8-19-10 Grilled Swordfish & Fried Okra/Squash Combo!!!

Our little Aggie Meredith joined us for dinner tonight before heading back to College Station and wanted seafood. We opted for grilled swordfish with my secret sauce and fried okra & squash!!!


Here’s what you’ll need:
Swordfish loin steaks
Dale’s Steak Seasoning
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Whole mushrooms
25 – 30 small shrimp peeled and deveined
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts
White onion
Pecans
½ cup lemon juice
2 tbsp. Land O’ Lakes Reduced Fat Butter
Fresh okra (from Mom’s garden!)
Fresh squash (also from Mom’s garden!)
Fresh black-eyed peas (from Karen's garden!)
Tami's secret salad (it just magically appears!!!)
Crusty bread
A beer (can substitute white wine or white wine vinegar)
Funf 5 German Riesling (we had to have it again!!!)

Now the secret to the secret sauce. Spray 10” Calphalon skillet with Pam and turn on medium heat. Take one drink of Coors Light and pour remainder into pan (if you have not opened wine, do so now and drink a toast!!!). Add lemon juice, capers, and butter. Chop ½ cup of pecans and ½ cup of white onion and add to mix. Peel shrimp and add to skillet. Slice/chop mushrooms and quarter the artichoke hearts (drained) and add to sauce. Reduce sauce by cooking on medium heat for 20 – 25 minutes.

Season the swordfish with Mrs. Dash Table Blend. Marinate in two tablespoons of Dales’ Steak Seasoning and a table spoon of olive oil for at least 30 minutes, flipping occasionally. Spray grill with Weber Grillin’ spray. Cook on medium heat on grill 18 – 20 minutes flipping three times.

Place black-eyed peas from Karen's garden garden into 3 quart Calphalon sauce pan. Add 3 cups of water and salt to taste. Cook for a very long time (1 ½ - 2 hours) on medium low heat. Add water as needed to keep them from drying up. Allow to simmer on low heat while everything else is wrapping up.

Chop the squash into bite size chunks, slice up all the slimy okra, and place in large mixing bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of corn meal and 2 table spoons of flour. Toss the veggies to coat in the meal and flour. Add 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to large skillet (I used a 15 inch Calphalon) and set to medium heat. Dump in the okra and squash and sprinkle with Lite salt and a little garlic powder. DO NOT over stir, as all the “goody” will come off the okra/squash combo. It’s really more like “scrape it loose occasionally” and let it cook ‘til the crust starts to brown. When finished, dump it all back into the large mixing bowl lined with paper towels to absorb some of the grease and make it healthy!!!! Slice the crusty bread in thickness to suit and spread with either Land O’ Lakes Reduced Fat Butter or Smart Squeeze. Broil at 500 degrees until the edges are brown.

To serve, start with the swordfish and top with a bunch of Brian’s Secret Sauce. Add black-eyed peas, salad, okra/squash combo, and the toasted crusty bread. Top off the wine and drink another toast. Meredith says this is her new favorite!
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-18-10 Baked Teriyaki Honey Chicken & Steamed Veggies!!!

We were blessed to have both our beautiful daughters for dinner and they have been watching the blog. They requested Chinese food, so we made a bit of a twist on one of the previous posts. We tried a new Kikkoman Teriyaki Honey & Pineapple Glaze on the oven baked chicken and the girls loved it!


Stuff you’ll need:
4 chicken breasts
White rice
Fresh squash
Broccoli head
Red bell pepper
Chow mein noodles (La Choy)
Kikkoman Teriyaki Honey & Pineapple Glaze
Kikkoman Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce
Chungs White Chicken Egg Rolls
Gekkeikan Sake

Add 2 cups of white rice and 4 cups of water to medium 5 quart Calphalon sauce pan, bring to boil, cover and steam on low for 20 minutes. Uncover stir/scrape. Cover and let stand off heat.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line Pyrex dish with foil and spray with Pam (much easier clean up).

Trim all excess from chicken breasts and cube. Add 1 cup of flour to paper bag with a pinch of salt and pepper. Dip chicken cubes in fat-free milk and throw into paper bag with flour and shake. Remove and space evenly in Pyrex dish. Bake chicken in oven for 25 minutes, scrape loose from foil, and then bake for another 20 minutes. Scrape loose from foil and dump in large mixing bowl. Pour in Kikkoman’s Teriyaki Honey & Pineapple Sauce and stir to coat the sauce on the chicken. During the chicken preparation, you also need to steam the veggies, the rice, and bake the spring rolls.

Cut three medium squash into mouthful-size chunks….feed tips to dogs!!! Chop the broccoli into mouthful-size chunks….feed remnants to dogs!!! Dice the red bell pepper into chunks. Throw all of this into to the steamer for 16 -18 minutes according to personal preference on texture.

Bake spring rolls in oven at 450 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes until golden brown.

To serve, start with rice base on plate. Mix steamed veggies and Teriyaki chicken in large bowl . Layer over brown rice and top with chow mein noodles. Season to taste with Kikkoman’s Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce. Drink sake and hug your baby girls!
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-16-10 Grilled Pork Tenderloin & Balsamic Glazed Grilled Veggies!!!

We found a good deal on pork tenderloins and decided to grill it along with some fresh veggies. Nice combo with a decent bottle of wine yielded a tasty and easy meal!

You’re gonna need the following:
Pork tenderloin
Pompeian Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kikkoman Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce
Brown sugar
4 new red potatoes
Fresh squash
Red bell pepper
Corn on the cob
Bay City Sour Dough Bread
Blackstone Merlot table wine

Open wine and allow to breath. Trim the silverskin and fat from the pork tenderloins. Season with black pepper and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar to a gallon baggie; marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes flipping occasionally. Pour wine and drink toast!!!

Chop the squash, potatoes, and red pepper into bite-size chunks. Add potatoes to large mixing bowl and microwave for 10 minutes on high. Add remaining vegetable to bowl and season with Mrs. Dash Table Blend seasoning. Add ½ tablespoon of olive oil and toss in bowl to coat vegetables; set aside.

Add ½ cup of balsamic vinegar, 2 table spoons of soy sauce, and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar to 1 quart Calphalon sauce pan. Bring to boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally; cover and set aside.

Set grill to medium heat and spray grill with Weber Grillin’ spray. Place tenderloin on grill and cook for 20 minutes flipping three times. After tenderloin is on for 5 minutes, add vegetable to grill in grill-top cookware (see pic), stirring occasionally. Remove veggies and tenderloin once meat is browned. Return grilled veggies to mixing bowl and top with balsamic glaze and toss to coat. Slice sourdough bread and brush with butter or Smart Squeeze and broil at 500 degrees ‘til brown on edges. To serve, cut the pork tenderloin in portions to suit, add the glazed veggies, toasted sourdough bread, and top off the wine.
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-13-10 BC's Meatza Pizza!!!

It’s Friday night and we wanted something fast, tasty, and within the realm of healthy. We settled on our pizza that we have developed over time that combines low-fat ingredients and great flavor, fun. Tami made some nummy brownies to top off the night!!!

You’re gonna need:
2 Boxes Jiffy Pizza Crust
Ham ( could not find any whole Canadian Bacon)
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni (70% less fat!!!)
Jimmy Dean Reduced Fat Pork Sausage
Whole mushrooms
1 can chopped tomatoes
Newman’s Own Fresh Marinara Sauce
Shredded Mozzarella cheese
2008 Lapavero Primitivo Puglia red wine
Duncan Hines Fudge brownie mix
Dreyer’s Slow Churned No Sugar French Vanilla Ice Cream

Open wine and allow to breath. Combine the two boxes of Jiffy Pizza Crust in a large mixing bowl with one cup of heated water and blend until forming a sticky dough. Cover the mixing bowl with a large plate and let rise for five minutes. Pour glass of wine and drink toast!!! Dump dough onto a floured surface and knead, folding 5 – 6 times. Roll thin with floured rolling pin. Spray 16 inch pizza pan with Pam and spread crust into pan with fingers. Create thicker crust on edges and brush crust with extra virgin olive oil. Set aside.

Chop ham into irregular chunks. Place 12 inch Calphalon skillet on medium heat. Spray with Pam and add ½ tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. Cut half tube of reduced-fat pork sausage and crumble in skillet. Add ham and brown for 5 minutes stirring often. Chop mushrooms and onion and add to mix. Cook on medium low heat for 8 -10 minutes. Set aside.

Preheat oven to bake on 425 degrees. Once heated, heat crust for 2 minutes and remove. Cover bottom of pizza crust with Newman’s Own Marinara sauce to suit. Spread meat and veggie mix evenly over pizza. Drain can of tomatoes and distribute evenly with fork. Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese to suit. Place in oven for 10 – 12 minutes until cheese begins to brown. Remove and transfer to cool pan. Allow to stand for 4 – 5 minutes before slicing. Top off wine (this was a really bold red but smooth!!!)

Grease 8 x 12 Pyrex dish with Pam. Mix brownies as per instructions, transfer to Pyrex dish, and lick bowl. Bake for 23 – 25 minutes to suit. Allow to cool a bit. Put a big ol’ brownie in a bowl and add a couple of scoops of the Dreyer’s vanilla ice cream.
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-10-10 Grilled Swordfish W/Shrimp Sauce, Steamed Veggies, & Sourdough Bread

This is gonna be a busy week, so we moved things up to Romantic Tuesday!!! It called for something special, so we decided on Grilled Swordfish (our favorite) with my secret sauce. We threw in some healthy veggies, crusty bread, and a nice Riesling…it was excellent!!!

Here’s the list of stuff you’ll need:
Swordfish loin steaks (schizzle!!!)
Dale’s Steak Seasoning
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Whole mushrooms (finally)
25 – 30 small shrimp peeled and deveined
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts
White onion
Pecans (more from Mom’s pecan tree…the best!!!)
½ cup lemon juice
2 tbsp. Land O’ Lakes Reduced Fat Butter
1 tsp of olive oil
4 new red potatoes
Broccoli head
Bay City Sourdough Bread (fresh from Market Street)
A beer (can substitute white wine or white wine vinegar)
Funf 5 German Riesling (how cool is this label???)

Season the swordfish with Mrs. Dash Table Blend. Marinate in two tablespoons of Dales’ Steak Seasoning (they make a reduced sodium version that we have yet to find….good stuff!!!) and a table spoon of olive oil for at least 30 minutes, flipping occasionally. Spray grill with Weber Grillin’ spray….try it and you’ll understand! Cook on medium heat on grill 18 – 20 minutes flipping three times.

Now the secret to the secret sauce. Spray 10” Calphalon skillet with Pam and turn on medium heat. Take one drink of Coors Light and pour remainder into pan (if you have not opened wine, do so now and drink a toast!!!). Add lemon juice, capers, and butter. Chop ½ cup of pecans and ½ cup of white onion and add to mix. Peel shrimp and add to skillet. Slice/chop mushrooms and quarter the artichoke hearts. Add to sauce and finish glass of wine. Reduce sauce by cooking on medium heat for 20 – 25 minutes.

Cut up the new potatoes into small chunks, add to steamer and set for 40 minutes. Cut up the broccoli head into smaller broccolis (what else do you call them?). When 40 minutes is up for potatoes, add broccoli, season with Mrs. Dash Table Blend, and cook for another 15 minutes (adjust to suit your preference on texture). Slice up the Bay City Sourdough bread and brush with either Land O' Lakes Reduced Fat Butter or Smart Squeeze.  Broil at 500 degrees until brown on edges and remove.

To serve, start with the swordfish and top with a bunch of Brian’s Secret Sauce. Add the steamed potatoes and broccoli. Set yourself up with some of this awesome sourdough bread (yes, I am a carbivore!!!!) and top off the wine (we’ll be drinking the Funf 5 again for sure)!!!
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-9-10 BC/Tami Mexican Cobb Salad W/Secret Sauce!!!

It’s Monday and we are struggling with what to cook for dinner. To avoid a trip to the grocery store, we settled on a BC/Tami Mexican Cobb Salad. Not sure what really defines it, but that’s what we call it and it’s easy, tasty, and filling. Tami played a more active role tonight, as she is the salad queen at the Cook household!!!

Stuff you’re gonna need:
4 chicken breasts
Head of iceberg lettuce
Head of green leaf lettuce
Two medium tomatoes (fresh from Karen’s garden)
One can of corn
Once can of Ranch Style Pinto Beans (can substitute black….we were out)
Mezzetta Deli-Sliced Mild Pepper Rings
Fat-free Ranch Dressing
Fat-free Italian Dressing
Lemon Juice
Hot sauce (salsa)
Flour tortilla
Shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheese
Tecate beer (in bottle)

Open first Tecate and drink toast!!! Preheat grill to medium heat and spray with Weber Grillin’ Spray. Trim all the fat and any skin off the chicken breasts and season both sides with chili powder and Mrs. Dash Table Blend seasoning. Grill for 16 – 18 minutes, flipping three times. Slice/chop/smash chicken breasts into mouthful-size pieces.

While you are outside doing all the really hard stuff on the grill, have your spouse inside chopping up lettuce, tomatoes, and such to create the base salad (these are not skills that I have or want to learn!!!). Drain canned corn and beans in colander and rinse. Blend all of these in large bowl, cover, and refrigerate. Drink another toast to completed salad, salt rim of beer stein, and pour another Tecate with lime and enjoy!

Pour 1/3 cup of fat-free ranch dressing, 1/3 cup of fat-free Italian dressing, and 1/3 cup of lemon juice in tall jar with lid and shake thoroughly, then refrigerate. This will yield the tangy secret sauce to top your salad with.

Make quesadilla by placing flour tortilla in 10 inch Calphalon skillet on medium heat. Smear on some hot sauce and sprinkle with grated cheddar and mozzarella cheese, fold over, and heat both sides until crispy, then slice into pie shape wedges for garnish in the salad.

To serve, start with chopped iceberg and green-leaf lettuce base in large salad bowls. Mix in corn, beans, chopped tomatoes, and pepper rings. Toss in bowl with hot sauce. Add grilled chicken chunks on the top, sprinkle with grated mozzarella cheese, and drizzle on secret sauce!!! Add quesadilla wedges (tortilla chips are good too) to finish.
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-7-10 Guilt-Free Breakfast Burritos

We went to the lake again this weekend. After a number of comments from our last trip that Mom’s biscuits and gravy were less than healthy, we opted to start things off with some breakfast burritos more in tune with the disciplined palate that are fast, easy, and filling!!! 

You’re gonna need:
Louis Rich Turkey Bacon
Eggs
Low-fat shredded cheddar cheese
Smart Squeeze
Hot sauce (you can call it salsa….at our house it’s still hot sauce!!!)
La Banderita Flour Tortillas (tasty and only one fat gram per tortilla)

Scramble the eggs on medium heat (at the lake so we are using a cast iron skillet). I typically scramble about 5 eggs but remove two of the yolks (5 fat grams per yolk). Stir occasionally to suit texture and remove into bowl.

We nuke our bacon in the microwave because it’s a LOT easier and makes a much smaller mess. They are various iterations of microwave-specific bacon platters; I prefer a round one and bought it at Walmart. Purists can still fry it in the skillet. Word of caution: the turkey bacon is a bit dryer and burns easily in the skillet. Cook in microwave on high setting, cover with paper towel, and cook to desired crispness (about 2 minutes for 4 slices).

To serve, start with a flour tortilla, add eggs, bacon, shredded-cheese, Smart Squeeze, hot sauce (salsa), and microwave for 30 seconds or until cheese is melted. Pour the coffee and juice and chow down looking out over the lake.
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-4-10 Teriyaki Chicken Brown Rice & Veggies

We had this meal a couple of weeks ago and I was chastised for lack of detail on the original post. I’ll try to do a better job on the documentation and pics tonight to help out! We threw in a few different twists including brown vs. white rice and based on the veggies we had on hand.


Here's what you'll need:
4 chicken breasts
Brown rice
Fresh squash
Broccoli head
Carrots
Fresh okra (first from Mom’s garden)
Chow mein noodles (La Choy)
Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauce With Sesame Seeds
Kikkoman Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce
Spring rolls
Gekkeikan Sake - The Finest Sake (says so on the label) 緣故是壞消息

Add 1 cup of brown rice and 2 cups of water to medium sauce pan, bring to boil, cover and steam on low for 55 – 60 minutes. Uncover stir/scrape. Cover and let stand off heat.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line Pyrex dish with foil and spray with Pam (much easier clean up).

Trim all excess from chicken breasts and cube. Add 1 cup of flour to paper bag with a pinch of salt and pepper. Dip chicken cubes in fat-free milk and throw into paper bag with flour and shake. Remove and space evenly in Pyrex dish. Bake chicken in oven for 25 minutes, scrape loose from foil, and then bake for another 20 minutes. Scrape loose from foil and dump in large mixing bowl. Pour in Kikkoman’s Teriyaki Sauce (this stuff is still the schizzle!!!) and stir to coat the sauce on the chicken.

During the chicken preparation, you also need to steam the veggies, the rice, and bake the spring rolls.
Cut two medium squash into mouthful-size chunks….feed tips to dogs!!! Chop the broccoli into mouthful-size chunks….feed remnants to dogs!!! Slice two carrots into chunks. Dice slimy okra.  Throw all of this into to the steamer for 16 -18 minutes according to personal preference on texture.

Bake spring rolls in oven at 450 degrees for 12 – 14 minutes until golden brown.

To serve, start with rice base on plate. Mix steamed veggies and Teriyaki chicken in large bowl . Layer over brown rice and top with chow mein noodles. Season to taste with Kikkoman’s Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce. Drink Sake….be happy!!!! Make sure to include water bottle on night stand…you will be thirsty later!
Enjoy!!!
BC

8-2-10 Grilled Center Cut Butterfly Pork Chops & BC Squash Casserole

Monday night and lookin’ for something simple. We settled on butterfly pork chops, squash casserole, black-eyed peas, and salad. Most of the veggies were fresh from Mom’s/Karen’s garden….sweet!!!

The stuff:

Boneless Butterfly Center Cut Pork Chops
Dale’s Steak Seasoning
Extra virgin olive oil
Tami’s Secret Salad
Fresh black-eyed peas
Fresh squash
Medium size white onion
Stove Top Stuffing Mix
Campbell’s Fat Free Cream of Chicken Soup
Chopped mushrooms
½ lb (8 oz.) of Fat Free Sour Cream
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup of grated cheddar cheese
Fetzer 2008 Merlot table wine

Trim all the fat/silverskin from the pork chops. Pepper both side of and set aside. Add 2 tablespoons of Dale’s Steak Seasoning and 1 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to quart size bag. Marinate chops in fridge for one hour, flipping occasionally.

Place black-eyed peas that Tami shelled from Mom’s garden into 3 quart Calphalon sauce pan (we only had a few peas). Add 3 cups of water and salt to taste. Cook for a very long time (1 ½ - 2 hours) on medium low heat. Add water as needed to keep them from drying up. Allow to simmer on low heat while everything else is wrapping up.

Chop up the squash (5 -6) and ¼ of the white onion. Add to 5 quart Calphalon sauce pan half-filled with water and bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat; cook on medium low heat for 45 minutes and then drain. Open Fetzer Merlot and allow to breath. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8 x 12 Pyrex dish with Pam. Add fat-free chicken soup, ½ lb. of sour cream, skim milk, and mozzarella cheese to pan with squash and onions. Mix together into mush and then gently stir in Stove Top Stuffing and mushrooms. Top with ¼ cup of grated cheddar cheese and sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes and turn oven off.

Light grill and remove chops from marinate; discard marinate. Pour 2008 Fetzer Merlot wine and drink toast!!! Cook chops to suit on medium heat, flipping occasionally, for 14 – 16 minutes. Cook the trimmed ends with space and serve these “snack ‘ems”.

Serve chops, Tami’s secret salad (I topped mine with Maple Grove Farms Fat Free Poppy Seed Dressing), squash casserole, and black-eyed peas. Top off merlot as needed.
Eat, drink, and enjoy!!!
BC