Ham and white bean soup with lentils

I have a beautiful ham bone leftover and wanted to make soup today. The weather has been cold and lousy here and soup always warms the house. Most soups are fairly simple to make, but this one in particular is so easy.

Here's my recipe for ham and white bean soup with lentils:

1 diced onion
1 C. each-chopped carrot and celery
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 ham bone (if you don't have a ham bone, use a couple ham hocks)
2 cans white beans
5 C. (40 oz.) chicken stock
1/2 C. rinsed lentils
large pinch of each-salt and pepper
1 bay leaf

Saute onion, carrots and celery in olive oil for 2-3 minutes in a large soup pot. Add ham bone, white beans and chicken stock. Stir to combine, add lentils, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for at least an hour. If cooking longer, reduce heat and simmer until ready to eat.

Chicken with leeks and mushrooms

I was busy cooking all day today and by the time dinner rolled around I had no idea what I was going to make!

I knew I had a package of boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the fridge, some leftover chopped leeks and half used can of diced tomatoes, here's what I came up with.

1/2 C. chopped leeks
1 Tbs. olive oil
4-5 boneless skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper
Greek or Italian seasoning
1/2 C. canned diced tomatoes with juice
3-4 mushrooms, quartered
1 cube frozen garlic
1 C. chicken stock
splash of white wine (optional)
1 bay leaf
splash of light cream (about 2 Tbs.)

Saute leeks in olive oil in a high sided nonstick pan on medium high heat for 2-3 minutes until leeks begin to soften. While leeks cook, season each side of chicken with salt, pepper and Greek seasoning. Add chicken to the pan and let brown for 1 minute per side.

Add tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic cube, chicken stock (white wine if you are using it) and bay leaf. Stir to combine, cover pan with a lid and reduce heat to medium low. Simmering for 15 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated and chicken is tender. Add a splash of light cream and cook another 2 minutes uncovered. Serve with couscous.

My kids loved this dish and couldn't believe I had just made it up. Give this chicken a try, it will certainly be made in our house again!

Garlicky white beans

We ate out a couple weeks ago and had the most delicious plate of very garlicky white beans. I figured these wouldn't be too hard to make at home and I was right. A bowl of these with a nice arugula salad would make a delicious dinner and my kids loved them too.

Here's the very simple recipe:

2 pieces bacon, cut into small pieces
½ finely diced onion
1 10oz. can white cannelloni beans, drained
3-5 cubes frozen garlic
1 tsp. Italian or Greek seasoning
1 bay leaf
8 oz. chicken stock
splash of white wine (optional)
salt and pepper
3 Tbs. chopped fresh Italian parsley for garnish
grated Parmesan cheese for garnish


Saute bacon in a deep pan for 4-5 minutes on medium high heat until it turns crisp. Remove grease from pan and sauté onion for 3-4 minutes. Add drained beans, garlic, Italian seasoning, bay leaf, and chicken stock and cook for 5-6 minutes uncovered on medium heat until most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parsley and Parmesan cheese before serving.

Vegetarian chili

I made this vegetarian chili for a client earlier this week and it was possibly the best one I've ever made.

Here's the recipe:

It makes a lot, about 10 C.

1 large diced onion
2 Tbs. olive oil
1/2 C. diced button mushrooms
1 can black beans
2 cans pinto/red beans
3 cans diced tomatoes with Italian herbs
2 C. frozen roasted corn (from Trader Joe's, if you can't find it, regular frozen is fine)
4 Tbs. chili powder (or 1 packet chili seasoning)
1 diced zucchini
1 large peeled and diced sweet potato
kosher salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbs. cornmeal

Saute onion for 2-3 minutes in olive oil in a large pot. Add mushrooms and continue cooking for another minute. Add drained beans and tomatoes. Stir to combine and add frozen corn and chili powder. Finally, add zucchini and sweet potato, and a good pinch of kosher salt and pepper. Cover and let simmer on medium low for 25 minutes. Season to taste, add cornmeal and continue cooking until ready to serve.

I served this with a side of jalapeno corn bread and homemade guacamole. If you like it spicy, add a little Tobasco sauce before serving.

Fusilli with sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts, lemon zest and asparagus

I am doing a corporate function tomorrow and prepared this dish for one of their meals. I wanted to share this delicious pasta recipe with you.

1 box fusilli
2 bunches fresh thin asparagus
1 C. thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil
1 C. toasted pine nuts (Trader Joe's sells them pre-toasted)
zest from 1 lemon
2 cubes frozen garlic
kosher salt and pepper
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 bunch fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
pinch of red pepper flakes
grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Boil pasta in salted water. While pasta cooks, lay a steamer over the pot and steam asparagus until just bright green, 2 minutes max. Plunge asparagus in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Remove from the bowl and slice into 2" pieces. Toss in a large bowl with sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts, lemon zest, frozen garlic, olive oil, and a big pinch of salt and pepper.

Cook pasta until al dente 10-12 minutes. Drain and add to bowl, and toss to combine. Finally, add a handful of parsley and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve warm.

Other add-in's that would be delicious:
pitted kalamata olives
fresh baby spinach
grilled shrimp

Pork medallions with lemon & peas, and zucchini coins.

I have a pork tenderloin and was looking for a new way to prepare it. Here's my recipe for pork medallions and zucchini coins, they're both easy to make and really delicious.

Pork Medallions:
1 (1 lb) pork tenderloin
1/4 C. olive oil
seasoned flour (1/2 C. flour mixed with 1 Tbs. Lawry's season salt and 1 tsp. black pepper)
1/2 C. white wine or chicken stock
juice from 1 lemon
1 Tbs. capers
1 C. frozen peas
1 C. sliced mushrooms (optional)

Cut the tenderloin into 1/2" thick slices. Heat oil on a large nonstick pan on medium heat. Dredge pork in seasoned flour. When the oil is hot, cook dredged pork for 1-2 minutes per side. When the pork is cooked, remove from the pan, and keep warm in a covered plate. Add white wine or chicken stock, lemon juice, capers, (mushrooms-optional) and peas to the pan, cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 1 minute. Pour sauce over pork and serve with warm crusty bread and broiled zucchini coins.

Zucchini coins:

Preheat oven to broil.

Thinly slice a zucchini, lay pieces on a foil lined cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, cracked pepper, kosher salt and a pinch of grated Parmesan cheese.

Cook for 3 minutes or until cheese has just melted. Turn oven off and keep in oven until ready to eat.

Baked pasta with spinach, fennel and truffled pecorino

We had some friends over for dinner tonight and as it was last minute, I had to find something to make from the pantry. Here's what I threw together from my pantry.

ingredients:
1 box pasta ( I used elbow macaroni)
1 head fennel
1 box creamed spinach
1 C. fresh mushrooms
2 cubes frozen garlic
olive oil
truffled pecorino cheese
1/4 C. cream cheese
Panko breadcrumbs


Preheat oven to 450. Line a cookie sheet with either a Silpat mat or aluminum foil. Remove the top from 1 head of fennel. Quarter and thinly slice the fennel. Add it to the cookie sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and add a pinch of kosher salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes.

While the fennel roasts, boil 1 box of pasta.
While the pasta boils, microwave 1 box of creamed spinach.

Heat a large nonstick pan on medium high heat. Add 1 Tbs. olive oil and while the oil heats, rinse and thinly slice a handful of mushrooms. Saute the mushrooms in the pan, add a pinch of kosher salt and pepper and 2 cubes of froze garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Turn off heat, and add roasted fennel, creamed spinach and 1/4 c. grated truffled pecorino cheese. If you don't have this on hand, you could use a drizzle of truffle oil and a handful of grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese instead. Add 1/4 C. cream cheese (the chive cream cheese would be good in here too) and stir until melted.

Drain pasta and add to pan, stir to combine and place pasta and vegetables in an oven proof casserole dish. Sprinkle top with bread crumbs, a drizzle of olive oil and a small handful of the grated truffled pecorino cheese.

Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden brown.

We enjoyed this with a salad that our friends brought over.

This dish was surprisingly delicious and I was glad to use up some of the foods from my pantry and freezer.

Enjoy!

Roasted curried cauliflower and grilled shrimp

When I'm organized I like to do a lot of prep cooking on Sunday. Today was one of those days. While my girls sit happily on the couch, I made 2 C. servings of the following:

lentils
quinoa
Trader Joe's mixed grains (Israeli couscous, quinoa, orzo, etc...)

They are all basically the same to cook. Boil water and "Better than bouillon", a little olive oil and cook respective grains. The lentils take the longest, the quinoa the shortest and the TJ's mixed are somewhere in between.

While those cook, I made a roasted curried cauliflower which could not be any easier.

Preheat oven to 425. Line a cookie sheet with a Silpat mat or aluminum foil. Wash cauliflower and bread into florets. Place cauliflower on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, a few pinches of kosher salt and a teaspoon of curry powder.

Bake for 15 minutes, turning the cauliflower once so it browns evenly.

I didn't know if my kids would eat this, but they LOVE it! It's not overly curried and has a nice rich flavor.

We are also having grilled shrimp.

Here's my recipe for shrimp:

Defrost peeled and cleaned uncooked shrimp in a bowl of warm water. Pinch tails off of shrimp. Add 2 tsp. of olive oil and the juice from 1 lemon and 1 cube of frozen garlic or 1 cube of fresh minced garlic. Toss to coat and grill on a HOT grill for 2 minutes per side.

YUMMY!

Garlicky sauteed broccoli

I really did NOT want to cook tonight, however really wanted some broccoli for dinner. The solution? Prepared black bean soup from Trader Joe's and quick sauteed broccoli.

Here's my recipe for a delicious and very fast side way to prepare broccoli.

1 Tbs. olive oil
4 C. broccoli florets
8 oz. chicken stock
2 cubes frozen garlic
1 tsp. soy sauce
toasted sesame seeds

Heat a large nonstick pan on high heat and add olive oil. When oil shimmers, add rinsed broccoli florets and chicken stock. Stir to combine and add frozen garlic. Continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated and broccoli is bright green.

Remove from heat and add a drizzle of soy sauce and sesame seeds (optional).

The kids don't like the seeds, so I add them to my bowl.

Chicken pot pie.

I had some leftover puff pastry and decided it would be yummy to make a chicken pot pie. I used to love these growing up, and my mother loved making them too- remove from freezer, open box and bake 40 minutes...

These are from scratch! Don't be intimidated by the ingredients. You can buy mir au poix (diced onion, celery and carrot) from Trader Joe's and leave out whatever veggies you don't have on hand.

3 C. shredded chicken - I poached 2 chicken breasts in water with a few bay leaves for an hour, them removed the meat and shredded. Leftover cooked chicken is fine too.
1 tbs. olive oil
3 tbs. unsalted butter, divided
1/2 finely diced onion (think Vidalia chopped- small dice)
1/2 C. diced mushrooms
1 C. diced carrot
2 diced celery stalks
1/2 C. frozen corn kernels
1/2 C. frozen peas
1/2 tsp.celery salt
1/2 tsp. Greek or Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. cracked black pepper
3 tbs. flour
1 c. Chicken stock or water
1 package puff pastry/ pie crust or even biscuit dough- these are all readily available.
1 egg- beaten with a fork

Preheat oven to 375.

Saute onion and mushrooms in olive oil and 1 Tbs. butter in a large nonstick pan on medium high heat. After 1 minute, add celery and carrots. Continue cooking for another minute or two and add frozen corn and peas. Season with salt, Greek seasoning and pepper and remove from heat. Add chicken and vegetables to a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan, melt remaining 2 Tbs. butter, once melted, sprinkle flour and whisk until combined and thick. Add 1 C. chicken stock or water and continue whisking until completely combined. Add to bowl and stir to combine.

Add vegetables and chicken to a deep oven-proof dish and cover with puff pastry, pie crust or biscuit dough. Brush pastry with egg wash before baking, this gives the pastry a nice shiny crust.

Bake in oven to 30-35 minutes. Lower heat to 350 if the pastry is getting too brown. Serve with a green salad.

Curried chicken salad with dried cherries

I was having a friend for lunch today and wanted to make a delicious (and healthy) meal for us to share. I made this recipe a while ago for a Holiday hors'dourves and desserts class and thought it would be the perfect meal for us to share.

Here's my recipe for curried chicken salad with dried cherries:

1 lb. chicken tenderloins (you could also use leftover cooked chicken and season it)
2 Tsp. olive oil
pinch of each: curry powder, tumeric, cumin, dried coriander, salt and pepper
1/4 C. green onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely diced (the Vidalia Chop Wizard works well)
1/2 C. fat-free plain Greek yogurt
zest from 1 lime
1/4 C. dried cherries or cranberries
optional (1/4 C. toasted slivered almonds)

Preheat oven to broil. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Lay chicken on foil, drizzle with olive oil and add a pinch of each of the spices to each piece of chicken. Cook for 5 minutes per side.

While the chicken cooks, combine yogurt, lime zest, green onions, cherries and celery. Stir well.

Add chicken to a food processor and pulse a few times until chicken is shredded. Remove chicken and combine with yogurt mixture (and almonds if using). Taste and add salt as needed.

Trader Joe's 17 Bean and Barley soup mix

A friend gave me a bag of interesting looking mixed dried beans and barley from Trader Joe's last week and it's so darn cold and gray here I thought it was the perfect day to make this soup. The hardest part (which is really quite easy) is quick soaking the beans. Here's my recipe for delicious and very healthy 17 bean and barley soup with smoked turkey.

This soup can also be made vegetarian by omitting the turkey and using vegetable stock.

1 bag Trader Joe’s 17 bean soup mix, quick soaked and drained until ready to use.
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cubes frozen garlic
1 diced onion (think Vidalia chopper!)
1 C. each, diced carrot and celery
2 smoked turkey wings ( I found these at Shop Rite in Norwalk)
1 10 oz. can diced tomatoes with Italian herbs
64 oz. chicken stock (or 3 Tbs. of Better than Bouillon and 64 oz. water)
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1½ tsp. smoked fleur de sel or kosher salt
1 tsp. black pepper
2 bay leaves


Saute garlic, onion, carrots and celery on olive oil in a deep soup pot on medium high heat. Add the turkey, tomatoes and chicken stock and stir to combine. Add in remaining ingredients, bring to a simmer, cover and let cook for at least an hour, preferably longer.

Before serving, remove the bay leaves and turkey meat from the bones. Add turkey meat back into soup and serve.

Shepherd's Pie

We had some leftover mashed potatoes and it was a toss up between making gnocci (delicious but destroys the kitchen) or shepherd's pie. Today is cool and breezy and feels like fall and the perfect day to enjoy some comfort food. While most people think of comfort food as high in fat, this is a delicious and healthy way to enjoy a perennial favorite.

Here's my healthy recipe for shepherd's pie:
1 Tbs. olive oil
1/2 onion- finely diced in the Vidalia chop wizard
1 C. mushrooms-finely diced in the Vidalia chop wizard
2 carrots (or 1/2 C. baby carrots)-finely diced in the Vidalia chop wizard
1 stalk celery--finely diced in the Vidalia chop wizard
pinch of celery salt and ground pepper
3/4 lb. ground 85% lean beef, turkey or chicken
2 tbs. tomato paste
1/4 C. red wine
1/2 C. each- frozen peas and corn kernels

Add olive oil to a large nonstick pan on medium high heat. Add onion and saute for 1 minute. next add mushrooms, carrots and celery and saute for another 2 minutes, season with celery salt and ground pepper. Next add in ground beef and break apart with the back of a wooden spoon ensuring the beef is well combined with the vegetables. Cook for 6 minutes or until beef is mostly cooked through. Add red wine,tomato paste, peas and corn and stir to incorporate. Let cook for another 3 minutes or until red wine has mostly evaporated. Taste and season as needed. Remove from heat. The filling can be prepared earlier in the day or even the day before.

Preheat oven to 350. Add filling to the bottom of a casserole pan. Spread mashed potatoes atop filling and add a sprinkling to Parmesan cheese, this will create a nice brown crust.

Bake for 20 minutes covered, then remove foil and cook for another 10 minutes or until mashed potatoes are golden brown. Serve with a simple green salad.

Mac and cheese with proscuitto

(Healthy, but don’t tell the kids) Macaroni and cheese with proscuitto


8 oz. pre-diced proscuitto
2 Tbs. unsalted butter
4 Tbs. all-purpose flour
2 cups non-fat or 2% milk
2 C. shredded skim mozzarella and cheddar cheese mix
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, saving ¼ C. for topping
1 pound elbow macaroni
Kosher salt and pepper


Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle.

To make the sauce:
Cook proscuitto on a heavy nonstick pan on medium high heat for 5-6 minutes until it begins to crisp. Remove from pan and melt butter in saucepan over medium-low heat and stir in flour. Cook roux, stirring, 3 minutes, then whisk in milk. Bring sauce to a boil, whisking constantly, then simmer, whisking occasionally, 3 minutes. Stir in cheeses, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper until smooth. Add in diced proscuitto, cover and remove from heat.

Cook macaroni in a pasta pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water and drain macaroni in a colander. Stir together macaroni, reserved cooking water, and sauce in a large bowl. Transfer to a 2-quart shallow baking dish.
Sprinkle ¼ C. grated parmigiano over macaroni and bake uncovered until golden and bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes.

Asian pear, carmelized onion and blue cheese flatbread

We went picking last week and as usual picked an abundance of Asian pears. These happen to be one of our families favorite fruits and they can be hard to come by in the market, not to mention extremely costly. Lyman Orchards has rows and rows of these delicious fruits available for picking now. It is worth the drive to this lovely orchard to pick these sweet, crunchy and delicious pears. They will quickly become one of your favorite snacks too. Pick some extras to make these flatbreads. I made them for some friends and we gobbled them up with some nice cold white wine.

Asian pear, carmelized onion and blue cheese flatbread


2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 Naan (Indian flat bread, available at most grocery stores)
1 cored, thinly sliced Asian pear
1 cup Caramelized Onions (see recipe)
1/2 cup Maytag blue cheese, crumbled
¼ C. candied pecans (available at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods)
1 C. arugula
pinch of black pepper


For carmelized onion:
Thinly slice 1 onion and sauté in a large nonstick pan on medium high heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 4 minutes. Add a pinch of kosher salt and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Remove from heat and let onions cool.

Instructions: Preheat oven to 450°. Brush olive oil on the flatbreads and cover with the sliced Asian pears and caramelized onion. Sprinkle with the cheese, then the pecans. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, add a large handful of arugula leaves, slice into small pizza slices and serve immediately.

Thanks to www.CTbites.com for the gorgeous photos of my food.

Moroccan Chicken with preserved lemons and green olives

I had this dish at a friends house years ago and practically licked my plate clean. I began to make preserved lemons and have even given them as gifts.

Here is my recipe for Moroccan chicken with preserved lemons and green olives

1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
3 cubes frozen garlic
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
8 pieces preserved lemon
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 C. pitted green olives, halved
1 C. golden raisins
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro


Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté chicken until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. Transfer chicken to a plate and keep warm, covered.

Add remaining tablespoon of oil to pot and reduce heat to medium. Cook onions and garlic, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add turmeric and pepper and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Scrape pulp from preserved lemon, and cut rind into thin strips and add to onions with broth, wine, raisins and olives.

Return chicken, with any juices accumulated on plate, to skillet. Braise, covered, until chicken is cooked through, about 12 minutes. Serve sprinkled with cilantro over couscous.

The Big Hand- Hamburger Helper Homemade

Emma asked for Hamburger Helper last week, I almost fell over. But who can blame her? A happy talking hand and a catchy tune! I decided to make my own version tonight and wanted to share my recipe.

1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
8 oz. petite diced tomatoes, juices drained
1/2 C. fat-free half and half or non-fat milk
1/2 C. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 C. shredded 2% mozzarella cheese
2 C. dry elbow pasta (or any pasta)
2 basil leaves (optional)

Boil pasta in salted water. While pasta boils, brown beef and add garlic salt in a deep sided pan with a lid. After beef is cooked through, add drained diced tomatoes and half and half. Stir to combine and add Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. Stir to combine, cover and lower heat to low. Continue cooking on low heat until pasta is cooked, about 10 minutes. Drain and add pasta to tomatoes and beef. Add basil leaves and season to taste before serving.

Corn chowder

Fall is in the air and I have been busily making (or at least thinking about) all of the different soups I'm planning to make. We made lentil again last week and it was gobbled up.

I had some frozen roasted corn sitting in the freezer that I had from a party this summer and decided to make a corn chowder from it.

Here's my recipe for the chowder, it can easily be made vegetarian by omitting the proscuitto, but it adds a nice smoky flavor.

8 oz. package diced proscuitto
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 finely diced onion ( I used my vidalia chop wizard)
3 C. roasted corn kernels (Trader Joe's sells a bag of roasted corn kernels that are good)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 C. milk ( I use non-fat)
1 C. water
2 tbs. Better than Bouillon
3 Yukon gold potatoes, finely diced ( I used my vidalia chop wizard)
kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 C. leftover roasted cauliflower ( I threw this in because it was in the fridge, completely optional!)
Other options- add in 1 C. cooked quinoa, 1 C. fresh lump crab meat, 1 C. diced red pepper

Saute proscuitto in butter for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in diced onion and continue cooking for 2 more minutes. Add in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and let cook for 30 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper, and using a hand mixer, puree soup until mostly smooth. I like a little body in the soup.

Cover and continue cooking on low or serve.

Kibbe a.k.a Lebanese lamb meatballs

I grew up eating kibbe as my grandmother is Lebanese. I hadn't made them by myself, well ever, and decided it was time. I saw a good looking recipe in Cooking Light Magazine and decided to tweek it and make it a little easier.

Here's my recipe for delicious and (fairly) easy Kibbe.

1 lb. each-ground lean beef and lamb
1/2 lb. bulghur cracked wheat, uncooked
1 teaspoon salt
2 cubes frozen parsley
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (optional)
vegetable oil for frying

Preparation:

In a medium bowl, soak wheat for 30 minutes in cold water. Remove and drain. Remove excess water by squeezing through thick paper towel or cheesecloth. Place into medium bowl and combine with meat, onion, parsley, salt, allspice, pepper and cumin.

Combine well and place small amount in food processor until doughlike consistency. Refrigerate covered mixture for 30 minutes. Add in pine nuts (optional before forming into balls).

Take an egg sized amount of mixture and form into a football shaped ball.

Fry in 350 degree oil on stove top for about 8 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Makes 25 medium sized kibbeh.

We ate these with Tzatziki and some sliced tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and a little kosher salt, and the kids ate them with katsup. They also freeze well.

Chicken cacciatore

Although summer is still here, the smell of fall is in the air. This makes me very happy because I love the cool sunny days, I also love making foods that warm our home with their delicious scents.

Here is my recipe for chicken cacciatore.

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup all purpose flour, for dredging
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 C. quartered button or baby bells mushrooms
3 cubes frozen garlic
3/4 cup white wine
1 ( 28-ounce) can Italian seasoned diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons drained capers
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
5-6 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly torn

Directions:
Combine flour, salt, pepper and oregano in a pie plate. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture to coat.

In a large heavy saute pan, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute just until brown, about 5 minutes per side. If all the chicken does not fit in the pan, saute it in 2 batches.

Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Add the bell pepper, onion , mushrooms and garlic to the same pan and saute over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the wine, tomatoes with their juice, broth, and capers. Return the chicken pieces to the pan and turn them to coat in the sauce.

Serve over rice, couscous or pasta.

Bring the sauce to a simmer. Cover and continue simmering over medium-low heat until the chicken is cooked about 30 minutes.

Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a platter. If necessary, boil the sauce until it thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Spoon off any excess fat from atop the sauce. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle with the basil and serve.

Back to School Dinner- lentil soup with turkey

The kids start the new school year tomorrow, and I don't know who's more excited!

The weather is definitely feeling fall-like so I decided to make lentil soup.

It's an easy soup to make, but takes at least a couple hours to cook. This soup can certainly be made vegetarian by omitting the smoked turkey wings. We use our Vidalia Chop Wizard to cut all of the vegetables. It takes no time and cuts everything so evenly, the kids love to help chop too.

1 whole onion diced
2 cubes frozen garlic
2 tbs. olive oil
1 C. shredded or finely diced carrots
1 C. finely diced celery
1 finely diced potato
2 smoked (or regular) turkey wings
1C. finely diced mushrooms
10 oz. petit diced canned tomatoes
1 1/2 C. uncooked lentils
7 c. chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 Tbs. kosher salt
1 Tbs. celery salt (or the smoked fleur de sel from Whole Foods)
1 Tsp. ground black pepper
1 Parmesan rind

In a large soup pot on high heat, add onion, garlic and olive oil. Saute for 1 minute until garlic begins to melt. Add carrots, celery and potato and stir to combine. Add the turkey wings, mushrooms and tomatoes with their juices and stir again to combine. Next add in lentils, chicken stock, bay leaves, salt and black pepper. Stock should cover all of the ingredients. Add more or less stock as needed.

Cover and let cook for 1 hour on medium heat. The soup should be softly boiling. After 1 hour, add in Parmesan rind and cook for at least 1 more hour, stirring occasionally.

Before serving, remove turkey meat from the bones and add back into the soup. Be sure to remove the bay leaves before serving.

We all enjoyed the soup with a few slices of fresh baguette and a plate of sliced melon.

Give it a try, you wont' be disappointed!

Greek Chicken and olive tapenade pizzas

As the long days of summer dwindle to an end, we are spending these last few days having friends over for leisurely dinners.

Tonight I grilled some boneless, skinless chicken thighs that I marinated for a few hours in the juice from 1 lemon, 3 Tbs. of olive oil, a large pinch of kosher salt and pepper and 1 tsp. of dried oregano. I grilled it on a very hot grill for 4 minutes per side, then removed from the heat, wrapped in aluminum foil and continued cooking in a 450 degree oven for another 5 minutes. This always produces very tender and juicy chicken.

We had some steamed broccoli, and a fresh spinach salad with feta cheese, dried cherries and cherry tomatoes from the garden.

I also made a tiny pizza using olive tapenade (Trader Joe's makes a great one), a few spoonfuls of tomato sauce, a few more teaspoons of the feta cheese and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

These baked in the oven at 450 for 8 minutes while the chicken cooked. I sliced the pizza into little bite-sized pieces.

The dinner was easy, healthy and a great way to enjoy the last days of summer with friends.

Asian grilled pork tenderloin sandwiches

We ate dinner at a friend's house the other night and she made us the most delicious sandwich for dinner. I asked her for the recipe and after a little tweeking wanted to share this recipe. The bread is warm an crusty, the pork is very flavorful and the cabbage salad is crunchy and tangy, the perfect combination for a meal.

Marinade for pork:
1 C. hoisin sauce
1 Tbs. sambal olek (this is spicy, so go easy if it's for the kids)
2 cubes frozen garlic
2 cubes frozen ginger
1/2 C. red wine
1 C. sliced scallions
2 1-lb. pork tenderloins
2 tbs. peanut oil
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a Ziploc bag and marinade at least 3 hours or overnight.

To cook: Heat grill to high heat. Remove tenderloins from marinade and grill for 6 minutes per side.

While the pork grills, assemble napa cabbage salad:

2 Tbs. nam pla (fish sauce)
1/4 C. rice wine vinegar
1/4 C. of each: chopped basil, cilantro and mint leaves
1 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. soy sauce
2 C. shredded napa slaw (in a pinch, romaine lettuce can be used too)
1 C. shredded carrots

Combine first 5 ingredients. Mix cabbage and carrots together, and dress salad before serving.

Once pork is grilled, remove from heat and tent with foil on a plate for 5 minutes before slicing. Warm crusty rolls in the oven for 3 minutes and slice open. Thinly slice tenderloin and add few slices to one half of the roll, add a heaping spoonful of napa cabbage salad to the other side of the roll, close and enjoy!

Teriyaki grilled top round London broil

There was a special at my favorite super market this week for a type of steak I've never eaten before. I decided to buy first and ask questions later. The cut was a top round London broil; when I returned home and Googled this cut of meat, I was nervous because recipes were calling it a tough cut. I finally found a way to cook it and more importantly slice it that would ensure a nice meal.

I marinated the steak in a bottle of Hoison Garlic Soy Vay sauce for a couple of hours in a Ziplock bag. When we were ready to eat, I let the steaks sit out for about 20 minutes while I heated the grill to high. I also preheated the oven to 450, and lined a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. I grilled each steak for about 5 minutes per side then removed the steaks, placed them on the cookie sheet, covered the steaks with aluminum foil and cooked in the oven for another 5 minutes.

Here's the important part, uncover the steaks and let them rest for a few minutes. Thinly slice the steaks on the diagonal, (otherwise you'll have a tough steak!) which means to cut it in the opposite direction of the way the lines on the steak run.

The steak was tender and very, very flavorful.

Don't be afraid to try new cuts of steak, it's a great way to expand your repertoire.

Panko and goat cheese topped portabello mushrooms

Here's a delicious recipe that is good for entertaining friends as it can be made mostly in advance and is a snap to make.

4 large portabello mushrooms, stem removed
olive oil
kosher salt
ground black pepper
6 oz. goat cheese
1. C panko
1 Tbs. garlic salt


Clean the gills from 4 portabello mushrooms using a spoon. Drizzle each side of the mushroom with a little olive oil and a good pinch of kosher salt. Preheat a grill to high heat. Cook the mushrooms for 3 minutes per side or until grill marks appear on the outside of the mushroom.

Preheat oven to 375. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and place the mushrooms on the sheet . Spread goat cheese on the inside of each cap. Combine panko, garlic salt, pepper, and 3 Tbs. olive oil and sprinkle a hearty tablespoonful atop the goat cheese on each mushroom cap. Bake in the oven uncovered for 15-18 minutes or until panko is golden brown.

Lemon and oregano roasted turkey thighs

It's raining here today and it reminded me of the (upcoming) cool fall days. This is a summery version of a dinner we make frequently when the weather turns cool.

3 turkey thighs
juice from 1 lemon
1 Tbs. dried oregano
large pinch of kosher salt and pepper
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 3" pieces
1 fennel bulb, white part only cut into 2" wedges
olive oil

Preheat oven to 425. In a deep sided casserole pan add turkey thighs skin side up, carrots and fennel pieces. Drizzle with olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt and pepper. Make sure the carrots and fennel are not on top of the turkey.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the skin is golden brown and the thighs feel firm to the touch.

While the turkey roasts, peel 2 sweet potatoes and cut into 1/2" thick coins. Place on a Silpat lined cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil and celery salt. The smoked fleur de sel from Whole Foods also works well. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

We had some steamed broccoli, but any type of fresh vegetable would be fine.

Crab cakes with arugula salad and lemon vinaigrette

I love crab cakes, they are so easy to prepare, and make a delicious summer meal. These crab cakes are not overly breaded, and full of delicious crab meat and fresh herbs.

Here's my recipe for crab cakes with arugula salad and lemon vinaigrette.

Crab cakes:
1 C. jumbo lump crab meat
2 eggs
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1 Tbs. lemon zest
1 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 C. finely diced purple onion
1/2 C. finely diced red pepper
1 Tbs. chopped flat leaf parsley
2 Tbs. finely chopped chives or green onion
2 C. panko
1 C. high heat vegetable oil

Combine all ingredients until panko into a bowl and stir together with a fork to combine. Add panko to a plate. Place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and using your hands form crab cakes. I like to make them a little smaller than the palm of my hand. Dredge each crab cake in the panko and place on the parchment lined cookie sheet.

When all crab cakes have been made, cover them with another piece of parchment paper and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes up to 3 hours.

Heat oil on medium high heat in a pan with high sides. When oil is hot add 3-4 crab cakes to the pan, being sure they don't touch. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side or until panko is golden brown. Remove crab cakes and place on a few sheets of paper towels to drain any remaining oil. Continue cooking in batches.

Serve with a simple salad of baby arugula, halved cherry tomatoes and thinly sliced English cucumber. Drizzle with fresh lemon juice, olive oil, a pinch of kosher salt and a big pinch of black pepper.

Asian quinoa salad

I had some leftover quinoa, steamed broccoli and roasted kale that I wanted to use up and decided to make an Asian salad.

You could use whatever leftover grain, brown rice or couscous you have available, as well as any leftover cooked vegetables.

1 C. cooked quinoa
1 C. chopped steamed broccoli
1 C. roasted kale a.k.a disappearing chips, see recipe in blog search
handful of shredded carrots
1 tbs. soy sauce
1 tbs. rice wine vinegar
1 pinch toasted sesame seeds
1/2 Tbs. sesame oil
3 Tbs. toasted almonds
1 scallion chopped
Chili paste (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

Thai chicken wings

I haven't posted a new recipe in a while as I haven't been making anything worth writing home about. Today, however I made a version of Chicken Satay, but as a wing.

Preheat the oven to 400. Line a glass casserole pan with aluminum foil. While the oven heats, add 6-8 chicken wings to the pan. Add 1 jar (8 oz.) of Peanut Satay dipping sauce (Taste of Thai makes a good one, so does Trader Joes), 1/4 C. honey or agave and 1/4 C. soy sauce. Smear the sauce around the wings and bake in the oven uncovered for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes cover with foil and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.

We ate the wings with some steamed green beans from our garden tonight. I added a few shakes of toasted sesame seeds to mine, and the kids dipped theirs in soy sauce.

This would also be delicious using boneless, skinless chicken thighs.

For a little heat, make a slurry of 1 Tbs. soy sauce with a good squeeze of Thai red chili paste- YUM!

Sweet and spicy pulled-pork

I've been prepping for a party and wanted to share a recipe with you for pulled pork with a kick.

Here's my menu, it's great for the summer, and full of big flavors.

spicy gazpacho
black beans
coconut rice
skirt steak with chimichurri
pulled pork
tostones with sugared lime zest
green salad with pickled red onions, garbanzo beans and sun-dried tomatoes

Here's my recipe for sweet and spicy pulled pork:
2 C. apricot jam
3 thinly sliced red onions
1 C. sliced picked jalapenos (you can also use fresh, but use 1/2 C.)
1/2 C. brown sugar
1 tsp. kosher salt and pepper
1/4 c lime juice
4 lb. pork shoulder
Handful of cilantro leaves for garnish

Preheat oven to 400.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl. Line a deep roasting pan with aluminum foil, (you will be wrapping the foil around pork, so be sure it's one large piece) and add pork shoulder. Rub entire mixture over pork and cover with foil. Bake for 3 hours, remove pork and break apart using 2 forks. Add back to pan and let cook uncovered for another 40 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro leaves before serving.

Coconut curried chicken with vegetables

I love coconut curry, but don't often make it at home.

Here's my recipe for coconut curry chicken with vegetables:

1 tbs. olive oil
1 cube frozen garlic
1 cube frozen ginger
2 tsp. red curry paste
4 pieces boneless, skinless, chicken thighs- cut into cubes
8 oz. coconut milk
1 C. quartered mushrooms
2 peeled and sliced carrots
1 C. thinly sliced peppers, (red, green, yellow)
1 C. snap peas
Kosher salt to taste
cayenne pepper (optional)

Heat oil in a large nonstick pan with a lid on high heat. Add ginger and garlic and stir to melt. Add cubed chicken and curry paste and stir to combine. Let chicken brown for 2 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking. Add coconut milk and carrots and reduce heat to medium. Cover and let cook for 8 minutes. Add peppers and mushrooms and season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste, and continue cooking for another 10 minutes. Add snap peas before serving. The heat from the chicken will steam the snap peas.

I served the curry with basmati rice.

Herbed black pepper compound butter

I haven't made a compound butter in a while, but a friend brought me a gigantic bunch of fresh oregano.

Compound butter is simply a combination of herbs and butter. It's delicious on bread, fish, corn, even tossed into pasta. Compound butter freezes beautifully and makes a nice dinner party gift. Make a big log and keep it in the freezer, when you need some simply slice what you need, and if you're gifting some, wrap a nice log in parchment paper, then wrap it in some pretty tissue and a ribbon.

Here's my recipe for herbed black-pepper compound butter.

3 tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. kosher salt
2 Tbs. cracked black pepper
1/4 C. basil leaves (or 3 cubes frozen basil)
1/4 C. oregano leaves
1/4 C. Italian parsley leaves
1/4 C. chives
4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into smallish cubes

Combine olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs into a Cuisinart. Process until smooth. While the Cuisinart is running, add in cubes of butter until thoroughly processed and smooth.

Lay a large piece of parchment paper on the counter and add compound butter to the center. Form a long log (like cookie dough) and enclose in remaining parchment paper. Next cover with Saran Wrap and freeze.

This is a great way to use fresh herbs during the summer and makes a unique gift from your kitchen.

Pasta salad for a crowd

The girls have their last softball game tomorrow, and I am making a pasta salad for the post softball BBQ.

Here is the recipe:

Boil 1 bag pasta (farfalle or penne works well).

While the pasta cooks rinse and slice 1 C. cherry tomatoes, 1 can of black olives, 1 can of rinsed garbanzo beans, and 2 finely sliced green onions. Add into a large bowl.

Add 1 C. shredded carrots, 1/4 C. balsamic vinegar, 1 C. olive oil., 2 tsp. Lawry's Seasoning salt, 1/4 C. prepared pesto, and 1/4 C. freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Add to the bowl.

Drain and rinse the pasta under cool water until the pasta has cooled, add to bowl and stir until thoroughly combined.

Cover with saran wrap and chill until ready to serve.

Asian Watercress Pesto

I have been messing around with a new recipe for Asian Watercress pesto, it's good on anything, tonight we ate it smeared over some grilled chicken.

Here is my recipe for Asian Watercress Pesto:

1 bunch watercress
3 cubes frozen garlic
3 cubes frozen ginger
3 cubes frozen cilantro
1/2 C. toasted walnuts, pine nuts or pecans
kosher salt
zest and juice from 1 lime
1 1/2 C. olive oil

Combine all ingredients except olive oil into a food processor. Process and slowly add olive oil. This pesto can be thinned out with more olive oil or kept on the thick side. It freezes beautifully if you happen to have a run on watercress. It's delicious tossed in with udon noodles, smeared on salmon then roasted or even used as a thinned out sauce for steak.

Give it a try, it's a delicious variation on traditional pesto.

Spanish quiche torta

We officially have a dozen eggs from our chickens so I decided to make a quiche. I don't love quiches that are overly eggy so I combined a quiche with a Spanish Torta which has potato in it. This recipe made 2 quiches and turned out amazing!

Here's the recipe:

2 pie crusts (store bought is fine)
1/2 lb. bacon
1/2 onion, finely chopped
5 C. fresh baby spinach
1 potato, peeled, and chopped into small cubes
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese ( Feta would be a delicious substitute!)
8 eggs
3/4 C. fat-free milk
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook bacon in a large pan on medium high heat. While the bacon cooks, snip it into pieces with scissors. It should take 8-10 minutes. While the bacon cooks, boil the potato cubes in another pot until cooked through, about 10 minutes. The bacon should be cooked through but NOT crisp. Drain bacon and remove from the pan. In the same pan saute onions for 4 minutes then add all of the spinach a handful at a time until the spinach has cooked down. This only takes a minute.

Whisk eggs and milk together, then add a pinch of salt and a good big pinch of ground black pepper. Add onion and spinach mixture, cooked potato, shredded cheese and crumbled bacon. Whisk together and pour half of the mixture into each pie shell.

Bake for 35 minutes or until quiche is springy and firm.

Quiche freezes beautifully and is delicious for breakfast, lunch of dinner with a salad of fresh arugula, peas, cherry tomato, lemon juice, salt and pepper

Blog is now searchable

My blog is finally searchable. If you are looking for a recipe from 2 years ago, like the Roasted pulled pork you can now type in "pork" in the search bar to find the recipe.

I taught one of my "recession buster" 15 Minute Meals classes today at the Christopher Peacock Cabinetry showroom. I made a panko crusted broiled scallop today and forgot just how much I loved scallops. They were sweet and buttery and the panko gave it just a little crunch.

There are a few more classes available before the end of the season, but private classes are always available.

Grilled snapper with white wine and chives

It was a beautiful evening for grilling, and I had picked up a nice piece of snapper earlier in the day. We bought some tiny beets at the farmers market on Sunday, and I was planning on making some jasmine rice with chives, celery and almonds using the chives from our garden.

Here are the recipes in order of how to prepare this dinner:

Preheat oven to 450. Cut the tops off the beets and rinse. Wrap beets in foil and bake for 25 minutes or until a knife can easily be inserted into the beet. Once beets are cooked, slide the skin off under cool running water.

While the beets cook, start the rice. Boil 1 1/2 C. of water and 1/2 tsp. of the chicken base (or Better than Bouillon). When the water boils, add 1 C. of jasmine rice. Cover and reduce heat to medium low. Finely chop 1 celery stalk and 1/4 of an onion. Saute in a tsp. of olive oil for 3 minutes on high heat. Add 1/4 C. of slivered almonds, 1/4 C. of diced chives and add to rice mixture. Cook rice until all liquid has evaporated.

Preheat the grill to medium high. Drizzle a little olive oil, kosher salt, pepper and the juice from 1/2 lemon to the snapper filet. Once the grill is hot, add the fish, skin side down. Cover and let cook for 5 minutes. Remove fish from the grill and add it to a glass casserole dish. Add 1/4 C. white wine and a 1/4 C. chopped chives. Bake in the oven for another 5 minutes.

Abby loved the beets and ate the fish (but thought it was chicken), and oddly neither of them liked the rice, but Kirk thought it was the best rice and fish he's ever had!

Kale with white beans, truffle oil and garlic bread crumbs

I made a delicious kale that I wanted to share with you. It can be eaten either hot or cold and it a snap to make.

2 Tbs. olive oil
3-5 cubes frozen garlic
5 C. chopped fresh kale. I found a bag of freshly chopped kale at the supermarket. If you can't find kale, Swiss chard will work too.
1/2 C. vegetable or chicken stock
kosher salt and pepper to taste
1 12oz. can of rinsed white beans
1/2 C. toasted almonds
1/2 C. Italian bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
drizzle truffle oil (optional BUT amazing!!)

Heat a large nonstick pan on medium high heat. Add olive oil and frozen garlic. While the garlic melts, rinse kale and add to the pan. Cook for 30 seconds then add stock. Continue cooking for approximately 5 minutes or until kale starts to cook down. While the kale is cooking, add the rinsed beans and stir to incorporate. Add a good pinch of kosher salt and pepper.

Reduce heat to medium, cover and continue cooking for another 6 minutes.

While the kale cooks, toss bread crumbs, garlic salt and 1 Tbs. olive oil. Toast in a small pan until they turn golden brown, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Before serving kale, drizzle truffle oil, add almonds and top with toasted bread crumbs. You can also add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and a few red pepper flakes.

Mahogany roasted chicken thighs with sauteed kale

I bought a bag of freshly chopped raw kale last week and have just gotten around to making it tonight. I had completely forgotten about a product that I used to use a lot called Chicken Base. It's almost the same thing as Better Than Bouillon and can be found at Costco.

Here is the recipe for Mahogany chicken (of which the kids completely devoured) and sauteed kale (of which 1 kid devoured).

Chicken:
4 chicken thighs
3 Tbs. soy sauce
1/4 C. hoison sauce
1/4 C. plum sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Place chicken in a shallow glass pan, combine 3 ingredients and add to the chicken. Bake for 25 minutes or until chicken skin has turned a dark golden color. The skin will look similar to roasted duck, dark and shiny.

While the chicken cooks, add 1 Tbs. of olive oil to a large nonstick pan with tall sides. Add 2 cubes frozen garlic and rinse 5 C. chopped kale. Heat pan to medium high. Add kale to the pan and stir to combine. Add 1 Tbs. of Chicken Base and 1/2 C. water. Stir to dissolve, cover and continue cooking until the kale is soft but still bright green, about 20 minutes. If the kale is looking dry, add another 1/4 C. of water. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Vegan stuffed zucchini

My friends are coming over for lunch today and one of them is vegan. I had a few zucchini in the house so I decided to make quinoa and brown rice stuffed zucchini.

Here's the recipe: The stuffing is delicious eaten as a salad or can be stuffed into zucchini or red bell peppers.

This recipe makes 3 cups of stuffing/salad

Finely dice 1/2 purple onion, and saute in 2 Tbs. of olive oil in a large nonstick pan on medium high heat for 5-7 minutes or until onion begins to brown. Add a good pinch of kosher salt and pepper. While the onion cooks, grate 1 whole zucchini and add to the pan. Continue cooking until zucchini has softened. Add in a small pinch of dried thyme, 1/2 C. toasted pine nuts and 1/2 C. golden raisins. Stir to combine and remove from heat.

I had leftover quinoa and brown rice, you can add either or both or even couscous. I added in about 1 1/2 C. total of mixed brown rice and quinoa with another tsp. of olive oil. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. You could also saute a few finely diced mushrooms with the zucchini, and a drizzle of truffle oil would be delicious.

Remove the mixture from the pan and add 1 Tbs. of olive oil, 1 C. of bread crumbs and 1/2 tsp. of garlic salt. Cook until breadcrumbs turn brown, about 1 minute. Watch these closely and stir frequently as they brown very quickly. Remove from heat so they don't burn.

I washed and sliced 2 zucchini in half lengthwise, and using a grapefruit spoon hollowed out the center of the 4 pieces. Preheat oven to 425. Line a cookie sheet with either a Silpat mat or aluminum foil and add the zucchini boats. Fill each boat with the stuffing and top with toasted bread crumbs. Cook in the oven to 10-12 minutes.

Stuffed chicken breasts

Tonight's dinner was met with mixed reviews. The grown-ups loved it, the kids... not so much.

Anyhow, here's my recipe for goat cheese and artichoke stuffed chicken breasts.

Saute 1/2 C. mire au poix (which you can buy pre-chopped from Trader Joe's) in 1 Tbs. olive oil and 1 cube frozen garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until vegetables begin to soften. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Add in 3-4 jarred artichoke hearts that you have roughly chopped and continue cooking. Turn heat off after a few minutes and add in 3 Tbs. goat cheese. If you don't have goat cheese, you can also use cream cheese or boursin.

While the veggie mixture cools, preheat the oven to 425 and slice 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts almost in half horizontally, being sure not to slice the breast completely in half. It should look like a pouch.

Add 1 tsp. olive oil to coat the bottom of a casserole pan. After stuffing the chicken, add them to the pan.

Smear a little dijon mustard to the outsides of the chicken breasts and add 1-2 Tbs. of the vegetable mixture to the pocket of the chicken. Finally, add a sprinkling of Italian bread crumbs or Panko to the top of the chicken breast. This will give it a nice crunch.

Bake chicken for 18-20 minutes or until the top of the chicken is golden brown.

I served this with quinoa and green beans. My kids had a FIT, and my adventurous eater even started to cry! I made her try a bite which she choked down and I eventually heated up some of the leftover barley soup from the other night.

The adults loved the dinner so I guess it wasn't a total loss!! Give it a try and let me know what your kids think.

Vegetable barley soup

It's raining here (again) and although I generally stop making soups when the daffodils bloom, we are supposed to get rain here for the next 4 days. Soup seemed to be a natural meal for the next couple of days.

Here's my recipe for vegetable barley soup.

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 C. sliced and rinsed leeks
2 C. frozen corn kernels
2 C. cooked barley
1 C. canned diced tomatoes
1/2 C. sliced carrots
4-5 sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 C. white beans (rinsed)
3 Tbs. Better Than Bouillon
1 bay leaf
5-6 C. water
salt and pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese

In a large pot, add olive oil and leeks, saute for 3-4 minutes until leeks begin to sweat. Add corn, cooked barley, tomatoes, carrots, beans, and mushrooms. Stir to combine and add in bouillon, water and bay leaf. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and let cook for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

When ready to serve, ladle soup into a bowl and add a spoonful of grated Parmesan cheese to top before serving.

Egg white burrito with leek and roasted tomato

I got the kids off to school today and realized I hadn't had breakfast yet. As my mornings are usually crazy (like every other mom), I found myself with a quiet morning and decided to make a delicious breakfast.

I made a fried egg white, and added a spoonful of roasted leeks and tomato that I had leftover from earlier in the week. I then added a slice of proscuitto and a teaspoon of crumbled ricotta salada to the egg. If you've never eaten ricotta salada, it is delicious, hard and salty. Wrap the egg in a warm flour tortilla and enjoy.

I also made a roasted beet salad yesterday for lunch with toasted pine nuts, beets, ricotta salada, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

Easy Chicken Enchilada Burritos

Tonight was another softball practice night and I got off easy with a playdate. I still made a dinner that could have been transported rather easily and takes almost no time to make.

Here's the recipe:

1 C. precooked chicken, chopped (I had 2 chicken thighs and a drumstick leftover that I had grilled a few days ago)
8 oz. enchilada sauce
1 C. shredded cheese (if you don't keep your shredded cheese in the freezer, do so, it will last 6 months frozen and thaws in about 5 minutes)
1/4 C. shredded cheese for topping
4 large flour tortillas
(optional to add to burritos)- 1/2 C. frozen brown rice, 1/2 C. frozen corn, 1/4 C. salsa

Preheat oven to 450. Rub a little olive oil or spray a little Pam to the bottom and sides of a casserole pan, this will prevent the enchiladas from sticking.

Mix the chicken, enchilada sauce and shredded cheese in a bowl. Spoon equal amounts of the mixture into 4 tortillas. Fold over the smaller edges first, then roll the tortilla. It should look like a burrito and be fully closed.

Place the burritos into the casserole pan, sprinkle remaining cheese atop burritos, and bake for 10-15 minutes.

I boiled some corn on the cob while the enchilada burritos cooked. Once the cheese has melted and looks golden brown, they are done. To take these on the road, simply wrap each burrito in aluminum foil and a couple paper napkins and they're good to go.

White wine poached mahi-mahi with mushrooms, fennel and carrots

I bought a beautiful fillet of mahi mahi yesterday and made it for dinner tonight, it was delicious, although the girls were not so sure!

Here's the recipe:

1 tbs. olive oil
1 C. thinly sliced fennel
1/2 C. thinly sliced mushrooms
1 peeled and thinly sliced carrot
1/2 C. white wine
6 oz. mahi mahi
pinch of kosher salt and pepper
juice from 1/2 lemon plus rind

Heat a large nonstick pan with a lid on medium high heat. Add olive oil, fennel, mushrooms and carrots and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add in wine (chicken stock or water work fine also) and filet. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper and the juice from 1/2 a lemon plus the squeezed lemon skin. Cover and cook for 6-7 minutes on medium high heat until fish is white and most of the liquid has disappeared.

If there is still a lot of liquid left in the pan, remove the fish, turn the heat to high and reduce the liquid and vegetables for another minute.

The girls ate a bite of fish, but ended up eating mostly mushrooms, carrots and quinoa. I, however, loved the fish and will keep trying.