I love it when people ask me for ideas for recipes. That's exactly what happened here. One of my co-workers was looking for something to take to a barbeque. We started talking about it, and I said, "What about - oh, hey, how about - what if, Ooh, yeah!" And that's how this recipe was born. As fate would have it, this also fit the bill perfectly for my own gathering this weekend.
Because I love to cook and create in the kitchen, the easiest way to offend me is to ask me to bring a fruit tray, vegetable tray or green salad to a potluck. Give that duty to someone who hates cooking or isn't good at it. This weekend I was asked to bring "fruit." My disdain must have been written all over my face, because my BF followed up with, "The only specfication is there is no specification, so you can create whatever you want with fruit."
Gold mine! Now you're speaking my language. Thank you for not offending me.
So, this was born out of my little brain, coupled with a conversation with a co-worker.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup plain, unsweetened coconut yogurt (or plain, unsweetened yogurt of choice)
2-3 T honey, depending on desired sweetness
1 T. lemon juice
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 T. chia seeds
4 cups cut fresh fruit - I suggest berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc.), pineapple, grapes, pears, kiwis or any other fruit you like
2 T. unsweetened shredded coconut
Directions:
In a medium mixing bowl, combine yogurt, honey, lemon juice, cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg. Whisk well to combine. Add chia seeds, whisk well, and let stand for 10 minutes.
Combine fruit in a large mixing bowl and toss. Sprinkle coconut over top, and toss again to incorporate. Drizzle dressing over fruit and toss again until fruit is coated. Be sure to toss gently so as not to break up the more delicate fruits, like raspberries.
Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve. Note: This doesn't keep well long-term, so I don't recommend making it very long in advance. The fruit gets a little mushy. Still tasty, but you lose some of the crispness of the fruit.
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Monday, July 14, 2014
Shredded Cola Chicken
I don't drink soda, like, ever. Okay, maybe once a month I'll break down and have one, but it just doesn't taste as good as it used to. Back in the day, I was that big girl you saw walking around with her refillable quadruple Big Gulp sautered to her hand. When Coke Zero came out, that became my drug of choice. Unless you've been living under a rock, you already have an idea about why artificial sweeteners are not any better for you than honest to goodness high fructose corn syrup. And don't think that soda containing "real sugar" is any better. It isn't. There's just nothing good about drinking soda. If you must drink it - do so in moderation and make sure you're getting plenty of water. I understand vices. You can pry my coffee with cream and sugar out of my cold, dead hand. Just don't overdo it. I'm not recommending you drink soda ever - I would recommend that any more than I'd recommend you drink a bottle of rat poison, but I get that people are going to do what they're going to do. Just be reasonable about it.
I digress. I was piddling around the internet looking for something to make for dinner. I wanted something simple, but different enough from what we normally eat. When I'm not finding anything on my usual sites I'll occasionally jump on over to Spark People. The problem with Spark People is that they're all user entries. This fact in and of itself is not a bad thing. The problem is twofold: you can't count on the recipes to be healthy, and there are countless recipes for any given ingredient or cuisine. You really have to dig to find what you're looking for. Not ideal when you're just browsing.
Anyway, I came across this recipe someone posted that used three ingredients: a can of Coke, a cup of ketchup, and three chicken breasts. The reviewers raved about it. I could not stomach the thought of eating this as is - gag - but I thought the concept was worth a shot.
The end result was tasty and the chicken tender. The flavors were mild, and I think it would be yummier if it had a bit more of a kick - so I think next time I'll increase the chili powder and red pepper flakes. If you have a tender palate, though - go for it as is. Note: the sauce makes quite a bit more than you'll need for the recipe. I did it this way because I have squash bottled in quart-sized jars. I'm far more likely to use leftover sauce than leftover squash chunks. I used part of the leftover sauce the next night in the Plantain Beef Pie. There's still some left I plan to use for a recipe tonight. But, if you prefer, feel free to cut the recipe into a fourth and use it all.
Because of all the sugar from the soda, this is not something I will make regularly. It's tasty as an occasional treat, though!
For the sauce:
4 cups cooked, cubed butternut squash
1/2 roasted red bell pepper
1 T. Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 T. apple cider vinegar
1 T. honey
1 T. chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 T. nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp rosemary
1/8 to 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Add a little of the cooking water or hot water to get it moving, but not too much - you want a thick sauce here. You can always thin down the remaining sauce for another recipe if needed.
For the chicken:
3 chicken breasts
1 cup butternut squash sauce (see above)
12 oz cola (NOT sugar free)
1 can pineapple tidbits in juice (drained)
Directions:
Cut chicken breasts in half lengthwise. In a large pot, combine sauce and cola, whisking to combine (it will foam, that's fine). Add chicken to pot and stir so that the sauce covers all of the chicken pieces. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
Transfer chicken from pot to a large mixing bowl. Continue to simmer sauce, whisking frequently, until sauce reduces and is thickened. Shred chicken with two forks. When sauce is thickened, return chicken to pan and add pineapple tidbits. Stir well.
Serve over brown rice or cauliflower rice.
I digress. I was piddling around the internet looking for something to make for dinner. I wanted something simple, but different enough from what we normally eat. When I'm not finding anything on my usual sites I'll occasionally jump on over to Spark People. The problem with Spark People is that they're all user entries. This fact in and of itself is not a bad thing. The problem is twofold: you can't count on the recipes to be healthy, and there are countless recipes for any given ingredient or cuisine. You really have to dig to find what you're looking for. Not ideal when you're just browsing.
Anyway, I came across this recipe someone posted that used three ingredients: a can of Coke, a cup of ketchup, and three chicken breasts. The reviewers raved about it. I could not stomach the thought of eating this as is - gag - but I thought the concept was worth a shot.
The end result was tasty and the chicken tender. The flavors were mild, and I think it would be yummier if it had a bit more of a kick - so I think next time I'll increase the chili powder and red pepper flakes. If you have a tender palate, though - go for it as is. Note: the sauce makes quite a bit more than you'll need for the recipe. I did it this way because I have squash bottled in quart-sized jars. I'm far more likely to use leftover sauce than leftover squash chunks. I used part of the leftover sauce the next night in the Plantain Beef Pie. There's still some left I plan to use for a recipe tonight. But, if you prefer, feel free to cut the recipe into a fourth and use it all.
Because of all the sugar from the soda, this is not something I will make regularly. It's tasty as an occasional treat, though!
For the sauce:
4 cups cooked, cubed butternut squash
1/2 roasted red bell pepper
1 T. Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 T. apple cider vinegar
1 T. honey
1 T. chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 T. nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp rosemary
1/8 to 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Add a little of the cooking water or hot water to get it moving, but not too much - you want a thick sauce here. You can always thin down the remaining sauce for another recipe if needed.
For the chicken:
3 chicken breasts
1 cup butternut squash sauce (see above)
12 oz cola (NOT sugar free)
1 can pineapple tidbits in juice (drained)
Directions:
Cut chicken breasts in half lengthwise. In a large pot, combine sauce and cola, whisking to combine (it will foam, that's fine). Add chicken to pot and stir so that the sauce covers all of the chicken pieces. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
Transfer chicken from pot to a large mixing bowl. Continue to simmer sauce, whisking frequently, until sauce reduces and is thickened. Shred chicken with two forks. When sauce is thickened, return chicken to pan and add pineapple tidbits. Stir well.
Serve over brown rice or cauliflower rice.
Friday, July 11, 2014
Black Beans and Rice
I think I've been playing a few too many hours of video games lately. My BF got this new RPG game for XBox and it's similar to a Harry Potter game I used to waste hours on. The whole week I've played way too late and been sacrificing my sleep. Bad, bad!
The moral of the story: I came home from work last night, sprawled out on the bed for a minute watching my BF play the game (it's just as interesting to watch as it is to play) and the next thing I knew it I had fallen asleep and it was after 8:00pm. I was soooo tempted to jump in the car and run to Chick-Fil-A for dinner. I probably stared at the ceiling thinking about it for fifteen minutes. I finally decided I could cook some fish faster than I could pick up food.
I love tilapia. There are so many little variations I do with it, so it's never exactly the same. Last night it turned out super yummy (or maybe I was just fah-mish-ed). My problem with fish is I never know what to serve as a side dish. Rice is always a good option, but when I'm making fish it's usually because I need dinner done fast. Rice takes 30 minutes to cook (unless I happen to have some already made in the fridge - which I did last night).
My BF tells me he likes it when I just throw a bunch of stuff together because it usually turns out good. I kind of wanted beans, kind of wanted rice, and kind of wanted something saucy. Those are good times to just throw some stuff together.
For this recipe, you could serve it as a side dish (like I did last night) or as a main dish (like I brought for lunch today). You could even toss in some cooked chicken to make it more hearty.
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 small can diced green chilis
1 T. chili powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
10 dashes liquid smoke
2-3 T. coconut milk
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 T. nutritional yeast
Directions:
Combine black beans, rice and chilis in a medium saucepan. Add all remaining ingredients except nutritional yeast and stir to combine. Add a little additional coconut milk if needed (chili powder absorbs a lot of moisture). Stir until heated through and just starting to simmer, then stir in nutritional yeast. Add additional seasonings if desired.
The moral of the story: I came home from work last night, sprawled out on the bed for a minute watching my BF play the game (it's just as interesting to watch as it is to play) and the next thing I knew it I had fallen asleep and it was after 8:00pm. I was soooo tempted to jump in the car and run to Chick-Fil-A for dinner. I probably stared at the ceiling thinking about it for fifteen minutes. I finally decided I could cook some fish faster than I could pick up food.
I love tilapia. There are so many little variations I do with it, so it's never exactly the same. Last night it turned out super yummy (or maybe I was just fah-mish-ed). My problem with fish is I never know what to serve as a side dish. Rice is always a good option, but when I'm making fish it's usually because I need dinner done fast. Rice takes 30 minutes to cook (unless I happen to have some already made in the fridge - which I did last night).
My BF tells me he likes it when I just throw a bunch of stuff together because it usually turns out good. I kind of wanted beans, kind of wanted rice, and kind of wanted something saucy. Those are good times to just throw some stuff together.
For this recipe, you could serve it as a side dish (like I did last night) or as a main dish (like I brought for lunch today). You could even toss in some cooked chicken to make it more hearty.
Ingredients:
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 small can diced green chilis
1 T. chili powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
10 dashes liquid smoke
2-3 T. coconut milk
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 T. nutritional yeast
Directions:
Combine black beans, rice and chilis in a medium saucepan. Add all remaining ingredients except nutritional yeast and stir to combine. Add a little additional coconut milk if needed (chili powder absorbs a lot of moisture). Stir until heated through and just starting to simmer, then stir in nutritional yeast. Add additional seasonings if desired.
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