Strawberry Spinach Salad

I tried this for the first time at a friends wedding. I was slightly nervous mixing fresh, sweet strawberries with spinach and dressing, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well it worked together. What is even better is when I made this for the first time at home - my once McDonald's and Whataburger fiance, who was skeptical as well, tried it and enjoyed it as well. I kept finding him sneaking pieces of strawberries and spinach out of the bowl! I've learned that as my cooking skills increase and I try a larger variety of dishes, my fiance is also getting a better variety of food and is learning to appreciate a healthier and more flavorful menu. As we prepare for the wedding and beginning of our life together, there is a quiet understanding between us that before we even think about little ones, we need to clean up our eating habits - at it seems we are well on our way! So, without further hesitation, here's the breakdown.

DRESSING

2 T Sesame Seeds
1 T Poppy Seeds
2 T Sugar
1/2 C Olive Oil
1/4 C Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 tsp Paprika
1/4 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 T Minced Red Onion

Combine all ingredients in a dressing cruet and shake vigorously. Chill dressing for at least 30 minutes.

SALAD

10 oz Fresh Spinach
1 qt Fresh Strawberries, sliced (an egg slicer works wonders!)
1/4 C Sliced Almonds (I use the toffee ones, other nuts will also work)
1/4 C Feta (or goat cheese)

Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl, top with dressing and coat evenly.

**Note: This recipe produces EXTRA dressing, you can easily double to spinach salad and still have enough.

Becky's Banana Bread

Anyone who knows me understands I have a fascination with banana's and anything banana related, so I continue to search for the tasty banana bread recipe that won't cause me to go up a pant size everytime I make it. While I continue to make slight changes to my recipe, I still think this one is worthy of a post, so here we are. Some of the measurements are assumed since I add a dash of this, a little more than, and so on - but this should get you started none the less.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 C sugar
1/4 C butter, softened
2 1/4 C ripe banana (or about 4 banana's)
1/4 C skim milk
1/4 C reduced fat cour cream
2 eggs whites
1 tsp vanilla
2 C flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Cooking spray

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix sugar and butter on medium until fully blended. Add banana, milk, sour cream, egg whites and vanilla. Set aside.

Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Add to banana mixture and beat until well blended.

Spray pan with cooking spray and coat with a layer of cinnamon and sugar (similar to flouring a pan). Add batter and bake for 60 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool and top with powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

Simple Fish Tacos

After spending my graduate school time in San Diego, where the seafood was considerably fresh and tasty, I was able to improve my taste from fish sticks and shrimp cocktail to actual seafood an adult would eat. One of the dishes I feel in love with was fish taco's, although my recipe differs from the one's I enjoyed in Southern California since I do not batter and fry them. Sure the crunch can be nice, but when you work sitting at a computer and don't spend nearly as much time being active as you did in college, your hips appreciate the lack of fried food calories.

INGREDIENTS:

3 Tbl taco seasoning
Juice from 1 lime and 1 orange
1 pound of white fish (mahimahi, tilapia, etc)
2 Tbl vegetable oil
1/2 head of red cabbage, chopped
1/2 C green onions, chopped
3/4 C low fat sour cream
2 Tbl fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp Hot sauce (Sriachi, etc)
8 corn tortillas
1 lime, cut into wedges

DIRECTIONS:

Combine taco seasoning, lime, and orange juice. Cut fish into bite size pieces, add to juice mixture, and toss to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Add fish and saute until fish is done, usually abut 5-10 minutes.

Mix cabbage, green onions, and cilantro. Combine sour cream and hot sauce, then coat cabbage mixture.

Warm tortilla's according to package. Fill with fish and cabbage mixture and garnish with lime wedge. (Squeeze juice onto taco before eating - delish!)

Serving size is 2 tacos and they have about 175 calories for each taco.

A Wine Tale

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet has turned into one of our absolute favorite anyday wines. It is an Australian wine, which is wonderful since most of our favorites are also Australian, so that alone would be a reason for us to at least try it. To make it even better, you should be able to find this at just about any store that has a decent selection, basically meaning the corner gas station won't carry it, but any place that carries Shiraz has a good chance. Oh - and to add to the greatness, it runs around $10 or so a bottle, give or a take.

In my mind, this has a great flavor which I'm not used to getting from a less expensive bottle of wine and win's my taste test over the ever-popular Rosemount Shiraz (another of which is in the same price range and makes it to our dinner table quite often!). I make no claim to be a wine taster of any education, but I know what I like and thus far, anyone I've had try this has enjoyed it. One warning: just because it's Penfolds doesn't mean it'll be the same. I am not nearly as much of a fan of the Thomas Hyland and Rawson's Retreat varieties, make sure if you are looking for this that you do indeed get the "Koonunga Hill" bottle. If history proves itself, you won't be disappointed!

Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

This is inspired be a similar recipe I found in a magazine. One thing which irritates me to no end is when a recipe calls for some sort of cooked item with no instructions on how to cook it. The original recipe does this with the chicken, so I have included my suggested cooking method rather than write "cup of cooked chicken".

When I first read this recipe, I was hesitant to attempt it since I am not a big enchilada fan, due to the soft corn tortillas used. Luckily, I was feeling daring one night and with my recent attempt to eat healthier, figure why not give it a shot - I mean the worst that could happen is it gets tossed in the trash and we end up with Chinese Take Out. Surprisingly, with one bite, I knew this was a keeper!

INGREDIENTS

1 C chopped onion
1/4 C fresh cilantro
2 Garlic cloves
8 oz salsa Verde (can be store bought)
3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/3 C reduced fat cream cheese
Fat-free, low sodium Chicken broth
12 White Corn Tortilla's
Cooking spray
1/4 C crumbled Queso Fresco
Chili Powder

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat oven to 350. Place chicken breasts in oven dish and add some chicken broth (I usually add enough to halfway submerge the chicken, probably about 1 C or so), this helps keep the chicken moist. I also like to season the chicken with any variety of black pepper, white pepper, red pepper, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, and / or onion powder. These you can switch out to your own taste. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes. Flip the chicken and bake another 20 minutes or until chicken is done. This will obviously differ depending on the size of your chicken breasts. One completely cooked, remove chicken to a bowl and use a fork to shred. Discard remaining chicken broth. Set oven to 425.

Combine onion, cilantro, garlic, and salsa in blender and blend until smooth. In another bowl, combine chicken, cream cheese, and half of salsa mixture. Reserve remaining salsa.

Spoon chicken mixture into corn tortilla, using a small enough amount to allow the tortilla to be rolled into a traditional enchilada. Place rolled enchilada seem-side down in a greased baking dish (I use Pam). Continue this process until all the chicken mixture has been used.

Top enchiladas with remaining salsa (I use a spatula to cover the tortilla's completely to prevent any crispy spots). Sprinkle with crumbles queso and top with chili powder.

Bake for about 18 minutes or until thoroughly heated (chicken has already been cooked, so no worries here!). The cheese should be melted and some areas browned.

Serve these enchilada's with refried beans, black beans, spanish rice, chips and salsa or guacamole, or any other wonderful side dish you desire - or even alone. For those who prefer, a Corona with a lime would be perfect!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:

Serving size: 2 enchiladas

Calories: 327
Fat: 9.5g
Protein: 28.5g
Carb: 31g
Fiber: 3.3g
Chol: 78mg
Iron: 1.8mg
Sodium: 493mg
Calc: 149mg

Welcome

First and foremost I want to say thank you for a taking a moment to see what this is all about. I hope to slowly compile a list of wonderful recipes as well as any other tidbits which may be useful. I have to take a moment to thank a great friend of mine who has inspired me not only to post this, but to be brave and take a stab at things I would otherwise turn my nose up at. She has earned the nickname "Betty Crocker" among our group of friends and we continue to wait patiently (or rather impatiently) for her to list new recipes in her own blog. So take some time and browse, this will continue to grow and hopefully you will walk away with at least a new idea of what to make for company. Let's eat!