July 22, 2008

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

If you've been a reader of Dianne's Dishes for a while you've seen me talk a lot about not heating up the oven that much during the summer. But not heating up your oven doesn't mean you have to give up foods you would normally cook there, it just means you find a different way to cook them and a slow cooker is a perfect way to do just that!

The other day I got a turkey breast from South Mountain Creamery and I decided to see how it would turn out in the slow cooker. I mean you can cook chicken quite well in a slow cooker so why not turkey? I must say even though in theory I thought it would work I was very pleased with the result! The breast was tender, juicy and overall just very delicious and the whole process was beyond simple! I'll most definitely be trying this again!

Another good thing about turkey is that you can do many things with the leftovers too! How about Turkey Avocado Salad or Turkey Noodle Soup or Turkey Salad...You can also use turkey in just about any recipe you would use chicken instead. How is that for versatile?

What You'll Need:
1 turkey breast (Note: I used one that had the bone.)
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Dried rosemary

Place turkey breast into the bowl of your slow cooker. Drizzle with olive oil. (Note: You want a few tablespoons max.) Flip the breast over to make sure you get olive oil on both sides. Sprinkle with sea salt, black pepper and dried rosemary. Place lid on slow cooker and turn heat to high. Cook for 6-7 hours.

Halfway through the cooking process flip the breast once. Once cooked bring out of the slow cooker and let sit for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve immediately.

Notes: Any dried herb you like will work. Thyme would be fabulous!

Posted by Dianne at 7:26 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

July 3, 2008

Gluten-Free Beef Stir Fry

I'm back! It would appear that they have ironed out the issues that were occurring that left me unable to access Dianne's Dishes Tuesday afternoon and the better part of yesterday...Now watch, I probably just went and jinxed myself! ;oP

Anyway, let's get started with some food shall we?

The other day when I made the Vegetable Stir Fry for me, I also made a Gluten-Free Beef Stir Fry for Jamison. You marinate it much the same way, but the "sauce" is much more simple than that of the Vegetable Stir Fry. The result is a tender, slightly sweet/carmalized and slightly salty dish that really hits the spot. Unlike Jamison you can throw in some steamed broccoli or a few sautéd vegetables and really round out the dish. Pair the stir fry with some brown rice and you've got a lovely, healthy meal that you can throw together in the morning or the night before, put in the fridge and then quickly cook in the evening. What's better than that?

What You'll Need:
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
1/4 cup of gluten-free soy sauce
1/4 cup of rice vinegar
1 scallion, chopped (green and white section)
1 clove of garlic, chopped fine
1 pound of steak, cut into cubes and all visible fat trimmed
1 cup of cooked brown rice per person (Note: Remember that most brown rice takes about 50 minutes to an hour to cook. The stir fry itself takes about 20-30 minutes.)

In a bowl or a canning jar mix together sesame oil, gluten-free soy sauce and rice vinegar until incorporated. Stir or shake in scallions and garlic to mix. Add steak and toss or shake to coat. Marinate for at least 1 hour to overnight covered tightly in the fridge.

Dump the contents of your bowl or jar into a large skillet and over medium heat bring to a boil. Cook the beef until the liquid evaporates, the mixture thickens slightly and the beef is tender:

Serve with rice and/or steamed or sautéd vegetables.

Notes: You could do this with chicken or sea food as well.

Posted by Dianne at 8:47 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

June 18, 2008

Not Quite General Tso's Chicken

While my first attempt at a slimmed down General Tso's Chicken didn't turn out completely as I had hoped, and wasn't quite what General Tso's Chicken should be, it did turn out to be quite lovely! It had a very spicy element along with a little sweet. It was good and I would make this again, but I'm going to have to experiment a little more. For now I'll share this with you, because really if you like a little sweet an spicy then this is the dish for you!

What You'll Need:
1 tablespoons of sesame oil
3-4 scallions, chopped (both white and green parts), Plus additional scallions cut into strips for garnishing
2 tablespoons of fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 large green chili pepper, seeded and cut into thin strips
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup of soy sauce
1/2 cup of rice vinegar
A pinch of sea salt
1/3 cup of honey
2 cups of chicken broth
1/2 cup corn starch
Extra virgin olive oil
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
2-3 cups of steamed broccoli
Cooked brown rice (Note: Brown rice takes about an hour to cook so keep this in mind. The dish itself takes about 30-35 minutes from start to finish.)

In a medium sized pot over medium heat sauté scallions, ginger, chili pepper and crushed red pepper flakes until onion is wilted and tender. Stir occasionally to keep from burning.

When onion is tender add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sea salt, honey and 1 cup of chicken broth and bring to a boil. Stir together remaining chicken broth with 1/3 cup of corn starch until smooth and add to the pot. Stir sauce until thickened (this usually takes a minute or two) and remove from heat.

Let sauce cool for a minute and then strain into a bowl. Set aside.

While the sauce is cooking, in a large skillet with a little extra virgin olive oil sauté chicken until browned and done through. Once cooked add strained sauce and cook for a minute or two to let the flavors meld.

While the chicken is cooking steam broccoli and the strips of green onion until tender. (Note: I usually do this in the microwave by putting a few tablespoon of water in the bottom of a glass bowl and then putting the vegetables on top. It takes about 2-3 minutes in my microwave.)

To assemble place a cup of rice on a plate and then top with the chicken/sauce mixture. Top with the steamed scallions and broccoli. Serve immediately.

How easy and delicious is that?

Notes: You could do this with shrimp or beef instead. Or if you wanted an entirely vegetarian dish you could use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth and mushrooms or tofu instead of meat. If you wanted to make it vegan you'd have to find a substitute for the honey. Agave nectar might work, but I'd have to play around with that to be sure.

Posted by Dianne at 8:58 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

June 16, 2008

Grilled Chicken Sandwich With Grilled Mushrooms And Provolone And A Side Of Old Bay Oven Fries

A grilled chicken sandwich is sort of a classic. You can go really simple and have a grilled chicken breast, with some lettuce, tomato and mayo, but why not kick it up a notch? You've still got your basic grilled breast, but why not top it with some sautéd mushrooms and a little Provolone cheese and you've got a sandwich that went from good to fabulous! Pair it with some Old Bay Oven fries and you've got a quick and easy meal.

What You'll Need Per Person For The Chicken Sandwich:
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
Extra virgin olive oil
2 large mushrooms, sliced
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 slice of Provolone cheese
2 slices of whole grain bread or a whole grain bun
Mayonnaise and/or brown mustard if desired

What You'll Need Per Person For The Old Bay Oven Fries:
1 potato (Note: I usually use russets.)
Extra virgin olive oil
Old Bay Seasoning
A small pinch of sea salt (Note: Go VERY easy on the salt as Old Bay has some salt in it. Just use a minute amount. Possible 1/4 a teaspoon or so.)

Pre-heat a grill or a grill pan until it's hot. (I used a grill pan.)

While the grill or pan is heating (my pan is cast iron so it takes a bit) pre-heat oven to 425 F.

Wash potato and cut into strips. Drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and toss to coat. (Note: You need no more than roughly a tablespoon to make oven fries. Don't go overboard or the fries won't crisp. You don't want the fries to be sitting in oil, you just want a slight coating.) Sprinkle generously with Old Bay seasoning. (Note: Old Bay has a bit of a kick to it. If you don't care for spicy use less, or you could simply use sea salt and black pepper.) Sprinkle with sea salt and place in the pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes until fries are browned and slightly crisp.

While the fries are baking it's time to start working on your chicken sandwich. Depending on the size of your breast you may be able to get two sandwiches out of one breast. If the breast you are using is large and/or thick cut it in half. It it is still thick then pound it flat. You want the breast to be uniform in size. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.

Brush the hot grill with extra virgin olive oil (again you just want a thin coat, you don't want the breast sitting in a pool of oil. A tablespoon or two will cover the entire grill) and place the chicken breast on the grill. Turn the breast a few times and cook until done through. If you're not sure if it's done you can cut into the breast, but you can usually tell by looking at it when it's done. It takes about 5-8 minutes on medium to high heat. Toward the end of the cooking time add mushrooms to the grill and cook until tender.

When the chicken is done spread mayo and/or brown mustard on a couple of slices of toasted whole grain bread. Add chicken breast and top with a slice of cheese and then add sautéd mushrooms. Top with the other slice of bread, cut and serve with the Old Bay oven fries.

Quick, easy, delicious and healthier than a sandwich that has been fried and served with regular fries. Plus the taste is fabulous!

Notes: You could use Swiss cheese in place of the provolone. You could also add in sautéd onions and/or bell pepper if you like. I always use light mayo and this time around I skipped the mustard.

Posted by Dianne at 8:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 12, 2008

Barbeque Chicken Pizza

Every couple of weeks we have pizza night. Jamison always has a tomato sauce with pepperoni and ground beef on a gluten free crust with rice mozzarella, Alexis usually has a tomato sauce with mozzarella, Parmesan and black olives, though as of late she has eschewed the olives and me, well I like to switch it up. Sometimes I have Chicken, Artichoke and Spinach Pizza or a Goat Cheese Pizza with Zucchini and Cherry Tomatoes or taking the dough and making a Calzone or you can leave out the crust all together and make Eggplant Pizzas. The possibilities are endless!

This go around I decided to make something a bit more contemporary and put together a Barbeque Chicken Pizza on a White Whole Wheat Crust! You can top this any way you like and you end up with a personalized pizza that hits the spot! What's better than that?

What You'll Need For the Crust:
2 cups of white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon of sea salt
3/4 cup of warm water
1 tablespoon of honey
4 teaspoons of yeast
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

In a large bowl stir together flour and salt to incorporate. In a glass measuring cup add honey and yeast to warm water and let sit for 3-5 minutes until foamy. Add olive oil to the flour mixture and then slowly add water/yeast mixture stirring until ball of dough forms. (Note: Depending on humidity and such you may need a little more or a little less water. Eyeball it as you go. Once the ball forms you'll know to stop. It's hard to mess this recipe up. It's very forgiving. If you go too far with the water then add more flour a tablespoon at a time until ball forms. If you need more water then add it a tablespoon at a time. Easy peasy.)

Once the dough ball forms you need to let it rise. This make roughly one large pizza or 4-6 personal sized pizzas depending on how big you like them. I like to make personal sized pizzas so that way everyone can have their own favorite toppings. If you're making one big pizza simply place the dough on a baking sheet in your oven with your oven light on (the oven light puts out just enough heat to rise to dough) or if you want to make personal sized pizzas divide the dough into 4 to 6 small balls and place on a baking sheet and follow the same procedure as for the large ball. You can freeze the dough balls before you let them rise if you want to use them later and then pull them out and let them thaw and rise at another time. If you aren't freezing the dough then let the dough balls rise for at least one hour. Then roll or push out the dough on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper (use a little olive oil on your hands to keep it from sticking) and top with your favorite pizza toppings to bake.

What You'll Need To Complete The Personal Sized Pizza:
1/4-1/3 cup of barbeque sauce
1/2 cup of shredded chicken
1/3 cup of mozzarella, shredded
1/4 cup of Parmesan, shredded
1/4 cup of sliced black olives
1/4 of an onion, chopped (Note: I used Vidalia, but any onion will work.)

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Spread a layer of barbeque sauce out onto the spread out crust. Next add a layer of chicken. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan and then add olive and onion. Bake for 8-12 minutes until crust is golden brown, cut and serve.

Notes: Pineapple is a good addition to this pizza. Green peppers work too.

Posted by Dianne at 10:55 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

June 9, 2008

Stuffed Pork Chops

I get bored with food. More specifically I get bored with the food that Jamison will eat. How he eats such a bland diet and does so over and over is beyond me! I can't even begin to explain to you how much I love him, but I get bored with his food quickly! ;o) So sometimes when I'm thinking of what to make for dinner I'll make something plain he'll eat (in this case a pork chop) and kick it up a bit so that I'm not having to eat the same things over and over and over. In my mind life is too short not to try different things!

A while back I saw Tyler Florence stuff a pork chop. I don't remember exactly what his had in it, but it had another form of pork (either pancetta or ham) and some sort of cheese, then again maybe it wasn't Tyler and maybe there was no cheese, but I specifically remember thinking "Really? Pork twice?" and then I started thinking about hardening arteries and heart disease and life in general...See how that works? See how I just get sidetracked like that?

Where was I? Oh yes....Stuffed pork chops!

Anyway, the other day I decided to try my hand at stuffed pork chops, but I decided that two forms of pork was just a bit much. So I started thinking of things that go well with pork chops and apples were the first thing that came to mind. Then I started thinking about something that would meld well with the apples and immediately thought of blue cheese and thus these babies were born!

Once baked the flavors just combine perfectly! The apples soften and meld with the blue cheese and the whole overall taste is just superb! Pair the chops with a little wild rice and a steamed vegetable and you've got a wonderful meal that is sure to wow! These chops take the ordinary and very easily make them extraordinary. What's better than that?

What You'll Need Per Person:
1 thick cut pork chop
1/4 of an apple, cut into thin rounds
1 ounce of blue cheese
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 F. (Note: I actually baked these in my toaster oven.)

First you want to cut a pocket into your thick chop. You do this by cutting in to the thickest part of the chop. Insert the knife and make a clean cut, making a pocket, but do not cut it alll the way through. You want a pouch, not two separate pieces of pork.

Once the pork chop is cut, then cut an apple into thin rounds and place the rounds inside the pocket:

Next top the apples with blue cheese:

After you add the cheese you want to secure your chop. I used cooking twine, but you can use toothpicks if you want:

Brush the top of the chop with a little extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Place in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until pork is done through. (Note: I know some people advocate baking pork like beef, but not me! Pork has to be well done. If it is not well done then don't eat it! Trichinosis anyone? Didn't think so!)

Remove from oven, untie and serve immediately.

Notes: You could use goat cheese and pears if you liked instead of apples and blue cheese.

Posted by Dianne at 7:27 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

June 6, 2008

Pineapple Chicken Salad

My sister, Ben and the boys are getting ready to fly to Tennessee tomorrow and she needed someone to distract Nelson and keep Grant out of the two year old grasp of his brother so she could pack. Alexis and I headed to their house this morning to do just that! We even swung by Starbucks and brought drinks because well Alexis is all about Starbucks (even though I don't drink coffee, they've got great tea...And before anyone asks and the answer should be obvious, but I'll share anyway, Alexis doesn't drink coffee either, but she loves their Strawberries and Cream Frappuchino! ;op)

Earlier in the week when I picked up groceries I grabbed a chicken because I was running low on broth and needed to make some. When I found out we'd be going over to Katherine's today I decided to use the breast meat from the chicken to make a batch of chicken salad and take it over for lunch today along with some fruit for a quick an easy lunch. I saved the rest of the meat for use later, but that's neither here nor there right now! ;o)

I've made variations of this chicken salad hundreds of times. The idea for the pineapple came from a chicken salad sandwich we used to get a long time ago in the little town I grew up in Tennessee and was probably my first improvised recipe in that I tasted it, remembered I liked it and recreated it years later. Every time you make it it is slightly different due to the pineapple. Sometimes the pineapple is really sweet, others not so much (and sadly this go round it was not so much), but it's good either way, though I prefer it slightly sweeter.

The chicken has a slight hint of thyme and rosemary from the cooking process of making the broth and the almonds and sunflower seeds give it a little crunch, but overall this is the prefect, summery salad that can be used to make sandwiches or even served on lettuce and really hits the spot on a hot summer day!

What You'll Need:
2 chicken breasts, shredded (Note: If you don't use chicken that you've used to make broth with herbs then you could add in 1/4-1/2 of both dried thyme and rosemary.)
1 - 20 ounce can of crushed or tidbit pineapple in its own juice, drained
1/3 cup of sunflower seeds
1/2 cup of whole almonds
1/4 cup of light mayonnaise

In a large bowl add all ingredients and stir to mix. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Seriously how easy is that?

Notes: You can add 1/2 of a small red onion finely chopped, but I was out. You can also add chopped scallions instead if you want. Cashews can be used instead of almonds and pumpkin seeds instead of sunflower seeds or a combination of any of them.

Posted by Dianne at 3:38 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

June 2, 2008

Steak Sandwich Done Right

When I attended the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and lived in the dorm there was a grill across the courtyard from my dorm that had the best (and the time the only) steak sandwiches I had ever had! The grill wasn't on my meal plan, but you had "bonus" dollars on most plans and those could be used there. A friend of mine and I would go down to the grill once a week or so and indulge. Given we had to walk a mile or so to class and then a mile or so back for many of our classes and we were usually walking quite quickly we easily burned off these splurges and I do mean splurge!

Let's take about these gut buster sandwiches why don't we? These sandwiches had lord knows how much fat and calories! The meat was cooked in butter and then if you added vegetables (I always had just mushrooms) then those were cooked in butter too. After that they'd slap down a little more butter and "toast" the bun on the grill and then put the whole thing together! And I'm not talking just a little butter, I'm talking like 1/4 of a cup at least for each thing that was "cooked" or as the case may be fried! Then we'd top it off with a large order of French fries. Oh my! I can hear my arteries hardening just thinking about all that butter! ;oP

As I have gotten older I just can't eat like that anymore. Over the past two years anything that has too much fat or if I eat too much fried stuff it just doesn't sit well. Plus who wants that much butter in a sitting? (OK...Maybe Ina or Paula Deen, but still! ;oP) Also I really worry about beef in general. I don't eat a lot of beef and I most definitely eat grass fed beef when I do. Mad cow anyone? I think not! It was time to take your basic steak sandwich and take it to a whole other level.

This sandwich actually uses a steak. It does not use that minute steak stuff, which I'm sure is not grass fed. Throw in some mushrooms, some provolone and serve it on some whole grain toasted bread and you've taken the standard, greasy steak sandwich and made it into something much lighter and much better for you. Who says you can't revamp something bad into something better?

What You'll Need:
1 - 1 pound grass fed steak
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Sliced mushrooms (optional)
Sliced onions (optional)
Sliced bell pepper (optional)
4 slices of whole grain bread, toasted
2 slices of Provolone cheese

Slice a 1 pound steak into thin strips. Place in a glass bowl and drizzle with some olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper and then toss to coat. Place bowl covered in the fridge for at least one hour.

Preheat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a little olive oil and cook mushrooms, onion and pepper until just tender. (I used only mushrooms, but you can use all of them or none of them...It's completely a matter of taste.) Once vegetables are tender add steak and cook until the meat is done to your likeness. (I like mine medium.) Remove from heat.

To assemble the sandwich place the layer of meat/veggies onto a slice of toasted bread. Top with Provolone. Add any condiments that you like. (I like a little light mayo.) After the condiments top with the other slice of toasted bread. Cut in half and serve.

Makes 2 sandwiches.

Notes: This method would work with chicken too if you wanted. At the grill they served the sandwich on a hoagie bun. You could serve it on a whole grain bun if you liked. For a vegetarian version you could just use more mushrooms and/or other vegetables.

Posted by Dianne at 8:22 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

May 21, 2008

Basic Roasted Lemon Chicken with Thyme and Rosemary

Basic roasted chicken is a very simple, yet very delicious solution to an impressive meal. It gives you a little wow factor, all while being crazily easy to prepare. It's perfect for a week night or even to pull out when company comes around. Most importantly (or at least to me) is the left over chicken to make other things with and of course the potential to make chicken broth. I'm all about multi-purpose when it comes to potential future meals.

Now let's talk roasting. There are two schools of thought on the matter. Low and slow or high and fast. I however like to do a combination of the two. I like to roast the chicken at 325 F for an hour or so and then crank the temperature up to 400 F for the last 30-45 minutes. The slow makes the chicken tender and juicy, the last blast of heat gives you that lovely brown color and crispy skin. I usually bake a chicken at least two hours, but most likely closer to three. It all depends on how large the chicken is and things of that nature.

When I'm picking out a chicken I always choose a chicken that is natural. If it says it has added fluid or solution or whatever that is not the chicken you want! You want a basic, unaltered, unadorned, unmessed with (yes I just made that up! ;oP) natural chicken. The stuff they add is mostly water and/or salt and or some weird flavoring that is supposed to make it taste better, but do you want to eat some weird flavoring that is most likely some nasty chemical or would you rather do it yourself? Trust me doing it yourself is better! ;o)

When seasoning your roasted chicken you can just do basic and add just salt and pepper or you can spice it up a bit. Chicken is very versatile and it's one of those things that is very easy and very fun to play around with. If you aren't sure which way to go two choices in terms of herbs that will give you a knock out chicken every time are thyme and rosemary. With the addition of the lemon you have a wonderful combination that will wins you raves.

Some what are you waiting for? Let's roast a chicken!

What You'll Need:
1 natural chicken
Sea salt (Note: I like to use Celtic sea salt when roasting a chicken.)
Freshly ground black pepper
2 lemons, cut in half
Extra virgin olive oil (Note: Some people use butter, but I use olive oil for two reasons: 1) It's healthier and 2) I think it makes a crisper skin and gives the chicken an overall better taste.)
Dried thyme (Note: I think the dried thyme works better for roasting versus fresh thyme.)
Dried rosemary (Note: See explanation for dried thyme.)

Pre-heat oven to 325 F.

(Note: The USDA recommends a chicken have an internal temperature of at least 165 F and to be totally honest I never check the temperature. You want to chicken to be done through and if you stick it with a fork the juices should run clear. If they don't then the chicken is not done and should be cooked longer. After you've cooked a chicken or two you can usually tell by looking at it if it's done. According to USDA guidelines a 3-4 pound chicken will take 1 1/4-1 1/2 hours to bake fully at 350F. It also depends on the actual temperature of your oven as well as they can run either hot or cold.)

Rinse your chicken under cool water and pat dry. Place in a large baking dish.

Sprinkle the cavity of the chicken with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and then stuff in the lemons.

Next drizzle the outside with olive oil and sprinkle generously with sea salt, black pepper, dried thyme and rosemary.

Place baking dish in the oven and cook chicken for 1 1/2 -2 hours. Then raise the oven temperature to 400 F and bake for an additional 30-45 minutes until the skin is really browned and crispy. Remove chicken from the oven and let sit for 10-15 minutes before cutting and servings.

Notes: Lemon not your thing? You can stuff the chicken with onion and/or garlic. You can also add in potatoes and carrots around the chicken about 20 minutes before you up the temperature to 400 F to make it an all in one dish.

Posted by Dianne at 9:32 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

May 19, 2008

Taste & Create IX: Chicken Breasts with Mediterranean Stuffing

I had so much fun last month with the Taste & Create event that I signed up to do it again! This month my partner was CIA: Cooking in an Apron and there were so many wonderful recipes to choose from that it took me a while to decide what I wanted to do. I finally chose to make Chicken Breasts with Mediterranean Stuffing!

First off let's just cut to the chase...Goat cheese! Those of you who are regular readers know I adore goat cheese and have even made it myself! Also I must admit I had never tried sun dried tomatoes, though I have wanted to. I know they were really popular back in the 90's but I was a dirt poor college student back in those days and they never even crossed my radar. So the combination of the two sounded so nice that I just knew I had to try it!

I ended up making my own tapenade. It's simple. You just mix together roasted garlic, black olives, sea salt, some black pepper and a little olive oil. You can do this process with green or black olives, but I chose to do it with black since that is what the recipe called for. Since I had added garlic to the tapenade I left it out of the recipe. I also like my tapenade a bit chunky, instead of smooth.

The process of making this chicken is simple: You take a boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut into it at the thickest part, filleting it open, but not totally cutting it in half. Next you add in a layer of cooked spinach:

On top of the spinach layer you next add a layer of goat cheese mixed with sun dried tomatoes:

To mix the goat cheese and sun dried tomatoes together I chopped up the tomatoes and placed them and the goat cheese in the bowl of my mixer with about a tablespoon of the oil from the sun dried tomatoes and mixed until incorporated.

Once the goat cheese mixture was added I topped it with some of the tapenade and folded the breast over and baked it at 375 F for about 25-30 minutes until golden and done through and that was the only thing that I changed instead of cooking it in a pan on the stove top. It was one of those days and I had so many things going on I couldn't watch it properly so I baked it for 25-30 minutes and it turned out great! The flavors all melded so well together and I was able to use spinach from my spinach box on the front porch!

If you like spinach, tomatoes and goat cheese then this is the chicken for you!

Be sure to check For The Love of Food after May 24th to see how the Taste & Create round up went!

Have a wonderful day everyone! I'm off to vacuum, mop and then work on a quilt!

Posted by Dianne at 7:52 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

May 4, 2008

Pulled Pork with Barbeque Sauce, Slaw and Oven Fries

Barbeque doesn't have to be hard...There I said it. You can have your secret ingredients, you can claim that only smoking it makes it good, you can grill it, you can bake it, you can even slap that sucker in a crock-pot and while each might have its charms, they all end up being charming and delicious in and of themselves. Add in some oven fries and a little slaw and you've got an easy meal that will have you looking forward to those summer days right around the corner.

This version falls into the oven or crock-pot category. You simply roast the pork with a little olive oil, black pepper and sea salt and then shred, top with some barbeque sauce and slaw, while pairing it with some oven fries and you've got a fabulous barbeque dinner that will win you raves. The most important thing to remember is that this is extremely easy too and that's always good, especially on a week night when dinner can be hectic.

What You'll Need for the entire Meal:
A pork roast (Note: Butt, shoulder or whatever cut you prefer.)
Buns (Note: Hotdog or hamburger buns either would work. I normally buy the whole grain type if I do a bun at all, which I usually don't, but I couldn't find them this go around.)
Barbeque sauce (Note: I use my homemade sauce, but you can use the bottled stuff if you prefer. I'll even give you a pass on the high fructose corn syrup lecture just this once. ;oP)
Slaw (See recipe below)
Oven fries (See recipe below)

What You'll Need for the Slaw:
2 cups of cabbage, shredded (Note: You can use green cabbage, red cabbage or a mix of both.)
1 cup of carrots, shredded
(Note: If you want to just buy a bag of pre-shredded cabbage or broccoli slaw mix feel free. I like to do it myself since it's a bit fresher, but either method will work.)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of apple cider (Note: If it seems a bit thick add a bit more vinegar a tablespoon at a time to thin it out.)
1/4 cup of light mayonnaise
1-2 tablespoons of organic cane sugar or honey (Note: If you like slaw sweeter go with more, if you like it less so go with less.)
1 teaspoon of celery seed (optional)

What You'll Need for the Oven Fries per Person:
1 potato, cut into shoestring pieces
Extra virgin olive oil
A pinch of sea salt
Black pepper

First you need to get the roast started. You can do this one of two ways. You can put the roast in a crock pot with about an inch of water, drizzled with a little olive oil and sprinkled with some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set the crock pot on high and cook for 5-6 hours until the roast falls apart and/or you can shred it with a fork.

The other way to do this is to cook the roast covered in the in oven low and slow. Preheat oven to 300 F. Place the pork roast in a dish (choose one that has a lid) and drizzle the roast with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover the dish with the lid or foil if you don't have a bakeable covered dish and bake for 3-4 hours depending on the size of the roast. You'll know it's done when you can take a fork and it will start to shred like this:

Once cooked let the roast sit for 10-15 minutes and then shred with a couple of forks.

After the pork is shredded you can eat it however you like. I sometimes eat it without a bun, and in fact usually eat it that way, but occasionally I do use buns. Usually it's a layering system bun, then shredded pork, then barbeque sauce.

Once you have the barbeque sauce in place top it with slaw and serve.

While the roast is cooking make your slaw. Slaw is a simple dish, cabbage or other vegetable of your choice, a little mayo, some vinegar and a little sugar or honey. You don't need a lot of any of these. The key to a good slaw is that it's not swimming in sauce. It should be slightly coated, but you don't want a lot of extra sauce. The taste of the cabbage/salad should be accentuated, not covered up. Slaw also needs a bit of time to marinate for an hour or so before serving.

In a large bowl toss together cabbage and carrots until mixed or dump the premixed cabbage or broccoli mixture. In a separate bowl mix together mayo, vinegar and sugar until smooth. Pour the mayo mixture over the cabbage and toss to coat. Store in the fridge covered until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 425 F. Thirty minutes before you're ready to eat start your oven fries. Rinse the potatoes and cut them into shoestring pieces. Toss the cut potatoes with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper and place on a baking tray. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are done through an are slightly crispy.

Notes: If you want a different take on slaw then why not try some Wasabi Slaw? You could use sweet potatoes or purple potatoes instead of regular potatoes to switch things up on the oven fries. You could also use other seasonings on the fries. Seasoned salt is good, or Old Bay Seasoning is also a good addition.

Posted by Dianne at 12:34 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 29, 2008

Steak-a-Mabobs

So what to call this? I just didn't know, thus the Steak-a-Mabobs title! This is a very simple dish, that creates a certain wow factor. I got the idea from Chicken Cordon Blue, but without the extra breading and meat and minus the butter. The steak and spinach meld very well with the swiss cheese and overall it's just a wonderful combination. Paired with some roasted sweet potatoes it made the perfect meal! If you want something with a little pizazz, all while being easy to make, then this is the dish for you!

What You'll Need:
1 - 1 to 1/2 pound steak of your choice, pounded thin
Sea salt (Note: I used Celtic sea salt.)
Freshly ground black pepper
Baby spinach leaves, washed and dried
Swiss cheese (Note: I used raw milk baby swiss cheese.)
Extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 F.

First you need to pound your steak until it is about 1/4 of an inch all the way around and then sprinkle the surface with sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper:

Next layer the steak with baby spinach leaves:

On top of the spinach leaves add 1 to 2 ounces of swiss cheese:

Roll up the steak and secure it with some wooden skewers:

Drizzle the top with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with a bit more sea salt and black pepper. Bake the steak for 25-55 minutes depending on how done you like your meat. I actually let this one go a bit too long for my taste as I like a medium rare steak, but you can cook it however you enjoy.

Makes 2-3 servings depending on the size of your steak.

Notes: You could use arugula in place of the spinach. You could also add in mushrooms and/or onions if you liked or switch out the cheese for provolone or Monterrey jack. It's a fun recipe to play around with.

Posted by Dianne at 10:26 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 18, 2008

The Best Slow Cooker Pot Roast You'll Ever Eat

Pot Roast is one of, if not the, quintessential comfort food of all time. When you cook a pot roast in a slow cooker you end up with a tender, moist roast that literally falls apart. You can cook it alone and make some mashed potatoes and a side salad to accompany the meal, or you can throw in some cut up potatoes, carrots, parsnips, etc to make a wonderful one dish meal.

Any way you make it, this is bound to become a family favorite! And the best part is this is simple and easy to throw on in the morning and have a hot, hearty dinner ready for the evening. Pot roast isn't just for Sunday dinner anymore!

What You'll Need:
1 roast (Note: You can chose shoulder, rump, whatever you like.)
Water
Sea salt
Black pepper

Place roast in the bottom of you slow cooker and cover with water until just covered. Add a very generous pinch of sea salt and a lot of freshly ground black pepper and believe it or not that's it!

Now for cooking. You can do it one of two ways. You can cook it on high for 5-6 hours or you can cook it on low all day long. You'll know it's done when you stick the roast with a fork and it sort of shreds.

Once the pot roast is cooked remove it from the slow cooker and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before slicing. I usually let it rest on a cutting board or in a glass dish. When you start to slice the roast it will normally just sort of fall apart. Once in a blue moon you may get a roast that does not, but it's very rare. 9.9 times out of 10 when a roast is cooked like this it just falls apart and is very tender.

If you want to add in vegetables then layer them on the bottom of the slow cooker and then lay the roast on top. After that follow the same directions as above.

If you want you can make gravy with the broth that forms from the cooking of the roast by taking 2 cups of the broth and placing them in a stock pot. Take about 1/4 a cup of broth and mix with 1-2 tablespoons of flour until smooth and add to the pot. Stir the broth/flour mixture in to mix and then cook over medium heat until mixture thickens. There is no need to add salt or pepper as the broth already has both. You can also reserve the left over broth for soup.

Notes: If you want you can add in a sliced onion on top of the meat or throw in 6-8 garlic cloves, but it's not necessary unless you just want to. The salt and pepper bring out wonderful aspects of the meat itself. You could also add in some rosemary and/or thyme.

Posted by Dianne at 7:24 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

April 7, 2008

Cheesy Ham Bake

I love Easter and not to mention the leftover Easter ham! A thick slice of ham makes a wonderful sandwich, but you can just eat so many sandwiches before you start looking to make something else. An omelet with ham and cheese is a good alternative or you can make a sinful, cheesy, macaroni bake with nice bites of ham through out. It's not light and it's not something you want to make everyday, but it's a fun treat or "sometimes" food an sometimes that's just what you need!

What You'll Need:
3/4 of a 16 ounce package of pasta (Note: I used rotini, but you can use whatever shape you want.)
2 cups of milk (Note: You can use whatever kind of milk you want. I used skim.)
2 - 8 ounce bars of Colby cheese, shredded
9 ounces of goat cheese, crumbled
Black pepper
4 cups of ham, chopped into bite sized pieces

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking melt cheese in the milk until smooth with a little black pepper. (Note: You can add salt it you want, but given the cheese and ham are salty in and of themselves I don't. I think these two elements make the whole dish salty enough.)

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a large bowl toss together pasta and ham. Pour melted cheese mixture over the mix and stir to coat. Pour mixture into a 13 X 9 inch dish that has been buttered or sprayed with non-stick spray. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the mixture is slightly browned. Serve immediately.

Notes: I had planned to add 2 cups of broccoli florets into the mix too, but I was out of broccoli. You could add in other veggies if you wanted and leave out the ham if you wanted a vegeterian option. Mushrooms would be good, as would onion and/or bell peppers.

Posted by Dianne at 7:04 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 24, 2008

Steak Fajita Nachos

Back in 1993 I returned home for a year to attend a local community college and a friend of mine and I used to eat a local Mexican restaurant that was there at the time. They had a dish on the menu that was called Chicken or Beef Fajita Nachos that was to die for! The restaurant went out of business and I had never seen a similar dish at other restaurants so I decided it was high time that I try to recreate it and I did just that!

This dish can be as hot (and I made it pretty hot!) or as mild as you like. You can also use the cheese of your choice or a mix of several cheeses. It comes together easily and it really took me back! If you like Mexican than this is the dish for you!

What You'll Need:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, cut into strips
1 bell pepper, cut into strips
1 pounds of steak, cut into thin strips
A pinch of sea salt
A pinch of black pepper
A generous pinch of cayenne pepper
1 - 8 ounce bar of Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded (Note: You could also use white cheddar or any other mild white cheese.)
Corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Sauté onion and pepper in a bit of extra virgin olive oil, along with sea salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper, until slightly tender. Add steak and cook until the steak is just browned. Remove from heat and set aside.

Spray a pie dish with non-stick spray and place a layer of tortillas to completely cover the bottom of the dish and then cover the tortillas with a layer of cheese:

Next add half of the beef/pepper onion mixture on top of the cheese:

Repeat this procedure one more time (a layer of tortillas, a layer of cheese and a layer of meat/onion/peppers) and then top the beef/onion/pepper layer with more cheese. Place the dish in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Notes: You could use chicken or shrimp in place of the steak. Serve with a little sour cream and/or salsa.

Posted by Dianne at 7:11 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

February 28, 2008

Cajun Adzuki Beans with Brown Rice and Chicken

Alexis loves beans! Lima, red. black, garbanzo, green...You name it and she loves it! Tuesday on our weekly trip to My Organic Market to get groceries I decided to grab a package of red adzuki beans and give them a try. Alexis saw them on the counter and wanted to make them for dinner Tuesday night, but I told her that we'd have to soak them overnight. So we did just that and yesterday for lunch we had a fresh pot of adzuki beans.

Now while Alexis enjoyed her beans with some brown rice, I wanted to spice things up a little. I was in a spicy mood yesterday (but I guess that's true of most days) so I pulled out Cajun seasoning and a few other elements and this quick and easy rice dish was what I came up with. The spicy goes a long way toward helping you feel full longer and every aspect of the dish is a nice and healthy change from lunch time doldrums. Sometimes it's nice to spice things up in the middle of the day, the added benefit being that you don't want to snack as much as the afternoon wears on. That's always a good thing!

What You'll Need:
Extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 of a large onion, chopped
1/2 a bell pepper, chopped
3 mushrooms,
1-2 tablespoons of cajun seasoning (Note: The seasoning I use is salt free. If you use a version that has salt included then omit the pinch of sea salt below.)
1 tablespoon of chili powder
A pinch of sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon of paprika
A pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup of cooked brown rice
1 cup of cooked adzuki beans
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked and cut into chunks (Note: This is completely optional. You could add in shrimp to mix things up a bit or even just add in mushrooms if you wanted a completely vegetarian option.)
1 cup of water

In a skillet or medium sized pot sauté onion, bell pepper, mushroom and garlic until onion and pepper are tender. Add seasonings and stir well to mix. Add brown rice, adzuki beans and chicken chunks to the veggie mixture and stir to coat. Add water and bring to a quick boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until water is gone and has absorbed into the dish. Serve immediately.

This makes two large main course servings or four smaller side dish portions.

Notes: You can make this as spicy (or not spicy) as you like. Simply adjust seasonings to your taste. I was going to add celery to mix as well, but we are out. You could also add in any other veggies that you like.

Posted by Dianne at 7:26 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 26, 2008

Seasoned Mushroom and Pearl Onion Chicken with Brown Rice

Who says eating healthily has to be boring? You can take your basic chicken breast and spice it up with a little seasoning, pair it with some veggies and brown rice and you've turned it into a scrumptious meal! On top of that it can be done quickly and easily. What's better on a weeknight for dinner?

What You'll Need:
Extra virgin olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 small package of button mushrooms
1 - 1 1/2 cups of small pearl onions (Note: I used fresh pearl onions for this.)
Seasoning Mix (Note: I used Kirkland Signature Organic No-Salt Seasoning, which I got at Costco. It is a dried mix of onion, garlic, carrot, black pepper, red bell pepper, tomato, orange peel, parsley, bay leaves, thyme, basil, celery, lemon peel, oregano, savory, mustard seed, cumin, margoram, coriander, cayenne pepper, citric acid and rosemary, but what ever kind of seasoning you like works.)
2 cups of cooked brown rice

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a making dish coat each chicken breast, onions and mushrooms with a little olive oil. (Note: You just want a thin coat. A few teaspoons per breast at most.) Sprinkle seasoning over mixture and toss to coat. Bake for 35-45 minutes until chicken is done through. Serve chicken, mushrooms and onions over cooked brown rice.

Makes two servings.

Notes: You could use other veggies if you like. It's all a matter of taste. The seasoning I used has enough flavor that salt isn't necessary, but if the one you use doesn't then add a pinch of sea salt and even some black pepper to the mix as well.

P.S. It's Tuesday and you know that that means...Tuesdays with Dorie! This week's recipe was Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits and was chosen by Ashley of eat me, delicious. I sat out this week's recipe due to having way too much going on last week, but don't forget to pop over and see what everyone else baked up!

Posted by Dianne at 7:17 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

February 20, 2008

Mexican Chicken Stack-up

Mexican food is one of my all time favorites, but as you know it can be very heavy and fat laden. It doesn't have to be though. This "Stack-up" is the perfect substitution for nachos. By layering your ingredients the flavors all meld together and the end result is light, yet satisfying, all while being full of protein, vitamins and good fats. What's not to like about that?

What You'll Need Per Person:
1 cup of beans (Note: I used black beans, but you can use red beans, pinto beans or a mixture if you like.)
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cooked in Mexican spices (See instructions and ingredients below.)
Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 an onion, chopped
1 ounce of light or fat free cheddar
1/2 an avocado, sliced
1-2 tablespoons of light sour cream

Heat beans in a small pot.

While the beans are cooking cut chicken into strips or chunks and place in a skillet. Cover with chicken with water. Add 1 tablespoon of parika, 1 tablespoon of chili powder, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 pinch of cayenne pepper, a pinch of sea salt, 1 teaspoon of black pepper and 1 tablespoon of cumin to the water. Give a quick stir. Put pan on the stove and bring to a boil. Cook until water evaporates.

While the chicken and beans are cooking sauté onions in a little extra virgin olive oil until caramelized.

Now on to assembly...The first layer is the beans and the second layer is the chicken.

Next add the onions.

On top of the onions place the cheese and let it melt a bit and then top with avocado.

And finally top with sour cream and serve immediately.

Notes: You could use steak or shrimp instead of chicken or if you wanted to go completely veggie you could sauté some mushrooms and use that instead. Portabella mushrooms would work really well, but any mushrooms will do. Also you can sauté some bell pepper with the onion is you like.

Posted by Dianne at 7:46 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 31, 2008

Balsamic Steak with Feta and Thyme Sweet Potato Medallions

Balsamic vinegar and feta go very well together, but who is going to eat feta simply with a little balsamic vinegar? By marinating a steak in some balsamic vinegar and topping it with feta, you've got a wonderful taste combination. Pair the steak with some Thyme Sweet Potato Medallions (which go together well in flavor too!) along with some baked or steamed asparagus and you've got a healthy, filling meal in no time!

What You'll Need for the Thyme Sweet Potato Medallions Per Person:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 medium to large sweet potato, cut into rounds
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon of dried thyme

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Add a little extra virgin olive oil to the bottom of a baking dish and spread around to coat. (Note: you only need a few teaspoons to a tablespoon max. Use a basting brush to spread it around on the surface of the dish.) Layer sweet potatoes into the dish and sprinkle with thyme. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender.

Notes: Depending on how many potatoes you are cooking this may take more or less time. Keep an eye on them. You could leave off the thyme if you aren't a fan and simply top them with a little sea salt and black pepper OR you could even just sprinkle with a little nutmeg and/or cinnamon. It you go with the nutmeg and/or cinnamon route don't think you need to add any sugar. Contrary to popular belief though sweet potatoes really don't need any sugar added, they are naturally sweet all on their own!

What You'll Need for the Balsamic Steak with Feta Per Person:
1 single serving type steak of your choice (Note: An appropriate sized serving of meat is roughly the size of a deck of cards or your palm.)
1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt
1 ounce of feta cheese (Note: I used fat free feta, but you can use whatever type you like.)

In a bowl cover the steak with the balsamic vinegar, olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Let sit for at least 30 minutes, turning the steak occasionally in order to coat evenly.

When you are ready to cook the steak the cooking method is up to you. You can remove it from the marinating solution and pan sear or "fry" it until it's done to your likeness, you can grill it or you can even bake it. I chose the pan searing method and I prefer my steaks medium so it took about 3-5 minutes in a very warm skillet.

Once the steak is cooked top with feta while the steak is still hot and serve immediately.

Notes: You could use goat cheese instead of feta if you wanted, because what's not better with a little goat cheese! ;o) Also the balsamic vinegar caramelizes as you cook it so it gives the outside of the steak a beautiful dark chocolate color.

Posted by Dianne at 8:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 24, 2008

Whole Wheat Chicken and Vegetable Pasta

Eating healthy is usually associated with eating boringly, but that's anything but the case! Whole Wheat Chicken and Vegetable Pasta is a hearty, satisfying, yet healthy alternative to other pasta dishes. The vegetables bulk up the dish without bulking up the calories, while the whole wheat pasta gives you a whole grain kick that is better for you than plain old ordinary pasta. This dish is just perfect for one, or even to share! Pasta...What's not to like?

What You'll Need Per Person:
2 ounces of the dry whole wheat pasta of your choice, cooked according to package directions
1/2 a boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked until done
Extra virgin olive oil
1/4 a small onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
3-4 mushrooms, sliced
A pinch of sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 to 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, cut lengthwise
1 cup of California Style frozen vegetables (Note: The version I used had broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and zucchini.)

Cook pasta, drain and set aside.

Cut chicken into chunks and cook in a skillet with a little non-stick spray, sea salt and black pepper until done through. Set aside.

In the same skillet you cooked the chicken sauté onions, garlic, mushrooms and tomatoes in a little extra virgin olive oil with sea salt, black pepper and oregano until tender. Add frozen vegetables and cook for a few minutes until veggies are thawed. Add cooked pasta and chicken then stir to coat. Cook for an additional 5-10 minutes to let flavors meld. Serve warm.

Notes: You can add in other herbs if you like. Basil might be a good addition or thyme. You could also top with cheese if you wanted, but remember that cheese can rapidly add up calorie wise. You could also use shrimp instead of chicken, or you could leave out the meat entirely and add more mushrooms for a meatless option.

Posted by Dianne at 12:33 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

November 28, 2007

Turkey Salad

This is yet another recipe that let's you utilize that left over turkey without out a lot of hassle or fuss and as I mentioned yesterday that's a good thing after working so hard on the big Thanksgiving meal!

Much like Chicken Salad, Turkey Salad makes a great sandwich or is even good served in a wedged tomato or on a bed of lettuce. It's a simple and delicious twist on a classic...Try it and see.

What You'll Need:
4 cups of cooked turkey, chopped (Note: Light or dark meat works fine or a mixture of both. It's a matter of personal taste.)
3 ribs of celery, chopped fine
1 small red onion, chopped fine
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3-4 tablespoons of light mayo (Note: You don't need a lot of mayo to get the job done. It shouldn't be heavy, but a light coating instead. Many time people over do it and you end up with a heavy, gloppy mixture, which isn't a good thing.)

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

Notes: This could easily be made with chicken instead of turkey and it similar to Whole Foods Chicken Salad, minus the tarragon (which in all honesty I'm not a big fan of, though I will eat it from time to time), walnuts and chicken of course! ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 8:23 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 2, 2007

Turkey Avacado Salad

Who says turkey only has to be on Thanksgiving and/or Christmas? This is the perfect recipe to use for left over turkey. It's quick, easy, delicious and healthy. That is a mix you can't go wrong with!

What You'll Need:
1 cup garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup cooked turkey breast, chopped
1 small avocado, cubed
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1/2 small red onion, chopped fine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon avocado oil (Note: If you don't have or can't find avocado oil then you can use extra virgin olive oil)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cups spinach leaves, whole

Mix all ingredients except spinach and toss well. Serve on a bed of spinach leaves.

Makes 4 servings.

Notes: How's that for simple? ;o)

Posted by Dianne at 8:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 9, 2007

Old Bay Roasted Chicken

Chicken, chicken, chicken! It's been a chickeny few days around here at Dianne's Dishes. I had chicken in the freezer that needed to be used so there's been a whole lot of chicken! It's fall clean out time of the freezer! You've heard of spring cleaning? Well I like to do it in the Fall too! ;o)

Old Bay Roasted Chicken is chicken with a kick! My sister, who isn't a fan of Old Bay seasoning, even enjoyed this when we had it for dinner last night! It's another simple go to dish that you just roast and go! Pair with rice or potatoes and a side salad and you've got a nice healthy meal!

What You'll Need:
1 whole chicken
Extra virgin olive oil
Old Bay seasoning

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Wash and dry the chicken. Brush with extra virgin olive oil and coat with Old Bay seasoning. Be sure to sprinkle Old Bay into the cavity of the chicken too.

Bake for 2 hours or until chicken sticks to 180 F. Let sit for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Notes: Old Bay has a bit of a kick to it so if you've never tried it be aware. If you remove the "crust" that the Old Bay forms it removes some of the heat. But if you like things hot then the more the better! :o)

Posted by Dianne at 8:33 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 27, 2007

Simple Baked Chicken with Rosemary

This week it has been all about simple in terms of food here at our house. I got through stages where I like things a bit more complicated and then I go through stages where I like simple, straight forward food. Baked Chicken is one of those simple and straight forward type dishes that always hits the spot.

There are so many things you can do while baking a chicken. You can mix up the spices, you can go with barbeque, you can make it plain Jane, but no matter what you do the key is making it what you like. It's versatile and easy, both of which are nice especially on a week night when things can be a little crazy. My personal favorite herb for chicken is rosemary. It's the perfect compliment.

What You'll Need:
1 chicken, rinsed and dried
1 small onion, chopped in half (Note: You don't even have to peel the onion.)
1 lemon, chopped in half (Optional)
Extra virgin olive oil (Note: You can use butter if you like, BUT olive oil is healthier and I think it tastes better for chicken as well.)
Rosemary leaves pulled from the stem (Note: I think the more rosemary the better, but if you want to go with less that's ok too. I wouldn't use less than a tablespoon though.)
Coarse sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

First when baking a chicken you need to decide which way you're going to go. You can either preheat the oven to 350 F and bake the chicken for a couple of hours or until internal temperature reaches around 180 F OR you can preheat the oven to 450 F and cook it for an hour or until internal temperature reaches around 180 F. Either way works and both ways are delicious. The 350 F method is a bit juicier, but the 450 F makes for a crisper out shell. Last night I chose to go with the 450 F route. So which ever method you choose preheat your oven to that temperature.

Rinse your chicken and pat dry. Place in a baking dish. Stuff the chicken with the onion and/or lemon. Cover the outside of the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with rosemary, coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake according to the temperature instructions above. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Notes: Like I said above there are numerous ways you can bake a chicken. You can make an Old Bay Chicken by covering the chicken in Old Bay. You can use thyme instead of rosemary or even sage. What you choose is completely up to you and each time it's like you've made an entirely different dish. You can also use different stuffing medium such as garlic and/or apple. Mix it up.

Posted by Dianne at 2:08 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 24, 2007

A Birthday Party: Beef Stroganoff and Chocolate Cake with Almond Buttercream Icing

Saturday was my sister's birthday and I'm a big believer in celebrating a birthday! Some people as they get older don't want to celebrate their life anymore and choose to mourn the day instead, but I think birthdays should be embraced and reveled in. Life is a grand adventure and birthdays simply remind us of our many adventures along the way!

I invited Katherine, Ben and Nelson over for dinner to celebrate. The tradition at our house growing up was that you got to pick what we had for dinner on your birthday and you got to pick your cake. Katherine chose Beef Stroganoff and chocolate cake with almond buttercream icing. Katherine also wanted a salad, some sort of veggie and some yeast rolls, so I made a big spinach salad with a choice of homemade ranch or blue cheese dressing, some roasted asparagus and a batch of Parker House rolls. We broke out the good china and had a grand old time!

Over all everything came together well. The rolls could have risen a bit longer, but I got side tracked. The Beef Stroganoff was a play on the one my mom used to make as a child, that I adapted into Mushroom Stroganoff over the years. This go around though I skipped the onion soup mix and used all fresh ingredients and instead of ground beef I took a pot roast and sliced it across the grain into somewhat bite sized chunks. The result was wonderful! I highly recommend this if you like this sort of dish!

What You'll Need For the Beef Stroganoff:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 small package of mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of flour
2 1/2 pounds of beef tips or other type of beef cut into chunks
1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 cup of sour cream
1 package of egg noodles cooked according to package directions

In a large pot or skillet (and I mean LARGE!) sauté onion, mushrooms and garlic until tender with a pinch of sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper. Once the veggies are tender add two tablespoons of flour and cook for 2 minutes stirring constantly. Add beef and cook for about 15 minutes until it's mostly brown stirring occasionally so it won't stick. (Note: A little red here and there is not a problem as you'll be cooking the dish a while more.) Add tomato sauce and cook for 35-40 minutes to allow the beef to become tender. Add sour cream and cook for 2 minutes or until heated through. Serve over egg noodles.

Notes: In a pinch you could use onion soup mix. Just omit the onion and garlic. You could also use garlic powder or salt if you're out of fresh garlic. Having made it both ways I highly recommend the fresh onion and garlic. Both variations are good, but the fresh version definitely was the best! You can also substitute more mushrooms for the beef to make the vegetarian equivalent.

After dinner we dug into the cake!

The basket weave wasn't as neat as I would have liked, but the icing was having issues on Saturday so we went with what came out. It turned out ok in the end and it tasted delicious, so that's all you can ask for. :o)

Posted by Dianne at 8:37 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

September 20, 2007

Chicken and Spinach Lasagna

Lasagna is one of those quintessential comfort foods. Normally it's tomato based, but it doesn't have to be. I had some chicken left over from this weekend from when I made some chicken noodle soup and thought this would be an interesting way to use what I had left. Throw in a little spinach along with the chicken and you've got a hearty twist on the classic, that will fast become a favorite. It's nice to have a twist to pull out to surprise those you might be serving. Try it, you'll love it!

What You'll Need:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 purple onion, chopped
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
6 cups of spinach leaves, washed and chopped
3 cups of shredded chicken
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Lasagna noodles
Mozzarella
Parmesan

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Sauté onion and garlic in a little extra virgin olive oil until just tender. Add spinach and cook until wilted. Stir in chicken and add a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Remove from heat and set aside.

Brush an 8 X 8 inch dish with olive oil and place a layer of lasagna noodles on the bottom of the dish. (Note: If you want to make the dish go faster pre-cook the noodles and decrease cooking time in the oven by 45 minutes. Otherwise just put the noodles into the dish straight out of the package.) Add a layer of chicken/spinach mixture and top with Parmesan and mozzarella. Repeat these steps until you run out of chicken/spinach mixture, ending with a layer of spinach/chicken topped with cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 50-60 minutes until noodles stick tender. Cook for the last 10 minutes with foil removed. Remove from oven when done and let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes: You could use mushrooms and leave out the chicken to make it vegetarian.

Posted by Dianne at 8:03 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

August 30, 2007

Onion Burgers

As a kid when we used to camp at the lake all summer we ate a lot of burgers. One of my mom's friends made the best onion burgers! She used onion soup mix in the meat and worcestershire sauce and they were delicious. On the 4th of July we usually spent the day together and she always made those burgers!

The other day I was thinking about my mom's friend and her burgers and I decided to play around in the kitchen with what I had on hand and see if I couldn't put something together that was similar. The result was delicious! Pair the burgers with some oven "fries" and you've got the perfect meal!

What You'll Need:
1 pound of ground beef or turkey
1/3 cup of A1 Steak Sauce
1 small onion, chopped fine (I used a red onion...Which the name of by the way irritates me...It's purple people! ;o))
Freshly ground black pepper

In a bowl mix all ingredients until completely incorporated. (Note: The best way to do this is either in your mixer or with your hands.) Form into patties and cook until desired doneness. Top with your favorite burger toppings.

Makes 2-4 burgers depending on how big you like your burger.

Notes: I don't add salt to this personally because the A1 is salty enough in and of itself to me. I also use t