In The Kitchen: Ultimate Strawberry Margaritas + Spicy Black Bean Salsa

My favorite part of watching sports is consuming insane amounts of chips and salsa, and washing them down with bottomless ice cold, slushy, Strawberry Margaritas. - I prepared this Margarita recipe in about 10 minutes tops, and it was so good I didn't need to make any modifications the second time around. 

This tasty Spicy Black Bean Salsa recipe is another winner I found on All Recipes.Com. It is super easy to make, and the payoff is absolutely delicious! - I did make quite a few modifications to this recipe: I used fresh tomatoes, fresh garlic, added cilantro, omitted the black eyed peas, subbed green onion for regular onion, and subbed fresh lime juice for the zesty Italian Dressing. I think these mods gave the dish more of an authentic Southwestern feel. 

Ultimate Strawberry Margaritas  [Adapted from All Recipes.Com]

6 Fluid Ounces of Tequila

2 Fluid Ounces of Triple Sec

8 Ounces Frozen Sliced Strawberries in Syrup

4 Fluid Ounces Frozen Limeaide Concentrate 

Fill a blender with ice and crush. Pour in the tequila and triple sec. Add the strawberries and limeade. Blend for 30 seconds or until smooth. Serve in margarita glasses.

Spicy Bean Salsa [Adapted from All Recipes.Com]

1 15oz can of black beans, drained

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1/2 cup chopped green onion

1/4 cup Red Bell Peppers

1/4 cup Orange Bell Peppers

1 cup of diced tomatoes 

2 cloves fresh garlic, minced 

1 4oz can of diced jalepeno peppers

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Juice from two limes

In a medium bowl, combine black beans, corn, onion, green bell pepper, garlic, jalapeno peppers and tomatoes. Season with lime juice, salt and pepper to taste, and mix well. Cover, and refrigerate overnight to blend flavors. 

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Curry Chicken Pasta Salad

This is one of my favorite quick and super easy recipes that offers a nice twist to the traditional chicken pasta salad! Best of all, this no fuss meal can be whipped up in no time. If you are watching calories/sodium, you can sub out the mayo with the low fat version and skip the addition of the bouillon cube.

I usually make a big bowl of this on Sunday night; as it's perfect for lunches throughout the week! For a nice twist; you can add chopped apples and mango's [ I however omitted them from this recipe].

Curry Chicken Pasta Salad [Adapted From Cooks.com]
1 cube chicken bouillon
9 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breasts
9 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 (8 ounce) package of pasta
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 bunch green onions, chopped

(1) Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; add bouillon cube and stir until melted. Add chicken and poach for about 13 to 14 minutes. Remove chicken and leave broth in pot; cool chicken and cut into 1/2 inch chunks; reserve. 

(2) Add mushrooms to broth and cook over medium heat; cook for a few minutes and remove mushrooms from stock; reserve.  

(3) With remaining stock in pot, add some more water, if needed. Bring water to a boil and add pasta to cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and discard stock. Cool pasta with running water; reserve. 

(4) In a small bowl, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, garlic, lime juice, curry powder and salt and pepper to taste. 

(5) In a large bowl, combine cooled pasta, chicken, mushrooms, sour cream dressing, green onions, and yellow bell pepper; mix well. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours and serve.    

Pesto & Cheese Filled Chicken Breast

I found yet another winner from Epicurious, and this one is definitely one of my favorites thus far! I decided to make my own pesto [you can use store-bought if you like], so it took about 30 minutes from start-to-finish. Finding great recipe's that can be prepared in a jiffy is an incentive for me to continue to cook, so hopefully I can kick this fast-food habit once and for all. I paired the chicken with a little bit of brown rice, and some asparagus!

Ingredients for Thyme Pesto:

• 1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh thyme leaves or 1 tablespoon dried, crumbled, plus 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup (about 2 ounces) grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Preparation:

Finely chop first 5 ingredients in processor. With machine running, gradually add 1/2 cup olive oil. Continue processing until pesto is almost smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Pesto can be prepared up to 1 week ahead. Cover tightly and refrigerate.)

Ingredients for Stuffed Chicken Breasts:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup soft, fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet)
• 1/3 cup thyme pesto
• 1 teaspoon minced shallot or green onion

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• All purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350°F. Pound chicken breasts between sheets of waxed paper to thickness of 1/4 inch. Combine goat cheese, pesto and shallot in small bowl; mix well. Spread boned side of chicken breast with scant 2 tablespoons cheese mixture. Starting at one long side of chicken breast, roll up tightly, jelly roll style. Repeat with remaining chicken and cheese mixture.

Heat olive oil in heavy large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off excess. Fry chicken breast in olive oil until golden brown on all sides, turning occasionally, about 4 minutes. Place skillet with chicken in oven and bake until chicken is tender and cooked through, about 10 minutes.

New Years Resolution #562 - Eat Healthy

[I am always one of those gals that gets Cilantro & Italian Parsley mixed up!]

I am really, really trying to get out of the habit of eating out every other night. Not only is it draining to my pocketbook, but my selections aren't always that stellar. I like recipes that call for as little steps as possible, and don't take all day to cook. Last night, I decided to hone in on my culinary skills [or lack thereof], and try out a new recipe. It was cold, dark, gloomy, and raining so I decided to make Chicken Veggie soup w/Lime & Cilantro, sans homemade chicken broth. 

Here are the ingredients you will need for this recipe:

Carrots! 

Cilantro

Green Onions

Limes

 

Russet Potatoes

Ground Coriander Seed

• 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 8 cups canned low-salt chicken broth
• 1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 3/4 pound carrots, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 15-ounce can golden hominy, drained I am not a hominy eater, so I omitted this from the recipe
• 6 green onions, chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 5 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Place chicken, broth, potatoes, carrots and coriander in large pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until chicken and vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes. Add hominy, green onions, cilantro and lime juice and simmer 5 minutes to blend flavors. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper.

I spray my veggies with cold water, then I rinse them under cold water set at low pressure

I leave the skin on the potatoes, and cut medium size chunks

I cut medium size chunks of carrots too

I like that this recipe only really has two steps, I can throw all of the ingredients in the pot, and relax or do homework!

The final step, adding the green onions, cilantro, and lime juice. I use Kosher salt, and fresh ground pepper to taste.

All done!