Saturday, May 26, 2012

Grilled Brie and Prosciutto Sandwich with Blueberry Lime Salsa

I had some leftovers from an appetizer platter I made the other night and used the odds and ends to make this decadent sandwich.  The Wild Blueberry Lime Salsa is jarred locally at Granite Town Farms.  It is to die for with baked brie, on baguette slices with goat cheese or as a chicken or fish topping.

Sandwich:  Baguette (remove the soft bready guts to save calories), brie, prosciutto, wild blueberry lime salsa, arugula and red onion.


This is also my change to make a plug for my Cuisinart Griddler.  I received it as a gift and it has changed our lives.  I hate kitchen gadgets that have only one use, so I was skeptical about a panini press.  BUT, the Griddler is so much more!  The plates are grill on one side and flat on the other and you can use the Griddler as a press or lay it out flat as a griddle.  Sandwiches, meat, eggs, bacon, pancakes... the uses are endless.  The best part, you can even purchase waffle plates!

What's for dinner? (May 26-May 31)

Saturday:  BBQ hotdogs and salad
Sunday:  Parents
Monday:  Pulled pork salad (sandwich for DH)
Tuesday:  Grilled sandwich and fiddlehead soup
Wednesday:  Chicken and bok choy stir-fry
Thursday:  Slow-cooked venison roast, potatoes, veggies

Real Food Connections Kitchen Basket

Milk, bread, eggs, raw milk cheese

Arugula, frozen strawberries, fiddleheads, rhubarb, broccoli sprouts, dry white beans, herb plant

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Curry Lamb Burger with Roasted Red Pepper Pecan Spread

During BBQ season, I am always looking for new ideas to try on the grill.  These burgers are simply amazing.  And, with the right toppings feel very gourmet and indulgent.  The roasted red pepper pecan spread is KEY.  I followed the recipe in the link below, but cut it in half.  The leftovers are fab on breakfast sandwiches or just regular ole sandwiches.

One little tip is to make the burgers the night before and to chill them in the fridge before BBQing.  They tend to be a bit on the crumbly side and they firm up a bit in the fridge.


Makes:  5 x 5oz burgers
Burger Ingredients:
  • 1lb lean ground lamb
  • 1/2 medium onion, minced
  • 1 c. baby bella (or regular) mushrooms, minced
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 c. panko (or bread crumbs)
  • 1 tsp curry powder
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • Salt & Pepper
Burger Instructions
  1. In a skillet with a little EVOO, saute the onion and mushrooms until the onion is translucent and the mushrooms have released their liquid.
  2. Mix all the burger ingredients up in a bowl.  WITH YOUR HANDS.
  3. Form into patties.  Mine were 5 oz.  And because I am anal, I used my food scale to ensure equality.
  4. Grill.
Burger Toppings:

Monday, May 21, 2012

Sweet Dijon Chicken Thighs

I am trying to keep up with my promise to start cooking the things I am Pinning on my Pinterest recipes board.  I have had this recipe on my "to-do" list for a while now and just picked up a big pack of thighs at Costco.   If you are eating these bad boys with either rice or potatoes, the sauce makes a great "gravy".  I can see why the original recipe author called this dish "Man Pleasing Chicken", my husband loved them too!!  I served them with roasted carrots and garlic and herb mashed potatoes.



Ingredients:
  • Chicken thighs (I used 6, you might need a little more sauce for 8, especially if you like your meat saucey like I do!)
  • 1/2 c. dijon mustard
  • 1/4 c. maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp crushed garlic
  • 1 tsp rosemary
  • salt & pepper
Directions:
  1. Mix up the sauce ingredients (mustard to salt & peppers).
  2. Spread the thighs out in a baking dish and cover with the sauce.  Marrinate over night or for the day, if possible, but they are OK cooked right away too!
  3. Heat the oven to 450 F.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, basting twice during cooking time, until thighs are cooked through.

What's for dinner? (May 21-25)

Monday:  Sweet dijon chicken thighs, wild rice, carrots, cucumber slices
Tuesday:   Sundried tomato sole in a bag, sweet potato, fiddleheads
Wednesday:  Lamb burgers, salad
Thursday:  Grilled sandwiches, salad
Friday:  Out

Real Food Connections Kitchen Basket

Milk, herbed raw-milk gouda, eggs, bread

Arugula, fiddleheads, potatoes, frozen blueberries (2), basil plant, sprouted bean mix, garlic

Friday, May 18, 2012

Who still eats english muffin pizzas?

THIS GIRL.



English muffin, homemade pizza sauce, diced ham, caramelized onion, red pepper and mushrooms, topped with onion and garlic raw-milk Gouda.  Side:  fresh spinach and radish greens with homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

YES.  PLEASE.


Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce



We had frozen strawberries and rhubarb stalks in our kitchen basket this week.  I saw a great recipe on Skinny Taste for strawberry rhubarb compote and I decided it would be a great way to use of the rhubarb.  It was realllllly easy and now I can't wait to make compote out of other fruits.

Ingredients:
  • 1lb of strawberries, fresh or frozen
  • 3 large rhubarb stalks
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp sugar (I used raw)
  • 1 tbsp water
Directions:
  1. Chop the strawberries and rhubarb.
  2. Combine everything in a sauce pan.  Bring to a boil.  Turn it down to low-med and simmer for about 15 minutes.
  3. With a stick-blender, purée the contents of the pot for a bit.  I didn't blend mine perfectly smooth, I just broke it down a little.
  4. Serve with yogurt or over frozen yogurt, either hot or cold.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Random Meal Plan (May 12-17)

This week is random.  We were out and about for most of the weekend and I didn't get a chance to do much grocery shopping.  This is the plan as it stands today.

Saturday:  Dinner at parents, contribution = coleslaw
Sunday:  Church potluck, contribution = pasta salad
Monday:  Husband's birthday!**
Tuesday:  Grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and soup
Wednesday:  Burgers and salad
Thursday:  Something with steak, either sandwiches or stir-fry?  (I have radish greens to cook up...?)

**For his birthday, my husband has requested an buffet of his favorite appetizers.  The plan is pastry wrapped cocktail sausages, a small wheel of baked brie with cranberry jelly and baguette, scallops and a little plate of nachos.  Yes please!

The best part about this week is that our kitchen basket had GREENS in it!! Woohooo!!  I love spring!

Real Food Connections Kitchen Basket


Staples:  Bread, milk, eggs, cheese
Veggies:  Spinach, radish and greens, rhubarb, potatoes, fiddleheads, cabbage, pea shoot greens
Extra:  Salmon

Salmon and Stir-Fry


Our kitchen basket included fiddleheads this week.  What are fiddleheads you might ask?  A delicious fern that you can only get in very particular environments at a certain time of the year (when the spring water is receding!)

You can learn more here:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddlehead_fern

I thought I would get creative and try them in a stir-fry, instead of the usual steamed-with-butter.  I steamed the carrots and fiddleheads for 10 minutes.  Then I stir-fried them with onion, red pepper, mushrooms, a little soy sauce and sweet chili.

The salmon was marinated and baked in a soy-maple glaze.

Soy-Maple Glaze:
  • 1/4 c. soy sauce
  • 1/4 c. maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp crushed garlic
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • salt and pepper
  • green onion for garnish
This was definitely a nice spin on a traditional meal.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

BBQ Chicken Salad (in a mixing bowl)

Do you eat your salad in a mixing bowl?  In case you haven't noticed from previous posts, I am a volume eater.  I like to cram all of my food full of veggies so that I can eat the largest quantity possible.

This is recipe is definitely a keeper.  My husband loved it too and this says a lot, as he was formerly part of the "you don't make friends with salad" camp.


P.S.  I seriously need to STOP taking photos with my broken phone!
Makes:  4 large bowls of salad

Ingredients:
  • 2 heads/stalks of romain lettuce, chopped
  • 1/4 red onion, sliced
  • 1 sweet red pepper, sliced
  • 2 c. mushrooms, chopped
  • 1 can sweet corn, drained
  • 3 green onion stalks, chopped
  • 4 oz lite havarti (or jack), shredded
  • 2 rotisserie chicken breasts, chopped (or cook and shred your own breasts)
  • 1/2 c. BBQ sauce
  • 1 tbsp Frank's hot sauce
  • 4-8 tbps of ranch (depends how ranchy you like it)
  • Optional:  tortilla chips, crushed
Directions:
  1. Chop, slice and shred all of the veggies and cheese.  Divide into four bowls.
  2. Heat a non-stick skillet.  Toss chicken, BBQ sauce and Frank's in the pan until heated through.
  3. Top salad with the chicken and ranch dressing.  Tortilla chips add a bit of crunch too, if you can spare the calories.
  4. Mix it alllllll up and NOMNONNOM



Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Cheap and Easy Eatin' (May 7-11)

We were traveling for the end of last week and all weekend.  I had been trying to clean out the fridge before we left, so we came home to very empty cupboards!  This week is busy and having had lots of "fun" on vacation, I was looking to plan a menu that was both easy and cheap.

Monday:  Rotisserie chicken thighs and Costco quinoa salad
Tuesday:  BBQ chicken salad (using the rotisserie chicken breasts)
Wednesday:  Spaghetti and caesar salad
Thursday:  Steak and salad
Friday:  Either out or omelettes or something silly like english muffin pizzas

This is Monday's supper.  We are huge Costco lovers and this quinoa tabbouleh salad is a particular favorite.  I wanted to stretch the salad a bit and added a can of 6 variety beans, a chopped red pepper and some mushrooms.