Month: April 2020

Quinoa Salad

Quinoa Salad

This is another flexible dish that with the base of the quinoa and the dressing, you can make a lot of variations. Quinoa is a great grain that is gluten free and offers lots of nutritional value. So, the recipe basically consists of this: quinoa 

Ramen with Grilled Chicken

Ramen with Grilled Chicken

I can not speak to the authenticity of this recipe. But, I can say this is a super flavorful broth with delicious toppings. Finding gluten free ramen noodles has been a great treat. The recipe is very flexible for the add-ins. I use grilled chicken 

Salmon with Parsley Crust

Salmon with Parsley Crust

When my husband, then boyfriend, first made salmon for me, I was very skeptical about his technique. But, I quickly became a believer. Topping salmon with mayo sounded not entirely appealing. What I learned is that the mayo gives the salmon a nice crust and locks in a lot of the salmon flavor. Adding in fresh herbs makes it have a great extra taste and look. Don’t have fresh herbs on hand, use dried spices to sprinkle on top or mix in.

Take a cup of loosely packed parsley and a 1/4 cup of mayo and mix in a food processor. Don’t have a food processor? Chop up the parsley and mix with the mayo by hand.

Spread the mayo mixture no top of the salmon pieces and bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes (depending on thickness of salmon and personal taste).

Salmon topped with mayo & parsley mixture.

For this dinner, I served the salmon with pasta mixed with sauteed spinach & onion. We love this as a side dish (with or without the pasta!). Slice an onion into quarter slices and slice a garlic clove into thin slices. Heat some olive oil in a pan and add the onion & garlic. Sautee until the onion is starting to caramelize. Add in a bag of spinach and stir until cooked down (take only a few minutes). Add the spinach & onion to some cooked noodles for a healthy and flavorful addition to noodles.

salmon
Salmon & pasta with spinach and onion.

Salmon with Spinach & Onion Pasta

Ready in 30 minutes (10 minutes prep and 20 minutes cooking)

Serves 2 people

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lbs Salmon Filet
  • 1/4 cup mayo
  • 1 cup parsley
  • a bag of spinach (10oz)
  • 1 onion, sliced and quartered
  • 1 clove garlic, sliced
  • 1/2 box pasta (gluten free rotini is pictured)

PREPARATION

  1. Mix mayo and parsley in a food processor or by hand
  2. Cut salmon into serving size pieces
  3. Top salmon with mayo/parsley mixture
  4. Preheat oven to 375F and cook salmon for 15-20 minutes depending on thickness of salmon pieces and personal preference
  5. Slice onion and garlic
  6. Cook pasta based on box ingredients
  7. Add some olive oil to a pan. When heated, add onion and garlic
  8. Sautee onion and garlic until clear and beginning to caramelize
  9. Add spinach to pan and cook down
  10. Mix cooked pasta with spinach & onions
  11. Enjoy!
Shrimp Tacos

Shrimp Tacos

Who doesn’t love a good Taco Tuesday Recipe! This is a favorite of ours for Meatless Mondays or Taco Tuesdays or really any other day of the week. Most of the components can be prepared in advance so this makes for a quick meal to 

Healthy Pancakes

Healthy Pancakes

I am always surprised by the number of people who only use pre-made pancake mix. I am all for keeping things simple and cutting steps but with pancake mix, you still have to do most of the steps as it’s really only the dry ingredients 

Rustic Italian Chicken

Rustic Italian Chicken

This is another crockpot recipe that you can set in the morning and have a great dinner waiting for you at night. It is also one of my go-to ‘meal-train’ recipes. It can freeze well and is great for left overs. Served over noodles (gluten free for us) or with hearty loaf of bread and a side salad and it makes a full meal.

Chop up an onion and some garlic (2 cloves). Next, throw everything in the crockpot. Cook on low for 6 hours, shred the chicken and add back to the sauce.

Cook up some noodles when you’re ready to eat and top with some mozzarella or parmesan. Bow-tie noodles (Farfalle) are my favorite with this dish but I have yet to find a gluten-free version. We typically use gluten free Rotini with this dish.

Rustic Italian Chicken

Ready in 6hr 15 minutes15 minutes of active time

Serves 4 people

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1lbs boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (can also use chicken thighs)
  • ground black pepper and salt, to taste
  • 1 onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano
  • 1 tsp. dried basil
  • 1 tsp. dried rosemary
  • ½ tsp. dried thyme
  • ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1x 14.5 oz. cans diced tomatoes
  • 1x 14.5 oz. can of cannellini beans (drained & rinsed)
  • 1/2 box of bow-tie pasta (16oz)

PREPARATION

  1. Slice an onion and mince the garlic gloves.
  2. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and then place them in the slow cooker.
  3. Layer sliced onion on top of chicken. Sprinkle herbs and garlic cloves over the top. Pour in vinegar and top with tomatoes. 
  4. Cook on low for 6 hours; turn crockpot to warm setting
  5. Remove chicken, shred and return to crockpot with sauce
  6. Cook pasta
  7. Serve chicken, beans & sauce over pasta
  8. Optional: top with mozzarella or parmesan; serve with fresh bread
  9. Enjoy!

TIPS

  • To freeze: once cooled, place chicken, beans & sauce in a Ziploc bag and freeze flat.
  • Favorite pasta to use is Farfalle.
  • Can be cooked on high for 2-3 hours if you want this to be ready faster.
  • This recipe can be doubled with no issues.