Make your own salads

This has become a favorite in our house especially on busy days.  The girls love the "make your own" aspect of it and I love it because it's (mostly) healthy and quick and easy.  No recipe really.  Just pick your toppings- we usually do tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, chives, hard boiled eggs, cheese, bacon (if I have it), craisins or raisins, sometimes olives and/or avocado and usually some type of nuts.

I found this  fabulous marinade for chicken and beef.  It's not only south beach diet friendly, it's also super easy and versatile.  Sometimes when I bring chicken home from the store, I go ahead and cut it up and put it in the marinade and then put it in the freezer in ziplocs and it's ready to go.  Other times if I haven't really planned ahead, I'll marinate the chicken just for an hour or so before cooking it and it's still just as yummy.  It's also a great marinade to use over night before grilling, but sadly we don't have a grill...

Mostly I love that we've found a fun, creative and healthy way for our girls to love salad!  

For dressing, I almost always use homemade ranch or our favorite balsamic vinegar dressing that I use for everything.  Here's that recipe...

Balsamic Vinegar Dressing

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

3 TBSP honey

2 TBSP dijon mustard

1-2 garlic cloves minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients expect olive oil.  Gradually stir in olive oil until well blended.  Store at room temperature and shake to combine before using.

Mulligatawny

The name of this soup makes me think of Seinfeld and the soup n@zi. I had no idea what was in it until I decided to make it one day. I imagine there are probably different variations of it out there. One thing is for sure, this version from my Harry's Roadhouse cookbook fed us for about a week and we had extra to take to friends as well. If you're ever hosting a big group I think this would be a fun thing to serve.

1 c uncooked rice
1 c diced onions
1 c diced celery (I used celery seeds b/c I didn't have fresh, but wished I would have just put more carrot of apple for more texture...)
1 c diced carrots
1/2 c butter, divided
3 1/2 T good-quality curry powder (I used red curry paste...)
1 1/2 t turmeric
1/4 t cayenne
2 1/2 quarts chicken stock (I used homemade)
1 quart coconut milk (I used 2 cans which may not have equaled a full quart...)
2 apples, peeled and diced
3 cups cooked and diced turkey or chicken (I used chicken)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c flour
1/4 c chopped cilantro

Cook the rice in 2 cups of water. Set aside.

Sautee vegetables in half of the butter. When onions become translucent, add curry powder, turmeric, and cayenne. Cook for about 5 minutes; add stock and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer. Add apples. When apples are soft add the cooked turkey or chicken. Adjust seasonings for salt and pepper.

Make a roux with 1/4 c butter and 1/4 c flour. Whisk into hot soup, being sure to whisk out lumps. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

Place rice in the bottom of six 12-ounce bowls, top with soup, and garnish with chopped cilantro.

**it says this feeds 6 but it went a long way for us - I just made fresh rice each time. You can make it stretch for awhile over rice. I liked it better over brown rice than white, but I prefer brown rice in general so that could be why

Chicken Spaghetti

While we were in the states my step-mom made some chicken spaghetti that was delicious. I still haven't gotten the recipe from her so I'll post the one that I use. I'm not sure I could fully do her recipe anyways b/c of the limitations on some ingredients here...

3-4 T butter
1 chopped green pepper
1 chopped onion
1 t. minced garlic
1 can cream of mushroom soup **(I use the Maggai dry soup packets and mix them with milk and labneh to make a sour cream consistency...)
1 can cream of chicken soup**
5 chicken breasts, skin removed (I usually just boil a whole chicken b/c it's so much cheaper)
8 oz cheddar cheese, grated
1 pkg spaghetti (I use about 3/4 of the pkg, that way the spaghetti stays wetter)
salt, pepper and garlic to taste
1 c. tomatoes

Sautee onion pepper and garlic in butter. Set aside. Boil chicken. Remove from water and set aside to cool and de-bone. Cook spaghetti in chicken broth and drain. In large casserole dish (i use a big bowl for this part, then transfer to casserole) mix all ingredients using only 1/2 the cheese. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake at 350 until heated through and cheese is melted on top (about 20-25 mins). Serves 6.

Roast Salmon on a Bed of Lentils

Salmon is one of those excellent for you foods that we're willing to spring for now and again. I usually just bake it and leave it at that but I was feeling a little more inspired this time. This turned out okay... it didn't knock our socks off or anything. I would probably add brown rice to the lentils next time.

2 skinless salmon fillets (about 6 oz ea.) *I left skin on - the skin is the best part in my book!
2 t. olive oil
2 t. fresh thyme leaves
Pinch each of salt and black pepper
Warm Lentil Ragout (recipe follows)
1 T finely chopped fresh parsley *I omitted this
Preheat oven to 450F.

Place salmon fillets in an 8 in square baking dish and rub the olive oil over them. Sprinkle thyme, salt and pepper on top of the salmon.

Bake the salmon until it is cooked through and flakes easily when pierced with a fork, 10 to 15 minutes.

Spoon a serving of the lentils onto each of 2 serving plates and place a salmon fillet on top. Sprinkle parsley over each fillet and serve.

Warm Lentil Ragout
*this recipe makes twice as many lentils as you'll need for the Roast Salmon

2 t. olive oil
1 med onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 med carrots, diced
1 c. green lentils
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
3 c. low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
salt and black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a medium-size sauce pan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until just beginning to soften, 3 minutes.

Add the carrots and cook, stirring frequently until they soften slightly, about 3 minutes. Add the lentils, thyme and bay leaf and cook, stirring to mix well, for about 1 minute.

Stir in the chicken broth, raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, and let simmer until the lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove and discard the sprig of thyme and bay leaf before serving. the lentils can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 5 days.

Garbanzo Beans and Vegetables over Couscous

1 T. olive oil
1 med onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 c. sliced carrots
1 t. ground coriander
1 t vegetable or ckn bouillon granules
½ t. salt
¼ t. tumeric
⅛ t. ground red pepper (cayenne)
2 med zucchini, sliced
1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans, undrained

Heat oil in 3 qt. saucepan over med-high heat. Saute onion and garlic 3 min. Stir in remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 12-15 min or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Serve over couscous.

Couscous

1 ¾ c. water
⅓ c. raisins
2 T. butter
¼ t. salt
¾ c. uncooked quick-cooking couscous

Heat water, raisins, butter and salt to boiling in 1 qt saucepan. Stir in couscous; cover. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes.

This is one of my 'go to' dishes when I'm looking for something quick and easy. And it's super cheap since it's so middle eastern friendly. We usually have leftovers of the topping but not the couscous so you families of 4 could double the couscous to have enough.

Jambalaya

This is one of our all time faves, so I was thrilled to see the healthy choice or butterball polish style turkey sausages at tsc.  I think they are like 10,000 for the package, so not too bad...

This is Jason's mom's recipe and it has been one  of our favorites since we got married.

1 cup chopped onion
e cup chopped green pepper
 2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp oil
1 can tomatoes
1 can rotel
sausage (diced or cut in rounds)
chicken (cooked and shredded or diced)
1 cup rice (I use brown so I always add a little more liquid while cooking)
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (probably 2, maybe more, if brown rice)
1 tsp salt
1 TBSP parsley
other spices of choice (if I have a cajun seasoning of some sort I use that, sometimes i add oregano, thyme, whatever I feel like)

Saute onions, pepper and sausage in oil.  Add all other ingredients. Cover, cook on low until most liquid absorbed (adding more if needed if rice not tender).  Usually cooks about 30 minutes.  Enjoy!  We usually have with cornbread and slaw or salad

German Pizza

I had completely forgotten about this recipe until Jason reminded me of it last week when I was having a "I have no idea what to cook for dinner" moment at almost 6 at night.  It's so quick and easy and cheap.  It might not be the healthiest thing in the world but it goes great with salad.    This is Jason's moms recipe and it's one of those that I'm not completely sure of the amounts of ingredients- you just kind of have to eyeball it.  I make two for our family- one in my large tefal skillet and one in the smaller one.

First, you slice potatoes (I did three medium sized) into thin rounds (like for home fries).  Also dice onions and peppers.  Put a small amount of oil in the bottom of skillet and heat over medium flame.  Layer the potatoes in the bottom of the pan (2-3 layers) building up slightly around the edges.  This will be the crust.  Sprinkle diced onions and peppers over potatoes.  Cover pan and let cook until potatoes tender and beginning to brown on the bottom (around 10 minutes).

Once the veggies are tender, sprinkle meat of choice on top.  I've been using those healthy choice turkey polish sausages that TSC has.  You can also use lunch meat chopped up like turkey or ham. I think the original recipe called for diced ham.  Anyway, put the meat on.  Then beat eggs for each pan (I think I used 4 in the big  pan and 3 in the small).  Pour beaten eggs over meat then top with shredded cheese (swiss is best).  Put the top back on and let it cook for another 10 minutes or so until the eggs are set.   The potatoes on the very bottom will get pretty brown and crispy like a crust.

I don't put all the veggies on the one for the girls:

You can do all sorts of variations with this especially when it comes to the veggies and meat- different color peppers, mushrooms, various fresh herbs add a nice touch.  Also I've used bacon instead of ham.  Another thing you can do is add more cheese at different layers.  Like sometimes I add cheese between the layers of potatoes.    Enjoy!

Lentils and Rice

Ingredients:
2 cups lentils (I usually use the reddish ones or light brown)
1 cup rice (I have used brown rice in this)
onions
garlic
olive oil
butter
butter
pine nuts
laban
salt
mint
flat bread

Put lentils in large saucepan and cook until done- about 30-45 minutes.  Wash rice, drain.  Saute with onions (maybe 1/2 of a regular onion diced) in small amount of olive oil.  Add to cooked lentils with salt and more water to cover.  Meanwhile fry thinly sliced onions ( I usually do two big onions) over low flame in a mixture of butter and olive oil.  Cook slowly so that they begin to carmalize.  We like them slightly crispy.  Also saute pine nuts and butter and/or olive oil and reserve along with the onions for topping.   Mash garlic (2-3 cloves) in medium sized bowl with salt.  Add 2-3 cups of laban and stir until well combined.  Garnish with mint if you want.  When lentils and rice are done cooking stir in small amount of olive oil.  Garnish with onions and pine nuts.  Serve with laban and arabic flat bread.  OH, and I forgot- you can also stir cucumbers into the laban dip.