Month: September 2015

New Barber Foods Chicken Cordon Bleu & Sauteed Green Beans #SimplySpecialMeals

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SimplySpecialMeals #CollectiveBias

 

We all have those nights where dinner is the last thing on your mind. On busy days (especially Mondays), I just don’t want to think up something for dinner, and  I don’t want to spend the money on delivery.

 

Having a main dish in the freezer, like Barber Foods Stuffed Chicken Breasts, is a lifesaver for busy days. I picked up a 6-pack of Barber Foods Chicken Cordon Bleu from my local Superfresh (you can find them in the freezer section) so that I’m set for future dinners. Look for their new snazzy packaging!

 

The stuffed chicken breasts are individually wrapped so you can make as many or as few as you want at a time. Barber Foods’ Chicken Cordon Bleu is a chicken breast stuffed with savory ham and Swiss and American cheese which is then breaded — they recently updated the recipe to go along with their new packaging, yum! The frozen raw chicken can go right in the oven from the freezer, so no preparation is needed. This allows me to get dinner going as soon as I walk in the door, so helpful!

 

I like to make a quick side dish to serve while the chicken is cooking, so for the Chicken Cordon Blue I decided to make sauteed green beans with garlic and toasted almond slices.

 

Ingredients:

  • 4 Barber Foods Breaded Stuffed Chicken Breasts (I used Cordon Bleu)
  • 1 (16 oz) bag frozen cut green beans
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup sliced almonds
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • the juice of one lemon

Continue reading New Barber Foods Chicken Cordon Bleu & Sauteed Green Beans #SimplySpecialMeals

Glazed Salmon and Rice Bowl

I don’t think I’ll ever have enough 30 minute weekday recipes, especially healthy ones! Here’s another one from Cooking Light, that includes salmon, brown rice, snow peas, and quick pickled radishes for a bunch of flavor, crunch, color, and a little tanginess.

 

This is actually two recipes together: the salmon rice bowl and orange-sesame snow peas.

 

Ingredients:

Salmon and Rice Bowl

  • 3 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce (or coconut aminos to make gluten free)
  • 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, divided
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 4 (6-ounce) skin-on salmon fillets
  • 1 cup very thinly sliced radishes
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 (8.5-ounce) pouch precooked brown basmati rice
  • 1/2 cup (1-inch) pieces green onions
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Orange-Sesame Snow Peas

  • 2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
  • 12 ounces trimmed snow peas
  • 1 teaspoon lower-sodium soy sauce (or coconut aminos to make gluten free)
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind

 

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Lemon-Browned Butter Cod with Hazelnut Pilaf

Have you ever made an Armenian-style pilaf? This style of pilaf adds toasted spaghetti or other noodles to the rice. This recipe for a Browned Butter Hazelnut Pilaf is really stellar. The cod recipe that goes along with it is also tasty, but the real star is the pilaf. The recipe, from the latest Cooking Light, is a quick meal, so it’s great for something a little different for a weeknight dinner!

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
  • 2 ounces uncooked thin spaghetti, broken into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 cup unsalted chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup uncooked basmati rice
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 1/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
  • 4 (6-ounce) cod fillets
  • the juice of one lemon
  • 4 lemon wedges (optional)

Continue reading Lemon-Browned Butter Cod with Hazelnut Pilaf

Smoky Slow Cooker Ribs #KingOfFlavor

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #KingOfFlavor #CollectiveBias

 

The countdown to the football season is almost over! As a Philadelphian, I am very much in Eagles territory, where Sunday (and Monday night) schedules revolve around the birds. A huge part of watching the game (at least for me) is obviously the food!

 

One of my favorite game day foods is a rack of ribs. I don’t have a grill, so my go-to method to get fall-off-the-bone ribs is to use my slow cooker.

The best ribs have a little bit of heat to them, don’t you think? This recipe brings both some heat and smokiness with the use of two El Yucateco hot sauces: Red Habanero Hot Sauce and Black Label Reserve Hot Sauce.

I actually picked up three of El Yucateco’s hot sauces at Walmart (you can never have too much hot sauce on hand!) I found them in the Hispanic Food Section.

El Yucateco Red Habanero Hot Sauce is a combination of red habanero peppers, tomato, spices and seasonings. What sets El Yucateco apart from other hot sauces is that it has less vinegar, so the flavor (and kick!) of the pepper comes through more. The red habanero sauce is a great pantry hot sauce and is a great addition to everything from a Bloody Mary to wings. The tomato flavor in the red habanero hot sauce also makes it a great addition to a barbecue sauce!

El Yucateco’s Black Label Reserve Hot Sauce is made from fire roasted habaneros and has an awesome smoky flavor without being overpowering. This hot sauce works great with red meat, chili, and even chocolate! The Black Label Reserve Hot Sauce adds the smoky flavor of barbecued ribs to my slow cooker version!

El Yucateco also has a Green Habanero Hot Sauce, which  is a combination of green habanero peppers, garlic, spices and seasonings. This hot sauce is perfect with lighter foods — chicken, seafood, veggies, etc.

I’ve included two methods of cooking these ribs, based on if you’re watching a day or night game. I’m not going to lie, the results are best when you can cook the ribs at a lower temperature for a longer time, but are really delicious both ways!

 

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs baby back ribs
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
  • 2 cups ketchup
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons El Yucateco Black Label Reserve Hot Sauce
  • 1 tablespoon El Yucateco Red Habanero Hot Sauce
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Continue reading Smoky Slow Cooker Ribs #KingOfFlavor

Beef Tenderloin Steaks with Chipotle Butter and Bell Pepper Sauté

I haven’t posted a beef recipe in quite a while, so I’m happy that the one I’m sharing is absolutely delicious! It’s really simple to make as well! This recipe is from the latest Cooking Light and works great as a weeknight dinner. I paired it with the suggested side, Cilantro-Cumin Quinoa, which was also really tasty.

 

I found the portion of my steaks to be too big, so the below ingredients is a smaller cut than is shown. The beef tenderloin steaks are topped with a simple bell pepper saute and chipotle butter, so a flavorful dinner is ready in no time!

 

 

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
  • 1/4 cup sliced onion
  • 3 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 1 small red bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 small orange bell pepper, sliced
  • 1/4 cup dry sherry
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 3/8 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 2 (4-ounce) beef tenderloin steaks or 1 (8-ounce) sirloin steak
  • 1 tablespoon butter, softened
  • 1/2 tablespoon finely chopped chipotle chile in adobo sauce
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