Enchilade Fiesta!

We've had a recent tragedy here in our happy neighborhood.....our local Tex-Mex restaurant has closed.  Gasp, oh no! Some of you non-city dwellers might be thinking, "So what?! You live in NYC, you have tons of options." And, you would be right BUT you just don't really understand unless you've been faced with walking 10 blocks in a freezing, driving rain for a measly enchilada and cheap margarita.  So, I've decided that instead of torturing myself with a painful walk, I'll just figure out how to make my favorites at home so that we won't miss feel the loss quite so much.  Thus, I bring you today's recipe for low-fat turkey, black bean and corn enchiladas. We had ours with chips & salsa, Mexican beer and salad (I accidentally bought the Asian salad so our dinner was Mexican-Asian fusion, oops).

Dinner came out great and we had a nice little mid-week fiesta plus we've also got a freezer full of margarita concentrate so I'm seriously considering inviting the neighbors and charging admission to our living room.

Turkey, Black Bean & Corn Enchiladas

1 turkey tenderloins, cooked and shredded

1 10 oz. can enchilada sauce

1 15 oz can black beans, drained & rinsed

1 15 oz can corn, drained

1 4.5 can chopped green chiles

8 6 inch corn tortillas

1 c. low-fat Mexican style cheese

Low-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt, to taste

1 avocado, chopped

1. Mix shredded turkey with black beans, corn and chiles.  Can be made in advance and stored in fridge overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 7 x 11 inch casserole dish.  Wrap tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave for 30 seconds or until warm.
3. Assemble enchiladas by putting a heaping spoonful of turkey mixture on the side of tortilla. Roll up the tortilla and place in casserole dish seam side down.
4. Pour sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle with remaining ½ cup of cheese.  Cover with foil and bake until bubbly (about 45 minutes). Garnish with sliced avocado and lowfat sour cream or Greek yogurt if desired.

Then do your Casa Bonita happy dance:

 
image via examiner.com

Retro Baked Hot Dogs

We just got back from vacation, yay vacation! We went on a cruise and had a great time. We got sunburned on the beach, drank mai tais, made fun of the onboard entertainment (while secretly enjoying every minute) and watched for dolphins from our balcony. Most of all though we just spent time together which is a special treat for two busy people with very different work schedules. Here's a very awkward picture of me enjoying our fun vacation, I think I was mid sentence or something and um, don't mind my fantastic tan.

Now we're back to regular life (ugh), and will be heading back to work soon (double blah). I was smart enough to clean out the fridge before we left so that we didn't come home to the lovely scent of old milk but my awesome planning meant the dinner pickins' were pretty slim. On a side note, this thoughtful bit of planning also lead to the great oj debate of '11 when I accidentally threw out the orange juice minutes before my main squeeze went to pour himself a glass....oops. I'm still hearing about it and doubt the jokes about throwing out the juice will stop anytime soon.

Anywho I'm trying to avoid ordering take-out all the time sooooo tonight I'll be looting what's left of the fridge to make a childhood favorite....baked hot dogs and soup.The recipe for this one came from one of the first cookbooks I got as a child (either Betty Crocker or Better Homes & Gardens Junior, although I can't remember which at the moment) so I've creatively named this one Retro Baked Hot Dogs and that's about as good as it gets with vacation brain, enjoy!

Retro Baked Hot Dogs

4 hot dogs

4 pieces of bread

8 toothpicks

Butter or margarine

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
2. Cut slits down the length of the hot dogs.
3. Butter the bread and place buttered side down on the cookie sheet.  Place the slit hot dogs diagonally across the bread, then fold the buttered side up and secure with toothpicks (creating a little “tent” with the hot dogs nestled in the middle).
4. Bake the hot dogs in the oven for about 20 -25 minutes or until bread is golden brown.

*Note: some people add a piece of cheese between the bread and the hot dogs before baking.  I like to think that by leaving out the cheese, I'm making it healthier....please let me have these small comforts.

Still lazy - this time with roast beef!

My days are long, there are meetings to worry about, laundry, gym, Hoarders, the inevitable post Hoarders cleaning spree, Jersey Shore....well, you get the idea.  So you might be wondering, where does dinner fit into this packed schedule of trashy TV? Well ladies and gents, I present you with my all time favorite kitchen appliance:

That's right, the lowly slow cooker has found a place of honor in this metropolitan kitchen. No joke, if I had a car it would have an I heart crockpots bumper sticker. Because really, who doesn't want to come home to a delicious and healthy dinner after a full day of stuff and things? Plus I found out I can throw frozen protein in there directly from the freezer......genius! I'm not ashamed to admit that I own 4 of  them, viva la slow cooker!

Anyway enough about my unhealthy obsession, let's get down to business with a classic Sunday roast from my childhood adapted for my favorite appliance.  Interesting side note on this one, I hated sandwiches when I was a kid (seriously, what kid hates sandwiches) so my Mom would give me straight up roast beef cubes in a plastic baggie. No bread, no cheese, just plain old roast beef because I was a weird kid.  It's amazing that I ever managed to become a relatively well adjusted adult.  Still working out some kinks on that well adjusted adult thing though so no promises.

Slow cooker Roast Beef
Beef Roast (pretty much anything will do, mine was a frozen 3 1/2 lb top round roast)
1 10.75 oz can mushroom soup
1 14.5 oz can beef broth
1 packet onion soup mix

Place roast directly in slow cooker (frozen is fine, no need to defrost just let it cook a little longer). Whisk together the three soups and pour over the beef.  Cook on low for 10-12 hours.

French Sweet Potatoes
2 sweet potatoes, cubed
3 tbsp Olive oil
1 tbsp mustard
1 tsp herbs de provence
1 tsp rosemary
Salt & pepper to taste

Mix together mustard, olive oil and seasonings, toss with potatoes to coat. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, tossing stirring halfway through.

Get In Shape Girl Black Bean Soup

Remember Get In Shape Girl, that wonderful old Hasbro chestnut of the '80s?  I do and I have many fond memories of suiting up in my totally rad leotard and sweatband to rock out with some sweet Michael Jackson tunes on my Get In Shape Girl mat. 



Oh how times have changed, now I rock out to sounds of the "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" in a desperate attempt to forget that I am actually pumping away on an elliptical machine instead of sitting on the couch in my pj's, eating fistfuls of Cheetos. Inexplicably, this mental trick has actually worked and now I find myself looking forward to Friday nights at the gym. I know it's kind of lame to spend Friday night at the gym, but if you lived in NY and had to throw an elbow just to get through the crowd of anxious people waiting for a machine on a Monday night you would understand my Friday night enthusiasm.  Plus there's something indulgent about starting the weekend off right, like it gives you a free pass to eat nachos and beer to your heart's content on Saturday and Sunday.

So in the spirit of a healthy Friday night, here's an easy and healthy favorite to help you jumpstart your weekend!

Get In Shape Girl Black Bean Soup

1 15.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 14.5 oz can lowfat chicken broth
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
1 small onion, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cajun seasoning
2 tbsp hot wing sauce (more or less to taste)
2 drops liquid smoke (be careful not to add too much, it is powerful stuff)
1 avocado (sliced or diced)
1 6 oz container lowfat Greek yogurt

1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan. Add onion and saute until onion is soft. Add jalapeño and cajun seasoning and continue to cook, stirring frequently for about 1 minute.
2. Add beans, chicken broth, hot sauce and liquid smoke.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer over medium low heat (stirring ocasionally) for about 20 minutes or until flavors combine and beans soften.
3. Carefully pour mixture into blender, put the lid on but leave off the middle portion of the lid to allow steam to escape.  Cover the hole by loosely holding a kitchen towl over the opening to avoid spillage. Pulse a few times until desired consistency (i.e. thickening the soup but not so much that it becomes a baby food puree).
4. Serve immediately with avocado and a dallop of Greek yogurt.

Lazy Woman Chicken Skewers

It's been cold here and it's making me extremely laaazzzyyyy.  Seriously,all I want to do is curl up in bed with a book and stay there until the temperature gets a little more reasonable.  Needless to say I was pursuing my dream by reading a magazine in bed last night when I decided it would be a great idea to make the adorable rosemary chicken skewers that I saw in this month's Every Day with Rachael Ray Magazine. Excellent use of ingredients I already had, cute dinner, everyone's happy, excellent plan!

Slight problem though, once I got out of my comfort coccoon, I had absolutely zero motivation to spend my night threading chicken cubes onto rosemary sprigs.  Soooooo I took the lazy route by chopping up the rosemary and mixing it in with all the skewer ingredients.  Let me tell you, the end result was delicious....didn't even miss the skewers. Plus I didn't have to worry about accidentally shooting chicken across the kitchen while extracting it from the skewer. Score! I love it when I'm rewarded for laziness. Plus this dinner involves a delicious dipping sauce, seriously, who doesn't love a good dipping sauce?

Lazy Woman Chicken Skewers

½ c. mayo

¼ c. mustard

1 lemon, juiced then sliced

1 shallot, chopped in wedges

1 package chicken, cut in pieces

1 package cherry tomatoes

2 tbsp rosemary, roughly chopped

Ground pepper

1.       Mix together mayo, mustard, juice from the lemon and pepper to taste
2.       Put chicken pieces, shallot wedges, cherry tomatoes, rosemary on a foil lined cookie sheet. Pour half  of mayo mixture over top and mix.
3.       Broil for 15 minutes, stirring a few times during cooking.
4.       Serve with reserved mayo mixture for dipping.

Adapted from Every Day with Rachael Ray.

Happy New Year!

Yes, I know, I'm late but I had important partying to do......and more important party recovery. I don't know about you, but I had a great time ringing in the New Year with friends at a bar in Manhattan. Even if the cab situation can be a challenge from Brooklyn, it's totally worth it to be able to relax, enjoy some libations and catch up with friends after all the craziness and office parties in December.

During my post New Year's Eve convalesence (referred to by normal people as New Year's Day), I did manage to get the obligatory pork chops and sauerkraut in the crockpot. If you're not familiar with the tradition, Pennsylvania Dutch custom is to make a meal of pork chops and sauerkraut (duh) on New Year's Day for luck.  Apparently the cabbage of the sauerkraut is supposed to represent greenbacks (a.k.a. money, big fortunes in the New Year) while the pork means that you will move forward confidently in the New Year (since pigs move forward).  My own guess though is that those old timey PA Dutch folks enjoyed a little too much of the old timey celebratory meade on New Year's Eve and needed some old timey stick-to-your-ribs recovery food. To me though it was always just something my Mom made while we watched the Philadelphia Mummers Parade.

Whatever the case, we had ours this year with horseradish mashed potatoes and green bean casserole. I also recommend making some mulled wine to counteract the sauerkraut smell. No picture for this one (again the convalesence) but I did leave you with a festive New Year's pic at the end of this post. Enjoy!

New Year’s Lucky Pork Chops and Sauerkraut

·         4 bone in pork chops

·         1 lb. sauerkraut

·         1 apple, diced

·         1 onion, diced

·         1 tsp caraway seeds

·         2 tbsp brown sugar

·         ¼ c. apple cider

1.       Brown pork chops in frying pan over high heat about 1-2 minutes per side.

2.       Add pork chops to slow cooker, top with sauerkraut and remaining ingredients.

3.       Cook on low 7 – 8 hours or until chops are fork tender and falling off the bone.

Southwestern Blizzard Stew

Not sure if you've heard, but we've had a blizzard here in NYC.  Luckily, I was able to get back from Florida in time to miss this and this. Whew, what a relief! Poor Mr. Officer though was not so lucky and had to work his emergency response magic in the terrible storm.  The weather was so bad that he had to leave his car at work and walk part of the way home through waist deep snow which made from one grumpy guy.  Well at least he had this soup waiting for him after a hard day's work!

Southwestern Blizzard Stew

·         1 lb ground meat

·         2 carrots, diced

·         2 shallots, diced

·         ¼ c. bourbon

·         1 can fire roasted tomatoes with chiles

·         1 can diced tomatoes

·         1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

·         2 cans corn

·         1 can beef broth

·         1 packet of taco seasoning

·         1 packet of ranch dressing seasoning

·         Salt & Pepper

·         1 tbsp olive oil

·         Shredded cheese (for garnish)

1.       Brown meat in dutch oven over high heat. Remove meat from pan and drain on paper towels.

2.       In same pan, heat oil over high heat and brown carrots & shallots with salt & pepper for about 5 minutes. Deglaze the pan with bourbon and continue to cook the veggies 1 – 2 minutes more.

3.       Add both cans of tomatoes and corn (with liquid) as well as the black beans and beef broth.  Stir in the seasonings packets and bring soup to a boil.

4.       Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for about an hour, stirring approximately every 20 minutes. Garnish with shredded cheese and serve with crusty bread.

Psst - don't mind the terrible photograph, I'm still getting the hang of this thing and obviously have zero future as a food stylist.