Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan

This is my quick and easy version of chicken Parmesan.  I hate having to pound out the chicken breast so instead I cut them into three pieces.  First remove the tender and part of the breast together.  Then simply slice the breast in half and you will end up with a good thickness for chicken Parmesan.

Ingredients:

2          Chicken breast, boneless, skinless trimmed as stated above

Salt and pepper

1 cup   Italian bread crumbs

¼ cup  Parmesan cheese shredded

1 tbsp. Herbs, dried (your favorite)

2          Eggs beaten

Oil, enough to fill the bottom of your skillet

Pasta sauce

½ cup Mozzarella shredded cheese

Directions:

Season the chicken breast on both sides with salt and pepper.  Add the dried herbs and shredded cheese to the bread crumbs and mix well.  Dip the chicken into the egg, shaking off excess, then place in the bread crumbs coating the chicken well on both sides.  Complete this for all the chicken pieces and place all the chicken on a plate.  Heat the oil in a large skillet.  Cook the chicken until each side is browned.  Remove the chicken to a baking sheet.  Preheat the oven to 350.  Cover each piece of chicken with a thin layer of sauce and top with the shredded cheese.  Bake until the cheese is melted.  Serve with your favorite pasta.

Grilled Sockey Salmon

Grilled Sockeye Salmon

This is a great dish if you use good fish.  The ingredients are simple and all you have to worry about is not overcooking your salmon.

Ingredients:

2 fillets of sockeye salmon

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Paprika

Directions:

Make sure there are no bones in your fish.  Coat both sides of the fish with olive oil and season with the salt, pepper and paprika.  Place fish skin side down on a hot grill and cook on one side till almost done to your liking.  Flip over for one minute.  Remove to a serving plate.

Serve with Swiss chard and beets and top with yellow mango salsa. I made two salsas, one mild and one hot with jalapeno and habanero peppers.  To my surprise the salsa was not really hot.

Avocado Chicken

This is so simple and yummy.  The avocado gets creamy and warm and blends so well with the melted cheese.  One of my favorites.

Avocado Chicken

Ingredients:

2                Chicken breasts, skinned

2 tbs.       Olive oil

1 med      Onion, chopped

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

½             Red pepper, chopped

Salt and pepper

4 tbs.      Pasta sauce

1               Avocado, sliced

6 slices  Mozzarella cheese slices

1 tbs.      Fresh chopped parsley

Directions:

In a large fry pan sauté onion, red pepper and garlic till soft. Remove from pan.  Add chicken breast seasoning with pepper and salt.  Brown the chicken on both sides.  Scoop half of the vegetable mixture on top of each chicken breast.  Cover each breast with 2tbs of the pasta sauce.  Place sliced avocado on top of each chicken breast and cover with cheese.  Put the chicken in a 375 preheated oven and cook till the cheese turns slightly brown.  Top with the chopped parsley.

Serves 4

Pepper Chicken with Guacamole

Pepper Chicken with Guacamole

This was one of my first posts I made this year.  It is also one of my favorite dishes.  The combination of chicken breast and spicy chicken sausage gives just enough spice to the dish.  Use as many combinations of pepper you have.  I do like a little heat so I use some chili peppers.  The guacamole calms down any heat that is present in the dish.  Please enjoy.

Ingredients:

¼ Red pepper sliced
½ Jalapeno sliced
¼ Banana pepper sliced
¼ Anaheim pepper sliced
½ Yellow onion sliced
½ tsp. Garlic Powder
½ tsp. Ground Pepper
½ tsp. Paprika sweet
½ tsp. Cumin
½ tsp. Chili Powder
1 Zucchini sliced
2 Chicken Breast, skinless, cut in chunks
2 Chicken Sausage sliced
5 Queen Green Olives chopped
2 tbsp. Olive Oil
Fresh Cilantro

Directions:

Put 1 tbsp. olive oil in hot skillet adding first five ingredients. Add ½ of garlic powder, ground pepper, paprika, cumin, and chili powder. Saute till al-dante. Add sliced zucchini and saute till tender. Remove from pan and set aside. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil to the hot pan and add the sausage and chicken. Season with the remaining garlic powder, ground pepper, sweet paprika, cumin, and chili powder. Saute till cooked through. Add back the vegetables to the pan with the chicken and sausage. Add the chopped olives and combine. Add chopped fresh cilantro.

Guacamole:
2 Avocados sliced
1 tbsp. Red onion chopped
1 Green onion chopped
¼ Jalapeno chopped
¼ tsp. Garlic powder
¼ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Ground pepper
Juice from 1 Lime

Mash the avocado then add remaining ingredients except the lime juice. Mix till combined. Add juice of one lime, mix well. Refrigerate

Jerk Roasted Vegetables with Black Beans, Cilantro Rice, and Caramelized Plantains by cook to love

The jerk seasoning on the vegetables smelted so good just making it.  I couldn’t wait to see how the vegetables taste.  The wait was worth it, they were just jumping with island flavors.

The rice and black beans was also loaded with great flavors.  I just love garlic, onions and cilantro.

Now for the plantains, I am the only one in the house who likes them.  This is strange because I would rather die than eat a banana.  I know they taste different, but come on they look alike.  We also had to go and pick up some agave nectar, not something we have ever used.  Well the combination was great and I enjoyed the plantains but surprise, surprise, so did my wife.  Now I am experimenting with the agave nectar, recipes to follow.

Red Lentils with Vegetables

Lentils are so easy to make and go well with most vegetables.  Enjoy.

 

Ingredients:

2 Cups chicken stock

1 Cup red lentils

Olive oil

½ Yellow onion, sliced

½ Red Pepper, sliced

1 Zucchini, sliced

1 Yellow squash, sliced

Salt and pepper

1tsp. Cumin

1tsp. Paprika

Extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp. Parmesan grated cheese

2 Green onions, chopped

Directions:

Prepare lentils by heating 2 cups of chicken stock to a boil in a medium sauce pan.  Add the red lentils, stir and allow to boil for five minutes.  Stir and reduce to a simmer until the lentils are tender.  Remove from the heat.

To prepare the vegetables, heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and red pepper cooking till soft.  Add zucchini and yellow squash.  Season with the cumin, paprika, salt and pepper.

Place the lentils in a serving bowl, add the vegetables and combine.  Put some good extra virgin olive oil on top, add the Parmesan and green onions and serve.

Tri Tip Steak (Frugal Man’s Filet)

Tri Tip Steak (Frugal Man’s Filet)

This is the frugal man’s filet mignon.  When tri tip roasts are on sale you can pick one up for around $3.99 per pound.  From this roast you can cut about four nice 2” steaks and have lots of meat left to turn into a great beef stew.  This can be a very inexpensive and flavorful cut of beef if seasoned and cooked properly.  You will not get the butter tenderness of the fillet but you will get a very tender piece of meat with a great beef flavor.

Ingredients:

4          2” tri tip streaks trimmed

2 tbsp.  All purpose spice rub

1 tbsp.  Olive oil

1 tsp.   Butter

Directions:

Season the steaks with the all-purpose spice rub and let sit at room temperature for around 30 minutes.  Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add steaks, brown on both sides cooking to a medium rare doneness.  Transfer to a plate and let rest for ten minutes before serving.  Serve with steamed asparagus and roasted potatoes.  You can eliminate the butter if you are watching calories without hurting the outcome.

Barbecued Meatballs by Turkish Kitchen Secrets

Barbecued Meatballs by Turkish Kitchen Secrets

I really liked this recipe, it was full of flavor.  This surely beats a burger in my mind.  Once you get all the ingredients ready the recipe comes together very quickly and it cooks easy on the grill.  I topped mine with some salsa and guacamole.   I served with Swiss chard cooked in bacon and a Greek salad with a fantastic Greek Salad Dressing from Fantastic Frugal Foods from Justa’s Kitchen.  The dressing is definitely a keeper that I will use on any salad.

 

Lentil Soup with Chorizo from Jar of Salt

As part of my week to pay homage to my fellow bloggers I decided to make lentil soup with chorizo by Jar of Salt.  Well I was very pleased that this is one of the recipes I chose for this week.  The flavors that the chorizo give this soup is so delicious.  I did serve this with baked corn tortillas brushed with olive oil and toped with parmesan cheese.

I would strongly suggest you make this soup, it is large with flavors.  Check it out Jar of Salt at http://jarofsalt.com/2012/05/05/from-the-kitchen-lentil-soup-with-chorizo/.

Puerto Rican Rice and Beans

This was an exceptional dish. Much more complex flavor than traditional Mexican rice and beans. I made the sofrito and the aroma when it was cooking was fantastic. You have to make this dish often.  I served it with a spicy grilled chicken breast.

creative noshing

A few years ago, I met a very dear friend of mine through work. She and her family are from Puerto Rico and of course, have some very lovely food traditions. As a tribute to our friendship, I prepared some sofrito earlier this week and now  I will be using it in a lovely rice and beans dish. With it’s beautifully complex flavors, this rice and bean dish is perfect for eating on it’s own or as a side to any Latin inspired meal. Enjoy!

Puerto Rican Rice and Beans

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