Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad

Such a fun way to have buffalo chicken and there’s lots of ways to customize yourself! I went mild on the spicy scale and below are lots of swaps to up the veggies.

The Three Bite Rule - Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad

Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad
Ingredients: (for 2 meals, or 4 sides)

2 cups pasta
2 breaded chicken tenders
2 cups arugula
1 tablespoon hot sauce
3 tablespoons blue cheese or ranch dressing

Directions:
Cook the pasta and the chicken and let cool to room temperature.
Chop the arugula.
Whisk together the dressing and hot sauce.

The Three Bite Rule - Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad

Mix together the pasta, arugula and dressing. Then add in the chopped chicken just before serving.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad

Go as spicy as you like! I like minimal but you could really go for it by tossing the chicken in buffalo sauce AND making the buffalo dressing! To go super mild, the hot sauce could be totally separate and sprinkled on per serving.

To make in advance, keep the chicken separate but the rest could be mixed ahead of time. Greens get a little wilty but a few hours lead time would work, or mix the pasta & the dressing and add in the chicken and veggies before serving.

While I was into the simplicity of it but more veggies would be great. Cucumbers and bell peppers would be awesome. I detest celery but that’s a natural fit and maybe chunks of carrots.

Banana Pancakes with Nutella Whipped Cream

If nothing else, make this nutella whipped cream to even just eat by itself!

The Three Bite Rule - Banana Pancakes with Nutella Whipped Cream

These pancakes are ebelskivers or pancake balls and all this would be just as delightful as a regular pancake but these little dip-able balls are a fun treat. Dipping into nutella whipped cream was pure magic.

Banana Pancakes with Nutella Whipped Cream
Ingredients:

Pancake mix + water (according to the mix)
1 ripe banana
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon nutella

Directions:
Put a metal mixing bowl and beaters into the freezer for at least 30 minutes before making the whipped cream.
Mix together the pancake batter according to the package (mine was 1 cup mix to 2/3 cup water but did 1:1 for a runnier mix which helps when making ebelskivers).
Chop the banana into slices for flat pancakes or dices for ebelskivers.
Add the pancake mix to the warm, sprayed pan and add in the banana.
Flip & keep warm when cooked.
For the nutella whipped cream, beat the heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and confectioners sugar into whipped cream. Then add the nutella and beat until mixed.
Serve the nutella whipped cream to dip & enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Banana Pancakes with Nutella Whipped Cream

These were so fun! I forgot how much I like ebelskivers – it is the pancake version of a doughnut! Pieces of fruit and any kind of chips are great. Jelly is like molten lava and messy to add so we don’t do that anymore! They take a tiny bit of patience and practice but the small batch size is so helpful and they don’t stick to eachother when kept warm (or to freeze) so they’re easy to make in advance or bring somewhere!

You just might find me eating nutella whipped cream as dessert on the regular over here!

Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw

I revisit these crispy fish pieces regularly and most often have them as tacos with lemonade slaw or as a Mexican-ish fish taco bowl. Today I branched out and made these 2 ways – as a pita pocket sandwich or as a bowl!

The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw

Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw
Ingredients: (for 2 servings)

4 breaded fish fillets (I use a variation of these)
2 cups shredded brussels sprouts
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup poppyseed dressing
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 pita pockets – optional

Directions:
Cook the fish – I airfried mine for 12ish minutes. (They do well in the toaster oven for 15-20 minutes.)
While the fish is cooking, mix together the shredded brussels sprouts, cranberries, dressing, dijon, lemon juice.

The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw

Serve the crispy fish over the slaw or in a pita with the slaw.

The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw

I loved this! It was great to have something I pigeon-hole into one set of flavors in a new way.

The slaw would be great with broccoli slaw, or cabbage, or shredded carrots- whatever you want! I intended to use broccoli slaw but it was sold out. The dressing is my go-to for slaw – coleslaw isn’t a signature dish and this bottled dressing is perfect. I never pick it for a regular salad but it is great to have on hand to mix slaw as needed.

Make your tacos for cinco de mayo and have the remaining fish around for these!

Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Fish with Poppyseed Slaw

April 2021 Recap

April has been lovely! We’ve turned the corner in my brain not needing to juggle nearly as much. T is at school full-time now and I think/hope that the multitasking nature of our own schedules with a kindergarten zoom schedule wrapping up means I less often feel like I’m just treading water.

This month, I loooved these Cuban Rice Bowls – maybe the most in my fam. It has great flavors and really diversifies pulled pork.

The Three Bite Rule - Cuban Rice Bowls

These Chicken & Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps were my quest for exciting lunches (while using all the leftovers). The balance was spot-on.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

I made Breakfast Totchos, like nachos but with tots as the base with breakfast goodies like bacon, eggs, cheese, beans, green onions. I added a spicy maple drizzle. Delicious!

The Three Bite Rule - Totchos

April was a good chance to intro some summery things while getting those last chances for wintery foods! We grilled and also ate lasagna. April to me is that reminder from Mother Nature of ‘did you want to wear a sweater one more time?’

The Little Girl:
She suddenly wants to walk out of the stroller more often. The pace is slow but she listens well to hold hands or to get back in so I’m OK with it. For about a week straight we watched the diggers building sidewalks up the street. So fun. It is a-dor-able to hear her say “I’m so happy for chocolate/daffodils/swinging”. She occasionally wants “some lots” for desserts and also asks why things have the name they do- why is that called the deck? She’s so cute.

The Big Guy:
School 5 days a week has been great. He loves it- though finds it tiring. He is into school lunch and I love giving him the 2 choices and guessing what he’ll pick. I have 99% accuracy. The convenience factor of not prepping or cleaning up from lunch is greatly appreciated and his astonishment that chocolate milk exists is comical. He’s starting tee-ball and I’m psyched he’s being brave and doing it. We just finished reading aloud Mouse and the Motorcycle.

Goals:
Year of the fun mail! I sent off a birthday treat and also sent cards for the very best college friends as we’ve dubbed our apt number to be a holiday on that number-turned-into-a-date.
More breakfasts: Totchos!
Lunches coordinated or prepped in advance: it’s all leftovers or these Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps
I’d like to get the house a bit neater: I’ve been going to town with a magic eraser.
Bullet journal – I’ve been keeping a meals list.
What I’m reading: I read Eight Hundred Grapes which was light and moderately entertaining and The Only Woman in the Room which was stellar and I couldn’t put it down.
What I’m Watching: the Food Network Tournament of Champions is hands down, the best competition out there – they’re judging blindly! We did a few movies during school vacation: The Lands Before Time and Cars 2.

Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

Think of a broccoli & rice & cheese but as a warm wrap- instead of a casserole! These wraps were so fun and an ideal way to use some leftovers!

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

Chicken, Broccoli, & Rice Warm Wraps
Ingredients: (for 2 wraps)

1 cup brown rice (+ water/broth according to required prep)
1/2 broccoli head, cut into small florets
1 cup roasted chicken
1/2 cup white cheddar cheese, chopped or grated
2 large wraps
2 tablespoons dressing (optional – creamy caesar or Parmesan Peppercorn)

Directions:
Prepare the rice (mine was brown rice for 10 minutes in the pressure cooker). Keep warm.
Roast the broccoli with a drizzle of olive oil in a 400-degree oven for ~10 minutes until getting golden and crispy.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

Assemble the wraps with half of each the rice, warm chicken, broccoli, and cheese.

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

Drizzle dressing, if using any.
Heat a pan to medium heat with a drizzle of olive oil.
If the wraps had been refrigerated (or a touch stale!) warm in the microwave for 10 seconds to be the most pliable.
Roll the wraps by tucking the sides in then rolling from the bottom and tucking the sides in further until completely rolled.
Then pan sear on each side, starting with the seam side down first.
Cook for a few minutes on each side- a cover will help the cheese to melt.
Let sit for 1-2 minutes before slicing.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Chicken, Broccoli & Rice Warm Wraps

I loved these! It is like a burrito – just without any particular identity. I like the balance of a whole grain (rice), as much veggie (broccoli) as protein (chicken) and some decadence (cheese & dressing) with just a few ingredients!

Most of this could be prepared in advance: the rice, the chicken, the roasted broccoli. These freeze well too – when freezing any burritos, I wrap in plastic and defrost overnight or in the microwave. Then to finish, I pan sear or bake the in toaster oven with a spray of non-stick spray. The goal is to defrost or warm slowly enough to heat all the way through, then give a little crunch to the exterior.

The technique to roll a burrito takes some practice not to over-fill and roll keeping the ingredients in, here’s a video of tucking the sides in as you roll away from yourself: