Fruits/Vegetables

Baja Chicken Stir-Fry

I’ve been on a bit of a chicken and veggies kick. It’s what I’ve been craving so why fight it? It’s better than eating a big bowl of pasta or a buffalo chicken cheesesteak, both of which I could easily eat on a daily basis if it weren’t for my stubborn conscience. I can’t seem to get enough chicken lately and the brighter the rainbow of veggies the better. It’s not often that I go through phases like this so when they come around, I embrace them. But no matter what my body wants, chicken and veggies can get boring unless they are switched up with different flavors. I came across this Baja Chicken Stir-Fry (adapted from Baja Pork Stir-Fry) right when I wasn’t sure what to do next. One look and I instantly fell in love with the vibrant colors in this dish.

Chicken breasts are cut into bite size pieces, seasoned with nothing more than salt and pepper, and cooked until brown. Green, orange and red pepper slices are quickly stir-fried with minced jalapeño and then mixed with the cooked chicken. A simple sauce of ground cumin, broth and cornstarch is added to the whole mixture and thickens up quickly, coating each piece of the stir-fry. A final addition of cherry tomato halves and chopped cilantro rounds out this dish that comes together quickly. The peppers are perfectly crisp, the tomatoes are juicy and the whole dish gets a kick from the jalapeño and a flavorful warmth from the ground cumin. I wouldn’t normally think to add tomatoes to a stir-fry but it seems to work here.

The ingredients:

Combine broth, cornstarch, cumin and garlic. Set aside.

Season chicken with salt and black pepper. Add canola oil to a large skillet heated over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook thoroughly until brown on all sides. Remove chicken from pan and keep warm.

Add remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil to pan and heat over high heat. Add the bell peppers and jalapeño and stir-fry for 1 minute.

Return chicken to the pan and stir-fry for 1 minute. Stir in broth mixture, the remaining salt and black pepper, and bring to a boil.

Remove from heat, and stir in tomatoes.

Sprinkle with cilantro.

Additions: None

Omissions:

Red onion

Substitutions:

Chicken breasts

Overall Rating: Like It

Source: Cooking Light Magazine

Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes

It’s surprising to me how sometimes I get cravings for food that I didn’t eat as a kid and still don’t eat often. The other day I was sitting at work when the overwhelming craving for sweet potatoes came over me. And not just sweet potatoes – roasted sweet potatoes. It was such a specific and odd craving, far more deep than my normal cravings for chocolate or Chinese food. Maybe it was my body’s way of telling me I need Vitamin C? I came home that night and searched through my recipes but could only find recipes for mashed sweet potatoes, nothing roasted. So, I decided to wing it. The result were these perfectly sweet and spicy Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes.

Fresh sweet potatoes are tossed with a little olive oil and chipotle chile pepper before being roasted in the oven until browned and soft. A light sprinkle of salt and squeeze of fresh lime juice finish off these potatoes which could be eaten as a side to any dish or simply as a light meal in itself. The combination of natural sweetness in the potatoes with the spicy chipotle makes for a perfect marriage of flavors and the addition of citrus at the end really brightens up the whole dish. If you take a quick scan online for roasted sweet potatoes recipes, most include brown sugar or honey but I didn’t want any added sugar and preferred to keep this savory. If you don’t like the spicy kick of chipotle chile pepper and prefer a more subtle flavor, cinnamon or smoked paprika would be good substitutions.

Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes (makes 4 servings)

2 sweet potatoes, scrubbed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper
1/2 a lime
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F. Chop sweet potatoes into bite size pieces and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil; toss to coat. Sprinkle chipotle chile pepper over the potatoes; toss to coat. Place potatoes on a baking sheet, spreading into a single layer. Bake for 30-35 minutes, tossing once halfway through, until potatoes are soft and browned. Squeeze lime juice over warm potatoes. Sprinkle with salt, to taste.

The ingredients:

Chop sweet potatoes into bite size pieces and place in a large bowl. Add olive oil; toss to coat.

Sprinkle chipotle chili pepper over the potatoes; toss to coat. Place potatoes on a baking sheet, spreading into a single layer. Bake for 30-35 minutes, tossing once halfway through, until potatoes are soft and browned.

Squeeze lime juice over warm potatoes.

Sprinkle with salt, to taste.

Strawberry-Mango Smoothie

I had dinner with a friend last night and as I was driving home, under an almost-blue moon (which is tonight, by the way), with the windows down and the sunroof open, I felt a change in the air. It was the change that comes in the summer when evenings get slightly cooler and temperatures dip into the 60s for the first time. And even though it’s supposed to get a little warmer here for the weekend than it’s been the last couple of beautiful days, I’m eagerly waiting for those nights when I can turn off the air conditioning and sleep with the windows open. Which should be any day now. I hope. As I wait, I’ll just savor these remaining warm summer days and keep sipping on something cold and refreshing like this Strawberry-Mango Smoothie.

Fresh strawberries, frozen mangoes, yogurt and mango nectar are blended until creamy, smooth, sweet and tangy. I prefer to use frozen fruit in my smoothies as opposed to ice because I like the texture of the frozen fruit but obviously you can use fresh fruit and ice instead. Also, if you can’t find mango nectar (which I find in the international foods section of my grocery store), simply substitute orange juice or apple juice. Really, just throw in whatever you want. Smoothies are a sweet ending or a good accompaniment to a weekend brunch, as a way to get a couple servings of fruit in you, or just to cool off on a hot day. Whatever your day brings you, I hope you have fun today or tonight and do something you wouldn’t normally do, something off the cuff and unexpected. That way when you tell your kids/friends your story, you can officially say, “I did it once in a blue moon.”

Have a great weekend everyone!

Strawberry-Mango Smoothies (makes 2 smoothies)