Peach and Mango Chicken

I recently purchased a fairly large basket of Ontario peaches and there's just too many for me to eat as is. Tonight's creation is an attempt to use put these delicious little peaches to work in my entree. I only had dehydrated mango slices in my cupbord, but a real mango would've made this even better.

Ingredients
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
10 mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic
4 small Ontario peaches (or 2 large peaches), peeled and sliced
1 mango, peeled and diced (or in my case, 5 slices of dehydrated mango, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes)
Juice of 1 lime
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp brown sugar
pinch each of salt and pepper
1/4 tsp chili flakes

Directions:
Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces to skillet and cook until no pink is showing. Add the sliced mushrooms and garlic, and cook until the mushrooms are tender and reduced in size. Add the cinnamon, salt, pepper and chili flakes and stir. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime over the mixture and add the peaches, mango and brown sugar. Turn heat down to medium and let cook until the peaches are warmed through and slightly soft.

Serve over pasta or rice.

Un-Rocky Road Brownies

Okay, so I don't like nuts in my brownies, which makes these ones un-rocky road style with the marshmallows on top, but you could undo the "un" part of it by adding your choice of nuts to the batter. Also, a girl's gotta use convenience foods sometimes when she cooks or bakes... this one's made with a store-bought brownie mix and chocolate icing. For an even more decadent treat, serve while still warm with a large scoop of your favourite ice cream.

Ingredients:
1 box of brownie mix + ingredients as shown on box
1 package of white mini marshmallows
4 T. of chocolate icing, warmed in microwave until runny.

Directions:
Bake brownies according to the package directions. Once baked, cover the top of the brownie with as many mini marshmallows as you like (I like to cover it completely with no brownie showing) and broil until the marshmallows are puffy and nicely browned. Remove from oven and set aside on a cooling rack. In a small microwave-proof bowl, warm the chocolate icing and then drizzle over the top of the marshmallows. The icing will seep into the brownie layer a bit, but the majority will stay on top of the marshmallows and will firm up as the brownies cool. Once cooled, cut into bars.

Garlic Dipping Sauce

As if the guacamole chicken pizza didn't have enough garlic, I decided that an extra treat for the crust was absolutely necessary. This isn't an exact science, the measurements are approximations, since I go by texture and taste when I make this.

Ingredients
3 T. margarine
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of salt and pepper
2 T. all purpose flour
Skim milk

Directions:
Melt the margarine in a small saucepan and lightly saute the minced garlic. Add salt and pepper. Add flour and stir well, allowing the roux to cook for a minute or two. Gradually whisk in skim milk until the sauce is creamy and smooth. Remove from heat and allow the sauce to cool. As the sauce cools, it will further thicken and resemble a creamy, pizza store-bought dipping sauce. Promptly refrigerate any unused sauce.

Guacamole Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:
1/2 T. active dry yeast
1/4 C. warm water
3/4 C. warm water
1 t. granulated sugar
1 - 1/2 C. all purpose flour
1 t. salt
1 T. olive oil
2 small avacados
Juice of 1 lime
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 large chicken breast, cooked and cut into bite size pieces
1 C. shredded mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper

Directions:
Mix the yeast, 1/4 C. warm water and sugar in a small bowl and let sit for 10 minutes. Combine the flour and salt in a separate small bowl. Pour the yeast mixture into a large mixing bowl and add the 3/4 C. warm water. Slowly add the flour and salt mixture, until a stiff dough forms and add the measured olive oil. Knead the dough until it's shiny. Lightly brush the ball of dough with olive oil and place back in the bowl. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let the dough rise for an hour or until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, place the peeled and pitted avacado flesh in a bowl (I use a pyrex 9x9 dish, as it's easier to mash the avacado on a flat surface). Add the juice of one lime, 2 cloves of minced garlic, a pinch each of salt and pepper and mash the mixture with a potato masher until smooth. Cover and refrigerate, while you prepare the rest of the toppings.

Preheat oven to 425 F. Lightly oil a large pizza pan and set aside. Roll the pizza dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface until it's about 1/4" larger than your pan. Gently lift your dough and place on the oiled pizza pan, rolling in the edges to form an outside crust.

Spread the avacado mixture on the crust, layer with chicken, tomato slices, mushrooms and top with the shredded mozzarella cheese. Place in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until the edges and bottom of the crust are nicely browned and the cheese is fully melted.