Grilled Flank Steak with Chimichurri

 

I've always been a steak lover, especially when it's topped with homemade chimichurri. It adds freshness and zing to grilled meats, chicken or fish, and the sauce can be made a day in advance.

In Brazil, Argentina and many other countries in South America, chimichurri is as common as ketchup is to Americans. My cousin Kat is from Brazil, and taught me how to make the BEST chimichurri, so forget all the other recipes out there, this is it! You can double or triple the recipe if you're feeding a crowd. Serve this with grilled corn or a salad on the side and you have yourself a meal!

Flank steak is a great lean beef option for grilling, I make a quick rub and slice it thin across the grain just before eating. If you want to make the chimichurri sauce a day ahead, leave it refrigerated, then before serving bring it back to room temperature. 

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Turmeric-Garlic Shrimp with Cabbage-Mango Slaw

Tons of flavor in this quick, shrimp dish! The perfect balance of spicy, savory, sweet & sour – and ready in less than 30 minutes.

I seasoned the shrimp with turmeric, cumin and red pepper flakes, then gave it a quick saute with garlic and finished it with some fresh lime juice and cilantro.

 

To balance out the heat (it's mild, although you can make it spicier or leave milder to your taste) I served this over a quick slaw with sweet mango, red cabbage and lime juice.

My husband gave it two thumbs up! This dish is perfect for most diet restrictions: gluten-free, low-carb, paleo, whole30 and of course weight watcher friendly!

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Stir Fried Pork and Mixed Veggies

Stir-fries are perfect for busy weeknights because they take under 15 minutes to prepare, and you can us any protein or vegetables you wish!

I chose to use lots of colorful veggies and lean pork, but you can also make this with chicken, beef, shrimp or even tofu if you wish. The stir fry sauce has a slight kick from the sriracha which I love, but if you're not a fan of spicy food, leave it out (or add more if you like it HOT!)

I ate a big bowl of this and felt completely satisfied, but if you want to serve this with brown rice, perfect! I am loving Trader Joe's frozen brown rice, it's so good and such a great time saver! If you want to keep it low carb you could make my favorite Cauliflower "Fried Rice" on the side.

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Roasted Boneless Leg of Lamb

Roasted boneless leg of lamb seasoned with rosemary, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and garlic is a succulent Easter delight that truly celebrates Spring.

With Easter coming soon, I am re-posting this easy, crowd-pleasing dish from the archives because I LOVE lamb, not just for Easter, but any time of the year.

If rosemary is not your thing, you could use other fresh herbs such as thyme or oregano. Ask your butcher to trim off all the fat for you to make this easier. I like to roll and tie the lamb myself so I can season the inside as well as the out. If you are nervous about doing this, you can just have the butcher do it and just season the outside.

To compliment the lamb, serve it with Teeny Tiny Potatoes with Rosemary and Asparagus with Dijon Vinaigrette for a Skinny Easter Feast, and don't forget the cupcakes!

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Asparagus Egg and Bacon Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette

I love the combination of this simple salad of asparagus, hard boiled egg and bacon tossed with a Dijon vinaigrette – it has Spring written all over it!

I'm sharing this from the archives because asparagus is in season right now, and this is one of my go-to salads this time of year. Asparagus and eggs are a match made in heaven, but not just for breakfast, it's great for lunch too! I always keep hard boiled eggs on hand in my fridge to use throughout the week, therefore this salad came together in less than 10 minutes. It's perfect to pack for lunch, and you can easily double or multiply the recipe to feed more. It's also very inexpensive to make, low-carb, high in protein and fiber and perfect for gluten-free and Paleo diets.

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Baked Chicken with Dijon and Lime

Easy weeknight dinner solution – grab some chicken, remove the skin, brush it with this Dijon-lime sauce and put it in the oven. I've been making this recipe for years using thighs until the USDA changed the calories and fat contact for thighs. Now I do this with drumsticks, you can use any parts you like.

While the chicken's cooking, grab a bag of lettuce, and top it with one of these delicious DeLallo SaladSavors® that make life so easy. These are the BEST, and come in 6 varieties with top quality ingredients. All you have to do is add some oil and vinegar, and you have an amazing salad in 5 minutes.  My favorite is the Zesty which has marinated artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes and Asiago cheese pictured below.

And because I love you ALL so much, I've teamed up with DeLallo to bring you this awesome giveaway! One lucky winner will have a chance to win all SIX SaladSavors® PLUS....

Prizes:

    -  One (1) copy of the Skinnytaste Cookbook
    -  One (1) Hand-Dipped Walnut Bowl (Food52 Provisions)
    -  One (1) Pair of Orange Kate Spade Earrings
    -  One (1) Journal (TOMS Marketplace)
    -  One (1) of each kind of DeLallo SaladSavors® (six total)
    -  One (1) of each kind of DeLallo Whole Wheat Pasta
    -  One (1) 16.9 oz. bottle of DeLallo Extra Virgin Olive Oil
    -  One (1) 8.5 oz. bottle of DeLallo Balsamic Vinegar
    -  One (1) 8.5 oz. bottle of DeLallo Golden Balsamic-Style Vinegar

To enter fill out the rafflecopter below. Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
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Petite Crust-less Quiche

Loaded with turkey kielbasa, veggies and cheese, this slimmed down quiche will not dissapoint.

I like to make these on weekends, and reheat leftovers for the week. I usually refrigerate them for up to 3 days or freeze them to reheat at a later time.

You can swap the veggies for anything you like, and the kielbasa can be swapped with ham or sausage. Two muffin sized quiches are perfectly satisfying, and to be honest, who needs the crust? If you try, let me know what you think!

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Sticky Baked Chicken with Apricot, Sage and Lemon Zest

Sweet, succulent roasted chicken. Get a napkin and be prepared to get your fingers dirty!

Seems like everyone I know has read or watched the movie, Fifty Shades. I on the other hand have not read the book, but I do plan on seeing the movie just so I can see what the hype's all about.

But I did get my hands on the Fifty Shades of Chicken: A Parody in a Cookbook. This cookbook is hilarious, with beautiful and somewhat risky nude photos of chicken... I couldn't stop laughing. And the recipes are actually really good – talk about the perfect gift for a foodie/Christian Grey fan! Recipes like Steamy White Meat, Dripping Thighs, Bacon Bound Wings, Chicken Strip Tease, just to name a few. I couldn't put it down or decide which to make, so I went with "Please Don't Stop Chicken".

I did have to modify the recipe to make it light. Originally it called for a whole chicken cut up, you can use any chicken parts you like but I went for drumsticks since I love them and they are leaner than thighs. I also removed the skin to reduce the fat, you really don't mind because they are coated with a delicious glaze.

And this week only, I'm giving 10 copies of the Fifty Shades of Chicken: A Parody in a Cookbook away! To enter fill out the form below, ends Sunday!

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Gluten-Free S'mores Tartlets

For all the bakers and chocolate lovers out there – this recipe is for you! These chocolate tartlets are a fun twist on a my favorite camping dessert, S'mores. Crushed graham crackers on the bottom, a yummy chocolate filling and a marshmallow Italian meringue on top.

Madison loved helping me in the kitchen. I put those little hands to work. I also made the cupcakes a day ahead, then made the meringue the following day which worked out perfect.

I adapted this recipe from Kyra Bussanich's cookbook, Sweet Cravings. Such a great cookbook for gluten-free desserts. I met Kyra a few months ago, she was the first gluten-free winner of Food Network's "Cupcake Wars" where she beat out non-gluten free cupcakes on the show which is pretty impressive. Although her recipes are all gluten-free, they are obviously not light so it took some work to cut the calories but I loved the final result. Her original recipe uses heavy cream in her chocolate ganache filling, but these worked out well using evaporated milk instead. I made some other modifications and everyone enjoyed them.

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Perfect Filet Mignon for Two

As a steak lover, I can't think of a better meal to enjoy for Valentine's Day.
Since it can be pricey, I only make it on special ocassions – and Valentine's Day is the perfect occasion! Get sizzling in the kitchen for an easy, Romantic dinner for two.

Filet mignon is the most tender cut of steak you can buy, and doesn't require fancy seasonings – coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper is all you need for a delicious steak that's pan seared then finished in the oven and cooked to perfection! I like mine medium rare, but you can cook it to your taste.

It's practically foolproof if you have a meat thermometer, but you can also use the finger test just in case you don't. This starts on the stove and finishes in the oven, so you'll need a heavy oven-safe non-stick skillet, or cast iron skillet to make this. One thing you should keep in mind is you'll want to bring the meat up to room temperature, so let it sit on the counter at least 30 minutes before you're ready to cook. It's perfect with sauteed or roasted vegetables on the side, here I made a quick sauteed garlic broccolini, but you can also serve it with skinny mashed potatoes.


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Deep Dish Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

This chocolate chip cookie pie is secretly good for you, but don't tell anyone! You won't believe it's made with beans, dates and oats! And because it's made with such wholesome ingredients, it's very filling.

I can't tell you how excited I am to share Katie's new cookbook, Chocolate Covered Katie! I've admired Katie's blog for years and have always been amazed by the sweets she dreams up and her healthy approach to making dessert. Oh and by the way, the back of her cookbook has a blurb from yours truly! Thumbing through her book I wanted to make so many things, but I'm a sucker for chocolate chip pie, so I knew I wanted to try this.

Katie says: "So famous it's been featured on ABC's Five O'Clock News, this gooey cookie pie sparked a complete beans-in-dessert revolution on the Internet..." I knew I HAD to make this! She has two versions, one with xylitol or sugar, and this more natural version using dates as a natural sweetener. If you prefer to skip the dates and use a sweetener, she used 1 1/2 cups.

I topped this with a little fat free vanilla frozen yogurt but that's completely optional. Everyone in my house enjoyed this!


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Avocado Toast Egg-in-a-Hole

The perfect 5 minute breakfast to make the one you love! Whole grain toast with mashed avocado, eggs over easy and a few dashes of hot sauce – 5 ingredients, 5 minutes to make, doesn't get better than that!

I'm obsessed with avocado toast and eggs lately as you might have noticed! I was thinking about Valentine's Day breakfast ideas and forgot I had these heart shaped cutters, so immediately this came to mind. I bought heart shaped cutters on Amazon last year, but even if you don't have fancy cutters, you can keep it simple and use the rim of a glass to cut out a hole.

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Chicken Barley Soup

Warm up with a bowl of this Chicken and Barley Soup! My entire family loves this including my five year old, and the leftovers are better the next day!

This week's forecast – snow, snow and more snow! Making soup is my way of dealing with February and the cold. I like to use chicken on the bone when making soup because it adds more flavor. If you prefer to use water instead of broth, that is fine too, just add salt to taste.

Make a big pot of this, and freeze the leftovers if you wish! Enjoy and stay warm!

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Avocado Toast with Sunny Side Egg

This is MY kind of egg sandwich! Whole grain toast with mashed avocado, a runny egg and a few dashes of hot sauce – only 5 ingredients, 5 minutes to make, doesn't get better than that!

I'm not much of a breakfast person, most mornings I usually grab a cup of coffee, a hard boiled egg and a piece of fruit, or whip up a smoothie. But lately, I've been obsessed with avocado toast for breakfast, especially when I have avocados in my fridge that need to be used up.

If you're like me and love avocado toast, I'd love to hear how you top yours!


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Bangin Good Chicken Salad

Here's an EASY dinner solution: tender chunks of chicken, breaded and baked until golden topped with Bang Bang sauce. I served this over mixed greens and swooned with every bite!

This is a fun spin on Bangin Good Shrimp recipe. My friend posted her dinner the other day on facebook and it basically looked like this, it looked so good I knew exactly how I was going to make it. I basically modified my Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets and topped it with this banging good sauce. Results... AMAZING!! And it's SO easy to make, I promise! You can easily halve the recipe for two.


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Healthy Avocado Egg Salad and Salmon Sandwich

An open-faced egg salad sandwich with wild Nova salmon and cucumber slices – under 300 calories, protein packed, and loaded with good fats.

Easiest tip to make a sandwich lighter is to make it open-faced. To make a lighter egg salad, I use half the yolks so I am still getting the health benefits from using some of the yolks, plus I add some mashed avocado which makes it creamy and full of healthy fats.

This is great for breakfast or lunch. If you're only making one serving, you can refrigerate the egg salad in an airtight container. Enjoy!

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Sausage, Cheese and Veggie Egg Bake

Eggs baked with sweet Italian chicken sausage, broccoli, roasted peppers and mozzarella cheese. I love the convenience of making a large breakfast casserole when I have friends and family over for breakfast or brunch. I also set out some fruit, a yogurt bar, coffee and juice. You can use any combination of vegetables to make this casserole, but I love how the broccoli and roasted peppers mimic the festive Christmas colors.

I worked with Ziploc® to create a sponsored post sharing a recipe, their containers and some "life lessons". I thought I would share a few things I learned from all of YOU blogging these past few years.

One of the things I love about blogging is that I really got a chance to learn what's important to you. Your comments and feedback only make me a better recipe developer and blogger. Last year I shared this recipe for a Ham and cheese breakfast casserole, and one of the questions everyone asked was if it could be assembled in advance.

So Lesson # 1 - this year I kept that in mind and prepped all of my ingredients and even cooked the sausage in advance so all I had to do in the morning was a quick saute while the oven heated up and into the oven it went.

I used Ziploc®'s Holiday Storage Bags for all my prepped ingredients and kept them in the refrigerator so in the morning I can just toss them out – no extra dishes to wash.

Lesson # 2 – I learned through the years some of you hate mushrooms, or cheese, or maybe even sausage! So here's the deal.... you can use whatever you want here!! Swap mozzarella for Swiss cheese, Feta, cheddar OR leave it out. Swap mushrooms for asparagus, or swap sausage for ham. There are no rules, use what YOU like.

Lesson # 3 – Several of you will always ask me if you can use egg beaters – my answer is yes. I personally prefer to use whole eggs with a few egg whites to lighten it up a bit. Too many egg whites I learned gives me a spongy texture, so finding the right balance of whole eggs to egg whites is crucial, plus the yolk is good for you so don't forget that!

Lesson # 4 - One of the questions I get the most from people is if a dish can be frozen and how. Here's what I do – I cut the leftovers in portions and freeze them. This way whenever I need breakfast in a hurry, I reheat them and know exactly what my portions are. These Ziploc® Containers with One Press Seal come in all sizes and stack easily in the freezer to save space. To reheat simply thaw the night before or you can heat it up in the microwave or oven set to 350°F until heated through.

I hope you enjoy and have a Happy Holiday!!

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Slow Cooker Lemon Feta Chicken Drumsticks

EASY chicken dish – only 5 ingredients not counting s + p! Skinless chicken drumsticks are seasoned with lemon, oregano and spices then slow cooked in the crock pot. When done, they are topped with fresh grated feta – YUM!

Every now and then I like to take recipes I would normally make in the oven and try them out in my slow cooker. Some of you might recognize this Roasted Lemon Feta Chicken recipe from the archives. Often they convert great for the slow cooker with some slight modifications. These drumsticks were fall of the bone, with great flavor and the only difference was rather than adding the feta and broiling them in the oven, I served the chicken on a platter and added the fresh grated feta cheese after which melted from the heat of the drumsticks. I highly recommend buying a chunk of feta and grating it yourself, it's moister and tastes so much better. I served this with this massaged raw kale salad using feta instead of parmesan – an easy inexpensive meal.

And since so many are asking, I have the 6 Quart Hamilton Beach Set 'n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker. I love it because you can adjust the time you want it to cook, and it automatically turns to warm when it's done. It also has a probe for meat that automatically shuts off when done. I hated my old crock pot, it burnt everything and my food had a weird taste. This crock pot is so great, I actually own two!

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Mini Turkey Meatball Vegetable Soup

This family friendly soup is perfect to warm up to on a chilly autumn night. It's made with mini turkey meatballs, tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, spinach and my secret ingredient for the best tasting soup – a parmesan cheese rind. I always keep the rinds in my freezer just for making soup, so don't throw them out!

It also makes great leftovers and can be frozen if you want to make this ahead for the month. Enjoy!

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Stuffed Chicken Breast with Prosciutto, Pears and Brie

Roasted stuffed chicken breast is the perfect Fall dish, filled with a savory-sweet stuffing of prosciutto, pears, sage, brie and arugula. It's delicious with a salad on the side, but also can be served with roasted butternut squash or brussels sprouts to make it a meal. It also happens to be naturally gluten-free and low-carb.

I've teamed up with Harry & David with the launch of The Skinnytaste Cookbook, and have some fabulous things planned, so stay tuned! This recipe was created with their Royal Riviera pears exclusively for their blog Field Notes. Please head on over to their blog to see the full recipe.

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Pears and Brie
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 4 • Size: 1/2 stuffed breast • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 233 • Fat: 9 g • Carb: 6 g • Fiber: 1 g • Protein: 31 g • Sugar: 4 g
Sodium: 316 mg • Cholesterol: 97 mg

Ingredients:

• 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (16 oz total)
• Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 slices prosciutto, chopped
• 2 sage leaves, chopped
• 1 Royal Riviera® Pear, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 oz Brie, skin removed, divided
• 1/4 cup baby arugula
• cooking spray
• cooking twine

Directions:

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