Monthly Archives: June 2021

Poultry, Recipes

Quick to Make Malibu Chicken

Photo: Malibu Chicken
Better than a restaurant’s version!

I recently ordered Malibu Chicken at a restaurant that was noted for it. To be frank, it disappointed me. The skinny chicken piece tasted bland and dry, even the breading brought little flavor to the meal. I figured it wasn’t that hard to make and I could substitute a low carb breading pretty easily.

I found this recipe at Low Carb Maven’s website and made a couple of changes to it. She used crushed pork rinds for the breading, which is okay, but my experience with them in the past was that they came out soggy. I substituted with an almond flour topping. It also tends to get a little too moist from the chicken, but I think it tastes better than the pork rinds. You can use whichever works best for you or eliminate the breading altogether. It makes a delicious chicken dish without it.

I buy large chicken breasts, usually about a half pound each, so one breast easily makes two servings. If you use smaller breasts, figure on one breast per person. I also use a thicker slice of ham on it than the original recipe stated. I like to taste my ham. I didn’t have Swiss cheese, so I substituted slices of Edam cheese. I think any similar cheese will work in the flavor profile.

Malibu Chicken

2 chicken breasts (6-8 ounces each)
salt and pepper
4 pieces deli ham (1/4-inch slices)
4 slices of Swiss cheese

Malibu Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1-1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard (or Dijon or a combo)
1/2 tablespoon sugar substitute or Sugar-Free Honey

Crumb Topping
1/2 cup Almond Flour or finely chopped almonds
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoons Granulated Garlic
1/2 teaspoon Onion Flakes
pinch salt
pinch Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C) degrees and place rack in the middle of the oven.

Pat the chicken breasts dry with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. Cut the breasts in half so you have four about equal-sized pieces.

In a bowl, mix almond flour, parmesan, garlic, onion flakes, and salt and pepper. Sprinkle 1/2 of the crumb mixture in the baking dish about where each breast will be placed.

In a small bowl, add the mayonnaise, mustard, and sweetener and stir until blended. Reserve about 1/2 of the sauce for dipping.

Use a pastry brush to spread the sauce over each chicken breast on one side. Place the coated side of the chicken on top of the crumbs. Now, brush the top of the chicken with the mayonnaise sauce. Sprinkle the rest of the crumb mixture over the top of the chicken breasts.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Poke the chicken with a fork to make sure any juices are clear or test with an instant-read thermometer to see it reads 165 degrees F (75 C.) Remove the chicken from the oven and add a slice of ham and cheese on top of each piece. Return to the oven for about 5 minutes until the cheese has melted.

Makes 4 servings.

Main Dish, Mexican/Spanish Recipes, Poultry, Recipes

Delicious Enchiladas with Zucchini and Chicken

I grew up with Mexican food in El Paso, Texas, so it’s one of my favorite things to eat. Often, I find my homemade is more like the food I ate as a child and certainly, it’s like the meals my mother and grandmother made at home. Unless you’re starting completely from scratch with making the chile sauces and tortillas, it’s also easy to put together.

Luckily, several companies have started making low carb flour tortillas and wraps. that make it easier to make great tasting meals like these lovely enchiladas. The sauces have been around for decades and you have a wide selection to chose from made by various companies.

For my mild chicken and zucchini enchiladas, I chose a mild green sauce and instead of green chiles, I used a frozen combination of bell peppers and onions. You can start with fresh if you prefer. Confession here, I used the frozen because I didn’t have fresh in the house. My technique is a little different than many recipes since I prefer to mix part of my sauce with the chicken filling. This recipe also uses a bit Mexican crema to make a creamier filling.

You can make these vegetarian easily by increasing the zucchini and/or adding other vegetables like butternut squash, crookneck squash, cauliflower, or kohlrabi to replace the chicken. Hatch Green Chile Enchilada sauce is vegetarian and vegan, but check other brands to be sure they don’t have a chicken broth in them.

If you’re not crazy about spicy food, you might enjoy these as they are light and tasty without the burn.

Chicken and Zucchini Enchiladas

1 cup Zucchini, sliced and quartered
2 cups cooked Chicken, shredded
1 cup Bell Peppers and Onions mixed (frozen)
1 tablespoon Oil
1 15-oz can Green Enchilada Sauce
1/4 cup Mexican Crema
1 teaspoon or more Garlic Herb Seasoning
1/2 cup crumbled Queso Fresca
1 1/2 cups Cheddar Jack Cheese or 4 Cheese Mexican
8 Low Carb Flour Tortillas (6 inch)

In a large skillet, heat the oil, then add the thawed and drained peppers and onions. Cook for about two minutes, then add the chicken and zucchini. Cook for a few minutes, then add one cup enchilada sauce, crema and garlic herb seasoning. Mix well and cook until bubbly hot. Add in the Queso Fresca.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F.) Spray a 14″x9″ baking pan with cooking spray. If you have an oven proof skillet, you can mix the chicken mixture above it, then transfer it to a large bowl and use the skillet to bake the enchiladas.

To assemble the enchiladas, take one tortilla and fill it with 1/8 of the meat mixture. Sprinkle a little cheddar cheese down the middle and fold one side over the other to make a roll. Place in the pan or skillet. Continue to roll each tortilla in the same way until all eight are filled. If using a skillet, you can get up to six across the middle with one at the top and bottom of the pan. In a baking pan, you should have enough room to put them side-by-side. Spoon additional enchilada sauce over the top of each roll, then sprinkle cheese over the entire top.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the cheese is melted and lightly browned. Serve one enchilada per person along with a salad for a low carb meal. If you’re really hungry, two won’t blow your carb count.

Makes 8 enchiladas.

Product Review

Product Review: Natural Heaven Hearts of Palm Spaghetti

For people on a low-carb diet, pasta is often a banned or use-very-seldom food. Over the years, low carb and Keto practitioners have found several substitutes for the popular starch. What is Italian food without it? Asian food also uses a starch noodle, frequently made from rice, but also flour, in many of their dishes.

So, we’ve turned to cauliflower to substitute for macaroni, rice, and potatoes in our meals. It does an admirable job most of the time. Likewise, spaghetti squash, zucchini, and butternut squash have helped fill the void when you don’t eat pasta. Some companies are even developing low carb pasta from carb-reduced flour. More on those another time.

When I first saw an ad for Natural Heaven’s Hearts of Palm pasta, I did a double-take. But I ordered three varieties to try. The hearts of palm spaghetti comes in a sealed package, ready-to-use. Each package provides two-and-a-half servings. I always wonder about that odd packaging, but I’m guessing the producers look more at weight than servings when they package. For the record, this is 9 oz. of pasta. Each serving is 1/2 cup. The key nutrition values per serving are: calories=25, sodium=19mg, carbohydrates=4g, dietary fiber=2g, and protein=1g. The net carbs per serving=2g. That’s a great number!

Palm core or heart.
Photo By mhoenig – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29408125

These palms are harvested and prepared in Ecuador in a sustainable manner. They insure three stems grow replacing each one cut. The core of the palm stem is the heart, which can be cut, cooked, and eaten.

Hearts of Palm Spaghetti with Meatballs

Now to the taste test. I made a quick throw-together spaghetti using 1/2 cup of premade pasta sauce and premade mozzarella-sausage meatballs from the grocery. I pan cooked and slightly over-browned the meatballs, then broke them into smaller pieces. I added the pasta sauce and a little water and cooked the meatballs for about five minutes in the sauce.

Then I opened the pasta and slid it into the pan, carefully separating the strands with a spoon, so I didn’t break too many. The pasta is moist but doesn’t need to be drained before using.

Following the directions on the container, I turned my stove’s heat to medium and let it cook another four minutes, often stirring, to heat the pasta. Following my tradition, I sampled one noodle. It tasted similar to a regular strand, and the texture is like al dente pasta.

Once I served the dish, I added Parmesan cheese on top and a side salad and had a very tasty meal served on my fancy paper plates. It is very much like regular spaghetti with the sauce and cheese since most of the flavor comes from the sauce ingredients.

Bottom line, it’s a very good substitute for spaghetti in texture, color, and taste. Be adventurous and try it with your favorite spaghetti ingredients.

Cost-wise, at $4.99 a package through Netrition.com, it’s not too expensive. But given that it’s only 2-1/2 servings, it’s certainly higher than a spaghetti squash or a couple of zucchinis. Still, when you want a more authentic looking and tasting pasta, it’s worth it.