Steak and Potatoes

Ahh Yes, the hearty food classic- Steak and potatoes. Now the truth of the matter is that this is a friggin hearty meal, not the type of thing you would want to eat every night- the meat is high in fat and the potatoes are very high in carbs. However, the meal provides a nutritional burst during the middle of the week and tastes so darn MERICAN.

I used a ribeye steak- it was about .75 lbs so I am eating half tonight and slicing the rest to use in a steak salad. I also used baby red potatoes that i cut in forths for my potatoes. They roast really nicely in the oven and have a great color to them. The potatoes take some time to roast (around 40-45 minutes) so give yourself plenty of time to make this dish.

Steak and Potatoes

Bad Presentation, Great Meal

Ingredients
-.75 pounds of beef. I used ribeye because it was cheap at the grocery store but sirloin steak, NEw York Strip, or filet would be wonderful as well. Come on its beef.

-1 small bag of baby red potatoes

-Olive Oil

-like 10 cloves of Garlic, peeled.

- 1/2 teaspoon of Rosemary, Thyme, Dried Oregano, Salt Pepper,

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450F. While oven is heating put potatoes and garlic cloves in a pyrex baking dish. Coat potatoes generously in Olive oil and add salt, pepper, Rosemary, thyme and dried oregano. Feel free to adjust amounts of herbs according to taste. I love rosemary so I pumped up the Rosemary. Place dish in oven.
2. About 20 minutes before potatoes are done prepare your steak. Simply Salt and Pepper GENEROUSLY on both sides. HEat a non-stick pan to medium high heat. Use a bit of canola oil or non-stick spray in the pan
3. Cook steak until desired temperature, flipping once at the half way point. For medium rare try 6-8 minutes. Medium 8-10, medium well 10-12. 
4. Remove steak and place on cutting board. Let it sit for 5 minutes.
5. Once potatoes are done (and steak has finished resting) take them out of the oven and plate. Slice your steak, saving half for lunch tomorrow. Place on plate.
6. Eat like a beast.

Healthy Asian Lettuce Wraps

Ok- Im not going to lie and say that these were as good as PF Chang's beloved Lettuce wraps. BUT DAMN! These were so good and they just tasted so fresh and healthy. THe think I love most about this dish is the texture. The crunchiness and wateriness of the lettuce couples with the saltiness of the soy sauce and softness of the meat and veggies. I garnished with thinly sliced carrot strips which also added a nice crunch.

This recipe made two servings and I am keeping the second one for lunch tomorrow. I'm so excited to eat them again I think I'm going to go to sleep really earlyso that lunch comes really fast- like a kid waiting for christmas.

ASIAN LETTUCE WRAPS

I really need to invest in a better Camera because these pictures do not do the dish justice.

Ingredients
-3/4 lbs of Ground Turkey (the 93/7 left over from last night)
-Half a yellow onion finely diced
-1 cup of mushrooms very finely diced
- 1/2 a red pepper finely diced
-1/2 a green pepper finely diced
-10-12 cloves of garlic finely minced
-3 good pieces of boston lettuce from the head of lettuce
- Sesame Seeds
-Soy Sauce
-1 tsp Cumin
-a few to a bunch of dashes of Chili powder (depending on your taste)
- 1 lime
-Olive Oil

Directions

1. Take all of the finely chopped veggies (onion, garlic, pepper, shrooms) and Saute in Olive OIl over medium high heat until soft. About 5 minutes. Set Aside
2. In a new pan brown the ground turkey until cooked all the way through. Add the juice of one lime, 2 tsps of soy sauce, 1tsp cumin, as many dashes of Chili powder as you like, and several dashes of Sesame seeds.
3. Once the Turkey is cooked through add the sauteed veggies. Cook over low heat for about 5 minutes, or if you have time, let simmer for 30 minutes (I did this and I think it contributed greatly to the flavor). 
4. Once all the flavors have mixed together, take a taste- what do u think it needs? I added some more soy sauce and a bit more chili powder but DO YOU!
5. Lay out lettuce pieces and garnish with carrot strips.
6. Remember to brag to your friends tomorrow about how good these were.

I also really need to get some hot chili sauce- like Srichacha- but I forgot to buy it at the grocery store this week. That would make a great addition to the dish. Also you could take the hot chili sauce, rice vinegar, and soy sauce and make a nice dipping sauce. Also for some extra crunch and texture you can add some crushed peanuts like they do in restaurants. Unfortunately I didn't have these either tonight but will definitely add them in the future.

Turkey Burger and Sweet Potato Fries

Burger and Fries- the bar staple. Try this was a delicious healthy alternative. I used the oven for both the fries and the turkey burger because they both cook about the same time and temp and it was really convenient. I have to be honest though and say oven baking burgers is not my favorite. I strongly prefer the  grill, pan frying second, then the oven. But for the sake of convenience the oven is a decent alternative. Plus it was raining out today so definintely not firing up the grill on this night.

Turkey Burger and Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients
- 1 lb of Ground Turkey. Use 93/7 because the 99% lean stuff is just too lean.
-1 large sweet potato chopped thinly into fries
-1/4 of a large onion diced
- 1 piece of Swiss Cheese
-  A few dashes of Worchestire Sauce
- 1 tsp of cumin
-1 tsp on garlic powder
- Salt and Pepper
-Olive Oil

Directions

• Preheat Oven to 400 F. While the oven in preheating spread out sweet potato fry strip on a metal baking sheet. Lightly cover in Olive oil and Season generously with Salt and pepper. Add a dash of cayenne pepper for some spice, cinnamon for some sweet or nothing for that real sweet potatoey taste- depending on what you like. Arrange in a single line on the sheet- don't overlap fries on eachother.
• Place ground turkey, onions, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Add a few dashes of Worchestire Sauce. Hand mix together a bit and form into two half pound patties. Place on a separate baking sheet lined with Olive Oil.
• When Oven is heated, place the fries on the top rack and the burgers on the lower rack. Let cook for 15 minutes then flip burgers. Let the fries cook for 20 minutes then flip them. 
• A few minutes before the burgers are done heat up the bun by placing it seperately in the oven. Also like 2-3 minutes before you can melt the cheese on top of the patty. I strangely like my cheese unmelted in burgers.
• Remove the burgers and let sit for a few minutes. Check the Sweet potato fries to see if they are crispy. If not, broil them on high for a minute or two until crispy. If you cut them thin enough the thirty minutes should be fine. 
• This makes two burgers so keep the other one for lunch tomorrow.
• Put on a plate, enjoy food tasty enough to be in a bar from the comfort of your couch.

Back on Track- Week of Feb 21st

So its been a hectic past two weeks and I didn't blog once. In fact I cooked very little in that time, unfortunately. But not my schedule is getting back to normal and its time to get back on track. I am trying to do a bit of a theme this week- healthy takes on traditional restaurant / bar food.  I hope to show that you can make your favorite eating out foods in healthy and simple ways to enjoy at home. So i'm doing the whole deal this week and I think its going to turn out great.

Meal Plan


Sunday

• Dinner- (Turkey) Burger and (Sweet Potato) Fries

Monday

• Lunch- Turkey Burger
• Dinner- Asian Lettuce Wraps

Tuesday

• Lunch- Asian Rice Mix
• Dinner- Steak and Roasted Potatoes

Wednesday

• Lunch- Turkey Sandwich
• Dinner- Chicken Quesadillas

Thursday

• Lunch- Southwest Salad
• Dinner- Healthy Nacho Supreme

These dishes are takes on my restaurant favorites- Burger and fries, Steak and Potatoes, Asian Lettuce wraps (I love PF Changs lettuce wraps), etc. These foods are all comfort foods, but comfort food doesn't have to be unhealthy. These meals are going to taste great and provide plenty of protein to support the new workout plan I am doing in the few weeks before SB 2011!

Grocery List- all from the greatest grocer on the planet- Trader Joe's

• 1.25 lbs Ground Turkey (93/7)- 4.10
• One large Sweet Potatoes- 1.29
• Pack of Whole Wheat Buns- 2.29
• Yellow Onion- .99
• 1 Red Bell Pepper- .99
• 1 Green Pepper- .99
• 1 pack baby carrots- 1.69
• I head of Iceberg LEttuce- 1.29
• 1 pack of Cremini mushroom- 1.99
• 1 pack of TJ's microwavable brown rice- 1.99
• 1 Rib Eye steak (i got about 3/4 of a pound)- 5.83
• 1, 1.5lb bag of Red Potatoes- 1.99
• 1/2 Lb of Turkey- 2.99
• 1/2 lb of swiss cheese- 2.99
• 1 pack of Chicken Breasts (around 1 Lb should do)- 6.88
• Pack of tortillas- 3.49
• 1 pack of mixed greens- 2.29
• 1 pack of Soy and Flaxseed Tortilla Chips -2.49
• 3 Jalepeno peppers- .99
• 1 pack of lite MExican Blend Cheese- 2.99
• 1 can of black beans- .99

Total- 49.51

Other stuff to Have- Oil Oil, Salt, Pepper, Soy Sauce, Cumin, Worchestire sauce, Cayenne Pepper, Thyme, Rosemary, Balsamic Vinegar

I left out breakfasts again so subtracted from my allotted spending accordingly. Do yourself a favor though, get some greek yogurt for breakfast with some granola and some fresh fruit like Banana, blueberries, raspberries etc. There is no better start to a morning than greek yogurt and a strong cup of coffee.

Shrimp Fajitas

This literally could not be easier to make- especially with pre-cooked shrimp because everything can cook basically the same amount of time and everything can go in the same bag. So to cook all you have to do is heat a pan and dumb the contents of the bag in the pan. I pre-season / marinate alot of my stuff in bags up to 24 hours before I cook it. If you are using raw meat make sure that you season the meat in one bag and the veggies in another.

Shrimp Fajitas

Ingredients
-1/2 lb of jumbo cooked shrip
- Half a red pepper sliced into fajita strips
- Half a green pepper sliced into Fajita strips
- Half a Red Onion in Fajita- type strips
- 1 lime
- Two Corn Torillas
- A little Mexican cheese
- Salt, Pepper
- 1 tsp of each- Cumin, Garlic Powder, Cayenne Pepper (adjust to taste)
- Olive Oil

Directions


1. The night before you are going to make this put the followin ingredients in a freezer bag: Shrimp, Peppers and Onions, Cumin, Garlic Powder, juice of half a lime. Also put in a few pinches of salt and pepper. Drizzle olive oil in bag until it lightly covers all ingredients. Close the bag tightly and toss it around so that the seasoning covers all of the ingredients. Put in the fridge for the night

2. On the day you are going to cook heat a large pan for around 3 minutes on high heat. You might add the juice of the other half of the lime to the pan, but you don't have to if you don't want them too limey. Open the bag and pour contents into the heated pan.

3. Cook for 8-10 minutes on high heat until peppers and Onions are cooked through.

4. Heat corn tortillas for 30 seconds in microwave right before the fajita stuff is done cooking. Serve fajitas on heated tortillas and top with some lite mexican blend cheese.

Southwest Salmon with Corn and Black Bean Salsa

THIS IS WHY I COOK! This was a meal I had never made before but was incredibly simple to make and tasted restaurant quality the very first time. This dish may not get you a michelin star but it will probably get you a second date- Just let the food do all the talking.

Southwest Salmon with Corn and Black Bean Salsa

I wish I had a better camera than my I-phone because this picture does not do this dish justice. The Salmon was juicy, flaky and perfectly browned on the outside and medium rare on the inside. The southwest seasoning on the fish was an amazing compliment to the salsa. The corn had a beautiful dusted color from the cumin that is unfortunately not captured in this picture. It was a fantastic southwest inspired dish and will be repeated very soon.

Ingredients
-1/2 pound salmon filet- I bought this Trader Joe's Southwest Seasoned Salmon filet. I normally don't buy preseason stuff but this one looked so good at the store and it turns out it was great when cooked. It also saves some time and energy.

-1 cup of sweet corn- i used frozen corn but feel free to use canned or fresh
-1 can of black beans
-half of a red onion diced
-Salt, Pepper, Cumin, Garlic Powder, Olive Oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. While the oven is preheating, heat some olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. When Olive Oil is hot, sautee diced red onion until translucent- about 3-4 minutes. Drain water from black beans and place in the pan along with the corn. Season with Salt, pepper. Add about 1 tablespoon of Cumin and 1/2 tablespoon of Garlic powder. Stir, taste and adjust seasoning to taste. Take the pan off heat. Save half for sides and with fajitas. Put the other half on your plate.
2. Once the oven is pre-heating heat some Canola oil in a seperate pan over high heat for 3-4 minutes. Once hot, place the Salmon in the pan skin side down. Sear for two minutes on the skin side until golden brown. Flip and Sear for one minute.
3. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 5-7 minutes, depenind on how rare you like it (try 4 for medium rare and more like 7 for medium)
4. Once cooked, take the salmon out of the oven and place over salsa.
5. YYEEEEHHHAAAWWWWW!

Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta

So I made double of this dish to save for lunch tomorrow. Its a really light dinner which is nice after a weekend of heavy eating. I used Trader Joe's Traditional Marinara sauce, but you can use whatever sauce you like. It would go really well with a white-wine garlic sauce or even a lemon-butter sauce.

Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta

Ingredients

- About 12 Shrimp- unfrozen

- 1 Bunch of Asparaus- sliced into about half inch peices (cut off the very bottom fibrious part)

- A handful of Basil

- Two servings of Whole Wheat Pasta

- As many cloves of garlic as you like- I used like 8

Directions

1.  Boil water and cook two servings of whole wheat Pasta according to directions on pasta package.
2. While the pasta is cooking, heat Olive oil in a pan in medium high heat. When Olive Oil is heated throw in garlic and sautee for about 1-2 minutes.
3. After Garlic has sauteed throw in the shrimp, basil and asparagus peices
4. Cook all the ingredients for about 5-7 minutes until the asparagus is cooked through. 
5. Lower heat and add pasta sauce to the pan. Stir around so that the ingredients are covered in the pasta sauce and wait until the pasta is done cooking. Should be about 3 minutes or so left.
6. Strain pasta when done and cover in the marinara and ingredients.
7. Enjoy with a nice side salad