Lemon Garlic Salmon with Asparagus

Hello there!  Suffice to say its been a while, and we've been really busy around here.  I will post some pictures of my 8 day trip to New Mexico with my Dad and Sister.  It was fabulous.  The scenery was breathtaking.  And the New Mexican Cuisine was inspiring.  I will definitely be looking for ways to incorporate some truly inspired dishes into my lineup.

But last night, I pulled out a beautiful huge salmon filet that we picked up at Costco this week.  I cut it in half, to make two large filets (they filled up an entire cookie sheet...that large).  And I began dressing it with finery...

Lemon Garlic Salmon with Asparagus

Here's what I used:

1-2 large Salmon Filets (about 4-6 oz per person)

juice 1 lemon

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

S&P

1 lb fresh asparagus

Here's what I did:

Preheat oven to 500/Broil, with oven rack at top level (this should allow for 2-3" space for salmon to sit while broiling).

Line a cookie sheet with foil, to save on cleanup.  Place salmon, skin side down, and then drizzle with lemon juice.  Add garlic and softened butter, evenly distributed.  Finally season with salt and pepper.  Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes at room temperature - this will give the lemon juice a bit of time to marinate the fish.

Meanwhile, prepare the asparagus.  In order to remove the stemmy, tough ends of the asparagus, take each spear between your hands, and snap them in two.  The spear should break at the point where the stemmy/tough part begins.  Discard the tough, stemmy end.  Set medium sized saucepan to boil with asparagus spears and a little salt. Allow them to simmer for 6-8 minutes, or until tender, but still al dente. 

Once salmon is in the oven, allow to broil for 6-10 minutes, depending on thickness of filets.  Mine were only about 1/2 - 1" thick, so I cooked them for 7 minutes.  You're not looking for a crusty brownish finish here, but more of a soft frothy one.  The edges may brown more than the center, but that's fine.

Allow salmon to rest for a few minutes, while removing asparagus from heat.  Blanch the asparagus in the pan by running the pan under cold water for 1 minute.  Then remove asparagus to a serving dish, and dress with 2 small pats of butter, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

Serve salmon alongside asparagus.  This would go wonderful with a nice Chardonnay.  :)

Lemon Garlic Hummus

This one is too easy.  Anyone could do it.

Lemon Garlic Hummus

Here's what I used:

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
juice 1/2 lemon
2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp champagne vinegar
1/2 tsp pepper
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1 package whole wheat pita bread

Here's what I did:

Simply combine all ingredients except for olive oil in a food processor or blender and begin to blend.  Slowly pour olive oil and allow mixture to become smooth.  Continue to process until the mixture reaches the desired consistency.  I like mine as smooth as possible, with no grainy texture. 

Transfer hummus to serving bowl and drizzle top with olive oil.

To accompany hummus, toast whole wheat pita bread in a toaster oven or conventional oven (at 350 degrees) for 5 minutes.  Using a pizza cutter, cut pita bread into wedges and serve warm with fresh hummus.

Chicken Piccata with Spinach Fettucine

This recipe is one of my favorites, it never fails to please.  It also keeps well, and the breaded cutlets make an excellent snack or sandwich later.  I have made this for fancy dinner parties, intimate dinners for two, family gatherings, etc. and in all cases, it was a winner.  I like to pair it with Colavita Fettucine Nests because the dried pasta ends up so tender, and the nests are perfectly divided into quanties for each person.  So if I have 2 people, I use 2-3 nests, and so on...and the proportions work well.

Chicken Piccata with Spinach Fettucine (for 2)

Here's what I used:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup all-purpose flour (bowl #1 for dredging)
1 extra-large egg (bowl #2 for dredging)
1/2 tablespoon water
3/4 cup italian bread crumbs (bowl #3 for dredging)
Olive Oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons), lemon halves reserved
1/2 cup dry white wine

Sliced lemon, for serving
Chopped fresh parsley leaves, for serving

Here's what I did:

Preheated oven to 400 degrees.

For preparation, I first rinsed, dried, and then pounded the chicken breasts to 1/4" thickness, by placing the breasts individually in a large ziplock bag, and then pounding flat with a mallet (you can also use the bottom of a drinking glass).  I also set up the three shallow bowls for dredging the chicken.  In the first bowl, mix flour, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.  In the second bowl, beat egg and water together.  Fill the third bowl with bread crumbs.

Prior to dredging the chicken, season both sides of each breast with salt and pepper.  Then, dredge each chicken breast in the Flour, then Egg, and finally Bread Crumb Bowls.  If there are any bare spots, re-dredge with egg, and then bread crumbs to ensure an even coating.

Once chicken is fully breaded, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in non-stick skillet over medium heat, 2 minutes per side.  Then add to a cookie sheet and allow to bake in oven for 5 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, set a large stockpot of water to boil for the pasta.  Cook pasta as directed, for an al dente finish.

For the sauce, over medium heat, melt 1 tbsp of butter and then add the lemon juice, wine, the reserved lemon halves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Boil over high heat until reduced in half, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and swirl to combine.

Plate pasta, with chicken overtop, and then drizzle with sauce.  Add chopped parsley overtop for garnish.

This is an instant classic.  Enjoy!

Mustard Crusted Steak with Lemon Asparagus and Brown Rice

This is another South Beach recipe that I like. Similar to a brisket, round steak is a relatively inexpensive cut of meat that when marinated, cooked and cut properly really has all the appeal as an expensive filet or strip steak.

Mustard Crusted Steak

Here's what I used:

1.5 lb round steak/london broil
2 tbsp whole-seed dijon mustard
2 tsp dry mustard powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tbsp worchestershire sauce

Here's what I did:

Mix all wet/dry ingredients together to make a sauce. Place meat on a foil-lined cookie sheet and cover meat surface with a thin, even layer of mustard sauce. Broil steak for 4 minutes per side on 2nd to highest oven rack, then allow to rest for 5 minutes, loosely tented with foil.

After allowing to rest, move steak to a cutting board, and cut into thin (1/8"ish) slices, widthwise. Once sliced, scoop remaining mustard sauce off of the cookie sheet, and spread among the tops of all slices of meat and serve.

Lemon Asparagus & Brown Rice

Here's what I used:

1 bunch asparagus spears, ends snapped off & rinsed
1/2 lemon, juice
1 tbsp butter
S&P

2 cups quick-cook brown rice
1 3/4 cups water
1 tbsp butter
S, P & Garlic Powder

Here's what I did:

Following ratio for rice/water on quick cook brown rice box, brought water to a boil and then added rice. Simmered 5 minutes (or as directed) and then added butter and seasoning then fluffed with a fork and allowed to sit away from heat for another 5. *I had to add a little bit more water at the end and let cook another few minutes to get a softer consistency.

While cooking the rice, I added my asparagus and enough water for all spears to float and brought to a simmer. I cooked asparagus spears until barely fork tender, as we like them with a little bite to them. Drained off water and seasoned with S, P, butter and lemon juice.

For plating, I added the brown rice first, then laid 1/2 asparagus spears overtop the rice and drizzled a little bit of the butter/lemon juice over top. Then I added several slices of meat to the other side of the plate.

Reviews. Meat was good, sauce is a little zippy. Asparagus were really yummy. Hubbs went to bed early, but despite feeling sick and tired, I don't think that it had ANYTHING to do with my cooking!! ;)

Spaghetti with Clams

This is yet another EASY, healthy, South Beach Cookbook Recipe. And a dinner that can be prepared using mostly "staple" and pantry items. Which makes it a great just throw it together choice for dinner.




Spaghetti with Clams

Here's what I used:

2 small cans chopped clams in juice (separate clam meat from juice, retain juice)
1 box spaghetti (Whole Wheat if you have it)
1/2 cup Fat Free 1/2 and 1/2
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1/4 tsp red pepper flake (great for HEAT)

Here's what I did:

Brought a large stock pot of water to a boil. Added my pasta, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, I added my olive oil to a sauce pan and allowed to warm up. Added my garlic to the oil and let soften until fragrant, about 30 seconds. (Garlic is SO EASY to burn, don't ignore it!). Then I added my clam juice, 1/2 and 1/2, parsley and red pepper flake. Allow this to cook down and thicken a bit, about 10 minutes.

Once my pasta was al dente (still a touch of bite), I drained it, and added it back to the pot. Then I poured my clam sauce over the pasta to mix thoroughly. I served this in large soup bowls so that we could fish out all the clam pieces. Also, topped with shaved parmesan.

Very yummy and easy.

Crispy Roasted Chicken with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes and Cauliflower

The name of the game Friday night was Roasted. I received my October issue of Bon Appetit magazine, and did a quick search for a recipe that would jive with the bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts that I had. Luckily for me, there was a recipe that fit, and lo and behold the fingerling potatoes that I'd bought were also part of the pairing. What are the chances?? I modified it a bit as I didn't have a whole chicken as the recipe calls for, and thus was missing the gizzard and neck (for making a gravy), so this is more of an omage to the recipe than an actual "copy".

Crispy Roasted Chicken

Here's what I used:

3 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
3-4 tbsp good olive oil
One lemon, sliced into 6 rounds
S&P

Here's what I did:

Preheated oven to 400 degrees F. Arranged one rack in the center of the oven, and one rack at the very bottom (for my vegetables - recipe below). Generously S&P the chicken breast and drizzle with olive oil, ensure breasts are evenly coated with oil. Lay 2 lemon slices over each chicken breast. These cooked for about 25-30 minutes. I used a meat thermometer to make sure they were at safe poultry temp, and not dry. The minute they hit 165 I pulled them out.

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes & Cauliflower

Here's what I used:

1 bag fingerling potatoes, chopped into 1/2" rounds
1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into small flourettes (about 1" pieces)
4-5 tbsp good olive oil
S&P

This is so easy... Prepare a cookie sheet with foil or other nonstick coating/cover (I wish I had done this, I lost a lot of crispiness off the potatoes that stuck to the bottom of my cookie sheet. Waaaah!!). In a bowl, coat vegetables in olive oil and sprinkle generously with S&P. Lay out in single layer on cookie sheet. Cook for about 15-20 minutes, turning once or twice throughout to ensure crispiness on all sides of vegetables. Potatoes should have crispy outer coating.

Since these two parts can cook together in the same oven, same temperature...its a great recipe to sort of "set and forget". You're not having to make a sauce while watching a timer, etc. The chicken was perfectly cooked, JUST right. You can really taste the lemon on the skin as well, subtle but delicious.

Chicken Kabobs with Greek Salad and Hummus

One of my favorite dinners is Greek Chicken Salad. There are a few places in the northern virginia area that make impressive Greek Salad's. One is Moby Dick's House of Kabob, another is Paisano's in Fair Lakes. While I enjoy patronizing our local stores, its also a challenge to try to recreate them in my kitchen. On top of that, I despise store-bought hummus. I think it tastes mealy and is too lumpy. So I have perfected my own recipe, after several middle-eastern friends and coworkers had provided me with several hints. I made this dinner in three parts: Chicken and Green Pepper Kabobs, Greek Salad with Calamata Olives & Feta, and Hummus with lightly toasted wheat pita wedges. Yummmmm.

Chicken and Green Pepper Kabobs

Here's what I used:

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 large green bell pepper
1/2 cup greek dressing
S&P
6 pre-soaked wooden skewers

Here's what I did:

Set the grill to Medium heat. Used kitchen shears and cut the chicken into large 1.5" cubes, and added them and the greek dressing into a dish to marinate. I also liberally sprinkled them with S&P. Chopped the bell pepper into 1" pieces. Alternated chicken and peppers onto each skewer, with a small space in between each piece. I put about 4 pieces each of chicken and peppers on each skewer...smaller skewers might require less per skewer.

Cooked skewers, turning occasionally, for about 6-8 minutes. Longer if chicken pieces are larger.

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Greek Salad with Calamata Olives & Feta

Here's what I used:

1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 large cucumber, skinned, halved lengthwise, and then chopped
2 tbsp reduced fat feta cheese
6-8 pitted Calamata olives
Greek Dressing as desired

Here's what I did:

Combine all ingredients into a large salad bowl. I don't add dressing until salad is plated. I let each person choose how much dressing they want to add. I also hold the olives for my husband, who doesn't like them, and just add them to mine.

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Hummus

Here's what I used:

1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans) rinsed well and drained
2-3 tbsp Tahini (sesame seed paste)
4-5 tbsp good olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp champagne vinegar
1 tsp garlic powder (or 2 cloves roasted garlic - yumm!)
S&P

Here's what I did:

In a food processor or blender, combine chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, vinegar and S&P. Slowly add olive oil until mixture binds together. Continue to add olive oil, and blend until mixture achieves smooth, peanut butter-like consistency. If you like your hummus more grainy, process it a little less. I like it the smoother the better, w/ no grainy or lumpy texture.

I also like to cut pita bread into 8 wedges, and then let toast in the toaster oven for about 2-3 minutes and serve hot with the hummus. Enjoy!!