Citrus Teriyaki Salmon w/ Mushroom Rice

Opted for something with some "Spring" flavor for dinner tonight even though we are expecting a "huge" snow storm ... it was very refreshing and the Hubby and Kiddos loved it! Served with sour dough and sauteed brussels sprouts. Enjoy ... 

 Citrus Teriyaki Salmon

Ingredients

• 1 pound salmon fillet
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons lemon pepper, divided
• 1 ½  teaspoon garlic powder, divided
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons ginger
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice

Directions

1. Rub salmon with about 1 tablespoon brown sugar. Lightly sprinkle with lemon pepper and garlic powder; rub seasoning into fish.
2. Combine remaining ingredients in a Ziploc bag and shake to mix.
3. Add salmon to bag and allow 30 - 60 minutes to marinate.
4. Preheat broiler. Place fish in a foil-lined baking pan drizzled with additional olive oil. Reserve marinade.
5. Pour remaining marinade into a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue to simmer for about 7 minutes.
6. Broil fish skin-side up, 2 minutes. Remove from oven, pull skin off with tongs. Baste with marinade, return to oven, and broil 2 minutes more. Turn fish, and broil until fish flakes easily, about 4 minutes. Remove from oven, and let sit 5 minutes before serving.

Mushroom Rice with Parmesan

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 mushrooms, coarsely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ¼ cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 ½  cups water
• ¾  cup uncooked jasmine rice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• ¼ cup parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook mushrooms, garlic and onion until mushrooms are cooked and liquid has evaporated.
2. Add rice and water to rice cooker. Stir in mushroom, garlic and onion mixture along with parsley.
3. Cook until rice is done, about 20 minutes. Stir in salt, pepper and parmesan.

Serve and enjoy :-)

Seared Scallops over Linguine with a Red Pepper Sauce

This turned out great! It was DELICIOUS ... if I do say so myself :-) Lylah LOVED the scallops (hence the pic of her I've included) and I hope you enjoy them just as much should you try this recipe. I served it with blanched and sautéed green beans and three cheddar bread.

Ingredients:
1 cup Heavy Cream
½ cup Half & Half
1 T Minced Garlic
1 large Red Bell Pepper, finely chopped (or 2 small peppers)
Dash Sugar
1/8 t White Pepper
1 T Lemon Juice
¾ t Cajun Seasoning (more or less to taste)
Dash Cayenne Pepper
20 Scallops – sprinkled with add’l Cajun Seasoning
1 T Butter
1 T Olive Oil
1 T Minced Garlic
7 oz Linguine Noodles (cooked according to directions)
Directions
1. Combine the bell peppers, heavy cream, half & half and sugar in a pot and bring to boil over medium heat; reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the cream reduces to about 1 cup, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the Cajun seasoning, lemon juice, salt, white pepper, and cayenne pepper.
2. Pour the sauce into a blender and blend until smooth.
3. While the sauce is cooking, heat oil and butter over medium heat.
4. Add garlic and scallops. Sear scallops on each side for 2-3 minutes or until done.
5. Place the seared scallops over the pasta and drizzle the red pepper sauce over top.

Meaty Garden Chili

Thought chili would be good for dinner tonight given the stormy, wet weather we're have today ... here's what I put together ... A Meaty Garden Chili!! Think I'll serve it with corn bread and a salad. Yummy!

Hoping it tastes as good as it smells :-)

Ingredients

• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
• 2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 (27 ounce) can chili beans in chili sauce
• 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 4 beef steak tomatoes, diced
• 3/4 cup beer
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons Franks Red Hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• Garnish: Shredded Cheddar Cheese, Sour Cream, Chips, Green Onion ... ???

Directions

1. Place ground beef & sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and crumble.
2. Combine meat and all other ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for about 8 hours or on high for about 4-5 hours.

Feta, Basil, & Tomato Stuffed Chicken

Came up with this for dinner last night while trying to use up some stuff I had on-hand ... turned out pretty tasty :-) Served over whole grain angel hair pasta tossed with EVOO, minced garlic, tomatoes, and basil. Finished off the dish with a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a glass of Cab Sauv :-) Cheers!

 

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1/4 cup chopped basil
• 1/4 cup diced sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• salt & pepper to taste
• Breadcrumbs 
• Balsamic vinegar

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking dish.
2. Place chicken breasts between 2 pieces of waxed paper. Gently pound chicken with flat side of meat mallet or rolling pin until about 1/4 inch thick; remove wax paper. 
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta. 
4. Roll up the chicken and secure with toothpicks.
5. Spread 2 tablespoons bread crumbs in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange chicken in the dish, and sprinkle bread crumbs over top of the chicken.
6. Bake 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Cream Cheese Spritz Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3 oz cream cheese, softened 
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg yoke
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
2. Mix the butter, cream cheese and sugar
3. Add egg yolk and vanilla and mix well
4. Add salt and flour, half a cup at time
5. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. 
6. Decorate and ENJOY :-)

Pics to come later ...

Chicken with a Dijon-Tarragon Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• Seasoned flour or breadcrumbs
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 shallot, minced
• Splash of white wine
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

Directions

1. Melt the butter and heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the chicken dry and coat with seasoned flour. Place in the skillet and brown on both sides. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and continue cooking 15 minutes, or until chicken juices run clear. Set aside and keep warm.
2. Add minced garlic and shallot to pan and sauté until almost soft. Splash with white wine and cook for about 1 minute.
3. Stir cream into the pan, scraping up brown bits. Mix in mustard and tarragon. Cook and stir 5 minutes, or until thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Drizzle chicken with sauce to serve. (I served the chicken on a bed of rice and topped with the sauce) … very YUMMY!

Italian Meatball & Tortellini Soup

Well ... given that today started out so dark and gloomy I decided I was going to make soup for dinner. I didn't want to go to the store so I pulled together ingredients from home ... this is what I came up with! Cheers :-)

Italian Meatball & Tortellini Soup

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ¾ cup diced onion
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 5 cups beef stock
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup edamame
• 1/2 cup diced carrots
• ½ teaspoon each: marjoram, thyme, rosemary, & oregano
• 3 tablespoons fresh basil, diced
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ pound frozen, cooked Italian-style meatballs - thawed
• About 36 cheese tortellini
• Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat; cook the onion and garlic in the oil until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour the beef stock into the pot; add the tomatoes, carrots, edamame, spices, and bay leaf. Bring the mixture to a boil. Stir in the meatballs and simmer for about 30-40 minutes. (I cut the meatballs into quarters so it was easier form the kiddos to eat)
2. Return to a boil, add tortellini and cook another 3-5 minutes. Ladle into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese to serve.  (Serves 4)