Saturday, February 6, 2010

Grilled Salmon with Green Beans and almonds



Fridays are pretty casual. I don't like to make anything too labor intensive. And the best way to do that is to put my hubby to work at the grill. He makes the absolute best salmon ever, and there isn't anything to it. Sometimes the most simple prep can result in the best flavors.

I love toasted almonds and so do my kids, I add them to veggies to make them a little more appealing. These green beans were gobbled down last night.

Grilled Salmon

4 6oz Salmon Portions with the skin removed
Pam Olive Oil Spray
Terriyake Sauce

Heat the grill for 20 minutes and get it nice and hot. Spray the fish on both sides with the olive oil spray. Put salmon on the grill and splash the fish with some of the terriyake sauce. Grill about 5 minutes per side and only flip it one. That is it.

Green Beans with Almonds

Green Beans cleaned and trimmed
Small pat of butter
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Steam the green beans until they are tender. While the beans are steaming, melt the butter in a small skillet. Add the almonds to the butter and sprinkle with a little salt. Cook the almonds until they turn a nice golden brown. Then toss the bean and almonds together in a bowl to serve.

Friday, February 5, 2010

Tuscan White Bean Soup


Lately I have been on a quest to add more meatless meals to my family's dinners. That coupled with my new immersion blender that I got for christmas made me want to try this recipe from Michael Chiarello. It turned out simply fantastic. I served it with some crusty bread from the bakery and a simple salad of arugula, and grape tomatoes tossed with olive oil and basalmic vinegar.

Tuscan White Bean SoupRecipe
by Michael Chiarello for Progresso® Foods
Prep Time: 55 Min Start to Finish: 55 Min

4 slices bacon, finely chopped
1 medium yellow onion, quartered lengthwise
1 medium stalk celery, quartered crosswise
1 medium carrot, quartered crosswise
2 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
3 cans (19 oz each) Progresso® cannellini beans, drained
1 dried bay leaf
1/2 cup white wine
1 carton (32 oz) Progresso® reduced-sodium chicken broth (4 cups)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, sliced
1/2 teaspoon gray sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1. In 4-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, cook bacon, onion, celery, carrot and 2 cloves garlic over medium-high heat 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium. Add beans, bay leaf, wine and broth; cover and cook 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat; cool about 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in 8-inch skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon chopped garlic; cook 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until garlic begins to brown. Stir in red pepper flakes; cook a few seconds. Stir in basil; cook until basil wilts.

3. Remove bay leaf from bean mixture. Pour mixture into food processor; cover and puree. Or use an immersion blender right in the pan to puree the soup. Return to saucepan; stir in salt and pepper. Simmer over medium heat 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until thoroughly heated.

4. Ladle soup into individual soup bowls. Top each with basil mixture.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Grilled Pizza!!!

Summer and grilled pizzas go hand in hand with my family. My husband and I work as a team to make them and the result, is the best pizza I've had since my trip to Italy 6 years ago. You can get fancy and make your own dough, but we just head to our favorite pizza place in town and buy a dough ball from them. It only costs us $3 for a 2lb dough ball which makes two medium grilled pizzas for us and is plenty for all the kids and us.

1. First thing I do is get all of the toppings together. I use: sliced roma tomatoes, chopped fresh basil, fresh mozzerella sliced thin, pepperoni, and shredded italian cheese blend. I like the natural version by kraft.

2. Then I make my quick pizza sauce. Just take 1 can of muir glen organic diced tomatoes with garlic and basil and put it in the blender. I pulse it to a nice sauce consistency. Then I put it in a small sauce pan and simmer adding some dried oregano and some salt and pepper.

3. Next I shape the dough. I cut the dough ball in half and flour my hands and start stretching! I am even starting to get the pizza toss down. Don't worry about the shape being perfect though, grilled pizzas do not have to be shaped perfect, thats what makes them look homemade and gives them great crunchy texture.

4. Then it's on to the team work with my hubby. He sets the grills on low, and brushes one side of the dough with olive oil. He then puts the oiled side down on the grill grate. Then he brushes the top with olive oil as well.. Once the bottom of the dough has cooked enough, he flips the dough over, at this point we get to work and put on the toppings. Then he shuts the grill cover just for a minute to cook the toppings, then slide off the grill onto a pizza peel or a flat cookie sheet, cut and enjoy!!!

YUM!

P.S. The leftovers are amazing just reheat in your oven.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Pork Chops w/ Apples, baked Sweet Potatoes, and lemon scented brocoli

Last night was one of my family's favorite dinners. It works just as well if you substitute chicken breasts for the pork loin chops.

Pork Loin Chops w/ Apples

4 Thick cut Pork Loin Chops
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1 ts. Cinnamon
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup Progresso It. Bread Crumbs
4 apples
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tb butter
1/8 cup apple juice

Pre-heat oven to 350. In a shallow dish mix the olive oil, 1 tsp cinnamon, and the salt and pepper. Dredge the chops in the oil mixture and then dip in the bread crumbs. Place the chops on a pan that has been lightly sprayed w/ pam. Bake for 45 minutes flipping once during cooking.

Meanwhile slice up the apple into wedges put in a saute pan over med low heat with the butter 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp of sugar, 1/2 tb of butter, and the 1/8 cup of apple juice, and cook until tender.

Serve the chops with the apples on top of them.

Bake sweet potatoes in the oven with the chops just scrub them clean and put them in the oven at the same time as the chops. They will be baked to perfection. I serve them with a small dish of cinnamon sugar which my kids love.

Lemon Scented Brocoli
Take two crowns of Brocoli and chop them into florets. Put them in a pan with 1/8" of water and cover. Simmer until tender and squeeze 1/4 of a lemon over it before serving.

Enjoy!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Panini night!

Tonight I pulled out the panini grill to use up the last of the bread left over from my dinner party this past saturday. Panini's are a great way to use day old bread, or in my case 3 day old bread. I made grilled veggie paninis and they turned out great. Just warm up your panini grill and slice some veggies lengthwise in strips. I used zuchini, summer squash, and red peppers. I brushed the panini grill with a little olive olive and put the veggies right in with a little salt and pepper on each side of them. After they had some nice grill marks on them and were fork tender I took them off of the grill. Next I sliced up the bread and spread each side of the bread with part-skin ricotta cheese and sprinkled on some parmesean a small amount of sea salt, and some pepper. Then I layered the veggies on one side with a few leaves of fresh basil and put the tops on and put them right into the panini grill. Keep them in the grill til brown and crispy and enjoy. I served these with some tomato soup on the side. (my husband, daughter, and I had them this way, my younger sons had the soup and just turkey and cheese in their sandwhiches) It was tasty and satisfying and I officially used all of my left overs!! Hooray!

Happy Wednesday all!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Burger night


Had to do a quick dinner tonight. My son was trying out for a play at his school. Unfortunately my little guy wasn't chosen. So having hamburgers cheered him up (his fave). In pursuit of using up all my left overs I made potato patties (or pancakes whatever your family calls them) with left over mashed potatoes that I had in the fridge. You just mix the left over mashed taters with one egg, some salt, pepper, garlic powder, and some bread crumbs (all I ever use is the progresso italian ones) then I put them in a skillet that was warmed up with a small drizzel of EVOO and cook until crispy on the one side and flip them. My younger ones aren't crazy about them but my husband and I love them. I've got to get to the grocery store or else tonights dinner might have to be cereal and canned peaches. LOL! I let you know what I put together after hitting the store.

Monday, March 23, 2009

Learning to love leftovers.

There was so much food left over from the party on Sat. That last night was leftover night. The carbonara warmed up great. I just put it on low heat in the skillet and added a little bit of milk to it to add some moisture back in. Yum! Total guilty pleasure. Though I love cooking and trying new recipes I am trying to stick to my new years resolution to use all the food I buy. (which means embracing left overs, my grandpa would be so proud) It can be a challenge sometimes, but it saves a ton.

Will get a little more creative later this week I promise. My son is trying out for a play tonight, cross your fingers that he makes it. He is so nervous! Too cute. Might have to be a hamburger night tonight won't be out of the audition til late.