Chicken with Balsamic Fig Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 lb thin chicken
• 2 shallots
• 2 sprigs rosemary or 2 tsp (remove needles & bundle needles together and chop across)
• 1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 Shallots
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 Tablespoon Chicken stock concentrate
• 1 oz Fig Jam
• Drizzle Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper, to taste

For side dishes:

• 1/2 lb potatoes
• 3 cups snap peas
• drizzle olive oil
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel ans season all over with salt and pepper. Cook in pan until no longer pink in center 5-7 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside to rest.
2. Lower heat under pan to medium. Add Shallot, chopped rosemary, and a drizzle of olive oil. Cook, tossing, until softened, 2-3 minutes. Stir in balsamic vinegar and fig jam. Simmer until syrupy, about 1 minute. Stir in 1/2 cup water and stock concentrate. Let reduce until saucy, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 TBSP butter. Season with salt & pepper.
3. Thinly slice chicken. Drizzle chicken with sauce. 

I served mine with roasted potatoes & snap peas.

1. Preheat oven to 425°F
2. Cut potatoes in 1/2 inch cubes, toss potatoes and snap peas in olive oil, and a dash of salt & pepper. Toss on baking sheet and cook in oven until tender and browned, 20-25 minutes.

*Leave butter out if you'd like the dish to be dairy free.

* You can sub sweet potatoes for regular potatoes & sub green beans for the snap peas.

Crockpot Beef Stew

Ingredients:

• 2 Pounds beef stew meat (cut into bite-sized pieces)
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, sliced
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 32 oz beef broth
• 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups baby carrots
• 4-5 small red potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces (about 3 cups)
• 1 Tablespoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

1. Combine beef, celery, carrots, onion, potatoes, salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, oregano, Worcestershire sauce, beef broth, and tomato paste in the crockpot. Cook on LOW for 10 hours or on HIGH for 6-7 hours.
2. About 30 minutes before serving, mix the flour and the water together in a small dish and pour into the crockpot. Mix until well combined. This will add nice thickness to the stew. Next add in frozen peas and corn. Continue cooking covered for 30 minutes.

*I forgot to add the peas and corn but it was still very good.

~Recipe from familyfreshmeals.com

Hasselback Potato

Ingredients:

• 1 medium size potato per person (Any potato will work)
• 2 Tablespoon fat of choice: olive oil, butter, coconut oil, lard or tallow
• seas salt & black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Wash & dry potatoes
3. Cut straight slits in the potatoes, leaving the bottom intact. Try to evenly space the slices 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch apart. 
4. Bruch the potatoes with approximately half your fat choice. (Don't worry about getting oil between the slices yet.
5. Place potatoes into a baking dish, and season with sea salt and pepper.
6. Bake the potatoes for 30 minutes, then remove the pan from oven and brush the potatoes again with fat - make sure some of the fat drips down into the space between the slices.
7. Bake another 30-40 minutes, until the potatoes are crispy on the edges and easily pierced in the middle with a knife.

~Recipe from paleoeatsandtreats.com (courtesy of Stephanie M)

Zuppa Toscana Soup (Copycat)

 

Yields: 6-8 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 lb Italian Sausage (casing removed if necessary)
• 4 oz bacon (about 5 slices), diced into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (about 1 small onion)
• 3 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 lbs Russet potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed then sliced into halves, halves diced into 1/8 to 1/6-inch slices
• 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 1/2 salt, then to taste
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup lightly packed kale, chopped into bite size pieces
• finely shredded Romano cheese for serving, optional

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large non-stick saucepan over medium-high heat. Crumble sausage into 1-inch pieces and add to saucepan.Cook sausage, stirring occasionally until cooked through. Drain sausage onto a plate or baking dish lined with paper towels leaving 1 tsp fat in pan, set sausage aside.
2. Add diced bacon (being sure to separate pieces from each other if you stacked them when slicing) to fat in saucepan, return to heat and saute 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add diced onions to bacon in saucepan and saute mixture until bacon is cooked through (not crisp) and onions are tender, about 5 minutes longer.
4. Add chicken broth, water, sliced potatoes, sugar, fennel seeds, salt and pepper. 
5. Bring soup just to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and stir in half and half, kale and cooked sausage. Cover saucepan and simmer 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are very tender. Use a spoon or ladle to remove excess fat from top of soup if desired.
6. Serve warm topped with Romano cheese.

Recipe from Cooking Classy

Moussaka

 

Ingredients:

Vegetables:

• 3 medium or 2 large red potatoes
• Kosher salt
• 1 medium eggplant
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Meat sauce:

• 1 onion, chopped
• Kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 ounces ground beef
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup red wine
• one 8-ounce can tomato sauce

Bechamel:

• 5 tablespoons butter
• 5 tablespoons flour
• 4 cups milk, heated to very warm in microwave
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grounded black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Vegetable oil, for greasing
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

1. For the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the potato slices for 5 minutes (do not cook longer) in heavily salted, boiling water. Meanwhile, slice the eggplant into 1/4-inch slices, brush with the olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoons salt and the pepper on both sides. Place on a baking sheet and cook in the oven, 6 to 7 minutes per side. Set aside the potato and eggplant slices for assembly.
2. For the meat sauce: In a large saucepan, sweat the onions with some salt in the olive oil over medium heat. After 5 minutes, add the ground beef and cook until golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the oregano, cinnamon, nutmeg and garlic, and cook until fragrant. Turn the heat up to high, and then deglaze the pan with the red wine, allowing to bubble and reduce for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat and set aside.
3. For the bechamel: In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the flour, whisking  to make a paste. Whisk constantly for 2 minutes, allowing the mixture to bubble. Add the warm milk slowly, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Once the sauce starts to come to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes, whisking very frequently. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg, and set aside.
4. For assembling the moussaka: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Before assembling, taste each of the layers and confirm that they are properly seasoned. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with vegetable oil. Lay out the potato slices, pressing gently into the pan. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the parmesan. Place the eggplant on top of the potatoes. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan. Spoon the meat sauce on top, followed by 3 more tablespoons of Parmesan. Finish with pouring over the bechamel and top with the last 3 tablespoons of Parmesan. Cover with foil (sprayed lightly with vegetable oil) and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and continue baking for an additional 30 minutes.

~Recipe from Melissa d'Arabian on Foodnetwork.com

Creamy Chicken Curry with Potatoes & Split Peas

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 inch piece fresh ginger, grated
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• salt and pepper
• 2 rounded tablespoons curry powder
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2 large starchy potatoes (russet), peeled and cut into 1 1/2- to 2 inch chunks
• 1 cup yellow split peas
• 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 lime, halved
• 1 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
• Chopped fresh cilantro, for serving

Directions:

1. In a Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, cumin seeds, and salt and pepper. Sweat the onion a few minutes.
2. Add the curry powder and stir for 1 or 2 minutes. 
3. Add the stock and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
4. Add the potatoes, split peas, and chicken. Cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the peas are tender, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.
5. Pull the chick out of the pan. Shred the meat with 2 forks and add it back to the curry.
6. Squeeze in the lime juice and stir in the yogurt. Adjust the seasonings. Serve sprinkled with cilantro.

*I served the curry with rice. I used lentils instead of yellow split peas, I just happened to already have them in the house.

~Recipe from Rachael Ray via 1 Grocery Bag 3 Meals