Healthy and Tasty Salmon with Sugar Snap Peas

Here is a very easy salmon recipe that is not only delicious but healthy as well and doesn't require hardly any prepping or cooking time.  :D

Salmon & Sugar Snap Peas

Heat 1 Tbsp. EVOO in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add 4 wild caught salmon steaks (about 6 oz. each and thawed if are frozen). Pour 1/4  cup soy sauce, (use lite if you prefer), and 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice over the salmon. Cover and cook 6 minutes.  Turn salmon and add a box of frozen Sugar Snap Peas.

Cover and steam 2 minutes or until salmon and peas are cooked through.  Serve with any variety of rice, even Minute Rice if that is all you have.  My preference is either Wild Rice or Jasmine.

~Enjoy~

Southwestern Chicken Chili Stew

This recipe is light, very low in fat and oh so flavorful!  I serve it with the "Blue Chips" but whatever Tortilla chips you prefer are fine .. or without chips even.  :D


Southwestern Chicken Chili Stew

INGREDIENTS:
    •    2 tablespoon olive oil
    •    2 cups chopped onion
    •    4 large garlic cloves, minced
    •    1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins, washed, cooked and cubed.
    •    Pickled jalapenos to taste (I use about 8 slices and chop it up well)
    •    1 teaspoon ground coriander (I usually don't add this)
    •    2 teaspoons ground cumin
    •    2 cans (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes in juice (I use Del Monte.  They have lower sodium content)
    •    1 can Great Northern beans, or black beans, (16 oz) drained.
    •    juice of a lime
    •    1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
    •    Tone's Lime Pepper seasoning on chicken and about 1/2 teaspoon into tomato mixture. (You can get this at Sam's Club)
    •    Sour cream
    •    Chopped red onion
    •    Chopped fresh cilantro
   
PREPARATION:
Heat olive oil in a large nonstick saucepan over medium heat. When oil is hot, add chicken;  cook it slowly until center turns white.  Remove and cut in cubes then set aside.  In the same skillet, add a tablespoon more olive oil if needed then add the garlic and swirl in skillet to infuse in oil.  Add onion;  saute until it is translucent. 

Meanwhile, In a medium to large soup pot add your diced tomatoes, add chopped jalapeno, and using a wooden spatula break the tomatoes up as you allow them to simmer.  Once your garlic and onion are done, add it to your tomato mixture along with the Lime Pepper seasoning, cumin and cooked chicken.
Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes; add juice of one lime and stir in the corn kernels and drained beans.
Simmer chicken chili, gently stirring until everything is blended in and nice and hot. 

Garnish with sour cream, chopped red onion and chopped fresh cilantro.

Patti's Garden Fresh Spaghetti Sauce

When you can buy or grow garden Roma tomatoes this sauce is even better, otherwise use the best organic canned tomatoes you can find at your grocery store. ;-)

To make this sauce, start with a large non stick skillet that has a lid and add 3 Tablespoon's butter allowing it to melt over low heat.  When melted add 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms simmering until mushrooms are soft and have shrunk down, absorbing the butter, which takes about 15 minutes.  Remove mushrooms and set aside.

Add to the skillet 2 Tablespoons EVOO and allow to heat up slightly.  Add 4 cloves chopped garlic to the oil.  Move the garlic around with a wooden spoon for a few seconds to flavor the oil, making sure the heat is on medium low to be careful not to burn the garlic.  Add to this, 1 medium chopped onion, 1/2 of a chopped green bell pepper and continue stirring and simmering this mixture until the onion is translucent. 

Add back into the mixture the cooked mushrooms, 1 can organic diced tomatoes and 1 small can tomato sauce.  Bring all of this to a boil, stirring and breaking up the tomatoes with your spoon.  To bring out the flavor of the ingredients, add 1 bay leaf, 1/2 Tablespoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon dried Thyme and 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder.  Blend all the seasonings into the sauce and continue simmering and breaking up the tomatoes.  Turn the heat down to low and place the lid on the skillet allowing the sauce to simmer on low for at least 30 minutes.  As it simmers, be sure to check the sauce and stir it occasionally.  Taste before adding sea salt; canned tomatoes contain high amounts of sodium.  I don't add salt to my sauce unless I am using fresh picked garden Roma tomatoes.

You can add Italian sausage to this sauce but be sure to cook it first and drain off all grease.  Add the cooked meat at the same time you add the cooked mushrooms.  ;-)

Serve over whatever pasta you prefer and top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  Bon Appetit!  :D

Patti's Spicy Oven Roasted Potatoes

 The Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil is what makes these oven roasted potatoes out of this world!  Harry's Farmer's Market or any Whole Foods Market should have this but if not, you can make your own by roasting garlic and using crushed red pepper to infused EVOO.  :D

Allow 1 large baking potato per person.
EVOO and EVOO Infused with Roasted Garlic and Crushed Red Pepper
"Season All" to taste (this contains a lot of salt so go easy with it.)

After washing and cutting potatoes into 1 inch quarters, put potatoes in large zip lock bag and drizzle first with EVOO to very lightly coat.  Shake and turn to make it evenly coated over all the potatoes.  Now, add Infused EVOO with Roasted Garlic and Crush Red Pepper taking care not to add too much.  Last, lightly sprinkle "Season All" over potatoes and shake it up to cover evenly.  Dump the coated potatoes out on a cookie sheet making sure all are laying flat and not on top of another.

Put in a 475 degree oven for 25 minutes.

~Enjoy~

The Best Mexican Corn Dip Ever~

Here's the "Best Mexican Corn Dip Ever" that I promised I would post.  This is great to serve for any occasion.  ~Enjoy~

SERVES 8
 Make the Mexican Corn recipe that I have posted.

Add the Mexican Corn to the other ingredients; 
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 (7 ounce) can diced green chilies
2/3 cup green onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
Last but NOT least, add half a Cow Horn pepper finely chopped.  

 In a medium to large bowl, combine sour cream, mayonnaise and cumin.  Blend well.  Add Mexican corn to the sour cream mixture, then add the cheddar cheese, chiles, black pepper, and green onions.  Stir well.  If you want hotter, add the cow horn peppers.  Yeeehaaaa!
Cover and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
   
        Serve with tortilla chips or Fritos - large ones for scooping.  ;-)

Thai Meal In a Minute

I needed something quick to cook for dinner one evening and this dish is what I came up with using leftover chicken breast and steamed green beans.  Even if you have to sautée the chicken and steam your green beans just for this recipe it is worth the effort, especially if you like Thai green curry.  You can also substitute the Minute Rice for Jasmine Rice, the hallmark rice of Thailand.


Minute Rice with Thai Green Curry

Measure 1 cup Minute Rice, (or cooked Jasmine Rice) and set aside, measure 1 cup Organic Chicken Broth and bring to a boil.
Add to the boiling broth;  1 cup Minute Rice, 1 Tablespoon of Thai Kitchen Green Curry, 1 cup of lightly steamed green beans, 1 cup leftover cooked chicken.
Sprinkle about a tablespoon of Lemon Grass stirring everything together turning off the heat, and put on the lid.  Let this sit for about 10 minutes or enough time for the rice to absorb the chicken broth.

Right before serving squeeze half a lime over the rice and blend.  Garnish with fresh chopped basil.

Bon Appetit!  :D

My Chili Has Evolved!

I have been making pots of Chili for all my friends and family since the mid 70's, and even though I have made lots of changes to the original recipe, it is still one of our favorite dishes.  That puts Chili at the top of the list of being not only a crowd pleaser, but something I can just about cook with my eyes closed! 

Back when I first started cooking I got most of my recipes from my old faithful Betty Crocker cookbook that I received for a wedding gift.  The recipe in that particular cookbook was the basis to what has evolved into the Chili I make today, which doesn't taste very much like that original recipe, I might add.

One of the major changes I have made to my Chili is I have gotten away from using ground beef, and substitute it for ground turkey, which makes it not as heavy, eliminates a lot of fat, and actually I prefer it, to be totally honest.  Turkey doesn't have as strong of a taste as beef though, so I had to keep tweaking it until I got the taste I wanted by basically adding a good bit more cumin which gives it more of a smoky flavor and goes really well with the ground turkey meat.  I use to add green bell pepper and decided I didn't want that flavor in my Chili, even though I love green bell peppers.  I use to make it a lot spicier when I was using the ground beef but I have cut back on the cayenne red pepper just a bit since I changed over to ground turkey.

There are so many recipes out there for Chili.  I have tried many of them as well.  I have put coffee in mine, chocolate, jalapenos, habaneros, beer, with and without beans and all kinds of beans, and have even tried it over macaroni, but I always go back to my recipe that isn't too spicy or heavy .... it's just darn good!  :D

Patti's Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Here's a dip that you can use the freshly roasted red bell pepper in.  :D


1 can (no salt added) 365 (Whole Foods) Garbanzo beans, drained.
1 roasted red bell pepper cooked over gas burner or grilled.
1 Tbls. olive oil
1/2 tsp. Tone's Garlic Pepper Blend seasoning  (They have this at Sam's Club)
1/4 tsp. Cumin
1 Tbls. Tahini
1 Tbls. Crystal Hot Sauce

Drain and put beans in food processor and blend well.  Add chopped roasted red bell pepper, and blend again.  Add remaining ingredients and blend well.  Taste and add seasoning accordingly.  ~Enjoy~

How To Roast a Red Bell Pepper (pimentos)

It is so easy to roast your own red peppers to make pimentos and they taste better as well!  What you absolutely have to have though, is an open flame.  Yes, you need either a grill with flames, (no electric anything), or the eye of a gas top stove, which works just as well, and is how I roast my red peppers.

Here's what you need:

1 whole red bell pepper washed and dried with a cloth.  Do not cut the stem off or slice it open.
1 brown paper bag (what you use for a sack lunch)
Eye of a gas stove or charcoal/propane grill
Tongs 

After washing and drying your whole red bell pepper, place the bell pepper on the iron of your gas stove or on a grill with flames that reach the pepper.  If you are using the eye of your stove you can place the pepper on the iron and then turn the eye on.  Adjust the flame making sure it is high enough to burn the sides of the pepper.  Allow the pepper to be totally blackened on all sides and the top and bottom, being especially careful to keep an eye on the pepper;  it will cause small flecks of soot to escape as it blackens the skin.  This will require you to use tongs to turn the pepper as the skin blackens.
As it is roasting, your kitchen will be filled with the most fabulous aroma!

Once the pepper is totally roasted, remove it from the flames and drop it into a brown paper bag.  Roll the open end of the bag down tightly using a clothes pin or clip to keep it closed.  Place the bag on a plate and allow the pepper to cool completely before using it.  If you don't plan to use the roasted pepper immediately, once the pepper has cooled, place it in the refrigerator for later use.

To use your pepper, simply take it out of the paper bag and wash all the blackened skin off under running water.  It comes off very easily once it is cooked.  Slice the pepper open and remove the stem, seeds and membrane leaving the rest of the pepper intact.  Cut the pepper up in long thin slices and then chop it up for use in your recipes.  :D

I have a few dips that I will post if anyone is interested.  Bon Appetit~

Mexican Corn (not from a can!) :D

This is sooo much better than the canned Mexican Corn you buy at the store and it makes "The Best Mexican Corn Dip Ever", which, BTW, is the name of the recipe I came up with after trying someone's recipe for just plain ole Mexican Corn Dip using the canned stuff.  ;-)

Mexican Corn
    •    1/2 of a small red bell pepper (chopped)
    •    1/3 of a small green bell pepper (chopped)
    •    1 cup chopped onion
    •    handful, (or to taste) sliced pickled jalapeno peppers (chopped)
    •    1 cup of frozen corn
    •    1 tablespoon olive oil

In a medium skillet add your olive oil and put the heat on medium.  When the oil is heated, add all ingredients except for the corn.  Sautée until the onion is translucent and add the corn.  Heat until the corn is hot and serve.

I will eventually add to my Blog my "Best Mexican Corn Dip Ever" that you can use the Mexican Corn in and also, check the web for recipes using this Mexican Corn recipe and create a dish!  Enjoy~

Quick and Easy Creamy Chicken Mushroom & Rice

This recipe was one of my favorites when I was growing up.  Unfortunately, I don't cook it very often because of the ingredients in the Cream of Mushroom Soup.  I tried cooking it using the "Healthy Choice"version of the soup and it sucked really bad!  So, if you want comfort food and don't care about the calories .... this is it!  :D

8 strips Tyson's frozen (non-breaded) chicken tenders
1 Tablespoon EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
2 cans Cream of Mushroom Soup
About 1 can of water .. or enough to make a nice thick gravy
2 bay leaves
Cracked black pepper to taste
2 cups Minute Rice

In a large nonstick skillet on medium low heat, add your EVOO and your frozen chicken tenders, cooking the chicken slowly until the chicken is white on the bottom.  Turn them over and continue slowly cooking until chicken is white in the center.  In a bowl combine the Cream of Mushroom Soup and water, mixing well, then adding to your cooked chicken.  Add your bay leaf and bring to a slow boil then turn the heat down to simmer.  Let this simmer for about 10 minutes as you make your Minute Rice.   Serve over the rice and add cracked black pepper to taste.
Voilá!!   It's simply delicious.  :D

Grill Time!!

It's beautiful outside and we are preparing the grill for marinated rack of lamb cut into individual chops ... makes them easier to eat with the little built in handle and gets that charcoal grill flavor on both sides.  I came up with a new recipe a couple of weeks ago which I am calling "Spicy Oven Roasted Potatoes. This new creation came about by me adding EVOO that is infused with roasted garlic and crushed red pepper and good ole "Season All".  A fresh baby spinach salad will finish off this meal just perfectly.  ~beams~