So I'm trying something new- this is my skinny chili recipe- full of veggies and healthy things. Instead of writing out the whole thing- watch the video! I can talk you through it - its like an online cooking class (dream!). Bare with me as at the end of the first half the phone rings- it was my mom so I had no choice but to take a break- why i said be back in five minutes.. who really knows. But give it a watch- try out the recipe- and as always- tell me how it goes!!! No editing skills yet folks- this will come with time I'm sure :P
Just as a side note- to finish the chili = in other words= make it look pretty when serving- you can use light sour cream- light cheddar- and green onions. Make every meal appealing to all of your senses and savour every bite- if you do that you will allow your body to feel fuller faster, you will eat less in the end, and feel great!
Dom's Skinny Chili Part 1 from Dom Friesen on Vimeo.
Dom's Skinny Chili Part 2 from Dom Friesen on Vimeo.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Cauliflower Rice- yes you read correctly!
So I was at the dentist yesterday and as usual I got to talking about food- with my hygienist of course... We got to talking about healthy cooking and substituting etc- and she asked me if i had ever had cauliflower rice- She went on to explain that all you need to do is put a head of cauliflower through the food processor- pulsing it until it slightly resembles rice in size. Then you heat a pan with about 1- 2 tbsp of butter- yes butter is natural and in small amounts is good for you- way better than its almost plastic distant cousin margarine, and you pan fry it on medium/low for about five to ten minutes. I made this with creamy Dijon pork sirloin and the cauliflower actually soaked up the sauce just like rice would. Healthy eaters rejoice! An alternative to rice and noodles! And you can feel good about this one too:) Happy Cooking!
(PS- this totally counts as a new ingredient because its something we've all used in a completely different way! The experiment is still going strong!)
(PS- this totally counts as a new ingredient because its something we've all used in a completely different way! The experiment is still going strong!)
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Week 5: Also an epic fail
So I have actually been doing my ingredient per week challenge- I just haven't kept it up on here :(
But here's another failure that turned out okay in the end...
I was watching barefoot contessa and she made a chilled cucumber soup, the recipe will follow. Not being such a big fan of cucumbers didn't make this soup a good idea in the first place, but you know me- I will try it anyway! The ingredient this week was GREEK YOGURT. I hear all about it on the cooking shows but not so easy to find- if your trying to lose weight its a good substitute for sour cream-especially on potatoes.
I followed her recipe- and the results were...horrendous- although my friend didn't mind it- but she also loves cucumbers-gotta say not a recipe I would ever try again, but if you love cucumbers search it on google: Chilled cucumber soup with shrimp.
After the terrible results I decided I needed to make it up to my friend and we made smoothies.
I added:
Any fruit substitution would work here- especially mango!
But here's another failure that turned out okay in the end...
I was watching barefoot contessa and she made a chilled cucumber soup, the recipe will follow. Not being such a big fan of cucumbers didn't make this soup a good idea in the first place, but you know me- I will try it anyway! The ingredient this week was GREEK YOGURT. I hear all about it on the cooking shows but not so easy to find- if your trying to lose weight its a good substitute for sour cream-especially on potatoes.
I followed her recipe- and the results were...horrendous- although my friend didn't mind it- but she also loves cucumbers-gotta say not a recipe I would ever try again, but if you love cucumbers search it on google: Chilled cucumber soup with shrimp.
After the terrible results I decided I needed to make it up to my friend and we made smoothies.
I added:
- 1 c of greek yogurt
- 1 c of frozen raspberries
- 3/4 orange juice
- 1 banana
- 1 tbsp agave nectar for sweetness
Any fruit substitution would work here- especially mango!
Guacamole my way:
This recipe is especially for Jen from Donwood. this is guacamole my way:
In the food processor- add about 2 tbsp of red onion and 2 garlic cloves. Pulse till finely chopped.
Add 4-5 avocados and pulse together until creamy. To this mixture add anywhere between 1/2- 1 cup of sour cream- depending on how creamy you like your guacamole. Then add the juice of 1 fresh lemon or 2 fresh limes, 2 tsp Worcestershire, 1 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1 tsp garlic powder, little bit of paprika for colour. Then pulse this altogether and check the seasonings if they suit your taste. Transfer the guacamole into a bowl and then fold in 2 roma tomatoes chopped with- seeds removed. If you like spice- consider adding either cayenne or a dash of hot sauce- I'm not a fan but for those who can handle heat- give it a try!
Done!
If you don't have a food processor- mash the avocados by hand, and finely chop the onion and garlic by hand.
Hints about avocados:
Add 4-5 avocados and pulse together until creamy. To this mixture add anywhere between 1/2- 1 cup of sour cream- depending on how creamy you like your guacamole. Then add the juice of 1 fresh lemon or 2 fresh limes, 2 tsp Worcestershire, 1 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1 tsp garlic powder, little bit of paprika for colour. Then pulse this altogether and check the seasonings if they suit your taste. Transfer the guacamole into a bowl and then fold in 2 roma tomatoes chopped with- seeds removed. If you like spice- consider adding either cayenne or a dash of hot sauce- I'm not a fan but for those who can handle heat- give it a try!
Done!
If you don't have a food processor- mash the avocados by hand, and finely chop the onion and garlic by hand.
Hints about avocados:
- Storing avocados: Buy the Haas avocados- they are more expensive but they have a better flavour- when you push on the skin of an avocado you should feel some give and then you know it is ripe. To cut into an avocado properly cut all it in half. To remove the pit safely- rest the half with the pit on your cutting board and firmly wedge your knife into the pit- turn gently and it should pop out. If you aren't ready to use your avocados yet- put them into the fridge and they will keep for about 5-7 days- depending how lucky you are.
- If you need to ripen your avocados quickly- put them in a paper bag overnight with an apple and banana- the fruits give off a gas that helps along the ripening process- small fact for you! This will take about 2 days.
- Another fun fact I have never knew: that you can actually freeze pureed avocado: I got this from the California avocado website but here are the directions:
- Wash, seed and peel the fruit.
- Puree the flesh, adding one tablespoon of lemon juice for each two pureed avocados. Pack the puree into an air-tight container, leaving 1 inch of head space.
- Seal and label the containers.
- Freeze and use within four to five months.
Great idea if you have too many!
Smarter Fettucini and Lemon Chicken
So I was at a Deluca's cooking lesson the other day with my brother- and learned a new way to cook chicken- and its good!
Here is my version of a Healthy Chicken Fettucini:
Here is my version of a Healthy Chicken Fettucini:
- Whole wheat pasta- don't drain and cool- keep it hot and put it in a big bowl- add 2-3 tbsp of cream cheese (garlic and herb to keep it simple), and 2-3 tbsp of chicken stock, salt and pepper to taste. Toss and depending on the consistency you like in your sauce- add more stock or cheese. No need to cook this again because the heat from the noodles will warm your cream cheese and stock. great short cut- and a lot less calories than the full fat cream substitute!
- The other part is to take 1 chicken breast- slit it in half the long way so that you get two thin and even pieces of chicken. Dredge or dip these in flour with a bit of salt and pepper. Have a shallow pan heated with olive oil and when your oil is ready (see the oil tip 2 posts ago!) drop in your chicken. Keep moving the pan around so the chicken doesn't stick- about 3-4 minutes per side- because your chicken is so thin it goes quickly! When it is fully cooked and lightly browned add about 1/4 c each of lemon juice and water. Let this simmer in with the chicken until the sauce thickens. Your chicken is ready! Serve along-side your pasta and done!
Not your regular grilled cheese...
So I randomly put this together the other day when I didn't have a lot of time but was craving something comforting- being the queen of cream cheese- I don't know how I haven't done this before but here it is: My fancy grilled cheese:
In between two buttered pieces of bread I put a layer of cream cheese- a layer of real cheddar cheese, a layer of Parmesan (real not fake- freshly grated) chopped chives and garlic powder. Then i grilled it like I would any other grilled cheese and done! Definitely worth a try this one!
In between two buttered pieces of bread I put a layer of cream cheese- a layer of real cheddar cheese, a layer of Parmesan (real not fake- freshly grated) chopped chives and garlic powder. Then i grilled it like I would any other grilled cheese and done! Definitely worth a try this one!
Has it been that long....? You'll forgive me after you read THIS!
The answer is yes... My dedication to this blog and my other one has been pathetic- but no worries I have multiple recipes to share with you today. Life just seems to get in the way sometimes- and with report cards, re doing our kitchen, and trying to stay sane I haven't had time to share my recipes in a while...
Today is another day of parent teachers which means I won't get home until late. Luckily enough I have a fully capable husband who will be home to make supper as long as I give him strict instructions- he unlike myself is a recipe kind of guy- and I thought if I'm already emailing him- I may as well put it up here. Many people have probably been to Joey's - they have an appetizer there called sweet chili chicken- they serve this on some kind of wonton but if you ask for rice- its no extra charge and can double as a meal. I adapted it at home and came up with something very very close, so here it is:
Sweet Chili Chicken (Dom's homemade version)
Make 1 1/2 c of your favourite rice in the rice cooker or on the stove. (For me its the rice cooker- put it in and forget it!)
Depending on how many people you are serving that will tell you how many chicken breasts to cut up per person- its safe to assume one chicken breast per. Cube up your chicken breast into just a bit bigger than bite size chunks.
Set out three plates for your breading station:
After all of your pieces of chicken are breaded- add them to a shallow pan heated with vegetable oil- if you don't know if your oil is ready for frying try this trick- put the end of a wooden spoon on the middle of your pan- if bubbles immediately start to form around it- you are ready to go- if they take a while just wait until you get there. Fry a few pieces at a time careful not to over crowd the pan- this drops the temperature of the oil and your chicken will soak it all up like a sponge instead of browning quickly like you want. After its browned- transfer it to a baking sheet and put the chicken into the oven at 300 to keep warm until you are done frying. Because its such a low temperature and with frying you sealed in all the juices- you do not have to worry about your chicken drying out.
When all the frying is done- take 1 large or 2 medium cucumbers. Cut your cucumber in half and seed it- I like to do this because the middle of cucumbers just add water to dishes- and salad and no flavor- barefoot contessa trick- take a small spoon and run it down the middle of your cucumber- and done! Then with your de-seeded cucumber cut each half in half again so you have 4 long quarters. Cut these into small cubes and part 2 done.
Then take your cold chopped cucumber and some of your cooked chicken cubes and put them in a large bowl. Add sweet chili sauce- found in the Asian isle at the grocery store. Add however much you want- but you want both the chicken and cucumber to be coated. Toss-Serve over rice and done! Really good mix- cool and hot, spicy and mild. Perfect dish! Tell me how it goes!
Today is another day of parent teachers which means I won't get home until late. Luckily enough I have a fully capable husband who will be home to make supper as long as I give him strict instructions- he unlike myself is a recipe kind of guy- and I thought if I'm already emailing him- I may as well put it up here. Many people have probably been to Joey's - they have an appetizer there called sweet chili chicken- they serve this on some kind of wonton but if you ask for rice- its no extra charge and can double as a meal. I adapted it at home and came up with something very very close, so here it is:
Sweet Chili Chicken (Dom's homemade version)
Make 1 1/2 c of your favourite rice in the rice cooker or on the stove. (For me its the rice cooker- put it in and forget it!)
Depending on how many people you are serving that will tell you how many chicken breasts to cut up per person- its safe to assume one chicken breast per. Cube up your chicken breast into just a bit bigger than bite size chunks.
Set out three plates for your breading station:
- Your first plate with have 1/2 c of flour (to two chicken breasts- meaning if you have 4 people and 4 chicken breasts use 1 c of flour!), add salt and pepper to taste so your flavoring goes into the first layer
- Your second plate will have 2 eggs and 1 tbsp milk to 2 chicken breasts (If four double- you get the picture)
- Your third plate will have panko bread crumbs- you can use regular but panko makes everything better- salt and pepper again to taste. I usually do about 1 c to 2 chicken breasts.
After all of your pieces of chicken are breaded- add them to a shallow pan heated with vegetable oil- if you don't know if your oil is ready for frying try this trick- put the end of a wooden spoon on the middle of your pan- if bubbles immediately start to form around it- you are ready to go- if they take a while just wait until you get there. Fry a few pieces at a time careful not to over crowd the pan- this drops the temperature of the oil and your chicken will soak it all up like a sponge instead of browning quickly like you want. After its browned- transfer it to a baking sheet and put the chicken into the oven at 300 to keep warm until you are done frying. Because its such a low temperature and with frying you sealed in all the juices- you do not have to worry about your chicken drying out.
When all the frying is done- take 1 large or 2 medium cucumbers. Cut your cucumber in half and seed it- I like to do this because the middle of cucumbers just add water to dishes- and salad and no flavor- barefoot contessa trick- take a small spoon and run it down the middle of your cucumber- and done! Then with your de-seeded cucumber cut each half in half again so you have 4 long quarters. Cut these into small cubes and part 2 done.
Then take your cold chopped cucumber and some of your cooked chicken cubes and put them in a large bowl. Add sweet chili sauce- found in the Asian isle at the grocery store. Add however much you want- but you want both the chicken and cucumber to be coated. Toss-Serve over rice and done! Really good mix- cool and hot, spicy and mild. Perfect dish! Tell me how it goes!
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