Michael Symon's Salmon with Avocado Salad

I absolutely loved this fish, and although no one else liked it as well as I did, it was still really well liked around here.  Everyone else thought it was a little spicy, but I love me some spice :).  I gave it a perfect 10, Noah and Aaron gave it an 8, and Owen gave it a 7.  I found this recipe in Michael Symon's 5 in 5 cookbook, and each serving was 448 calories for 5 servings.  Here's what I did:

2 lbs salmon
salt and pepper
1 T chipotle powder (I used a little less)
grated zest and juice of 2 limes
1/2 onion thinly sliced
1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro leaves
4 T olive oil
1 avocado, sliced

Preheat oven to 400.  Season the salmon on both sides with salt, pepper and chipotle powder.  Cook in the oven until the fish has reached desired doneness, we cooked ours about 15 minutes.
Stir together the lime juice and zest, onion, cilantro, oil and salt.  Add the avocado and toss gently, then top the salmon with the avocado salad when serving.  Yummy yummy :).

Bobby Flay's Warm Chocolate Cakes With Dulce De Leche

This was really  delicious, and not super difficult, but we had to cook ours quite a bit longer to set our chocolate cake.  The recipe said 6-7 minutes, but ours went double that at least.  The cake was really delicious and moist, but I think it would've been better with a more pronounced caramel flavor from the dulce de leche filling.  Anyway, this was a fun treat, and we enjoyed it.  The boys gave this a perfect 10, and Aaron and I gave it an 8.  I found this in Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill cookbook.  Each cake was 508 calories, and here's what to do:

8 T unsalted butter
1 T flour, plus more for the ramekins
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1/4 c sugar
2 large egg whites
Dulce de Leche (recipe is in the book, or buy storebought and use 1 T per ramekin)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Grease and flour the ramekins (we made 7 of them), and refrigerate to set the flour.
Melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave or in a double boiler.  Let cool slightly when the chocolate is completely melted.
Beat together the egg yolks, the whole eggs, and the sugar.  Add the melted chocolate mixture and beat to combine.  Mix in the 1 T flour, then set aside.  Beat the egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form.  Fold them into the chocolate mixture.
Fill each ramekin half way full with the batter, then place 1 heaping T of the dulce de leche in the center and then fill the ramekin the rest of the way.
Place the ramekins on a cookie sheet, and bake until the sides have set but the centers remain soft.  Run a knife around the perimeter of the cakes and invert onto a plate.  Serve with ice cream, hot fudge and more dulce de leche if desired.

Michael Symon's 50/50 Burger

So this was a perfect 10 from all of us, this was so great, and of course easy :).  Michael Symon came up with this recipe in his 5 in 5 cookbook, and it is easy and delicious.  He also suggested using Italian sausage instead, and changing things up just a little, and we will be trying that as well.  Each burger was (gulp) 765 calories the way I made it, and it's worth every calorie :).  Here's what to do:

3/4 lb ground beef (the leaner the better)
3/4 lb chorizo
salt and pepper
sliced Monterey Jack cheese
buns
Cilantro leaves to taste
1 Avocado, sliced
1 Tomato, sliced

Mix the beef and chorizo, and salt well, then form into patties.  In a hot skillet, cook the burgers until well done, flipping after browning well on the first side.  After the burgers are well cooked, top with cheese, let the cheese melt, then place on the bun and serve with the cilantro, avocado and tomato.  (Everyone besides me had mayo as well)  Yummylicious!

Lauren's Latest's Dorito Southwest Salad

So this salad was really great, and I found it on Lauren's Latest.  Here's the link to the original recipe, and I will share what we did.  The boys and I gave this a perfect 10, and Aaron gave it a 9, because he doesn't love salads, but enjoyed this anyway.  I used my own recipe for the pork, we didn't use chicken, but you could use any meat, we used pork with Mexican seasonings.  Here's what I did, and the calories are about 500 per serving, depending on the amount of dressing you use.

3 c lettuce, washed and chopped
2 cans beans, rinsed and drained
Mexican blend cheese
Seasoned pork
tomatoes
1 avocado, chopped
Doritos, broken into small pieces

Dressing
3 T honey
3 T lime juice
1 small garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 t cumin
chopped cilantro to taste

Mix the dressing ingredients together, mix your salad ingredients, then toss with the dressing.  Serve and enjoy.

Michael Symon's Chicken with Mozzarella Salad

I wasn't going to post this, because it's so easy and similar to many things we've had before, but this was super great, the boys gave it perfect 10 and Aaron and I gave it a 9.  This tastes like summer on a plate, and it is super healthy, only 416 calories the way I make it.  This is another Michael Symon hit, from his 5 in 5 cookbook, and again, it's easy and delicious.  Here's what to do:

1/2 c plain dry bread crumbs
seasonings to taste
1 1/2 lbs chicken tenders
seasoned butter (garlic butter, etc.)
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
1/4 c olive oil
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1/2 lb fresh Mozzarella cheese, diced
1/2 c torn fresh basil, chopped

Dip the chicken in seasoned bread crumbs.  Melt the flavored butter in a large skillet, and brown the chicken on both sides.  While the chicken is cooking, mix together the olive oil, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.  Toss the tomatoes, cheese and basil together with the olive oil mixture, then serve over the chicken.  Serve and enjoy :)

Michael Symon's Fried Salami and Peppers

So this is a favorite around here, and so super simple.  Aaron, Noah and I gave it a perfect 10, while Owen gave it a 9 because it was a little spicy.  Michael Symon delivered a real winner for us.  This was from Michael Symon's 5 in 5 cookbook, and each sandwich is 408 calories, but the total is dependent on what kind of bun you use.  Here's what to do:

1 lb thinly sliced salami
1 jalapeno, sliced thinly
salt
Sliced provolone
1/2 c torn fresh basil leaves
Hamburger buns or rolls

Cook the salami slices until crisp, then when all salami is crisp, add the jalapenos to the pan and cook with some salt for a few minutes.  Separate the meat and peppers into piles, return to the pan, and melt the cheese over the sandwiches.  Place on a bun, and serve with condiments.

Make It With A Cakemix's Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

This wasn't my favorite thing, but my boys really liked it.  I gave it a 7, and the boys gave it a 9, and Aaron gave it an 8.  This was super easy, as it uses a cake mix, but the frosting was really delicious, and this was a fun idea.  I made a few changes from the recipe, because we didn't want fruit in this.  Also, the frosting has to be piped from a wide tip, since sometimes you can get little bits of cereal in your frosting unless you sift it.  Each cupcake is 345 calories, and here's what to do:

Cake:
1 box butter pecan cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 c melted butter, cooled
1 c buttermilk
2 t vanilla
1 c cinnamon baking chips

Frosting:
1/2 c Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, finely crushed
1 c butter, softened
2 T milk
1 t vanilla
1/2 t cinnamon
4 c (or a little less) powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 and line your cupcake pans.  Combine the eggs, butter, buttermilk, and vanilla until smooth.  Stir in the cake mix and cinnamon chips.  Fill muffin liners and bake for about 17 minutes or so.  Let cool.
Beat the butter for 2 minutes, then add in the cereal, milk, vanilla and cinnamon.  Then add in the powdered sugar.  Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Bobby Flay's Banana Foster's Crepes

So this is such a great dish, we love bananas foster, and this is a great way to have it.  Sorry about the upside down picture, I don't know what happened, but oh well :).  This is a basic crepe recipe with sliced bananas inside, and then topped with whipped cream.  The real star for this for me was the caramel sauce, I think it was the best one I have ever made.  The whole brunch meal was out of this world, but here is the recipe for the caramel sauce I found in Bobby Flay's Bar Americain cookbook.  The alcohol isn't necessary, you can use flavorings if you want, extracts, or just leave them out, but it will taste different.  We all gave this a perfect 10, and the calories for 12 crepes are per crepe 315 calories, and that includes one crepe, some slices of banana, some whipped cream and the caramel sauce.  The caramel sauce by itself, for 1/12, is 142 calories.  Here's what to do:

1 c sugar
1 c cream
1/4 t cinnamon
1 T orange liqueur
1 T dark rum

Combine the sugar and 1/2 c water and bring to a boil.  Cook until the caramel is amber in color, about 8 minutes.  While doing this, warm the cream to a simmer.  When the caramel has finished cooking, add the cream carefully, whisking the entire time.  Stir in the cinnamon and flavorings.  Serve warm.

Absolutely Avocado's Cucumber Salad

We ate this with our Krab avocado sandwiches the other night, and we all enjoyed this so much.  I found this recipe in the Absolutely Avocado cookbook.  Each serving, for six servings, was 165, and Noah and Aaron gave it a perfect 10, Owen gave it a 7, and I gave it a 9.  Here's what to do:

2 T olive oil
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cucumber, chopped
2 avocados, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
salt and pepper

Mix together the oil and vinegar, season to taste, and set aside.  Assemble the vegetables together with the garlic, and then toss with the dressing, serve.

Jonah really loved this too :)

The Diner Cookbook's Crab Avocado Sandwich

So although we didn't all love this meal, Owen really liked it and wanted me to blog it.  I found this cookbook in the Diner Cookbook and I wanted to try it because it was a crab salad that didn't use mayonnaise, but everyone else wanted mayo, so oh well :).  Each sandwich was 304 calories, and Owen and I gave it an 8, Noah gave it a 7, and Aaron gave it a 6.  Here's what I did:

1/4 c sour cream
2 T lemon juice
1 t dill
1/4 t dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb krab
sliced bread, toasted, with butter
1 ripe avocado, peeled and sliced

Mix together the sour cream, lemon juice, dill, dry mustard, salt, pepper and krab.  Toast your bread, spread it with butter if desired, and slice the avocado and assemble the sandwich.  Eat :)

Michael Symon's Spaghetti Carbonara

I enjoy Spaghetti Carbonara, and our boys did too, but Aaron isn't a big fan of this.  He likes his pasta with hamburger or sausage much more than bacon.  Anyway, I love how tasty and simple this pasta is, and this rendition comes from Michael Symon's 5 in 5.  For each serving of this, the calories are 389 for 8 servings.  Noah gave this a perfect 10, Owen and I gave this a 9, and Aaron gave it a 6.  Anyway, here's what to do:

1 lb dried spaghetti
3 T olive oil
1/2 lb bacon, cut into small pieces
4 large eggs, separated
1 t pepper
salt
1/4 c parsley, chopped
1 c grated Parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta in well salted water until al dente, reserving 1/4 c of the pasta water.
In a skillet, cook the bacon until crisp.  Deglaze the pan with the reserved pasta water, then remove the pan from the heat.
Whisk the egg whites until they start to get foamy.  Add in the pepper, salt, parsley, olive oil, and Parmesan.  Mix this slowly with the bacon, whisking the entire time.
Add in the cooked pasta, pour the egg yolks over, then salt to taste.  Serve :).

Bobby Flay's Thin Apple Tart

I'm so sorry about the late posting today, I spaced what day it was, which is pretty typical any more of my life :).

While this picture isn't very pretty, the food definitely tasted pretty :).  This was out of Bobby Flay's Bar Americain cookbook, and we really enjoyed it.  For 8 servings, each serving was 523 calories.  This was a great alternative to apple pie, and we gave it an 8, partly because I cooked it a little too long.  Here's what we did:

Tart Dough

1/4 c sour cream

1 egg yolk

1 1/4 c plus 2 T flour

1/4 t salt

8 T unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces

1/2 c sugar

Apples

1 1/2 c apple juice

juice of 1/2 a lemon

1/4 c sugar

1 T brown sugar

1/4 t cinnamon

2 Granny Smith apples peeled, cored and sliced very thinly

Creme Anglaise (Bobby Flay gives a cinnamon varitation)

To make the tart dough, whisk together the sour cream and egg yolk in a small bowl and set aside.  

In a food processor, pulse the flour and salt a few times.  Add in the butter and pulse until it forms coarse crumbs.  Add in the sour cream mixture, pulse a couple of times, then form into a disc, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.  (I did this the night before, and I needed to add a little water to my dough)

Spread the sugar over where you want to roll your dough, then roll the dough into a large circle, making sure to turn to cover both sides with sugar.  Place the dough in your tart pan lined with parchment, and place in the refrigerator. 

Preheat the oven to 375.

Combine the apple juice, lemon juice, sugars, and cinnamon in a small pan.  Let it thicken slightly and reduce to about 1/2 c, and then set aside.  (Keep an eye on this, mine went from super liquidy to caramel in about 1 minute :))

Lay the apples in the tart dish, overlapping them slightly, until the whole tart dish is covered.  Brush the apples with some of the glaze, then cook for about 35-40 minutes (check at 30, mine was overcooked slightly)

Remove it from the oven and immediately brush the tart with the remaining glaze.  Let cool slightly before serving with some Creme Angalise.

Michael Symon's Sausage and Peppers

This is such an easy dinner, and super delicious. Aaron loves Olive Garden's Sausage and Peppers Rustica, and this sandwich reminds me of that. We all gave this a 9, and since it is in Michael Symon's 5 in 5 cookbook, this is quick and easy to throw together. Calories for 6 servings are 348 per sandwich, but I used olive oil to brown the sausage, and that made the sandwiches too greasy, which is why they only received a 9.  Here's what we did:

1 lb Italian sausage

1/2 red pepper, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 onion, sliced

Sliced provolone or mozzarella

Rolls

Brown the sausage, then add in the peppers, onion, garlic, and season to taste. Separate the meat into portions, top with cheese, and serve.