Grilled salmon with a quick blueberry pan sauce
Posted: July 29, 2011 Filed under: Clean eating, Fish/seafood, Grilled, Light and healthy, Low Carb Leave a comment »As you know I love love LOVE salmon, really most fish and seafood, but love salmon. I could eat it every day if I tried or let myself. I also love love LOVE blueberries so when I saw this recipe on Bon Appetit I had to make it. It was PERFECT…totally delicious and one of my new go to recipes for salmon.
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil plus additional for brushing
3/4 cup sliced shallots
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt plus additional for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme plus additional for seasoning
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice plus additional for seasoning
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
4 7-ounce salmon steaks or fillets with skin (each about 3/4 inch thick)
3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint, divided
Directions:
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt, 1/4 teaspoon thyme, and 1/8 teaspoon allspice. Stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add blueberries, 1/4 cup water, and vinegar. Stir to blend. Mash berries with potato masher or back of fork and cook until sauce thickens, stirring often, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Remove from heat.
DO AHEAD Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Rewarm before using.
Brush grill rack with oil. Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Brush salmon on both sides with oil; sprinkle with coarse salt, thyme, allspice, and black pepper.
Grill salmon until just opaque in center, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to plates. Stir 2 tablespoons sliced mint into warm blueberry sauce. Spoon sauce over salmon and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon mint. Serve immediately.
Herbed Turkey Meatballs
Posted: July 27, 2011 Filed under: Appetizer, Clean eating, Holiday Recipe, Light and healthy, Low Carb, Turkey Leave a comment »I have been meaning to making these meatballs for a while now. Finally I got around to it and wished I had made them sooner. They are wonderful, full of flavor, easy to make and a huge hit with us. These are not only a great meal, but would be a great holiday appetizer!
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 lb ground turkey
1 cup fresh bread crumbs, or panko
1/4 cup pumpkin puree, or 1 egg
2 tbsp fresh oregano, minced
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2/3 cup orange juice
1 shallot, minced
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 cup sugar
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and lightly oil a baking sheet.
In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and celery, and cook until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
In a large bowl, combine the celery and onion, turkey, bread crumbs, pumpkin puree, oregano, poultry seasoning, parsley, salt, and pepper. Gently mix to incorporate with your hands. Using a cookie scoop, form the mixture in meatballs, and arrange them on the baking sheet.
Bake 10 minutes, until cooked through.
Meanwhile, make the cranberry sauce. combine the orange juice, shallot, cranberries, and sugar in a medium skillet. Cook over medium heat, until the cranberries pop and the mixture begins to thicken slightly, about 5 minutes.
Serve the meatballs with the cranberry sauce.
Crab melts
Posted: July 25, 2011 Filed under: Appetizer, Cheese, Fish/seafood, Quick, Sandwich 2 Comments »For a quick and easy dinner, lunch or appetizer, try these crab melts. Found on allrecipes.com I made this with a greens salad for dinner and they were a hit…cheesy, toasted bread and crab! Wonderful!
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup cooked crabmeat
1 clove garlic, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
hot pepper sauce to taste
4 thick slices Italian bread, cut in half
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Beat the cream cheese in a medium bowl until fluffy. Mix in crab,
garlic, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Spread onto bread slices and top with Swiss
cheese. Place on a baking sheet.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cheese
has melted and browned slightly. Sprinkle with parsley, and serve.
Shrimp and pasta with creamy goat cheese sauce
Posted: July 11, 2011 Filed under: Cheese, Italian, Pasta, Quick Leave a comment »My H and I love goat cheese. We love it on grilled cheese, salads, pastas, breads, etc…so when I saw this recipe from Epicurious, I had to make it. It was great. The creaminess of the goat cheese and strong tomato flavor was perfect with the shrimp and pasta! HUGE HIT!
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
1 package sliced mushrooms
1 lb shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic
pinch each of kosher salt and red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
4 ounces goat cheese (or a combination of goat cheese and cream cheese)
1 tablespoon butter
Directions:
In a ziplock bag, combine shrimp through tomatoes and marinate in refrigerator for an hour.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat in a saute pan and cook mushrooms until they release their liquid and are browned. Set aside.
Keeping the same saute pan at medium-high, add shrimp and marinade ingredients and saute until cooked through, about six minutes. Set aside.
In the now empty pan, turn heat to high and deglaze with wine, scraping up any browned bits. Add chicken stock and reduce the liquids by half. Slowly stir in the goat cheese until melted and smooth. Add the butter at the end, and melt.
Add the mushrooms and shrimp back to the sauce and warm through. When just about finished, add the drained pasta and toss to combine. Add a little bit of reserved pasta water if the sauce is too thick or doesn’t cling to the pasta.
Lemon almond biscotti
Posted: July 9, 2011 Filed under: Biscotti, Breakfast, Brunch, Cookies Leave a comment »Ok, I LOVE LOVE LOVE biscotti. I love to make a fresh cup of coffee and dunk a delicious biscotti in it every morning. Even now I am wishing I still had some biscotti. Coffee and biscotti are my favorite way to start the day. So, once again I found a biscotti recipe to add my list of faves! This recipe was great!!
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
6 Tablespoons Butter
2/3 Cup Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 1/2 Tablespoons Lemon Zest
3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 1/4 teaspoons Almond Extract
2 Large Eggs
2 1/4 Cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place parchment paper on a large baking sheet or lightly grease the baking sheet. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the butter, sugar, salt, baking powder, lemon zest, and almond extract on medium speed until the mixture is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl down. Beat in the eggs and lemon juice. (It is normal if the batter appears slightly curdled.) Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour. Mix the dough until smooth. Note-the dough will be very sticky. The consistency is similar to sugar cookie dough before it is chilled.
Place the dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Shape the dough into a log, approximately 13″ long, 3″ wide, and 3/4″ thick. Straighten and smooth the top and sides. (A wet spatula works well for shaping.) Place the pan in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. (I let my dough cook for 23 minutes and removed it from the oven to prevent burning. Cooking time may vary depending on the oven, pans, etc. Keep an eye out to make sure the bottom isn’t burning.) Remove from the oven and let cool directly on the sheet for 10 to 25 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a spray bottle filled with room temperature water, thoroughly spritz the dough. Make sure to spray the top and sides as well. This process helps soften the biscotti, thus making it easier to cut. (I didnt do this step and it was fine to cut)
After letting the dough rest for 5 minutes, use a serrated knife to cut the dough crosswise. Cut the dough into 1/2″ slices, being sure to cut straight up and down to cut even slices. Set the biscotti on their edge on the baking sheet. Place the pan back in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, turning the pan halfway through to prevent uneven cooking. Remove from the oven when they turn very dry and are golden around the edges. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool. Yields approximately 2 dozen biscotti. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature.
Parmesan crusted goat cheese ball over basil oil
Posted: July 7, 2011 Filed under: Appetizer, Cheese, Quick 1 Comment »For a fun filled girls day out, I was to bring an appetizer and a summery cocktail to share. I had seen this on Annie’s Eats a while back and wanted a great time to make it. This was it. Girls day with all my girls who share my love of goat cheese! This appetizer was great!!! Easy to make, was delicious and loved by all!
ENJOY!
Ingredients:
For the goat cheese:
½ oz. Parmesan cheese
¼ cup panko
Freshly ground pepper
4 oz. semi-firm plain goat cheese
1 clove garlic
¼ tsp. coarse salt, plus more to taste
For the basil oil:
¼ cup fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Baguette slices, for serving
Directions:
Place the Parmesan in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely ground. Add the panko to the bowl and pulse a few more times so the cheese and crumbs have an even, fine texture. Season with freshly ground pepper to taste. Transfer to a shallow plate or bowl. Wipe out the bowl of the food processor.
Place the goat cheese in a small bowl. Finely mince the garlic. Sprinkle the salt over the minced garlic and smash the mixture together with a fork or the side of a chef’s knife until it forms a paste. Add the garlic paste to the bowl with the goat cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir the mixture together until smooth and well blended. Form the goat cheese mixture into a round ball. Roll the ball in the Parmesan-panko mixture until well coated. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
To make the basil oil, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add the basil leaves to the pot and boil for 30 seconds. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water. Blot the basil leaves with a towel to remove all of the excess water. Add the basil leaves and the garlic to the bowl of the food processor. Pulse until finely minced. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the food processor running, add the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream. Continue processing until the mixture is well blended and the oil takes on a green hue. Strain the oil mixture through a fine mesh sieve onto a serving plate. Place the ball of goat cheese in the center of the basil oil. Garnish with additional fresh basil if desired. Serve with baguette slices.
