Island Grilled Chicken

Maui Sunset #5 at The Four Seasons Resort Wailea

7/07/13: To be quite honest, I have absolutely no idea what I was doing the day that I decided to make Island Grilled Chicken. I mean, really, that was about two months ago and, let’s be honest, sometimes recipes and ideas all start to blend together at some point.

Maui Sunset #1 at Kamaole Beach across the street (South Kihei Rd) from our hotel

At any rate, I figure I would take this opportunity to tell you about my most memorable island adventure: Maui, Hawaii. As I’ve mentioned before, my college roommate, Erin, asked me to be a bridesmaid in her Maui wedding. Of course, I was thrilled, and it ended up being the most beautiful place I have ever been. I asked myself repeatedly throughout the trip (YouTube’s After the Dentist style), “Is this real life?”

Maui Sunset #2, Happy Hour on the Bensons' lanai at mana Kai Maui Resort

Maui Sunset #2, Happy Hour on the Bensons' lanai at mana Kai Maui Resort

And the sunsets. Oh. My. Gosh. The sunsets. I have never- not at the lake, not at the river, not in Alaska, not on either coast, not in Florida or Mexico- never EVER seen a sunset like a Maui sunset. Holy. Moly.  They were absolutely breath-taking.

Maui Sunset #3 at Erin & Alex's Rehearsal Dinner at the
Plantation House Restaurant at the Plantation Golf Course

Maui Sunset #3 at Erin & Alex's Rehearsal Dinner at the
Plantation House Restaurant at the Plantation Golf Course

We watched the sunsets every night that we were there- from the beach, from a luau, from the Kapalua golf course, from Erin’s family’s hotel room- but the last sunset of the trip had to have been the most spectacular. Everyone had recommended that we try to get to the Four Seasons for happy hour to watch the sunset, and I would give anything to be able to do that just once a year for the rest of my life. We had fun, fruity drinks on the patio and watched the most blazingly beautiful sunset I have ever seen in my whole life. As you can see by the pictures, it completely changed color schemes and phases numerous times in the short time it was setting. We were in awe.

Maui Sunset #4 at Erin & Alex's wedding reception
The Grand Luau at Honua'ula

Maui Sunset #4 at Erin & Alex's wedding reception
The Grand Luau at Honua'ula

I always think of Granny when the sunsets. For more on that, read my story for Strawberry Shortcake. She loved sunsets, and I am sure that I inherited my love for the blazing orange beauty from her.  While it makes me sad to think of her never getting to see a Maui sunset, I had no doubt she was watching right alongside of Andy and me on the Four Seasons patio- and knowing Granny, she probably had her own fruity drink in hand, too.

Maui Sunset #5, Four Seasons Resort Wailea

Island Grilled Chicken

Pinterest.com

Servings: 2; WW PointsPlus Value: 5

Spaghetti Squash & Island Grilled Chicken

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1-2 lemons)
• 1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 chicken breasts

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together
2. Marinate chicken for at least 1 hour, up to overnight
3. Grill chicken over medium heat, appr 15-25 mins depending on thickness

Keep on cookin'!

-Katherine

Chicken Spaghetti

Andy and me in Maui, HI

When sifting through recipes online a month ago, I asked Andy if he'd ever heard of Chicken Spaghetti.  "Heard of it?" he surprisingly asked.  "Well yeah, we used to have it every week before our soccer games.  The moms would rotate cooking it for our team."  Turns out Chicken Spaghetti is much more popular than I ever knew- geez, I'd never even heard of the stuff until I came across the recipe. 

Mr. & Mrs. Jennings at the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Speaking of Andy's mom, that night we went to meet her, Andy's dad, Andy's sister (Carly) and brother-in-law (Slate), and Andy's precious nephew, Greyson, at Patrizio's for Carly's birthday dinner.  Carly and Slate had been in the Dominican Republic at the beginning of July, and Andy and I had just gotten back from Hawaii.  To add to it, Andy's parents had been on a road trip to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, so we all had vacation stories to share and Carly's birthday to celebrate.  And actually, for lunch that day, we had met Andy's cousin (Clint), Clint's wife (Patty), and their two sons (Guy and Coleman) for lunch at Joe T's.  It was quite the Jennings family day!

Coleman and me at Joe T's for lunch

But back to dinner... Greyson wasn't feeling very well, and we had him watching both Hop and Dora the Explorer on two different iPhones to keep from crying about his sore throat.  He wasn't satisfied with either Hop or Dora, so double screen time it was. 

Slate in the Dominican Republic

Carly professed that she'd forgotten her camera when they went to the Dominican, but was able to show us pictures from her iPhone (when it wasn't being used by Greyson- cue the crying).  I was prepared with our 550 photos on my friend, Whitney's, iPad that she had graciously let me borrow for our Hawaiian adventure.  (Thanks, Whit!)  We probably looked like super iGeeks in the middle of the restaurant, but it was fun to relive all of our trips.

Carly in the Dominican Republic

I did my best to try Chicken Spaghetti.  Given that it was from Cooking Light, I'm sure it wasn't as good as what Andy had growing up (let's be honest, full-fat foods often win that contest).  However, Andy claimed that he did like it, and was pleased that it was lighter and lower-fat than traditional Chicken Spaghetti.

Chicken Spaghetti
Cooking Light
Servings: 6; Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value: 8

Chicken Spaghetti

• 1 c fat-free shredded cheddar cheese
• 12 1/2 oz canned chicken, drained & flaked
• 10 3/4 oz Campbell's 98% Fat-Free Cream Of Chicken Soup, undiluted
• 10 3/4 oz Campbell's 98% Fat-Free Cream Of Mushroom Soup, undiluted
• 10 oz canned tomatoes with green chilies, drained
• 1/2 fresh mushrooms, chopped
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 medium green pepper, diced
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 14 1/2 oz cooked whole-wheat spaghetti

1. Combine cheese, chicken, condensed soups, green chilies, mushrooms, onion, green pepper, garlic salt, and black pepper in a sauce pan on the stovetop
2. Cook spaghetti per instructions on box
3. When sauce mixture is hot and cheese is melted within, and spaghetti has been cooked and drained, pour sauce mixture over noodles

Keep on cookin'!
-Katherine

Texas Spaghetti Sauce

At the Mana Kai Maui Resort

I am an avid lover of to-do lists.  I make them on my phone, on the back of the charge nurse worksheet we use at work, and in notebooks.  I find some weird thrill in checking off the items on said to-do lists, so much so that I have actually added items I have already done to the to-do list, just so that I could check them off as being done.  It's just one of my things.  I also compulsively organize the lists: things to do, emails to send, errands to run, and things to pack on upcoming trips.  Those lists are then, in turn, also compulsively organized.  E-mails to send are organized by importance, errands are organized in the order of my drive from work to home, and things to pack are organized by which bag (carry-on, purse, checked, etc) will hold them.

Andy and me at Erin & Alex's wedding rehearsal at the Grand Wailea Resort

Andy and my trip to Maui in July was no exception.  I started making to-do lists for our trip back in February when we decided we were going to go.  I remember telling Andy, "It's only 147 days away!"  He thought I was crazy.  But a trip of that magnitude needed planning!! Having completed my packing list about two weeks before we were leaving, I thought I was ready to go.  

Sunset at the Mana Kai Maui Resort

The Sunday before we left (we left on a Wednesday), I was "flexed" (cancelled) from work.  Perfect- I needed a day to get organized for Maui!  I packed my entire pack, in the order of my packing list, all that Sunday.  Again, Andy looked at me like I was crazy. 

Erin, Andy, and me after Erin & Alex's wedding at the Grand Wailea Resort

Crazy? Probably.  Organized/anxious/ready/stoked? Absolutely.  After packing my huge pink suitcase to check, my newly acquired (from Andy for my birthday!) camera bag purse, and my carryon, it was time for some pre-Hawaii pampering.  I headed to the nail salon for a mani/pedi.  

Erin, Julia, and me at Mama's Fish House in Maui

"Do you want to upgrade to the coconut oil delux pedicure?" Linda, my nail tech, asked.  Why, yes.  Yes, I did.  Coconut oil on the feet and a Nail Time complimentary margarita in hand, I sat back to relax and daydream of my upcoming trip to paradise. 

Lunch at the Hula Grill

I came home to Andy still not packed (shocker.  I'm pretty sure he didn't finish packing until 3 mins before we left for the airport!), so I figured it was time to get the house all situated with everything in place for our almost-week-long vacay.  Andy's friend, John, brought over some venison a few weeks ago (thanks, John!), so I thought I'd try a new spaghetti sauce recipe.  Spaghetti would be an easy meal to prepare while we were busy packing and organizing, and the venison would give it a unique meaty and hearty twist.  I ended up deciding to call the dish "Texas Spaghetti Sauce" since venison and deer hunting is so very Texas-style.  So off we went- me bugging Andy to start packing, finishing last minute laundry and dishes so we wouldn't come home to a messy house, all with Texas Spaghetti Sauce simmering away- ironically, while we prepared to leave Texas far behind.

Andy and me in the ocean in Maui

Texas Spaghetti Sauce

Kate Strickland

Servings: 2

Texas Spaghetti Sauce

• 1 jar of your favorite meat-free spaghetti sauce (we used light marinara)
• 1/2 lb ground venison
• 1 tbsp tomato paste

1. Brown venison in a pan on the stovetop
2. Put marinara sauce in a saucepan on the stovetop and turn heat on low
3. Add tomato paste and allow it to melt into the sauce
4. Add browned venison to marinara sauce and cover with a lid
5. Heat until heated throughout, stirring occasionally- make sure to stir in the tomato paste so it isn't chunky in the sauce



Texas Spaghetti Sauce

Keep on cookin'!

-Katherine

Salsa Chicken

Michael & me before going out for Michael's 25th Birthday, July 2011

The night before Andy and I left for Hawaii was also our friend, Michael's (who introduced Andy and me) birthday.  During the day of July 10th, we were invited to join Michael and some of our friends at Baker Street for drinks to celebrate Michael's 26th.  Since we were still busy readying ourselves for Maui, we knew we would need a quick, inexpensive, and easy dinner, so Salsa Chicken with Black Bean & Corn Side it was! 

Michael (a penguin) and me (Sookie Stackhouse) at Katie Fenn's Halloween Party, October 2011

Tuesday, July 10th, was one LONG day at work.  I constantly found my thoughts wandering to the beach and visions of frozen concoctions and succulently prepared exotic fish were swimming through my head.  Luckily, I was already packed (since I have such a to-do list obsession), so I was free to let my thoughts float to the waves and not to my suitcase.  I finished an admission at our partial-hospitalization program, and I was returning crisis phone calls when I got a text from Andy suggesting we go to Baker Street for Michael's birthday.  Now I knew Andy was far from packed, and I had a staff meeting after work, so I knew it was a hard-press, but that it would be fun to say hi to our friend for his big day.

Andy, me, Jesse, Will, Brian, & Michael at St. Patrick's Day in Dallas, March 2012

I could barely sit through the staff meeting- they said "Restraint and Seclusion" and all I could hear was "secluded island."  They said "new hire" and I thought "new adventure."  They said "Happy Birthday to the July birthday people" and the only celebration I could think of was Erin & Alex's fast-approaching wedding celebration.  It was tough!

Michael, me, and Andy in New Orleans, February 2012

I raced home and threw the oven into pre-heat.  I had pulled the chicken breasts out and marinated them with the taco seasoning and salsa the night before, so they were rarin' to go.  As soon as Andy came home, I popped the chicken in, dumped the cans for the side in a pot, and in 30 minutes we were scarfing it down.  As our last home cooked meal before our big trip, I'd say it was quite the easy preparation and cleanup.  After dinner, it was off to Baker Street.  We met Brian, Mallory, Sean, Elise, Ray, Laney, and (of course!) the birthday boy, Michael.  We only had a few beers, but it was fun catching up and watching the crazy rainstorm that hit Fort Worth out of nowhere.  Seriously- It was pouring so hard, I couldn't even see across the parking lot- it was white outside!

Thomas, Andy, Abbie, me, Michael, and Chris at my house watching a TCU game, September 2011

I was glad when we came home to not have a ton of dirty dishes and kitchen cleanup on my to-do list, and it was off to bed to dream sweet dreams of Maui sunsets and wedding shenanigans.


Salsa Chicken
All Recipes
Servings: 4; Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value: 5

Salsa Chicken with chips and Black Bean & Corn Side

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 4 teaspoons taco seasoning mix
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 cup fat-free shredded cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Place chicken breasts in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Sprinkle taco seasoning on both sides of chicken breasts
4. Pour salsa over all
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-35 mins, or until chicken is tender and juicy and its juices run clear.
6. Sprinkle chicken evenly with cheese, and continue baking for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Salsa Chicken with Black Bean & Corn Side