chicken fajitas with avocado

If you're looking for an easy weeknight meal that packs in lots of veggies and flavor, this is it. Just make the fajita seasoning and rub it on the chicken in advance (I did it the morning of, but overnight would be even better) and let it mellow in the fridge.

Fajita Seasoning

Approximately two tablespoons equals one store-bought seasoning packet. Use this amount for one pound of chicken. Try this healthy salad recipe with the leftover seasoning!

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 crushed chicken bouillon cube
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon cumin

 Stir together the above ingredients. To make a marinade, mix with 1/4 to 1/3 c of oil and add to a bag or shallow dish with the meats or vegetables.

 

Prepare your ingredients:

• One small onion, chopped
• One bell pepper, chopped
• 4-6 oz. mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
• Two garlic cloves, diced
• Two chicken breasts, sliced into strips
• Salt and pepper
• Fajita-sized tortillas (whole-wheat, if possible)
• Avocado, sliced
• Shredded cheese
• Sour cream
• Hot sauce, if desired

1. Mix seasoning with desired about of oil and combine with chicken. Refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Heat a pan to medium heat and add the chicken and marinade. Stir fry until just cooked and remove from pan to a paper-towel lined plate. If the pan has excessive oil in it, wipe it with a paper towel, leaving a little behind. Add the veggies to the same pan, season with salt and pepper to taste, and saute until soft. Add the chicken back to the pan.
3. Serve desired amount in tortillas with cheese, sour cream and avocado. Top with hot sauce, if desired.

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better-for-you spicy grilled wings

For the superbowl, we both wanted wings. But I'm super picky about wings, as well as their sauces, and have been known to turn my nose up at them in restaurants. Several years ago, we frequented a wing joint that had a really good dry-rub wing meal on the menu, and I feel in love with them. Now, it's about the only way I like them: a little spicy with a hint of sweetness, a crunchy bite and a juicy middle, but not nuclear (unlike the hubs).

After a lot of hunting online, I found this recipe and chose all drummettes at the grocery store. Before tossing them in the spice rub, I trimmed off most of the skin and drizzled them in a little canola oil. (Don't use olive oil or it will burn on the grill.) Try it next time you're craving a flavor-packed dinner of wings! We'll be bringing this out for company soon.

Better-for-You Spicy Grilled Wings

• 24 lean chicken wings (I used all drummettes) 
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon mustard powder
• 5 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• Canola or vegetable oil (not olive oil)

1. Mix the seasonings together in a shallow bowl. Trim the wings and drummettes off any excess fat or skin. Toss with a little oil. Sprinkle chicken with most of the seasoning mixture. Allow to sit for 1-4 hours in the fridge.
2. Grill until almost cooked and sprinkle with the remaining seasoning. Serve immediately.

Note: We also brought out the Red Hot wing sauce and added it to taste. Added some good heat!

garlic-ginger marinated chicken thighs

This super-fast recipe is a great tailgate food if you have a grill available. Start marinating the chicken in a zip-top bag the night before the game and throw the whole thing in a cooler on the way out the door. Practically instant lunch! Great with just about anything, this is a yummy and versatile marinade.

Also, for the record: the jury is still out on whether white meat is better for you than dark meat. The former has slightly less calories and fat (an ounce of boneless, skinless breast meat contains about 46 calories and one gram of fat, compared with roughly 50 calories and two grams of fat for an ounce of boneless, skinless thigh), but dark meat has more iron, zinc, riboflavin, thiamine, and B vitamins. No wonder I always reached for the drumsticks!

Garlic-Ginger Marinated Chicken Thighs

• 2 lbs bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed (or any dark-meat cut of chicken)
• 1 cup red onion, sliced
• 2 tbsp, minced garlic
• 2 tbsp, fresh chopped ginger
• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 1/4 orange juice
• Black pepper

Combine the above ingredients in a small bowl and then pour over chicken in a zip-top bag. Squish around to ensure even distribution and place in the fridge for one hour, or as long as overnight. Grill and serve!

basil chicken in coconut curry sauce

So, I believe I have mentioned several times (like here) how much my husband loves "spicy flakes" (the affectionate term we have given to crushed red pepper) and flaming-hot foods in general. This means that he loves nuclear Asian foods, like fresh Japanese wasabi (his soy sauce mixture is a deep green color and nearly smoking when he's done concocting his ratio) and stir fries, and Indian cuisine. When we visit our local Thai restaurant, he orders a seven on a scale of one to five and then he asks for red-hot chilies packed in oil on the side. We've even had the chef come out and check on him half way through the meal - partly out of sick curiosity and partly to make sure he was still breathing. For Christmas, we got three separate spice packs of all sizzling seasonings.

And then he married me. The medium salsa, the oh-my-lips-are-burning from mild wings, the level-two-Thai-food girl.

Now, don't get me wrong, I like the flavor that comes with warmish foods, but I also I like to  be able to taste other things going on in a dish. To me, heat should add a little something in the background, not overwhelm food. Which is exactly what this dish did. It was flavorful and interesting, while still providing a noticeable heat. Good stuff. And, it gave him the chance to use his spicy seasonings from Christmas. No matter what your preferred heat level, this one's a win.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce
(from Epicurious)

• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (buyer beware: this bottle was almost $8 at Publix!)
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric (a kick-ass superfood!)
• 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs (you can use breasts, but the thighs are more flavorful)
• 1 red onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 14-oz can coconut milk
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
• Lime wedges
• Hot cooked Jasmine rice
• Red pepper flakes

1. In a small bowl, mix together the salt, ground coriander, cumin, ground cloves, cinnamon, ground cardamom, black pepper, chili powder and turmeric. Set aside.
2. Rinse chicken, pat dry. Cut into one-inch pieces. Put into a bowl and sprinkle the spice mix over all the pieces. Coat well and let sit for two hours in the refrigerator.
3.  In a large skillet heat 1 tbsp oil on medium high heat. Add the onions and jalapeños and cook for three minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more. Remove the onions, peppers and garlic from the pan and put into a medium sized bowl. Set aside. Use the same pan for the next step.
4. Add 1 tbsp oil to the skillet and heat on medium high heat. Add one half of the chicken pieces, spreading them out on the pan so they are not crowded. Brown for a few minutes on each side. When the chicken pieces are cooked through, and no pink remains, remove from pan, add to the bowl with the onions. Cook the second batch of chicken pieces the same way. Remove from pan, add to bowl with onions.
5. Add the coconut milk, minus a couple tablespoons, to the skillet and whisk to incorporate the bits left on the bottom of the pan. In a small bowl, mix the remaining coconut with the corn starch to help it dissolve. Add the dissolved corn starch mixture back to the skillet with the coconut milk. Cook on medium heat and stir till thick and bubbly. Mix in the Worcestershire sauce. Add chicken mixture and ginger. Cook two to four minutes more to cook through.   
6. Serve over rice with lime wedges and top with basil.

thai ginger-honey beef salad

For dinner I wanted something fresh and colorful, and also something I could pair with steak. I've been craving a Thai-style beef, but also something healthy and light. So I found a recipe from Epicurious for a ginger-honey marinade for beef – one that has a little kick and uses lots of herbs and spices – that would be perfect for a salad.

Color: that's how the salad was built. Red tomatoes, orange carrots, yellow pepper, green cucumber, earthy mushrooms, purple onion. The colors alone, not to mention all the fresh flavors, got me excited. Then we pulled the beef out of the marinade. Intoxicating and spicy, citrusy and sweet, it went on the grill until it was tender and made our mouths water.

Simple. Tasty. Colorful. Fresh. Healthy. Make this steak and serve it over salad or with other Thai-style side dishes (Ina's peanut noodles would be amazing). You won't be disappointed.

Thai Ginger-Honey Beef
Marinade & Steak

• 3/4 to 1 lb. of skirt or flank steak
• 1 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• 6 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 1 tablespoon cilantro
• 1 tablespoon mint leaves (home grown!)
• Juice from one lime, about 1 tbsp
• 1 small Thai (or serrano) chile or jalepeno
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced

1. Place all ingredients (soy sauce through ginger) in a food processor and puree. Place steak in a bag or shallow dish and pour the marinade over it. Tightly cover or seal and allow the steak to marinate in the refrigerate for at least two hours.
2. Preheat the grill to 350*. Grill, turning once, until the meat is the desired doneness. Remove the meat from the grill and wrap it tightly in foil; allow it to rest for 10 minutes. Slice it thinly against the grain. Serve immediately.

Note: I whipped up a homemade salad dressing of orange and lime juice, sesame oil and a little soy sauce. Refreshing and delicious with the citrus and sesame.

Before I go, let me just say that the advantages of marinating meats before grilling go beyond flavor boosting. Grilling meat at high heat produces carcinogenic compounds (heterocyclic amines [HCAs] and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [PAHs], just in case you were wondering). Marinating meat helps to prevent these compounds from being formed. In fact, rosemary, oregano and sage are credited in being some of the best to add to a marinade for just that purpose. All the more reason to pour on the flavor before you grill!

inviting warm weather with simple summer kebobs

The weather has been fantastic. It demands flip flops and shorts, and long runs outside. And grilling outdoors in the evenings with a frosty cold beer or a good glass of wine.

Last night was such a night. I had a ton of veggies to use up and was craving them grilled – something I haven't had since the end of last summer. (Especially mushrooms. I love grilled, marinated mushrooms.)

In a half a shake of a lamb's tail we had cut chicken breasts into chunks and got them marinating in teriyaki. While the chicken was drinking in the flavor, we chopped onions, white mushrooms and green peppers into bite-sized pieces, and added cherry tomatoes to the pile. Then we strung skewers with the chicken and veggies and threw the on the grill.

Because I got home kind of late from the gym, we didn't have time to marinate the veggies like I usually do. So we improvised and whipped up some Italian dressing to brush the veggies with on the grill. Turned out to be quite tasty in a pinch. And extra delicious paired with fresh yellow rice.

While there's really no recipe for this, I can tell you that you should make it to woo summer into coming. If you don't like onions and peppers, use zucchini and squash. Don't like chicken? Use pork or beef. The possibilities are endless. Enjoy.