Mexican Chicken Bake

September 8, 2012 3 Comments

Why is it that when I’m at work and school all week, the sun shines and the weather is gorgeous, but when I have a day off it rains cats and dogs. I had planned on spending the morning at the park with Munchkin then doing some grocery shopping and trying out a few recipes, but I honestly don’t feel like stepping outdoors into that rain. Hopefully it’ll pass!

Enough complaining about the weather because I have something yummy to share! I was out of ideas as to what to make for dinner last night, until I went to the mailbox that is. I got the latest issue of Everyday with Rachel Ray and while flipping through the pages, I came across a recipe for Mexican chicken and I just happened to have basically everything I needed to make it.

Chicken breast topped with sliced tomatoes, red onions, jalapenos and cheese on a bed of arugula and avocado tossed with lime juice and olive oil. I didn’t really have high expectations for this dish, since the ingredients were so basic, but all the flavors came together perfectly!

Mexican Chicken

  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute
  • Olive oil, for drizzling
  • 4 chicken breasts
  • 2 tomatoes, thinly slices
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 jalapeno peppers, sliced with seeds and ribs removed
  • 1 cup of shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)
  • 2 avocados
  • juice of one lime
  • 2 cups arugula

Preheat over to 450 degrees. Place chicken breasts into a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and rub with spices. Top each chicken breast with alternating slices of tomatoe and onion. Sprinkle jalapeno peppers on top and bake for 20 – 25 minutes. During last 5 minutes of baking, top each chicken breast with cheese.

Meanwhile in a large bowl, combine diced avocado and top with lime juice and salt and peppers. Allow the flavors to marinade for a few minuted before tossing in the arugula and drizzling in olive oil. Plate the arugula and avocado salad and top with a chicken breast. Dig in!


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Guest Post: My go-to “on-the-go” breakfast

August 22, 2012 2 Comments

A big HI to all of Sylvia’s readers!! I absolutely adore Sylvia’s blog…she helps me feed my quinoa addiction. (In addition to lots of other things as well!) I’m so glad I found her (or she might have found me, I don’t really remember) through WIAW! That little party sure does bring people together.

So anyway, my name is Cinnamon and I am the blog mastermind behind eatPRAYtri.com. And when I say blog mastermind, I really mean a wife and stepmother trying really hard yet failing miserably at most things (cooking and working out to name a few), buuuuut loving every minute of life anyway and talking about it all on the internet!

Sylvia guest posted for me a while back while I was away in Mexico and her post got rave reviews. When she asked me to return the favor, I jumped at the chance although I don’t think my post will get quite the reviews as hers did. But a girl can dream right?

I present to you one of my all time favorite recipes:

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See what I mean?

I love blogging for lots of different reasons, but one of the biggest reasons BY FAR is the stuff I learn. Sometimes I seriously wonder how I got anything accomplished before I started reading blogs. That was only about a year ago, so honestly the fact that I have actually made it to 36 is probably a miracle. :)

Seriously though, the things you pick up and learn just by reading other peoples perspectives and opinions is just fantastic. This little go-to breakfast of mine is a combination of two things I learned from reading blogs. I just put them together and viola! I have my new favorite (SUPER EASY) breakfast that I eat MOST days of the week.

The microwave egg sandwich

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I had never really seen or heard of sandwich thins before blogging. Maybe I just didn’t pay attention in the grocery store (I have no idea how long they have been around) but I swear I had no idea these existed. Then I saw bloggers left and right throwing peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter (bloggers love nut butter if you couldn’t tell) and banana or strawberry or whatever else on top of these sandwich thins and having (what seemed to me) the greatest breakfast ever.

I jumped on board right away. And what do you know? They are fantastic. Now we get them at Costco, stick them in the freezer and eat them until our little hearts are content.

THEN, I read about microwaving eggs. Probably doesn’t seem like rocket science to most people, and I guess it doesn’t really seem like that to me either, but I had never once before in my life considered microwaving eggs. I have no idea why. So of course, this idea was brilliant to me. And made me feel incredibly stupid all at the same time.

I love eggs and I think I pretty much always have, but I never wanted to make them because they were messy, dirtied a pan and took longer than a minute to prepare. This does not fly when you have to get out the door because you hit snooze too many times and now you are running late and you still have to drive an hour to work. Its also really hard to eat eggs in the car unless they are hardboiled or solidified in some way between two pieces of bread.

What a minute.

Stop the presses.

Hold on.

Idea time.

How about I microwave an egg in the exact same size dish as the sandwich thin? Slap it in the middle, wrap it up and take it in the car so that I could eat it on the way to work?

And the whole thing takes literally about 1 min 30 seconds to put together?

Yep, that just happened.

So this is what I do. I get all my stuff together

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I put the sandwich thin in the toaster and then I crack the egg into the dish and put in some salt, pepper and a sprinkling of shredded chedda cheese

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Then I scramble it all up and throw it in the microwave for 1 minute

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This is what comes out

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About this time my sandwich thin is done toasting so I slap the egg on there (fits PERFECTLY), wrap it up in a paper towel and put it on top of my coffee mug to take out to the car.

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I mean seriously. It probably took longer to read this post than to make this breakfast. And its good for you.

This is also proof why reading blogs is good for you too! Especially mine.

What is your go-to breakfast?

Did you know about microwaving eggs before you were an adult? Please say no so I feel better.

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Thai Peanut Spaghetti Squash

August 3, 2012 14 Comments

I love Thai food. I love Spaghetti Squash. So, it’s natural that it would only be a matter of time before I decided to combine the two. On my last trip to Whole Foods, I scored the last Spaghetti Squash in the produce section, so this was a sign that I had to use it for something really yummy.

Enter, Thai Peanut Sauce Spaghetti Squash. This was super easy to make and so, so good.

Not too sweet, not too spicy, totally hit the spot. And I can’t forget to mention that it was super simple to make.

Thai Peanut Spaghetti Squash

  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 2 chicken breasts, thinly sliced into one inch chunks
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 cup unsweetened Coconut Milk
  • 1 cup natural Peanut Butter
  • 2 tablespoon Thai Red Curry Paste
  • 2 tablespoon Liquid Aminos or Soy Sauce
  • 4 tablespoon Fish Sauce
  • 4 teaspoons toasted Sesame Oil
  • pinch of ground Ginger
  • pinch of ground Cinnamon
  • pinch of ground Black Pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped Green Onion
  • 1/2 salted Peanuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Carefully, cut the Spaghetti Squash in half, remove the seeds and coat with a bit of coconut oil. Bake for 40 minutes to one hour, until fork tender. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before removing the spaghetti strands with a fork.

While the squash is baking, combine coconut milk, peanut butter, curry paste, aminos, fish sauce, sesame oil, ginger, cinnamon, pepper, green onion and peanuts in a large bowl and whisk together until smooth and creamy.

Take about a quarter of the sauce and marinate your chicken in it for about 40 minutes, while the spaghetti squash is baking. Once marinated, heat the remaining coconut oil on a large skillet and cook the chicken. Once chicken is fully cooked, top it with the rest of the sauce and toss in the spaghetti squash.

Garnish with some green onion, crushed peanuts or sesame seeds and dig in!

It is also really easy to make this recipe vegetarian and vegan. Just remove the chicken for veggie and the fish sauce for vegan. This dish is also paleo friendly! Hope you enjoy!

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Seaweed Salad

July 19, 2012 9 Comments

Ever since I tried seaweed salad for the first time at a sushi restaurant a few months ago, I’ve been hooked. It is my appetizer every single time we go for sushi, and Tommy has gotten hooked on it, too. On our last trip to Whole Foods over the weekend, Tommy got the idea that we should try to make Seaweed Salad ourselves. He did some research, and came up with the ingredients we needed to buy to make this incredibly delicious and good for you salad.

Seaweed Salad

  • 1 package dried wakame seaweed
  • 4 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 4 tbsp liquid aminos or soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp Asian sesame oil
  • 2 tsp freshly grated ginger
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • sesame seeds to garnish

Soak the seaweed in hot water for 5-10 minutes. Drain the hot water, rinse with cold and squeeze out the excess water. In a separate bowl combine rice wine vinegar, aminos/soy sauce, ginger and red pepper flakes. Pour mixture over the seaweed and toss to combine. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and dig in.

Bet you didn’t think it was that easy, huh?

BTW, this is what the seaweed looks like at Whole Foods. It took us about 10 minutes staring at the seaweed section before we found it.

What’s your must-have at a Japanese restaurant?

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Breakfast Quinoa WIAW

July 11, 2012 29 Comments

I’m going on a road trip today! Woowoo! After work, Tommy and I are taking a quick trip down to Philly to pick up my new gym. Sadly, we will only be there for as long as it takes us to pack up the car. I will miss the area. Hopefully, we will be back there one day! Anywho….it’s Wednesday so lets talk about FOOD and FITNESS!


First up is breakfast quinoa. Yes, it appears that my quinoa obsession has hit a new level this week.

I cooked up the quinoa the way I would make my regular oats. Two parts milk to one part quinoa. I added in cinnamon, apple and dried blueberries to make an incredible breakfast. The only down side is that this takes a bit of time to cook, and isn’t weekday friendly.

Luckily, this Veggie Tofu Scramble is very weekday friendly and this is why I’ve been enjoying it every morning this week.

Spinach, green peppers, tomatoes, tofu with a bit of sriracha and garlic salt scrambled together on a hot, hot skillet. If this doesn’t make you smile for the rest of the day, I don’t know what will.

Oh wait, yes I do! How about some Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna.

Just looking at these pictures makes me want to reach through the screen and grab it. It was incredible!

But what’s a good dinner without a good drink, right? We picked up this lemon juice beer from the Beer Boutique, a new beer store that opened recently in Brooklyn.

White Aphro is a Belgian style Wit Ale made with lemon peel, ginger & lavender and tasted amazing.

The Beer Boutique has this crazy contraption in which they can put on-tap beer into plastic bottles that will keep for up to 6 weeks. The machine first fills the bottle with CO2 so that the beer stays carbonated and it shakes it while pouring it into the bottle. According there are only 5 machines like this in the world!

And no day is complete without dessert. Be it healthy like the watermelon I enjoyed on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

..or indulgent like the Coldstone Ice Cream Munchkin and I shared yesterday.

And since calorie-less ice cream is yet to be invented, I turn to fitness to keep myself in check!

My favorite way to burn calories is through running. If you would’ve told me two years ago that I’d be running a 10k in a few months, I would’ve laughed in your face. Until a few months ago, the extent of my running experience consisted of being a sprinter on my high school track team. Those long legs came in handy!

When I first started running for distance, it was an incredibly difficult transition for me. I started out way too fast, burned out way too quickly and ended up walking home disappointed and discouraged. I believe that this is why I wasn’t successful in my running last year and never got to race.

This year, something just clicked. I stopped running on the track which made me feel like a hamster in a wheel and I just took it at my own pace and had a good time with it. I listen to music and dance along with it while I run run on the street. I set mini-goals for myself like I want to get to the park and get a drink at the water fountain before turning around to go home. Lemme tell you, getting to said park is now a breeze, but it felt nearly impossible when I was starting out.

I am planning on running three races this year. Two of them are more for fun and one is my ‘serious’ race. I am doing the NYC Color Run on August 25th (keep an eye out on the Fitfluential blog for my recap!), the Down and Dirty Mud Run 5k and the Rock and Roll Brooklyn 10k in October. Since these are my first races ever, I’m going in with a goal of just finishing. Once I see how I do in these, I think I will be able to step up the training and work on speed, but for now I’m happy being the tortise in the race. Slow and steady wins anyway, right?

So long story short…I love to run!

What’s the best thing you ate this week? What’s you favorite way to burn off those eats?

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Veggie Mexican Lasagna

July 9, 2012 11 Comments

Gather round children and I’ll tell you a story. A story about how I made something delicious, something I couldn’t wait to dig into…

…and then I dropped it on the floor taking it out of the oven. Lesson of the day: always put the oven glove on all the way!

Luckily, I was able to salvage most of it and got two dinners out of it.

Oh yea, it’s a Mexican lasagna. A vegetarian Mexican lasagna…with tofu. Bet you didn’t see that one coming!

Veggie Mexican Lasagna (inspired by Peas & Crayons)

  • 4 whole wheat tortillas
  • 1/2 can re-fried beans
  • 1 15 oz can black beans
  • 1 orange pepper, diced
  • 8 oz firm tofu
  • 1 jar salsa
  • 1/2 diced jalapeno
  • 1 cup Mexican blend cheese

Dice tofu into cubes and sautee in a large skillet with pepper, jalapeno and salsa until tofu is scrambled.  Spoon salsa into the bottom of an oven safe baking dish. Spread re-fired beans onto one side of the tortilla and place into the baking dish. Layer tofu scramble, black beans, cheese and salsa before topping with the next tortilla. Repeat until all the tortillas are layered and top with extra cheese and black beans before placing into a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes. Carefully remove it from the oven and let stand for a few minutes before digging in.

Check out that layer action…yum!

Enjoy!

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Southwestern Quinoa Salad

July 3, 2012 11 Comments

A few days ago I did some grocery shopping at a local Whole Foods-esque supermarket. I always have to walk through the hot bar area, even if I’m not going to get anything from it, just to see what they have. This time I came across this gem, snapped a quick pic to remember it and started planning on how I can make it even better.

Since I’ve been on a quinoa kick lately so it was only natural that I included some in this recipe to create Southwestern Quinoa Salad. Holy Moly people! This stuff is addicting!

Southwestern Quinoa Salad

  • 1 cup dry quinoa
  • 2 cups veggie stock
  • 1 can black beans
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1/2 medium red onion, diced
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons sriracha
  • salt and pepper to taste

Pour veggie stock into a large pot and add quinoa. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer until quinoa is light and fluffy. Drain and rinse can of black beans. Combine beans, corn, diced onion and pepper in a large bowl. Add cooled quinoa, lime juice, vinegar and sriracha and mix to combine the flavors.

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I guarantee that you will not be able to keep yourself from reaching for more spoonfuls of this salad and it is perfect for your 4th of July BBQ! Needless to say, there were no leftovers after out Sunday BBQ, we all could not get enough.

What’s your favorite way to prepare quinoa? What’s your favorite BBQ side-dish?

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The Week’s Favorite Eats WIAW

June 27, 2012 8 Comments

Why is it that every time I wake up early to write a blog post, I spend an hour trying to fix our Internet. I’m talking to you Time Warner..I think it may be time to look into some alternatives!

Okay, enough ranting! It’s Wednesday and the lovely Jen at Peas and Crayons is hosting the best part on the interwebs today..WIAW! After my Lame-o WIAW lat week, I promised that I would change it up a bit for this week and make it a bit more interesting, so instead of showing what I ate yesterday (if you’ve seen one dippy egg, you’ve seen em all) I’m going to share some fun things I’ve made or eaten in the past week.


Since June’s theme is Sensible Snacking, I’m going to start with my snacks. First up, Greek yogurt fruit popsicles.

Munchkin is a nut for all things ice cream. I’m pretty sure I could freeze some broccoli into popsicle form and it would go down no problem.

All I did was mix a container of plain Chobani but a bit of honey with cherries, strawberries, grapes and a peach. I let it freeze overnight, and I got myself a sensible snack for both young and old.

Another sensible snack that I’ve been enjoying this week is the Strawberry Banana Muffins that I made on Monday. I took a recipe that I found on the recipe cards at the supermarket and tweaked it to make it a bit healthier. Munchkin can down these muffins like they’re going out of style, so when they’re a bit on the healthier side, I don’t feel so bad when he asks for a second or a third.

Another thing that I love in the summer is grilled corn on the cob.

While some people peel the corn and wrap in it tip foil with butter, salt and all sorts of other stuff, I just throw the whole ear on the grill and wet the sweetest, most flavorful corn, no extra salts and fats needed.

The last item I am sharing was made by my lovely boyfriend over the weekend. Some guys that he works with were talking about spaghetti al guitarra, and he decided to make it for us.

The dish is spaghetti tossed with grilled shrimp, sauteed cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and fresh chunks of mozzarella which get stringy when tossed in with the hot ingredients giving the dish its name.

It is so.so.so.so.good!

Have a tasty Wednesday!

What’s your favorite thing off the grill? What’s the best thing you ate this week?

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A Healthier Alternative: Strawberry Banana Muffins

June 26, 2012 8 Comments

Over the weekend, I grabbed a bunch of recipes from our local supermarket in the Poconos. One of the recipes was for Raspberry Swirl muffins and as soon as I saw it, I got the baking itch. When I got home from work yesterday, I went straight to the kitchen and these babies happened.

I used the supermarket recipe as inspiration and came up with Strawberry Banana Muffins. They are good, and pretty good for you – whole wheat flour, no added fats and packed with fresh fruits!

Strawberry Banana Muffins [makes 12 muffins]

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/3 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup mashed bananas (about 2 large)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/3 cup applesauce
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat over to 375 degrees and line a pan with muffin cups (I used leftover cars cups. Munchkin loved it!) In a large bowl combine flours, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. In a separate bowl, mix together bananas, eggs, applesauce, honey and vanilla. Add to the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Fold in the strawberry chunks. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups until 2/3 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Enjoy!

I love how the fresh berries gave the muffins a marbled look on top…it makes them that much more mouthwatering, if you ask me!

What inspires you in the kitchen? What’s your favorite thing to bake?

 

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Apple Pancakes

June 22, 2012 9 Comments

Today’s breakfast was too good for words, but that won’t stop me from writing about it.

Apple pancakes are a food that brings me back to childhood breakfasts, sitting around a huge table with all my cousins in Poland. My aunt and uncle’s house in Poland was a magnet for the whole family’s kids so sometimes there was 11 different little mouths to feed in the morning. In the late summer, once the apple trees started producing fruit, apple pancakes were a favorite.

These pancakes are a bit different than the ones my aunt used to make, Polish pancakes are much thinner and more crepe-like, but they are amazing nonetheless.

Apple Pancakes

  • 2/3 cup buttermilk (or combine 2/3 cup milk and 2 tablespoons vinegar and let stand to make buttermilk)
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoon oil
  • 1 large apple, peeled and sliced thinly

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda  in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together egg, buttermilk and oil. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until lumps are gone. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Put down apple slices into the skillet and pour large spoonfuls of batter over the slices. Cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side.

Happy eating!

What was your favorite childhood breakfast?

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