Yummiest Tuna Pasta Salad (*but see notes to swap out tuna if you're not a fan)

 

Ingredients:

For the salad:

• 1 ½ cups cooked pasta (250 grams COOKED)
• 4 (5 oz. each) cans of albacore tuna (I like Wild Planet.)
• ⅔ cup cucumbers, finely diced
• ½ cup jarred roasted red peppers, chopped
• ½ cup jarred pepperoncinis, chopped (I used banana peppers.)
• ½ cup red bell peppers, diced
• ¼ cup red onion, finely diced
• ½ cup basil (I didn't bother using.)
• 2 Tbsp. fresh dill or parsley, chopped (I used parsley.)
• 3 cups arugula, roughly chopped
• 2 oz. crumbled feta
• I added 1 seeded jalapeño too!

For the dressing:

• 3 Tbsp. light balsamic vinegar (I used a lemon infused white balsamic.  My fave is the Baker and Olive brand.)
• 3 Tbsp. lite mayo (I used Chosen Foods brand.)
• 1 lemon, squeezed
• ½ Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 frozen garlic cube (or minced clove)
• 2 tsp. honey mustard
• ½ tsp. kosher salt
• ¼ tsp. pepper

Directions:

• Cook 125 grams of pasta if you want just enough for this recipe. It will grow into 250 grams of cooked pasta.
• To a large bowl, add cooked pasta along with the rest of the salad ingredients. Break up the tuna so you don’t have any huge chunks.
• Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the salad and toss well. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Tip: If it’s drier than you prefer, add a little juice from the pepperoncini (banana pepper) jar or additional vinegar.
• Enjoy immediately or store in the fridge for your meal prep!

Notes:

GF/DF: Make sure to use gluten-free pasta and dairy-free cheese. 

Pasta: Cook a whole box and save the leftovers.  The cooked and dry weight pasta measurements are included in recipe.

Vinegar: Feel free to use any light balsamic or champagne vinegar.  My favorite is a fruit-infused white balsamic by Baker and Olive for that sweet kick! You can also do half of a normal vinegar and half of the fruit infused for balance.

Tuna: If you're not a fan of tuna, feel free to swap in chicken of course! Use the same 420 grams of chicken for the following macros: 

• Grilled chicken:  402 calories, 11 fat, 33 carbs, 36 protein, 2.2 fiber
• Rotisserie chicken breast: 388 calories, 12 fat, 32 carbs, 34 protein, 2.2 fiber

*www.lillieeatsandtells.com

One Dish Roasted Lemon Chicken + Potatoes

 

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs, bone-in + skin on (I used more chicken, around 2-2.25 pounds.  This was 5 thighs instead of 4.)

2 pounds baby potatoes, halved (I used 1-1.5 pounds.)

4-5 lemons (1-2 necessary and the other 2-3 optional.  I'll explain below.)

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped (I used 1 tablespoon dried.)

3 cloves of garlic, minced (or frozen Dorot cubes)

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon oregano

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

arugula, for serving

Directions:

*If you'd like to make this ahead of time, I prepped the entire recipe (up to step 5), and refrigerated until close to bake time.  Remove from fridge about 30 minutes before baking to allow to get to room temp.

• Preheat oven to 400.

• In a small bowl/jar, whisk together olive oil, zest of one lemon, 1/4 cup of lemon juice (1-2 lemons), rosemary, garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper.

• Add your chicken (skin side up) to a 9 x 13 baking dish and scatter your halved potatoes around.

• Pour the olive oil/lemon mixture over the top and rub into the chicken and potatoes, ensuring that it is evenly incorporated.

• IF DESIRED (for an even more lemony flavor), wedge up to two lemons, AKA four lemon halves into the dish. (The chicken and potatoes will already have a lemon-flavor from the lemon-oil mixture, but to elevate, add the additional lemons (anywhere from 2-4 halves) as suggested.  It is also fine to completely leave them out!)

• (Before baking, I added a few pinches of additional salt to the potatoes.)  Bake for one hour, then broil for 3-5 minutes until the chicken skin is a deep, golden brown.

• (Check potato salt levels, and if needed, add another pinch or two of salt.)  Serve the chicken, potatoes, a wedge of lemon, and plenty of juices from the pan over a bed of arugula.

*www.oliviaadriance.com