Baked Salmon and Lemon Foil Packets - A healthy Start!

There are times when we eat healthy, and there are times when we indulge. This is a healthy day. And one of my all time favorite healthy foods has to be salmon. I could eat salmon everyday. That's how good it is. And it not only is delicious, but a healthy addition to my household meals.

Here are some healthy benefits that I've heard about salmon:

Salmon is high in vitamin D and along with selenium found in salmon, has been said to have anti-cancerous properties, and can protect against different kinds of cancer.

Salmon is also a source of omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA, which is said can help protect the heart from plaque buildup-up.

Salmon and fish oil promotes eye health and is known to improve vision.

I make no claims or guarantee what health benefits salmon can provide, but from all that I've read or heard about salmon, it sounds like a superfood to me.

And I know that butter is not really known as a superfood, I couldn't help myself. But hey it's a start!

And my kids can't get enough of it:) 

When I tell them that I am cooking salmon for them, they get so excited, and can't wait for me to get started on dinner.

My husband on the other hand is a meat and potatoes man, and wants nothing to do with it.

So I usually cook this when I know that he will be out for a while at his buddies house watching basketball.

While he is watching basketball and eating all kinds of snacks, we will be eating healthy, and that kind of balances things out right!?

So here is my recipe for baked salmon in foil. Below this recipe, you will find links to additional salmon recipes by some awesome bloggers.

Ingredients:

4 salmon fillets 

2 lemons sliced

2 tablespoons butter sliced into pats

Salt and pepper to taste 

Grated lemon zest 

Minced parsley for garnish

4 pieces of non-stick foil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

On each piece of foil, place two lemon slices in center. Then add salmon fillet on top of lemon slices. Top salmon with two pats of butter, and season generously with salt and pepper. Add a pinch of grated lemon zest, and fold foil into a packet. Place foil packets onto a baking sheet, and let bake for about 30 minutes. Serve with rice or veggies, add a bit of chopped parsley and enjoy!

Here is a few more recipes from some of the best websites around!

http://pinchofyum.com/caramelized-salmon

http://www.skinnymom.com/2014/07/01/connection-recipe-coconut-crusted-salmon/

http://damndelicious.net/2013/11/13/sesame-ginger-salmon/

http://www.betterrecipes.com/blogs/daily-dish/2014/01/08/healthy-salmon-dinner/

http://cuckooking.blogspot.com/2011/12/bruschetta-salmon.html

 

http://www.savvyinthekitchen.com/2013/12/st-nicholas-day-salmon-and-great.html

Be sure to check out these wonderful salmon recipes for you and your family to enjoy! Happy Eating:)

Honey and Garlic Baked Pork Chops

If there is one thing my family is a big fan of, it's Asian food.

The flavors of these pork chops, will satisfy any Chinese food craving.

And with this recipe, the longer the chops marinade, the better they will be.

And I love the aroma that fills the house when cooking these pork chops. The ginger and honey makes these pork chops sweet and flavorful.

I've been doing a lot of organizing lately, like cleaning out my master closet, and I'm sure you know what a task that can be. 

And on evenings like this, cooking a big meal would've been to much to handle, and that's why this dish is perfect for such a day. You just let the meat marinade while doing chores, then when everything settles down, just pop it in the oven, and dinner is done.

 

Ingredients:

8 Pork chops

1/2 cup Honey

4 tablespoons Soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon minced ginger

1 tablespoon of minced Garlic

Directions:

In a large bowl, add honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic. Mix until well combined, and pour marinade into a gallon sized resealable bag. Add pork chops to bag with marinade. Seal bag and place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour or overnight. When ready, bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes, basting every 20 minutes. 

Serve with a side of steamed rice, and broccoli.

Homestyle Dutch Oven Pot Roast

Happy new year everyone! I hope 2015 will bring everyone much health, wealth, happiness, and joy all year long!

It is New Year's Day here in Los Angeles, and it is quite chilly outside. A perfect day to make a homestyle Dutch Oven Pot Roast! I love New Year's Day, because it is a day of fresh starts. A day of planning goals for the year ahead, and starting something new.

I am planning on saving some money using the 52 week savings plan. I'm planning on losing weight this year and eating more healthy. I love the feeling of starting anew, because I get another chance to accomplish my goals and I feel excited about it.

 This year I also hope to grow my blog even more because I love to share whatever I'm working on, whether it is cooking, crafts, DIY, cake decorating and more. And I'm thankful for all of my followers and blog visitors. I have been having so much fun connecting with new people and blog hopping. And I must say that Pinterest has become my new obsession. 

So for the start of what I know will be an awesome year, I wanted to share my family recipe for a simple pot roast, that is perfect not only for a Sunday dinner at home, but also a holiday like today.

I love this recipe because not only does this pot roast creates such a wonderful aroma, but the meat becomes so tender after it slow-roasts. And the vegetables are the most tastiest of all in this dish. My kids never complain about finishing there veggies while eating this classic family meal.

I love baby Yukon potatoes. You don't need to peel or even

Cut them too much, and they absorb so much flavor.

It is important that the chuck roast gets a good sear

On both sides.

The veggies look so pretty surrounding the roast!

A little sprig of rosemary goes a long way in this dish.

Look at how the vegetables have soaked up all of that

Beefy goodness:)

The roast becomes so tender, it just melts in your mouth!

Pot roast never goes out of style, and with the right cast iron Dutch oven, it can't get any better. So try this recipe, it is sure to become a family favorite!

3 pound boneless beef chuck pot roast

1 can of beef broth

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

Salt and ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

3 stalks of celery cut into quarters

6 carrots cut into quarters

1 sprig of rosemary 

2 1/2 pounds of baby Yukon gold potatoes halved 

1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, add potatoes, carrots, onion, celery. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle vegetables with some salt, pepper and Italian herb seasoning. Mix to combine, and set aside.

Season both sides of beef chuck roast very generously with salt, pepper and garlic powder. In a large Dutch Oven, place 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and heat on medium-high heat. Sear beef chuck on both sides until browned, about a minute or two each side. Add vegetables and spread around roast. Pour beef broth and soy sauce over top of roast and vegetables. Place a sprig of rosemary on top for some added flavor. (Optional) Cover and let roast for 3-4 hours or until beef and vegetables are tender. Serve on a platter, familystyle and enjoy!

Fried Pork Chops! A Family Treat!

One of our family favorites is fried pork chops. It is definitely a treat! Sometimes when I need a quick dinner idea, this always fixes my problem. I guess mainly because I always have most of the staples in my pantry for this meal. I always have oil, flour, seasoning salt, and a few cans of beans on hand. If there are any leftover the next day, I just re-heat them, and serve them with a fried egg for a quick country breakfast! Sometimes during this busy time of year, I need something that does not resemble fast food, and this meal is sure to satisfy.

Ingredients:

About 7-8 center cut pork chops 

1 1/2 cups Self-Rising Flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt

Canola oil for frying

Heat oil in a frying pan. Use enough oil to just come almost half way up frying pan. Meanwhile, in a shallow dish or pie plate, combine flour, salt, pepper, seasoning salt. Mix to combine. Place chops in flour, and cover with flour. Shake of excess flour. Carefully place chops in frying pan and fry on medium high heat for about 6 minutes per side, or until pork chops are golden brown. When removing pork chops from pan, I always check with a meat thermometer for doneness. Serve with some rustic cut french fries and a side of baked beans, and your all set!

Our Thanksgiving Turkey and My Thanksgiving Menu

Well people, it's that time of year again; The time where everyone wants to eat but nobody wants to help in the kitchen, the time for 15 hours of cooking, for 15 minutes of eating, the time where everyone dreads clean-up after, but everyone looks forward to leftovers. Thats right! I'm talking about thanksgiving!

The only day, where you are sure to catch a glimpse of a giant snoopy balloon! I never seem to catch the full broadcast of the parade, because I am to busy cooking the bird.

And what a pretty Bird she is!

When I cook turkey, it usually starts with a long bath. I clean this bird so much, that sometimes I think I could call it a brine. I always clean out the cavity and remove the gizzards and what not, but I also clean up and pull out all the little veins and things in there. I never just rinse it out and go. It's always a big procedure.

I give it a good scrub down on the inside and outside with salt. Kinda like an exfoliation. I then set her down on my roasting pan that is fitted with a rack, and I slather it with lots of butter and salt. That's it. Just butter and salt.

I pour some water, about four cups, in the bottom of the pan,

I then cover with the roasting pan lid, or aluminum foil and create a seal around the pan and place the pan in the oven at 350 degrees for about three hours, basting about every 45 minutes then covering again.

After three hours in the tent, she is pretty much done. Now she just needs to get brown. So I take of the foil and let her cook for another one and a half hours, while basting every 30 minutes or so.

I've been doing it this way my whole life. Our dinner is usually done by 3 pm. Just in time for football. If I make a dish that is not a regular staple at my thanksgiving table, my sweet mother-in-law will of course tell me I'm going a bit too "Gourmet" 

on her.

The gravy is pretty simple and old fashioned, but I like it that way. It goes like this:

After the first 3 hours of cooking the turkey, I remove the foil and get all that water from the bottom of the pan. By now, that four cups has become a lot more from all the juices from the turkey and now all that water has become turkey broth.

After I put the bird back in the oven, is when I start on my gravy.

I pour all or most of the turkey broth in a sauce pan and bring it to a slow boiling roll. 

I put about a half a teaspoon of minced garlic in and stir. I then take out about a cup of this broth and place in a measuring cup. I then stir in about three or four tablespoons of flour in the measuring cup and stir really well and make a thick paste.

Then I pour that mixture into the turkey broth while stirring vigorously with a whisk.

I sometimes repeat this process until I get the right gravy consistency I'm looking for. I then add about three tablespoons of Soy Sauce. Yup! Soy Sauce! No need to add salt. Just a bit of black pepper. Stir for a bit, and simmer for about 20 minutes

And I promise you will have the most yummiest old fashioned Turkey Gravy ever!

So simple, so easy, so done!

Along with my turkey and gravy, here is a list of the other wonderful dishes I will be

Serving this thanksgiving.

Rigatoni and Cheese

 

Creamy Mashed potatoes

 

Sage Onion Dressing

    Southern Fried Corn

 

    Pan Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Caramelized Onions and Bacon

 

    Noodle Kugel

 

    Buttered Rosemary Rolls

 

What will you be serving this thanksgiving?

Honey Mustard Chicken

A few years back, I saw an episode of Rachael Ray. She was cooking live, and the audience was cooking along with her. That episode was filmed here in Los Angeles, and had I known where it was to be filmed sooner, I would have definitely went! But I did cook along with the show. 

The recipe was easy, delicious and something that I still cook because my family loves it and on a busy weeknight it cooks up fast and is inexpensive because most of the ingredients, I already have on hand.

I always thought of Honey Mustard as a condiment and not really the main flavor of a meal, so when I made this recipe, I was delighted with the flavor. I could eat this sauce for days! If you just make this sauce on its own, it would be an awesome dipping sauce!

So here is the recipe and I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks

Salt and pepper

1 1/2 tablespoons Olive Oil

3 tablespoons butter

2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced on an angle

1 large parsnip, peeled and thinly sliced on an angle

1 large shallot, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups chicken stock

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

1/3 cup honey

Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions:

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil  in pan, in a skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add chicken in single layer and cook to light golden in color. About 4 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and reserve.

Add butter to skillet and melt. Add carrots, parsnips and shallots, and season with salt and pepper. Cover pan and soften vegetables, 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover pan and sprinkle in flour, stir 1 minute or so, then stir in stock, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and honey. Let thicken to coat spoon, add reserved chicken to heat through. Garnish with parsley. Serve!

20 Rainy Day Soup Recipes - I just had to share

It's raining and pouring outside, and it seems as though our winter storm is in full swing.

For me, this is the perfect time to make a big pot of soup for everyone to enjoy and get warmed up.

I am a soup person. I along with my mini-me daughter, can eat hot soup on a hot summers day. That's how much we love soup. I have put together 20 delicious soups for you to enjoy on these rainy days.

They are sure to take the rainy day blues away!

This is a part of my new series: "I just had to share..."

So get ready to cozy up and try some of the most delicious soup recipes around

1. Joannagoddard - The Best Broccoli Soup You'll Ever Have

2. Realmomkitchen - Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

3. Fabtasticeats - Mommas Split Pea and Ham Soup

4. Susannahskitchen - Bean & Pasta Veggie Soup

5. Creolecontessa - Smoked Chicken Tortilla Soup

6. Kenarry - Slow Cooker White Bean and Ham Soup

7. TheRoastedRoot - Sicilian Meatball Soup With Cabbage

8. MyBakingAddiction - Corn Chowder

9. TheVintageMom - Amazing Beef Vegetable Soup

10. ShugarySweets - Chicken Pot Pie Soup

11. MamaMiss - Chicken Avocado Soup

12. CookingMimi - Tomato Soup

13. DianaRambles - Italian Beef Leftovers Soup

14. KatherinesCorner - Lactose Free Sour Cream & Chive Potato Soup

15. OurLifeTastesGood - Tomato Basil Soup

16. ThymeForCookingBlog - Moroccan Chickpea Soup

17. BakedInAZ - Potato Soup

18. SkinnyTaste - Beef Barley Soup

19. ThatSkinnyChickCanBake - Sausage, Lentil and Vegetable Soup

20. OurThreePeas - Sweet Potato Cauliflower Soup

Green Beans and Bacon

We have been wrapped up in watching the Olympics on TV lately.

I really enjoy all the games, especially ice skating, and snowboarding. I try to watch all the events, but  it's close to impossible to catch every single game.

They started out with a glitch! But it still was very beautiful.

I loved her hat! Her work uniform is awesome:)

The snowboarding event was so awesome!

This is how my son watches the Olympic's

(Semi-interested) 

Not a great night for some of the skaters, but we're still

Rooting for the home team:)

We had dinner tonight and the side dish of green beans and bacon was on!

I am embarrassed to admit that I have been eating while watching the games lately.

But it's only once every two years right? 

So here is to a wonderful dinner and here is to team USA!

1 can of green beans

1/2 cup sliced onion

1/2 pound bacon chopped to 1 inch pieces

1 clove minced garlic

1/4 Teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste 

Begin by cooking bacon on med-high heat, until crisp but somewhat soft. Remove bacon and set aside. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from pan, then return pan to stove. Add onion to the pan and let it get a bit browned and translucent, about 3 minutes. Then add garlic and crushed pepper. Cook garlic for only a minute, so not to burn, then quickly add green beans and cook for about 2 minutes then add bacon and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another minute or two, then transfer from heat to a serving dish.

Beer Battered Onion Rings

My kids love onion rings. So on our hot dog night, instead of sweet potato fries, I thought I'd try my hand at onion rings. I've never made them before and I know everyone would love them. 

I'm not much of an onion person. I like them in moderation. I can't really eat raw onions as the taste will just linger with me FOREVER!   But I like to eat them in there cooked form.

I like onion rings, but I have to admit that I'm the person who takes the onion out and will just eat the crunchy batter around it.

Yes I used to cut the ends of my bread:)

I have to say that since this blog has started, I've been cooking things that I either never thought about making or I just never had faith in myself to make. So I am very thankful that since I have started this blog, along with reading many of the other wonderful blogs out there, it has inspired me to try so many new things in the kitchen.

So thanks for sticking with me and here we go!

Ingredients:

2 sweet vidalia onions

2 Cups all-purpose flour

2 Teaspoons garlic powder

2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 Teaspoon smoked paprika

1 Egg

1-1 1/2 Bottles of beer

1 1/2 cups plain bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon paprika

Canola oil for frying

Begin by slicing onions into 1/2 inch slices. Separate slices into rings.

In a large bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika. Stir to combine.

Then pour beer in bowl and stir well until it is the consistency of batter. Add Dijon mustard and mix well then set aside.

In a shallow dish, add  bread crumbs and 1/2 teaspoon paprika. Combine bread crumb mixture.

Add oil to frying pan. about enough to cover 2-3 inches from the bottom.

Heat oil to 350 degrees. 

Dip the onion rings into wet batter to coat, then dredge into bread crumb mixture. Carefully put them into hot oil, and turn a few times to get the rings golden brown.

Remove rings from oil, and place on a paper towel-lined plate.

Serve warm with your favorite sauce or dip.