In the mood for something flavorful and a bit different for dinner tonight?  Curry and peanut and coconut all in one?  You’ve come to the right place!

This recipe comes to us by way of a recipe from my favorite magazine, just with some different steps and ingredients.

A 30 minutes or less type dinner is what you’re probably going for mid-week and this is not only quick enough to get the job done, it’s easy enough too.

The flavor combination here is one that is rivaled only by the Chicken Gorgonzola Pasta recipe on my blog.

For tonight’s recipe though, check out the Jasmine Rice as a perfect side dish.

Gorgonzola Asparagus Chicken Pasta

Some of the greatest compliments I get are from dinner guests for this recipe.  It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, what, with the gorgonzola (a type of blue cheese) and the asparagus. 

But the way the nutmeg and the tarragon play off each other and the way the flavors all come together is simply amazing.

The original recipe comes from a most unusual cookbook, but I purchased it because I wanted unusual flavor combinations.  This is a tried-and-true recipe that I make frequently and love dearly. 

I make it especially for date nights or when I want to impress someone.

It’s a one dish meal and a great accompaniment are the Black and White Brownies which you can find on my page.

The pork chops are inspired by my flavor imagination gone wild.

Seriously, when you’re in the mood for something crispy that has a really fun zingy flavor, check out this recipe. 

It’s not too spicy, trust me.  I’m a spice wimp and if regular wasabi flavored peas aren’t too spicy for you, you’ve come to the right place.

If you’re a big wasabi fan, go ahead and kick it up a notch with a bit more wasabi paste in the egg mixture.

After craving sesame crusted chicken for weeks and pouring over recipes both in my slew of cookbooks and online for days, I developed this recipe.

Some recipes come to me in a flash, others in bits and pieces, while others as I create them.

This one came to me in a flash.  I had a can of mandarin oranges that I was likely not going to use the juice from, and that seemed wasteful.  I also had too much hoisin sauce in my pantry, not that it goes bad when unopened, but jeez, do I really need four jars?

I had received some chicken tenders in the grocery delivery, they were substituted for chicken breasts, so I thought this would be a great way to try this recipe. 

I love using marinades in my Asian flavored recipes, so the mandarin juice seemed like a perfect fit. oh no

• NOTE: Orange juice can be substituted.  Orange juice just produces a stronger, sweeter flavor.

Also, using the chicken tenders allowed me to have a greater crust to chicken ratio which I plenty enjoyed. 

Now, a lighter hand with the hoisin sauce might be preferred, as it is by some of my taste testers, but I like it just fine doused thoroughly.

You can cook this in the oven or on the stovetop, depending on the season and where you live, as well as your taste preference.  If you like a little extra sesame flavor, the stovetop is nice since it has the sesame oil in it.

I look forward to hearing from you about your experience with the hoisin under the breading as it is in this recipe.

Picture it: January 2021 and I’m getting tired of my soup recipes being the same every week for lunches for my Pandemic Pal (roommate during the pandemic).

I start thinking what makes a really good, hearty and delicious bowl of soup?  Kind of like Italian Wedding Soup, Minestrone, Pasta Fagioli you get the idea. 

So, I took all my favorite parts of all the best Italian soups and merged them together into one really quite great recipe.

We’ve got great northern beans, ditalini pasta, veggies, tomatoes, and you can’t forget the little chicken meatballs all in a savory broth with homemade chicken stock.  YUM.

Now, if I’ve gone and created a recipe for which there is already a name, PLEASE let me know!  Write me a note in the comments, send me a note at hello@mommiesnommies.com, or whatever, but let me know!

As you may have read from my other blogs, I went a little stir crazy in the Spring of 2020 and made a LOT of chicken stock.  I was roasting chicken and making subsequent stock pretty much weekly for a few months there. 

It helped me figure the recipe out in addition to feeding my Pandemic Pal / roommate.

If you don’t have an instant pot don’t worry you can still make the Chicken Stock, it just takes a bit longer.  Just remember, the more time on the stove, the tastier it will be.  I like to keep it there from 8-10 hours when I can, but I try to have 5 hours as my minimum.

It’s perfect for these cold blustery days out here in Pennsylvania.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my Pandemic Pal enjoys and I enjoy it.

Oh my gosh, this recipe is such a winter favorite.  Alright, you got me, it’s a year-round favorite.  I make this in the dead of summer. 

This recipe comes together nicely as the proportions are so easy to estimate.  I use solo cups, 16-ounce plastic tumblers, to separate my ingredients to make my mise en place.  Mise en place is a culinary term to describe “everything in its place.”  This gets everything chopped up and all ingredients lined up and ready to cook before the application of heat (cooking) starts.

Wow, zzzzzzzz, I just bored myself. 

But the point is that you can pop everything into 16-ounce solo cups to separate and measure your ingredients so that they’re all set to throw in the pot.  Also, I find it’s easier to remember all the quantities too.  ⅔ onion, 1 celery, 1 carrot, 2 potato.

For this recipe, you’ll want to just undercook the chicken breast, so that it can finish cooking in the broth.  You want tender bites, and over cooking the chicken breast in the pan then cooking it more in the broth will make for a chewy bite.

PS, 3 points to anyone who got my Star Wars references – Solo and Chewy.

PPS, the points are for imaginary credit, not anything running on the page 🙂

My grandma Dottie, bless her heart, was not the best cook in the world (see Grandma’s Pasta Sauce Blog) but she did make a mean turkey and rice soup the day after Thanksgiving.

I still honor that tradition by making it the same day too, however, I have upped it to recreating it throughout the year to enjoy with homemade stock and roasted chicken. 

She always made it simply.  Celery, carrots, and onion (or as culinary school taught me – mirepoix) as well as broth, rice, and meat.  Throw in a little salt and pepper and you’re set.

Today I add a bit of fresh parsley and garlic as well as bay leaves. 

Every time I make this recipe, she is in my heart more so than usual.

Be sure to check out my Trifecta Chicken blog for more of the story!