GRILLED PEARS!!!

This is just ridiculous. Grilled dessert? Yup.

Ingredients:
- Pear
- Pat of butter
- Brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla to taste
- Vanilla ice cream

Cut pears into thick slices. Melt butter and mix in brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over pear slices and refrigerate until butter hardens. Place on grill until sugars caramelize. Put over ice cream.

Sesame Ginger Glazed Asparagus

We put this sauce over plain grilled asparagus.

Combine:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger

Microwave for ~1.5 minutes.
Drizzle over asparagus nizzle.

Chicken Parmesan Burgers

2 (3 ounce) square ciabatta rolls

1 garlic clove

1/2 pound ground chicken

1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons lower sodium marinara sauce, divided

1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary

1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Cooking Spray

1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Basil leaves

1. Preheat broiler

2. Cut rolls in half. Place bread, cut side up, on a baking sheet. Broil for 3 minutes or until slightly browned. Remove bread from pan. Rub each slice with cut side of garlic. Set aside.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees

4. Combine chicken, 1/3 cup marinara, rosemary, thyme, red pepper, salt, and black pepper. Divide into 2 portions, shaping each into a 1/4 inch thick patty. Heat an ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add patties to pan; cook for 3 minutes. Turn patties, and place pan in oven. Bake at 375 for 8 minutes. Top each patty with 2 tablespoons cheese; bake 1 minute.

5. Layer bottom half of each roll with 2 basil leaves, 1 patty, 1 tablespoon marinara, 2 basil leaves, and roll top.

ENJOY!!

Crab Cakes......Yummylicious!

This recipe is from the cooking light magazine and it is spectacular!

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

3 tablespoons light mayonnaise

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

3/4 teaspoon old bay seasoning

1/2 teaspoon worshesterchire sauce

2 egg whites

1 pound lump crabmeat, drained and shell pieces removed

1 1/2 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) - I made my own bread crumbs from whole grain bread!

1 tablespoon olive oil, divided

cooking spray

1. To prepare crab cakes, combine first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl. Gently fold in crabmeat. Gently stir in 3/4 cups breadcrumbs. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

2. Divide crab mixture into 6-8 equal portions; shape each into 3/4 inch thick patty. Place remaining 3/4 cups breadcrumbs in shallow dish. Working with 1 patty at a time, dredge in breadcrumbs. Repeat procedure with the remaining patties and breadcrumbs.

3. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat both sides of crab cakes with cooking spray. Add 4 crab cakes to pan; cook 7 minutes. Carefully turn cakes over; cook 7 minutes or until golden. Repeat procedure with remaining oil, cooking spray, and remaining 4 crab cakes.

Note: I used more oil than recommended and did not coat the cakes with cooking spray before cooking.

ENJOY!!!!

Ham and Potato Gratin

Grandpa would say these potatoes are "all rotten," but there's nothing remotely bad about this recipe. The best way to slice all the potatoes is with your new, fancy, food processor Christmas gift that does the job in less than thirty seconds - but a knife and cutting board work just fine, too : )

5 medium thick slices smoked ham (about 4 ounces)
4 tablespoons butter
2 pounds baking potatoes (4 or 5 of them), such as russets, peeled and very thinly sliced
3 cups freshly grated Gruyere cheese (we did a combination of mozzarella and cheddar instead)
1 teaspoon nutmeg, or to taste
Salt and pepper

1)Preheat the oven to 375
2) Trim all the fat from the ham. Chop into 1/2 inch to 1 inch pieces
3) Use one tablespoon of the butter to coat the inside of a baking dish about 14x9x2. Arrange half the potatoes in an even layer in the dish.
4) Arrange half the ham evenly over the potatoes. Distribute half the cheese over the ham. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Arrange the remaining potatoes, ham, and cheese in even layers in the dish. Sprinkle on more nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Cut the remaining butter into bits; dot the top evenly with butter.
5) Bake, uncovered, until the gratin is golden, about 50 minutes; do not overcook or the gratin will be dry and the ham rubbery. Serve immediately.

Chimichurri sauce

Your life will be better with chimichurri in it. It's an typical Argentinian sauce for steak, but goes great with chicken, too. The recipe calls for a lot of herbs, but they break down a lot and - let's be honest - you'll want a lot of this delicious stuff.

1 packed cup washed, stemmed, parsley leaves
1 packed cup washed, stemmed, fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup washed, stemmed fresh mint leaves
6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon coarse salt, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 cup EVOO
1/3 cup distilled white vinegar, or more to taste
1/3 cup cold water

Combine the parsley, cilantro, mint and garlic in a food processor and finely chop. Add the salt, black pepper, and hot pepper flakes and process to blend. Add the oil, vinegar, and water and continue processing to make a thick sauce. Taste for seasoning, adding salt or vinegar as necessary; the chimichurri should be highly seasoned. Serve within a few hours.

Chicken Stir Fry with Sugar Snap Peas and Peppers

Chicken Stir Fry with Sugar Snap Peas and Peppers

(I added onion to this recipe cause I like onion. Also, I did not have stir fry oil so for the marinade I chopped up some garlic and ginger and sauteed it in 4 tbsp olive oil and added some honey and lime juice. Once I felt like it had mixed together well enough I took it off and added some soy. Sorry for no measurements - I just did it Grandma Wilson style.)

Sugar snap peas and red peppers make this chicken stir fry dish fresh, crisp, and delicious. The light sauce made from a simple mix of chicken broth and soy sauce brings out the natural flavors of the vegetables. This is a classic example of a wonderful stir fry.

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5 lbs) - we only used two breasts
1 medium red bell pepper
½ lb sugar snap peas
2 tsp cornstarch - this amount was still a little runny. Add more for thicker sauce
2 tbsp stir fry oil - I used olive oil.

Marinade:
2 tsp stir fry oil - see above

Sauce:
1 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp soy sauce

1. Remove all of the fat from the chicken and then cut each breast into 1 inch to 1½ inch pieces.


2. Using your hand (nasty - I used a spoon), mix the stir fry oil into the chicken making sure to coat each piece and then set these pieces aside. (I let it sit for maybe 20 minutes)
   


3. Cut the red pepper in half and remove the stem, seeds, and inner white meat. Rinse the halves under cold water and dry them with paper towels. Then cut them into ½ inch squares and set them aside.


4. Remove the stems from the sugar snap peas, rinse them under cold water, and drain them in a colander. Dry them thoroughly with paper towels and set them aside.


5. In a large cup, mix together the sauce ingredients and set this mixture aside.


6. In a small cup mix the cornstarch with just a little water until it dissolves and set it aside.


7. Heat a wok or non stick pot on high. Once hot, add just 1 tablespoon of the stir fry oil and let it get hot.


8. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken and stir fry it for 6 to 8 minutes or until it browns. To brown it quickly and evenly, let it sit for 2 minutes and then stir it, flipping the meat onto the other side, and then let it sit another 2 minutes and stir it again. Continue until completely browned. (With the pieces of ginger and garlic, as well as the honey it will blacken pretty quick. Don't let it sit for to long)
   


9. After the chicken is browned, remove it from the wok and set it aside.


10. Without wiping out the wok, add the remaining tablespoon of stir fry oil and let it get hot. (You may want to scrape out some of the blackened-ness)
    


11. Once the oil is hot add both the red peppers and the sugar snap peas and cook them for 4 minutes. (I added all the veggies at once but probably should have waited on the onion until putting the chicken back in)
    


12. After 4 minutes, return the chicken to the wok, add the sauce mixture and bring everything to a boil.


13. Once it boils, add the cornstarch mixture and stir until thick.


14. Serve with white rice, fried rice, or noodles. Makes about 3 servings.