My journey through finding new recipes and learning to be a great cook...





Saturday, July 3, 2010

Light lunch and a day at the pool!

Well, this post is a bit different because Nick helped me with it :) We decided to make chicken salad wraps / sandwiches and I have never made those before. Since he knew what he was doing, he was the chef today and I helped him out! It was so delicious. First we grilled the chicken on the Foreman Grill and then shredded it in a bowl. We added 3/4 cup of lite mayonnaise along with chopped green onions, and tomatoes. We also squeezed a whole lemon over it and mixed it all together.






I put mine on some flat bread tortillas (50 cals).



Nick put his on whole wheat bread.


We had tomato basil potato chips and mixed fruit (chopped strawberries, bananas and berries) on the side!

After that lunch, we were ready to go relax by the pool!

Happy 4th of July everyone!

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Giada's Spaghetti with Pinot Grigio and Seafood

I saw a post on another blog from a friend of mine who cooked this the other day. It looked so yummy in her picture. I LOVE shrimp so I thought I'd give this one a try. We used penne pasta instead of regular spaghetti noodles and it was so delicious. We also didn't use clams as the recipe calls for. This is the recipe from Lindsey's blog: All Things Bright and Beautiful

- 1 pound of spaghetti pasta (Lindsey used wheat linguine pasta- and we used whole wheat penne pasta)
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- 3 shallots, chopped (we learned it is essentially a potent onion)
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cup Pinot Grigio (or other white wine will do)
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 pounds of clams, washed (Lindsey got just 1 pound- about 15 small clams. We did not use any clams this time)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups of arugula (learned tonight it looks like spinach)

Here are the directions from the foodnetwork.com :

"Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and the garlic and cook for 3 minutes, until tender but not brown. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and cook for another minute. Add the wine (YUM), shrimp, and clams. Bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the shrimp are pink and the clams have opened, about 7 minutes.

Add the spaghetti to the seafood mixture. Add the salt and pepper and stir to combine. Add the arugula. Stir gently and place on a serving platter. Serve immediately."



This recipe was so delicious. Nick went back for seconds! Next time I will try it with the clams or maybe sub the shrimp for chicken. We served this with a side salad and a glass of Pinot Grigio. I would say this one was a complete success!

Bon Appetit!

Monday, June 7, 2010

Turkey Meatballs with Quick And Spicy Tomato Sauce and Whole-Wheat Spaghetti





Tonight was a little rushed to make this meal. After work I went all around running errands and didn't get home until 8 or so. Nick met me over at my apartment and we didn't sit down to eat until 8:45 PM. I hate eating so late and being so rushed.

This was a really great meal, though and healthy too! I got it from foodnetwork.com and I think I will definitely make this again. This experience was much better than my last post. At least a clove of garlic didn't go flying across the room like last time!

Enjoy!

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Pork Tenderloin with Eggplant Relish and Beans Marinara


Tonight marks the first recipe of my new journey in learning to cook and try new things. Boy did I pick a good one! I got this recipe from foodnetwork.com classified under the easy level. I, however, did not think it was easy. There was so much going on at once that I'm sure there is a lost clove of garlic somewhere in my kitchen!

Nick and I both loved the pork tenderloin and the beans marinara but were not huge fans of the eggplant relish. On the bright side, at least I can say that I know how to make relish!

And here is a picture of the aftermath:


Thanks for reading!

Saturday, May 22, 2010

New Beginnings

I just finished watching "Julie & Julia" and it inspired me to start a cooking blog. For those of you who know me, you know that I am not very experienced with cooking. I am getting married in 3 short months and am going to use this time to try new recipes. I will post them on my blog; triumphs and failures. So enjoy! And Bon Appetit!