Asian Beef

Ingredients

• 1 lb, shaved steak
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons, oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon, Mama Sita’s BBQ Marinade
• 2 scallion stalks, chopped

1. In a large skillet over medium to high heat, drizzle olive oil.  Add onions and saute for 5 minutes, until the edges become golden brown.
2. Add shaved steak, drizzle oyster sauce and Mama Sita’s BBQ Marinade atop.  Cook for about 3 minutes on each side.
3. Saute for an additional 2 minutes.  Top with scallions.  Remove from heat.

Not So Traditional Bibimbap

• Steamed white rice
• Seaweed salad
• Pickled daikon radish
• 1 fried egg
• Sauteed onions and steak (recipe above)
• Sriracha sauce

1. In a large bowl, add rice, top with seaweed salad, pickled daikon radish, fried egg, and sauteed onions and steak.  Drizzle with Sriracha sauce.
2. Mix well. Eat.

Tonight’s meal features a really simple Japanese dish – Chirashi.  No cooking necessary.  I even got the cooked rice bowls.  Just needed to pop that sucker in the microwave.  Everything else was already prepared.  No effort required at all.  And oh so healthy.  I wish we could eat this every night.  But then we’d be broke.

Ingredients: White rice, seaweed salad, pickled daikon radish, salmon sashimi.

Chicken Tacos

Makes 10 tacos

• 1 packet of Frontera taco skillet sauce
• 1 lb of boneless chicken breast, cubed
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• Olive oil
• 10 corn tortillas (use Romaine lettuce as shells for a Paleo recipe!)

Avocado Salsa

• 1 avocado, cut into cubes
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 6 tablespoons cilantro, coarsely chopped
• A bit of lime juice
• Sea salt

1. In a medium skillet over medium to high heat, drizzle olive oil, and saute onions for about 5 minutes.
2. Drizzle additional olive oil, add in chicken breast and cook until browned around the edges, an additional 5-7 minutes.
3. Add Frontera taco skillet sauce and mix well.  Remove from heat.
4. In a separate bowl, add all salsa ingredients and mix well.
5. In a separate skillet (or in the microwave), warm up the tortillas.
6. Place tortilla onto plate, spoon on chicken and onion mixture, top with avocado salsa.  Serve with lime wedges.  (Optional toppings – sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese).

It usually goes for $99.99 at Bed Bath & Beyond, but use your 20% coupon and you’re golden ($80 before tax).  I already bought one to give to my mom for Mother’s Day!

Green Smoothie

Ingredients

• 2 handfuls of organic baby spinach
• 1 organic apple, cut into 2″ pieces
• 8 seedless grapes
• 4 strawberries, cut in 1/2
• 1 tablespoon of chia seeds
• 1/4 of Goji berries
• 1/2 cup of water

1. Place all ingredients into Nutribullet cup.
2. Blend.
3. Enjoy.

And……. here’s a random picture of my kittykins, Gracie!!! Just loungin’ on the couch.

I haven’t been whipping up many new recipes in the kitchen, just been cooking a lot of the same ol’ stuff or some variation of it.

On a lazy Sunday night, Bjorn wanted to get take-out, but I knew I had a ton of goodies in the kitchen and some extra time on my hands… and so I whipped up today’s recipe – Mushroom Risotto.  I always tend to order risotto when we’re out to eat because it is SO labor intensive, but it never really tastes like what I’m expecting.  Risotto is definitely a pain to make, but the end result is worth it.  My good friend, Christian, also gifted me with a bottle of truffle oil, so I knew I had to put that to good use.  This recipe is adapted from Tyler Florence.

Mushroom Risotto

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 8 cups chicken broth, low sodium
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pound fresh baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon truffle oil
• 2 cups Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
• Olive oil
• Sea salt and black pepper

1. Heat the chicken broth in a medium saucepan and keep warm over low heat.
2. Drizzle olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1/2 onion and 1 clove garlic and saute until translucent.  Add the mushrooms, herbs and butter. Saute for an additional 3 to 5 minutes until lightly browned. Season with sea salt and black pepper.  Remove from heat and set aside.
3. In a large pot, drizzle olive oil and saute the remaining 1/2 onion and garlic clove.  Add the rice and stir quickly until it is well-coated and opaque (1 minute).
4. Using a ladle, add 1 cup of the warm chicken broth to the rice and cook, stirring, until the rice has absorbed the liquid. Add the remaining broth, 1 cup at a time. Continue to cook and stir, allowing the rice to absorb each addition of broth before adding more. The risotto should be slightly firm and creamy, not mushy. Transfer the mushrooms to the rice mixture. Stir in Parmesan cheese, cook briefly until melted. Top with a drizzle of truffle oil and chopped parsley before serving.

Lemongrass Chicken

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 8 skinless chicken drumsticks
• 2 shallots, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• About 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce
• 1 stalk lemongrass, finely chopped
• Olive oil

1. In a large skillet, over medium to high heat, drizzle olive oil.  Add shallots and garlic, saute for a few minutes until shallots become translucent.
2. Place drumsticks to skillet, drizzle oyster sauce and lemongrass atop, and cook for about 8 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.

A few weeks ago, I saw Mark Bittman speak at Ikea.  2nd row seat!  He’s awesome.  So laid back, witty, and intelligent.  I got a signed copy of his book, How to Cook Everything The Basics.  This is a must have in every kitchen!! And if you’re not a cook, then you will become one after you’ve been introduced to this book.  Bittman spoke about the things that our society faces today when it comes to food and the infamous “obesity crisis”.  First, we need to define food and non-food.  Things like soda, chips, is non-food, as it offers no nutritional value whatsoever to our bodies.  We also need to learn about what’s in the food that we purchase as consumers in the grocery store.  Look a little bit deeper beyond food that is labeled “Natural”, “Organic”, “Non-GMO”, etc.  How is the food handled, what are the living conditions of the animals?  Something to think about…

One of the things that Bittman said that really resonated was something along the lines of… “What’s the main ingredient in chips?  Who knows!  But, we all know that the main ingredient in broccoli is… broccoli.”  Let’s all take that extra step and effort in nurturing our bodies with wholesome and natural foods.

Quinoa Salad with Dried Cranberries and Pistachios

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups uncooked quinoa
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
• 2 cups of water
• Olive oil
• Sea Salt
• Black Pepper
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup of pistachios
• Handful of parsley leaves, coarsely chopped

1. In a large skillet, over medium to high heat, add olive oil and shallots to pan.  Saute for 2 minutes, or until transparent.  Add 2 cups of water and about 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt; bring to a boil.  Add quinoa, cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes (or until all liquid is absorbed).  Remove from heat and let cool.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice, and black pepper.  Mix well.  Add quinoa, dried cranberries, pistachios, and parsley.  Toss gently.

The key to keeping rosemary nice and fresh is to wash it, wrap it in a damp paper towel, and store in an airtight bag.  The rosemary that I bought two weeks ago is still amazingly green and vibrant!

This meal took me about 45 minutes to prepare (including the mashed cauliflower), but less than 5 minutes to consume.  Yes, it was really that good.

Honey and Rosemary Glazed Pork Chops

Serves 4

• 4 pork chops
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 2 rosemary sprigs, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

1. Mix honey, rosemary, and olive oil in a bowl.  Brush generously onto pork chops.
2. In a large skillet, over medium to high heat, cook each pork chop for 5-6 minutes on each side.
3. Serve with your favorite side dish (obviously mine is mashed cauliflower).

Tonight’s dinner features a classic steamed tilapia fillet, inspired by a handful of fresh Asian ingredients.

Steamed Tilapia with Ginger and Scallions

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 Tilapia fillets
• 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
• 2 oz of ginger, julienned
• 2 scallion stalks, cut into 1/2″ pieces

1. Add 2″ of water into a large pot, cover and boil over high heat.  
2. Place all ingredients into a heat proof dish.
3. Once the water is boiling, place the dish into the steamer basket.  Steam for 10-15 minutes, until fish is cooked through (will turn white).
4. Serve alone or atop black japonica rice (featured in photo).

This recipe is an addition to my previous post.  But this time, I added bacon.  And yeah, it was THAT good.  Serve this up as a passing hors d’oeuvre at your next dinner party and your guests will be oooh-ing and ahhh-ing in excitement.

Bacon Wrapped Dates with Goat Cheese and Almonds

Makes 6 pieces

Ingredients

• 6 whole Medjool dates, pitted
• 2 oz of goat cheese
• 6 raw almonds
• 3 strips of uncured bacon, cut in half

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F).
2. Stuff each date with goat cheese, one almond, wrap with bacon strip and secure with a toothpick (or two).
3. Place on baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.