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.