CEiMB: Salmon with Sweet & Spicy Rub

This week's recipe was a super easy one! Mix a couple spices together, rub it onto the fish and cook! This week's recipe also tasted fabulous!!

You are probably wondering where the salmon is for which this post is titled? There wasn't any salmon in the freezer only tilapia! My husband and I both loved the rub on the fish and because it is so quick and easy will probably use it often and on more than just fish, such as chicken or pork.

The best part of this recipe and Craving Ellie, is that I think, no I'm pretty positive that my husband enjoys eating fish. If you have read my blog for any length of time, you know this is a big accomplishment! I first introduced him to salmon, then we tried Ellie's fish tacos and now this rub!

Thanks to Pam of Lobster & Fishsticks for this week's selection!

Beef Brisket

I promise that this piece of beef tastes a LOT better than what is looks like in this picture! You may remember a previous beef brisket recipe. Since there are only 2 of us here, I had cut the meat in half and stuck it in the freezer for future use. Well, the future has arrived for the second half to be used. Jake found a great recipe from allrecipes.com. Our changes are noted below.

Slow Cooker Corned Beef-Style Brisket

Ingredients

1 small onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 bay leaves, crumbled
8 whole black peppercorns, crushed
1 tablespoon pickling salt (we used sea salt)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon celery seed (omitted)
1 (4 pound) beef brisket
1 cup water
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks (omitted)
1/2 small head cabbage, sliced into strips (omitted)

Directions

Stir together the onion, garlic, mustard, vinegar, bay leaves, peppercorns, salt, parsley, and celery seed in a bowl. Cover, and refrigerate for 24 hours. (We

Rub the brisket with the mixture, wrap tightly, and refrigerate overnight.

To cook the brisket, place it into a slow cooker along with the water. Cover, and cook on low for 5 hours. Add the carrots, and cabbage, and continue cooking until the brisket is tender, about 3 hours more.

We omitted the overnight part and the slow cooker part of this recipe entirely! We mixed up the rub, rubbed it on the beef and put it in the oven for about an hour (it was a small piece!) We served it with a side of curry couscous!

Quick Pizza Dough

Pizza dough

Source: Judy's Gross Eats

(with whole-wheat flour}

1 package active dry yeast

2/3 c. lukewarm water (105-115°F)

2 t. sugar

½ t. salt

1 T. olive oil

1 ½ c. all-purpose flour

1 c. whole wheat flour (I sometimes use all-purpose flour)

Dissolve yeast in warm water (with a pinch of sugar) in the processor bowl. Add sugar, salt, oil, and all the AP flour. Process with the metal blade for 15 seconds. Let rise for 30 minutes in the processor bowl. Add whole wheat (or AP) flour and process until a ball forms on the blades.

Remove dough and knead on floured surface for 1 minute. Roll out into a large circle or rectangle to the desired thickness, about 1/8 to ¼ “ thick. Pinch up a rim around the edge.

Top with your favorite pizza toppings.

White Chicken Chili

White Chicken Chili
Source" Slow Cookers for Dummies"

Ingredients

3 Tablespoon olive oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium jalapeno pepper, chopped
2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 15 oz cans white kidney beans, drained and rinsed with cold water
3 cups low sodium chicken stock
minced cilantro leaves (optional)
sharp cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

Lightly spray 4 to 6 quart slow cooker with cooking spray.

Heat 2 T olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken breasts and cook until no longer pink on outside, about 5-6 minutes. Remove and place in slow cooker.

Add remaining 1 T olive oil to skillet and cook onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper, oregano and cumin, 7-8 minutes or until soft. Place in slow cooker.

Add white kidney beans and broth to slow cooker. Stir to combine.

Cover and cook on low heat setting 7 to 8 hours or until the chicken breasts are very tender and shred easily.

Shred chicken breasts using 2 forks. To thicken chili, mash some of the beans against the side of the pot with a fork.

If desired, garnish with cilantro and cheese. Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

Makes 6 servings.

Ravioli Casserole

This recipe is super easy. I hunted down a few before I started cooking. In the end, I didn't have enough ingredients to make any of them. If you have ever made lasagna this is basically this same thing but much easier!


I started with a layer of sauce on the bottom. Then a layer of cooked raviolis (they were leftover from the night before). Then I cut up some leftover turkey meatballs and layered those in. I sprinkled in mozzarella cheese. Repeat! When I layered the last of the mozzarella cheese, I also added Parmesan cheese. I baked this about 30 minutes at 350 or until the raviolis and meatballs are warmed through and the cheese is melted. Serve with garlic toast!

CEiMB: Fish Tacos with Chipotle Cream

This is the husband. Tonight I was in charge of making our "Ellie" recipe. After procuring the necessary provisions from the market, I set about this little task. I was not raised to be a consumer of "fishy" food, but have expanded my pallet in my "old age". These were surprisingly quite delicious. The chipotle sauce (albeit perhaps a little hotter than it should have been) helped give great flavor to this bland fish.

We did top ours with corn (brief story pause: I detest corn. I always have. My mother use to try to make us eat our portion of veggies as kids and clever boy that I was thought, "Hey, if I put my corn in a glass of mile - my fav drink of choice at the time - I can just swallow the corn. Needless to say it made me sick and I really swore off corn from that point forward! But tonight, I ate the corn. I'm learning! Back to blogging:), we also used lettuce - instead of cabbage, and ommited the cilantro.

All-in-all these were a hit, something I imagine we will revisit time and again! For all of you who think fish tacos are "gross", give it a try and find something new to experience in life!


This week's host was Sara from imafoodblog. She is also our new (and fearless) leader of Craving Ellie in My Belly. A big thank you to Natalie for all your hard work as our (previous) leader!

Teaser

I am afraid that today you are going to have to settle for a teaser.

You are probably asking yourself why?
I arrived home tonight at about 9pm after working a 16 hour day.
I couldn't sleep last night because daylight savings time had me all screwed up.
I worked together with my boss today.
I haven't seen my boss in 6 months (he lives in Baltimore, I live in NYC)

But I am dedicated to fulfilling my goal to of NaBloPoMo!

Check back tomorrow to see what I made with this pork rub. I'll give you a hint...it wasn't pork!!

Roast Chicken

Jake and I have found a love for roast chicken. And they are cheap which is an added bonus! I usually just put it in the crock pot stuffed with onion and garlic. This time I wanted something different. I found a recipe for a rub at Kalyn's Kitchen. She was making this rub and bagging it up into Christmas gifts. So, I scaled the recipe way down. I also didn't follow her instructions for use. It came out fabulous and juicy. I then took the rest of the chicken apart today and we had chicken soup with lots of leftovers. I have now turned a roaster chicken into 3 meals.

Just to give you a reference. I bought the chicken at Sam's Club. The roasters come in a 2 pack for $8.42. That's 1 chicken for $4.21. And I am going to get 3 meals out of 1 chicken. That's $1.40 per meal. Now I realize that I add things to the meal but how can you go wrong when the protein for your meal costs $1.40!

Here is what I did:

Roast Chicken Rub

6 Tablespoon garlic powder
2 Tablespoon thyme
2 Tablespoon parsley
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon onion powder
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sage
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon rosemary
1 Tablespoon paprika
1 Tablespoon cayenne pepper (I omitted)

Mix all ingredients together. Store in a air tight container.


Roast Chicken

I mixed 2 Tablespoons of the rub into 1/2 stick of softened butter. I rinsed the chicken and patted it dry. I then trimmed it of excess fat and loosed the skin from the chicken breasts being careful not to break the skin. I salted and peppered the inside cavity of the chicken. I then rubbed the mixture onto the chicken breasts under the skin. I then used the remaining mixture to coat the outside of the skin including the legs and wings.
I laid the chicken on a bed of baby carrots. Added enough chicken stock to fill the baking dish up about half way (2-3 cups)
I cooked the chicken for about 25 minutes at 450. I took the chicken out, turned the oven down to 325. I basted the chicken with the liquid from the bottom of the pan. I returned the chicken to the oven and cooked for about an 1 and 15 minutes until the temperature on a meat thermometer read 165 degrees. I basted the chicken even 20-30 minutes. I covered the chicken with foil towards the end to prevent it from burning while I was waiting for it to come up to temperature.




Chicken Soup

I saved the cooking liquid from the bottom of the pan and ran it through a strainer. I removed all the remaining chicken from the bones. Added carrots, egg noodles and enough water to have a good amount of broth. Let it simmer for 45 minutes.

Penne with Vodka Sauce

My husband and I both grew up in homes where alcohol was forbidden even for cooking. A few months ago in a conversation with my mom she mentioned having fresh parmesan cheese in the house. I found this unusual for my mom (just not something you find my mom's kitchen). She said she needed it for a recipe she had made recently. The cheese lover in my inquired as to what she made and she replied, "Penne with Vodka Sauce". I was intrigued. I asked, "You went to a liquor store and bought Vodka?!?!". She replied (as if this was no big deal), "Yes". Picture now my jaw hitting the floor! I was in amazement and needless to say I asked for the recipe!

My youngest brother plays soccer, basketball and baseball for the small Christian school he goes too. Some of his friends play every sport with him. One night before a big game one of the moms made Penne with Vodka Sauce for the team. My brother then requested my mom to make it his birthday dinner and she agreed. Anyone want to guess out of 5 children where in line this brother falls?

This recipe came from the mom of my brother's best friend. Its their family recipe. I know that my mom has played with the recipe. The nutrionist in her didn't like the fat content. I have for the original recipe, I think my mom is still perfecting her version. I think I am going to make a few changes in the future. I didn't use the panchetti and wish I had because I think it would have added a lot of flavor and I thought this was a little bland.


Penne with Vodka Sauce

Ingredients

1/4 pound panchetti, diced
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup vodka
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 pound penne pasta, cooked
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cup tomato sauce

Directions

Melt butter in a large fry pan, when butter foams add panchetti and brown slightly. Add vodka and stir. When finished smoking, stir in tomato sauce and cream. Stire for 5-8 minutes. Add cooked pasta and parmesan cheese.

CEiMB: Beef Tenderloin with Rosemary and Chocolate

Well, if you follow my blog regularly you know that I have been absent from Craving Ellie in My Belly. But I'm back! I have to confess that my husband actually made this week's recipe but he gave me the approval to claim it for myself. I have such an amazing husband. Work has been physically stressful this week and he knew how much it meant to me to participate in this week's recipe so he offered to make it. I sat at the counter and kept him company.

Ellie mentions in her notes that this really works for any cut of beef. Since it is just the 2 of us, I decided to just pick up 2 steaks. The sauce takes quite a while to reduce down but it was worth the wait. I was very hesitant. If fact the picture above is my husband's plate, my sauce was in a dish on the side in case I didn't like it! I was pleasantly surprised.

The aroma of the sauce with the spices was quite overwhelming and I thought for sure I wouldn't like it but Ellie proved me wrong and I will definitely make this again in the future.

Other than substituting the cut of meat, the only other change we made was using a cooking sherry instead of red wine. I was not interested in making an extra stop to the liquor store this week. I'm not a wine drinker so I can't tell you if it made a huge difference but if it did than I like it better my way!

Thank you to Amanda of Beckett Bakes It for this week's selection. You can find the recipe on her blog. Don't forget to visit CEiMB too!

CEiMB: Oven Fried Chicken

I have been finding it really hard to cook or bake lately. Work is kicking my butt! If that weren't enough, Jake has been super busy. He is gone pretty much every night. So with my work schedule craziness and his work schedule craziness, we have been doing very little cooking. It has been all about convenience these days.

All that to say I had to drag myself into the kitchen last night to make this week's recipe. And so glad I did!!! This week's selection was chosen by MacDuff. He chose this recipe out of a love for fried chicken. I loved this recipe just for the addition of a new chicken recipe.

I made a few alterations. I used white saltines because that is what I buy. I left of the sesame seeds and cayenne pepper because I didn't have any. I subbed in ground pepper and onion powder. I wanted to leave out the Dijon mustard because I really don't like mustard but in the end I found some honey mustard in the fridge and threw it in. I used boneless skinless chicken breasts and made chicken tenders.

I will definitely be making these again. I even cut up the leftovers onto a salad tonight so I had another convenient dinner.

Check out MacDuff's blog for the recipe and the new Craving Ellie in My Belly blog.

CEiMB: Sweet and Sour Brisket

In case you missed it a couple weeks ago, I've joined a new cooking group, Craving Ellie in My Belly. We are cooking from The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger.

This week's selection was chose by Natalie from What's For Supper? It was a perfect pick for a comfort food night. I have been craving pot roast and this definitely hit the spot!


I cut the recipe in half and put the other half of the brisket in the freezer for a future meal. I only made a few minor ingredient changes. I left out the allspice berry of which I didn't have and added a pinch of both cinnamon and nutmeg. I also added a bag of carrots and cut up a few potatoes as a side.

I don't own a Dutch oven (yet, its on the Christmas list!) so I used my slower cooker. I put the carrots and potatoes right on the bottom and brisket on top with all the sauce. It could have used just a bit more sauce since the carrots and potatoes soaked some of that up.

I was pleasantly surprised by the ingredients and the flavor outcome. I never would have thought that beef, tomato sauce, raisins, chicken stock, cinnamon and nutmeg would all got together. But, I really loved it and my husband requested it to be a a regular meal this winter.

CEiMB: Steak Tacos with Cucumber Avocado Salsa

Are you tired of cookies, chocolate, and only seeing baked goods on my blog? Then you've come to the right place because......I've joined a new event!! This time its a cooking and eating healthy event! Craving Ellie in my Belly or CEiMB is cooking out of Ellie Krieger's book The Food You Crave.

I must be a glutton for punishment as my blog has been severely lacking this past month. But, I'm thinking this might be just what I need to get my game back and better for the waistlines in this house.

My husband is excited about this one as well because he prefers cooking over baking so this is an event we can do together. We are always looking for healthier recipes. He also said this is something we can actually eat rather than taste and give away to someone! (Side note: Don't for a second think I'm leaving TWD though!)

So, thank you to Leigh for starting this new event! And thank to my good friend Clara for a hosting a great pick this week!

Now about this week's recipe...it was a great one for us to start with. We LOVE tacos and the like. I really loved the flavor of the steak. I omitted the cayenne pepper because we didn't have any but probably could have used that kick.

The salsa I was a little nervous about and therefore I ended up changing quite a bit. Basically I diced the cucumber and avocado and added the lime juice and salt to taste. My husband added red onion to his tacos and I diced up some tomato for mine. I had a bad experience with cilantro one time making my own salsa and hated it. I love things with flavor but not super spicy so I left out the jalapenos.

In the end I wanted to add sour cream and cheese for more flavor since I left most of it out but I resisted the urge to add fatty calories to my healthy dinner. I will be making this again, especially since I have a lot of red cabbage left even after buying the smallest one! Any good cabbage recipes out there?

For more information about this new event or to join us go to Craving Ellie in My Belly!

(I'm working on my photography skills. What do you think?!)

Chicken and Dumplings

Despite what it may look like, I do cook regular food type meals not just TWD delicacies! Though these pictures were taken the first time I made this, I have made it several times since then. It has become one of our favorites.

I remember chicken and dumplings being one of my mom's favorites so it was something we ate often in my house growing up. I know you don't think of a stew being something you want to make in the summer but this one comes together very quickly and using fresh summer vegetables makes it appealing 12 months of the year. I find it to be a great comfort food when I want to relax.

I have to give props to Rachael Ray because we really love this variation. I do want to make my own chicken stock but that I will save for a winter day! I've learned to double this so we have leftovers too.


1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders (Remember to COOK them first)
1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
2 tablespoons butter
1 russet potato, peeled and diced (skin can be on or off, we've done both)
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced or thinly sliced
1 medium onion, chopped (I use my microplane to get all the flavor and none of the texture)
1 rib celery, diced
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning, 1/3 palm full
2 tablespoons flour, a handful
1 quart chicken broth or stock, canned or paper container, preferred brand Kitchen Basics
1 small box biscuit mix(preferred brand Jiffy Mix) (I use Bisquick)
1/2 cup warm water
Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup frozen green peas

Dice tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Wash hands.

Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables and bay leaf and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir broth or stock to the pot and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir.

Place biscuit mix in a bowl. Combine with 1/2 cup warm water and parsley. Drop tablespoonfuls of prepared mix into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 8 to 10 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit. Stir peas into the pan, remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls.

VTV: Freestyle=Eggplant

This week's vegetable was up to us! Since I missed eggplant week I thought I would go back and revisit that vegetable.

Eggplant is something I don't really remember eating as a child. I think my mom stuck to the basic in order to please 5 children.

One of my favorite ways to eat eggplant is parmigiana style. I found this recipe while watching a Tyler Florence episode in which he searched the world for eggplant dishes. He visited a charming woman in Sicily, Anna Tasca Lanza. I decided to give it a try. It is fantastic! I chose to grill the eggplant instead of frying them so I felt like it was a healthy version of eggplant parmigiana.



Involtine di Melanzane con Capelli d'Angelo
Recipe courtesy Anna Tasca Lanza via foodnetwork.com

Ingredients
3 eggplants
2 cups olive oil, to fry the eggplants
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
Pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
12 fresh basil leaves, roughly shredded
1/4 pound angel hair pasta, or spaghetti
1 cup tomato sauce, or passata
1 clove garlic
2 tablespoons caciocavallo cheese

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut off the bottoms and stems of the eggplants. Peel them using a vegetable peeler and slice them into 1/2-inch slices.

In a heavy bottomed pan heat some olive oil and fry the eggplant slices for about 4 to 5 minutes (if you prefer a healthier version of the dish, you can grill the eggplants). Place the cooked slices on some paper towels to drain any excess oil.

In a large bowl combine the butter, freshly grated Parmesan, and salt, to taste. Add the roughly shredded fresh basil leaves.

Place the angel hair pasta or spaghetti into a pan of boiling water, bring back to the boil and cook until al dente. Drain.

Add the cooked pasta into the big bowl with the butter mixture and combine.

Take a small portion of the pasta and place it on top of an eggplant slice. Roll the eggplant around the pasta and place it in an oven-proof dish. Repeat this process with all the eggplants slices.

Pour some pureed tomato sauce, or passata, over the eggplant rolls. Place slices of cacioavallo on the top. Finally cover the dish with more freshly grated Parmesan.

Place the dish in oven for around 20 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly.

Yields 4 to 6 servings.



Side Note: Does anyone know how to make the VTV logo smaller for my sidebar??

VTV: Asparagus

This week's Vindicate the Vegetable is Asparagus! This happens to already be one of our favorites. I don't remember always liking asparagus or maybe I'd never had the opportunity to try it until a couple years ago. It grows wild on my grandma's farm. She steamed it for dinner one night and with some cheese on top, I was hooked. I still love to eat it that way.

Recently, I saw on one of the many blogs I read that someone had roasted asparagus in the oven. This is my new favorite way to eat it. We spray the pan with cooking spray, salt and pepper the asparagus and cook until fork tender.

So, I was excited for this week to find something new to do with asparagus. I found a weight watchers pasta recipe and adapted it. This came out amazing and will most certainly be seen again in my kitchen.

I doubled the sauce part of the recipe and thought it came out great. I also just roasted the asparagus and added it into the pasta with the cream sauce. If you stick to the original weight watchers recipe this recipe makes 6 servings and each serving is only 6 points. Obviously, doubling the cream part and adding asparagus changes that. But, I still felt like it was a healthy meal.


Pasta and Asparagus with Creamy Spinach Sauce
Source: Weight Watchers Recipes (my changes in blue)
Photo: my kitchen


Ingredients

1 lb pasta (penne or ziti) I used a long curly spaghetti like pasta
1 lb fresh spinach, stemmed
1 cup low fat cottage cheese 2 cups
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1/2 cup
1/4 cup low fat milk 1/2 cup
1 pinch ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon
1-2 garlic cloves (optional) 2 cloves
salt and pepper (to taste)
1 lb roasted asparagus

Preparation
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Add the spinach and 1 tablespoon salt; cook for about 1 minute.
3. Using a slotted spoon, remove the spinach (reserve the water for the pasta) and transfer it to a bowl of cold water.
4. Drain and squeeze dry the spinach.
5. Chop it coarsely.
6. Bring the spinach water back to a boil. Meanwhile, in food processor fitted with steel blade, mince the garlic (if using).
7. Add the cottage cheese and blend until fairly smooth.
8. Add the cooked spinach and milk, and blend until smooth.
9. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a shallow serving bowl.
10. Add the pasta to the boiling water, stirring to prevent sticking.
11. Cook the pasta until just tender (about 10 minutes or according to the instructions); drain well.
12. Add the pasta to the bowl with the spinach sauce and asparagus, and toss to coat.
13. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and toss again.
14. Serve hot.

Gilled Chicken Caesar Pizza

When Jake and I were dating we used to have movie night. It was one night during the week dedicated to us. On occasion we would shift the night for a commitment but if we could help it, Thursday nights were spent usually having dinner and watching a movie. Ultimately it was quality time for the 2 of us. Now that we're married, we still plan a special date night but since we now live together we feel like we get a lot of quality time together.

This past week presented itself with a need for a special night. One of our movie nights included Jake making Grilled Pizza. We loved it then and haven't made it since. We thought we would try to recreate since we can't remember where the recipe came from.

Grilled Chicken Caesar Pizza
source: us
photo: our kitchen


Ingredients

Pizza dough
Caesar dressing (recipe to follow)
2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
mozzarella cheese
romaine lettuce
tomotos
cucumbers


Directions

Roll out pizza dough on a well floured surface. Carefully move pizza dough to the rack of a grill. Note: if using an inside grill pan on the stove, be sure to ventilate the area very well as the excess flour from the pizza dough will burn quickly.
Grill the dough on both sides. You'll know when its done by the grill marks but it only takes a few minutes on each side.
Once the dough is done, move to a baking sheet.
Spread on a layer of Caesar dressing. Top with chopped chicken and mozzarella cheese.
Bake in the oven until the cheese is melted.
Top with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and additional Caesar dressing.
Enjoy!


We wanted to make our own Caesar dressing for this meal and let me just say, I will never buy Caesar dressing again. This is amazing!!

Caesar Dressing
source: cooks.com

1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 clove of garlic (minced)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon milk

Mix all ingredients together and shake or whisk until well blended.

from me to you...

I have had a rough couple of days this week. So, last night Jake decided I just needed to be pampered. This included making dinner for me. This is not an unusual task as we both love to cook so we share the responsibility. Out menu for the night was turkey burgers. We had planned ahead to try adding grilled pineapple on top for something fresh with salads on the side.


When he served dinner this is what I found...


...a smiley face :) Just what I needed. After dinner, he cleaned up and tucked me on the couch for some quality DVR time. What a fabulous husband I have!

P.S. The grilled pineapple on top was excellent!

VTV: Yellow Summer Squash

While my in laws were visiting for Easter, we had a conversation about the vegetables that Jake has learned to like, while the list is very short; his mom was very impressed. I believe she said, "Wow, he never used to eat any vegetables as a kid!"

So, I was really excited when my friend, Nina started a new blog, Vindicate the Vegetable. While I enjoy eating many different vegetables, my husband does not. We have been working very hard at introducing new vegetables into our diet. I was glad the first week was a vegetable that we both already like, yellow summer squash. This recipe is one of our favorites ways to eat squash. In the past, we've also used eggplant in this. Today, I decided to top them with some lime zest. It was amazing! (Thanks Mom#2 for the microplane!)

(don't worry, I took the picture mid-cooking, the chicken was fully cooked before we ate it!)

Fajitas
(Source and Photos: my kitchen)

Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
2 small yellow summer squash
4 small red potatoes
1 lime
salt
pepper
onion powder
garlic powder
non-fat sour cream
reduced fat Mexican blend cheese
tortilla shells



Directions

Season both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Grill until almost fully cooked then slice and add to the vegetables to finish cooking together.

While the chicken is grilling, I microwaved the potatoes in order to cook them faster. I chopped the squash, added it to the wok and seasoned it. Once the potatoes were cooking, I chopped them, added them to the wok and season them as well. (Note: if you don't precook the potatoes, don't add the squash till the end. It will cook very quickly and turn to mush.)

Let everything finish cooking together. Warm the tortilla shells for 30 seconds in the microwave or toast them in the oven. Layer the chicken and vegetables on the bottom. Add a little non-fat sour cream, shredded cheese and the zest of a lime. Yum!

Husband Rating: A+ He ate all this vegetables tonight and thought the lime zest was a great addition.

Wife: A+ A favorite that we haven't had in a while and it was so refreshing and guilt free, no oil or butter!

Easter Dinner: The Official Menu

If you read my last post, you know I was recruiting help for my Easter dinner menu. Thank you to Clara for posting it as her question of the day. Thank you to Amanda, April and Dawn who left me some wonderful suggestions here on my blog.

Easter Dinner 2008
Brown Sugar & Spice Crusted Ham
(source: Cooking Light)

Deviled Eggs

Roasted Asparagus
Corn

Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes w/gravy

Grandma's Sticky Rolls
(source: my grandma)

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
(source: Good Things Catered)


Come back next week for recipes, pictures and reviews from my guests!