Strawberry Sauce

A couple of years ago I bought The Best of Cooking Light and was mesmerized by the Strawberry-Almond Cream Tart on the front cover. On a Sunday afternoon I made this beauty and learned two things: 1. From start to finish this recipe was very time-consuming (albeit delicious) and 2. The strawberry topping, on the other hand, was easy to prepare and could be used in multiple ways. I haven't made this again since (see lesson #1) but this strawberry sauce shows up in my kitchen multiple times a year.

According to Publix' advertisting, strawberries are at their season's peak (as evidenced by their current 3 for $5 deal), so it's a great time to pull out your food processor and make this delectable sauce. Make sure to look for bright red berries as the dark ones aren't as fresh, and the bigger the berry the better as the small ones tend to be a little more tart. I use closer to 1/2 cup of sugar than the 2/3 the recipe calls for as I don't like the sauce to be too coyingly sweet. As I said, the preparation is very easy. The result is this beautiful bright red sauce that is perfect topped onto pancakes, stirred into oatmeal, drizzled on top of ice cream, or spread onto a piece of toast.


Strawberry Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 cups small fresh strawberries (one package)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Place strawberries in food processor; process until pureed. Combine strawberry puree, 2/3 cup sugar, and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.


Adapted from Cooking Light

Chicken with Brussels Sprouts, Rosemary Potatoes and Mustard Sauce

I'll start off by saying I'm not a huge fan of chicken. Yes, it's versatile and can be prepared many ways, but I often find that it dries out too easily, and when it does, I consider it an epic fail. Low and behold, this dish changed my mind about chicken (well at least this time, anyways).

The chicken is cooked first and then rests while the sauce is prepared. Like other meat, and especially with chicken, you want to keep the juices in for as long as you can - if you cut it as soon as it's done, they come spilling out and you end up with, well, a dried piece of meat. I made sure to time everything perfectly so that the potatoes would be ready to come out of the oven at the same time my brussels finished up. Many a time I forget this important step and end up with one of my sides (or even my main, gasp!) ending up cold in the process.

Preparing brussels take a little bit of work but I did this step earlier in the day so I could just throw them in later when needed. First, you must chop off the hard base - a sharp knife makes this easy. Next, peel off some of the tough outer dark green layers with your fingers. Finally, slice them in half lengthwise. Everything else was a snap to put together. I substituted Dijon mustard for whole-grain since I'm not a fan of this tangy variety, and I used packaged apple cider mix instead of purchasing a half gallon of the prepared stuff.

The mustard sauce was delicious as hints of apple came through without overpowering the other flavors. The combination of butter and olive oil to cook the brussels in was really nice. It was just enough to give you that buttery flavor without it seeming too oily. Finishing them off with chicken broth made them tender underneath the partially caramelized exterior. The rosemary potatoes were wonderful. We have more rosemary than we know what to do with in our garden (look for a future post using this wonderful herb!), so this was a great way to incorporate our bounty into a meal. They were crispy on the outside and pillowy-soft in the middle - just what you want from potatoes. Beginning to end this meal only took about half an hour to cook and could definitely make it on your weeknight rotation. Pour yourself up a glass of chardonnay and enjoy!


Chicken with Brussels Sprouts and Mustard Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided 
• 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 3/8 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 1/4 cup unfiltered apple cider
• 2 tablespoons whole-grain Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 12 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved 

Preheat oven to 450°. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper; add to pan. Cook 3 minutes or until browned. Turn chicken; place pan in oven. Bake at 450° for 9 minutes or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Heat pan over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup broth and cider; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 4 minutes or until thickened. Whisk in mustard, 1 tablespoon butter, and parsley.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add Brussels sprouts; sauté 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Add remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/4 cup broth to pan; cover and cook 4 minutes or until crisp-tender. Serve sprouts with chicken and sauce.


Adapted from Cooking Light



Rosemary Potatoes

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 12 ounces quartered red potatoes 

Preheat oven to 450°. Combine olive oil, thyme, rosemary, salt, black pepper, and potatoes in a bowl. Spread potatoes on a jelly-roll pan. Bake at 450° for 25 minutes or until golden brown and tender.


Adapted from Cooking Light 

Bananas Foster French Toast

With the normal workweek being so busy, for breakfast I usually opt for something simple and healthy such as cereal, oatmeal, or a bagel. My weekends, however, are pretty laid back and wide open. For breakfast my husband or I usually whip up something a little more complex and sometimes downright decadent. One Saturday night my husband and I were watching the Food Network and a preview for Diners, Drive-ins and Dives came on, giving a sneak peak of Bananas Foster French Toast. We looked at one another and said we MUST make this tomorrow morning. After a quick search on the internet, I came across this recipe. It was simple, I had most of the ingredients on hand, and best of all, it sounded delicious.

I halved the recipe since there were just 2.5 of us and made a couple of substitutions: I used light butter made with olive oil, 2 whole eggs instead of the 3 plus 3 yolks it called for, 1% milk in place of the whole milk/whipping cream combo and used honey wheat bread (it was all we had on hand). This made the french toast feel less heavy. The sauce for this recipe is really what makes the dish. It is velvety and super sweet, and you only need a little bit for each serving as it goes a long way.

The key to making french toast is to dip the bread into and out of the custard quickly. If you linger too long, your french toast will be a sopping mess that never reaches that golden crisp texture you want. You also want to watch your temperature and make sure the pan doesn't get too hot or you'll have crispiness, but of the black-charred nature.  Make sure that your bananas are cut thick and put them in at the last minute so they don't fall apart and become gooey. Save this recipe for a weekend breakfast treat - your family will love it!

Bananas Foster French Toast

Ingredients

• 4 ounces (1 stick )unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 4 bananas, peeled and cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices
• 3 large whole eggs
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 slices (3/4-inch thick) brioche or challah bread
• 3 tablespoons (about) unsalted butter
• Whipped cream (optional)

Melt the butter in a large stainless-steel skillet with a lid over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and whisk until it melts into the butter. Add the water and whisk until smooth. Cover and set aside while you prepare the French toast.

Whisk the whole eggs and egg yolks in a large bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in the milk, cream and vanilla. Dip the bread slices into the egg mixture, turning to coat and soak until they are completely moistened with the custard.

Heat a heavy, large griddle pan over medium heat. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter on the griddle. Working in batches, transfer the soaked bread to the pan with a slotted spatula and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Add more butter as needed for each batch.

To serve, add the banana slices to the sauce and cook until the bananas are almost tender, tossing gently, about 3 minutes. Transfer the French toast to plates. Top each with the banana sauce and whipped cream, if desired.

Adapted from Simply Zov Rustic Classics with a Mediterranean Twist

Rosemary Chicken Salad Sandwich

Anyone who knows me well knows I'm not a huge fan of cold cut sandwiches. Whenever I go to a sandwich shop I usually opt for some type of salad - egg, tuna, or my favorite, chicken. Unfortunately chicken salad is usually made with an abundance of mayonnaise, which overpowers the delicate flavor of the chicken. The same usually goes for recipes I've found so I tend to stay away from making it at home.

We planned to have some friends stop by a few weeks ago and as I was searching for something light to serve for a luncheon, I came across this recipe. It's a less fattening version of the classic favorite with a twist - it includes rosemary and smoked almonds. The combination of light mayo and yogurt gave the salad the creaminess you'd expect but kept it from overshadowing the other flavors involved. I used a purchased rotisserie chicken instead of roasting my own, and decreased the green onions by half as they can tend to be a little strong when the rest of the ingredients in a recipe are rather simple. The result was a satisfyingly zesty chicken salad sandwich with an underlying smoky flavor. My son wanted to eat it straight out of the bowl!


Rosemary Chicken Salad Sandwich

Ingredients

• 3 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 3/4 pound)
• 1/3 cup chopped green onions
• 1/4 cup chopped smoked almonds
• 1/4 cup plain fat-free yogurt
• 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 10 slices whole-grain bread

Combine first 9 ingredients, stirring well. Spread about 2/3 cup of chicken mixture over each of 5 bread slices, and top with remaining bread slices. Cut sandwiches diagonally in half.

Adapted from Cooking Light