This delicious Lemonade Chicken recipe which I am sharing with you today is one which I had flagged on Pinterest a number of weeks back. I adapted it from one which I found on a blog called Dash for Dinner.
The flavors sounded interesting and like something which I would enjoy. I adore lemon chicken, so why wouldn't I enjoy lemonade chicken.
The original recipe was cooked in the crockpot/slow cooker. I confess, although I do cook chicken in the slow cooker from time to time for convenience's sake, I am not overly fond of the texture of chicken which has been cooked in the slow cooker.
It seems to be too similar in texture to chicken which comes in the can. And I am not a fan of canned chicken either.
I decided to cut the recipe in half (because I am a singleton) and I adapted it for cooking in the oven as I already had my oven on cooking other things.
The end result was tender and moist chicken, with a tangy sauce, that was not overly sweet, but nice and lemony. The addition of brown sugar and ketchup helps to prevent it from being too tart.
It was very easy to make and quick also, when done in the oven. I had it on the table and was enjoying it in not much more than 40 minutes from beginning to end.
I hope you will be inspired to give it a go one way or the other!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE LEMONADE CHICKEN
Just a few very simple ingredients. I will explain any substitutions for any ingredients which might be difficult to find overseas.
- 2 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup (120ml) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
- 1 TBS tomato ketchup
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
- pinch of white pepper
- pinch of salt
- 1 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
- 1 TBS cold water
The chicken breasts I had bought were actually exceptionally large, so I just cut one in half diagonally for this recipe. As you can see from the photograph, this was a great size.
I used the Minute Maid lemonade concentrate, Heinz Ketchup and seasoned rice wine vinegar. If you don't have rice wine vinegar you can use apple cider vinegar.
You may not be familiar with frozen lemonade concentrate if you live overseas. This is a very common drink mix concentrate here in North America which comes frozen. Usually you will stir it together with 4 parts of water to make a container of drink.
Lemonade is not the same as what the British call the fizzy lemon/lime flavored drink, but more like a lemon cordial/juice. It is tart and sweet at the same time. In the U.K. I would substitute undiluted lemon/lime cordial for it. Something like Belvoir or Rose's would work beautifully. Do not dilute it.
I think everything else is pretty self-explanatory.
HOW TO MAKE LEMONADE CHICKEN
This is really easy to make, and you can cook it either in the oven or in a crockpot. Today I cooked mine in the oven as I had the oven on making other things. This is delicious.
Preheat the oven to 375*F/ 190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a small casserole dish. (Trust me on this.)
Place the chicken breasts into the casserole dish. Whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour them over top of the chicken. Cover tightly.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened somewhat, uncovering for the last 10 minutes.
You can also cook this in the slow cooker. Butter your slow cooker. Place the chicken into the bottom of the slow cooker. Whisk the remaining ingredients together and pour over the chicken.
Cover and cook on high for 2 - 3 hours, or low for 4 - 6 hours. Make sure your chicken is cooked all the way through.
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YOU CAN ALSO MAKE THIS AS A SIMPLE FREEZER MEAL
Double the ingredients, popping two raw chicken breasts into one each of two zip lock baggies that you have labeled with the date and contents.
Whisk double the amount of ingredients as written below, omitting the water and cornstarch. Pour half of the sauce into each bag. Zip closed, removing as much air as possible. Pop into the freezer.
When you are ready to cook this thaw in the refrigerator overnight. The next day when you are ready to cook it proceed as per the recipe below.
I cooked mine in the oven. I am not always happy with the texture of chicken which has been cooked in the slow cooker. This was tender and juicy with a lovely tangy glaze, with only a slice sweetness.
I served it with some brown rice and French cut green beans. It made for a most delicious meal! This would go well with noodles or potatoes as well.
We do eat a lot of chicken in this house, and it is usually in the form of a chicken breast. They are such a versatile protein adapting themselves to many flavors. Here are a few other recipes for chicken breasts which we enjoy!
PAN ROASTED CHICKEN BREASTS WITH THYME - Although I have used chicken breasts with the skin on for this, you could also use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They will not take quite so long to cook as this version, so be careful to not let them dry out. Crisp golden skin, deliciously tender and juicy meat, filled with bags of flavor. These are fabulously tasty!
CHICKEN BREASTS STUFFED WITH GOATS CHEESE & ARTICHOKES - This is a brilliant combination. Chicken breasts are stuffed with a lush cheesy and artichoke filling and then wrapped in Parma ham to hold everything in. They then get popped into a baking dish, fresh tomatoes sliced into wedges are scattered amongst them and the whole dish is roasted until the tomatoes form almost a sauce and the chicken is perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. Altogether this is a simple dish with oodles of flavor that everyone will enjoy!
Yield: Makes 2 servings
Lemonade Chicken
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 45 Min
This is a very simple dish to make. Juicy and tender chicken with a delightfully sweet and tangy sauce. You can cook in the oven or in the slow cooker. It's your choice.
Ingredients
- 2 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup (120ml) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
- 1 TBS tomato ketchup
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
- pinch of white pepper
- pinch of salt
- 1 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
- 1 TBS cold water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375*F/ 190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a small casserole dish. (Trust me on this.)
- Place the chicken breasts into the casserole dish. Whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour them over top of the chicken. Cover tightly.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened somewhat, uncovering for the last 10 minutes.
- You can also cook this in the slow cooker. Butter your slow cooker. Place the chicken into the bottom of the slow cooker. Whisk the remaining ingredients together and pour over the chicken.
- Cover and cook on high for 2 - 3 hours, or low for 4 - 6 hours. Make sure your chicken is cooked all the way through.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
Also, if you have not checked out my YouTube Channel yet, do give it a gander. I would really appreciate it, and if you want to subscribe that would be even more appreciated! Thank you so much! It is not really fancy like some people's channels. I am very much learning as I go along, but what you get is authentic at least! There is nothing fake there! No filters, bells or whistles. Filmed in real time and unedited!
A number of weeks back I ran across a photo on Pinterest of the cutest mince pie. It was shaped like a gingerbread house. I traced it back to here, which was a compilation of a lot of different gingerbread houses. But the actual link given for the original source was dead. Never mind.
I save the picture to my desktop with the idea in mind that I was going to try to do something similar this year for Christmas. Today was the day.
I gathered all of my ingredients together and made myself a cardboard house pattern. I then just flew by the seat of my pants. I have tried to write all the steps in the recipe in a way that you can understand what I did.
I was very much reminded of when my children were growing up and I used to make them a gingerbread house every year for Christmas. One year I actually made them a gingerbread Christmas tree, complete with little sugared candles on the branches and gummy bear ornaments, etc. I wish I had a photo of it to show you. It was a real labor of love.
This mincemeat tart is nowhere near as time consuming or difficult to make as a gingerbread house, but it is every bit as delicious and as cute. Well, I think so at any rate! I hope you will be inspired to want to make one of your own! Trust me when I tell you it's not all that hard to do! Cute. Cute. Cute.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE A PRETTY GINGERBREAD INSPIRED MINCE TART
Just a few simple ingredients. This is not a real budget breaker.
- 1 box containing two sheets of frozen all butter puff pastry. (Put in the refrigerator overnight to thaw)
- 1 jar of your favorite kind of prepared mincemeat (You will probably not need it all.)
- 1 large egg yolk, beaten together with 1 tsp water
- 1 TBS demerara sugar
- a pizza cutter, ruler, and paper cut out
- icing sugar to dust the finished tart
If you are a really keen baker, of course, you could make your puff pastry from scratch. Or you could use short crust pastry if you are not fond of puff pastry. It will be delicious either way. Here in Canada, I used the PC brand which is found in the frozen section of the grocery shops.
In the U.K. I would use Jus Rol ready rolled all butter puff pastry. In the States I think that Pepperidge Farm makes a decent one.
I use British Mincemeat. A popular brand here in Canada that you can find in the shops is Robertsons. I buy mine online at Blighty's and it is a bit thicker and fruiter than the Robertsons. You could also make your own from scratch. I have an excellent recipe here for it. I promise you it is really good.
HOW TO MAKE A GINGERBREAD HOUSE INSPIRED MINCE TART
Trust me when I tell you that making this is a lot simpler than it might look. The hardest part is working while the pastry is still cold. If your pastry gets too warm, pop it back into the fridge for a bit to give it another chill.
You will need to work fast with this so make sure you have everything ready to go before you start. Puff pastry needs to be used cold.
Preheat the oven to 375&F/190*C/gas mark 5. Have ready a medium sized baking sheet, lined with baking parchment.
Make your house pattern. I cut a 8-inch square out of cardboard. I marked a dot at the center of the top and at the center of both sides. I then used the ruler to make a straight line from the dot at each side to the dot in the center of the top. This is your house shape.
Beat the egg and water together and have it ready to go. Open your mincemeat. I used a pizza cutter to cut my pastry. It worked beautifully.
Un-roll one sheet of the pastry, cold from the refrigerator. Place the cardboard pattern on one side of the pastry so that one side of the house aligns with the side of the pastry and the bottom aligns with the bottom of the pastry.
Use your pizza cutter to cut out around the house. Place this piece of pastry on your lined baking sheet. Spread mincemeat over the house to within 1/2 inch of the edges all around. Brush some of the egg wash around the edges that are not covered with mincemeat.
Unroll your other sheet of pastry and repeat, cutting out the house as before. Do not move it yet. (With this one, you will need to cut out some windows, a roof, chimney and any other decorations you might need.)
Using small cookie cutters cut out several windows. Now remove the house and place on top of the mincemeat spread piece of pastry on the baking sheet, to cover the mincemeat completely. Using a fork, pinch the pastry shut all around the edges.
Using the scraps of still cold puff pastry, cut out a roof edge, and any other shapes you might want, such as a Christmas tree, door, some gingerbread people and a chimney. Cut thin strips to use as the windowpane markings and attach these to the windows you had cut out on the house. (A dab of the egg wash helps them to adhere at the ends.) You might also want to place a strip around the edges of the windows to make a frame. Again, use the egg wash to help it adhere.
Use the egg wash to help the roof attach, the chimney and any other cuttings/shapes you have cut out. Trust me when I say there is no wrong way to do this. It is going to end up cute no matter what.
I used a toothpick to mark a design on the tree and gingerbread people eyes, bricks on the chimney, etc.,
Brush the top of the tart all over with the egg wash. Sprinkle the demerara sugar in between the doors, windows etc.
Pop into the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes until golden brown and puffed. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature before eating.
Dust with icing sugar to serve. Stand back and let everyone admire it for a bit, then cut into 8 rectangles to serve.
I was a little nervous starting off to make this tart. I thought it would be quite complicated and time consuming. It might be if you were a perfectionist, but there is simply no way that you could make this tart without it ending up cute! Seriously.
I was very pleased with the end result. This is delicious as is, cut into servings, or you can amp it up by serving it warm with some clotted cream, whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream on top. I dare say it would be excellent if served with lashings of custard sauce as well!
Jarred mincemeat is something which I keep in my cupboard pretty much all year round, not just at Christmas, although I do primarily use it at this time of year. Here are some other delicious ways to use it that you might also enjoy!
MINCEMEAT ORANGE MEUSLI MUFFINS - These are a delicious, moist muffin, flavored with, ground almonds, some orange marmalade and orange liqueur. I used Grand Marnier, but you could use any orange liqueur that you like or even just orange juice if you don't want to use alcohol. The muffin mixture is put into buttered ramekins over the top of mincemeat. (About 1 TBS per ramekin.) A muesli-like streusel is sprinkled over top and then they are baked to delicious perfection. These are lovely for breakfast, eaten right out of the ramekin.
APPLE & MINCEMEAT PUDDING - This very popular and delicious pudding makes a great alternative to a traditional Christmas Pudding. You place a layer of cooked apple on the bottom of a casserole dish. This gets covered with a moist mincemeat laced cake batter and then baked. The tartness of the apple makes for a beautiful contrast to the sweet cake. This is gorgeous served warm, spooned into bowls with lashings of custard or brandy sauce spooned over top.
Yield: 8 Slices
Gingerbread House Inspired Mince Tart
Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 1 Hour
This 8-inch Mince Tart is cute, cute, CUTE!! It's also not as hard to make as one might suppose. Trust me on this. If I can do this anyone can!
Ingredients
- 1 box containing two sheets of frozen all butter puff pastry. (Put in the refrigerator overnight to thaw)
- 1 jar of your favorite kind of prepared mincemeat (You will probably not need it all.)
- 1 large egg yolk, beaten together with 1 tsp water
- 1 TBS demerara sugar
- a pizza cutter, ruler, and paper cut out
- icing sugar to dust the finished tart
Instructions
- You will need to work fast with this so make sure you have everything ready to go before you start. Puff pastry needs to be used cold.
- Preheat the oven to 375&F/190*C/gas mark 5. Have ready a medium sized baking sheet, lined with baking parchment.
- Make your house pattern. I cut a 8-inch square out of cardboard. I marked a dot at the center of the top and at the center of both sides. I then used the ruler to make a straight line from the dot at each side to the dot in the center of the top. This is your house shape.
- Beat the egg and water together and have it ready to go. Open your mincemeat. I used a pizza cutter to cut my pastry. It worked beautifully.
- Un-roll one sheet of the pastry, cold from the refrigerator. Place the cardboard pattern on one side of the pastry so that one side of the house aligns with the side of the pastry and the bottom aligns with the bottom of the pastry.
- Use your pizza cutter to cut out around the house. Place this piece of pastry on your lined baking sheet. Spread mincemeat over the house to within 1/2 inch of the edges all around. Brush some of the egg wash around the edges that are not covered with mincemeat.
- Unroll your other sheet of pastry and repeat, cutting out the house as before. Do not move it yet. (With this one, you will need to cut out some windows, a roof, chimney and any other decorations you might need.)
- Using small cookie cutters cut out several windows. Now remove the house and place on top of the mincemeat spread piece of pastry on the baking sheet, to cover the mincemeat completely. Using a fork, pinch the pastry shut all around the edges.
- Using the scraps of still cold puff pastry, cut out a roof edge, and any other shapes you might want, such as a Christmas tree, door, some gingerbread people and a chimney. Cut thin strips to use as the windowpane markings and attach these to the windows you had cut out on the house. (A dab of the egg wash helps them to adhere at the ends.) You might also want to place a strip around the edges of the windows to make a frame. Again, use the egg wash to help it adhere.
- Use the egg wash to help the roof attach, the chimney and any other cuttings/shapes you have cut out. Trust me when I say there is no wrong way to do this. It is going to end up cute no matter what.
- I used a toothpick to mark a design on the tree and gingerbread people eyes, bricks on the chimney, etc.,
- Brush the top of the tart all over with the egg wash. Sprinkle the demerara sugar in between the doors, windows etc.
- Pop into the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes until golden brown and puffed. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature before eating.
- Dust with icing sugar to serve.
- Stand back and let everyone admire it for a bit, then cut into 8 rectangles to serve.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
Also, if you have not checked out my YouTube Channel yet, do give it a gander. I would really appreciate it, and if you want to subscribe that would be even more appreciated! Thank you so much! It is not really fancy like some people's channels. I am very much learning as I go along, but what you get is authentic at least! There is nothing fake there! No filters, bells or whistles. Filmed in real time and unedited!
I think I am pretty late to the Marry Me Chicken party. Its not something I have ever made, although I have been hearing about it for a while now. Marry Me Chicken is your favorite cut of chicken doused in a Parmesan and sun-dried tomato cream sauce alongside bacon and angel hair pasta.
This slow cooker version resembles that only in that it has a deliciously creamy sauce filled with garlic and sun-dried tomatoes. There is no bacon here, although you could certainly crumble some crispy bacon over the top of each serving.
I have always loved using my slow cooker to make delicious meals on busy days. They are a great way to do some hands-off cooking, leaving you free to do other things.
I had some chicken breasts and was looking for a delicious way to use them in the slow cooker the other day and came across this Slow Cooker Marry Me Chicken recipe on a blog called, Taming Twins. It looked right up my alley, and I had been wanting to try Marry Me Chicken, so the timing was right.
I did make a few changes. First of all, I cut the recipe in half to make only two servings. That worked beautifully. I also added some North American measurements as the original recipe was in metric. (British/European.)
I also added some frozen chopped spinach at the end to give a bit of extra texture and an additional pop of green color. This worked beautifully and I ended up with a spectacularly delicious dinner. I served this with rice which I cooked in my Pampered Chef Rice cooker in the microwave.
I enjoyed half myself and took the other half to my next-door neighbor who was most appreciative. She really enjoyed it also. I call this a winner winner chicken dinner! Rich, creamy, and delicious!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SLOW COOKER MARRY ME CHICKEN (SMALL BATCH)
Not a lot of ingredients and most of them pretty simple as well. This is a half-sized batch, making two servings. Simply double to serve more people.
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 TBS plain all purpose flour
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed (about 1 tsp)
- 5 sun dried tomatoes in oil, patted dry and finely chopped (Do not use the ones not in oil as they will be too tough.)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 2/3 cup (180ml) boiling water
- 1/2 chicken stock cube, crumbled
To add at the end:
- 1/4 cup (50g/2 ounces) cream cheese, crumbled
- 2 1/2 TBS (25g) grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp chopped basil leaves
- a handful of frozen chopped spinach (optional)
- salt and black pepper to taste (I did not need any)
You will need a smaller crockpot for this recipe. I do not recommend doing this small batch in a large slow cooker. Mine is a 2 QT Crockpot brand which I bought on Amazon.
I use it all the time. It works beautifully.
I dare say you could also do this in the oven, although you would have to keep a closer watch on it. I would cook it in a very low oven, no more than 325*F/160*C. It wouldn't take any longer than an hour I don't think.
My chicken breasts were not overly large, only about 3 ounces each/85g. Cut them into bite sized pieces. Do not use a large amount of salt. The stock cube will be salty, so be judicious.
I didn't have fresh garlic cloves, so I used the refrigerate organic crushed garlic.
DO use the sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil. They are much more supple. Pat them dry and then chop them finely. The dry packed ones would not soften enough and come out chewy.
Adding the spinach was my idea. I wanted a bit more green to make the dish pop a bit more and I knew that spinach would go with the rest of the ingredients. I had a pack of frozen chopped spinach and so threw some of that in at the end with excellent results.
I did not have any fresh basil, so used freeze dried basil leaves. They worked fine.
HOW TO MAKE SLOW COOKER MARRY ME CHICKEN
Another dump and go kind of a dinner with a few things stirred into it at the end.
My chicken breasts were both about the size of my hands. I have smallish hands. Cut them into bite sized pieces and toss them together with the flour, salt and black pepper. Pop them into the bottom of the crockpot.
Add the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, oregano, paprika, crumbled stock cube and water. Give everything a good stir together.
Cover the crockpot and cook on high for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.
Whisk in the cream cheese, Parmesan, basil leaves and spinach if using. Stir until the cheese melts into the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
Serve hot with rice, noodles or potatoes.
Crockpots/Slow cooker meals are perfect for busy days. I often throw something into the crockpot on Sunday mornings so that a delicious dinner is waiting for me when I arrive home after church. Here are a few other recipes which I enjoy.
CROCKPOT SAUERKRAUT SOUP - All you need is a jar of sauerkraut, some fresh veg, stock, tomato puree and a bit of smoked sausage and you have the makings of a deliciously simple dinner. In fact, you could not get much easier than this. This is one very simple and delicious soup!
CROCKPOT CHICKEN & STUFFING - Delicious and simple to throw together. This is a quick and easy dump and go dinner. Chicken and stuffing cook to perfection in the slow cooker, with a simple cheesy sauce. All you need on the side is perhaps a vegetable and some potatoes and a delicious dinner is served!
Yield: 2 servings
Slow Cooker Marry Me Chicken (small batch)
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 2 H & 30 MTotal time: 2 H & 40 M
Rich, creamy and deliciously perfect for those days when we have a lot on our plates to do and know we won't have a lot of time to spend cooking. This is simply fabulously tasty!
Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
- 1 TBS plain all purpose flour
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed (about 1 tsp)
- 5 sun dried tomatoes in oil, patted dry and finely chopped (Do not use the ones not in oil as they will be too tough.)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 2/3 cup (180ml) boiling water
- 1/2 chicken stock cube, crumbled
To add at the end:
- 1/4 cup (50g/2 ounces) cream cheese, crumbled
- 2 1/2 TBS (25g) grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp chopped basil leaves
- a handful of frozen chopped spinach (optional)
- salt and black pepper to taste (I did not need any)
Instructions
- My chicken breasts were both about the size of my hands. I have smallish hands. Cut them into bite sized pieces and toss them together with the flour, salt and black pepper. Pop them into the bottom of the crockpot.
- Add the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, oregano, paprika, crumbled stock cube and water. Give everything a good stir together.
- Cover the crockpot and cook on high for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.
- Whisk in the cream cheese, Parmesan, basil leaves and spinach if using. Stir until the cheese melts into the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
- Serve hot with rice, noodles or potatoes.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
Also, if you have not checked out my YouTube Channel yet, do give it a gander. I would really appreciate it, and if you want to subscribe that would be even more appreciated! Thank you so much! It is not really fancy like some people's channels. I am very much learning as I go along, but what you get is authentic at least! There is nothing fake there! No filters, bells or whistles. Filmed in real time and unedited!
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