursday 8/27/2015.
Want additional entries? It’s simple! Gain an additional entry when you “Like” Caution: Caveman Cooking on Facebook, and another each when you follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You’ll also gain another entry when you “Like” Broil King on Facebook, and another each when you follow them on Twitter and Instagram. Plus, one more entry by “Sharing” our Facebook link to this week’s review of the Broil King Q-Lite™. Of course, if you already like or follow us on those sites you will automatically receive those entries … just let us know your names on those sites in your comment below. That’s 8 total entries up for grabs to give you a a better shot of winning. Be sure to read the contest rules.
Good luck!
THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED! See who won.

©2015 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This review 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.

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.

Cavey Cali Cheesesteak

This recipe won Post of the Day for 5/13/10!

A bit of a California twist to the classic Cavey Cheesteak. It’s just as tasty and you probably won’t even notice that it’s a little healthier. 😉

INGREDIENTS

6-8 Ounces Cooked Chicken, preferably Juicy Beer Can Chicken
3 Medium-Small Baby Bella Mushrooms
2 Thin Slices Sweet Onion
1/4 Medium-Small Red Bell Pepper
1/4 Medium-Small Avocado
1-2 Slices of Cheese
1 Tbsp Oil
1 Tbsp Mayonnaise (we use the Light variety)
1 Fresh Sandwich Roll
Salt & Pepper to taste

RECIPE

Seed, devein, and chop the red pepper. Rinse, lightly scrub, and then chop mushrooms. Chop onions and slice avocado. Set aside.

Cut leftover chicken into one and two-bite pieces. Both white and dark meat are okay. Set aside.

Over a medium-high flame, heat oil on non-stick griddle or in large skillet. Add all veggies and salt & pepper to taste.

Since the chicken is already cooked, and you don’t want to end up over-cooking and drying it out, let the veggies cook a bit before adding the chicken. Just before you are going to flip them the first time is usually a good time to do it.

While everything is cooking, get your roll ready. Butterfly slice the roll, being careful not to cut all the way through. If it’s super fresh like the one pictured here there’s no need to heat the roll up. If it could use a little help, place it on the griddle and quickly heat both sides. Evenly spread mayo, place avocado slices on bottom side, and set aside on plate.
HINT: Choosing the right roll is critical for a really good cheesesteak sandwich. If possible, skip the pre-packaged rolls in the store and get a good, fresh-baked Amoroso roll, Artisan roll, or French Roll. It does make a huge difference!

Just before chicken is ready to come off the grill (you just want to get it hot) add cheese slices. Allow to begin melting before removing from griddle.
NOTE #1: Although we used Swiss Cheese here, any number of cheeses would work well with this sammie. Experiment! Though, the Swiss is gooooood!! 🙂

When ready, remove cheese topped chicken with a spatula and evenly distribute on roll.

With the spatula, remove veggies from griddle and evenly distribute on top of chicken. There! You’ve done it!! Enjoy!!!

NOTE #2: I was planning on taking a picture of the Cavekids unabashedly stuffing their faces with this dish, but I was too busy stuffing my own face to notice that they were done before I even got halfway through mine.
On a side note, the Caveboy called “Dibs!” on the remaining leftover chicken so that I could make him another one of these tomorrow! 😆

Prep Time = 10 minutes
Cook Time = 8 minutes
Serves 1

©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.

Mom’s Club Meals On Wheels

Last night, the Cavewoman and I teamed up to cook a homemade meal for Yaeera, a local mom of two who had just given birth to her third last week, and her brood. We did this as part of a program our local Mom’s Club chapter does for families with newborns. Each night a different family volunteers to cook for them and then delivers it to them around dinner time.
The funny part is that we just met this new-for-the-third-time mom a few weeks ago when she responded to an email blast from my wife to any local mom’s who wanted the inflatable bouncy the Cavekids had outgrown. Yaeera and I ended up chatting for almost an hour and really hit it off. So, when the Cavewoman half-jokingly asked, “Want to make dinner for your new best friend?”, I was totally game!
READ MORE >>

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

Tasty Enchiladas

Back by popular demand, the Cavewoman returns to share her tasty Cheese Enchilada recipe. Don’t worry fellow carnivores, we’ll still show you how to turn them into awesome Chicken Enchiladas, too!

INGREDIENTS

1 12 oz. package Queso Fresco
2 Cups finely shredded Chedder Cheese
1 16 oz. Can of Corncorn
1 28 oz. Can Enchilada Sauce
12-16 Flour Tortillas
3 Serrano Peppers, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil

RECIPE

Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large, flat non-stick fry pan and lightly fry tortillas. Pat dry with a paper towel. If pan dries out after 5 or 6 tortillas add another tablespoon of oil.
I don’t like them too brown, just lightly cooked. Frying them is a must though, I tried it once skipping this step and it was horrible. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for healthy meals, but sometimes a little grease is a good thing.

Make sure the Queso Fresco is culture pasteurized … otherwise you’ll be playing Russian Roulette with your digestive system. Crumble Queso Fresco into a large bowl.

Mix in the rest of the dry ingredients and then combine with 1/3 of can of the sauce.

The next step is very important. Make sure you have an adorable sous chef! If you don’t have one, I highly recommend getting one. 😉

If you want to do the meat-lover’s version of this recipe add some chicken to the cheese mixture and combine well. My hubby, the Caveman, likes to cook up one of his Juicy Beer Can Chickens and add about 1.5 to 2 cups of it, shredded. He swears by it but, of course, I just skip this step and keep it veggie-friendly.

I always forget, but use a nonstick spray before doing this next step. You’ll be happy later that you did. If you forget like I did, it makes for very messy enchilada’s when you go to scoop them out. They still rock, but they just aren’t as pretty. After you spray, coat the bottom of the large baking dish with some sauce.

Place a mound of the mixture in the center of the tortilla. “Testing” the mixture is a must at this point. I like it almost as much raw as I do cooked. It’s amazing, no need to be patient, nibble away. There’s plenty. 😉

Squeeze lightly but firmly while you are rolling. Yikes, my hands look BONEY!!

Place in pan seam side down and cover them with the remaining sauce. Cook them at 350 covered with foil for 35 minutes. If you like melted cheese on top, uncover at 30 minutes and put more cheese on top.

We like diced up Serrano’s on ours. These are homegrown and so good. But, we have more than we know what to do with! If you have any good Serrano Pepper recipes, please send them our way. We could use them!!

Even though these are Cheese Enchiladas here, the Cavedude found a way to beef ’em up with some Carne Asada and Rockin’ Guac.
You may think I’m crazy, but my favorite thing about making this dish (besides nibbling on the uncooked filling) is having leftovers for breakfast the next day. And then more for lunch. And, perhaps, even more for dessert! I just can’t get enough of these … yes, I need help. 😉

Prep Time = 15 minutes
Cook Time = 35 minutes
Serves 6-8

©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 #11

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!

After being down for the count for nearly a week with a nice little bug passed on from one of my walking petri dishes, also known as my daughter, I was itchin’ to get back in the kitchen. Plus, I was long overdue for making another dent in this icy odyssey that only has a few weeks to go. As I was digging through the freezer, I found something I had bought for my Veggie wife to try after her obvious pangs of jealousy over not being able to indulge the last time I made my Easy Chicken Parm. Though, as I pulled it from it’s chilly sanctuary, I realized I had bought the wrong variety. Instead of the plain original MorningStar Chik Patties I had inadvertently picked up the Parmesan Ranch. I was afraid they might be too seasoned … But, these would have to do.
I whipped up a batch of Italian Sauce, dressed up the chicken breasts for the Parm, and got ready to prepare the faux-chicken using the “Oven Method” described on the box. My plan was to get them ready to get sauced and cheesed when I did the same to the real chicken the Cavekids and I would be eating. Surprisingly, everything went perfectly! About 5 minutes after completing the last steps I pulled it all out of the oven, served it all up with some spaghetti, and a nice salad the Cavewoman put together.

Vegetarian Chicken Parm

As usual, the short-people devoured their plates with the sounds of chewing being almost the only thing audible from their sauce-covered faces. The best sound, however, was my wife getting her first taste of Chicken Parm since before her 12th birthday and absolutely loving it. Though, after several bites she did note that the Parmesan Ranch Chik Patties were a bit salty. Ahhhhhh … bummer! My purchasing faux pas had ended up coming back to haunt me after all. I was quickly heartened, though, when my wife said she’d be eager to try it again with the original version of the product. She still somehow managed to “muddle” her way through the salty version.
Regardless, we all had a great dinner together (the first time this week we all sat together for dinner), and I was able to score another notch in my ice pick. Best of all, I also managed to make a couple extra “real” chicken breasts that will be perfect for leftover Chicken Parm Sandwiches. Guess what I’m having for lunch today?!?! 😉

©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.

Freezer Food Fest #3

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!

As I’m rummaging through the freezer to find some skinless, boneless breasts to make Chicken Panang (Thai Red Curry in Coconut Milk) I come across a bag of frozen French Green Beans from Trader Joe’s, and the light bulb over my head goes on, singeing a bald spot onto the top of my head (okay, so the bald spot was already there :(). I figure these would probably go great in a Panang and I could “kill two frozen birds with one wok”. So, I decided to forego my usual ingredients of peas and red bell peppers for the beans-with-an-accent and went to work on a meal that is one of my favorites, but hadn’t yet been tried by the Cavekids nor was it (curry) on the Cavewoman’s list of faves. But, in being true to my stubborn Taurus lineage, I trudged forward.

Chicken Panang

I sauteed the curry paste, browned the tofu for the veggie-version I would make for my herbivore wife, cooked the chicken and added the rest of the ingredients including the Haricot Verts. The smells emanating from the kitchen definitely piqued everyone’s curiosity. But, upon first glance the Caveboy’s reaction was “What’s that sauce???”, said with a keen feeling of dread. But when the first bites were taken, all reservations were replaced by comments like “Wow, dad! That’s good!!”. Even the Tofu version met with sincere approval from the Cavewoman who found it “Absolutely delicious!”.

Tofu Panang

While I’m really happy that everyone ended up loving this round of Freezer Food Fest, I am slightly bummed. Now, that the whole family likes Panang with French Green Beans there won’t be much in the way of leftovers for moi! 😉 That’s okay, though, because we will be having this dish more often, now that it has received the Cavehold Seal of Approval.

©2009 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.