Ketchup!

     It's been awhile since my last post and naturally a lot has happened. Rather than try to recap it all, I'm just going to share a few of the meals I've made lately. I wish I could tell you that I'm back to my regular cooking self, but I'm actually leaving my kitchen tomorrow for 15 days. I plan on picking up tons of foodie inspiration somewhere between Palm Springs, Newport Beach, San Francisco, Sonoma Valley, New York City and Detroit and will have lots to share once I return. Not to mention, I can't wait to share all of the yummy recipes I whip up with my Mom and sisters for Thanksgiving. Gobble Gobble!

Southwestern BBQ Chicken Salad

Ingredients: 

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

BBQ sauce

1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
1/2 head romaine lettuce, chopped
6 fresh basil leaves, cut into strips
1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup canned corn, drained
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tomato, diced
1/2 avocado, diced
1/4 cup mexican shredded cheese
Tortilla chips, broken into bite sized pieces
Spicy Ranch Dressing

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 
Brush BBQ sauce on chicken breasts and cook for 30 minutes.
Cool, then shred into bite sized pieces.
Mix lettuce, basil, black beans, corn, cilantro, tomato, avocado, cheese and tortilla chips in a large salad bowl. 
Toss with spicy ranch dressing and drizzle with BBQ sauce. 

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The Californian

Ingredients:
1 Sesame bagel, toasted
1 tbsp cream cheese
1/4 tomato, sliced
1/4 avocado, sliced
1 egg, cooked over easy
1 tsp cilantro
Red pepper flakes ~~~ CLH

Directions:
Spread cream cheese on bottom half of bagel.
Layer tomato, avocado, egg and cilantro on top of cream cheese.
Sprinkle with red pepper flakes. 
Serve open-faced.

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Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 tsp italian seasoning
1 cup sun-dried tomato sauce
2 tbsp mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tsp parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 deg F.
Combine bread crumbs and italian seasoning in bowl, set aside.
Beat egg in a separate bowl. Brush chicken with egg mixture.
Coat chicken in bread crumbs.
Place coated chicken in casserole dish. Cover with tomato sauce. Bake for 30 minutes.
Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan cheeses over chicken breasts, then place under broiler for 5 minutes until melted. 


Sauteed Broccoli Rabe

Ingredients:
1 bunch broccoli rabe, tough stems removed
2 tbsp live oil
3 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes ~~~ CLH

Directions:
Blanch broccoli rabe, then set aside to dry.
Heat olive oil over medium heat in large saute pan. Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Once garlic begins to brown, remove it from the pan and discard. 
Add broccoli rabe to the pan. Coat in olive oil mixture and cook for a couple minutes more.
Serve with parmesan chicken and crusty bread.

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Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp jalapeno, minced
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 tbsp Emeril's Southwest Essence
1.5 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chilies
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup canned corn

1 cup canned black beans

1/2 tbsp fresh cilantro stems, chopped
1 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
Sour cream
Mexican cheese, grated
Green onions, chopped

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium heat. Toss in onion and jalapeno and cook for a few minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a couple minutes more. 
Stir in the ground turkey, Emeril's Southwest Essence, chili powder, salt, cumin, oregano and bay leaf. Cook until turkey is browned and cooked through. 
Transfer ingredients from the pan to slow-cooker on low heat. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, green chilies, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, corn, black beans, and cilantro stems and leaves. Mix all ingredients together.
Cook for 8 hours. 
Serve chili in bowls. Top with sour cream, cheese and green onions.

Lazy Sunday Brunch

     There's nothing better than a lazy Sunday. Sleeping in. Slowly getting around to cooking up a late breakfast. Then before you have a chance to change out of your pj's to start your day, you make the executive decision to go and crawl back into bed. It's not very often that these kind of days come around, so when they do you gotta take hold and try to make it last for as long as humanly possible. 

     Of course, not getting out of your pj's can cause some issues - such as venturing out to the grocery store to get supplies. Since getting out of my pajamas is clearly not an option, I'm going to do the best with what I have in my fridge. Luckily, we had tacos a couple nights ago which means we have all of the necessary ingredients to make Huevos Rancheros!!

Lazy Sunday Huevos Rancheros

Ingredients: 
2 tbsp olive oil
2 eggs
Salt and pepper, to taste
3 corn tortillas
1/2 cup rice, cooked

3 pieces of thick cut bacon, cooked and diced

1 half of an avocado, diced
1 tbsp cilantro, stems removed
1 tbsp salsa
Mexican cheese, shredded
Hot sauce, to taste ~~~ CLH

Directions:
Heat olive oil in skillet. Fry the eggs sunny-side up. Season with salt and pepper. 
Wrap corn tortillas in damp paper towel, then place inside large ziplock bag. Keep bag unzipped and microwave for 30 seconds to steam. 
Arrange tortillas in a triangle like shape, overlapping in the middle. Top with cooked rice, diced bacon, sunny-side up eggs eggs, avocado, cilantro, salsa and cheese. Dabble with hot sauce. 

Buon Appetito

     Sleeping in on a Monday is a rare occurrence. Sort of like the blue moon that happened a couple days ago, which by the way - did you know a blue moon is not actually blue? According to my trusty source, Wikipedia: "A blue moon is the appearance of the third full moon in a season that has four full moons, instead of the regular three". There you have it folks. You learn something new every day!

     Anyway, back to the beginning... Sleeping in on a Monday is a rare occurrence... 

     Anddd... I actually have no clue where I was going with that. Uhhh... just eat and be happy :)

Caprese Scramble

Ingredients:
8-10 small heirloom tomatoes
1 tsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
3 eggs
1 tbsp. milk
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. basil, minced
1/3 cup cooked chicken, diced
2 tbsp. fresh mozzarella, diced
Balsamic glaze

Directions:
Sautee tomatoes and garlic in olive oil for 2-3 minutes, then set aside. 
Beat eggs and milk together in bowl. Season with salt and pepper. 
Heat greased skillet over medium-high heat, then pour in egg mixture. 
Once the eggs start to set, add the sautéed tomatoes, basil, chicken and mozzarella. 
Scramble until cooked through and no liquid remains.
Drizzle balsamic glaze over scramble and serve with a side of toast. 

Same Ole, Same Ole

     Hallelujah! It is the weekend. And a long weekend at that. Not only am I excited to have 3 full days away from the office, but I am excited to do absolutely NOTHING. 
     
     At first I was feeling a little strange about not skipping town for the holiday weekend, but then I took a look back at my daily planner (yes, I still use an old school planner - where I write my schedule out with a pencil) and I realized for the past eight weekends straight I have either been traveling or entertaining house guests. Eight... weekends... two... months... zero... "me"... time...

     Now, what to do with all of this extra time? Well, I gave my boyfriend access to my Pinterest account and told him to choose any breakfast recipe his little heart desires. You know what he did with that? Took 30 minutes scrolling through pictures, then asked me to make him the same ole breakfast burrito I used to make him when we actually had the time to cook our own eggs. I guess some things never change. 

Breakfast Burrito

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 tbsp. milk
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup cooked rice
1/4 cup bacon, diced*
1 tbsp. Mexican cheese, shredded
1 tbsp. salsa
2 tsp. hot sauce ~~~ CLH
1 large flour tortilla

*TFD: Use turkey bacon if you want to feel a bit less guilty. I slipped it in and my boyfriend didn't have a clue ;)

Directions:
Whisk eggs, milk, 1 tsp. hot sauce and salt and pepper together in a bowl.
Cook eggs at medium-low in greased skillet, until scrambled through. 
Wrap scrambled eggs, 1/3 cup cooked rice, bacon, cheese, salsa and remaining hot sauce inside of tortilla. Warm burrito in greased pan until cheese is melted and grill marks appear. 
Serve with extra rice on the side.