Becca’s Big Dog Salad
By · CommentsLately the weather has been way too hot to cook. I can barely get something easy on the table by 8pm. I have been doing a lot of salads and such. Well Rebecca, my sister, came over for dinner on Monday night, since she had been craving a salad she used to get at a bar and grill in Las Vegas, she planned the menu. The best she could get off the internet for the recipe was a description of the salad on the Big Dogs site. So she went to work and came up with this and it is yummy! Everyone ate it all up. We tweaked things to our taste. I am ready to have this again soon. It was easy and would have been easier if we had barbecued the day before or a few days before. As it was Rebecca grilled the corn on her neighbors gas grill and I cooked the chicken on my panini grill. Worked out well! To make it even easier, make the dressing the day before or earlier in the day, and grill the corn and chicken (which can be done on the broiler or whatever!) Here is the recipe with how much we used.
Becca’s Big Dog Salad
- Shredded Lettuce, (we used 1/2 a small head of iceberg and 1/2 Romain. Next time I will use all Romain)
- Cajun Spiced Chicken (I used 3 large chicken breasts, seasoned with cajun seasoning. Could use 2)
- Roasted Sweet Corn (4-5 ears of corn roasted. We did it without the husks so the corn got roasting marks on it)
- Tomatoes (We did 3 medium Roma in a small dice)
- Wisconsin Jack Cheese (2 cups shredded)
- Cheddar Cheese (2 cups shredded)
- Cilantro (I used most of 1 bunch of cilantro between the salad and the dressing)
- Tortilla Chips (My favorite brand is Santitas white corn because they are light and crispy)
Dressing:
- 1 Ranch Dressing Mix pkt
- 2 ½ c Sour Cream (we used 2 cups I believe)
- 3 Tbs Lime Juice (we added a 4th tablespoon)
- 3 Tbs Pureed Chipotle Peppers (chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, we picked out the best of them, scraped off most of the sauce, and whizzed them up in a mini food processor. then added 1 tbs at a time till we liked how hot it was. We stopped at 2 tbs)
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- 2 Tbs Fresh Cilantro
Whisk all the ingredients together and let them mellow together for at least 30 minutes. We added some milk after the dressing had sat for a while to make it more pourable, or at least less like veggie dip, it was thick! If you want you can use low fat sour cream to lighten the calories up.
We put the finely shredded lettuce, tomatoes, chicken corn and cilantro all together, and tossed it. We kept the cheese and chips out in case we didn’t eat it all. When we served it we passed the salad , chips (everyone crushed them to their liking) the cheese and dressing. Everyone piled it on like taco salad and gobbled it up.
A Kitchen Aid mixer from one of my Favorites!
By · CommentsIf you want a Kitchen Aid mixer Here is Your Chance to win one.
Leanne Ely, whom I have quoted many times has a great contest up right now. I know you want to be in on it so I have included all the information you need and links too! If you go to the page you can click on the twitter link or facebook link… makes it even easier.
Good Luck!
http://savingdinner.com/contest/
Win a Kitchen Aid mixer!
You know ya wanna! 
There are three ways to enter the contest and it will run until we have 10,000 “likes” or fans on our Facebook page.
Three ways to enter
- Post the information about the contest on your FaceBook page
- Tweet about the contest on Twitter.com
- Post the information about the contest on your blog
(and email the link to leanneely@savingdinner.com put “contest” in the subject line so we can see)
Once we have our 10.000th fan on Facebook we’ll close the contest and pick a winner with a random drawing. Only three enteries per person please. Now go share the love! GOOD LUCK!!
Being Prepared
By · CommentsHere is an article by Leanne Ely of Saving Dinner…. she is so wise and gives us a kick in the pants when we need it! She also gives good recipes. I suggest you subscribe to her newsletter. To make life even easier, she has Menu mailers in all varieties with recipes and shopping lists.
Menu Plan for Pete’s Sake!
by Leanne Ely, C.N.C.
When you choose to not plan, you choose to live in an unprepared state. Think about what that means for a minute. Being unprepared means chaos, confusion and regret. Living life in a state of perpetual unpreparedness is highly stressful. Why do we do this to ourselves?
In the kitchen and in the food department of life, being unprepared translates to not having the food you need to cook and feed your family and yourself well. Unprepared means unhealthy, expensive and wanting in nutrition. And when you consider that 70% of all disease is lifestyle-induced (by making poor choices in food, drink, not exercising, smoking and being stressed out), it’s astounding that we are surprised when handed a less than healthy diagnosis from our doctors. We have got to take responsibility!!
Here’s the thing, menu planning isn’t sexy and glamorous. However, it’s necessary and one of the easiest ways to get a grip on your health. The simple art of menu planning is too often passed up by “adventure seekers” (the unprepared) living on adrenaline and the thrill of the hunt. You know what I mean, right? Hunting for something to throw together for dinner at the very last minute. Hunting for a fast food place to get your whining children and cranky spouse fed. Hunting for a place to park at the grocery store at rush hour, hoping to score an already cooked rotisserie chicken to feed your family.
This kind of hunting is not feeding your family the way you want to. It’s stressing you out, neglecting your health and not helping you with the body clutter you may be sitting on.
Instead of being hunters, we need to be gatherers. Gatherers always have food because they have a plan. They use menus. They make grocery lists. They gather their groceries, they chop, they cook and they feed. It’s deliberate preparedness that gives them a sense of calm and peace. Yes, preparedness is that powerful and when applied to all things food-related, it will revolutionize your health, your well-being, your finances and that of your family’s as well.
The beginning place is a menu plan for the week. Pull recipes as necessary, make a list for the grocery store and then implement your plan. It’s that simple.
Don’t put this off. There’s too much at stake to be so capricious with your health. Do it today.
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Here’s a few recipes I thought you might enjoy.
Steak and Potato Stir Fry
Serves 4
1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 pound lean sirloin steak, trimmed and cut into strips
1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
Pepper to taste
3 cups diced, par-boiled russet potatoes
1 large onion, sliced
1 large tomato, sliced
In a wok or skillet over medium-high heat, saute garlic in the oil for a minute or two; add steak strips, vinegar, and pepper; stir-fry until beef is nicely browned (about 3 minutes); add potato and stir-fry until potato begins to brown around the edges; add onion and tomato and continue to stir-fry until tomatoes have softened, onions are translucent, and potatoes are cooked through.
Per serving: 352 Calories; 18g Fat; 24g Protein; 24g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 71mg Cholesterol; 69mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain (Starch); 3 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates. Points: 8
SERVING SUGGESTION: Add steamed asparagus and steamed baby carrots.
Italian Pasta and Bean Bake
Serves 4
1/2 pound Penne pasta
8 ounces canned no salt added diced tomatoes
1 (16-oz.) can low sodium kidney beans, rinsed and drained
13 ounces canned/jarred low sodium pasta sauce–your favorite
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 ounces shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
2 ounces shredded low fat Cheddar cheese, divided
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain and return to saucepan; add tomatoes, beans, Italian seasoning, pasta sauce and 1 cup of the cheeses.
Transfer mixture to a 9- x 13-inch baking dish and sprinkle with remaining Mozzarella cheese; bake, uncovered for 25 minutes; remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining Cheddar cheese; allow casserole to sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.
Per Serving: 461 Calories; 9g Fat; 22g Protein; 72g Carbohydrate; 11g Dietary Fiber; 27mg Cholesterol; 112mg Sodium. Exchanges: 4 Grain (Starch); 1 Lean Meat; 2 Vegetable; 1 Fat. Points: 9
SERVING SUGGESTION: A big salad tossed with Easy Balsamic Vinaigrette (see recipe).
DO-AHEAD TIP: Allow fish to sit in buttermilk for 5 to 10 minutes.
Buttermilk Oven Fried Fish
Serves 4
Water/Oil Mixture
1 1/2 pounds medium red potatoes, quartered
1/2 cup buttermilk
4 firm-fleshed fish fillets
1 cup crushed cornflakes
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
Pepper to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Paprika to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 2 baking dishes with water/oil mixture.
Place quartered red potatoes in one baking dish; lightly spray with water/oil mixture and place in oven.
Pour buttermilk into a shallow pan; add fish; set aside while you prepare the breading mixture.
Place the next 6 ingredients (cornflakes through ginger) in a large zipper-topped plastic bag; seal bag and shake to combine; add one fish fillet at a time and gently shake to coat; place in baking dish.
Sprinkle coated fish with paprika and bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes, or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. DO NOT TURN FISH DURING THE BAKING PROCESS.
Serve fish with the roasted red potatoes and enjoy.
Per serving: 378 Calories; 2g Fat; 47g Protein; 42g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 100mg Cholesterol; 243mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2 1/2 Grain (Starch); 5 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 0 Fat. Points: 7
SERVING SUGGESTION: Add steamed green beans and steamed baby carrots.
Copyright (C) 2010 www.savingdinner.com Leanne Ely, CNC All rights reserved.
Hot Taco Rice
By · CommentsI have an aversion to pre-prepared foods. I like knowing what is in my food, and the quality of the ingredients. One thing I do buy pre prepared and use in some recipes is Pace Picante Sauce. So here is a recipe that is quick and easy to make. It is made quicker if you cook a large batch of rice then divide it into meal portions for your family in zip top bags and freeze them (I flatten the bags so it thaws easier) Here are my notes on rice cooking. I also recommend brown rice, it is full of essential nutrients lost when rice is made into white rice.
Hot Taco Rice
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups salsa
8 ounces tomato sauce, or more if needed
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
2 cups long-grain rice, cooked in 4 cups water
Toppings
chopped tomatoes, sour cream, grated cheese, tortilla chips, chopped olives
Brown beef in skillet; add onions cook till tender. Stir in salsa, tomato sauce and bouillon. Simmer, covered for 5 minutes. Serve over rice, top with toppings.
More About Good Food
By · CommentsHere is a post by one of my favorite foodies Leanne Ely. It is related to my last post: Quality vs Quantity .
Hope you enjoy it….
Dinner Diva Early Edition
By Leanne Ely CNC
I’m always up for a new adventure whether that adventure involves traveling to a foreign country or trying some new food. These past couple of weeks, I was able to do both!
Traveling to Ireland for a combination business/vacation, I was anticipating adventurous sights, places and most of all, food! (once a foodie, always a foodie). Ireland didn’t disappoint (although having to fork over additional funds to stay an extra 5 days because of the volcanic ash could wasn’t planned).
The seafood was amazing whether you ate fish and chips in a pub, sipped seafood chowder in a café or dined elegantly at an upscale restaurant, I was blown away by it all. And it got me thinking–the food wasn’t fancy, it was quality. Therein lies the difference between remarkable and mediocre food. So many times it’s excellence that one-up’s even the same recipe.
If you’re like most people, you’ve got grocery shopping to do this week. Think in terms of excellence when you choose your food–here are 3 quick tips that will help you do so without breaking the bank:
1) Choose in season produce. If you can, grow your own or visit a local farmer’s market. You know the difference between an in-season tomato and an out of season one, right? ‘Nuf said.
2) Choose wild fish. It’s tastier and much healthier than farmed.
3) Choose frozen fish or produce. Sometimes frozen is better than fresh and almost always, cheaper. I only buy my green beans frozen (organic haricot vert that ROCK) and my wild fish is almost always frozen–can’t tell the difference with either one.
Speaking of Ireland, here’s a recipe that I really enjoyed, Colcannon. It was served as part of my mussel dinner at a small seaside café in a charming little village called Kinsale. A good dose of Irish cuisine, plus it uses up leftover mashed potatoes:
Colcannon
Serves 4
4 cups mashed potatoes
4 cups shredded green cabbage
1 small bunch green onions, finely chopped
1 2/3 cups milk
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper to taste
In a skillet, on a medium heat, cook the onions in the milk for 5 minutes. In the meantime, steam the cabbage till fork tender, drain then combine with the potatoes. Add the onion and milk to this mixture, add the butter, salt and pepper to taste and mix together well. Serve piping hot.
Quantity vs Quality
By · CommentsSome people believe you have to have a table laden with lots of food, as opposed to a few dishes of good food to nourish your soul. That is probably why our culture tends to overload our plates …. at home and in restaurants. Maybe it is a remnant of the great depression or our ancestors and their pioneer life when their lives were so closely linked with their ability to produce sufficient food. Starvation was only a bad growing season away. It could be that we have a genetically imprinted need to make sure we don’t starve. Whatever the cause, I have been learning a lot about the quality of our food and how the need to mass produce and make food production into a big business has driven food producers to compromise the quality of our food supply. From genetically modified organisms(gmos) like canola seed (read canola oil) to corn fed beef, we have been provided with mass quantities of foods that are dubious in their nutritional benefit to us.
I read a blog post from KitchenStewardship.com today that induced me to write this post because I wanted share a quote from her. She was reviewing and commenting on a book by Michael Pollan “Food Rules”. For the most part she liked his book ….this is a part she liked:
““If you spend more for better food, you’ll probably eat less of it, and treat it with more care…Choose quality over quantity, food experience over mere calories. Or as grandmothers used to say, “Better to pay the grocer than the doctor.””
More traditionally raised foods and sustainable farms and food closer to their raw state. I think there is wisdom in the Real Food movement.
Rice
By · CommentsI know that there are a lot of options out there for rice, parboiled, precooked(minute), and plain old dry rice. You can choose brown or white. Wild is another option, but that would also be another post. I don’t like parboiled or precooked(minute), don’t mess with my rice! Plus it is quite expensive per serving and with a little planning you can have delicious rice perfectly done and without a rice cooker. Here are my notes on it.
When cooking rice it is a two to one ratio. Two parts water, one part rice.
Bring the water to a boil, salt it, I put a bit of oil in it to keep down the froth, then stir in the rice, turn down the heat to medium low and put on a lid.
The trick here is, and it is different for each stove and pot and quantity, to keep the water simmering, no boiling over, for the length of time it takes to cook the rice. (20-25 minutes for white and about 50 minutes for brown)
Keep it simmering (I usually turn the heat down even more, to low) until you don’t see water anymore, then turn off the stove and leave the pot on the burner for 5 – 10 minutes. Then carefully fluff the rice getting the stuff from the bottom up to the top. Then cover again. for another 5 or ten minutes. What that does is re distribute the moisture from the wet rice on the bottom, sharing it with the drier rice on the top. There shouldn’t be any standing water at this point.
The key is not to cook it at too high a temp making too much steam and that will make your rice dry because the water boiled away instead of absorbed into the rice.
What I like to do is cook a pot of rice, more than I need for one meal, then measure out rice and put it in zip top freezer bags and keep it in the freezer for when I need some quick rice. Works great! I do it in 4 cup servings.
Have Fun!
Teriyaki Chicken Salad
By · CommentsThis past weekend we had a Sisters Weekend even though we still had a few kids and a husband hanging with us. I am so glad my two older sisters and mom could take the time and come visit my youngest sister and I here in Spokane. The weather was perfect and I loved cooking for them. On Monday we picnicked at the park, the weather was nearly 80° and sunny with cool breezes. We had a marvelous time but for this northern girl it did get a bit warm in the sun, so I was looking for a nice easy and summery dinner when I remembered a delicious salad that was served at a luncheon held by our churches women’s organization. I don’t know who came up with the recipe because it wasn’t on the recipe they handed out. It is delicious though. There aren’t any measurements because you have to scale it to your family. I will put what I used for the 10 of us.
Teriyaki Chicken Salad
Green cabbage (for 10 people we used 3/4 of a medium sized head) chopped (1 inch)
2-3 peppers red, orange, yellow (3/4 inch)
1-2 cucumbers (1/2 to 3/4 inch dice)
chicken meat (2 leg quarters and 2 breasts) cooked and shredded into chunks. You don’t want it too fine, it breaks up as you stir it.
teriyaki sauce
sweet chili sauce
Chinese 5 spice
Sesame Oil
Cooked brown rice (Jasmine brown rice)
1 pkg Good Seasons Italian dressing made according to package directions except sub 1-2 tbs of Sesame oil for some of the vegetable oil. (I used safflower oil and rice wine vinegar)
First off, mix up the dressing and let it set to blend. Then cook the chicken if you don’t have leftover. Cook it any way. I have grilled, boiled, and baked it. Let it cool then shred it, then sprinkle on some 5 spice and teriyaki sauce. Use enough sauce to coat it well.
Chop the vegetables, combine in a salad bowl, drizzle on the salad dressing. I used the whole recipe for the 3/4 head of cabbage, it probably would have stretched to the whole head. Toss the salad.
When dishing up, put down rice, then a mound of chicken and a mound of salad. Top with teriyaki sauce and sweet chili sauce to taste.
The leftovers save well, keep them all in their separate dishes, warm the rice and chicken, and dish it up.
Childhood Favorite: Hong Kong Rice
By · CommentsWhen I was a growing up, my mom used to make a dish called Hong Kong Rice. Don’t know how ‘authentic’ it was but it was delicious. The basic recipe is rice, ham, green onions, scrambled egg and tomato. Sometimes mom would add a small can of those tiny shrimp to make it extra special. The other night I decided to dust off her recipe and make it my own. I started with the rice… mom used white because brown was unheard of, I have become a huge fan of Jasmine Brown rice so I used that. Mom used regular tomatoes because there wasn’t really any choice, I like roma tomatoes because they are firmer and have less seeds. I also used frozen shrimp that I simmered then peeled. I added a light dressing to keep the rice from clumping together and accent the flavor of the ingredients. Well, it is simple, fairly quick (especially if you use rice you have previously cooked and frozen) it is delicious and satisfying and for me it is a comfort food.
Hong Kong Rice
The basic recipe…
4-6 cups of cooked brown rice (Jasmine brown rice is good!)
1-2 cups of ham finely diced
2 eggs scrambled and cooked
¼ cup chopped green onions (to your taste)
3-4 Roma tomatoes diced
optional…
2 hands full of spinach leaves, chopped
1 lb shrimp, cooked and peeled.
Anything else you want to add…..
Dressing
¼ cup safflower oil (or peanut oil)
2-3 tbs rice wine vinegar
1-2 tsp toasted sesame oil
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tsp sugar
Mix the dressing ingredients well with a whisk. Set aside while you put the salad together.
If your rice is not already hot … warm it. Fold into the rice the spinach and green onions, this will wilt the spinach a bit and infuse the rice with the delicate green onion flavor. Cook the eggs and dice the ham, stir into rice mixture. Add whatever else you put in, then stir the tomato in last. Drizzle some of the dressing on the salad, mix and adjust the seasonings. I don’t put all of it on at once, it isn’t the star of the show, just helps loosen the rice from clumping and adds a little flavoring. I serve it warm but not hot.
Fish, Onions and Tomato
By · CommentsWhile reading up on nutritional healing one day, reading the commentary of a nutritionist, she was naming off some foods that are beneficial for heart health and blood pressure, she listed onions, garlic, tomatoes, fish, then said that sound good for supper. Well I tell you that sounded good to me to. In the past I haven’t bought fish because it is usually priced out of my budget, but our local Winco has wild caught frozen pollack fillets for 2.98 for a 1 lb pkg, servings are individually frozen and sealed. I realized that is what I pay for a pound of no antibiotic/steroid, vegetarian fed ground beef. So I can afford fish!
I took a half a large onion (I always buy the biggest ones I can find) and sliced it up.
Minced up 4-6 cloves of garlic
1 can of tomatoes (fresh would be better though… so 2 cups; you might need to add broth or water)
a little brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb pollack filets
8 oz dried cheese tortellini
I cooked the tortellini first, then drained it. A hint for cooking dried tortellini is to cook it slowly, until the pasta is done, the cheese never gets fully hydrated, like fresh.
Using the same pan I cooked the tortellini in, I heated it with olive oil, added the onion and sauted till tender, added the tomatoes, sugar salt and pepper. Then brought it to the simmer and added the fish and let it cook till done (it flakes when it is done.) About 10 minutes.(It also tends to break up as you stir it occasionally, thats ok)
Now put the pasta in a serving bowl, top with the saucy fish onions and tomatoes. Sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese. It was delicious.
I made a simple salad using Spinach, Strawberries, Red onions and Raspberry vinaigrette.
Healthy and Delicious, Enjoy!
