Ok, I know what you’re thinking. It’s been a while since I’ve posted. And honestly? It’s been a while since I’ve spent quality time in my kitchen. I blame it on grad school.

Anyway, today I had a hankering to cook something up and remembered a recipe on Ross Mathews’ blog. It was pretty much a smorgasbord of ingredients thrown together in a skillet. So after Jazzercise, I headed to Kroger to pick up the stuff from memory.

This seriously turned into the easiest and tastiest meal I have ever made. No joke.

Here’s the ingredients:

• 1 lb Ground Turkey (But I bet any meat or meat substitute would work great)
• 1 pkg Taco Seasoning
• 1 medium/large onion, diced
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can green chilies, diced
• 1 can yellow sweet corn (I found some that had diced bell peppers mixed in)
• 1 clove garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Salsa, to top
• Shredded Cheese, to top

I’m not a bean person, but if you wanted to add beans I bet they would be great in this.

Directions:

1. Cook meat through in a large skillet. Drain or cook off excess fat.
2. Add taco seasoning and water as package directs.
3. Add onions and cook until clear.
4. Add everything else, cook until heated through.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Serve with your choice of toppings.

Yield: 4 servings (about 296 calories, 8g fat each)

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 carrots peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, diced
• 1 russet potato, diced
• 1 can stewed tomatoes (drain slightly)
• 50% less sodium Beef Broth
• salt
• pepper
• Worchestire  sauce

Steps:

1. Finely dice onion, carrots, garlic, and celery.
2. Sautee in skillet (spritzed with PAM) or 5 minutes, or until onion is clear and carrots are slightly tender.
3. Season with a pinch of salt and generous amount of black pepper.
4. In a large pot, pour in beef broth, stewed tomatoes, 2 cans of water and combine with diced potato and skillet veggies.
5. Add a few dashes of worchestire sauce (I added about 3) and let simmer on medium-high heat for about 20 minutes.
6. Taste to check seasoning and add more salt and pepper as desired. (At this point I generously added more pepper and a few dashes of salt.) Continue to simmer until potatoes are tender.
7. Serve and enjoy!

Yield is about 4 large servings. I did a quick calorie count and each serving is about 150 calories. Eat up!

When I moved into my first apartment, one of my initial purchases was a Rachel Ray cookbook. In the cookbook, I happened upon her Israeli Spice Rub and my sometimes boring chicken-filled life hasn’t been the same since. Whenever I’m at a loss for chicken cooking ideas I whip this up and am so happy I did.

Seriously, I could go on and on about this rub.

RR’s Israeli Spice Rub:

• 1 & 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 & 1/2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (How hot can you take it?)
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoons coarse Kosher salt

This is enough to rub onto 1 & 1/2 to 2 pounds of chicken breasts. Anytime I mix this up, I double or triple the batch. It’s always worth it to have some on hand.

Here’s how I cook my chicken using the rub:

1. Place chicken breast in a dish and lightly drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, just enough to barely coat each side.
2. Rub the chicken liberally with the rub and let stand for 6-10 minutes. I’d suggest rubbing a little less than you think you need the first time, as this rub is awfully powerful (But have I mentioned how goooooood it is?)
3. Meanwhile, preheat your skillet to medium high and lightly coat with Extra Light Olive Oil.
4. Grill chicken for about 6 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear.

This is great when served with a fresh green salad!

Here’s what I did…

Deconstructed Kabobs

Ingredients:

• Trimmed and Ready Chicken Breast
• ½ medium onion
• 1 green bell pepper
• Pineapple chunks in juice [If you are like Jen and can't stand Pinepple, I bet mango or lemon would work great! Let me know if you think of any other substitutions.]
• Extra Light Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper to season

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Quarter your onion, and separate the layers. Place half onto a foil square.
3. Clean and “empty” the bell pepper. Quarter it and then cut about 3-4 pieces from each quarter. Place half on top of the onion for each pouch.
4. Take about 6 large pineapple chucks and slice them in half, place half on top of the peppers and onions.
   

   Do these colors not SCREAM summer?

5. Season your chicken breast with salt and pepper on each side and place on the foil.
6. Drizzle with a little pineapple juice and olive oil.
7. Fold up the packet and place on a baking sheet.
8. Cook for approximately 45 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.
   

   Seriously, I wish you could smell this!

Potato Pouches

[I found this recipe here and modified it ever so slightly.]

Ingredients:

• One russet potato
• ½ medium onion
• Parsley
• Paprika
• Black Pepper
• Kosher Salt
• Butter
• Heavy Cream [optional]

Directions:

1. Quarter the potato (skin on) and the cut each quarter in half. Turn those cuts horizontal and make a heavy dice.
2. Place half onto a foil square.
3. Finely dice the onion and place half on top of the potato.
4. Put 1-2 pats of butter in each pouch (about 1 tbsp per pouch)
5. Generously season with Kosher salt.
6. Sprinkle on some paprika, pepper, chopped parsley, and add just a splash of heavy cream.
7. Fold up the pouches and place on the same baking sheet as the chicken.
8. Leave them in until the chicken is done. (350 for approx. 45 minutes)
   

   Best potatoes ever. I promise!

   Next time I make the potatoes I think I’m going to skip the cream. I think they will be just as good and save a few calories