Citrus Parmesean Chicken over Salad

Yes.  it has been six months since my last post.  I swore I'd never be one of those people who starts a blog, knows I have people that check the blog, and then mysteriously disappear one day.  My excuse?  I'm now 34 weeks along with baby #3 and my stomach as well as my energy has been severely tested.  Morning sickness (terrible queasiness) didn't ease up until almost 5 months. Say what!?  For a long period of time I ate some fruit, cereal and a significant number of milkshakes and smoothies.  And lots of fast food burgers or fries from the drive thru as I'd go from queasy to starving and going insane in a nanosecond. Nothing food blog-worthy.  But, I'm back and plan to post some recent favorites now that my appetite is back, although much smaller thanks to a shrinking stomach due to a big baby!

Be prepared for lots of sweets recipes... My major weakness this time around.  Maybe I'm having another girl?!

One of my favorite recipes this spring and now summer is a take on Ina Garten's Parmesean Chicken over Salad.  Her recipe is pretty phenomenal as is, but I basically added a few teaspoons of lemon zest to the panko (breadcrumbs).  Give it a try, with or without the addition of lemon zest!

Oh, and the kids love this dinner!  Tonight I'm serving with a side of caprese salad using heirloom tomatoes.  Yes, I realize I'm basically serving two types of salad in one meal, but I'm prego and can do what I want. :)

Click on the link for Ina's amazing recipe!
 http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/parmesan-chicken-recipe/index.html

Mexican Fiesta!

Tonight I'm having some girlfriends over for a mexican fiesta!  Our group used to get together almost once a month, but once kids arrived it made our gatherings hard to coordinate.  So tonight will be a fun night of laughs and catching up.

The menu:Pink Cadillac Margaritas and Iced Mango Sweet Tea

Chili Lime Mixed Nuts

Three Sisters Salad

Spanish Rice

Chicken Enchiladas

and Sopapilla Cheesecake with Dark Chocolate and Coconut Ice Creams

I like putting menus in frames - it makes the event seem more formal and is a fun touch. 

Each place setting had a dark chocolate bar with the name of each guest.

And where there is mexican food, there is tequila!

The enchiladas can be made in advance and refrigerated. I made mine yesterday - just take them out of the fridge for a bit before putting in oven.  

Three Sisters Salad - perfect dish for a dinner of sorority sisters!  Corn, butternut squash and beans make up the sisters.  I snuck a taste and it is delicious!

And to give the party another fun touch... premixed margs in mason jars and labeled with guest names.  Just add some ice and shake!

I have to thank Southern Comfort magazine (August 2012 issue) for this great menu.  And also want to thank Trader Joe's for their amazing (and super spicy) chile lime mixed nuts.  Addicting.

Click on the image below to enlarge the recipes.

Towering Pear Salad

I saw this idea on Pinterest (a time wasting obsession).  A salad made much more impressive by stacking it between pear slices.  Yes, you can do this.  It really is easy.  You just need a steady hand when carrying the salad from kitchen counter to the dinner table!

Take a pear and cut it in to 3 slices (I also cut a bit off the bottom so the pear was sturdy).

Wah-lah!

Now cut out the center seed area of pear.

Wah-lah!

Start with the base slice of pear and top with some salad. I used mixed greens, blue cheese crumbles, candied pecans and a balsamic vinegrette.  Now add the center layer of pear and top again with more salad.  Top with the final piece of pear.  You're done!  I did add a little drizzle of agave nectar over pear. 

This salad gives an amazing presentation and was the perfect start to my husband's birthday dinner!

Southern Comfort

Today we were feeling like some southern comfort.  Tony smoked a pork shoulder for 12 hours yesterday.  Today we celebrate the end result with pulled pork sandwiches and a spicy vinegar sauce (plus, everything tastes better from a Mason jar).

A little homemade coleslaw salad... (mix together a bag of shredded cabbage, dried cranberries, toasted slivered almonds, a bunch of green onions sliced, and some poppyseed dressing)

And homemade pickles...

Add a few buns and some Shiner beer, and dinner is set. 

Panzanella Salad

I'm addicted to Panzanella salad.  It is all Ina Garten's fault.  She always has the best combinations of flavors, and the colors in this salad are hard to beat.  I've used this salad for a few picnics and its great the next day too, as long as you don't mind your croutons being slightly soggy.  Which I don't mind because the flavors are even more developed.  You can also make extra croutons and just add to salad on following days so they remain crispy. 

I made a few changes to Ina's recipe.  Sorry Ina!  I omitted the capers and basil and added a good handful of crumbled feta.  This is the perfect summer salad and everyone that has tried it raves about the flavors.

Panzanella Salad, courtesy of Ina Garten

3 Tbsp good olive oil

1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)

1 tsp kosher salt

2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick

1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced

20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped (I excluded)

3 tablespoons capers, drained (I excluded)

1 c. crumbled feta (optional)

For the vinaigrette:

1 tsp finely minced garlic

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

3 Tbsp Champagne vinegar

1/2 cup good olive oil

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.

My favorite napkins... "Dinner Is Poured".

Tabbouleh

We attended a 2nd birthday party and had this fantastic Tabbouleh salad.  Not surprising that it is a Ina Garten recipe... all her creations have the best flavor.  The kids weren't too hot on this refreshing dish, but Tony and I loved it and we had enough for a few meals and shared some with my mom.

My only recommendation is to watch the salt.  My finished product was much too salty for my taste and I had to add more bulghur wheat to help cut it.  And good luck finding bulghur wheat!  The grocery clerks sent me to two completely wrong aisles in the store... I discovered it in the natural section of the baking aisle...

Tabbouleh, courtesy of Ina Garten and Barefoot Contessa Parties!

1 cup bulghur wheat

1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (1-2 lemons)
1/4 cup good olive oil
3 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 c. minced scallions, white and green parts
1 c. chopped fresh mint leaves
1 c. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
2 c. cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Place the bulghur in a large bowl, pour in the boiling water, and add the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir, then allow to stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Add the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper; mix well. Season, to taste, and serve or cover and refrigerate. The flavor will improve if the tabbouleh sits for a few hours.

Goes great with bbq'd fish or chicken.

Zucchini Salad

This is a nice twist to the usual salad or vegetables.  Mint and feta give a nice flavor and the kalamata olives give a salty punch.  This goes great with grilled chicken and tastes very good on a warm day.  You can marinade chicken breasts in some olive oil, chopped fresh dill/parsley/garlic cloves, salt, pepper - very similar to salad dressing below.  Let sit for a couple hours or overnight.

Zucchini Salad
4 zucchini, sliced lenthwise in to very thin ribbons (use a mandoline if you have one!)
1/2 c. shredded fresh mint
1/2 c. coarsely chopped kalamata olives
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese

Zucchini Salad Dressing, combine the following in small bowl:
1/4 c. olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp lemon zest
juice from one lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Combine zucchini, mint, and olives in a large bowl and drizzle with combined dressing ingredients above.  Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

Steak Salad and the Week

I cut open this avocado before dinner and it was too perfect to mash up for guacamole.  So instead I changed up our planned dinner and made a big dinner salad with sliced BBQ steak (leftover from the night before - love Costco and buying a pack of steak with one steak too many - just for this reason!), chunks of avocado, slices of red onion, fresh cracked pepper, Gorgonzola crumbles and a vinaigrette by Briannas (my favorite brand of salad dressings) served over mixed greens.  I put a little too much Gorgonzola on my salad (which is almost impossible for me), but it still turned out great and was a nice change of pace for dinner.

Whats your favorite dinner salad - whether planned or last minute?

I've mentioned this before, but I typically try to plan our weeks worth of dinners each Sunday.  I have an ongoing grocery list posted on the fridge, and all week we add staples we need or write down dinner ideas for the following week.  On Sundays I go to the store and stock up, trying to avoid needing another trip to the store for the rest of the week.  I used to go to the store at least three times a week until two months ago when I made this change. 

To make my once weekly trip to the store more beneficial, I quickly sift through the Sunday newspaper coupons.  I clip ones I could use that day and will save some that I may be able to use for the near future (an upcoming holiday, baby shower, etc).  I am in no way a coupon freak, but I don't understand why I wouldn't use them if a coupon is good for an item we're always buying.  As a side... I have almost saved as much as I have spent at QFC in the past five months (you can see your accrued saving at the bottom of their receipts...).  Yes, this means I buy a lot of store brands, but I'm also using coupons for name brand products.

An example week for us - this week:

Monday - BBQ'd ribs, corn (on sale so bought for today/tomorrow) and blueberry crumble (leftover ribs for Charlotte/my Tuesday lunch)

Tuesday - steak dinner, corn, rice (3 big steaks from costco, eating only 2 between the four of us)

Wednesday - steak salad (using 1 leftover steak), bread toasted in oven with some butter/seasonings

Thursday - homemade pizza with sausage, carmelized red onions and basil, side of green salad (leftovers for my lunch on Friday).  Trying out a new pizza dough found in the freezer section, made by Essential Baking!

Friday - Tony & Jodi out with friends for dinner - but BBQ'd chicken, steamed broccoli and rice for the kids (buy one package of chicken breasts, get another package free. Use remaining package for Saturday dinner) 

Saturday - pretzel coated chicken with dipping sauce, corn, green salad (leftover chicken for Sunday lunch?)  I'll have the pretzel recipe on the website once we've tried it out!  Stay tuned!

Chinese Chicken Salad

Tonight I'm having a girl's party and everyone is bringing their favorite summer appetizer or dessert.  I made Ina Garten's chinese chicken salad and it is super tasty.  As my friend warned, you end up with about twice the amount of peanut sauce that you need.  So use about half on the salad (or whatever amount you prefer) and use the rest as a dip for assorted veggies. 

This salad was a big success and the dip was too!

Double whammy. One recipe equals two dishes... an appetizer and a salad or main course!

*To save time, use a whole roasted chicken from the supermarket!

Chinese Chicken Salad, courtesy of Ina Garten

4 split chicken breasts (bone-in, skin-on)
Olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 pound asparagus, ends removed, and cut in thirds diagonally
1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded
2 scallions (white and green parts), sliced diagonally
1 tablespoon white sesame seeds, toasted

Dressing:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup good apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1/2 tablespoon honey
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon peeled, grated fresh ginger
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub with the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones, discard the skin, and shred the chicken in large bite-sized pieces.

Blanch the asparagus in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes until crisp-tender. Plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain. Cut the peppers in strips about the size of the asparagus pieces. Combine the cut chicken, asparagus, and peppers in a large bowl.

Whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing and pour over the chicken and vegetables. Add the scallions and sesame seeds and season to taste. Serve cold or at room temperature.
Click here for online recipe courtesy of Food Network.

Goat Cheese Medallion Salad

One of my favorite cheeses is chevre, or goat cheese.  Such a yummy, creamy flavor that pairs well with crackers, pears, chicken, and even salads!  Below is one of my absolute favorite salads.

Place mixed greens on two salad plates and garnish with sliced peaches or nectarines.  Sprinkle some toasted sliced almonds.  I don't add dressing until right before I place the goat cheese medallions on the salad.  Typically I use a nice fruity vinegrette.  Put salad plates in fridge to stay chilled.

I take one little container or sleeve of plain goat cheese and divide in to four.  With your hands shape in to four discs.  Put in fridge to chill.  Meanwhile, beat one egg in a dish, and in another dish sprinkle about a cup of plain breadcrumbs, fresh ground pepper and a pinch of kosher salt.  I also like to add a small bunch of crumbled/sliced almonds to breadcrumbs.

Melt some butter in a nonstick skillet. 

Dip each cheese medallion in to egg and gently transfer to breadcrumbs and thoroughly coat.  Place coated cheese in to skillet and let brown.  Turn over after a couple minutes so both sides can brown.

Meanwhile remove salad plates from fridge and sprinkle with vinegrette.  Carefully transfer the browned cheese medallions to top of salad and enjoy!

Fresh from the Garden

I was very proud to serve our salads tonight.  Everything was fresh from our garden! So cool.  Lettuce, cucumbers and snap peas.  Blake told me how cool it was that the basic Bisquick biscuits I made came from the garden too.  Hmmm, I wish!

Bisquick Biscuits

1/3 c. butter
2 1/2 c. Original Bisquick® mix
2/3 c. milk
Butter or margarine, melted

Heat oven to 450ºF.

Cut firm butter into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss Bisquick mix and butter pieces with fork until coated. Add milk; stir just until milk is absorbed (do not overstir).

Turn dough onto surface dusted with Bisquick mix. Knead 5 times. Pat to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with 3-inch cutter. Place on ungreased cookie sheet with sides touching for soft sides or 2 inches apart for crispy sides.

Bake about 9 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter.

Dinner is Served

Tony was gone skiing all day, Blake ended up taking a 3 hour nap, and I took the opportunity to cook. I made homemade Italian Wedding soup accompanied by goat cheese in baked phyllo over a bed of mixed greens and champagne vinaigrette.

If you are wanting a good cookbook, Ina Garten's Back to Basics is a great choice. It brings you back... to the basics. Probably not a great cookbook for beginners, but it isn't complicated and gives great ideas. This is where I found both the above recipes.

I also highly recommend The Pie and Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum. This is definitely a more advanced cookbook and at almost 700 pages in length, it only features a couple pictures. Not ideal when I can't even pronounce half the recipe names in the book. I plan to make Pain au Chocolat and Creme Brulee Tartlets if all goes well this week. I'll post any pictures if they turn out!

I received both these cookbooks from my mom for Christmas and can't wait to try out more recipes!