Wedding Wednesday

Where does the time go?  I feel like I JUST left Charlotte/Richmond for Katina's (Recipe Gurl) Engagement Party - even though that was almost two weeks ago!  I know I said I'd do this post last week, but as I'm sure all of you know, catching up on work after a vaca is the worst!  So without further adieu - here are some great pics of us and our friends at her amazing party and fun-filled weekend:


First and foremost, when Katina picked me up from the Charlotte airport, we went straight to the most amazing sushi restaurant called Eez Fusion & Sushi in the most adorable part of Charlotte called Birkdale Village. Whoever said that landlocked cities don't have good sushi has obviously never been to this place.  Hands down, the most amazing sushi I've ever had (and I've had a lot!).

Sitting outside at Eez Fushion (we did not coordinate our outfits I swear)

Katina always gets the Mad Mango-Cado Roll: Shrimp tempura and kani roll coated with tempura flakes, topped with slices of fresh mango and avocado. Drizzled with our signature sweet sauce.......divine!


Since I'm obsessed with anything that has jalapeno in it, I got the Mango Tango Roll:  Albacore tuna, yellowfin tuna, jalapeno and green onion inside. Topped with yellowfin tuna, albacore tuna and tuna mango salsa. Garnished with raspberry sauce on the plate.  Again - absolutely mind-blowing!!


If you are ever in the Charlotte, NC area, I HIGHLY suggest you visit this place and stuff your face like we did.  


Then it never hurts to top off your sushi with several glasses (or bottles) of wine with a friend:

Catching up at Katina's adorable house.  We'll have to blog on her decor and paint colors soon since she did an amazing job with her new home.

On to Richmond, VA for the party....

Katina (Recipe Gurl) and her soon to be hubby, Greg

Katina and me (in the middle) with our awesome friends!!

The weekend was so much fun and I had a really hard time coming back to Florida - but we have plenty of Wedding festivities to keep us busy over the next couple of months!  

xoxo,

Amanda 

What We Made This Weekend

Both Katina and I made two very successful yet very different recipes this weekend that we thought fabulous enough to share with everyone.....


Recipe Gurl's Buffalo Chicken Panini's:

So we recently received a panini grill as a gift for our engagement party. I think we’ve used it about 5 times and our party was only a little over a week ago. A Panini is such an easy and satisfying dinner! It’s also a crowd pleaser (esp for picky eaters). So I came across this gem on the fabulous blog over at The Grilled Cheese Social and just had to try it. I am always a little weary of blue cheese, I never like when it’s too strong. I followed this recipe to a T and it came out amazing, the blue cheese was not overwhelming at all, it was the perfect compliment to the chicken. And as always, I used a rotisserie chicken to make the recipe even easier, and lower fat ingredients whenever possible. I strongly advise cooking this on a panini grill or even a George Foreman grill would work if you had one of those, but it also works just fine cooking it in the pan. Enjoy!!

Ingredients

-4 thick slices of french bread **
-2 pads of real salted butter
-1 tbs blue cheese salad dressing
-3 tbs organic cream cheese
-2 tbs crumbled blue cheese
-1 tbs shredded cheddar
-1/2 cup cooked shredded organic chicken breast
-1.5 tbs Frank's hot sauce

Once you've got everything out, combine all the cheeses into a small bowl. Stir together until you get a smooth consistency. Now combine your finely chopped chicken with Frank's hot sauce and stir.

Ok, now you're ready to begin!  Smear on a little over a tablespoon of the mixture onto each slice of bread (or however much you want!).

Then divide half the chicken on top of each piece of the smeared bread.  Now smear the other slices of bread with cheese and put the top on the sammie.  Gently apply 1 pad of butter to the top of the grilled cheese and place it butter side down in your pan (or Panini Grill)!

This cheese mixture will melt really quick, so make sure to check the brownness of each grilled cheese about every thirty seconds or so.  It'll probably take about a minute and a half once the pans hot and you'll want to take it off when it looks like this on both sides.

You'll want to serve these immediately because they're super delicious when they're all gooey and hot.

**I used Whole Wheat French Bread just to make it just a smidgen more healthy**

xoxo,

Katina

Okay - now for my (much lazier dinner approach) One-Pot Thai Chicken and Rice:

So I went to my local grocery store and randomly picked up Taste of Thai's Seasoning Packet for Chicken and Rice.  I made it last night for the boyf and we scarfed it down like it was nobody's business.  Here's the uber simple recipe from Taste of Thai's Website:

INGREDIENTS

Salt and pepperOil for browning4 pieces boneless skinless, chicken breast (about 1 1/4 lbs)1 1/4 cups Jasmine Rice, uncooked2 cups water1-1.75 oz packet Chicken & Rice Seasoning, both inner envelopes1 red bell pepper, diced1 cup peas, fresh or frozen

Salt and pepper chicken. In a large saucepan, heat oil on high and brown chicken. Remove chicken when browned. Set aside.

Add Jasmine Rice to saucepan and stir to coat rice. Add water and Chicken & Rice Seasoning. Stir well to combine.                                                                                                                          

Top Rice with chicken and bell peppers. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer on a low heat 10 minutes.                                                                                                           

Uncover and add peas, re-cover and cook 5 minutes more.

I made this recipe to the tee, not changing a single thing and it was absolutely fabulous - as if we got takeout from our fave Thai restaurant.

Hope you enjoy one or both of these recipes!  

xoxo,

Amanda 

Recipe Gurl's Easy Pantry Salad

Source

 

 

So after a week of vacation and consuming nothing but Corona beer, crab legs dipped in raw butter, and hush puppies, I was in the mood for a healthy and light dinner to start my vacation detox. I was totally not inspired at the grocery store, so all I picked up was lettuce, cukes, tomatoes, an onion, and some chicken tenders for the grill. So when I got home I knew I was going to make a salad but what I purchased at the store was only the makings for a boring salad. So thanks to the ingredients I already had in my pantry and my fridge I created this unique salad.  Who would have ever thought capers would even be good in a salad? So try this one night when you're in the mood for something light but not boring. I would say it's kind of my twist on a plain old caesar salad.

 

Ingredients:

 

chicken tenders

light sun dried tomato dressing

romaine lettuce

tomatoes (diced)

red onion (finely chopped)

cucumber (diced)

eggs (hard boiled then chopped)

bacon bits (I use the Hormel 50% less fat real bacon bits)

capers

light creamy caesar dressing

low fat or whole wheat seasoned croutons

 

Directions:

 

Place chicken tenders in a ziploc bag, cover them liberally in sun dried tomato dressing and marinate in the fridge for a couple hours. Grill the chicken on a grill or cook in a pan. While the chicken is cooking assemble your salad with the ingredients above and use as much or little of the ingredients as you like to your taste. Place the grilled chicken on top of the salad, drizzle light creamy caesar dressing on top, and enjoy!

 

xoxo,

Katina

Recipe Gurl's Non-Recipe Top 5

So I decided to branch out of my comfort zone and write about my top 5 favorite beauty products. They are five things I can’t live without so I just had to share them with everybody.  Enjoy!

NUMBER FIVE:

Benefit Powderflage

I don’t know if anyone else has this problem, but I have tried a zillion different under eye concealers and they all seem to cake under my eye and never look smooth. So I have discovered this amazing product. No matter what eye concealer you use, you just brush a little bit of this powderflage over it and it smoothes your concealer out and brightens up your under eye area.

NUMBER FOUR:

Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

This stuff is amazing. Whenever I get a manicure in a salon I always bring it with me and put it on top right before I leave, because even the stuff they use in the salon isn’t even as good as this stuff. By the time you’re finished putting it on all 10 of your fingers they will be dry, seriously. I want to be a Seche Vite sales rep and sell this product to all of the nail salons in my area, I would make a killing.

NUMBER THREE:

Meaningful Beauty Products

So I’m going out on a limb with this one just a bit. So I used to use Proactiv to keep my acne at bay, but now that I’m pushing 30 I feel like it’s time to switch over from the adult acne control products and move on to the preventative aging products. I just started using these products a week ago, but so far, most of the claims they have made on their infomercial (yes, I found saw this on an infomercial, but that’s how Proactiv started, and anyone who has ever has acne and tried it, knows it works!) and their website are true. My skin really does feel tighter and it just has an all over glow to it. I said I was going out on a little bit of a limb just because I’ve only been using it for a week, buuut so far so good, I might do a Meaningful Beauty update in a couple months…

NUMBER TWO:

Too Faced Leopard Love Complexion Perfection

I was skeptical of this product when I first bought it just because it seemed like everything was so shimmery, and I don’t really like the shimmery makeup look, I like the more natural makeup look. I was pleasantly surprised that it does really perfect your complexion and gives you a natural look, the key is to not have a heavy hand with any of the colors. Plus, I love Too Faced products because they always give you directions with pictures, and diagrams to spell out for you exactly where to put each shade. And not to mention the compact is really cute, and lasts a while. I bought this in the beginning of April and still don’t need a new one.

NUMBER ONE

Big Sexy Hair Volumizing Dry Shampoo

This is my number one, absolute, can’t live without, favorite beauty product. If I was stuck on a stranded island or was unable to shower for days, this would be the one product I would have to have. One spritz on your roots takes away any grease and gives your hair volume. For those of you who are fans of not washing your hair everyday, this is the product for you. I would also recommend carrying around a bottle in your purse for long nights out when you need to freshen up. This stuff makes you feel fresh and look like you have just washed you hair, even if you haven’t done a thing to it in days.

Cheap and Easy Weeknight Dinner

Source

So I’m always in search of healthy, quick, and cheap dinners to make on the weeknights. I was wandering aimlessly in Target’s grocery aisles yesterday with no cooking inspiration what so ever. I was on the verge of just leaving and picking up Chinese or Mexican, or some other sodium loaded, bloat-filled meal on my way home instead of cooking…then, all of a sudden I happened upon these lovely gems Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Lime Juice and Cilantro and picked up two cans. Then I proceeded to get a can of black beans, and some frozen corn. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it all, but I knew I could figure something out. So when I got home and searched through my pantry I pulled out some brown rice and whipped up a hodgepodge one pot dish that actually turned out really good. The fiancé even commented several times about how good it was, which is surprising considering it’s super healthy (brown rice + black beans = tons of fiber) and meatless. So anytime you’re looking for something super quick and easy, this is your dish.  I popped it in the oven, went on a run, and when I came back dinner was ready, what more could a girl ask for?  Enjoy!

Recipe Gurl’s Delish Rotel Creation:

Ingredients:

2 cups brown rice

2 cans of Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Lime Juice and Cilantro

1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained

Frozen Corn (use the empty Rotel can to measure out a can and a half of corn)

1 ½ cups water

Optional (but Recipe Gurl recommended) toppings:

Light sour cream

Reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese

Chopped avocado sprinkled with lime juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Please all ingredients in a 13x9 casserole dish and mix together.

Place casserole dish in the oven for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes stir the dish up, see if the dish looks dry or not (if it does add a touch more of water so that the rice can finish cooking). Set the cooking time for another 20-25 minutes. If rice still needs more cooking time, leave it in for a little longer. Keep testing the rice to see whether or not it seems to be cooking and gauge oven temp and amount of water in the dish.

Top the dish with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Tip: If you wanted to add more protein to the dish you could always incorporate shredded pieces from a rotisserie chicken and just mix it in the dish before baking.

Recipe Gurl's Must Try Scallop Dish

So, I’ve never been good at cooking scallops in the pan, they always come out tough and rubbery. I always end up disappointed because I love getting scallop dishes in restaurants, but can never successfully cook them at home. So when I saw this recipe for BAKING scallops I had to try it. This was soo easy and the scallops came out perfectly. To make the dish more figure friendly, I swapped out butter for Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread made with Extra Virgin Olive Oil http://www.smartbalance.com/products/buttery-spread/smart-balance-light-buttery-spread-made-extra-virgin-olive-oil  This is a great dish for company or a date night because it looks and tastes impressive, but takes no time at all. Add a salad, crusty bread, and white wine, and you have yourself a simple yet fancy meal!

Source

Ingredients

• 2 lbs scallops (about 4 cups)
• 1 cup dry white wine
• Salt
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, separated 3 Tbsp and 3 Tbsp
• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 2 1/2 Tbsp flour
• 1/2 cup fine bread crumbs

Method

1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Place scallops in a medium sauté pan. Add the wine and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and simmer for 4 minutes. No longer. Remove the scallops to a 1.5 quart casserole baking dish. Pour off the cooking liquid to a separate container and reserve.
2 Heat 3 Tbsp butter in the sauté pan on medium heat. Add the onions and cook until wilted, a couple minutes.
3 Slowly sprinkle the flour and add the cooking liquid over the butter onion mixture, whisking vigorously while you do so. As soon as the sauce is thickened, add it to the scallops in the casserole baking dish. Stir to fully incorporate the scallops into the sauce.
4 Sprinkle bread crumbs over the scallops and dot with the remaining 3 Tbsp butter. Bake in the oven at 400°F until bubbly and brown, approximately 15 minutes.
Serves 6. Serve with lemon slices.

You can also find the recipe here: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/baked_scallops/

Recipe Gurl's 'Go-To' Recipes

So everyone has those few recipes that you make over and over again because you just know you can always count on it to be easy and delicious.  I asked my BF, Recipe Gurl, to share hers with us.  Here are her fave 'Go-To' Recipes:

1.  Salmon Filets over Couscous



Foodnetwork.com



Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 4 (4-ounce) pieces salmon
• Lime
• House Seasoning, recipe follows
• Butter
• Couscous, recipe follows

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Add a drizzle of olive oil to glass pan and place the salmon. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime over the top of the salmon and sprinkle with the House Seasoning. Top with pads of butter. Wrap in the foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Serve on a bed of couscous.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt

1/4 cup black pepper

1/4 cup garlic powder

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.

Couscous:

2 1/4 cups water or chicken stock

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons butter

10 ounces couscous

1 cup diced tomatoes

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup green onions

Combine water or chicken stock, salt and butter in a saucepan, over medium heat and bring to a boil. Stir in couscous. Add diced tomatoes, crumbled feta, and green onions. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Uncover, fluff with a fork, and serve hot or cold.

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ease of preparation: easy

2.  Roasted Tilapia with Roasted Pototoes and Lemon



realsimple.com



Ingredients

• 1 pound baby potatoes (about 12), halved
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
• 4 6-ounce skinless tilapia fillets
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400° F.
2. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the potatoes, lemon, thyme, 2 tablespoons oil, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer.
3. Roast, tossing once, until the potatoes begin to soften, about 20 minutes.
4. Toss the olives with the potato mixture; nestle the fish in it. Drizzle the fish with the remaining oil and season with paprika and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper.
5. Continue to roast until the potatoes are golden brown and crisp and the fish is opaque throughout, 12 to 15 minutes.

3.  Honey Chicken Skewers with Grilled Corn Salad



realsimple.com



Ingredients

• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• kosher salt and pepper
• Canola oil, for the grill
• 6 ears corn, shucked
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 scallions, sliced

Directions

• Place twenty 8-inch wooden skewers in water to soak. Heat grill to medium-high.
• In a small bowl, combine the ketchup, honey, and Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.
• Slice the chicken lengthwise into twenty ½-inch-thick strips. Thread each strip onto a wooden skewer. Season with ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper.
• Lightly oil the grill. Cook the chicken, turning occasionally, until cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes, basting with the ketchup mixture during the last 2 minutes.
• Meanwhile, grill the corn, turning occasionally, until slightly charred, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Cut the kernels off the cobs, place in a medium bowl, and toss with the butter, scallions, and ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper. Serve with the chicken.

4.  Chicken Broccoli Couscous



Rachel Ray Magazine



Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• Salt and pepper
• 3 cups chicken broth
• One 10-ounce box couscous
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 head broccoli, broken into small florets
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Toast nuts in a 350° oven until fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes.

 

Directions:

 

• In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, add to the pan and cook, turning once, until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a work surface, let cool, then shred; reserve the skillet.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring 2 cups chicken broth and 1 tablespoon olive oil to a boil; season with salt and pepper. Add the couscous, cover and remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
• In the reserved skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and the remaining 1 cup chicken broth and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken, raisins, parsley and couscous; season with salt and pepper. Toss with the almonds before serving.

**Recipe Gurl Tip:  Cut down on time by using Rotiserrie Chicken instead!!**

5.  Chicken Caesar Burgers with Parmigiano Taters

Ingredients

• For the taters:
• 1 sack frozen tater tots, waffle fries or your favorite frozen tater, any brand
• A couple of handfuls of grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Romano cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves removed and chopped
• 1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon grill seasoning (eyeball it)

• For the dipping sauce:
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• 1/2 small onion, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• For the burgers:
• 1 1/4 pounds ground chicken breast, the average weight of 1 package
• 3 garlic cloves, 2 finely chopped, 1 cracked from skin
• 4 anchovies, finely chopped (optional – but recommended)
• A handful of Parmigiano Reggiano
• Salt and coarse black pepper
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• A handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest plus juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus some for drizzling
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 heart romaine lettuce, chopped
• 2 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 4 crusty rolls, split in half

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Start the taters: Combine Parmigiano, salt, rosemary, hot pepper flakes and grill seasoning in a bowl. Pour four portions of taters onto a non-stick cookie sheet. Bake until almost crisp (about halfway through the cooking time on the package), then remove and sprinkle them with a handful of the cheese, tossing them a little to make sure they're coated, and then finish baking them off. Sprinkle them with cheese and herb mixture, tossing them around a bit so the mixture sticks. As the frost starts to melt, the flavorings will set into place.
• Make the dipping sauce: Heat EVOO in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add grated onion (onion can be grated right over the pot) and garlic, and cook 1-2 minutes. Add tomatoes, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, for 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat and reserve.
• While the sauce is working, prepare the burgers: In a bowl, combine the chicken, finely chopped garlic, anchovies, a handful of cheese, a pinch of salt and a generous amount of pepper, Worcestershire, parsley and lemon zest. Mix the meat and form 4 oval-shaped, rather than round, burger patties.
• Heat a large nonstick skillet with 1 tablespoon of EVOO, a turn of the pan, over medium-high heat. When hot, add the chicken patties and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.
• Preheat the broiler and toast the bread on a cookie sheet or broiler pan. Once lightly golden in color, remove from oven and rub the breads with cracked garlic. Drizzle bread with the EVOO.
• Combine Dijon, lemon juice and 2-3 tablespoons of EVOO with salt and pepper, and toss the greens with it.
• Place the patties on the bun bottoms and top them with a pile of romaine, sliced tomatoes and bun tops. Serve the burgers with the Parmigiano taters and a bowl with the dipping sauce alongside.

What are your "Go-To" Recipes??  I'll be posting mine after this weekend! 

Recipe Gurl's Review of Giada's Spinach and Cannellini Bean Dip

Don’t be scared by the appearance of this dip, it is sooo good, and for anyone trying to lose/maintain weight, get ready for an event, or just getting ready to get into a bikini, this is a great thing to snack on throughout the day, or even to replace a meal with. I make this weekly and eat if for dinner after I go to the gym just so I'm not eating something heavy right after working out. It says to use a food processor, but for the first year I made this dip I didn’t have one so I used a blender, but a food processor is MUCH easier to use with the recipe now that I have one. I love dipping Trader Joes less sodium pita chips in this. If you can't find cannellini beans in the grocery store, sometimes they are called "Great Northern Beans" these are the same thing.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 (6-ounce) bags baby spinach

1 (15-ounce) can cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil, over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 of the spinach and cook for 2 minutes until wilted. Repeat with the remaining spinach. Let the mixture cool for a few minutes.

Place the remaining olive oil, spinach mixture, cannelloni beans, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor.

Blend until the mixture is smooth. Transfer to a small serving bowl. Serve with endive spears, crostini or pita chips.

You can also get the recipe here http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/everyday-italian/spinach-and-cannellini-bean-dip-recipe/index.html

What Did Recipe Girl Cook This Weekend?

What did Recipe Gurl cook this weekend??......Her ode to fancy in minutes and Trader Joe's ready made pizza dough...

Saturday Night: Chicken with Wine

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon flour
• Salt and pepper
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, sliced into 8 cutlets and pounded thin
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
• 10 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 1 cup red wine
• 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

Directions:

1. In a shallow bowl, combine the flour and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Coat the chicken, shaking off any excess.
2. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add the chicken and cook, turning once, until just cooked through, about 5 minutes; transfer to a plate. Add 1/2 tablespoon butter and the mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring, until browned, about 5 minutes; transfer to the plate of chicken. Stir in the shallot and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Add the wine and chicken broth and simmer until reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes.
3. Return the chicken and mushrooms to the pan, add the thyme and cook, turning, to heat through; season with salt.

This is Rachel Ray's quick and healthier version of coq au vin. It turned out great, but I did make a few tweaks, the recipe says to use chicken breasts cut into 8 cutlets and pounded thin, to save time I just bought thin sliced chicken breats. Instead of fresh thyme I used 1/2 tsp of dried thyme. Also, I cooked the shallots for longer than a minute, I probably did about 3 minutes to develop the flavor more. When adding the chicken back in, I recommend leaving the chicken and mushrooms simmer in the wine and broth mixture for at least 10 minutes to soak up the flavor. For sides I quartered red baby potatoes, drizzled them with olive oil, kosher salt, and dried dill and cooked them in the oven at 425 for 20 minutes. I also popped asparagus in the oven at the same temp for 15 minutes, i just drizzled them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and a little lemon juice. Cook both of these in the oven at the same time along with this easy chicken dish and you have a faked fancy dish in 30, I mean come on, anything that I can used presliced mushrooms with is a winner.

 

Get the recipe here http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipes/healthy-good-for-you-recipes/Chicken-with-Wine

Sunday night: Sausage, Pepper and Onion Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1 pound refrigerated pizza dough
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound hot italian sausages, casings removed
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 red bell peppers, sliced
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven, place an inverted baking sheet on top and preheat to 500°. Using oiled hands, stretch the pizza dough to fit a parchment-lined baking sheet.
2. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and pour out any remaining grease. In the same skillet, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, the onion and peppers and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and the rosemary.
3. Scatter the sausage, onion and peppers across the pizza dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border. Dollop with the ricotta and sprinkle the parmesan on top; drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Set the baking sheet on the inverted baking sheet in the oven and bake until the crust is crisp and golden-brown, about 20 minutes.

This turned out better than I thought it would. Every time I try to make a pizza I end up with a soggy crust, but thanks to my new buy from Crate and Barrel, the 16' Pizza Crisper http://www.crateandbarrel.com/kitchen-and-food/pizza-pans/16%22-crisper/s488569 (had to get myself a little something while I was buying about 5 wedding gifts) the crust turned out perfectly, I totally recommend it, well worth the $16 bucks. I think Target also has something similar as well. I tweaked a couple things in this recipe that I think made a big difference. I used Trader Joe's ready made whole wheat pizza dough which I think is the greatest thing ever, you buy it in the refrigerated section and it's all ready for you to roll out. All I did was spray the pizza crisper with non-stick spray and kneaded it out on the pan with my hands. Instead of pouring the olive oil over all of the toppings like the recipe says, I poured the olive oil on the crust before putting any of the toppings on to make sure the crust didn't turn out dry. I didn't use rosemary, instead I put about 1/4 tsp of fennel seed in the pan and let it cook for about a minute before adding the peppers and onions. Lastly, I don't really like the consistency of ricotta cheese, so I used fresh mozzarella instead. I added a salad on the side, drizzled it with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and a little salt and pepper (to make myself feel healthy and balance out the fact that I was eating bread topped with sausage and cheese).

Get the recipe here http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-index/dinner-recipes/Sausage--Pepper-and-Onion-Pizza