Quinoa Corn Edamame

YIELDS ABOUT 4 CUPS

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups frozen, shelled, edamame
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup cooked, cooled quinoa (leftover is great)
1 green onion, sliced (just green parts)
½ red sweet bell pepper, diced
2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro
1½ Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp dried thyme
⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper
dash of cayenne

STEP 1:
Briefly boil the edamame and the corn, just until tender. Drain very well and cool completely.

STEP 2:
In a large bowl, combine the edamame, corn, quinoa, green onion, red pepper and cilantro.

STEP 3:
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, lime juice, salt, chili powder, black pepper, thyme and cayenne until emulsified. Drizzle mixture over salad mixture and toss to coat. Cover and chill for at least two hours

Recipe found on 86 lemons.

Sriracha Chicken Pozole

Picture from original recipe posting. Find it here.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 large beefsteak tomatoes (cored if desired)
• 4 large dried guajillo peppers
• 10 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 white onion cut into 1/2 inch rounds
• 5 whole cloves, 3 Tbs. sriracha sauce
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 3 Tbs. vegetable oil
• 3 Tbs. distilled white vinegar
• 2 tsp granulated sugar
• 3 good pinches kosher salt
• 2 large fresh poblano peppers
• 2 pounds chicken (skinless boneless thighs and breasts)
• 1 quart chicken broth
• 2 tsp dried Mexican oregano
• 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 sprig fresh mint
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans white hominy, drained and rinsed
• 1 avocado finely diced
• 6 radishes finely sliced
• 1 lime

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENT OPTIONS

• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme (1/2 teaspoon dry)
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, optional
• Shredded lettuce or cabbage
• Diced tomatillos
• Diced green or red bell peppers

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat oven to 500. Score an X in the bottom of each tomato and place them on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Roast tomatoes for 25 minutes, until softened and slightly charred all over.
• Cut the stems off the guajillo chiles and slice them lengthwise. Shake out the seeds. Lightly toast them in a small cast iron until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl of cold water and let sit for 30 minutes, or until soft and pliable.
• Back the skillet, toast the onions and garlic until you see good charred marks on all sides, and the onions have softened, about 10 minutes.
• To a blender, add the tomatoes (with the skins peeled), onions, garlic, chiles (drained from water), sriracha sauce, cloves and allspice. Puree for a good two minutes, until very smooth. Add a little water if needed.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a large dutch oven over medium high. Add the puree (it will probably splatter) to the pan and and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add a cup of water, vinegar, sugar and a Tbs. of salt. Partially cover and simmer on a medium heat for 30 minutes, adding a little more water if needed, to keep it at the same consistency.
• In the meantime, flip your oven to broil. Place the poblano peppers on a baking sheet and broil until blackened and charred all over, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately transfer to a small plastic bag, and seal it. Let sit for 15 minutes, allowing the skin to loosen. Once cool enough, peel the skin away from the peppers and slice into small strips.
• After 30 minutes of simmering, add the chicken, cilantro, mint, Mexican oregano, hominy, chicken stock and another Tbs. salt. Stir to combine, and simmer on medium for another 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
• Ladle pozole into bowls and garnish with sliced radishes, dice avocado, fresh sprigs cilantro and a good spritz of lime juice.

Rosemary Chicken with Corn Quinoa

Ready in 40 minutes. Serves 4 or 5.

Chicken Ingredients:
4 skinned and boned chicken breasts (2 lb.)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation:
Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper, and rosemary. Cook in hot oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat 6 minutes on each side or until done. Serve with quinoa.

Fresh Corn Quinoa Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups uncooked red quinoa
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 cups water
4 shallots or 2 small onions, quartered
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups fresh corn kernels
6 cups shredded greens (such as chard)
1/2 cup torn basil
1/4 cup torn mint
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation:
Bring quinoa, salt, and water to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until tender; drain. Cover and let stand 15 minutes. Meanwhile, sauté shallots in hot olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat 3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add corn kernels and shredded greens; cook 2 minutes or just until wilted. Add quinoa, basil, mint, and fresh lemon juice.

Recipe from Southern Living's September 2013 issue. See it here.

Chicken Piccata

Serves: 4 Calories: 365 Prep Time to Table: 30 minutes 

Ingredients:

• 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 2 ounces all-purpose flour, divided (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 T finely chopped shallots
• 1 medium garlic clove, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Place 1 teaspoon flour in a small bowl, and place remaining flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle both sides of chicken evenly with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour in shallow dish; shake off excess.
2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.
3. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in pan; swirl to coat (optional - turns out great without the added oil). Add shallots to pan; sauté 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add wine; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until liquid almost evaporates, stirring occasionally. Remove shallots mixture and put on top of chicken, on serving plate(s).
4. Add 1/4 cup broth to reserved 1 teaspoon flour; stir until smooth. Leave aside.
5. Add remaining 1/2 cup broth to pan; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced by half (about 5 minutes). Stir in flour mixture (from step 4); cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, juice, and capers*. Place 1 chicken breast half on each of 4 plates; top each serving with about 2 tablespoons sauce.
6. Notes: *Not a fan of capers – so left these out of original recipe and also reduced shallots and garlic

Original recipe from Cooking Light Jan/Feb 2012. Used adapted recipe found here.

Patriotic Peanut Butter Cookies (Frosted)

Prep time: 20 mins  *  Cook time: 20 mins  *  Total time: 40 mins  *  Serves: 24

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup butter (room temperature)
• 1½ cups dark brown sugar
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1½ cup chunky peanut butter (room temperature)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 4 cups white chocolate chips
• 6 teaspoons vegetable shortening
• red food coloring
• blue food coloring

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
• In a stand mixer, combine the softened butter with the dark brown sugar and granulated sugar until well mixed.
• Add the eggs and continue mixing until the eggs are completely incorporated.
• Now pour the vanilla extract into the cookie dough and mixer for 30 seconds to combine.
• Add the chunky peanut butter to the bowl and mix for 2 minutes, or until the peanut butter is completely mixed into the dough.
• Now add the salt, baking soda, and flour and mix slowly for 2-3 minutes. The dough should be very sticky.
• Scoop the dough onto un-greased baking sheets (2-3 tablespoons per cookie). Lightly press the cookie down to form a small disk (do not use a fork!).
• Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for a minute before moving to a cooling rack. Once the cookies are cool to the touch, move them to the refrigerator or freezer to cool completely.
• While the cookies are cooling, separate the white chocolate chips into 3 bowls and add 2 teaspoons of shortening to each bowl. Microwave for 60-90 seconds to melt the chocolate. Add red coloring to one of the bowls and blue to another.
• Once the cookies are cooled, place the cookies upside-down into the plain white melted chocolate to coat the top of the cookie. Place back in the refrigerator or freezer so that the chocolate can harden.
• To add the red and blue stripes, use a spoon to spread the red and blue chocolate over ⅓ of the cookie. Again, place back in the refrigerator or freezer to harden. Store in the refrigerator until serving.
• Note - I found it hard to apply colored frosting on top of the white frosting. As an alternative, I used a zip lock bag to pipe the colored frosting through.

Recipe from Zack and Cilantro Saga on Cooking & Beer.