It's what's for breakfast

We drink these smoothies several times a week for breakfast. They are easy, tasty, healthy and refreshing. I usually use frozen blueberries and strawberries (organic from TJ's) but any kind of fruit would do. If you don't have apple juice it's also good with soy milk or regular milk. I buy the yogurt in larger tubs so I always have it on hand. This recipe makes 2 servings.

1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries

1 cup frozen strawberries

1`banana

1 cup low fat vanilla yogurt (or any flavor you like)

1 cup apple juice

3 T flax oil

Put all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Add more liquid if desired. Enjoy!

Pizza Pizza

These were such an easy and tasty dinner. I've been thinking of making calzones for a while and I was at Trader Joes the other day and picked up some pre-made whole wheat dough. I was so surprised when it was tasty and chewy. The dough really made these work. Of course you could use any kind of pizza dough you can find or make your own. I stuffed these with whatever I could find in the fridge. Be creative and use your favorite pizza toppings.

Artichoke heart, Chicken, Sun dried tomato and Pesto Calzones

1 package pre made pizza dough

1 can chopped artichoke hearts

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast - cooked, cooled and diced

1/2 cup marinara sauce

1 cup mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
1 cup chopped basil

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 t garlic

1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 375. Toss diced chicken with marinara, set aside. In small food processor, add basil, parm. cheese, garlic and olive. Process on high until a pesto is formed, set aside. Break pizza dough into 3rds and flatten each section out into about a 5 inch circle. On 1/2 each circle spread prepared pesto. Top with chicken, 1/3 of the the artichoke, 1/3 of the sun dried tomato, and 1/3 of the mozzarella. Fold the other half of the dough over top of the ingredients and seal the edge with your fingers. Place on a greased pan and place in oven for approx. 20 minutes.

Bourban Chicken

Bourbon Chicken
(Source: RecipeZaar.com)

2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup apple juice
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup soy sauce

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add chicken pieces and cook until medium heat until well mixed and lightly browned. Remove Chicken.

Add remaining ingredients, heating until all is dissolved. Add chicken and bring to a hard boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. (I added 1 T flour toward the end to thicken the sauce)Serve over hot rice and ENJOY.

Forgive Me Mother For I Have Sinned!

No, I'm not into drugs and no, don't worry I haven't started selling my body. Although I may have a slight chocolate addiction. So, what have I done that is so wrong? Well...remember those chocolate chip cookies you used to make and have ready, warm from the oven when we got home from school. Yep, the Toll House ones! You know I have been a loyal Toll House eater and maker for a long time but I have to admit, I have strayed. Don't get me wrong, Toll House was always good to me and it made a good cookie but I have found something sweeter. I'm not alone in my thinking either. I found these cookies on another blog and they think they are the BEST too. Check it out...http://goodthingscatered.blogspot.com/2007/08/best-chocolate-chip-cookies.html. Anyway, I hope your not mad and maybe someday you will come to the bright side and enjoy one of these little bundles of love too.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie

2 cups plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted & cooled until warm
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Adjust oven racks to upper & lower -middle positions & heat oven to 325.Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk dry ingredients together; set aside.With electric mixer, or by hand, mix butter & sugars until thoroughly combined.

Beat in egg, yolk and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients & beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in chips.

Place dough onto cookie sheet, leaving ample room between each ball.-Bake, reversing position of cookie sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft & puffy. *This took about 10-12 minutes in MY oven but start at 10 minutes and check from there. Do NOT over bake!

Cool cookies on sheets until able to lift without breaking and place on wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!

Salmon Cakes

This is another one of my old standby recipes that I dust off once every couple of months. Whenever I make them I always freeze at least half of the cakes and pull them out for a quick, yummy dinner every now and then. They do take a little while to put together, lot of chopping and different steps, but they are always a hit and I love having them in the freezer.

Salmon Cakes w/ Aioli

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup onion, finely diced

1/2 cup celery, finely diced

1 cup red pepper, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz cooked salmon meat

3 T fresh lemon juice

1 T dijon mustard

1 T Worcester

1 t hot sauce

2 cups ritz crackers, or equivalent

2 egg whites

2 whole eggs

3 cups panko or bread crumbs

Canola oil for frying, about 1/4 cup

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, celery and red pepper and saute until soft. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in salmon, lemon juice, dijon, Worcester and hot sauce. Beat the two egg whites until stiff but not dry and fold into salmon mixture. Mold salmon cakes using about 1/3 cup each. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.

Beat remaining 2 eggs on large plate. Dip the cakes in egg mixture, and then in panko.

If freezing cakes stop at this point. Store in air tight container and freeze.

Heat 2 T of canola oil in large saucepan over med-high heat. Add 3-4 salmon cakes and fry until they are golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Continue to fry cakes working in batches heating more oil each time.

Serve with Aioli.

Aioli

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup green onion, chopped

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

3 T fresh lemon juice

1 T Worcester

1/2 t hot sauce

1t dijon mustard

1 t garlic salt

Mix together well and serve atop salmon cakes.

Enjoy!

Mojito Chicken

I spend a lot of time at our local Trader Joes and have become very familiar with their products. I've started doing most of my weekly grocery shopping there. If they don't have it, I usually omit it from a recipe. Other than a monthly trip to Costco (they have the cheapest organic chicken and my husband is obsessed with buying things in bulk) Trader Joes is basically the only store I go to. Their products contain the most natural ingredients, no trans fats or high fructose corn syrup, limited preservatives and often they are organic. With that said, they have some great pre-made sauces that come in very handy when making a quick, healthy dinner. I always keep a few of them on hand and this Mojito Sauce is no exception. This was a great, easy, nutritous meal.

Cuban Mojito Chicken

2 skinless boneless chicken breasts, cubed

1 can Cuban Mojito Sauce

1 T jerk seasoning

1/4 cup light rum- if you don't have this on hand you can omit it

1 T olive oil

2 T onion, chopped

1 T garlic, minced

2 cups fresh spinach

1 can Black beans, drained

1 cup TJ's frozen succotash (another TJ's item I can't live without. Frozen shelled edamame, red pepper and corn. Obviously substitue whatever frozen veg you would like)

3 cups brown rice, cooked

Place cubed chicken, 1/4 jar of the Mojito Sauce and the jerk seasoning into bowl and mix. Let marinade for 10 minutes, up to an hour.

Heat large skillet over med-high heat. Add marinaded chicken and saute 5 minutes. Add the rum (be careful, it may flame) and cook an additional 5 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

Return skillet to the heat and saute garlic and onion in olive oil. Add the black beans and saute 1-2 minutes. Add the frozen vegetables, spinach and the remainder of the sauce. Saute 5-7 minutes.

Return the chicken to the pan. Serve over brown rice.

Enjoy!

The Cheese is Sad...

Or maybe it's just blue! I've been eyeing this Blue Cheese Walnut Cole Slaw for a while now. We had lunch for dinner and I decided it would work perfect with a buffalo chicken panini. The cole slaw was amazing and super easy to throw together. For the panini (since I know people will ask) I just sauteed up chicken and put it between 2 pieces of bread with mozzarella cheese, blue cheese crumbles and a generous helping of bar-b-que sauce. Then I toasted on the panini maker and it was ready! Very easy dinner :-)

Blue Cheese Walnut Cole Slaw

1 head Napa or Savoy Cabbage, shredded
1 shallot, sliced super thin
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 t white sugar (I used honey instead)
1 t white vinegar
1/4 cup candied walnuts, chopped
1 cup blue cheese crumbles
salt and pepper

Combine the mayo, sugar and vinegar. Season generously with pepper and a touch of salt.

Pour the mixture over the shredded cabbage and shallots. Toss to coat. Add the walnuts and blue cheese. Gently incorporate. Let rest for at least 15 minutes and serve.