Peachy Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

Peachy Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

Cook Time:  30 minutes

Difficulty:  Easy

As a busy mom of three, weeknights are often hectic with homework, after-school activities, etc., and dinnertime can be challenging. I love when a recipe comes together, sometimes out of necessity. It all started with a jar of Cherchies® Vidalia Onion Peach Salsa! 

I'm not a fan of wasting food; I'm known for turning yesterday's leftovers (my children are leftover snobs, maybe it's the word "leftovers") into tonight's masterpiece.

I had many peppers (not exactly my children's favorite vegetable) leftover from New Year's and wanted to create something quick, easy, and delicious. I figured if I disguised the peppers in a tasty sauce (my family loves our peach salsa), they'd eat them. It worked (they even ate the peppers!) I added chicken to the peach salsa sauce, served it over rice, and presto, dinner was ready in 30 minutes.

So grab a jar of Cherchies® Vidalia Onion Peach Salsa, a deliciously spiced and perfectly balanced sweet and savory condiment, and turn dinner into a flavor-packed, quick, and easy dish. Your family may even eat their peppers and ask for seconds (gasp! Mine did).

Comment below if you made this delicious recipe. Thank you for visiting. Please come back again.

Ingredients

• 1 package of chicken breasts, chopped into 1 inch chunks

• 1 red, yellow, and green pepper, roughly chopped (I had some orange peppers leftover, so I added them)

• 1 small onion, roughly chopped

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning (Could substitute Cherchies® No-Salt Garlic and Herbs Seasoning)

• 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) pepper

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Olive oil (Could use coconut oil)

• 1 Tablespoon butter

• 1 jar of Cherchies® Vidalia Onion Peach Salsa

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) soy sauce

• 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) cornstarch

• several drops of hot sauce (to taste)

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Orange juice

• 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) chicken bouillon (we used Minor's Chicken base -Gluten free)

• 2 cups cooked rice (optional- I snuck in brown rice 2:1 for my family...they didn't even flinch)

Preparation

Roughly chop the peppers and onion.  Set aside.

Dice chicken into 1 inch chunks. Place chicken chunks into a large bowl and season chicken with Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning and pepper, mixing to ensure all the chicken is coated.  Wash the bowl.

Turn stove onto medium, add 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to a large skillet, and cook the chicken until almost cooked through (20 minutes or less depending on size of chicken chunks). Turn off stove and return chicken to bowl.  Set aside.  

In same skillet, turn stove back onto medium and add onions and peppers.  Cook until peppers and onions are soft and onions are translucent.  Add butter to pan.  

Add salsa, soy sauce, hot sauce, bouillon, and orange juice.  Stir to combine.  Return chicken to pan with vegetables.  Sprinkle on cornstarch.  Stir and cook for a couple more minutes.  Mixture will thicken.  

Serve over rice.  (chia̍h hok) - Eat well, enjoy good food!

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Peachy Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

Champagne Chicken Cordon Bleu Recipe

Champagne Chicken Cordon Bleu Recipe

Cook Time:  About 30 minutes  

Difficulty:  Easy

Are you looking for a new chicken recipe that will dazzle your family and guests? Consider our Champagne Chicken Cordon Bleu, a classic chicken dish consisting of chicken, ham, and swiss cheese, but Cherchies® style, with champagne mustard, of course! 

Cordon Bleu is fancy for "Blue Ribbon" or award-winning-(dictionary.com), so it is only fitting to use our award-winning Champagne Mustard in this tasty recipe. It is the pièce de résistance of this dish, hands down.

This deliciously rich recipe is family-approved yet perfect enough for guests or a romantic dinner for two! Serve our Champagne Chicken Cordon Bleu with our Cranberry Orange Salad for a complete meal. Bon Appetit!

Ingredients

• 3-4 Chicken Breasts

• Ham slices

• Swiss cheese slices

• 1-2 Tablespoons Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning (could substitute Cherchies® Garlic and Herbs Seasoning)

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) pepper

• 2 cups Crispy Rice Cereal (we used Rice Krispies)

• 6-8 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Mayonnaise (1 per chicken pocket, read below)

• 3-4 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Cherchies® Champagne Mustard (or for more of a kick, substitute our Cherchies® Hot Banana Pepper Mustard)

• 3-4 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Cherchies® Select Grilling Rub and Seasoning

• Cooking Spray

Sauce Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) butter

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) flour

• 1 Tablespoons (Tbsp) Cherchies® Champagne Mustard

• 1/4 cup white wine (or could substitute chicken broth)

• 1 cup milk (preferably warmed)

• 3 Tablespoons (Tbsp) grated parmesan cheese

• Salt and pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place Rice Krispies cereal in a resealable plastic bag. Gently roll over bag with a rolling pin, crushing the cereal.  Set aside.  

Slice chicken breasts in half lengthwise, but not completely through chicken.  This will create a pocket to stuff the chicken.  Sprinkle both sides of chicken with Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning and pepper and place on a baking pan or jelly roll pan.

Brush the opened chicken breasts with Cherchies® Champagne Mustard, and place ham slices (here we used ham from the deli, but leftover holiday ham is also perfect) and swiss cheese over the chicken breasts.

Fold chicken breasts in half and cut chicken bundles in half horizontally (if have large chicken breasts).  

Spread mayonnaise over chicken breast pockets, then sprinkle Cherchies® Select Grilling Rub and Seasoning over the chicken.  Generously coat the chicken breast pockets with crushed cereal mixture.

Spray coated chicken breasts with cooking spray and bake in the oven until the chicken is cooked completely, the crust is golden brown, and the cheese is melty (about 30 minutes).

While chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce.  In a medium skillet, turn the stove on low and melt the butter.  Combine melted butter with the flour, whisking constantly and cook (otherwise known as a roux) for a couple minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Add Champagne Mustard (or Cherchies® Hot Banana Pepper Mustard) and white wine, and stir until smooth.   Mixture should be thick. 

Slowly whisk warmed milk into roux, add parmesan cheese and continue to cook for a few minutes on low .  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Turn off stove and remove pan from burner.  

To serve, arrange chicken on plates and top with the cheese sauce.  Serve with crusty bread and our Cranberry Spinach Salad for a complete meal.  Enjoy!

Savory Champagne Meatloaf Recipe

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Savory Champagne Meatloaf Recipe

Cook Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Meatloaf has gotten a bad rap, and I'm not sure why.  Perhaps it's the word "loaf" in the title that makes people shudder, but coincidently, burgers have the same ingredients as meatloaf and just the mention of burgers makes many salivate, meatloaf...not so much. Folks...you've got it wrong!  Meatloaf is amazing.  You can put it in the oven and walk away for an hour, and dinner is done!  

Our family loves meatloaf, and they often help themselves to seconds, so we usually make a double batch.

"Meatloaf" is comfort in a pan, and the flavors usually associated with meatloaf are just like burgers!  

This recipe, adapted from the lovely folks at Southern Living (an old cookbook) is one of the most flavorful and moist meatloaf recipes I have ever come across.  The Champagne Mustard adds a delightful tang to the meatloaf, and the addition of Vidalia Onion Peach Salsa, Ketchup, and Worcestershire Sauce to the topping, complete this dish.  Serve this with dish with our Savory Wedge Bread, vegetables, and Herbed Mashed Potatoes, and you'll have a complete meal.

So, give meatloaf a chance.  It's comfort, it's easy, it's elegant, and best of all, it's delicious!  Burgers beware!  

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef (You could substitute Ground turkey. We used lean beef and pork and doubled the recipe)

• 3/4 cup uncooked regular oats

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) Cherchies® Garlic Seasoning

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) Cherchies® Champagne Mustard

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) Cherchies® Pepper Pizzazz

• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

• 1/2 cup milk

• 2 Tablespoons (Tbsp) finely chopped onion

• 1 egg

• 1 teaspoon (tsp) Worcestershire sauce

• 1/2 cup Cherchies® Vidalia Onion Peach Salsa

• 1/2 cup Ketchup

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Preparation

Combine the first ten ingredients in a large bowl.  Mix until all ingredients are combined.

Press the meat mixture into a bread loaf pan (s) (we have a family of five, and we usually double this recipe. It's amazing how much young adults can eat!).  My goodness!

Mix the remaining four ingredients in a medium bowl and spread 3/4 mixture over meat.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  Add remaining apricot-ketchup mixture to the meatloaf and return to over for about another 30 minutes, or until center is no longer pink.  Drain and let meatloaf rest for about 10 minutes.

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Sweet and savory Champagne Meatloaf.  Enjoy!

Turkey and Cheese Waffle Panini Recipe

Turkey and Cheese Waffle Panini Recipe

Cooking Time:  10 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

My kiddos have begged me for a panini press for some time, and while the thought of having one more appliance didn't appeal to me, the idea of my kiddos cooking together did, so I am at an impasse.

Thank you Pinterest people for always providing such fabulous ideas!  You are all so creative, because while I was trying to justify another appliance, I ran across an idea to use my waffle iron and simulate a panini press!  Yipee! Impasse avoided!

I told my kiddos about my waffle discovery when they came home from school.  Low and behold, (I've never seen teens jump so fast at anything), they jumped up, grabbed some turkey, ham, butter, bread, our gourmet Champagne Mustard, Apple Butter Spread, Cranberry Preserves, Cranberry Mustard, and started experimenting...and mom smiled:)

As I mentioned in my "Cooking With Kids" Blog recently, my kiddos gobbled up their waffle sandwich creations before I had a chance to photograph them.  With Thanksgiving next week, I recreated one of their culinary inventions for you, which includes leftover turkey, Cranberry Preserves (Thanksgiving wouldn't be the same without something Cranberry), Champagne Mustard, and cheese. Oh my goodness...the flavor! The waffle sandwich possibilities are endless (grilled ham and cheese with Champagne Mustard would be nice too).  

Who knows, maybe I'll break down after all and get them a panini press for Christmas, since they love to cook so much!  Shhh, don't tell them.

BTW, stay tuned later this week.  Our newsletter (don't forget to sign up...www.cherchies.com...page down until you see the section for our newsletter, and enter your email) will be going out on this Friday with some fantastic deals on our cranberry products.  That's right, all three cranberry products mentioned will be on sale this weekend, beginning this Friday:)  Surprise!  

Here's our secret recipe (not really secret).

Ingredients (per sandwich)

• Leftover turkey
• One slice of cheese per slice (I used American this time because I didn't have Brie in the house.  Brie or a nice aged cheddar would be good)
• Cherchies® Champagne Mustard (Feel free to substitute Cherchies® Cranberry Mustard)
• Cherchies® Cranberry Preserves (Feel free to substitute our Cranberry Hot Pepper Jam)
• Two slices of bread
• Butter;)

Preparation

Turn on waffle iron.  Generously butter (or use cooking spray on both plates of waffle iron).  While waffle iron is warming, assemble the sandwich.

Spread one slice of bread with a small amount of Cranberry Preserves, and the other with Champagne Mustard.  Then add the turkey...

And don't forget the cheese!  My mouth is already salivating!  Place the sandwich on the waffle iron, close the lid, press down slightly, and wait for the waffle iron light to go off. 

 It's that easy to recreate something new with leftover turkey!  Let us know your favorite Cherchies® combinations.  Next time I think I'll add stuffing...saw that too on Pinterest...Thanksgiving reconstituted:)  I love it!  Enjoy!