Turkey spinach egg "muffins"

I've been looking for more portable breakfasts, so on Sunday morning I threw this plate together. Yum! The strawberries are just sliced for ease of eating, and the recipe for the muffins is here. The muffins also reheat pretty well, so I've been zapping them in the microwave all week either just before I leave the house or right when I get to work. I think I will try more variations on this theme soon!

 

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Crispy Smashed Chicken with Chimichurri

I love chimichurri! The original recipe for this chicken suggested salsa but this sounded even better to me, so off I went to find a suitable recipe, which I got from here. I added some broiled asparagus and dinner was served!

Crispy Smashed Chicken

Recipe from the Nom Nom Paleo™ app for the iPad, which I really like!

Makes : 4 servings

Hands-On Time : 30 min

Total Time : 30 min

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 6 ounces each)
• 2 tablespoons Ghee or fat of choice, plus more if needed (I used coconut oil)
• ½ cup coconut flour
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• freshly ground black pepper
• Lime wedges (optional)
• Mango Salsa or Salsa Roja Asada (optional)

Preparation Steps:

If you're starting with frozen chicken breasts, dunk the package in a large bowl of super-hot tap water and weigh it down with a ramekin or small bowl to keep it completely submerged. A package of two large chicken breasts should thaw in about 10 minutes. Flip it and massage it a few times as it thaws.

Sprinkle the chicken with a few drops of water and place it between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment. Then hulk out and smash the breasts with a meat pounder, rolling pin, or small cast iron skillet until the chicken is uniformly flattened into half-inch-thick paillards.

Melt the Ghee over medium-high heat in a large cast iron skillet.

In a large bowl, mix the coconut flour, salt, garlic powder, and a few grinds of pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, and pat off any excess.

Once the cooking fat is melted and shimmering, place the chicken flat-side down in the skillet, and allow it to cook undisturbed for 3 to 4 minutes.

Don't overcrowd the skillet -- if your chicken pieces are too big, fry them up in separate batches.

Flip the breast over, and cook the other side for another 3 to 4 minutes, or until the exterior is crisp and golden brown.

Transfer the cooked chicken to a wire rack, and tent it with foil while you fry up the remaining pieces.

Slice up the paillards, and serve it up with your favorite sauce. This chicken is fantastic with some lime wedges and topped with a spicy salsa.

 

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Slow cooker pulled pork

Smokey Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Ingredients:

• One 4 to 6 pound pork shoulder
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 2 small white or yellow onions

Dry rub:

• 1/4 cup Spanish smoked paprika
• 2 tbsp dehydrated minced onion
• 1 tbsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp chili powder

Instructions:
1) Peel your garlic and cut each clove in half. Using a thin knife poke holes into your pork shoulder and then press your garlic in. I like to stick a few pieces under the fat cap as well.
2) Mix your dry rub ingredients well in a bowl or large plastic bag.
3) Coat your pork shoulder with your dry rub as evenly as possible. Allow your spice coated pork shoulder to sit in the fridge overnight if possible. This step is not necessary, yet I find that this marination time helps the meat pull some of the spice in better. You can either use a large resealable bag or plastic wrap.
4) Slice your onions into thick slices and line your slow cooker with them. Place your pork shoulder on top of the onions with the fat cap facing upwards.
5) Set your slow cooker to low for 8 to 10 hours. Your meat is done when it easily pulls apart with a single fork.
6) Remove your fat cap and bone from the meat. Now simply use a pair of forks to shred your tender meat into pulled pork goodness serve it up with a veggie of your choice or toss it in a salad.

 

I steamed some broccoli and made a quick salad of baby spinach with avocado, almonds, and balsamic vinaigrette. Pretty yummy!

 

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Swedish Meatballs

You may think these are ordinary meatballs, but they are not! They are delicious Swedish meatballs, resting before diving into their sauce. This is a family recipe, which has been tweaked over the years until it's exactly what we want.

Swedish Meatballs

Serves 8 generous portions

Prep time: 20 min, Cook time: 30 min

• 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 t. ground allspice
• 1/2 t. grated nutmeg
• 1/2 t. ground cardamom
• 1/2 t. ground pepper
• 1 lb. lean ground beef chuck
• 1 lb. lean ground veal
• 1/2 lb. lean ground pork
• 2 T. butter
• 2 T. flour
• 14 oz. beef broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 T. dry sherry

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Put bread crumbs and milk in a large bowl. Stir and let soak 10 min. Add onion, eggs, and spices and use a wooden spoon to combine.

Break meats into small bits with hands (Note: when I'm being fancy it's worth getting veal and pork, but I just used ground beef this time) and add to bowl. Use wooden spoon to beat until well-mixed. Shape into 1 1/4-inch balls; handle gently and rinse hands often to keep mixture from sticking. (If you have an ice cream scoop or dished about this size it makes things much easier to scoop and then use your moistened hands to shape into a ball). Arrange meatballs in a single layer on ungreased baking sheets (you'll need about 4 sheets).

Bake until well-browned, 10-15 minutes. Remove from pan with wide spatula. At this point, you can cover and chill these for up to 3 days.

For the sauce, put butter and flour in a large saucepan. Blend broth and water into flour. Bring to boil while stirring. Add meatballs and sherry and bring to simmer, cover and gently simmer for 10 min.

Serve over egg noodles or baby red potatoes sprinkled with dill.

 

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Summer berry balsamic salad

This is my favorite way to eat salad. You can tell because I forgot to take a picture until I'd eaten half of it! Plus it's super duper easy.

Summer berry balsamic salad

1 serving

Prep time: 5 min

• A big bowl of Baby spinach
• 4 Strawberries
• 6 Raspberries
• 2 T. Balsamic Vinaigrette
• 1 T. Toasted sliced almonds
• 1/2 rotisserie chicken breast

The beauty of this salad is that, other than toasting the almonds, I didn't have to cook anything. I could have made my own chicken but we went to Costco today and they have the most delicious rotisserie chickens for not much more than it would cost me to buy the raw meat. I also used per-made balsamic vinaigrette, though I usually make my own. I just tossed the spinach in the dressing, sliced the strawberries, sliced up one of the breasts on my rotisserie bird, and threw everything on top of the spinach. Lunch is ready!

 

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Curried bison meatballs

I made this new recipe tonight and it turned out great! I used ground bison instead of beef and served it with a little rice and a lot of steamed broccoli. I always feel better--not only healthy but proud and satisfied--when I make food from scratch at home.

 

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Five minute dinner

Scrambled eggs, wilted spinach with garlic, and leftover focaccia. Yum!

 

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