Recipes

Chicken Fajita Feast

A few months ago I began a subscription to my favorite meal kit service – also the best value IMHO:  EveryPlate.com. This meal kit service offers your choice of three dinners, for two or four people, from a selection of eight different meal options with a range of proteins and sides. Since my kids can be picky, I’ll often make the EveryPlate meal for dinner for myself, my husband and my younger son and let my two teenagers pick what they’d like for dinner. Sometimes the choice of EveryPlate meal lends itself to “upsizing” with additional sides, so I’ll use that as the base for a meal for our whole family.

First, I opened a package of fresh corn on the cob and tossed the ears on a sheet pan with a bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, cilantro and my favorite seasoning, Tajin. This citrusy, spicy blend gives a little kick to anything you shake it onto. I roasted the corn at 425 degrees on the top rack for about thirty minutes, turning each ear about halfway through, until the ears were beginning to char.

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Second, I made two packages of Knorr Taco Rice. This packaged rice is a quick and easy side with fajitas or tacos, and you can boost the veggie value by mixing diced fresh tomatoes, green, red and jalapeño peppers into the rice while it’s cooking.

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Then I got into preparing the EveryPlate recipe for Classic Chicken Fajitas. Everything you need, with the exception of some kitchen staples like butter or olive oil, is included in the box you get from EveryPlate each week. The recipe card gives the exact quantities you’ll need of each ingredient and offers clear instructions with photos on the back. I diced and cooked the fajita green pepper and red onion, then tossed the diced chicken in salt, pepper and southwest seasoning. The chicken cooked in my cast-iron skillet – yum!

Last but not least, I diced up the tomato, red onion and jalapeño pepper and tossed with some salt and lemon juice to make a quick salsa, then mixed up the lime crema.

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Everyone got one ear of roasted corn, which I topped with queso fresco, a serving of taco rice and a chicken fajita on a flour tortilla topped with the fresh salsa and lime crema. What a delicious Sunday dinner!

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Do you want to try EveryPlate.com? Click here! You’ll get $20 off your first box. Weekly boxes start from around $39 for three dinners for two, which is only $6.50 per serving (the best value I’ve found in meal prep kit services). The serving size says it’s for two, but I nearly always get two adult servings plus a kid’s portion out of my EveryPlate meals.

4th of July Dessert Cheesecake Dip

This is a quick and delicious dip to enjoy at your 4th of July cookout with vanilla wafers, pretzels or fruit.

US Flag Dip

Vanilla Pudding Cheesecake Dip

Ingredients:

2 boxes vanilla pudding

4 cups cold milk

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

1/2 cup fresh blueberries

1 cup diced fresh cherries

1/2 cup small marshmallows

Preparation:

Blend vanilla pudding mix, milk, softened cream cheese and confectioner’s sugar with an immersion blender or in a blender until thickened and smooth. Pour into a rectangular glass casserole or other container. Arrange fresh blueberries, diced cherries and marshmallows to resemble the American flag. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Serve with vanilla wafers, sugar cookies, pretzels, fresh fruit or any other snack. Happy 4th!

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Perfect Spring Brunch

This light, easy spring brunch was delicious, and was made possible by Aldi’s sale on hams (50% off).

The refrigerated ham came with glaze for baking. It was pretty quick to bake, then glaze during the last 15 minutes of baking. My trick is to wrap the dish or tray you use to bake your ham in aluminum foil until you glaze it. That will keep the ends of the ham from getting burnt.

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While the ham was baking, I made a quick pie dough, then I diced up a medium onion and layered onto the bottom of the pie crust. I thinly sliced two medium zucchinis and two medium squash, layered them in my pie pan over the crust, then added my quiche mixture:  6 eggs, 1 cup milk, dashes of salt, black and white pepper and 1 tsp. of ground mustard. I baked the quiche in a 350-degree oven for about 50 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle came out clean.

Once both were finished, it was the perfect light spring brunch.

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The Chesapeake Goat Omelette

This delicious breakfast was created by my husband, who mixed one up for me this weekend 🙂

You can use egg whites (which is how my husband made ours) or whole eggs.

Ingredients:

5 eggs or equivalent amount of egg whites

8 oz. crab meat or imitation crab meat

4 oz. crumbled goat cheese

dash of salt

dash of pepper

1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning

Preparation:

Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add eggs or egg whites and cook for 1-2 minutes until the egg just begins to set. Add the crab or imitation crab and goat cheese, spreading both evenly throughout the pan. Cook another 1-2 minutes until nearly set. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and Old Bay seasoning, then fold one side of the omelette over the other and flip it gently to the other side to cook. Cook another minute or two until done, then slide it onto a plate. Cut in half and serve to your better half!

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Greek Chicken Pasta Salad

This was so quick and easy I had to share! Cook a box of fusilli or other small pasta (the pasta I used was gluten-free). While that was boiling, I chopped a cucumber, half of a red onion, artichoke hearts, tomatoes and some cooked chicken and tossed them into a big bowl. I added a small can of black olives, then drained and cooled the pasta. I drizzled on some olive oil, some balsamic vinegar and some honey, then added a few dashes of salt, black pepper, a container of feta cheese and some Italian seasoning (basil, oregano, etc.). And voila! A simple healthy lunch.

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Ingredients:

1 lb. chicken breast, cooked and diced

1 box fusilli or other small pasta, cooked, drained and cooled

1 small can diced black olives

1 medium cucumber, diced

1/2 medium red onion, diced

1 small container cherry tomatoes, halved

1 small container feta cheese

1 small jar artichoke hearts

2 tbsp. olive oil

4 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

3 tbsp. honey

salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

Italian seasoning, to taste

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and enjoy!

 

Slow Cooker Steak Fajitas

This was such a delicious and easy way to enjoy fajitas for dinner from the crockpot. I grabbed some steaks from Lidl (about a pound worth) sliced it up and added it to the slow cooker with a bunch of green and red peppers and red onion and my two secret ingredients: homemade fajita seasoning and liquid aminos.

For the homemade fajita seasoning, I whisked together the following ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup chili powder
  • 2 tbsp. cumin
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. black pepper
  • 2 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tsp. parsley

This recipe doesn’t include chicken bouillon, which is used in some other homemade fajita seasoning recipes, so it’s paleo and Whole30 approved.

Crockpot Steak Fajitas

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. steak, diced into thin strips
  • 1/2 green pepper, diced into thin strips
  • 1/2 red pepper, diced into thin strips
  • 1/2 red onion, diced into thin strips
  • 4 tbsp. fajita seasoning
  • dash liquid aminos

Cook on low for 4 hours, or on high for 2 hours. Serve on whole wheat tortillas or in a bowl with cauliflower rice, black beans, lettuce, Greek yogurt, guacamole and tomatoes. Yum!

Slow Cooker Steak and Sweet Potato Stew

Today was #SlowCookerSunday, and I wanted to make something warming and hearty, but also healthy, for family dinner. Into the slow cooker went two pounds of diced sirloin, two diced large sweet potatoes, one diced medium white onion, three sliced large carrots, three diced celery stalks, one carton of beef broth, one teaspoon of rosemary, one teaspoon of thyme, one teaspoon of salt, two tablespoons of soy sauce or liquid aminos and a dash of pepper.

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I set my slow cooker for four hours on high, but you could also do six to eight hours on low. Once the sweet potatoes have cooked through and started getting a little mushy, it’s ready to serve. I cooked a pot of quinoa for the kids to have on the side, though it’s a full meal in itself.

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Delicious!

Meal Prep Hack

As a busy mom, my meal planning and prepping is constantly evolving. I find that it’s hard to prep too many days of the same meal at one time because I like variety in my meals. I’ve also spent whole Sundays cooking food for the week and then ended up making a frozen pizza for dinner because I’m so over being in the kitchen. What’s a girl to do?

For this week’s meal prep, I used three recipes to make enough food to both feed my family for Sunday dinner and prep four lunches for the week – two for me and two for my husband. Combined with a couple of salads and one meal out during the week, these meals will get us through the workweek eating healthy.

First, I prepped my sweet potatoes by dicing them into chunks about 1/2″ wide, then tossing them in vegetable oil and salt. I roasted them in a 450-degree oven while I went to work prepping my proteins. I cut a pound of chicken breasts into about 1″ chunks then tossed in oil and cajun seasoning before arranging them in one layer in a glass baking dish. Next, I peeled a pound of shrimp and placed them in one layer into a different glass baking dish, then drizzled with oil and topped with salt and pepper. I popped the two baking dishes into the oven and grabbed a couple heads of broccoli. I chopped the broccoli florets into small pieces, drizzled with some oil and sprinkles with salt and pepper, then into the oven they went!

While everything was cooking in the oven, I sliced my leftover broccoli stalks and made a quick slaw with some diced almonds, chopped grapes, 1/4 cup of mayo and 2 tbsp. of apple cider vinegar.  I put a package of Green Giant zucchini noodles in the microwave to cook, then mixed up my sauce for the shrimp and zucchini noodles – 2 tbsp. mayo and 1 tsp. diced chipotle peppers in adobo.

Once everything was cooked, I packed up four lunch containers with a little bit of everything in each, then we enjoyed a delicious dinner from everything that was cooked. The kids enjoyed the cajun chicken, roasted sweet potatoes and the shrimp and zucchini noodles (they aren’t big on green vegetables – more roasted broccoli for us grownups!).

 

Shrimp and Green Bean Skillet

With three kids, a husband and a full-time job, finding quick and easy dinner recipes is super important. I’ve found the quickest options include frozen or pre-packaged items. My go-to’s are store brand organic frozen veggies. For this skillet, you’ll need a pound of raw frozen shrimp, a package of frozen green beans, some oil or butter, a medium onion, a clove of garlic, salt, pepper and your favorite hot sauce (mine is Cholula!).

Thaw out your shrimp – I usually do this by running warm water into the bag and letting it sit for about five minutes, then draining and repeating until all shrimp are thawed. Remove shells and tails and set your shrimp aside. Cook a package of frozen green beans in the microwave according to the package directions. Put 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive or vegetable oil or butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then dice half of a small onion and one or two cloves of garlic.  Sprinkle on some salt and pepper, and let the onions and garlic cook down for a few minutes. Add your shrimp and season with some more salt, pepper and a few dashes of hot sauce. Cook the shrimp for a few minutes on one side, then flip them over to finish cooking. Add your cooked green beans in for just enough time to coat them with seasoning and sauce, then plate and serve! Yum.

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Quick, Healthy Breakfast

I’m always looking for quick, easy, meal-prep options that are also healthy. For a while, my go-to breakfast was some egg whites, salsa and cheese nuked for about a minute and a half in the microwave to cook the eggs. Then I discovered Green Giant’s veggie spirals, especially the zucchini spirals. The quick-cook package makes meal prepping for the week quick and easy. I can just throw the package in the microwave to cook the veggie spirals from frozen, then divide the package contents across a 12-cup muffin tray.  Drop in some onions, cheese, fill the cups about 2/3 of the way with egg whites, then top with salt, pepper and any herbs I want and it’s a quick cook in the oven for about 15 minutes at 375 degrees for a batch of yummy, healthy mini veggie frittatas.

Once the mini frittatas have cooled, you can drop two at a time into plastic bags and store in the freezer. It’s easy for my husband and I to each grab a bag of these to take to work and warm up in the microwave. Voila – the problem of how to enjoy a quick, healthy breakfast is solved!

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