Chopped Greek Salad & My Favorite Greek Dressing

Okay so I definitely feel kinda lame for posting about a salad because...well... it's a salad. But since this salad finds its way to my dinner table at least once a week, I figured it was time to post about it. And really, this post isn't about the salad as much as it's about dressing. Aren't all salads really about the dressing anyway?

Once I started making my own salad dressings, I have never gone back to store bought. Have you read the ingredient list in that stuff? It's all sugar and words I can't pronounce. I'll take my sugar in the form of cookies, not salad.

This greek dressing is great because I can pretty much guarantee that you have all the ingredients to make the dressing right now. You can throw it together on a moments notice. The other thing that I love about this dressing is that it has a high ratio of vinegar to oil. Most vinaigrettes have wayyyyyyy too much oil in them. This dressing uses more vinegar than oil so it gives it a really good tang and makes a little bit go a long way.

I'm posting a "recipe" for the salad based on what I usually put in it. Obviously change things around as you see fit. The version I'm posting is a vegetarian version, but if I have leftover chicken I usually throw that in too. This makes quite a bit of salad. It usually makes enough for me and Ross for dinner one night and lunch the next day.

Chopped Greek Salad
Ingredients:

• 1 bag of romaine, washed, dried, and chopped
• 2 - 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 bell peppers, chopped (I use one orange and one yellow)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup cucumber, chopped
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup garbanzo beans
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives, roughly chopped
• 1/2 feta, chopped

Directions

1. Throw everything in a large bowl and mix it together!

My Favorite Greek Dressing:
Source: AllRecipes.com
*Note: The quantities are a little weird. This is because the recipe is scaled back from a restaurant recipe that makes like 120 servings.

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 1/4 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp onion poweder
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Whisk together all of the ingredients except the olive oil.
2. Slowly stream in the olive oil while whisking until well blended.
   

Greek Salad Dressing

Cranberry Almond Granola

I absolutely love granola, but I hardly ever buy it because every time I read the nutrition facts in the store I'm reminded that most granola is full of calories and sugar. I've tried a few granola recipes before and none of them were worth blogging about... until I tried this one.

This granola uses unsweetened applesauce in place of oil, which reduces the calories and makes it a lot healthier. I also used a combination of brown sugar, agave, and a little bit of maple sugar to sweeten it. It's not super sweet oatmeal, so if you're looking for something sweet just add a little more sugar. I adapted the recipe from David Lebovitz, and it uses 1 tablespoon of oil along with applesauce. I'm not sure why, but I went with it anyway. The recipe is really adaptable and it will be my base recipe for granola from now. Next time I think I'll throw in some sunflower seeds and maybe some dried apricots. The flavor combination are endless!

Recipe: Cranberry Almond Granola
Highly Adapted from: David Lebovitz
Ingredients:

• 3 cups old fashioned rolled outs
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 3/4 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
• 1/4 light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup agave (I used light), or honey, or maple syrup
• 2 tbls maple syrup
• 1 tbls vegetable oil
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup dried sweetened cranberries (or other dried fruit)
  

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300F (150C).
2. In a very large bowl, mix together the oats, almonds, coconut, toasted wheat germ, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
3. In a small saucepan, warm the applesauce with the agave, maple syrup, and oil.
4. Mix the applesauce mixture into the dry ingredients until thoroughly dispersed, then divide and spread the mixture evenly on two baking sheets.
5. Bake the granola for about 45 - 60minutes, stirring every ten minutes, until the granola is deep golden brown.
6. Remove from oven, mix in the dried fruit, then cool completely. Store the granola in a large, airtight container. It will keep for up to one month.

Spicy Sweet Potato Hash

I absolutely love breakfast foods, but I hardly ever make them. My standard breakfast consists of a bowl of Special K or Multi-grain cheerios. Occasionally, I'll make a bowl of oatmeal, but on most mornings I can't be bothered to put a bowl in the microwave (No judging). So when I had the brilliant idea to make breakfast for dinner last night, I was very excited to try some breakfast recipes that have been lingering in my mind. I made this spicy sweet potato hash and a smoked salmon frittata (recipe coming soon).

This hash was absolutely delicious. It's healthy and flavorful and pretty easy to throw together. It has sweet potatoes, onions, and red peppers. It did involve a lot of chopping, but that can all be done ahead of time. And of course you can chop the pieces to be a bit larger, which will save some time. I, however, have this crazy idea that things taste better when they're chopped smaller (remember, no judging). This, of course, makes making salad a very labor intensive process for me. My salads are exclusively chopped: chopped greek salad, chopped cobb salad, chopped chicken ceasar salad... you get the idea. The bottom line is, whatever size you chop your potatoes, this will still be amazing.

* Note: I read a bunch of different recipes for hashes and some of them had you boil the potato pieces in some water for about 3 - 4 minutes before you put them in the pan with the onions and peppers to make sure they were cooked all the way. I decided to do that, but ultimately came to the conclusion that if you chop your potatoes as small as I did, it's unnecessary. If your pieces are larger, go ahead and boil them first to make sure they are cooked all the way through, but they only need a couple minutes. They should be slightly tender but still hold their shape.

Spicy Sweet Potato Hash
Ingredients:

• 1 tbls vegetable oil
  
• 2 - 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped* (See note above)
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (add more if you want, I have a low spice tolerance)
  
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp cumin
  
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp brown sugar
  

Directions:

1. Pour the oil into a large skillet and place over high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and saute, stirring, 2 to 3 minutes.
   
2. Add the rest of the ingredients, lower the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 - 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender and some are browned. The potatoes will begin to stick as they cook. Just continue to turn with a spatula.
   

Chickpea Salad

This has become pretty much my favorite thing ever this summer. I love making it at the beginning of the week and having it to snack on when I get hungry. The chickpeas provide plenty of protein and the olives and feta give it a delicious saltiness.

This salad is really easy to make with whatever you have on hand. I had sun-dried tomatoes that I needed to use up but I think it would also be great with slow roasted cherry tomatoes. Some toasted pine nuts would also make a great addition.

Chickpea Salad
Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas (about 15 oz), rinsed and drained
• 1 can of artichokes, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup of kalamata olives, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup of feta (I used reduced fat), diced
• 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tbls basil, chopped
• 1 - 2 tbls extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbls red wine vinegar
• 1 tbls lemon juice, optional (just add a little vinegar if you don't have lemon)
  
• Salt & Pepper to taste
  

Directions:

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and stir together. Add salt & pepper to taste. Refrigerate and serve cold or at room temperature.
   

Toasted Israeli Couscous Salad with Grilled Summer Vegetables

This summer, in an effort to eat healthier I've gotten in the habit of making side salads like this to have around the house. I'll make way more than I need, serve some of it as a side dish for dinner, then put the leftovers in the fridge. Salads like this are great cold and I love having them around any time I want something to munch on between meals. It's a lot easier to avoid junk food when you open the fridge and have a healthy, colorful, ready made snack staring you in the face.

(All the grilled veggies, chopped up and ready to get mixed into the couscous)

One great thing about this recipe is that it made me realize that I actually like peppers! I always thought I didn't care for peppers, but it turns out I just don't like green peppers or raw peppers. Marinated and grilled red/orange/yellow peppers are a completely different story! As a matter of fact, a lot of the peppers went straight from the grill to my mouth!

This is a Bobby Flay recipe that I found on FoodNetwork.com. It has great reviews all around and is incredibly adaptable. It's a perfect summer recipe with all those veggies, and it would make a great veggie drawer clean out recipe if you have vegetables that you need to use up before they go bad. I ended up changing it up quite a bit. Here are my notes on the recipe:

1. I ended up using almost the same amount of veggies as the original recipe, but much less couscous. The recipe calls for 1 pound of couscous and I ended up using about 6.3 oz because that was the only package of israeli couscous I could find. I think it works great better with a higher veggie to grain ratio. The directions for cooking the couscous in the recipe were pretty vague, so just use as much couscous as you want, just follow the directions on the package.
2. Instead of using water to cook the couscous, use vegetable stock or chicken broth to give it more flavor. I needed about 2 cups of liquid so I used 1 can of chicken broth and a little bit of water to get to 2 cups.
   
3. I added feta cheese because... well... feta makes everything feta.
4. The original recipe calls for asparagus which I'm not really a fan of so I left it out and added an extra pepper instead.
5. And finally, I'm a complete idiot and somehow managed to forget to add the fresh herbs to the couscous. It's suppose to have basil and parsley in it, which I'm sure would have made the salad even better, but it was still great without it.
   

Toasted Israeli Couscous Salad with Grilled Summer Vegetables
Recipe: Adapted from FoodNetwork.com

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 green zucchini, quartered lengthwise
• 1 yellow zucchini, quartered lengthwise
• 12 cherry tomatoes
  
• 1 red bell pepper, quartered and seeded
• 1 orange bell pepper, quartered and seeded
  
• 1 yellow bell pepper, quartered and seeded
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, chopped
  
• 2 tbls basil chiffonade (stack leaves, roll in a cigar shape and cut crosswise into thin strips)
• 2 tbls cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 package Israeli couscous, prepared according to package directions (See Recipe Notes above)
• Chicken broth or vegetable stock
  

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard and garlic, slowly add the olive oil and whisk until combined. Season with salt and pepper. Pour 1/2 the marinade over the vegetables and let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
   
2. Preheat the grill. Remove the vegetables from the marinade and grill the vegetables until just cooked through.
3. Cut the zucchini and peppers into 1/2-inch pieces, cut the tomatoes in half. Set aside.
   
4. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, add the couscous and toast until lightly golden brown. Cover the couscous with the hot stock/hot water and bring to a boil, cook until al dente and drain well. Place in a large serving bowl, add the grilled vegetables, feta, and herbs and toss with the remaining vinaigrette. Serve at room temperature

Tomato, Corn, Avocado Salsa

I'll pretty much eat anything if it has tomato and avocado in it. Now that it's summer and tomatoes are flavorful, plentiful, and cheap I find myself making salsas all the time. This is one of my favorite because it screams summer!
'
So what do I do with this salsa? Pretty much everything. I've thrown it on top of grilled mahi mahi. I've served it as an appetizer with some blue corn tortilla chips. Last night I served it with black bean quesadillas. And more often than not, I just eat it with a spoon.

The recipe is more of a guideline than a recipe. Feel free to add more jalepeno and onion if you want more heat. My only note: Don't be shy with the salt. All of the ingredients really need it to help their flavor come through.


Corn Tomato Avocado Salsa Recipe
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of diced tomato (I used about 4 roma tomatoes)
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 cup of corn (canned, fresh, or frozen)
• 1/4 of a small red onion, finely diced
• 1/2 of a jalepeno, seeded and diced
  
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbls chopped cilantro
• Salt and pepper to taste
  

Healthy Zucchini Apple Muffins

After posting about blueberry cheesecake ice cream and smores brownies, I figured I should make something a little healthier. I had some zucchini and apples that I needed to use up so I threw them into a healthy muffin recipe not really sure what to expect. I had 2 zucchini and 2 apples. I couldn't decide if I wanted to grate the apples or dice them, so I grated one and diced the other. I really liked the bites of diced apple running through the muffin. These came out great and I'll definitely be making them again!

This was my first time making a "healthy" muffin, so I still used a little real sugar and real oil. I think next time I make them I would cut the sugar out completely and just use a little more agave or honey. I definitely recommend keeping the walnuts in the recipe. I'm not usually a fan of nuts in muffins, cookies, or brownies, but in this case the walnuts added a really nice texture to the muffin.

Zucchini Apple Muffins
Recipe: Makes about 16 muffins
Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup AP flour
• 2 cups grated zucchini (squeezed, then packed into a measuring cup) [about 2 medium zucchini]
  
• 1 apple, peeled and grated
• 1 apple, peeled and diced
  
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 agave or honey
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 3 tbls canola oil
  
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line muffin cups with paper liners. Grate zucchini by hand or using a food processor, then gently squeeze grated zucchini to remove some of the water.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, beat egg, egg white, then add vanilla, sugar, and agave nectar and mix to combine. Stir in the grated zucchini, and apple then the oil and applesauce.
   
3. In a smaller bowl, combine AP flour, whole wheat flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Stir dry ingredients into the zucchini mixture, then fold in chopped walnuts and apples.
4. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let muffins cool a few minutes in the muffin tin or cups, then remove and cool a few minutes more.

Asian Turkey Burgers with Hoisin Mayo

Turkey burgers are one of my favorite things to make during the week. They're quick, easy, healthy, and make great leftovers the next day for lunch. I'm always looking for new flavor combinations and this asian style burger just replaced the greek style burger as our new favorite.

The burger gets most of its Asian flavor from grated ginger, grated garlic, and hoisin sauce added to the meat. It was also one of the most moist turkey burgers I've ever eaten. These burgers are great plain since they have so much flavor. Just add a drop of hoisin mayo and they're perfect!

Asian Turkey Burgers
Recipe: Adapted from Eating Well
Ingredients:

• 1.3 lbs of ground turkey (I used 93/7, but I think turkey breast would be fine too)
  
• 1/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
  
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 scallions, trimmed and sliced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• Salt & Pepper to Taste
• Hoisin Mayo (Recipe Follows)

Directions:

1. Combine the first 7 ingredients and mix well. Form the mixture into patties. (I made mine smaller than normal burgers and got 6 burgers. You should be able to get 4 - 5 regular sized burgers).
2. Sprinkle the patties with salt and pepper.
   
3. Heat grill or grill pan to medium high. Oil the grill and grill until browned and no longer pink in the center, about 5 - 7 minutes per side.

Hoisin Mayo
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayonaise (I used light)
• 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
• dash of sesame oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients and mix well.
   

Grilled Corn Salad

The other day I went to the store and fresh corn was on sale. It was 10 ears of corn for $2! Clearly, I had to buy some corn. I had no idea what I was going to make with it, but I knew I'd figure something out. And I did. And it was so good, I went back to the store 2 days later so buy even more corn and make the same dish again. Yes, you read that right. I might this corn twice in 2 days!

The recipe is pretty simple, but requires a little time and labor. This was my first experience grilling corn, so I read a lot of different methods before beginning. It seems like the preferred method is to keep the husks on, remove the silks, soak in water for about 30 minutes, then grill for about 20 minutes. That's exactly what I did and they came out so good!

I took bits and pieces from different corn recipes I saw and ended up with this. Some recipes call for mayo, sour cream, or creme fresh to be mixed in with the corn but I wanted the freshness of the corn to stand out so I just used a tiny bit of butter. The recipe calls for cotija cheese and I definitely encourage you to seek it out instead of replacing it because it really takes the corn to a whole new level!

Grilled Corn Salad with Cotija Cheese
Ingredients

• 8 - 10 ears of corn, silks removed, husks on (soaked in water for 30 min)
• 1/2 tbls butter
• Juice of 1 lime
  
• 1 tbls chopped, fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/8 tsp ancho chili pepper (I'm a wimp with spice, add more if you want)

Directions:

1. After soaking the corn, grill on medium high for about 20 minutes.
2. When the corn is cool enough to handle, remove the husks and cut the corn off the cob.
3. Saute in a pan over medium high heat with the butter, lime juice, cilantro, salt, pepper, chili powder, and chili pepper.
4. Add the cotija cheese just before you are ready to serve.
   

Caprese Chicken & My Go-To Chicken Marinade

If you're looking for something quick, healthy, and delicious to jazz up some grilled chicken, this is it. This is a really light and fresh summer meal. And the best part is, you don't even have to turn on the oven! I threw together the bruschetta a few hours before dinner, then went outside to grill the chicken 15 minutes before we were ready to eat. To quote Ina, "How easy is that?". We love anything with tomato and mozzarella in the this house, so I know this would be a hit.


The marinade I used for this chicken is my standard grilled chicken marinade. I use it A LOT in the summer. It's amazing what a difference a little marinade makes. The recipe below was scaled down from the original quantities, I used this to marinade 3 boneless, skinless breasts, but it would probably be enough for 4.

Chicken Marinade
Recipe: Adapted from AllRecipes.com
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• Juice of 1 lemon
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard (I used regular mustard)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon dried parsley

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, mix together oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, wine vinegar, and lemon juice. Stir in mustard powder, salt, pepper, and parsley. Use to marinate chicken before cooking as desired. The longer you marinate, the more flavor it will have.

Caprese Chicken
Recipe: Adapted from BakedBree
Ingredients:

• 1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
• 1/2 of a medium red onion, finely diced
• 1 cup of mozerella, diced
• 1/4 cup of fresh basil, chopped
  
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• salt & pepper

Directions:

1. Add all the dry ingredients to the bowl. Sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste and combine. Don't be shy on the salt, it really brings out the flavor of the tomatoes!
   
2. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar to taste and mix together. I probably used about 1/4 cup of each.
   

Grilled Mahi Mahi with Pineapple Cucumber Salsa

When the sun is shining and it's warm outside, I crave really light food and fresh flavors. This dish is perfect (not to mention quick and healthy). I usually stray way from cooking seafood because I'm always worried that I'll overcook or undercook it, but mahi is a pretty forgiving fish. Overall, this was really easy to put together. I just drizzled the fish with some olive oil, sea salt, pepper and lime and put on my grill pan for about 4 - 5 minutes on each side. The salsa absolutely made the dish. The sweetness of pineapple and the coolness of the cucumber completed the fish perfectly. The quantities of the ingredients in the salsa are really flexible so feel free to add more or less of whatever you want. I served this with a side of brown rice and it was a perfect meal. Enjoy!

Recipe: Grilled Mahi Mahi with Pineapple Cucumber Salsa
Ingredients:

• 2 mahi mahi fillets
• Salt & Pepper
• olive oil
• 2 limes
• 1 cup pineapple, chopped
• 3/4 cup cucumber, finely chopped
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 jalepeno (seeds removed) finely chopped
• 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. To make the salsa, combine pineapple, cucumber, juice of 1 lime, onion, jalepeno, and cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste.
   
2. To cook the fish, heat a grill pan to medium high. Drizzle the fish with olive oil, salt, pepper, and the juice of 1 lime. Cook for 4 - 5 minutes on each side.

Baked Falafel

I absolutely love falafel, but as I previously mentioned, I hate frying things. So when I saw a recipe for baked falafel, I knew I would have to make. It's always a gamble when you take a food that's typically eaten fried, and try your hand at making it healthier, but these falafels were a huge a success. I was really surprised at how crispy they got in the oven.

I basically just read a bunch of falafel recipes and pick and choose what sounded good from each one. The recipe is pretty flexible. Feel free to add or take away spices to your liking. I threw everything in the food processor, formed them into balls, squashed them down a little bit so there would be more surface area to get crispy, then baked them at 400 degrees. It's really important to flip these half way through so both sides get crispy.


Overall these were a huge hit. I served them in pitas with some chopped up cucumber, tomatoes, feta, and homemade tzatziki sauce. I also threw together a rough chopped salad with my favorite greek dressing. Enjoy!

Recipe: Baked Falafel

Ingredients:

• 15 oz can garbanzo beans drained
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs (I used panko)
  
• 1/4 of an onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup of parsley
• 1/4 cup of cilantro
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
  
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp corriander
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp baking powder
  

Directions:

1. Place garlic, onion, cilantro, parsley or mint, chickpeas, and bread crumbs in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to chop and blend ingredients.
2. Sprinkle lemon juice and olive oil over chickpea mixture and pulse a few more times. Sprinkle baking powder, salt, and spices over mixture and pulse until the chickpea mixture reaches a workable paste-like consistency. Add additional lemon juice or olive oil if it seems to dry.
   
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. While the oven is getting hot, line a baking pan with foil and brush with olive oil. Scoop balls (about the size of a golf ball) of dough into your palms and form them into patties. Set aside on work surface while you form the remaining mixture.
4. Arrange falafel patties on oiled baking sheet and brush them with olive oil. Bake at 400 degrees F for about 20 - 25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and crispy. Turn once midway through baking.
5. Remove from oven and let falafel cool on pan for a minute or two before removing to plates or pitas with a spatula.

Roasted Red Pepper White Bean Dip

I'm back! Sorry for the huge gap between posts. Two weeks ago I went on vacation to Las Vegas and since I practically ate my way through the city I decided to take the next week off from baking.

Last week we had a few people over for a poker game during the week, so I wanted something that I could make that was easy and healthy. I didn't have high hopes for this because, to be honest, I don't really like red peppers (or green, or yellow, or orange for that matter). But I had a jar of roasted red peppers in my pantry that was begging to be used so I through this together. Wow! It was actually really good. It was such a crowd pleaser. Everyone kept going back for more.

This is ridiculously easy to put together. You pretty much just open up a few cans and pop everything in the food processor with some lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, and olive oil. Seriously, it doesn't get any easier. Not to mention, it's such a pretty color!

Recipe: Adapted from Closet Cooking Ingredients

• 1 15 oz can of white beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 small jar of roasted red pepper, coarsely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Add everything to the food processor and puree until smooth. Add more olive oil (or water) to thin to desired consistency.
   

Multi-Grain Waffles

I've never really been big on making breakfast. My usual morning routine is scarfing down a bowl of Special K with some honey, cinnamon, and a banana while I check my email. Occasionally, I'll have some oatmeal but most days I can't be bothered to be to put a bowl in the microwave for 90 seconds (I know, I'm ridiculous) so clearly any sort of waffle/pancake/omelette during the week is out of the question.

This weekend I got a very undeniable waffle craving though. Besides, I figured it was about time to put the waffle maker to use. The one we got for our wedding. The one that's been sitting in the back of the kitchen cabinets for almost 2 years now. I decided to go for a multi-grain waffle that uses whole wheat flour. After seeing the list of ingredients I wasn't sure how they were going to come out. It seems rather healthy for a waffle. They actually came out really good though. As in, I'll probably be making them on a regular basis (only on weekends of course). They definitely don't have the perfect texture. The exterior could be a little crispier and the inside could be a little lighter and fluffier, but the taste is spot on. If you're looking for a healthy waffle recipe, give this a shot.

(Marcus REALLY wanted to try these. I swear he practices this look when we're not home!)

Multi-Grain Waffles: Makes 8 waffles
Adapted from: FoodNetwork.com
Ingredients:

• 2 cups buttermilk
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 2/3 cup whole-wheat flour
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup toasted wheat germ or cornmeal
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but gives them a great nutty flavor)

Directions:

1. Mix buttermilk and oats in a medium bowl; let stand for 15 minutes.

2. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, wheat germ (or cornmeal), baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.

3. Stir eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla into the oat mixture. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; mix with a rubber spatula just until moistened.

4. Coat a waffle iron with cooking spray and preheat. Spoon in enough batter to cover three-fourths of the surface (about 2/3 cup for an 8-by-8-inch waffle iron). Cook until waffles are crisp and golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Repeat with remaining batter.

Black Bean Turkey Chili

Okay, so I know that for a blog called "SugarCooking" I've had a serious lack of sugar related posts lately. I've just been craving really hearty, healthy foods lately. So I figured instead of not blogging at all, I'd just blog about all the healthy things I've been making. (I know, boring). But fret not, I promise to return with some sugar laden, full fat treats soon.

So about this chili. It's easy, it's delicious, it's filling, and it's healthy. I found this chili to be just about perfect. It has a little heat but it's not too spicy. If you like things really spicy feel free to dial up the cayenne or even add in some chopped jalepeno. This is a perfect meal for a cold, snowy night; it will warm you right up. Enjoy!

Black Bean Turkey Chili: Adapted from AllRecipes
Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1.3 lb ground turkey (I use 93/7)
  
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 3 cans black beans, undrained
• 1 1/2 tbls chili powder
• 1/tsp cumin*
• 1 tbls dried oregano
• 1 tbls dried basil
• 1 tbls red wine vinegar
• 1 tbls worchestershire sauce
• 1/2 tbls brown sugar
• 1 tsp cocoa powder ** (see note)
  
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp cayenne peper
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat; cook onion and garlic until onions are translucent.
   
2. Add turkey and cook, stirring, until meat is brown. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 60 minutes or more, until flavors are well blended.
3. Serve with sour and cheese, if desired.

Notes:
* I find cumin to have a very overpowering taste so I always reduce the amount called for. Feel free to add more if you like the flavor.
** I've seen a few recipes add cocoa powder to them so I tried it because I was curious. I don't know if there was a noticeable difference. I don't think I used enough to actually taste it.

Chicken, Spinach, Goat Cheese Quesadillas with an Avocado Sour Cream

These quesadillas are delicous, quick, and healthy... what more can you ask for? I recently got a new grill pan because I've been seriously missing the summer time grilling. All this snow is just too much for a Florida girl to get used to! I figured I'd try out the grill pan with this quesadilla recipe.

Since I pretty much love anything with spinach and goat cheese in it, it's no surprise that I loved these quesadillas. They really came out perfect. The cheese was melting and gooey on the inside and the tortilla was crisp on the outside.

I can't remember where I first read this (although I wish I did so I could give you credit!), but I remember someone suggesting to toast the inside part of the tortilla on the pan for about 30 seconds before you put the fillings on. That way is crisps up just a little bit; enough to prevent the cheese from making the inside of the quesadilla soggy. Brilliant, right?

This recipe is obviously quite adapatable to your likes and dislikes. I also put in some monterey jack cheese to give it that gooey melty texture. I think caramelized onions would be great in here, as would roasted garlic. All the recipe quantities are approximate, but just common sense and put them on in quantities that look right.

Chicken, Spinach, Goat Cheese Quesadilla
Ingredients:

• Flour Totrillas (whole wheat would work fine too)
• Chicken (cooked and sliced)
• Garlic (1 tsp., minced)
  
• Baby Spinach (1 pre packaged bag)
• Salt, Pepper, & Cayenne Pepper to taste
  
• Goat Cheese (4 oz, crumbled)
  
• Reduced Fat Shredded Monterey Jack
• Non-Stick cooking spray or olive oil

Directions

1. Heat the spinach with the garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper over medium-low heat in a pan until just wilted. Remove from heath and set aside.
   
2. Heat the grill pan (or regular pan) over medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray or drizzle with olive oil. Toast the inside of the tortilla for about 30 seconds.
3. Take the tortilla off the grill pan and assemble as follows. Over half the quessadilla sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of monterey jack cheese, following by a few slices of chicken, then the spinach, then the crumbled goat cheese.
4. Add to the grill pan and cook for about 1 - 2 minutes. Carefully use a spatula to flip the empty half of the tortilla onto the loaded half. At this point I like to let the quesadilla cook for about 30 more seconds, then flip it over. Give it another 1 -2 minutes, then remove from the pan and enjoy!

Avocado Sour Cream
Ingredients

• 1 Avocado, chopped
  
• 1/3 c. sour cream
• 1 T maynoaise
• 1 lime juice
• 1/4 t onion powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Use a fork to mash the avocado as much as you can. (You can put it in the food processor if you want a smoother dip, but I just use a fork and a spoon).
2. Combine it with all other ingredients and stir together.

Note: If you want a thinner dip, stir in a few tablespoons of buttermilk. If you want a smoother dip, throw everything in the food processor.

Japanese Cucumber Salad

There was this pan-Asian restaurant where I went to college that always served a side of cucumber salad with whatever meal you ordered. It was simple and it was perfect. Vinegary, slightly sweet, and slightly spicy. I've tried numerous times to recreate the recipe and while I've gotten close a few times, I always knew I just missing the mark. That is, until now!

I tried this recipe last night and it was exactly what I was looking for, nothing more and nothing less. This is really easy to throw together and can be made ahead. It's a very light and refreshing salad that is a great side to any Asian influenced meal. I served it alongside a honey-ginger grilled chicken breast and brown rice.

Recipe: Japanese Cucumber Salad (Adapted from: For the Love of Cooking( Ingredients:

• 1 english (hothouse) cucumber, peeled
  
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup seasoned rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup of water
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Directions:

1. Peel the cucumber then cut in half lengthwise. Take a small spoon and scoop out all the seeds from the cucumber. Cut into bite size pieces and place in a colander, sprinkle with salt and toss well. Drain 1 hour. Place on several layers of paper towels. Let stand for 5 minutes, pressing down occasionally. Rinse and pat dry.
2. Combine vinegar, water, sugar, and pepper in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cook until reduced to 1/3 cut (about 10 minutes). Remove vinegar reduction from heat; cool. Combine cucumbers and vinegar deduction in a medium bowl; toss well. Enjoy.

Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

After people see my blog/receive a plethora of baked goods from me, I get asked the same question a lot. "How are you NOT 300 pounds?". Well the answer is actually pretty simple. I don't eat dessert for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Well it's little more complicated than that. For one, I go to the gym at least 4 - 5 days a week for about an hour. Second, I try to give away about 98% of what I bake. Usually I'll keep a couple of whatever I make in the house and send the rest out of the house as soon as possible. At the very least, I put it in the freezer (but let's be honest, that's not gonna keep me away for too long). I also (try) to limit my baking, and desserts in general, to once a week. Obviously, there are exceptions to this but I do well with guidelines so that's what I tell myself. And finally, and most importantly, I actually eat really healthy when it comes to non-dessert related items. I do the whole shebang. Whole grains, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, and lean proteins.

Sugar is my weakness. I go all out when it comes to sugar. Everything I bake is usually all the way. I give myself that liberty because of the above reasons and because when it comes to savory stuff I have no problems going light. I use reduced fat/non fat items on a regular basis. I swap out lean ground turkey for ground beef whenever I can. (I can't even remember the last time I ate a cheeseburger). You could tell me that I'm not allowed to eat another french fry for as long as I live and I'd be okay with that; but if you were to tell me no more cookies or ice cream then we'd have a problem.

So how come all you've seen so far is the sweet stuff? Well for one the blog is called "SugarCooking". But more realistically there are actually a few good reasons. 1) It gets dark around 6:00 at this time of year and that makes it hard to take pictures when we're sitting down to dinner. 2) Even if there was enough light to take pictures, I'm sometimes slow and I'd feel bad letting the food get cold so I could take pictures of it. 3) I actually eat a lot of the same foods (whole wheat pasta with a turkey bolognese, this pasta dish, grilled chicken with veggies, turkey and black bean chili) on a weekly basis and that would just be boring to blog about.

So why am I telling you about all this? Well, I'm going to make an effort to start blogging about more of the savory stuff I make. I've gotten a little faster at taking pictures and I have a good lighting set up now so that will take care of reasons 1 & 2 above. But the real driving force is I think this will inspire me to broaden the dinner repertoire in my house. So, I present to you the first of hopefully many healthy, savory dishes. This thai style pineapple fried rice is delicious. I was so impressed with how it came out. It was fragrant and flavorful and really hearty.

It came together really quickly. Just make sure you have all your ingredients prepped and measured before you start because everything goes into the pan pretty quickly so you won't have time to be running around measuring stuff in between steps. I chose to use brown rice instead of white rice. I also added tofu (quick, easy, and healthy) but I think chicken or shrimp would be a great addition too. The pineapple is absolutely the star of the meal though. It adds such an unexpected brightness and sweetness to the dish that really balances with the spices.

Thai Style Pineapple Fried Rice Recipe: Adapted from Closet Cooking
Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 2 shallots (thinly sliced)
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1 red chili (optional, I omitted it because I was scared)
• 1 egg (lightly beaten)
• 3 tablespoons chicken stock (or vegetable broth)
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce (or soy sauce)
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 cup cashews (roasted)
• 3-4 cups cooked brown rice (preferably a day old)
• 1 cup pineapple cut into bite sized pieces
• tofu (or any protein) (drained and cubed)
• soy sauce
  
• 1/4 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
• 1/4 cup currants (or raisins)
• 2 green onions (sliced)

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a pan.
2. Add the shallots, garlic, chillies and stir-fry until fragrant, about a minute.
3. Add the egg and stir-fry for a minute.
4. Add the chicken stock, fish sauce, curry powder and sugar and stir-fry.
5. Add the cashews and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
6. Add the rice, break up any clumps and stir-fry for a few minutes.
7. Add the tofu and soy sauce to taste (I used about 1 tbls),gently stir.
8. Add the pineapple, peas and raisins and stir-fry to mix them in.
9. Remove from heat and serve garnished with chopped green onions.

Greek Turkey Burgers with Tzatziki Sauce

These turkey burgers are packed full of flavor. They have onions, garlic, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, and feta inside. And a generous helping of tzatziki sauce piled on top. This is not your average , dry turkey burger. This guy is moist and flavorful. You won't be missing beef burgers any time soon!



The quantities, and ingredients, in this recipe are incredibly flexible. I'm just starting to acquire a taste for sun-dried tomatoes and olives so I decided to go a little easy on them, but feel free to add in more if want. If you're running short on time you can ditch the onions and garic in place of a litlte onion powder and garlic powder, and use frozen spinach.

I chose to cook mine under the broiler. If you want to throw them on a grill I would add in egg to help bind so they don't fall apart. Also, do not use 99% lean turkey breast. Make sure you go for the 93/7 ground turkey, otherwise your burgers will be really dry! Now go make these! They are easy, delicious, and healthy!

Recipe:
Makes 4 - 5 burgers

Greek Turkey Burger
Ingreidents

• 1.3 lbs lean ground turkey
  
• Half an onion, finely chopped
  
• 2 - 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  
• Olive oil
• Spinach (Fresh or frozen)
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
  
• 1/2 teaspoon corriander
• 1 teaspoon paprika
  
• 1/3 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/3 cup chopped kalamata olives
• 4 oz crumbled reduced fat feta
• Salt & Pepper to taste
  
• Tzatziki sauce (recipe follows)
• Lettuce
• Tomato
• Whole Wheat Buns
  

Directions

1. Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil until the onions are tender and transulcent.
   
2. Add in the spinach and cook until it is wilted.
   
3. Combine the ground turkey with the onions, garlic, and spinach. Add in the spices, sundried, tomatoes, olives, and feta and combine.
   
4. Form into patties.
5. Place in the oven on the middle rack and broil for 15 minutes, flipping once half way through cooking.
   
6. Assemble with lettuce, tomato, and tzatziki sauce.

Tzatziki Sauce
Ingredients:

• 6 ounces plain greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup cucumber, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Black Bean & Corn Salad

I first made this about 1.5 years ago when we were having a "no carb BBQ" a couple months before our wedding and I needed some healthier side dishes. Since then, literally every time we have friends over and I'm trying to decide what to make Ross always says, "Why don't you make the black bean and corn salad?" I don't know whether to be insulted or glad that his favorite thing ever comes from dumping a few canned ingredients and some spices in a bowl.

It's pretty much just black and beans and corn. It gets a little zing from a balsamic vinegar sauce that it marinades in, as well as some chili powder, cumin, and cilantro. It's really good as is but if you want to add a little more I'm thinking diced red pepper, avocado, or even tomato. A splash of lime probably wouldn't hurt either.


Recipe
Black Bean & Corn Salad (From AllRecipes.com)
Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (8.75 ounce) can sweet corn, drained

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix together balsamic vinegar, oil, salt, sugar, black pepper, cumin, and chili powder.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together black beans and corn. Toss with vinegar and oil dressing, and garnish with cilantro. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.