Sunday Supper: Honey walnut chicken

This weeks Sunday supper comes from one of my favorite cookbooks: The Junior League of Salt Lake City's "Salt to Honey" (salttohoney.org). I had the pleasure of helping sample, cook, and edit through the tons and tons of recipes in the creation of the book. There are so many great recipes, but this one in particular, is one of my favs. Since it isn't my recipe, I won't be sharing it here. However, I will note a few changes I make: I use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts, double the amount of green onions,  and add an additional 2 tbsp of soy sauce.  

If you don't have the cookbook, I recommend picking it up. You won't be disappointed! :) This recipe is the perfect combination of sweet and savory, and the honey glazed walnuts are out of this world. It's 100 times better than what you'd pick up at Panda Express, I promise! 

Sunday Supper: Panko and Dill Pork Loin

This weeks Sunday Supper is an ode to my love of dill. I use it while pickling every season, but never really cooked with it until just recently. Dill is cheap, readily available throughout the year, and the main spice in so many of my favorite meals. I've found that the best way to store pretty much any fresh herb is to wash and trim the ends significantly, then place in a small glass with water in the fridge. Dill has kept like this for weeks, cilantro as well. Once a week, I trim the ends, change the water, and put back into the fridge. Plus, it's like having my own little herb garden in my fridge.

-Enjoy!

Panko and Dill crusted Pork Loin

Ingredients:

8 tbsp fresh chopped dill
2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
3 minced garlic cloves
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2- 1 3/4 lb boneless pork loin
1/3 cup Panko Italian flavored bread crumbs
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:
-Combine 3 tbsp of dill, yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a small bowl and generously spread over both sides of pork.
-Combine Panko, 3 tbsp of dill, and olive oil and pat over both sides of pork loin.
-Place in a shallow roasting pan or baking dish coated with olive oil, cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
-Heat oven to 425, and cook pork loin, covered, for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 375, and bake an additional 35-40 mins. (I like the internal temp of pork to reach 150-160 instead of 140. I promise this can be done without drying out the pork!)
-Let pork stand 10 mins, then garnish with remaining dill, slice, and serve.

This recipe is great with any grain: couscous, pasta, or rice.

Sunday Supper: Honey drenched cilantro lime chicken

I have a confession. Despite my best efforts, this 'Sunday Supper' totally happened on a Monday. As is life with a baby sometimes, Sunday was more of a 'pizza out of the box' kind of day. Regardless of when you cook this one, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I do!

Honey drenched cilantro lime chicken
1/2 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
5 minced cloves of garlic
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp creamed honey
3 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Preparation:
Marinate chicken in lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and cilantro for 3 hours minimum.

Cook:
Grill chicken until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees, generally about 20 minutes depending on your method of grilling (outside grill vs. grill pan). You can also bake this recipe if you do not have a grill handy. (Bake at 375 for 35-40 mins, check internal temp, drizzle honey once done).
Once the chicken is well cooked and developing a good char, melt honey in the microwave for 30-45 seconds. Drizzle the honey over chicken and serve with a garnish of cilantro.

A few things: I served this with black beans, corn, and brown rice tossed in lime juice, olive oil, s&p, cumin, and chili powder. Yum. I also cut the chicken into large hunks to make it easier to cook.

Honey is one of my favorite things to grill with. It adds flavor and complexity to nearly any dish, while helping to seal in all the juices and prevent your meat from going dry. I have a thing for creamed honey, and use it whenever possible.

Enjoy! :)

Sunday Supper: Lemon Dill Chicken and Homemade Pasta

The Sunday Supper Series:

One of the most magical equations I know involves family, kitchen, and food. I've always been an avid chef, and sincerely enjoy creating meals for my family. During the week, I try to find creative ways to entertain my son while I quickly chop veggies, or get items into a baking pan. The weekends, however, are a sweet reprieve from this one handed, one eyed, running between two rooms, balancing act. The way I see it, it's bonding time all around, between father and son, and mother and kitchen. With that being said, I present my Sunday Supper Series, a new recipe each week based upon what's currently inspiring me at the moment. 

 

Lemon Dill Chicken & Homemade Pasta

Lemon Dill Chicken:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

salt & pepper

4 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup finely chopped red onion

4 cloves minced garlic

1 cup of chicken broth

2 tbsp flour

4 tbsp chopped fresh dill

2 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

-Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper

-Heat a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat, and add 2 tsp of olive oil.

-Add chicken and cook until browned on both sides @5 minutes.

-Remove chicken from pan and place on a plate. Cover with foil.

-Add 2 tsp of remaining olive oil to pan with garlic and onions. Saute for @2 minutes until fragrant.

-Whisk broth, flour, 2 tbsp dill, and lemon juice in a cup. Slowly add to garlic and onion mixture, and whisk until dissolved over medium heat @ 3-5mins.

-Once the mixture has thickened and is well dissolved, add the chicken back to your pan and cook until internal temp of chicken reaches 165 degrees (@8-12 minutes depending on heat and thickness of your chicken).

-Remove from pan, garnish with remaining dill. This is great served over pasta or rice, as the liquid makes enough to serve as a sauce. 

Bon Appetit! 

Macgyver Challenge Day 20....Homemade breakfast burritos

There's a bit of a joke I have with my husband and a few friends. When I was pregnant with my son, I didn't have a single craving, but I DID want a HOT breakfast daily. In fact, towards the end of my pregnancy, engulfed in hormones and feeling as big a circus tent.. and overdue... I remember breaking down in tears because all I wanted was a hot breakfast. I didn't even care what it was, I just wanted something warm in my huge belly. Now that I'm a mom, I'm finding I have less and less time for breakfast in the morning, but am still craving that hot breakfast. I've made homemade breakfast English muffins before, and that got me thinking about my one true breakfast love....
I hereby proclaim my deep love for breakfast burritos. I am not joking when I say this: I could eat a breakfast burrito every single day until I die. I also hereby proclaim my disdain for how crazy expensive frozen breakfast burritos are! $3 per burrito? Are you kidding me? That's almost 25% of my entire monthly food budget, spent on one person's breakfast daily! Since my bff breakfast burrito and I don't plan on breaking up anytime soon, I knew I had to find a way to make these little wrapped up bundles of happiness, at home.

Homemade Frozen Breakfast Burritos

Ingredients:

-12 eggs & Milk for scrambled eggs

-2 lbs breakfast sausage (I used turkey breakfast sausage)

-One 15oz. can corn and peppers

-1 package frozen pre-cooked hashbrowns

-12 oz. of shredded cheddar cheese

-Salsa to taste

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Flour tortillas (I used a mix of large and small tortillas, so I made large and smaller burritos)

-Small freezer bags

-Wax paper

Directions:

Start by cooking all ingredients that you want to fill your little wrapped pieces of heaven. I love eggs, some form of meat, hash browns, and for a little kick, I used a can of corn and peppers. 

-I cooked a dozen eggs mixed with some milk to make my scrambled eggs. Set that aside in a large bowl and allow to cool. (You could also use egg whites here to save calories).

-Cook your meat. I chose low fat turkey sausage and added a little salt and pepper. Set that aside and allow to cool. (Ideas: bacon, turkey bacon, regular sausage, turkey or chicken sausage, chorizo, or ham).

-Yes, I'm a cheater... I was not grating potatoes and cooking my own hash browns. I got the the ones you pop in the toaster, and allowed them to defrost so I could get handfuls of hash browns rather than a big patty.

My "kitchen" in the extended stay. 

If you're also doing the Macgyver challenge... don't forget to keep setting this bad boy!!

Once all your ingredients are cool, you can begin filling, rolling, and wrapping your burritos.

For mine, each burrito used about 2 tbsp of egg, 2 tbsp of meat, 2 tbsp. of hash browns, 1 tbsp of corn, a sprinkle of cheese, a shake of hot sauce, and a dash of pepper, on a warm tortilla. Wrap your burrito up, placing the seam on the bottom to allow it to seal to itself. You don't have to do anything fancy here, the weight of the burrito will help hold the whole thing together.

Once you've rolled all your burritos, it's time to wrap them each in a sheet of wax paper, then place in an airtight ziplock freezer bag. It is SUPER important that you use a freezer bag here, to prevent freezer burn. I am able to fit 3 small burritos in a small freezer bag, and one large burrito in a small freezer bag. Remove all the air from the bag, and seal. Lay flat in the freezer and allow to freeze at least overnight.

To reheat:

-Remove the burrito from the freezer bag, and wax paper for about 5-10 minutes before you need to heat it.

-Place on a microwave safe plate, or wrap in a paper towel and Heat 2-3 minutes in a microwave.

-Add topping of your choice (I use plain greek yogurt, salsa, and avocado.. or sometimes just eat it straight).

- ENJOY.

Or, like most mornings for me, throw it in your bag, or eat it one handed while lugging a car seat out the door :)

Makes about 10-15 burritos depending on the size you use. Now here's the fun part... The cost? Less than $1 each!