piña colada chicken and a giveaway!

May 6, 2015 12 Comments

you know why I love writing here, because you have no idea if I’m sitting in my pajamas noshing on some leftover amazeballs chicken, or whether I’m dressed up writing this from the library. 

I’m sure if you had to guess, you’d get it right 😉

When I wrote Coconut crusted chicken with grilled pineapple salsa last week, I was going to call it piña colada chicken. 

But then I had a thought… A deep  thought. 

In order for it to be called piña colada chicken..  It had a very necessary ingredient…  

  Hellz. Yea. 

I’ve been chomping at the bit all weekend ( Kentucky derby pun completely  intended) to share this with you! 

Pull out your flip flops and sunglasses and tiki torches…  We are taking a trip to the carribean, my friends! 

piña colada chicken 

1 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless 

1 tablespoon  jerk seasoning 

1 tablespoon coconut oil 

3/4 cup pineapple. ( mine was fresh, canned is fine, just dry it ) 

1 can coconut milk

1 ‘nip’ bottle of white rum 

1/4-1/2 cup Chicken stock

  

  

Start by sprinkling salt and pepper on each side of chicken, then rub  both sides of chicken with seasoning.  Let sit for 10 minutes. 

Heat oil over medium heat until melted. Add chicken and sauté on each side for about 5 minutes. Add pineapple and cook another 5 minutes.  Using tongs, remove chicken , turn off heat and add rum. Turn heat baby on and using a wooden spoon, scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Once it starts to boil, add coconut milk and stir.  Return chicken to pan.  Stir in chicken stock 1/4 cup at a time, making sure it doesn’t get too soupy .

Reduce heat to low and cover for 1/2 hour. 

Test sauce for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed. 

Serve over a bed of greens, with sauce generously spooned atop! 

  

 

  

  

I wanted to make my Cilantro coconut rice but I was out of rice.  Say whaaaat? I’m slacking..

So I used whole wheat coucous in it’s place.  It worked! 

So mosey on down and send your friends a postcard from your tropical dinner! 

I bought an extra bottle of the jerk seasoning to giveaway to one of you! All you need to do is comment either here in the comments, share this post with your friends, or like and comment on My Facebook page

That’s it!  I’ll chose a winner at random on Saturday night at 5 pm mountain time. 

Good luck! And as always, thanks for reading. I pour my heart out here sometimes and it’s nice to know you are reading!  😎

Ciao bellas! 

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turkey-stuffed peppers with dried cranberries,pine nuts and feta

April 28, 2015 Leave a Comment

today’s recipe comes to you courtesy of a still rainy day and a trip to the store that had me wandering and tapping into my inner rumbly tumbly. 

It all started when I saw watermelon on sale…  And where there’s watermelon,there’s feta. And since I was buying the feta, I decided to include it in my stuffed peppers.  A quick look around the kitchen when I got home, and voila! 

Turkey-Stuffed peppers with dried cranberries, pine nuts and feta 

1 pound ground turkey breast 

1 cup cooked whole grain rice 

1/2 cup dried cranberries 

1/4 cup red wine 

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 

1/4 cup pine nuts ( you could sub a less expensive nut, maybe walnuts? I just happened to have these in my fridge ) 

3 peppers 

Big handful of flat leaf parsley 

1 large egg 

A few gratings of nutmeg 

1tsp ground cinnamon 

1/2 tsp ground ginger 

  

Start my charring your peppers.   Simply place over a gas fire or under the broiler. You can skip this step, but I really think it adds flavor.  Using tongs, careful place on cutting board allowing to cool. 

  

Meanwhile, toast pine nuts in small cast skillet over medium heat.  Watch carefully..  They burn quickly. 

Pour wine over cranberries and heat up either in small pot on  the stove or in the microwaves. This reconstitutes them and add tons of flavor 

When peppers are cool enough to handle, slice in half and remove seeds. Place peppers in a lightly oiled baking dish . 

Chop parsley fine and mix with turkey, egg, rice,pine nuts, feta, cranberries ( with juice) and spices,  season with salt and pepper. 

Divide mixture into 6 portions and carefully stuff each pepper . 

  

Cover with foil and bake at 350 until internal temp is 165. Remove foil, sprinkle with a bit more feta and let cook an additional 5 minutes.  

Serve alongside a salad! 

  

A balsamic glazed like I used in Goat cheese and beet salad would have been perfect as a drizzle on top, but I was surprisingly out of balsamic vinegar!   Must buy some soon! 

Other stuffed recipes 

Pork stuffed peppers with raisins and pine nuts

Caprese- stuffed tomatoes

Lightened up cabbage rolls

Chicken sausage stuffed peppers

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lightened-up cabbage rolls

April 18, 2015 1 Comment

happy Saturday, friends! 

When I was a little girl my very favorite meal was galumpkies. ( stuffed cabbage rolls) 

It was my go to meal for each and every birthday and special occasion. 

I remember my mom standing in the kitchen hand rolling each one and thinking how special it was that she was making them for me!

 I decided this week to try my hand at them, but I wanted to lighten-up the recipe.  I played around a little and was very pleased with the end result! 

  

12 cabbage leaves

1 pound ground turkey breast 

1 cup whole grain rice 

1 cup frozen spinach ( no need to defrost) 

1 egg

1 egg white 

1 onion, finely chopped ( divided) 

1/4 cup tomato paste 

Splash of red wine

1/2 cup chicken broth 

1 large can of whole tomatoes 

Sprig of fresh rosemary and thyme 

Start by gently pulling the leaves off of your cabbage.   Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add sea salt and gently add the leaves and let them cook until they soften a bit ( 5-7 min) 

Remove from water, let cool.   When cool enough to handle, slice a small upside down v down by the base and remove center ridge ( make for easier rolling ) 

Meanwhile. Mix turkey breast, cooked rice, spinach ( not drained) tomato paste and 1/2 of the chopped onion together.  Season with salt and pepper. 

  

Divide mixture into 12 portions. 

Working one at a time, add turkey mixture to base of cabbage leaf, and gently roll. 

In a baking dish, add tomatoes, the rest of the onion, the chicken stock and the wine. Stir. 

Remove about 1/2 cup of tomatoes and set aside 

Place cabbage rolls seam side down in the tomato sauce.  Once they are all wedged in the dish, top woth reserved tomatoes, salt, pepper and thyme and  rosemary sprig. 

  

Cover and bake at 350 until the center of the rolls registers 165 (35-40 minutes) 

  

Serve with cooking sauce and enjoy! 

If you happen to be counting weight watchers points, one roll with sauce is 3 points, 2 is 7 points.

 Enjoy! 

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stuffed peppers with raisins and pine nuts

August 8, 2013 2 Comments

good afternoon, friends!  I apologize for those whose email I blew up this morning by re-posting links from my weebly site.

 

I tried very hard to import all of the posts over to here with no success 😦  Someday I will hire someone to do it for me ( I really want everything in one place, for many reasons) and the issues that I was previously having with wordpress seem to have been resolved.

 

on the bright side, I  set up and instagram account 🙂

 

I know… blah, blah, blah. we want FOOD!

 

Kewl..  here’s what i have for you today…. you all know about my infatuation with Hatch peppers that I wrote about earlier this week.  It turns out that it’s kind of a regional thing.  My friends from facebook knew all about them. Apparently they are a big deal, and I just happened to stumble across them!

more on regional foods soon…. today I give you my stuffed pepper recipe

Growing up my mom made stuffed peppers alot. yum!  My recipe is a bit different than hers, because I basically cook everything first, then just heat before serving.

 

3-6 peppers

1 pound lean ground pork

1 can of tomatoes

1/4 cup of tomato sauce

1 large onion

2 garlic cloves

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup raisins ( I used golden)

1 teaspoon each ground cinnamon and ground cumin

About a cup of chicken broth

1-2 cups of cooked rice, or other grain

1/2 cup cheese of your choice

 

 

I also use it as a way to clean out the fridge!

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Start by sauteeing about a pound of ground pork ( I used extra- lean) . Season with salt and pepper. Remove pork form pan and set aside.

 

 

Add a drizzle of oil oil and add 1 onion, chopped  over medium heat.  When onions are translucent, add 2 garlic cloves, smashed. Stir and add a can of tomatoes ( I used Fire- roasted, use what you like.  )

IMG_0504The add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon, a teaspoon of  ground cumin, a dash ( or more if you like) of chipotle seasoning.

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Mix the pork back in and add about a cup of chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then simmer while flavors develop.

 

Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a small skillet over medium heat. shake continuously. ( Nuts can burn in a nano-second.. trust me on this)

 

toss with Raisins

 

Here is where cleaning out the fridge comes in handy.  I had some leftover lentils ( which I LOVE) and some leftover rice. So I made 2 different peppers.

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half the batch   with lentils

 

 

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and half the batch  with rice

Toss in some cheese ( I used ricotta salata, use what you have 🙂

 

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set aside

 

Next, rinse and halve your peppers ( use rubber glove if they are hot) and scoop out membranes & seeds

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place in a baking dish with a little bit  of reserved tomato sauce

 

and start filling dem peppers!

 

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top with a little bit of cheese ( and sauce if you have any left) and bake at 350 until peppers are warm and cheese is melted.

 

IMG_0512serve with sauce on the side.

 

now I know these look kinda messy.. but that’s because I was trying to fill tiny peppers.  If you use a bigger pepper, say a red bell, or green bell, it will  be much neater.

 

Regardless of how it looks, it’s tasted great.

 

Don’t let the idea of the raisins & cinnamon deter you from making this recipe. The flavor combo is amazing.

 

have fun in the kitchen!

 

Have I made you hungry yet ??

 

oxox

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Cilantro-coconut rice

May 29, 2013 1 Comment

Yeah……… so I wrote this 2. weeks ago but never published….again! Le sigh … here goes

This time from high above you with broken headphones 😦

boo.

Note to self… Next time make sure you grab the right ones…

Oh well!

My horoscope for today said that I have a hidden talent and that I should share it with the world.

All that I can come up with to share is this yummy recipe that I inhaled

Um came up with a few weeks ago .

I decided that I wanted mole tacos…but here’s the thing…. I’ve never actually made mole before .. And while I could have gone and researched a recipe.. I chose my way to do it… Just make it up as I go along ( just call me capt’ Ron of the kitchen)

While I really liked it, the girls did not, so until I can play with the recipe a bit more, I won’t be sharing ( although I will show you a pic of the finished produc

What I will share ( like the horoscope Gods told me) is the delicious rice dish … Which is so simple and soooo flavorful

You will need

1 cup White rice ( I used jasmine)

1 cup of light coconut milk *** ( I like trader joes… It’s the cheapest and I like the nutrition )

1 tsp ground cumin

Juice of 1 lime ( I had lemon so that’s what I used )

1/2 bunch cilantro chopped *

4 scallions chopped

Pinch of sea salt

* note. If you don’t like cilantro… It’s ok. It’s not your fault. It’s actually hereditary. Just sub out Parsley and you’ll be good to go!

Start by adding rice, coconut milk, cumin, salt and 1 cup water to a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stir, then cover and reduce heat.

I cooked mine for about 20-30 minutes but my stovetop cooks faster than most ( I think ). Follow the cook time on your package of rice that you are using

Turn heat off and let sit 5 minutes

And cilantro, lime juice and scallions .

Fluff with fork and season with salt and pepper.

Note… I usually store remainder of coconut milk in freezer zip lock bags.. That way none goes to waste and I always have some on hand 🙂

I have been completely infatuated with corn tortillas lately. Whole foods 365 brand is inexpensive , fresh, and delicious!

I simply heated up a corn tortilla.. Topped with cheddar cheese… Some secret I-cant-share-the-recipe-with-you-until- I play- with-it-again mole sauce.. A slice of avocado and fold.

I served it along side the coconut cilantro rice and some peach chipotle salsa ( I’m loving all of the fun salsas that you can get in the stores these days :).

As we start our final decent I’ll share some random tips…. ( feel free to skip if you don’t want to hear my babble)

Last time I flew to Co. I stopped at one of those kiosk-y things at the terminal… Grabbed a salad and a water and it came to $15.95! ( this was your basic run of the mill garden salad… Iceberg lettuce, tomato, cucumber..)

Of course I had a 4 hour flight in front of me and I was starved, so I still bought it but vowed to never put myself in that situation again.

A friend of mine starting selling 31 bags recently and when she sent me the link to the catalog and I saw this thermal bag… I knew I had to get it.

Heck…2 salads and it pays for itself!

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this one’s a keeper

September 12, 2011 4 Comments

friends, I have a recipe to share with you. I cannot take credit for this recipe ( I rarely do.. with the exception of my roasted vegetable lasagne , which I am convinced will someday make me famous)  I mostly share recipes and tips that I have found along the way.

Tonight’s is no exception.

EXCEPT… I’m being a bit selfish here. Ok I know.. you are shocked. Let me explain.

For Christmas this last year one of my gifts from my mom & step dad was a subscription to Clean Eating magazine. I had heard about it & really wanted to learn more.  I bullied one of my friends into getting it as well, so that we could compare recipes & the front cover & stuff.

whaaat.. I was a nice bully 😉

One of the first recipes that I made was a pork stew/chilish kinda dish. I loved it! Really loved it. When I went to make it the next time , I couldn’t find it anywhere. I searched the magazines( by then I had a few issues) I searched the website. and continued to come up blank. I finally did find it, and made a mental note to bookmark it.

Epic.

Fail.

So The other night when I wanted to make it again.. same process, expect now I had 9 months or CE magazines to go through.

*on a side note… this made me look at my entire stash of cooking mags that I had saved. The one on the TOP of the pile read ’20 best things to try in 2007’*

yes. 2007. I am behind the times.

I recycled all 7 shopping bags of magazines and was rewarded with.. the recipe that I had been looking for. Picadillo Chowder.

Now I am quite naive… I never looked up picadillo and I never looked up chowder. I searched pork in every fashion.

I searched chili.

I searched stew.

It doesn’t matter, because the magazine Gods shined upon and rewarded me for being such a good recycler and then and there I promised to write it on my forehead

share this with you….

I give you Picadillo Chowder .

( picture is missing the black beans. I forgot them)

*1 lb lean ground pork

*1 medium yellow onion

*4 gloves garlic, chopped

*32 ounce low sodium chicken broth

*1 cup Organic black beans , rinsed ( I used the whole can, rinsed)

* 1/4 cup brown rice

* 1 tsp ground cumin ( I like it spicy, so I used a bit more)

* 1 tsp chile powder ( I used chipolte chili powder and more because I like it spicy 😉

* juice of 1 lime

* chopped parsley or cilantro for garnish

Place a large stockpot on medium heat. Add pork & onion and cook for about 3 minutes or until pork is opaque and onion is translucent. Stir in garlic, cook for 2 more minutes.

Remove pot from heat; pour mixture into heat proof container and drain fat from meat. Return mixture to pan and add broth. Stir in beans, rice, cumin & chili powder.

Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes. Stir in lime juice then continue to simmer for another 15 minutes.

I always put a hot pepper in the middle, then when it’s done, I mash it up for extra heat. What can I say? I like it hot.

The original recipe called for rice browns, which are like little rice pancakes, but the first time I made them I was not impressed, so I haven’t included the recipe. If you are interested, give me a shout out & I will post it for you.

I like to serve it with an extra squeeze of lime juice , fresh cilantro ( parsley for you cilantro haters.. it’s not your fault..it’s hereditary) I forgive you and will always have parsley for you 🙂   I serve it with cornbread & a dollop of greek Yogurt.

and I’m such a poor blogger,that I missed taking a photo of the final dish. I know. my bad.

HOWEVER, I did manage to take a picture the next day when I morphed the leftovers into a wonderful organic corn tortilla soft taco for lunch

is your mouth watering? mine is…..

this recipe has it all in my opinion.

it’s quick

it’s inexpensive

it’s easy

it’s delicious

it’s versitile

it’s what you should make 🙂

and for my vegetarian friends ( you know who you are) you could probably make it vegetarian by using veggie stock & grated Tempeh in place of the pork. I haven’t tried it but may be inclined to do so. Soon.

a special shout out to those of you who ‘like’ me on facebook. Let’s face, it, everyone who like to be ‘liked’ and I am no exception 🙂 If you see a recipe that you like, feel free to share it with friends 🙂

ciao bellas!

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