Grillled BBQ Chicken Salad Sandwich

I have messed around with this photo (taken cellphone style) for the last 20 minutes and I can't get it to post properly, so here it is, in all its' sideways glory. The sandwich was to ooeygooey delicious not to photograph!

The Cuisinart Griddler has changed our lives. We have a new weekly tradition of having soup and a grilled sandwich once a week, because the Griddler rocks so hard. My husband loves soup and sandwich night more than anything and I have made it my personal vendetta to never serve the same combo.

I bought a rotisserie chicken from Costco on the weekend for quesadillas and the sandwiches, so this was seriously EASY. The bread comes in our kitchen box from Real Food Connections and it is The. Best. I usually try to incorporate other things from the kitchen box into both the soup and sammy. This week, the peashoot greens were especially good on the sandwich!

Makes: 4 sandwiches or wraps.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 a rotisserie chicken, chopped


• 3 stalks of celery, minced


• 1 red pepper, minced


• 1/2 small red onion, minced


• 1/4 c. light or fat free mayo


• 1/4 c. BBQ sauce


• S&P


• 4 slices of cheddar


• Bread or wraps


• Shredded lettuce (I used pea shoots from our kitchen box!)

Directions:

1. Chop chicken and mince veggies. Combine with BBQ sauce, mayo and s&p.


2. Divide chicken into 4 and put on a sandwich or wrap with a slice of cheddar.


3. Grill sandwich or wrap until the outside is crispy and the cheese is melty.


4. Remove from grill and add greens. I had slimy wilted greens, so I add them after cooking.


5. Enjoy :)
   

*I was going to post the recipe for the soup, but I didn't measure a single thing when I made it! Ooops.

Pork Tenderloin with a Balsamic Brown Sugar Glaze

I have a tonne of recipes posted to my Pinterest boards. I think around 100 between the "Recipes" and "Food Porn" additions. I have vowed to start cooking at least of these recipes a week. Otherwise, I fear pinterest will turn into a "stuff I like but am too lazy to ever do" compilation.

It's Sunday, so thought I would make something a bit special. But, it turns out this is easy enough for a week night! I served it with roasted potatoes and broccoli. The glaze was
yummy on both.

Inspired by: www.candcmarriagefactory.com/2011/01/brown-sugar-and-balsamic-glazed-pork.html

Ingredients:

• Pork tenderloin
• Prosciutto (around 6 slices)
• Rub: salt, pepper, sage, garlic
• Water

Glaze

• 1/2 c. water
• 1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp corn starch

Directions:

1. Rub the tenderloin with the, you guessed it, RUB.
2. Wrap in prosciutto. The prosciutto is optional and was something I added from the original recipe, but totally worth it!
3. Put a little water in the crockpot and cook the tenderloin on low for 6-8 hours.
4. About an hour before the tenderloin is done, make the glaze. Mix up the glaze ingredients in a small sauce pan and heat, stirring constantly until thickened.
5. Glaze the tenderloin a few times through the last hour of cooking.
6. Slice the tenderloin and drizzle with remaining glaze. (Save a little for your sides, it is delish!!)

Sundried Tomato Tilapia in a Bag

Photo (and inspiration) from redlobster.com

Ingredients:

• 4 large or 8 small Tilapia filets
• 8 c. spinach
• 1 medium red onion, sliced
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• S&P
• 4 tbsp italian salad dressing
• 1/2 c. sundried tomatoes
• 8 pieces of parchment paper

Directions:

1. Spray 4 pieces of parchment paper. Layer 2 c. spinach, 1/4 of the onion and 1/4 of the red pepper on each piece of paper. Place tilapia on top and season with s&p and 1 tbsp italian dressing. Top with sundried tomato.
2. Place a piece of parchment paper on top of each piece of tilapia and seal the packet.
3. Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 F for 15-20 mins.

Comments:

I don't know how many times I can say that recipes are amazing, but I guess I wouldn't post them if they sucked, would I? This was fast, delicious and fresh. I served it with a side of wild rice and some broccoli, but there are enough vegetables included for a serving. I think you could make it on the grill too. This will be a regular in the rotation!

Sweet Potato, Kale and Black Bean Enchiladas

Ingredients:

• 1 large or 2 smaller sweet potatoes, peeled, chopped, boiled and mashed



• 1 onion, chopped



• 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed



• 8 c. Kale, removed from stalks and chopped (this seems like a lot, but it really shrinks!)



• 1 tbsp of fresh garlic (or 1 tsp of garlic powder)



• 1 tbsp chili powder



• 1-1.5 tsp cumin



• 1 tsp paprika



• 1 tsp oregano



• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (more if you like it spicey)



• salt and pepper



• 1 can of enchilada sauce (with mexican or international food at grocery store)



• Shredded cheddar cheese



• green onion for garnish



• Tortillas (5-8, depending on how much filling you use)

Directions:

1. Cook and mash sweet potatoes.



2. In a skillet, soften the onion.



3. Add black beans and seasoning, stirring to coat. Heat black beans through.



4. Add kale about two cups at a time and fold it in. It will wilt as you do this.



5. Spray a pan. Pour a little enchilada sauce into the bottom and swirl it around until the bottom is coated.



6. Put a little bit of shredded cheddar and a scoop of filling in a tortilla, fold it up and place in the pan.



7. When the tortillas are all rolled up an in the pan, pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the top. Sprinkle with more cheese and the green onion.



8. Bake for 25 mins at 350 covered in foil. Remove foil and bake for 5-10 more minutes.



9. Serve garnished with sour cream, salsa and/or guac.

Comments:

My husband was skeptical of these, but OH WOW. They are seriously delicious. They feel sinful, but with low carb wraps, they are really quite healthy and diet friendly. My parents are pretty meat-and-potatoes type folks and even they really enjoyed them.

Serve with a side salad or some spanish rice for a complete meal.

Asian Chicken Salad

Source: Me!
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1lbs of boneless skinless chicken thighs


• 1/2 c. flour, seasoned with salt and pepper


• 2 tbsp EVOO


• 1/4 c. mango chutney


• 1 head of Boston lettuce, shredded (or greens of your choice)


• 1 carrot, shredded


• 1/2 red onion, sliced thin


• 1 c. sliced mushrooms


• 2 stalks of green onion


• Asian toasted sesame ginger dressing


• Optional topping: chow mein noodles

Directions:

1. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces. In a ziplock bag, toss chicken in seasoned flour until coated.


2. Heat up oil in a non-stick skillet. Brown chicken for about 3-4 minutes on each side, until the chicken is almost cooked, just a tiny bit pink in the center.


3. Add the mango chutney and toss the chicken until coated. Continue cooking until the chicken is cooked through, about another minute or two.


4. Meanwhile, make up the salad of shredded lettuce, sliced red onion, sliced mushrooms, chopped green onion and shredded carrots.


5. Let the chicken cool a little. Top the salad with the chicken, asisan toasted sesame dressing and crushed chow mein noodles (optional).

Comments:

This almost felt like a restaurant main course salad that would be really bad for you, it was so good! Next time, for a change, I might try tossing the chicken in sweet chili sauce and adding some mandarin oranges. Definitely a make again!

Eggplant Lasagna

Source: Skinnytaste.com, with modifications

Ingredients:

• 3 c. tomato sauce (see below)


• Olive oil


• 1 large or 2 smaller eggplants


• 1 container of fresh spinach


• 1 package of portobello mushrooms (4-5)


• 12 oz (1 package) of light ricotta cheese


• 1/2 c. fresh parsley, chopped


• 1 egg


• salt and pepper


• 1/4 c. parmesean cheese


• 2 c. mozzarella cheese

Tomato sauce:

• 1 large onion, chopped


• 1 tbsp jarred garlic


• 1 carrot, minced


• 1 celery stalk, minced


• 2 c. sliced baby bella mushrooms


• 1/2 c. dry red wine


• 1 c. crushed tomatoes


• 1 c. diced tomatoes


• Basil


• Oregano


• Italian seasoning


• Red pepper flakes

Instructions:

1. Prepare tomato sauce. On medium heat, heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook until softened. Add mushrooms and cook until moisture releases. Deglaze with red wine. Add tomatoes and spices to taste. Simmer for at least 40 minutes.



2. While sauce is simmering, roast the eggplant. Heat oven to 400 F. Slice eggplant into 1/4" pieces. Brush with EVOO and place on a cookie sheet. Roast it on each side for about 10 minutes. Watch it VERY CLOSELY because it burns easily. Do the same with the portobello mushrooms. Slice and roast.



3. In a bowl, mix together ricotta, parsley, egg, salt and pepper.



4. In a lasagna pan, layer sauce, portobellos, eggplant, ricotta, mozza, spinach x 3.



5. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes covered in foil. Bake for an additional 10 minutes with foil off. Let sit for 10 minutes before cutting.

Comments:
We don't eat meat on Friday's during Lent, so I have been on the look-out for good vegetarian recipes. This is vegetarian AND gluten free! My batch of sauce was large enough to yield some extra for a baked ziti. You could use a jar of store-bought sauce though. It was really delicious and I barely noticed the lack of noodles or meat. I served it with a caesar salad. The leftovers were almost better then the first serving.

Green Pea and White Bean Soup

Source: Chatelaine Magazine

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 small onion, minced

540 mL can of navy beans, rinsed and drained

4 c. frozen peas

900 mL carton of chicken broth

Garnish: crumbled goat cheese, pancetta or bacon crumbles

Instructions:

Heat a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add oil, onion and garlic. Sautee for about 3 minutes, stirring continuously until the onion is soft.

Add beans, peas and broth. Bring to a boil over the medium heat. This will take about 12 minutes.

Remove from heat and puree with an immersion blender. Simmer on very low heat for 5-10 minutes.

Serve garnished with crumbled bacon or pancetta and goat cheese.

Comments:

This soup was different, but really nice. It is a great lunch or served as a side or appetizer. It came together really easily and quickly too.