Okra

 

Since childhood, I have always had an affinity for fried okra. My waistline has not. On the flight home from our family vacation last summer, I picked up a copy of Fine Cooking magazine, the grilling issue. They had a recipe for grilled okra. I was intrigued. Okra was in season, so on my next grocery run, I picked some up. Can I just say, grilled okra is AMAZING. My husband first looked at it and asked me if he really had to eat it. He ended up eating more than I did. We ate it again the next night. I feel as if we have found a brand new vegetable. The sliminess usually associated with okra seems to fade out on the grill. It is also big enough that you can just throw it onto the grill and it doesn't fall through the grates the way asparagus does. I changed up the recipe a little from the one in the magazine, but the grilling technique is the same. I use Mexican crema, which you can find in the refrigerated section of almost any grocery store, for the sauce. It is amazing stuff, Mexico's version of crème fraiche at a 1/3 of the cost. You can always substitute sour cream.

Grilled Okra

1/2 - 1 lb. okra
1/2 lemon
1 Tbl. olive oil
salt and pepper

Sauce

1/3 c. Mexican crema
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. creole seasoning

Wash okra in a colander.

The take a knife and cut the okra in half starting at just below the top of the vegetable.

 One you have all of the okra prepped. Add the olive oil, salt and pepper. I rub the lemon half in the olive oil, too.

 

Heat grill on high. toss the okra onto the grill. Cook the okra on medium high heat for about 5-8 minutes, turning occasionally. You want the okra to be soft and somewhat charred. I personally really like the charred okra, so I tend to cook them a little longer than when my husband is grilling them. I also grill the lemon cut side down while the okra are grilling. When you take them off of the grill, squeeze the juice over the okra.

For the sauce, mix all the ingredients together, taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Serve alongside the grilled okra.

I couldn't get a picture in before my husband and I dove in. Next time we make them, I'll update and add some better shots.

Warm Fennel Orange Salad

This post was also going to include a new way I was trying to cook pork chops. Unfortunately, I had a leaning process with my instant read thermometer. Here is what I can relay from my learning experience. When taking the temperature of meat that you have been cooking for what appears to be an adequate amount of time, double check that your thermometer is not reading the temperature in Celsius. Because when you cook pork chops to 180 F. before realizing your mistake, they taste like cardboard.

So, I will just post the recipe for this delicious side dish. With perfectly cooked pork chops, this dish is amazing. Fennel and pork are a match made in heaven. The flavors in this dish, aren't what one would normally think of in composing a side. However, they really work well together.

This dish can be made ahead and served at room temperature, also. For me, though, it tastes best nice and warm from the pan. I useually prep all of the ingredients ahead, so putting it together is fast.

Here is the recipe:

Warm Fennel Orange Salad

1 Fennel bulb, tops removed, sliced (reserve some of the fennel fronds for garnish)
1 tsp. olive oil
1 orange, segmented, juices reserved. I package of mandarin oranges will also work if you do nohave a fresh orange.
1/4  Red onions, sliced thinly
2 TBL capers, drained
Salt and pepper to taste
Drizzle of good olive oil

Sauté fennel in a nonstick pan with the olive oil over medium high heat until fennel is softened and beginning to brown. Arrange fennel over bottom of serving plate. Spread red onions, orange segments, and capers over. Drizzle some of the remaining orange juice and good olive oil over the salad. Sprinkle with Chopped fennel fronds and Fleur de sel. Serve immediately or may sit at room temperature until ready to serve.

Chicken Marsala

 

Chicken marsala is easy to make, and a home run with my family.  Here is the recipe that I use.

Chicken Marsala 
(serves 4)

2 Chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
1 lb mushrooms, preferably cremini, sliced
1/2 onion, chopped
2 Tbl olive oil
1/2 Tbl butter
1/2 c. Marsala wine
2 tsp. tarragon, dried
2/3 c. chicken stock
1 Tbl cornstarch
1/4 c. chicken stock or water
2 Tbl chopped parsley


Slice your mushrooms.

Cut each chicken breast in half.

Place one of the chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap. Pound the breast with a meat mallet. I used a can of vegetables before I splurged on a mallet.

Pound each breast to about 1/4 inch thick. It works best to pound from the middle out. The main goal is to make the breasts a uniform thickness throughout. Wash hands well after handling the chicken.

Heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Salt and pepper each piece of chicken. Brown the chicken breasts in batches. After each piece is browned, set aside on a plate.

Next, add onions and mushrooms to the same pan that you sautéed the chicken in. Use the remaining oil in the pan to start cooking the onion/mushroom mixture. I add the pat of butter to give the mushrooms a richer flavor. Salt and pepper the mushrooms to taste. Scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan as the mushrooms cook.

When the mushrooms have cooked through, add in the marsala wine to the pan.

Let the wine come to a boil to burn off the alcohol. Add in the tarragon and the chicken stock. Return the chicken to the pan and add in any juices that have accumulated on the plate.

Simmer the mixture for about 6 minutes over medium heat, until the chicken is cooked through. Since the chicken is so this, it won't take long to finish cooking.

Dissolve the cornstarch in the remaining broth or water. Add it into the pan. Bring the sauce to a boil, so the cornstarch thickens the sauce. Add in chopped parsley and serve immediately.

Stuffed Peppers

My husband loves a good stuffed pepper. Since we are watching our waistlines, I worked on producing  a healthy version of stuffed peppers. We will actually eat this tomorrow. I made it today, because tomorrow is going to be crazy hectic. I want to come home and have something ready to throw into the oven. While they are cooking, I will whip up a salad, and voila, dinner will be ready. For taste and calories, it will beat any takeout.

I used brown rice in the peppers. I have to confess something. I am a terrible rice cook. I seem to have a genetic deficiency when it comes to cooking rice. I'm talking about easy to cook white rice. This issue doesn't even begin to touch the more difficult brown rice. I have discovered a delicious cheat, though. Uncle Ben's ready rice. Pop that sucker in the microwave for two minutes and you are in business. I just love it. One day, I will devote serious time to mastering rice. For now, I have a job and a family to take care of, so, Uncle Ben to the rescue.

Stuffed Peppers

3 bell peppers (I use red, yellow or orange, whichever is the better deal and look the best)
2 links turkey sausage
2 Tbl olive oil, divided
1 small onion, chopped
4 mushrooms, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1 tsp. Thyme
1 tsp. oregano
1 pkg Uncle Ben's brown Ready Rice
2 c. marinara sauce (I make my own, but any decent jarred will do)
1/2 c. low fat, part skim, grated mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Cut the tops off of the peppers and scoop out the seeds and core. Reserve the tops. Place peppers in a small casserole dish. Cut a bit of the bottom of the peppers off, if they don't stand in the dish.

Cook turkey sausage in a sauté pan with 1 Tbl of the oil over medium high heat. I use a potato masher to help crumble up the sausage.

Once the sausage has browned, put the sausage into a large mixing bowl. Add remaining oil and onions. Season with salt and pepper, continue cooking over medium high heat until onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and continue cooking. Once the mushrooms have softened, add in the zucchini, thyme and oregano and continue to cook until all of the zucchini is cooked through, slightly firm. Add all of the ingredients into the mixing bowl.

Heat the rice according to package directions and add to the mixture. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Add in 1/2 c. of the marinara sauce and 1/4 c. of the cheese. Combine all ingredients well.
Scoop the mixture into the peppers. Top with remaining marinara sauce and cheese. Place the tops back on the peppers. If making ahead, cover the casserole dish with aluminum foil and refrigerate. When ready to cook, place in 350 oven for 75-90 minutes. Peppers should be cooked through.

Citrus Salmon with roasted asparagus

 

 

 

This is one of my favorite salmon recipes. It is especially good in the winter, when oranges are at their best. I used both navel and blood oranges tonight because my husband accidentally grabbed blood oranges instead of navel at the store today.  The colors are so pretty, it turned out to be a happy accident! The salad recipe that follows is made up out of things that I enjoy in a salad. We eat it in winter, using dried fruit instead of fresh.

 

Roast Salmon with Citrus Salsa

 

Roast Salmon

1/2 lb. salmon filet

1 Tbl. honey

1 tsp. season salt (I use Lawry's)

 

Citrus Salsa

2 navel oranges, segmented, juices reserved

2 blood oranges, peeled, segmented juices reserved

1 Tbl. capers

2 Tbl. finely sliced red onions

1 Tbl. chopped parsley

1 Tbl. chopped mint

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp. olive oil

 

 

Preheat oven to 350 F.

 

Place salmon in baking dish that has been coated with nonstick spray (easy cleanup).  spead honey over the top of the salmon. Sprinkle with season salt. Roast salmon, uncovered for 15 minutes, until medium rare on the inside.

 

 





Make the citrus salsa. Peel and segment the oranges, reserving the juice in a bowl.

 



Combine the remaining ingredients to finish salsa. Let the flavors meld together while the salmon cooks.

 



Roasted Asparagus

1 bunch asparagus
Salt and pepper
1 tsp. olive oil

Peel the asparagus, optional, but my son loves it when I peel our asparagus.

 

 

Place asparagus in oven proof dish. Season with salt, pepper and olive oil. Roast asparagus along with the salmon 10 - 15 minutes at 350.

 

 

 

 

 

Red leaf Salad with Dried Cherries and Blue Cheese

 

 

1 head red leaf lettuce

2 Tbl. chopped dried cherries

2 Tbl. blue cheese crumbled

2 Tbl. toasted, slivered almonds

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

pinch of sea salt

3 Tbl. Easy Lemon Dressing

 

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. dress with dressing just before serving.