Tilapia and a Chipotle-Orange sauce

I thought I would try something a little different tonight and make fish. I'm not a huge fish person, but we had some tilapia in the freezer so I thought why not? This dish is very good, but it's quite spicy so if you aren't a spice person I would skip this one. But, if you like things a little hot....

Sauce:

2.5 oz canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

1 TBS rice wine vinegar

10 oz orange marmalade

1 1/2 TBS fresh squeezed orange juice

2 tsp. fresh minced cilantro

1 TBS finely diced red onion

Blend the peppers and vinegar together in a blender. Put the rest of the ingredients in a medium bowl and add the chiles from the blender. Set aside until ready for use.

Fish:

2 tilapia filets

flour

olive oil

Dredge the filets in a coating of flour. Heat some olive oil in a skillet on med-high to high heat. Sear the filets for 3-4 minutes per side until pink is just gone.

I served the fish over a bed of quinoa, but you can use steamed rice as well. Add steamed veggies of your choice such as carrots, zucchini, squash, or peas.

Sweet Potato Chowder

I love soup, all kinds of soup, but my mom especially loves this soup. There is a lot of chopping involved, but try not to be intimidated. Soup is generally easy as a rule, and especially this soup!

Ingredients:

8 large sweet potatoes, peeled, divided
Olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, peeled and diced
2 ribs celery, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
8 cups chicken stock
6 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c packed brown sugar
1 Tbs ground coriander
2 cups half and half
2 cans (16 oz each) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (16 oz) creamed corn
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot add 3 diced sweet potatoes to some salted boiling water. Boil until the potatoes are done; soft but not mushy. Drain and set aside.

In the same pot, add a few teaspoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, onion, celery, carrots and the rest of the 5 chopped sweet potatoes. Saute for 10 minutes. Add the chicken stock and boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the vegetables are soft and tender. Remove from the heat and add the Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, coriander, and half and half. Puree the soup in the pot using a hand blender or pour into a regular blender until creamy. Add the sweet potatoes in the colander, canned corn, and creamed corn. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Crostini Appetizers

This weekend was my grandma's 80th birthday party. We had most of the extended family over and I ended up cooking for a day and a half! One of the things I made, and one of the more popular things at the party, were crostini appetizers. I made two different kinds, but the possibilities are endless with these little treasures.

Ingredients:

Baguettes sliced into 1/2 inch pieces

Canned artichokes in water

Fresh basil

Goat cheese

Parmesan cheese

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Tomatoes, seeded and diced

Salt and pepper

Toast the baguette slices in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, flipping over halfway through to toast both sides evenly. Once toasted, brush with olive oil.

For the toppings:

Topping 1--

Drain water off the artichokes and roughly chop. Throw artichokes in a big bowl and marinate with a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and freshly chopped basil. Place on top of the toasts and top with shredded Parmesan Cheese.

Topping 2--

Seed and roughly dice tomatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spread a generous amount of goat cheese on the toasts and top with tomatoes. Sprinkle the top with freshly chopped basil.

Not only are these super easy, they taste delicious! The added bonus is everyone at your next party will think you are quite fancy.

Apple-Turkey-Curry Burger

This is an interesting take on a burger. Best of all it's low-fat with ground turkey! This burger is so full of flavor you don't even need mayonnaise, ketchup, or any of the other condiments you would normally put on a burger.

Ingredients:

1 Tbs mustard seeds

3 Tbs applesauce

1 Tbs plain yogurt

2 1/2 Tbs mango chutney

2 tsp curry powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 lb ground turkey breast

1-2 chopped scallions

1 tsp dried mint

3-4 Tbs peeled and freshly grated apple (Granny Smith)

Lettuce and sliced tomatoes

Hamburger buns

Put the mustard seeds in a frying pan over medium heat. Shake the pan over the heat until the seeds start to pop.

Transfer the seeds to a medium mixing bowl. Add the applesauce, yogurt, chutney, curry powder, salt, and cayenne pepper. Stir. Add the turkey, scallions, mint, and apple. Mix together till just mixed. The consistency will be soft, but you should be able to shape into four patties.

Spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray and cook on medium to medium-low heat until cooked through. If the outside starts to blacken, turn down the heat. You can also grill the patties. Serve on a hamburger bun with lettuce and tomato.

Amazing Sugar Cookies

Sorry it's been so long! Christmas was crazy and the New Year has been just as busy. I'm back though, with two new posts tonight.

First, dessert. These are some pretty great sugar cookies. I made them about a month ago so no pic, but trust me, they will crumble in your mouth. No need for frosting because they are super tasty all on their own.

Ingredients:

2 large eggs

1 cup canola oil

2 sticks softened butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup powdered sugar

1 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

Cream together the eggs, oil, butter both sugars, and vanilla. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix. Add a couple more tablespoons flour if dough feels too wet. Refrigerate an hour.

Take the dough out of the refrigerator and roll into balls to be placed on the cookie sheet. Flatten the dough into round disks (don't totally flatten the dough, just the top). Sprinkle the cookies with extra granulated sugar.

Bake 11 minutes at 350.