Grilled Chicken and Bulgarian Salad

Some friends of ours invited us over for dinner last weekend. They are from Bulgaria and there was a lot of food talk at the dinner table. I picked their brains about some traditional Bulgarian food. That same night we ate a traditional Bulgarian salad consisting of tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, scallions, feta, olive oil, and salt. We liked it so much that we have had this salad twice since then. It is simple and delicious.

If you haven't made your own meat marinade, I suggest you start. You can control what goes into the marinade and the flavors are savory and fresh. I may not buy a bottled marinade again. Because of this warm weather, we have been using the grill frequently. Using the grill makes it easy to eat healthy. Marinade your favorite meat (veggies too), grill, and serve it with a fresh salad. More marinade recipes to come!

Chicken Marinade

3 T. fresh finely chopped dill
1/4 c. olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
1/2 shallot chopped
juice of 1 Meyer lemon
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken breasts

In a large bowl whisk together all of the marinade ingredients. Add chicken, cover, and put in the refrigerator. Marinate anywhere from 2 to 8 hours.


Preheat the grill. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the grill rack with olive oil to prevent the chicken from sticking. Grill the chicken 4-5 minutes each side on medium heat or until the internal temperature reaches 165.















Salad

3 vine ripen tomatoes chopped
1/2 cucumber peeled and quartered
1 scallions
1/2 c. green pitted olives
2 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
Olive Oil
Salt

Combine these ingredients in a medium sized serving bowl. I would add more scallions, but Ben is not convinced. Also, buy feta cheese that is fresh and still reserved in the liquid. The flavor is loads better and the cheese is moist. Be liberal with the salt and olive oil. This is a great salad to add more of what you do like and omit what you don't. Ben eats olives, and I eat onions. We compromised by having a little bit of both, but still picked out what we didn't eat.

Thank you Veny and Lozan for a delicious meal!

Spring Brunch

Spring is here!! Enjoying brunch on the patio outside is great way to spend time with your family. My brother from out of town and his wife were visiting for the weekend, so we had my other brother and his family over for a Saturday morning brunch. We had egg frittatas, sausage, berry cobbler, fruit, coffee, and of course mimosas! I prepped a lot of the food the night before to make it an easy morning. I cut and cooked the egg fixings the night before and had the berries washed and ready to go for the cobbler. This is also a great brunch for any vegetarians. You can make eggs with any vegetables you want and serve the meat as a side. I hope you enjoy this simple brunch that makes both kids and adults happy.

Egg Frittatas

10 eggs
3 T. cream
1 green pepper chopped and sauteed
1 shallot chopped and sauteed
2 tomatoes chopped
1/2 C. shredded mozzarella cheese
Salt & Pepper
Leaves of 12 sprigs of Thyme
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375

Prepare

Liberally spray one cupcake tin with the cooking spray. Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl. Whisk the eggs together and then add in the cream, salt, pepper, and thyme. Using a cupcake tin, fill the tin 1/4 the way full with your favorite veggies. Fill each tin 1/2 way with the egg mixture. The eggs will rise in the oven. Sprinkle your favorite cheese into each tin. For pickier eaters, reserves a few tins for just eggs and cheese.
















Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the eggs are just about set in the center. Use a knife to loosen the edges around the tin and serve on a platter.



Berry Cobbler

3 c. almond flour
2 ripe banana
3 eggs
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
2 t. apple pie spice
1 T. melted coconut oil
1/3 c. maple syrup
1 t. vanilla
1/2 c. chopped toasted pecans
Ghee to coat the muffin tin cups
2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen berries (fresh is always better)
2 T. honey

Prepare

Coat a medium sized casserole dish with cooking spray, ghee, or butter. Layer the berries at the bottom of the dish. Pour two tablespoons of honey over the berries and toss together.


Combine the almond flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a medium size bowl. Add in the mashed ripe banana, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla, and maple syrup to the same bowl. Mix in the pumpkin pie spice. Spread this mixture of the berries evenly. Sprinkle the chopped pecans over top.

Cook for 30-40 minutes at 350.

I cooked the cobbler first so it could cool while I cooked the eggs right before my guest arrived. While the eggs cooked, I used a large pan to heat up some precooked chicken apple sausage.

Have a favorite frittata ingredient? What do you like best about brunch? Please share!

Grain Free Gumbo

I have made this recipe several times in the past couple years. Previously I used quinoa in place of the long grain rice. Now I've replaced the quinoa with cauliflower rice. I used a hot andouille sausage, which made it extra spice. If you're not into spice, use kielbasa or a mild andouille. You can always add the heat later with some hot sauce or cayenne pepper. I'm not sure if this recipe should be labeled gumbo or jambalaya. I used Rachel Ray's recipe as a guide, and she called it jambalaya. Whatever you call this meal, this gumbo taste good!

Need

1 T. ghee or butter
2 T. olive oil
3/4 lb. chicken breasts cubed
1 lb. andouille sausage
3/4 lb. shrimp, deveined and tails removed
1 small onion chopped
1 bell pepper chopped
2 ribs celery chopped
2 T. arrow root powder or flour
1 can diced tomatoes
1 carton chicken broth (4 cups)
1 T. chicken flavoring (I used Organic Better than Bouillon)
1 T. chili powder
1 T. cumin
Dash of Worcestershire Sauce
4 Springs Thyme
Salt & Pepper

Prepare

1. Using a dutch oven or a large soup pot, heat the ghee and olive oil on medium heat.
2. When the oils is hot, add the chicken and sausage to the pot. Cook for about 4 minutes. The meat does not need to be fully cooked because it will cook more when the soup is simmering.
3. In the same pot saute the onions, peppers, and celery. Salt and pepper everything and cook until the onions are translucent.


4. Sprinkle on the arrow root powder or flour just so everything is lightly coated. This will thicken the soup.
5. Combine in the tomatoes, chicken stock, chili powder, cumin, chicken flavoring, and Worcestershire sauce.
6. Bring the soup to a simmer and add the sprigs of thyme. Taste to see if any more salt and pepper needs to be added. Simmer for 10 minutes or longer.


7. To make the cauliflower rice, use the shredding attachment on your food processor to finely grate the cauliflower. You can also use a cheese grater to shred the cauliflower.
8. About 3 minutes before serving, add in the shrimp. The shrimp will cook very easily in the hot soup.

Serve the gumbo over a large helping of cauliflower for an easy midweek meal!

Pecan Crusted Catfish and Sweet Potato Wedges

Lent has inspired me to venture into the seafood world. I usually make fish on the grill because it's easy: marinate, grill, and serve. Although the weather has been telling us it's grilling season, we have not fired up the grill just yet. The other night I made a "breaded" catfish and served it with sweet potato wedges. You could use the same recipe for a different white fish like cod or use it for chicken breasts. Of course it is no fish n' chips or fried fish basket, but it still taste good!


Need for Fish

1 1/2 c. pecans
1 t. dried thyme
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. garlic salt
1 t. pepper
2 pinches cayenne pepper
4 small catfish filets
2 eggs beaten
Olive Oil

Need for Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes (to serve 4 people)
1 t. chili powder
1 t. sea salt
1 t. black pepper
olive oil
pinch of cinnamon

Prepare

Preheat oven to 425.

Potatoes

Wash and cut the sweet potatoes. Transfer the sweet potatoes to a foiled cookie sheet. Drizzle a decent amount of olive oil on the potatoes. Using your hands make sure each potato has some. Sprinkle on the chili powder, sea salt, pepper, and cinnamon. Bake for 40 minutes. Flip the potatoes once after 20 minutes.










You can cut the potatoes however you want. I cut them into wedges, which required a longer cooking time. If your potatoes are smaller, reduce cooking time. For a crispier potato arrange the potatoes facing up on the skins. This method does not require flipping.

Catfish

1. Using a food processor finely grind up the pecans and transfer to a shallow dish.
2. Add the seasonings ( thyme, oregano, garlic salt, pepper, cayenne) to the dish and mix.
3. In a large frying pan or flat top pan heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil on medium high heat.
4. Create an assembly line to bread the fish. The pecan mixture, two beaten eggs, and catfish.
5. When the oil is hot, bread the filets. Dip one filet at a time in the egg mixture then coat with pecan mixture in the shallow dish. Transfer the filet to the hot oiled pan.















6. Cook on medium-high heat for about 4-5 minutes a side. My catfish filets were extremely large, so they took about 6 minutes a side. I flipped them over when I could see the sides of the filets turning white. You may want to add more olive oil to the pan as the filets cook.

Serve the catfish with sweet potato wedges and your favorite vegetable!

Stuffed Peppers

These peppers are great because you can sneak in extra vegetables and non-veggie eaters will not mind. Ben did not notice that I subbed shredded cauliflower for long grain rice and I added in a cup of fresh spinach. When making these yourself feel free to add your own favorite vegetables and meats. These stuffed peppers live up to their name and will leave you satisfied. Because of all the veggies and meat, you will not be hungry for hours!

Need for Peppers

5-6 large green peppers
1lb. grass fed ground beef
1/2 lb. chorizo
1 large shallot diced
1 jalapeno pepper seeded and diced
1 c. shredded cauliflower rice.
1 cup fresh spinach chopped
1 T. tomato paste
1 T. cumin
1 T. chili powder
1/4 t. garlic powder
1 C. chicken stock
Salt & Pepper

Need for Tomato Sauce

1 can organic tomato sauce
1 t. cumin power
1 t. chili powder
dash of hot sauce
pinch of cinnamon
Salt & Pepper

Prepare

Preheat oven to 350.

1. Cook the ground beef and chorizo on medium heat until most the meat is brown.2. In the same pan add the jalapeno pepper and shallot. Salt and Pepper
3. After about 4 minutes mix in the cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder.
4. Fold in the fresh spinach and cauliflower. (I shredded the cauliflower in the food processor before I started cooking.)
5. Add in 1/2 c. chicken broth and the tablespoon of tomato paste. Cook the mixture until the spinach if full cooked down and wilted.
6.. While the meat filling cooks, hollow out the green peppers. I find it is easy to cut a square at the top of each pepper. You can lift the top out by the stem and it usually takes the inside flesh and seeds with it.
7. Stuff each pepper with the mixture and place in a oven safe baking dish.















8. To prepare the sauce, combine all the sauce ingredients and cook on medium to low heat.
9. Pour a few spoonfuls of sauce over each pepper. Reserve half of the sauce for serving.
10. When all the peppers are ready, add 1/2 cup of chicken stock to the baking dish. Cover with foil.
11. Bake in the oven at 350 for about 1 hour. I like my peppers to be extremely soft. If you prefer your peppers to be stiff, take the peppers out of the oven sooner.



12. Serve with a spoonful of sauce on the top and go crazy by adding a spoonful of sour cream.

Pork Chops

I heard that allowing meat to marinate in a brine hours before cooking makes the meat juicier when cooked. Why? I really do not know. You'll have to ask Alton Brown or these people. I used this website as a guide for my first experience with brining meat. I cooked pork chops the other day and they were juicy and flavorful. I created a glaze to brush on top for an extra punch. I'm going to investigate more about brining, until then try it out!

Need for Brine

4-6 1 inch thick boneless pork chops
2 bay leaves
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups ice
3 T. brown sugar
1/4 c. sea salt
2 cap fulls of apple cider vinegar
1 t. Peppercorns
Olive Oil

Need for Glaze

Juice of one orange
1/4 c. maple syrup
Pepper
Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Prepare

1. On medium heat combine the chicken stock, brown sugar, salt, peppercorns, bay leaves, and vinegar in a large stock pot.
2. Once everything is dissolved, remove from heat and add the 2 cups of ice.
3. When the mixture is cool (which should be quickly) add the pork chops.
4. Refrigerate from 2-24 hours. I was short on time, so I had the pork chops in the mixture for 4 hours.


5. When you're ready to cook, heat a small amount of olive oil in a stove top pan.
6. Remove the pork chops from the stock pot and pat them dry with a paper towel.
7. When the oil is hot, transfer the pork chops to the pan.
8. To make the glaze, simply combine all the glaze ingredients in a small dish. Add a dash of pepper.
9. Brush the top layer of the pork with the glaze. Continue to brush the glaze on the pork chops often as they cook.


10. Cook the pork chops on medium to medium high heat for approximately 7 minutes each side.
11. Brush the pork chops with the glaze one last time before serving.

I served my pork chops with roasted asparagus and broccoli.

Banana Apple Muffins

This recipe is very similar to the pumpkin muffins. I like making these muffins because it dirties one bowl, one spatula, and takes about 15 minutes to make. This week I had a muffin, berries, and a cup of coffee every day for breakfast. I'd say that is the breakfast of champions!

Need

2 c. almond flour
2 ripen bananas mashed
1 medium apple, cored, peeled, and finely diced (reserve 2 T. for garnish)
2 eggs
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1 t. apple pie spice
1 T. melted coconut oil
1/3 c. maple syrup
Chopped pistachios for garnish
Ghee to coat the muffin tin cups

Prepare

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Combine the almond flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a medium size bowl.
2. Add in the mashed ripen bananas, eggs, coconut oil, and maple syrup to the same bowl. Mix in the pumpkin pie spice. Lastly fold in the chopped apples. The batter will be very thick.
3. Using some type of oil, coat the muffin cups. I used a small amount of ghee.
4. Divide the batter evenly in the muffin pan filling about 3/4 the way full.
5. Top each muffin with the chopped pistachios and left over chopped apples.

Bake at 350 for approximately 20 minutes. The muffins should be golden brown.