Roasted Salmon with Dijon-Dill Sauce

This recipe is ridiculous. I almost hurt myself eating this one. It was absolutely fantastic! 2 of my favorite ingredients to cook with, dill and Dijon, are in this dish and they pair so nicely with this salmon. This sauce has a Greek yogurt base as opposed to a half-and-half or heavy whipping cream sauce, which makes it way healthier for you. This took me 5 minutes to prep…that’s it. This was super fast to make and tastes like it took an hour to make!

This recipe is gluten free and full of healthy fat and protein. Pairs nicely with a cilantro lime Jasmine rice!

Ingredients:

• 3 Tablespoons plain 2% reduced-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 4 (6-ounce) fresh salmon filets

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Combine first 7 ingredients. Place fish, skinned side down, on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with olive oil OR use a Demarle non-stick cookie sheet.
Spread the yogurt sauce over the fish.
Bake at 425 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.

Nutritional Value

Calories 270; Fat 12g; Protein 35g; Carb 2g; Fiber; 0g; Chol 94mg; Iron 1mg; Sodium 494mg;

Recipe source: inspired by Adam Hickman and Laura Zapalowski

Shredded French Dip Sandwiches

My neighbor, Heather, introduced me to these sandwiches. She and her husband invited us over for dinner so we could get to know our new neighbors and she served these French Dip Sandwiches for dinner. Oh my goodness…they were so far past amazing that I begged her for this recipe. She was happy to share and 7 years later, we are still good friends! She loves to cook and has shared so many recipes with me that have become family favorites!

I make these a lot for family that come in from out of town because they feed up 6 to 8 people. Here’s a secret about how to make the meat tender. Cook the meat in the slow cooker on low for at least 8 hours. I typically let mine continue to cook for about  9 or 10 hours. You cant really overcook roast. I took these to work this past week for a pot luck and I woke up at 2 AM to start the crock pot! I wanted these to be tender!

Ok, so these are not gluten free. Sorry – they just aren’t and I haven’t found a gluten free substitute for beef consomme or french onion soup. But seriously – this one is so good, I counldn’t NOT post it. That would not have been fair to not share this one because it is definitely worth repeating! Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 3lbs beef chuck roast
• 1 10.5 ounce can beef consomme
• 1 teaspoon of bouillon granules or 1 beef bouillon cube
• 1 10.5 ounce can french onion soup
• 1 10.5 ounce can beef broth
• 8-10 french rolls

Directions

• Halve roast and place in a slow cooker.
• Combine all ingredients except for the rolls and pour over roast.
• Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.
• Ensure the meat is tender.
• Remove meat and shred with two forks.
• Serve on rolls. Slim the fat from the cooking juices and serve as an au jus dipping sauce.

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Recipe source: inspired by Heather Huberich

Southwest Meatballs

Ok seriously, who doesn't like a good meatball recipe? I'm not talking about frozen meatballs out of a bag when you are getting ready to watch the game...I'm talking about homemade Southwest meatballs made with some amazing ingredients!

My friend, Bob Long, made these several weeks ago and they were YUMMY! I begged him for 5 weeks to send me this recipe and today, he finally did. He even gave me permission to post this on my site so others can try and repeat. Good Bob!

These are gluten free and this recipe does not call for breadcrumbs, which I appreciate. With that being said, you need to read your label on the chorizo you buy. Way too many stores today have entirely too many products on their shelves with artificial ingredients that don't need to be in the item. So read your labels!! Make sure if you are gluten free, there is no wheat or gluten listed!

The sauce makes these meatballs.  These meatballs are packed with good fat and are high in protein. I see myself eating these for a snack!

These little guys are fabulous! Per Bob, Yay meatballs!

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

• ½ pound ground turkey (or chicken, beef, etc.)
• ½ pound chorizo (chicken, pork, beef, etc.)
• ¼ small red onion, minced
• ½ red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ jalapeño, minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
• salt and pepper, to taste

For the sauce:

• 1 avocado
• handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
• juice of ½ lime
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ¼ jalapeño, minced
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon cumin
• pinch of salt and pepper
• ¼ cup olive oil mayo

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8×8 glass baking dish with some oil (olive, coconut, etc.)

• Place all ingredients for the meatballs into a bowl and use your hands to mix the mixture together. 

• Using a cookie scoop, scoop out each meatballs and form into balls. This should make about 18 small meatballs. 

• Place each meatball into the greased baking dish, side by side. It’s ok if they are touching. 

• Put in oven to bake for 20-25 minutes. 

• While the meatballs cook, create the dipping sauce by placing everything for the sauce, except for the mayo, into a food processor. Puree until smooth. 

• Once smooth, add the mayo and puree once more until well combined. 

• Dip meatballs into the sauce or place on top.

Crock Pot Beef Carnitas Tacos with Endive and Avocado Salad

I'm a part of a lunch coop at the office where I work and we had 2 ladies bring in a fantastic recipe that I just had to share! It's absolutely worth repeating!

I believe they got these 2 recipes from Barefoot Contessa and eatliverun.com. This is by far a very different salad recipe and I dont think I would have pulled this one out to try, but I'm so glad they made it because it was fantastic! Step outside your comfort zone and try this one!

The Beef Carnitas Taco were also fantastic. Just a word of advice...ensure that when you are marinating your steak with the rub that you really lather this rub into your flank steak so the steak gets the full flavor. You could also substitute the Flank Steak for Iron Steak.

This recipe is Gluten Free and full of protein and healthy fat. I see myself making this again on my lower body push days at the gym :)

Enjoy!

Crock Pot Beef Carnitas Tacos

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs flank steak
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

for spice rub-

• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

for serving—

• corn tortillas
• avocado slices
• cilantro
• your favorite salsa
• limes

Directions:

Mix together all spices in a small bowl. Rub the spices all over your flank steak—be generous and rub it into the meat. Then, place your steak at the bottom of your crock pot.

Cover the steak with the chopped onions, bell peppers and jalapeno pepper. Turn heat on LOW and cook for 8 hours.

After 8 hours, remove meat from crock pot and shred with a fork. It should be incredibly easy to shred. You can either stick the shredded meat back in the pot for another hour or serve as is.

To serve, heat your corn tortillas in a skillet on the stove. Spoon some carnitas on a tortilla then top with salsa, avocado, cilantro and a squeeze of lime.

Endive and Avocado Salad 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons) 
• 4 to 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 4 heads of endive 
• 2 ripe avocados, peeled and seeded 

Directions:

Whisk together the mustard, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper to make a vinaigrette. 

Remove a half inch from the stem end of each endive, discard the core, and cut the rest across into 1-inch chunks. Cut the avocados into large dice or wedges. Toss the avocados and endive with the vinaigrette.

 Season to taste and serve at room temperature. 

Greek Marinated Chicken

I found a fabulous chicken recipe this past weekend and I just have to share it! This one is a Greek Marinated Chicken made with chicken thighs and legs. This one comes from "Budget Bytes". Their website is: http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/06/greek-marinated-chicken/ and I can appreciate the information they place on the site. They give a lot of information about balancing your budget and still having the ability to eat well. That's right up my alley! Check out their site for some great budget information with your grocery list!

This Greek Marinated Chicken recipe grabbed my attention because they posted a picture with the chicken marinating in a white creamy sauce. When I looked at the ingredients, I saw it was made from plain Greek yogurt! YEAH for a healthy marinade high in protein!

This one is really easy to make. You do need to let your chicken marinate for 30 minutes, but this one is gluten free and can be baked in the oven or grilled. Step by step instructions are listed below. This one has a wonderful garlic and lemon taste and was a huge hit tonight in my house! This will easily become one of your family's favorites!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 medium lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley
• 4lbs chicken pieces (I chose thighs and legs)

Directions:

• To make the marinade, combine the yogurt, olive oil, minced garlic, oregano, salt and pepper in a bowl.

• Use a cheese grater or zester to scrape a thin later of lemon zest from the lemon skin into the bowl.
• Add the the juice from half the lemon. Stir until the ingredients are well combined.
• Clean and then chop about 1/4 cup of fresh parsley and add to the bowl and mix well with the marinade.

• Grab a gallon sized zip top bag and add the chicken pieces and marinade to the bag. Move the chicken around to ensure each piece is well coated.

• Refrigerate the bag for about 30 minutes.
• After marinating, you can choose to grill the chicken or bake in the oven. If you bake in the oven, preheat oven to 375 and bake for about 40 to 60 minutes to ensure done.
• I chose to grill the chicken and grilled for a total of 35 minutes.

Ensure your chicken is cooked fully through and it is then ready to serve.

                                  

Steak with Creamy Balsalmic Mushroom Sauce

I love it when I find an excellent recipe! I did a lot of research and looking around this weekend for some good recipes and tried some out this weekend. I found this particular recipe on "A Sweet Pea Chef" website (http://www.asweetpeachef.com/). I've tried some of her stuff before and she does a really nice job on her recipes, so I'm sharing this one with you!

This one was surprisingly easy to make. It sounds a little "fancy" but it took 30 min total to make. What makes this dish so fantastic is the mushroom sauce. And let me stress to you that a good quality balsamic vinegar is essential for this recipe. One of my favorite places to get good quality oils and vinegars is a store called "Oil and Vinegar" (http://oilandvinegarusa.com/). They have a lot of different flavored oils, as well as vinegars. I used a Hibiscus Vinegar for this recipe and it was absolutely fabulous!

This dish is gluten free and my recommendation is to use either Ribeye steak or New York Strip. I paired this dish with homemade mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli and carrots. This one is definitely a keeper in our house and if you love steak, you'll want to make sure you try this one.

Ingredients:

• 4 New York Strip or boneless ribeye steaks
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 20 baby bella mushrooms quartered
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus some for seasoning your steaks
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, plus some for seasoning your steaks
• 1/4 cup good quality balsamic vinegar (I used a hibiscus balsamic vinegar)
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter

Directions:

• Heat an outdoor grill over medium heat. Coat each steak evenly with salt and pepper for flavor.
• Place steak on grill and cook for 5 minutes. Then, flip and cook an additional 5 minutes. Cook steak to your desired temperature. While steak is cooking on the grill, start the sauce.
• In a medium saucepan, heat your olive oil over medium-heat. Add mushrooms and saute for 8-10 minutes, until most of the juices have released and the mushrooms start to brown.

                                                          

• Add the garlic and cook and additional minute, allowing the garlic to become fragrant. Add the salt and pepper.
• Add the chicken broth and balsamic vinegar and cook 8-10 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half.
• Add the cream, and stir well. Cook until heated through and then remove from heat. 

                                     

• Add the butter and stir to combine until melted.
• Serve hot over the steaks.

                                     

Marinated Flank Steak

Oh my goodness this is a fabulous marinade recipe for flank steak. I'm a huge fan of flank steak, but this marinade is over the top in flavor! It's so super easy to make this. Last night, I got home from the gym at 10:00pm, whipped up this marinade in 10 minutes and let it marinate in the fridge on my flank steak for 16 hours. I got home from work today, popped it on the grill and it was ready in 15 minutes. So easy and if you are a "plan ahead" kind of person, you'll appreciate this recipe.

This is gluten free BUT make sure you read the label of your soy sauce. Some brands of soy sauce have gluten and some don't...so read those labels! Check your Dijon mustard label too.

Enjoy - this one is amazing and I have no idea where it came from. I've had this recipe stuck away in an old folder  since 2006 so I'm claiming it as mine :)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, mined (use fresh)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak

Directions:

• In a medium bowl, mix the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, garlic and the ground blank pepper. Place meat in a shallow glass dish. Pour marinade over the steak, turning the meat to coat it thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

• Preheat your grill for medium-high heat.
• Place the grill on the steak. Grill meat for 7 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

Marinated Flank Steak

I made this one last night and it was fabulous!  This marinade is great!  I have REALLY come to LOVE dishes with Dijon Mustard!  I let this one marinate overnight and it had a great flavor.  My kids ate it up as well as my hubby!  This recipe says to marinate it for 6 hours, but I chose to do it overnight.  I have no idea where I found this recipe...it was tucked away in a huge pile of recipes I had in my recipe book (unorganized, of course). This one is Gluten Free and Dairy Free.  It goes great with a salad.  I've really enjoyed making Flank Steak recipes.  It's easy to cook and low maintenance. Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup Gluten Free Soy Sauce
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 1/2 pound flank steak

Directions:

In a medium bowl, mix the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, garlic and ground pepper.  Place meat in a shallow glass dish.  Pour marinade over steak, turning meat to coat thoroughly.  Cover and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.

When you are ready to cook the meat, Preheat grill for medium-high heat.  Place the steak on the grill and discard the marinade.  Grill meat for 5 minutes on each side for a medium rare finish...or longer if you prefer your meat more well done.

Extremely Healthy Meatloaf (dont worry - this isnt your TYPICAL meatloaf)

This is one of my favorite recipes!  And it's so healthy!!  I don't like meatloaf, but I LOVE this recipe for meatloaf.  Instead of using ketchup and crackers, this recipe calls for brown rice and salsa.  SO yummy and my kids eat every bite and always want 2nds!!  This one is Gluten Free and Dairy Free!  Full of Veggies and high in protein and fiber!

This one is from South beach Diet.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 onion chopped
1/2 red bell pepper - chopped
1/2 green pepper - chopped
1/2 lb ground turkey meat
1/2 lb ground beef
1 cup of your favorite chunky salsa
1 egg beaten
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup cooked brown rice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  Heat oil in a pan and take the onions, pepper and saute for about 5 min or until tender.

In a large bowl, combine beef, turkey, salsa, egg, salt, black pepper and garlic.  Stir in the sauteed veggies and then the rice.  Place the mixture in an oblong bread loaf or in a baking dish and form into an oblong loaf. 

Bake for45 min to an hour or until the inserted thermometer reaches 160 degrees and meat is no longer pink.

NOTE FROM CHEF - I've had the best results on this one using the oblong bread loaf. See my picture below for the size I use.  Also - make sure this one you really gage by the thermometer being inserted.  I've noticed on this one that if I make anything else in the oven with it...it takes longer than an hour to cook, so make sure you cook this one by itself in the oven.  Also - this one isn't that appealing when it's done.  The juices from the peppers and onions float to the top...but it tastes AMAZING!  Just letting you know beforehand!

This is a picture of the meatloaf in the oblong bread loaf pan and then I served it with my Roasted Veggies.  See that recipe on my blog too!

Slow-Cooker Salsa Chicken

This is another great recipe for cooking in your crock pot!  We all have those days that tend to be busy and you just dont have time to cook so save this recipe for those busy days!  I got this one from SparkPeople.  This one is low calorie, low fat, and super high in protein! This one calls for a can of reduced fat cream of mushroom soup, so if you are going Gluten Free make sure to buy the Gluten Free Brand of Cream of Mushroom.  The sour cream mentioned below as the last step can be optional. Serve this in warm tortillas or taco shells.
Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup salsa
1 package reduced sodium taco seasoning
1 can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup (condensed) - Get the Gluten Free kind if you are Gluten Free
1/3 cup reduced fat sour cream

Directions:
Add chicken to slow cooker.  Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken.  Pour salsa and soup over chicken.  Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Remove from heat and still in sour cream.  Serve with rice, beans, tortillas, taco shells and all your other favorite taco toppings!!

Serves 6
Nutrition Info:
Calories: 157.2, Fat 3.3g, Carbs 6.7g, Protein 24.3g