Almond Crusted Mahi with Sundried Tomato Sauce

This meal is really just something I came up with last week when I didn't feel like making anything with chicken or anything really heavy. I just used a bunch of stuff I had on hand that I thought might go good together. The measurements below are guestimates since I didn't really measure anything out exactly. However, I did get the sundried tomato sauce recipe from Dr. Oz's website and I really liked it. You can serve the fish over couscous, brown rice, or quinoa. I served mine over coucous which is really easy to make. I buy a brand called Near East that has no artificial ingredients and takes less then five minutes to cook.

Ingredients
2 Mahi Filets
1/2 cup to 1 cup crushed almonds (I put our leftover sliced almonds in a ziplock bag and crushed them with a rolling pin)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
salt, pepper, garlic powder-to taste

Sundried Tomato Sauce
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes (not the ones packed in oil)
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions
1.Pre-heat oven to 350
2.Prepare a bowl with the flour (add in the salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste), a bowl with the egg (can add a little water if you want), and a bowl with the crushed almonds
3.Dip each Mahi Mahi filet into the flour mixture, then the egg, then the almonds
4.Place the filets in a baking dish and bake for about  25-30 mins or until fish is cooked through.

Sundried tomato sauce
1.Add the tomato and garlic to a food processor, then add the rest of the ingredients.
2.Pulse until it comes together, then add in a little bit of water about a tablespoon at a time.The amount of water added will depend on how thick or thin you want the sauce.



Recipe source: Harper's Original
Sundried Tomato Sauce:adapted from The Dr. Oz Show

Quick and Easy Tomato Basil Bruschetta

We bought a new charcoal Weber Grill last week and decided to test it out yesterday. We had my sister and her boyfriend over and made some jerk chicken, asparagus, potato salad, and strawberry meringue pie. My goal was to post the pie, but I overcooked my meringue....still tasted ok, but wasn't blog worthy. We had bought a loaf of cuban bread (the bakery was actually out of french bread!) to grill as well, but totally forgot about it!  So I decided to use it tonight, as well as the rest of my grape tomatoes and the Basil I had. I actually had to buy basil last week and it was so expensive for such a tiny box! We planted some basil seed but it hasn't really taken off yet. Anyways, I just wanted to use up some stuff I had and threw together some quick bruschetta (I didn't use any specific measurements here). There are many ways you can make it, but I opted for an easy version this time.

Ingredients
French/Cuban or any type of crusty loaf bread
Cherry tomatoes (or you can cut up some plum/roma tomatoes)
Garlic
Balsamic Vinegar
Fresh Basil
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Pepper
Mozarella Cheese (fresh would be the best, but we only had the pre-shredded kind)

Directions
1. Slice up a few pieces of bread (not too thick)
2. Rub a clove of fresh cut garlic over each slice
3. Brush each slice with olive oil
4.Cut cherry tomatoes into quarters
5.Place a small handful of tomatoes on each piece of bread
6.Top with mozarella cheese
7. Sprinkle on basil, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar
8. Stick under the broiler under browned

Just a few other variations to consider:
*Mix tomatoes together with some fresh pesto sauce
*add in some sauteed onions
*use feta cheese instead of mozarella
*experiment with different kinds of bread



Recipe Source: Harper's Original

Stuffed Campari Tomatoes

I don't normally buy campari tomatoes because they are kind of pricey but they were on sale last week so I bought 2 packages. They have a sweeter flavor than your regular vine ripened tomatoes that I really like. I searched for some recipes I could use them in and found a recipe for stuffed tomatoes. I've had stuffed mushrooms before which I love, but don't think I've ever had stuffed tomoatoes. I  made them as an appetizer the other night when I made the bowtie pasta with sausage and sage and they were gone in less then 5 minutes.  Of course it was just me and my husband so I only made 6 of them, but you could easily make more for a large dinner party.


Ingredients
6 Campari Tomatoes
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp prepared pesto (I used Basil Pesto)
1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1-2 Tbsp Asiago Cheese (Parmesan or Mozarella works too)
Salt and Pepper

Directions
1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Cut off tops of tomatoes and scoop out the insides, saving some of the juice. I used a teaspoon to scoop the insides out into a cup and then strained to keep the juice.

3.Sprinkle the insides of the tomatoes with a little salt and pepper
4. Heat olive oil in skillet and add garlic and panko until nice and toasty, about 2-3 minutes
5. In a medium bowl, mix together the panko/garlic with the pesto and 1Tbsp of the reserved tomato juice

6. Spoon mixture into the tomatoes and top with the cheese
7. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and tomatoes are softened.



Recipe Source: Adapted from Life's Ambrosia

Hungarian Goulash

This recipe comes from my awesome grandma on my mom's side (I'm so lucky to have 2 amazing grandmas!).  I've heard my mom talk about it before and how it was one of the recipes they ate a lot growing up.  By "they" I mean my mom, grandma, grandpa, and 7 other kids.  I really don't know how they did it. Eight kids? I can't even imagine. But they've always been there for our family and I am greatful for all they do. 

I wanted to try this recipe because one, it was from my grandma and two, it was something different. I love pasta and I love tomatoes but sometimes regular old spaghetti can be boring. And being that I don't eat or make red meat too often, I thought Nathan might like it too. The paprika in the sauce gives it a distinct flavor.  And although my meat definitely could have been more tender, it was pretty good too. I'm going to need to try it a few times to perfect it.

Ingredients

1 lb of beef  ( I just bought a pound of the pre-cut stew meat. To save money and get more meat you can buy a roast and cut it yourself)

1/4 Cup of Oil (I used Olive oil, Vegetable oil is fine too)

1 cup of chopped onion

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/4 tsp of dried thyme

1/4 cup all purpose flour (I use unbleached)

3 tsp of paprika

1 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of pepper

1 lb 12 oz can of tomatoes (it's the large can-I bought crushed tomatoes)

2 Bay leaves

Hot buttered noodles (I bought whole wheat egg style noodles)

Directions

In large skillet, brown beef that has been cut into 1/2 cubes in hot oil. Reduce heat and add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is tender, but not brown. 

Blend in the flour, paprika, salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaves.

Add tomatoes.

Cover and simmer stirring occasionally until meat is tender 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Stir often toward end of cooking.  Stir in 1 cup of sour cream if desired.  Serve at once over hot buttered noodles.

*As a side note, I should have cut the meat into smaller pieces.  And I also screwed up on the oil.  I thought I added too much, so I drained it off a little but when I added the flour and spices I had to add a little more back in.  And I should have cooked it longer.  I also didn't add the sour cream this time (as much as I love it) because I wanted to see how it tasted without it. I'll probably try it in there next time. For the 1st time making it, I'd say it turned out pretty good.  Nathan said he really liked it too, so I'll definitely try this again!