Gorgonzola B-A-T

So, I received a wonderful basket of Avocados from Mexico recently, and I want to share some simple ways to incorporate avocados into your diet.  I think sometimes with avocados you might see them in the store, and think they are neat and look cool, but what would you do with them?  I mean unless you are having Mexican night, and you whip up some guacamole.  However, there are so many ways to use these healthy, green super fruits!  They are smooth, dense, and a fabulous source of monounsaturated fat.  It's a healthy fat also found in nuts and olive oil.  One way we have used some of the avocados from the box is as a sandwich spread.  Hence my Gorgonzola B-A-T...check it out!

Do you know the best way to get the fruit out of an avocado??  Click Here... How to peel an Avocado

Gorgonzola B-A-T  (Bacon-Avocado-Tomato)

Makes 2 Sandwiches
Ingredients:

• 4 pieces of bacon
• 1 avocado
• 2 tsp honey
• 1/2 lemon juiced (TIP: always squeeze some citrus on avocados once the flesh is exposed to keep them from turning brown.)
• 2 tomato slices
• 2 oz Gorgonzola (it is a type of blue cheese, use whatever cheese you have or like on these)
• 2 100% Whole Wheat Arnold Sandwich thins, or any sandwich bread you have

Directions:

1. Toast rolls 
2. Smash avocado with honey and lemon juice to make a chunky mixture, salt and pepper to taste
3. Spread avocado mixture on inside of each roll slice 
4. Layer on each bottom slice: 4 halves of bacon strips, Gorgonzola, tomato slice, and top with other roll slice!  

You must try this sandwich, it was so delicious!  Or at least the avocado spread, you could use that on any kind of sandwich you like.  You can also add a grilled chicken breast to this and lower the amount of bacon to make a heartier sandwich.  ENJOY!

Grilled French Toast with Syrupy Pears and Bacon!

So I had to post immediately, because I was so excited about my french toast and bacon....ON THE GRILL.  I would like to encourage you to get an indoor grill...best and most used kitchen gadget I got from the wedding!  You can certainly do this on an outdoor grill, but these indoor ones are so handy!  They are also a great way for low fat cooking, b/c all you have to do is spray with cooking spray instead of butter or oil in a skillet.  A little note about the Pear Syrup...Pears are 99 cents/lb right now, so I have been using them quite a bit!  They are a nice change from apples, and they are wonderfully sweet this time of year.  However you could do this with peaches or apples.  It's beginning to feel alot like fall, YAY!

Grilled French Toast with Syrupy Pears and Bacon

For the French Toast...

Ingredients:

• 2 slices of thick sliced wheat bread, any bread that is dense will work best (I buy mine from the farmers market from Harvest Bread, Honey Wheat is awesome!)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg beaten
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 T Brown sugar
• Cooking Spray

Directions:

1. Beat egg with milk, cinnamon, and brown sugar in a shallow dish, preheat grill to medium high heat
2. Dip bread in milk mixture on both sides and place on grill for about 2 minutes on each side

For the Syrupy Pears:

Ingredients:

• 2 pears, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 tbs butter
• 2 Tbs Borwn sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• dash of salt

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat
2. Place pear in skillet with the zest of the ingredients
3. cook for a couple minutes until syrupy consistency.  Done!

Take grilled toast off and pour on your Syrupy Pears...Deliciousness!

Meanwhile just reserve the other half of your grill for the bacon, medium heat about 3-4 minutes on each side depending on how crisp you like it.  Drain on paper towels, and you've go great crispy bacon!

Tuna, Tomato, and Artichoke Bowties

Okay I have a confession...I love canned tuna!  For so many reasons,  I mean it's a lean protein, it's cheap, it's got lots of flavor, it's already cooked, and it has been a staple in my house since I was little!  I grew up with tuna patties, tuna salad, and tuna helper!  I loved them all, and now as a married woman with a house of my own, I keep canned tuna at all times!  So I decided to make an updated, fresh version of a tuna pasta dish.  Don't let the ingredients scare you, they are all in your grocery and you need to discover them!  They'll give a little pizazz to your pantry :)  This one is BURSTING with flavor, QUICK, and one of my new favorite summer pasta dishes.

Tuna, Tomato, and Artichoke Pasta

Ingredients:

• Half a box of Farfalle Pasta (bow ties), I used the whole wheat or protein enriched ones just to ensure I'm not wasting calories
• 1 Cubanelle Pepper, chopped or banana pepper-look for them with the other peppers in the produce section or at the farmers market (if you can't find them you can use a green bell pepper) TIP: They look like this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubanelle
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• Juice and Zest of 1 Lemon
• 1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 Can Artichoke Hearts in water, drained (these are right in the canned foods section)
• 1 cup Grape tomatoes, halved (I used 1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes chopped since I was out of fresh)
• 1/4 Cup Parsley, chopped
• 1/2 C Parmesan
• 12 can 12 oz can Tuna in water, drained

Directions:

1.   Cook Pasta according to pkg instructions, to Al Dente (with a little bite to it)
2.  While pasta cooks, saute garlic, lemon zest, and Cubanelle in olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes
3.  Reserve a 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain, then add artichoke hearts, tomatoes, tuna, and drained pasta to the saute pan. Toss together
4. Add pasta water, parmesan, and parsley.  Toss everything together and serve! 

Date Night Brined Pork Chops with Pear Sauce

So I went to the meat counter the other day at Kroger, and I found two thick cut pork chops equaling almost a pound for $4.50!  The only thing I was worried about was I didn't want them to be tough, dry, and flavorless since they were so thick.  Pork can be bland if it is not prepared right, and I wanted this to be a special dinner.   For the past two years I have been in charge of the Thanksgiving turkey and brining is the key to my success.   Brining is so simple, it's basically the same as marinating, but you can leave it for 24 hours!  I only brined these chops for about 8 hours (I did them in the morning and left them brine until dinner) and they were super moist!

 TRY THIS for your next "date night" at home dinner it's easy, feels very fancy, inexpensive, and healthy!  I even ate my whole pork chop...and it was a big piece of meat!

Brined Pork Chops with Pear Sauce

For the Pork...
Ingredients:

• 2 thick cut pork chops
• 1 Tbs Salt
• 2 tsp Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Apple Juice
• 1 Cup water or chicken broth
• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• Salt and Pepper
• EVOO

Directions

For the Brine...
TIP: You can easily do this the night before, and they will be ready to go for dinner the next day!

1. Place Salt, sugar, apple juice, and chicken broth in a saucepan over medium high heat to dissolve salt and sugar
2. Let the mixture cool, place pork chops in a resealable bag, pour brine in and add thyme
3. Refrigerate for at least 30 minute or up the 24 hours

Cooking the Pork...

1. Take chops out of brine and pat dry, sprinkle with black pepper and salt
2. Heat 1 Tbs of extra virgin olive oil in a pan over med high heat, once oil is hot put in the chops, and let them brown for 3-4 minutes on each side
3. Place Chops on a baking sheet and place in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, depending on thickness of the chops.  

TIP: Don't forget to let the meat rest for about 5 minutes after you take it out of the oven, this will keep it very moist!

For the Pear Sauce...

Ingredients:

• 2 Ripe Pears, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme or 2 springs fresh
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 1/4 C dried cranberries or raisins
• 1 tbs Maple Syrup
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. While Chops are in the oven, place the sliced pears in the same pan with pork juice over medium heat, add cinnamon ginger and thyme, cook for about 2 minutes until pears are very soft
2. Pour in apple juice to deglaze and scratch up any brown bits in the pan
3. Take a potato masher and begin mashing pears in the pan to make a chunky sauce and let everything reduce for a couple minutes 
4. Add cranberries, syrup, and Salt and pepper to taste, YUM!

I served this with my Spring Onion and Parmesan Quinoa.  It is a whole grain that is also a complete protein, so healthy and seriously delicious.   Recipe for that coming soon!

Parmesan Herb Zucchini Roulades

Here is a video I was going to submit to Cooking Light's casting call but I read the date wrong about when to submit, Oops!  Oh well, I'll still put it on here for you to see :)  I made these with the Broiled Tilapia, they are delicious!

Ingredients:

4 zucchini, thinly sliced lengthwise

Cooking Spray

1 cup part skim ricotta

1 tsp Lemon zest

1 tbs lemon juice

1 tbs capers

1 tbs Kalamata Olives finely chopped

1/4 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix Ricotta, lemon juice and zest, capers, olives, parmesan, salt, and pepper together in bowl and refrigerate

Place Zucchini strips on grill sprayed with cooking spray, grill on each side about 2-3 minutes over medium heat (or until grill marks appear)

Remove zucchini from grill and put a tablespoon of ricotta mixture on each strip, role up like a pinwheel and secure with a tooth pick.

Asian-Inspired Green Beans

If you have been to the Farmers Market lately, you have seen lots of zucchini, corn, peppers, and green beans!  Now for some reason green beans seem to be the most boring choice for me.  I like them, but  I guess because just having to take the ends off and boil them, shock them in cold water, then add the flavor seems daunting.  However, whenever I maker them, I always pleasantly surprised by how quick they are!  Not to mention they just taste like health! ha  And I don't mean that in a bad way, sometimes if I am eating something that tastes healthy, it taste even better to me.  I know I am putting something in my body that is good and good for me.  So with that said, I tried to spice up green beans with some Asian flavors, and it was a success if I do say so myself!

Asian-Inspired Green Beans

Ingredients:

• 1 lb green beans, trimmed (just pick those little ends off, or line them up and cut 'em off! Gets the job done quickly!)
• 1 Tbs EVOO
• 2 gloves garlic (minced)
• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced ( I already had some chopped onion, but sliced works best here)
• 2 Tbs soy sauce
• 2 tbs Orange juice
• 12 /tsp red chili flakes
• 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbs of toasted sesame seeds or 2 Tbs slivered almonds (these add some crunch, but if you don't have any don't worry about it)

Directions

Placing them in ice water is referred to as shocking,
it stops them from cooking and allows them to keep their color.

1. Place beans in boiling water for about 3-4 minutes until just tender.  Once barely tender immediately remove, strain, and rinse with cold water or place in a bowl of ice water
2. Heat EVOO in skillet over med heat, add garlic, onions, and chili flakes for about 2 minutes (until softened)
3. Add Green Beans then orange juice, soy sauce, salt, and pepper to taste and cook for a couple minutes tossing beans in sauce
4. Finish with sesame oil and sesame seeds or almonds.  

Simply Broiled Tilapia

This is one of the easiest Tilapia recipes I have ever made, and one of the most delicious!  I bought a bag of frozen Tilapia fillets, and we have gotten 3 meals out of it!  The whole bag was on sale for $6.99!  So we have had Tilapia tacos, Blackened Tilapia, and this Broiled Tilapia.  This one literally took me about 10 minutes and ANYONE can do this!

Simply Broiled Tilapia

Ingredients:

• 4 (4 oz each) Tilapia fillets
• 1 lemon Juiced
• 1/4 C Light Mayo (I use Canola Oil Mayo)
• 1 Tbs Dijon
• 1/4 C Parmesan (Freshly grated if you have it)
• 2 Tbs green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 tsp of each: Garlic powder, Salt , and Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat Broiler
2. Squeeze lemon juice over fillets
3. Mix next 5 ingredients together and spread on top of each fillet
4. Put fish on sprayed cookie sheet and place under broiler for 5-6 minutes!  (Keep an eye on them so they won't burn!)

TIP:  Put a few pieces of bread (top with some of the fresh Parm and EVOO) in with the fish for the last few minutes for some yummy toasted bread.

I also served this with some Parmesan Zucchini Roulades, recipe and video coming!  ...Can you tell I splurged on some fresh Parmesan recently?!

Couldn't Be easier "Homemade" Creamy Sausage Spaghetti

Well we have had a couple long, tough weekends here at the McKinney household.  Both of my husband's grandparents passed away within a week.  They were older and in bad health, but it was still hard to see them go.  Needless to say, I was not cooking as much or going to the grocery, but I did make an effort to have a home cooked, QUICK meal the other night.
I would venture to say to most of us have a jar of store bought spaghetti sauce and spaghetti noodles at the house, I know I always do!  However, sometimes this simple meal needs a little "jazzing up."  Oh and you know when you are left with two ends of the bread and maybe one regular slice that probably won't get eaten?  Well that is what I had to work with!  I also had some "homemade" sausage that I had cooked up and froze a few weeks ago.  This is an awesome idea, because I love spicy sausage, but when you buy it at the store it has quite a bit of fat.  So I bought some lean 90/10 ground pork recently (it was on sale, so I thought why not!)  Here is what I came up with...

Homemade Sausage

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground pork
• 1/2 tsp ground sage
• 3/4 tsp dried fennel seed
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

 Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together until combined, don't over mix! (easiest to just do it with your hands) 

That's it!  You have a lean, flavorful sausage that you don't have to feel guilty about!  Form it into patties for breakfast, cook it up and freeze it (which is what I did), or just use it for any recipe needing sausage!

Creamy Sausage Spaghetti
You can always add fresh basil or dried Italian seasonings to your pasta sauce if it needs more flavor.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb "Homemade" sausage (crumbled and cooked)
• 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
• 2 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese
• 1 lb Whole Wheat spaghetti noodles, or any noodles you have on hand

Directions:

1. Boil water for noodles
2. Pour sauce in saucepan over med heat, add sausage and cream cheese
3. Umm..that's it!  I just served this with a simple salad, since you know I keep that bagged salad at all times! ~Delicious, Easy, and Quick!

"Down to the Bread Heels" Garlic Toast!

Ingredients

• 2-3 Bread Slices/heels, cut slices in 3 strips
• Italians seasoning
• Garlic Powder
• Grated Parmesan
• EVOO

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Place strips on baking sheet, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with other ingredients

I didn't put the amounts of the seasonings, because I am guessing you will just sprinkle how much you want of each ingredient.  I know I didn't bother to get the measuring spoons out for this one!

Sometimes the simplest meals are the best.  Enjoy!

Perfect Summertime Picnic!

So for my birthday my husband and I went with two other couples to the beautiful Arrington Vineyards!  I have been wanting to go for a while, but it has just never been the right time.  It was absolutely beautiful and such a good time so close to home!  Here is the website if you want to check it out http://www.arringtonvineyards.com/.  I told everyone I would bring the food, because they were all working that day, and well, I kinda like to cook:)  So I decided to make some very light and summery salads to go with a simple sandwich.  We would be eating outside-picnic style, and since it is so HOT in Tennessee right now the traditional heavier summer sides just didn't sound very appealing (baked beans, potato salad, mayo based salads etc.)

So here was the Menu:

Sweet-Hot Cucumber Salad
Zesty Corn and Black Bean Salad,  courtesy of Cooking Light
Turkey and Swiss Pesto Sandwich
Chocolate Crinkles
...And of course some wonderful, local wine from the vineyard!

Sweet-Hot Cucumber Salad
There are so many different versions of this salad, but I kinda mixed and matched some recipes to come up with this one.  It turned out great, beautiful, and so refreshing!

For 6, 1/2 Cup servings

Ingredients:
2 English cucumbers, thinly sliced (these are the ones that have a plastic casing, the best!)
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
1 tbs sugar
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs rice vinegar
1 lime, juiced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  How easy can it be?!

Zesty Corn and Black Bean Salad
Usually I find recipes I like and change them a little to suit me..this one is an exception, I love it just the way it is!  It is a recipe in my Cooking Light cookbook that is simply delicious and always a hit.  It has so much flavor and color, such a great use for summer produce too.  The longer it sits the better!

Here is the recipe...


Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  vegetable oil
• Cooking spray
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 2 1/2  cups  fresh corn kernels (about 4 large ears)
• 1/4  cup  fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 1  tablespoon  extravirgin olive oil
• 2  tablespoons  red wine vinegar
• 3/4  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1  cup  halved grape tomatoes
• 1  cup  diced red bell pepper
• 3/4  cup  diced red onion
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh cilantro
• 2  tablespoons  minced seeded jalapeño pepper
• 1  tablespoon  chopped fresh oregano
• 1  (19-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

Preparation

Heat 2 teaspoons vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add corn; sauté 8 minutes or until browned. Remove from pan; cool completely.

Let the corn get a little charred in the skillet.  It gives it that grilled, smokey flavor that is so good!

Combine juice and next 4 ingredients (lime juice through salt), stirring with a whisk. Combine corn mixture, tomatoes, and remaining ingredients. Drizzle juice mixture over corn mixture, and toss gently to coat.

Turkey and Swiss Pesto Sandwich
Buying a baguette or in this case a loaf of Cuban bread from the grocery is such a great way to make sandwiches for a group.  Its like a gigantic sub from Subway! We actually had a bunch of deli meat at our house, because Zach's grandma passed away and we were sent home with the deli tray.  I kept thinking how are we going to use all of that, well this is how!

Ingredients:
1 loaf of Cuban bread (I got this from Publix for about $2.50, it was he perfect texture for a cold sandwich)
1 1b thinly sliced turkey meat
8 slices Swiss cheese (this is what was also in the deli tray, I happen love Swiss but provolone or mozzarella would work here too)
1/2 C light Mayo (I use canola oil mayonnaise)
2 tbs pesto
1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes

Directions:

1. Cut bread length wise on one side so it opens like a book 
2. Pull out excess bread inside loaf to make more room for meat, cheese and other sandwich goodies
3. Mix mayo and pesto together, spread on inside of bread
4. Layer cheese on one side and turkey on the other, then sprinkle tomatoes evenly
5. Close sandwich cut into 8 sections and your done!  

I like to let the turkey fold onto the bread to make the sandwich seem fuller

As for the Chocolate Crinkles, this was my first time making them and WOW!  We all loved them and could not just eat one...I had to move them away from Zach!  I am not the most experienced baker, and I definitely did not make up this recipe.  Here is the link to the recipe I used on Joy of Baking: http://www.joyofbaking.com/ChocolateCrinkles.html

I will say one thing about baking, I have improved only because I now follow the directions very carefully.  Using exact measurements, "spooning flour" into measuring cups, chilling the dough long enough, etc.  So, I will take you on the journey of my experience baking these crinkles with my pictures...

So beautiful to me Melted Chocolate and Butter

Sinful Chocolate batter!  It will be runny, but when you chill it, it firms up nicely

Chilled chocolate batter dough ball dunked in powdered sugar

Ready to go in the oven!

Awesome finished product!

 I hope you enjoyed my Birthday, picnic post, I know we did!

A Simple Summer Peach Dessert

Every time I walk in the grocery store lately there are beautiful peaches up front, and I just can't help myself!  I love a good, ripe peach in dishes or on their own.  Since my claim to fame was Blue Peach Pizza I thought I'd share another way to use them, this time as a quick dessert.  Make sure your peaches are ripe by feeling them to see if that have a slight give, you don't want them to be to soft for this recipe.


Warm Peaches and Cream

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp canola oil
• 2 peaches, quartered
• 2 tbs brown sugar
• 1/2 lemon juiced
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp Vanilla
• 1 tbs butter
• Light whipped cream, low fat vanilla ice cream, or sweetened low fat cream cheese
• Candied nuts or Granola to garnish

Directions:

1. Put canola oil in skillet over med-high heat
2. Add peaches to skillet and let brown while rotating
3. Add next four ingredients, until a syrup is formed in peaches
4. Add the butter in at the last minute to give it that wonderful richness!
5. You can top this with whatever you have and/or like!  We used a spoonful of mascarapone sweetened with honey!  (YUM) However, I usually don't keep mascarapone at the house since it is a little pricey, anything on the list would be wonderful!  We also used candied pecans that I got at Aldi for like $2 (just a few on the top to add some crunch.)  You could use just toasted nuts, toffee bits, or granola.  

Get creative with this one, it's so fast, literally like 5 minutes, and it's a perfect ending to any summer meal!

Fake "Fried" Chicken Tenders for Kids and Adults!

This weekend my wonderful nephew (Zach's sister's child) Hayden came to spend the night with us!  We were going to just order pizza and have brownie pizza (yes..I said brownie pizza!!) for dessert.  However, after talking to Zach's sister, Heather, she said Hayden had been eating lots of junk food lately because of staying with grandparents and a very hectic schedule.  So, I told Zach, "ya know what I can make him something that still sounds really good, but will be better for him."  Plus, we were going to have that brownie pizza, so this would be better for all of us.  This recipe really is simple and a finger food treat, Hayden loved it!  The best thing about them is you feel like your eating something not so good for you, but they are actually way better than the traditional fried chicken tenders.  Make it for the kids in your life or for yourself when your craving some good chicken tenders that you can dunk in your favorite sauce

Fake "Fried" Chicken Tenders

Crispy and Yummy!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups Grape Nut Flakes cereal (you can use corn or wheat flakes or as well)
• 1/2 Cup Bread Crumbs (I always use seasoned but unseasoned works too)
• 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 3/4 tsp Salt
• 1 C Low fat Buttermilk
• 1 1/2 lb Chicken breast tenders (you can cut the breasts into tenders if you have them on hand)
• Cooking Spray

Directions

1. Combine first 6 ingredients in food processor (or just put the flakes in a Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin, then add the other ingredients in the bag and shake to combine)
2. Put the buttermilk in a bowl, flake mixture on a plate and have a baking sheet lined with foil and spray ready (Easy clean up!)  
3. Dip chicken in buttermilk, then in flakes (press the chicken into flakes to get it fully coated) then put them on the baking sheet
4. Spray the tenders with cooking spray and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes (depending on tender size)

TIP: I always set it up like an assembly line, get everything ready and in line, then start dunking and breading!

Make your own dipping sauce if you want such as...

• Mix equal parts lite Ranch and BBQ sauce
• Mix 1/2 C  spicy Mustard and 1/4 cup Honey (or Maple Syrup!)
• Mix 1/2 Cup light Mayo, 1/4 cup ketchup,  1/2 tsp chili powder, juice of 1/2 lemon 

Get creative with the sauces and try different seasonings and herbs in the breading, this is just a guide, but I know this batch was kid friendly!