Lean, Mean, Turkey Burger Machines

What's for Dinner? 5/18/2010

-Simple Turkey Burgers
-Sweet Potato Oven Fries

We really love turkey burgers in this household. Sometimes they get a bad rap as being flavorless and dry, but ours are definitely not! Plus, they are WAY healthier than beef burgers. {We use 99% fat free ground turkey.}

Tonight's dinner was positively scrumptious, and made even better by the fact that Alex did all the cooking AGAIN! Score!


To make the Simple Turkey Burgers we just formed the patties {with no seasoning} and then sprinkled both sides of the patties with garlic salt and black pepper. Then we grilled them on the charcoal grill for about 5 minutes on each side. Melt provolone cheese on top once cooked through.

To make the Sweet Potato Oven Fries we sliced up a sweet potato and then tossed them in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and some Lawry's Seasoning Salt. Place the potato slices on a rack placed on top of a baking sheet. Then bake in a 425 degree oven for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.

The Husband Cooks Again

What's for Dinner? 5/17/2010

-Chile Chicken and Basil
-Brown Rice

Alex picked the recipe and did all the cooking tonight! I love having a husband who knows his way around the kitchen! :)

He found this recipe in his Men's Health magazine while he was deployed and ripped it out and saved it until now. When he was cleaning out the study this past weekend he found it and we added it to the menu.

It was EXTREMELY flavorful and really low calorie to boot {two things that don't always go together}! Only 160 calories per serving in the chicken (doesn't include the rice). It also came together really quickly and he said it was easy to make. Definitely a keeper!


Chile Chicken and Basil
Source: Men's Health magazine

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 Thai bird chilies or serrano chilies
1 tsp soy sauce
2 cups loosely packed fresh basil
1 Tbsp fish sauce
3 cloves garlic
1/2 Tbsp peanut oil or canola oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp fresh cracked pepper
1/2 Tbsp red-chili paste

1. Chop the garlic and chilies finely. Then use the side of your knife to press them together into a rough paste. (Add a pinch of salt to make this pro

2. Preheat a wok or stainless-steel sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and the garlic-chili paste you just made, and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Chop the chicken into small pieces and add them to the pan, cooking them until they're lightly browned, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce, chili paste, and sugar, and continue to cook until the chicken is done all the way through, another 3 to 4 minutes.

3. Add the pepper and basil and cook until the basil is just wilted, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

4. Serve with: 1/2 cup each of steamed bok choy and prepared brown rice Makes 4 servings.

Per Serving: 160 calories, 24 grams (g) protein, 3 g carbohydrates, 5 g fat (1 g saturated), 1 g fiber, 490 milligrams sodium

Simple Pasta Deliciousness

PHEW!! We're back home after a whirlwind weekend! We've been out of town since Thursday to celebrate various family milestones with my side of the family {one of which included my 25th birthday}. I'm exhausted from such a fun-filled weekend.

Luckily, I had planned a super simple dinner for tonight, which I originally found on a great blog called Eat.Drink.Run. I don't think I could have handled something complicated tonight!

I was a little worried that it was going to be too simple {a.k.a. bland} for us but Alex had THREE helpings of it, so I'm pretty sure he liked it. :)



Here's how Shelby described the process for Sundried Tomato Shrimp Pasta on her blog:

A super simple – and healthy – pasta with shrimp. So easy. Boil whole wheat noodles. Melt 1 TBSP butter and 1 TBSP olive oil in a pan. Cook 1 TSP minced garlic and a few sundried tomatoes for a couple of minutes. Add shrimp and cover until cooked through. Drain pasta and toss into shrimp mixture along with dried basil and oregano. Less than 20 minutes total!

{I also added some fresh basil & thyme from our Topsy Turvy}

Splurge-Worthy Steak

What's for Dinner? 5/12/1985

-Flank Steak with Balsamic Port Reduction
-Goat Cheese Polenta
-Side Salad with avocado

Okay so I went a little bit off my "healthy eating" plan with this one, but it's my birthday week so it's allowed right!?! :/ Besides, it's really not THAT bad.

The worst thing was probably all the GOAT CHEESE inside the polenta. But ooooooh man do I ever love the combination of goat cheese and polenta. It was worth it.

And to justify myself even further, I've done the 30 Day Shred for every day for a week now. So that's good, right??

Okay enough justifying myself. :) This was a recipe I found on Confections of a Foodie Bride {which is yet another FABULOUS food blog}, but originally from Everyday Food {a food magazine/website that I LOVE}. With both of those credentials behind it, I knew it would DEEEEEELICIOUS....and it was!

A perfect pre-birthday splurge.

Flank Steak with Balsamic-Port Reduction and Goat Cheese Polenta

Source: Confections of a Foodie Bride

For the steak:
1 1/2 lb flank steak
Olive oil
Salt
Fresh ground pepper

For the reduction:
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup Port

For the polenta:
4 cups water
1 cup cornmeal
1 tsp salt
4 oz goat cheese
1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 Tbsp butter
Fresh ground pepper

For the steak: Heat grill to medium-high. Rub steak with olive oil and season liberally with salt and pepper. Put on the grill for 6-8 minutes each side. Remove from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes. Add any ‘resting liquids’ to the reduction. Thinly slice steak against the grain.

For the polenta: While steak is cooking, bring water to boil in a 2 quart sauce pan over high heat. Whisk in cornmeal and salt and reduce heat to low. Cook for 10 minutes, whisking occasionally. Add goat cheese, thyme leaves, butter, and fresh ground pepper. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat.

For the reduction: Bring balsamic vinegar and port to a boil. Reduce by 1/2, stir in ‘resting liquids,’ and remove from heat.

Divide polenta between 4 bowls. Top with steak slices and balsamic-port reduction.

Serves: 4
Adapted from: Everyday Food

25 Books in 2010

I've been seriously slacking on my reading! I need to get back in the swing of it or I'm never going to make this 25 in 2010 goal!

Unfortunately the two most recent books that I read were not that good, which is partially why it has taken me so long to get through them. :(





25 Books in 2010:

1. The Gastronomy of Marriage by Michelle Maisto {click here for my review}

2. Shelter Me by Juliette Fay {click here for my review}

3. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks {click here for my review}

4. Dead as a Doornail {Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood, Book 5} by Charlaine Harris

5. The Mercy of Thin Air by Romlyn Domingue

This book was one of my least favorite that I've read in a while. I don't even know why I finished reading it, but I've always had issues giving up on books. It was just boring and weird. It's about people who die and are ghosts, essentially, but without all the scary aspects of it. They just wander around and watch other people's lives happen. I do not recommend it. 1 Star

6. The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond

This book was at least better than the last one, but still not that great. It's about a woman who "loses" her fiance's daughter on a beach. No one knows what happened to the little girl so it's about the woman agonizing over the fact that she lost her and trying to remember the details of the day that she went missing. It wasn't poorly written, just extremely slow and repetitive at times. I need more excitement in my books! 2 stars

Leggo my Egg Skillet

What's for Dinner? 5/11/2010

-Southwestern Egg & Black Bean Skillet

Cara's Cravings is an amazing blog that features all kinds of innovative and healthy recipes that she creates all on her own. She is such an inspiration for food bloggers everywhere! Visit her blog like right this minute and prepare to be inspired!

When she recently posted about this Southwestern Egg & Black Bean Skillet I knew I was going to make it. Black beans, mexican flavors, eggs, avocado, cheese....uhhhh YES PLEASE!


It completely met and exceeded my expectations! Hubs loved it too. His exact comment was "Wow you're on a roll this week but this might be my favorite dinner so far!" That's saying A LOT from a man who normally turns his nose up at any dinner that doesn't include meat.

I did end up adding 2 extra eggs (Cara's recipe only calls for 2 eggs) because I knew 1 wouldn't be enough for the hubs. Together we polished off the ENTIRE SKILLET. That's how good it was!

Southwestern Egg & Black Bean Skillet
Source: Cara's Cravings

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced {I used 2 cloves}
1/3 cup frozen corn {I used 1/2 cup}
1 cup drained, rinsed black beans {I used 3/4 of a can...think it was a bit more than 1 cup}
salt & pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
pinch of coriander
10oz can diced tomatoes with green chilies
2 large eggs {I used 4 eggs}
2oz queso fresco, crumbled
chopped cilantro and sliced avocado, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400F.

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add garlic, corn, and beans and cook for about 2 more minutes, until garlic is fragrant. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and coriander.

Add the diced tomatoes with green chilies and increase heat to high. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and allow to simmer for 10 minutes to blend flavors.

Carefully break the eggs over the black bean mixture. Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, until eggs are soft-set. Sprinkle with queso fresco and garnish with cilantro and diced avocado. Serve hot.

Nutritional Info (not including avocado)
Servings Per Recipe: 2
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 338.3
Total Fat: 14.0 g
Cholesterol: 227.5 mg
Sodium: 1,525.8 mg
Total Carbs: 35.9 g
Dietary Fiber: 9.0 g
Protein: 20.7 g

Short on Calories, High on Taste

What's for Dinner? 5/10/2010

-Five Spice Turkey & Lettuce Wraps
-Soy Sauce & Sriracha Roasted Broccoli

When looking for healthy recipes for this week's menu, I decided to stop by Eating Well and see what they had to offer. I found this recipe pretty much immediately and thought it sounded awesome. I'm a BIG fan of lettuce wraps, especially the ones from Pei Wei, so I figured this would be a hit with me. I was not, however, sure if it would go over well with the hubs.

Well, the verdict is in and...............HE LOVED IT!

The best part is they are not only tasty, but also SUPER low calorie....only 285 calories per serving. Are you kidding me?!?

I made a few minor tweaks to the recipe which are noted below in blue.


Five-Spice Turkey & Lettuce Wraps

From EatingWell: June/July 2006

Based on a popular Chinese dish, these fun wraps also make appealing appetizers for entertaining. Make it a meal: Serve with chile-garlic sauce and rice vinegar for extra zip; toss diced mango and strawberries with lime juice for a quick dessert.

4 servings, 1 1/4 cups filling each | Active Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

* 1/2 cup water
* 1/2 cup instant brown rice
* 2 teaspoons sesame oil
* 1 pound 93%-lean ground turkey
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
* 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced
* 1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, rinsed and chopped
* 1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, {I ended up adding another tablespoon b/c I thought it needed more flavor}
* 1 teaspoon five-spice powder, (see Note)
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* Splash of soy sauce
* A couple dribbles of Sriracha sauce to kick up the spice factor
* 2 heads Boston lettuce, leaves separated
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, mint and/or chives
* 1 large carrot, shredded

Preparation

1. Bring water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add rice; reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add turkey and ginger; cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until the turkey is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in the cooked rice, bell pepper, water chestnuts, broth, hoisin sauce, five-spice powder and salt; cook until heated through, about 1 minute.
3. To serve, spoon portions of the turkey mixture into lettuce leaves, top with herbs and carrot and roll into wraps.
Nutrition

Per serving : 285 Calories; 11 g Fat; 3 g Sat; 1 g Mono; 66 mg Cholesterol; 24 g Carbohydrates; 26 g Protein; 5 g Fiber; 543 mg Sodium; 390 mg Potassium

Tips & Notes

* Make Ahead Tip: Prepare the filling (through Step 2), cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Serve cold or reheat in the microwave.

* Notes: Hoisin sauce is a spicy, sweet sauce made from soybeans, chiles, garlic and spices. It will keep in the refrigerator for at least a year.
* Often a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise and Szechuan peppercorns, five-spice powder was originally considered a cure-all miracle blend encompassing the five elements (sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, salty). Look for it in the supermarket spice section.