Chicken Asparagus Wrapped in Bacon

I was inspired when my husband and I went to Ginger restaurant in Milwaukee.  We ordered a chicken cor don blue tapas that was wrapped in prosciutto with cheese and asparagus.  I felt that we could do the same with bacon, asparagus, and a few other variations.  The verdict?  It was delicious.

I usually don't like chicken breast because they are kind of on the dry side.  These were very moist and tasty.  Broiling it at the end allowed the bacon to get a little crispy.

You can have total freedom with this recipe by adding cheese or pesto.  Just depends what you are in the mood for.

Ingredients:

4 to 6 chicken breasts

4 to 6 slices bacon

8 to 12 asparagus with ends snapped off. 

1 to 2 tbsp Italian seasoning

1 to 2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper

 Place your chicken breasts in a plastic zip bag and pound it out until it's about 1/2 an inch thick.  Place on the side while you pound the other chicken breasts.  When done, put all the chicken breasts back in the bag and drizzle with olive oil.  Toss in the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper and give it a shake so the chicken breasts are coated with seasoning.  You can totally do this step in advance and allow the seasoning to sit on the chicken breasts or you can just move along.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Take your seasoned and flattened chicken breasts out of the bag.  Take the snapped asparagus and roll the chicken breast around it.  Don't leave a ton of the asparagus hanging out.  It will get burnt.  Then take your bacon and wrap it around the chicken breast/asparagus roll.  You may want to use a tooth pick to hold the bacon in place.

Place your rolled up chicken breasts in a baking dish seem side down.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  Then turn on your broiler.  Broil the rolled up chicken breasts for 2 to 5 minutes.  This will get the bacon crispy.  Then you're done.

Add ins:

Cheese - this can go inside with the asparagus or put on the outside at the broiling stage.

 Pesto - you can put pesto on the inside with the asparagus.

Extra bacon - you could use extra bacon as well.     

Frittata with Quick Alternatives

Frittata is a great way to get in veggies for breakfast.  It's also a fantastic way to reuse leftovers and clean out the refrigerator.  Make a pan full on the weekend, and save any leftovers to enjoy during the week.  

Ingredients:

4 Eggs

2 Tbsp Coconut Milk

Sea Salt and pepper

1 tbsp coconut oil or butter

I am separating the ingredients because when it comes to add ins it's all about creativity.  So here are the add ins I used on this particular day, but just use what you have in the fridge.  

Meat: 3 Pieces of bacon (ground beef, chicken or steak would work)

Veggies: 1 cup of chopped mushrooms, 1 to 2 cups spinach (steamed in boiling water for 2 minutes), 1 roma tomato (shredded carrots, red pepper, asparagus, onion, whatever you got)

Other: 5 sliced black olives, garlic 

Seasoning: Fresh thyme (use basil, oregano, or a seasoning blend)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  

In a bowl, mix together the eggs, coconut milk, salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you may want to use.  

Use a cast iron skillet or any other skillet that is oven safe.  Melt coconut or butter in a pan and add your bacon.  (If using leftover meat that is already cooked add right before going into the oven) Then add your mushrooms or other hardy vegetables.  Next toss in tomatoes and garlic.  Finally add in the spinach and black olives.  

When the veggies are done, spread them out evenly over the bottom of the pan.  Cover with the egg mixture and let it cook for about 3 to 4 minutes to get partially done.  

Then put the skillet in the oven for 11 to 13 minutes to finish cooking.  If you want a little crust on top, put under the broiler for 3 to 5 minutes.  

That's it.  Enjoy the incredible, edible egg in a new way!  

If you have pre -cooked meat or veggies from the night before this will speed up the process.  You could just toss in all the leftovers into the eggs.  Put in the skillet.  And just spend the time cooking on the stove top and in the oven.  You can even skip the broil. 

Probiotic Pickles

I love pickles!  Especially my homemade pickles.  No limp pickles from the grocery store packaged in funky ingredients.  Just pure and simple.  The little cucumbers I use are turned into pickles using a process called lacto-fermentation.  Basically by using a salt and water mixture, the cucumbers become pickles that are packed with healthy bacteria that are good for your gut.  

Ingredients:

Quart Canning Jar with lids

Gerkin Cucumbers (or other small pickle varieties)

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

2 cloves of garlic, peeled.  

3 Tbsp Sea Salt

3 Cups Filter Water

Place cucumbers, bay leaves, dill and garlic in a quart canning jar.  

In a separate container combine 3 cups of water and 3 tablespoons of sea salt.  Mix well and pour over the cucumbers leaving an inch of room at the top of the jar and making sure all the cucumbers are covered by the water/salt mixture.  

Then place the lids on the jar and store in a dark place for 1 week.  After 1 week, bring the jars out, tighten the lids, and store in the refrigerator.  Note:  If you don't put these in the refrigerator, the pickles will keep fermenting.