One Pan Cilantro-Lime Chicken & Rice with Black Beans

I came across this recipe on Pinterest & it immediately piqued my interest because it's a one-pot meal and simple. I've since made it a couple times & I love it. I used chicken the first time and while it was good, I prefer using ground meat, which is what I've done since. I usually use 6 oz of whatever ground meat I have on hand. It just blends better with the rice & beans. And while this recipe states that's necessary to use minute white rice, which would probably make it have less liquid, I really don't like the way minute rice taste. So I've always used my rice cooker & altered how much liquid I put into the dish. Your choice in how you make the dish-I'll let you decide. I'll put the ingredients for the minute rice. This dish is just really easy to make & it's perfect the next day for lunches.

To find the recipe, click here



Ready to be simmered down...

Enjoy!...

Italian Chopped Salad

I found this recipe on Pinterest and I have been looking for good salads to take to work with me lately and I found this one and thought it would be easy enough to make. It was definitely easy and it looks like you could add pretty much whatever you want, to your liking. I added more pepperoncinis to mine and also added the rest of the bag of the mini pepperoni for more meat. I left out the artichoke hearts since I'm not a big fan. All in all, this salad was really really good! It lasted through 3 lunches at work and I'm eating the last of it for dinner tonight.

Italian Chopped Salad (8 servings):

*Dressing
1/2 c red wine vinegar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp dry Italian seasoning
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
1/2 c olive oil

*Salad
1 c ditalini or other small pasta
3 c chopped romaine hearts
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 (7.5 oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 c grape tomatoes, quartered
1 c cubed salami
1 c cubed Provolone
3/4 c chopped cucumber
1/2 c mini pepperoni
1/2 c sliced green onions
Pepperoncini peppers

To make dressing: Combine all the ingredients except the salt, pepper and olive oil in a blender. Season with salt and pepper. Blend to combine. Slowly stream in the olive oil to combine. Alternately, add all the ingredients to a jar and shake until completely combined and slightly thickened.

For salad: Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water. In a large bowl, combine the romaine, chickpeas, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, salami, cheese, cucumber, pepperoni and green onions. Top with desired amount of dressing and toss to coat. (I only added the dressing before I ate each serving to make sure the salad wasn't soggy!)

Serve the salad topped with desired amount of pepperoncini. Enjoy!




Dressing after it has been blended...






Enjoy!...

Texas Caviar Rice & Beans

This was one of the dishes I made for my weekend with a bunch of girlfriends at the cabin this past weekend. We had planned meals that were easy to eat off of all weekend and this recipe sounded perfect. I had to use 3 serrano chile peppers since Lund's didn't have poblano peppers. It was a little too spicy but all in all it tasted really good. I didn't roast the peppers and it tasted just fine to me. I also have an aversion to pre-cooked rice pouches-I can't stand the taste, so I cooked up some dry basmati rice according to the pkg directions. When I make this again, which I definitely will, I plan to use only one chile pepper and I will make it into a salad. The recipe says to use the leftover dressing as a side but I poured mine over the rice and the rest of the ingredients to add more flavor and it definitely worked.

Texas Caviar Rice & Beans (4-6 servings) (Southern Living):

1 (15.8 oz) can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 c finely chopped roasted red bell peppers
1/4 c finely chopped poblano pepper (here I used the 3 serrano chile peppers)
Texas Vinaigrette, divided
2 (8.8 oz) pouches fully cooked basmati rice
1 1/4 c halved grape tomatoes
1 c shredded pepper jack cheese
3/4 c loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
2/3 c thinly sliced celery
1/3 c thinly sliced green onions
Tortilla Chips
Garnishes: Sliced pickled jalapeno peppers

*Texas Vinaigrette (1 cup): Whisk together 1/2 c olive oil; 1/4 c fresh lime juice; 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro; 1 tbsp hot sauce; 1 garlic clove, minced; 1/2 tsp chili powder and 1/2 tsp ground cumin. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir together the first 4 ingredients and 1/4 c Texas Vinaigrette in a microwave-safe glass bowl; let stand 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Microwave at high 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring at 30-second intervals.

Heat rice according to pkg directions; fluff with a fork. On a large platter, layer the caviar as follows: celery, rice, tomatoes, bean mixture, cilantro, cheese and pickled jalapeno slices. Drizzle the dressing over the rice and other ingredients on the platter. Serve with tortilla chips.




Bean mixture soaking in marinade...






Enjoy!...

Roasted Chickpeas

Besides bringing the fruit bars to Easter, I also wanted to bring along a snack. I debated bringing a polenta appetizer but thought it may be too filling. (I will be posting that recipe hopefully this week or next week however when I make it for myself!) I have seen several recipes for roasted chickpeas so I thought I'd try to make them and bring those with me. It seemed super easy and it was but it didn't have a lot of flavor. For some reason, the chickpeas didn't absorb any of the spices, except for the red pepper flakes. And they were definitely patted dry. I may do some more experimenting with smaller batches and with different spices to see if I can get them to stick.

I found this recipe on Rachel Ray's website.

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas (Rachel Ray):

3 cans chickpeas
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Drain and rinse chickpeas. Lay on paper towels to thoroughly dry (you can also gently pat them dry). Line a cookie sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray. Transfer chickpeas to a med bowl.

Combine olive oil and spices and whisk to combine. Immediately pour over chickpeas and toss. Bake 45-50 min or until browned and crispy. Serve hot or at room temp.

Store at room temp.




Rinsed and drained chickpeas...






Spices mixed with the olive oil...






Ready to roast...






Fresh from the oven...

Quinoa Turkey Chili

Wow...it's been a long while since I've been on here! Thought I'd start posting things on here slowly again. I'm planning on purchasing a recipe book online soon where I can post everything but in the mean time, this blog works!

I've made this recipe twice now..the second time being tonight. I found it in Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking magazine. I loved it the first time I made it and I love it the second time as well. I gave this recipe to a family member and after telling her about it, I started craving it. It's really filling and it makes a lot. It freezes well too, which is a plus since I live alone. It calls for corn, but I omitted it both times. It also calls for an adobo pepper, which I couldn't find the first time, so I used red pepper flakes instead. I used the pepper this time around and it's a little too spicy for me so next time I make it, I'll just use the red pepper flakes again.

Here's the recipe (2 1/4 qt):

1 c quinoa, rinsed
3 1/2 c water, divided
1/2 lb lean ground turkey
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 med sweet red pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cans (15 oz each) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 med zucchini, chopped
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, chopped
1 tbsp adobo sauce
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 c minced fresh cilantro

In large saucepan, bring quinoa and 2 c water to boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 12-15 min or until water is absorbed. Remove from heat; fluff with a fork and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan (I used my Dutch oven) coated with cooking spray, cook turkey, onion, red pepper and garlic over med heat until meat is no longer pink and veggies are tender; drain. Stir in chili powder, cumin and cinnamon; cook 2 min longer.

Add black beans, tomatoes, zucchini, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, bay leaf, oregano, salt, pepper and remaining water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 30 min. Stir in corn (if using) and quinoa; heat through. Discard bay leaf; stir in cilantro.

Enjoy!

Paula Deen's Hearty Vegetable Soup

My new favorite chef is Paula Deen and with me being on a soup kick, while looking through her cooking magazine I came across this veggie soup. And me being me, I of course made some mistakes! :) I forgot to pick up spinach so I just left that out. The recipe called for 1 can (15 oz.) great Northern beans, drained. I picked up a 16 oz. bag of dried Northern beans. Tastes the same but I added the entire bag, when I should have only added about half the bag. So after I made the soup, I had to take out half of the beans just to actually be able to taste the soup. After I did that, the soup tasted great!

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin slices
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used pearl onions)
2 cups tightly packed fresh baby spinach
2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano
2 cups chicken broth (or veggie broth)
1 (15 oz.) can great Northern beans, drained
1 cup frozen cut green beans, thawed
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp salt

To pre-soak the beans, heat 4 cups water and beans. Bring to a rapid boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, place a lid on the pan and let cool for 1 hour. Drain.

In a Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add carrots, zucchini, and onion; cook; stirring occasionally, for 5-6 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add spinach, stirring until wilted.

Add diced tomatoes, broth, beans, green beans, pepper and salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Pre-soaking the Northern beans..




Raw veggies...




Diced tomatoes, chicken stock and Northern beans..




Veggies cooking in butter...




Everything added to begin simmering..




Less beans!




Enjoy!



**NOTE: I've made this soup again after the first time and instead used one can of Great Northern (or cannellini) beans and the serving size of beans to soup was just perfect!