quick and easy

Basic Overnight Steel-Cut Oats

June 18, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com 28 Comments

I’m officially obsessed with Basic Overnight Steel-Cut Oats. Like, can’t-go-a-morning-without-this obsessed. Like, might-cry-into-my-bowl-once-it’s-empty obsessed. Why? Because they’re EASY and chewy and satisfying without added sugar and with plenty of protein and fiber.

So normally I eat eggs for breakfast. By normally, I mean almost every day because they are delicious and because they are a good source of protein and because they keep me full until lunchtime. But eggs are now the stuff of Breakfasts Past and now I’m all about the Basic Overnight Steel-Cut Oats.

…

Summer Corn and Tomato Salad with Jalapeño-Lemon Feta

June 16, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com 8 Comments

Fresh summer corn is probably one of my favorite foods. I know I say that about a lot of foods, but this is true. It’s actually always true… I have a lot of favorite foods! I’m a girl who loves food, what can I say?!

Even not-fresh, always-available corn (i.e. canned corn) has had a special place in my heart for a very long time. When I was still little, but big enough to use the stove, I would heat an entire can of corn, add some butter, and eat the whole thing for supper. I’m a little horrified by that idea now… but I guess it’s okay for a 10-year-old. But seriously, just horrified thinking about it. Where’s the protein? Where’s the calcium or iron or vitamin C? Oy vey… (…rolls eyes at younger self.)

…

Jalapeño-Lemon Feta

June 11, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com Leave a Comment

Ready for the easiest recipe ever?

Those words are like sweet music to my ears these days.

This super-simple recipe can be an appetizer, a snack, or an ingredient. In fact, if you stay tuned for my next blog post, you’ll see me use Jalapeño-Lemon Feta in a summer veggie salad side dish something.

I owe you, my blog friends, an apology. I feel like I’ve neglected the Internetsphere lately. I’m at least posting once a week, but they’ve been short and maybe a bit impersonal.

…

Cool Summer Veggie Pizza

June 1, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com Leave a Comment

Mom used to make this all the time when I was little. Cold summer pizza. It’s probably a recipe that started on the side of a Pillsbury package, but I have a photocopy of a years old handwritten recipe card.

It’s unmistakably Mom’s handwriting. Isn’t it funny how we come to recognize these little things and find a second of comfort in them? Mom’s handwriting, familiar stationery with worn edges, memories of sitting on bar stools, picking the radishes out my lunch. So arbitrary and yet heart-warming.

…

Smoked Salmon Salad Bites

May 28, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com 2 Comments

Smoked Salmon Salad Bites take just five minutes to make and are perfect for a quick snack or light meal. This recipe is low in calories, but packed with protein and those good-for-you fats. …

Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups

May 21, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com Leave a Comment

The phrase ‘Easy as Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups’ was coined after this exact recipe. I’m obsessed with this quick, healthy, minimal-heat-required recipe and you will soon be too.

Is it summer yet? Is it, is it, is it?

I’m ready!

I’m at the beach this week, so I suppose this is my summer.

Ya know, adulthood isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Remember the days when you got 10 weeks of summer vacation? Remember how much you looked forward to that? The excitement… The anticipation… All the planning and daydreaming of what the summer would bring… Fun! Trouble! Romance!

I mean, I still do all that daydreaming… There’s just no summer vacation attached to it…

This is the second year I’ve done a personal beach week. I’m lucky — my parents have a beach condo, so no planning ahead required and no expenses accrued.

When I skip down here for a weekend, yes, I definitely bring a friend and plan to have a little fun! But this week is about peace, quiet, rest, and relaxation. I did invite Dad (he’s the other quiet member of the family), but he declined. Umm… and be glad you aren’t here Dad — I have literally taken over the place. My stuff is EVERYWHERE. I’m dreading cleaning up in the morning.

In my normal life, I’m pulled in so many directions. Working eight+ hours a day, blogging, kickball team, tennis team, gym, side job, family occasions, girls’ nights… it all builds up until… I need to either implode or decompress. So here I am. At my personal beach week. Decompressing.

And it just so happens, one of my favorite ways to decompress is to create in the kitchen! Plus, after my freckled skin was burnt on Day 1, spending time indoors looking at the ocean is quite an attractive idea.

I’m a bit obsessed with grapefruit right now. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it’s pink. And pink = pretty. I’m also obsessed with quick, healthy, minimal-heat-required meals. And I’m obsessed with these inexpensive marcona almonds from Aldi. And that, my friends, is how a good recipe is born. Obsession A + Obsession B + Obsession C. That is the key. Easy as ~~pie~~ Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups.

I made five of these. I’ve eaten two. It took me exactly 4 1/2 bites to eat two of the lettuce cups. 1/2 a bite for all those little drippings that dripped out the side and that I wiped up with my finger (and then licked, of course). That means, I’ve got six bites waiting for me in the fridge and my stomach is a’growlin’.

Here’s what I like about Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups:

no utensils required
a little heat tempered by cool Greek yogurt
juicy grapefruit
crunchy, salty almonds
mint! so you don’t have to brush your teeth after… (?)
swimsuit-friendly (like, you’re gonna look good and feel good even after cramming your face with these little snack-lunch-treats)

You are 15 minutes away from eating some of these, but I’m only 15 seconds away, so pardon me…

Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups

Easy as Cajun Chicken and Grapefruit Lettuce Cups was coined after this exact recipe. I'm obsessed with this quick, healthy, minimal-heat-required recipe and you will soon be too.

Course Main

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 198 kcal

Author my Bottomless Boyfriend

Ingredients

1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 pound chicken tenderloins
8 leaves bibb lettuce
1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1 grapefruit flesh removed with a grapefruit spoon or a sharp knife
1/4 cup plain almonds chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degree F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
Mix together cumin, chili powder, and paprika. Run mixture onto chicken tenderloins and lay on prepared baking sheet. Bake about 6 minutes, turning halfway, until cooked all the way through. Once cool, slice tenderloins into strips.
Lay lettuce cups flat. You are going to fill them as if they are tacos. Spread Greek yogurt in a strip down the middle. Divide chicken strips evenly among lettuce cups. Divide grapefruit evenly among the lettuce cups. Sprinkle with almonds and mint. Enjoy.

Chocolate-Dipped Butterscotch Cookies

May 7, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com 6 Comments

My friend Chris is an old man. And old men like… loafers, and peppermint, and coffee, and the smell of tobacco, and flat caps. (I’m making so much of this up.) And butterscotch. My old man friend Chris is no exception. He likes all of the above (again, making some of this up), and he LOVES butterscotch. At least, he loves when I make homemade butterscotch treats just for him.

And, because my last butterscotch baked good gift to Chris was in December, he was due another gift. (FYI – He gets gifts because he gives gifts in return. It’s like an exchange program for food.)

…

Mushroom Pesto Arugula Flatbread

April 27, 2015 by theeverykitchen@gmail.com Leave a Comment

This recipe for Mushroom Pesto Arugula Flatbread takes just 20 minutes if you use a Pillsbury Crust, which means you can have a light spring dinner on the table any night of the week! It’s so delicious, you’ll still devour it in half the time it took to make.

…