Green With Envy

Green is my favorite color and I decided I would make a meal with everything green I could find in my kitchen. I probably should have waited until St. Patricks Day for this one but it was so good I think I'll make it again then! I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs but breasts would also work fine. I served the chicken with baby bok choy and spinach sauteed with sesame oil and soy sauce and some couscous. The greens accompanied the chicken perfectly.

Green Chicken

1 cup cilantro

1 1/2 cups coconut milk (I used lite)

1 cup baby spinach

1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

1/2 of a jalapeno (seeded for less heat)

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

2 cloves garlic

1 T olive oil

1 pound skinless boneless chicken (thighs or breast)

In a blender liquefy the cilantro, coconut milk, pumpkin seeds, jalapeno, spinach, chicken stock and garlic.

Salt and pepper chicken. Place in a large bowl and coat with the cilantro mixture. Marinade for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.

Heat olive oil medium heat in large saute pan. Remove chicken from the green sauce. Saute chicken in olive oil until starting to brown on both sides. Add the cilantro mixture to the chicken and cook for approximately 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Serve with greens, rice, couscous, etc...

Enjoy!

Mocha Chiffon Cake

I haven't been baking much lately. Mainly this is because there is no one in our house to eat my baked goods except for me. I'm completely afraid that I don't have the will power to not eat the whole loaf, batch or even batter. Therefore, it is easier to just stay away! I did have an opportunity to share my baking with others recently for a birthday for our dear friend Mark Williamson. I volunteered my services to make him a birthday cake which I was happy to do and I got my sugar and flour fix! This is a Southern Cooking Recipe and it was very good.

Mocha Chiffon Cake

3/4 cup boiling water

1/2 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon instant coffee granules

1 3/4 cups cake flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

8 large eggs, separated

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate-Coffee Buttercream Filling- See recipe below

Chocolate Fudge Frosting- See recipe below

Stir together first 3 ingredients until blended; cool.
Combine flour and next 3 ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add cocoa mixture, egg yolks, oil, and vanilla; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar at high speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Fold into batter. Pour batter into 4 greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
Bake, 2 layers at a time, at 325° for 17 to 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool layers in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool on wire racks covered with plastic wrap or wax paper to prevent layers from adhering to racks.
Spread about 1/2 cup Chocolate-Coffee Buttercream Filling between layers. Frost with Chocolate Fudge Frosting. Garnish, if desired. Store in refrigerator.

Chocolate-Coffee Buttercream Filling

2/3 cup butter, softened

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon cocoa

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 teaspoons instant coffee granules

2 teaspoons coffee liqueur*

Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy.
Microwave whipping cream at MEDIUM (50% power) until warm (do not boil). Stir together warm cream and coffee granules until dissolved; cool. Add whipping cream mixture and liqueur to butter mixture, beating until smooth.

*Note: 1 teaspoon vanilla extract may be substituted for liqueur.

Chocolate Fudge Frosting

1 cup butter, softened

1/3 cup cocoa

6 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup milk

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add remaining ingredients, beating until smooth.
Note: To a make a torte, cut each cake layer in half horizontally with a serrated knife, and use 1/4 cup Chocolate-Coffee Buttercream Filling between layers. Frost as directed.

Whatever is in the fridge Quiche

I think quiche is a great meal because you can really put anything in it and it tastes good. What wouldn't surrounded by eggs, cheese and pie dough? Therefore I usually just take whatever I have in the fridge at the moment and stick it in. This time it was spinach, a chicken breast and goat cheese so I'll give you the recipe for those ingredients. Feel free to go ahead and add whatever you happen to have in your fridge. Yum!

Quiche

1 pie shell- see recipe below

1 chicken breast, cooked and diced

1 package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 cup goat cheese

1 cup mayonnaise (I use 1/2 cup regular & 1/2 cup low fat)

1 cup milk

4 eggs, beaten

2 T corn starch

Preheat oven to 375. Spread the chicken, spinach and goat cheese into prepared pie shell. Pour egg mixture over top making sure it gets under the meat and cheese. Bake for about an 1 hour or until browned.

Pie Dough

31/2 cups four

1/2 cup Bisquick

3/4 cup shortening

2 T sugar

3/4 t salt

1 T apple cider vinegar

1 egg

1/2 cup cold water

Mix all together with a pasty blender. Will make 3 large balls. Can be frozen.

Enjoy!

Healthier Banana Bread

The banana bread I usually make is more like a cake. Don't get me wrong, I love it but I usually feel like I am eating dessert instead of a bread. I decided to try a healthier recipe and it turned out great. It has 1/4 of the oil and 1/2 of the sugar of my previous recipe. The blue berries also give it a fun little twist. My husband likes this for breakfast with a big glass of cold milk and I don't feel guilty for eating it. This ones a keeper!

Healthier banana bread

1 cup whole wheat flour (I use King Arthur)
1 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 T baking powder
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 egg
1 egg white
1 t vanilla
3 ripe mashed bananas
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup low fat vanilla yogurt
1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (I like the wild frozen blueberries from Trader Joe's because they are small and tasty)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Lightly beat the egg and egg white in a small bowl. Add vanilla, bananas, oil and yogurt to eggs and mix.

Add dry ingredients to the wet ones and stir until just combined. Add blueberries and gently mix. Spread batter into greased pan and cook for approximately 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted is clean.

Enjoy!

Asian Fusion

This is one of my husband's favorite meals. He really likes the lettuce wraps and I really like the black bean cakes. The sauce is by far the best part. If you make them together there is quite a bit of chopping involved but many of the ingredients overlap and it is worth a sore wrist!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced into 1/4 inch cubes

2 T oyster sauce

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

2 T sesame oil

2 t minced fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup diced carrots

1 cup shitake mushroom (crimini also work), diced

1 can water chestnuts, diced

1 T rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

2 T sugar

1 head iceberg lettuce, leaves separated

Place chicken in a bowl with the oyster sauce and let stand 10 minutes. Heat large pan over high heat and add walnut pieces. Toast 1-2 minutes or until slightly colored. Remove and set aside. Heat wok over high heat, add 1 T of the sesame oil. Add ginger and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add chicken and stir fry for 1 minute. Add garlic, carrots, mushrooms and water chestnuts. Stir fry 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 T sesame oil, rice vinegar and sugar. Cook to heat through. Add walnuts, toss to coat. Remove from heat. Spread about 2 T hoisin sauce onto lettuce cups before spooning on chicken mixture. Wrap and serve.

Black Bean Cakes w/ Spicy Cilantro Sauce

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup green bell pepper, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 can black beans, drained

2/3 cups fine dry bread crumbs

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1 large egg

1 cup yellow cornmeal

canola oil for frying

Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic and cook stirring occasionally, until softened. In a bowl, mash 1 can of the beans with the back of a fork and stir in the remaining beans, onion mixture, bread crumbs, and cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the egg.

Form bean mixture into 8 patties (mixture will be wet and soft). Gently dredge patties in corneal and transfer to a plate. Refrigerate the cakes for 30 minutes and up to 12 hours.

Pour enough canola oil in a skillet to coat bottom. Heat the oil over medium heat until hot but not smoking. working in batches, cook the patties, turning once, until browned, about 1 12 minutes per side. Transfer the cakes to paper towels to drain.

Serve with the sauce:

Spicy Cilantro Sauce

3/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped

1/3 cup canola oil

3 T soy sauce

1 garlic clove

1 T fresh lime juice

1/2 jalapeno chili, roughly chopped

salt and pepper

Add all ingredients to food processor and blend until combined. Serve with Black Bean Cakes.

Enjoy!

Comfort Food

I was thinking grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup sounded good for dinner tonight. Such a comforting, easy meal that is always tasty. Since I had all the ingredients and some spare time I decided to go for it and make it all myself (sorry Campbell's, not tonight). It was great, healthy and very filling.

Homemade Tomato Soup

1 T olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

3 T tomato paste

2 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 chopped large tomato

3 cans tomatoes with liquid (stewed, chopped, anything will do)

2 T sugar

Salt and pepper

2 T basil, chopped

sour cream and cheese for garnish

Heat oil in large pot. Saute chopped onions, celery, carrots and garlic until they are beginning to get soft. Mix in bay leaf, tomato paste and chicken stock. Stir in all tomatoes, sugar and salt and pepper. Simmer soup for about 1/2 hour. Remove bay leaf and blend soup with immersion blender until thick. Stir in chopped basil and serve with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

Colorful Risotto

I was trying to think of a tasty side dish to go along with Steak and I didn't feel like pasta. I had 3 cans of sun dried tomatoes in the cupboard because they were on sale last week and some extra artichoke hearts in the fridge from some dip I recently made that I needed to use. I came up with sun dried tomato, artichoke heart and basil risotto and it was so good! We loved it and I will definitely make it again. It takes a little time but it is worth it!

Sun Dried Tomato, Artichoke Risotto

1/2 onion, chopped

1 t chopped garlic

1 T olive oil

1 cup risotto

3 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup chopped artichoke hearts

1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

salt and pepper to taste

Heat chicken broth in medium pot until hot and beginning to simmer.

In large pot heat saute onion and garlic in oil for about 2 minutes. Add rice and saute for 2 more minutes. Begin to add chicken broth to the rice in 1/2 cup increments stirring constantly. Wait until most of the broth is absorbed by the rice before adding more. Continue the process until all of the broth has been added and is absorbed.

Mix in the Parmesan cheese until melted. Add the artichoke hearts, tomatoes and basil. Salt and pepper and serve hot.

Enjoy!

Ole, Ole!!!

I think that my favorite type of food is Mexican. With that said I try to incorporate it into as many meals as I can. My husband is getting really sick of turkey tacos so with all of my new found free time (recently unemployed) I have begun to get creative. Below are 2 of my recent fiesta creations I came up with in my constant quest to make good Mexican food that is also healthy. While they are far from gourmet they were both very tasty and won the acceptance, even praise of the mister. Appetit Bueno!


SW Turkey Burgers w/ Avocado Cream

1 lb. ground turkey
1/2 cup salsa
2 T taco seasoning
4 slices pepper jack cheese

2 mashed avocados
3 T low fat mayo
3 T low fat sour cream
1 t garlic salt

4 whole wheat hamburger buns

Mix Turkey, salsa and taco seasoning in bowl. Form into 4 equal 1/2 inch thick burgers. Burgers will puff up while cooking so make them thinner then usual. Cook on grill or grill pan until completely heated through. Top with cheese and allow to melt.

Mix avocados, mayo, sour cream and garlic salt. Top burgers with avocado mixture.

I served these with oven sweet potato fries and it was excellent. It would also be great with some simple tortilla chips.

Mexican Cobb Salad (makes 2 servings)

Romaine lettuce

2 chicken breasts

1 packet taco seasoning

3 avocados, 2 smashed/ 1 sliced

2 hard boiled eggs, sliced

1 cup black beans

1 chopped medium tomato

2 T chopped cilantro

1/2 cup frozen corn

1 T apple cider vinegar

1 T olive oil

1/2 cup sour cream
feta or goat cheese

Coat chicken breasts in taco seasoning and cook through on grill or in pan. Slice and set aside.

Mix together the beans, tomato, cilantro, corn, vinegar and oil to make a salsa.

Mash 2 avocados and add sour cream 1 T taco seasoning.

To assemble pile the romaine lettuce on a plate and layer each item on the lettuce. Start with sliced egg, then add the sliced chicken breast, next pile on the black bean salsa, next layer 1/2 of the sliced avocado and lastly a layer of the feta or goat cheese.

Top with a layer of the avocado dressing.

Enjoy!

Football Food??

We were headed out to a friends house for a Seahawk playoff game and I had made nothing to take. I hate to go anywhere empty handed but I didn't want to go to the store. After some pantry searching I realized I had all the ingredients for a cheeseball but I was having a hard time thinking a cheeseball was football food. Regardless I got to work and came up a cheeseball/football! It was easy, and a hit as usual. I guess you can't go wrong with a bunch of men and a ball of cheese!

Cheeseball

1 jar Roka Blue Cheese
1 jar Old English Cheese
2 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 T minced onion
1 T Worcestershire
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix everything together and form a ball. Roll ball in the walnuts. Refrigerate until firm. Serve with crackers.