Recipe for Chai Concentrate

Yesterday I promised you another Indian ingredient recipe.  The surprise is that it isn’t for a meal.  It's for chai (Indian tea) concentrate.  I saw the original recipe from thecatnipcat and thought it would be great to have this in the fridge for iced chai lattes or, on that rare cool evening here, a hot latte.

I halved the original recipe and tweaked the ingredients to my preferences.  I think this is a versatile enough recipe to increase or decrease ingredients depending on what you like (I like cinnamon, so I used more; not that crazy about cloves so used less).

Recipe for Garam Masala Grilled Chicken



Here is another recipe following my interest in cooking more with Indian spices.  This is a super easy, quick marinade that tenderizes and flavors the chicken in a wonderful way.  A quick turn on the grill and you have a delicious Indian flavored main course. 

Recipe for Ahi Edamame Nachos

One of our go to snacks is chips (usually a “healthy” variety-whole grain, multi-grain, baked, lower fat etc) and a dip of some sort.  Maybe hummus, maybe edamame purée, or perhaps a wickedly rich jalapeno and artichoke spread when we’re feeling like a treat.  So I was pleased when the folks at Tostitos asked me to try their new Artisan Recipes Flavored Tortilla Chips.  I haven’t seen them yet on Maui.  We always get new stuff later than you do on the mainland :-{

The two flavors I received from Tostitos were Fire-Roasted Chipotle and Roasted Garlic and Black Bean.  Today, I’m trying out the Chipotle flavor.

Recipe for Turkey and Bean Nacho Casserole

Recipes from Cooking Light rarely disappoint me.  This one, meh.   I adapted it by using ground turkey breast rather than vegetarian crumbles as in the original recipe and made a few other minor tweaks.   It was tasty enough but I would just make it like traditional nachos if I make it again.  All the building of the casserole wasn’t worth it and it didn’t keep well for leftovers (soggy chips).  If I had just made it like nachos, I could have saved the leftover meat mixture and served it on fresh chips the next day.  Lesson learned!

PICTURE THIS: Memories from a trip to Japan, 2009

Tsukiji Fish Market, Tokyo

Recipe for Fish Cakes



As I promised yesterday, here is another fish recipe.  When I bought the fish for yesterday’s dinner, as sometimes happens, the piece of fish that was cut by the fishmonger ended up being a bit more than I wanted.  I just decided to take it all instead of making him cut another piece as I figured I could use the extra for lunch.  Now I don’t know about you, but for me there aren’t many leftover fish dishes that I’ve enjoyed eating.  So rather than poaching all the fish yesterday and having the extra today, I cut about 4 ounces off and stuck it back in the coldest part of the fridge and saved it for today’s lunch.

When I pulled it out, I was thinking along the lines of a fish salad (like tuna fish, chicken salad etc) but I felt a little creative (not one of my strong suits for sure) and decided to try to pull off a fish cake.  I wanted it flavorful, light, and interesting.  That’s pretty much what I got.  I’m very happy with this recipe and will make it again.  It could be a dinner entrée as well as made in small sizes for appetizers.    I ate them for lunch along with a green salad and was quite happy and full until dinner.

Recipe for Poached White Fish

Still on our quest to eat fish several times a week and to eat what is sustainable, I made this flavorful dish.  I am drawn these days to Indian spices and am trying to use them in new ways in my cooking.  I’ll admit that Indian cooking is intimidating to me.  So many ingredients (many of which I can’t find here on Maui!) and so many steps.  I know the results are worth the effort, but I find myself venturing slowly into this arena.

Recipe for Easy Marinated Pork Tenderloin

Aloha everyone,
Here's another recipe (if you can call it that) where I used some of the product that the nice folks at Newman's Own sent me as part of the Foodbuzz Featured Publisher's program.  This time I used the Family Recipe Italian Salad Dressing as a marinade for pork tenderloin. 

Recipe for Blueberry and Goat's Cheese French Toast

You’ve probably had French Toast spread or stuffed with cream cheese.  Mmm Mmm good, right?  I wanted to give it a try using goat’s cheese instead.  The thought was it would be a bit tangy to cut some of the richness.  I also had some frozen blueberries that were defrosted and needed to be used and figured their tartness would fit in with the tanginess of the cheese. 

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

PICTURE THIS: Hibiscus

Sending you, Dear Readers, some tropical color to brighten your day!

Recipe for Quick Breakfast Quiche

Continuing on the theme of “prepping ahead”, here is a great veggie and ham quiche that I made over the weekend.  I was able to have 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches from it.    It is very versatile-just use what you have on hand.

Happy St. Patty's Day by the way!

Recipe for BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

As I mentioned last week, I’m devoting some time to “prep ahead” so meal times are easier (and they tend to be healthier too).  Here’s an example.

I made a roasted chicken using Mark Bittman’s quick method.  We enjoyed the chicken that evening with some roasted potatoes and green beans.  The next evening, I used some of the thigh and breast meat to whip together a quick quesadilla (recipe below). 

I was also able to make a couple of lunches by combining the chicken with some extra veggies that I’d made when I made my Caesar Veggie Wraps. 

Plus Mr. ELEB made himself a couple of “man sandwiches”  (meat, bread, and maybe cheese-no photo necessary!).

Here’s how I made the quesadilla.

Two servings, each 483 calories, 16 grams fat, 45 grams carbs, 2.5 grams fiber, 35 grams protein;  12 WW Points+

Ingredients:

1/3 cup finely chopped red onion, plus more for garnish

1 TBSP olive oil, divided

½ cup ketchup (I used a no sugar added variety)

2 ½ TBSP Penzy’s 3000 BBQ Seasoning

2 TBSP chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish

1 ½ cup shredded cooked chicken

2 whole wheat tortillas

4 TBSP shredded Mexican blend cheese

Olive oil spray (or cooking spray)

Low fat sour cream for garnish

 

Saute onion in ½ TBSP olive oil until soft.  Add ketchup ,  BBQ Seasoning, 2 TBSP cilantro and chicken.  (You can use your favorite BBQ sauce if you would prefer).

Cook on gentle simmer for 5 minutes.  Place 1 ½ TBSP cheese on ½ of tortilla, top with chicken mixture and an additional ½ TBSP cheese. 

Fold over.

Warm ½ TBSP olive oil over med-high heat.  Place folded tortillas in pan.  Cook for 2 minutes or until nicely browned.  Spray top with olive oil spray and flip.  Cook an additional 2 minutes.  Remove from pan.  Cut into thirds.  Top with dollop of sour cream, diced red onion and chopped cilantro.

So…one chicken, dinner for two twice, and four lunches-not bad.  What prep ahead stuff are you doing that helps you through the week?



Printable Recipe

Recipe for Pepperoni Portabella Pizza

Here’s a tasty and satisfying idea for a quick lunch that comes in under 250 calories.  

Recipe for Cinnamon Raisin Whole Wheat Bread

I can't even begin to tell you how good this is (was!).  Whole wheat, cinnamon, walnuts, raisins, a touch of brown sugar all baked up and yummy together.  Then sliced and served with a small smear of butter.  Oh my.

I remain facinated with the simplicity of the "five minutes a day, no knead bread" method, by authors Jeff Hertzberg, M.D. and Zoë François.  It takes more than five minutes, but I get the concept they are trying to get across:  bread making isn't that difficult.  I love that there are only 5 ingredients in their basic recipe-flour, water, salt, yeast, and vital wheat gluten (necessary when using whole wheat flour).

Picture This: My Clean Eating Magazine Feature and Tsunami Update

My Mom called me recently and exclaimed "You didn't tell me you were going to be in a magazine!".  Well, I thought I'd told her it was a possibility (I never count my chickens until they're hatched).  Anyway, I am fortunate that my recipe for Easy Make Ahead Breakfast Quiche was accepted for publication in Clean Eating Magazine, March 2011, page 24.

One of the pitfalls of living on Maui is that our magazines come by boat and so usually they arrive about 3 or more weeks later than when you get yours.  The folks at Clean Eating did me a favor and sent me a copy of March's magazine by Fedex so I can share this with you now!

So, indulge me while I do my little woo-hoo dance!

**We are anxiously awaiting to see how big or not the tsunami will be here on Maui.  It's 3am now and the sirens are sounding hourly.  Low lying areas are evacuated, some roads closed.  We are high enough at our house to be safe, but it is a bit scary just waiting.  Thoughts out to our friends in Japan.

Recipe for Turkey Sausage, Rice and Beans Soup



As part of my attempt to do more prep work on the weekends to make eating healthy more likely during the week, I had soaked and cooked some cannellini and black beans.  I used them along with some left over brown rice and veggies, Italian turkey sausage and fresh herbs to whip together a quick, healthy and filling soup.  This made enough for the two of us for 2 meals plus plenty for the freezer.

Recipe for Indonesian Curry



We were experiencing one of those rare Maui days when it was cool and rainy.  Sitting in the fridge was a pound of ground bison (buffalo) on tap for that night’s dinner.  What to cook, what to cook? Hmmmm.  I was in the mood for something to warm me up.  Not chili, though. 

Even though I’m not a huge spicy food fan, I do like flavorful heat.  Not the burn your mouth and tongue for no reason heat, but layers of spices and flavors along with some heat.  A curry?   Yes that would be just perfect. 

A few minutes using Google’s new recipe search feature gave me several good inspirations for this Indonesian dish.  Served alongside simple steamed asparagus, perfect rice cooker basmati rice, a cooling touch of low fat sour cream and a slice of lime, this was (if I do say so myself) a top restaurant quality meal.

If you don’t like heat, leave out the pepper and reduce the amount of garlic chili sauce.  This carried a goodly dose of heat, about at the top of my tolerance level!  If you love heat, leave all the pepper seeds in or up the amount of peppers and/or garlic chili sauce.

Makes 4 servings; each approximately 411 calories, 9.3 grams fat, 42 grams carbs, .5 grams fiber, 34 grams protein;  10 WW Points+ for ¼ of meat mixture and ¾ cup basmati rice

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground bison

1 TBSP garlic chili sauce

¼ cup, shallots chopped

2 TBSP sliced peeled ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp salt

3 whole cloves

1 Serrano chili, half of seeds removed, chopped

8 ounces light coconut milk, divided

Zest of 1 lime

Juice of ½ lime

Lime slices for serving

1/3 cup sweet flaked coconut

4 TBSP low fat sour cream

3 cups cooked basmati rice

Method:

Cook bison over medium high heat, drain and reserve.

While bison cooks, combine 2 TBSP coconut milk, chili sauce, shallots, ginger, cinnamon, garlic, turmeric, salt, cloves, and chili in food processor and pulse until well combined (curry sauce).

Combine coconut and 2 TBSP coconut milk and reserve.

Heat curry sauce over medium heat until gently bubbling and add lime zest, lime juice, remainder of coconut milk and bison.  Simmer for 10 minutes and then stir in coconut mixture.

Serve over rice with a TBSP of low fat sour cream and slice of lime.

The heat was perfectly balanced with the sweet coconut and the touch of sour cream.  How about you?  Can you take the heat?  What spicy food are you eating/cooking?


Printable Recipe


Recipe Inspiration

Recipe for Newman's Own Caesar Veggie Wraps-my first video recipe

As a Foodbuzz Featured Publisher, I received a Care Package from the Newman's Own Company that included a Flip HD video camera.  In return, I was to prepare a video of a quick meal (about 30 minutes) using some of the products.  I really wanted to make portabella fajitas with some of their lime marinade, but alas, none in my package, and I couldn't find any here on Maui either.

However, I did put together a super easy recipe for Caesar Veggie Wraps and they are really good.  While the video is sponsored by Newman's, the recipe and opinions are mine.

They wanted us to be "edgy" and "funny" in the video.  Ok, I'm not really either but I was able to have a good laugh at myself while making the video.  Take a peek!  (Oh, don't you just hate how you look and sound on video?)

Caesar Veggie Wraps

Hopefully you're chuckling with me (as opposed to at me!).

Fruit Salad

Take five minutes on Sunday and enjoy a nice fruit salad for the next 3-4 days.  I’ve been trying to get back in the habit of prepping stuff a bit at a time so it isn’t always a start from scratch with every meal or snack.  Plus I find I eat healthier when I put some thought into it rather than just opening the cupboard or fridge and grabbing whatever catches my eye.    By then I’m usually hungry and want immediate satisfaction and won’t spend the few minutes it takes to put something like this fruit salad together.

Weekly Wrap

Aloha Readers and happy Saturday!

Here's what was served up this week on Eat Little, Eat Big, followed by some things I noted with interest around the web.

PICTURE THIS: Butternut Squash Pizza

Butternut Squash Pizza from Chef Merriman's New Restaurant: Monkeypod Kitchen



Another dazzling pizza from Maui!  Caramelized onions, roasted butternut squash and pine nuts on a crispy crust.  Oh, so good.

Recipe for Beef and Lamb Pastitsio

Oh my!  I try not to be too OTT about recipes but this one is amazing.  I served it to friends and family and everyone loved it, even my friend who is not a fan of lamb (I believe he had seconds).  The original recipe called for all lamb but I wanted to be sure my friend would eat it so I described the recipe to him and we agreed half lamb and half beef would work.  I used local Maui Cattle Company lean ground beef and lean ground lamb. 

The seasonings-nutmeg, oregano, cinnamon, and cloves-give a really unique flavor to the dish.  Go and buy some if you don't have them-they make this Greek version of lasagna so good.  And, bonus, your house will have an amazing smell while you are cooking!

Recipe for Simple Roasted Potatoes

Potatoes get a bad rap.  Sure, if you load them up with butter, sour cream, cheese etc the calorie count will add up.  But a small serving of potatoes, flavored with herbs and cooked with some healthy olive oil can definitely be part of a well balanced diet.  Potatoes are naturally low in sugar (1.6 grams in a small potato), provide a decent amount of vitamin C (22% of daily requirement), and although they are a starchy vegetable, one provides a modest 10% of daily carb requirements plus some fiber.  And they have Omega-3 and -6 fatty acids.  So don't eliminate potatoes from your diet! 

Recipe for Olive and Cheese Whole Wheat Bread

We are really enjoying having fresh artisan bread any time we want by just plucking some dough from the fridge and baking off a loaf.  The basic whole wheat recipe is wonderful plain or with butter and/or jam.  I love it with almond butter.  The dough also takes well to variations like this savory olive and cheese bread, with a hint of rosemary.

Recipe for Bison Shephard's Pie

This isn't a traditional Shephard's pie but it is a very tasty one.  The shiitake mushrooms give it a nice earthy flavor and the little pop from the peas keeps it from being too heavy.  I made this when my parents were here visiting.  Everyone gave it thumbs up.  My Mom thought it needed a bit more gravy so if you like a "wetter" Shephard's pie, double the gravy ingredients.  I liked it as made but the extra gravy would also be good.  I mean, how can you go wrong with potatoes and gravy?

Weekly Wrap

Aloha y'all,
The Weekly Wrap is tardy today because we went to see Sir Elton John play last night.   The concert was really good-Sir Elton is such a talented pianist and even though the pipes may be a bit crusty and not have the range they once had, he can still belt it out (think "Saturday, Saturday, Saturday nights all right" and "Buh Buh Bennie and the Jets").  The venue here on Maui is a small amphitheater with great acoustics where every seat has a good view and the big screens let you feel as if you were up on stage with the band.

It is nice not to have to go to Honolulu for world class performances!

PICTURE THIS: Tuna Sashimi Pizza

Tuna Sashimi Pizza at Bev Gannon's Hali'imaile General Store, Maui

A thin, crispy crust, edamame puree, ahi tuna, sprouts, a touch of red onion, tobiko-Mmm, Mmm Good!

Recipe for Roasted Brussels Sprouts



Soggy, grey, bland, bitter.  Those are the attributes I think of when I think of Brussels sprouts.  I haven’t eaten them since I was a young kid at school and used to spit the boiled sprouts into my napkin and try to stash them somewhere the teacher wouldn’t see.  Gross, I know, but I’m just saying-bleck, that’s been my lifelong reaction to the little fellas.

But, the older I get the more open minded I get and after seeing roasted Brussels sprouts on countless menus, and Mr. ELEB dropping hints that he LOVES Brussels sprouts, I bought some.  And…ta da…I did enjoy them.  I wouldn’t say they are my favorite veggie in the whole world or anything like that but I won’t avoid an entrée on a menu anymore if Brussels sprouts are the side dish.

Recipe for Asian Marinated Pork

Here’s one of our favorite marinade recipes adapted from “The Weber Big Book of Grilling” (Chronicle Books, 2001, p. 181).  It is versatile, tasty and easy-how could you go wrong?  My intent was to cook pork tenderloin but, as sometimes happens here on Maui, “the shipment didn’t come in”, and so I subbed boneless pork chops which worked fine.  I just sliced them up for serving (and forgot to take a photo of them coming off the grill!).

I have marinated for a few short hours or overnight, both with good results.  The longer the meat marinates the more tender and flavorful.

Makes 6 servings, each approximately 302 calories, 12.4 grams fat, 0 grams carbs, 3.5 grams fiber, 44 grams protein, 7 WW Points+

Recipe for Greek Salad

This salad is always a hit whenever I make it.  It is super easy to make and each bite is full of flavor and good for you ingredients.

As part of the Food Buzz Tastemakers program I received bottles of Crisco's new Olive Oil line.  Here's what Crisco has to say about the three different types of oil:

Recipe for Dirty Martini Steak Kebabs

This concept behind this recipe sounded fun and tasty-using martini ingredients (vermouth, olives, onions) as a marinade and accompaniment for beef.  It was good, but nothing to write home about and not a recipe I’d repeat.  The meat was very tender as I marinated it overnight. But the flavor from the marinade was pretty basic.

I followed the recipe as written except for adding some green bell pepper to the skewers for some added veggie.  The recipe didn’t include instructions for soaking the skewers.  If you are using wooden skewers, be sure to soak them for several hours in plain water to prevent them from burning on the grill.  I didn’t make the salad included in the original recipe.  Instead I served my mushroom rice. 

We had company for dinner and we all ate our skewers so don’t get me wrong, there was nothing bad about it.  But, meh, just an okay meal.



Each serving Calories:418, Fat:24g, Carbohydrates:19g, Fiber:3g, Protein:28g

Original Recipe

Weekly Wrap

Enjoy the long weekend (if you get Monday off)!  This week zipped by for me with my parents here visiting. 

Monday:  a sweet treat for your sweetie.

Quick Valentine's Treat

PICTURE THIS: Grown in Hawaii

Maui Kale

Recipe for Rosemary White Bean Crostini



Here’s a healthy and quick appetizer or snack that is sure to please.  The rosemary, wine and shallots play very nicely together.  I used my new favorite healthy baguette recipe for the bread.

Makes about 2 cups of dip, approximately 83 calories, 0.8 grams fat, 13 grams carbs, 3 grams fiber, 4.3 grams protein, 2 WW Points+, per ¼ cup

Bread: approximately 21 calories, 0.1 grams fat, 4.25 grams carbs, 0.5 grams fiber, 1 grams protein, 1 WW Points+ per ½ of thin slice

Recipe for Oven Baked Fish Tacos

In the never ending quest for good fish dishes, this fish taco meal was a winner.  I chose to bake the fish instead of frying it and liked it a lot.  It would probably be faster to fry it, but would also add some calories from the oil that would be absorbed.  It was great with a side of my Cilantro Rice. 

Recipe for Crispy Potato Roast

If you want a “WOW” recipe for company or just for a special evening for yourself, give this recipe a try.  If you don’t have a mandoline, a sharp knife and some patience would be imperative.  Next time, and there definitely will be a next time, I’ll just strip the thyme off the sprigs and sprinkle it around.  It looked pretty placed whole on top but I think the flavor would be enhanced by taking the leaves off the sprigs.  The big change I made from the original recipe was adding in the pancetta-it was a good add!

Makes 10 servings, each approximately 234 calories, 5.4 grams fat, 31 grams carbs, 2.7 grams fiber, 6.8 grams protein, 6 WW Points+

Quick Valentine's Treat

If you're looking for a quick treat for your Valentine, it isn't too late.  Grab some strawberries, dark chocolate, chopped nuts and kosher salt and in less than half an hour, you'll have a sweet treat for your sweetie.

Weekly Wrap

Happy Weekend!  I hope yours is going well.  I'm happy because my parents are here visiting us on Maui.  It is long way for them to come from Georgia so their visits aren't very frequent.

Here's a summary of this week on the blog and some fun things I read.

Picture This: Maui's Finest

An excellent source of Vitamin C; 1 serving is over 100% of your US RDA.

Recipe for Cilantro Rice



Here’s a great way to bump up the flavor in rice.  You can use brown or white rice and this goes especially well with Mexican food. 

Makes 4 servings, each approximately 96 calories, 0 grams fat,  22 grams carbs, 0 grams fiber, 2 grams protein, 3 WW Points+

Recipe for Chocolate Chunk Cake

Using large chips of bittersweet chocolate makes this cake insanely chocolate.  It doesn’t need icing, just a touch of whipped cream or powdered sugar to finish it off.  If you like chocolate and salt like I do, sprinkle some kosher salt on the top and enjoy!  This is not a low calorie dessert by any means so use portion control.  You could also reduce the chocolate to 1 cup and I’m sure it would still be awesome.