Cinco De Mayo Spread

Cinco De mayo is one of my favorite times to host a fun get together, simply because I love Mexican food and any chance to make guacamole is good in my book! Well, the 5th of May fell on a Wednesday this year. As you can tell by the title of this blog, not so conducive to our cooking strategy. So we decided to celebrate early, just the Mr. and me, with our own little fiesta.
On the menu:
-Annie's Island Chicken (ok, not so Mexican, but we wanted to use it for various recipes!)
-Black Bean and Corn salad
-Guacamole (yes!!!)
-Warm corn tortillas and all the fixings
-Lots of cerveza!

From this menu we were able to eat well throughout the week and use the chicken for tacos, fajitas and chicken salads.
Salud!
MM

Annie's island Chicken (from Annie's Eats)
Ingredients:
½ cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp. lemon juice
1½ tbsp. soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
½ tsp. dried oregano
¼ tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2-4 chicken breasts

Process:
Combine all ingredients except chicken in a mixing bowl or large airtight plastic bag. Whisk or shake well until the marinade is well mixed. Add the chicken breasts to the bowl or plastic bag so that they are covered by the marinade. Press out all the excess air and seal the bag tightly. Refrigerate and marinate up to 10 hours.

When ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 350° F. Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish and pour the excess marinade over them. Bake in the oven until cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 165° F, about 45 minutes (exact baking time will depend on the size of your chicken pieces.) Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving. (We shredded several of ours to use for tacos that night).

The Johnson's Famous Guacamole (adapted from Mum Sue's recipe)

Ingredients:

1/4 red onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
2- 4 ripe Hass avocados (depends on how much Guac you want)
1 lime, juiced
2 to 3 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 ripe plum tomato, cored and diced
1/4 to 1/2 jalapeno (with seeds), minced

A dash or 2 of Worcestershire

Process:

There's really not much to it. Mass all the ingredients in a bowl until well blended. Taste and adjust seasoning. I like to make my guac a few hours ahead and let it sit in the fridge (well covered with saran wrap) so the flavors blend.

Black Bean and Corn salad
Ingredients:
1/2 red onion, diced
1 Hass avocado, diced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 16 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 ear of corn, boiled and kernels cut from cob
1 small handful of cilantro, chopped
1 lime, zested and juiced
1/2 tsp cumin
2 Tbsp EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Process:
Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium glass bowl, tossing well. Combine lime zest and juice, 2 tbsp EVOO and cumin in a small bowl and whisk well. Pour liquid mixture over salad, tossing to combine. Sprinkle cilantro over top. Enjoy!

The Complete Feast!

Spiced Up Pork Loin

I have tried to become a more savvy shopper when it comes to my weekly grocery store adventure. I used to check out recipes, find something that sounded good and make my shopping list based on my taste buds.
There's nothing wrong with that approach per say... but the Mr. and I love to watch our budget whenever and wherever we can. So I have become a huge fan of the store circular! You know, that fabulous ad that arrives in the mailbox mid-week? It showcases all the latest deals and specials happening at a store near you. Now, I check out what's on sale, then search my saved recipes to find a good match!
The Mr. bought me Cooking Light's Best recipes for 2010 and I have had several recipes marked for the past month. Spice Rubbed Pork Tenderloin sounded fab once I discovered pork loin was the special of the week at Kroger.
This recipe is packed full of flavor, but the cumin definitely dominates, so if you are not big on that spice this may not be the dish for you. Of course, you can always sub in another flavor.
I omitted the sugar (per the Mr.'s request) and instead added a little extra cinnamon. We also quadrupled the recipe and had to cook our loin considerably longer (about 70 minutes total) since I bought an almost 4 pounder. Whoops! More for leftovers...

Cheers!
MM

Spice Rubbed Pork Loin (adapted from Cooking Light best of 2010):
Ingredients-
- 1 tsp. sugar (I omited)
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. allspice
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
- 1 (1 lb.) pork tenderloin, trimmed (I used a 3.6 lb. pork loin)
- 2 tsp. EVOO

Process-
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Combine first 9 ingredients.Rub mixture over both sides of pork and let stand 20 minutes.
- Heat EVOO in large skillet over medium-high heat and brown pork, about 4 minutes on each side.
-Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, turning pork over after 7 minutes, until thermometer reads 155 degrees.
-Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

Spring Quiche with Asparagus

First off, I must apologize for the incredibly poor quality of this picture. It does NOT do this wonderful breakfast justice! My family was just so eager to chow down, I forgot to get a good rendering of the finished masterpiece!
My dad and step mom came to visit recently for a nice weekend visit. The Mr. and I bought my dad a beer brewing session for Christmas and we finally made it into the brewery's appointment book! Obviously, we knew there was a day of drinking ahead of us, so I wanted to get a decent ballast into our stomachs for the long haul.
I had purchased some beautiful asparagus earlier in the week, along with my favorite veggie, portabella mushrooms! I added a red bell pepper, some shallots, and fresh rosemary and decided a quiche was the way to go!
I found this recipe from the food blog Sing For Your Supper. I made a few changes just using what I had on hand. I would say this was a success... considering I had to snatch this one and only picture before my dad and Mr. devoured the last pieces.

Cheers!
MM

Spring Vegetable Quiche (adapted from Sing For Your Supper)
Ingredients:
- 1 9 inch pie crust (I was feeling lazy and didn't want to make my own. Pillsbury filled in just fine)
- 4 large eggs
- 6-7 Tbsp. liquid egg whites
- 3/4 C. low-fat milk
- 1 bunch fresh asparagus
- 1/2 medium red bell pepper, julienned
- 8 baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- 3 shallots, sliced
- 1/4 C. fresh rosemary, minced
- 1/2 C. Asiago, shredded
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- pinch of garlic powder

Process:
- Preheat over to 400 degrees
-Place pie crust plate on cookie sheet (in case of spills)
- In a medium saute pan, cook shallots, diced pepper and mushrooms until softened. Set aside to cool slightly.
- In a glass bowl, whisk together eggs, egg whites, milk and spices.
- Spoon vegetable mixture evenly in pie plate.
- Sprinkle cheese evenly over vegetables.
- Pour egg mixture into pie plate, making sure to leave about 1/4 inch of pie crust exposed at top.
- Bake quiche in oven until eggs are set, between 50- 60 minutes (I like my eggs on the firmer side so I increased the cooking time to about 75 minutes).
- Let quiche set for about 5 minutes before serving!

Sour Cream Biscuits with Rosemary and Cheese

I am a huge fan of biscuits. They just seem to embody everything that is good and tasty about comfort food: a succulent, pipping hot, right-from-the-oven biscuit is a perfect compliment to most meals. So when I was home visiting my family in Arizona, I thought I would whip up a batch for our belated Easter celebration.

I found the original recipe for these drop biscuits when I was enjoying a lazy day of browsing through myrecipes.com. I made a few adaptations to suit our springtime meal of ham and potato salad. I hope these biscuits bring you as much joy in your tummies as they did to my family.

Cheers!
MM

Sour Cream, Rosemary, and Asiago Drop Biscuits (adapted from Cooking Light)
Ingredients:
- 2 C. all-purpose flour (I used half whole wheat flour the first time I made these and they turned out just fine)
- 1 Tbsp. Sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 3 Tbsp. chilled butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 C. shredded Asiago cheese, or Italian cheese blend (I used a mix of Parm, Asiago and Romano)
- 1/2 C. fresh Rosemary, finely chopped
- 1 C. reduced fat milk
- 1/2 C. reduced fat sour cream

Process:
-Preheat oven to 450°.
-Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.
-Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.
-Cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal.
-Add cheese and onions; toss well.
-Add buttermilk and sour cream; stir just until moist.
-Drop dough by 1/4 cupfuls onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.
-Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until edges are brown.
-Remove biscuits from pan; cool on wire racks.

Nutritional Information (1 biscuit)
Calories: 146 (29% from fat)
Fat: 4.7g (sat 2.9g,mono 0.8g,poly 0.2g)
Protein: 5.2g
Carbohydrate: 20.1g
Cholesterol: 14mg
Sodium: 406mg

Ban Boring Chicken with Balsamic!

I lived in a sorority house for 3 years and the most common dinner item on the menu was chicken: baked chicken, chicken strips, chicken with mystery sauce... basically anything boring was fair game. Needless to say, when I graduated and moved out on my own I rarely made chicken for myself. Until now! I understand the nutritional value or chicken as a lean protein, but just because I want to eat healthy doesn't mean I can't have fun, right?

I don't have an exact recipe for this Balsamic Chicken. I found a few guide recipes through the Whats Cooking message board on The Nest. This recipe turned out moist, tender and full of flavor. Enjoy!

Cheers!

MM

Ingredients:
-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 C. baby portabella mushrooms, quartered
-1/2 red onion, diced
-2- 3 roma tomatoes, diced
-1 1/2 C. Balsamic Vinegar

The Process:
-Heat 1 Tbsp. EVOO in large saute pan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook till fragrant (about 30 seconds) stirring constantly. Set garlic aside.
-Add onion and mushroom to pan and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Set veggies aside, with garlic.
-Add 1/2 C. Balsamic to pan and bring to rolling boil over medium-high heat.
-Add chicken breasts to pan and simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn chicken over and continue cooking an additional 3-4 minutes.
-Add additional 1 C. Balsamic Vinegar, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, and onion.
-Let chicken simmer with veggie mixture until cooked through. Place chicken on a plate and keep warm.
-Reduce Balsamic and veggie mixture until thickened and equal to 1/2 C. liquid.
-Plate chicken, cover with 3 Tbsp. sauce mixture. We topped our chicken with 2 Tbsp. creamy goat cheese. So delicious!

Stuffed! Literally.

The Mr. and I have a busy week and a half before we head on vacation (small happy dance inserted here). So, on Sunday we decided to make a few meals that will see us through until our departure.

One of my favorite go-to's is baked pasta. But I hate feeling like I am chowing down on so many carbs just days before slipping into a bikini!

I found this recipe from one of my favorite chefs, Giada De Laurentis. If she can eat pasta all the time and stay teeny tiny, there is hope for the rest of us! I made a few adaptations to make this mixture even more healthy.

Turkey and Artichoke Stuffed Shells (adapted from Everyday Italian):

Ingredients-

-1 12oz. Box Jumbo Pasta Shells

-1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped

-3 Cloves Garlic, chopped

-1 lb. Ground Turkey meat

-1 package Frozen Artichokes, coarsely chopped (I used canned, medium artichokes)

-1 15oz. container Ricotta cheese (I used low fat Cottage cheese)

-3/4 c. grated Parmesan (I used low fat shredded Italian cheese blend)

-2 Eggs, lightly beaten

-1/4 c. Fresh Basil, chopped

-2 Tbsp. Fresh Italian Parsley, chopped (I omitted)

Process-

Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until slightly tender, but still very firm (about 5 minutes). Drain pasta and set aside to cool.

In a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, cook for about 3 minutes, occasionally stirring. Add the ground turkey to the skillet, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add artichokes, stir to incorporate. Remove from heat and let mixture cool.

In a large bowl, combine turkey mixture with Ricotta (or Cottage cheese), Parmesan, eggs, basil, parsley and salt and pepper. Stir to combine all ingredients.

Cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish with your favorite pasta sauce. I used Giada's Arrabbiata sauce, minus the pancetta. Take a shell in palm of your hand, spoon turkey mixture inside of shell (will equal about 2 Tbsp.). Place stuffed shell along edge of baking dish, stuffing side up. Continue stuffing until baking dish is full. We were able to fill two baking dishes. Drizzle remaining pasta sauce over shells and top with shredded Italian cheese.

Bake in 400 degree oven until shells are warmed through and cheese is melted, about 20-25 minutes. Enjoy!

Cheers! MM

Mad for Muffins

I love the ease of grabbing something quick for breakfast in the mornings. Something portable, something you can eat on the go and not have to thin too much about it.

That is where my love of muffins fits in to the equation. Since the Mr. and I are always looking for ways to eat healthier, I wanted to make up a batch using some brand new whole wheat flour my parents bought in the Amish country.

I found three different variations of Apple Spice muffins... a little from this one, a pinch from that one, and we have....

Spiced Applesauce Muffins:

Ingredients-

-3/4 c. Whole Wheat flour

-3/4 c. All Purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

-1 tsp. Cinnamon

-1/2 tsp. Nutmeg

-1/4 tsp. Allspice

-Pinch of salt

-3/4 c. Packed Brown sugar

-2 eggs

-4 Tbsp. butter, melted (I used Country Crock sticks)

-1/3 c. Vanilla yogurt

-1 c. Cinnamon applesauce (or whatever kind you have on hand)

Process-

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

-Prepare muffin tin with cooking spray or cupcake liners.

-Mix together dry ingredients, except sugar, in medium bowl.

-Whisk eggs, brown sugar and yogurt in separate bowl.

-Slowly stir in melted butter (cooled) until mixture is creamy, then add applesauce.

-Slowly add dry ingredient mixture to wet. Fold until just moistened.

-pour batter into muffin tins, about 2/3 full.

Topping-

-3 Tbsp. Brown sugar

-1 tsp. Cinnamon

-Mix together and sprinkle topping over uncooked muffins.

-Bake for 20-22 minutes. Tops of muffins should be golden ans toothpick inserted to top should come out clean.

-Transfer to wire rack and allow to cool completely.

Cheers!

MM