Bruschetta

The wonderfully delicious bruschetta is so so so yummy and the best part very easy (you just need to be patient).  My first experience with bruschetta was at a young age, my mom loves it and would always order it at any Italian restaurant; and I, just like her, learned to love it.
I figured bruschetta must be really difficult to make and that was why we never made it however, last summer my mom made a delicious batch using all fresh ingredients including tomatoes from our garden.
Last week, my buddy, who is very talented in the kitchen, made some carbonara for a group of us.  I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to try out a bruschetta recipe and get feedback from a large audience of taste testers.  It turned out to be very good  so enjoy this Just Good Food and let me know what you think!

Recipe:  Makes 20 bruschetta pieces

4 beef steak tomatoes (really any big tomatoes will work)
4 cloves of garlic (yum)
1 tbsp olive oil (too much will make it runny and soften the tomatoes too much)
1 1/2 tbsp basil (dried) or 1 oz of fresh basil (preferred)
pinch of salt
loaf of french baguette


Directions:

Fill a pot of water and boil the water (we will be dunking the tomatoes in the water to peel the skin).  Once the water is boiling dunk the tomatoes in for about 30 seconds, take them out and rinse under cold water and the skin should peel off.  Then cut the tomatoes into small pieces and place in a dish.  Once this is done, mince the garlic cloves extra fine and mix in with the tomatoes.  Add the olive oil, basil, and salt and you are good to go.  I would recommend letting this sit for at least 2 hours, but no more than 12, to earn peek taste point.  Right before serving bake the bread, cut into small pieces and place a generous amount of bruschetta on each piece.  Serve on a platter (decorate with basil leaves for fanciness).  Halve this recipe and you will easily have enough for you family (I made it for a group of 18).  Enjoy!

Chicken Pita with Hummus

This is a yummy recipe and literally takes 10 minutes to make!  You don't need an abundance of ingredients and can make a bunch and save it for lunch the following day.  This is a good way to get in a variety of vitamins from a bunch of veggies as well, it is one of my new favorites and so so so easy.
You can us any veggies you want I used cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, and lettuce (all these colors make it pretty too!)  You could use some yellow peppers too, I didn't because I thought I had enough kick in it already.
This would also be a perfect picnic, I was going to bring them to Lake Calhoun but that trip fell through and we played sand volleyball and grilled out instead.  Try and share with friends and family this recipe truly is Just Good Food!


Recipe:  (serves 2)
 
2 pocketless pitas
1/4-1/3 lb chicken breast
2/3 cup cut cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced cucumber
1/3 cup sliced carrots
1/4 cup hummus (I recommend chipotle)
2 garlic cloves
1 cup chopped lettuce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
freshly ground pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin


Directions:

Marinate the chicken breast with red pepper flakes, 1/2 tbsp olive oil and red wine vinegar, cumin, paprika, and oregano for a few minutes.  Warm a grill to cook the chicken breast and cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side.  Meanwhile, halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the cucumbers and carrots and mix together in a dish with remaining olive oil and red wine vinegar with minced garlic and freshly ground pepper.  When the chicken is done, cut into bite size pieces and mix in with the veggies.  Warm the pitas on the grill and spread the hummus on them, shred the lettuce, and top with the chicken salad for a delicious and healthy meal.



Hope everyone's summer is going well, if there are any requests for food, anyone who would like a lesson or maybe a night-time crepe with nutella please feel free to comment!  Also follow my blog on Twitter to stay updated and type in your e-mail to get updates so you're always in the loop!

Caprese Salad

A traditional yummy salad for the summer months than can also be placed on crackers and used as a "party favor" whoop whoop!  They were sampling this at Trader Joe's a few weeks ago and (ok first of all you haven't been to a TJ's in your life you NEED to go because they are awesome and the people are so helpful and friendly and they are all about value so you can get great food for so inexpensive) I remembered how easy this is plus it's a great excuse to eat mozzarella.  All you need is 5 ingredients and you will create a fan favorite in about 5 minutes!  Enjoy this Just Good Food!


Recipe:  (Serves 4-6)

4 large beef steak tomatoes (fresh and ripe)
12 oz mozzarella cheese (also fresh) make sure it's a block of cheese
2 tbsp basil (fresh if accessible)
1 tbsp olive oil
salt


Directions:

First rinse the tomatoes under cold water and slice them then cut into small pieces (but be careful not to smash them).  Place the tomato pieces in a serving bowl and gently mix in the herbs, salt, and olive oil.  
Cut the mozzarella into small square pieces and mix in with the tomatoes gently.
That is it, literally that easy and fast but full of flavor.  Love this summer favorite, serve with grilled chicken breasts or together on a crouton
as an appetizer.

Tilapia Fish Sticks with Chipotle Aioli Sauce

I have never been much for frozen fish sticks on a Friday night but last weekend it was raining and I had just finished up a bike ride and wanted some fried and bad for me (but I knew I could do better than that...right?)  So I thought well people love fish sticks and I could break the barrier between fresh and frozen so I thought I would give them a shot.  I picked up some tilapia ( a very common white fish with omega 6-fatty acids ) and looked in my "spice cabinet" (filed with all of 5 spices, the thing I miss most about home is the abundance of spices) and took out all the spicy stuff.
I am not known for making good sauces, salsas, dips, etc so I was a little hesitant on making a sauce to dip the fish in.  I thought back a couple weeks to a chipotle aioli sauce I had on a turkey sandwich at Bonfires (thanks State Farm for buying me lunch!) and wanted to give that a stab.  The aioli was good but I should not have been scared to use mayo (I used sour cream and yogurt) as it would have been better.
The recipe follows along with pictures and instructions (I forgot to cut the fish into "stick" like pieces so remember to do that unless you want to make it more "fancy" then you could serve it as a fillet!  Enjoy this Just Good Food!


Recipe for Fish:  Serves 3

12 oz tilapia
1 cup flour
2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp italian seasoning
1 large egg
2/3 cup bread crumbs (panko preferred)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
lemon juice
olive oil
salt and pepper

Recipe for Chipotle Aioli

1/2 cup mayonaise
2 tbsp greek yogurt
1/2 lemon juice
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp chipotle chile
salt


Directions:
First get 3 bowls out and put the flour in 1 large bowl with 1 tsp paprika, the cayenne, and 1/2 tbsp italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes.  Scramble an egg in the second bowl and bread crumbs in the third bowl (preferably panko bread crumbs because they are crunchier and tastes fried) with the remaining spices and salt and pepper.
Take a baking dish and spread 1 tbsp of olive oil on the bottom of the pan and preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Cut the fish into whatever shape you want and clean the fillets.

Next, flour the fillets with one hand (shake the access flour off) then place in the egg batter (repeat this process twice with every piece of fish to make it crunchier).  After the second time around place the fish pieces into the bread and coat heavily all over the fish.
Repeat this process until all the fish are coasted, and place each piece of fish on the baking dish and put in the hot oven for about 14-16 minutes (keep an eye on these so they don't get burnt).
After the fish is done, squeeze lots of lemon juice on the fish and serve!

While the fish is cooking start making the sauce.  The best way to make the sauce is using a food processor but it can be done without one.

First peel 2 cloves of garlic and mince in the processor (or by knife) and then mix in all the other ingredients and mix very well.  Add salt and extra lie juice to taste, this will make about 1 cup of sauce (use extra sauce on a sandwich).

Mango Macadamia Nut Salad

This is the salad I made with the chicken marsala last week.  My aunt Michelle introduced me to it and it was so good I thought I would make a homemade dressing for it.  The sweetness of the mangos with fresh romaine, crunchy macadamia nuts, and a fresh dressing is perfect.
Somethings to be aware of are how to pick out a ripe mango which can be tricky.  You want it soft and somewhat yellow (it is perfect if the juice is starting to leak from the mango).  Also you want fresh ingredients for the dressing (believe me this can make or break the salad.


Recipe: (Serves 4)

5 oz of romaine salad mix
1 ripe mango
1/3 cup macadamia nuts
handful bread crumbs (french bread toasted and cut into pieces works)

Dressing: (Need a food processor)
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tsp good mustard (not the stuff you put on a hotdog)
pinch salt and pepper
tsp basil


Directions:

For the salad, rinse the lettuce and place in a large bowl, gently rip the leaves into bite size pieces (the one thing I dislike about eating salad is trying to eat huge leaves).

Peel the mango skin and cut into 1/4 inch size pieces (mangos have big pits but try and get as much of the fruit as you can).  Toss in the salad along with the macadamia nuts (if you want you can chop these so they are easier to eat but I leave them as they are).
Cut the toasted bread into small pieces and toss in as well.  Mix everything together well before adding the dressing.

For the dressing get access to a food processor (otherwise you can just use a basic balsamic dressing, or mix balsamic vinegar and olive oil together with mustard).
First, process the garlic clove into tiny tiny pieces, then add all the other ingredients until everything is very well mixed (about 45 seconds).


Add the dressing (will only need about half of what you made, but it's nice to make a lot to save for salads the next couple of days).  Mix in the dressing and serve JUST GOOD FOOD!

Chicken Marsala

I started cooking classes (well I think it's more of an excuse for my friends to eat Just Good Food) but anyway I thought it would be fun to spice it up a little bit and cook something new to me and them.  Chicken Marsala is a dish similar to parmesan chicken in that it is floured and fried but the sauce is completely different (soooo maybe not).  The dish is rich but at the same time not too much to handle in any means; I was surprised at the end of it (I never know what to expect when cooking something new) as this dish turned out to be spectacular and something I will be sure to cook  many times in the future.

 

Recipe:  (serves 5)

 

5 4-6 oz chicken breasts

3 tbsp Olive Oil

1/4 cup flour (I used WW but AP is fine too)

1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes

pinch of salt and pepper

 

2/3 cup red wine (I used $3 Chuck Merlot because it tastes the same as Marsala)

1/2 cup chicken stock

4 oz prosciutto

8 oz sliced mushrooms

1 tbsp butter

 

Directions:

 

Firstly, get a plate with higher sides you can put flour on to dredge the chicken and place oil in a large skillet on medium heat.  Before dredging the chicken, cover with plastic wrap and pound until thin (1/4 inch thickness is good) this makes the chicken more tender and yummy. 

After this step, cover each chicken breasts with the flour thoroughly and shack off excess before placing in oil.

Once the oil is heated up (just feel above the pan to see if it is hot), when you place the chicken in you want the oil to bubble slightly (but not so much that it splashes at you) this is the best temperature for cooking the chicken throughout (cook for about 5-6 minutes on each side).

While the chicken is cooking, cut the prosciutto into small pieces and place in the skillet when the chicken is done and has been removed.

Let the meat cook for about 3 minutes then place the sliced mushrooms in the skillet with the prosciutto and cook for another 2 minutes and add the wine.  Lower the head and let reduce for a few more minutes before adding the chicken stock and butter.

Once you have added the butter, let sit for a minute then add the chicken to heat up for a second and you're ready to serve Just Good Food!  Take a look at the pictures and email me at justgoodfoodinc@gmail.com if you have any questions or would like to attend a class!

Pesto and Goat Cheese Chicken Sandwich

This sandiwch is another very tasty meal that you can make in under 10 minutes!  It is perfect for a lighter meal (you can even make it vegetarian by simply removing the chicken), it is also a good party sampler if you cut into small pieces.  The flavors of fresh goat cheese and pesto with a nice juicy tomato are just heavenly on a freshly baked french loaf.  Originally I wasn't going to add chicken but then decided to add a half a chicken breast to make it a light but satisfying meal before I went for a bike ride.  Again, this is very simple just be sure to use all fresh ingredients to really experience wonderful flavors in this sandwich.

Recipe: Serves 1

3 oz chicken breast sliced in half

1 tbsp fresh pesto (I'll be putting up a recipe for homemade pesto eventually!)

1 tbsp goat cheese

2 slices of tomato

Mini loaf of french bread (6-8 inches)

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Marinate the chicken breast with salt and pepper on one side and grill for about 7 minutes (or bake at 450) (I use my George Foreman that works really well and cooks it in about 4-5 minutes). 

Meanwhile, bake the loaf of bread for the recommended amount of time (again about 5-6 minutes, just until browned slightly). 

Once the bread is done, cut in half and spread goat cheese on one half and pesto on the other. 

When the chicken is done, slice it in half to make it thinner and place on the bottom half of the bread.

Top with two slices of tomato, salt and pepper to taste and you are ready to eat

JUST GOOD FOOD!