Jessica Merchant's Blog, page 418

Homemade Roasted Veggie Cream Cheese for a Perfect Lox Bagel.

Super toasty bagel people raise your hands.

Mine are both up.

We have our own little clique. Toasted and golden, no warm bread please.

If I come across a hugely fantastic breakfast spread, a bagel bar, if you will – with loads of cream cheese flavors and toppings and drizzles and fruits and nut butters and even vegetables, but no toaster?

No thanks. I’ll pass.

I simply can’t do untoasted bagels. Why are they even allowed to be a thing?

A few weeks ago, a craving for smoked salmon (or lox, I believe they are sliiiiightly different, as in lox isn’t actually smoked?) on toast hit me HARD. The only thing I had that was crunchy and toast-like were a bunch of seedy crackers, so I made a snack plate of cream cheese on crackers. Topped with avocado, salmon, salt, pepper and a drizzle of toasted sesame oil.

It made my life. And it’s SUCH a filling but light wonderful lunch. Or snack. Or breakfast. Or everything.

One night I wanted it for dessert?

If that doesn’t say my taste buds might be changing, I don’t know what does. I’ve picked savory over sweet a bunch of times recently and am like WHO ARE YOU to myself.

This roasted veggie cream cheese is everything. There have been very few times in my life that I’ve picked veggie cream cheese out of the options I’m given. Mostly because I’m pretty sure the store bought versions contain carrots? And celery?

Carrots? Um, no.

Celery? Oh heck NO.

Just like raisins, celery ruins everything. (I can handle the teeniest amount sautéed and softened in something like chicken soup, but no other way and certainly not raw ever.)

So while you won’t find those things in my version of cream cheese (though you can obviously add them and not listen to a brat like me), you will find diced peppers and onions and garlics, roasted to perfection. A little bit of char, juicy and naturally sweet, flavored to heaven and back. SO delicious.

And just when I thought that it couldn’t get much better than roasted veggie cream cheese and silky salmon, I did something else.

Thinly sliced, heavily seasoned avocado. Ooomph.

Thinly sliced, toasted sesame cucumbers. Eeeeep.

The taste. The texture! It’s a locked and loaded bagel.

My Favorite Lox Bagel with Homemade Roasted Veggie Cream Cheese









Ingredients:

roasted veggie cream cheese

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 orange bell pepper, chopped
1/2 red onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened

lox bagel

1 sesame bagel, toasted
1/4 seedless cucumber, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/2 lemon, juiced
salt and pepper for seasoning
2 to 4 ounces smoked salmon



Directions:

roasted veggie cream cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Add the peppers and red onions to the sheet and toss with garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, tossing once, until caramely and sweet.

Place the cream cheese in a large bowl. Add the roasted veggies and sliced scallions. Mix thoroughly to combine. (You can use a food processor if you want, but I like the chunks!) This keeps great in the fridge for a few weeks.

lox bagel

Cover the bagel with your veggie cream cheese. In a bowl, toss the cucumbers with the oil and sesame seeds. Spritz the avocado with the lemon and season with the salt and pepper. Build your bagel by adding the cucumbers, avocado and salmon on top!

the best bite.

moments 2.21.16

happiest little chunk.

Currently Crushing On.

{via}

Can I be totally cliche for a moment and say HOW are we nearing the end of February?! What the what? Time is going so fast but on an exciting note, please take a trip to Target and ooogle at all of their adorable Easter stuff. I think I’m going to find some spring decor this weekend because…

Today it’s going to be around 60 degrees outside and I can’t even STAND the excitement. I’m thinking swinging on swings and some park time and then lots of shopping and maybe tacos. Speaking of tacos, I made these fish tacos with pineapple slaw last night and you can find the recipe right there on instagram. They were SO good.

love on the internets this week includes:

this grapefruit and campari sorbet is insanely gorgeous.

craving these sausage kale french bread pizzas like whoa. LOOK at that!

this comfort food, yes: tamale chicken pot pie.

and speaking of pot pies, pot pie PIZZA.

dark chocolate, cinnamon and pomegranate porridge. oh how badly do i want this.

oh my gosh – this prickly lady cocktail?! the color!

can someone please make me breakfast tacos every single morning? thank you.

or we can swap it out with huevos rancheros, because sauce and cheese.

too cute: cherry strawberry and rose pie. those hearts.

sweet potato pancakes with spiced blueberry sauce. vegan and gluten free too!

how delicious does this butterscotch budino with pretzel crumbs look?

tart cherry tartlets. can never get enough cherry.

weekend plans include the ultimate bloody mary. yours?

Toasted Quinoa Cashew Butter Cups.

See also: how to eat an obnoxious amount of snacks.

Because that is totally going to happen here.

It’s your dream snack though, right? It’s definitely mine, if I can’t have mini peanut butter cups sprinkled in a bowl of hot popcorn, of course. (pssst. try it.)

So here’s the Friday question.

Please tell me that you’ve tried Trader Joe’s milk chocolate jumbles?!

They happen to be an incredible little pecan turtle bite made with toasted quinoa and I was absolutely set on recreating them. SET.

But. Then I got all worked up about having the caramel stay gooey and being able to cover both sides in chocolate, so I figured I’d make a copycat jumble cup. With the caramel. That sounded so much easier.

THEN I spied the cashew butter in our pantry and since it’s a current favorite (so freaking good with apples!), knew I had to use it. Plus, it’s slightly sweeter than almond butter, at least I think that it is. Which is perfect when dark chocolate is involved.

And quinoa!

Toasting the quinoa makes it so poppable and crunchy, almost like a homemade cereal or something. The texture is fabulous. So if you’re one of those people that just can’t deal with cooked quinoa dishes and think it’s a bowl of mush, here you go.

The perfect way to get your quinoa fix. I mean, these cups include a complete protein. What more could you need?

Now what are you doing this weekend? Besides making ten batches of grown up peanut butter cups.

{and drinking one of these.}

Toasted Quinoa Cashew Butter Cups

Yield: makes 8 large cashew butter cups, about 14 small cups

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

10 ounces high-quality dark chocolate (I used 75%)
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 cup cashew butter
1/4 cup rinsed uncooked quinoa



Directions:

Melt the chocolate in the microwave (I do 30 seconds on 50% power a few times, stirring after each time, and stirring until melted) or a double boiler. Stir in the coconut oil.

Line a muffin pan with liners. Place 1 to 2 tablespoons of melted chocolate into the liners and brush it up along the sides with a pastry brush. Let the chocolate set (or you can place it in the fridge or freezer to set quickly - I do this now, because you'll end up doing it with the cashew butter filling later).

To toast the quinoa, add it to a skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring and tossing often, until the quinoa becomes fragrant and pops - and also turns golden if you're using white quinoa - it will take about 5 to 6 minutes.

Melt the cashew butter in the microwave or in a small saucepan. Stir in the toasted quinoa. Spoon 1 to 2 tablespoons of the cashew butter mixture in the chocolate liners. Place the pan back in the fridge to set for 30 minutes or so. Once set, Spoon the remaining chocolate over the cashew butter, finishing off the cups. Place the pan back in the fridge to set. Eat up!!

 

if you make this recipe, be sure to post a photo on instagram and tag it with #howsweeteats to share!

Can we PUH-LEASE call this a health food. Thank you.

Dark Chocolate Cherry Chai Smoothie.

Flavor bomb explosion, right here in your face.

If you follow me on instagram or snapchat, you may have noticed that I’m kind of into smoothies right now, which is huge since it’s still cold out. I like smoothies and shakes and stuff in the summer, but in the winter I want none of it. They tend to be the absolute worst.

Hello, would you like to hold this icy beverage and drink it down and freeze your insides while it’s 7 degrees outside?

I think not.

But. I’ve been super inspired by Eddie, who has been drinking green smoothies in the morning now for MONTHS. I can’t exactly remember how long at this point, but he is still making one every single day. It’s awesome. And I really love that I can make one for Max and myself, add it to his cup and watch him suck it down. It’s too cute, like I can barely stand it.

Eddie would never go for a smoothie like this – he much more prefers fruit, spinach (never kale! ever.) milk, juice or coconut water and tons of ice. I like mine to occasionally be weird and often taste decadent, even if they are not. I need as much variety as I can get because the boredom monster strikes me daily. Um but this coffee coconut smoothie I shared on instagram earlier this week? I’ve made it every.single.darn.day. Oooomph. It’s the best.

You’ve most definitely heard me ramble on since last September about how much of chai fan I am NOT. Until I made those cookies. Which led to these cupcakes. Which led to even ordering chai lattes and stuff and well, that really blew the top off. Now I’m just chai-ing all things with reckless abandon.

It’s freaking fabulous.

AND. I’m loving that this one is packed with protein, but doesn’t use protein powder. I waaaay overdid it with that in the early 2000s and it mostly all makes me cringe. At the same time, I’ve learned how much fuel I need to feel good while chasing Max all day, and let’s just say it’s a LOT. Gotta eat good to feel good.

For this one, I always start with a version of chai spice mixture (usually minus the black pepper, because I’m a child) and go from there. In this case, I added half to the smoothie and a sprinkle on top. Just don’t inhale!

Uh, also? These metallic gold paper straws I found at Michaels a few weeks ago are everything. The universe knows that drinking out of paper straws is complete misery and usually just an instagram trick, unless you’re downing your beverage in 31 seconds. But I can’t stop drinking out of these because they make my days feel fun. Just means I inhale smoothies.

And mojitos.

Oops.

Dark Chocolate Cherry Chai Protein Smoothie.

Yield: makes 2 servings

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen pitted dark cherries
1 cup plain greek yogurt (I like 2% the best)
1/2 cup milk (I'm currently obsessed with cashew milk)
1/2 cup ice
3 tablespoons hemp hearts
2 tablespoons almond butter
2 tablespoons unsweetened dutch process cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
half of the chai spice mixture below
pinch of salt
for topping: hemp heart sprinkles, frozen cherries, chocolate curls

 

chai spice

1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice



Directions:

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until pureed. Taste and if desired, add more chai spice! If you want your smoothie sweeter, you can add a pitted date or two. I find that the frozen cherries I buy (from Trader Joes) are pretty sweet and get the job done.

Top the smoothie with extra hemp heart sprinkles, another cherrie or two, a few shakes of the chai spice and if desired, chocolate curls!

Cherry peekaboo is adorable.

Toasted Coconut Overnight Oats.

I don’t even KNOW how I can convey my love for these little honey-dripping jars.

But I’m going to try. Because coconut overnight oats! What practically all breakfasts should taste like forever, unless you want bacon and eggs.

They kind of look like the grown up version of sand art.

Without the sand. And without the art.

And with your breakfast!

Okay I’ll stop.

So here’s the deal.

I’ve always enjoyed the concept of having a breakfast right there in the fridge first thing in the morning, the moment you wake up. One that isn’t a granola bar or even a banana, stuff like that. But I didn’t truly appreciate it until, well, right now. Right now as in: life with Max.

Real life, I can’t even remember and/or would be slightly embarrassed to tell you some of the things I have grabbed out of desperation first thing in the morning over the last year. The problem is that I’ve ALWAYS been a breakfast person. I mean, I guess it’s an excellent problem to have. I’ve never been one to skip breakfast. So I know I need something, and with it being my favorite meal (though mostly my favorite at dinner… ), I WANT something.

Choices have included but are not limited to a leftover scone that sat out overnight, an expired container of yogurt and a cookie (or four). That is, if I don’t want what Max usually eats, which is some scrambled eggs and fruit and cheerios or a yogurt pouch. Unexpired for him of course, lucky dude.

The worst part is that my instagram explore page is always flooded with the MOST incredible photos of breakfasts first thing in the morning – smoothie bowls galore, these layered parfait things, ten kinds of toast (that don’t include peanut butter or jelly) and huge oatmeal bowls. And I’m like whyyyyyyy can’t that be my kitchen. ASAP.

And while my personal favorite at-home breakfast meal is avocado toast with eggs, I actually prefer to have it a lunch. After I’m sufficiently caffeinated. Breakfast quirks, let me hear you.

These adorable little jars are filled with coconut yogurt, coconut milk, toasted coconut and oats! A touch of honey too, along with some chia. It’s a coconut lover’s dream. It’s even really delicious if you don’t like the texture of coconut but adore the flavor. Like Eddie. Thank you coconut rum for teaching him the flavor is spot on perfect.

No thank you to sweetened shredded coconut, which squeaks between teeth and turns half of the population off.

I also layered in some vanilla almond butter (justin’s!) because I just kind of need something else with my overnight oats. Plus… vanilla almond butter. It’s so freaking wonderful.

Also, as a note, sometimes I like to let mine sit at room temperature for awhile. I don’t love food at severe temperatures, be it hot or cold (except for ice cream, of course, since I know you’re wondering), so I’ll take it out of the fridge, make Max breakfast and then sit down to this situation.

But let’s be real. I’m rarely sitting down. That is horrible but true. I’m scared of what it will look like with another kid or two. So scared that I rhyme.

Ohhhh and to top it all off, and make it somewhat high maintenance after I just talked about really needing a breakfast that isn’t high maintenance at all ever, I caramelized some pineapple for the top. You totally don’t need to caramelize it, but it’s delish. Or you can simply just cut up some pineapple and kiwi and go from there. It’s fantastic. That combo is life.

Plus more coconut.

Plus more honey drizzle.

Plus all the good feels. Breakfast is forever.

Toasted Coconut Overnight Oats

Yield: makes 2 servings

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats
1 (15 ounce) can coconut milk (light or full-fat, your choice!)
1/2 cup greek yogurt, preferably coconut flavored! (I used siggi's)
1/4 cup toasted unsweetened, flaked coconut (I use bob's red mill), plus extra for topping
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup almond butter (I use justin's)
for serving: extra toasted coconut, almond butter, sliced kiwi, honey for drizzling

honey caramelized pineapple

1/2 cup pineapple chunks or spears
1 tablespoon honey



Directions:

Note: to toast the coconut, I simply place a 1/2 cup or so in a dry pan and set it over low heat. I cook, stirring often, until it is golden brown and fragrant. Don't leave it unattended - it will burn!

In a large bowl, stir together the oats, coconut milk, yogurt, toasted coconut, honey, chia seeds and vanilla extract until combined.

In two jars, bowls or containers, layer 1 to 2 tablespoons of almond butter into each and press it on the bottom of the jar. Top each with equal spoonfuls of the overnight oat mixture. Add another tablespoon or so of the almond butter (basically, finish what you have) and top with the remaining oats. I like to top it with more toasted coconut then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.

When ready to serve, top the oats with the pineapple, sliced kiwi, a bit more almond butter and toasted coconut. Drizzle everything with honey and go at it!

honey caramelized pineapple

Add the pineapple to a skillet over medium heat and add the honey. Cook, tossing and stirring often, until the pineapple becomes golden and caramely.

if you make this recipe, be sure to post a photo on instagram and tag it with #howsweeteats to share!

Now I’m really done.

Tuesday Things.

1. Does anyone actually love cacao nibs? Seriously.

2. Whaaaaat. This soft meringue s’mores crumble. With blood orange. Cue brain explosion.

3. You know how I’m always talking about my mombrain? On Saturday night Eddie started freaking out while looking for his credit card, thinking he lost it. He was holding it in his hand. Boom.

4. Speaking of Eddie, I ordered him Tom’s Mom’s cookies for Valentine’s day! Of course, my computer was sitting open, with my email RIGHT THERE the week before and he said “hey why did you order tom’s mom’s cookies?!” Surprise fail.

5. Have you ever had a dream that is SO real, you wake up and think it has actually happened? That was me last night and I am still so mad at Eddie. For my dream. He definitely cheated on me with a super model who had a blogger’s name.

6. Gwen’s new song. I can’t stop.

7. Guys. I seriously don’t know if I can continue to watch The Walking Dead. Eye phobia, as mentioned below? Check. I’m so invested in the characters and we’re so far in that nothing good can come of this. Ugh. But it was possibly the best episode yet? And my boyfriend Daryl was awesome. Oh oh and Billions? Freaking loooove Damian Lewis. Maybe because he looks like Eddie sometimes. Gingers unite. The little twists and turns took me by surprise this week! I can’t stand Wags. I looooove Lara and Wendy (aka, Tara).

8. Creating a habit for almost anything in a year? Read right here.

9. Who has eyelash extensions? Tell me about them. Do they ruin your real eyelashes? I have an extreme phobia of things coming close to my eye (going to the eye doctor is super fun), so that would probably pose a problem. But I’m intrigued.

30 Minute Greek Chicken Lettuce Cups with Avocado Tzatziki.

Oh hiiii.

Did you have the most romantic weekend ever?

Are you eating your way out of the heart shaped box of truffles because right now, it’s pretty much like, what resolutions?

I’m going to save your soul then. With chicken and salad in a cup of lettuce. I swear it is about 673% better than it sounds.

This is very much a combo of some of my favorite recipes. First, the greek chicken pitas in Seriously Delish, which you can also find a version of here. And second, this greek salad, which I love oh so freaking much because it marinates and sits and soaks up loads of flavor.

And it’s vinegary beyond belief. Vinegar FTW always. Something about feta + seasoning + vinegar-based dressings make me lose my marbles. In a good way.

P.S. this salad makes a ton. You’ll adore the leftovers.

The chicken can be made in 20 minutes. Actually, waaay less than 20, about 12. Of course, if you want tons and tons of flavor, you could marinate it overnight. But simply flavor it up and stick it under the broiler. This is the method that we’ve been using for all of our chicken lately. In fact, for at least six months of so – after finding this spicy honey chicken recipe last spring. It is SO good. And sosososo simple.

That’s what we need right this second, right? I mean especially with all the stress of wondering if Leo is finally going to get an Oscar.

Something easy, to keep us in check.

Also, let’s talk lettuce cups. Mine must be butter lettuce or even, wait for it… iceberg. It just works! I love the fresh crisp crunch. And if I don’t want iceberg, then it HAS to be butter because that is so super soft and smooth and dreamy. Don’t even give me romaine and if you think I can possibly wrap something up in swiss chard, we clearly don’t know each other very well. That is waaaay too much crunchy greenery for my liking. Totally wish I could get into it, but it’s a lost cause.

At least for now.

But there’s avocado tzatziki. Eeeeeep. !!!

I simply threw an avocado into the food processor with my greek yogurt, dill, cucumber and a few other delicious things. While this took away a bit of the tang from the yogurt, it added such a delicious richness. Combined with the dressing on the greek salad and the teeny crumbles of feta?!

Dead. Just completely and utterly dead.

Guys. I have had the most MAJOR recipe fails the last couple of weeks, so this was born after a day of nothing working at all. I made these stupid egg cup things three times with no luck. Two recipes of granola bars fell apart and I burnt the ever living heck out of chicken and filled the entire house with smoke. I do that (fill the house with smoke) on a weekly basis (at least) but this was next level filling the house with smoke.

I was so hungry that I’d eat a plate of vegetables, and when I’m feeling that way, I go for it.

And we have a winner!

30 Minute Greek Chicken Lettuce Cups with Avocado Tzatziki

Yield: serves 4

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

chicken

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 lemon, zest freshly grated and juice
2 tablespoons honey
8 to 10 fresh butter lettuce leaves

salad

2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/3 cup roasted red peppers, chopped
1 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 cup pitted kalamata olives, some sliced if desired
6 ounces feta
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
2 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

avocado tzatziki

1 avocado
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 seedless cucumber, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper



Directions:

Heat the broiler in your oven to the highest setting with the oven rack about six inches below (I set my rack on the second-highest level.) Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray. Place the chicken in the dish.

Stir together the salt, pepper, dill and garlic. Cover the chicken evenly on both sides. Place it directly under the broiler and broil for 6 minutes, then flip the chicken and broil for 6 minutes more. While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the honey, lemon juice and lemon zest. Once the chicken is finished, brush the honey mixture on top and broil for 2 more minutes. Flip the chicken, brush the other side and broil 2 minutes move. Remove from the oven and let cool, then slice.

To assemble the lettuce cups, spread some tzatziki in the bottom of the butter leaf. Top with the greek salad, the chicken, and any extra feta.

salad

Place the shallots, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, olives and half of the feta in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, garlic, dill, oregano, salt and pepper. Slowly stream in the olive oil and whisk until the dressing comes together. Pour it over the vegetables and let sit under ready to use. You can store this in the fridge, even overnight, for tons of flavor! Right before serving, I use half of what is left of the feta to stir into the veg, and the other half for topping the cups. This makes for a good amount of leftovers! I keep mine sealed in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

avocado tzatziki

Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until combined. You can leave this as chunky or as smooth as you'd like!

so much more room for truffles now.

20 Minute Greek Chicken Lettuce Cups with Avocado Tzatziki.

Oh hiiii.

Did you have the most romantic weekend ever?

Are you eating your way out of the heart shaped box of truffles because right now, it’s pretty much like, what resolutions?

I’m going to save your soul then. With chicken and salad in a cup of lettuce. I swear it is about 673% better than it sounds.

This is very much a combo of some of my favorite recipes. First, the greek chicken pitas in Seriously Delish, which you can also find a version of here. And second, this greek salad, which I love oh so freaking much because it marinates and sits and soaks up loads of flavor.

And it’s vinegary beyond belief. Vinegar FTW always. Something about feta + seasoning + vinegar-based dressings make me lose my marbles. In a good way.

P.S. this salad makes a ton. You’ll adore the leftovers.

The chicken can be made in 20 minutes. Actually, waaay less than 20, about 12. Of course, if you want tons and tons of flavor, you could marinate it overnight. But simply flavor it up and stick it under the broiler. This is the method that we’ve been using for all of our chicken lately. In fact, for at least six months of so – after finding this spicy honey chicken recipe last spring. It is SO good. And sosososo simple.

That’s what we need right this second, right? I mean especially with all the stress of wondering if Leo is finally going to get an Oscar.

Something easy, to keep us in check.

Also, let’s talk lettuce cups. Mine must be butter lettuce or even, wait for it… iceberg. It just works! I love the fresh crisp crunch. And if I don’t want iceberg, then it HAS to be butter because that is so super soft and smooth and dreamy. Don’t even give me romaine and if you think I can possibly wrap something up in swiss chard, we clearly don’t know each other very well. That is waaaay too much crunchy greenery for my liking. Totally wish I could get into it, but it’s a lost cause.

At least for now.

But there’s avocado tzatziki. Eeeeeep. !!!

I simply threw an avocado into the food processor with my greek yogurt, dill, cucumber and a few other delicious things. While this took away a bit of the tang from the yogurt, it added such a delicious richness. Combined with the dressing on the greek salad and the teeny crumbles of feta?!

Dead. Just completely and utterly dead.

Guys. I have had the most MAJOR recipe fails the last couple of weeks, so this was born after a day of nothing working at all. I made these stupid egg cup things three times with no luck. Two recipes of granola bars fell apart and I burnt the ever living heck out of chicken and filled the entire house with smoke. I do that (fill the house with smoke) on a weekly basis (at least) but this was next level filling the house with smoke.

I was so hungry that I’d eat a plate of vegetables, and when I’m feeling that way, I go for it.

And we have a winner!

30 Minute Greek Chicken Lettuce Cups with Avocado Tzatziki

Yield: serves 4

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

chicken

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 lemon, zest freshly grated and juice
2 tablespoons honey
8 to 10 fresh butter lettuce leaves

salad

2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/3 cup roasted red peppers, chopped
1 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 cup pitted kalamata olives, some sliced if desired
6 ounces feta
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
2 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

avocado tzatziki

1 avocado
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 seedless cucumber, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper



Directions:

Heat the broiler in your oven to the highest setting with the oven rack about six inches below (I set my rack on the second-highest level.) Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray. Place the chicken in the dish.

Stir together the salt, pepper, dill and garlic. Cover the chicken evenly on both sides. Place it directly under the broiler and broil for 6 minutes, then flip the chicken and broil for 6 minutes more. While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the honey, lemon juice and lemon zest. Once the chicken is finished, brush the honey mixture on top and broil for 2 more minutes. Flip the chicken, brush the other side and broil 2 minutes move. Remove from the oven and let cool, then slice.

To assemble the lettuce cups, spread some tzatziki in the bottom of the butter leaf. Top with the greek salad, the chicken, and any extra feta.

salad

Place the shallots, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, olives and half of the feta in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, garlic, dill, oregano, salt and pepper. Slowly stream in the olive oil and whisk until the dressing comes together. Pour it over the vegetables and let sit under ready to use. You can store this in the fridge, even overnight, for tons of flavor! Right before serving, I use half of what is left of the feta to stir into the veg, and the other half for topping the cups. This makes for a good amount of leftovers! I keep mine sealed in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

avocado tzatziki

Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until combined. You can leave this as chunky or as smooth as you'd like!

so much more room for truffles now.

Currently Crushing On.

{via}

Happy Valentine’s weekend!

What is your Valentine’s Day looking like? Eddie and I don’t really like to go out on holidays in general – it seems that the food isn’t quite as good and it is super crowded. We much rather prefer to do something at home and this year, we’re doing that again and cuddling the heck out of this one. I’m probably making a heart shaped pizza and you totally should too!

My favorite thing ever as a kid was making homemade Valentine boxes out of shoe boxes or tissue boxes and decorating them. Best school party of the year, right??

P.S. if you have some spare time this weekend and want to relax, you can listen to my podcast interview on blissful bites right here.

things that I’m nutty over this week:

ten points for this one bowl chocolate rose cake for two. stunning!

and ? i love.

this is eddie’s valentine’s wish: sheet pan BBQ blue cheese chicken pizza. dreamy.

what i wouldn’t do for a spiked coffee milkshake. this morning.

i would like this DIY heart emoji pillow for my everyday life.

what we all try to achieve: cracker style thin crust pizza!

ombre conversation heart cookies. always will be a thing.

going on the menu this week: slow cooker butter chicken. loving it.

homemade strawberry nutella ice cream is calling my name.

desperately want a big bite of loaded baked potato dip. dying.

hello, chocolate frosted and rose covered donuts. stunner.

pan crisped deviled egg salad. i simply cannot. !!!!

what are you drinking this weekend? i’m thinking salted vanilla hot chocolate. it’s freezing here!