Mysterious Splashes and Squeezes

Recipe: Chicken, Craisins, and Walnut Salad (Sandwiches)

It's true that we just got back from somewhere a lot more exciting (and photogenic) than this chicken salad but we've been devouring this salad (and/or sandwich, depending on who you are in this household) for almost 3 years so I couldn't wait another moment to share it with you. *pictures of our July 4th weekend to come... someday

Devouring? A "typical" chicken salad? Really, Kara... the food(-ish) blog world doesn't need one more person over-hyping a recipe. So with that, I will make a promise to you that this is no over-hype... sure it might just be that we have warped taste buds or the fact that we like anything in salad form (egg salad, tuna salad, etc.), but this Chicken, Craisin, and Walnut Salad truly is one of our favorites.

Is it the mysterious splashes of hot sauce? Or the squeeze of lemon? We'll never know (not that we're ever left with much time to figure it out)... all I know is that this is one of the two most often requested dishes around here, which to me says it is anything but typical. It also says "make me tonight... or tomorrow... or better yet, both!" (these leftovers are highly coveted in this house)

Chicken, Craisin, and Walnut Salad Sandwiches
adapted from Bon Appetit

1 1/4 lb skinless boneless chicken breasts
1 1/4 c thinly sliced green onions
1 c coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
3/4 c Craisins
3/4 c mayonnaise
1/2 c chopped fresh parsley
2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1 (scant) tsp hot pepper sauce
12 slices wheat bread, lightly toasted

Arrange chicken in single layer in medium skillet; add enough water to cover. Bring to simmer over medium heat. Cover; reduce heat to low and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes. Transfer chicken to cutting boat. (chicken can be made in advance using this method, or slow-cooked and shredded using this recipe)

Cut chicken (or shred) into 1/2-inch cubes. Mix chicken and all remaining ingredients except bread in large bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide salad among 6 toast slices and top with remaining pieces of toast.

Work in Progress

Entertaining is, you might call it, a passion of mine. Some might put me over the edge of being obsessed but however you spell it, I just like doing it a whole lot. From setting up (and even cleaning!) our house and getting to hang out with friends, to menu planning and the subsequent grocery shopping (oooh - my favorite!), I love each and every morsel.

Often I get a little tied up in the planning part... the narrowing down of my stacked-high piles of recipes, combining my choices with what's on sale that week and what we already have stashed in the cupboard... calling what results "side-tracked" is being more than friendly.

Buuuut... once I've righted my ship, usually something at least edible (and on occasion, even repeatable, which is obviously a big bonus) is born. Things like decorating my table and selecting the right mix of serving dishes for the final presentation are still works in progress... and perhaps a call for help will meet your eyes right here one day.

You'd think, then, that I'd be the first to notice things like say, serving an entire vegetarian meal (to self-avowed meat-eaters). Alas, it was only as I was setting individual portions of this delicious lasagna and it's accompaniment of garden-fresh herbed tomato salad on the table that I realized the entire meal, from start-to-finish, was devoid of anything that could even moonlight as meat.

Thankfully one of the uh, meatless items on the table was this Black-Bean and Spinach Lasagna (thanks, Emily!!). It truly saved the dinner. And we were only too happy to feast on the left-overs for as long as they would last... which wasn't long enough.

Luckily, my shame lasted for even less time, as no one seemed to notice my embarrassing oversight in menu-planning until I mentioned it (I will never learn).

No Matter Where You Are

Nothing says grilling by the beach like grilled pork tenderloin... unless of course you're not at the beach, then it says "grilling by [wherever you are]".

We've done pork tenderloin 'on the barbie' before - and each time I'm more and more convinced that this meat is just made for the grill. Course I did like this non-grilled version a whole lot too... darn it, perhaps there are no conclusions to be drawn just yet. Pay no attention to my rambling and go fire up your grill.

Sadly, this past weekend didn't find us at the beach, so this was more of a "grilling on our deck" pork tenderloin... and while I'm not certain when we'll get to the beach next, something I do know is that we'll make this recipe once we're there.

Garlic Herb Grilled Pork Tenderloin
adapted from All Recipes

2 pork tenderloins
4 TBSP olive oil
3 cloves garlic: 2 chopped, 1 cut into 4 pieces
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 TBSP chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 TBSP salt
1 TBSP ground black pepper

Pour olive oil into casserole dish with cover. Add chopped garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper, and stir. Place tenderloins in dish and make sure the meat is coated well with the olive oil mixture. Marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours or overnight.

When ready to grill, cut 2-3 small slits in one side of each tenderloin and insert pieces of garlic. Prepare your grill for medium-high heat. Grill to a minimum internal temperature of 160 degrees.

Let the meat rest for about 5 minutes before slicing into medallions.

The Whole Package

There's not a whole lot to this recipe so I don't have much to say about it except to applaud the (extreme) ease of making it and the deliciousness that resulted.

It was another winner of my buddy Christie's that definitely went straight into the "go-to" meals file... and she's right, this Roasted Herbed Pork Tenderloin is fancy enough for entertaining even! Plus, we are in the middle of re-adjusting our grocery budget for the year and with Costco's $2.99/lb pork tenderloin, this isn't just tasty - it's new year's resolution (read: healthy!) and budget friendly, too!!!

*for the two of us, I only cooked one of the tenderloins in a 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes and it was perfect!

Doing My Research

I don't know whether to call the dish we enjoyed last night spicy, "herbed" or sweet salmon... I may just have to leave it at some mix of all three.

Yes, the sweet flavor was unmistakable... and I certainly detected and enjoyed the subtle smoky paprika flavor, but then the addition of cinnamon and thyme? Are all these flavors considered spices or herbs anyway... or does it even matter?

I've actually been wondering this for a while now but this recipe was the last straw - it turns out that both spices and herbs "can consist of flower buds, bark, seeds, leaves or many other parts of a plant" and that "[o]ver time the definitions for spices and herbs have changed a bit. In the past, spices have been categorized as fragrant, aromatic plant products like cinnamon, cloves, ginger and pepper. These spices are found in plants grown in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. While herbs have always been recognized as the more green, leafy products like mint, rosemary and thyme grown in more temperate areas.

But according to the American Spice Trade Association, today spices have become known as 'any dried plant product used primarily for seasoning purposes.' This all-inclusive definition seems to cover a wide range of plants like herbs, spice seeds and even dehydrated vegetables and spice blends."

Admittedly, it felt good to find out that I'm not the only one who's pretty confused about these things... and we can all be comforted that no matter what you call the ingredients, this Smoked Paprika Roasted Salmon with Wilted Spinach is still delicious!

*as usual, I made very few changes... this time only adding some thinly sliced, sauteed garlic to the wilted spinach

Nothing Neutral About It

What comes to mind when you think of Switzerland? Mountains... Alps? A neutral county? Skiing? Anything to do with winter and snow? Chocolate... fondue... bruschetta... my mind, as typical, wanders to things related to food. Wait... bruschetta? How'd that slip in there?

It's true, this is probably the only place that you're going to see anyone pair bruschetta and Switzerland, but did you know that Switzerland's National Day is August 1st? What a great stretch... our National Ice Cream Day was July 20th and Switzerland celebrates their day soon after!

And to celebrate, Zorra of Kochtopf has invited us to send her something Swiss... OR red and/or white! And here's where my fresh tomato bruschetta comes in... not to mention it has been the perfect recipe to use up our monstrous tomato plants currently taking over our backyard.


We have enjoyed this recently perhaps too many times, but it can't be helped since it's a delicious and easy appetizer and just feels perfectly "summer" since I usually pick the fresh tomatoes from our garden about 30 minutes before the dish is on the table!


Fresh Tomato Bruschetta

1 baguette, sliced into 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices
3/4 c olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves

my measurement: two handfuls of cherry tomatoes (or as many fresh tomatoes as you need for your crowd), chopped
2 TBSP+ fresh basil, cut in a fine chiffonade
pinch of salt
balsamic vinegar, to taste (about 2-3 TBSP)

Preheat your oven to 350. In one layer, spread baguette slices on a greased baking sheet. Brush each slice with a conservative amount of olive oil. Place the baking sheet in the oven for 5-7 minutes, being careful not to burn. Immediately upon taking the baguette slices out, rub each slice on one side with the cut side of the garlic cloves; reserve the cloves after using.

Evenly dice the tomatoes and put into a large bowl. Mince the garlic cloves used for rubbing the baguette slices. Add the garlic, basil, salt, and balsamic vinegar. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.

To serve individual appetizers, prepare each baguette slice with a spoonful of tomatoes. Or, to prepare a self-serve option, put the tomato mixture into a serving bowl and place the garlicky-toasted bread slices close by.

However you celebrate Switzerland's National Day, I hope it's delicious! Check Zorra's round-up on the big day, August 1st!

Oh Captain, My Captain

I feel as though this ship has been incessantly calling out to me for a few months now so I finally gave in. And I think we will readily admit that it was one of those them temptations we are glad we caved into.

This was also our first foray into the world of our fun new Cuisinart Electric Skillet. I'd seen a similar recipe in the freebie booklet that came along with our slow cooker, but had passed it by, though, not without a long second glance as I'm pretty hooked on any dish that involves chicken with tons of veggies.

Ever since our pantry was stocked with fresh new herbs (okay, I got only two or three new ones - I'm not one to splurge, even on amazing herbs), I've been looking for delicious recipes in which to use them. This is certainly one of them - it made for a beautiful plate, easily covered almost all of the healthy food groups, and had a great mixture of tastes (loved the hint of curry!); this recipe quickly found its way into the "must make again" folder!!

Chicken Country Captain
*curious about the name of this dish?

1/3 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts *I pounded mine out for even thickness
2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 TBSP unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 bell peppers, chopped (any mixture of yellow, green, and red - you know I used frozen)
1 TBSP curry powder
1 tsp thyme
1 bay leaf
2 14-ounce cans diced tomatoes with their juices
1 c chicken stock, nonfat, low sodium
2/3 c golden raisins
4 green onions, trimmed and cut into 1/8-inch slices
2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley
2 TBSP slivered, toasted almonds

*I did make this in our electric skillet but you could just as easily make it on the stovetop - I did love the skillet, though, for not making the kitchen quite so hot!

Preheat electric skillet to 400 degrees. Combine flour with salt, pepper, and cayenne in a flat bowl; lightly coat chicken breasts, shaking off excess.

Pour olive oil into skillet and swirl to coat the bottom. Brown chicken breasts about 4 minutes per side or until golden. Remove and keep warm. Reduce heat to 200 degrees. Cook the garlic, onion, and peppers for 2-3 minutes or until slightly softened. Add curry powder, thyme, and bay leaf; stir. Add tomatoes and chicken stock, bring to a boil. Add chicken breasts, loosely cover skillet and simmer for 12-15 minutes.

Remove cover; add raisins and green onions. Simmer for 5 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked. Remove and discard bay leaf. Garnish with chopped parsley and toasted almonds. Serve with brown rice.

Adapted from the Cuisinart Electric Skillet recipe booklet

Other excuses to use your dried herbs and spices or a garden full of fresh herbs:
The Tastiest Turkey Burgers Ever
Grilled Salmon, Basil Grilled Shrimp, and Roasted Red Potatoes
Italian Sausage Soup
Tilapia in Mustard Cream Sauce

Just Like the Song...

Seriously!?! I'm subjecting you all (that is... "all" 2-5 of you) to a post about the Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager-written, Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross and Whitney Houston-performed song that we all used to know by heart oh-so-many years ago?

What follows is worth it, trust me.

So what's all the fuss about? A few short days ago, my new food-blog and long-time Deacon friend, Christie, found, made, and posted this recipe, aptly entitled "Tasty Turkey Burgers" by Southern Living. After seeing her delicious post, she and I chatted and it was decided that my frozen lean ground turkey meat would indeed be put to use this very week - it was urgent.

I now understand why. And, well... if it's within my control, I don't believe I will ever... EVER prepare another recipe for turkey burgers (you can check me on this, but I don't believe I've ever made that kind of statement about another recipe... maybe guac, but I am at least tolerant enough of others' guacs to try it).

I changed a few things from both Christie's adaptation as well as the Southern Living version but only because of what was in my pantry, and we all know how happy I am when I don't have to visit the grocery store to complete a recipe.

The. TASTIEST. Turkey. Burgers... EVER.

1 pound ground turkey
1/2 c Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 c finely chopped (defrosted) green, red and yellow bell pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 TBSP minced onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 TBSP Fresh Herb Marinade
4 whole wheat hamburger buns
Herb-Grilled Onion Rings
freshly shaved Parmesan cheese

1. Combine first 7 ingredients. Shape mixture into 4 equal-size patties.
2. Grill 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in center, basting each side occasionally with Fresh Herb Marinade.
3. Grill buns, cut sides down, 2 minutes or until toasted. Serve burgers on buns with Herb-Grilled Onion Rings and a few slices of the freshly shaved Parmesan.

*Don't skip either the marinade, grilled onions, or the fresh Parm - it absolutely makes the entire burger.

Prepare yourself once you pull the burgers and the onions off the grill. You are in for a treat. Oh, and go ahead and make all 4 patties even if there are only two of you... I came this (picture me with my fingers VERY close together) close to eating a second burger last night, but if not, the left-overs are just as delicious the next day.

And, if anyone's still interested in our side after hearing that glowing recommendation... I made us a side of fresh string and wax beans with our burgers and for once, I think even without a recipe, it was pretty good.

I guess these are really no-fail, but just in case you need the pointers... I washed and trimmed our beans and then dunked them in a pot of boiling water for 1-2 minutes. I quickly drained that pot and added about 1/4 TBSP of butter and some diced onions to the beans to quick-saute. Once they were slightly sizzling, I added some garlic powder, salt, cumin (only because I add that to everything) and a drizzle of olive oil. I let it cook for another minute or two and then turned off the heat after covering the pot.

A great light addition to the perfect burgers.

Enjoying the Bounty

Thanks to our exciting first real farmers' market experience, the stage was set for our big Sunday night meal.

It must be said, if quickly, that Sunday nights have become one of the only nights (aside from entertaining) that I find the time to really put together a full meal for us, so they are eagerly awaited each week. This time, it seemed that our stock of frozen salmon cut into individual fillets and some deveined shrimp was just begging to be included in this weekend-ending fest.

Allrecipes was the winning source providing two great recipes for grilling our salmon and shrimp. I had all of the ingredients in the pantry (or in our herb garden), which undoubtedly made these recipes a cinch, so for once, I actually followed them to the letter... which leads me to think that I might just be heading back down the road of being a loyal recipe-follower. The marinade carmelized absolutely perfectly on the salmon and the mustardy shrimp marinade had a wonderful flavor; admittedly, a soy-brown sugar and mustard marinade on the same plate isn't conventional but we enjoyed it nonetheless.

Since I'd been adventurous with new recipes for our seafood entrees, my creativity waned in the preparation of our market bounty, my cute red potatoes.

This is a recipe that everyone probably knows in some form and is certainly not from a reputable source (except my head and palate), but I thought it might be helpful to record it somewhere... for posterity if nothing else. It seems, however, that there is delicious-ness in simplicity! Thank goodness for that.

Fresh-from-the-Market Red Potatoes (this is easily adaptable to your quantities so be flexible!)

Handful of medium to little red potatoes, cut into equal sized portions (no smaller than halved or quartered)
olive oil
2-3 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder (can substitute fresh, minced garlic)
kosher salt to taste
1/2 TBSP cold butter, cut in pieces

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Wash and scrub your potatoes carefully (so as to not scrub off the skin). Drizzle olive oil over your potatoes. Sprinkle chopped herbs, garlic powder and salt over potatoes and toss with your hands so all pieces are equally coated. Bake for 10 minutes and then quickly add pats of butter to the potatoes (will make a nice buttery skin on the potatoes) and bake for 15-20 more minutes until desired doneness.

Straight From the Garden

Thanks to an overabundance of herbs in the garden (hopefully the green-thumb gods won't take that as a sign of over-confidence, I've just gotten lucky so far this year!), my brother's ingenuity (at the beach, I watched and learned as he put together his infamous pizzas for dinner one night) teaching me to pre-heat my pizza stone, and a great deal on shredded cheese at Safeway, dinner last night... was served.

Fresh oregano on my version of a traditional Italian pizza... whole wheat crust covered with tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella, and pepperoni... all sprinkled with Parmesan.

And, fresh cilantro on yummy BBQ chicken pizza, which no surprise turned out to be our favorite. Honey barbeque sauce layered on whole wheat crust followed by shredded braised chicken, mozarella cheese, and topped with rough-chopped cilantro.

*Next time for the BBQ chicken pizza, I've vowed to try the real CPK recipe which includes smoked Gouda!

In My Own Backyard?

Sorry for the teaser, this isn't another post about our flowers... rather about my new favorite place to whittle away my time and money (though admittedly, their prices are right in line with any chain grocery store but their product is almost guaranteed fresher)... Penzeys Spices.

There's not a whole lot more to my post today, other than a free ad for another wonderful kitchen and cooking-related store - this one specializing in any spice, herb, or other flavoring that you might desire for your culinary needs. They have a ton of retail locations but you can also order online or from their catalog if you are sadly too far from one of their stores.

*thanks, Carolyn, for the recommendation!!

Two for Two

Once again frustrated making the same (albeit tasty) dishes over and over again, I went looking for some recipes and came upon two winners... in a row (I just had to share)!

Yes, I'm always talking about healthy recipes that can be made with your everyday ingredients... so that's where this tilapia dish comes in. The brownies... not so healthy but so yummy and even versatile!

Tilapia in Mustard-Cream Sauce
*Don't be turned away by the "cream" in the recipe title, this was a Cooking Light recipe and as such, it's actually very light!

Ingredients

4 (6-ounce) tilapia fillets
1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
Cooking spray
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 ounce portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 TBSP whipping cream
2 TBSP Dijon mustard

Sprinkle fish with thyme, pepper, and salt. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add fish; cook 1 minute on each side. Add broth, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Add mushrooms; cook, uncovered, 1 minute or until mushrooms are tender. Remove fish from pan; tent with foil to keep warm.

Add cream and mustard to pan; stir with a whisk until well combined. Cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Serve sauce over fish.

*I halved this recipe and it still turned out perfectly. I also omitted the mushrooms (though I bet they'd be delicious), and served this over a bed of sauteed spinach. This sauce would be amazing over chicken as well!

My second foray into brand new recipes (don't you love having reviews of recipes easily accessible on the web?!) was Double-Chocolate Chip Brownies from Nestle.

Three things I loved about this recipe... that I had all of the ingredients on hand (a common theme, as you've noticed), it allowed some creativity with the selection of nuts (I chopped up some pecans), and in mere minutes, the entire pan was gone (granted, when do hungry guys turn down brownies... but I still view that as a good sign).