A few recipes I've made recently, and failed to photograph!

a few amazing recipes that i've tried recently! (i over-cooked and over-photographed over the holidays - so i've been slacking on it all....wompwomp)

Korean Beef Tacos (i just made the beef) - these were seriously flavorful and delicious! simple to make, but make sure to watch the crock pot.

Sweet & Spicy Green Beans (i omitted the honey) - these were crispy, full flavor - and i added sriracha sauce to give it an extra kick!

doesn't get much more simple than a toll house chocolate chip cookie - but if you want to stick to a tried & true recipe, try the Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookie!

I'm sure there are plenty more and I'll be sure to share them as they come! And I promise to try and do a better job sharing my life with the few readers that I still have!

holla!

Recipe: Skinny Beef Barbacoa

{Recipe via SkinnyTaste}

This recipe is spicy, juicy, easy, amazing and delicious! Please make this ASAP! tastes just like Chipotle Beef Barbacoa....if that doesn't sell you on it, then i dont know what will.

 Beef Barbacoa - Via Skinnytaste.com

(with my adaptations in italics)

"Ingredients: 

• 3 lbs beef eye of round or bottom round roast, all fat trimmed
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1/2 medium onion
• 1/2 lime, juice (whole lime)
• 2-4 chiptoles in adobo sauce (to taste) (i used the whole can, minus the sauce)
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp ground oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• salt and pepper
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 cup water

Directions:
Place garlic, onion, lime juice, cumin, oregano, chiptoles, cloves in a blender.

Trim all fat off meat, cut into 4 inch chunks. Season with salt and pepper and brown on high heat in 1 tsp oil. Add liquefied spices, water, bay leaves and simmer on high in a crock pot for 4 hours.

Once cooked and the meat is tender, remove the meat and place in a dish. Shred it with two forks, and reserve the liquid for later (discard the bay leaf). Return the shredded meat to the pot, adjust salt and cumin (you may need to add more) to taste and add some of the reserved liquid back. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes to let the flavors penetrate."

note: i served mine with black bean and corn salsa, sofrito rice, and avocado slices. i suggest all of this. ah-mazing.

'lasagna'

This "lasagna" is soooo easy and delicious!!! i put quotations around lasagna, because there are no noodles. the various veggie layers act as my noodles.

make this as you would any lasagna. brown the meat, put in the layers as you wish (sauce, cheese, meat,  uncooked veggies - in whatever order. just put the sauce at the bottom so it doesnt stick!!)

in mine, i used yellow onions (diced at the bottom mixed in with sauce), yellow squash, red bell pepper, and zucchini. and then for my cheese i used 4cheese italian (reduced fat!) and a bit of shaved padana cheese (i think?? it's like parm). and ground turkey - but you could use ground chicken or beef as well!

hmm guess which side is mine, and which side is sissy's?

 bake at 400 degrees 25-30 minutes, covered with foil. then take the foil off and add the cheese to bake for another 15-20 minutes. i put mine in the broiler on hi for about 4 minutes at the end to get that crunchy, browned cheese effect!

make this! and enjoy!!!

Sloppy Joe Remix

sloppy joes are always one of my favorites! i looove them. i think that there are two reasons i love them so much: 1) my mom makes the BEST ones and 2) they remind me of It Takes Two with the Olsen Twins....love me some old school olsen twins! hahah!

i tweaked this recipe a bit to make it a little less tangy, and a little more sweet! so delicious. please make these, sloppy joes are such a crowd pleaser!


 Open-Faced Skinny Sloppy Joes
{slightly adapted from *Gina's Skinny Recipes}

• 1.25 lbs 93% lean ground beef sirloin
• 1 tbsp steak seasoning or seasoned salt
• 1 medium onion, minced (i used a pre-diced frozen bag)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup mixed bell pepper, minced (i used a frozen blend)
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 cups tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp tomato paste

Chop all the vegetables really fine, using a chopper or food processor.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meat to the pan and break it up as it cooks. Season with steak seasoning and cook the meat until it browns, then add onion, garlic, and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and add red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, cook 5 more minutes. Add brown sugar. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan, stir to combine. Cover and reduce heat to simmer and cook an additional 5 minutes. Using a measuring cup, pile 1/2 cup of sloppy meat onto toasted buns - we used whole wheat pita bread or whole wheat sandwich thins.

Enjoy!

Caprese Quinoa

ahhhh, i've had this recipe at the top of my to-make list since i first saw it! and it lived up to its hype! except i suck and put too much salt (more than the recipe called for apppparenntllyyy)....so yea. anyway, i ended up rinsing the whole thing off and then topping with basil oil..and what do you know? it turned out perfect! i love when mistakes turn out well in the end.

i only slightly adapted this recipe by adding lemon zest and a bit of lemon juice (umm and too much salt)...because apparently i cant go a day without lemon juice in my life.

Caprese Quinoa
{slightly adapted from How Sweet Eats}
makes about 3 cups worth
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 large & 1 small heirloom tomato, diced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
3/4 cup fresh mozzarella pearls (or just buy a fresh mozzarella ball and cut it into chunks)
10 large basil leaves, chiffonade
tsp of lemon zest, and juice of one lemon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Prepare quinoa according to directions on box (which is most likely: 2 cups water + 1 cup quinoa, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes).  Add in the tomatoes, cheese, basil, lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper. Drizzle about 2-3 tablespoons of basil oil over top and serve!

Homemade Basil Oil
from myrecipes
1 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups packed basil leaves (I used 3 handfuls), coarsely chopped
Blend oil and basil leaves in a blender or food processor for 30-60 seconds, just until the two are mix. Pour mixture into a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, just until bubbles appear around the edges. Heat for about 5 minutes, the remove from heat and let cool completely. Once cool, pour through a fine mesh strainer and press on the basil leaves to release all the oil. Store in an airtight container for 2-3 weeks – stays fresh best if set in the fridge.

Enjoy!!!

summer pasta salad!

i just posted about some of my farmers market purchases, and i was not kidding when i said how delicious the produce was! my whole car smelled like a caprese salad before i even got home thanks to fresh basil and tomatoes :)

i knew i had to use most of this immediately. sadly it wasn't because i thought it would go bad, it was because i couldn't handle another minute without it....

so i made a delish, fresh pasta salad!

ingredients for the salad:

• handful or two of cooked whole wheat pasta - i used penne
• handful of grape tomatoes (yellow or red), chopped into two or four pieces
• two or three radishes, thinly sliced
• palmful of frozen (or fresh!) sweet white corn kernels
• a small plum tomato, diced
• handful of basil, chiffonade

ingredients for dressing:

• juice of one lemon
• teeny bit of lemon zest - gah, im so good at measuring...
• pinch of cayenne - or in my case, a lot more than a pinch
• pinch of sugar, salt and fresh ground pepper
• tablespoon or two of evoo

preparation:
whisk together dressing ingredients and toss all salad ingredients in with the dressing! 

enjoy! i know you will! it's the most refreshing salad ive had in a while! i'm going to try it with more veggies and no pasta next time! mmmmm!

farmers market!

apparently, i've been missing out on some amazing local produce for the past three years! i finally went to the clarendon farmer's market and came out with some pretty amazing produce! 

i made a delicious summer pasta salad using some of these ingredients, recipe coming soon!

mexican lettuce wraps!

i suppose this dish was inspired by pf changs lettuce wraps...but mostly because me and sis didnt want to fill up on carb loaded fajita wraps!

most simple dish ever! and SO flavorful!

ingredients:

• chicken breasts, each breast cut into 4 pieces (however many you need...we used three chicken breasts and that provided a LOT of shredded chicken)
• a packet of reduced sodium taco seasoning
• guacamole, store-bought or homemade
• refried black beans
• large romaine lettuce leaves
• extras:
• reduced fat sour cream
• reduced fat mexican shredded cheese blend

to prepare the chicken, toss the pieces of chicken in about half a packet of taco seasoning. put some EVOO into a skillet and heat on high. add the chicken, brown it on one side and flip. brown the other side, add some chicken stock, reduce to medium heat, and add a lid on the pan.  cook through, flipping occasionally, about 5ish minutes! (i suck at timing, i just check every few minutes)

to shred the chicken, use two forks to pull the meat, or use a handy dandy choppy choppy from pampered chef like i did!

 

wash your romaine lettuce, and layer all the ingredients as you wish!

seriously delish, and if you omit cheese and sour cream - superrr healthy! :)

enjoy!! :)

chicken tenders!

baked chicken tenders are my new fave! baked chicken is SO much more moist than on the pan or grill. maybe i just suck at both of those. it's entirely possible.

anywho.

i added some cayenne pepper - YUM. spicy chicken tenders that tasted a little like Wendy's spicy chicken nuggs! mmmmm. this was the second time i've made them in about a week. that good.

this recipe is slightly adapted from Gina's Skinny Recipes!

• 16 oz (2 large) skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into even bit sized pieces
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 6 tbsp whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp panko
• however much cayenne - i prob put about a 1/2 tsp.
• 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• olive oil spray (I used my Misto)

Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil spray.

Put the olive oil in one bowl and the breadcrumbs, panko and parmesan cheese in another.
Season chicken with salt and pepper, then put in the bowl with the olive oil and mix well so the olive oil evenly coats all of the chicken.
Put a few chunks of chicken at a time into the breadcrumb mixture to coat, then on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the top with olive oil spray then bake 8 - 10 minutes. Turn over then cook another 4 - 5 minutes or until cooked though.

Pesto Baked Chicken

 you guys. this is OMG amazing and it takes 4 ingredients. FOUR. that's it.

 Baked Pesto Chicken
{from kayln's kitchen}

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chickenn breasts
salt and fresh ground black pepper for seasoning chicken
1/2 cup basil pesto (I used my homemade Basil Pesto with Lemon, but you can use purchased pesto.)
2 oz. (1/2 cup) grated low-fat mozzarella cheese

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375F. Trim all visible fat and tendons from chicken pieces, then cut each chicken breast lengthwise into 2 or 3 pieces. (I cut the larger ones into 3 strips and the smaller ones into 2 strips.)

Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray, then spread 1/4 cup basil pesto over the bottom of the dish. Lay chicken strips over the pesto, then spread 1/4 cup more basil pesto over the chicken.

Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil (or use a baking dish with a tight-fitting lid) and bake the chicken for 25-30 (**i did 20 because my chicken was cut a bit thinner) minutes, just until chicken is barely firm and cooked through. (Don't cook too much at this point, or the chicken will be overcooked by the time the cheese is melted and browned.)

When chicken is barely cooked through, remove foil and sprinkle chicken with 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese. Put dish back into the oven without foil and cook 5 minutes more, just until cheese is melted. (If your broiler is separate from the oven, start preheating it when you take the chicken out.) After I melted the cheese for 5 minutes I switched my oven to broil and broiled for 5 minutes more, just long enough to get the cheese lightly browned.

Serve hot. There will be some flavorful juice in the bottom of the dish when this is done, so you may want to serve with rice, couscous, or quinoa to soak up the juice, but if you're eating this for phase one, just spoon the juice over the chicken.

ready for the oven - bake at 375 for 20-25 (depending on how thin/thick you cut the chicken strips)

ready for the oven part 2 - broil on high for 5 mins.

the flavor was so intense and the chicken was cooked perfectly! i cant wait to make this again! next time, i think i'll make my own pesto - my dad has the best recipe that i have yet to make on my own!

Chickpea and Sweet Pepper Arugula Salad

i've made this before without my own pictures, wanted to post again because i modified the recipe!

 
this recipe is from Picky Palate, and once again, i highly recommend it!

i modified it slightly by adding a handful of chopped hot cherry peppers (jarred). they added a perfect kick that didn't distract from any of the elements of the salad.  i also cut the olive oil down a lot and used more lemon juice instead.

Dinner: Lemon Chicken Gyros and Spanakopita dip

 Lemon Chicken Gyros and Tzatziki Sauce *via Can You Stay for Dinner - a new favorite site of mine!

the chicken packed a punch of lemon-y citrus flavor (i added extra lemon juice and cooked the chicken in all that deliciously saucy marinade!! it came out sooo moist) and the tzatziki with diced cucumber added the perfect condiment to the flatbread! i highly suggest you make this immediately!!!

Lemon Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki and Feta - slightly adapted from *here
makes 2

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
  
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
  
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
  
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  
• 8 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
  
  
• ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt (fat free!)
  
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh dill
  (added diced cucumber and S&P here!)
  

• 2 flatbreads
  
• 1 tomato, diced
  
• ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
  
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
  
• minced fresh parsley, for serving
  

In a medium bowl, whisk together the oregano, thyme, garlic, pepper, lemon juice, and olive oil. Add the chicken, toss to coat, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Remove the chicken from the bowl and saute in a large frying pan for about 5 minutes per side, until the pieces are no longer pink in the center.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the yogurt and dill. Spread a thick smear of this homemade tzatziki sauce onto a warmed flatbread, followed by crispy shredded lettuce, tomatoes, feta cheese, and a sprinkling of fresh minced parsley.

find the recipe on Pioneer Woman's site here!

crisp up some whole wheat pita bread in the broiler and dip away! this was delicious, a greek take on spinach dip! i'll definitely be making this again for a party!

Spanakopita Dip - slighty adapted from *here

• 1 container (17.6 Ounce) Container Greek Yogurt
• 1 pound Frozen Chopped Spinach, Thawed And Squeezed Lightly To Remove Excess Moisture
• ⅓ cups Feta Cheese Crumbles
• 2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Parsley
• 2 teaspoons Garlic Salt
• 1 teaspoon Minced Fresh Garlic
• 1 teaspoon Fresh Dill Weed
• ½ teaspoons Paprika
• ¼ teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Begin by combining yogurt with spinach and all other dip ingredients in a large bowl. Stir well until evenly combined. Store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour prior to serving. Serve with sturdy chips, crackers, vegetable sticks or spread on bread.

Dinner: Sea Scallops, Tabbouleh, and Sweet Potato Fries

this is going to be a jam packed post of pictures and recipes!! my new roommate (and sorority sistaaaa, holla!) Becca loves to cook as much as i do so i cant take full credit! we worked together to make this AMAZING meal, and while the cooktime was long, the real prep wasn't time consuming at all! :) perfect weeknight or weekend meal!

Seared Sea Scallops (how's that for alliteration!!??)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb jumbo sea scallops (wild caught - always!)
•  paprika, to taste
• cayenne pepper, to taste
• s&p to taste

Preparation:
pat dry fresh scallops with a paper towel to ensure that real crisp outside when cooked.  combine all ingredients in a tupperware bowl (or whatever you have!) heat a skillet pan with a bit (1tbsp will do) of evoo.  once the pan is heated and coated with evoo, place scallops in the pan. cook on each side for about a minute, or until opaque. you dont want to overcook these guys, so pay attention :)

serve immediately. enjoyyyyyy!! :)

Tabbouleh
(found *via GimmeSomeOven)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup bulgur (a.k.a. cracked wheat)
• 2 cups of water or chicken stock
• 2-3 cups of curly parsley, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup of mint, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of scallions, finely chopped
• 3-4 roma tomatoes, chopped
• 2 Tbsp of olive oil
• juice of half of one lemon (or more to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt

Method:
In a large bowl, pour 2 cups of boiling water (or chicken stock) over the bulgur.  Let it sit for 30-60 minutes until softened, and then strain the bulgur through a fine-mesh strainer.
Then combine the prepared bulgur, parsley, mint, scallions, and tomatoes in a large bowl.  Add oil and lemon juice, and stir until well mixed.  Add salt to taste.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to one day.

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut to desired size
• evoo
• paprika, to taste
• cayenne pepper, to taste
• s&p, to taste

Preparation:

pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. mix all ingredients in a bowl and place on foiled tray.  add extra cayenne and paprika if desired (we did!). bake for 35 minutes at 425. for the last 5 or so minutes, put the oven on low broil - this gives it a bit of a crisp at the end!

SO DELICIOUS!!!

Crispy Shrimp Tacos with Mango Salsa

Crispy Shrimp Tacos
(adapted from How Sweet It Is) 
 
1/2 pound raw, deveined shrimp (tails removed)
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 corn or flour tortillas

Optional additions:
1/4 cup grated cotija or cheddar cheese
1 lime
shredded lettuce
cilantro
fat free sour cream or fat free greek yogurt
mango salsa (below)
fresh salsa

Make sure shrimp is clean and completely dry. Combine salt, pepper, garlic and cumin and sprinkle it over the shrimp. Add the flour to a small bowl, and dredge the shrimp through the flour to get a very light coating on it. Heat a skillet on medium high heat and add the olive oil. Once hot, add the shrimp and brown on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the shrimp and let drain on a paper towel.




Mango Salsa
 

Ingredients:
(for 6)
3 mangos, diced
1 medium red onion, diced small
1 medium red pepper, diced
large handful of cilantro, chopped roughly
juice of 2 limes
s&p to taste

combine all ingredients and serve!! it's so easy and this was everyone's favorite part of the meal!

mango salsa is always my favorite salsa - the fresh, fruity flavors mix so well with the acidic lime juice and fragant cilantro! i want some now......

quite the mexican spread for an irish holiday :)

White Bean Cilantro Lime Hummus

Cilantro Lime White Bean Hummus
(slightly adapted from How Sweet It Is)



1 15-ounce can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp minced garlic (or more, if you are like me!)
1/4 cup cilantro (added more!)
1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
1/3 cup olive oil (+ more to reach desired consistency)
salt and pepper to taste
Combine beans, cilantro, juice and garlic in the food processor and blend until mixed. With the processor on, stream in olive oil until desired consistency is reached. I blended mine for a good 3-4 minutes to make it super creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with any type of chip or cracker you'd like! Would also be great on crostini or as a condiment on a sandwich!

i couldn't stop tasting this before it was served! we made a roomie dinner on St. Patrick's Day and while this isn't Irish in any way, at least it's green! the texture is very similar to chickpea hummus, and the taste is so rich and flavorful! i highly suggest this as a party dip!

Tabbouleh and Pan Seared Scallops

YUM!

ya'll - get off your butts and make this tabbouleh ASAP! it's that good. thank god its healthy, because i ate the entire batch in less than two days. ya, it's like that.

i found the recipe on Gimme Some Oven (one of my favorites!!) I didnt even bother adapting it (except for like...doubling it) because it looked so perfect! topped it with some fat free feta cheese, and boom. amazing.

Tabbouleh


Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup bulgur (a.k.a. cracked wheat)
• 2 cups of water or chicken stock
• 2-3 cups of curly parsley, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup of mint, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of scallions, finely chopped
• 3-4 roma tomatoes, chopped
• 2 Tbsp of olive oil
• juice of half of one lemon (or more to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt

Method:
In a large bowl, pour 2 cups of boiling water (or chicken stock) over the bulgur.  Let it sit for 30-60 minutes until softened, and then strain the bulgur through a fine-mesh strainer.
Then combine the prepared bulgur, parsley, mint, scallions, and tomatoes in a large bowl. 

tabbouleh pre-bulgur addition

Add oil and lemon juice, and stir until well mixed.  Add salt to taste.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to one day.

delicious!

 

 

 
 Pan Seared Scallops

pan-searched in the tabbouleh mixture

1/2 lb of  ocean scallops (for two people this was about 4 medium sized scallops each)
1/3 cup of tabbouleh mixture (minus the bulgur wheat)

combine scallops and tabbouleh mixture and let them marinate while you prepare the tabbouleh.  heat a pan and sear scallops on each side for 2-3 minutes until they are white (instead of opaque).

scallops in the pan

serve immediately.


ENJOY! (i know you will!)

Shrimp and Shiritaki Noodles

let's just start with me saying how hesitant i was to buy these noodles. i read about this recipe *here at Guy Friendly - Girl Envied.  she posts delicious, hearty recipes with a healthy twist, it's a great food blog!  when reading the recipe, i noticed they were tofu noodles, and that apparently, they smell and are expensive.  ewww, who wants smelly, expensive food? with that being said, the smell wasn't horrible, and the packages were $1.99 per 8oz, which truly isn't that bad, it just seems like a lot to pay for "pasta."  so yay for proving my negative self wrong!

i jazzed up the recipe using Pampered Chef Thai Red Curry spiced shrimp and it was filling and delicious! i also changed up the veggies, but the essential ingredients are the same.

Shiritaki Noodles with Spicy Thai Shrimp

5 tbsp reduced fat peanut butter
1/2 cup lower sodium chicken stock
3 tbsp rice vinegar
5 cloves minced garlic
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp Sriracha sauce (any hot sauce to you like)
3 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 cups diced zuchinni
1 1/2 cups diced yellow squash
1 cup sugar snap peas
1 lb medium peeled shrimp
2 tbsp Pampered Chef Thai Red Curry Spice (or any thai mix, really)
3 8-oz packets shiritaki noodles
when i read the original recipe, i found some good advice about the shiritaki noodles. 1) you'll find them at whole foods in the refrigerated tofu section. 2) take the noodles and drain and rinse them. then boil them for 3 minutes. it will remove any odor that came with them.  

prepare the sauce in a microwave container. use all ingredients from peanut butter through ginger. microwave for about a minute, and stir. (ew sorry for the heinous pre-picture!)


meanwhile, spray pam on a skillet pan large enough to fit all of the shrimp. heat the pan and cook shrimp for a few minutes on each side until pink. do not overcook the shrimp, test them as you go!

in a deeper pot, add zuchini, squash and peas and a bit of chicken stock. cook for about 5-7 minutes. (once again, ew to the picture. it was dark and gross out)


toss all ingredients together in the deeper pot and serve!

don't be turned off by the large ingredient list, it's actually a simple recipe that i think you will really enjoy!

Yum! annnnd again, picture is gross, food is delish! i was too hungry to clean up my mess - typical.

happy cooking!

On the Menu this week! 7/26/10

{*via anthropologie}.

i had a few extra minutes today to meal plan for this week! this is always my goal, but i always get sidetracked or end up doing something stupid like stopping at subway on the way home because i'm too lazy to go to the store.

not this week my friends!

foodie delights in store for this week are:
yogurt and spice grilled chicken skewers
corn and arugula salad
strawberry-and-arugula salad with crispy proscuitto
feta, herb, and sun-dried tomato-stuffed chicken
mediterranean couscous

my.mouth.is.watering.already!
i'll be sure to report back and let you know how they all are :)

Corn and Tomato Salad

so many amazing salads have been in my life recently - summery and refreshing :)

This one is one of my own creations including everything I loooove:

package of frozen corn (you can also use corn cut off the cobb, grilled corn....your choice!)
1 or 2 packages grape tomatoes, halved (or you can use a normal tomato, diced)
1 or 2 red onions, diced
1 bunch of basil, in a fine chiffonade, or just roughly chopped in my world
lemon juice of 3 lemons
3 tbsp red wine vinegar (you can also use rice vinegar!)
s&p to taste
optional: fat free feta on top!

place all ingredients in a bowl and toss! so simple!

gaaaaahhh, i could eat this all day, every day.

Dinner: Ginger Salmon with Cucumber Avocado Slaw

disregard my spelling of avocado- how embarrassing.

Obviously, when there is a sale, I take advantage, especially with produce because it's so dang expensive! So I had two avocados and had to use the second, since I used the first one here.
Ginger Salmon
(for 2)

Ingredients:
2 filets of salmon (mine were about 8 oz each)
1 jar of ginger dressing (Makoto is a great brand)

place filets in a baking dish and pour the dressing over them so that there is dressing almost covering them. marinate for about an hour in the fridge (optional, it has great flavor either way!!). preheat the oven to 375 and bake for 18 mins or until cooked to desired temperature. SO easy!

Cucumber and Avocado Slaw

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups English cucumber, halved, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 2 scallions, white and green parts, minced
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons lime zest
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• Salt, to taste
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and chopped

Preparation

Combine cucumber and scallion together in a medium bowl. Whisk together vinegar and next 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Pour vinaigrette over cucumber mixture, and season with salt and pepper. Add avocado just before serving, and toss gently to mix. (You can make this salsa ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to serve, but add the avocado just before serving.)

one of my favorite meals to date! SO simple and so fresh and sooooooo delicious!