Super Easy Fajitas

 

I rarely go out for mexican food and when I do I always get fajitas.  Well I've made them at home using little seasoning packets, and using super yummy spices that have to marinate for a day or more but sometimes you want a quick and easy recipe that's not in a packet.  After browsing some recipes online and getting a feel for what to use in a home-made marinade we experimented at making up our own recipe and it was a success!  I don't think I'll ever go back to those little packets with a zillion ingredients that I do not recognize.    

Ingredients

1.5 - 2 pounds of chicken or steak sliced in thin strips

4 garlic cloves

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 tablespoon freeze dried or 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro (optional)

1/2 - 1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes, add based on how spicy you like it

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 bell peppers (green, red or yellow) in strips

1 small onion in strips

1 tablespoon olive oil

tortillas

Toppings of your choice - avocado mashed with lime and salsa, hot sauce, salsa, cheese, tomatoes and lettuce are our favorites.

Recipe

1. Combine ingredients chicken through lime juice in large ziplock bag.  Shake it up and let meat marinate for at least an hour.  You can shake and rotate bag a few times.
2. Using a large pan or griddle heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium high heat.  Add the peppers and onions to the griddle and cook until a little blackening caramelization occurs.  Let everything sit on the griddle for a few minutes, don't turn too often.  You want these to have have flavor, soften slightly but still have some crunch.  Remove from pan and set aside when done.
3. Add meat to the pan.  Cook on one side for a few minutes.  It will get a nice sear if you're good and don't flip too soon or try to stir too often.  Flip the meat and cook the other side.  
4. Be sure the meat is cooked through and then add the peppers and onions back to the pan.  Stir everything together and heat through.
5. Serve mixture on a warm tortilla with toppings of your choice

Turkey Noodle Soup

I make soup all the time.  I love soup and find that we almost always have the ingredients to make up a batch on those cold dreary days when you want something hearty but also good for you!  This is also another great way to use up chicken or turkey leftovers.  I can't help but serve it with a nice warm from the oven crusty bread.  

Ingredients

thyme, dried parsley, salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
8 cups chicken stock or broth
3 large carrots
4 large celery stalks
4 medium parsnips
1 cup uncooked noodles (I like the amish brand)
1 - 2 cups of cooked turkey or chicken, dark or light

Recipe

1. Melt butter or margarine over medium heat in a large stock pot.
2. Add carrots, celery and parsnips and cook on medium for 5 minutes.
3. Add stock/broth and bring to a boil.  Add Noodles and bring back to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to medium simmer and add chicken/turkey.  
5. Simmer until the noodles are done.  Around 12 minutes for the amish brand.
6. Add seasonings (salt/pepper/thyme/parsley)
7. Soup is ready to be served!  Just allow to cool some before eating to avoid those burned tongues

Red Curry Turkey

We cooked a 22 pound turkey for our week after Thanksgiving feast.  So the entire week after I can up with ways to enjoy the turkey but give a new twist.  This is my first attempt in a long time at a coconut milk red curry.  The result was good but as my family likes it super blazing hot I will add even more curry and maybe a touch of chili paste next time.  Great way to reinvent those turkey leftovers!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 cloves of garlic
8 ounces mini button or sliced mushrooms  
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 cups broccoli
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
8 ounce can of water chestnuts drained
8 ounce can of bamboo drained
Between 1 and 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless turkey meat cooked, we prefer breast

3 tablespoons curry paste, use this to your taste mix 1 tablespoon at a time

1 tablespoon grated lime zest
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 (14 ounce) can light coconut milk
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Recipe

1. Heat oil in large skillet or wok over high heat.  
2. Mix curry paste through coconut milk in a medium bowl with a whisk and set aside.
3. Add garlic through baby corn and sauté for about 5 minutes until vegetables are not as crisp but are not completely soft.  Stir often.
4. Pour curry mixture into the pan.  Add turkey.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for 3-5 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and add cilantro.  Stir and then serve over rice.

Spicy Chicken Sloppy Joes

When you cook from scratch for the majority of your meals canned and super processed foods can leave something to be desired.  I like the concept of sloppy joes but was never happy with the taste of manwich.  So we decided to look online for homemade recipes and modify, merge and tweak until we came up with a good recipe for our family.  Here is is.  Still has that sloppy joe taste, is a bit healthier and less salty and no metallic can flavors.  And who doesn't love to eat with your hands and be messy!  And this is still a quick meal.  You could even prepare the meat in the morning before work, or when the baby is napping in my case, and reheat for dinner.

Ingredients

1 pound ground chicken breast (could use turkey or hamburger)

1/2 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup ketchup

1/3 cup BBQ Sauce (we like a local place City BBQ)

1 tablespoon mustard

1 tablespoon vinegar

2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce

ground pepper to taste

hot sauce to taste (we like it spicy so like 8 shakes of Chalupa)

sharp cheddar cheese slices (optional) 

whole wheat hamburger or slider buns

Recipe

1. Cook the chicken and onion over medium heat until done and no longer pink.  Add oil if you are not using a non-stick pan.
2. If you like your sandwiches extra saucy double the sauce.  Add ketchup through hot sauce and mix thoroughly.  Let the meat simmer for 5 - 10 minutes.
3. Serve on buns and top with cheese if desired 

BBQ Chicken Burgers

I know we have been making allot of burgers but really it's that time of year and they are so easy and quick.  This one is a chicken burger recommended my our friend Stephanie and it is so yummy!  We used BBQ sauce from City BBQ and that made it even better.  Served with simple balsamic glazed asparagus and smashed sweet potatoes.  My only regret is we went up to the lake and I left two burgers behind, hate to waste food especially when it's so good.

Recipe Modifications

• Cooked the onions until they turned a nice brown color
• Added some fresh pepper

Ingredients

2 Tbsp Oil, divided
1 Small Onion, diced
1 lb. Ground Chicken Breast
2 Tbsp BBQ Sauce (your favorite), plus additional for serving
1/2 Tsp Onion Powder
1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
4 Jack or Mozzarella Cheese Slices
Burger Buns

Easy Side Recipes
Asparagus

1. Cook Asparagus over Medium heat in olive oil
2. Add tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, dash of sea salt and dash of fresh ground pepper
3. Cook until desired softness, 5- 10 minutes.  Turn often

Smashed Sweet Potatoes

1. Microwave or bake sweet potatoes until soft
2. Cut lengthwise and scoop potatoes out
3. Add 1/4 to 1/2 tablespoon of butter, depends on number of potatoes
4. Add dash of nutmeg.  Mash and serve 

Burger Recipe

This recipe comes from Weelicious.  Healthy creative recipes that once you try you'll be hooked!

Click Here for Recipe

Easy Taco Night

My family loves tacos and they are so easy and fast to make that we have them often.  We never eat all the tortillas so for lunch we have leftover cheese and tortillas to make quesadillas with.  Throw on any leftover meat or veggies you have from other meals.  The girls love them, and I love that food isn't wasted.  I am a bit of a lazy taco maker and wasn't even sure this qualified as a real recipe.  But just in case anyone out there never makes them at home, look at how easy this is!  We usually serve with spanish rice or corn bread and corn.  If the avocados are ripe I'll make a side of avacados smashed with lime and fresh salsa too.

Ingredients

1-2 tablespoons taco seasoning

1-1.5 lbs ground turkey

1/2 - 1 cup tomato chopped

1 cup shredded lettuce

Sour Cream to taste

Hot Sauce to taste

Sharp Cheddar to taste

Multigrain Tortillas (Giant Eagle brand are actually quite tasty)

Recipe

1. Chop tomatoes and shred lettuce
2. Brown the Turkey over medium heat and Drain
3. Return to heat and add Seasoning and 1/4 cup of water, mix until water has reduced a few minutes.  Remove from heat
4. Heat tortillas according to package instructions
5. Let everyone make their own taco to taste!  I like mine topped with meat, sour cream, cheese, hot sauce, lettuce and tomato.

Turkey Burgers with Spinach and Feta

I had some left over hamburger buns to use up and if you know my family you know we hate to be wasteful.  So I decided to try my hand at making some turkey burgers.  It was raining out so we decided to pan fry them and they were a bit sticky anyway so I think that's the best method for this recipe.  They turned out amazing!  The next time I make them I think I'll add some hot sauce to kick them up a notch more, we like spicy foods.  Of course we served with french fries and topped with fresh tomatoes, lettuce and a touch of mayo.

Ingredients

1/2 cup of chopped onion

4 garlic cloves

2 cups fresh baby spinach

19-20 ounce package of ground turkey, not the super light kind you want a little fat

1/4 cup pasteurized eggs or 1 eggs beaten

4 ounces feta 

2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce

pepper to taste

hot sauce to taste - optional

hamburger buns

burger toppings (lettuce, tomato, pickle) and condiments (mayo)

Recipe

1. Cook onion and garlic over medium heat until onion is slightly caramelized (slightly browned), around 4 minutes
2. Add spinach and cook until wilted, around 2 more minutes.  Remove from heat
3. Combine turkey, eggs, feta, worcestershire, pepper and hot sauce (optional).  Add onion mixture and stir until well combined.
4. Heat large skillet over medium heat.  Form meat mixture into patties and place in pan.  The patties should not be too think and only the width of a burger bun.  
5. Do not turn until they are nicely browned, 4 or 5 minutes depending on temperature.  You will notice the patties shrink and edges appear cooked.  Then allow the other side to cook until browned.  You can turn once more for a few minutes to ensure they thoroughly cooked.  If you wait let them brown before flipping they will have amazing flavor and actually be more moist.   
6. Place on buns and top with your favorite toppings

Mac and Cheese with Sausage

Mac and Cheese is one of Michael's all-time favorite foods.  The boxed varieties just don't appeal to me as an adult.  But this version will satisfy your adult palette and give you that treat your inner child remembers.  We prefer the dish with a spicy chicken sausage to give it a little kick.  And since it's very popular I always double the recipe so we have leftovers for lunch the next day.  The noodles used vary based on what I have on hand but my favorite is shells.  They just seem to scoop up the cheese.  Hope you like it as much as we do!

Recipe Modifications

• doubled the recipe
• added 9 oz of sausage instead of 8 oz because that's the size of the package, and we always use a spicy chicken sausage
• added 8 oz of cheddar and 4 oz of pepper jack cheese

Ingredients
4  ounces  chicken and sun-dried tomato sausage (such as Gerhard's), chopped
1 1/4  cups  fat-free milk
2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
3/4  cup  (3 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1/3  cup  (about 1 1/3 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/4  cup  (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
1/2  teaspoon  onion powder
1/4  teaspoon  garlic salt
5  cups  hot cooked elbow macaroni (about 8 ounces uncooked pasta)
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

Turkey Burritos & Homemade Guacamole

This is a great weeknight recipe because you can pull together a satisfying meal in under 30 minutes.  We just tried it for the first time and really loved the flavor.  I've been making my own guacamole ever since I tasted how awesome my friend Jackie's was compared to the store bought versions.  We generally munch on the guacamole as dinner is cooking and serve a little bit with our tacos or burritos.  The girls love cornbread and I have found a mix that I love and doesn't have a zillion ingredients - Trader Joe's cornbread mix!  I used to make spanish rice but they really like the cornbread the best.  Here's my run down - Preheat the over, mix cornbread and pop in the oven.  Mine is done in 25 minutes even though the box says 35-40 minutes.  Make guacamole and get out tortilla chips for family to munch.  Make burritos.  These finish at the same time as the cornbread.  Eat dinner!

Recipe for Guacamole

2 medium avocados

1 small lime

1-2 tablespoons of fresh salsa

Remove flesh from two medium avocados and place in a medium bowl.  These should be slightly soft but not brown on the inside, that's perfectly ripe!  You can still use ones with brown just don't use the brown bits.  Squirt juice from one small lime over the avocados.  Mash these with a fork until desired consistency.  We like ours smooth with a few chunks.  Add a tablespoon or two of fresh salsa to taste.  The salsa you use does make a difference in the taste.  We like Jack's Special fresh salsa

Recipe Modifications for Burritos

• I had extra liquid at the end.  If you don't buy extra lean turkey I'd drain some of the fat or omit the 1/2 cup of water
• Added Jack's Special Fresh Salsa.  We prefer this over bottled salsa
• Added sour cream and cheese to taste with each burrito
• Used whole wheat tortillas

Ingredients for Burritos
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground turkey breast
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons bottled salsa
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles, undrained
6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
1 cup (4 ounces) pre-shredded reduced-fat Mexican blend cheese

Recipe for Burritos

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

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

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.