Japanesse Zucchini and Onions

Yes this is another zucchini recipe.  I think I have a mild obsession, but it is just so good and so versitile.  You can prepare it a million different ways and it goes with everything.  I am always looking for new veggie recipes as sides with Asian food instead of the old stand by of broccoli, so I was thrilled when I found this simple recipe on Pinterest.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     2 tbsp olive oil
     1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
     2 medium zucchinis, cut into thin strips
     2 tbsp teriyaki sauce
     1 tbsp soy sauce (I use low sodium to be healthier)
     1 tbsp toasted seasame seeds
     ground pepper

     Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Stir in onions, and cook for 5 minutes.  Add zucchini, and cook, stirring, for about one minute.  Stir in the teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, and seasame seeds.  Cook until zucchini are tender, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the ground pepper, and serve immediately.  Oh and enjoy!

Veggie and Cheese Orzo

This is a terrific summer side dish for BBQ chicken.  In addition, it is actually pretty health when prepared as stated, only 200 calories per serving, which I calculated was about a heaping cup.  I will say it was hard to find whole wheat orzo, even at Wegmans, but it is still healthy when made with regular orzo.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     1 small garlic clove (or 1/2 tsp of minced garlic like I used)
     1 small shallot
     1 cup of baby carrots
     1 cup of broccoli florets
     2 tbsp of olive oil
     1 cup of white or whole wheat orzo
     1/2 tsp of salt
     1 cup water
     1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
     1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

     Place the shallot and garlic (even if you are using the already  minced) in the food processor and pulse to chop.  Add the baby carrots and broccoli florets to the food processor and pulse; scraping down the sides half way until it is finely chopped. 
     In a large stock pot, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat and saute the chopped veggies, raw orzo, and salt for 4 minutes, stirring continuously.
     Add the water and broth to the pot, increase to medium-high heat, and bring to a boil.  Then lower to medium heat and cook for 10 minutes uncovered, or until the liquid starts to evaporate and the mixture thickens.  NOTE: I found it took more then 10 minutes, so you will need to judge it for yourself.  I did find covering it made it thicken quicker.
     Finally add the Parmesan cheese and stir to combine, then enjoy! 

Tex Mex Summer Squash Casserole

When I think of summer I definitely think of squash and zucchini.  Although, I do eat it year round, when summer rolls around I eat it at least three times a week, therefore I am always looking for new ways to prepare it.  So when I tried this recipe I found in Taste of Home magazine, I knew it was a definite keeper.  It has tons of flavor and it is easily divided in half when you don't need to feed 10 people lol.  You can also modify it and change things, like my friend Emil did when she added bacon.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     7 medium yellow summer squash, sliced (about 10 cups)
     2 1/14 cup shredded cheddar cheese
     1 medium yellow onion, chopped
     1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies
     1 can (4 oz) diced jalapeno peppers, drained
     1/4 cup flour
     1/2 tsp of salt
     1 tsp of cumin
     2-3 tsp taco seasoning
     2 tsp of cilantro
     3/4 cup of salsa
     4 green onions, diced
     1/4 cup of red onion, chopped

     Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  In a large bowl, combine the squash, 3/4 cup of cheese, yellow onion, chilies, and jalapeno peppers.  Sprinkle with flour, salt, and other spices; stir gently to combine.
     Transfer the squash mixture to a greased 13x9 inch baking dish.  Bake, covered, 30-40 minutes or until squash in tender.
     Remove from the oven, and spoon the salsa over the top; sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 cups of cheese.  Bake uncovered for 10-15 minutes or longer until the cheese is golden brown.  Let it stand for 10 minutes.  Top with the green and red onions, and then enjoy!
    

Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Peppers

I was never a big fan of stuffed peppers, until I found this recipe!  Probably because of my love for wings is why I loved this recipe.  The chicken mixture if so good that you could use it for many other things - buffalo chicken tacos, buffalo chicken sandwich - the possibilities are endless.  To make it easier to bake the peppers, I recommend that you get you use female peppers - peppers that have four nubs on the bottom - they stand up better in the baking dish.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     1.5 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
     1 medium yellow onion, sliced
     1/2 tsp of dried parsley
     1/2 tsp dried dill
     1/2 tsp dried chives
     1/2 tsp garlic powder
     1/2 tsp onion powder
     1/2 tsp sea salt
     1/2 tsp pepper
     4 yellow or orange peppers, tops cut off & seeds cleaned out
     1/2 cup of your favorite wing sauce (I used Wegmans wing sauce)
     1/4 cup of unsalted butter
     1/4 to 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese (depends on how much you like cheese)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all your dried spices together in small bowl; set aside.  Next you will poach your chicken by doing the following.  Cut the chicken breasts into 2-3 pieces and then place in the bottom of a sauce pan.  Add water to cover the chicken and about an additional two inches of water.  Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer; simmering the chicken uncovered for about 10 minutes.  Then turn off the heat, cover, and let the chicken stand for 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken.  While the chicken is cooking, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat.  Once melted stir in the wing sauce and sit aside.  Once the chicken is done, shred chicken using two forks.  Place the shredded chicken back in the saucepan (after you dump the water), add the onions and mixed spices.  Simmer on medium heat until the onions are tender, stir occasionally.  Add the wing sauce mixture to the chicken mixture and stir to coat the chicken mixture.  Stuff the peppers with chicken mixture and then sprinkle cheese on top.  Bake for 35-40 minutes until the peppers are softened to your liking and then enjoy! 
    

Buffalo Chicken Soup

I am obsessed with soups this fall, thus I have decided it is the year of soup lol.  This soup is amazing!  I ate a bowl almost everyday the week that I made it.  It kept well for a week in the refrigerator, but I am not sure how well it would freeze with the orzo in it.  If you like more spice in your buffalo chicken, you can always pick a spicier wing sauce then I used.  For all you local central PA people, they now sell Arooga's wing sauces in the grocery store and I bet that the Kangarooga sauce would be wonderful in this dish; I used their mild sauce.  I also did not use blue cheese because I do not like it, but I sprinkled shredded mozzarella cheese on it.  I found this recipe on Pinterest and it comes from a blog called Mi casa is your casa.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     1/2 cup uncooked orzo pasta
     2 tsp olive oil
     1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
     1 clove garlic, minced
     2 medium carrots, peeled & cut into half moon shapes
     2 tsp ranch dressing seasoning mix
     3 tbsp fresh cilantro, divided
     32 ounces chicken stock
     2/3 cup the wing sauce of your choice
     4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
     4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
     2 cups cooked chicken shredded
     1/4 cup green onions, chopped & divided
     1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

   Cook the orzo according to the package directions, until it is about half way done.  Drain and then set aside.
   In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil.  Saute the onion, garlic, and half of the green onions in the oil for 2-3 minutes until the yellow onions are opaque and tender.  Add the carrots, ranch dressing mix, and 2 tbsp of cilantro.  Stir to combine and cook until the carrots begin to soften.
   Add the chicken broth, wing sauce, cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, and shredded chicken.  Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender, but still have a slight bite. 
   Bring the soup back up to a boil, over medium high heat.  Add the orzo and stir frequently until the orzo is al dente.  Top with remaining green onions and cilantro, and blue cheese crumbles. 

Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal

This is a great baked oatmeal recipe.  I have struggled finding good baked oatmeal recipes that are a solid consistency....or maybe I just do not make them correctly lol.  Anyways, this is great for those who like pumpkin flavored dishes and it is easy to make.  It is not a sweet dish, so I did sprinkle brown sugar on top to make it a bit sweeter.  I modified this recipe from one I found on Pinterest, and you can find the original on my pinterst page, where there is the recipe to make a one serving amount of this.  The recipe I posted here makes four servings.  In addition, that recipe uses almond milk instead of regular milk.  I kept the dish in the frig for up to about 5 days and it was still good.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     2 cups regular rolled oats
     2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
     1 tsp baking powder
     1/8 tsp salt
     1 cup milk
     1/2 cup water
     1 cup pumpkin puree
     1 tsp vanilla extract
     4 tbsp maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 8x8 inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.  In a small bowl, mix oats, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt until combined.  In a medium bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, milk, water, vanilla extract, and maple syrup.  Add the bowl of dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well.  Stir until they are combined.  Pour into the prepared baking dish and bake for 25-27 minutes. 

Spinach Stuffed Tilapia

The hardest part about doing this blog is figuring out what to write as a little blurb before I write the recipe.  I mean it is boring just to say this recipe is good lol, but it is!  I was surprised at how filling it was since Tilapia is is light, but it is very filling.  For this recipe you will need the following:

     2 tilapia fillets
     1 egg, lightly beaten
     2 tbsp panko bread crumbs
     2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
     1 tsp Italian seasoning
     1/2 tsp garlic powder
     1/2 tsp paprika
     salt and pepper, to taste
     1 tsp olive oil
     1/2 cup onion, small diced
     2 cloves of garlic, minced
     5 oz baby spinach
     1/2 tbsp fat free cream cheese (I used the new Greek yogurt cream cheese)
     1 tsp crushed red pepper
     1 tsp basil

   Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Line a small baking sheet or pan with parchment paper; set aside.  Heat oil in skilled over medium-high heat.  Saute onion for 3-4 minutes or until softened.  Add garlic and cook for another minute.  Add spinach and completely wilt down.  Season with crushed red pepper, basil, salt, and pepper.  Remove from the heat and stir in cream cheese until it's coated all the filling. 
   In one shallow pan, place beaten egg.  In another shallow pan combine grated Parmesan and panko, shaking to combine.  Season both sides of the fish with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Place the filling on fish fillet and fold fillet over, securing with toothpicks.  Dip in beaten egg, and use hands if needed to ensure the egg is all over the fish.  Move fish to the breading mixture.  Shake pan back and forth in order to ensure the bottom of the fish is nicely coated.  Then use your fingers to press the breading mixture to the top and sides of the fish. 
   Place in baking sheet, spray the top with nonstick cooking spray, and bake for 15 minutes, or until fish is flaky and cooked through.