Ja cię kocham…

The Biggest Loser has been on for almost 10 seasons, and I have never, ever watched it until now.

I missed out because that show rocks.

Watching Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels scream in the faces of the contestants instantly reminds me of my college field hockey days.  It wasn’t a good workout unless someone was screaming at you to push harder or run faster.   I think that’s why I’m so picky about how I exercise now.  Most exercise videos just seem wimpy to me.  If I don’t feel like I’m about to drop dead of exhaustion then I need to keep going.  “Pain is fear leaving your body – keep going!!” Ha.  Thanks Coach Mike.  Point taken.  I think at this point in my life after all of the sports-related “pain” that I have endured, I must not be scared of anything.  My fear is gone.  Bring it, Bob and Jillian!

The show is truly inspiring.  If you aren’t familiar with it, you need to check it out.  People that are morbidly obese check-in to a “boot camp” of sorts led by a team of nutritional and training experts and leave 200+ pounds skinnier.   Last week, the show did a bit on healthy eating and how to eat foods that we enjoy without all of the extra fat.   Bob grabbed a pack of ground turkey, corn and black beans and made a chili.  Unfortunately they didn’t exactly disclose a recipe – it was more of a plug for Jennie-O turkey – BUT it did give me an idea for a recipe.

I went to the grocery store, picked up some ingredients, and gave it a shot.  Jay asked me what I was making and my response was, “I’m not quite sure yet, we’ll see where this food takes me.”   I’m calling it a chili because quite frankly I’m not sure how else to describe it, although the liquid content is no where near the same as an actual chili.  We put this recipe in whole wheat tortillas and I would go even as far to say I would put it on a pizza.  Yummmm….

Also check out my Turkey Pumpkin Chili that I made in the fall.  It was goooooooood.

If you are looking for more motivational weight-loss stories, hop on over to Caren’s Blog, City Momma/Country Momma.  She has currently lost 87.6 pounds (and counting!).  We work together and every time I talk to her, I get so pumped to be healthy.  She has lost weight the correct way – eating healthy and exercising regularly – no fad diets, no slashing carbs or starving.  She is a wife, a proud momma of an adorable boy, swim instructor, and an elementary school teacher that has recently started a career as a nutritional expert.  She runs weekly meetings/support sessions for people trying to lose weight.  She’s certainly busy, but she makes sure to take time for herself.  Talk about inspirational!  She chronicles her weight-loss journey on her blog.  You should check it out!

The Biggest Loser-Inspired Black Bean & Corn Turkey Chili

Serves 6-8 (depending on how hungry you are!)

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil
1/4 large sweet onion, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes (don’t drain it!)
2 lbs extra lean ground turkey
2 Tbs. chili powder
1 Tbs. cocoa powder
3 tsp. water
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 -15.5oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1-8.5oz can whole corn kernels, rinsed and drained
3 scallions/green onions, sliced
1/2 avocado, cubed

Directions:

In a large skillet heat olive oil to medium-high.  Add onions and cook until tender.  Then add tomatoes with liquid.  Allow to simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove onions, tomatoes, and liquid from skillet and place in a bowl.

(You may need to now add a little bit more olive oil to skillet since turkey is extra lean.)  Add turkey, chili, cocoa, water, salt and pepper to skillet.  With a minute or so left on the turkey throw in your garlic and cook until turkey is browned (no pink!).

Add onion/tomatoes, black beans and corn back into the large skillet with the turkey.  Stir and allow beans and corn to warm through.  Taste test it for any additional salt or pepper.  Turn off heat.  Add scallions.

Divide into separate bowls.  Top with avocado cubes….

…OR you can place this in the center of a tortilla wrap, add avocado, roll it up and enjoy….

…OR you can serve this along side tortilla chips.

The possibilities are endless!

ENJOY!

It’s a party up in here!  This time last year, I posted for the very first time and had no idea what was going to come of this blog.  Little did I know that I would have so many foodie friends (HUNDREDS of you!) and so much support!  Thank you!

And in celebration of Ja cie kocham’s birthday, I’m making chocolate covered pretzels – a boatload of them.   They are festive, easy to make, and I’m probably going to eat them all within a few days.

I’m also going to use this time to recap on some of my favorite recipes of the year:

Breakfast:

Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast – Heaven on a plate.  ‘Nuff said.

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Appetizer:

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms – What a crowd pleaser!  Make sure to double the recipe because these will be gone in minutes!

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Pizza:

Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza – Wish I would have thought of this one sooner!  Seriously melted in my mouth.  I could have eaten the whole pizza by myself.

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Sandwich:

Grilled Vegetable, Herb, and Goat Cheese Sandwich – Perfect for a picnic and requires no refrigeration!

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Chicken Dish:

North African Grilled Chicken Paillards – Add ethnic flare to your chicken with a few pantry staples!

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Lime Chile Steaks with Pico de Gallo and Homemade Guacamole – Home run dish.  Bursting with flavor and super healthy to boot!

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Vegetarian:

Lemon Chickpea Stir-fry – AMAZING.  Nothing is more gratifying than making a very healthy meal that is so full of flavor.  I had several people ask for the recipe because they loved it so much.

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Pasta:

Linguine with Bacon, Baby Spinach, and Sage – I found this recipe on the back of the pasta box.  Always check the back of boxes for recipes.  They tend to be real winners!

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Side Dish:

Grilled Pineapple with Agave Nectar (or Honey) and Coconut – Elegant, healthy, delicious!

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Cookie:

The best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER.  They were huge, fat, chewy, and absolutely sinful!

Thank you for spending time with me in my little corner of cyberworld this year.  Here’s to many more years together!

Soooo…. my camera doesn’t work!!  I turn it on, and the stinkin’ lens won’t open.  I guess it’s a sign that we need to get a new camera.  Perhaps a REALLY good camera.  But for now, my iPhone will have to do…

ANYWAY… In the NE portion of the United States, we have been battling the ups and downs of indecisive weather.  One moment it’s 50 degrees, the next minute we have 2 feet of snow on the ground and then it’s rainy and 35 degrees… all within a week or so!  Insane.  Needless to say all of this yo-yo-ing of the temperature has caused some coughing and sneezing making it absolutely essential to have some warm soup on the stove.

I randomly came across wonton wrappers at the grocery store that were on sale so I picked them up and decided to give them a go.  I have never made anything with wontons before but I felt as if all the stars were aligning just as they should in order for me to make this incredibly flavorful and comforting soup: The wontons were on sale, the meat was buy one, get one free, and I got a newsletter from Hungry-Girl including a wonton soup recipe… all in the same day.   It’s as if this was meant to be.  And it was.

I was surprised how easy it was to make it!  Typically you will find recipes that highly suggest filling and wrapping one wonton at a time because the pasta will dry out otherwise, but I honestly didn’t have that problem.  I had a system and it worked for me.  Maybe I’m too fast for the pasta, like a ninja or something…

Wonton Soup

Slightly Adapted from Hungry-Girl

Serves 8

Ingredients:
For Wontons:
9 oz. raw lean ground beef
2 tsp. reduced-sodium/lite soy sauce
2 tsp. dried minced onion
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. black pepper
16 small square wonton wrappers (often stocked near the tofu in the fridge section of the market)

For Soup:
1 Tbs. canola or grapeseed oil
1-2 tsp. chopped garlic
1 cup mushrooms, stems removed, cleaned and sliced
6 cups fat-free beef broth
1 tsp. chopped fresh ginger
1 tsp. hot sauce (or if you are like my husband and I make it 1 Tbs or more!)
1/2 cup chopped scallions

Directions:

To make the wonton filling, combine all wonton ingredients except the wrappers in a medium bowl. Mix by hand until evenly combined. Set aside.

In a large pot on medium high heat, add canola/grapeseed oil.  Add mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes until tender.  Add garlic.  Let cook for another minute.  Then combine the remainder of the soup ingredients except scallions into large pot. Bring to a boil on the stove. Reduce heat to low and allow soup to simmer for 10 minutes.

Lay wonton wrappers flat on a clean, dry surface. Scoop a spoonful (about 2 tsp.) of filling into the center of each wrapper. Moisten all wrapper edges by dabbing with water.

You have two options here:

1 – Fold the bottom left corner of each wrapper to meet the top right corner, forming a triangle and enclosing the filling. Press firmly on the edges to seal. Set aside, and repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.

OR

2 – Fold All wontons into triangles, then fold all edges.  See pictures above for this.

Stir scallions into the simmering soup. One at a time, carefully add wontons. Make sure they’re submerged, but don’t stir. Simmer for 5 minutes, adjusting temperature if soup begins to boil, until wonton centers are firm.

YUM.

On a related side note, I went to Chinatown with a friend and ate at a Noodlehouse.  For $4 I got an ENORMOUS bowl of egg and vegetable soup.  Had to take a picture of the impressive meal… maybe I’ll make this one next!

These ribs are always a huge hit with our family and friends, and I cannot take one ounce of credit.  These are made by my grill master husband, Jay.   If something needs to be grilled, he is always ready to go, beer and cigar in hand.  It’s so funny because on our teeny, tiny patio outside we have a huge Weber grill, a charcoal grill, and a smoker.  Do we have enough??  Apparently not because we’re thinking about getting a tailgate grill for when we go to sports events, too.  Ha.  We love our food in this house.

We pretty much always get our meats from the super wholesale store, Costco.  Their meats are outta this world.  Honestly, a lot of Costco’s stuff is pretty amazing.  (Their birthday cakes are unbelievable!)  If we don’t go to Costco, then we go to our local Amish farmer’s markets for meats.  They, too, have great stuff for great prices.  And I have to just give a shout out to Trader Joe’s because it’s my favorite grocery store.  I can’t talk about good food and prices without mentioning TJ’s.

So…. the superbowl is about a month away and you need a great recipe for a party, don’t you?  I suggest you try these ribs.  They can be cooked in the oven, on a grill, or in a smoker.  Does not matter.  We’ve done it all and they are always a huge hit.  HUGE hit.

My only critique is the price of the food to make this meal, but it is important to know before you get to the grocery store.  Bobby Flay uses 2 different types of chili powder both of which are expensive (and hard to find) in addition to a whole lot of maple syrup, which is also expensive. It’s totally fine to use any chili powder and syrup you have in the house.  Yes, the specific kinds that are chosen do make these ribs particularly yummy, but using any chili powder and syrup still tastes amazing and you will still rock the house in grilling.

For New Years we served these babies with Sauerkraut with Bacon and apples (recipe follows).  Mmmmmmm…..

Spice Rubbed Smoked Ribs with Maple-Horseradish Baste

Source: Bobby Flay

Serves 8

Prep Time: 15 min

Inactive Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 1 hr 30 min

Ingredients:

Maple-Horseradish Glaze:

2 cups pure maple syrup
1/2 cup prepared horseradish, drained
2 heaping tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Ribs:

1/3 cup Spanish paprika
3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
3 tablespoons New Mexican chili powder
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3 cups wood chips (hickory, mesquite, or applewood)
4 racks pork ribs (3 pounds each)

Directions:

Glaze:

Whisk all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ribs:

Stir spices together in a medium bowl.

About 1/2 hour before cooking time, soak hickory chips in enough water to cover. Drain chips. In a covered grill, place slow burning charcoal in both sides of a drip pan. Sprinkle coals with wood chips.

Rub top side of each rack of ribs with about 3 tablespoons of the rub. Place ribs, bone side down, on grill. Close cover or place cover on the smoker. Grill about 1 1/2 hours, adding chips every 20 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of grilling, brush liberally with the Maple-Horseradish Glaze.

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SERVED WITH:

Image courtesy of Simply Recipes

Sauerkraut with Bacon and Apples

Source: Simply recipes

Serves 8-10

Merry Christmas Ja cie kocham readers!

As you may know from reading my previous posts, I am the cooker and baker of this year’s Christmas Dinner!  And oh boy, this will be my FIRST sit down holiday meal for more than 6 people.  I’m not concerned about the food turning out, I’m more concerned about the timing.  I know some of you are with me on this.  Being that I’m not fortunate enough to own two ovens, I have to carefully plan how to bake several things for one dinner using one oven while keeping everything from getting cold or drying out.  I will let you know how THAT goes.

To make things a little easier for me, I’ve been prepping for the past week with a detailed schedule of things to be made so that I’m not frantic an hour before dinner.  On today’s to-do list, I made the macaroni and cheese.   This is such a tease!!!  The aroma of white cheddar and nutmeg is swirling through my home making my mouth begin to water and my tummy is now growling fiercely.  *Roar*

I have to say that this recipe was so simple, tastes so good (I HAD to test it!!), and left me with minimal dishes.  Solid deal.  Can’t ask for anything better than that!!  Plus the most of the ingredients should already be in your cupboard, and if they’re not, you can find them with no problem and spend next to nothing on them.  Merry Christmas to me!  Simple, cheap, and goooood.

I will be sure to post the rest of my holiday menu within the next few days.  Let’s just hope I remember to take pictures!

I wish you all safe travels and good eats!!

Simply Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Source: Smitten Kitchen
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup cottage cheese
2 cups milk (not skim)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Pinch cayenne
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound sharp or extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 pound elbow pasta, uncooked.

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°F and position an oven rack in upper third of oven. Use one tablespoon butter to grease a 9-inch round or square baking pan.

In a blender, purée cottage cheese, milk, mustard, cayenne, nutmeg and salt and pepper together.  Reserve 1/4 cup grated cheese for topping. In a large bowl, combine remaining grated cheese, milk mixture and uncooked pasta. Pour into prepared pan, cover tightly with foil and bake 30 minutes.

Uncover pan, stir gently, sprinkle with reserved cheese and dot with remaining tablespoon butter. Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes more, until browned. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

This picture that is way better than mine is courtesy of the New York Times Fitness and Nutrition section.

Ready to see mine?  Hahaha.  It makes me laugh.

AHHHHH!  The time change has made the evenings dark SOOO early that I can’t get a good picture in when it’s light out!  Dang you, Ben Franklin!!

Anyway, this side dish is a part of the pre-Thanksgiving meal that I have been talking about for 3 consecutive posts now.  OH MY LORD was this meal good.  Now I am a HUGE mashed potato-lover, but these were also really good.  It’s nice to change things up.  The coconut and cayenne definitely stood out.  Mmmmm!!

Coconut Cardamom Sweet Potatoes

Source: Clean Eating Magazine Nov/Dec 2009

Serves a huge crowd!

Ingredients:

5 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
3/4 cup light coconut milk
2 tsp. cardamom, ground
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/3 cup unsalted pecan halves, chopped (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add sweet potatoes, return to a boil and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.  Drain.

In a large mixing bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), add potatoes and remaining ingredients (except pecans).  Mix on medium speed until smooth.  Transfer to a 9×9 baking dish.  Sprinkle pecans on top.

Bake 45-50 minutes, or until edges are slightly browned.  Cool on rack for 10 minutes and serve

Egg McMuffins from Mickey D’s rock my world.  I can eat one in a matter of moments.  I TRY to savor the taste of each bite but it never works because no sooner I bite the sucker, it’s gone.  My excitement is over.

I try to make “Egg McMuffins” at home but they are always so dry – even with the cheese.  I’ve sprayed/slathered the English Muffin with butter to try to moisten it, but nooooo, the sandwich remained disgustingly dry.  After making my Blue Stilton Cheese Sauce, which is essentially blue cheese with milk, flour, and butter (simple), I decided to use it to alleviate the over-crustiness of my sandwich.  Over-crustiness?  You get my point.

Since I’m “off” from work this week to focus on my thesis for grad school – being “off” is a whole other story in itself – I’ve been making heartier breakfasts.  This particular sandwich is for Jay because it’s really spicy, but the heat can easily be turned down for a heat-sensitive palette.  All that I did was add XXX hot sauce to the cheese sauce recipe.  It was really good but my mouth was on FIRE.  Perfect for Jay.  Then I threw some hot peppers on top.  He loved it.  I should call the sandwich Jay’s Inferno or eat this and your tongue will fall out.  Like I said, don’t do the hot sauce or the hot peppers, and there is no heat.  You’ll survive.  And so will your tongue.

Bacon Egg, and Spicy Cheese Sandwich

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 english muffins
2 eggs
4 slices reduced sodium, bacon (I like center-cut)
Blue Stilton Cheese Sauce + hot sauce stirred in it (hot sauce optional)
hot peppers (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook bacon in a medium/large skillet.  When it’s almost done, push bacon to the side of the skillet and cook the eggs.  If you want to saute your peppers, throw them in the skillet as well.

While eggs are cooking, toast your english muffins.

Place your toasted english muffins on your serving plate and spread the top half with the cheese sauce.  On the bottom half add the egg, bacon, and peppers.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Close them, arrange them so they look pretty on your plate, and enjoy!

I love pesto.  Basically anything with basil in it gets a thumbs up from me.  What I never thought about was how versatile pesto is.  Basil, pine nuts, garlic, olive oil, cheese… that was pesto to me.  Oh how I was wrong!   You can change up the pine nuts with walnuts or almonds… change the basil to thyme… throw in red pepper flakes… or even sun-dried tomatoes!

A little bit of this particular pesto goes a long way.  I think I actually made too much.  Because I have so much left over, I’m putting on my chicken, crackers with cheese, on my sandwiches, as a dip for my raw vegetables, and anything else that I can think of.

I’ve cut the recipe in half.  The changes are reflected in the recipe below.

Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Red Pesto

Adapted from 101 Cookbooks

Serves 4

Ingredients:

12 plump, chewy sun-dried tomatoes (about 2 ounces)
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
a couple big pinches of red pepper flakes
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
handful of fresh basil
1/4 cup walnuts or pine nuts, lightly toasted
zest of half a lemon

Directions:

Pulse all ingredients in your food processor until it reaches a crumbled texture.  If you are using the pesto with pasta, add 1/2 cup of the pasta water with 2/3 of the pesto sauce and then add the rest of the pesto to the mixture.  If not, use a small amount of hot water to thin it out.  I suggest gradually adding the water so you can get the consistency that you prefer.

Ah yes, you put the lime in the coconut.  Go ahead.  Start singing away!  I won’t stop you!

When I came across this recipe title, I was sold.  Limes and coconuts are so refreshing… especially at the beach…. in the Caribbean… with crystal blue water and spectacular white sand… and a glorious breeze.  Ahhhhh….  pina colada anyone?  How about a margarita?  Now we’re talking!

This chicken is phenomenal.  The coconut milk and lime juice are perfect compliments to the curry, cumin, and coriander.  Although the title whisks me away to the tropics, the spices remind me of Indian fare, which I love!  Depending on your preference you can take it easy or go nuts with the cayenne pepper.  In this house, we like to walk on the wild side.  The chicken can marinate for as little as 15 minutes or as long as 2 hours.  Whatever fits your schedule.

Okay… back to singing… put the lime in the coconut...

Lime and Coconut Chicken

Source: Mildly Adapted from Chaos in the Kitchen/Fine Cooking, Winter 2006

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 tbsp oil
zest of 1 lime
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 cup coconut milk
pinch cayenne
1 small fresh hot chili, such as Thai or Serrano, minced (optional)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Fresh limes, cut into wedges
*I added shredded coconut as a garnish

Directions:

Starting on thick side of the breasts slice the chicken breasts almost in half, then open.

Place each open breast between two pieces of plastic wrap, wax paper or inside a large, open, Ziploc bag.  Using a small heavy pan, bottle or smooth meat mallet lightly pound out each breast into even thickness.

Mix all remaining ingredients except fresh cilantro and limes.  Add chicken and marinade to a large bowl or ziploc bag and chill in the refrigerator for up to two hours.

Remove each breast from the marinade. Pour the marinade into a small saucepan and bring to a rolling boil.  Boil continuously for at least 2 minutes, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t burn.

In a heavy skillet or grill pan, heat 1 Tbs. oil over high heat and cook the chicken in batches to prevent over crowding the pan.  Place the breasts in the hot pan and cook without turning for a couple minutes.  Flip the breasts over and cook until the other side is golden.

Place cooked breasts on a plate in a warm oven or under foil while cooking the remaining chicken. Sprinkle with fresh lime juice, shredded coconut and cilantro. Serve with sauce on the side.

Trader Joe’s is by far my favorite grocery store.  Besides the local produce stands, which I LOVE, Trader Joe’s is the best!  They have the best selection of wild fish that I have ever seen.  I prefer wild fish because there aren’t color injections (C’mon, is the salmon in the grocery store naturally THAT pink??), the fish get to swim in wide open spaces preventing disgusting stuff from infiltrating the flesh, and there is less fat.   The more I think about it, the more grossed out I am with farm-raised fish.

I have never had red snapper before, and I have never cooked it before.  That being said, I am not sure how I feel about it.  It tasted wonderful, but the consistency was a little off to me.  The meat didn’t flake off of the skin like other fish usually does.  I cooked it for well over the time that the package called for, and it still was gummy.  Maybe that’s how the fish is.  I don’t know.

Regardless of the consistency of the fish, the sauce I made to go with it was awesome!!  It could easily be used on salmon, mahi mahi, catfish, flounder, crab, shrimp…etc. etc.  (All the fish that I have cooked and have enjoyed thoroughly.)

If you are familiar with red snapper and enjoy it, then by all means make this recipe verbatim.  If you’re a little unsure because of my testimony, then by all means substitute the snapper for another type of fish.  Just TRY to use wild fish if you can. 

Red Snapper with Orange Chipotle Butter Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 red snapper fillets
4-5 Tbs. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. chipotle pepper seasoning, divided
1-2 Tbs. orange juice (I like mine freshly squeezed)
3 Tbs. butter
3 Tbs. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
cilantro for garnish

Directions:

Add flour and half of the chipotle pepper to a large plate.  Mix well.

Preheat medium-sized skillet to medium-high.  Add olive oil.

Pat fillets dry with paper towel.  Dunk both sides with flour mixture and place in skillet skin side up first.  Cook 4-6 minutes on each side.  Place on platter.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Mash butter, orange juice and remainder of chipotle pepper together.  Gently place a generous amount on each fillet.  Garnish with cilantro.