Operation Cook ... Night 9

So not only did I cook tonight.. I cooked this morning and this afternoon and this evening... I will start answering to Betty Crocker.. or Rachel Ray.. This morning I made a crustless  spinach quiche.. I made this in hopes that it would be delicious and I would have breakfast made for three days.. and let me tell you, I was right... it is absolutely delicious...

Crustless Spinach Quiche

Ingredients: 

1 Tbs olive oil

1 Onion

1 (10 ounce) package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

5 eggs

3 cups shredded Muenster Cheese

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease pie pan

Heat oil in large skillet over med-high heat. 

Add onions and cook until soft. 

Stir in spinach and continue cooking until excess moisture has evaporated.

In a large bowl, combine eggs, cheese, salt and pepper. Add spinach mixture and stir.

Scoop into pie pan.

Bake about 30 mins. 

Let cool for 10 min.

Crustless Spinach Quiche

 Then for lunch I used the left over chicken from last nights recipe and made chicken salad.. which is pretty simple and I am sure you all have your own recipe for that..

Then came dinner which was so delightful.. Not only was the food to die for but we had awesome company.. Our best friends Paul and Nicole came over, I love that they come over even though they have three kids ( the youngest being 1 month old) and can put them to bed at my house and enjoy a nice dinner.. So on the menu tonight was Spicy Lime Grilled Shrimp with a side of Bacon Feta Beans and a salad.. We all felt that this meal was healthy but most parts and so delicious that you would probably pay about $25.00 per plate in a restaurant.

I know some of you might be thinking this woman has never cooked? wow she sure has good meals.. well, that is true.. however, every meal we have made is a "new" recipe so we are truly not sure until we try it.. we just pick recipes by the rich taste in food that we have..

Spicy Lime Grilled Shrimp

Ingredients:

1Tbs and 1-1/2 tsp cajun seasoning

1 lime, juiced

1-1/2 tsp olive oil

1/2lb peeled and deveined medium shrimp

Directions:

Mix together the cajum seasoning, lime juice, and oil in a plastic bag. Add shrimp, coat with the marinade, refrigerate for at least 20 min.

Pre-heat grill or skillet. Remove shrimp from marinade.

Cook about 2 min each side.

Spicy Lime Shrimp with Bacon Feta Beans and a salad with Shallot Cucumber Dressing

Bacon Feta Beans

Ingrediants:

8 slices bacon - cooked, crumbled and divided

1 (16 oz) package frozen cut green beans

1tsp minced garlic

4oz crumbled fets cheese

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/8 tsp ground pepper

2 Tbl water

Directions:

Place bacon in a skillet. Cook over med-high heat until evenly browned but only slightly crispy.

Drain grease, leaving a small amount in skillet for later use.

Crumble bacon, reserving 2Tbl for garnish.

Cook frozen bean in microwave for about 3 min, (until thawed but not fully cooked)

Stir in bacon and garlic in left over bacon grease until golden brown.

Add green beans and feta cheese, and season with onion powder and black pepper.

Cook and stir until most of feta has melted.

So those were the recipes for today.. I really hope some people try them.. Please comment if you do I would love to know if anyone got any inspiration  to try something new from my blog.

Speaking of blogs.. my husband just started his own blog.. he felt like he needed the world wide wed for a soap box as well..I mean who doesn't ? Anyway, I am so proud of him and jealous at the same time.. I feel his words flow effortlessly and he is interesting and comical and serious all at the same time.. He has one upped me for sure in the blog world.. but please check his blog out.. again if you are a blog reader you know that blogs are just random thoughts from random people.. http://randomlyatlarge.blogspot.com

Operation Cook Every Night.. Night 8

Sunday night I made Lemon Caper Chicken.. I have made this before and really like it.. We had a salad with it.. I was going to make a vegetable but we were actually not that hungry last night..

Lemon Caper Chicken

 2 Servings * 110 Calories

2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

Juice of 1 lemon

1 Tablespoon olive oil

2 Shallots, minced

1 Tablespoon capers, drained

1 Teaspoon Dijon mustard

Preheat broiler, place chicken in a shallow roasting pan. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Broil for 15 mins or until chicken is done.

Then for dessert I made Sugar Free - Carb Free - Gluten Free- Pumpkin Cookies.. Let's just call them Free Pumpkin Cookies, you might be thinking how could they taste good if they are "free" of everything? well, they are very good.. They do not get hard like a cookie since there is not any sugar but they do get crusty on the outside.. it is like having a nice bite of pumpkin pie filling..

"Free" Pumpkin Cookies

2 cups Almond meal 

(usually you can only get this in a health food store)

1 cup pumpkin 

2 eggs

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 cup Splenda or Stevia 

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp pumpkin spice

1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in your mixer and scoop onto a pre-greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 mins.

Operation Cook Every Night.. Night 7

So Saturday we ran errands all day.. got most of our shopping done for the up coming week.. we ended up going out to lunch while we were out.. we had salads.. but we had a late lunch and did not want to make dinner.. We ended up having people over to watch the UFC Fights and to play poker.. I had sliced up some hard cheeses and salami and we pretty much just snacked on that all day.. However,  earlier that day James found an awesome website called www.allrecipes.com it is amazing.. you can create an account and search recipes by how many people you are cooking for ( it will do all the math and adjusting for you is you need it for 2 or 5 or 7 or however many) you can also limit your search to only low fat, low calorie, low carbs.. you name it. Once you find recipes you want you put it in your "recipe box" and hit grocery list.. it will create a shopping list for you.. So the first place we went was the kitchen to cross off everything we already had.. It made shopping so easy.. We did go over budget this week but I think that has to do to the fact we picked recipes with items like chili oil and stuff like that which was pricey..

I am starting to really like cooking.. I think it helps to have a menu planned out..

Operation Cook every night..Night 6

So Friday night was night 6 of cooking every night and I FAILED! Well, I guess I failed in the way of cooking.. however, we did not have to pay for our dinner and we ate healthy.. James and I went to the Elk Club for dinner with his dad and his wife.. We had baked Walleye with green beans and a salad... Therefore, in the way of saving money and calories it was still a success.. Weekends are hard for us to continue the cooking because I feel like we always have something going..

Operation Cook Every Night... Night 5

Tonight I cooked another new recipe.. New, ha ha I guess I should say almost all are "new" to me... So tonight was Thai Beef Lettuce Wraps..We had our friend Monica over for dinner again and let me tell you, this recipe is SO GOOD.. there are not any carbs in this recipe and if anyone is doing the Ideal Protein Diet it is complaint with that... Today was also day 2 of my 8 min abs and 8 min buns.. today I was a bit sore from yesterday but still felt great doing it.. now, tomorrow might be a diffident story.. I have a feeling tomorrow we might be hurting a lot more.. You all should for sure try this recipe.. here is a note.. It is spicy so if you do not like spicy reduce the number of jalapenos..

Thai Beef Lettuce Wraps

Combine in a small bowl and set aside:

5 Tablespoon fish sauce

5 Tablespoon soy sauce

One packet Splenda

In a large skillet on high heat stir fry in 1 Tablespoon olive oil for about a min.:

8 chopped garlic cloves

3 thinly sliced large fresh jalapeno peppers

Add 2lbs lean hamburger, ground chicken or ground turkey 

( I used beef since I recently just bough 1/4 of a cow)

Fry until done, drain any visible oil.

Fold into hot meat mixture:

Sauce mixture

2 cups raw sliced in 1/2 inch pieces, green onion

2 cups fresh basil, chopped into large pieces

Generous "squirt of lime and lemon juice

Serve hot with large lettuce or cabbage leaves for each person to roll the meat mixture into a wrap.

This is so easy and so good.. I had a glass of Chardonnay with it but it would have probably been better paired with a  Cabernet or Pinot Nior..

Thai Beef Lettuce Wraps

Operation Cook Every Night.. Night 4

So I am now caught up.. Tonight I am making a meal I have had before it is so easy, healthy and so delicious.. I can tell you now James and I both rate this as a 10.. I am also starting to feel like I am getting back into  the groove of cooking.. today was also day one of doing 8 min abs and 8 min buns.. My best friend Lauren and I call each other on the phone (she lives in Colorado) and we put the phone down on speaker and watch the classics on YouTube.. soon we will be looking good..

Just in-case you forgot how awesome the ad was

Greek Salad with Grilled Chicken

1/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon dried oregano

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 1 garlic clove, minced

4 (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

  Cooking spray

8 cups torn romaine lettuce

1 cup sliced cucumber (about 1 small)

 8 pitted kalamata olives, halved

 4 plum tomatoes, quartered lengthwise

   2 (1/4-inch-thick) slices red onion, separated into rings

1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled feta cheese

Preparation

·         Prepare grill or broiler.

·         Combine the first 8 ingredients in a small bowl. Brush the chicken with 2 tablespoons dressing; set remaining dressing aside.

·         Place chicken on grill rack or broiler pan coated with cooking spray; cook for 5 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

·         Combine the romaine lettuce and the next 4 ingredients (romaine lettuce through red onion slices) in a large bowl, and toss with the remaining salad dressing. Divide the salad evenly among 4 plates; top each serving with sliced chicken, and sprinkle with feta cheese.

      Wine Suggestion: either Chardonnay or a pinot grigio

Operation Cook Every Night.. Night 3

Tuesday Night was Thai night.. I found a recipe that was only 236 calories for a salad.. James rated this recipe a 9 I however, rated it a 5 only because I HATE cilantro and was not paying attention when preparing it and added all the cilantro to the salad mixture.. I would make it again but next time I will put the cilantro on the side..

Thai Tenderloin Salad

1 pound beef tenderloin, trimmed

Cooking spray

3 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

6 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce

1 cup thinly sliced red onion

1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper

1 cup thinly sliced peeled cucumber

1/3 cup coarsely chopped green onions

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced

1 cup cilantro sprigs

3/4 cup chopped fresh mint

Preparation

Prepare grill.

Place beef on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 6 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Cover and let stand 10 minutes. Cut beef diagonally across grain into thin slices.

Combine juice, fish sauce, sugar, and ground red pepper in a large bowl. Add beef, lettuce, and next 5 ingredients (lettuce through jalapeño); toss well. Add cilantro and mint; toss gently.

Wine Suggestion: I would suggest a nice pinot noir

Operation Cook Every Night.. Night 2

So Monday night I made Lemon- Shallot Scallops.. By this day I was still very excited about cooking and was feeling good that I was making low calorie meals.. Not only were we saving tons of money on eating out each meal I have planed for this week are all under 300 calories...
This Scallop dish is ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS! We had our friend Monica over for dinner and she loved it as well.. This one is for sure a keeper I might even try the same recipe with shrimp..

 Lemon-Shallot Scallops

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 pounds Sea Scallops
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons butter
3 tablespoons minced shallots
1/2 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
lemon wedges (optional)

1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle sea scallops with salt and pepper. Add scallops to pan, and sauté 2 mins on each side. Remove scallops from pan, and keep warm.

2. Melt butter in pan. Add shallots and garlic, sauté 30 seconds. Add wine and lemon juice, cook one min. Return Scallops to pan; toss to coat Remove from heat; sprinkle with parsley. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired on a bed of mixed greens...

Wine Suggestion: a nice Chardonnay for your choice

Operation Cook Every Night... Night 1

Sunday night was night one.. I made.. I was all excited to start and the fact that I was starting with a crock pot recipe was even better.. The roast came out good.. James and his dad loved it.. it was only OK to me only due to the fact I have some weird thing about liking the food I actually cook.. I will have to get over that

Slow Cooker Beef Roast with Gremolata

To produce a successful slow cooker pot roast, the classic recipe needs a flavor boost (here, from sun-dried tomatoes) and less liquid than oven or stove-top versions. A mixture of garlic, herbs, and lemon rind, gremolata is traditionally served in Italy with Veal Shanks.

Pot Roast:

1  (2 1/2 pound) boneless cross-rib chuck roast, trimmed

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon olive oil

Cooking Spray

2 cups chopped onion

1 can beef broth

1 cup dry red wine

1/4 cup chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

4 Thyme sprigs or 1/2-1 tsp dry to taste

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 bay leaves

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 turnip cut into 1 inch pieces

1 rutabaga cut into 1 inch pieces

1 parsnip cut into 1 inch pieces

Gremolata:

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 teaspoon chopped fresh fresh thyme or 1/4 tsp dry

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind

1 garlic clove, minced.

To prepare pot roast, sprinkle roast evenly with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Coat slow cooker with cooking spray. Add roast to skillet; cook 5 min, turning to brown on all sides. Transfer roast to an electric cooker. Re-coat skillet with oil and add onion; saute 8 mins or until tender. Add broth and next 6 ingredients (through bay leaves) to skillet; bring to a simmer. Add broth broth mixture to slow cooker.. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours. Reduce heat to low; arrange carrots, turnip, rutabaga, and parsnip around roast in a slow cooker cook 4 hours. Remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs from slow cooker; discard. Remove roast from slow cooker; shred with 2 forks.  Make sure you use the Gremolata on the meat.

To prepare gremolata, combine parsley and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Serve roast and vegetable mixture.

Wine Note: goes well with a nice Red Zinfandel.

Operation Cook Every Night...

 I know I have not blogged in awhile.. man, time sure does fly by.. I have been super stressed out lately. We have had to deal with, well, the obvious (not being able to have a baby) as well as damage done to our basement, I have lost quit a few kiddos from my day care due to moving and going to preschool.. Which is the added stress of making less money.. Then my husband, James, throughout his back, he has a herniated disc as well as his original injury from the Army.. now he waiting to get back surgery which is making him not work.. so now I am also taking care of him as well as children all day..

I am not going to lie for a bit there I was so stressed out and felt like we could not catch a break... I really started to wonder how much more I could take..I was in a bit of a funk for a bit.. but today I woke up and decided to snap out of it.. this is not who I am.. I have had the bad luck stick all my life.. I can deal with it..It could be worse.. 

So, to get to the meaning of the title of my blog "Operation Cook Every Night"... James and I eat out ALL the time either at a restaurant, our friends or family members houses.. This past weekend in an attempt to get out of my stressed out funk and to save money since we will be drowning in medical bills soon, I decided I would try and cook every night! I know, some of you are thinking I do that every night, must be nice to have be able to go out all the time, well, you are right it was nice to eat out but with eating out always comes more calories and the huge expense..I created a menu for the week and have given myself a mini goal of cooking every night this week.. Sunday will start week II of cook every night.. I was going to say 30 days but then felt that was way too big of a goal and when I fail at things I never go back to it.. so I have made it a weekly goal.. So far so good.. I should have started this blog on Sunday then this blog entry would not end up being so long..

If you are wondering why I have decided to blog about it, the answer is simple.. I loved blogging when I did.. it is in a way a therapy.. I also though since there is absolutely no news to write about in the infertility aspect since we can only afford to try once a year and now with James back and the basement we will most likely have to wait until 2013 ( which is scary since the Dr. said I no longer could be a patient at 35 and my chances would be about 0% at that age.. The next three post that I will post back to back are what I have been cooking with the recipes...then it will be a daily thing..