Rosemary Garlic Chicken

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinnless chicken breasts

4 cloves garlic, minced

1.5 TBSP fresh Rosemary, minced (or 1 tsp dried)

1 TBSP dijon mustard

1 TBSP fresh lemon juice

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 TBSP olive oil

Directions:

Rinse your chicken, pat it dry, and put it in a glass baking dish. In a small bowl, mix the ingredients together and pour over the chicken and coat it well. (You can also do the same thing in a large ziplock bag and let it marinate in there). Cover it and marinate it at room temperature for 30 minutes. BBQ the chicken over low heat for 7-8 minutes per side basting with the marinate while it's cooking. *** You can also make these with skewers (like in the picture), if you do, cut your chicken into chunks before your marinate and adjust the cooking time according to the size of your pieces.

Black Bean, Rice, and Cheese Enchiladas...

These were super yummy, bursting with flavor and a really filling meatless option for your menu! There are lots of ways to tweak the recipe, so add or take away depending on your taste buds!

Ingredients:

1/2 onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 TBSP Grape Seed Oil

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 16 oz. jar of chunky salsa (I used Trader Joe's Chunky Salsa with the black label)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup water

1 cup cheese

2 cups brown rice, precooked

3 TBSP cilantro

8 flour tortillas

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350. Get your brown rice cooking. Saute your onion, garlic, and green pepper in your Grape Seed Oil for a few minutes. Next add your black beans, cumin, chili powder, water and 1 cup of salsa to the pan and let that heat until it simmers, stirring it occasionally (depending on the salsa that you choose, you may need to add more or less water to get the consistency right, just eyeball it) . Next add your cooked rice and let that cook for another minute or two to blend the flavors (I also added a sprinkle of grated cheese to the mix so that the inside of the enchiladas would be cheesy too!). Spray your 9 x 13 pyrex dish. Scoop your rice and bean mixture into your tortillas, roll them up, and place them in your baking dish. Spoon another cup of salsa on the top of the enchiladas, then cover the top with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover them, add your cheese and cilantro and bake for 2 -3 more minutes until the cheese has melted. Serve as is or with sour cream and guacamole! Enjoy!!!

TIPS: Depending on the salsa that you use, judge how many onions you want to saute. My salsa had chunks of onions in it, so I went with less chopped onions. Also, I used green onions to top the dish because I didn't have cilantro, and next time I will skip the green onions and hold out for the cilantro because I think it would add a better flavor.... but fix it to your families likings! Oh and one more thing, rice freezes really well, so next time your making a serving of it, make an extra cup or two and stick it in the freezer for recipes like this one to cut down on the prep time!

Spinach, Sundried Tomatoes, & Artichoke Pasta Salad

This is a delicious recipe that I was introduced to through my sister-in-law Lisa, who got the recipe from her sister Emili, who is my Guest Chef today! She is a ball of fun, not only did she send me the recipe, but she also included a snap shot of her in her chef gear! Thanks Emili for being so fun and sharing this yummy recipe with all of us! You can make it as a side salad or a main meal- you can leave it meatless or add chicken... you choose!

Ingredients:

2.5 cups of Orzo pasta

1 big handful of baby spinach, chopped

1 12 oz. jar of marinated artichoke hearts

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1 8 oz. jar sundried tomatoes (I buy the Julienne Sliced ones from Trader Joe's)

1 jar or to your liking, of Kalamata Olives, pitted

1 clove garlic, minced

*** 1 lb. chicken, optional

***Extra olive oil or Balsamic Vinegar might be needed as well if you desire more dressing on your pasta.

Directions:

Super easy. Cook your orzo pasta per directions on the package. While that is cooking, if you are adding chicken, brown your meat on the stove with some s & p & garlic powder OR Lawry's Seasoning Salt & pepper. (I grilled my chicken on the BBQ and because I used tenderloins instead of breasts, it only took a few minutes and it added a great grilled flavor!) The rest is easy peasy. Drain your pasta and dump it in a bowl, mince your garlic, drain your sundried tomatoes and add them- give it a stir. Then, chop your spinach and your artichoke hearts and add all of the marinate from the artichoke hearts jar (that serves as your dressing for the salad). Add your feta and toss! If your pasta seams dry (or is dry the next day because it's absorbed all the dressing) add a little extra olive oil and Balsamic vinegar- perfect!

If you have a recipe that you would like to share, feel free to email me and we'll post YOU as our guest chef!

Homemade Salsa...

Here's a super quick and crowd pleasing recipe for homemade salsa that we've used in our family for a long time. We have tomatoes coming out of our ears over here, so we've been making lots of tomato filled recipes this summer. The easiest way to make this salsa is to dump it all in your Food Processor and let IT do the work! (In the photo I gave it a whirl in my Vitamix, which sad to say- didn't turn out too well, it was a little frothy and unevenly chopped, but you never know until you try! Stick to your Cuisinart!)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. tomatoes

3 cloves garlic

3 green onions

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar

2 tsp sugar

2 tsp lime juice, fresh

1/4 tsp onion powder (I didn't have so I omitted)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

FOR THE KICK, depending on how heated you like things choose ONE of the following options:

• 2 roasted jalapeno peppers OR
• raw jalapeno peppers, seeds removed OR
• 1/2 a can of green ortega chilies OR
• nothing extra, still delicious!

Directions:

Put all of the ingredients in your food processor (I chopped my tomatoes in half, as well as my green onions and I minced my garlic first) then just pulsate it until it's the consistency that you like! Enjoy with some tortilla chips!

Greek Salad Stuffed Pitas...

I don't know about you guys, but we can't get enough salads over here during these summer months! Here's another great option to add to your repertoire! Super simple, light, fresh, and fast!

Salad Ingredients:

Head of Romaine

1 lb. chicken tenders

1/4 thinly sliced red onion

1/2 thinly sliced bell pepper

1/2 thinly sliced cucumber

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

**olives, optional

Dressing Ingredients:

6 TBSP red wine vinegar

5 TBSP Olive Oil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp Dijon mustard

Additional Ingredients:

Pita Breads sliced in half

2 TBSP fresh lemon juice for your chicken

Directions:

Prep your chicken and brown it in a skillet with 1 TBSP Grape Seed Oil. I also added 2 TBSP of freshly squeezed lemon juice while it cooked to give it more flavor, then I seasoned the tenders with s & p and let them cook until both sides were browned. Chop the chicken when it's done cooking to top your salad. To prep your salad, simple- wash and slice your veggies, add your chicken, feta, and dressing right before serving and toss well. Fill your pitas with your salad mix and enjoy!

Gremolata Mahi Mahi

Here's a classic of mine, it's a favorite around here, it was one of my first posts, but was lacking a picture, so here is an update with a picture- if you haven't tried it yet- don't wait any longer!

Ingredients:

Combine in a mixing bowl:

1/4 cup italian bread crumbs

/4 cup finely chopped parsley

1 grated peel of a lemon (1.5-3 tsp)

1 TBSP of melted butter

Also, 1 lb. Mahi Mahi ( I use the frozen steaks from Trader Joe's & blot it dry)

** Note: I double this recipe because the topping is yummy and my husband eats more than this calls for in a sitting!

Instructions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a roasting pan in foil & spray the foil. Put the fish steaks on the pan, lightly salt them and squeeze lemon juice over the top. Then spoon the mixture from above and gently press it down on the tops of the fish steaks. Cook them uncovered for 15-20 minutes until brown on top.

Options to serve with:

I love to serve this with the asparagus and sweet potato fries, it is a great combination!

Homemade Berry Pie

This past week, we had a great adventure with some moms & friends of ours- we took a trip to Murray Farms, a local U-pick veggie and fruit farm.... the kids had a great time eating their way through the blueberry bushes, black berry vines, and orchards of pluots and apricots. Needless to say, they were a sticky mess by the end of the trip- but their bellies were full of yummy goodness!So, I had some blackberries left in the fridge that were really sweet and ripe and I wanted to make a scrumptious dessert- so I picked up a pre-made pie crust at Trader Joe's and I found a really simple recipe that I thought would be worth a go- here it is in case you find yourself with a plethora of ripe, juicy berries this summer.

Ingredients:

4 cups berries

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup flour

pie crust, homemade or store bought (I won't tell!)

Topping:

1 TBSP milk

2 TBSP sugar

2 TBSP brown sugar

3 shakes of cinnamon

Directions:

Super simple. Take your fresh berries (I had 3 cups of fresh blackberries, so I added an extra cup of frozen blueberries that I had on hand) and combine them in a bowl with your flour and sugar. I kind of mashed mine together with a pastry tool to get them to gel well. ** You could probably use any combination of berries, but take note of the natural sweetness, if your berries are tart, you might want to adjust the sugar amount and add more. Mine were naturally sweet, so I left it at 1/2 cup. You could also add more berries if you like a fuller pie, mine was on the smaller side, but you can add up to 6 cups of berries if your berries are in abundance!

Next, lay your pie crust in your pie dish (I used a 9 inch dish) pat it down, then fill it with the berry mix. Lay your pie top on and connect the sides of the crusts. Then brush on your TBSP of milk on the top of the pie (I didn't even use the entire TBSP, too much will make your crust soggy) and sprinkle your sugar mixture on top of that. Bake it in the oven for 15 minutes on 425, after that, turn your temp down to 375 and cook it for another 25 minutes or until your crust is golden brown. Let it rest for 30 minutes- 1 hour before serving it. It is delicious by itself, but complimented well with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Strawberry Milkshakes...

With fresh strawberries galore, I thought I would make a Strawberry milkshake for my husband on our stay-at-home-date-night. Now, I must admit I automatically thought I wouldn't like it (hence I didn't make one for myself!) because I had childhood memories of "strawberry FLAVORED milkshakes or ice cream" and thought it would taste fake and overly sweet--- but my oh my, was I pleasantly surprised---- the real thing tastes SO different.... it was delicious, give it a go for yourself!

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh strawberries (you can use frozen if you must)

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream

3-4 ice cubes

** 1 TBSP honey (if it's not sweet enough, but mine was perfect without!)

Directions:

Dump it all into your blender or Vitamix, give it a whirl, and enjoy! My husband thought it would be fun to top with whip cream... but he'd probably like to top a lot of things with it! And don't overestimate the delish and timeless dessert of a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a drizzle of chocolate and freshly sliced strawberries- that's a real crowd pleaser as well!

Love Bananas?? Cut your strawberries down to 1/2 cup and add 1/2 a banana! Get Creative!!!

Strawberry Short Cake from Scratch...

We have had a ton or ripe, juicy, delicious strawberries around here (thanks to my husband who farms next to the best strawberry grower in town!!!) so we have been making many-a-dish (or dessert!) with our fresh strawberries!!!! Here's a recipe for old fashion shortcake, we served it at a shower, it's prefect for guests and makes about 12-16 cakes which you can leave whole or slice in half.... here's what to do.

Ingredients for Short Bread:

3 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tsp. baking powder

1 cup butter

2/3 cup heavy cream

Ingredients for Whipping Cream:

1/2 pint heavy cream

3 TBSP powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

**Don't forget your fresh strawberries!!!

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and baking powder- stir well. Then add your heavy cream and your cold butter (not melted) you are going to cut your butter into the batter with a knife. Keep mixing and cutting your batter until you feel like it's well combined (you are still going to see nuggets of butter in there, they will melt together with the rest of the dough when you kneed it). I used a plastic thin cutting board, sprinkled with a little flour and turned my dough out onto it. Kneed your dough for about 2-3 minutes, this is where you will really see if coming together. With a large spoon, scoop dollops of dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 15- 20 minutes until the edges are golden. Immediately after taking them out, remove them from a baking sheet (so they stop cooking) and place them on a rack or wax paper, sprinkling the tops of them with a pinch of sugar.

Next make your whipping cream in a chilled bowl, beat all ingredients together until your whipping cream begins to peak. Cover and chill until serving.

And last, slice up your strawberries. Mine were super sweet so I didn't add any sugar, but I pre-cut them so they could marinate in their own juice for a while. If yours aren't really sweet, add a spoonful of sugar, stir, cover and refrigerate until serving. Unfortunately I totally spaced and forgot to capture a picture of the finished product, but it looked similar to this to give you an idea!

Homemade Waffles

OK folks, sorry about the serious delay in posting recipes.... I realize I have been M.I.A. for the last few months- but I have good reason. I have been eating things lately that most normal people wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole... things like lemon yogurt, pickles, bean burritos, apples, and eggs, tons of eggs... because this is how I eat when I am pregnant. I have the worst morning/all day sickness again with this baby (#2)--- I don't even want to cook, I don't want to eat, I don't even want to think about food--- which doesn't go well with trying to keep up with a blog centered all around food! But I am entering into week 15 and hoping the sickness is coming to an end (with my daughter is tapered off around week 16.... maybe one more week to go!!!!) So here are a few little things I have managed to make in the past 3 months.... just little recipes & ideas until I get my cooking apron back out during the week :)

Homemade Waffles

Ingredients:

2 eggs

2 cups flour

1 3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup oil or butter

1 TBSP sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

* I use 2/3 cup brown rice flour and 1/3 cup coconut flour and Kerrygold butter to be more specific! You can also double the batch and freeze the other half for a quick breakfast later on in the week.

Directions: Super simple, pour everything into a bowl, whisk until all the clumps are gone, and pour into a HOT (and oiled/sprayed) waffle iron. Serve with a side of fresh fruit, real  Grade B maple syrup, or caramelized apples (recipe coming soon!) ** Made about 10 waffles in my grill (which you can freeze or refrigerate and toast for later!)

Roasted Parmesan Parsnips

Here's a new way to cook parsnips, thanks to the fabulous blog Sprouted Kitchen! She has great ideas and AWESOME pictures, take a gander when you have a free minute- she makes cooking meals into an ART! These Roasted Parsnips are soft and gooey thanks to the parmesan cheese, and yet bursting with flavor with all the different herbs--- they were so yummy I could have eaten them all myself!!!

Ingredients:

4 Parnips, peeled & chopped

1 egg white

1/2 TBSP dried Oregano

1 TBSP Rosemary, finely chopped

2/3 cup Parmesan Cheese, fine

s & p

Directions:

Super simple. Peel & chop your parsnips, put them in a bowl. Separate an egg white and toss the parsnip sticks in it, then add your seasoning and give it another toss, then add your parmesan (I had to chop mine be cause it was shredded and needs to be a fine consistency). Toss it all together, pour it out on a roasting pan or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and cook for 20-25 minutes on 425 until they are golden and done to your liking! You can serve plain or with a marinara sauce.

Toasted Flat Bread...

Get them before they're gone!

Here's a yummy treat, a great compliment to any salad really. Take a piece of flat bread, lightly butter it or use a little olive oil evenly, then add some Garlic Salt and sprinkle some parmesan cheese and put it in the oven on Broil for a few minutes (watch it, it will cook quickly and can burn easily!). Then slice it up and serve it as a fun crunchy side to a salad.

Cooks Quickly and perfect for a last minute meal!

I love Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Flat Bread. It is really soft and chewy, and is great for many things. I use it to roll up sandwiches, even sandwiches for kids- it makes a great peanut butter, banana, & honey sandwich all rolled up and chewy! Give it a whirl!! You're gonna love it!

Carrot Cake with Creamy Frosting

This tasty little treat is just in time for Easter!

So my daughters 2nd birthday is this weekend and I was looking for a yummy recipe that was light on the sugar and BIG on flavor- so I combined 2 -3 different recipes and came up with this little treat. They are flavorful and filling, they are dense like a normal carrot cake and yet unusual with the addition of the lemon zest and nutmeg. You can make this in a loaf pan or cupcakes or perhaps even in a sheet cake. The frosting has no sugar and you can make it as sweet as you like by adding more or less honey.

Directions:

Super simple. Take out your cream cheese brick so it can soften while you prep. Combine your dry ingredients in a bowl, then your wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Then add your dry ingredients into your wet and mix thoroughly. Now, if you use a pan you may want to spray it first or rub some butter on it to prevent sticking, I used cupcake liners and it was fine, but if you are concerned about them sticking to the cupcake liners you can add 2 TBSP melted butter to the recipe. Bake them at 350 and keep an eye on them- cupcakes took about 15-18 minutes (use a toothpick to test them) and a loaf pan could take up to 50 minutes or more. Sorry I don't have better time estimates- I ALWAYS forget to set my timer and end up watching everything by eye!

Dry Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour, I used whole wheat but you can use white

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 TBSP cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

Wet Ingredients:

2 eggs

1/4 cup applesauce (I substituted apple sauce for oil)

1 1/2 TBSP Molasses

1 TBSP vanilla

1/2 cup raisins

1/4 cup pecans, chopped

1 1/2 tsp lemon zest

2 cups freshly grated carrots

Frosting Ingredients:

1 brick of cream cheese

1 tsp cinnamon

3-4 TBSP honey (or more to taste depending on how sweet you like it)

1 drizzle of vanilla

Pesto Chicken, Sundried Tomatoes, & Artichoke Heart Pasta

Now that's a mouth full! Here's a simple pasta, easy to throw together in a pinch using the recently posted Pesto recipe. It's super simple and very flavorful!

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds pasta, I used brown rice pasta

3 chicken breasts, baked

1/2 jar sundried tomatoes, julienne sliced

1/2 jar marinated artichoke hearts, divided

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

pesto sauce

Directions:

First get your chicken baking, I cooked 3 breasts in a pyrex dish (sprayed with Olive Oil) and seasoned with s & p and garlic powder on 400 for about 30- 40 minutes (check center before removing from oven, time will vary due to thickness of breasts). Next get your water boiling and your pasta cooking (per directions on the pasta bag). Then make your pesto sauce and then start combining things as they are done. Drain the pasta, cover it in the pesto sauce, chop your chicken, add your sun dried tomatoes & artichoke hearts and toss in some fresh parmesan and you are ready to serve your hearty and tasty pasta! Ta-duh!!!

Chocolate Fix

Here's a tip. Let's be honest, sometimes throughout the day or even when you are done with your tasks at night, you need a little chocolate fix. You don't need a whole bar, just a square, a snip-it, a morsel that soothes that inner chocolate gland that's sounding like an alarm. I know this alarm well, so it makes me extra conscious of the treats I keep in the house, this being the only one I bring home, it's my one cheat. So let me spill the beans. I buy the Dark Chocolate "Pounder Plus" from Trader Joe's. It's more than a pound of dark chocolate (72% cocoa) goodness that comes in perfect, little bite size squares. I chop it up on my cutting board and store it in a little jar on my butcher block- out of constant sight, but not in a secret hiding spot... somewhere in between the two. Then when the moment hits, I simply indulge in my chocolate fix, replace the lid, and carry on as I was before! Only one rule for me: only one trip to the chocolate jar each day.... that's not to say that there haven't been days when those sneaky fingers of mine grab a second piece on that solo trip though!


** And if you prefer, they carry Pounder Plus in Milk Chocolate too!