honey lime fruit salad

i love plain fruit salad with nothing on it. i just can't get enough fruit.

but every now and then it's fun to change it up. i wanted a fruit salad a few sundays ago with dinner, but not one that added jello or cool whip or something crazy sugary.

i stumbled across this honey lime fruit salad on mel's kitchen cafe a while ago and have been going crazy waiting for strawberries to get to $1/lb so i could make it.

the stars aligned. the strawberries went on sale. and make it, i did!

oh my. we all couldn't get enough of it. so simple and so amazing. enjoy!

honey lime fruit salad
from mel's kitchen cafe (link above)

4-6 servingscute little 3 year old couldn't keep her fingers out of the salad!

1 (20 oz.) can pineapple chunks, drained well
1 can mandarin oranges, drained well
2-3 ripe kiwi, peeled and sliced into thick half moons
1 cup green grapes, halved
1 cup strawberries, quartered
Zest from one lime, about 1 tablespoon
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon poppy seeds (optional)

combine the fruit in a medium-large serving bowl. add the lime zest and poppy seeds, if using, and gently toss. drizzle the honey over the fruit and again, gently mix until the fruit is evenly coated with the honey. serve.

comfort food makeover

the season for comfort food is quickly coming to a close. we were at 80 degrees yesterday!

while that is wonderful i find myself a little sad this year, not having made as much comfort food as i would have liked with hubby eating dinner at work most of the winter.

so we're trying to squeeze a few more in.

i love that creamy casserole thing with chicken and broccoli and lots of cheese. i recently figured out it's called broccoli chicken divan.

the problem with it is the problem with most comfort food - the veggies are an afterthought and the main show is the butter and cheese. same with this dish - it's mostly cheese and butter, negating all the good of the broccoli and chicken.

so i fixed it. lots more broccoli. lots less cheese and butter. delicious result and much better for you. just ask my little monsters who both pounded through their huge servings of it last night. :) (for those of you who know my little guy - don't tell him there was cheese in it! ahhh! bad mom award!)

and it uses my new favorite seasoning - kirkland's no salt seasoning, available at costco. it's a little pricey so ask for it for easter or something! :) it's great on everything i've put it on.

healthier broccoli chicken divan
6 main dish servings

3-4+ cups steamed broccoli florets (i filled 1/2 of my 13x9 with broccoli, adjust on if your family is iffy on broccoli; less if they are, more if they aren't)
1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
salt, pepper, no salt seasoning
1 can 98% fat free cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
1/4-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (adjust to your liking)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon coriander (adjust to your liking)
2 cups (approximately) grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 heaping cup crushed reduced fat ritz crackers
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. cook chicken seasoned with salt, pepper and no salt seasoning. set aside.
2. combine soup, milk, garlic powder, coriander and a few dashes of no salt seasoning. stir well.
3. place broccoli into a 13x9 glass baking dish. top with chicken. pour soup mixture evenly over the top. top with cheddar cheese to your liking.
4. combine crushed crackers and melted butter in a bowl. sprinkle evenly over casserole in baking dish.
5. bake at 350 for 12 minutes, the turn up oven to 450 and continue baking until browned on top to your liking. watch it carefully so you don't burn the crackers!
6. serve over brown rice or mashed potatoes, or eat it plain and let the crackers on top be your carb for the meal! (i ate mine plain and it was awesome.)

five ingredient fridays: vanilla and cinnamon fruit salad

sorry... it's saturday. i know.

this salad is sooooo yummy! my 1 year old would eat it by the truck load. it tastes like a treat, but it's good for you. no sugar even.

they were serving samples of something like it at my gym a few months ago and i knew i had to recreate it! here it is!

vanilla and cinnamon fruit salad
4 snack servings

1 sweet apple (so no tart ones like granny smith) , grated
1 pear, grated (peel it if pear skin is too rough for you)
1 banana, grated (has to be ripe for flavor, but still firm... and really grate it, sounds weird but it's a consistency thing in the salad - don't mush it)
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
less than 1/8 teaspoon vanilla

1. combined apple, pear, cinnamon and vanilla. stir to combine. gently fold in bananas.
2. if you have extra, store in refrigerator and enjoy for 1-2 days.

jamaican chicken

wow, people! i'm really disappointed in the lack of enthusiasm for my last two posts. these are some seriously amazing meals. both 9 out of 10s at our house. i hope you're all too busy making and eating them (or at least drooling over them) to comment. :) you are out there, right?

on to the chicken. i'm always up for a good chicken marinade. it makes for such a simple meal to have yummy chicken to serve with rice, potatoes, veggies, etc.

we love this marinade at our house. really distinct and perfect flavor. it looks spicier than it is. enjoy!

jamaican-spiced chicken
from cooking light, here
(only real modification is same amount of chicken, but more marinade!)

1/2 cup diced red onion
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped, seeded jalapeno pepper
4 teaspoons cider vinegar
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon all spice
1 teaspoon thyme (i use a little less)
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper (i just use crushed red pepper)
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs or 2 large chicken breasts, butterflied

1. combine first 10 ingredients in large bowl. add chicken, tossing to coat. let thighs sit in fridge to marinate for 30 minutes and breasts for 4 hours or so. cook on hot grill until done(or dry pan fry with cooking spray if you prefer). brush with extra marinade as it cooks.

serve with your favorite side dishes and veggies!

apple poppyseed spinach salad

with a little bit of the apple poppy seed dressing left over from the magical coleslaw and a bag of spinach on the verge of wilting in my fridge, there was nothing to do but create a salad to go with my sunday night roast and mashed potato dinner.

this might be my new favorite salad - made by me, panera bread, cafe rio or anyone else for that matter. use your leftover apple poppyseed dressing and whip this one up!

apple poppy seed spinach salad

baby spinach
slices of a sweet apple (i used fujis)
feta cheese
craisins
roasted almonds or walnuts (both good - whatever your preference)
apple poppy seed dressing (here)

1. no exact recipe here - just top a pile of spinach with apple, feta, craisins and nuts and then toss it with the apple poppy seed dressing. viola!

then let your mouth water between bites.

bbq pulled pork and magic coleslaw sandwiches

okay.... here it is! the magic cole slaw. this stuff has changed my life.

let me start from the beginning. back in may when we moved a friend from my church offered to bring us dinner one night while we were getting settled in. she showed up with bbq pulled pork (yum), trader joe's ciabatta buns (yum), sun chips (yum), fruit salad (yum) and cole slaw (yikes!)... to put on the sandwiches (double yikes!).

since it would be rude not to try it, i decided i'd better.and wow! am i glad i did!

so i asked her what she put on the magical cole slaw (that's a direct quote). "girard's apple poppyseed dressing," she said.
problem: my budget doesn't do salad dressings that cost $4.99 (on my budget i have $7 total per day to feed my family. $5 for salad dressing doesn't work.)

solution: replicate the dressing. done! it's close enough to give the same effect on the sandwiches and hubby likes it better than girard's. so ha!

this really is a great, tasty, well-balanced meal when you add the coleslaw. cabbage is amazing for you.

bbq pulled pork and magic coleslaw sandwiches
enough coleslaw for 6 sandwiches

pulled pork:
a lean pork roast (size of your choosing)
your favorite bbq sauce (we love sweet baby rays - you can find it at walmart)

trim pork roast of excess fat and place in crock pot. smother with tons of bbq sauce (if you're not sure about how much to add, just make sure to check it a couple of times throughout the day and add more if it's looking dry). cook 8-10 hours on low. shred at the end and add more bbq sauce if it needs more.

magic coleslaw:
1 bag of prepared coleslaw
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cup apple poppyseed dressing (recipe below)

mix coleslaw and dressing together in a bowl.

the bovine's apple poppyseed dressing:
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons frozen apple juice concentrate
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons light tasting olive oil
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon molasses (optional)
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
4 to 6 dashes salt, or to taste
1 tablespoon poppyseeds

combine all ingredients but poppyseeds in a blender. mix well until blended. add poppyseeds. mix well. refrigerate 4+ hours to let onions rehydrate and flavors meld.

put the sandwich together:

toast ciabatta buns (we like walmart's). top with pulled pork and more coleslaw than you think you'll want. serve with lots of napkins. :)

freeze leftover bbq pulled pork for [the following week] when you crave the sandwiches again. thaw in fridge over night. heat and serve.

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you'll have extra dressing. what should you do with it? an apple poppy seed spinach salad up next to use it up! stay tuned!

snack time!

holiday blogging hiatus is over!

it feels good to be back, though it feels a little frustrating since hubby is gone until 10pm for the next three months. we're doing lots of kid-friendly, non-interesting food around here. but that's okay. i like kid food.

my mom packed awesome school lunches. one of my fondest school lunch memories is peanut butter and jelly on graham crackers. now i try not to eat it for lunch but i do eat it for a late night "non-dessert" snack once in a while. here it is for your enjoyment - with the trick that makes it eatable!

graham cracker pb&j

graham crackers
peanut butter (jiff reduced fat is my favorite... only because it's sweeter than regular pb)
grape jelly (try others - this is my go to for this snack though)

1. spread a thin layer of peanut butter on a graham cracker. spread a thin layer of jelly over that. top with another graham cracker.
2. ****here's the trick: let them sit for at least 30 minutes (or lots longer in a school lunch) so the crackers get slightly softer so it doesn't crunch and get as many crumbs all over the place when you bite into it.

next up - a magic cole slaw for people who don't like cole slaw. i would know - because i don't like it. :)

and more pb&j just for fun...