Quinoa Tabouli

I got the idea of making tabouli with quinoa to up the protein factor.  But, then I found out that bulgur wheat is pretty high in protein too (less amino acids though!).

1 cup of quinoa, prepared and chilled
2 bunches of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 small bunch of mint, finely chopped
1 bunch of green onion, chopped
2-3 tomatoes, diced
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 lemons, juiced
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Prepare all of the ingredients and toss to combine.  Chill and serve with lettuce leaves and pita bread.

I'll write the recipe later.

Butternut Squash Soup

I have a new uncle now named Kirk and also a new cousin named Cody and they came over for dinner last week. I made a starter of butternut squash soup and it was really quite good. So, I thought I'd share.

1 whole butternut squash, seeded, peeled, and chunked (or, I cheated and bought the pre-diced package butternut squash)
1 package frozen winter squash puree (in the freezer section)
1 can chicken or vegetable broth
1 can water
1 small onion, diced
2 T brown sugar
Salt/pepper
Dash cinnamon and nutmeg
Oil for tossing and sauteeing (so about 2 T tops)
1/4 cup Heavy cream *optional

Begin by tossing the squash chunks in a bit of oil, coarse salt, and black pepper.
Sprinkle about 1 T brown sugar all over the squash.
Roast in an uncovered pan in a 400 oven for 30-35 mins.
Meanwhile, dice up a small onion and gently sautee/soften in a bit of oil. Salt the onion once it starts to soften. Do not brown the onion.
After it is soft, add in the squash puree, stock, water, and spices and 1 full T of brown sugar.
Bring to a boil, stirring often, then reduce to a low simmer.
After the squash is done, add it to the soup. Let cook for another 10-15 mins on low heat.

Now, either use a HAND BLENDER or you'll need another pot.

Ladle the soup and squash chunks to a blender (you will want to work in batches; about 3 batches will do for this amount of soup), and puree on high for 30-60 seconds per batch until smooth. Move each batch to a new pot.

Once all of the soup has been pureed, taste and re-season.

More salt? More pepper? (Maybe a dash more sugar??? Probably not, but maybe.)

Stir in heavy cream and let cook for 5-10 more mins on low heat.

Serve.

I love it with multigrain crackers or graham crackers!!!

Pork Tenderloin Chops de Giada

So, this isn't really my recipe. I got it from Giada DeLaurentis but I've modified it slightly. It is sooooooo good, so I'm putting it on my blog for you.

1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup white wine (drinking wine)
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 head of fennel (anise)
capers
lemon (juice and zest)
parsley
olive oil
salt/pepper
1/2 tsp. white sugar
3-4 large thick cut pork loin chops (boneless)

Season then brown the pork chops in a skillet and set aside (they should not be cooked through, only browned on the outside)
Chop up garlic and fennel
Add 2 T olive oil the the same pan the pork chops were browned in and then add the fennel and garlic.
Lower heat and gently sautee for 4-5 mins.
Deglaze pan with white wine and stir to get all of the goodness off of the pan.
Add in tomatoes, salt/pepper, and sugar. Stir stir stir.
Chop up a handful of flat leaf parsley and toss it in.
Reintroduce the pork to the pan and nestle them into the sauce.
Turn the heat to medium and cover the pan.
Cook for 10-15 min, depending on the thickness of your chops.

After cooking, add in 2 T capers and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice along with some lemon zest. Garnish with more chopped parsley.

Yum!

Healthy Veggie Fajitas

1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 white onion
1-2 large portabella mushroom caps
chopped garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil

6 flour tortillas
(Or 6-8 ice berg or romaine lettuce cups for substitution, if you are watching carbs)

Jar of Salsa
Low Fat Sour Cream
Romaine lettuce (chopped)
Cilantro (chopped)
Lime (optional)

Slice the peppers, onion, and mushroom and cook in a hot skillet with oil and garlic stirring often until veggies begin to soften. Reduce heat half-way through if veggies are starting to brown too much.
Add in 2 tablespoons of your favorite salsa and stir.

Heat tortillas in microwave for about 20 seconds to steam.

Make fajitas by piling veggies, more salsa, sour cream, lettuce and cilantro (and a squeeze of lime) into the tortillas (or lettuce cups) and enjoy.

*Some people like shredded cheese, but I don't.

**Don't hesitate to add in other vegetables to the above recipe if you have them and like them. This is a great way to get your vegetables but make them taste like a decadent mexican meal.

Spicy Seafood Pasta

 

This is what I made before a 10 mile run!

1 lb. live mussels

1 lb. shrimp, cleaned and deviened

1/2 box fettucini or linguine pasta

4-5 cloves garlic, chopped

1 T crushed red pepper

1 cup dry white wine (drinking wine)

1 jar marinara sauce (good quality)

3 T butter

Salt/pepper
Chopped flat leaf parsley
Parmesan cheese
Toasted crusty bread

Begin by boiling the water for the pasta.

In a large pot add the wine, garlic, butter, crushed red pepper, and half the jar of marinara sauce.  Bring to a simmer and let cook for about 5 minutes, then add in cleaned live mussels.  Increase the heat and cover tightly.  Allow the mussels to cook for 4 minutes stirring once at 2 minutes.  Turn off the heat. Once the mussels are cooked and have opened, remove the meat and return it to the sauce. Discard the shells.  (I left a few mussels in their shell, but that was just for presentation.)

Cook the pasta for 10 minutes or according to the package.  In the last minute, toss in all of the cleaned and de-shelled shrimp.  Do not put the shrimp in until the pasta is pretty much done.  More than one or two minutes in the water will overcook the shrimp.  Drain pasta and shrimp and return it to the pot.  Toss the pasta, shrimp and sauce with the mussels together with the remaining marinara sauce and chopped parsley and some salt/pepper.  Heat until the sauce and pasta are hot.

Serve with toasted crusty bread.

Creamy Chicken Enchilladas

Ingredients
1 lb boneless chicken breast (thighs ok too)
1/2 chopped yellow onion
2 tablespoon oil (canola or vegetable)
1 (12 ounce) jar alfredo sauce
1 small tub sour cream
1 small jar medium or hot salsa
1/4 cup sliced jalapeno (optional)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 cups chopped lettuce
1 ripe tomato, diced
8-12 ounces mozzarella cheese
6  medium flour tortillas

Directions
 Lightly brown chicken in skillet with oil.
After chicken has a light brown color (does not need to be cooked through), add chopped onion and 1/2 jar of salsa to pan and bring to a simmer.
Reduce heat and let simmer on low-medium heat for about 15-20 minutes, stirring and shredding the chicken as it cooks.
Preheat oven to 375.
Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray or coat with a light coating of oil.
Add 1/2 jar of alfredo sauce to shredded chicken and stir to combine.
Add in sliced jalapenos if you are adding them.
Spoon equal amounts of the chicken mixture into the 6 tortillas, rolling the tortillas and placing them seam side down into the baking dish.
In a bowl, mix together the rest of the alfredo sauce, the sour cream and 1/2 cup water. I usually warm the water and that helps the sour cream and alfredo sauce come together smoothly.
Pour that alfredo/sour cream mixture over the top of all of the enchillada rolls.
Pour 1 line of salsa down the middle of the rolls.
Sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese and cover with tin foil.
Bake for 30 minutes.
In the last 5 minutes, remove the tin foil and allow to brown in oven.
Top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro and more sour cream.

French Onion Soup

2 large sweet onions, sliced thinly and quartered
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 T sugar
salt/pepper
1 tsp. thyme
1 cup sweet marsala wine
1 qt. beef broth
2-3 T Olive oil

Croutons
Mozzarella or Provolone cheese
Parmesan *optional

Slice onions very thin and quarter them.  Sautee in oil over medium heat.  Do not char the onions; let them caramelize gently, stirring often. After about 2 minutes, add in the thyme and salt/pepper. Let them cook for another 5-7 minutes and then add the sugar and garlic.  Continue to let them cook until they become a light caramel color.  Add in the marsala wine and turn up the heat to high.  Let simmer for about 5 minutes and add in the beef broth.  Stir and let cook for another few minutes until the flavors blend and the soup is steaming hot.

Ladle into fire safe bowls and top with croutons and slices of cheese.  Broil for 1-2 minutes until the cheese is melted and begins to brown slightly.  Garnish with some parmesan.

Mussels and Wild Mushroom Risotto

I went to Miller's at 14 and Haggerty, the only good place to buy fancy ingredients near me. I got a bag of live mussels from behind the fish counter, some dried wild mushrooms, a package of sliced portabellas, 2 shallots, a $5 bottle of white wine and a bunch of fresh parsley. I had the rest of the ingredients at home.

INGREDIENTS

MUSSELS:
1/4 sweet white onion, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
1 shallot, sliced
1 T capers, drained
2/3 cup white wine
Olive oil
Chopped parsley
Juice from 1 lemon

Crumbled bleu cheese *optional

MUSHROOM RISOTTO:
1.5 cups arborio rice
2 T olive oil
2 T butter *optional
1/4 sweet onion, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
1 shallot, sliced
1 package wild mushrooms, steeped in warm water for 30 mins (about 1 cup warm water)
1 package sliced portabella mushrooms
Chicken stock, heated
2/3 cup white wine, chill taken off
Chopped parsley
2 T (or more!) parmesan cheese
Salt/pepper to taste

PREPARATION

MUSSELS:

Sautee onions, shallots, garlic in olive oil for a little while until transluscent (not browned).
Increase heat to medium/high and add in wine, capers, parsley and juice from 1 lemon.
Put the mussels in, toss in the wine, and cover for 4-7 mins or until all/most of them have opened.
Pour into a bowl and serve with crumbled bleu cheese.

RISOTTO:

Strain the mushrooms and reserve the liquid. Chop the mushrooms and add all of the mushrooms to a hot oiled pan. Brown the mushrooms, stirring often, and set aside.
Sautee onions, shallot, garlic in olive oil for a little while until transluscent (not browned). Add in rice and stir to coat. Keep cooking over medium/low heat for 5 minutes or so, stirring often. Add in 2/3 cup of white wine and stir. Cook until the wine has been absorbed by the rice. Add in 1/2 cup heated chicken stock and stir stir stir. While that cooks, add in the mushrooms and keep stirring. Once the chicken stock has been absorbed, add in the mushroom stock (about 1/2 cup) and stir. Once the mushroom stock has been absorbed, add in another 1/2 cup of warmed chicken stock and stir. Salt/pepper to taste.

Once the rice is *almost* done, add in parsley, butter, and parmesan cheese and stir some more.
Take off heat and serve.

Grilled Chicken Kebab with Coconut Rice and Grilled Pineapple

For 2 people

12 oz. - 24 oz. chicken breast, cubed
4 oz. plain yogurt
2 T Ras el Hanout spice (shawarma spice mix)
skewers
1 cup jasmine rice
1 can coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. sugar
Fresh pineapple, sliced
Cilantro, chopped
Red Onion, diced
Yellow onion, diced
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. salt
1 can black beans
Vegetable oil
2 loaves Naan bread

This recipe is a little involved, but worth it in the long run. Jon got a new gas grill for his birthday, so I use that to grill the kebabs on, but you could use a George Foreman or other indoor grill, or even your broiler.

Begin by rolling chicken chunks in the shawarma spices and then marinating in plain yogurt. Let the chicken sit in the fridge for 2-8 hours in the marinade. Then, put 4-5 chunks on each skewer.
Grill chicken until cooked thoroughly.
To make the coconut rice, add milk and 1/2 cup water to a sauce pan and bring to boil.
Add in sugar and 1 cup jasmine rice.
COVER the pan tightly and reduce heat to your lowest setting available.
Let the rice cook for 15-20 minutes, no peeking!!! Let rest additional 5 mins with the heat off.
Chop red onion and cilantro and use as a garnish.
Put the diced yellow onion in another pan with some vegetable oil. Gently sautee until soft and add cumin and rinsed black beans. Add salt to taste.
Grill pineapple.

Serve with naan and a squeeze of lime.

Bleu Cheese Walnut Dip for crackers or crostini

Also great on veggies or apple slices and fresh pineapple!

1/2 cup toasted walnuts
4 oz. bleu cheese
1 package cream cheese
2 T honey
1 tsp. garlic salt
Chopped scallions *optional

Toasted crostini
Crackers
Fruit slices

Toast walnuts in a 350 oven for 5-7 mins on a baking pan.
Combine softened cream cheese, bleu cheese, salt and honey in a bowl.
Add in toasted walnuts and combine.
Garnish with chopped scallions, if desired.

Serve!

Tofu Parmigiana

Last night, I created a great vegetarian version of Chicken Parmesan using extra firm tofu instead of chicken. It tasted great and I like to limit my consumption of meats whenever possible. I do use eggs and cheese, however. You can alwasy use soy milk instead of eggs in this recipe and vegan cheese instead of mozzarella.

1 package extra firm tofu cut into 2 steaks
Panko bread crumbs mixed with italian bread crumbs (50/50 mix)
1 egg
FRESH mozzarella cheese
Spaghetti sauce
FRESH basil leaves, torn
Flour seasoned with lots of garlic powder!

Preheat oven to 425
Drain your tofu on paper towel by wrapping each tofu steak and leaving in fridge for at least 1 hour.
Dredge tofu in a little seasoned flour (handle carefully or tofu could break apart)
Dredge in whisked egg
Dredge in panko/breadcrumbs mixture
Move steaks to a baking dish sprayed with PAM or other non-stick cooking spray
Bake in 425 oven for 15-17 mins
Take out of oven and top with about half the jar of spaghetti sauce and slices of fresh mozzarella
Reduce heat to 375 and bake for another 10-15 mins
Top with lots of torn fresh basil leaves and maybe some parmesan cheese!

*Serve with some spaghetti and sauteed mushrooms, if you wish.

Note: I used to skip the 1) dredge in flour step and have found that I should not skip that step. It helps keep the breadcrumbs on the meat/tofu/eggplant/other veggie so much better!

Cast Iron Skillet Deep Dish Pizza

1 frozen pizza dough ball

Pizza Sauce

Fresh Mozzarella, sliced

Shredded Mozzarella

Pepperoni

Italian Sausage

Olive oil

Parmesan Cheese

Garlic Salt

Red Pepper Flakes

Any other ingredients you'd like!

Preheat oven to 350.
Let dough thaw and rest.
Brown the sausage.
Oil the cast iron pan and stretch the pizza dough to fit in the pan & up the sides.  I let the dough hang over a little.
Par-bake the dough for 5 minutes.
 Take the pizza out and layer with shredded mozzarella.  Bake another minute in the oven to let the cheese melt just slightly and form a barrier for the sauce.
Layer sauce, sausage, pepperoni, fresh mozzarella slices and more sauce.  Top with more fresh mozzarella.
Fill up the pizza!
Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on the edges and the cheese is fully melted and hot.

Apple Walnut Salad with Bleu Cheese

I like to make my own croutons for this salad. I slice up a baguette,toss the slices in some olive oil, some garlic salt, and a little parmesan cheese. Lay the slices on a baking pan and bake in a 375 degree oven for 8-10 minutes until crunchy. Let them sit in a warm oven (oven OFF) for additional 3-5 minutes to get extra crunchy.

1 small head of romaine lettuce
1 cup of baby spinach
1 green apple (I prefer the more tart variety)
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
1/4 cup craisins *optional
4 oz. bleu cheese
3/4 cup Apple cider vinaigrette (see salad dressing post)

Dice the apples and toast the walnuts. Chop the romaine and toss with the spinach. Add everything to the bowl and toss with the cider vinaigrette.
Serve with homemade croutons on top!

Sherry Mushroom Chicken

2 chicken breasts
2 packages of cremini mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 shallot, sliced
2 cups cream sherry
1/2 cup light cream
Salt/pepper
Flat leaf parsley, chopped
Shredded parmesan cheese
Olive oil

Season chicken breasts and sautee in a pan 3-4 minutes per side.  Chicken does not need to be cooked through, but should get a little color.  Set aside.

Halve the mushrooms and sautee in 3-4 T olive oil.  Use a hot pan to brown the mushrooms.  After the mushrooms begin to brown, reduce the heat and add in chopped garlic and sliced shallots.  Continue to cook over medium heat until the garlic and shallots begin to soften.  Don't let the garlic burn.  Season with salt and pepper.

Put the chicken into the pan and add in cream sherry and let cook 10-12 minutes over medium heat.

Reduce heat and allow the sherry to stop boiling.  Add in cream and stir thoroughly to incorporate.
Let cook for 7-10 more minutes.

Garnish with chopped flat leaf parsley and parmesan cheese.

Pear and Bleu Cheese Pizza with Honey Drizzle

Ingredients
1 (ball frozen pizza dough (available at your local grocery store in the frozen bread section)
1 (4 ounce) wedge of good quality blue cheese
6 ounces lightly toasted walnuts
1 ripened bartlett pear
4 ounces olive oil
garlic salt
grated parmesan cheese
honey
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese (more if you'd like)

Directions
1Defrost the pizza dough and follow instructions on package for making a 12" pizza crust. Make sure ball is thoroughly defrosted and has had time to rest (about 1/2 hour in a bowl) as it will make the dough more elastic and easier to form into a pizza crust.
Dust with flour and roll out dough into a circle. Put on a pizza pan and brush whole crust with a layer of olive oil.
Sprinkle dough with Garlic Salt and Parmesan Cheese.
In a preheated oven (400 degrees) put the pizza crust into the oven and let bake for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice pear into thin slices.
Take crust out of the oven after baking for 5 minutes and sprinkle with mozzarella.
Arrange pears and walnuts all over the top of the pizza and crumble the entire wedge of bleu cheese on top of the pear and walnut mixture.
Bake for an additonal 10-14 minutes or until the cheese melts and the crust is browned.
Lightly drizzle honey over the whole pizza and serve.
Garnish with a sprinkle of finely chopped flat leaf parsley (optional).


12***Added flavor: Fry some bacon until crispy and crumble real bacon bits over the top!

Fish Tacos

I love fish tacos!

I love the fish tacos at a restaurant called Bar Louie in Novi, MI.
So, I decided to make them at home.

Fish: 3/4 lb. skinned and clean Mahi Mahi, poached with lime juice and olive oil for 20-25 mins in 400 oven, wrapped in tin foil
Tortillas: Flour, taco size, warmed for 20 seconds in microwave
Toppings: shredded lettuce, shreddded cabbage, diced tomatoes
Condiments:
Guacamole
White Sauce -- 1/4 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup lite mayo, 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, 1 small can green chilies, juice from 1/2 lime, salt. Mix to combine.
Cilantro Lime Sauce -- large handful cilantro, 1 clove garlic, juice from 1 whole lime, 1/4 cup olive oil. Put in food processor on high for 30-40 seconds.

Assemble how you like!

Serve with black beans and rice.

Vegetarian Burritos with Brown Jasmine Rice

1 can fat free vegetarian refried beans
1/2 small onion, diced and gently sauteed in a bit of canola oil
2 heaping spoonfuls of salsa
Flour tortillas or whole wheat tortillas

Toppings of your choice:
Diced tomatoes
Chopped cilantro
Avocado slices
Chopped lettuce
Diced onions
Cheese
Sour cream
Black olives
More salsa
Hot sauce

You choose!

Dice and sautee the onions over low-medium heat until soft. Add in 2 spoonfuls of salsa and stir. Add in 1 can refried beans and mix to combine. Continue to heat over low heat, stirring often, for about 10 mins.
Cook 1 cup brown jasmine rice according to package. The keys is to use exact amounts of water to rice. Brown rice usually takes longer to cook, so allot about 30 minutes total cooking time for the brown rice. Once the brown rice has been cooking over the lowest heat setting you have for about 20 minutes, DO NOT REMOVE THE LID. Turn the heat off and let the rice sit for an additional 10 minutes.

Compose your burrito by warming your tortilla in the microwave for about 10 seconds & putting a layer of the vegetarian beans, rice, cheese (optional), tomatoes, cilantro, lettuce, avocado, hot sauce and whatever else you like!

Roll it up and have some napkins handy!

You can put your burrito under your oven's broiler for 1-2 minutes to get a crispy browned outer shell, if you'd like! I like mine with tons of hot & spicy salsa on top.

Different spins:
1) Add shredded chicken breast!
2) Use black beans instead of fat-free refried beans!
3) Use white jasmine rice instead of brown (it is easier to cook!)
4) If you want, put a little canola oil in a non-stick pan and get a crispy crust on the burrito by wrapping it up, placing seam side down on medium heat for 3-5 mins on first side and 1-2 mins on second side.
Like here:

Sweet Potato Curry with vegetables

This one is also vegan!


1 can coconut milk
2 T yellow curry paste (red works too!)
1 T brown sugar
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1 tsp. thai garlic chili sauce
1 can vegetable stock
1 T peanut butter

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 package extra firm tofu, cubed
1/2 an onion, diced
2 cans chick peas, rinsed
1 red bell pepper, sliced
Broccoli crowns

Jasmine Rice, prepared according to the package

Begin by sweating 1/2 an onion in some oil.
Heat the coconut milk, curry paste, garlic sauce, garlic, vegetable sauce, peanut butter, & brown sugar in a large pot. Stir often.
Add in the diced sweet potatoes, 2 cans of chick peas, and the onions.

Cook for about 12-14 mins on medium heat until the potatoes begin to soften.
Taste curry to see if you need a bit more sugar.

Add in the rest of the veggies and the tofu cubes. Stir and cover.
Reduce heat to low/medium and let simmer until the rice is done (or about 10-15 mins), stirring occasionally.

Serve curry over the rice with a little chopped cilantro (optional).

You can obviously add in any veggies you like best!!!

Black Bean Soup (Vegetarian)

Jon is going to be away for work for the next two weeks. So, I am taking this time to eat more vegetarian meals. We don't eat meat too too much, but I'd like to try and get my protiens from plant sources (beans, legumes, lentils, tofu, spinach, rice & beans) more often.

I am aiming at being about 80 percent vegetarian while he is away -- and learn some things about incorporating vegetarian meals into both of our diets on a regular basis.

I'll tell you about any new vegetarian recipes I come up with over the next couple of weeks.

This is what I am starting with:



1 can black beans, rinsed
1 tsp. garlic, chopped
1/2 of a small onion, diced
2 T canola oil
1 can diced tomatoes
4-5 slices of jarred jalapenos
1 tsp. FRANKS RED HOT or dash tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 can vegetable stock

Optional: diced red onion, cilantro, sour cream

Gently sweat onion in oil over medium heat in a medium soup pot. Once soft, add in garlic, beans, can of tomatoes, jalapeno slices, cumin, and hot sauce. Stir to combine and heat for a couple minutes.
Add 1/2 can vegetable stock.
Bring to a boil and then simmer for 3-5 minutes.

Carefully spoon about 75% of the soup into a blender, cover, and blend until smooth.

Add back to the pot with the rest of the soup.

Simmer for 10-15 minutes over low/medium heat and serve with chopped cilantro, diced red onion and sour cream.