5 things

Here are 5 completely random and unrelated things about me!  Followed by a totally easy and delicious dinner, of course!

1.  My favorite breed of dog is the Pit Bulls, but I really want a pet pig and a pretty rooster to run around my yard (both barnyard animal varieties have been given a VETO by hubby... but I still totally want them!)

2. I didn't really like VA wine, until I started going to VA wineries.... and now I love it!

3.  I believe leftovers make the best breakfast, and I rarely heat them up!

4.  I love driving- I always offer to drive whenever we get in the car! I have had a daydream (or 2) about being a race car driver- like Formula 1 style!

5. I waited tables for a very long time- while in high school, college, and grad school.... one of the few places I worked was a diner, which may be where I drew inspiration for tonight's dinner!  It was tasty- EASY- and devoured quickly.

Chicken Salad (two times) with Toasted Pita Bread
2 boneless skinless chicken breast
1/4 cup Italian Dressing
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
1/3 cup Mayo- I use the lightened Olive Oil kind

1/2 cup Plain Greek Yogurt

1 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper

Start by cutting the chicken into thinly sliced strips. Cook over medium heat in the dressing and broth- cook until chicken is completely done, with no pink (ewh!)
Shred chicken into bits and pieces, before mixing with the all remaining ingredients.
Serve over a green salad with LOTS of cucumbers, and diced red pepper! Red onion also makes a great addition to the salad- and is perfect with the chicken salad. 
For the toasted pita- rub generously with olive oil, add sea salt and garlic. Toast for a few minutes in a 400 degree oven. Enjoy the warmed pitas with the salad.

Tonights simple dinner was a fantastic way to cap off a day of brunch with my little sister! We headed to LuLu's!   She had a country ham and crab omelet, while I went with smoked salmon eggs benedict- with spinach and crab hollendaise. Each was awesome- of course a mimosa always makes brunch better! 

After brunch I swung by to quickly visit my friend and her new addition- they were able to head home today!!

The days festivities didn't end there- I jetted off to a baby shower for another friend and spent a few hours visiting with some dear girlfriends! HOLY PREGGER GIRLFRIENDS BATMAN- there are LOTS of new additions arriving in 2011!!!

I'm excited for PJ's and down time with my dude! Time to DIVE into the bed, and call it a day...'er night!

Keep your fingers crossed for mild weather this week- and no interruptions!!!

One Week!

It's bizzare how a week can fly by! The last week of January was certainly one of those weeks. We almost made it through the week without a schedule interruption due to weather... almost! Maybe next week we'll stay on track... possibly?!  I was happy to have extra time to put into cleaning up the mud the pups tend to drag in, reorganize cabinets that have been urking my nerves, and clean out some of my closet- to make room for Spring stuff!  The show stopper of the week was my best friend welcoming her little man into the world.  He is perfect and beautiful, and I can't wait to visit again for baby nuzzles!
My most enjoyed dinner from this awesome week was Proscuitto Wrapped Pork Tenderloin, with Kale Chips, and Quinoa-mac and Cheese (which still needs tweaking!).
Steve couldn't get enough of the pork! I'm glad I picked up two tenderloins ;)

I dusted a 1ish lb tenderloin with garlic, onion powder, dried sage, salt, pepper, and dried mustard.
Then, wrapped the pork in 3-4 pieces of proscuitto.
It was baked in a 400 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. 
After giving it a chance to stand for roughly 10 minutes we cut into it. It was EASY- and super juicy!       

Kale has been popping up on my random craving radar lately! I buy the whole (head?! leaves?!) BUSH of kale and cut the leaves in half up the stem.
Then I cut each half  of the leaf into 3 or 4 pieces. 
Place it in a plastic bag or bowl and cover with 2 Tbsp Olive Oil.
Shake bag, or mix in bowl, until all of the Kale is covered. If any parts are missing I cheat and spray with Pam Olive Oil spray! 
Finish by dusting with garlic powder, sea salt, and cayenne pepper (depending on how spicy you like your food- we use a lot!) 
It is baked in a 425 degree oven for 7 minutes (check them, they may need  a few minutes longer).

Enjoy- they are addicting!

Sunday Gourmet

Thursday, Friday, Saturday- they all came and went in one major blur of a couple of days! They were full of work, meetings, extra curricular work events, planning and craziness! While they didn't leave me a whole lot of extra time- Thursday I crashed around 7:30, and Friday I didn't get home until 8:30- they definitely left me wanting some normalcy this upcoming week. 
We did a little bit of shopping Saturday afternoon. While perusing Tom Leonards, a place I often forget to go into but enjoy everytime we do, we came across a different kind of marinara. A jar of Dave's Gourmet Butternut Squash immediately caught my eye. A quick peak at the ingredients, and I decided to make my own version at home!
This morning, after a fast, windy, run, I got to googling Butternut Squash Sauces. I wasn't too excited about my findings, as most weren't exactly what I was searching for flavor wise. Many of them were squash and sage sauces.  I found 1 website listing similar ingredients as the Dave's jar.  I shut the computer and decided to wing it- tasting and altering as I went along.

I've never tasted Dave's Gourmet sauce before, so I'm not sure if this is a knock off or not- but it sure was delicious! This has a hint of marinara, but definitely not in the traditional sense.  The squash makes it creamy, and sweeter than tomato marinara.  We served it over whole wheat spaghetti noodles with a handful of arugula, roasted and sliced portabellas, and finished it with goat cheese- I'm definitely excited for tomorrow's lunch leftovers!

Butternut Squash Marinara

1/2 large butternut squash roasted (in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes)

5 cloves of roasted garlic (how to)

1 carrot roughly chopped

3 Tbsp tomato paste

1 can tomato sauce
1/4 cup diced onion
1/2 large red pepper (roasted red pepper)
Basil (if using fresh, use a large handful- if using dried do a couple heaping tablespoons)
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4-1/2 cup water- depending on desired consistency
3-4 Tbspn Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Put everything except the water in a food processor. Let it whirl for a couple of minutes, before heating on a stovetop. While heating the sauce up stir in water until your sauce reaches your desired cosistency. For me it was too thick not to add the water, but everyone's tastes are different.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Looking into this week, I'm excited to see the snowy forecast, is now more rain!  I may get to  work 1 whole week in January!!! I can't believe the first month of 2011 is nearing it's end... 56 days until Spring!

Chili!

When googling the recovery time for hubby's ankle, I came upon a website that said the Universe would allow it to heal based on previous life experiences. Long story short, bad hubby= longer recovery, good hubby= quick recovery. Simple enough!  While I think it was the MOST absurd information, I couldn't help but giggle when I felt as if the Universe was laughing HARD at me today-I guess since I'm not healing from surgery,  I needed something to remind me where I stand.
Today was BANANAS. I couldn't begin to describe the events leading up to it being "THAT"  day.  When I got home, luckily dinner was working it's magic, on the counter. I set everything up so that I could jump over to the gym tonight- I was draggin'...er draggin' my feet... but reluctantly put on gym clothes. I made the proclamation 3 maybe 4 times that I was leaving... this after a puppy snuggle fest in the bed, an invitation to Steve to come gaze at the moon with me on the front porch, and a sweet Banana Sunflower seed butter snack-  I HAD to go!!!  Armed with H2O, Steve's mp3 player, and enough pent up energy from the day's events, I headed to the gym. I did a quick, intense cardio session on the elliptical and nice long stretch.  It wasn't the heavy hitting time I had hoped for, but I will never regret getting a work out in!

When I made it home, Steve and I chowed down on the Stew!  It was the perfect ending the the perfectly crazy day!

Oh yeah, and Universe if you're reading this.... try harder ;)

Beef and Black Bean Chili Soup
1/2 lb cubed stew beef
1/2 diced white onion
4 cloves chopped garlic
1 diced roasted red pepper
1/2 cup diced green pepper
1 shredded onion
1 can diced tomatoes
1 diced fresh jalapenos- or slices from the jar, if you don't have fresh
1/2 can  tomato soup
4 cups beef broth
2 cups dried black beans
2 Tbsp cumin- I love cumin
2 Tbsp chili powder- I like A LOT
1 Tbsp dried onion
1 Tbsp garlic powder
Cayenne and salt to taste

Start a day early, allow the dried beans to soak overnight, and while your at it get to choppin'!!
Put everything in a slow cooker, and allow to cook on low for 8-10 hours!

We served it with Blue Corn Tortillas, and shredded pepper jack cheese.  Greek yogurt would have been perfect on top too!

c-Rock On!!!

So far so good this morning- no calls yet about delays or closings!  It's a strange feeling having your work week out of sorts until Wednesday- we're halfway to the weekend already. Something tells me this weekend will be a great reward, as shorter weeks are often crazier than their 5 day counterparts. 

To make life easier, and a trip to the gym more feasible this evening, I have dinner in the crockpot- working away already! My crockpot is a standard fixture in my kitchen. I try to use it once a week in making dinner (having that challenge also helps when planning meals throughout the week!). 

A few weeks ago, I was making something- start to finish at 6AM. While the crockpot does all of the work cooking, it seems to forget prepping, and clean up!  What was supposed to take a few minutes ended up taking 40- getting my morning off to a late start.

To make this morning run smoother, I gathered everything the night before. While making last nights dinner {veggified Turkey sloppy joes and broccili slaw} I cut extra onion, peppers, garlic, and set it aside for this morning.  My blackbeans started their overnight soak.  I pulled out the beef broth, and canned tomatoes. All of the veggies and spices were mixed in a bowl, the beef started defrosting in fridge, and I called it a night.  All I needed to do this morning was mix it up in the crockpot.

Doing a few extra steps in the kitchen one evening is like investing in your week. The more effort put forth one evening, the more free time  me time I get later. And while I wanted to park it on the couch right after dinner, I pumped myself up with "If you do THIS now, your whole evening is free tomorrow."  Having 4PM-8PM open is a luxury, I didn't want to pass up!

Assuming our kitchen aroma is a precursor to a satisfying meal, I'll post ingredients this evening- and hopefully snap a few appealing pics of Black Bean and Beef  Chili... er Stew (the jury is still out on which one it will be!) 

Happy Wednesday

 

Late Morning!

It seems like every time we get a week going, there is another weather system moving in.  I do love my fair weather state- we are lucky to have 4 beautiful changing seasons- but I wouldn't mind a mild end to the Winter Season!

So with a few extra hours this morning, I was able to make muffins- but not just any muffins, Carrot Cake Muffins!

After yesterday's cleaning extravaganza, I headed to the gym for a much needed sweat session! I was cruising along on the treadmill- running intervals of 30-40 second sprints, with 1 minute recoveries (OUCH!!)- and somewhere 20 minutes into my work out I was salavating thinking about a carrot cake breakfast muffin.

With a little extra time on my hands this morning, I decided to google my craving and see what I could come up with for breakfast.  There were plenty of cupcake recipes, and I do love a cupcake- just not for breakfast.  I came across this muffin recipe on Food.com. I made small changes to the recipe, and they were just right!  Steve couldn't get over how moist they are- my healthy whole wheat baking tends to be dry compared to the real stuff ;-)

Carrot Cake Muffins- adapted from Food.com

1 1/2 cups white wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ginger

1/2cup brown sugar

1 egg 

3 tablespoons coconut oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup 1% milk

1 (8 ounce) can drained pineapple

3 carrots shredded

1/2 cup chopped Walnuts

3 Tbsp unsweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 350- line a muffin pan or spray with nonstick spray.  Toast walnuts for 5 minutes.

Mix ingredients flour through brown sugar in a mixer or bowl.  In a separate bowl beat egg, milk, vanilla, and coconut oil together.  Mix pineapple bits, and carrots into the liquids.  Combine the liquids with dry ingredients, and mix until everything is moist.  Fold in walnuts. Spoon muffin mixture equally into muffin pan, and top lightly with coconut flakes. Bake for 20-23 minutes. When finished baking, pull out and let cool!

What is your favorite thing to make for breakfast, when you are surprised with a couple extra hours?!

Tapas Table

We share a lot of amazing times in the kitchen here. I always say it's where we fell in love!  With Steve's ankle healing, and him spending less and less time with his leg propt up  on a pillow we set out to cook dinner together twice this weekend! I sure did miss my boy making a mess in the kitchen with me.  We love doing tapas nights at home because we get to make and taste as many different things as we feel! So after a relaxing Sunday with family, we decided it was definitely a tapas night.  While we were cooking, we decided to do a duel post as well. My husband can write, and illustrate with words, in a way that I could never do. He is concise and powerful, while I have  a tendency to ramble- our 'discussions' are quite a sight to behold, as we are both very passionate, however our deliveries are extremely different.  Below is Steve's go to list for an awesome night in- or in our kitchen, a 2 person party!  Check him out at his blog!!!

There are those that would have you believe that it’s a show, that all of this glitter couldn’t possibly be gold, that ordinary people don’t create extraordinary cuisine. Those people would be wrong, as I can attest to the fact that my wife is truly gifted in the kitchen and that I am privileged to tag along.

Following my ramble she’s going to talk about our “Tapas dinner” and how it all came together.

I like to break things down into the simplest of forms, so here’s 6 things you might consider for making a memorable 2 person party.



King Family Vineyards Merlot



1. A candle
2. A small quaint table
3. 1 plate to share
4. 1 plate to serve
5. An imagination enhanced by the power of a “Google” search.
6. Death Cab for Cutie singing I’ll follow you into the dark”.

Enjoy!

Fried Goat Cheese

Cut goat cheese in to 3/4 inch think slices.

Dip in 1% milk and dredge in bread crumbs.

Dip back in milk, and return to bread crumbs.

Place in a pan with Canola oil- at Med heat.
Cook for roughly 10 seconds on each side- until golden crispy!

Garlic Shrimp on the Grill

Place shrimp in a cast iron pan with olive oil, minced garlic ( 4 cloves) and finely diced white onion (1/2 onion)  and place pan on the grill. Cook until shrip are pink! Enjoy!

 Mussels with Chickpeas

We started with roughly 10 mussels. Place 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1/4 cup diced onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 diced roasted red pepper, and 7 cherry tomatoes on medium heat and saute.  Add Chickpeas (1/4 cup), seafod stock (1/2 cup) and sherry- roughly 2 tsp to the mixture.  Stir in mussels and cook until mussels are open. Serve with crusty bread!

 Fish bites with  Warmed Tortillas

Grill a mahi mahi filet (seasoned lightly with salt, pepper, and fresh lemon juice).

Cut into bite size pieces and serve with warm tortillas.

Steve garnished with balsamic glaze and hot peppers!

 Grab a seat, and dig in!

Be sure to hang out for a while- and put on a sweet soundtrack to your life!