Turkey Lettuce Wraps

PF Chang's and Pei Wei make amazing lettuce wraps. I had a craving a little while ago, so I set out to make some of my own. I found this recipe that has a ton of ingredients--all full of flavor and nutrients. I've made some modifications, but the original is from today.msnbc.com - Joy's slimming chicken lettuce wraps.

If you have a food processor it can be fairly quick to make, but since I have a small one, I must admit it took about an hour to make.

One more note--you might experiment with the type of lettuce you use. I tried Bibb lettuce and thought it was too fragile, but iceberg broke up too. I've been told romaine wrap lettuce works, so I'll try that next. :-) Good luck! It's definitely worth it.

serves 4

• 4 medium carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1 large red bell peppers, seeded and finely diced
• 1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, drained and finely diced
• 3 green onions--the white and green part- thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon grated or finely minced fresh ginger. *the recipe called for 2 tablespoons, but one is MORE than enough. :-)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound ground turkey-- at least 90% lean. *The recipe called for ground chicken, but pound for pound, ground turkey is cheaper, so I usually get that instead.
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/3 cup Chinese Plum Sauce
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon hot chili paste such as sriracha--you can use less if you don't want it too spicy.
• 1/4 cup unsalted roasted cashews, chopped
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro--if you like cilantro. It's optional
• 1 head Boston or Bill lettuce(or iceberg, or romaine wraps... see above :-))

1. Liberally coat a large skillet with Pam and preheat it over medium-high heat.

2. I would pre-dice everything and have it ready. Add the carrots, celery, bell pepper, water chestnuts, green onions, ginger and garlic. Saute, stirring occasionally until the vegetables soften slightly--about five minutes. You can add a tablespoon of water at a time if necessary to prevent scorching.

3. Add the ground turkey to the skillet. Break the meat up with a wooden spoon, and cook until the meat is no longer pink. Season with salt and pepper. In my case, I had to drain some juice off to keep the filling from being too runny.

4. Add the plum sauce, soy sauce, vinegar and chili paste--stir to coat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until heated through.

5. Remove the skillet from heat and stir in cashews and cilantro. Allow the mixture to cool slighly--about five minutes.

6. Clean the lettuce and break off 12 individual leaves. Trim away the stem end if they are tough. Fill each lettuce cup with about 1/2 cup of the turkey filling.

nutritional facts:

The recipe is confusing unfortunately. I don't know if this is per serving or total. I believe that 1 lb of ground chicken is 640 calories all by itself, so my guess is this is the nutritional count per serving.

Calories – 298 Protein – 27 g Total Fat – 9 g Saturated Fat – 2 g Cholesterol – 80 mg Sodium – 610 mg Carbohydrate – 34 g Fiber – 5 g

Barbecue Skillet Pork Chops

I made this meal recently and as soon as Zach tasted it, he said "You have to blog this recipe." :-) I think it's really tasty as well, and easy to make. I'm not usually a fan of pork chops unless they are cooked with a flavorful mix of spices, or in this case, a homemade BBQ sauce. Hope you like it--let me know what you think! I got this recipe from my favorite recipe book, Betty Crocker's Quick & Easy Cookbook.




Barbecue Skillet Pork Chops

• 4 pork loin or rib chops, 1/2 inch thick (At least 1.25 pounds)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper(These measurements I threw out the window--just season to taste. ;-))
• 1 can(15 ounces) of chunky tomato sauce with onions, celery and green bell peppers. I always use Ragu, but you can use your favorite sauce.
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard

1. Spray a 12-inch nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.

2. Sprinkle both sides of the pork with salt and pepper.

3. Cook pork in skillet about 5 minutes, flipping it once, until it's brown.

4. Stir the remaining ingredients(tomato sauce, brown sugar, white vinegar, ground mustard) into the skillet.

5. Heat till boiling and then reduce the heat.

6. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pork is slightly pink when cut near the bone.

This would be perfect with roasted potatoes or beans and potato salad. I made it with salad for Z. :-)

Nutritional information:

1 serving: calories 230. fat 8g. cholesterol 65mg. sodium 560mg. carbohydrates 16g. dietary fiber 1g. Protein 24g. Diet exchanges: 1 starch, 3 lean meat.

Oven roasted green beans

Oven roasted green beans are my favorite green vegetable right now. They are easy to cook, and because you use fresh green beans, they are fresh and crisp. I love chopping the ends off of the green beans. It makes me feel domestic. :-) I got the recipe initially from Cooking Light's Chicken for Dinner magazine.

I make them about once a week, and tried them out on my family for Christmas. They approved. :-) Hope y'all will, too!




Oven Roasted Green Beans

Serves 6 (The magazine says 12, but... we like our green beans. :-))

• 2 pounds green beans, trimmed
• 4 teaspoons extravirgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2. Place a baking sheet with a lip or large glass casserole dish in the oven for 10 minutes.

3. Place the green beans in a large bowl.

4. Drizzle the green beans with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss well to coat the beans with the mixture.

5. Arrange the green beans as spread out as possible (a single layer if you can) in the pan.

6. Bake at 425 degrees for about 8 minutes, or until crisp-tender. You don't want to cook them too long!

Nutritional facts per serving:

Calories: 37 Fat: 1.6g Protein: 1.4g Carbohydrates: 5.5g fiber: 2.6g Sodium: 196mg Calcium: 29mg

Pesto Quinoa

So, I'm a little behind on the superfoods trend. A few weeks ago, Zach sent me a link to an article about Quinoa and it was the first time i'd ever paid attention to the food so many people raved about. I tried  this pesto recipe that night and we both became huge fans. It's SO delicious!

Like everyone says, it's a really versatile seed. It takes on the flavor of pretty much whatever you mix it with, it's high in protein and really filling. We're not vegetarians, but we'd like to eat less meat ($$$) so recipes with quinoa tend to fill us up better than say, eating a salad for dinner. :-)

Make sure you rinse the quinoa before you cook it. We haven't experienced any bitterness in the quinoa, but you might as well be sure! It's kind of messy, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of herding the tiny dots eventually. :-) Let me know what you think! I got this recipe from allrecipes.com.



Pesto Quinoa
Serves 4

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
• 2 cups chicken broth-- you can substitute veggie stock if you'd like
• 2 tablespoons basil pesto
• 1 tomato, diced
• salt and pepper, to taste

1. Bring the chicken broth and quinoa to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. 

2. Cover, and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the broth is absorbed.

3. Remove from heat and mix in the pesto.

4. Stir in the tomatoes.

5. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve it up!

Nutritional info, per serving:

Calories: 207 | Total Fat: 6.4g | Cholesterol: 5mg

Oreo bites

I have to credit our fabulous APHA interns Hillary Yetter, Megan Crudup and Megan Brincks with this recipe. They sealed their role as BEST INTERNS EVARRR at their very first snack day by bringing these tasty morsels. I commissioned them to make them for a bridal shower and they were a hit. They are absolutely fabulous, and I can say this because every single person who has eaten them has freaked out. :-) The interns also made cake balls, but I haven't personally made them. I'll include the recipe for them at the bottom. Again, I'm crediting the interns. :-) I made these balls a few weeks ago for a bachelorette party, so here's my experience. Give yourself plenty of time to make these, they require several stints in the freezer. :-)



Oreo bites
1 package Oreos
1 package softened cream cheese
1-2 packages Baker's Chocolate
1 package Baker's White Chocolate (Drizzle)

1. Crumble the oreos as small as you can and then mix them with the cream cheese. I used a food processor to crumble and my hands to mix.

2. Roll the mixture into small balls and place in the freezer. Chilling is important, otherwise they'll fall apart when you dip them. I put them on a cookie tray. I recommend bite-size balls. Too big, and the balls are just too rich to eat. The smaller you make the balls, the more balls you will have! I planned to make 2 dozen and I ended up with like 7 dozen.

3. While the balls are freezing, melt the chocolate in a small saucepan on low heat. Don't turn the heat too high or you'll burn the chocolate. Stir the chocolate until it's smooth and slightly drippy, then remove from heat.

4. Once the balls are hard, cover the oreos in the chocolate. I dropped them in the chocolate and rolled them around with spoons before placing them on a cookie tray covered in wax paper.

5. Return the chocolate covered balls to the freezer and then let them harden.

6. Melt the white chocolate in a small saucepan. Take the balls out of the freezer and drizzle them with the white chocolate. I used a spoon.

7. Return the Oreo bites to the freezer so they can harden again. I store them in the fridge before serving so they don't melt together.

If you are feeling adventurous, check out the cake balls. They take an extra few hours, but they are very good.

CAKE BALLS:
1 Cake Mix of Choice
1 container icing of choice
1-2 packages Baker's Chocolate
1 package Baker's White Chocolate

1. Bake the cake like normal. Make sure it is cooked all the way through.

2. Let the cake cool down. After it is COMPLETELY cooled crumble it up into small pieces.

3. Pour semi-melted icing into the cake. Mix together and form into balls, then follow the same steps as the oreo balls :)

Nutritional info: desserts don't apply. ;-)

Delicious and healthy miso soup

I'm a huge fan of Japan's food staple-- miso soup. Delving into that little bowl of tasty goodness is a great part of the sushi experience to me. I think miso soup is good for the soul, and studies show it's good for the body, too. After a long hunt for some random ingredients(dashi granules, anyone? I can't even find them at Central Market, and combining several recipes/substitutions wasn't working) and several unsatisfactory attempts, I've finally found the right recipe for my husband and I. Found in the exercise program P90x's recipe book, this miso soup is healthy and delicious--and most importantly, a cinch to make. So, check it out! Let me know what you think!

Side note: I apologize for the badly focused photo. I was so excited to eat my soup that I was in a hurry. :-)



P90x Miso Soup

• 1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
• 1/3 cup shallots, finely chopped. These are a mild onion but they look like reddish garlic cloves.
• 3 tablespoons miso. I found white miso paste at central market. This is the most important part!
• 1 quart vegetable stock. I used Kitchen Basics original-- it's 20 cal/0 fat/330mg sodium(way lower than any other stock)
• 1/4 cup firm silken tofu, diced is what they recommend, but I used an entire package. Good luck dicing. ;-) 
• 3 tablespoons scallions(green onions), sliced

1. Heat the sesame oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until translucent.

2. Add the miso and vegetable stock and whisk the miso to mix. Bring the soup to a simmer--just under boiling. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. You don't want to boil the soup--it'll make the miso paste grainy.

3. Add tofu and green onions a few minutes before serving.

Now, p90x says you can add protein powder just before serving. This sounds disgusting, but if you are all into p90x by all means, go for it. :-) We thoroughly enjoyed our soup and it was great reheated the next day. I served it with a salad topped with chow mein noodles and light asian sesame dressing. Enjoy!

Nutrition facts:

107 calories

3 g total fat - 23% calories from fat

16 g carbohydrates

1 mg cholesterol

1,052 mg sodium(this could be lower because i used low sodium veggie stock)

The Dove's Nest White Chili

This was a recipe Zach brought home from his mom's house as a favorite, so I thought I'd give it a try. It has a lot more ingredients than anything else I'd made before, and the preparation took me about an hour. But man this is a delicious meal! I have to say it was worth it. It's surprisingly spicy and a hearty soup.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes or--my recommendation--2 10 ounce cans of diced tomatoes with green chilies
• 6 tomatillos, chopped. These really add flavor--don't omit them if possible!
• 1 medium jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 2 cups chicken stock. I used chicken boullion and water.
• 1 17 ounce can of chopped green chilies
• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken. I sauteed chicken breast in a pan and then chopped it.
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 cup--heaping of fresh cilantro. I used a tablespoon of dried cilantro.
• 2 19 ounce cans of cannellini or Great Northern Beans(my choice)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• sour cream for serving
• shredded monterey Jack cheese to top soup
• fried tortilla strips

1. Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes or until the onion has softened. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes longer, but don't allow the garlic to brown.

2. Add the tomatoes, tomatillos and jalapeno. Cook until the tomatillos are tender, stirring occasionally.

3. Add the chicken stock, green chilies, chicken, oregano, cumin, cilantro, beans and lime juice. Cook until heated through, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Ladle the chili into serving bowls.

5. Serve garnished with a dollop of sour cream, shredded cheese and tortilla strips.

Hope you enjoy!

Shrimp Florentine Stir-Fry

I got the basic idea for this recipe from my favorite recipe book, Betty Crocker's Quick & Easy Cookbook. This book has gotten me through college and beyond with easy and tasty recipes. It's the book I use the most!

We made shrimp Florentine stir-fry for our 1-month anniversary of being married. We picked this recipe because we had a big bag of spinach leaves we wanted to get rid of. It's fresh and tasty. Hope you enjoy it too!




Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 8 minutes

Ingredients for 4 servings

• 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil. When in doubt, we usually opt for olive oil for most recipes.
• 1 pound medium size uncooked, peeled and de-veined shrimp. If you get it frozen, run some cool water over the shrimp for a few minutes to thaw it.
• 4 cups of fresh spinach leaves
• 1 can(14 ounces) of baby corn nuggets, drained. I used regular corn and it worked just fine. :-)
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped, drained roasted bell peppers - from a 7-oz jar. I found these in the aisle with Mexican food--not something I usually get. :-)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves. I used dried--my tarragon plant keeled over this winter.
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• lemon wedges. We didn't have these, but I don't like lemon on seafood anyway, so I didn't miss them. They are just for garnish.

And here are the directions!
1) Heat a wok or 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. I used a deep skillet because that's what we have! Add the oil and coat the sides and bottom of the skillet.
2) Once the oil is heated, add the shrimp to the skillet. Stir fry 2-3 minutes--stir constantly--or until shrimp are pink and firm. Add the spinach, corn, bell peppers, tarragon and garlic salt. Stir-fry for 2-4 minutes or until spinach is wilted. You can add lemon wedges for garnish.

Nutritional info:

Calories: 175(calories from fat 45)

Fat: 5g (Saturated fat 1g)

Cholesterol: 105mg

Sodium: 480 mg

Carbohydrates: 20g (dietary fiber 3g)

Protein: 15g

Diet exchanges: 1 medium-fat meat, 4 vegetable.

See? Pretty easy. Let me know how it works for y'all and if you do anything to it!

Recipes: yes or no?

Hello blog land. I would like your input. A few people have asked me to share some of the recipes I've cooked recently. I always cook from a recipe, but in the last few years, being a single working girl, I pretty much only made something more than pasta+spaghetti sauce on the once or twice a week occasions when Zach came over. Now that we're married, I make something probably 3 times a week. One of my favorite parts of having him around all the time is the chance to try recipes I've never made before--I have stacks of books and allrecipes.com at my fingertips, so it's been really fun!

My question for you is this: Would you guys like to see some of them? It seems like it's a newlywed trend to post recipes, and I haven't done it before simply because I didn't think there'd be an interest. I make what looks good to eat--to me--and stuff that's pretty healthy.... and most importantly, meals that are quick and easy. I'm not Rachel Ray by any means, and I don't have hours to make a meal most of the time! I tried to make a recipe of hers once and her 30-min dish took me 2 hours to prepare and make. I also haven't been all awesome photographer-y with the food. I make food and then take a pic with my point and shoot--just for posterity. :-) I could do better, I suppose... ;-)

If you don't want to see recipes, you can post that too. I know it's not something everyone likes. If you want me to e-mail you instead, tell me that! Just looking for input. :-) love y'all!