Dinners for 9/21-9/22: Chicken and mango quesadillas; curry chicken salad wraps

I was very busy the past few days, and am now playing catch-up. Since this post will be long (sorry), I will try to keep my comments to a minimum.

Back in high school home economics class, I was partnered with Jess, Betsy, Marie, Nancy, and Jennifer. During the cooking portion of one of the classes, we decided to make chicken quesadillas. Somehow, Jess and Bets talked the rest of us into putting mango on the quesadillas. I was skeptical, but blown away when I tried them. The tangy, sweet mango really complemented the sharp and salty cheese and chicken. And I now marinade the chicken first in an acidic marinade that matches the acidity of the mango. I loved the combination of chicken and mangos, and still continue to use it. And not just in quesadillas!


Dinner for Monday 9/21


Chicken and mango quesadillas (inspired by Jess and Bets many, many years ago) this makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
2 TBSP olive oil
1 ½ TBSP lime juice
¼ tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 TBSP white vinegar
2 TBSP chopped dried onion
¼ tsp oregano
½ tsp pepper
¼ TBSP paprika
1/4 cup water
1 chicken breast, in bite sized pieces
Half of a mango
1/2 cup shredded or grated reduced fat sharp cheddar
8 tortillas
Oil for the pan


Directions:

Step 1: Mix first twelve ingredients. Whisk to combine.




Step 2: Add chicken. Marinate for 30 minutes.




Step 3: Remove chicken from marinade and cook in lightly oiled sauté pan until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from pan and let rest.

Step 4: Dice the mango. (I love dicing mangos!)

Step 5: Lightly oil a griddle or saute pan. Heat over medium heat.

Step 6: Place one tortilla in the pan. Sprinkle 1/4 of the grated cheese on the tortilla. Top with 1/4 of the chicken and 1/4 of the mango.

Step 7: Top with a second tortilla. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until cheese melts and bottom tortilla becomes crispy. Flip the quesadilla over to crisp the other tortilla.

Step 8: Remove quesadilla from pan. Cut into wedges and serve with salsa (homemade is preferable, but we used Newman's Own)

Dinner for Tuesday 9/22

Curried chicken salad wraps: For this dinner, I used some of the tortillas I made Monday and also the other 1/2 of the mango. This makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast halves, no more than 3/4-inch thick
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon curry powder

Half of a mango, diced

1 cup halved red grapes
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 ounces romaine lettuce (about 5 cups lightly packed))
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice

4 tortillas

Directions:

Step 1: Bring the broth and water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add chicken to broth and simmer, covered, for 8 minutes. Turn the heat off and let chicken stand in the cooking liquid, covered, until cooked through, about 20 minutes.

Step 2: Remove the chicken from the broth and cool completely in the refrigerator. Cut into 1/4-inch dice.

Step 3: In a large bowl, stir together the yogurt, mayonnaise, and curry powder.

Step 4: Fold in the chicken, mango pieces, grapes and cilantro and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Step 5: In a large bowl, toss the greens with the oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper, to taste.

Step 6: Place a tortillas on four plates. Arrange the greens on top of the tortillas. Then top with a scoop of the chicken salad. Roll it into a wrap sandwich and enjoy!

recipe adapted from Elie Krieger