Creamy Pesto Chicken Salad with Apples and Pecans

The perfect summer salad bursting with delicious sweet and savory flavors from apples and grapes, crunchy pecans and shredded chicken all smothered in creamy pesto mayo combo!

It seems like forever since I posted. I do apologize my dear readers for that hiatus. We've been on a month-long holiday in Europe in June which extended up to the first week of July. Thereafter, it took me a little over a week to get over the jet lag and pure exhaustion. I have only been getting back into the swing of things recently and thankfully,now, I feel human again!! Hurrah! :)

Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Chicken

Simply dump the chicken, salsa verde and seasonings and what comes out of the slow cooker is one super delicious dish. Perfect for your tacos and burritos!

My family loves Mexican food and have it at least once or twice a week. Although Mexican food is pretty reasonably priced we cannot afford to buy it all the time as we would be bankrupt! So for us the only way to satisfy our cravings for tacos, burritos and enchiladas would be if Mom (that's me!) make some and feed her hungry family!

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

The classic Filipino dish - Chicken Adobo - marinated in vinegar, soy sauce, peppercorns and garlic then cooked in the pressure cooker (instant pot).

I have lost count with regard to the number of adobo recipes I have! This is the latest and probably the 5th! Well, we love chicken adobo so much that I want to try all the different versions. I have my own classic adobo, our helper's awesome adobo, Chinese-style adobo, slow cooker adobo and then this --- a pressure cooker version. And this time, I am talking mainly about chicken adobo -- pork adobo is equally as popular and for me, equally delicious!

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

The combination of spices plus a hint of citrus goodness make this Butter Chicken totally delicious!  Easy, simple, tried and tested recipe made in your slow cooker!

Every time our friend Samuel comes to the US for a visit he brings with him some delicious spices from his beloved country India!! One time he brought back with him nearly a kilo (2+ pounds) worth of authentic and homemade curry powder made by his mom. Wow! That was and still is, for me, the best curry powder ever, It was vibrant, spicy and made everything I add it to totally yummy! As a result, I have been cooking curry a lot and, as you can imagine, using it a lot, too. What I love about it is that it's so robust in flavor that even a mere teaspoon can truly do wonders to any dish that needs curry powder.

Slow Cooker Chicken (or Turkey) Chili

I have made this chili many times for my family and friends and it's always well loved and the super easy recipe is often requested. 

When our schedules are not hectic we love to have people over at our place. We especially love having friends from church during Sunday nights after the evening worship service. It's just a nice and perfect time to relax, enjoy each others company especially before we face the challenges in the real world the next day --- Monday! We enjoy some food and occasionally have some games that everyone can participate in. We don't do anything too formal or structured, the food is mostly the appetizer type - quick and easy in preparation. The point is to enjoy each other's company in a fuss-free environment.

Lemon Cilantro (or Coriander) Chicken

Fresh lemon juice, aromatic spices and herbs add so much flavor to this succulent chicken dish. Easy and delicious option for a weeknight family meal!

What a disaster! No, not this recipe, thankfully, but the fact that I lost the video for this recipe. It is frustrating as I really worked hard to make a video for this and even missed an appointment to finish it on time and then in the twinkle of an eye, it was gone....all gone.

Whole Roast Masala Chicken (Indian-style)

Flavored with aromatic spices, this whole roast Masala Chicken (Indian-style) comes out so yummy! The skin is deliciously crisp and the meat is tender and moist. This roast is very easy and quick to prepare, too.

When I was pregnant for the first time 10 years ago with our eldest son, the main food I craved was roast chicken. I had a really bad "morning" sickness (of course, it could be anytime of the day!) for the first 4 months or so and nothing seemed to calm my stomach and made me happier than roast chicken! I don't know why that was but I guess I should just be happy my cravings were not too "exotic" or hard to find!

Slow Cooker Chicken Adobo

Chicken slowly braised in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and bay leaves until fall-off-the-bone tender and DELICIOUS. This classic dish can be made a day ahead and tastes even better the next day! 

Life does get in the way sometimes. :) I intended to post this well-clamored for recipe last week but alas my migraine headache for 3 days in a row totally prevented me from doing so. So, I apologize to those who were normally awaiting another recipe last week. Things were certainly beyond my control. I guess, it's better late than never. Anyway, let me assure you dear readers that this recipe is certainly worth the wait!

Filipino Coconut Chicken Curry

The other night we had dinner over at our friend's house. A missionary visiting from France who spoke at our church last Sunday stayed with them. For his last night we decided to have dinner together, sort of a pot luck. I didn't have time to prepare a main dish as we toured him around the area during the day (though I made some French clafoutis for dessert in his honor). Hubby and I just decided to get a couple of rotisserie chicken as our contribution. 

Pasta with Chicken and Mushrooms in Blue Cheese Sauce

When it comes to comfort food a pasta dish would have to be one of the top favorites. Eating pasta especially with a delicious creamy sauce not only satisfies the taste buds but makes one feels so good inside. Good food can make one smile and instantly make anyone feel better. Well, at least that's how I feel when I eat a delicious pasta dish.

Slow Cooker Red-Cooked Chicken

I love cooking Chinese food. It really is, next to Filipino cuisine, my favorite. Whenever I crave something with Asian flavors that means family dinner will have rice and a Chinese viand. Also, it's much easier to find ingredients for Chinese recipes nowadays as chances are you are within walking or driving distance from a Chinese store. However that is not often the case with my Filipino ingredients although of late many Asian stores now carry some of the basic Filipino must-haves for cooking. For this reason, Asian night means mostly Chinese night.

Chicken and Pork Adobo

To say that I love Adobo is an understatement! I live Adobo! The proof - this is my 4th version of this famous Philippine national dish and this may not be the last as I am always on the hunt for different versions of this Pinoy classic. This one is special though as this is my family's personal favorite.

Chicken and Bacon Chowder

There's something comforting about a hot bowl of creamy soup. The aroma from the soup scooped out straight from the simmering pan conjures an image of something so good and delightful! And when you are in the middle of winter you need a lot of this bowl of deliciousness.

Country-Style Chicken Kiev

In our church in Holland, MI the ladies came up with a fantastic cook book that contained recipes that are not only family friendly and easy to make, they were also very much palate-pleasing, too. When I was just starting to learn how to cook - a little over a decade ago - this book was my companion and reference guide for meals that I prepared for hubby and the kids.

Baked Chicken with Olives and Zucchini

Yay for Fall! That means the weather is cooler and we can finally turn our ovens on to bake and cook delicious meals for our family. When I make a savory dish for my family, I try to use simple recipes that I can easily prepare and do not require too much fuss. After all, when school season begins, there are tons of activities to attend to and oftentimes, there isn't a lot of time to make dinner.

Sweet-and-Spicy Chicken and Steak Taco Bar

My husband and I love spicy food! We prefer food that has complex flavor, full of yummy spices that delight the taste buds. When we came to the USA, over ten years ago, one of the first things we looked for was a good Indian restaurant as we love Indian food. Unfortunately, at that time, there wasn't any reasonably good Indian restaurant where we resided so we were quite sad and thought we may no longer have our favorite food for a long time (unless we visited another city). Thankfully, the situation all worked out well as that motivated me to learn how to cook. If spicy food won't be readily available, then I must do something about it. I am glad that because of this I learned how to cook curry and other Indian and even Thai specialties. Necessity is indeed a good motivator!

Cornell Chicken Barbecue (Cornell Formula Sauce)

Last year, one of our friends from church invited as over for dinner. I watched as she masterfully grilled the chicken which we would have for dinner. I knew it would be a wonderful dish as the aroma coming from the grill smelled wonderful. It was amazing - the most tender, juicy and flavorful grilled chicken we have had in a long time. I am sure, I ate quite a few pieces.

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Before I converted my hubby to become a pork and beef lover (particularly ribs), he pretty much ate only chicken. Let me correct that, he ate pork but only in the form of breakfast sausages and particularly the British variety as he believes they make the best sausages in the world - I must say, I do agree. At any rate, he still prefers to have chicken over red meat as he is quite health conscious (I am obviously not as good as him as I love pork too much!).

Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos

It's summer time and as you know, no one wants to use the oven during sizzling hot days. Hence, the magical slow cooker becomes the numero uno kitchen appliance that comes in handy. This summer I intend to use it for making all kinds of food from appetizers, main dishes and desserts! Love that you can just dump all the ingredients in and voila a few hours later, you have the most amazing, moist and flavorful dish! 

Chicken Rogan Josh

Last December 2013 my hubby had the opportunity to visit India! Of course, he was excited as he'd always wanted to travel to India to see this amazing country, taste his favorite curry and experience its culture. He was invited by a friend to speak and help out in their annual church conference and he readily said yes. Of course, I was excited for him but nonetheless, because he would be absent for 2 weeks, I was kind of scared, too. I told him to make up for it - he'd better bring me home some of India's best spices!!! :)