Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Baked Chicken with Dijon & Lime with Sautéed Spanish Corn

Baked Chicken Adapted from Skinnytaste
Sautéed Corn Courtesy of Plated Perfection

It's been ages since I bought or cooked chicken drumsticks, but last night was the night to change that! I love so many of the recipes on the Skinnytaste blog, and this was one I hadn't tried. It came out very tasty and I'd definitely recommend. Next time, I may try it with chicken breasts instead. The corn is something I came up with and it was delicious. It's my play on the corn we get from one of our favorite DC restaurants - Estadio. Definitely give it a go!

Baked Chicken with Dijon & Lime
Ingredients:
6 chicken drumsticks (the original called for 8, with skin removed)
3 tb dijon mustard
1 tb lite sour cream (the original called for light mayo)
1 clove garlic, diced (the original called for this crushed)
1 lime, juiced and zested
3/4 tsp pepper
salt to taste
dried parsley
spray of Pam

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Place in a large bowl and season with salt. In a small bowl, combine the dijon, sour cream, garlic, lime juice and zest, and pepper. Stir and pour over the chicken to coat well. Spray a large baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and place chicken in a single layer. Top the chicken with dried parsley. Baked until cooked through, around 35 minutes. Finish it off by placing under the broiler for 2 minutes.

Sauteed Spanish Corn
Ingredients:
4 ears of corn, cleaned and cut off the cob
1/2 lime, juiced
chopped cilantro, for garnish
shredded manchego or monterey jack (for topping)
Pimenton (Spanish smoked paprika) for topping - dash on each serving
2 olive oil
1 tb butter

Directions:
Heat the olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Once it has a shine, toss in the corn and stir with a spatula or spoon. Cook 3-5 minutes until caramelized, stirring as necessary to not stick to the bottom of the pan. Once the corn appears a bit browned, add the lime juice. Remove from the heat and serve topped with cheese, cilantro and pimenton.


Monday, October 24, 2016

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Courtesy of Skinnytaste

We are on a mission to eat healthy this week (as we usually try to start each week). This recipe caught my eye and it was quite good! It also makes 6 halves of bell peppers, so this could easily make leftovers as well. The only thing I would add to this recipe is more seasoning - even if just salt and pepper. I also added a little more tomato sauce than what was called for, and it turned out great. This is a great weeknight meal that isn't full of guilt! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 lb 93% lean ground turkey
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 onion, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp kosher salt
3 large sweet red bell peppers, washed
1 cup fat free chicken broth
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
Olive oil spray
6 tbsp part skim shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray olive oil spray in a medium nonstick skillet and heat on a medium heat. Add onion, garlic and cilantro and saute about 2 minutes, add ground turkey, salt, garlic powder, cumin and cook meat for 4 to 5 minutes until meat is completely cooked through. Add 1/4 cup of tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of chicken broth, mix well and simmer on low for about 5 minutes. Combine cooked rice and meat together. Cut the bell peppers in half lengthwise, and remove all seeds. Spoon 2/3 cup meat mixture into each pepper half and place in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Top each with 1 tbsp cheese. Pour the remainder of the chicken broth on the bottom of the pan. Cover tight with aluminum foil and bake for about 45 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and serve right away.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Seared Pesto Scallops with Sautéed Kale and Prosciutto

Courtesy of Plated Perfection

This was something I threw together because I was craving all of the various ingredients. I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but it was pretty awesome (and healthy!). This was a great week night meal - definitely give this one a try! This would also work with shrimp, but I was able to find fresh scallops, so I went that route. This recipe involves a few different pans, but totally worth it!

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh sea scallops
1 tsp salt, plus a dash for the scallops
dash of pepper
dash of red pepper flakes
1/2 bag of kale
1/2 bag of baby spinach
1/2 cup (approx.) of diced prosciutto - I buy this already diced so that it's larger chunks
1/2 lemon, juiced
3 tb pesto sauce, warmed
swirl of olive oil
2 cloves garlic, diced

Directions:
Pat the scallops dry with a paper towel and season with a dash of salt and pepper. In one saute pan, heat the olive oil and cook the scallops over medium-high heat for approximately 3 minutes per side, until a bit browned. Remove when done and set aside. I usually cover with a foil tent to keep them somewhat warm. Add a bit more olive oil into the scallop pan and cook the garlic over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add in the prosciutto to warm and mesh flavors.

In the meantime in another, larger saute pan, heat another small swirl of oil and toss in the greens. Saute over medium heat until soft, approximately 10 minutes. Throw in the garlic/prosciutto mixture about halfway through and add the lemon juice and red pepper flakes, along with a dash of salt.

Top the sautéed greens with the seared scallops and drizzle the pesto on top of the scallops. Enjoy!

Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Salsa Verde

Courtesy of Plated Perfection

I've been dying to make chicken enchiladas, as they're one of my favorite things in the world. I've also been wanting to attempt my own salsa verde, which I also tackled in this same recipe! The prep time for this was a bit long, but I think that was partially because it was my first time making it. You could easily prep the salsa beforehand as well. A lot of folks hate on using flour tortillas, but I did this go around since I had them and love them. These turned out delicious - definitely give it a try! I served this with some sauteed black beans with a bit of onion, garlic, bay leaf, chicken broth and salt and pepper.

Roasted Salsa Verde
Ingredients:
1 lb tomatillos, husked and rinsed (I used 5 as they weren't super big when I bought them)
3 cloves garlic (I didn't peel these until after roasting)
1 onion, peeled and cut into quarters (I used yellow since I had it on hand and it turned out just fine)
2 jalapeno peppers
1 lime
dash of cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup cilantro, rinsed and stems cut off

Directions:
Roast the tomatillos, onion, garlic and peppers at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes. When done, take the garlic out of their shell and cut the jalapenos in half, removing the seeds (this is to make it not super spicy). Leave the seeds in if you prefer it spicy. Throw the tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapenos in the food processor with the remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth. Set aside. Season with a bit more salt if necessary.

Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients:
2 cups shredded chicken (I used the white meat of a rotisserie chicken)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups salsa verde
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (or cheese of your preference) -- I bought a block and shredded it myself because I feel it melts easier
6 flour tortillas

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the shredded chicken with 1 cup of salsa verde and the sour cream. Mix in approximately half of the cheese. Spray a baking dish (2 qt should work) and place enough salsa verde on the bottom of the dish to coat it. Assemble your tortillas by placing 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture in each tortilla. Roll and place seam side down in your baking dish. It'll be a tight fit, but you should be able to fit 6 in there. Top with remaining salsa verde and cheese. Cover with foil and bake for approximately 15 minutes. Take out and remove the foil, and place back in the oven for approximately 10 minutes until the cheese is completely melted. Serve immediately!