Salsa

Tomatillo-Radish Salsa

Tomatillo-Radish Salsa
Serves 8 (1/4 cup portions)

1 pound tomatillos (6-8)
6 radishes, shredded
3 celery stalks, minced
1 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
Juice of 1 lemon

  1. Peel the husk off the tomatillos. Rinse them under cold water to remove the stickiness. Dice all but two tomatillos.
  2. Place the remaining tomatillos in a food processor or blender. Process/blend until they are smooth.
  3. Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
  4. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight, to let the flavors blend together.
  5. Optional: add 1/2 to 1 minced jalapeno (not used in the above picture.)

Serve on fish, chicken or turkey. Use as a topping on tacos and burritos. Serve as a salsa with chips.

Nutritional data for 1/4 cup of salsa:
Calories:          16
Fat:                0.4g
Sat fat:           0.1g
Chol:                0mg
Sodium:          16mg
Carbs:           3.2g
Fiber:               1g
Protein:         0.5g

Note: The next time I make this, I will add one teaspoon lemon zest for a bit of color and bright lemon character.

Rosemary Chicken and Tomato-Avocado Salsa

Rosemary Chicken
Serves 4

4 chicken breasts, 6 ounces each, boneless skinless
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoongs red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary crushed, or 1 tsp dried  (I used 1 tablespoon Penzey’s Bouquet Garni.)

1.  Place chicken in a heavy-duty freezer bag, and pound with a meat mallet until approximately 1/2 inch thick.  Do this one at a time, then place the chicken in a second ziplock bag. (The first bag may have holes from the mallet.)
2.  Mis remaining ingredients together, pour over chicken.  Toss in the marinade to coat.  Place chicken in refrigerator for at 30-60 minutes.
3.  Heat a non-stick skillet, and spray with cooking spray. Place the chicken in the skillet over medium-hiigh heat for 3-4 minutes on the first side, and 3 minutes on the second.
4.  Serve with  Tomato-Avocado Salsa and roasted vegetables.

Nutritional data:
Calories:       307
Fat:               16.5g
Sat fat:            3.8g
Chol:               98mg
Sodium:          62mg
Carbs:              1g
Fiber:               0g
Protein:          38g

Tomato-Avocado Salsa

Serves 4, approximately 2/3 cup each.

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried rosemary (or Bouquet Garni)
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
1 ripe avocado, peeled, and diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes (about 24), cut in half
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese

1.  Whisk together first four ingredients.
2.  Gently stir in the remaining ingredients.
3.  Make this while the chicken cooks, as its texture is best when fresh.

Nutritional data:
Calories:        126
Fat:                10.9g
Sat fat:             2.6g
Chol:              8.3mg
Sodium:         112mg
Carbs:             6.3g
Fiber:              3.1g
Protein:           2.6g

Roasted Vegetables

Serves 4

Fresh vegetables, your preference.  I have used Brussel sprouts, onion, tomato, mini-bell peppers, cauliflower, broccoli, leeks, mushrooms and asparagus.  (If you use cauliflower, pre-cook it in the microwave for 3-4 minutes.)

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
Black pepper, and any spices you like.

1.  Fill a one gallon ziplock bag with your preferred veggies.
2.  Whisk together other ingredients, and pour over veggies.  Toss to coat.  Let sit for 10 minutes.
3.  While the veggies are resting, preheat oven to 450F
4.  Place veggies in a 9×13 pan.  Place in oven for a total of 30 minutes.
5.  Toss veggies after 15 minutes.
6.  Remove when the veggies are tender/crunchy and beginning to brown.

Nutritional data (will vary slightly based on your choice of vegetables):
Calories:       126
Fat:                10.g
Sat fat:           1.6g
Chol:                0mg
Sodium:          11mg
Carbs:          12.4g
Fiber:            4.7g
Protein:            5g

Scrambled Eggs with Sauteed Leek

Scrambled Egg with Sauteed Leek

3 large eggs
2 small leeks, sliced (about 2 cups)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salsa (I used an artichoke-garlic salsa)
Preferred seasoning (I used Penzey’s Sunny Paris salt-free blend)
1/2 avocado, mashed

1.  Slice the leeks the long way.  Separate the leaves and rinse under running water to make sure all dirt is removed.  Slice across the grain in 1/4 inch slices.
2.  Heat a non-stick skillet over med-high heat with 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add leek.  Saute the leeks until they begin to brown.
3.  Reduce heat to medium.
4.  Scramble the eggs, pour over the leeks.  Let the eggs cook until beginning to set, then scramble them until cooked to your desired level of hardness.
5.  Top with 4 tablespoons salsa, and 1/2 mash avocado.

Nutritional Data:
Calories:           475
Fat:                   39.4g
Sat fat:                8.1g
Chol:                 635mg
Sodium:             432mg
Carbs:               12.7g
Fiber:                  6.8g
Protein:             20.4g

This is a fairly big breakfast. You can certainly make it smaller by using only two eggs, or just three egg whites. You can reduce the sodium load by using less salsa (or no salsa).  But this is a meal that will keep me going all morning. 

And it was delicious!

Green Salsa Chicken and Cumin Corn

Green Salsa Chicken
4 boneless-skinless chicken breasts, 5 ounce each (approx.)
8 tomatillos, husks removed
½ cup onion, sliced
1 cup diced bell peppers, any or all colors
4 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
Herb blend (ideally a southwestern spice blend)
1 lime
Cooking spray
Sprinkle chicken breasts with spice.  Place in preheated non-stick skillet.  Cook approximately 5 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet, cover and set aside.
Spray the skillet with cooking spray.  Place tomatillos, skin side down in skillet.  Do not stir, let them begin to lightly char (5 minutes over med-high heat) then flip over.  Let them continue to cook for additional 5 minutes.  When done, remove from skillet and roughly chop.  Place in a bowl.
In a separate small skillet, coat with cooking spray and add onion and diced pepper.  Cook until beginning to soften, then add to bowl of tomatillos.
Grate the lime to remove ½ tsp zest.  Squeeze lime to get 2 tablespoons juice.  Add juice and zest to tomatillo-pepper-onion mix.  Toss.
Serves 4 (1 chicken breast and approximately ¼ cup of salsa)
Nutritional data:
Calories:          183
Fat:                  9.8g
Sat fat:              2.6g
Cholesterol:     75mg
Sodium:           223mg
Carbs:              8.7g
Fiber:               2.4g
Protein:            17.3g
Cumin Corn
1 cup (5 ounces) frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
¼ cup onion, diced
¾ cup bell pepper, diced, any colors
2 tsp olive oil
¼ tsp ground cumin (or more, to taste)
Black pepper to taste
Serve 4 (1/2 cup portions)
1.       Heat non-stick skillet with 2 tsp olive oil.
2.      Add onion and bell pepper to oil.  Stir frequently, until heated through, and beginning to get tender.
3.      Add cumin and black pepper.  Stir in thawed corn.  Stir until the corn is beginning to get tender and is heated through.
Nutritional Data
Calories:      63
Fat:            2.8g
Sat fat:       0.3g
Chol:            0mg
Sodium:    1.9mg
Carbs:        8.6g
Fiber:         1.7g
Protein:     1.6g