Michael Symon's Grilled Salmon with Shaved Carrot Salad

Ok people. I have some confessions to make.
#1- I hate Salmon
#2- I have a huge crush on Michael Symon!
#3- due to #2, I am addicted to The Chew!

As it turns out, I love Iron Chef Symon enough to trust that I might really like his salmon dish from the show earlier this week. It was fantastic! I might have found my salmon cooking mistakes as well; don't over cook the fish, and remove the skin before cooking! While the smell was still really fishy, the fish didn't seem nearly as oily as it usually does. Enough- here's the recipe!



Grilled Salmon with shaved carrot salad



Ingredients:

4- 6oz pieces of salmon

4 oz EVOO

1 bunch of scallions

1/2 cup toasted peanuts

salt and pepper

3 medium Organic carrots

1 Tablespoon cumin seed

1 cup mint leaves

2 oz red wine vinegar

Instructions:



Season salmon with salt and pepper and brush with olive oil. Grill for 2 minutes on each side.

While the salmon is grilling shave the carrots, toast the cumin sees and peanuts, slice the scallions thin and tear mint leaves.

Place carrrots, cumin seeds, scallions and mint in a large mixing bowl with the peanuts.

Whisk together the oil and red wine vinegar and add to the vegetables. Season liberally with salt and pepper, Place the salmon on a platter and top with the shaved carrot salad.



* what I did differently: I didn't have cumin seeds, so I just sprinkled a little ground cumin on the carrots- go easy! Also- I subbed cashers for peanuts (almonds would work too)- it's just what I had in the house. I also made just one serving, so I kind of guessed on amounts. However, I'm not a big mint-in-food fan so I went pretty light on the mint. Oh- and I made this on my George Foreman Grill-- it was too cold, damp and windy tonight for the grill. None-the-less, the flavor was amazing!!

Spaghetti Pie

This is my dual purpose post! It is Week 1 in my friend's 52 Recipe Challenge (post a new recipe once a week), and it's also my "Healthy Every Week" recipe. In week 2 of the Food Network's "Healthy Every Week" Challenge, we are focusing on whole grains. I think by now, most of us are using the whole wheat or whole grain pasta.  Here is a fun recipe to make with Spaghetti Night Leftovers!



Spaghetti Pie



Ingredients:

1 egg
2 cups cooked whole wheat or whole grain spaghetti noodles
2/3 cup spaghetti sauce
2 oz of goat cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Coat small oven safe casserole dish (8x8 or smaller) with non-stick spray.

Scramble the egg in a medium bowl, season with salt and pepper. Add cooked noodles. Mix well. Carefully pour noodle mixture into prepared casserole dish. Top with spaghetti sauce and crumbled goat cheese. Bake, uncovered until egg is set and cheese has browned- about 15-20 minutes

* Turn this pie into a pizza, by layering your favorite pizza toppings on after the sauce and before the cheese. I frequently use, Turkey Pepperoni, onions, mushrooms, peppers and spinach. This is a perfect way to get a serving of veggies into a very low-fat meal!

Serves 2- perfect portion control served with a side salad!

** Be sure to check the "Healthy Every Week" & "52 Recipe Challenge" tags to see all of my recipes for these two Challenges!

Avacado Egg Sandwich

Happy New Year! This year my motto is- Operation 2012: Desire to Inspire! Each month I plan to do something that inspires you to get healthy!! In January, I am participating in the the Food Network's Healthy Every Week Challenge. Each week the Healthy Eats blog, will be posting articles and recipes on a different healthy thing to do. Week 1 is breakfast. So today's recipe is a fun egg sandwich. Healthy avacado, and tomato slices on whole wheat bread with an egg! Easy! But here's the recipe!


Avacado Egg Sandwich



Ingredients:

1 whole egg (or 2 egg whites, or egg subsitute)

2 slices of whole grain bread, toasted

1/4 Avacado, sliced

2 slices Ripe Tomato

While bread is toasting, scramble egg in a small bowl. In a small fry pan, cook egg as you would cook an omelete, one small circle, until egg is cooked through. Salt and Pepper to taste.



Place egg, tomato, and avacado on toast, and enjoy!

* if you don't like tomatoes in the winter, try a Tablespoon of salsa instead!

Here's to a Happy HEALTHY 2012!

Tortilla Soup

I took about 5 different recipes and made this tortilla soup that turned into quite a winner!



Tortilla Soup



Ingredients:

I red bell pepper, spilt and seeded

1 cup of frozen corn

2 large chicken breasts, diced (about a pound)

1 tsp poultry seasoning

1 tsp cumin

salt and pepper

1 small zuchinni, diced
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced or grated
1 chipotle in adobo (2 if you like it REALLY hot), chopped with 1T of sauce
2 (14 oz) cans of stewed tomatoes
1 (8 oz) can of tomato sauce
3 cups of low sodium chicken stock

Garnish options:
Tortilla chips, broken into large pieces
1/2 cup cheddar or pepper jack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup low fat sour cream (or better yet- plain yogurt)
Chopped red onion
Chopped cilantro
Diced Avocado

Directions:
Place red pepper cut side down on cookie sheet, with frozen corn. Broil until corn is lightly charred and red pepper skin is black (8 minutes or so). Place red pepper in glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 5 minutes. Remove charred skin and dice red pepper.

While veggies are cooking, heat 1T oil in large soup pot over hight heat. Add chicken, poultry season, cumin, salt and pepper. When chicken starts to brown, add zuchinni, onion,s garlic and chipotle peppers. Cook vegetables until onion is soft. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and stock. Bring to a bubble and reduce heat to medium low.

Stir in corn and red pepper, and heat until warmed through.

Ladle into bowls and top with desired garnishes.

Apple-Cheddar-Squash Soup

I saw this recipe on the Food Network facebook page one day, and thought it sounded SO good. But, when I saw there were 34g of fat per serving, I freaked! That's a whole days' worth of fat in one little bowl of soup!  I will post the recipe as published by the Food Network with notes as to what I did differently.

Ingredients:
5 Tbls unsalted butter (I used 1T of butter and 1T grapeseed oil)
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 medium apples, thinkly sliced
1 large white potato, diced
1 1/2 cup chopped peeled butternut squash, fresh or frozen (I used frozen pureed squash, it was fine)
Kosher salt & Freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp dried sage
2T all purpose flour
1/3 cup apple cider
4 cups low sodium chicken broth (I use Stock)
1cup milk (I used skim)
2 oz thinly sliced prosciutto torn into pieces (I used 1 oz)
2 cups grated Cheddar cheese (I used one cup, and a little for garnish)
Chopped chives, for garnish
Crusty Bread

Directions:
Melt 4 Tablespoons (I used the butter/oil combo) of butter in large pot over medium-low heat and add the onion, apples, potato and squash. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the onion is soft, about 8 minutes. Stir in the sage and flour. Add the cider and cook over high heat, stirring, until thickened. Add the broth and milk, cover and bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the potatoe is soft, 8 to 10 minutes.  (If you are using the box of frozen pureed squash, I suggest adding it after the onions are soft, and before the sage and flour)

Meanwhile, heat the remaing 1T butter in aa large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the proscuitto and cook until crisp, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes, drain on paper towels. [ok, while there isn't a ton of fat in prosciutto, I always cook bacon like meats on a broiler pan in my toaster oven. No need to add extra fat]

Add cheese to the soup and stir over medium -low heat until melted (DO NOT BOIL). Puree in a blender in batches until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Garnish with the prosciutto, more cheese and chives. Serve with bread.

Apple-Cheddar-Squash soup, with Sixx, my feline "helper".

Here's my healthy tips! You don't need 4 tablespoons of butter to saute a few veggies. Be smart! There are a lot of veggies here, but halving the butter/oil cuts out 20+ grams of fat! (about 11 per tablespoon).  Cheese is another kicker! Lots of fat there! I wasn't sure it would be good with half of the cheese, but it was! And those were the two big changes I made that dropped the fat from 34g to about 12!! Without losing taste!

Winter Salad

 This salad has been around for a while. I've changed up the dressing to be slightly healthier. It is a crowd pleaser, and the perfect dish to lighten up those heavy holiday meals!!


Winter Salad



Ingredients:

2 heads of Romaine lettuce, torn

1 cup of shredded swiss cheese

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 cup cashews



1 apple, cubed

1 pear, cubed

Toss together in a large bowl, adding cashews just before serving.

Dressing:

1/4 c sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp dijon mustard
1 Tbls grated onion (or 1/2 tbls of onion flakes)- optional
1 Tbls poppy seed
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about one lemon)
Mix well then add
1/2 cup canola or Grapeseed oil

Add dressing just before serving.

Tip:To make ahead, chop up the pear and apple, and toss them in the dressing to keep from turning brown. Then toss all together just before serving.

Cinnamon Sugar Bread

While this bread isn't super healthy, it takes like a cinnamon roll without all the extra butter and sugar on top! I brought it today for my potluck at work, and it disappeared before I thought to take a photo, but rest assured- it looks like any loaf of bread from your bread maker!


Cinnamon Sugar Bread



Ingredients:

1 cup of milk (I used almond milk)

1 egg

1/4 cup of butter or margarine, softened

3 cups of bread flour (sub up to half with whole wheat flour)

1/2 c sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp yeast

1. Place ingredients in bread maker per manufactures instructions

2. Use sweet bread setting (or white bread setting)

3. When bread cycle is complete, let sit for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

Serve with honey butter (mix butter, honey and a dash of cinnamon to taste).