Blackened Salmon

Blackened salmon.  Now those are words I never thought I'd type on the blog.  I've been getting adventurous lately in trying to find new ways to make salmon...well, not taste like...salmon.  Blackening salmon HAS WON THE CONTEST.  Not only did I not hate this, I loved it.  Like really, truly loved it.  

If you don't like salmon, try this.  I swear you will love it.  Here's the recipe:

2 Skinless, Boneless Salmon Fillets 
Blackening Spice (you can find this in the spice aisle)
2 Tbs of Canola Oil 

Pour blackening spice onto a plate.  Press each side of the salmon into the seasoning and set aside. Add oil and heat a heavy skillet (preferably cast iron) on medium high heat for 3-4 minutes or until it starts to smoke.   Add seasoned salmon carefully to the hot pan and turn heat down to medium.  DO NOT TOUCH THE FISH for at least 2 minutes.  Check the fish.  It should have formed a nice black crust.   Flip the fish and cook for another 2 minutes.   Serve immediately.

Stay hungry!

Heirloom Tomato Quiche

I know it's a bloggerly thing to love fall.  Pumpkin spice everything, autumn wreaths, babies in pumpkins.  But as much as I enjoy fall (and I really do!), I'll always love summer more.  Maybe I'm feeling especially nostalgic for summer this year because I had a long wonderful chunk of time off with Will or maybe it's just because I've heard that the Farmer's Almanac is calling for a brutal winter around here.  Either way, I'm clinging to the last bits of summer wherever possible and this time, it comes in the form of late-season tomatoes.

I made up a quiche late last night (hence the lack of in-progress shots) using some beautiful heirloom tomatoes.  It was very easy and turned out super tasty.

Here's what I used:

1 pie crust (I used store bought.  Sorry, Mom)
3 medium tomatoes
4 eggs
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup parsley
1 cup half & half
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon herbes de provence

I preheated the oven to 350, then rolled out my crust into a pie plate.  I still have yet to buy a real quiche dish from last time I made one but a pie plate worked just fine.  I took about a third of the cheese and sprinkled across the bottom of the crust, then added a layer of tomatoes, followed by more cheese, more tomatoes, and then the last of the cheese, all the while sprinkling in a little salt, pepper, & herbes de provence.  In a separate bowl, I whisked the eggs together with the half & half, then poured it all evenly over the tomatoes & cheese and baked the quiche for 50 minutes.

It reheated beautifully the next day and was a hit with Jesse & my mother.  Served with a salad, a small slice of this tasty quiche made a perfect lunch that tasted like summer, even though the leaves are all almost down outside.

Enjoy and stay summery hungry!

Low Calorie Low Carb Chili

Low calorie, super easy to make chili you say?  YES.  Low calorie chili that's not only delicious, spicy, and satisfying, but will leave you full for hours.  OH, it's also low carb.  I swear.  You know I would never post anything that wasn't hungry approved. 

I usually eat it plain, but if you miss all of the yummy toppings, use only a little extra sharp cheddar. With extra sharp, you will need much less because it is so flavorful.  Instead of full fat sour cream, use a dollop of Greek yogurt.  SOOOO GOOD.

It's packed with extra lean ground turkey, eggplant and spinach.  Did I mention that Charlie not only loves this, but made a big batch of this for himself this weekend?  The proof is in the pudding chili. 

I make this chili with Rick Bayless' Chipotle Garlic Skillet Sauce.  I rarely use premade stuff.  But Rick Bayless is the man.  And it's all natural, with no preservatives with ingredients I can not only stand behind, but pronounce.  And Rick Bayless waved to me from his restaurant window in Chicago.  OKAY?!  Seriously though, he basically infuses roasted tomatoes with amazing flavors - saving me time and effort.  

Here are the nutrition facts for 1.5 Cup serving.  Not too bad.  Not too bad at all. 

Now for the recipe!  This is an extra big batch.  We usually make this on Sundays and eat it throughout the week.  You can easily half it for a smaller batch.

4 Large Purple Eggplants, peeled and diced 
1 Cup of No Salt Added Chicken Stock 
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
4 Extra Lean (99% Fat Free) Raw Ground Turkey (4, 20 oz packages)
1 Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
2 Tbs of Cumin 

4 Garlic Cloves, chopped 

4 Packages of Rick Bayless' Chipotle Garlic Skillet Sauce 
4 Packages of Yellow Cherry Tomatoes 
6 Packages of Baby Spinach
2 Large Bunches of Green Onions, chopped 

Spray extra large pan with olive oil cooking spray and pre heat over medium heat.  Add diced eggplant and salt.  Stir and raise heat to medium high.  Stir every 1-2 minutes.  Add chicken stock and cover, stirring until eggplant has reduced for 50%.   Add raw turkey, red pepper flakes and cumin.  Stir turkey into the eggplant, then let it rest and stir every 3 minutes.  If turkey sticks, add a little more stock. Once turkey is cooked, add garlic.  Stir.  Add Rick Bayless' Chipotle Garlic Skillet Sauce.  Throw in cherry tomatoes.  Simmer for 30 minutes.  Add baby spinach, stir into chili.  Add the chopped green onions and stir.  Serve and ENJOY.

Stay hungry!

Custom Photo Thank You Cards (or My First Dance with Shutterfly)

Normally I'm not into photo thank yous.  I really enjoy writing out thank you notes for gifts and thoughtful acts but I've never made custom ones before - generally store bought notecards (paired with some heartfelt words) do the trick just fine.  But I broke my own rule when thanking guests for coming to the christening last week.  It's just because my kid is so cute.  I couldn't help sharing his smiley face with all of the people who joined us.  I just couldn't help it:

If I buy photo prints (which is fairly rare), I usually go with Snapfish just because I've had an account with them since my college days.  They were my first choice when looking for photo thank you notes online but I found their selection to be pretty cheesy.  I just wanted something simple but couldn't find a very basic option.  Then I switched over to Minted.com.  They had plenty of simple and pretty choices but all seemed to be priced individually... at $5.99 a card. The cards were nice, for sure, but I just used Vanguard's online calculator recently and found out that the cost of a 4 year education at Bates in twenty years is estimated to be just under $700k.  Now isn't the time to go nuts on over the top thank you notes.  Moving on...

I've never used Shutterfly before but decided to check it out.  I found these cards (and some similarly simple ones) easily and customized them quickly to be exactly what I had in mind.

Shutterfly Thank You Cards

I ordered them on Monday and they arrived yesterday afternoon (I upgraded to free expedited shipping with a coupon I found on Retail Me Not).  The only thing that I thought was weird was that you can't order exactly as many as you'd like - 12 is the lowest option of cards but then it jumps up to a pack of 25.  Luckily for us, I needed exactly 12 so that's what I went with.  

Thanks, Shutterfly, for making nice (& reasonably priced) custom cards that I'm excited to send out (here's the link for all of their thank yous)!  I guess this is the dawn of a new era for a thank you enthusiast like me...

Lemon Dill Quinoa Salad

I have an unhealthy obsession with quinoa.  Or maybe I should say healthy?  I love the stuff.  It's filling, yet light, packed with protein, and gives you that carb "fix" without all of the poof and guilt.  Yay, yay, yay...and yay. 

I really like fish, but Charlie does not.  So, with two fish friendly girl friends coming over for dinner on Friday, I thought I'd get adventurous.  I ended up making blackened salmon with this lemon dill quinoa salad.  It was delish.

The toasted slivered almonds added the perfect buttery crunch.

Here's the recipe:

1 Cup of Quinoa 
2 Cups of Low Sodium Chicken Stock (or water) 
Zest from 1 Lemon 
1/4 Cup of Slivered Almonds, Toasted 
2 Tbs of Lemon Juice 
2 Tbs of Extra Virgin Olive Oil 
3 Tbs of Fresh Dill, Chopped 
Salt to Taste 

Cook the quinoa per the box instructions with either water or chicken stock for extra flavor.  Toast the slivered almonds in a frying pan over low-medium heat with a little butter.  Once quinoa is cooked, toss with all of the ingredients.  Cool or serve immediately.

Stay hungry!

A Different Kind of Guest Book

When planning our wedding, I decided I didn't want a traditional guestbook but this was in the pre-Pinterest days so I didn't  have a bajillion different ideas laid out for me.  After some brainstorming, I decided to get some small pieces of paper in our colors, leave out some pens, and see what people came up with.  I put together some brief instructions, popped them into a frame (fun fact: this frame now hosts a map of Colorado on our map wall), and left everything on a table that guests passed coming into the wedding:

A few weeks after the wedding, I bought a book that held a small photo in front...

...and had plenty of blank pages inside for the kind wedding notes mixed with candid photos from the wedding...

I hate to play favorites with all of these thoughtful and sweet notes, but Jesse and I cracked up when we saw this one, from one of my Bates friends, which simply reads "Yo Yo Yo Congrats":

It was quick to assemble the photos and notes afterwards and turned out to be a simple way to keep all of these well-wishes in one place.  The book now lives either tucked away on a bookshelf in the living room or out on the coffee table.  I love how it turned out and I could spend all afternoon reading and re-reading all of the messages from our friends and family.

What did you do for a wedding guest book?  Have any memorable wedding messages (or guests)?  Let us know!

Cheese Dips for Tailgating

Ah, cheese.  How I love thee.  I really love cheese.  Everything about it.  It's comforting and just amazing...in all forms.  I've never met a cheese I didn't like.  Grilled, melted, cold, off the block, and of course mixed with other amazing ingredients, too.  We are tailgating this weekend and I'm thinking about trying one of these.  What do you guys think?

Dude, check out Life's Ambrosia's Cheesy Jalapeno Dip with Tater Tot Crust.  Hello little love.




Hot Cheesy Mushroom Dip by Closet Cooking.  Charlie wouldn't touch this but I would hurt this thing.



Zesty Bacon Cheese Dip posted on Yummly.com.  Zesty = happy.



Beer Cheese Spread posted by Taste of Home.  This would be another great one for tailgating - you can serve it cold!  And it already has beer it in!  Score!



Pimento Cheese Spread by Pine Gate Road.  LOVE pimento cheese spread.  Perfect dip to make ahead of time and serve from your trunk.



Can't wait to tailgate this weekend! Stay hungry!