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Grilled Chicken with Tomato-Avocado Salad

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Kaitlin

I am in a grilling mood so there is going to be an influx of barbecue recipes on here, I think very few people will complain. We finally have a grill, but haven’t set it up yet (oops) so I am still making this recipe on my grill pan. This is a recipe from Cooking Light in the latest issue. I made a few changes just based on what I could find but the recipe is primarily in tact. Ingredients: 1/4 cup nonfat buttermilk 3 tablespoons 0% Greek yogurt 2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley 1 tablespoon minced shallots 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme 1 teaspoon cider vinegar 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt 1 large garlic clove, minced 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves Cooking spray 1 teaspoon onion powder 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika 1/4 teaspoon chili powder 2 ears yellow corn, shucked 1 small red onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices 1 cup yellow cherry tomatoes, halved 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved 1 sliced peeled ripe avocado

Mediterranean Stuffed Mini Peppers

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Kaitlin

I am less than one month away from attending Eat Write Retreat in Philadelphia and am getting so excited for it! Not only is the lineup awesome, but I get to meet a ton of other bloggers, what could be better? As we get closer to the big weekend, the attendees were sent a secret ingredient and were asked to try to incorporate into an appetizer recipe. I received California raisins, which people tend to think of more for sweet foods, but play off savory dishes oh so well. It goes without saying that I haven’t been able to get California Raisins’ classic commercial out of my head since I received them! OXO generously also sent us a few spiffy tools to help create our recipe; I can never have enough of their products! Raisins are a great addition to a meal to add some sweetness without any added sugar. The dried fruit is loaded with antioxidants and fiber while being fat free and cholesterol free. Did you know that one serving of raisins (just 1/4 cup) has more potassium than a banana? I have a friend that absolutely raves about Mediterranean Stuffed Peppers that her grandmother used to make for her, with rice, … Continue reading →

Badenjan Chalow

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Kaitlin

This month, Pomi asked that I try to create a recipe using one of their tomatoes paired with eggplant. I have been craving my favorite Afghan meal from a restaurant in Philadelphia called Ariana so my mind went immediately to trying to replicate it. The meal, Badenjan Chalow, is a lamb dish with eggplant, cooked with tomatoes, onions, garlic and spices served over basmati rice. Pomi’s strained tomatoes are perfect for this recipe. Although I’d love to put this in a slow cooker and let it cook all day, I wanted to make this weeknight meal friendly. Ingredients: 1 cup cooked basmati rice 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided 1 medium yellow onion, chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 eggplant, peeled and diced 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper 1 teaspoon ground cardamom 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric 1 lb lamb chunks 1 container Pomi strained tomatoes

Tri-Vegetarian Chili

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Kaitlin

I made a realization this weekend. Chili is so hearty that I really don’t realize if there is even meat in them. So why add it in? With a bunch of different beans and peppers, you can still deliver an absolutely delicious chili that doesn’t even need meat! (I’m not knocking those that like meat in their chili, I just apparently prefer the vegetarian version) Katherine Martinelli had a chili link up last week on her blog and I couldn’t stop thinking about chili. Her Three Bean Chili in particular looked so fantastic, I decided to make my own version of it below. It is based off of her recipe but I did make some changes, so to see the original recipe, check it out here. This Tri-Vegetarian Chili is aptly named. It uses three types of beans, three types of dried peppers, and three types of bell peppers. Ingredients: 1 cup dried red kidney beans 1 cup dried great northern beans 1 cup dried black turtle beans 2 dried guajillo peppers 2 dried chipotle peppers 2 dried ancho chili peppers 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped 1 orange … Continue reading →

Sweet Orange Salmon with Browned Butter-Orange Couscous

Posted on January 5, 2013 by Kaitlin

After all the pasta, meat, and desserts I’ve had over the past, oh, month, I think it’s about time to switch back to some seafood recipes. This is actually two different recipes from Cooking Light but I thought they’d be fantastic together. The Sweet Orange Salmon recipe is so easy and quick to make and the Browned-Butter Orange Couscous can be whipped up in no time as well! Ingredients Salmon: 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon chili powder 1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander 1/8 teaspoon black pepper 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets Cooking spray Orange wedges Couscous: 2 tablespoons butter 1/4 cup slivered almonds 1 cup uncooked couscous 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth 1/2 cup coarsely chopped orange sections 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 1/4 teaspoon salt Orange wedges

Fish Tacos with Lime-Cilantro Crema

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Kaitlin

It’s funny how you can go years, even decades, thinking that you don’t like a certain food only to find you can’t get enough of it when you’re older. Fish tacos is one of those foods for me. They pack a ton of flavor but are a healthier option than other proteins (as long as the fish isn’t fried, that is). I also love how quickly you can cook them up, perfect for a weeknight dinner! Cooking Light always has the best taco recipes so I naturally went in search of a fish taco recipe there. I found this recipe in the myrecipes.com new cookbook: Myrecipes’ America’s Favorite Food Cookbook, which you can win by entering below! Ingredients Crema: 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise 3 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream 1 teaspoon grated lime rind (I just used the zest of one lime) 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice (I used the juice of one lime) 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 garlic clove, minced Tacos: 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 1 1/2 … Continue reading →

Wine Infused Thanksgiving Leftover Empanadas

Posted on November 20, 2012 by Kaitlin

One of the best parts of Thanksgiving doesn’t even take place on Thursday. I (and I’m assuming many others) look forward to the leftovers as much as the original meal. Friday always includes a Thanksgiving sandwich (which you can actually get a version of in Delaware all year long at Capriotti‘s called the “Bobby” mmm). Saturday tends to be my own version of the Wawa Turkey Bowl. By Sunday, I’m starting to run out of creative ways to mush my leftovers into a new meal. The makers of Clos de los Siete came to my rescue! Clos de los Siete is an Argentine red wine that is made from seven vineyards in the foothills of the Andes. The wine is a mixture of 57% malbec, 15% merlot, 15% cabernet sauvignon, 10% syrah and 3% petit verdot that is a really nice complement to turkey. Azul Argentine Bistro in New York created a recipe that uses Thanksgiving leftovers along with some spices to create a Thanksgiving leftover empanada, how fantastic does that sound? Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 pound turkey breast 1 sweet potato, diced 1 cup Clos de los Siete wine 1 green pepper, chopped 1 red pepper, chopped … Continue reading →

Quinoa Indian Chicken Curry

Posted on September 8, 2012 by Kaitlin

Although quinoa seems to be a bit of a “new” super food, it has actually been around for thousands of years and was considered one of the most important crops of the Incas. This grainlike seed is really easy to cook (you cook it like rice) but is chock full of nutritional benefits. Quinoa’s high protein content makes it a great choice for vegans and vegetarians. It is also a complete protein which means it contains all the essential amino acids. Quinoa is also rich in vitamins and minerals, including magnesium, phosphorous, zinc, iron, potassium, calcium, vitamin B, folate, and riboflavin. Quinoa is also naturally gluten free, and can be ground into a flour that allows for gluten free baking. Whew. I really didn’t know much about quinoa, or how to use it. So I was excited to be given the chance to review The Complete Idiot’s Guide Quinoa Cookbook to learn more about it. The book is full of quinoa recipes, including breakfast, dinner, and even dessert recipes. I wanted to try one of the more traditional preparations of quinoa, but can’t wait to delve into the more interesting uses for it in future posts (Lemon Poppy … Continue reading →

Chilean Sea Bass Tacos with Chipotle Cream

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Kaitlin

I have never made a taco recipe from Cooking Light that I didn’t love. Honestly, how do they manage to deliver fantastic recipe after fantastic recipe? This one is no different, although the original recipe was made with red snapper. I’ve been having really bad luck recently coming across the fish I want when I go to the market, so I had to sub in Chilean sea bass instead. Ingredients: 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream 1/8 teaspoon salt 1 canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, seeded and minced 1 1/2 cups chopped onion, divided 1 1/2 cups chopped tomato, divided 2 tablespoons butter 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 4 garlic cloves, minced 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 1 pound Chilean sea bass 1 teaspoon grated lime rind 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 4 (8-inch) fat-free flour tortillas To make the chipotle cream, remove one chile from the can and chop. (I had a friend recently mention that when she read a recipe using one chile from a can of chipotle chile in adobo sauce, she incorrectly thought it said to use the whole can, and I can totally see how it would be read … Continue reading →

Black Bean Soup with Orange-Jalapeno Salsa

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Kaitlin

Every food blogger dreams of walking out of their day job and never looking back to pursue a full time career in food. Most keep this as a fun little pipe dream to think about while sipping on their morning coffee. Michael Natkin, however, did the unthinkable. He took a sabbatical from his job as a software engineer and spent 6 months immersed in food, experiencing Italy and Israel through food with his family and interning in the kitchen at Cafe Flora. He dove into the world of food full time this year. His blog, Herbivoracious, has been going strong since 2007. If you’ve never seen it, go there. Now. I’ll wait…. Fantastic, right?! Michael’s cookbook based off his super popular blog, Herbivoracious: A Flavor Revolution with 150 Vibrant and Original Vegetarian Recipes, was released on May 9. Michael has been touring America to promote his book and recently came through Philadelphia. He hosted a food blogger event at the fantastic R2L, where local bloggers (like yours truly) were treated to bites from the kitchen and the opportunity to chat with Michael himself. So, the cookbook is vegetarian. It honestly doesn’t even need to be mentioned though because the recipes … Continue reading →