Got protein?

We have been eating a lot more protein in our house lately so Ive been doing a lot more prep work in the kitchen.  Ive been told that making sure you get enough protein (no longer than 3 hrs apart) really kicks your metabolism into high gear. Who doesn't want that!

Check out this pin! http://pinterest.com/brownr/cooking/#

It works!!! Ive been cooking in large batches lately and it was such a time saver throwing the warm chicken in the kitchen aid mixer.

I said large batches! I find myself really enjoying different foods that I didnt really care for a few years ago. Hard boiled eggs are an awesome, super fast, good source of protein and yummy too. No worries, its the 'good' cholesterol. I did struggle with the peeling process, I could peel quick but they didn't look so perfect. I tried just about everything except using old eggs. I added a little salt and vinegar in the cooking process as well as running them under cold water and dropping them in an ice bath. Hopefully practice makes perfect.

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_perfect_hard_boiled_eggs/

5 Ingrediant fix

Once again Ive found a great dinner recipe from the Food Network show "5 Ingrediant Fix." I stumbled upon the episode where she makes really quick recipes, my kind of cooking. I actually wanted to try making some rice with chicken broth and make it a little more interesting. I did try it on my own and it didnt turn out to well. I think its because Im still adjusting to brown rice, turns out the day after I screwed up my rice I watched the show and voila I had a great new recipe to try.

Baked Shroom Rice

Recipe courtesy Claire Robinson, 2010

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 8 ounce shiitakes mushrooms, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup white rice
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Over moderately-high heat in an ovenproof saucepan, melt the butter until the foam subsides. Add the mushrooms and saute until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the rice and stir constantly until the rice is coated and lightly toasted. Season with salt and pepper. Add the chicken stock and bring up to a boil. Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook on the middle rack in the oven until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, 17 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving.

BYOC: Want to get more whole grains in the kids? Try doing this with brown rice and add a little more chicken stock and a little more time.

Turkey Robinson

Recipe courtesy Claire Robinson, 2010

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons garlic-infused olive oil
• 1 pound ground turkey
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 1 (5-ounce) bag triple washed spinach
• 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained
• Brown rice or pasta, for serving

Directions

Heat the oil in a large skillet over moderately-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the ground turkey and, using a wooden spoon, break up the clumps and cook until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the stock and scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring up to a boil, and then let simmer until slightly reduced, about 10 minutes. Stir in the spinach and cannellini beans and heat through. Season with salt and pepper. Serve over brown rice or your favorite pasta.

BYOC: Try adding some red pepper flakes to the turkey for a little spice and finely grate some Parmesan cheese to serve.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Lee and I recently celebrated our second wedding anniversary with a trip to Orlando. We haven't traveled much together yet so we have fun going anywhere we can relax. I wont make this a sappy romantic post but rather how much we love to eat!

I find myself thinking differently about what to order because I love to get ideas from restaurants.  I don't like ordering something that I can whip up at home and was a little bummed because I felt like I could make the majority of what we ate. With the exception of the mahi mahi, sushi, french onion soup and all the cocktails, I think I could make everything we ate. We did eat a lot of bar food like chicken nachos, cheese dip, quesadillas, and sliders. All delicious and gave me ideas of how to spice up my own at home. Things like green onions, red peppers, and using multiple cheeses. A new challenge I guess, and maybe I'll attempt our favorite french onion soup one of these days.

Chicken salad

This recipe is also from "5 ingredient fix." I love how I watched the show for ten minutes and came up with two great recipes. This is a healthier version of a typical chicken salad. I was pleasantly surprised with swapping mayo for greek yogurt. 

3 C chicken (chopped)

1 stalk celery (chopped)

about 12 grapes (halved)

1 C non fat plain greek yogurt

salt and pepper

1/4 C craisins (Ill put these in next time)

Everything mixed together

Scoop a small amount on one side

Fold the sides in to keep everything together

Cut it on an angle to make it fancy

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/claire-robinson/schoolhouse-wraps-recipe/index.html

Chocolate peanut butter banana chips

Flipping through the channels on a lazy summer morning I stumbled upon "5 ingredient fix" on the Food Network. The simplicity of the Memphis Banana Bites inspired me to give it a go. 

All I did was melt semi sweet chocolate over a double boiler and mixed in some peanut butter. While that is melting, I layed out the banana chips over some wax paper on a plate or cookie sheet. When the chocolate mixture is smooth, I poured it in a large plastic bag and cut off a small corner. Make sure you snip off a corner AFTER the mixture is in the bag. (I fold over the edges of the bag just in case the mixture hits the sides of the bag on the way in.)

A double boiler uses the steam from the boiling water below so make sure you arnt boiling your glass bowl.

 

 

 In the Food Network recipe she makes little banana sandwiches but I had to adapt because my chocolate mixture was too warm. It wouldn't stop in between each chip and was looking really messy. So I decided to just smother it over all of them, put another layer of chips on top and drizzle (with a heavy hand) on some more chocolaty goodness. 

A thank you to my sister for letting me use her kitchen and a shout out to girls nights!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/claire-robinson/memphis-banana-bites-recipe/index.html

5 Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas

Well its soccer season so that means I am a busy bee with no time to blog, or cook dinner. I decided to share some of my quick fixes that Ive been loving.  All winter I have had a really hard time eating salad and Ive finally gotten the summer itch and this dressing has me eating salads everyday. Which explains why the bottle in the picture is empty.

#1- Ideally, I would precook chicken for the week but I'll be honest and say that it doesn't happen. So I buy a bag of precooked chicken at Sam's Club and its been awesome for quick and easy lunch and dinners. Last night I threw a bunch of lettuce, chicken, pepper, parmesan cheese and caesar dressing in a bowl, tossed it and then wrapped in in a whole wheat tortilla.

#2- Tortillas are something that Ive been eating a lot lately too. Whenever I need to curb my fast food craving I throw a tortilla in a pan and sprinkle on some cheese, chicken, hot sauce, and a some drops of ranch and its just like taco bell. Mmm.

#3- Cereal has also been on the dinner list quite a bit lately, Multi-grain Cheerios to be exact. Along with cheese, veggies, and/or crackers. I really like the laughing cow garlic and herb for only 35 calories a wedge.

#4- I really think that I honestly made a dinner in less than 8 minutes the other night and 6 of them I wasn't even in the kitchen. I threw some salmon on the George Foreman grill and sprinkled on some Mrs. Dash seasoning and let it cook, put it on a bed a lettuce to finish it off. Easy peasy.

#5- Lastly, my fellow teachers and I are eagerly awaiting summer vacation and with this weather I think we feel like we are coming out of hibernation. So some of my dinners have been at happy hour and not gonna lie I cant wait for more free time with my coworkers!

Cheers to Oberon!