37: Sriracha-Glazed Chicken Breasts

Will & I both really enjoy spicy food.  We recently started really liking Sriracha sauce so when I saw Martha's recipe for Sriracha-Glazed Chicken I knew it was something that we needed to try.  

Ingredients:

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp sriracha sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp ginger
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 lb skinless/boneless chicken breasts
1 tbsp sesame seeds

The How To:
Line a dish wish foil (for easy clean up) and place your chicken breasts in the pan
In a separate bowl mix soy sauce, vinegar, sriracha sauce, sugar, ginger, and sesame oil
Pour the sauce over the chicken
Preheat oven to 405 while your chicken is marinating for about 30 minutes 
Bake chicken until cooked through (about 35 minutes)
Then remove chicken and top with sesame seeds
Cook for about 5 minutes longer

I served this with a little of the extra sauce in a bowl for dipping and Will and I both devoured it.  It was absolutely delicious. This was 100% Will approved!   

36: Summer No Bake Lasagna

Truth time.. I never make lasagna.  Actually I very seldom eat Italian at all.  But, I saw this recipe on Martha's site for No Bake Summer Lasagna and thought I'd give it a whirl.  

Ingredients

1/2 cup ricotta
3 tbsp parmesan
olive oil
S&P
8 lasagna noodles, broken in half  
garlic
grape tomatoes, sliced
2 zucchni, thinly sliced
1 baby bella mushrooms, diced

The How To:
Cook noodles according to package and drain
In a small bowl, combine ricotta, parm, olive oil, and some S&P.  
In a skillet, heat some olive oil - add garlic, tomatoes and mushrooms
Cook until it looks good, probably about 5 minutes then put them in a separate bowl
Add more oil to your skillet, add zucchini and stir around until cooked - about 5 or 6 minutes depending on how thin they are sliced; then put them in a separate bowl
Place tomatoes in a dish, top with noodles, cheese mix, zucchini and tomatoes.  Repeat this layering process until your bowls are empty

A few things:
Whole wheat pasta is gross.  Does anyone actually like that stuff?  It's just a weird texture and not good.
Lasagna is a huge pain.  I'd rather just make a pasta bowl with all the stuff mixed up.  Who has time to wash all those bowls?  
No Bake Lasagna does not have time to meld - do yourself a favor and just bake the thing.
The zucchini in it were delicious.  I think those could reappear as a side dish.

With all that being said this dish was NOT Will approved.

35: Jalapeno Shrimp Cakes

Both Will and I really enjoy our seafood and jalapenos... So, I thought I'd try out these Jalapeno Shrimp Cakes.  

Ingredients:
1 lb shrimp - peeled
1 jalapeno - seeded and diced
Garlic
2 tbsp cilantro
2 tbsp panko
S&P
Juice from 1 lime
1 sliced avocado


The How To:
Place shrimp, garlic and jalapeno in a food processor (I use the magic bullet) and pulse until chopped well.  
Combine the mix with all the other ingredients
Form 4 patties 
In a nonstick pan, cook the patties on each side for about 4 minutes

I believe if I made this dish again I would try smaller patties and make shrimp pops instead.  This week our friend Angie wanted to get in on the fun -- this meal is Will (and Angie) approved! 

34: Jalapeno Mac & Cheese

My favorite meal in the world is my mom's mac & cheese.  I decided to do a spin on it and added in some jalapenos...

Ingredients: 

1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
2 cups milk

2 cups shredded sharp cheese

~4 tbsp diced jalapeno (to taste)
S&P
3 cups pasta (any kind you want)

The How To:
Cook the pasta according to package directions and put aside.
Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan, then add the flour and mix until it becomes a paste.  
Add the milk and jalapenos and bring to a boil, stirring continuously.  
Add the cheese and stir until melted completely.
Pour the roux (cheese mixture) over the pasta
Serve immediately

Since this is so close to my all-time favorite meal of course I think it is delicious.  As you can see from the picture below, this was Will approved.
I served it with steak, so that might have had some part of the extra smiley Will.

33: Chipotle Lime Salmon

I have mentioned before(here and here) that Will and I both really love salmon.  And recently I have branched out of the way that I typically make it. (my normal way is just plain on blackened in the broiler)  I saw this recipe and knew I had to try it out.

Ingredients:
1 lb salmon, cut into three slices
Olive oil
1 lime, sliced in thirds
S&P
cayenne pepper 

The How To:
Preheat oven to 500
Place salmon on a foil lined baking sheet - skin side up
Let it cook for 2 minutes, then pull salmon out and remove skin
Drizzle olive oil on both sides of the fillet
Squeeze the lime juice on the fillets
Sprinkle salt, pepper, and cayenne over the tops of the fillets and then place a slice of lime on top of each cut
Reduce heat to 275
Then cook for 8 minutes (longer if you would like your fish more well done)

We both really enjoyed this dish and I could totally see this becoming a regular in our house.  This dish is Will approved!! I served it with quinoa salad (quinoa, red pepper, mushroom, broccoli, tomato, avocado, feta and lime juice) - which was also delicious.

PS.
Yes, I actually forgot to take Will's picture right after we ate - then we went for a long walk.  So that's the reason for the change of clothes and sweaty look... 

32: Buffalo Pork Tenderloin

Will and I love spicy food, so when I saw this recipe I knew I wanted to try my own version of Buffalo Pork Tenderloin.

Ingredients:

1 package lean pork tenderloin
Frank's buffalo sauce
Merrilily's High Five Barbeque Sauce or your favorite hot sauce
Other BBQ Sauce (to taste)
Dash of paprika
Dash of cayenne pepper
Dash Fiery Montreal Seasoning
S&P



The How To:
Preheat oven to 405
Cover the pork with the above mixture
Cook for an hour or until the pork is about 170 degrees

Let the meat sit for about 5 minutes before cutting then cut and enjoy! 

I served this with broccoli and a quinoa salad

I was expecting this dish to be really spicy since the sauces I used are pretty hot.  But it really ended up pretty mild.  Next time I would add more sauce to heat it up a bit.  But regardless, Will really enjoyed it.  So, this dish is Will approved! 

31: Avocado, Swiss, Arugula, and Goat Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

What could you think of that would go better with Tomato Gazpacho than a grilled cheese sandwich?  Exactly -- an Avocado, Swiss, Arugula, and Goat Grilled Cheese Sandwich! This recipe was inspired by this Green Goddess Grilled Cheese.

Ingredients:

Wheat bread
Basil pesto spread
Swiss cheese
Arugula
Avocado - thinly sliced
Goat cheese
Olive Oil

The How To:
Get two slices of bread for each sandwich 
Spread about 1 tbsp pesto sauce (to taste) on the top and bottom of both pieces of bread
Add 1 slice of swiss cheese, avocado, arugula, goat cheese and top with second slice of bread
Heat olive oil (or butter) in a frying pan over medium/low heat
Add the sandwich and cook until golden brown - press down on the sandwich and flip until the other side is golden brown

Serve warm.

Will was not expecting much with this meal, but ended up really enjoying it.  So I am pleased to announce that this meal is Will approved! 

30: Spicy Tomato Gazpacho

Last week I went to McCormick and Schmicks and had a special tomato gazpacho.  It was so delicious that I have been searching for a recipe to try out.  This is the one that I decided to start with.

Ingredients:

5 tomatoes
1 tbsp garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
1  tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp diced jalapenos
1 tsp cilantro*
1/2 large cucumber 
olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder*
S&P
avacado

*not pictured

The How To:
If you don't have a magic bullet (this kind) you should get one. I LOVE mine.
Cut two large slices of cucumber and place aside

Grind 4 tomatoes until they are liquid
Then add all ingredients except the olive oil
Add S&P to taste
Dice the 2 large cucumber slices and 1 tomato and add to the mix
Refrigerate a couple of hours (if you have time) before serving
Serve with avocado slices on top

Will was very skeptical about this dish.  He is not even half the tomato fan that I am.  I really think that I could live off of tomatoes.  But, Will ended up really liking this dish, so..... this dish is Will approved! 

 This is what happens when I forget to take the picture at the table... 

And yes, I served this dish with #31 - Avocado, Swiss, Arugula, and Goat Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

29: Summer Salmon

Will and I both love seafood and I am always looking for new dishes to make.  I ran across this recipe and then modified it a bit.  This is a great summer dish and I just know I'll be making it again.

Ingredients: 

1 lb salmon
olive oil
S&P
1 diced cucumber 
1 tbsp diced jalapeno
few mint leaves, minced*
1/2 lime - squeezed
1 diced avocado*

*not pictured

The How To:

Preheat oven to 500.

Place fish skin down on a foil lined baking sheet
Rub fish with olive oil and sprinkle some sea salt
Reduce temp to 275 and cook fish on the lowest rack for about 9 minutes
For the topping - mix together cucumber, avocado, lime juice and serve over the top of the salmon

Needless to say this dish was awesome and it was Will approved.  I served it with a cucumber, avocado, lime orzo dish.

Quinoa with Corn and Jalapeno

Since it's been a while since I have posted, I figured I'd throw in a freebie. 
There are no pictures, since it's just a side - but it's still delicious.

Ingredients: 
1 cup cooked quinoa (2 cups water, 1 cup quinoa - let it start to boil, then cover and let it simmer 15 minutes)
Olive Oil
Corn kernals from about 2 ears of corn
1 avocado chopped
1 jalapeno seeded and diced
S&P (to taste)
Feta cheese

The How To:
Mix the quinoa, olive oil, corn kernals, avocado, jalapeno, feta and S&P.

Delicious.