I went shopping for bok choy at my local, organic store - but every bunch seemed sad and wilted. Instead I bought baby bok choy and created this yummy, chilled lunch with an Asian twist.

Ingredients

• 1 package ramen noodles (any flavor)
• 1 TB Rice wine vinegar
• 1 TB Red Wine vinegar
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 of 10 oz. can mandarin oranges (look for those NOT packed in syrup), separated fruit/liquid
• 1 head baby bok choy, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 TB chopped onion
• 1 cooked chicken breast - shredded, or one large can chicken
• 2 TB sesame seeds

Directions

1. Unwrap a block of ramen noodles. Throw away the seasoning packet. Break noodles up with hands in bottom of large bowl.
2. Pour 1 TB Rice wine vinegar, 1 TB Red Wine vinegar and 1 tsp ground ginger on noodles. Toss well. Noodles will begin to soften.
3. Add mandarin oranges and juice. Here’s what we did: open a 10-11 oz. can of mandarin oranges packed in pear juice (not sugary syrup). Drain the juice into a measuring cup. Add half of the oranges into the bowl with the ramen noodles. Add 1/4 cup of the juice from the can. Place remaining oranges and juice in container and refrigerate for a future use.
3. Chop baby bok choy into bite-size pieces. Use leaf and stem. Stems can be chopped as small as you like. Add to bowl on top of ramen noodle mixture. (Don’t toss yet, we want the noodles in the liquid)
4. Drain chicken, add to bowl on top of bok choy. Add chopped carrot and onion. Add sesame seeds.
5. Toss the whole salad. By now the ramen noodles will have softened and salad is ready to serve or can be refrigerated and eaten over the next 2 days.

Also great with: 1/2 C french cut green beans, 1 TB teriyaki sauce, or replacing the ramen noodles with 1-2 cups wheatberries

Fricassee can refer to how a chicken is cut, or dredging it in flour and then pan searing in butter. This recipe refers to neither of those items. It is easy and flavorful, but time consuming.

Note: allow 8 hours or overnight to marinate the chicken. That step only takes 5 minutes, but the chicken will sit in the fridge afterwards.

Ingredients

1/8 C Dijon or Spice Brown Mustard
1/8 C chopped fresh parsley, divided
1 TB chopped fresh thyme, divided
2 pounds chicken, we use boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste
2 TB olive oil
1 large onion chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup dry white wine, we use Chardonnay
1 cup chicken broth

Directions

1. Combine mustard, 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme, and chicken in a large zip-top plastic bag; toss well to coat. Chill 8 hours or overnight.

2. Remove chicken from bag and discard marinade.

3. Heat olive oil in a deep saute pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove from pan.

4. Add chopped onion to pan and sauté 4 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add garlic to pan and sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine and chicken broth, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in 1 tablespoon parsley and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme.

5. Return chicken to pan. Cover, reduce heat to med-low, and simmer 25 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and keep warm.

6. Cook sauce, uncovered, over medium heat 4 minutes. Pour sauce over chicken, and sprinkle with remaining parsley.

Serves 4.

You can also add 1 C chopped mushrooms to the sauce if desired during step 5.

We served this with whole wheat linguine pasta and steamed french cut green beans.