recipe that is healthy Archives - Page 2 of 2

Tag: recipe that is healthy

25
Mar
2013

Pickled Red Onions

This recipe was tacked onto another Bon Appetit recipe that I made recently, the Shredded Red Chili Chicken. It’s an amazing topper to that dish and pretty much anything that deserves a good pickle. It could not be simpler to make these tart ruby rings. So easy, that they might become a weekly staple for you as well. If you are like me and love pickled veggies, make a lot. They shrink down somewhat after pickling.

1 red onion, sliced thin, but not super thin

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup warm water

Mix together all ingredients in a medium bowl, except onions. After mixing, add onions and let stand until slightly pickled, about 30 minutes. Drain and store in a sealed tupperware in the fridge.

25
Mar
2013

Red Chili Chicken (Crock Pot Recipe)

categories: Crock Pot Recipes, Main Dishes

My favorite type of recipe is a healthy, fast, versatile one. By versatile, I mean, one that has ingredients that can be used in many different meals during the week. Taking the time to figure out recipes that are symbiotic, is worth the time it takes to plan.

This recipe starts with lean chicken breasts that are cooked via crock pot in a delicious red chili sauce. The chicken is then shredded and can be used for a multitude of dinners and lunches. Really, the delicious possibilities are endless. Pictured at the left, is a mouth-watering chicken tostada. The shell is spritzed with a fine mist of olive oil, then baked at 350 for 10 minutes, flipping once. I layered it with 1 tablespoon of a clean (no chemicals added) store-bought guacamole, the featured chicken, tomatoes, 1 tablespoon of cheddar jack cheese and pickled red onions. Seriously, you HAVE to try pickled red onions if you haven’t. Not only are they extremely easy to make, they are D-LISH-US! AND you can reuse them later in the week on a chicken lime cilantro burger.

This recipe makes a lot. So be prepared to use it in several meals, or freeze a portion for a later date.

(adapted from a Bon Appetit braised pork recipe)

3 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

3 large new mexican dried chilis

2 tablespoons agave

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 large onion, chopped

3 large garlic cloves, chopped coarsely

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 can Tecate beer

Place chilis in a medium bowl. Add enough boiling water to cover, and set something on top of the chilis to weigh them down in the water. Keep submerged for 30 minutes or until softened. Drain chilis and puree in blender with 1 cup of the soaking liquid. Put all the ingredients, including the red chili mixture, in the crock pot, except chicken. Mix well and then add chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the chicken will shred easily. Shred with two forks and add back the cooking liquid till the chicken is moist again.

Use the shredded chicken to make the tostadas above, or chicken lettuce tacos, chicken taquitos, pulled chicken sandwiches, quesadillas on wheat tortillas, inside of an omelet, I could seriously go on and on. If you think of another great use put it in the comments below!

18
Mar
2013

Chicken Stew served over Quinoa

categories: Main Dishes, Side Dish

I’m kind of obsessed with quinoa lately. I love that it is an all encompassing food, with the best possible nutrition bio a food can have. I even got my kids to eat it today, begrudgingly, but they did eat 3 bites each. It’s a texture thing with them. At least they tried it.

This recipe is a play on a dish my Assyrian grandmother used to make called kurush. I have always looked forward to eating this dish. Walking into a home where this was cooking would send my salivary glands into over drive. In it’s original state, it is a tomato meat stew with green peppers, and canned green beans, served over rice that has been baked all day in butter. Not exactly the poster child for health. So I took it to the kitchen and gave it a health makeover. After serious changes, in all of it’s stewy glory, it walked out of the kitchen smelling delicious, and looking fit. Instead of the buttery rice, a bed of quinoa now soaks up the luscious red sauce. The canned green beans have been replaced with fresh, crisp green beans. I hope you enjoy this play on my grandma’s dish. I hope she approves of the nutritionally necessary makeover.

1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, all visible fat removed, cut into bite sized pieces

1 – 2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 lb. fresh green beans, wash and cut in half lengthwise

2 large bell pepper, ct into chunks

1 onion chopped into wedges

1 lb. sliced mushrooms

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1 14 oz can organic diced tomatoes

1 8 oz. can organic tomato sauce

1 6 oz. can organic tomato paste

1 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon basil

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

sea salt to taste

For the quinoa

2 cups quinoa

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Season the chicken by sprinkling with salt, pepper, and paprika. Heat the olive oil in a dutch oven and brown all sides. Brown in batches so that the pan is not overcrowded, if needed. Put the browned pieces in a bowl and set aside. If needed, add a small amount of olive oil and saute the vegetables over medium high heat for 5 minutes. Pour the chicken broth into the pan to de-glaze (scrape all of the brown bits off the bottom of the pan). Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, paprika, basil and black pepper to the pot with the vegetables. Bring to a boil and add the chicken back in. Put the lid on and place in oven. Set the timer for 30 minutes.

For the quinoa:

Bring the stock to a boil and add in the quinoa and turmeric. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 15 to minutes or until the liquid has evaporated. make sure to check after 15 minutes that the bottom is not burning. Stir and put the lid on if there is still liquid present until done. Pull off heat and set aside.

When the stew is done, pull out of the oven. Stir and serve over the quinoa. Then leave a comment and tell me your experience!

15
Mar
2013

Delicious Green Smoothie

categories: Smoothies

I added delicious into the name for two reasons. First, because it is. Second, because most people hear green smoothie and immediately they decide it can’t be good. I then go on to tell them there is spinach and peanut butter in and it. That is when they start running. To the doubters I say, “Stop being a wuss and try it!”. Maybe that was a little harsh. No never mind, definitely not.

This protein, fiber, iron, flavor packed smoothie is really good. Everyone I have ever made it for continues making it at home once they try it. Bonus: it’s quick and easy to make and clean up is a snap. It can replace an entire meal. I will drink it after a workout to rebuild broken down muscles. So put your big girl/boy underwear on and try it. You’ll thank me, I promise.

6 oz. almond milk

1 scoop vanilla protein powder

1/2 banana for women, 1 whole banana for men

1 tablespoon natural peanut butter (or pb2*, almond butter is another great alternative)

1 tablespoon FiProFlax* (see note below)

1 big handful of spinach

1/2 cup of crushed ice

Put the ingredients in the blender in the order listed, except for the ice. Puree the mixture till smooth (there will be small bits of spinach in a regular blender). Add the ice and blend until it is the smoothest your blender can muster. Mine will leave small chunks, but I am fine with that. Drink and pass on the recipe once you realize how awesome it is.

*You can find FiProFlax and PB2 on Amazon.

Benefits of flax seed:

Lower blood cholesterol
Reduce viscosity of blood
Lower arterial blood pressure
Prevent colon and breast cancer
Improve mood
Diminish allergies
Produce healthier skin

12
Mar
2013

Italian Meat Loaf

categories: Main Dishes

I’ve always had a love for meat loaf. Making it for someone else can be a bit scary though. In my experience, most people love their mom’s meat loaf and have a wall up guarding their taste buds from liking another. My husband is no exception. He likes my food, but none of my variations of loafed meat have even come in a close second, till this one. So, if you have a person in your life suffering from, “I like my mommy’s meatloaf” syndrome, give this one a try. Their taste buds might have room for two meat loaves to love. Then, after their third helping you can say it was good for them too.

1 lb ground Italian turkey sausage

1 lb ground turkey

1 zucchini, peeled, and diced

4 oz. button mushrooms, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 red onion, diced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 tablespoon dried basil

1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup steel cut oats

1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Saute the zucchini, onion and mushrooms in 1/2 tablespoon olive oil for five minutes or until soft. Add garlic and saute for one minute. Mix in dried basil and season with salt and pepper. Let cool.

Beat the egg in a large mixing bowl with tomato paste, salt, pepper, garlic powder and Worcestershire. By hand, mix in the oats, turkey and sausage.

Put mixture in a meatloaf* or bread pan, bake until the juices run clear and the top is browned, 45-60 minutes. If desired, top with marinara sauce and bake another 5 minutes.

This little beauty also freezes nicely. So feel free to make a ton.

*On a side note, I use a special meat loaf pan to reduce the amount of fat the meat may have. The pan is similar to the one pictured below. The fat drains into a resevoir below the meat. The pan is non-stick, so clean up is easy!