Our go-to Salad

Y'all really seemed to like the fajita in a bowl and requested more simple, healthy, home-cooked meals.  I love the feedback and will always try to meet your requests.  I also love to read how you put your own spin on something I've shared.  

Today I'm sharing our kale "salad" we eat weekly.  I put quotations around salad because it has bacon, avocado and chicken which satisfies even the hungriest of humans >> Paul.  He won't eat a "salad" but he gladly eats this every week.  Other ingredients like sliced apple, bell peppers, almonds, lemon juice, or goat cheese are optional but the bones of the salad are baby kale, bacon, chicken, avocado and a simple dressing of evoo & white balsamic vinegar.  (detailed recipe is at the end of the post for easy reference)

I've found that using baby kale is the easiest because you don't have to pick out the stems.  You detail oriented readers out there will notice that this picture above is different from the others.  I started this post last week but finished it this week, and this week we had regular thick kale and a red pepper not orange.  :D

Pull out your pans, toss your chicken and bacon on them, salt&pepper the chicken.  Place chicken in oven at 350degrees for 45 minutes, add bacon to oven with 15/20 left.  I love baking chicken for recipes because I can toss it in and walk away. 

Chopping the peppers or apple is the hardest step. You will get better and faster with practice. 

This is why I don't buy regular Kale for salad, picking out the stems is too time consuming!

Best way to prep avocado is in the shell, then just scoop out with a spoon.

sliced almonds are optional

As shown above, bacon will get crispy in the oven, which is how I prefer it!

EVOO and white balsamic vinegar is the only dressing I use.  You can add lemon juice if you have it.

A healthy, satisfying, fairly quick and home-made dinner!

//recipe//

1 bag of baby Kale

1lb chicken strips

1lb bacon

2 sliced bell peppers (red, orange, or yellow)

1 sliced green apple

2 avocados

handful of sliced almonds

goat cheese

evoo & white balsamic vinegar to taste

Bake Chicken (45min and Bacon (15-20min) in oven at 350degrees. Slice peppers, avocado, apple. Toss kale, veggies, chopped chicken & bacon, and additional toppings together. Dress and serve. Great options for a salad the next day as well! 

Fajita in a Bowl

While it's nothin' fancy, I typically make dinner 5 nights a week.  Even on the long, busy days, I manage to get chicken in the oven, steam some broccoli, and get some rice cooking on the stove.  To make getting a meal on the table a stress-free experience, I rotate between 5 meals each week - this fajita bowl being one of them.  It's quick with minimal prep (approx. 15 minutes) and its healthy! 

I love meals where I can throw it in the oven and walk away...because this precious peanut pulls...at my leg constantly heart strings.

Below are the simple steps:

1) Toss chicken strips/breasts into a baking dish, slice up some red/yellow bell peppers to throw on top and pour your favorite salsa (instant seasoning) all over everything! Place in the oven at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes (aka free time).

2) About 15 minutes before chicken is done, slice up some avocado & tomatoes, shred cheese (if desired), and start some rice on the stove (...more hands-free time)

3) A secret ingredient is to replace sour cream with plain greek yogurt - you won't be able to taste the difference and it's so much healthier.

4) Pull out chicken, place on top of rice, add sliced tomatoes, cheese, avocado, and greek yogurt and enjoy!! 

I love healthy, home-made meals that require little effort -  I hope you try it!

A Thanksgiving Hash

(The sunnyside up egg is optional - but adds even more flavor and nutrition!}

Just in time for Thanksgiving, the dish you must have on the table this year: Brussel Sprout Hash.

Paul and I made this a few weeks ago while we were in Georgia and we have been making it every chance we get, ever since.  It's a super healthy meal (Paleo of course) and it packs a TON of flavor.  Don't like brussels? - just give this a shot - even my grandfather liked it! 

You can find the recipe at the end of the post but below are some step-by-step shots of the easy dish.  I suggest using super fresh, local ingredients, it really makes a difference!

A MUST for this meal is to have a wide vegetable peeler as pictured above.  It will prevent you from cursing yourself for starting this meal (and me for suggesting it) during the peeling process. 

{cut the peeled squash in half and scoop out the seeds (toss) - then chop in into medium chunks}

{slice the brussel sprouts - about 4-5 slices a sprout}

{my little helper, eating her broccoli}

{the ingredients (not pictured: evoo, salt, & pepper)}

{her favorite food - sweet potatoes!}

The secret to making this meal distinct from anything else on the menu is the bacon grease.  According to the recipe, you will bake the bacon while chopping the other ingredients.  Once the bacon is done, pour the grease from the pan directly into the sautéing pan!

{sauté the squash and onion first, then add brussels, chopped bacon, evoo, and s&p}

If you want to get fancy, top off the hash with a sunnyside up egg.

As seen below, the longer the hash cooks the better and softer it will get.  I hope you take a chance on this dish this year and enjoy it as much as we have! 

Recipe, serves 8-10

(adapted from this recipe: http://paleogrubs.com/brussels-sprout-hash-recipe)

Ingredients

1. 1lb uncured bacon
2. 1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
3. 1/2-1 small red onion, finely diced
4. 40-45 (1stalk) Brussels sprouts, stemmed and sliced
5. 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6. Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
7. 2-3 eggs, optional

Instructions

1. Place the bacon in a separate pan and bake at 350 until crisp. Set aside on a paper towel-lined plate and crumble into pieces. Pour the bacon grease in the pan.
2. Add the butternut squash and onion to the pan and cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft. Stir in the Brussels sprouts, along with a tablespoon of olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté for 8-10 minutes until the Brussels sprouts are dark green and fork-tender.
3. Add the crumbled bacon back into the pan and stir. Optional: Make two or three small wells in the hash and crack an egg into each. Cover and cook until the eggs are set. Serve immediately.

kabobs >> frittata

This past weekend was our first weekend back in Boston in several weeks.  To ease the pain of no longer being at the beach on a Friday night, I decided to make Paul a big meal for Friday night. I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up fresh healthy ingredients for the weekend.  

While in the produce section, I spotted some pre-made kabobs and decided to buy the ingredients to make my own, figuring I could make more for my money since I knew I had wooden skewers at home.  

{Ingredients: Red&Yellow peppers, local grape tomatoes, onion, mushrooms}

{I soaked the wooden skewers to try to avoid them burning on the grill}

I was able to make 6 total; one is not pictured. To make kabobs you chops the items up into big chunks, so the process is very fast.  These took me maybe 10 minutes.

{Skirt Steak!}

Not the prettiest picture I have ever taken - but it was one of the best home made meals in a while.  Simple vegetable skewers, cauliflower rice, roasted asparagus, skirt steak with only salt&pepper.  No processed ingredients, no additives, no stress! 

I have become a little neurotic about food as I am preparing to feed Roswelle real food...I'm working on finding the balance between feeding her healthy, organic, nonGMO, local food and being a realistic American (hehe...ehhhhhhh). 

<insert scared wide-eyed emoji here>

BACK to my post! The next morning I used the leftovers to make a frittata.  A new mom I met in a baby & barre class I go to gave me the idea - she said she just throws in her leftover veggies into a pie plate and adds eggs - so easy! 

{2 kabobs, cooked asparagus, raw kale and 10 eggs; butter the dish; baked at 350 for 35 minutes}

{I topped mine with feta cheese}

Paul and I ate the entire thing...plus a pound of bacon. In one seating. Good thing i'm training for the half!

Frittatas are our new favorite thing.  You can get really creative with it.  If Paul ate cheese, I would add a few scoops of goat cheese to it before baking. Next time I might add bacon IN the frittata - BOOM. 

frittatas make me say hakuna matata

Roasted Salmon

A couple weeks ago we bought some frozen Alaskan Salmon from Trader Joes.  Paul pulled it out of the freezer on Friday morning and ask that I cook it for dinner (I was working from home due to the snow - even Boston will close for 12-14").  While working from the couch, I caught an episode of Ina Garten's cooking show Barefoot Contessa.  I generally always love her recipes; they are simple & delicious while using natural ingredients.  Anyways, she happened to be highlighting a roasted fish recipe and I it was so simple that I was able to make it for dinner.  The trick was using parchment paper for the roasting, it keeps in all the flavoring and moisture.  Paul's mom gives us rolls of over 250+ parchment paper sheets at a time...we use it for everything (we even line the refrigerator shelves with it!).

While it's pretty easy to follow, you can read the full recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/herb-roasted-fish-recipe/index.html

I seasoned both with salt, pepper, and olive oil.  I finished two with lemon juice and thyme (fresh is best but I didn't have any) and seasoned Paul's with lemon juice and soy sauce.  I've been trying to avoid soy in my diet lately...which is hard since it is in everything!!

{to seal the paper, brush edges with a simple egg wash}

{start rolling from one corner and finish on the other end by folding the corner under}

{place in a baking sheet and cook at 400 degrees for 15 minutes}

ta-da!

**and while some people may be skeeved out about eating fish while pregnant, I decided one serving of fish every now and then won't give the baby too much mercury.  And it's way better than feeding the baby processed foods with additives and gmo's...in my humble opinion...ya just gotta do what you think is best!** 

Southern Cookin'

This past weekend while I was home, I requested a homemade southern meal by my grandmother.  She knew exactly what I meant by southern meal as this is a usual request when any of the grandkids are in town for any reason.  For some reason, some meals just aren't as good as when your grandmother makes them - it must be the extra ingredients they put into every dish - a dash of tenderness, a heap of love, and a sprinkle of care, and a boatload of butter.

The usuals in our family meals are baked mac'n cheese & banana pudding.  Another staple with any meal in the south is cold, sweet, iced tea.  Sweet Tea is really simple to make - you just add cups (2-3 in our house) of sugar!!

While my grandmother is inside making the dishes, my grandfather is outside at the grill.  Down South it is still just warm enough to grill outside without getting frostbite - although some southerners would beg to differ I'm sure.  This past weekend he made perfect ribs which no one skipped over...Shadow was lingering in the background...hoping I would drop one!

  

This past summer, my grandmother made Strawberry Rhubarb.  It is a delicious topping all year long on biscuits, cornbread, or toast - or you could just do what I did and have a spoon full! (as well as two biscuits covered in Strawberry Rhubarb with my meal - eek!)

Cornbread, homemade Biscuits, banana pudding, and fried okra - all staples down south!  

We love anything sweetened or fried. 

I didn't skimp out on anything...I was full for the next 24hrs.... :)

My grandparents have a daybed swing on their back porch.  They simply cut off the legs to a daybed and hung it with chains that they spraypainted white.  It is the perfect place to nap after my homemade Southern meal.  I can only bare a few of those meals every now and then...although it had been 5 months...so I was long overdue!

Snow Day

As I mentioned before, I was snowed in yesterday due to the Nor'Easter.  It was my first "blizzard" and I really enjoyed it! Probably because I was able to watch movies and cook all day - Paul was sweet enough to do the "not so fun stuff" such as shoveling snow.  I haven't learned how and I don't really want to anytime soon. I'm sure my Grandfather is rolling his eyes right about now....  I'm sure some day I will be forced to shovel, I'm just glad it wasn't today. :)

 

 

{above is my car - I think it will be staying there tomorrow as well}

When I found out that we would be getting severe snow on Wednesday, I immediately starting thinking of something to cook - and what better to cook than a chili on cold, wintery, snow filled day??

I found this recipe and knew it was the one!  It is all natural - and for the most part fresh - ingredients and it was easy!  I was able to cook cornbread and the chicken for the chili all at the same time.

 

What better to go with a fresh, healthy chicken chili than sweet, southern cornbread.  I found this recipe - I must say I was more than happy with it.  Paul said it was the "best cornbread he has ever had." This statement only confirmed what I already thought - he doesn't say that about much that I make....yet.  

{a key secret step - the honey glaze at the end}

{instead of sour cream, I added nonfat yogurt, a great replacement}

{but of course I can't be that healthy - I added a big piece of sweet cornbread as well}

 

I was on a roll in the kitchen and decided to make my new favorite cookie - chocolate chip, peanut butter cookies.  I use mini semi sweet morsels - and a ton of them.  It's the perfect balance - a lot of mini's!

All in all it was a great day of practicing in the kitchen and practicing with my camera.  The break in the middle of the week was extra nice...there is just something about being home when it isn't a Saturday/Sunday.  Headed to watch another movie and then back to reality tomorrow.