Thai Peanut Chicken Saute

I'm baaaa-aaaack!!!! I got a brand new laptop and I am back in business!!! So far, everything is going great - except for lovely Windows Vista of course! But, beggars can't be choosers, right?

So, I really haven't been doing that much cooking the last month or so. You know how summer is - vacations, etc. Lots of stuff going on. I made this a few weeks ago and the boy really liked it. This is definitely something I would make again!

Ingredients:
1/2 package rice noodles
1 lb. chicken, thinly sliced
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 carrot, julienned
1/2 c. peanut sauce
1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
1 handful of peanuts, chopped

Directions:
Cook noodles according to package directions.

Heat oil and add chicken. Saute until cooked and set aside.

Add peppers and saute about 3 minutes. Add carrot and saute another minute and set aside.

Add peanut sauce and bring to a boil.

Drain noodles and add noodles and chicken to pan.

Remove from heat, mix in the vegetables and cilantro and garnish with peanuts.

Yield: 4 servings

Source: adapted from www.closetcooking.com, Thai Peanut Pork Noodle Saute

One of my very favorite things is PF Changs lettuce wraps. If only we had a PF Changs that wasn't over an hour away! So, when I saw lettuce on sale, I thought - hey! I should make lettuce wraps, since I already had some leftover chicken! I did a lot of searching on the internet for a recipe and in the end, I combined a couple different ones. I didn't want to try and re-create PF Changs lettuce wraps, because I knew that we would be disappointed.

So, the chicken part of these turned out pretty good. It turns out that I'm a tard and I bought cabbage instead of lettuce. We both had our second "lettuce wrap" in a tortilla. :)

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. garlic
1 tbsp. ginger
1 lb. chicken, cooked and shredded
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1/3 c. sweet chili sauce
1/2 c. fresh cilantro, minced
1/4 c. chopped peanuts
1 c. grated carrots
head of lettuce

Directions:
Heat oil in a pan (or wok, if you have a wok). Stir fry garlic, ginger and carrots.

Add chicken.

Stir in soy sauce and chili sauce.

Add cilantro and peanuts.

Serve. :)

Yield: 2-3 servings

Sources: www.recipegirl.com & www.pillsbury.com

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

If you haven't noticed, I love buffalo anything. It is just so good! And I also like pizza. One of my favorite things is different kinds of pizza - Thai pizza, BBQ chicken pizza, etc. So, I had a little bit of leftover chicken, a little bit of leftover buffalo sauce and then when I cleaned out my freezer last weekend, I found an extra pizza dough! Decision made! So, totally easy and perfect for Friday night!

Ingredients:
1 pizza dough
1/2 c. bleu cheese dressing (or ranch - next time I will use ranch instead!)
1/2 c. buffalo sauce
1.5 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 c. cheese (I used mozzarella)

Directions:
Preheat oven and prepare pizza dough according to package directions (and if you make your own, I figure you already know what to do!)

Spread dressing over pizza dough.

Toss chicken in buffalo sauce and spread on top of dressing.

Sprinkle with cheese.

Cook according to directions.

Yield: 3-4 servings

Chicken & Black Bean Flautas

I have been cooking up a storm the last week or so... I just haven't posted anything :) So, get ready. It is my mission today to get caught up, since I will have some Memorial Day recipes to post next week! These chicken and black bean flautas were a quick and easy lunch last weekend. It definitely satisfied my Mexican craving, and it only took a few minutes to make! This is definitely a 30 minute meal - and 20 minutes of that is oven time! And, you could put whatever you want in these, depending on what you feel like eating :)

Ingredients:
1 small can Rotel tomatoes with green chilis
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 c. chicken, cooked and shredded
1 c. shredded cheese
4 small flour tortillas
Salsa

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Coat a baking sheet with non-stick spray

Place tomatoes, beans, chicken and cheese in a tortilla. Roll tightly and set seam side down on the baking sheet.

Spray tops of each flauta with olive oil cooking spray.

Bake 10 minutes, then flip and bake 10 more minutes.

Dip in salsa :)

Yield: 2 servings

Source: Adapted from http://www.fortheloveofcooking-recipes.blogspot.com/

Sweet & Spicy Chili Chicken

So, as much as I would love for everyone to think that all of my recipes turn out perfect, they don't. Here is one that didn't. And I was SO excited about it too, because it seemed like such a great idea. This wasn't sweet or spicy or even flavorful. I might as well have you used cornflakes. Quite honestly, this was blah enough that I ate maybe 5 or 6 bites and then decided to just eat ice cream instead. If you have any suggestions as to what I could've done differently to make it better, I would really appreciate it!!

Ingredients:
1 c. crushed Sweet & Spicy Chili Doritos
2 chicken breasts
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp. milk
salt and pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray.

Combine egg and milk.

Salt and pepper chicken. Dip into egg mixture and then coat with crushed chips.

Place in baking dish and bake 30-40 minutes, depending on size of chicken breasts.

Yield: 2 servings

Source: me! No wonder it wasn't good!

Teriyaki Chicken Noodle Bowl

Long time no post! I've been super busy lately... so this was the PERFECT meal since I had no time! No more than 10 minutes of prep time and no more than 15 minutes of cooking time. That is what I like for a weeknight meal! And even better, the boy absolutely loved it! Sah-weet!!! It just doesn't get any better than that!

Ingredients:
1 lb of chicken
1/2 bottle teriyaki marinade
1 package of Lipton Teriyaki Noodles (or something similar)

Directions:
Sometime at least 30 minutes before cooking, cut up the chicken and throw it in a ziploc with the marinade. It needs to marinate for at least 30 minutes. I did all this the night before I was planning on making this.

When you are ready to cook - read the directions on the Lipton Noodle package. You should just need water and a little vegetable oil, if you want. Cook according to directions (I did the microwave directions and it took 10 minutes).

Meanwhile, while that is microwaving, throw the chicken in a skillet on medium-high heat and cook until done (no more than 7-8 minutes).

And you're done. See how easy that was?

Yield: 2 main dish servings

Braised Chicken

I made this last week for dinner, and let me tell you, if I had known it was going to take so freaking long, I wouldn't have made it! Or maybe just saved it for a weekend when I had more time! I guess I underestimated the time it would take for all the chopping. Anyways, this wasn't bad. The boy loved all the vegetables, but the chicken was just regular chicken. If I make this again, I think I might marinate the chicken for a few hours, instead of just brushing it on. I will say this - this was a very pretty dish (the picture doesn't do it justice). I just love food with lots of colors!

Ingredients:
3 chicken legs (I used chicken breasts)
3 garlic cloves
3 tomatoes
2 bell peppers (I used one red and one orange)
1 large onion
1/2 c. chicken broth
1/8 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. paprika powder
1 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. oil
Chili pepper (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.

Wash and slice 2 bell peppers into strips. Cut an onion in half and slice it up. Slice a medium to large red chili pepper. Wash and dice 3 tomatoes.

Grate or mince garlic cloves. Place garlic in a small bowl. Add oil and spices. Whisk.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1-2 tbsp. oil in a skillet and brown the chicken. Transfer the chicken to an oven dish. Brush with half the marinade. Spread peppers and onions around the chicken and place a few slices underneath and on top. Lightly brush the vegetables with remaining marinade. Add the diced tomatoes. Pour 1/2 c. chicken broth over the vegetables (but not over the chicken so you don't disturb the seasonings).

Bake for 1 hours. After 30 minutes, flip over the vegetables and spoon some of the juices over the chicken. Bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Yield: 3-4 servings

Source: www.thepioneerwoman.com/cooking

Buffalo Chicken Soup

You have probably noticed by now that I love buffalo chicken anything. Buffalo chicken wings. Buffalo chicken dip. And now *drumroll* buffalo chicken soup! Yep, all that buffalo-y goodness in a soup. I have been waiting to make this soup. And when I saw that milk was only $2.49 for a gallon, I jumped at the chance! This was super easy and it is good! Perfect for cold weather! It is a little odd though - the sour cream didn't melt down. I think that next time (and yes, there WILL be a next time), I will whisk together the sour cream and cream of chicken soup before adding everything else. Just to ensure that there are no weird sour cream curds floating around. Still good though :)

Ingredients:
6 c. milk
3 cans cream of chicken soup
3 c. cooked, shredded chicken
1 c. (8 oz) sour cream
1/4 c. - 1/2 c. hot pepper sauce

Directions:
Combine everything in the crockpot.

Cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Yield: 8 servings (2 quarts)

Source: Taste of Home's "Quick Cooking Annual Recipes" 2002 edition

Clean Out The Fridge Fajitas

First of all, I know this picture is awful. I had actually already taken a bite out of the other side before I went "Oh crap! I forgot to take a picture!" Oops!

I didn't really have a dinner plan tonight, but I knew I was feeding the boy. So, I pulled out all the leftover STUFF from the last couple weeks and made fajitas. It was actually pretty good. I always feel kind of proud of myself when I can throw something together like this and it turns out well! I didn't really measure anything, I just kind of threw stuff in, so everything is approximate. :)

Ingredients:
Cooked chicken - I used 3 small leftover chicken breasts
1/2 red pepper, cut into strips
1/2 packet fajita seasoning
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. black beans
chili powder to taste
tortillas, cheese, lettuce, sour cream, salsa, etc.

Directions:
In a skillet, throw everything in and heat/stir until blended and heated through.

Serve on tortillas with whatever toppings you have. As you can see, I smothered my fajita with leftover queso. I could drink that stuff through a straw.

Caribbean Spice Roast Chicken

I made a chicken. A whole chicken. I feel like I've just added a notch to my cooking belt. When I saw this recipe on Nancy's website, it looked SO good, and I knew I wanted to make it. For a couple weeks I debated about whether I wanted to just try it with chicken breasts, or if I wanted to go for the whole chicken. Well, whole chickens were on sale this week at the grocery store, so that kind of made my decision for me. And this was good. It was super easy - except for the disgusting sticking my hand inside a chicken part. And apparently, I roasted the chicken upside down. But you know what? The package didn't have a top and bottom sign on it. How was I supposed to know there was a right side? My family seemed to enjoy it. I was surprised that I didn't dry it out. Ooh! And I got to break out my new digital meat thermometer! I was so excited!

Like the hand pies, this picture is pretty lousy, too. I had told everyone that dinner would be at 5:30 or so. Well, it was a beautiful day out, so the boy and I went for a motorcycle ride. And that made me a little late. So I was rushing to get everything out of the oven, into the car and over to my parents' house. And I almost forgot to take a picture - and if I had, I would've been SO upset! But, a bad picture is better than no picture, right? Right.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbsp. lime juice
2 oz. rum
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 3 lb. chicken
1 tbsp. vegetable oil (I used EVOO)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325.

Combine lime juice, rum and brown sugar. Set aside.

Mix all dry ingredients.

Brush chicken with oil and coat with spices.

Bake 90 minutes, or until meat thermometer in thickest part of the thigh reaches 180.

Baste every 20 minutes with the sauce.

Yield: 4 servings:

Source: www.nancysrecipes.wordpress.com

Kahlua Jerk Chicken

This is some damn good chicken! I admit, I was skeptical when I first saw the recipe. The ingredients aren't something I would ever think to put together. But I figured that if Kahlua was in it, how bad could it be? So, I made it anyway. And it was good. Now go. Make chicken!

Ingredients:
4 chicken breast halves
salt and pepper
1/2 c. flour
2 tbsp. EVOO
3/4 c. Caribbean Jerk Marinade
3/4 c. Kahlua
2 tbsp. chunky peanut butter (I only had creamy)

Directions:
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Place in a ziploc bag with flour and shake to coat.

Remove chicken from bag.

In skillet, heat EVOO over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan.

In same skillet, combine remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low.

Add chicken and simmer 5-6 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings

Source: "Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade 20 Minute Meals"

Simple Grilled Chicken

Since it is just me tonight, I didn't feel like making something very... involved, I guess. I remembered a yummy recipe I saw at www.kevinandamanda.com. It was actually from a chicken pasta, but I figured I could just make the chicken. I heated up some sweet potatoes to go on the side. And man, this is some GOOD chicken. I didn't actually grill it. It is supposed to SNOW tomorrow morning (holy cow!) so it is pretty cold outside right now. Plus, it has been raining for two days. I will definitely be making this again. It would be perfect to make a quick chicken sandwich, or to throw on top of a salad.

Ingredients:
Chicken (however many chicken breasts you need)
Montreal Steak Seasoning
Butter
EVOO

Directions:
Season chicken.

Heat up butter and EVOO in a skillet.

On medium heat, cook chicken. About 5 minutes on each side.

Source: www.kevinandamanda.com

Italian Spinach Chicken

My boyfriend loves spinach. And since he is on a diet, I have been trying to find healthy (or healthier) meals to make. When I saw this one, I added it to my list because it looked really REALLY easy and delicious. And it was. The boy loved it. This will become one of my standard dinners probably, especially for weeknights because it is easy and only took a half hour or so (not counting marinating). I tried to serve this with roasted baby carrots with balsamic vinegar and rosemary. They kind of didn't turn out as planned. So instead, I served burned baby carrots with balsamic vinegar and rosemary. Close enough. Roasted, burned. Same thing. They didn't taste bad. Well, not really bad anyway.

Ingredients:
2 chicken breast halves
8 tbsp. Italian dressing, divided
6 c. fresh baby spinach
salt
2 slices Provolone cheese

Directions:
Please 6 tbsp. dressing in a plastic bag and add chicken. Marinate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350.

Drain and discard marinade.

In a skillet, brown chicken. Remove and keep warm.

In the same skillet, saute spinach, remaining dressing and salt.

Place chicken in a baking dish coated with non-stick cooking spray. Top with spinach and cheese.

Bake, uncovered, for 18-22 minutes.

Yield: 2 servings

Source: Taste of Home's "Cooking for 2" magazine, Spring 2009

Oven Roasted Balsamic Chicken

Argh! I had a beautiful picture of this last night, and I turned on my camera to upload to my computer and it kept saying "Format memory card - this will delete EVERYTHING on memory card." Wonderful, right? I got a new camera for Christmas, and I apparently just can't figure the thing out. I just keep having problems with it.

So, I apologize for lack of picture. Especially because this was a GREAT recipe. At least that means I will most likely be making it again and will get a picture. I guess I can take a picture when I heat up the leftovers, too. I am always looking for super quick "go to" recipes. And this is so it. Prep time was no more than like, 7 minutes. Yeah, that's right. I said 7 minutes. This also turned out pretty enough that I think I could pop this in the oven for surprise guests and stuff like that! I think I was much more impressed than the boy, but I so rarely think that what I made was just SO good, that it doesn't matter! :)

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
EVOO
Salt and Pepper
1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. dried rosemary
1 tsp. sesame seeds (I didn't have any, so I skipped this one)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.

Drizzle chicken with EVOO and season with salt and pepper.

In a small bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, mustard and rosemary. Brush on chicken.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake for 40-45 minutes.

Source: Robin Miller, http://www.foodnetwork.com

How To Host a Superbowl Party On 24 Hours Notice

So, if you read my last post, you know that I had to host a Superbowl party on 24 hours notice. Now, let me preface this by saying - I am NOT spontaneous. I am a planner. I love to plan and organize actually. Spontaneity doesn't do anything for me. So, I was a little panicky. After we had a plan, I calmed down, but it was still kinda stressful. BUT, all in all, everything turned out great. The food was good and the boys were happy. So, here's the menu:

- Party Meatballs
- Ranch Bread Bowl with Veggies
- Pizza Squares
- Buffalo Chicken Dip in a Bread Bowl
- Veggie Tray (No picture)
- Chips and Salsa (No picture)
- Buffalo Chicken Wings
- Oreo Pie (courtesy of some unknown friend of my sisters! No picture - sorry!)
- Gooey Butter Bars

And, here are the recipes:

First, we have party meatballs. My mom actually made these for a Christmas Eve party and had frozen the leftovers. Being the mooch that I am, I just took them out of her freezer and reheated them in the crockpot. So, no recipe. But basically you put meatballs, spaghetti sauce and grape jelly in a crockpot and just go!
Next, we have a bread bowl with ranch dressing and vegetables. This is one of the easiest party dishes you can ever make. It looks like it took more time than it did, and the serving bowl is edible. I used a sourdough bread bowl, filled it with ranch, and put it on a plate with veggies and the bread from the bowl!

I also made pizza squares. You can find the recipe here. This picture is SO much better!

I also made buffalo chicken dip and put that in a bread bowl too. This is one of my most favorite recipes and it is so easy. I could seriously just munch on it ALL day. Sorry the picture is blurry. I don't know what happened.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. cooked chicken

2 c. blue cheese dressing (I don't measure, I just used a whole bottle)

1/2 c. Tabasco sauce (I used hot wing sauce)

1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Dump everything in the crockpot. Stir to combine.

Cook on high 1-2 hours, until cheese is melted.

Source: www.crockpot365.blogspot.com

I also made buffalo chicken wings. I used the same method as my Asian Chicken Wings from last week, but these turned out so much better! All the guys loved them!

Ingredients:

4 lbs. chicken wings

2 bottles buffalo wing sauce

Directions:

Marinate wings in 1 1/2 bottles of sauce, preferably overnight.

Dump on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour-ish at 350, basting with remaining sauce.

When the outsides are crispy, put the hot wings in a bowl or on a serving plate and drizzle with the rest of the sauce.

And now for the icing on the cake - Gooey Butter Bars! These are super rich, but they are so good! I was eating the dough and the mix before I even got them into the oven! Seriously, go make these.

Ingredients:

1 package yellow cake mix

3 eggs

2 sticks butter

1 package cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

1 box powdered sugar

Directions:

Combine cake mix, one egg and melted butter. Pat into a greased 9x13 cake pan.

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla and melted butter. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth.

Spread over cake batter.

Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes. Do NOT overbake - it is supposed to be gooey inside!!

Source: Paula Deen

So, that's that. We actually ended up with very few leftovers, which is good. So, after all that, I won't be cooking tonight. Maybe just soup and grilled cheese or a chicken salad sandwich. Something easy!!

BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

Well kids, bad news. I didn't win the chicken wing contest. I didn't even place actually. Oh well. I knew they weren't good! So, tonight, I wasn't in the mood for any major cooking. I poached a big pot of chicken over the weekend, so I have been trying to use it up. I decided to just make a simple quesadilla - one of my favorites! All measurements are approximate, since I didn't actually take the time to measure anything. :)

Ingredients:
1/2 c. cooked chicken
3 tbsp. your favorite bbq sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)
1/2 c. shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
2 tortillas
butter

Directions:
Heat skillet on medium heat.

Butter one side of each tortilla. On non-buttered side of one of the tortillas, spread bbq sauce and then sprinkle with cheese and chicken. Place the other tortilla, non-buttered side down, on top of it.

Cook each side in skillet for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown.

Cut into wedges. I like to dip my quesadillas in salsa or ranch dressing. Mmmm...

Asian Chicken Wings

Here's the thing. Every month at work, we have a cooking contest. The theme this month is chicken wings. I try to participate every month. If I have a tried and true recipe, I use that. If it is something I've never made before, then it gives me the chance to try something new - kind of like everyone out there who is in Daring Bakers or Tuesdays with Dorie. I know - y'all must think that I work at some insane place. I mean, seriously, what business has cooking contests!? I actually have an awesome employer - we are one of the premier small pre-employment screening companies. Trust me, we are good at what we do. If you work somewhere that doesn't do background checks, or if you aren't happy with who you use, let me know! We truly are one of the best! Okay, so I'll stop sucking up to my boss! On to the chicken wings!

Since I have never made wings before, I wanted to make them the night before. I am also terrified of using a deep fryer (and I don't have one anyway), so I settled on a recipe that called for baking the wings. I probably will not make these again. After they came out of the oven, they didn't taste very good. The only thing that saved them was basting them with some Lawry's Teriyaki Marinade and sticking them back in the oven for a bit. They are supposed to be teriyaki flavor, but quite honestly, they don't taste teriyaki-y to me at all. They taste like soy sauce wings. So, use this recipe at your own discretion!

Ingredients:
3 lb. chicken wings
1/2 c. orange juice
1/4 c. soy sauce
2 tbsp. ground ginger
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. course salt
5 drops hot pepper sauce
1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:
In a bowl, combine everything except the wings.

Place wings in sauce, cover and marinate in the refrigerator overnight. I just used a giant Ziploc bag.

Preheat oven to 350.

Remove from marinade - reserve for basting.

Bake 1 hour, basting with reserve marinade.

Source: http://www.wildforwings.com/

Overnight Chicken Bake

Again, I apologize for the picture. I know it is awful. The food, on the other hand, was pretty good. This was super easy to make - you just have to plan ahead because it sits in the fridge overnight. Basically, it tasted like chicken pot pie, except with bread crumbs on top. If I make this again, I will probably use biscuits or crescent rolls on top instead.

Ingredients:
2 c. cooked chicken
1 package frozen mixed veggies (I used peas and carrots)
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 c. water
1 c. shredded cheese
1 c. uncooked elbow macaroni
2 tbsp. butter
1/2 c. breadcrumbs

Directions:
Mix all ingredients except for butter and breadcrumbs in a 2 quart casserole dish. NOTE: do not put water in first and then frozen vegetables. They will freeze in one big layer and it makes it hard to mix. Yeah, you would think this is a pretty duh thing. But, I still did it.

Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350.

Melt butter and mix with breadcrumbs. Spread over the top.

Bake uncovered for 45-55 minutes.

Source: www.kevinandamanda.com

Oh. My. God.

Holy cow!! Everybody go out RIGHT NOW and buy an Orka Steamer. Seriously. This has just become my new favorite kitchen appliance. Appliance? First of all, I know the picture sucks. I am having camera issues.

I had been eying the Orka Steamers for quite awhile, and after Christmas, they went on sale on Amazon, so I went ahead and got one. Unfortunately, with all the hoopla of the last couple of weeks, I haven't had a chance to try it. Until now. No boy tonight, so I wanted to do something simple. And I was freezing, so I wanted something hot. And I didn't want any leftovers

Cue Orka Steamer! I had some chicken breasts in the freezer (note: I probably shouldn't have used year old chicken, but it was still pretty good!). The chicken isn't very pretty, but it is good! The vegetables turned out beautifully - I was afraid they would get all smushy. But no! They were soft inside but also crisp! So, I kind of made this up as I went, because the box only had like, 3 recipes. Does anybody have an Orka Steamer? Do you have any tried and true recipes for it?

Ingredients:
1 Chicken Breast
1 Serving Veggies (I used green beans, carrots and tomatoes)
1 tbsp (ish) EVOO
Italian Dressing
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
Place everything in the steamer.

Drizzle with EVOO and salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle with Italian Dressing.

Cook in microwave 7 minutes (this is according to Orka's instructions for a frozen chicken breast).

Told you it was easy :)

Product Review: Lipton Sides Thai Sesami Noodles

I have been lazy this week. I have had some long days at work and don't feel like putting a lot of effort or energy into cooking. Since it was just me tonight, I decided that I would make one of the Lipton sides - not to mention that my dad works for Unilever (who manufactures Lipton) so I get a ton of these for free!

This is the first time that I have tried the Thai Sesame Noodles. Of course, they were easy to cook - I always go for the microwave directions instead of the stove top. I kind of have an aversion to boiling water. It just never works out too well for me. So, I made these in the microwave - all you need is water and oil if you have it. I also added about a cup of leftover chicken to make it a little heartier since this was my entire dinner. Yeah, that's right. I don't worry about sides when the boy isn't here. Heck, most of the time I don't even cook this much for just me! All in all, this was pretty good. I think it would definitely be better as a side or to do some peanut chicken or shrimp or something and use this as the "serve on a bed of noodles or rice" part of the recipe. These probably would've been better if I had added a little soy sauce or teriyaki sauce or something. Still good, considering the ease and the cost! :)