Skinny Salmon May 27, 2012

I had a nice piece of salmon leftover from sushi night, and decided to sear it on a grill pan.  It was good, it just need a sauce of some sort.  I sauteed half of an onion, one can of fire roasted tomatoes, half a can of quartered artichokes, several banana peppers and a handful of kalamata olives.  I added about a half a cup of red wine and let it reduce for 15 minutes. Put in baking pan & top with crumbled ritz crackers, parmesan cheese, and bread crumbs. Set oven to 350.  Cook in oven for 30 minutes (or until topping is golden brown)  I served mine with a side of garlic spinach and orzo.

 

 

Sushi!!

I had a craving for sushi and decided to make my own!  There are only two sushi restaurants in Durango and they are pretty pricey. Suprisingly, sushi grade tuna and salmon were only $15.00 per pound at Nature’s Oasis, and I need a half a pound of each.  This was almost too much fish because I bought imitation crab (for California rolls) and shrimp for shrimp tempura rolls.  I already had a bamboo roller, seaweed paper (Nori), freeze-dried wasabi powder (just mix with water for a paste), soy sauce, cucumber, avocado, carrots, and green onions.  Sushi rice was also available at the grocery store and only took 20 minutes to cook.  After a few practice rolls, it became super easy to get them too look normal.  I also made spicy mayo (which is the pink sauce that is served on alot of fried rolls).  Just mix siracha and mayonaise and you have your very own spicy mayo.  I also bought won ton wrappers and made mini spring rolls with shrimp,cilantro, and veggies. You can buy a low fat sesame ginger salad dressing for dipping.

Chicken Piccata May 24, 2012

I love Italian food!  The only downside, is that it can be very high in calories and fat.  In my attempt to stay healthy,  I modified my favorite chicken piccata recipe to fit within my diet guidelines.

1 lb organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2-3T brined capers (drained and rinsed to reduce sodium)

2 T I can’t believe it’s not butter or olive oil spread

1/2 c frozen peas

1/2 c white wine

1/4 c all purpose flour

3 t minced garlic

3c whole wheat angel hair pasta or spaghetti

1/4 c fresh squeezed lemon juice

salt & pepper to taste.

Garnish with flat leaf italian parsley

Pound out chicken with a meat mallet or heavy object around the kitchen (ex. a can of soup)

Boil 6 c water.  Add pasta when boiling.  Drain, set aside.

Meanwhile, heat butter in skillet of medium high heat

Dredge chicken in flour, saute in butter (shaking off any excess flour)

Cook chicken till brown. Remove from heat.

Add capers, lemon juice, wine.  Simmer until thick.  Add chicken & frozen peas.

Serve over pasta.  Garnish with additional lemon slices and parsley.

Cucumber Tomato Cottage Cheese

Breakfast as we all have been told, is the most important meal of the day because it gets your metabolism going.  I HAVE to eat something for breakfast or else I will starve and be cranky for the rest of the day.  Today, I was craving cottage cheese.  I love cottage cheese because you can switch up the added ingredients to almost anything that suits your taste.  Sometimes I like to add berries, fill a half of cantelope with cottage cheese and drizzle with sugar free syrup, or substitute it for dressing on my salad.  I happened to have some grape tomatoes and an English cucumber on hand.  Diced the veggies, added lots of fresh ground pepper, and served it with a slice of whole wheat bread.  This totally hit the spot!

Mussels in Bed

I always cook my mussels in white wine, but due to the lack there of, I grabbed the red wine bottle I had opened to drink and used it to cook the mussels.  I wasn’t expecting them to be as tasty as they turned out, being partial to white wine, but they were DELICIOUS!  The robust flavor of the red wine really complimented the sometimes fishy, bottom- of- the-ocean taste.  My friend Vanessa and I ate the mussels in bed, while watching movies. (best idea ever)  I served the mussels with ritz cracker crusted tilapia, garlic ranch mashed potatoes, and green bean almondine.  So good!

Don’t mind the already eaten tilapia.

1-2lbs mussels

3 slices of turkey bacon, diced.

1 T minced garlic

1-2 c red wine

1 tomato, diced

1/2 medium onion

3 T flat leaf parley, diced

Saute onions in 2 T peanut/vegetable oil medium high heat

Once onions are translucent, add mussels.

Add garlic on top, tomato, wine all over.  Cover.

Let simmer until mussels have opened up.  About 3 minutes total.

Add parsley, stir, and serve.

Side note:  Do not eat the unopened mussels

Kale & Cabbage

Because I am from the South, I have been raised on hearty greens like collards, turnips, cabbage, and kale. Traditional, southern greens are slow cooked with a ham hock or chitlins (any pork part will do, really).  Sometimes I indulge myself and cook them the traditional way.  BUT because I am getting married in just a few short months, I have been trying to cut back on fatty foods and stick to lean proteins and an unlimited amount of fruits and veggies. All the while keeping an eye on my caloric intake.

 This recipe is a twist on southern greens and is made with Kale and Cabbage.

1/4 bag pre washed kale (or one bunch)

1/4 head shredded cabbage

1/2 medium size onion, diced.

2 T peanut oil or vegetable oil

2 capfuls apple cider vinegar or 1/4 c dry white wine

1 pinch of sugar

Salt & pepper to taste

Heat peanut/vegetable oil over medium heat.  Add the onion.  Saute until translucent.  Add shredded cabbage & kale. Salt, pepper, sugar.  Once it has softened up a bit, add the apple cider vinegar/wine/broth.  Pan will sizzle & steam.  Reduce heat to medium low & cover.  Allow liquids to reduce.  Stirring frequently.  Veggies should be more tender but still a little bit crispy.  

 

 

Meatballs, MY WAY! January 18, 2012

I absolutely adore a heaping plate of spaghetti and meatballs! But let’s face it, the calories don’t melt off as easily as they used to. Sooooo… lately I have been modifying some of my favorite foods by substituting leaner meats and adding double the veggies. Well, last night was a “cold weather craving night” in my house and spaghetti and meatballs was on the menu. I don’t know if you know this, but the meat world has come a long way with healthier options. Ground chicken and turkey are a few of my favorites. Now, you can purchase pre-seasoned ones too! For this particular recipe, I used an Italian seasoned ground turkey which was delish!

Ingredients:

– 1 lb Ground Chicken or Turkey (or Ground Beef if you are feeling slim)
-1/4 c Parmesan Cheese
-1 T Parsley
-1 c Bread Crumbs (If you get the Italian Seasoned Meat you can use plain bread crumbs)
-2 Eggs

Roll into 2 in balls and place on a non stick baking sheet
Bake at 425 for 25 minutes.

In the meantime, heat a jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce. I chose an Asiago cheese tomato sauce. When meatballs are out of the oven, transfer them to the simmering sauce, season with salt & pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over your favorite bed of pasta. Enjoy!

I’m baaack!

Back in action in the world of blogging and from my new hometown of Durango, Co.  I have been introduced to so many new flavors and ingredients that I did not know would soon become my new kitchen “must haves”.   First off, let me just say that the roasted green chile should have it’s own National holiday.  Early fall, I started seeing green chile vendors EVERYWHERE with lines of people, taking tickets, and crowding around like a pack of Wolves fighting over a dead carcas!   At the time, I did not know what all the hype was about. All it took was a trip to Walmart where I purchased a 20 lb. sack of these delightful green gems and I will forever love thee green chile.    It takes about two hours to peel off the charred skin, and de-seed them which takes A LOT of patience.  Once I cleaned them in their entirety, I bagged them in serving sized portions, and froze them.  I am HOOKED.  I defrost them in the fridge or microwave when ready to use and literally put them in everything.  Not to mention, McDonald’s has a “Green Chile Double Cheeseburger”. WOAHHHH!

Add Green Chiles to:

Your Tacos

Your Eggs

Your Pizza

A Veggie Sandwich

Soups & Stews

Heck. Put Green Chiles on/in everything!!!!!!

Chicken Lickin’ February 18, 2011

I undoubtedly have an obsession with roasted chicken that would probably be considered unhealthy.  But I think chicken is pretty healthy and I’m no psychologist, so I am gonna go ahead and obsess about it, until I get sick of it.  I must admit that the idea of handling a huge, raw, chunk of a bird, stuffed with gooey unidentifiable parts, scared the living daylight out of me.  Not to mention, I didn’t have the “proper” roasting pan, string to tie back the legs, etc.  Any excuse at all would generally do, and I would opt for the pre-cooked, rotisserie chickens sunning under the heatlamps in the deli of the supermarket.  In trying to overcome my raw, chicken fear, I put on rubber gloves and took that bird by the proverbial horns/wings..you get the idea.  I was shocked as to how extremely simple it was to prepare.  I now make this dish at least once every two weeks and it will feed a house full of hungry people.

Lemon Rosemary Roasted Chicken

INGREDIENTS

-1 (5-7 lb) whole ROASTING chicken (comes with a convenient little thermometer that pops up when it’s done-practically fool proof)

-2 fresh lemons sliced thin

-8 whole cloves of fresh garlic

-fresh rosemary sprigs

-5 whole carrots (peeled & roughly chopped)

-1 whole sweet onion (roughly chopped)

-1 bag of red, Yukon gold, or fingerling potatoes (halved)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven according to package directions

(cooking time is generally 20 min per pound)

-Chop 1/2 onion and stuff inside the cavity of the chicken along with two cloves of garlic, one large rosemary sprig, and the ends of  one lemon.

-Stuff remaining garlic cloves under the skin of the chicken. Try and get them down in there.  Add a few lemon slices, a few sprigs of rosemary too.

-Cover chicken in EVOO or butter, Season with Salt & Pepper.

-Scatter remaining carrots, onion, and halved potatoes around the base of the chicken.  Lightly drizzle with EVOO, season well with salt and pepper.

-Bake according to directions.  Serve over brown rice or cous cous!

The Girls Need Love, Too.

In honor of Valentine’s day (and girl’s night) we’re cooking up everything in the house.  Tonight is more romantic than a candlelight dinner under the stars because I’m with some of my most favorite girls ever.  Three trips to the grocery store later and we were on our way to a Valentine’s day feast.  On tonight’s menu for the Eve, of Valentine’s Day Eve is as follows:

Appetizer#1:  Phyllo Dough Margherita Pizza

Appetizer #2:  Steamed Clams with Tomato, Garlic, White Wine Sauce

Entree: Seared Jumbo Scallops with lemon chive creme fraiche served over a scrumptious bed of brussel sprouts in pancetta (compliments of Food & Wine)

Phyllo Dough Margherita Pizza

INGREDIENTS

-1 package phyllo dough sheets (dethawed for about 40 min between dish towels)

-2 thinly sliced vine ripened tomatoes

-1 Bunch of fresh basil

-1 large round of fresh mozzarella cheese (sliced)

-Mix a few tablespoons of EVOO, two cloves of freshly pressed garlic, basil, salt and pepper

Place phyllo dough on lightly greased baking sheet. Poke the phyllo dough several times with a fork and bake per package instructions for 3 min. Remove from oven.

Cover dough with EVOO mixture, Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Basil, salt and pepper. [top with shredded or grated parmesan for extra flavor].  Bake according to package instructions.

Appetizer #2:  Steamed Clams with Tomato, Garlic, White Wine Sauce

INGREDIENTS

-1 Bushel of littleneck clams

-1 vine ripened tomato

-2 shallots or 1 small sweet onion

-5-6 cloves of fresh garlic

-1 cup of dry white wine

-parsley or basil for garnish

–Rinse clams in a strainer under running water until dirt and any residual sand is removed

-In the meantime heat a dutch oven or stock pot over medium heat.

-Sautee shallots and garlic in EVOO

-Add clams, tomatoes. Cover pot with lid.

-Turn heat to medium-high. Add white wine. Cover with lid.

-Steam 3-4 minutes. [clams are ready when the shells are open. It is a good idea to discard the unopened clams]

-Garnish with chopped italian parsley or basil. Serve

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entree: Seared Jumbo Scallops with lemon chive creme fraiche served over a scrumptious bed of brussel sprouts in pancetta (compliments of Food & Wine)

INGREDIENTS

1. 1/4 cup crème fraîche
2. 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
3. 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
4. 1 tablespoon snipped chives
5. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6. Salt and freshly ground pepper
7. 6 jumbo scallops (about 3/4 pound)
8. 6 thin slices pancetta (about 2 ounces)
9. 1/2 pound brussels sprouts, thinly sliced
10. 1 shallot, thinly sliced
11. 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
12. 1 garlic clove, minced

DIRECTIONS

1. In a small bowl, whisk the crème fraîche with the finely grated lemon zest, fresh lemon juice, snipped chives and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season the lemon-chive crème fraîche with salt and pepper.
2. In a medium skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil until shimmering. Generously season the scallops with salt and pepper and add them to the skillet. Cook the scallops over moderately high heat, turning once, until they are golden and just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the scallops to a plate; tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.
3. Meanwhile, in another medium skillet, cook the pancetta over moderately high heat, turning once, until browned and crisp, about 4 minutes. Add the brussels sprouts and shallot and cook, stirring, until the brussels sprouts are softened but still bright green, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the butter and garlic and season with salt and pepper; transfer to plates and top with the scallops. Serve with the lemon-chive crème fraîche.