Grilled Chicken and a Rainbow of Veggies with Lemon & Cilantro

Today was absolutely gorgeous and sunny.  It was however not very warm here in ohio.  So I decided to make a spring dish that is as flavorful as it is colorful.  I have pulled out the juicer we got for our wedding recently and absolutely love using it.  You get more juice and it's a small cheap unit easy to clean up.  The 30 second blanching step is definately worth it for the snap peas.  They become brighter and tastier after the step.  I often find myself prepping for dinner in the evenings or afternoons when I have more free time.  If you have have small children read this as after bedtime and during naptime.  This meal is great because you can prep almost everything ahead of time and it will only take you 10 minutes to prepare dinner later.  And because it's healthy you almost have to treat yourself to a little dessert too!

Recipe Modifications

• Marinated chicken for around 3 hours.  
• Pan fried the chicken instead of grilled.  There is oil in the marinade so you shouldn't need any in the pan
• Used more veggies than called for.  One whole yellow and red pepper.  One large zucchini

Ingredients
Chicken:
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon salt
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Cooking spray
Salad:
1 cup sugar snap peas, trimmed
1/2 cup red bell pepper strips
1/2 cup yellow bell pepper strips
1/2 cup (1/4-inch-thick) slices zucchini
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 lemon wedges (optional)

Recipe

This recipe comes from my favorite source Cooking Light. Not diet food, but food that is conscious of health without losing any flavor. Food for life! 

Click Here for Recipe

Cupcake Wars - Raspberry Cupcakes with Champagne Buttercream Frosting

We have caught a few episodes of Cupcake Wars and Cake Boss and they have really made me want to perfect super yummy and pretty cupcakes.  This is my first attempt at pretty cupcakes and I have to say I loved the recipe.  The cupcake was denser than a normal cupcake and very moist.  Don't be afraid of the raspberry puree, they are such soft berries you can mash them with your fork into a puree.  The frosting was buttery with just a hint of the champagne.  I didn't have a pastry bag or tips so I used a ziplock bag to make the frosting a bit fancier than my usual smear it on method.

Modifications

• All the stores I went to were out of the raspberry extract so I bought a raspberry gel flavoring for cupcakes.  I just squirted a bit in and it gave the perfect hint of raspberry and a slight lavender color
• Added 2.5 tablespoons of pureed raspberry instead of 2.  May add more next time
• Halved the frosting recipe but added 2.5 tablespoons of champagne instead of 2
• My oven usually bakes fast.  These took 30 minutes instead of the suggested 20 minutes

Ingredients
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon raspberry extract
2 tablespoons pureed fresh raspberries
frosting -
1 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
6 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons Champagne, or 1 tablespoon Champagne flavoring

Recipe

This was the first Cupcake Wars recipe I've used and I will try them again.  I have my eye on a tiramisu cupcake, yumm!

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Chicken and Pesto Farfalle

This recipe should be made on a day you have more time.  A day off or weekend day.  If you have someone watch the grill and another person inside it would go a bit faster.  Since it's still pretty cold out I chose to pan fry the chicken in my nice toasty kitchen.  My almost 2 and almost 4 year old also aren't huge fans of raw tomato so I added the tomatoes just after the garlic to break them down.  The end result was delish but you would have an even better display with them raw.  Overall I would am definately making this recipe again.  The next time I may experiment more by adding some spicy sausage and adding the tomatoes a bit later to soften but keep their form.  Serve this dish with a simple salad and crusty bread or garlic toast.  This dish makes a large amount, so feed it to your guests and you'll be sure to impress ;-)

Recipe Modifications

• Used 2 cups grape tomatoes and 2 cups mini heirloom tomatoes instead of all grape 
• Added the tomatoes after the garlic to soften them for the younger ones in our home
• Used a Knorr packet to make my own pesto.  Less calories and you can use your favorite olive oil.  Added 1/2 cup of pesto instead of 1/3 a cup
• Pan fried the chicken.  Then used the pan for the sauce so you gain the flavor of the chicken left behind

Ingredients
1 3/4  pounds  skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1  teaspoon  salt, divided
3/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper, divided
Cooking spray
20  ounces  uncooked farfalle (bow tie pasta)
1  tablespoon  butter
3  garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2  cups  1% low-fat milk, divided
2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
1  (3.5-ounce) jar commercial pesto (about 1/3 cup)
3/4  cup  half-and-half
2  cups  (8 ounces) shredded fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
4  cups  halved grape tomatoes (about 2 pints)
1/2  cup  chopped fresh basil


Recipe
This recipe comes from my favorite source Cooking Light. Not diet food, but food that is conscious of health without losing any flavor. Food for life! 

Click Here for Recipe

Easy Crockpot Turkey Tenderloin

Doing my grocery shopping I ran across a "manager's special" markdown.  If you haven't checked these out they are items that fastly approaching the sell-by date.  I like to pick up meats that are marked down and pop them in the freezer or cook them in the next few days.  So I took my $5 turkey tenderloins and made an easy slow cooker meal.  After a day of errands and playing the meal was ready to go.  And it makes your house smell delicious!

Ingredients

• Turkey Tenderloins
• Carrots
• Celery
• Red Potatoes
• White Onions
• Garlic
• Chicken Stock
• Sea Salt
• Pepper

Recipe

1. Chop  Carrots, Celery, Red Potatoes into bite size pieces.  You'll want around 1 - 2 cups of each.  The amount doesn't have to be exact.  Add to slow cooker.
2. Dice the onion and mince the garlic.  Add to slow cooker.
3. Add some chicken stock.  If you just want to steam the veggies add around 1/2 a cup.  If you want a soupy broth to dip bread in add more.  
4. Place the Turkey Tenderloins on top of the veggies in the slow cooker.  Season meat and veggies with sea salt and pepper to taste.
5. Cook on high for one hour.  Cook 5-7 hours on low.  The total time depends on the thickness of your tenderloins.  I tend to buy thicker pieces and they generally are done after 6 hours on low.

Brown Sugar-Banana Muffins

Almost everyone who eats bananas has experienced too ripe to eat bananas.  And when this happens it's time to bake!  I took advantage of my 21 month old waking up at 5:30am this Saturday morning and made these delicious light and cakey banana muffins.  I even made a mistake missing the egg addition, which I added at the last addition of the banana mixture and these turned out so well.  If you like a less sweet muffin you could adjust the amount of brown sugar based on how ripe your bananas are.  As they ripen they become sweeter.  We will be making this recipe again and again.

Recipe Modifications

• Used 1/4 cup of milk and 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice instead of buttermilk
• Used pasteurized eggs instead of eggs

Ingredients
1/2  cup  butter, softened
1  cup  firmly packed brown sugar
2  large eggs
1  cup  mashed ripe bananas (about 2 large)
1/4  cup  buttermilk
1  teaspoon  vanilla extract
2 1/4  cups  all-purpose flour
3/4  teaspoon  baking soda
1/2  teaspoon  baking powder
1/2  teaspoon  salt
1/2  cup  toasted chopped pecans

Recipe
For this recipe I used a southern living recipe.  They do look very southern with the toasted pecans on the top!

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Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip and Pecan Cookies

We made these on Sunday afternoon.  The girls are getting cabin fever from the cold Ohio winter this year.  So Cadence asked daddy what would you like me to bake you?  He wanted chocolate chip cookies.  A quick search and these sounded so good!  They are absolutely a keeper and we will be making again.  They aren't even that bad for you as far as a cookie goes.  The next time I make them I might even reduce the sugar more so I can steal a few more cookies ;-)

Recipe Modifications

• Added 1/4 cup white sugar instead of 3/4 cup
• Added 3/4 cup brown sugar instead of 1/2 cup, will try 1/2 next bake
• Used pasteurized real egg product instead of egg, 1/4 + 1/8 cup
• Used regular chocolate chips instead of the mini chips
• Made cookies 2 tbsp, making 18 instead of 3 dozen

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (about 5 1/2 ounces)
1 cup regular oats
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate minichips

Recipe

This recipe comes from my favorite source Cooking Light. Not diet food, but food that is conscious of health without losing any flavor. Food for life! 

Click Here for Recipe

Blueberry Pancakes with nutmeg and cinnamon

Weekend and vacation mornings are my favorite to try out new breakfast recipes. Today my three and a half year old wanted pancakes. So we made a new blueberry pancake recipe and it turned out yummy! My new le creuset enameled cast iron pan created a perfect crunch outside and they rose for a light fluffy center. We served real maple syrup on the side and fresh berries. These are sweet enough you could even enjoy without syrup.

I take a child involved approach to cooking. My girls are young but they stand on chairs and watch me mix up the ingredients and dump the measuring cups. We often cook with pasteurized egg substitute so the batters and doughs can be sampled. I really believe this involvement and early exposure to wide variety of foods has helped shape their wonderful palettes.

Recipe Modifications

• Doubled baking powder to 2 teaspoons
• Doubled cinnamon to 1/4 teaspoon
• Used pasteurized egg substitute
• Used sour cream instead of yogurt
• Added more milk to thin out about 2 tablespoons

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup fresh blueberries

Recipes

There are so many recipes on allrecipes.com and many user reviews. After reading a few tweaks people make and knowing how my family prefers food it's pretty easy to find good recipes from this source. And there are always new ones!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Blueberry-Pancakes/Detail.aspx

Chicken Stew with Shallots, Cider and Butternut Squash

• This has to be one of my favorite dishes and we make it several times a year. You are looking at a slow cooked chicken stew with cider, shallots, butternut squash and curry. This pairs really well with crusty bread hot out of the oven, a nice salad and hopslam beer. I do have to warn you the aroma will make you very hungry and the stew simmers for nearly two hours.

Recipe Modifications

The recipe calls for a hard cider but I've found that the slight sweet note you get from a sparkling non-alcoholic cider is my favorite way to prepare it. I also use all breast meat for the chicken and about a teaspoon more curry powder. The amount of chicken and squash varies based on what I have on hand. I would recommend doubling the recipe and freezing a portion. The squash will not be as firm when defrosted but the overall flavor is still delish!

Ingredients
4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 cup sliced shallots (about 6 medium)
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
3/4 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
2 cups fermented dry cider
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup water
2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash (about 1 pound)
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)


Recipe

This recipe comes from my favorite source Cooking Light. Not diet food, but food that is conscious of health without losing any flavor. Food for life!

Click Here for Recipe

Farfalle with Creamy Wild Mushroom Sauce

 I was looking for a yummy pasta dish without a red sauce and came across this dish on cooking light's website.  We love mushrooms and cheese and this recipe did not disappoint!  It didn't take long and turned out very pretty.  This would be a good recipe to serve when you have guests.  The only complaint I got was from Michael.  After three servings, he said it would of been perfect with chicken!

Recipe Modifications

• I doubled the recipe but didn't quite double the pasta about 1 3/4 lbs
• Used all shallots, no white onion

Recipe
This recipe comes from my favorite source Cooking Light. Not diet food, but food that is conscious of health without losing any flavor. Food for life!

Click Here for Recipe

Salmon and Wilted Spinach with Balsamic Reduction

We love balsamic vinegar around here. It's so easy to turn a quick everyday meal from so-so to scrumptious with a simple balsamic reduction sauce. Here we have baked wild salmon, wilted spinach, jasmine rice and corn. This meal is fast and can easily be made during the week after a hectic day at work. Try the sauce with pan seared chicken, another favorite of ours

Ingredients for Salmon and Wilted Spinach

• 4 medium salmon fillets, skin on wild caught is my preference
• 1 package of spinach rinsed, this reduces in size allot
• 1/2 tablespoon butter
• sea salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar

Recipe

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray if your salmon in skinless.
2. Combine 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar in a small saucepan. Over medium heat bring to a low boil. Cook until sauce is reduced to almost 1/2, usually takes 7-8 minutes. Remove from heat when done.
3. Season the salmon filets with sea salt and pepper to taste and place in the oven. Cooking time varies based on salmon thickness and your oven. Check salmon after 10 minutes, small fillets cook quickly. If it flakes it's done, if you catch if before it flakes but the center is no longer raw it's perfect!
4. Melt 1/2 tablespoon butter in large pan over medium heat. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
5. Place spinach on plate, salmon on top of spinach and top with balsamic sauce.