Cooking Basic

For this recipe I used ground turkey as my meat. When it first hits the pan depending on the fat content you may want to add a splash of soy sauce so the meat doesn’t stick. If you can stand the heat put in a little more srirachi sauce. It adds a nice kick. For the lettuce leaves I prefer to use just the leaves of romaine lettuce. They are already to go you just need to wash them. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 3/4 Lb. ground meat (beef, turkey, chicken)
• 4 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tsp. srirachi sauce
• 1/4 Tsp. pepper
• 1/4 Tsp. ground ginger
• 3 Cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Red bell, finely diced
• 1 Green bell pepper, finely diced
• 1/2 Cup onion, finely diced
• 3 Oz. mushrooms, diced
• Lettuce leaves (butter or romaine) washed and dried

Directions

In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef, stirring often and reducing the heat to medium when thoroughly browned. Add diced onions and bell peppers. Stir frequently until softened. Add the garlic, soy sauce, srirachi, ginger and pepper. Stir occasionally adding mushrooms. Cook a few more minutes until mushrooms are softened. Remove from heat. Serve in lettuce leaves.

For this recipe you can use any color of bell pepper however I prefer to use the red bell pepper. This can be eaten as a whole meal. The pepper cuts very easily because of the pre-boiling step. These are so good and light you may want to eat two peppers.

Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup wild rice, cooked
• 2 Cups onions, chopped
• 1 Tsp Italian seasoning
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 Cups mozzarella cheese
• 2 Cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 Lb extra lean ground turkey
• 2/3 Cup tomato juice
• 10 Cherry tomatoes, halved
• 4 Bell peppers

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash peppers. Cut off tops and remove seeds. place peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove and set aside. Saute onion in pan for 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 2 more minutes. Next add turkey, tomato juice, cherry tomatoes and seasonings. Cook until turkey is no longer pink. Add rice and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Stuff peppers with turkey mixture and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese turns a light brown. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Andrew Schloss. This is pretty much the BEST hot dog I have ever had in MY LIFE! The sweetness of the lambic beer hot dog and the richness of the porter in the sauerkraut makes this most magnificent combination. Genius Andrew, genius!

Ingredients

• 3 Cups sauerkraut, rinsed, drained
• 1/2 Cup dark beer (such as porter)
• 1 Tablespoon dark brown sugar
• 1 12-Ounce bottle Belgian raspberry lambic beer
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 6 All-beef hot dogs
• 6 Toasted hot dog buns
• Mustard

Directions

Simmer sauerkraut, porter beer, and brown sugar in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat 5 minutes. Meanwhile bring lambric beer and sugar to simmer in medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add hot dogs; simmer until dogs plump and beer syrup coats lightly; about 8 minutes. reserve syrup. Top each bun with grilled hot dog and sauerkraut; drizzle with reserved beer syrup. Serve with mustard.

This is a great chicken dish! Between the marinade and the sauce this dish hits the mark for flavor. The chicken can be served with rice, couscous or even your favorite pasta tossed with olive oil.

Ingredients

Sauce:

• 1/2 Cup coarse-grained mustard
• 1/4 Cup water
• 1/2 Cup heavy cream
• 1/4 Cup olive oil
• 4 Teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 Cup chopped fresh dill

Chicken:

• 1/4 Cup white wine
• 2 Teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 Teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2/3 Cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Shallots, minced
• 4 (1/4-inch thick) chicken cutlets (1 1/2 lbs. total)
• 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a bowl, combine well all sauce ingredients and season with pepper. Let sauce come to room temperature and whisk before serving.

In a small bowl, whisk together the wine, mustard, salt, and pepper. Next whisk in oil. Stir in garlic and shallots. Place the chicken in a glass pan, pour the marinade over, cover, and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

Remove the chicken from the marinade (discard the marinade). Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Grill on an oiled rack set over glowing coals 1-2 minutes on each side, or until just cooked through. You can also cook the chicken in a pan over medium-high heat. Serve chicken with the sauce.

Recipe adapted from Robin Miller. The almond-parsley pesto makes the dish absolutely delicious. However if you were allergic to nuts you could leave the almonds out. I used a whole wheat pasta when I made this dish but you can use what you like best.

Ingredients

• 2 Teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 Cup chopped onion
• 1 1/4 Lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 10 Ounces angel hair pasta, cooked
• 1 Packed cup fresh parsley leaves
• 1/3 Cup sour cream
• 1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/8 Cup Olive oil, or more as needed
• 2 Tablespoons toasted slivered almonds
• 3 Cloves garlic
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt

Directions

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown on all sides, about 5-7 minutes.

In a blend, combine the remaining ingredients, except the pasta, and process until smooth, adding more oil if necessary to create a sauce-like consistency.

Add the sauce to the chicken in the skillet and cook for 1 minutes to heat through. Serve the chicken and sauce over the pasta.

This recipe came from EatingWell.com. The sweetness of the potato really compliments the warm black bean salad. This is sure to leave you full but still healthy. Make sure when you buy the sweet potatoes you are really buying sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes and yams are often mixed up and even your local grocery store produce person might not know the difference. I like to eat this with some guacamole and chips as a side. You can also add your favorite hot sauce to the black bean salad to kick it up a notch.

Ingredients

• 4 Medium sweet potatoes
• 1 15-Ounce can black beans, rinsed
• 2 Medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 Teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 Teaspoon ground coriander
• 3/4 Teaspoon salt
• 1/4 Cup reduced-fat sour cream

Directions

Prick sweet potatoes with a fork in several places. Microwave on high until tender all the way to the center, 12-15 minutes. (Alternatively, place in a baking dish an bake at 425 degrees F until tender all the way to the center, about 1 hour.)

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine beans, tomatoes, oil, cumin, coriander and salt. Heat until warm, around 5 minutes.

When just cool enough to handle, slash each sweet potato lengthwise, pres open to make a well in the center and spoon the bean mixture into the well. Top each with a dollop of sour cream and serve.

The lemon combined with the flavors of the capers and artichoke hearts make this chicken dish very fresh and light. The term “piccata” refers to the sauce containing lemon and spices. For this recipe you only need one medium sized lemon for both the zest and the fresh juice. Enjoy!

Ingredient

• 4 (4-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• Salt and ground pepper
• 1/3 Cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 Teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 Teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 Teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 Cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 Cup dry white wine
• 1/2 Cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, quartered and drained
• 1/4 Cup drained capers

Directions

Place chicken in zip-lock bags and pound with a meat mallet or polling pin until 1/4-inch think. Remove chicken from bag and season all over with salt and black pepper. In a shallow dish (or plastic bag), combine flour, lemon zest, paprika, and garlic powder. Mix well. Add chicken and turn to coat. Remove chicken from flour mixture and shake off excess flour.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and saute 3 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. Add lemon juice, wine and chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer 5 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and sauce thickens. Add artichoke hearts and capers and simmer 3 minutes to heat through.

Serve with your choice of rice or couscous.

I’m starting to make more dishes with chicken and this one tops the charts. The creamy vegetables really compliment the chicken. This dish is even great as left-overs.

Ingredient

• 4 Chicken cutlets (about 1 1/4 lbs), patted dry
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• All-purpose flour, for dredging
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 2 Scallions, thinly sliced
• 8 Ounces mushrooms (button, cremini, shiitake or a combination), quartered
• 1 1/4 Cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 3/4 Cup heavy cream
• 2 Cups sugar snap peas, stemmed and halved lengthwise

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add 1 tablespoon oil to the skillet. Dredge 2 chicken cutlets in flour, shake off any excess and place in the skillet. Cook until golden, about 1 1/2 minutes per side; transfer to a baking dish. Repeat with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the other 2 chicken cutlets. Cover the dish loosely with foil; place in the oven while you prepare the vegetables.

Add the butter to the hot skillet; then ad the scallions and mushrooms; cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms brown, about 4 minutes. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Cook until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the cream and boil until the sauce thickens slightly, 5 more minutes. Stir in the snap peas and heat through; season with salt and pepper. Serve the chicken topped with the creamy vegetables.

So what do you do when you have left-over spaghetti from the night before? You make spaghetti sandwiches! Yeow!

Ingredients

• Any amount of left over spaghetti with sauce
• 4 Slices of bread
• Mozzarella cheese (Sliced or shredded-your pick)
• Butter
• Garlic Salt

Directions

First pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter each slice of bread on one side. Sprinkle on garlic salt to buttered side of bread. If you are a garlic person put on a few extra dashes. Bake bread for 10 minutes buttered side up on a cookie sheet. Meanwhile heat up the left-over spaghetti and sauce till warm to touch. Once the garliced slices of bread are ready, remove them from the oven.  Flip them buttered sides down and spread on a thin layer of spaghetti sauce. Next top with spaghetti and chesse. Finish sandwich with the other slice of bread. Bake for 20 minutes or until top is light brown and cheese is melted. Cool and enjoy!

This recipe is a great spin on the all-time favorite grilled cheese. I found this recipe in Sunset magazine.

Ingredients

• 2 Slices multi-grain bread
• 1 Tsp. Grey Poupon Mustard
• 6 Slices shaved chicken breast
• 2 Tomato slices-thinly cut
• 1 Slice of cheddar cheese
• 2 Tsp. butter, softened

Directions

Spread 1 of the bread slices with mustard; top with chicken, tomatoes and cheese. Cover with remaining bread slice. Spread outside of sandwhich with butter. Cook in a skillet on medium heat for 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Cool slighty, cut in half and enjoy!