Grilling: Tandoori Chicken Platter

Recipe

1 pack of naan

1 white onion

1 banana pepper

Chicken

3 chicken breasts, diced evenly

1 entire Fage greek yogurt

3 tbs Shaan Tandoori Chicken Spice

1 tbs garam masala

1/2 tbs cumin

1.5 tbs of tomato paste

1/2 cup cilantro

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Mix all ingredients and marinade for 1-2 hrs in the fridge. Once marinated, put chicken on the grill for 4-5 minutes (each side).

Meanwhile, slice the white onion thick and grill in a basket until translucent and charred

Add the naan on the grill till warm and until you can see the char lines.

Slice the banana peppers on top of the chicken and serve with salad and sauce.

Salad

1/2 english cucumber, diced

1 tbs of red onions, chopped

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Toss all ingredients and refrigerate

Sauce

1 tbs Coleman's Mint Sauce 

2 tbs Fage greek yogurt

Mix ingredients and refrigerate

Recipe: Fattoush Salad

I love Middle Eastern Food! It has so much flavor and I just can't get enough!

One of my favorite dishes is a Fattoush Salad. So rich in flavor and with the crisp pita bread, it's actually very filling.

Spices: Zatar and Sumac are great middle eastern spices. Zatar primarily consists of oregano, dried mint, etc... while Sumac is a lemony, bold red spice. Excellent addition to the salad. Can be purchased at any international aisle in a grocery store. I would say that these are vital ingredients that should be purchased to make this salad what it is.

Recipe

Serving Size: 4

1 large romaine lettuce, chopped
2 tomatos, diced
1 english cucumber, diced
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1 tbs mint, chopped
3 radishes, sliced thin
1 small green pepper, diced
1/2 tbs zatar
1/2 tbs sumac
1/2 tbs salt
1 large pita bread sliced

Add all the ingredients (sans pita bread) together and mix.

Dressing

3 tbs fine olive oil
1.5 tbs red wine vinegar
1/2 lemon juice
3 garlic cloves smashed with a dash salt
1 tsp zatar
1 tsp sumac

Mix all the dressing ingredients and whisk. Put in the fridge. 15 minutes before serving add the dressing and toss.

Pita 

Place the chopped pita bread on a baking tray. Brush on some of the mixed dressing and bake for 10-15 minutes.

Top the pita bread on the salad. Serve immediately.

Quick Kale Salad Recipe

I love an easy weeknight salad! I had some kale at home and decided to make a quick salad for dinner. It's healthy and low-carb!

Recipe

1 bunch of kale thinly sliced
1 granny smith chopped lengthwise
1/2 cup of walnuts, pistachios or pine nuts

Dressing

2 tbs olive oil
3 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs lemon zest
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp pepper

If you don't have time to make a dressing, the Dean and Deluca Pear Vinaigrette is an amazing alternative! I use that if I have a long night at work. However, I do advocate making your own since it eliminates preservatives.

Mix all ingredients together, serve immediately.

*** You can add some fresh grated parmesan cheese or pecorino romano to the salad. I'm just not a huge pungent cheese fan since it diminishes some of the healthiness of the salad but it's all preference.

Caprese Salad with Balsamic Glaze

Recipe (serves 2)

4 vine-ripen juicy tomatoes (the juicier the better!)
1 cup of fresh basil leaves
1 buffalo mozzarella ball (or any type of mozzarella)
1 tbs of olive oil
1 tbs of fine balsamic vinegar
Balsamic glaze drizzle on top
Dash of freshly grounded pepper and salt

Instructions: Dice up your tomatoes and mozzarella. Toss everything together (except the balsamic glaze). Drizzle the glaze at the end.

Fairly simple recipe! The balsamic glaze is sweet and really binds the whole salad together but it's all preference. You can purchase it at any World Market, Whole Foods and/or regular/specialty grocery store.

Detox Tuesday - Grilled Turkey Salad with Salmon

So I'm still detoxing and decided to post my recipe for this grilled turkey salad with salmon. I know.. salmon again... I just made a ton, its healthy and tastes delicious!

Recipe

1 piece of grilled Alaskan Salmon (6 oz) - I used about half for the salad
1 grilled turkey burger sliced
4 bunches of romaine lettuce leaves (chopped)
1/4 of an english cucumber (sliced thick)
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs lemon
1 tbs Coleman's Mint Sauce
Dash of fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup of grilled onions
1 small vine ripen tomato diced
2 hard boiled eggs sliced
4 piece of blanched asparagus spears

Dressing

1 tsp hummus
1 tsp roasted red pepper spread (I used the Trader Joes version)
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp Coleman's Mint Sauce (I purchased it from Amazon - Coleman)

Please refer to my previous post for cooking and seasoning the salmon.

Turkey Burger: I would season the heck out of it just like the salmon. I added one tbs of panko crumbs and one egg to bind it all together but I really just added every herb (rosemary, parsley, oregano, sage) in my garden and every seasoning I own. I also added a dash of cinnamon and cumin to help enhance the flavor, but other than than, go crazy!

Boiling the Eggs: The best trick I have found is to boil the water and then toss in the eggs for about 9-10 minutes to get the perfect yellow yolk!

Asparagus Spears: To blanche asparagus spears, boil your water and add in the spears for 2 minutes. You want that bright green color but for it to remain crispy as well.

Once you have all the ingredients above prepared, mix it all together before adding the dressing. Once tossed, add the small amount of dressing and mix (it may seem as if there is not enough dressing but the flavors from everything else will enhance the salad). Add more pepper if you would like and serve immediately.

Detox Monday - Salmon Salad with a Lemon Olive Oil Vinaigrette

It's Detox Monday! After eating pizza and pasta during my business trip, it's time to get healthy! This recipe is very easy and fast for those long work weeks!

Recipe

1 piece of grilled Alaskan Salmon (6 oz) - I used about half for the salad
4 bunches of romaine lettuce leaves (chopped)
1/4 of an english cucumber (sliced thick)
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs lemon
Dash of fresh ground pepper

Get a large piece of salmon and season with all your favorite seasonings. The salad itself is pretty plain mainly because the flavors will come from your cooked salmon. I do overdo my seasonings since salmon can still be fishy! I added cumin, crushed red pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and some of my favorite Whole Foods seasoning mixes (post soon to follow). I also added some sliced lemons on top and fresh dill.


Grilling - (on a cedar plank) Takes about 15 minutes (just make sure you can flake off the salmon which to me ensures that it is cooked thoroughly)

Bake - Put the seasoned salmon on a baking dish with aluminum foil on the bottom. Seal the dish with additional aluminum foil. Bake at 375 for about 35-45 minutes until the salmon flakes with a fork.

Mix all the ingredients together and serve, chilled!