Turkey Okra OMG Good Soup

Gobble Gobble Gobble everyone! I hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving. I got to spend time with my husband's family up in Tahoe, they are all so amazing. It's always a treat to spend time in the snow with the nephews and niece. After all that heavy holiday eating I wanted to make a simple comfort meal to end the weekend and get me ready for the next work week.

     Okay a little side story - they had bags of frozen Okra at the Bargain Market for only 99 cents so I threw a bag in the cart not knowing what I would ever do with it - seeing how I've never eaten let alone cooked with Okra before. Hey I couldn't pass up a great deal on a veggie product. I've heard Okra being used on lots of Food Network programs before so hey - there had to be a recipe for me to follow - right???

     Well come to find out there aren't too many recipes I got excited about. So I just started to defrost them in a bowl with salt and pepper and EVOO and I would figure the rest out later. After letting them defrost I came back to my kitchen drawing board and thought - soup!!! Well what a great way to end my holiday weekend especially on such a cold and wintry Sunday. Nothing better to settle an over stuffed stomach like a bowl of hearty home made soup. It's sooooo easy you have to try this on your next wintry Sunday.

TURKEY OKRA OMG GOOD SOUP

1 T. butter
2 T. EVOO (or whatever oil you have)
1/2 white onion
2 large or 8-10 baby carrots
5 garlic cloves smashed
12-15 okra spears
*you can eyeball the following - I did
1 T. garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 T. celery salt
1 T. blackening seasoning
1/4 C. white, red or apple vinegar - I used white wine vinegar, it's what I had
1 - 1/2 C. cubed or shredded turkey or chicken meat
2-3 C. chicken stock - I used 1 box which is 946 ml
Salt and pepper - always eyeball to taste

In a medium to large pot start to heat butter and oil over medium-low - don't let the oil burn

Meanwhile chop onion, carrots and okra into bite sized pieces and add to heated pot

Smash garlic and roughly chop and add to soup pot

Dust veggies with all seasonings

Turn heat to medium and let veggies sweat for 12-15 minutes - make sure to stir with a wooden spoon or spatula occasionally so the veggies don't burn and cook evenly

De-glaze pot by adding vinegar and scrapping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon or spatula - the vinegar will get rid of the "sliminess" that is created by the okra, you wont really taste it

Add meat and chicken stock and turn heat to medium until soup starts to bubble, make sure to stir every 5-8 minutes

Once you see it start to bubble turn heat to low and let simmer for 25 + minutes

Serve with toast and your good to go. If you don't want any spice just omit the cayenne - happy wifey recipes!

Chipotle BBQ Blue Cheese Chicken

Okay - so don't judge me but I LOVE to save take out sauces. I know full of sodium and preservatives, but they taste so good. Especially from Wing Stop, Quizno's and Domino's (hey don't judge on the Domino's either - it's good on a Friday night)

     This recipes I used left over BBQ sauce and Blue Cheese Dressing from Wing Stop. I'm not sure if Wing Stop is everywhere but it's everywhere in the East Bay Area. If you don't have a Wing Stop you can just use BBQ sauce and Blue Cheese Dressing from the market.

     If you are serving this to kids you can leave out the Chipotle peppers if you think it will be too spicy for them. You can make them more mild by taking out the seeds. It adds a good smokey flavor that will start to open up your kids pallets to new tastes.

     This is an easy dish you can whip up after work in no time. Also a great way not to waste left over take out sauces - hey you paid for it, you might as well use it - right!

CHIPOTLE BBQ BLUE CHEESE CHICKEN - for two

2-3 chipotle peppers (in adobo sauce)
1 Tbls adobo sauce
2 large chicken breast
1/4-1/2 C. BBQ sauce (seriously the best is from Wing Stop)
1/4-1/2 C. blue cheese dressing (I gotta go with Wing Stop's)
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Blend together the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, BBQ sauce, and blue cheese dressing in a small mixer or I LOVE my Magic Bullet - it does everything!

Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken and place in an oven safe dish.

Coat with sauce and drizzle a little extra blue dress dressing on top is you want - I had fun with it as you can see in the picture

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked through

**I'm new at this whole recipe writing thing so let me know if something isn't clear and I'll do my best to fix it - happy wifey recipes!

Connie's Carrots

We all know and love Bugs Bunny, and I can honestly say he is the reason I wanted to eat carrots as a kid. I mean they are crunchy, sweet and you get to dip them in ranch dressing - who wouldn't want that.

     I still remember when they started selling baby carrots at the market. I thought they were made just for kids - kids only carrots! Now that am "a little" older I enjoy them small, large, raw, boiled, BBQed and roasted. 

     Seriously next time you BBQ throw a couple peeled raw carrots on there, char on all sides, salt and pepper and it's the perfect appetizer. Anyways that is not what we are talking about here. Like I said, now that I am "a little" older I like carrots all kinds of ways. Last week I made some AMAZING roasted carrots. The flavors complement the sweetness of the carrots with the perfect savory seasonings. I called them Connie's Carrots because my new cousin (as in cousin-in-law, not newly born) Connie was over helping us with our heater and giving us some home improvement estimates while I made these - so she inspired the name :)

     I served these carrots with roasted sausage and garlic bread. They would be great with just about anything. If you have left overs store them in an air tight container and add them to your lunch salad the next day. They are so easy, and will make your whole house smell of delicious roasting vegetables. Here is what you do:

CONNIE'S CARROTS

4-5 large carrots
1/4 C. EVOO
1/4 - 1/2 cup soy sauce
1 Tbs. garlic powder
1 Tbs. parsley
1 Tbs. Italian seasoning
1 Tbs. oregano
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400

Peel and cut carrots into bite sized pieces

In a square glass baking dish add carrots and coat with EVOO and soy sauce. Spread out evenly and make sure they are not laying on top of each other

Dust carrots with garlic powder, parsley, Italian seasoning, oregano, salt and pepper

Place in the middle of the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. The longer you roast them the sweeter they will get. If you want to add them to a salad only roast them for 15 minutes so they don't get too soggy in the salad

Try it and let me know how yours turn out - happy wifey recipes!!

How to sex up your salad

Okay - this is not bedroom talk here people! I'm referring to the everyday lunch salad we all seem to struggle with to enjoy on a daily or 3xWeek basis. Eating healthy isn't easy for anyone so let's try and make the stigma of the "diet salad" turn into "look how amazingly fabulous my lunch salad is and I wouldn't trade it for your burrito with extra cheese if you begged on you knees" type of salad. Seriously, if you have something that is sexy, then you wouldn't trade it for anything - right??

Anyways, so what I am referring to is the question of what can I bring to work on a daily basis that is easy to pack, store, and makes a filling and delicious meal with easy to little prep in my office kitchen? I tend to shop based on what is on sale and/or whether I make it to the farmers market or not that week. You have got to switch it up or you will get bored and cheat with a burger and extra large fries. Mix it up and you will always have something to look forward to.

Here is a list of fresh yummy salad ingredients you can mix and match to satisfy what you happen to have in your fridge that week. Make sure you always keep it different and in season - eat more fruit in the summer and more root veggies in the winter. Eating local and in season will keep your body in balance and in tune with what is the freshest and best for your body.

Here are some veggie mixes that will keep it interesting every day of the week:

Mix and Match - #1 more to come...

Roman Lettuce - Chop and use as your base ingredient - 2 Cup +

Protein Additions - 1/2 - 1  Cup:
* Deli or left over grilled chicken
* Deli or left over turkey
* 1 can tuna or left over white fish
* Deli or left over ham
* 5-6 Slices of deli salami quartered 

Veggie Additions - 1/2 - 1 Cup:
* Fresh/Frozen/Left over corn
* Fresh/Frozen/Left over peas
* Fresh/Frozen/Left over green beans
* 1/2 Avocado 
* Whole/sliced black olives- 1 small can
* Grilled/roasted baby carrots (roast carrots @ 375 degrees for 15 - 20 min with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and a drizzle of EVOO) - cut into bite sizes pieces and chill before adding to salad

Crunchy Additions
* Baked pita chips crumbled into bite sized pieces
* Crumbled oyster crackers - you get the crunch of a crouton but 0 fat
* Baked soy beans - Trader Joe's has the best
* Crumbled turkey bacon

Dressing Options
* Fat free/low fat ranch - or the real stuff if you prefer
* Italian Dressing
* Balsamic garlic dressing
              - 1/4 C balsamic vinegar, 2 garlic cloves chopped, 1/2 C fat free sour cream, salt and pepper. Whisk ingredients and drizzle in EVOO slowly until you get the consistency you prefer your dressing

Mix and match as many ingredients as you have in your fridge and this should get you through the week with out having to repeat "another boring salad" ever again.

Be healthy and enjoy :)

Power to the Poultry

Don't be a pooper on poultry, don't check off the chicken, please let's start routing for the roaster again! I know how uninspiring pulling two frozen chicken breast out of the freezing and thinking "OMG, seriously I'm serving chicken breast, veggies, and rice/pasta again!"

I don't know about you but dinner is usually the one big yummy meal I eat during the day, so it's gotta be body and soul satisfying. Breakfast consists of coffee, and maybe a tiny bite of something whole grain and healthy, followed by a salad for lunch. I started eating strictly salads for lunch to loose weight for my wedding, but I found that even having a sandwhich instead of a bowl full of veggies made my afternoon sleepy and slow. Salads can be creative and filling - just add chicken but that's another blog - and we digress...

So chicken huh ?? So here is what I have to say on that. It's cheaper and more delicious to buy and roast a whole chicken then unfreezing and serving another boring chicken breast. There is only Seth and I (so far) so I understand sometimes it may seam like a bit much to roast a whole chicken just for two people, but we've got to think ahead here people.

I don't get home until after 7:00pm so there has got to be some stuff in the fridge to whip up a good filling dinner during the week. Believe you me, finding left over shredded fresh roasted chicken is perfection on a Wednesday night at 7:30pm trying to figure out what to make for dinner. Give me a handful of that any day of the week!

So my tip to you - roast 1-2 chickens on Sunday when you have the time and you will have plenty of left over shredded chicken for lunch and dinner during the week. You will save money by bringing your lunch to work and the more fresh unprocessed food you can incorporate into your diet the better. Don't microwave when you and grab some fresh shredded chicken. Eat what your body can process and your mind and body will thank you. So here is what I'm getting at - I have an amazing recipe for roasted chicken that will knock your sox off Sunday night and Wednesday afternoon...

Roasted lemon herb chicken - recipe one

1 whole (organic prefered) young chicken
2 large lemons
6-8 spirgs of Thyme
5-6 T. dried oregeno
5-6 T. Italian seasoning
4 T. garlic powder
1 T. red chili flakes
2 T. celery salt
Salt and black pepper
1 C. white wine
6 T. E.V. olive oil
1 large white onion
5-7 carrots
6 garlic gloves

In a large cassarole dish or dutch oven or roasting pan (with lid preferred) oil the bottom with E.V olive oil and lightly season with salt and pepper.

Chop onion, garlic and carrots roughly and add to dish/pan

Season veggies with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, chili flakes, celery salt, and oregano. Toss to coat veggies with herbs and oil evenly, spread out evening to cove the bottom of the baking dish

Place whole chicken over veggies breast side down first and coat with; juice of 1 lemon and little lemon zest, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and oregano. Take a couple  sprigs of thyme and place inside breast cavity

Turn chicken over so the breast is right side up and coat with; juice of 1 lemon, a little lemon zest, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, oregano and celery salt. Take a couple of thyme sprigs and stuff under wings of chicken, like little thyme deodorant sprigs

Pour a little white wine in each corner of the pan and a little over the breast of the chicken, try not to wash off too much of the herb coating

Cover with lid and place in oven for 1 - 1 1/2 hours or until the internal tempurtature reads 180 degrees

Take out of oven and let rest for at least 12-15 minutes before serving to let the juices distribute themselves evenly through out the bird

Shred entire chicken to use later during the week or serve whole chicken for dinner and shred left overs and store for a yummy lunch later during the week

More recipes that use left over shredded chicken to come, this is seriously SUCH a time saver and OH SO EASY - trust me :)

First of Forever

 This is the first of the forever dishes I will make my new husband. I'm so excited we had an amazing wedding and are ready to start the rest of forever together.

Last night we got home from our honeymoon so today makes it our fist official day as husband and wife in our new home. That is so awesome to type!

I start the day by staring at all the dishes we got as gifts and as I complain about washing the pile by hand (we still need to get a new dishwasher - it's the only appliance the house came with so of course it doesn't work) Seth reminds me "you wanted them all" - ugggh I know - still not happy about washing all these. But he is right - I did want ALL of these :)

So I let a sink full soak for a bit, washed them quickly and filled the sink again. Okay time to start some food. All this dish washing and coffee drinking (new coffee maker works great!) has made me starving - what's in the fridge?? Let the creative process begin....

So I LOVE baked eggs so I thought - well I've got a couple of eggs and some deli lunch meat, let's do this. This recipe for Marinara Baked Eggs will satisfy you morning or afternoon - on Sundays they tend to run together at our house, especially during football season. Here is how is goes:

MARINARA SUNDAY BAKE - for two

2 Organic Eggs
Non-stick spray or 2 T. E.V Olive Oil
4-6 thin slices of deli meat, I used turkey but you could also use: ham, pastrami, roast beef, mortadella or prosciutto
6 T. Your Favorite Spaghetti or Marinara Sauce
2 Slices Cheese, I used pepper jack but you could also use; Swiss, Cheddar, Goat, Feta, Cream Cheese, Munster, or Brie
2 pinches of dried oregano
2 dashes of garlic powder
2 dashes Italian seasoning (optional)
Salt & Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a muffin tin oil or spray two cups, make sure to swirl oil evenly if using E.V Olive Oil

Take 2-3 slices of deli meat and press into each cup to form a lining

Spoon 3 T. of sauce into each cup

Take a small slice a cheese and press lightly into sauce

Season with 1 dash in each cup of salt, pepper, garlic powder, oragino, and Italian seasoning

Carefully crack one egg into each cup, keeping the yolk as close to center as possible, salt and pepper the top of each egg lightly

Very carefully place in the middle of the oven and bake for 13-18 minutes, or until whites are set

Remove from muffin cup by taking a butter knife and running is along the edges of the cup to loosing the meat from the pan and carefully scoop out with a small rubber spatula

Serve with toast and bacon for a delicious Sunday brunch - enjoy!

BB is Back

Okay I know what you are thinking - Backstreet Boys are Back?? -  You wish!! (okay, I wish)

Beef Bourguignon is BACK in action baby. So the recipe I made last night (Sunday Football Beef Bourguignon) was too much for just Seth and I to finish off ourselves so I had to figure out how to make this into a round two dinner. So I took a quick look in the pantry and freezer and found it - I just needed to add a little rice and whala! Rice and Beef Bourguignon Bash :)

It seriously only took 20 minutes from fridge to table. The entire dinner took about 1 1/2 hours only because I made artichokes. They don't require much attention, just need to sit in the steam room for awhile - that accounts for the 1 1/2 hour cook time. 

If you want to get your Angerer on in the kitchen here is how to have a delicious round two dinner (for two): 

2 Artichokes

Sauce: 

1/4 C. Ranch (I used fat free ranch because I'm watching my weight)

3-4 dashes of your favorite hot sauce

2 t. lemon juice

Salt and Pepper   - more pepper then salt

Left over Beef Bourguignon (about 2- 2 1/2 cups)

2 cups cooked rice 

*To make it super quick use 1 packet of Trader Joe's quick cook frozen brown rice

1/4 C. Beef broth

For the artichokes cut the stem and top 1/2 inch off top with a serrated knife. Fill a medium pot 1/4 way with water and a palm full of salt, stir to dissolve. Bring the water to a boil and add artichokes. Cover and turn heat to low. Let them chill in the steam room for 45-1 1/2 hours over low heat, depending on how large the artichokes are. 

Meanwhile make sauce; combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. 

20-25 minutes before the artichokes are done grab a large skillet (the taller the sides the better) and heat 1/4 cup of beef broth and black pepper over medium heat for a couple minutes. Then add left over beef  bourguignon and cooked rice. Stir to coat rice with beef broth and left over bourguignon. Cover and turn heat to low. Let mixture simmer over low for 20-22 minutes, until meat is heated all the way through. 

Plate beef bourguignon rice and your ready for dinner. On the side serve the artichokes with sauce and don't forget the throw away leaf bowl! Or if you don't want to wait for artichokes to steam try it with one of these sides:

Frozen corn heated with olive oil and garlic

Side Cesar salad (Roman, Croutons, any creamy dressing, black pepper)

Canned fruit with cottage cheese

Fresh sliced tomatoes with slices of cheese drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar

Enjoy and let me know how yours turns out!