Tag Archives: Recipes

Fast Food on your clock!

7 Tips, 7 Recipes under 7 minutes!

 

Operating under the daily stress of working outside or within the home or trying to get a decent meal to the table in minutes can seem impossible!   You can prepare a meal in less time than what it takes to call “Take Out” drive back and forth picking up the meal. 

Cooking a meal in less than 10 minutes requires having a few staples on your shopping list and placed into your pantry on a weekly basis: Olive oil, garlic, a couple of onions, capers, olives, canned legumes, pepper flakes, hummus. Dried fruits and Nuts. Dried or Fresh herbs: rosemary, parsley, cilantro, arugula, and basil.

Always begin by washing fruits and vegetables. Place produce into a large bowl filled with water and 2 tbsp baking soda.  Rotate them in the water and take them out as needed. 

 

  1. Vanilla yogurt with flaxseed, nuts or diced fruits make a quick snack or a great dip for fruits and vegetables.
  2. For sandwiches buy a multi gain baguette and switch things up by drizzling oil, pepper, oregano onto bread, then add arugula or cilantro in addition to your other toppings. 
  3. Keep boiled eggs in the refrigerator to combine with salads, sandwiches or as a snack.
  4. Fresh fruits add taste to your meals: cherries, grapes, apples, and apricots. Washed lemons and limes for water.
  5. Vegetables cook fast:  Asparagus, cherry / grape tomatoes, Olives, Mushrooms, sliced carrots, fresh beans.  Bag of lettuce, Cucumbers, Sliced fennel or Celery.
  6. Cheese favorites:  Parmesan or feta cheese
  7. Thinly sliced: Chicken, Sirloin Tip Fish fillet all can cook within 5 minutes!

 

Here are some great recipes that can be quickly brought together in less than 7 minutes. 

7 Easy Recipes under 7 minutes!  https://eatknowhow.wordpress.com/recipes/

7 Easy Recipes under 7 minutes!

Tuna Delight

 

1 6 oz can or bag of Tuna Fish

2 tbsp Hummus

1 tbsp Chopped Walnuts (optional)

5-8 diced Grapes

Drizzle Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients.  May be served on pita bread, baguette slices, or on side of salad.  Serves 2.

 

Mediterranean Salad

4 cups Pre-washed bag of Lettuce Chopped

1/2 can of Chick Peas rinsed and dried

8-10 Olives of choice

½ Cucumber diced

¼ c Arugula 

1 tbsp Feta Cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

Drizzle Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar

 

Place all ingredients into bowl.  Gently toss ingredients together to combine. Serves 2-4 people.

 

 

Stuffed Tomato

Stuffed tomato's. Serve fresh or baked.

Minute Rice. Follow instructions on box  per serving.

1-4 large round Tomato  (Heirloom or Beefsteak)

Salad mix of choice (Egg, Tuna, Crab, Turkey, Ham)

Lettuce leaf or basil for presentation

 

Boil water for minute rice and follow box instructions. Meanwhile, Slice cap off top of tomato.  With a teaspoon remove pulp. Combine salad mix of choice with 1/4 cup of cooked rice. Spoon mixture into tomato. Serve on top of lettuce leaf.    

OPTIONAL: Heat oven to 400F.  For oven roasted tomato’s, follow instructions for stuffing. Place tomato’s in baking dish with 1 cup water and drizzle olive oil on tomato’s. Cover dish with aluminum foil, slit inch into the center of the foil with a knife, place in oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven. Serve with favorite meat or salad.

Cherry tomato's with Angel Hair Spaghetti

Angel Hair Pasta with Fresh Tomatoes

Serves 2-4.   To table in 7 minutes.

 

1 large pot 2-3 quarts boiling water

½ box Angel Hair Pasta

¼ cup Olive Oil

1 Garlic Clove (minced)

1Tbsp Capers (optional)

10 Olives (optional)

1 pint Cherry or Grape Tomatoes

Salt, Pepper to taste

Parsley fresh or dried

 

Fill pan with water and place on stove on high to start boiling water.

Saute` olive oil, garlic, tomato's for 7 minute's.

Meanwhile, place skillet on medium high heat. Add oil, garlic, tomatoes, (capers and olives) salt and sepper.  Allow to simmer uncovered for 5 minutes.

When water boils add 1 tbsp salt to boiling water and pasta.  Allow pasta to cook 1 minute. Remove 1 ladle of boiling water and add to tomatoes in skillet.  Drain water from pasta.  Add pasta to skillet and combine with tomatoes.  Top off with fresh or dried parsley and serve.

 

Angel Hair Pasta with Pesto

Serves 2-4.  To table in 7 minutes.

 

1 large pot 2-3 quarts boiling water

½ box Angel Hair Pasta

¼ cup Pesto

Olive Oil

Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

 

Fill pan with water and place on stove on high to start boiling water.

When water boils add 1 tbsp salt to boiling water and pasta.  Drain water from pasta.  In a clean bowl, add pesto and drizzle olive oil, gently combine together.  Serve and top off with cheese.

 

 

Sirloin Tip Steak

Sirloin Tip

Serves 2.  

 

¼ cup Olive oil

Peeled and Sliced ½  Onion

Sliced Portabella Mushroom

Salt and Pepper to taste

¼ cup  Red Wine (optional)

1tsp Soy Sauce

2-4 slices of 1/4 inch sliced Sirloin Tip Steak

 

Salt and pepper meat on both sides. Place skillet on medium-high

Sirloin and Mushroom's

heat. Add olive oil, sliced onion and sliced portabella mushroom. 1/4 tsp salt to taste. Allow to cook covered for 2 minutes.  Add wine, soy sauce and meat. Cover, allow to cook for 2 minutes, with fork turn meat to other side and cook another 2 minutes.  Serve meat with mushrooms and onions

 

 

Asparagus Sautee`

Asparagus spears washed and lower part of stick cut and removed.

1/4 cup Olive Oil

Garlic Clove sliced

Sesame Seeds

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Place skillet on medium heat and add all ingredients.  Allow to cook with skillet covered for 5 minutes.  Serve on side of pasta dish or with Sirloin Tip.

 

 

 

 

 

Fresh Vegetable Salad

A trick that adds diversity to your salads:  Choose 2-4 vegetables and 1-2 fruits.  Dice them to bite size.  Maybe added to a green leaf salad or served as combined fruits and veggies.

Maybe prepared one day in advance.
Choose 2 or more.  Thinly slice vegetables
Asparagus
Avocado
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Olives
Peppers (red, yellow, orange)
Tomatoes

Fresh champagne mushrooms (white) 
No slicing needed: Peas, Corn, Beans

Fresh Fruit
Choose 1 or 2 fruits. Remove pits or cores then slice and dice.
Apples
Apricots
Cherries
Pear
No slicing: Craisins or Raisins

Add 1/8 c. thinly sliced red onion, Feta or blue cheese, herb of choice (Arugula, Basil, Cilantro, Parsely, 1 ounce of chopped nuts, sprinkled flaxseed. Drizzle with vinaigrette dressing, or olive oil and balsamic vinegar. (salt and pepper to taste)

Chicken Marsala

Easy to prepare, delicious to eat!

1 pound chicken breast (butterflied)
1 cup Semolina Flour or 1 cup bread crumbs in bowl and set aside
1/3 cup light olive or vegetable oil
1 Tbsp butter
Seasoning: 1/8 tsp or “A Pinch” each per chicken slice: Sage, Pepper and Salt

Marsala Sauce

  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 onion diced
  • 1-2 Portabella Mushrooms
  • 1/2 tsp each: Sage, Pepper and Salt (if needed, add to taste.)
  • 1 tsp flour
  • 1 cup DRY Marsala (suggested FLORIO MARSALA).  i.e. (Sweet or SemiSecco Marsala ONLY for baked goods.)
  • 2 Tbsp Fresh Parsley Chopped (or 1/2 Tbsp dried parsely) for presentation

Optional: 1 pint heavy whipping cream, or 1 cup milk. Provides for a creamy sauce to serve over Tortellini pasta.
Optional: Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese for pasta.

Begin with filleting chicken breast. Place knife along the length of the chicken breast while placing the other hand on top as you carefully slide knife through the length of the chicken.  Gently open the top flap of breast allowing for easy movement of cutting the meat. Once chicken has been butterflied open you may choose to leave it as a large fillet or, cut it in half to obtain 2 chicken slices.

Place skillet on low heat add oil and butter allow to warm for 3 minutes. DO NOT let the ingredients come to a “smoke point”, it will change the flavor of  your dish.

Dredge (cover) each chicken breast in Semolina Flour OR Bread Crumbs allowing it to cook about 3 minutes on each side. Season with salt, pepper and sage. Remove browned chicken and set aside.

Allow pan to cool about 4 minutes and wipe clean with paper towel.

Marsala Sauce
Return pan to low heat and add olive oil, onions, mushrooms and seasonings. Cover pan and allow to saute for 5 minutes. Add to  vegetables flour and stir. Add  Marsala and stir. Allow to simmer for 1 minutes. ( May add heavy whipping cream and allow to simmer together for another 5 minutes.)  Top off with chopped parsely for taste, color and presentation. Add chicken to sauce and allow to simmer on low heat for 2 minutes.

Can serve by itself, with pasta or, with salad.

Poolside Silohouette? Flatten your Tummy, Choose your Foods

It’s that time of year which inspires us to get our bodies healthy for three months, so that we can sit poolside and look good.  Wouldn’t it be great if we could take our lessons learned from how to get a flat tummy now and maintain it over a life long period?  I’m not talking about being 104 pounds, but achieving our own healthy weight, so that we live a lifetime of being strong and focused, mentally intact and driven! Many respectable weightloss programs such as USANA’s Macro Optimizer, Reset also provides nutritional supplements so that you can achieve your goal effectively.

Many meals come from awesome summer foods that help to curve our appetite so that we are not tempted to indulge in ice cream and frozen Margarita’s.  The various delicious fruits and vegetables (veggies burn the most calories) will bring new flavors to your palette!  By eating 4-5 fruits and 5-6 vegetables a day, your body will have to make an effort to breakdown the food and that energy will contribute to weightloss!  Treat yourself to something new in your salad by shredding fresh herbs into your salad such as: cilantro, arugula, mint, parsley, 1 Small clove diced garlic, or basil which will become the driving force to try new summer recipes. 

A trick that adds diversity to your salads:  Choose 2 or more vegetables and one fruit dice them to bite size. Add 1/8 c. thinly sliced red onion, cheese of choice, herb of choice, 1 ounce of nuts, sprinkled flaxseed. Drizzle with vinaigrette dressing, or olive oil and balsamic vinegar. (salt and pepper to taste)

Fresh fruit drink.  Choose 2-3 fruits, wash and peel.  4 ounces of orange, pomegranate, cranberry or pear juice.  Place all in a mixer and liquefy.  May drink immediately, served chilled or frozen.

Please read the following clip from “Eight Summer Ultimate flat Belly foods” by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding from Men’s Health who recently had an article posted on Yahoo. 

“Find a way to work these potent super-foods into your diet every day, and you’ll curb cravings before they hit, crowding out much of the junk we turn to when hunger calls. The result? Well, it could mean saving 600 calories or more a day. Couple that with 30 minutes of moderate exercise, and you can shed as many as 12 pounds in six weeks!  Which is in standing with the rule that states, “1-2 pounds a  week to properly shrink lipid cells” Read more on Calorie Shifting Fad and Facts and USANA Nutritional Supplements and Products  

1. Spinach
It may be green and leafy, but spinach is no nutritional wallflower. This noted muscle-builder is a rich source of plant-based omega-3s and folate, which help reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis. Bonus: Folate also increases blood flow to the nether regions, helping to protect you against age-related sexual issues. Aim for 1 cup fresh spinach or a half cup cooked per day.

SUBSTITUTES: Kale, bok choy, romaine lettuce

FIT IT IN: Make your salads with baby spinach; add spinach to scrambled eggs; drape it over pizza; mix it with marinara sauce and then microwave for an instant dip.

2. Yogurt
Calcium is a major contributor to effective weight loss.  Various cultures claim yogurt as their own creation, but the 2,000-year-old food’s health benefits are not disputed: Fermentation spawns hundreds of millions of reinforcements for the battalions of beneficial bacteria in your body. That helps boost your immune system, provides protection against cancer, and even does duty as a cavity-fighter. Not all yogurts are created equal, though, so make sure the label says “live and active cultures.” And watch out for high-fructose corn syrup; stealth sugars are worth avoiding in yogurt and everywhere else.

SUBSTITUTES: Kefir, cottage cheese, ricotta

FIT IT IN: Yogurt topped with blueberries, walnuts, flaxseed, and honey is the ultimate breakfast — or dessert. Plain low-fat yogurt is also a perfect base for creamy salad dressings and dips.

3. Tomatoes
There are two things you need to know about tomatoes: Red are the best, because they’re packed with more of the antioxidant lycopene, and processed tomatoes are just as potent as fresh ones, because it’s easier for the body to absorb the lycopene. Studies show that a diet rich in lycopene can decrease your risk of bladder, lung, prostate, breast, skin, and stomach cancers, as well as reduce the risk of coronary artery disease. Aim for 22 mg of lycopene a day, which is about eight red cherry tomatoes or a glass of tomato juice. Plant some now for a health harvest in July and August. This Men’s Health video will show you how.

SUBSTITUTES: Red watermelon, pink grapefruit, Japanese persimmon, papaya, guava

FIT IT IN: Dress sliced heirloom tomatoes with torn basil and olive oil; guzzle low-sodium V8 and gazpacho; roast cherry tomatoes and serve over grilled fish or chicken.

4. Carrots
Most red, yellow, or orange vegetables and fruits are spiked with carotenoids — fat-soluble compounds that are associated with a reduction in a wide range of cancers, as well as a reduced risk and severity of inflammatory conditions such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis — but none of them is as easy to prepare, or have as low a caloric density, as carrots do. Aim for a half cup a day.

SUBSTITUTES: Sweet potato, pumpkin, butternut squash, yellow bell pepper, mango

FIT IT IN: Snack on baby carrots; grate raw carrots into salad; toss a carrot into a breakfast smoothie with frozen mango and OJ; roast carrot chunks with olive oil, salt and cumin.

5. Blueberries
Host to more antioxidants than any other North American fruit, blueberries help prevent cancer, diabetes, and age-related memory changes (hence the nickname “brain berry”). Studies show that blueberries, which are rich in fiber and vitamins A and C, also boost cardiovascular health. Aim for 1 cup fresh blueberries a day, or a half cup frozen or dried.

SUBSTITUTE: Açai, an Amazonian berry, has even more antioxidants than the blueberry. Mix 2 Tbsp. of açai powder into OJ or add 2 Tbsp of açai pulp to cereal, yogurt, or a smoothie.

FIT IT IN: Mix fresh blueberries into plain yogurt; blend with ice, yogurt, banana, and OJ for a 60-second smoothie; toss with baby spinach, red onions, goat cheese, and raspberry vinaigrette for a summer salad.

6. Black Beans
All beans are good for your heart, but none can boost your brain power like black beans. That’s because they’re full of anthocyanins, antioxidant compounds that have been shown to improve brain function. A daily half-cup serving provides 8 grams of protein and 7.5 grams of fiber, and is low in calories and free of saturated fat.

SUBSTITUTES: Peas, lentils, and pinto, kidney, fava, and lima beans

FIT IT IN: Wrap black beans in a breakfast burrito; use both black beans and kidney beans in your chili; puree 1 cup black beans with 2 Tbsp olive oil and roasted garlic for a healthy dip; add favas, limas, or peas to pasta dishes.

7. Walnuts
Richer in heart-healthy omega-3s than salmon, loaded with more anti-inflammatory polyphenols than red wine, and packing half as much muscle-building protein as chicken, the walnut just needs a cape and we could call it a superhero. Other nuts combine only one or two of these features, not all three. A serving of walnuts — about 1 ounce, or seven nuts — is good anytime, but especially as a post-workout recovery snack. Keep a can of Planters Nutrition Heart Healthy Mix in your desk drawer or glove compartment, and use them to lead you away from temptation.

SUBSTITUTES: Almonds, peanuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts

FIT IT IN: Sprinkle on top of salads; chop and add to pancake batter; mix 1 cup walnuts with a half cup dried blueberries and a quarter cup of dark chocolate chunks.

8. Oats
The original wunderkind of health food, oats garnered the FDA’s first seal of approval. They are packed with soluble fiber, which lowers the risk of heart disease. Yes, oats are loaded with carbs, but the release of those sugars is slowed by the fiber, and because oats also have 10 grams of protein per half-cup serving, they deliver steady muscle-friendly energy.

SUBSTITUTES: Quinoa, flaxseed, amaranth, pearly barley

FIT IT IN: Eat granolas and cereals that have a fiber content of at least 5 grams per serving; sprinkle 2 Tbsp ground flaxseed on cereals, salads, and yogurt; sub quinoa in for brown rice.”

Thank you to David and Matt for allowing Eat Know How to utilize a portion of their article!

By; Kim Crocker