Jalapeno Pineapple Chicken

This combo of flavors is actually one that a customer put together at the store, she said she was going to use it on fish. But as my husband prefers chicken...

Oh my. This chicken was actually a breeze to make. Don't be worried by roasting a chicken, if you don't have the time or the inclination, buy a rotisserie one, cut it up, brush it with the Jalapeno Olive Oil and bake it for twenty minutes or so while you finish up the rest of this dish. I like the bigger flavor you get when you roast it yourself, but nothing beats a rotisserie chicken when you are in a hurry!

And there are much more authentic and, well, better Sticky Rice recipes out there, but this is something thrown together in a pinch, using regular minute rice. We were in a rush.

Jalapeno Pineapple Chicken

1 fryer chicken, cut up and roasted

2 tbsp Jalapeno Olive Oil

2 tbsp Pineapple Balsamic

1 tsp minced tarragon

Garnish:

1 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened

Slivered almonds

Whole tarragon leaves

Lime wedges

Preheat the oven to 350.°

Rub the chicken down with the Jalapeno Olive Oil and the tarragon. Roast for 20 minutes, lightly covered. 

Brush with the Pineapple Balsamic. Garnish with slivered almonds, shredded coconut and tarragon leaves.

Pineapple Sticky Rice

2 cups instant rice

1 1/2 cup full fat coconut milk, canned

2 tsp Jalapeno Olive Oil

1/4 cup chopped pineapple

1/2 pineapple juice

1/4 cup Pineapple Balsamic

pinch of Thai Ginger Sea Salt

1 tsp minced tarragon

Bring the water and coconut mixture to a boil in a medium saucepan with the Oil. Add the tarragon leaves and rice. Cook according to the package directions. 

When you remove it from the heat to let it sit, add in the balsamic vinegar the reserved pineapples and a sprinkle of sea salt.

Top with sliced almonds and coconut shreds

Creamy Chicken Salad

One of the simplest recipes I've probably ever made. It's was a great hit anyway!


Creamy Chicken Salad

2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup cubed mangos
1 tbsp White Pineapple Balsamic
2 tbsp Blood Orange Olive Oil
2-3 tbsp pickled jalapenos

Whisk the yogurt, olive oil and balsamic together in a large bowl. Fold in the rest of the ingredients and serve.

Shrimp Avocado Sandwich

I made a few more shrimp than I needed when I made the lemon pasta earlier this week. I suppose they aren't really extra. There are never extra shrimp. There are just reserved shrimp. 

So these reserved shrimp needed something creamy, and crunchy to pair with. At the grocery store, a nice display of avocados decided the day.

Shrimp Avocado Sandwich

for 1 sandwich

6-8 shrimp, cooked

1/4 avocado, sliced

1 long roll

2 slices provolone

a couple ribs romaine lettuce

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp Pineapple Balsamic

2 tbsp Spanish Olive Oil

Slice your roll in half and brush with the olive oil. Toss under a boiler for a couple minutes until it gets nice and brown. I used my toaster oven and that worked just fine. 

Whisk the mayonnaise with the Pineapple Balsamic and spread over the toasted bread. If you want melted cheese, assemble everything but arrange the cheese on top and stick back under the broiler. I just wanted to eat it, so I folded it up and did just that.

Perfect crispy bread. Nice creamy avocado. Mmmm, shrimp.

Tropical Chicken Salad

Our In Store Special this month is the Blood Orange Olive Oil and the White Pineapple Balsamic. I thought that I would make something with them to go with that!

This salad is fantastic. I've been enjoying it for a couple days now. And I will definitely make it again!

Tropical Chicken Salad

1 cup cooked, shredded chicken

1 small can mandarin orange slices

1 small can chopped pineapple

1 can water chestnuts

1 tbsp Blood Orange Olive Oil

1 tbsp White Pineapple Balsamic

1 pinch powdered ginger

a handful of cashews

chow mein noodles

Drain the fruit and the water chestnuts and toss everything together. If you are not serving it right away, leave the chow mein noodles off. They can get soggy pretty quickly.

If you don't like water chestnuts, I think that chopped celery would be very nice in this as well!

No Meat Chili and Pineapple Cornbread

I hope everyone had a safe and happy Turkey Day.

My day was fun, but my families celebration combined with the cooking I've been doing for you guys, I am turkey-ed out!

To get completely away from turkey, I made this no meat chili. I'm going to show you some good things to do with leftovers this coming week, you could even put shredded turkey into this. But right now, turkey is out and beans are in!

No Meat Chili

2 cans black beans
1 can red kidney beans
1 can chopped carrots,
         or 2 fresh carrots
1 can, diced new potatoes,
          or 1 large baking potato, diced
1 cup chopped or crushed pineapple in juice
1/2 cup juice from the can of pineapple
1 large onion, diced
3-4 tbsp Taco, Southwest, Jerk or Wings seasoning blends
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
2-4 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Jalapeno Olive Oil
1 cup vegetable stock

Heat the Olive Oil on medium heat in a large stock pot. Add in the onion and saute 5-7 minutes, until they start to become translucent. Add in the potatoes and the carrot and one tbsp of your seasoning blend. Saute 2-3 minutes.

Rinse and drain all your beans. Add them to the pot along with the vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and stir occasionally. Cook for 10 minutes. Taste. Add the rest of your seasonings blend one tbsp at a time along with 2 tbsp of the brown sugar. Simmer 5-10 mins. Taste again. If still too spicy, add a little more brown sugar. If too sweet, add more spices. The spices will intensify a bit as you cook.

Add the pineapple bits, juice and tomatoes and simmer 1- 1 1/2 hours. Sauce will thicken and turn darker.

Serve with Pineapple Cornbread (recipe follows)

Pineapple Cornbread

Take one package cornbread mix and empty it into a bowl. If the directions call for water or milk, substitute an equal amount of crushed or chopped pineapple in juice, plus 2 tbsp of the juice.

Add in eggs if it calls for it, also 2 tbsp Jalapeno Olive Oil.

Stir and bake as directed. Remember to grease your pan well. The pineapple bits make it stick more than usual.

Cool slightly and turn out onto wire racks. Slice and brush the tops with White Pineapple Balsamic. Serve warm with chili.




*If you would like to make a meat chili, I would saute the meat in one of the spicy oils before I put in the onions. I would use Jalapeno for preference, but Citrus Habanero if you are feeling the need to breathe fire. If you do, you may only need 1-2 tbsp additional spices.