Roasted Grape and Thyme Salmon

Memorial Day weekend is one that traditionally finds me at the beach with my family, except for this year.  I elected to remain home this weekend to work on a couple of “honey-do” projects that have been piling up while the ladies in my life went to the sand and surf.  <insert Pity-Party here>

Today was an absolutely beautiful day and I thoroughly enjoyed working in the yard, even though I often thought how nice it must be at the beach too.  <Pity-Party is in full swing>  As the day was winding down I had to decide whether to go visit a relatively new eatery that was serving some delicious vegetarian frittata or making dinner for one.

Smelling rather manly and pretty much covered in yard dust I decided to shower and stay home.  A rather great decision it turned out to be!  <Pity Party subsiding> Trying a new recipe I discovered on Facebook, my spirits were quickly lifted – being clean probably helped a great deal too.  Here is a dish that was a spectacular blend of flavors for the taste buds and an attitude lifter.

Ingredients:

2 salmon filets of similar thickness
20-30 red seedless grapes
A few sprigs of fresh thyme (about 30 or so little leaves after prep) Reserve two sprigs for baking with the salmon
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. Olive oil, divided

Salt and pepper

What to do:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and prep thyme by removing the leaves from the stems. (Remember to save a sprig for each filet)

In a small bowl combine garlic, grapes, thyme, 1 Tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
Coat salmon with remaining olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.
Place salmon on baking sheet and add the grape mixture. 

Top each filet with a sprig of fresh thyme.

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes

Enjoy!

Don’t forget to remember those who gave all to protect and serve our country.

Source

 

Mango & Banana Smoothies

Mangoes and bananas make this ‘clean’ smoothie feel like a tropical breeze just blew in.  Now with under twenty days of school left before the start of summer vacation, I am starting to feel the need for warm sand between my toes, the sun’s rays on my body and an ocean breeze on my face.  Add this Mango Madness smoothie to my glass as I kick back in the beach chair and ahhhh…. Soon…very soon...  Well, enough of my fantasies, let’s see how to make this wonderful and healthful drink from my cookbook, The Everything Eating Clean Cookbook. 

Ingredients:
1 fresh mango, peeled and cored
1 banana, peeled
1 cup almond milk
1 Tbsp. local honey (support your community/state farmers and buy local!)

2 cups of ice

What to do:

Alright, how many of you have ever peeled and cored a mango?  Honestly, this was my first time to do so.  It’s pretty simple.  Using a potato peeler I skinned the entire fruit.  Cut in half; removed the ‘pit/core’.  Then put it in the Ninja/Blender with the peeled banana, almond milk and honey.

Add ½ cup of ice and blend.  Continue to add ice until you reach your desired consistency.  I used the entire two cups, but it may vary.  I topped it with a few blueberries for color and texture to each serving.

The recipe yielded three 8oz. servings approximately 126 calories per serving.  It counts as two servings of fruit too!

A 3oz shot of rum would be nice for the beach chair mix, but those calories are extra and not considered ‘clean’.

 

Enjoy!

Fresh Berry Smoothie

Natalie woke us up this morning with breakfast in bed for her mommy.  She said mommy has been working so hard to take care of daddy she wanted to make breakfast for her. (Since my flu and bronchitis illness, my bride has been taking good care of me.)  Natalie prepared toast with butter and jelly, coffee prepared correctly with cream and Splenda, and blackberries and strawberries.  The strawberries she even capped herself.  She wheeled the breakfast place setting to our door using an old microwave cart.  It was awesome!  I’m so proud of her.

Natalie’s timing was perfect today as Stephanie was worn out herself.  Feeling a bit better myself, I tried taking care of her some.  For lunch I took some of the berries and made her a smoothie.  I got to use my Ninja!

 

Ingredients-

½ cup vanilla coffee creamer
½ cup low fat milk
1 Tbsp.  Splenda
½ cup fresh blackberries
½ cup fresh strawberries

3 cups of ice cubes

What to do-

Put all of it in the blender/Ninja and mix until smooth.

 

Top with a couple berries and insert a straw!

 

Enjoy!

Simple “Egg-Drop” Soup

Day two home with the flu has not been fun at all.  I dread tomorrow even more as the sore muscles from all the coughing and hacking is going to be painful and the fever is draining all my energy.

This is my ‘fast-food’ for the flu menu.  My bride has been taking great care of me.  Yes, I am the typical male when sickness hits- I want my mommy and to be pampered.  I guess since I can’t have my mommy, my bride has stepped it up double time.  She and Natalie went to the school for the Book Fair Festivities and ate at the school.  She offered to bring me something back, but I said I’d fix something simple. 

This is simple and something I fix when it’s cold and want soup in a hurry.

Make sure you drink plenty of fluids too!

Ingredients-

2 15oz cans chicken broth (reduced sodium and 99% fat free)
2 large eggs, room temperature then beaten in a small bowl or glass
2 scallions or green onions, sliced (separate the white parts from the green)
1 cup or so of sliced mushrooms  (I like baby bellas for this)
1 Tbsp. of butter
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

What to do-

In a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat, add butter and olive oil.  When this is hot add mushrooms and white parts of the onions.  Cook these for about five minutes stirring often. 

Add the broth and stir well to get the good bits off the bottom.  Heat to a slow boil and then reduce heat to medium-low

Give the pot a good stir to get the mixture revolving well.  Slowly add the beaten eggs trying to keep the stream thin.  Once all the egg is added give the pot another vigorous stir and allow to cook for about a minute or two.

 

Get your bowl and spoon and dish up half the contents.  Top with a few baked goldfish crackers or oyster crackers.

Enjoy.

* I'm fortunate that my strain of flu is not the "other" brand going around our fair city.  I was blessed to not have the "stomach bug".  The high-fever, coughing, hacking, aches and pains, congestion and severe headache is the one I got.

If you have the "other" brand, you must force the fluids.  Just heat the chicken broth alone with some bay leaf in it and allow to simmer for ten minutes or so.  Then remove the bay leaf and drink the warm broth in small sips.

Tuscan White Beans

I was the recent benefactor of last month's Food Network Magazine.  I found it in my mailbox at Royall Elementary School - Thank You!!

There were several recipes in this publication that will be on the dinner table at Richard's.  This post is about a side dish.  It was pretty simple, and most importantly - tasty!

Ingredients-

2 cloves garlic (Fresh, smashed; or minced)
¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
2 tsp. Olive oil
1 Roma or plum tomato, chopped
1 sprig fresh rosemary
2 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
½ cup water
Chopped parsley (optional)
Salt to taste

Shredded parmesan cheese for sprinkling on the top.

 What to do-

Cook the garlic, pepper flakes in olive oil over medium high heat for a minute.  Add the tomato, and rosemary sprig cooking an additional two minutes.  Add the rinsed and drained beans and slightly smash with a spoon.  Cook for five more minutes.  Remove the rosemary and discard. 

 

Stir in water and parsley and top with sprinkling the parmesan on top. 

 

Broil until golden and drizzle with olive oil.

Enjoy