Mexican Fritatta

Two words - EASY and YUM! :)

Ingredients:
5 oz pork chorizo
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 Yukon Gold potatoes, diced into small cubes
6 eggs, beaten
6 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
salt & pepper
EVOO

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a nonstick skillet, heat about 1 T EVOO over medium heat then brown chorizo, breaking up as it cooks, about 5 minutes.
3. Add onion & cook until just starting soften, 3-4 minutes.
4. Add bell pepper & cook until crisp tender, about 3 minutes.
5. Remove chorizo mixture to 8x8" baking dish & set aside.
6. Heat 1-2 T EVOO in same skillet then add potatoes, salt & pepper, cooking until golden brown & fork tender.
7. Return chorizo mixture to skillet & blend everything together, then place in baking dish.
8. Blend about 2/3 cheese with eggs, pour over potatoes & mix together. Top with remaining cheese & bake about 15 minutes, until eggs are set.

KITCHEN NOTE: Chorizo can be hard to find sometimes. Try substituting a spicy smoked sausage, halved & thinly sliced or diced.

Easy Oven-roasted Chicken & Veggies

This is a quick & easy weeknight dinner!

Ingredients:
About 4-5 pounds chicken pieces on the bone
5-6 carrots, cut in 2 and halved lengthwise
1 onion, quartered or cut into large chunks
salt & pepper
EVOO
2 C long grain rice
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley
2 oz slivered almonds

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees and arrange chicken, carrots & onion in a single layer on foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO & toss to coat. Salt & pepper everything and roast in oven for about 30 minutes, until juices run clear.
2. Meanwhile, salt 4 C water and add rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat & simmer about 20 minutes, until rice is done. Stir in parsley & almonds.
3. Arrange chicken & veggies over rice on a serving platter and pour pan juices over the top.

**Substitution note: In place of rice, add small red potatoes, halved to veggies for roasting!

Enjoy!

Pork with Roasted Lemon-Apple Relish

I must say that I wrinkled my nose at this one but tried it anyway and it's delicious!! Courtesy of Rachael Ray's weekly menu planner.

2# boneless pork loin roast
3 T EVOO
Salt & pepper
1 lemon, thinly sliced crosswise & seeded
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 C apple juice
1/4 C raisins
1 green apple, cored & cubed (about 1")
1 tsp sherry vinegar (didn't have any so used apple cider vinegar and it was fine)

1. Preheat oven to 425. Place pork on one side of large baking dish, rub with 1 T EVOO & season with salt & pepper.
2. On the other side, combine lemon, onion, 1 T EVOO & sugar. Season with salt & pepper & toss together. Arrange in an even layer, putting lemons on top.
3. Roast until pork reaches 150 degrees & lemon slices are browned around the edges, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven, tent pork with foil & let rest.
4. Transfer lemon mixture to a cutting board and chop.
5. In a medium bowl, combine apple juice and raisins and microwave for 1 minute. Stir in lemon mixture, apple, vinegar & remaining 1 T EVOO. Season with salt & pepper if needed.
6. Thinly slice pork and serve with relish and a side of your choice.

Baked Pork Chops

I'm sure this is no original idea but I just threw this one together and it turned out yummy!

Ingredients:
4 boneless chops about 3/4" thick
Tone's Canadian seasoning or McCormick's Montreal Steak seasoning
1 egg (for bigger chops, you may need 2)
milk
1 pkg saltine crackers, crushed
2 T butter

1. Sprinkle chops with seasoning, rub in and chill for a couple hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Break egg into a shallow bowl, add a couple tablespoons milk and whisk with a fork. Place crushed saltines into another.
4. Dip chops in egg then crackers, repeat and place on a lightly greased or buttered baking sheet and drizzle with melted butter.
5. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, carefully turn over and bake another 30 minutes, until golden brown.

Enjoy!! :)

Onion & Pepper Smothered Steak

Here's an Emeril recipe... altered a little. :) A yummy one pot dinner! (Ok, so two if you count the rice.)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 - 2 lbs thin top round steak, sliced into 1/4" strips (easily done if steak is partially frozen)
1 1/2 T Emeril's Original Essence
1/4 C vegetable oil
3 T flour
3 C chicken broth
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 green bell peppers, sliced
2 t salt
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
1 T freshly chopped parsley
White rice for serving

1. Heat oil in large Dutch oven or high-sided skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Combine meat with Essence and flour in a gallon ziplock and toss to coat.
3. Brown meat in batches, until browned on all sides, 4-5 minutes.
4. Return all meat to pan and add 2 C chicken broth, stir, scraping any browned bits from the pan.
5. Add onions, peppers, salt, cayenne & black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently for 6-8 minutes, until veggies are silted. Reduce heat to medium, cover & cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Add remaining cup of broth & continue to cook uncovered for about 1 hour, until meat is very tender and gravy is thickened.
7. Add parsley & serve immediately over rice.

NOTE: Don't forget to start your rice with about 20 minutes left on the meat... so everything is done at the same time!

Chicken, Broccoli & Tomato Fusilli

This is a light and delicious meal that I hope you'll love!

Ingredients:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can chicken broth
1 T kosher salt
6 cloves garlic (2 smashed, 4 minced)
2 sprigs flat leaf parsley
14 oz small broccoli florets
12 oz spinach fusilli pasta (or similar - I use tricolor spirals)
3 T EVOO
1/4 t chili flakes
2 C grape tomatoes, halved
2 T butter
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
freshly ground black pepper

1. In a small saucepan, combine chicken, broth, 1 t salt, smashed garlic & parsley. Cover & bring just to a boil then remove from heat, set aside covered for about 15 minutes to cook through.
2. Remove chicken, strain & reserve the broth. Pull chicken into strips & reserve with about 1/4 C of the broth (I use my serving bowl - less dishes!)
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt generously & add broccoli to cook until crisp tender, about 2 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to the bowl with chicken.
4. Return water to a boil & cook pasta until al dente, about 8 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, combine minced garlic, oil & chile flakes in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until lightly browned and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
6. Add tomatoes & cook, stirring, until somewhat soft, about 1 minute.
7. Add 1/2 C broth, remaining 2 t salt & stir in the butter and 1/4 C parmesan until incorporated.
8. Stir in chicken & broccoli, bring to a simmer & remove from heat.
9. Drain pasta, transfer to serving bowl & toss with remaining parmesan. Pour sauce over pasta, season with pepper and toss to combine. Enjoy!

NOTE: If the sauce is a little short, add a little more broth.

Eggplant parmesan over grilled chicken...

For some reason I was craving my favorite dish from Cafe Red Onion (for you Houstonites), the Chicken Brazil. So I came up with something similar, without all the fattening queso... this recipe will serve 2, with leftover eggplant parmesan. Just increase the chicken to go with what you have on hand. One eggplant will probably make enough for 4 servings. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, marinated in Italian dressing
1 small eggplant
2 eggs, beaten
1 - 1 1/2 C breadcrumbs, Italian seasoned
1/2 jar Bertolli Italian Sausage spaghetti sauce
1/2 C parmesan cheese
1-1 1/2 C monterrey jack cheese, shredded (or provalone slices)

1. Slice eggplant fairly thin - 8 slices (or more). Dip into eggs, then press into breadcrumbs so they are liberally coated and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
2. Meanwhile, coat bottom of square baking dish with spaghetti sauce. When eggplant is done, place in a single layer in baking dish. Top with more sauce then parmesan and jack cheeses. Repeat with another layer of eggplant, sauce and cheeses.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, grill chicken.
5. When all is done, slice chicken and serve eggplant parmesan on top next to a salad with tomatoes and avocado! Yum!!