Spa Fierce – Healthy

GRΣΣK CHIC

Mar 11th

First, let me apologize for my absence. I MISS YALL SO MUCH! You’re all I have that doesn’t talk back and disappoint me, lol. I’ll never leave you again.

For my first day back, I decided to ABSOLUTELY WOW you with something understated and simple. Kinda like that DKNY black dress I LOVE with my triple stranded pearls. Anyway….Thanks to my good friend and fellow foodie, Stacey P. for pointing me to this ONE-DISH WONDER. IT IS A WINNER!

Pampered Chef Lemon GrΣΣk Chicken

Ingredients:

Zest of 2 lemons (Tip – Zest Lemons before juicing)
1 C. lemon juice (Pretty much 3 lemons)
4 T. Extra Virgin olive oil
1 Head of garlic (roughly chopped)
4 T. dried oregano leaves
3/4 T. salt
1/8 T. ground black pepper
8 Baby Idahoes (small red potatoes, no need to peel)
1 Medium red bell pepper, cut into thin slices

1 Medium orange pepper, cut into thin slices
1 large red onion, cut into wedges
Whole Chicken cut up (cleaned)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°.

In 1 qt bowl, combine lemon zest, juice and oil.

Add garlic, oregano, salt and black pepper; set aside.

Cut each potato lengthwise place in 9 X 13 casserole dish.

Add bell pepper, onion, and half of the lemon juice mixture; toss to coat.

Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.

Place chicken on top of vegetables; brush with the remaining lemon juice mixture.

Bake 60 to 70 mins. or until chicken is no longer pink in center and potatoes are fork tender, basting chicken and vegetables with pan juices after 30 minutes. (At the 30 minute mark, I brushed on a little more EVOO)

Serve over brown rice cooked entirely in chicken broth (no water…bleck) and 1 T. butter. Plate rice, followed by chicken and veggies and last but definitely not least, spoon some of that great flavored broth and pan juices on top. SUPERB! AND ONE OF THE BEST PARTS…..IT FITS INTO MY NEW BETTER EATING PLAN…SPA FIERCE!! (Without the skin of course. My mom is visiting and she would’ve killed me had I removed it from her pieces as well. It was delish without! I promise.)

Yield: 4 servings

Baby Idaho Potatoes, Baked Chicken, broth, brown rice, chicken, Chicken Stock, evoo, garlic, Greek, Lemon, Lemon Juice, Lemons, red onion, Red Peppers, Yellow Peppers

Spa Fierce Orange Glazed Salmon and Green Beans

Jan 20th

Posted by Zina in Dinner

3 comments

Tonight, in honor of the “Fiercer Challenge” (in case you didn’t know, my friends and I have a little bet of who will be the finest for our first ever girls vacation) I prepared Orange - Glazed Salmon (recipe compliments of Cuisine at Home magazine) and Tyler Florence’s Green beans with carmelized onions and almonds.

I usually make my salmon in the oven with mango chutney. It’s good because I LOVE the sweetness. However, last night, I wanted a little sweet and spicy so I tried a recipe that promised exactly that. I am NOT a fan of anything “orange”- cool-aid, Gatorade, pound cake, cookies etc. BUT I figured once it was baked into a glaze with the different flavors, it may be something I could appreciate. I was right. I’d never pan-fried (sautéed) salmon so I was a little hesitant. I found that I need more oil than the recipe called for. It may have been because I wasn’t using a non-stick pan, but I did need more oil.

ORANGE-GLAZED SALMON

Ingredients:

4 boneless salmon fillets (with or without skin side)

3 Tbs. Cajun Spice (McCormick $2.99)

1 Tsp. Brown sugar

½ Tsp. salt

½ c. Orange Marmalade (Seville Oranges)

juice of half of large lime

2 Tbs. olive oil

Directions:

Mix the Cajun spice, b. sugar and salt together in a small bowl. Press the mixture into the salmon, covering the entire surfaces of both the top and bottom of the pieces. Combine the jelly and juice together and have it on deck to spoon very quickly. Add the oil to your (non-stick) skillet. Once heated, add the pieces skin-side down first (just in case the pan is a little too hot and you won’t mess up the pretty face of the fish, lol). Quickly spread the jelly mixture over the pieces and cook about 3-4 minutes. Gently flip the fish, spread the sauce on the other side and flip back in 2 to 3 minutes. The sauce will now surround the pieces so take the time to spoon it over them and on the sides again. The fish is done when it flakes when tested with a fork. Serve with lime wedges.

GREEN BEANS WITH CARMELIZED ONIONS

There was something personally satisfying about trimming my own beans although it got old very fast, lol. I felt like I was providing my household with good quality, “clean” food. And yes, I was tempted to start the party by sautéing a lil bit of bacon but I decided against it. (

Ingredients:

1 ½ lb. fresh green beans, trimmed of stems ($2.77 @ Publix)

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2/3 c. sliced almonds, with skin (in the produce section at Publix)

Kosher Salt

Black Pepper

2 Tbs. Butter

2 Tbs. Olive Oil

I used one skillet for the entire dish. Toast the almonds for 3 to 4 minutes on low heat. Be careful because I burned a few of mine. Set them aside for later. I’ve never boiled water in a skillet before so I was, for some odd reason, amazed when I noticed that I was,lol. Anyway, fill the skillet with water up until maybe 1 inch from the rim of the pot, bring to a boil. Salt water and add green beans. Boil for 6 minutes, drain in colander and run cold water over beans until they are no longer hot (to stop the cooking process). Using the same pot, heat the oil and butter and add the onions. Season with salt and pepper. Saute the onions for 25 mins. on medium low heat. THEY WILL SMELL AMAZING! Add the beans back into the pot and toss aound with the onions for 4-5 minutes (longer if you want them softer and devoid of nutrients, lol). Cut the heat off and add the toasted almonds to the pan and toss. That’s it!