Blueberry French Toast Bagel

 

Blueberry French Toast  Bagel

2 blueberry bagels (can also use plain or whole wheat)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/8 cup sugar in eggs
pinch of salt
1/8 cup sugar (for egg mixture)
1/8 cup sugar (for blueberries)
1/2 cup blueberries


1) Preheat oven to 375. Separate the bagels and poke holes on both the inside and outside with a fork.

2) In a shallow baking dish mix the eggs, milk, ⅛ cup sugar and a pinch of salt. Add the bagels to the mixture. Flip constantly and soak while the oven is preheating.

3) Spray non-stick or add oil to a skillet and heat on medium high. Briefly fry both sides of the bagels and place in baking dish.

4) In a bowl, coat the blueberries with ⅛ cup of sugar and place on top of bagels. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

(I think Liem nominated me for Mommy of The Year with this one! Isn't that what life's all about? Enjoy!)

Jerk Chicken w/ Peach Chutney & Jalapeno Corn Slaw

Jerk Chicken w/ Peach Chutney & Jalapeno Corn Slaw

JERK CHICKEN

approx. 3.5 lbs split chicken breasts
1 tbsp olive oil
½ lime (juice)
1 jalapeno (sliced or diced- You can omit if you have kids or substitute w/ 2-3 tsp cayenne)
¼ cup cilantro (chopped)
4 garlic cloves (finely minced, preferably grated)
½ - 1 tbsp grated ginger
1 tbsp salt
1 ½ tbsp Italian seasoning (oregano, rosemary, thyme, basil)
½ tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp cloves
½ tsp cinnamon

PEACH CHUTNEY

2 very ripe peaches (skin peeled)
1/2 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
¼ cup tomatoes (diced)
½ tsp crushed red peppers

JALAPENO CORN SLAW

4 corn cobs (cooked)
2-3 cups of green & red cabbage (mandolin sliced)
cilantro (roughly chopped)
1 tomato (diced)
1-2 stalks of scallions (chopped)
1-2 jalapenos (sliced or diced-2 if you like it spicy!)
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup white vinegar
⅛ cup olive oil
pinch of salt

1) CHICKEN: Add wet ingredients to chicken. Combine all dry ingredients and add to chicken. Rub Rub and Rub! Try to get access to every surface. If you find a flap or pocket between the rib bones and the breast, rub there as well. If you’re in a rush, you can get straight to cooking the chicken. If not, allow chicken to sit for a couple to a few hours.

To cook chicken, preheat oven to 325. Add some oil to a pan and heat on medium high. When the pan is hot, add chicken skin side down and sear for 1-2 minutes on each side. Do not sear chicken until the oven is ready. If you have a piece of chicken that is noticeably larger than the others, you can cook it in the pan another minute or so to allow even cooking. Bake chicken for 35-40 minutes depending on size. Loosely cover chicken with foil for 5-10 minutes after you take it out. If you baked for 40 minutes, tent for only 5 minutes. The longer you bake the chicken, the less time you tent.

2) CHUTNEY: While chicken is baking, cut the peaches in half and peel off skin. You can only do this if the peaches are really ripe (it can even be almost mushy). If you can’t, just use a pairing knife. Cut the peaches into small cubes. Add just a tad of olive oil or non-stick spray to a sauce pan on medium high heat and add all ingredients. Stir, then reduce heat and alllow to simmer for a few minutes until peaches soften and juices are released. Set aside to cool.

3) SLAW: While the chicken is in the oven and the chutney is simmering you can prep your slaw ingredients. (I absolutely love overlap cooking!! It makes gourmet meals during the week possible!) Cook the corn cobs whichever way you’d like. Just don’t boil them. I like to pop them in the microwave with the husks and everything on for 7-8 minutes. Just rotate and flip them around half way through to make sure they cook evenly. Allow the corn to cool before slicing and combining with the other ingredients. Place corn, cabbage, jalapenos, cilantro, scallions, and tomatoes in a large bowl. In a small bowl, add olive oil, vinegar, sugar, a pinch of salt and mix. Refrigerate both bowls until the chicken has finished cooking. When you’re ready to eat, pour the dressing into the bowl and stir.

NOTES:

-I like to remove the bones and slice the chicken into ½ inch slices. It’s so tender when you eat it this way. Leftovers taste even better!

-You can tailor the spiciness according to your tolerance. If you have kids but love to eat spicy foods like me, you can have a side of pickled jalapenos to add to everything. That way everyone is happy! To make pickled jalapenos, just add a 1:1 ratio of vinegar to sugar and placed sliced or diced jalapenos in the juice and refrigerate. Just keep adding jalapenos and replenishing the juice. The longer you keep it, the spicier it gets!!

-Vegetarians: Substitute chicken with black beans, avocado, and pan-seared plantains.

Summer Chicken Chili w/ Creamy Tomato Sauce

Summer Chicken Chili w/ Creamy Tomato Sauce

What do you do when you feel like chili but it’s too hot outside? Have beans? Have veggies? Have chicken? Make summer chili!!

CHICKEN:

3.5 lbs of split chicken breasts
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp olive oil

BEAN SALAD:

3-4 cups cooked red beans
3-4 celery stalks (rough chopped)
3 green peppers (rough chopped)
½ large onion (rough chopped)
1 cup grape tomatoes (cut in half)
3 garlic cloves (minced)
cilantro (chopped)
2 tsp salt

TOMATO SAUCE:

½- ¾ cup grape tomatoes
½ onion (diced)
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup sugar
pinch of salt

1) CHICKEN: Add all ingredients to chicken and marinate until you’re ready to cook.

To cook chicken, preheat oven to 325. Add some oil to a pan and heat on medium high. When the pan is hot, add chicken skin side down and sear for 1-2 minutes on each side. Do not sear chicken until the oven is ready. If you have a piece of chicken that is noticeably larger than the others, you can cook it in the pan another minute or so to allow even cooking. Bake chicken for 35-40 minutes depending on size. Remove chicken and cover with foil. When the chicken has cooled, peel off the bones and cut into large cubes.

2) BEAN SALAD: I prefer cooking my own beans instead of buying them canned. Once you cook your own beans, it’s kind of hard to buy canned. The texture is completely different. Cooking them yourself really doesn’t take that much time, as long as you are overlapping it with other tasks. So if you’re going to marinate the chicken for a while, you can cook your beans during this time. If you plan on cooking your chicken right away, you can do this step first. Therefore, while the beans are simmering, you can prep the chicken.

Add 2 cups of dried beans to a large pot along with 1 tbsp each of salt and garlic powder. Fill with water up to ¾ full and bring to a boil. Then simmer for 15 or so minutes until the beans are soft but not mushy. Drain and rinse with cold water and set aside.

Quickly stir fry green peppers, celery, onions, garlic, and tomatoes with olive oil on medium high heat for a couple of minutes. Add this to your beans, toss and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

3) TOMATO SAUCE: Saute tomatoes and onions with olive oil until tomatoes are soft. In a blender, add tomatoes, onions and the rest of the ingredients (except cilantro) and puree until smooth. Add cilantro and pour into a bowl.

To serve, combine all ingredients and toss.

NOTES:

- This also pairs great with whole wheat penne pasta. Just double the sauce so you’ll have some to drizzle on the pasta too.

-Vegetarians: Substitute chicken with avocados or grilled tofu (cube extra firm tofu, toss with olive oil, salt and grill).

Salmon Satay Skewers w/ Napa Salad & Thai Cucumber Sauce

 Salmon Satay Skewers w/ Napa Salad

& Thai Cucumber Sauce

Here's another recipe at your request and will also be found in Summer Body Salads.  This is bold, flavorful and refreshing at the same time!  Enjoy!

P.S. Please don't be mad at me if your six pack comes back!

SALAD: Sliced Napa Cabbage, Red & Green Cabbage, Tomatoes, Bamboo Shoots, Snow Peas, 2 Red Peppers, 1 Large Onion, 1 Lime

SALMON MARINADE:

1/2 cup coconut milk (shake/stir before adding)
2 tbsp curry powder
4 garlic cloves minced or grated
1 tbs garlic powder
3/4 - 1 tsp salt
2 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp red curry paste
2 tsp galangal powder


 
THAI CUCUMBER SAUCE:  (Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to eat.)

1/4 cup minced  cucumber (peeled and pitted)
1/4 cup crushed peanuts
1/8 cup minced onions
1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp chopped basil
3/4-1 cup fish sauce vinaigrette
1 tbsp vinegar


Preheat oven to 350.  Then bake snow peas for 8 minutes.

Cube 1 1/2 to 2 lbs. of salmon and add to marinade.  If you're in a rush, you can grill this right away. But it's best if you leave this for one hour to a few hours to allow the salmon time to really soak in the spices.  While salmon is marinating,  prep your salad and sauce.

Preheat grill to medium and skewer salmon cubes alternating with cubes of red peppers and onions. Place skewers on greased grill and grill for about 3-5 minutes per side. 

Let the salmon sit for a couple of minutes before plating on top of salad. 

Garnish with extra cilantro, basil, crushed peanuts and lime wedges.  

Notes: 

Any type of rice will also taste great with this dish (brown, white or sticky).

Spinach Crab Cakes w/ Strawberry Asparagus Salad

 Spinach Crab Cakes w/ Strawberry Asparagus Salad

 I LOVE salads and I LOVE seafood.  In the summer, that's pretty much all I eat.  This is probably one of the cleanest crab cakes you will ever eat!  No butter or cream added!  Even the egg yolk from the egg is tossed out. And trust me, you won't miss any of it!  This along with many other healthy and delicious recipes will be featured in Summer Body Salads, one of my e-cookbooks I am working on at the moment to help you cut out the carbs and starch and still get your eat on!  


Salad:  spinach, spring mix, asparagus, fresh strawberries, roasted pecans, feta

Crab Cakes

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp basil
2 tsp old bay
1 egg white
1 heaping handful of spinach, coursely chopped
1/2 red pepper (sliced into slivers with mandolin)
1 lb Lump Crab Meat

Makes 4 Crab Cakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (If you don't already have pecans that are already roasted, you can place them on a baking sheet and into the oven while it is preheating.  Just set the timer for 12 minutes.  You can also place them in the microwave for 1 minute towards the end.  This is a great alternative when you are short on time.  Obviously oven roasted pecans are better.)

In a mixing bowl, mix all ingredients except for the crab meat.  Then gently fold the meat into the mixture.  You want to do a good enough job incorporating the meat  without mashing it up.   Spray a baking sheet with a non-stick spray.  To form the crab cakes, find a small plastic or metal bowl that will allow you to pack about one cup of meat into it.  You should be able to make 4 heaping crab cakes from this.   Since we're not using any cream, mayo or melted butter which adds a great amount of stickiness (and also calories), don't be afraid to really pack it in.  Once packed, quickly flip your bowl onto the baking sheet and remove the bowl without disturbing your crab lump.  It's ok if you mess up a few times.  Just repack and try it again.  Bake crab cakes for 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, chop off approximately one inch off the bottoms of the asparagus.  Then cut them in half and place in boiling water for approximately 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.  During this time, place 2-3 cups of ice in a mixing bowl and fill it with water.  When the color changes from pale green to deep green, you can remove the asparagus with a strainer or strain the pot, then immediately place it into the ice bath. Once it is chilled, drain and set aside. 

Prepare the dressing while the asparagus is in the ice bath.  Once the crab cakes are done, let them sit for a couple of minutes while you plate your salad. 

Boil the asparagus for 1 1/2-2 minutes. Drain. Then place in an ice bath until chilled.  Drain again and set aside in a colander.

Combine all salad ingredients and finally, place crab cakes on top!

 Blackberry Wine Vinaigrette

1/2 cup Manischewitz blackberry wine (In most grocery stores.  Can also substitute blackberry juice)
1/4 cup white vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
red pepper flakes
Italian seasoning/oregano
Kirkland Organic No Salt Seasoning (you can omit or substitute with any all purpose spice blend)

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan & Coconut Nutella Cookies

Hello my dear friends!  I'm sorry for the lack of yummy posts.  I assure you there is no slacking on my end!   I'm currently working on multiple e cookbooks for Amazon Kindle and Kindle apps while chasing a curious and active 18 month old around the house.  In fact, the pic for this one was cropped of tiny fingers reaching over to grab one of the cookies screaming to be eaten!  I feel so blessed to be where I'm at in life right now and really want to share as much of who I am with whoever needs my help, advice or ideas on food and cooking. 

As requested, here are the recipes for my Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan and Coconut Nutella cookies.  By the way, I will always do my best to post any requested recipe while I'm working on the cookbooks.  You will just have to be a tad patient!


Plain Cookie Dough Batter-  I always like to make different types of cookies at one time.  Instead of doing the same steps multiple times, I just make one super large cookie dough batter that I split up and add different ingredients to.  Makes it possible to make multiple types of cookies in one sitting! It's great when you have cookie monsters in your home who are each craving a different type of cookie!  If this is too much for you, you can cut all the measurements in half.

4 1/2 cup white or fine wheat flour (like King Arthur's)
2 tsp  baking soda
2 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
4 sticks softened butter

Yields 5 cups of dough and approximately 4 dozen cookies.

In an electric mixer,  cream the butter with sugar, salt, and baking soda.  Reduce speed and add eggs one at a time alternating with one cup of flour.  Scrape the bowl with a spatula as needed.  Divide the batter in half by removing 2 1/2 cups of dough.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

Preheat oven to 375.  

2 1/2 cups plain cookie dough
1 1/2 cup regular oatmeal (for softer, less dense cookies, use 1/2 to 3/4 cup)
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup pecans

In an electric mixer, add oatmeal, chocolate chips, and pecans to the cookie dough and stir until well mixed.  Use an ice cream scoop to transfer dough on to a greased baking sheet.  (I like to use a metal spatula and slightly pat the top of each mound to flatten it a bit since the oatmeal stiffens the dough.)  Bake for 12-13 minutes depending on your oven type and how crispy or soft you like your cookies.

Coconut Nutella Cookies

2 1/2 cups plain cookie dough
3/4 cup Nutella spread
1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened) (you can add another 1/4 cup if you really really love coconut)

Preheat oven to 375.

In an electric mixer, add the Nutella to the plain cookie dough and stir at medium low speed until completely  mixed.  Add the shredded coconut and slowly stir until just barely mixed so you don't pack the coconut into the dough.  Use an ice cream scoop to transfer dough onto a greased baking sheet.

Keep the dough in round mounds with at least 1 1/2 inches of space.  They will spread out quickly while baking, which will give the cookies a light crispy texture.

Bake for approximately 12 minutes.


Notes:

1) You can use whole wheat flour and double the fiber without anyone noticing the difference.

2) No more boring sugar cookies to give as gifts!  Be creative!  To your plain cookie dough batter, you can try adding chopped apples, butterscotch and pecans  or grated carrots, walnuts and white chocolate chips!!