Avocado Chicken Salad

August 28, 2013 by Mackenzie

This recipe has been one of my go-tos all summer – I’ve probably made it at least five times in the last month! It’s super easy, super fast, summery, and made with all “real food.” Can’t get any better than that!

This recipe is great because you can scale it up or down very easily depending on how many people you are feeding or how much leftovers you want to have. I go with a 1:1 ratio of avocado to chicken breast and usually do half a chicken breast per serving. It’s also a great recipe because of how versatile it is – you can eat it hot or cold, plain, in a wrap, in a sandwich… I’ve tried it all these ways – and loved it each time!

Avocado Chicken Salad
Serves 2 (easily scaled up or down)
Recipe from Gina’s Favorites

Ingredients:
1 organic, boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 tablespoons coconut oil (or olive oil)
1 avocado
1/4 red onion, chopped
Juice of 1/2 a lime
2 tablespoons cilantro
Salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Dice chicken into 2-inch pieces (doesn’t have to be exact, you’ll shred it later). Heat the coconut oil in a medium-sized skilled over medium heat. Add the chicken, sprinkle some salt and pepper of it and begin to cook it. When the chicken is almost done, add the red onion and let them soften. Take a wooden spatula or a fork and shred the chicken into smaller pieces. Cook the chicken and onion together until the chicken is cooked through.

2. In a medium bowl, mash the avocado. Add the chicken and onions, the lime juice, cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Mix it all together and enjoy! Keeps well for up to two days in the fridge.

Mexican Chicken Quinoa Casserole

August 20, 2013 by Mackenzie

Mexican Chicken Quinoa Casserole - amazingly delicious, full of "real foods" so it is healthy, and easy to prepare! Spencer and I are enroute to St. Louis! We are driving all the way there – 33 hours in the car with my bro 🙂 While he was driving today, I thought I would be productive with my passenger seat time and write up a recipe! Now that we’ve got wi-fi in the hotel – I can post it!

At the beginning of this trip, this Mexican Chicken Quinoa Casserole was divided into about 10 tupperwares in the cooler in the back of my car. Now there’s only about half left! It’s one of the super-easy, on the go meals that I made up before we left so that I could stick to my Clean Eating lifestyle and also have quick yummy meals on the road!

I’ve now made this dish twice in the last two weeks – it’s so good and very easy to take with you on the go because it is just as good cold as it is warm. Everything in it is “real” – nothing processed or genetically modified. I think you’ll love it!

Mexican Chicken Quinoa Casserole

Serves 10, fills one 9×13 dish
Recipe adapted from MJ and Hungryman

Ingredients:

2 organic, boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 cup quinoa
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, cut into one inch pieces
1 cup organic frozen corn, thawed
1 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, thawed (squeeze out as much water as possible)
1 (15 oz) can black beans
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup organic chicken broth
1 cup of your favorite salsa (I love the emerald valley brand at Whole Foods)
1 cup shredded cheddar

Directions:

1. Prepare chicken: heat coconut oil in a medium-sized skillet. Cut the chicken breasts into smaller pieces (doesn’t matter how big because you will shred them later) and add to skillet. Cook, turning often, until cooked through. Allow to cool and when cool enough to handle, shred the chicken.

2. Cook quinoa: pour quinoa into a saucepan and add 1 1/2 cups of water and 1/2 cup chicken broth. Bring liquid to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until soft, about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 teaspoons olive oil and sauté onion until softened, about five minutes. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the bell pepper, corn and frozen spinach and combine well. Add tomato paste, cumin and salt and pepper and mix. Then add the shredded chicken, quinoa and black beans. Mix well. (If this gets too big for your skillet, you can transfer the mixture to a large bowl and add everything in that).

4. In a medium saucepan (I just used the same one I had made the quinoa in), add the chicken broth and salsa. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add to chicken mixture and combine well.

5. Pour mixture into a greased 9×13 baking dish. Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Top with avocado and salsa.

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette

June 14, 2013 by Mackenzie

This galette accompanied our meal from last weekend with the Roasted Sweet Pepper Rolls with Caper-Pinenut Stuffing and Lemon Risotto – yet it was the star of the show! The crust is flaky and just melts in your mouth, while the filling of butternut squash, caramelized onions, and fontina cheese make each bite truly heavenly. This is a really outstanding dish!

We thought it was especially good when it was hot, so I’d recommend reheating it in the oven just before you eat if you make this ahead of time (which is what we did). We also halved the original recipe to make just one 9-inch galette. I’ve given the halved ingredient quantities but you could easily double it to make a large, pizza size dish or to make two smaller galettes.

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette
Recipe from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
Makes one 9-inch galette, serves 3-4 as a side dish

Ingredients:

Pastry:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
1/2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/4 cup ice water

Filling:

1 small butternut squash
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 teaspoon table salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon butter
1 sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced in half moons
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1 cup grated fontina cheese
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 teaspoon water, for glaze

Directions:

1. Pastry: in a food processor, combine the flour and salt. Add the whole stick of butter and pulse until butter is no bigger than peas. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, vinegar, and water. Pour this over the dry mixture, mix briefly, then transfer to a bowl and combine the mixture with a rubber spatula or your hands. Add more flour or water if needed to get a slightly sticky dough. Pat dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour.

2. Squash: preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel the squash, then halve it and scoop out the seeds. Cut into 1/2-inch chunks. Drizzle two tablespoons of olive oil over a baking sheet and then spread the squash out on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with a 1/2 teaspoon of salt and some freshly ground pepper, then place in the oven and roast for 30 minutes, until the squash is tender. Set aside to cool.

3. Onions: while the squash is roasting, caramelize the onions. Melt the butter and one tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet, add the onions, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook over medium-low heat, until soft, tender and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Combine the squash, caramelized onions, cheese, and herbs in a large bowl.

4. Assembly: on a floured surface, roll out the dough to an 11-inch round, or about 1/4-inch thick (think pie crust). Transfer to a baking sheet. Spread the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a two-inch border. Fold the border over the filling, pleating it, to make it all come together. Brush the crust with the egg wash. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees, until the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and slide onto a serving dish. Serve hot or warm. You can make this ahead of time and reheat it in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Corn and Poblano Lasagna

December 27, 2012 by Mackenzie

Libby and I came across this recipe in the Food Network magazine and thought we would try it out for a potluck we were going to. Everyone loved it at the potluck so we made it again for ourselves the following week. Then, it’s so good that I had to make it for my family when I went home for Christmas. All that to say, it’s REALLY good!!!
It’s definitely not a traditional lasagna with sausage and tomato sauce… this has a corn cream sauce and is loaded with veggies so it is even on the healthier side!

Corn and Poblano Lasagna
Recipe from Food Network Magazine
Makes one 9×13 – serves 8-10

Ingredients
4 poblano chile peppers
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups frozen corn kernels (thawed)
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced white onion
1 large zucchini, thinly sliced lengthwise
12 (7-by-3-inch) no-boil lasagna sheets
2 cups shredded Oaxaca or mozzarella cheese

Preheat the broiler. Halve the poblanos lengthwise and remove the stems and seeds. Place cut-side down on a baking sheet and broil until browned in spots, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover with a plate and set aside 5 minutes. Peel off the skin with your fingers, then cut the peppers into 1-inch strips.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and saute 1 minute. Mix in the corn and saute 5 minutes. Stir in the cream and thyme, reduce the heat to medium low and cook 5 minutes to let the flavors incorporate. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly, then transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a medium heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining minced garlic clove and cook 1 minute. Mix in the zucchini and poblano strips and cook 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper.

Spread about one-quarter of the corn mixture in the bottom of an 8-by-11-inch baking dish. Cover with 3 lasagna sheets. Layer one-quarter each of the poblano mixture and cheese over the pasta. Repeat the layering 3 more times. Cover with aluminum foil.

Bake until the pasta is tender, about 50 minutes. Turn on the broiler. Remove the foil and broil until golden brown and bubbly, 8 to 10 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Winter Salad with Sweet Potatoes, Pomegranate Seeds, Goat Cheese and more!

December 6, 2012 by Mackenzie

Libby and I made this salad for dinner last night and it was oh so good!! Libby made it up so I’m giving her all the credit 🙂 It’s awesome and will definitely be made again soon!

Winter Salad

Serves 2

1. Peel sweet potatoes and cut into 1 inch chunks. Toss with olive oil and salt and pepper and bake until tender, about 25 minutes.

2. To make the vinaigrette, whisk together: 1/2 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp of brown sugar, 1/8 cup of balsamic vinegar, 1/4 cup of olive oil and salt and pepper. We eyeballed these ingredients and did our best just now to think of how much we used… so definitely taste and see if it needs more of anything.

3. In a large bowl, add mixed greens, walnuts, goat cheese, pomegranate seeds, dates, sweet potatoes and vinaigrette! Serve with a piece of toast with honey butter.

photo-16

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