Stuffed Zucchini

Stuffed Zucchini:

1 medium zucchini
1 green onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon butter or stick margarine
1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 dash white pepper
2 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp Ricotta cheese

2 tbsp spaghetti sauce

Cut zucchini in half lengthwise. Scoop out pulp, leaving a 1/4-in. shell. Chop pulp; set shells aside. In a nonstick skillet, saute the zucchini pulp and onion in butter for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Add wine or broth and spaghetti sauce. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10-12 minutes or until liquid has evaporated. Stir in salt and pepper.

Place zucchini shells in a saucepan and cover with water; bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes; drain. Fill shells with mixture. Mix both cheeses and crumble on top of mixture. Broil 3-4 in. from the heat for 3-4 minutes or until lightly browned.

Panko and Onion Crusted Chicken

I made this up last night. I wanted to use the panko I had left after the Platinum Chef challenge. I originally thought about using a ranch packet but didn't have one on hand. I did, however, have an onion soup packet. :)

Panko and Onion Crusted Chicken:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup Panko

1/2 packet onion soup mix

2 eggs

Salt & Pepper

Butter Pam

Mix panko and dry onion soup mix in a ziploc bag. Whisk eggs in a bowl til mixed. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and coat with egg mix. Place in ziploc bag and shake to coat. Spray the bottom of a baking dish with butter Pam and place coated chicken breasts in it. Bake for 30-45 min or til done in a 350 degree oven.

Grilled Chicken with Avacado Salsa

I got this recipe from Jessy of Everyday Gourmet . The only changes I made was to bake the chicken instead of grill it. The family loved this dish. I had extra salsa left over so I decided to put it on top of a bed of lettuce and drizzle ranch dressing on top (see below). Yum!

Lime Chicken with Avacado Pico de Gallo:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 medium sized tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 scallions diced
2 tablespoons of cilantro minced
2 garlic cloves minced
2 limes- juiced
1 pepper of your choice-I used half of cubanelle and half of a salsa pepper
1 avocado
2 teaspoons of sea salt ( less if you are using table salt)
fresh cracked pepper
olive oil

Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of salt over chicken breasts along with pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Turn over and season the other side as well ( with another 1/2 teaspoon of salt). Drizzle chicken with 1/2 of a limes juice. Cook for 30-45 min or till done in a 350 degree oven.

In a bowl combine diced tomatoes, scallions, cilantro, garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt, cracked pepper, the juice of 1 1/2 limes, minced pepper(s) of your choce, and avocado. Chill until chicken is done.

Once chicken is done, top with the Pico de gallo and enjoy!

Here is the salad I told you about. It was really good. I have started to keep this salsa in my fridge at all times because it is so good on lots of stuff. Sometimes I will put a plop on my eggs in the morning.

Prickly Pear Martini

I was given a container of Prickly Pear Cooler drink mix as a gift. It has a yummy vodka martini recipe on it so I decided to give it a try tonight. I am soooo happy I did.

Prickly Pear Martini:

1 scoop Prickly Pear Cooler drink mix (http://tinyurl.com/6xlahm)

1 cup water

1/2 cup vodka

Squeeze of lime

Mix above ingredients. Put ice in a shaker, add mix, shake. On a small plate mix 1 spoon of sugar and some of the cooler mix. Wet rim of martini glass with lime juice and dip into sugar mix to coat the rim. Drain coctail into glass, serve.

Eggplant Parmesan

I was looking for a non-breaded version and came up with this. It is very yummy but it takes a while to prepare.

Eggplant Parmesan:

1 eggplant, cut into 3/4 inch slices
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
8 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces ricotta cheese
6 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
4 cups pasta sauce

Sprinkle both sides of the eggplant slices with salt. Place slices in a colander, and place a dish underneath the colander to capture liquid that will sweat out of the eggplant. Allow to sit for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, mix the ricotta, mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Mix in egg and basil.

Rinse the eggplant in cold water until all salt is removed. In a large skillet, heat 4 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Place one layer of eggplant in the pan, brown each side. Repeat with remaining eggplant slices, using additional oil if necessary.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish, evenly spread 1 1/2 cups of spaghetti sauce. Arrange a single layer of eggplant slices on top of the sauce. Top the eggplant with 1/2 of the cheese mixture. Repeat layering process until all the eggplant and cheese mixture is used. Pour remaining sauce on top of layers, and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese.

Bake 30 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until sauce is bubbly.