Mmmmm! Something a little different tonight!

[BikerJJ]

I am running low on groceries and didn't want to go to the store so here's what I made out of what I had on hand.

I cubed and cooked some chicken in a skillet with salt, pepper and garlic. Added some butter. Put in some chopped celery, bell pepper, and green onions. Sauteed that all together, then added a little Paul Neuman's olive oil vinegarette. At the last minute I added some chopped tomatoes from the garden.

Tossed it with some spaghetti.

Wow! Was it good! I have some of my most creative moments when there's nothing to cook! lol

[Rebecca]

This sounds great!!! I'm going to have to try this. I cook like this all the time but never take the time to write down what I did. When I try to repeat something, I can't ever remember everything I put in there so nothing I cook tastes the same way twice. Unless I'm baking, I rarely use recipes. Sometimes I really hit the nail on the head so I need to start making myself take notes. Yeah, like that'll ever happen!! LOL

[BikerJJ]

That's the way I am too! But I liked this so much I did write it down. Even my husband liked it and he's not a pasta fan.

[Rebecca]

Hey, sometimes we just hit it and when we do, we owe to ourselves and our loved ones to write that down for a repeat. I just got a new laptop and a new $9.99 cheapy program called Master Cook that might help me manage this stuff. You can put in your ingredients, measurements and directions and save your own cookbook. It will even give you all of the nutritional information and you can generate shopping lists. I'm just not much of a pen and paper kind of gal any more. I've been sucked in by the technology monster! LOL

If you come up with more, post them lady! As I've said elsewhere on the Spin, I'm working hard to eat better and I can use all the help I can get. Thanks for sharing!!!

[BikerJJ]

Well, replace the butter with olive oil. Then the rest is pretty healthy.

I had master cook too! I put all my favorite recipes in it that I kept in that little box. Took me weeks.

Then my computer crashed. This was about 8 years ago and now I just make do with the little cards. It's like memory lane because some were given to me when I was in my twenties. Some are in my grandmother's handwriting.

[Rebecca]

I understand what you mean about those cherished recipes. I copied by hand some of my Mom's recipes and I am thrilled to have them. The best thing I have is my notebook that I used the one Thanksgiving my Mom couldn't cook because she was recovering from surgery. She sat and directed me as I did it and I took notes.

As for Master Cook, it's put out by ValuSoft, www.valusoft.com (http://www.valusoft.com), and you can buy it on their website. Version 8.0 is $9.99 and version 9.0 is $19.99 in case you're interested.

[Miss Mally]

JJ...I make a similar dish...but I add basil and mushrooms...and a wine sauce...made from cream of chicken and a cup of white wine...

Sometimes I also add a little cajun seasoning for a kick.

[BikerJJ]

That sounds good too but the cream of mushroom soup would make it a little more calorie laden.

[Miss Mally]

I bet you could still make a good wine sauce...and use skim milk...and fresh mushrooms.

[BikerJJ]

Now that sounds excellent.