Healthy Snacks

Balsamic Chicken Bites Recipe

8 · Jan 21, 2016 · 1 Comment

+ This Balsamic Chicken Bites Recipe is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Tyson Foods, Inc. All opinions are entirely my own. +

It’s getting EXCITING!!

THE BIG GAME is almost here!

No matter who you are rooting for, the Super Bowl is always a fantastic time to gather with friends and family to enjoy some crazy excitement together and to enjoy some fantastic food!

Whether the game is a wild ride or a blowout, you want to make sure your game time snacks are ON POINT!

The Super Bowl just isn’t the Super Bowl without a scrumptious, tempting spread of all kinds of snackable treats. Just like any event or holiday, you want to make sure you have some great recipes that are tried and true so that you can look like a kitchen ROCKSTAR!

You can find all kinds of fantastic ideas at Talk About Delicious or the Talk About Delicious Game Pinterest Board. It’s packed full of great ideas. Today, I have a tasty recipe for you as well. Our family’s favorite Balsamic Chicken Bites…

What I LOVE about this little bite sized treat is that it’s on the healthier end of the typical game time snack spectrum and it’s packed full of flavor. It’s also super easy to make, you can even make it a head of time which is fabulous, since you don’t want to be bogged down with food prep when you’re with your friends and the game is on.

I typically head to Walmart to gather all of my supplies. I love using the fresh Tyson® Chicken found in the refrigerated meat section of the store. Then I grab the rest of the ingredients for my marinade, one of the stars of the show.

For the chicken marinade you’ll need–

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon salt & pepper

1 tablespoon minced garlic

Cut two Tyson® Chicken Breasts into bite-sized pieces and add your dry ingredients.

Then add your wet ingredients and mix well. Store in an air tight container or Ziploc bag for at least one hour or up to 4 hours. This is a strong marinade and you don’t want to over do it with those bite sized pieces of chicken.

Now, this marinade is one of my go-to recipes when it comes to making scrumptious chicken meals for the family throughout the year. When I am using it with whole Tyson® Chicken Breasts, I can marinate it overnight and it will be just fine. I normally serve it with a lovely salad and some French bread and you’re good to go.

Once the chicken is full of that balsamic flavor, you’re ready to cook your chicken. Typically if I am cooking whole breasts, we grill them BUT, since these little gems won’t really work on the grill AND it’s February… I cook them inside either on a cast iron grill pan or a cast iron pan. I LOVE my cast iron cookware, I’ve grabbed most of my pans at Walmart. They are fantastic and you can’t beat the price. I purchased the pan I’m using in the photo below for less than $15!

Now these little gems cook pretty quick. I heat-up my pan until it’s screaming hot and then I turn down the temperature to medium. I add a little olive oil to the pan and then place the chicken into the pan making sure not to over crowd them or add too much liquid to the pan. You want to sear them, NOT boil or steam them. I typically cook them in batches. Turn them after 1-2 minutes and continue to do so until you have a good sear on them. Make sure to keep a close watch on them. Because of the high sugar content, they can burn quickly.

These little balsamic chicken gems cook pretty fast, usually 4-5 minutes but you’ll want to check the temperature to make sure they are fully cooked and are safe at 165˚. Remove from pan and set aside until you have finished cooking all of your chicken.

Tyson® Balsamic Chicken Bites

Next, all you need to do is assemble your Balsamic Chicken Bites. You’ll need…

cherry or grape tomatoes

balsamic chicken gems

buffalo mozzarella pearls

Now, the key to making this appetizer sing is to pair the Balsamic Chicken gems with some scrumptious bite-sized tomatoes like these cherry tomatoes still on the vine or some lovely grape tomatoes. Either one will work really well.

I use a large toothpick and feed a tomato onto the toothpick followed by a balsamic chicken gem and then cap it with a buffalo mozzarella pearl.

It’s super slick. You can either serve the chicken warm or cold. They taste great either way. I like to lay out a few basil leaves to set the Balsamic Chicken Bites on…

… I love how it adds some lovely color and some fresh vibrant flavors to your Super Bowl spread!

Looking for more GAME DAY ideas? Don’t forget to visit Talk About Delicious for more fantastic ideas and then visit your local Walmart to stock-up on all your game day goodies!

Honey Pumpkin Yogurt Topping

1 · Aug 17, 2015 ·

+ This Honey Pumpkin Yogurt Topping post brought to you by Silk +

I don’t know why this is, but the minute the kiddos head back to school I’m ready to head into the magic of fall. It just doesn’t seem right to continue to celebrate summer when there’s early bedtimes and homework to be finished. In my mind, I KNOW that it is still mid-August and pumpkin season still has a few weeks before we hit it full swing, BUT… I’m in the mood for fall flavors!

Fall flavors are just something extra special. It’s like a little gift from Mother Nature saying, “I’m sorry the summer is over, here’s your little gift to smooth the transition to winter.” That’s when the pumpkin spice, stewed cinnamon apples & candy corn come to play. That’s the magic when the air turns cooler.

With the kiddos getting back into the routine of school, we’ve had to get back onto a normal breakfast schedule and sometimes that can get a little boring. We love yogurt, but sometimes you need to kick it up a notch, plus we need some of that autumn magic this time of year to make it special.

Here’s what we came up with at our house…

Honey, pumpkin butter, roasted pumpkin seeds & Vanilla Silk® Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternative. I love that thanks to silk, even people with diary issues can still enjoy great yogurt creation for breakfast. Who knew that dairy-free could taste so good. Silk® Dairy-Free Yogurt Alternative has…

6 grams of plant-powered protein per serving
6 smooth, creamy flavors with juicy bits of real fruit
Excellent source of calcium and vitamin D
No cholesterol, dairy, lactose, gluten, carrageenan
or casein.

PLUS, It’s tastes aaaaamazing topped with honey, your favorite pumpkin butter and some roasted pumpkin seeds.

Honey Pumpkin Yogurt Topping Recipe

1 5.3 oz. container of Vanilla Silk® Diary-Free Yogurt Alternative

1 tablespoon honey

1-2 tablespoons pumpkin butter

1-2 tablespoons of roasted pumpkin seeds

Top yogurt with honey, pumpkin butter and roasted pumpkin seeds to your taste and enjoy!

If pumpkin isn’t your thing and you would like some more fruity flavors, Silk® has you covered their too.

They also have Black Cherry, Peach & Mango, Strawberry, Tropical Pineapple along with Blueberry. All of them perfect to top with your favorite toppings. Click HERE to grab a coupon to try these Silk® dairy-free yogurt alternatives.

I think I’m going to stick with my honey pumpkin creation for a bit. I’ve kind of fallen in LOVE!!

This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Fresh Avocado Bites Appetizer

2 · Feb 1, 2015 · 2 Comments

+ This Fresh Avocado Bites Appetizer post brought to you by Avocados from Mexico #FirstDraftEver +

If I were stranded on a desert island and was given a choice of one fresh food plant to bring with me, I would choose an avocado tree. Yep, I love them that much. As a child I couldn’t get enough of them. Luckily my Grandfather had an avocado ranch and when we visited in the summer I could eat all the avocados a girl could ever want. Those are happy memories!

If I could I would add avocado to almost anything; sandwiches, soups, salad, egg dishes, salsas, smoothies, pastas… you can add it to almost anything! The cool thing is that Avocados from Mexico are available 365 days a year!

So, even in these cold dreary months, we can add a FRESH Mexican goodness into our lives.

Did you know that avocados are a FRUIT? Not only that, but they are part of the BERRY family? They are full of all kinds of vitamins and nutrients, plus they are a fantastic source of “good fat.” Yes, our bodies need fat to keep our cells strong, great news for fans of this incredible fruit! For all of the avocados nutritional facts, you can check out this site.

My family adores this fresh avocado salsa that I make for all kinds of dishes. Today, I’m making it for a fun appetizer to share during the Super Bowl. This is a simple dish that’s easy to whip up and the light, fresh flavors will have your guests coming back for more. Speaking of the Super Bowl… Have you seen the Avocados from Mexico Super Bowl commercial? It’s hilarious!! If you missed it, you can check it out HERE.

First you need to grab some wonton wrappers from the market. Using a mini-muffin pan, place your wrappers into the cup and press them down to create a “cup”. Spray with cooking spray and place in a 350˚ oven for 5-7 minutes, until they are nice and crisp. Remove from oven and let cool.

These cups can be made a day or two ahead and stored in an air tight container until you are ready to use them.

Now’s the fun part, making the fresh salsa… This is super simple!

Cut all of your ingredients into small bite sized pieces. The ingredient list is below.

Add your lime juice, olive oil and chili powder to the bowl and gently toss.

Spoon them into your wonton cups and top with the sour cream sauce and serve.

Looking for more avocado fun? Come join me along with Mario & George Lopez, the folks from Avocados from Mexico and a handful of other bloggers as we tweet it up during the Super Bowl today! Follow Avocados from Mexico on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest & Instagram for all kinds of avocado ideas.

Fresh Avocado Bites Appetizer

Heather // WhipperBerry

These fresh avocado bites are a creamy burst of flavor in your mouth, your guests will adore the simple yet complex flavors of this appetizer.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 5

Total Time 15

Course Appetizer

Servings 48 cups

Ingredients

1 package of wonton wrappers
cooking spray
2 ripe avocados
1 cup grape tomatoes
1 tablespoon diced jalapeño
1/2 a mango diced
1 lime
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 chipotle chili powder
1/2 cup green onion sour cream
green onion

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 375˚
Place wonton wrappers in a mini muffin pan and press down to create cups
Spray with cooking spray and bake for 5-7 minutes or until lightly brown and crisp
In a medium size bowl add your diced avocado, diced tomatoes, diced jalapeño, diced mango, juice from one lime, olive oil, chili powder and green onion. Gently stir. You want to make sure you don't mash the avocado.
Spoon avocado mixture into cooled wonton cups
Put sour cream in a squeeze bottle and top avocado bite with a drizzle of sour cream

Disclosure // This is a sponsored post brought to you by Avocados from Mexico via Mom it Forward. As always… All thoughts, ideas and opinions are my very own.

Bring Back Dessert with Dessertify

0 · Jul 21, 2014 · 4 Comments

Who’s tired of skipping dessert? We are all trying so hard to be good most of the time, wouldn’t it be fun to get a little bit of that sweet that we crave without all the guilt! I’m super excited to tell you guys about a project that I’ve been working on over the last several months with the crew from FiberOne®…

The crew at FiberOne® has created the new website called Dessertify and we are on a mission to BRING BACK DESSERT!! They’ve assembled a crack crew of food bloggers, gave all of us a mission to find some simple dessert hacks that hovered right around 200 calories… Not an easy mission I assure you. How can you pack all that sweet goodness into such a low calorie profile? Well… You use some great FiberOne® products as your base and the rest is easy!!

I created five different “dessert hacks” for Dessertify, and I’m super excited to finally be able to introduce you to my creations…

Lemon Peach Melba Bar

Let’s just say, the Aussies got it right when they put raspberries and peaches together… I upped the ante with the addition of lemon. Together this dessert hack is like summer on a plate! At just under 200 calories, this dessert hack will for sure bring that fruity sweet back into your life! Click on the Lemon Peach Melba Bar link above to go to Dessertify and get the recipe.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake Rice Pudding Parfait

This dessert hack will take you right back to grandma’s kitchen. This down home concoction of cinnamon coffee cake paired with rice pudding brings comfort dessert back into style. Top it off with some golden raisins and you have a dessert that will warm you even on the coldest night. This dessert at roughly 215 calories will earn grandma’s seal of approval for sure!

Butterscotch Mousse Parfait

This dessert hack will take you to sweet and salty heaven. Check this out… Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie FiberOne® Bar paired with butterscotch pudding, whipped topping, and crushed pretzels… Yea, it’s aaaamazing! At roughly 221 calories this is a sweet & salty fan’s delight.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies with Mousse

This one is a chocolate lover’s dream. It’s like dunking your cookies in milk, but soooo much better! The addition of a light chocolate mousse just takes this experience to a whole new level. Sitting right around 255 calories, your midnight cookie craving will be something you can truly enjoy!

Blueberry Streusel Parfait

I adore frozen yogurt and this combination of FroYo with the Blueberry Streusel FiberOne® Bar is heavenly! This dessert hack comes in right around 250 calories and is one of my favorites!

Come on over to Dessertify and see all of the other amazing dessert hack ideas. You won’t have to feel guilty after you indulge in dessert anymore!!!

Disclaimer // This post is brought to you by FiberOne®. I received product and payment for my recipe ideas. As always all thoughts, ideas and opinions are my very own and I will never post about products that I don’t truly believe in.

Healthy Snacks

For the chicken marinade you’ll need–

Tyson® Balsamic Chicken Bites

Honey Pumpkin Yogurt Topping Recipe

Fresh Avocado Bites Appetizer

Ingredients

Instructions

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