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Chipotle Chicken with Avocado Salsa

July 21, 2014

Chipotle Chicken

I love the foodie blog – How Sweet It Is… the majority of my recipe pins are from her site and I honestly have never been disappointed with her creations.  When I came across her Honey Chipotle Chicken Bowls, I knew I HAD to give them a try.   While the original is DELICIOUS, I wanted to put my own spin on it… so here is what I did:

Qunioa Tower

 

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Chipotle Chicken with Avocado Salsa

Chicken:

  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons adobo sauce (from a can of chipotles in adobo)
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon honey mustard
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 1 large handful of fresh chopped cilantro
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  1. Salt and pepper chicken and transfer to a Ziplock bag or baking dish.
  2. Combine remaining ingredients (oil, adobo sauce, honey, mustards, cilantro and garlic) in a jar and shake until mixed.
  3. Pour over chicken and let marinate in the fridge for at least 2-12 hours.
  4. Preheat oven to 425.
  5. Transfer chicken to a baking dish (if you haven’t already) and let chicken sit out at room temperature for 30 minutes or so.
  6. Bake chicken for 20 minutes, then flip chicken breasts and bake for 20 more minutes.
  7. Top with salsa and serve with lime quinoa.

*I love to prep the chicken in the morning and let marinate for the day, for an easy dinner to whip up dinner!

Cilantro Chipotle Chicken

Salsa:

  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2 avocados, diced
  • 4 green onions, sliced
  • 1/2 cup cilantro, leaves torn from stem
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  1. Combine tomatoes, avocado, green onion and cilantro in a bowl.
  2. Add lime juice, olive oil and honey to a jar and shake until combined.
  3. Pour over salsa and toss before serving.

*I make the salsa ahead of time (and depending on how early just let sit out at room temperature) and toss with the dressing 30 minutes before serving.

Lime Honey Dressing

Quinoa:

  • 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • zest of 1 lime
  • juice of 1 lime
  1. Rinse quinoa and combine with chicken stock in a medium sized saucepan.
  2. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to low, cover and let simmer for 15 minutes.
  3. Make sure most of the liquid has evaporated and then stir in coconut oil, lime juice and lime zest.

Qunioa Tower

Tasty

Opa!

July 7, 2014

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The warm weather always makes me crave Mediterranean food and this is one of the easiest and freshest menus to whip up!

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First I start with an easy appetizer of fresh figs, mint leaves, honey and feta cheese (I prefer a delicious block of French feta, but I had to use some crumbled in a pinch).

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Then onto the main menu…

Turkey Meatballs with Zucchini Ribbons

Roasted Meyer Lemon Potatoes

Tzatziki with Cucumber Slices 

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The joy of this menu is you can prep the chimichurri, tzatziki and meatballs in the morning and then whip up the potatoes while the kabobs are grilling!  Doesn’t get any better for those after work dinner parties this summer…

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Tasty

Tequila Soaked Watermelon with Lime & Agave

July 2, 2014

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J and I enjoyed these amazing alcohol infused fruits on our last trip to Vegas and I knew this would be the perfect thing to try out for myself for our next BBQ… it was super easy to make and quite the hit!  Can’t wait to give it a go with different variations this summer…

 Tequila Soaked Watermelon

  • 1 watermelon
  • tequila
  • 1 lime
  • Agave
  • Salt
  1. Slice watermelon (I prefer triangles for this)
  2. Place watermelon slices on a rimmed baking sheet (they can be pretty snug… no need to space them out)
  3. Squeeze 1/2 lime juice over watermelon slices
  4. Pour tequila overtop (not sure the amount but about 1/2 inch worth in the pan)
  5. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes, then turn over all slices, so that the other side is exposed to the tequila
  6. Wrap sheets in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours
  7. Once ready to serve, drizzle with agave and sprinkle with freshly grated lime zest
  8. Serve with a small bowl of salt for guests to dip watermelon in if they prefer.

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Tasty

The Easiest Miso Soup

June 18, 2014

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I love a dinner that makes for a great lunch the next day and this soup was an answer to my prayers!  Super easy, quick and VERY delicious!

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Miso Soup 

  • 1 portion of soba noodles (usually about 3 oz)
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tsp. freshly grated ginger
  • 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
  • dash sesame oil
  • 7 cups water
  • 2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
  • 5 tbsp. white miso paste
  • 1-2 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 lb extra firm tofu, cubed
  • 4 cups fresh spinach, sliced
  • 2 scallions, chopped
  • sesame seeds
  1. Cook soba noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside (make sure to run under cool water to stop cooking).
  2. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat and sautee garlic and ginger for about one minute.
  3. Add water and bring to a boil.
  4. Add carrot and boil for about two minutes.
  5. Reduce to a simmer, then add miso and soy sauce and stir.
  6. Add tofu, soba noodles and spinach to pot and stir until spinach is wilted.
  7. Serve soup and top with scallions and sesame seeds. Enjoy!

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Tasty

Soba Noodle Bowl

June 11, 2014

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I’m going through a “bowl” phase… the idea of grains, veggies and a protein all touching and mixed together may terrify my 5 year old self, but now I can’t get enough – one dish to clean? Sign me up!

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Amazing Soba Bowl

  • Soba Noodles
  • 1 bell pepper, sliced into matchsticks
  • 2 carrots, peeled into ribbons
  • 1/2 a bag of edamame, cooked
  • 1/4 of a head of purple cabbage
  • 4 leaves of kale, de-stemmed, cut into ribbons
  • 1-2 bunch of green onions, chopped
  • Large handful of cilantro

Dressing

  • 1 1-inch piece of fresh peeled ginger, grated
  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 3 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons agave nectar
  • 1½ tablespoons white miso
  • ½ teaspoon minced garlic
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  1. Cook soba noodles and be sure to rinse them with cold water after draining them to stop them from cooking further.
  2. Top them with prepped veggies.
  3. Make dressing of your choice (I used the one above) and stir until well combined
  4. Drizzle with Sriracha and lime juice if you like.

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The joy is, you can mix and match to your heart’s delight… just find a dressing that fits your mood and get creative! Here are some of the “usual suspects” in my rotation (don’t forget that preparation variations make for even MORE combinations – hard-boiled/fried/poached eggs, shredded/grilled/roasted chicken, etc.):

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Dressings are key to making this all come together… if your ingredients are bold enough, perhaps you can go the oil and vinegar route, but if you want to mix it up, here are some of my favorites:

  • Coconut Peanut Sauce
    • 1/2 cup light coconut milk
    • 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
    • 2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
    • 1 tablespoon lime juice
    • splash of agave
  • Mustard Vinaigrette
    • 1/3 cup olive oil
    • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
    • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
    • pinch of sugar
  • Shallot Dijon Vinaigrette
    • 3 tablespoons finely diced shallots
    • 1 tablespoon honey
    • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
    • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
    • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • Cilantro Balsamic Dressing
    • 2 cloves garlic
    • 1/2 cup cilantro
    • 1/4 balsamic vinegar
    • 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
    • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
    • 1 cup olive oil
    • juice of half a lemon
  • Sesame Ginger Dressing
    • 2 tablespoons low sodium tamari sauce
    • 2 tablespoons water
    • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
    • 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
    • 1/4 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
    • 1 clove garlic, minced
    • 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

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