Chicken + Red Wine

I hate chicken. If I never had to eat chicken ever again, I would be perfectly content for the rest of my life. However, try and take beef away from me and I will hurt you. Chicken is just terrible all the way around. It's bland and boring. I hate cooking it because it's so disgusting when it's raw...I don't want to touch it or even look at it. I'm terrified of cooking it because I'm afraid that I'm not going to cook it well enough, get salmonella and die. Plus, you really have to do a lot to it to make it taste good because it's just so bland on its own...aka: it requires a lot of work that I don't want to do. Beef on the other hand...sprinkle a little seasoning on it, cook it any which way you choose and voila, delicious. You can even under-cook it and that makes it taste even better. Win, win. Unfortunately, my husband says that we should eat less beef and more chicken because it's less fattening and a healthier option. He's a fun ruin-er. No wonder it's less fattening and healthier, it tastes like nothing. So typically what happens at my house is we make the dreaded chicken breasts (because my husband forces me too) which I hate and then I end up drenching it in ranch dressing or something delicious in order to make it actually taste like something...thus, destroying that whole "less fattening and healthier option". Alas, I have been experimenting recently with ways to marinade my chicken so that I can actually enjoy it and not add a billion extra calories thanks to dressings like ranch. So when you are in the kitchen and need to add a little extra flavor to something, what do you do? You rely on your trusty old friend...alcohol. Turns out that wine and beer aren't just for drinking, but for marinating too. My mother-in-law taught me the art of cooking with beer years ago. Basically the rule is whenever a recipe calls for water, you substitute beer instead. This is especially true for anything in the Crockpot. If you notice that your Crockpot dish needs a little more liquid, don't waste the opportunity for flavor on water, use beer instead.

Which brings me to my newest creation...chicken and red wine. There are two things that we have plenty of at my house that I don't care for myself, and that's chicken and red wine. Jared loves both of them, and I do not. However, put them together in the oven for about 45 minutes and I might just be able to get on board. Presenting a super easy way to make your boring chicken breasts taste so much better...

I do not have a catchy name for this dish other than "my new favorite way to cook boring, bland chicken breasts and make wine an essential staple in your diet". Sorry blog world. 

Step 1: Pour about a 1/2 cup of balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing and 1 cup of red wine into a baking dish. Coat both sides of the chicken breasts in the marinade and then submerge the chicken in the baking dish. Sprinkle a little black pepper, garlic and light brown sugar on top of each chicken breast. 

Step 2: Bake in the oven on 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. If the chicken breasts you are using are extra thick, then maybe add about 5-10 extra minutes of cooking time. Serve and enjoy! I drizzled a little extra of the leftover sauce on top of the chicken once it was on my plate. I also drizzled a little on my veggies too. 

This is the perfect way to jazz up those boring chicken breasts! And don't forget to use the left over wine and pour yourself a glass to enjoy with your meal as well. I'm sure that the more wine you drink, the better the chicken will taste :) 

Cilantro Lime Chicken

That's right y'all, a non-baby-related post! Seriously, what's going on here? Not only is this post not about Peyton, but it's about cooking, which I totally hate. I know, I can't believe I actually had time to cook a meal and blog about it. Look who's finally becoming a legit stay-at-home-mom. Go me. Of course, with my new role as a mommy I'm in need of recipes that are quick, easy and produce leftovers. This one is perfect for just that and it involves my all-time favorite kitchen appliance, the Crockpot.

I actually borrowed this recipe from my friend Rebecca and her blog. I just tweaked it a little bit and changed the way I serve it because some of the toppings she included in her recipe are delicious dairy and I'm trying to avoid incorporating dairy into my cooking at home for now. She also suggests preparing it ahead of time, bagging it and putting it in the freezer so that when you need an easy dinner option, you can just throw it in the Crockpot and heat it up. What a great idea!

What You Will Need...

1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts

Juice from 2 limes

1 bunch chopped cilantro

16oz frozen corn

2 minced cloves of garlic

1/2 red onion chopped

1 can black beans drained and rinsed

1 tsp cumin 

Black pepper to taste

2 bags of Ready Rice

Step 1: Mix together frozen corn, black beans (drained and rinsed), and chopped red onion. Pour mixture into the Crockpot to form the bottom layer. 

Step 2: Add chicken breasts, garlic, black pepper and cumin. 

Step 3: Top with chopped cilantro and lime juice. 

Step 4: Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6-8 hours. 

Not only does it taste good, but it also makes your kitchen smell like cilantro-limey goodness!

Step 5: Serve over a bed of rice. I used the microwave Ready Rice, but you can also just use regular uncooked rice and throw it in the Crockpot with the rest of the ingredients as well. 

I like to shred up the chicken breast and mix it altogether. It's delicious and I hope you enjoy it too!

BBQ Pulled Pork

Fall is my favorite time of year to bust out the Crock-Pot. Technically, I use my Crock-Pot all year round, but there are a lot of good Crock-Pot recipes that just seem to complement fall and football season perfectly. This past Sunday, I decided that I wanted to try my cooking skills at making BBQ pulled pork on my own. Jared is usually in charge of the cooking when it comes to large hunks of meat. However, it's usually pretty difficult to mess something up in the Crock-Pot so I figured that this would be a safe bet. It ended up being super easy and very delicious. Plus, it made for some leftovers which means one less day I have to cook dinner, yay! Try out my recipe for your next tailgate!

This recipe made about 5-6 servings of pulled pork. Here is what you will need...

2-3 lbs. Pork Tenderloin

2 bottles of the BBQ sauce of your choice

1.5 Sweet Onions

1.5 (12oz.) cans of beer

Brown Sugar

Ground Pepper

Garlic Powder 

Crock-Pot

Step 1: Chop the onions into large chunks and line the bottom of the Crock-Pot with onion. Make sure you have a fairly thick bed of onions that cover the entire bottom of the Crock-Pot.

Step 2: Season the pork tenderloin with ground pepper and garlic powder on both sides.

Optional Step (If you are pressed for time and do not have the full 7-8 hours to dedicate to cooking, then use this step. Otherwise, skip to step 3): Brown the pork tenderloin in a pan for no more than two minutes on each side.

Step 3: Coat both sides of the tenderloin in BBQ sauce. Sprinkle brown sugar on top of the BBQ sauce on both sides. (If you used the optional step, then add a little more ground pepper and garlic powder as well)

 Step 4: Place the pork tenderloin on top of the bed of onions in the Crock-Pot.

Step 5: Pour beer into the onions and around the pork tenderloin. Try not to pour the beer on top of the tenderloin so it doesn't wash the BBQ marinade off of the meat. Pour in enough beer so that the onions are completely submerged and the meat is submerged about half way. (It took me 1.5 cans of Bud Light)

Step 6: Add more BBQ sauce on top of the tenderloin. Cover with the lid and begin cooking! You can cook it for 4-5 hours on high (I would use the optional step that I mentioned above if you are going to go this route) or you can cook it for 7-8 hours on low which is obviously the best option if you have the time. You can also do a mixture of high and low cooking times if need be. Before removing the meat from the Crock-Pot, check to see that it is done. Use a fork to check that the meat is not pink in the center, that it is tender and pulls apart easily when you stick the fork in it.  

Step 7: Remove the meat from the Crock-Pot and place into a container or on a large plate where you can pull it apart. Use a fork and knife to shred the meat. Add BBQ sauce to the meat once it is shredded. Add just enough sauce so that all the meat is coated, but not too much. Then everyone can add their favorite BBQ sauce according to their taste when it is time to serve.

You can use the onions from the Crock-Pot if you want to. By the end of this process, the onions are caramelized and soaked in beer so you can add them to your meat or to the side dishes if you want. I don't like onions so I didn't use any of them, but Jared added them to the baked beans and said it was delicious. Just an idea. I hope you enjoy this yummy pulled pork! 

Caprese Kabobs

This is my new favorite appetizer. It's delicious, fairly healthy and so easy to make. No actual cooking required, yay! These are perfect for cocktail parties or tailgates where there is limited seating because you don't need a plate and you can eat them with one hand, which is important because you won't even have to put your drink down :) So next time you have a party to attend and you need to make something quick that everyone will enjoy, this is the appetizer for you. Needless to say, I will probably be bringing these as my "contribution" to every party we go to in the future.

Here is what you will need: 

Fresh mozzarella

Grape tomatoes

Balsamic vinegar

Fresh basil leaves

4" Skewers

Make sure you get the mozzarella that is in water because it stays fresher. Also, don't get a big block of mozzarella, get the mozzarella that is already in little balls. If you are going to Publix, you can get the exact one pictured above in the "fancy cheese" section in the deli.

Each kabob will require 1 skewer, 1 basil leaf, 1 mozzarella ball and 1 tomato. The container of mozzarella that I used had 20 little balls in it so I made 20 skewers. Keep this in mind when planning this dish for a party. The average person will eat more than one of these kabobs.

Cut the mozzarella in half, the tomato in half and the basil leaf into thirds. 

Then assemble on the skewer in this order: tomato, basil, mozzarella, basil, mozzarella, basil, tomato. I folded the pieces of basil in half so they didn't stick out awkwardly.

Repeat the process until you have used all your ingredients and then arrange the kabobs on a platter. 

The last step is sprinkling balsamic vinegar all over the kabobs. If you are making these ahead of time, hold off on the balsamic until you are about to serve them so they don't get soggy. Balsamic has a very strong taste so do not drench the kabobs in it. Just carefully sprinkle it all over so that each kabob gets a little bit on top. Enjoy!

Island Green Smoothie

One of my self-proclaimed talents is making delicious smoothies and frozen cocktails...meaning, I know how to operate a blender. No really, there is a little more skill involved than just throwing a bunch of stuff in a blender and pressing"start", that is, if you actually want it to taste good. I worked at Tropical Smoothie for a year in college and then for two more summers once I started teaching. I absolutely love Tropical Smoothie so it's a good thing that I know all the secrets and have the skills so that I can make it in my own kitchen. If you want to know how to make anything on the Tropical Smoothie menu, I can teach you how to do it. However, there are some newer items on the menu that have come out since I was working there that require a little more effort on my part to figure out how to make them taste just like the real thing.

Since I have recently been trying out this kale fad, I decided to try Tropical Smoothie's new Island Green smoothie. I wanted to drink one from the actual restaurant before I tried to make it at home so that I knew what it was supposed to taste like. I was actually surprised by how delicious it was. I was expecting it to taste like it had leafy greens in it, but it doesn't. I think the strongest flavors of the smoothie are the banana and mango, which is good because it doesn't seem as though you are drinking leaves except for the fact that the smoothie does turn out green.  

To make this smoothie at home, you will need banana, mango, pineapple, kale and spinach. Now, you have some options here for your ingredients. Obviously, you need to get your banana, kale and spinach from the produce section. However, you can use either fresh or frozen for the mango and pineapple. If you are really into the "all fresh" style, then you can get all your ingredients from the produce section. On the other hand, Dole makes bags of mango and pineapple chunks in the freezer section. I decided to use frozen mango and pineapple for a number of reasons. Number one, it will last longer if I don't use it all right away. Number two, it is all ready to go into the blender. I didn't want to have to peel or seed any fruits. Number three, it will keep your smoothie thicker and less juice-like because it is already frozen. Whether your preference is fresh or frozen, it will taste the same so no worries.

You also have the option of putting sugar or sweetener in this smoothie. Tropical Smoothie uses a special sugar called turbinado in all of their smoothies, which is why they taste so good. When you order one of their smoothies, you can request to have that sugar substituted with Splenda or request no sugar at all. I will warn you that this does alter the taste of the smoothie and some smoothies really do need a little sugar in them to remove the tart from the fruit (example: raspberries). However, I think that this Island Green smoothie tastes just fine without sugar. I made mine at home with no sugar or sweetener.

I also did not use any ice when making this smoothie. Using the frozen pineapple and mango allowed me to get the smoothie-like texture without adding any ice. If you use all fresh ingredients, you might need to add some crushed ice or else yours might end up more like a juice than a smoothie. Go ahead and blend up all the ingredients and if it looks too liquid-y for your liking, then just add some ice.

I don't use specific measurements when making my smoothies, but here is a rough estimate. This smoothie calls for 1 banana, and about a handful of everything else (pineapple, mango, kale and spinach), which equates out to about 1/2 cup of each ingredient. I highly recommend that you chop all the ingredients up into smaller pieces before you put them into your blender. The blenders at Tropical Smoothie are professional grade and about $1200; therefore, you can put whole pieces of fruit into those blenders no problem. However, unless you have a $1200 blender at your house go ahead and chop everything up to help your blender out. Once you put all the ingredients in the blender, add a splash of water as well.

If you notice while your blender is going that it doesn't seem to be blending well, there might be an air bubble at the bottom causing it to stall in mixing. Stop the blender, then take a utensil and stir around in the blender mixing the ingredients up. Keep doing this until your smoothie is well blended. Do not stick a utensil in your blender while it is running! I do not want to be responsible for anyone having to go to the emergency room or broken blenders. When you see that your smoothie is getting a smooth, well defined funnel in the middle, then you are all done!    

Enjoy your smoothie!

Cooking with Kale

I bet you never thought you would be reading about this topic on my blog, huh? Don't worry I'm not being held hostage by some organic-granola-hippies or anything, just trying something new. I enjoy eating healthy about as much as your average overweight twelve year old. However, since the day I turned 25 I realized that I can't live off of diet coke, wine and double cheeseburgers like I did in college. If you haven't turned 25 yet, trust me, the rumors are true. I literally woke up on my 25th birthday and no longer had a metabolism. In these past 4 years of marriage, Jared has been trying to train me to eat healthier. I guess the time has come for me to jump on the bandwagon, sort of. I really have been making an effort recently to eat healthier, nothing crazy, just eating less crap. Don't worry I still eat cheeseburgers and pizza, just a lot less often.

Which brings me to this whole kale thing. In case you have been living under a rock, kale is the new super-food. I haven't personally spent any time researching it, but apparently it is full of vitamins and all kinds of wonderful things for you. People are literally obsessed with this stuff. Apparently, kale is going to save the world one little green leaf at a time.

I figured if it's so wonderful, then I might as well try it. Anytime something gets a lot of hype, I just have to try it out for myself to see what the big deal is. Like last summer when we all just had to read 50 Shades of Grey. Gosh, I wish I could get those hours of my life back. Anywho, last Sunday during our weekly grocery shopping trip I decided to try out this kale stuff. I decided that if it tasted like crap, I would just chock it up as a loss of $4 and never eat it again. But if I liked it, then why not get some extra healthy goodness in my diet. Here goes nothing.

When it came to incorporating kale into my diet, I knew there was only one option. Cooking it. I love leafy greens, but only when they are cooked. I love cooked spinach, collard greens, turnip greens, etc. However, I hate leafy greens raw. Spinach salad? Yuck. I have to have crunchy lettuce in my salad. I knew that if I made myself a little raw kale salad that I would immediately throw it away and give up on kale. So of course, I went to my laptop and googled "cooking kale" to get some ideas. How did we ever survive before Google?

Since kale is only good for a few days, I had to use the entire container I bought before this week was over. Alas, kale for dinner every night! I got a little creative and came up with three different meals this week that incorporated kale. Honestly, I'm pretty impressed with myself. I have always been able to follow a recipe, but never just throw random stuff together in the kitchen and have it taste good. Yet, all three of my kale creations were delicious. Go me.

Of course I am going to share these three recipes with you in case you are itching to cook with kale too. The first and most important thing you need to know about cooking kale is lemon juice. You only need 5 things when you cook kale and lemon juice is the most important one. So when you go to buy your bag of kale in the produce section, go ahead and get one of those little lemon-shaped bottles while you are at it. The best way to incorporate kale into your meal is to sauté the kale in a pan before you do anything else with it. To do this, put olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Then chop some fresh garlic and throw it in the pan. Next, chop the kale into small pieces (warning: they will shrink up a lot when you cook them, so chop much more than you think you are going to need). Add the kale to the pan with some sea salt, ground pepper and lemon juice and sauté until the kale looks wilted. Finally, you can go ahead and add it to whatever you are cooking.

Here are some healthy, kale-inspired recipes that I created...

Meat and potatoes, y'all. Simple as that. I am a Southerner after all. For this recipe, you will need kale, sausage of any kind (Jared made me get chicken sausage because it's healthier supposedly), and those little yellow dutch potatoes. This is a one pan meal, which I love because I hate doing dishes. 

1. Chop kale, slice potatoes and put to the side.

2. Cook sausage in a pan thoroughly and then put on a plate to the side to slice. 

3. Sauté potatoes in olive oil with salt and pepper and chopped garlic. 

4. Add kale to the potatoes and continue to sauté. Add a little salt, pepper and lemon juice to the kale. 

5. Add the sliced sausage back to the pan and toss all the ingredients together.  

Next on the list is a recipe for all those red meat lovers (like me!) out there. Moo.   

I used a sirloin filet for this recipe because that was what was on sale at Publix this week. You can use any cut of meat, as long as it is thick enough to be cut in half. For this recipe, you will need kale, Philadelphia cooking creme (it's right next to the cream cheese in the dairy section), and a steak. 

1. Sauté kale as I explained above with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and lemon juice. 

2. Butterfly the raw filet in half (yes, this means you have to touch the raw meat extensively). 

3. Spread the cooking creme inside both halves of the filet.

4. Spread some of the sautéed kale on one side and then fold the top half of the filet back over. 

5. Season both sides of the filet (on the outside) with salt and pepper. 

6. You can either bake it in the oven or cook it in a pan to your preferred meat temperature. I like to cook it in a pan because it is easier to monitor and not overcook your steak. Jared and I like our cows still mooing when we eat them :) 

7. Top the filet with the remaining sautéed kale. 

Jared and I always have a ton of chicken in our house. It's cheap and healthier for you than red meat (at least that's what he tells me) so we eat chicken a lot. I personally don't like chicken that much, it's so bland and boring. I would much rather have a steak. However, since I am stuck eating chicken a lot, I have to get creative with ways to make it not taste like I'm eating the same boring chicken everyday. 

You can make chicken this way even if you don't want to incorporate the kale. Just doing the marinade itself is so yummy. For this recipe, you will need, kale, chicken breast, balsamic vinegar (the actual vinegar, not the salad dressing), fresh garlic and fresh rosemary. 

1. In a sauce pan, heat balsamic vinegar with chopped garlic and rosemary until it simmers.

2. Place chicken breasts in a tupperware. Pour the balsamic marinade over the chicken and cover. Allow the chicken to marinate in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes. The longer, the better.  

3. Sauté chopped kale as I explained above with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and lemon juice.

4. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and place on a greased baking pan. 

5. Bake chicken breasts in the oven until they are cooked thoroughly (mine were pretty thin so I only did about 20 minutes in the oven). 

6. Top chicken with the sautéed kale. I also shredded some fresh grated parmesan cheese over mine.  

The final verdict. Kale is yummy. And it's good for you, so that's a plus. However, I will say I have been a little disappointed with all the hype. I was expecting to have some sort of Popeye experience when I ate the kale, like I instantly become superwoman or something. It's only been a week though, so I'll let you know if any super powers start to surface. 

Patriotic Parfaits

Today, I am sharing a recipe for one of my favorite patriotic treats. Keep this one in mind when 4th of July rolls around and you are scrambling to try and find something festive to make for your holiday cookout. It is delicious, easy to make and not so bad for your health.

Here is what you will need...Feel free to substitute any or all ingredients for their non-fat, sugar-free or organic versions if you want to make your dessert super healthy. I, of course, opted for full sugar, full fat deliciousness.

Ingredients:

Plastic Cups

Blueberries

Raspberry Sherbet

Vanilla Ice Cream

Alright kids, get ready this is the tough part. Don't worry, if this girl can do it, you can too. 

Step 1: Put two scoops of raspberry sherbet into each cup. 

Step 2: Put two scoops of ice cream on top of the sherbet.

Step 3: Place a handful of blueberries on top of the ice cream.

Voila! You're all done. If you want them to be extra delicious, put them back in the freezer for about an hour so the entire parfait can congeal back together. I guarantee that these will be so yummy and there is no possible way you could mess this up. Next time, I think I'll garnish them with some little American flags to add to the festivity. Enjoy!