chicken lo mein recipe

confession:  i'm obsessed with chinese food.

obstacle:  ann arbor has ROUGH chinese delivery selection.

solution:  this recipe.

steve and i are in money-retention mode (omg greece yay).  this means we've been doing a lot of home cooking lately, and i'd hate for any of you to miss out on the latest and greatest dinnertime deliciousness.  i'd long been intimidated by attempts to cook lo mein, but devil may care we went for it and my oh my was it good (and far easier than expected).  note: quantities are approximations as i was mostly just throwing things into a skillet.  try playing around with  the ingredients to taste.

you will need:

1-2 chicken breasts (sliced into strips)

1 lb spaghetti

3/4 cup matchstick sliced carrots

1/4 cup chopped scallions

1/4 cup diced onion

1 cup diced baby bella mushrooms

1 tsp pre-minced garlic (about 3 cloves)

olive oil

sesame oil

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 cup teriyaki sauce

2/3 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup honey

2 tsp ground ginger

2 tbsp brown sugar

cook the spaghetti al dente, drain and set aside.  do not rinse.  while noodles are cooking, dice up the necessary vegetables.

saute the chicken with the garlic and diced onion (not the scallions) in sesame oil.  when chicken is nearly cooked, add the carrots and mushrooms.

once the chicken is cooked and the mushrooms have started to brown (but before they are fully reduced) add the cooked noodles and scallions and reduce heat to medium-low.  pour the soy sauce over the noodles, and if they are stuck together, add a little olive oil to loosen them up from their sticky pasta mass.  add the teriyaki sauce, honey, rice vinegar, ginger, and brown sugar and toss the noodles with the vegetables and chicken until the sauce is mixed.

that's it!  all that's left is stuffing your belly!

mac n' cheesy chicken stuffed shells

today i'm sharing a self taught recipe that i've been debating blogging about for a while.  why?  because it's absolutely totally awsesomely incredible tasting comfort food, but frankly it's kinda nasty looking.  this is not a photogenic recipe, but after one heck of a miserable day yesterday (my car may or may not need a new alternator or battery mere weeks before i'm due to replace the car itself) all i wanted was some mac n' cheese with a dead bird inside.  don't judge.

if you have little ones to feed, i imagine this is a super kid friendly recipe.  last night I just wanted to throw my toys on the floor and have a childish tantrum, and it sure made me feel better.  my measurements are rather approximate, as i'm less a "measure and blend" kind of chef, and more of a"toss it in and see what happens" kind of cook.

you will need:

3-4 tbsp butter

12 oz evaporated milk

10.5 oz condensed cheddar cheese soup

8 oz brick cream cheese

2 cups shredded precooked chicken (i used a rotisserie chicken)

1 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese divided (i used mild, but whatever strikes your fancy)

12 cooked jumbo pasta shells

melt the butter on medium heat over the stove and add cheese soup.  wisk until soup is less lumpy.  add evaporated milk gradually while wisking until smooth.  add 1/2 cup to 1 cup cheddar cheese gradually and continue to wisk as cheese melts.  allow cheese to melt thoroughly before adding too much.  you should have a thick velveeta-like cheese sauce that is a thick, yet pourable consistency with no lumps or stringiness.

soften cream cheese and combine with the chicken and remaining cheddar.  you could probably mash them together with a utensil, but i went straight for it with my hands.

stuff the shells with your cream cheese chicken cheddar cheese mixture.

arrange stuffed shells in a greased pan and smother them in the cheese sauce.  bake at 350 degrees for about a half hour.