Pioneer Woman's Ranch Style Chicken

½ cups Dijon Mustard
½ cups Honey
½ whole (juice Of) Lemon
½ teaspoons Paprika
½ teaspoons Salt
Crushed Red Pepper (optional To Taste)
6 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 pound Thick Cut Bacon
Bacon Grease
Sharp Cheddar Cheese, to taste
Canola Oil

To begin, make the marinade. In a large bowl mix together ½ cup Dijon or country/grainy mustard with ½ cup honey, juice of ½ lemon, ½ teaspoon paprika, and ½ teaspoon salt and whisk until smooth. Sprinkle in some crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne if you like things a little spicy. Set aside.
Next, rinse the chicken breasts, place between two sheets of waxed paper and pound to around ½ to ¾ inch thick with a mallet. Next, add the chicken to the bowl with the marinade, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 hours.
While the chicken marinates, fry up some bacon. When finished cooking, reserve ¼ cup of the bacon grease and clean out the skillet.
When the chicken is done marinating, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Remove the chicken from the fridge and pour off excess marinade. Heat half of the reserved bacon grease with an equal quantity of Canola Oil in the clean skillet over medium-high heat. When the grease is nice and hot add two or three pieces of chicken to it. Cook until brownish/blackish, about 1 to 1 ½ minutes per side. Remove chicken to a large baking sheet. If cooking many pieces of chicken, repeat skillet process and remove finished chicken to baking sheet. Place chicken in preheated oven and cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from over.
Lay a few pieces of bacon over each chicken breast. Sprinkle shredded sharp cheddar cheese over the top of the chicken as generously as you like. Return pan to oven for an additional five minutes until cheese is melted and bacon is sizzling. Serve immediately.


This is super yummy, and the marinade is great...would be tasty for chicken on the grill too!

Chicken Bow-tie Pasta With Sun-dried Tomatoes

3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
Jar Sun-Dried Tomatoes, drained
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup fresh basil or 1 Tbsp. dried
4 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp. italian seasoning
1/8 tsp. red pepper
12 oz. broccoli
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
16 oz. Farfalle pasta (bow-ties)
Parmesan Cheese

Cook Pasta according to package directions and drain.  Keep warm.

Cut chicken in 1 inch cubes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Saute chicken in oil over medium-high heat for 5 minutes or until done.  Remove chicken with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.  Do not drain oil from skillet.  Cover chicken with foil to keep warm.

Add sun-dried tomatoes and next six ingredients to skillet.  Bring to boil over medium heat.  Stir in broccoli and cook 5 minutes or until broccoli is tender.  Stir occasionally.

Place warm chicken and pasta in large serving dish.  Pour skillet ingredients over the pasta and chicken and mix together evenly.  Top with Parmesan cheese.

Black Bean Burritos

1 Tbsp. Cumin
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. red pepper
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kernel corn, drained
2 cans Rotel
1 cup instant brown rice
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese
Tortillas

Combine cumin, garlic, paprika, and red pepper.  Add cubed chicken and half of the seasoning blend to a Ziploc bag.  Shake to coat.  Cook chicken in vegetable oil until no longer pink.  Combine beans, corn, Rotel, and reserved seasoning blend.  Add to chicken and bring to a boil.  Add rice.  Cover and cook until rice is tender.  May need to add water.  Top with cheese and cilantro.  Serve with Tortillas.