Chicken with Honey-Beer Sauce

Chicken with Honey-Beer Sauce
Cooking Lite Magazine, September 28

canola oil
4 (6oz) chicken breast
1/4tsp black pepper
1/8tsp salt
3tbsp thinly sliced shallots
1/2 cup of beer
2tbsp soy sauce
1tbsp dijon mustard
1tbsp honey
parsley

heat skillet add oil. sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper saute 6 minites on each side until done. remove chicken and keep warm.

add shallots to pan and cook 1 minute. combine beer, soy, mustard and honey together to make a sauce. add to pan and bring to a boil. cook until liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup. return chicken to pan and coat with sauce. i also added soba noodles.

Pepper Jack Cornbread

Country Living Magazine October 2012

1 (8.5oz) box of Jiffy corn muffin mix
3/4 cup creamed corn
3oz pepper jack cheese grated
2 tbsp unsalted butter

preheat oven to 425, put muffin tin in oven to heat up

in a medium bowl combine all ingredients except butter.

remove ans from oven and brush with butter, fill with batter and bake 12-15 minutes. (toothpick test)

Brian's Bourbon Chili

my notes about this chili

Brians Bourbon Chili
Country Living Magazine, October 2012

it wasn't spicy enough for me :( I like it with a kick and this was a milder version. the beans were a nice touch though.

• 1.25lbs ground beef ( i used turkey)
• 1 cup bourbon
• 4 minced garlic cloves
• 1tsp dried oregeno
• 1tsp dried sage
• 3tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium chopped yellow onion
• 3 chopped bell peppers (i used green, red and yellow)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper ( i used 3 jalapenos) 
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp ground chipolte pepper (spice aisle)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 15 oz can black beans
• 1 15 oz can garbanzo beans
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 4 ounces cheddar cheese

in a large pot add beef and 1/4 cup bourbon, half the garlic, oregano and sage. cook until brown put aside ( i put it in a crock pot. 

in the same pot over high heat , heat olive oil add peppers, orange juice, butter and remaining garlic. stir about 10 minutes. 

add chili powder, chipolte and cayanne. salt and cook. about 1 minute

add remaining bourbon cook until reduced by half (about 8 minutes)

add tomatoes and bring to a boil. add beans and reserve beef. ( I just threw it all in a crock pot on med and let it sit about two hours). this says to simmer over stove top low for 1 hour.

Serve with pepper jack cornbread. 

the 25 calorie cookie

i found this amazing blog on pinterest.

Chocolate Covered Katie 

She has CHANGED my life!

I made these 25 calorie cookies from her blog and they were actually REALLY good.

I think I needed to add just a touch more flour and let them cook just a few more minutes.

• 1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup flour (I used 70g oat flour. You can use all-purpose or spelt, or Bob’s gf.)
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda (not baking powder)
• up to 1/3 cup chocolate chips, depending on your preference
• 2 tbsp (20g) brown sugar or coconut sugar (don’t sub with white) 
• 2 tbsp evaporated cane juice or white sugar (Omit only if, like me, you have no sweet tooth) (24g)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon (12g) vegetable or coconut oil (or pre-melted margarine) (If you want a fat-free version, see the cookie ball pop link, below.)
• 1-3 tablespoons milk of choice, as needed (feel free to switch proportions of milk and oil) (15-45g) (I ended up using 2) 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix your dry ingredients, then add in wet. Form cookies and bake 6-7 minutes. Take out when still underdone–they’ll continue to cook while cooling, and so you don’t want them to get hard. And if you want super-soft cookies, fridge the dough after rolling into balls. Then cook them after the dough is cold.

View her page here. Her cookies look a lot better than mine :) 

balsamic-glazed salmon

this recipe was AHMAZING

next time though i would offer the sauce on the side. it makes a ton of sauce and it tended to be just a tad over powering. but still a great low fat/low cal way to serve salmon.

serves 4

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 garlic clove
vegetable oil
4 (6oz) salmon fillets, center cut skinned. (i just bought whatever was offered at my grocery store) (still worked great)

2tbsp olive oil
salt
pepper

rice (makes a nice sauce holder).

place an oven rack in the center of oven. preheat to 400 degrees.

spray a baking sheet with vegetable oil. arrange the salmon fillets in a single layer on the baking sheet. drizzle both sides with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. roast for 8-10 minutes until the flesh flakes easily when prodded with a fork. (mine took a bit longer to cook, about 15 minutes)

in a small saucepan, bring vinegar, syrup and garlic to a boil over medium heat. reduce the heat and simmer until thick (about 12 minutes) set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

the calories i have figured for just the salmon and sauce is 300.

Asparagus Soup with Herbed Goat Cheese

Loved this recipe! Came from my new Weeknights with Giada cookbook.

this is a WONDERFUL cookbook for week night meals.

they are easy, fast and healthy.

the asparagus soup was my first recipe from the book. (this is the way i made it the book was much fancier)

ingredients:
1/2 cup (4oz) goat cheese at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 2 tbs of fresh chopped basil leaves
salt and pepper
2 tbs unsalted butter
1 large leek (white and pale green part only) thin slice
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 lbs trimmed aspragus cut into 1 inch pieces.

start by mixing goat cheese with 2 tablespoons. the book said to use a small scoop but I rolled the cheese and herb into balls (hee hee balls) (grow up abby) and then set them on wax paper in the fridge.

in a dutch oven (i used large saucepan) heat butter over medium heat. add leek and stir until soft (3 min or so).

add broth, asparagus and remaining basil.

season with salt and pepper

increase heat to high and bring to a boil.

reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes.

pour contents of saucepan into blender.

blend until smooth.

add goat cheese and enjoy!

I calculated 1 serving (4 total) to be about 222 calories.

Chicken Veracruz

35 minutes. serves 4

1 tbs olive oil
4 skin-on, bone in chicken breasts (about 1.5lbs)
dried oregano
salt
1 poblano chili pepper, stemmed and seeded
1 white onion
1 large tomato (i don't like tomato, i substituted with a large green pepper)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup chopped pickled jalapenos
1/2 cup pimentos
1 cup dry white wine

1. heat olive oil in a skillet over high heat. sprinkle chicken with oregano and salt. sear the chicken until well browned (about 7min per side)
2. meanwhile, slice the peppers and onions and garlic
3. once the chicken is browned, add veggies. cook until veggies soften (about 5 min). sprinkle with salt and add wine. bring to a boil. cover and simmer until chicken is finished cooking about another 10 minutes.
4. serve!

per serving: calories 421, fat 22g, cholesterol 109mg, sodium 1,304 mg, carbohydrate 9g, fiber 1g, protein 36g.

recipe taken from the june 2011 food network magazine

Bourbon Barbecued Pork Chops

Total: 40 min, Serves 4
ingredients

salt
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
4, 8oz bone-in pork loin chops
1/2 cup bourbon (you can substitute with apple cider) (the bourbon is worth it)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbs minced peeled ginger (i substituted dry ginger powder, found in spice aisle)
1 medium onion cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
2 medium beefsteak tomatoes ( i hate tomatoes so i doubled the onions instead)
1 tbs vegetable oil

1. Prepare a grill for indirect hear. ( i cooked this all in a skillet over my stove top)
2. whisk 1/4 cup salt, 1/4 cup brown sugar, and 3 cups of warm water in a large bowl. add pork chops and let soak 10 minutes.
3. meanwhile, mix the bourbon, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 cup brown sugar, garlic and ginger in a skillet. put over grill (or stove top) in direct heat. bring to a boil for a few minutes then remove from grill.
4. grill the onion and tomatoes over direct heat until charred about 3-5 minutes per side. add to the saucepan an put pan back over grill. cook until the sauce is thickened about 15 minutes.
5. remove chops from brine, pat dry. brush with vegetable oil and grill (or stove top) pork chops until finished. add to sauce and vegetables, let simmer 5 minutes and serve!

Per Serving: Calories 439, fat 20grams, cholesterol 102mg, sodium 347, carbohydrates 11g, fiber 1g, protein 37grams.

*Recipe taken from Food Network Magazine July/August 2011

Dopiaza Curry

I needed a quick and healthy meal that would fill me up!

ingredients

1.5 cups brown rice

1 jar Pataks Dopiaza Curry (found at Horrocks, Meijer and World Market)

2 peppers, 1 red, 1 green

2 large white onions

12 ounces of chicken

1 head of cauliflower

1. Cook the rice as box instructs

2. Start cooking the cauliflower, bring water to a little boil

2. Cut the chicken up and start cookin

3. Add your chopped veggies once the chicken is done

4. when the rice, and cauliflower are done add to skillet of chicken and veggies

5. stir it around a bit so the cauliflower becomes very small and blended into the rice. (I have found this to be a great trick to use less rice but still have something of substance to hold the sauce). 

6. Add the entire jar of Pataks sauce and let simmer on low for 15 minutes so the flavor sinks in. 

Serves 4. My calorie count came to 353 per serving. 

all about abby.

so here's to a new blog.

if you follow my personal blog, www.binksandthebadhousewife.com, you would know that when i hit the scale at 160 it was time for a wake up call and a life change.

it has not been easy. i'm three weeks in, 5 lbs down and learning to live healthier.

i have seriously tried everything. weight watchers, the abs diet, the 30 day diet, you name it i've tried it. unfortunetly i've also tried other alternatives, anorexia and bulimia in high school  which lost the weight but murdered my metabolism and ruled my mind.

those days are behind me and i've sifted through the early pages of a new chapter in life.

learning to live healthy.

to me, being healthy always meant "diet" but i'm trying to view the word "diet" how it's meant to be understood.

not temporary, but consistent. your diet is what you eat every day. so my new moto is going on a healthy balanced diet.

no starvation, no deprivation just moderation.

if you know me, then you know i love to cook. it's been an adjustment to switch from thick cheesey sauces to leaner healthier options. (not saying that i don't allow myself every now and then" but it's all about (again) moderation.

by no way am i a fitness expert trying to give health and fitness advice. no. at least not yet? haha probably not ever. thats not my expertise.

what this blog will be dedicated to is simple. the recipes and calorie content in them that i make throughout the week.

please feel free to comment on how you changed up the recipes and your takes on them. i'd love to see them!

xxoo abby