Asian Marinaded Chicken Thighs with Asparagus bundles

Tags

asparagus, bacon, chicken, dinner, Gluten free, healthy, low carb, paleo, sides

 

 

 

One of my go to, easy put together dinners is this asian marinated chicken. This chicken dish is super quick to put together, not to mention delicious. 

 

Ingredients (serves 4, or two really greedy hungry people)

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1/2 cup coconut aminos, or soy sauce

2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1/4 cup raw honey (regular honey is ok too)

1 tsp fresh grated ginger (1/2 tsp if using powdered ginger)

2 cloves of garlic, minced (or 1 tsp powdered garlic)

1 bunch of scallions, sliced (optional)

 

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together coconut aminos, rice wine vinegar, garlic, ginger, honey and sesame oil. Pour mixture over boneless chicken breasts, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the chicken marinates, I prep my side dishes. Since Brent and I follow a low carb diet on a more regular basis these days, I made some bacon asparagus bundles. We found a great hardwood smoked organic bacon, sliced to order with our local grocer that doesn’t run cheap but we find we cant stay away from it! Its so good. 

 

Bacon Asparagus Bundles

1 bunch of asparagus

6 slices of bacon

a sprinkle of natural sea salt

Preheat an oven to 450*. Arrange a baking sheet with parchment paper or non stick foil.

Trim asparagus of woody ends.

Wrap several stalks of asparagus with bacon. Some prefer to tie the bacon in a knot but i prefer the spiral method for more bacon coverage.

Sprinkle the asparagus lightly with sea salt. Roast in the oven for 10 -12 minutes, depending on how you like your asparagus. I like mine with a little char/crunch. 

 

Back to the chicken.

Heat a large grill pan or non stick skillet over a medium high heat. Allow the pan to fully heat to get the desired effect with the chicken. If the pan sizzles wildly after a sprinkle of water hits the pan, place the chicken on the pan and allow to cook undisturbed for 6 minutes. Turn over and cook for an additional 6 minutes or until the center is no longer pink.

Allow the chicken to rest and while resting, garnish with chopped scallions.

 

This is, hands down, our favorite chicken dish. I added a bit of sauteed fennel to the dish.

The leftovers are great for lunch!! (if there are even any leftovers)

Paleo Bacon Meatloaf with Mushroom Sauce

Tags

bacon, beef, dinner, low carb, meatloaf, paleo, recipes

 

When I first started my Paleo journey, I was always afraid BR and I weren’t eating enough. Not in the sense that we had to eat like birds but I wanted to make sure that the meals were satisfying and healthy.

One of the greatest “tricks” to succeeding during my initial 30 days was adding good quality bacon to our diet. For so long, I always saw bacon as “bad” and “unhealthy”. So when I started shopping for our first week, holding the pound of freshly butchered bacon made me so excited. It started to feel like anything but a diet.

GIVE ME BACON!

And that love for bacon is the reason why when I was making a beautiful grass fed beef meatloaf that I added bacon to it without the slightest feeling of guilt. And for BR, he dug in and said “this is a diet?!?! SIGN ME UP!” It was definitely satisfying, especially with the addition of some great veggie sides. Even if you arent following a low carb diet, this is a really satisfying dinner.

Ingredients:

2 lb 85% lean grass fed ground beef

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup almond flour, or flour of choice

1 egg

1 tsp granulated onion powder

1/2 tsp granulated garlic

6-8 slices bacon

For the sauce:

8 oz mushrooms, i chose cremini, sliced

1 Tbsp butter

1 tbsp arrowroot flour, Or flour of choice

1/4 cup beef stock

 

Preheat the oven to 350*. In a large bowl, combine the ground beef with onions, salt, flour, egg, garlic and onion powder. Combine until all ingredients are well incorporated. Place in a non stick baking pan and form into a loaf shape. Top with bacon.

Place in the oven and bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes.

While the meatloaf was baking, I prepared the mushroom gravy. Heat the butter in a large skillet over a medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the sliced mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms are softened, about 5-7 minutes. When the mushrooms are cooked, sprinkle in the arrowroot flour and stir until its well combined. It will thicken up, add beef stock in 1 Tbsp at a time until desired consistency is reached. Allow the mushrooms to bubble while stirring constantly. When it reaches a bubble, lower the heat to allow it to simmer while the meatloaf cooks. When the meatloaf is complete, slice and serve with mushroom sauce over it. I served this alongside some sauteed cabbage, roasted red beets and a tomato and cucumber salad.

The mushrooms sauce was great, however, it congeals quite a bit once it cools. Not to be alarmed though, the sauce gets better when its heated.

 

Paleo Week 1: ALL OF THE BACON!

Tags

bacon, diary, paleo, paleo diet, whole 30

Paleo?

What made me start this diet? Instagram. Partially. And even some bloggy friends who are amazing fitness warriors. Also, desperation.

BR and I are good eaters. When I cook, we eat well. When left to our devices, we are assholes about it (truth). Bowls of mac and cheese, for comfort. Buckets of fried chicken, because protein (lies! Pure Comfort). And bread. Bread everywhere. Warm bread with cheese and sausage. Toast with breakfast. Big doughy sandwiches for lunch. At 5pm every day we were grumpy, bloaty, tired and unhappy. The solution? Eat More.

My bloggy friend as well as longtime friend, Sarah- healthy mom on the run- took on a NO sugar detox challenge over the summer. So, lots of paleo-esque recipes. I was looking at those recipes, and I liked them a lot! But, I still couldn’t decide to make the full leap to trying a paleo diet. Then, someone I keep in contact with via Facebook and instagram started his paleo journey and after 2 months still has amazing results!

BR and I decided together that we needed to try this. Not a fad diet, but to change our lifestyle a bit. I started doing my research (I love research) and thanks to hashtags on Instagram like: #paleo, #paleodiet, #paleorecipes, and #whole30, I had tons and tons of inspiration. Enough to get the ball rolling for us. I also decided to use Instagram to keep myself accountable, which means TONS of food pics. Everything I eat goes on instagram.

I won’t lie, some people don’t take kindly to news of “diets”. With every positive comment, you get two negative ones.

“I don’t believe in those kind of diets. I eat what I want. Just exercise more!”

“Wow, you are going to have really high cholesterol”

“Who needs a diet, just use common sense and eat everything in moderation”

And more times than not, the people that should support you without a doubt are usually the first ones in line to discourage you.

Despite it all, I persevered. And it’s not to prove anyone wrong. It’s to finally stick to something and decide for myself this is what I want. For anyone out there who doesn’t support what I am doing, I just ask that you please respect my decision. This is my platform. This is my life. There is no room for negativity. There will be plenty of non-paleo posts to come as I have a back-log of things to share with you.

But let’s start with week 1. It’s a constant learning curve and I love it. Learning how to eat. Learning what’s going on in my body. For the first 30 days, I will be strictly paleo.

No Dairy. No Grain. No Beans. No soy. No Sugar.

But there’s meat, vegetables, fruit, nuts and healthy oils on the YES list.

Bacon. That sold BR immediately.

My coffee was the hardest thing to adapt. I found a raw and grass fed half and half at the farmers market but minus sugar, it was pretty disgusting. I then added cinnamon and it helped a little.

Day 1: Bacon. Eggs. Coffee with raw milk with breakfast. Feeling Really motivated! Went for a 45 minute swim. Wasn’t hungry until about 4pm (shocking) so I baked some chicken wings with sautéed swiss chard and steamed cabbage. 3 chicken wings to be exact. Then around 8pm was STARVING. BR and I were ready to eat a jar of peanut butter (no-no) until he had the brilliant idea of ordering in. Steak with onions, green plantains, and a side salad. All paleo. Very satisfying- didn’t eat all of it.

           

Day 2: Won’t make the mistake of not eating enough! Can’t make that mistake. Used the leftover steak with avocado, leftover swiss chard scrambled into an egg alongside some… bacon. Extremely full. Went to the gym for the first time in months. Did the elliptical for 10 minutes, then started Day 1 of Couch to 5K. It was painful. Had lots of water after the gym and went for a swim too! Snacked on a juicy watermelon. Didn’t eat lunch. Dinner was a meatloaf made of grass fed beef and topped with sautéed mushrooms (in grass fed butter), more steamed cabbage, roasted beets and a cucumber salad dressed in coconut aminos, vinegar and a drop of sesame oil.

(Recipes are coming soon.)

    

Day 3: bacon. soft-boiled egg, watermelon, and a nectarine. Half a cup of coffee with raw milk. The coffee is probably the worst I have ever had. Decided to look into alternatives. Lunch is a breaded chicken cutlet (almond flour and coconut flour are approved and make for a great alternative!!!) with roasted sugar snap peas, leftover beet salad, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. Finally my CSA veggies are getting ALL THE LOVE. Went to the gym after work and did a HIIT elliptical session for 30 minutes. I kept losing track of the minutes. Then I walked home briskly (1/2 mile). Made Bahn Mi Style burgers with ground pork and lettuce buns, sautéed baby bok choy (my new fave!) and half of a baked sweet potato with grass fed butter and cinnamon. Not super full after dinner but feeling content.

Day 4: Breakfast and lunch were the exact same as the day before. The thing I was looking forward to most, as was BR, was the oxtail simmering in the slow cooker the entire day. When I got home, I took a long walk with the dog then went home to make a cauliflower mash to go with it. It was perfection. It did not taste like diet food. A few slices of avocado sealed the deal. Was perfectly content all night.

Day 5: steamed broccoli rabe, scrambled egg, and- you guessed it- more bacon for breakfast. Didn’t waste my time on the coffee. Had a plan B for the coffee… just needed coconut milk. Lunch was leftover oxtail and cauliflower puree. With an overripe nectarine, sliced cucumbers, and sliced avocado. The envy of the office. After work, I went to the gym and had a great idea. Used my couch to 5K, week 2 podcast to time my HIIT on the elliptical. For a warm-up, I did level 1. For the brisk walk, I did level 3. For the Run, I did level 12. Felt AMAZING after. Went home for some pan-seared salmon, sautéed green beans and plantains. I love plantains!

Day 6: Bacon, eggs and broccoli for breakfast. A midday banana. Leftover salmon, green beans, with cucumber and watermelon. A big test today as we are going to a farewell party after work at a nearby pub. Did my research. The pub has bacon, grilled chicken and salad. Not prepared in the approved oils but still sticking with the plan for the most part. Grilled chicken, an avocado, bacon and a mixed green salad lightly dressed in a balsamic vinaigrette. BR has chicken wings with bacon. A man’s man. We sip lemony water while everyone does shots. We get high fives all around. I leave extremely proud.

Day 7: I have a splitting headache. Attributing it to the change of weather, although feeling guilty about the non-approved oils and the non paleo salad dressing. BR tells me to shut up. Had a big breakfast of steak and eggs with avocado from the local diner. Going to the gym after breakfast makes me feel better. More HIIT on the elliptical – and some weights! Went to the pool but no swimming. Snacked on some juicy cantaloupe. Skipped lunch (seems to be the weekend trend) and came home to a slow roasted chicken alongside some bacon Brussels sprouts.

Thoughts on week 1.

- You can love bacon all you want, but it’s nice to not have it every day. There is always STEAK

- I really love my coffee milky and sweet but have been okay not having it.

- My stomach doesn’t feel bloated. At all. Not gassy either, despite all the roughage (TMI).

- Despite Saturday morning’s icky headache, I haven’t had a headache in over a week- had headaches/migraines DAILY

- So much energy. Going the gym 3-4 times per week and feeling good. Mentally and physically.

- Starting to get REALLY thirsty. I need ALL of the water.

- Resisted Free pizza at work! CELEBRATE ALL THE THINGS!

- So many Bakers at work just decided to bake everything I love on the same day- said NO to it all. Rejoice. Bring me all cute fluffy things!

Hopefully this entire post doesn’t bore you to death. But I hope it can help if you were considering a paleo diet. And if not, hang tight- regular stuff is coming too.

Turkey Bacon and Cheddar Burgers with Caramelized Onions

Tags

bacon, burger, dinner, onion, recipes

So now that I am officially a comfy cozy girl in a healthy relationship, the boo and I stay in quite a bit. Not because we don’t want to see anyone or because we hate going out, but after a full week of work, our favorite thing to do on a friday after work is relax. And I must confess that as I get older, I find myself falling asleep earlier and earlier each night without a care. Last friday, I was asleep by 10 pm. TEN. P.M!!!! The time most young adults are on their way out for a night of fun.

I digress. After a week of clean eating and a heavy veggie and fish week, I decided to pick up some lean ground beef. I didn’t have an immediate plan for it, but having it around provided some leeway for that spontaneous moment where I could be reckless and plan dinner as I’m making it. That’s my opinion of reckless.

With a sudden leftover supply of bacon, I suddenly craved burgers.

with Caramelized onions.

Bacon.

and a soft and fluffy potato bun.

Ingredients: serves 4

1 lb lean ground beef

1 tsp worcestshire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1 large spanish onion, sliced

4 slices of crispy bacon

4 oz cheese (I chose extra sharp cheddar)

1.  In a large skillet, heat a tsp of oil over a medium heat. Add the onions and cook until browned or caramelized, about 8- 10 minutes. When onions are done, set aside.

2. Combine the ground beef with worcestshire sauce. Make 4, 4 oz, patties out of the beef. Sprinkle each patty with salt and pepper. Prepare a cast iron skillet with a tsp of oil. When the pan is screaming hot, place heat on lower setting. Add burgers and cook 4-5 minutes on each side, or to desired internal temps. For burgers, I like mine with a little pink inside.

3.  Add cheese to cooked burger patties and assemble with onions and bacon. (also a good option: smashed avocado!)

4. Affix on bun of choice (Mine is potato bun). Serve with baked fries or a healthy side salad.

A simply seasoned burger is the best burger. The addition of the sides just made this a great texture party! It was nice to change things up a bit. We tore these babies up.

Less Loaded baked Potato Soup

Tags

bacon, baked potato, cauliflower, cooking light magazine, dinner, healthy, lunch, recipes, scallions, soup

I feel like a broken record here. Its cold! Its April! Why?

What to do when its cold?

Snuggle up with your boo and your puppy. And if you need some warmth and comfort in your tummy, January’s issue of Cooking Light had a tasty less loaded baked potato soup.

Now, I love all things soup. Its filling, Its comforting. And its usually easy to make. BR on the other hand, is not really a soup kind of guy. He likes substance. He likes meat.

Looking at the recipe, I saw it had bacon. Bacon is meat. This soup is meat and potatoes. How can that disappoint anyone? And even more amazing is how this soup packs all the flavor of a loaded baked potato with less calories and fat thanks to the pureed cauliflower.

Right?

Less Loaded Baked Potato Soup

• 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 pound cubed peeled baking potato (about 2)
• 1 pound cubed Yukon gold potato (about 4)
• 5 cups unsalted chicken stock (such as Swanson)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 pound cauliflower, cut into florets (about 1/2 head) I used an entire head
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• Cooking spray
• 1 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk 1/4 cup fat free half and half
• 3/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
• 1/2 cup fat-free fromage blanc (such as Vermont Creamery) or sour cream
• 2 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 slices center-cut bacon, cooked and crumbled

Directions: (my directions vary from Cooking Light slightly)

1. Set up a large pot of salted water. Bring to boil. When water is boiling, add cauliflower and potatoes and boil till fork tender. About 10 minutes. (you want it to fall apart easily – makes blending quick!)
2. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion, thyme, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add stock, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and bay leaf; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. When the potatoes and cauliflower are fork tender, place in a blender, along with some of the simmering broth and puree. When the desire texture is reached, I like mine velvety, place it all in the dutch oven and allow it to simmer for an additional 10-20 minutes.
4. Remove from heat; discard bay leaf.
5. Add half and half. Stir. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 cup green onions, and sour cream; stir until sour cream dissolves.
6. Ladle soup into 8 bowls. Top evenly with remaining green onions, cheese, and bacon. (or in my case, serve two bowls of soup and put the leftovers in the fridge for lunches)

For a soup, BR thought it was okay. (figures). But this is a great soup disguised as a guilty pleasure but lightened up to make indulging guilt free. My favorite part of this soup is the crispy bacon and the creamy texture of this soup.

Might as well enjoy it while its still freezing.

I don’t know what it is, But it Has Bacon

Tags

bacon, dinner, pasta

Quite a title, isn’t it? Truthfully, I didn’t know what to call it other than dinner. But it was a little passed dinner time and I was hungry and there was no waiting for delivery. I rummaged through the fridge and pantry. I pulled out pasta, chicken breasts, frozen peas, leftover pasta sauce and BACON.

The wheels were turning. It would be nothing special but it would be quick and fulfilling.

Here is my BS dinner recipe: (serves 2, btw)

3 chicken breasts seasoned with salt, pepper and basil

2 slices of bacon

2 cups of marinara sauce

1/4 cup half and half

1/2 cup frozen peas

2 cups pasta, cooked

I crisped up the two slices of bacon and crumbled them. When they were nice and crispy, I set them aside on some paper towels. The bacon fat didn’t go to waste- don’t you worry! I cooked the chicken in it.

When the chicken was done, I set it aside as well.

I heated the marinara sauce in a large skillet and added some half and half followed by the peas.

 

When the sauce was heated through and the peas were tender, I tossed in the cooked pasta.

Threw it all in a bowl and ate it. Served BR and as he dug in he asked “what is this?”

“I don’t know what it is, but it has bacon”.

And it was good.

Quiche Lorraine

Tags

bacon, brunch, cheese, dinner, egg, lunch, pie crust, quiche

Eggs baked with cream bacon and cheese in a a flaky, buttery pie crust.

Quiche Lorraine. Its pure heaven for me. But I don’t make it often because its so easy to devour the entire thing! Don’t act like its just me!

However, I do feel like one can indulge in the good stuff if they keep it balance. A nice spring green salad to go along side this decadent quiche is the perfect homemade brunch; topped with a honey mustard vinaigrette!

I have made quiche in the past and sought a few of my pervious projects for inspiration. I cheated by using a premade frozen crust and went all in on the cream, eggs, bacon and cheese.

I served us each a slab of quiche alongside a mixed green salad.

It was a great balance. It was also hard to not have a second slice. Instead, I had more salad since the honey mustard dressing was SO delicious!

BLT Risotto

Tags

bacon, dinner, recipes, risotto, spinach

I really didn’t know what to do with the 3lb bag of Arborio rice that was given to me by mistake from Fresh Direct, so it sat in my cupboards. Sure, I could make risotto… I mean, that’s what arborio rice is for. But the thought of using it never came to mind until I was looking through a cookbook at Patty’s house.

“Oh, I have been meaning to give that to you…”

A free cookbook! It was Emeril Lagasse’s Sizzling Skillets and One Pot Wonders. Everything about a one pot dinner sounded great to me but when I spotted the BLT Risotto recipe my mind went right to the giant bag of free Arborio Rice.

I had most of the ingredients on hand, so I figured “Why Not?”

I was also nursing a really gnarly hangover and was craving CARBS like crazy. There was no time like the present to 1) make hangover risotto and 2) stop feeling hungover.

Ingredients:

6 cups chicken stock

6 ounces thick cut bacon  1/5 lb thick cut bacon

1 cup onion, diced

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp crushed garlic

1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme 3/4 tsp dried thyme

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

3/4 cups dry white wine

1 lb vine ripened tomatoes 2 vine ripened tomatoes

5 ounces fresh baby spinach

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

2 ounces parm cheese

To start, set the 6 cups of broth in a pot to simmer. It has to be hot in order to do its magic later.

While the broth was simmering, I crisped up the bacon in a large skillet… the same skillet I would be using for the duration of the cooking! One skillet to wash! yesss!

I digress.

When the bacon is nice and crispy, remove it from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside on some paper towels.

Add the onions to newly rendered bacon fat and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon until the onions are translucent. About 4-6 minutes.

Add the garlic, rice, and thyme. Toast up the rice, stirring frequently for 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and allow the rice to absorb it.

When the wine is absorbed, add 1 cup of the chicken stock and gently stir the rice. As the stock evaporates, continue to add 1/2 cup of stock at a time. This should go on for about 15-18 minutes until there is 1/2 cup of stock remaining and the rice is al dente.

Add the tomatoes and allow to cook for two minutes.

After that, add the spinach, bacon, remaining stock, butter and parmesan cheese. Once the spinach wilts, allow it cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Plate and serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Amazing.

And it made for an awesome hangover breakfast!

Maple braised Brussel Sprouts with Caramelized Onions and Bacon

Tags

bacon, brussel sprouts, slow cooker, vegetables

That is quite a mouthful so a side dish, right?

Well, there really is no way to give the dish justice without naming all of its delicious components.

Its probably no secret that I have been slacking in the menu planning part of my life. I know I say it all the time. But when I think about setting the time to menu plan, I get side tracked. Like “Oh, a notification on Facebook.” Or “OOOh! A text from my boyfriend”. And then, next thing you know, its Sunday night and I havent a thing planned.

That’s what I love most about trips to the supermarket with the roommate. I go with a vague idea of what I want and then, if I see something I like, I get it.

the problem?

I see a lot of things I like.

Like slab bacon. You cant just cook it an eat it… (I mean, you can… but humor me), you need to make it a star in an otherwise boring dish.

And while thinking this over, I glanced in the cart of someone else in the market and spied a massive bunch of brussel sprouts. Immediately I was back at Zutto having the best brussel sprouts ever!

So…here we are

Ingredients:

2 oz slab bacon, diced

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 lb of brussel sprouts, quartered

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

salt to taste

I started by taking the brussel sprouts and placing them in my SLOW COOKER. Oh yes, these babies are braised!

While they hung out in the slow cooker, I crisped up the slab bacon and with a slotted spoon transferred the bacon to the slow cooker; reserve the bacon drippings.

I then caramelized the onions in the bacon fat. Once they were a sweet caramel color, I added the contents of the pan to the slow cooker… drippings and all.

OH BABY.

I sprinkled a little salt on it because I like a little salt here and there and drizzled the maple syrup onto the contents of the slow cooker.

I gave it a stir to incorporate all the deliciousness all over!

I set it on high for 2 hrs and came back to some seriously tender and delicious brussel sprouts. Sweet from the maple syrup and onions and smoky from the bacon. The brussel itself had a slight bitterness to it that balanced out the flavors.

And then I did what anyone would do.

I ate a bowl of brussel sprouts.

…or is that just me?