Spiced Peppers and Eggplant

As usual, I can't remember where I found this recipe, but it is REALLY GOOD.

Ingredients

SERVINGS: 4

• 4 garlic cloves
• ¾ tsp. coriander seeds, crushed
• ¾ tsp. cumin seeds, crushed
• Pinch of saffron threads (optional)
• 4 sweet peppers, any color (about 1 lb.), cut into 2” strips
• 2 baby eggplants (about ½ lb.), quartered lengthwise, or ½ large eggplant, cut into 2x1” pieces
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 cup torn fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation

TOTAL: 30 MIN

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, coriander, cumin, and saffron, if using; cook, stirring often, until garlic is softened, about 4 minutes. Add sweet peppers and eggplants; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 15–20 minutes. Remove from heat and add vinegar. Just before serving, add basil and toss to combine.
• Do Ahead: Vegetables can be cooked 4 days ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to room temperature before adding basil and serving.

Melon and Ham Salad with Burrata Cheese.

I was a little skeptical to try this.. ham? With melon?? Okay, sure, I love ham & pineapple pizza, but I would have never thought of adding it to a melon salad.

I'm so glad I tried this, I really enjoyed it.

2T white balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp. minced shallot
1/2 tsp. honey
Pinch of sea salt
2 tbsp. canola oil
1/4 small cantaloupe
1/4 small honeydew
2 oz. thinly sliced ham
4 oz burrata cheese
1/4 tsp. cracked black pepper

Combine vinegar, shallot, honey and salt in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Slowly add oil, stirring constantly.

Shave the melons into strips using a vegetable peeler. You should have about 1 1/4 cups each of the melon.

Mix the ham and melon and place on a platter. Top with the burrata cheese and drizzle the vinegar mixture over the top.

Creamy Cheese & Garlic Pasta

I can't remember where this recipe came from, it's one of those word documents that I cut/pasted some time ago and saved to the computer.

And then never make.

I seem to do that a lot from the count of all the documents in the recipe folder.

So I made this the other night and The Husband loved it. 

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 8 oz spaghetti
• 1 cup cooked pasta water
• 1 chicken bullion cube
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 and 1/2 cups of Four-Cheese Italian White Cheese Blend (Mozzarella, White Cheddar, Provolone, Asiago)
• Salt, pepper, Thyme
• 1 pound chicken breast tenders, boneless, skinless

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil and butter on medium heat in a large skillet, add minced garlic and cook for about 1 minute on medium heat, without burning.
2. Cook pasta in a separate pan, drain. Reserve some of cooked pasta water. Dissolve 1 cube of chicken broth bouillon in 1 cup of hot pasta water.
3. While pasta is cooking, rub chicken with salt, pepper and Thyme - as much or little as you like - and cook in the skillet with olive oil and about two minced cloves of garlic. Remove from the skillet when done. Drain some of the olive oil (save garlic bits!) if there is a lot left in the pan.
4. Add pasta water (with the dissolved chicken broth bouillon cube in it), heavy cream, and cooked spaghetti to the skillet with cooked garlic. Bring to boil, stirring. Once the liquids are boiling, immediately add cheese and keep stirring everything together (spaghetti and the cream), while boiling, until cheese melts and coats pasta, for about 1 minute. Reduce to simmer and continue to cook, constantly stirring, to thicken the sauce - for another minute or two.
5. Serve topped with the chicken strips/tenders.

Tomato and Roasted Lemon Salad

I made this salad recently and it was sooo very good!

Tomato and Roasted Lemon Salad

2 medium lemons, halved crosswise, seeds removed, and cut into paper-thin slices (9 oz)
3 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp superfine sugar
8 sage leaves, finely shredded
2 2/3 cups baby tomatoes, yellow or red or a mixture of both, halved
scant ½ tsp ground allspice
1/3 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
½ cup mint leaves
seeds of 1 small pomegranate (2/3 cup)
1½ tbsp pomegranate molasses
½ small red onion, thinly sliced (about ½ cup)
salt and black pepper

Preheat the oven to 325ºF.

Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil, add the lemon slices, and blanch for 2 minutes. Drain well, place the lemon in a bowl, and add 1 tablespoon of the oil, ½ teaspoon salt, the sugar, and the sage. Gently mix and then spread the lemon mixture out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes, until the lemons have dried out a little. Remove and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, combine the tomatoes, allspice, parsley, mint, pomegranate seeds, pomegranate molasses, onion, the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and some freshly ground pepper.

Add the lemon slices, stir gently, and serve.

Ginger Beef, Mushroom & Kale Stir-Fry

Ginger Beef, Mushroom & Kale Stir-Fry

Prep: 5 mins Cook: 25 mins Total: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Marinade Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup soy sauce (if making gluten-free, be sure to use GF soy sauce)
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth (or chicken/beef broth, or water)
• 3 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. corn starch
• 2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper

Stir-Fry Ingredients:

• 1 lb. thinly sliced flank steak or sirloin, cut diagonally across the grain into thin strips
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 8 ounces baby portobello or button mushrooms, halved
• 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, halved
• 3 cups chopped kale
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

Directions:

To Make The Marinade:

Add all marinade ingredients to a bowl and whisk to combine. Pour marinade into a large bowl or ziplock bag, then add in the steak and gently toss to combine. Cover/seal and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

To Make The Stir-Fry:

Once steak has marinated, heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Remove steak from marinade with a slotted spoon, reserving the marinade, and add to saute pan with garlic. Saute for about 2-3 minutes until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove steak with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add mushrooms, kale, and reserved marinade to saute pan, and stir to combine. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the kale is wilted, the sauce has thickened, and the mushrooms have cooked, stirring regularly so that sauce does not burn. Add in the steak, and toss to combine.

Serve immediately over rice or quinoa, garnished with chopped green onions.

Super simple baked chicken recipe.

 

Easy!

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• ½ cup Parmesan
• salt & pepper to taste
• ½ tsp garlic
• boneless, skinless chicken

1. Mix all ingredients together except for the chicken.
2. Place the chicken in a single layer in a baking pan; brush the mayo mixture over the top and sides of the chicken.
3. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

• ½ cups Butter, Softened
• 1 cup Granulated Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 1 whole Egg
• 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
• ¼ teaspoons Salt
• ¼ teaspoons Baking Powder
• ⅛ teaspoons Baking Soda
• ½ cups Powdered Sugar 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease light colored baking sheets with non stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest and juice. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients (except powdered sugar) slowly until just combined. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly.

Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottom of cookies begin to barely brown and cookies have a matte finish (not melty or shiny). Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
*If using a non stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.

Vegetable Casserole

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Medium Yellow Onion
1 Tsp Minced Garlic
1 Medium Zucchini
1 Medium Yellow Squash
1 Medium Potato
1 Medium Tomato
1 Tsp Thyme
1 Cup Shredded Cheese
Salt & Pepper

STEP 1: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic. Saute both in a skillet with olive oil until softened (about five minutes).

STEP 2: While the onion and garlic are cooking, thinly slice the rest of the vegetables.

STEP 3: Spray the inside of an 8x8 square baking dish with non-stick spray. Spread the softened onion and garlic in the bottom of the dish. Place the thinly sliced vegetables in the baking dish vertically, in an alternating pattern. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, and thyme.

STEP 4: Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, top with cheese and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown.

Melt In Your Mouth Chicken Breast

• 4 boneless chicken breast halves
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 ½ teaspoons seasoning salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Mix mayonnaise, cheese and seasonings.
2. Spread mixture over chicken breast and place in baking dish.
3. Bake at 375°F for 45 minutes.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
a pinch of salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF (175ºC).

2. Line a cookie sheet or two with parchment.

3. Cream butter and sugars until creamy, then add egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.

4. Add Peanut butter and continue to beat until combined.

5. Add flour, baking powder and salt and stir to combine.

6. Add chips and stir again.

7. Drop small spoonfuls of dough onto parchment (you should get a dozen per sheet).

8. Bake 12 minutes or until just golden.

9. Remove from oven and allow to rest on the sheet 1 minute before removing with a spatula.

Honey Balsamic Chicken

So I found this recipe online somewhere (honestly, I dunno where it was, I had printed it out a while ago) and just made it for the second time tonight (okay, okay, I burnt the sauce the first time). I was worried it would be too sweet, but it really just has a perfect touch of sweetness.

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast (four, 4 oz pieces)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp honey

Combine first 4 ingredients; sprinkle over both sides of chicken.

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook 7-8 minutes on each side or until chicken is no longer pink.

Reduce heat to medium low, transfer chicken to serving platter; keep warm.

Add vinegar and honey to the pan. Simmer for 1-2 minutes until glaze thickens; stir constantly. (Glaze will bubble up as it's stirred)

Pour glaze over chicken and serve.

Number of Servings: 4

Slow Roasted Tomatoes

My mother-in-law, Liz, comes out a couple times a year and turns our kitchen into *heaven*. I totally get spoiled with all the fantastic and healthy things she does. When she leaves, I go into withdrawals trying to copy what she's made and usually fail at it. Slow roasted tomatoes are one of those things I could never get quite right. You'd think it was simple.. but you're reading a blog of a girl who has mastered the art of burning water.

This is the recipe that I make - it's really yummy and almost Liz-quality!

Small Roma tomatoes
Whole unpeeled cloves of garlic
Thyme
Rosemary
Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees.

Halve the tomatoes lengthwise and place them and the garlic cloves on a parchment-covered baking sheet.

Lightly baste the tomatoes with olive oil and sprinkle a small amount of herbs on them.

Depending on how small/large the tomatoes are, bake them for 3-4 hours, keeping an eye on them toward the last hour. You want to make sure they're shriveled on the outside but still a little moist on the inside.

You can freeze them for winter, but they don't last that long in my house. I love them as snacks by themselves or with a little fresh mozzerella, basil and pimentos as a modified Caprese salad.

Seared Chicken & Garlic Sauce

We love garlic in our house, there is no such thing as too much. Okay, maybe there is such a thing, but not with this recipe! The hubby actually goes back for thirds on this one.

1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into four 4-ounce pieces
1 teaspoon olive oil
12 garlic cloves, cleaned and halved
1 cup chicken broth

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Combine the first five ingredients in a small bowl. Rub the herb mixture into both sides of the chicken pieces.
3. Heat oil in a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook two minutes on each side. Add the garlic and 3/4 cup of the broth. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until chicken is done and the garlic cloves are soft.
4. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the chicken to a platter; keep warm. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of chicken broth to the pan and mash the garlic with a fork. Cook garlic mixture over medium heat for two minutes or until heated through; stir. Serve the garlic sauce over the chicken.