Roasted Green Chiles

I love green chiles. They are one of my favorite ingredients. You know what I don't love? Canned green chiles. It's no surprise how I feel about cans. Admittedly, I have a can of green chiles in the cupboard right now. And I cannot get myself to cook with it. If you are anything like me, the reason to not make something from scratch falls into one of the following categories: 

- it's too time consuming

- the can is right there, why do extra work?

- it takes a little confidence to delve into making something from scratch

Luckily, homemade roasted green chiles are not very time consuming (at least not in the hands-on sense) and they are not complicated or difficult to make in the slightest. In fact, you can make the equivalent to a can in less than 45 minutes (with only 10-15 minutes of hands-on time...depending on the number of chiles you are using).

Here's what you'll need:

- 3-4 green chile peppers (makes the equivalent to one four ounce can; need more, add more chiles)

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- baking dish

Method: 

(Part 1)

- preheat oven to 425 degrees

- coat each pepper with a little olive oil and place on baking sheet, place in oven

- set timer for 30 minutes 

- turn peppers every 10-15 minutes

When they are done, they'll look like this: 

(Part 2)

- remove peppers to plate and let cool enough to handle 

- if the outside layer isn't already breaking, cut a small slit in each pepper

- remove this layer (sometimes it helps to cut off the stem and a bit off the top)

- once peeled, cut open and scoop out seeds

- chop/dice the peppers

Congratulations...

You now have a delicious ingredient to use that isn't riddled with BPA. :) 

Here's my final product (and, yes, that's a Pioneer Woman cookbook in the background. I owe countless meals to this fabulous lady.) 

Enjoy! 

Ridiculously Easy Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan

It's hard to find meals that are both ridiculously easy and still healthy. Usually, it's a trade-off between health and convenience. Today, I knew that I would be making dinner for just Alex and myself. On nights like these, I like really easy meals. On nights like these, I usually don't get to cleaning up until well after my guy is in bed. There is nothing worse than being exhausted AND walking into a kitchen that looks like a small tornado passed through to say hello. On nights like these, I am extra thankful for my crock pot. I recently discovered I can pretty much cook anything in a crock pot. Today, I was craving Italian food...but I couldn't see myself juggling 3 pans and chopping fresh herbs while Alex complained in the background. Enter my recipe for Ridiculously Easy Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan. 

To be fair, it's not breaded and fried (YUM!)...and I used a jar of sauce instead of homemade. This meal wasn't meant to be gourmet and fabulous; it was meant to be easy and healthy. It literally took 5 minutes to prep everything. My crock pot did the rest. Here's what I used: 

Yes, that's string cheese. Forgive me, but my fancy mozzarella cheese looked a little sad. Thank goodness I am a mom of a toddler. String cheese is a household staple and saved this dinner. Also, pretend there is parmesan cheese in this picture. You'll need it. 

Method: Put chicken in crock pot; sprinkle with 3 cloves chopped garlic; cover with sauce; set crock pot to low and cook until tender. Thighs will cook in 3-4 hours, breasts will take a little longer - about 5-6 hours. When chicken is tender, cover chicken with string cheese pieces (I broke each string cheese into a few pieces) and cook until melted, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Serve with: 

- pasta and sauce from crock pot

- caesar salad

I wish I had a picture to show the final product, but Alex was hungry, and...who am I kidding? I totally forgot. 

Enjoy! 

Family Beef Enchiladas...And Some Extras

What do you get when you combine a busy mom/wife, husband who often works late, a picky toddler, and grocery list that tries to be as organic as possible? Very complicated dinnertimes. I think it's gotten worse since Alex started eating more of our meals and less baby food. He no longer wants grilled chicken and carrots. No, no. He wants sauces, rich flavors, and pretty much anything we are eating...except eggs. I can't get this kid to eat eggs for the life of me. Oh, well. That's another issue all together.

Yesterday, I was craving enchiladas. I like mine spicy, with lots of red pepper flakes and roasted green chiles, and other spiciness - hardly a dinner that Alex's newly developing toddler pallet can handle. I also like when they are a little on the creamy side. (This is when the lightbulb went on inside my noggin). I knew that if I used some homemade cream of chicken soup, it would not only mix well with the adult enchiladas, but it would also help make toddler enchiladas, as well. I have my own cream of chicken concoction on my blog, but I was more of a newbie cook when I made it, and I like this soup recipe much better.

Looking through my ingredients, I had a whole pound of grass-fed organic beef (Trader Joe's is the best deal in town ($6.99 lb), a whole package of flour tortillas, and 4 pounds of cheese (don't judge me). Another lightbulb went on. I was going to make as much food as possible, and freeze what we didn't have for dinner so that another dinner another week would be ridiculously low maintenance.

Here are the ingredients I used:

- 1 lb grass-fed ground beef (divided -  approx 3/4 lb for the adult dinner, 1/4 lb for toddler dinner)
- salt, pepper, and red chili flakes to taste
- 1/2 can green chiles (couldn't find any to roast myself, so sad I had to use a can)
- 1/2 yellow onion
- approximately 1 lb total freshly grated cheddar and jack cheeses, divided (you may use less if you aren't as enthusiastic about cheese as I am)
- 1 batch homemade cream of chicen soup (see above link)
- 1 12oz bottle Trader Joe's enchilada sauce
- Burrito sized flour tortillas (at least 10)
- green onions to garnish (optional)

Method:

Get out two frying pans - one big, one small (or use one pan and cook meat two separate times...I used two)

- brown the smaller amount of beef in the small pan and the rest of the beef with the chopped onions in the largerpan; after the meat starts browning, add salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to the large pan. Cook both until completely done (no pink, please).

- drain fat from each portion of meat; set aside the little portion to use in a bit

Time to get the adult enchiladas assembled...

- Mix about 8 oz/one cup of enchilada sauce with cream of chicken soup (put as much in as you would like. I like mine more on the enchilada sauce side of things, so I only put in 4-5 oz of soup...add more if you'd like it less spicy/more creamy. This is your finished enchilada sauce.

- Add approx. 4 tbsp of enchilada sauce to beef

- Add approx. 1/2 cup of each type of cheese to beef

- Add 1/2 can green chiles to beef

- Combine, combine, combine...

- Fill each tortilla with mixture, and roll closed (I cut mine in half after rolled so they fit nicely in the baking dish

Here's where I split them into two dishes - one night's dinner included 6 enchilada halves/3 whole enchilada (this left me with enough for a leftover serving the next day), and the other dish had 4 halves/2 whole...this will be a freezer dinner for another night

- Top with sauce and remaining cheese

- Bake at 375, covered, for 20 min; remove cover and bake about 10 minutes more, or until heated through (top with chopped green onions before serving if that's your things...it certainly is mine)

- Cover your freezer portion with foil and place in a large ziploc bag (or use your preferred method for storing food in the freezer). Now you have dinner for another night! :) Defrost and bake according to the above direction, or bake frozen for 1 hour, 15 min; or until heated through.

Now, onto the toddler servings...

- Add 2 tbsp of the soup and a little cheese to the beef, and combine

- Fill one tortilla with mixture (I cut this in half...making two servings...one for dinner, one for the next night's leftovers) and place in separate baking dish

-Top with soup and cheese

- Bake along with adult enchiladas, but these will only need about 20-25 min total

At this point, I had leftover beef and cheese, so I just added the beef mixture to a few more tortillas, added some cheese, and cut them into mini quesadillas to freeze for another time (I ended up with 4 more toddler servings). Wrap each serving in foil (and place in freezer bag), and you have dinner ready for those nights you go on a date and you have no clue what to feed your tiny person. :) These portions can easily be heated (from frozen) in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.

After all this food, I still had sauce and soup left, so I just combined it in a freezer safe plastic container and now I have an enchilada sauce for another meal waiting. :)

Here is all the food I am hoarding had for dinner for two nights, plus leftovers, plus toddler quesadillas, plus sauce:

Well, that was my longest blog post in history; but in my defense, it made 2.5 adult meals, and 6 toddler servings...not bad at all. And to add icing to the cake (mmm...cake), all of this cost under $25. Yes, please. This meal took about 1.5 hours to put together (including washing all the dishes), but had I had soup made already, I could've cut the time by 20-30 minutes. Which reminds me - if you decide to make your own soup, make a double batch, and freeze portions similar to a can of soup. This way, you'll have the convenience of the can with the health benefits of homemade. :) It is a great base for lots of recipes or that sad little chicken breast we don't know what to do with.

Phew...I am tired now. I need a nap.

Bon Appetit!

Store-Bought Condiments - Raising the Bar

I have a love-hate relationship with store-bought condiments - with the emphasis not on the love. I don't know what it is. Very few are actually delicious. Sure, a restaurant usually has good sauces and dips, but who the heck knows what they are made of?! (I am guessing - if I knew - I wouldn't eat them very often.) Now, I still haven't cracked the code on store-bought ranch dressing. As far as I am concerned it doesn't exist. (Anyone want to prove me wrong?)

However, thanks to "Bone Suckin'" (funny name, phenomenal taste), I am one step closer to finding peace with store-bought condiments. I haven't tried everything Bone Suckin' makes, though I can say the three I've tried are wonderful. Here are may favorite ways to use these sauces:

- Sweet Hot Mustard: on a homemade turkey and/or salami sandwich; or on a hot dog (grass-fed beef only, please). 

- BBQ: slow cooked with chicken - makes the most delicious shredded chicken sandwich. Check out the Pioneer Woman's recipe here.

- Habanero Sauce: I've only tasted the sauce individually, but I plan to use it as a dip for the polish sausage I am having tonight. 

Bone Suckin' Sauces can be purchased at Whole Foods, though they can also be purchased online. Do yourself a favor, and try this brand. 

DIY Cream of Chicken Soup

If you are anything like me, you search the internet for recipes weekly, if not daily. There are always so many things that look yummy. And then I read the recipe, and find that it calls for a can of cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup. Almost. Every. Time. If you are reading this, you know how I feel about cans, in general...and BPA in cans, specifically. That's when I thought, "Hmm...I bet I can make my own 'soup'." I should warn this really isn't "soup", but - to be fair - I don't really think of the average condensed soup as such either. It is basically a bunch of chicken flavor with some cream and goodness knows what else. How hard could it be, right? 

Here's what you'll need:

2 tbsp flour

2 tbsp butter

8 oz chicken broth from a carton (I use regular, not low sodium in this case)

2-4 tbsp of heavy cream

Pepper and other spices to taste

Method: 

Make a roux with your flour and butter, whisk over low heat for 2 minutes. Whisk in broth and cream until completely combined (read: not lumpy). Turn the heat up a bit - stirring occasionally - until it starts to thicken. Substitute anytime a recipe calls for Cream of Chicken Soup. Note: next time, I may change the broth to cream ratio a bit. I think this is a personal preference. 

Voila! 

Here is a link for the recipe that inspired this life changing culinary choice: 

Crispy Cheddar Chicken

I should note that this recipe is not perfect, at least not the way I made it. Some of the ingredients were hard to work with (I used freshly grated cheese, instead of the pre-grated stuff). I think the lack of anti-caking agents in the cheese I used made it more difficult. However, I find that even if it didn't look as pretty in the baking dish, it looked pretty delicious once plated...especially next to the roasted garlic potatoes and green beans. In case you don't believe me, here's a picture: 

Next time, I think I'll concoct Cream of Mushroom Soup. :)

BPA is Not Your Friend

That's right - BPA is no bueno. If you are a mom of a young child (like me) you probably know this. If you aren't, you probably don't. It wasn't until I was pregnant with Alex that I started realizing that BPA wasn't something to mess around with. So I did what any new mom-to-be would do: I only bought bottles, pacifiers, and toys marked "BPA free", but continued to prepare meals with cans of beans, tomatoes, and my Sparkletts #7 water bottles. After Alex was born, I realized that if something isn't good for him, it's probably not good for anyone else either. So I started investigating (slippery for someone like me, I do realize).

Spare yourself the agony of Googling "BPA". Trust me. It sucks. It's, like, one of the worst things ever to be created. If you read my last post "Finding Peace as a Meat Eater" you know I am extreme, but also try to find balance. Of course, I will never be able to rid myself of this terrible chemical entirely, unless I never eat at a restaurant or use a food processor, or have that darn cranberry sauce out of a can at Thanksgiving. However, there is so much I can do to limit my exposure on a daily basis - when I cook at home - that I wanted to share with you. These are the ways to limit your exposure to BPA:

- let food cool a little before placing it in a food processor. BPA is most often leached when food is stored in the container or as the temperature rises. A quick 30 seconds in a food processor isn't going to do much, if anything...so process away! Making anything with fresh ingredients at home is still, like, 1,000 times better than buying a processed mess at a local store. 

- do your homework on canned foods (or keep reading and I'll tell you...). Companies like Trader Joe's and Eden offer a wide selection of canned goods that are BPA free. Trader Joes' canned corn, beans, and meats use BPA free lining. Eden has a wide variety of beans in BPA-free cans as well. Here is the link to read more: http://www.treehugger.com/green-food/7-companies-you-can-trust-to-use-bpa-free-cans.html

- NEVER BUY CANNED TOMATOES. If anyone ever finds tomatoes in a BPA free can, I may just have to make a batch of Chocolate Chip Cookies for you to show my appreciation, because - as far as I know - they don't exist...something about the acidity in the tomatoes is too harsh...yada yada yada. This raises a red flag for me. If tomatoes' acidity is so strong, imagine the toll the can takes. No thank you! Instead, buy Pomi tomatoes. They come in a BPA free carton. While they aren't organic (boo!), they are not genetically modified (oh, don't even get me started on this...). I'll trade a little pesticide for a hormone-mimicking chemical any day. Whole Foods sells them, or you can order them online for a reasonable price. (Hint: if you go to Vitacost.com, you get FREE shipping on orders over $50. They are also available on Amazon (sometimes with Prime!). Here's more info from Pomi's website if you're interested: http://www.pomi.us.com/images/presslinks/PomiTomatoes_BPAFreeAlternativetoCans_EatDrinkBetter.pdf

Darn it all to heck! The baby just woke up. I wanted to post my recipe for the BPA-free spaghetti sauce I made last night. Oh well, that'll have to wait until next time.

In the spirit of my Italian Pomi tomatoes...

...Buona Sera! 

Finding Peace as a Meat Eater

I don't know about you, but I spent my early childhood thinking that livestock was always raised in open pastures, eating the things that - you know - they were supposed to eat; and that when they were slaughtered for food, it was done so as humanely and hygienically as possible. Then I learned that most meat was factory farmed, and most of the animals' welfare was put second to efficiency and profit. Obviously, I started thinking more and more about the food choices I was making. For the past 18 years, I've gone back-and-forth. At times, I'd only eat poultry, then only fish, but it was still the generic meat found in the local grocery store. Then I'd get even more fed up and become a full vegetarian. My diet would then consist of what most vegetarians live on - cheese, highly processed soy products and way too many carbs. I'd keep this up for a while, only to fantasize about meat...not the Double Double from In N Out (this would be the obvious desire), but the actual texture of meat. Clearly, I am not meant to be a vegetarian. My body needs meat. At the same time, I felt so bad contributing to the mass-production of improperly treated animals. Enter: humane farming practices.

I made a deal with myself: if I was going to eat meat, whenever possible, it would be humanely raised. I am not so unrealistic to say I will NEVER eat a traditional piece of meat. Unless I plan to live in a bubble, it's nearly impossible. It would basically mean never eating at 99% of restaurants or at other peoples' homes. I did, however, make a deal with myself. I would only buy meat to prepare at home that was from animals raised in the right conditions; and when going out or eating at someone else's home, I'd try to limit the meat I ate.

Here's my advice for finding the most humane and healthiest meat and other animal products: 

- buy only grass fed organic beef; it is lower in saturated fat, higher in omegas, and the animals are happier because they are eating what they are supposed to be eating. As a result, the cattle are not being treated with antibiotics. Yes, that's right. Antibiotics are used to kill all the illnesses that animals contract because of eating the wrong foods and living in terrible conditions. Cows are not meant to digest corn, just grass. Imagine what your body would feel like if you consumed only things that humans were never meant to eat. 

- shop at Whole Foods; all the meat at Whole Foods is given a 1-5 rating that is displayed next to each selection. The higher the rating, the closer to a completely natural environment the animal experienced. Check out the details here: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/meat/welfare.php

- try certified humane eggs by Vital Farms (also available at Whole Foods); the farm raises hens on beautiful pastures, so your eggs are being laid by truly happy hens. This is how eggs are supposed to be. Check out their website: http://www.vitalfarms.com/

The con to eating this way: it's a little more pricey. However, I believe, if meat is cheap to buy, it was cheap to make (yuck!). And if we don't set aside time and money now, we'll be paying for it later in various ways. 

And there you have it! 

 

Ode to Eggs

For as long as I can remember, eggs have been one of my favorite foods. Over the past few months, a midmorning egg has been my go-to "second breakfast". (Yes, I eat two breakfasts - one while Alex scarfs down his blueberries and a more relaxed one during his morning nap.) I have kept this up for probably the last two months, so I thought I'd share my two favorite ways to eat eggs. 

First, the poached egg:

Aww, isn't it glorious? There is something about a perfectly poached egg paired with a perfectly toasted piece of sourdough bread that brings such joy to my tummy. 

I have been making poached eggs for years, but just last week I perfected them. Thanks to....the one and only Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. Seriously, this woman is like my culinary savior. Her blog and TV show have given me a whole new lease on cooking comfort food. If you want to see how to make the best poached egg ever, check out her Eggs Benedict recipe here: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/10/eggs_benedict/. You may even want to try the hollandaise  sauce, because - OH MY GOODNESS - it looks good. 

Next, is my favorite way to eat scrambled eggs - in a breakfast burrito. It's really just an excuse to make homemade salsa. :) 

Here it is: 

When I was a salsa-making newbie, I wasn't confident enough to make salsa without a recipe. I found this one: http://thehappyhousewife.com/cooking/homemade-salsa/ (it's pretty darn good). As my confidence grew, I started tweaking things to make my own recipe...which I think I like better. 

You will need: 

- 4 small roma tomatoes

- 1/2 to 3/4 white onion

- 2 jalapeno peppers 

- 1 or 2 juicy limes

- salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste

- 2-4 tablespoons of cilantro

Just chop and combine tomatoes, onion, and jalapenos (and please - for the love of all that is good - leave in the jalapeno seeds), sprinkle in salt and pepper and garlic, and squeeze in the lime juice. Stir and enjoy! 

(I must confess, I usually make my salsa the night before so I can have it with warmed tortilla chips...yummmmm!) 

In my next post, I will share tips on finding some of the best-tasting ingredients - including eggs (hint: it also involves buying eggs laid by hens who've been treated with love and kindness). They may be a little pricey compared to a traditional grocery store egg, but I promise you it's worth the couple of bucks. 

Ciao! 

Is Anything Better Than Pasta? Nope. Didn't Think So.

Seriously, if reincarnation exists, I was an Italian in my previous life. I love pasta. I could eat it everyday. I could eat with red sauce, white sauce, butter sauce...and if you add garlic into the mix, my day has pretty much been made complete.

Having said that (I always think of Curb Your Enthusiasm when saying this...haha), I eat it too often to always have a white sauce that is capable of clogging every artery I have. Enter, the greatest culinary epiphany I have had in the recent past: the not-full-of-cream-and-cheese sauce (sophisticated title, I know).

Here's what you need for 2-3 people:

- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 8 ounces of chicken broth (use low sodium, or take it easy on other salt in your dinner)
- 2-4 cloves of garlic (depending on how long you've known the person you'll be kissing later).

Melt the butter over low heat. When melted, add chopped garlic, and cook for a couple minutes. Next, add the flour, and whisk constantly for 2-3 minutes. Then, add in the chicken broth and whisk for 2-3 minutes until completely smooth. Turn up the heat a little and stir gently for as long as the sauce needs to become thick (not Alfredo thick, but enough to coat pasta).

This sauce is truly divine, and not full of cream and cheese (bittersweet, I know). Your waste line (and heart) will thank you.

I combined it with 6-8 oz of linguine, grilled chicken cut into strips, and pieces of roasted asparagus and it was magical. Oh, and I topped it with parmesan cheese, because what would pasta be without it? I can't even imagine.

Here is a photo of the deliciousness:

Here are some helpful hints I've discovered that really helped make this dish easy and delicious:

- Slice the chicken breasts in half (thinner chicken = more even cooking and shorter grill time).
- The asparagus roasted well at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper.
- Whole Foods sells organic chicken broth in 8 oz cartons (remember, avoid cans when at all possible. BPA is not your friend!).

Buona Sera!

The Best Pot Roast in the Whole Wide World

If you only cook one meal between now and the time the weather gets really warm (and you eat beef), make it this: The Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pot Roast and Mashed Potatoes.

I cannot stress enough how wonderfully comforting this meal is. 

This recipe is so good, I completely went against my grocery list in order to add it to this week's menu. If you do it right, it will be so tender and flavorful you'll almost  forget you spent $28 on your grass fed chuck roast. :) (I know $28 sounds like a lot, but this easily feeds 4 people; or better yet - if you are a family of 2 - it's dinner for two nights. The leftovers will knock your socks off, as well.)

Here is a picture of the last time I made it, just in case you need convincing: 

If you don't like it, maybe you should become a vegetarian; it really doesn't get any better than this. 

Enjoy!  

Grass Fed Beef

Did you know that when eating 100% grass fed beef, instead of traditional grain fed beef, many of the health risks associated with beef consumption nearly disappear? 100% Grass fed beef is better because:

- it has lower amounts of fat
- it has higher levels of vitamin E
- it has higher levels of Omega-3 fatty acids
- its Omega-3 and 6 levels are health promoting 

AND

- cows are meant to eat grass, not grain. Thus, 100% grass fed cows are healthier - emotionally and physically.

To verify this information (and to learn more about grass fed beef) visit: http://novyranches.com/grassfed_beef_nutrition.htm

Eating Healthy

Eating healthy is so subjective. Healthful eating is often defined as counting calories, cutting out fat, drinking a diet soda instead of regular, eating one of those cute 100 calorie packs of your favorite snack, or getting the grilled chicken sandwich from a local restaurant's "light" menu. My weekly menus got me thinking about how how healthy my food really is.

What made me think of this? Well, for starters, every dinner I make contains olive oil, or butter, or - Heaven forbid - real sour cream (ahhhhh!). I often wonder if it's the right way to go. And you know what? After second- and third- and fourth- and fifth-guessing my self, I think it is. I think about our grandparents, and great grandparents. Never in a million years would I have found low fat sour cream in my granny's refrigerator. She was the kind of woman who had a little sour cream and a little butter and a little red meat. She drank one Manhattan almost every night. (Do you see a pattern?) She lived to be almost 90 and was healthy and self-sufficient for the first 85 years of her life. I think there's something to be said about that. 

When I really think about it, this is how past generations differed from ours:

- they didn't have the option of adding ridiculous junk food to an already gross meal for an extra 99 cents

- their coffee didn't contain 5 pumps of vanilla or gingerbread or hazelnut, and whipped cream

- they ate the majority of their meals from home

This week would've been my Granny's 94th birthday. She taught me what good food was. She showed me that orange juice can come from a hand-picked orange off the tree in the backyard, and that dinner should have a veggie. I think it's important to honor our past generations' reverence to food. Good food does more than fill your tummy for a short period of time; it nourishes us - body and mind. 

Enough with the mushy stuff...

I will try to frequently give small tidbits that pay tribute to real food, and not the convenience we've all grown accustomed to. I'll try to make these tidbits simple and time-friendly. After all, half the reason we reach for the frozen dinner is because there aren't enough hours in the day (true story).

So here's a tip for today: 

Next time you want tacos (or another Mexican dish that calls for a packet of taco seasoning), make your own. All you need is: chili powder, chili pepper flakes, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. It'll take a minute to shake a few containers instead of 10 seconds to open a packet, but you'll be saving yourself tons of sodium and other yuckies.

If you wanna be extra adventurous (and have 5 more minutes) omit the onion and garlic powder and chop your own fresh. After you cry from the onion, you'll cry tears of joy because your dinner tastes so much better. 

Adios, mis amgios y familia

This Week's Menu (3/18...)

Sunday: Fish (either Halibut or Salmon), Sauteed Swiss Chard with Leeks and Parmesan Cheese, and Basmati Rice Medley

Monday: Chicken Parmesan and Salad of Red Leaf Lettuce, Cucumber, and Balsamic

Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman) has the the most delicious recipes. This one shouldn't be any different. Seriously, check out her blog. You probably won't know what to try first. 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/10/chicken-parmigiana/

Tuesday: Cheeseburgers and Fries
For the fries, I am trying this:  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/baked-french-fries-i/

For the burgers, here is my recipe (serves 2):

- 1/2 pound organic grass fed beef (85/15), seasoned with a sprinkling of garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, mixed together, and divided into 2 patties; grilled to your personal perfection (I use a grill pan, because I am too lazy to get my BBQ going)

- 2 generous slices of cheddar cheese, or any other you'd prefer

- 2 buns, covered with butter and grilled butter side down until gold brown

- all the fixings (and, order matters. Here is the winning permutation: bun, mayo and ketchup mixed, hamburger patty with melted cheddar, onion, tomato, lettuce, mustard, top bun). After much research, this really is the best way to assemble a burger. Trust me. 

Wednesday: Chicken Paprikash (A family recipe given to me by my 85 year old Grandma, who received it from my Grandpa's mother - her mother in law. I am sharing an heirloom. Feel very fortunate:

You will need: 

- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I use organic, free range...but Grandma doesn't. It's your call.)

- one small yellow onion (chopped)

- 1 or 2 heaping tbsp Hungarian Paprika (not the regular kind...the good stuff comes in a rectangular prism red container)

- 2 tbsp olive oil; another other oil is fine

- 32 oz of low sodium chicken broth (I use organic, free range...but Grandma doesn't. It's your call.)

- 2 or 3 large carrots

- 2 - 4 tbsp flour, a little water - combined until super smooth (you will be adding this to the broth at the end to thicken it up)

- 1/4 cup sour cream 

Start by heating oil in a large pan over medium heat. Sautee the onions until soft. Turn off the burner, and stir in paprika. Add each chicken breast, coating with the mixture. Once all chicken is coated, cover chicken with broth. Add in carrots. Bring to a light boil, and then simmer on low (covered) for 1.5 - 2 hours or until chicken is super tender. Longer is usually better in this case. 

Once chicken is tender, turn heat up slightly, and stir in your flour water mixture. Let the broth become thick. Usually a few minutes. Add more of a flour-water mixture as needed to thicken, but be careful not to put too much flour (yucky taste!). Once thick, put sour cream in a 2 cup measuring cup. Add a little hot sauce from the pan, and stir stir stir! Add a little more sauce until the cup is full. You want to add a little liquid at a time to avoid curdling the sour cream. Once the measuring cup has a nice sour cream- broth mixture, add it to the pan, and stir. Yummmmmmmm! 

Serve with dumplings (I have a great recipe if you want it). 

Here is a picture of the most nostalgic meal I know: 

Thursday: Chicken Ravioli in a Wine and Broth Reduction with Shallots, Garlic, Olive Oil and Butter; Paired with Baby Greens

The only thing homemade here is the sauce. Why? Because after the previous four days of cooking, I'm tired! 

Here's the recipe:

- 1 package of chicken ravioli (or any other you like)

Sauce: Sautee a shallot and 2 cloves of garlic in 1 tbsp olive oil; add 1/2 cup (total) of chicken broth and white wine; reduce down by half; turn heat off, and stil in 1 or 2 tbsp of butter. Toss with ravioli, and top with parmesan. Done and done. (I've never tried this...it'll be a first. If there's one thing I know, you can't go wrong with garlic, shallots, wine and butter. Always a winner.)

Ciao! 

Dinner Photos...and a few tidbits I thought I'd share.

Let it be known that no matter how organized and deliberate I try to be while planning my menu, I will ALWAYS need to change something because I didn't think something through. As much as I love filet, it is not a very economical steak (duh!). Now, while I won't jeopardize animal welfare to save money (as evidenced by my weekly gasp when checking out at Whole Foods), I will happily choose a different piece of meat. In this case, I opted for a nice ribeye instead. (If I was a really super duper food blogger there'd be a picture here. Just pretend, ok?) Another reason I like buying one piece of meat and splitting it between Mike and I is because we buy (and eat) less meat than if we bought two steaks. Would I love a whole 8-12 oz steak myself? Yes. Do I need it? No. I try to stick to the four-ounces-per-serving rule. Here is a picture of dinner. The highlight: steamed asparagus with melted butter and chives; the lowlight: roasted beet mashed potatoes. They weren't the best were terrible, in my opinion. Mike felt differently, but I don't know if that was him just being a good husband. Next time, I'll opt for mashed potatoes and a side of roasted beets...thank  you very much. Here's dinner: 

Here's the Halibut with Orzo Dish...and a tip: buy the Whole Foods Frozen Halibut. It comes in 2 individually-wrapped, perfectly-sized pieces for less than $8. The fish was flaky and delicious and would have been double the price had I bought fresh (which I would have, if they weren't out of it.) I love when things like this work out. How did that little slice of bread get on the plate? Oh, I know. I am obsessed. I don't care if carbs for dinner are unacceptable to some. They are acceptable to me, and I am quite happy about that.  

Here's the Linguini/Linguine with Kale, Turkey Bacon, Fontina, and Garlic (and Parmesan). As if pasta isn't dangerous enough, I had a piece of crispy french bread with olive oil, thyme, chives and mozzarella and fontina cheese on top. Why? Because on a night with a plate of pasta for dinner, calories certainly aren't that big of a concern. :) 

Last but not least, here are the Creamy Chicken Taquitos. Originally planned for Monday, I forgot my chicken was in the freezer. Oops. I paired them with sour cream, salsa, cilantro, green onions, and black beans. Trader Joe's has the best deal in town - organic, in a BPA free can for $1.19. Yes, please.

And in case I haven't rambled enough, here is a picture of the produce that inspired this week's menu: 

Visit www.abundantharvestorganics.com for more information on receiving organic and local produce. FYI: all of these fruits and veggies cost about $20 - worth every penny...and way cheaper than organic at the grocery store. 

Ciao! 

This Week's Menu

It's funny really. I can't keep one blog updated, so I thought I'd start another one. Twice the work will definitely get done, right? Oh, well. A girl can dream. I wanted to start a food blog where I took pictures of every step of creating a meal. Well, guess what? Alex doesn't think that's a good idea. His afternoon nap has gotten shorter, so I am lucky if I even get to finish a sandwich (at 3 o'clock) and chop a few veggies. Most of my dinner prep is done frantically while he's gnawing on a teething biscuit or my fabulous hubby, Mike, gives him a bath. Long story short - this poor blog will be lucky if it sees a finished meal at the end of each day. But I am going to try.

To start simple, here is this week's dinner plan. I figure this might motivate me to be more involved in the world of food blogging. So for now, here are my ideas. I am not nearly as creative as I'd like to be, so most dinners will have cute little links next to them - you know, giving credit to the real genius behind the dinner plate. 

Here goes nothing:

Monday: Chicken Taquitos
http://penniesonaplatter.com/2010/02/22/baked-creamy-chicken-taquitos/

I cannot emphasize enough how great these are. I usually make way too many and freeze them in individual servings. Trust me. This is a great idea for those days when there is nothing to eat.

Tuesday: Filet Mignon, Roasted Beet Mashed Potatoes, and Roasted Asparagus
Here is the link for the Roasted Beet Potatoes:
https://www.abundantharvestorganics.com/recipes.php?id=429

Wednesday: Halibut with Lemon Garlic Parmesan Orzo and a Baby Green Salad with Balsamic
Here is the link for the Orzo:

http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/orzo-lemon-garlic-parmigiano-herbs.aspx

Try this orzo recipe, but do cut it in half if you plan to only feed 2-3 people. I can't believe this is the first orzo recipe I had ever tried. It is scrumptious. 

Thursday: Linguini with Kale, Turkey Bacon, Fontina and Garlic

http://www.marthastewart.com/339257/whole-wheat-pasta-with-kale-and-fontina

Inspired by Martha Stewart, I've personalize this one. (Sorry, Martha. Sometimes, your recipes are too bland for me.)

I cut the pasta amount in half and used normal pasta instead of wheat. I also reduced the chicken broth by half, and substituted turkey bacon. I kept the turkey bacon, kale, garlic, and fontina amounts the same. I also topped mine with parmesan because, c'mon, when has adding more cheese ever been a bad idea?

I love this dinner because it's a one dish meal. Protein, carb and veggie are all in one dish. 

I'd love to dish more about my food, but I am sitting in my robe and a messy braid in my hair, and I am pretty sure everyone at Whole Foods would appreciate if I didn't go shopping looking like this. Plus, I am racing the clock until Alex gets up from his nap. 

If a personal creation is "Oh Faye" (name the movie?), I will add a detailed recipe. Can't do it now, because most of the time I just throw things in a pan and hope for the best.

Adios Amigos.