Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Wow, as if indulging in Charleston wasn't enough, we then headed south to spend the holidays with our families. Cookies, cake pops, fudge--you name it we ate it (have you ever made cake pops? They are actually pretty easy. Check out the picture below for my finished result. I used this recipe). As soon as we got back home we looked at each other and said "Chicken for dinner EVERY NIGHT!"

The menu this week was simple, and included a lot of old recipes, so I will keep this blog post short and sweet.

Monday--Rotisserie chicken over lettuce with chopped vegetables
Tuesday--Whole wheat rotini with fresh spinach, Martha Stuart's marinara sauce and a side of homemade meatballs
Wednesday--Chicken marinated in Cindy's Kitchen Double Garlic Ginger Lime dressing, grilled and served with brown rice and steamed broccoli and snow peas
Thursday--Pineapple Cilantro-Lime Chicken served with pico de gallo and fiesta rice
Friday--Eggplant parmesan with zucchini marinara

PS--A picture of my cake pops. YUM!

From freezer to table: Making the most out of what is in your house

I know Farm to Table is big right now, but you know what's big in our house? Freezer to Table. As much as I try to incorporate fresh produce into all of our meals, there are nights that I have to just work with what we have in the house. This seems to especially be true the week before we are heading out of town to visit family or go away on vacation.

Last night I had to scrape together what I could with pantry staples and whatever we had in the freezer. I came across some frozen turkey taco meat but really was not in the mood for the 800 dishes that seem to pile up when I put a taco bar together. My husband had just given me a large rectangular Pizza Stone from Williams Sonoma as an early Hanukkah gift and I was eager to use it. That was how my Turkey Taco Pizza came to be.

Turkey Taco Pizza
Ingredients
1 batch Martha Stewart's Cornmeal Pizza Crust
1/2 pound 93% lean ground turkey or soy crumble meat substitute (for my vegetarian friends out there)
1/2 green pepper, finely diced
1/2 small yellow onion, finely diced
1/2 packet taco seasoning
1/2 cup water
2 cups shredded 2% Mexican cheese blend


Directions
-Place pizza stone on bottom rack in oven and preheat to 500 degrees F.
-In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, saute onions and peppers until soft. Add turkey (or soy crumble) and cook until all the pink is gone. Add taco seasoning and 1/2 cup water. Simmer on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all the water has evaporated. Remove from heat and let cool.
-Spread a large amount of cornmeal on your work surface. Roll out pizza dough so that it is a large rectangle. Transfer rolled-out dough onto a well cornmealed pizza peel (if you don't have a pizza stone or pizza peel, you can use a cookie sheet).
-Spread turkey mixture evenly over your dough, leaving a 1/4 inch boarder around the edge to form your crust. 
-Top with cheese.
-Carefully transfer pizza to your pizza stone and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until cheese begins to bubble and turn brown.
-Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
-Top with sour cream, guacamole and pico de gallo for an extra treat!

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

Gouda and Champagne detox--recovering from a weekend away

After returning from a weekend away with my hubby that included ridiculous amounts of champagne and cheese, I am looking forward to getting back to cooking. In an effort to detox from the Brie and Gouda, this weeks menu is going to be simple and focus on incorporating as many whole foods as possible.

Sunday--Oatmeal-turkey burger and sugar snap peas
Monday--Agave-balsamic marinated turkey tenderloins with patty pan gratin
Tuesday--Alyssa's four-bean vegetarian chili and corn bread
Wednesday--Red onion chicken and mashed potatoes
Thursday--Chicken Caesar salads

Breakfast is also going to be a focus for me this week--I need to start the day out with protein. It's really the only thing that keeps me full until lunch, however, I hate making eggs in the morning just because I am so tired. The solution? Mini-fritatas. I tried these out a few weeks ago when I catered my friend's baby naming and they were a big hit. Also, they freeze amazingly well and their are endless combination that you can make. This week I made Huevos Rancheros fritatas, inspired by my indulgent breakfast at Charleston Place.

Huevos Rancheros Mini Fritatas
2 PointsPlus per serving

Ingredients
3 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup black beans
1/2 tomato, diced
1/2 cup 2% shredded Mexican cheese
1 small yellow onion, quartered and sliced
salt/pepper

Directions
-Heat oven 350 degrees and spray a half-dozen muffin tin with PAM.
-Spray a small frying pan with PAM and saute onions over medium heat until they are golden brown.
-In a medium-sized bowl whisk eggs and milk together. Add remaining ingredients and stir until combined.
-Spoon egg mixture evenly into greased muffin tine.
-Bake for 20-25 minutes, until tops look golden brown.
-Remove from oven, let cool, and remove fritatas from muffin tin. Keeps 3-4 days in the fridge, or freeze and defrost as needed.


Healthy meals to nourish your mind.