Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

So on the way to the gym, Laura and I placed bets on whether or not Jen and Marion would actually decide on what to have for dinner tonight. Annnnd, of course, after working out hard for 40+ minutes, we find out that they were still at the "what do you want?" stage. So, I decided to make Drewie's Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken since I knew we had all the seasonings on hand.

It actually turned out pretty good, although I regret throwing a little extra lime juice on it to add some liquid for the chicken to cook in.

Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
4 (4 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 tablespoons lime juice

In a small bowl, mix together salt and next 7 ingredients (through parsley). Sprinkle spice mixture generously on both sides of chicken breasts.

Heat butter and olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until golden brown, about 6 minutes on each side. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons garlic powder and lime juice. Cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently to coat evenly with sauce.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 308	Calories from fat 159
% Daily Value
Total Fat 17.6g	27%
Saturated Fat 6.4g	32%
Cholesterol 116mg	39%
Sodium 578mg	24%
Total Carbs 2.8g	1%
Sugars 0.7g
Protein 33.3g
Vitamin A 9%	Vitamin C 7%
Calcium 3%	Iron 10%

Penne Alla Vodka

Recipe I borrowed from Julie's Foodie. Very delicious, but I think I would almost double the sauce next time I make it.

Penne Alla Vodka

5 large tomatoes or a 14.5 oz can, drained
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1/4 cup vodka
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1 lb. penne
1/2 cup heavy cream
Leaves from 3 or 4 large fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs, coarsely chopped

Peel and seed the tomatoes, then cut them into small dice. If the tomatoes are very juicy, drain them for about 10 minutes in a colander. Set aside.

In a large fry pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the garlic and sauté until just starting to turn golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the stovetop and add the vodka.

Return the pan to medium heat and cook until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes, salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Generously salt the boiling water, add the pasta and cook until al dente (tender but firm to the bite), 10 to 12 minutes. Drain well and add the pasta to the fry pan. Add the cream and cook, stirring, over medium heat until the pasta is well coated with the sauce, about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Pour into a warmed large, shallow bowl. Add the parsley and toss briefly. Serve immediately.

Serves: 8

We also cubed and seasoned some chicken with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and mixed it in with the pasta.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 307	Calories from fat 120
% Daily Value
Total Fat 13.3g	20%
Saturated Fat 3.2g	16%
Cholesterol 52mg	17%
Sodium 171mg	7%
Total Carbs 36.1g	12%
Dietary Fiber 1.4g	6%
Sugars 3.0g
Protein 7.6g
Vitamin A 23%	Vitamin C 26%
Calcium 3%	Iron 13%

Chocolate Oreo Raspberry Cupcakes

These cupcakes are really easy to make, but oh so delicious!!!

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Oreo Raspberry

Ingredients:

• Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge cake mix (and all necessary items)
• Betty Crocker Whipped Vanilla frosting
• 6 oz. raspberries, thawed or fresh
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. water

Directions:

1. Make cake mix according to box directions. Pour into cupcake molds (use liners). Bake according to box directions (about 19 min.).
2. Crush up as many Oreos as desired. Mix into vanilla frosting. (I used about 1 row of double stuffed oreos.)
3. In a blender (or food processor), blend raspberries, water, and sugar until liquid. Strain liquid into a ziploc bag (or pastry bag).
4. After cupcakes have cooled, ice with oreo frosting.
5. Clip off a bottom corner of the bag with the raspberry drizzle (make the opening very small as this is very runny). Drizzle sauce over cupcake.

Final Product:

• Makes 24 cupcakes
• Calories: no idea, don't want to know

Yay! I'm going to KC!

So I finally talked Adam into going out to Kansas City to finalize some things with our vendors for our wedding. I'm so excited! We are finally going to be getting our engagement pics taken -- I am so jealous of everyone else's pics.

Oh yes, and other great news. I randomly showed my mom the pocketfold invitations (prefacing it with "I never showed you these because I thought they would be too expensive...") and she absolutely loved them. She thought they were so much better than my previous invite mock-up. How awesome is that? I should have just showed them to her from the get-go and let her tell me if they were too expensive. We both ordered a sample kit to play with, so we'll see what she thinks when she actually sees it in person. ::crossing my fingers!::

Laura just about killed me at the gym tonight... Juan told her to bring her swimsuit home with her to Puerto Rico so now she's all freaking out. So we did 40 min on the ellipitcal... which equated to about 4.7 miles for me -- which I haven't done since the summer. I am going to be sore tomorrow. Oh well, just working off all those cupcakes I have been eating as of late. (I'll make a new post with the amazing recipe.) I really need to quit pigging out... I'm going to regret it in 5 months!

5 months! I can't believe it -- it's crazy that I'm getting married this year, not "oh, next summer..." It's this summer! I do think, however, that I've got most things under control, which is good, because I just don't want to be stressed out over this. It's supposed to be fun, right?