Cottage Cheese Salad

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup cucumber, diced or sliced in rounds (pictured above) (Use minis if slicing in rounds.)
• ¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 Tablespoons red onion, finely diced
• 1 cup full fat cottage cheese (IMO, Good Culture brand is by far the best!)
• ½ - 1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
• Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil (I love the Graza "drizzle" EVOO.)
• Fresh herbs (dill or parsley are best) (I used a couple pinches of dried dill and it was great!)
• Cracked pepper and flakey sea salt

Directions:

• Combine tomatoes, cucumbers, and onion in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with a little salt and a crack of pepper and toss to combine.
• Add cottage cheese + vinegar to a shallow bowl and stir to combine. Scoop veggies on top with a slotted spoon to drain excess liquid from the veggies.
• If desired, toss to combine.  Top with herbs, a drizzle of olive oil, cracked pepper, and flaky sea salt. Enjoy on its own or served with pita chips or bread. (Siete Dip Chips are a fave at our house!)

*www.eatingbirdfood.com

Easy Peasy Carnitas

 

Ingredients:

2.5-3.5 pounds pork shoulder or butt roast (I usually get closer to 3.5 pounds because I trim a bit of the large chunks of fat before cooking and that reduces size.)

1/2 a yellow onion, thinly sliced

one packet Siete carnitas seasoning

1/2 cup Herdez salsa verde

favorite toppings 

Directions:

In a slow cooker, add the pork and top with sliced onion. Add 1/2 cup of water + 1/2 cup of salsa verde.  Cover and cook on low setting for 6-7 hours (or until tender).  

Carefully remove meat from crock pot and place in a 9x13 dish.  While separating/shredding meat, remove unwanted fat and discard.  DO NOT DISCARD cooking liquid.

To a small bowl, add 1/2 cup of cooking liquid from crock pot, and add carnitas seasoning packet.  Whisk until combined and pour on top of meat in 9x13 dish.  Stir to coat pork and mix well.  Add additional cooking liquid as needed.  Do not oversaturate. 

For crispy carnitas, broil pork the oven for 2-3 minutes or until crispy!

Serve as desired (tacos, nachos, burrito bowls)!

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip

Ingredients:

• 4, 10 oz. cans chunk chicken breast, drained
• 2, 8 oz. blocks cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 8 oz. finely shredded Colby Jack cheese
• 1 cup Frank's Wing Sauce
• 1 cup ranch dressing
• For dipping: tortilla chips (I use Fritos Scoops), carrots, celery

Directions:

Add chicken, cream cheese, shredded cheese, wing sauce, and ranch dressing to a 6 quart crock pot. Stir to combine then heat on LOW until hot, 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring a couple of times. Serve with dippers.

*Make ahead: Add all the ingredients into the crock of your slow cooker then refrigerate up to 2 days ahead of time. Place on the crock pot base then cook on low for an additional 30 minutes, or until heated through.

*www.iowagirleats.com

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bundt Cake

Pair this with a good vanilla ice cream and...*chef's kiss!*

Ingredients:

Cake:

1 standard size chocolate cake mix

1 package dry, chocolate pudding mix (3.9 oz.)

1 cup sour cream

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

1/2 cup warm water

PB Filling:

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1/3 cup powdered sugar

4 tablespoons melted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

Chocolate Glaze:

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup whipping cream

Topping:

Mini peanut butter cups (Reese's or Trader Joe's)!

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prep bundt pan by coating with non-stick cooking spray.

2. Combine all of the cake ingredients with a hand mixer until combined. Do not over mix, but make sure all dry ingredients and wet ingredients are well combined. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, combine peanut butter, melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt.  Hand mixing is fine, but mix well.

4. Spoon half the chocolate cake batter into cake pan, then spoon all of the peanut butter filling on top of the cake batter. Top with remaining chocolate cake batter.

5. Bake for 50-55 minutes  (check at 50) or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, then transfer from pan to serving dish.  Allow to cool COMPLETELY.  (I like to make cake the day before, seal and store, and then glaze next day.) 

6. To glaze, pour heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl (glass works best) and heat for a minute on half power (or until boiling). Add chocolate chips to hot whipping cream and step away from it for 3-5 minutes.  Stir until combined until it becomes a smooth, glossy glaze.  Spoon or pour over cake.  Allow it to cool for a few minutes, then top cake with mini peanut butter cups.

*Adapted from www.lovefromtheoven.com

Avgolemono (Greek Lemon Chicken) Soup

Avgolemono is a traditional Greek lemon chicken soup that's made with egg yolks and loads of lemon juice for a warming and satisfying meal.  Super yummy, especially during the chilly months or when family has the sniffles.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• 2-3 celery stalks, diced
• 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves 
• 2 chicken breasts (about 12 oz / 350 g total)
• 6 cups (1.5 liter) chicken stock or broth (I used 6 at first then added another cup later!)
• 3/4 cup (175 g) orzo
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 egg yolks
• A handful fresh dill
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot or Dutch oven and cook the onion, carrot, and celery for 8-10 minutes over medium heat until softened. (I food processed the onion, carrot, and celery together!) Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, then add the bay leaves, raw chicken (I seasoned with salt and pepper first), and chicken stock (I used broth).
3. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low, cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Take out the chicken breasts and bay leaves. Add the orzo to the pot and continue to cook for 10 minutes.
5. Shred the chicken with two forks and add it back to the pot.
6. Pay attention to this step!!  While the orzo is cooking, whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice in a bowl. Take out 1-2 ladles of soup and pour it over the egg-lemon mixture to temper it. Whisk, whisk, whisk!  Add this mix to the pot and continue to stir + cook for 5 minutes.
7. Stir in the fresh dill, adjust the seasoning, and serve immediately with some extra fresh dill on top if you like.  Grilled cheese paired with this soup is a winner!

For step by step directions, *https://skinnyspatula.com/avgolemono-greek-lemon-chicken-soup/

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