~Salmon with Mustard Wine Sauce~

Ohhhhhh my goodness!! This is restaurant-worthy salmon right here. Ah! If you want to impress your date/husband/wife/friends/family/whoever, this is a definite go-to recipe. It is also very easy to make--so you can't go wrong with this recipe. If you like salmon, or even think it's okay, you will still love this recipe. Honestly, it's that good.

I made this last week, and Jeremy already requested it this week. (Think he liked it?)

Normally, I don't serve a starch for dindin, and if I do it is brown rice. Tonight however, Jeremy requested white rice, so I paired the salmon with that and asparagus. I broiled the asparagus in the oven with olive oil and parmesan (click here for the simple recipe). Such a simple, moist salmon. Big pet peev of mine--dry fish. Yuck. Not this recipe--the salmon was soooo moist--perfection!

Serves 4

You'll Need:

4 pieces frozen skinless salmon fillets, thawed

flour for dredging

2 Tbs. vegetable oil

3 Tbs. butter

1/2 c. white wine

salt and pepper to taste

2 Tbs. Dijon mustard

1/2 c. fish stock*

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1/4 c. heavy cream

Get Busy:

Lightly flour the salmon. In a large skillet, heat the oil, add the salmon and saute over medium heat until golden, turning once, about 3 minutes per side. Set the salmon aside and discard the oil from the pan.

Add the butter, wine, salt and pepper to the pan and bring to a simmer. Add the mustard, fish stock and lemon juice. Simmer over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.

Gradually add the cream, stirring constantly and simmer until slightly until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the salmon to the sauce and simmer until the fish is well coated and the sauce is reduced, maybe 3 more minutes. Transfer to a plate and pour remaining sauce on top. Enjoy!

*Don't have fish stock? I didn't either, and I couldn't find it at the grocery story I went to. So I just used chicken stock--no big deal. It was still amazing. If you make it with fish stock let me know how it turned out.

Business in Houston

Well I had my first business trip to Houston this past week! I was excited (not that Houston is uber exciting) but I had never been there before and I really enjoy seeing new cities. Thankfully the weather was wonderful--humid and warm. It was about 80 degrees every day...and I'm totally fine with that. Apparently I missed an awful cold, wet and rainy few days in San Diego so I wasn't too bummed out. While training took up most of the week, I did get to meet some fun new people across the country and the co-workers I work with in San Diego and I had some uh-mazing food there! Here are some of the pictures from the festivities:

I probably gained 10 pounds this week (just kidding, but it felt like it). I ate such good food and so much food I was happy to get back home into my normal food routine. I don't want to eat out for a year. However, I will ALWAYS be down to eat at The Cheesecake Factory! We ate there on Monday night, and later in the week walked there after eating dinner somewhere else just so I could order another Godiva cheesecake. Folks, it doesn't get better than that. Yum. On Wednesday, I ordered the Oreo cheesecake, which was good, but I'll be honest...there is simply not enough chocolate.

My hotel, JW Marriott. We were right across the street from the Galleria, the 4th largest mall in America. How nice of my company to choose such a great location :-) The pool was on the fifth floor, and I convinced my trainer to let us do some training on the deck so we could get some sun.

Some of my awesome co-workers, Taryn and Laura and I on our last night, at the Grand Lux. (Don't mind my hair--the humidity gave me Texas hair without trying!)

There is a chain of restaurants in Texas (maybe other places too, I'm not sure) called The Grand Lux. It is a sister restaurant to Cheesecake Factory, so you know the food is divine. I ordered salmon cooked 3 different ways with whipped potatoes, asparagus and green beans---oooo it was so good!

...And for dessert (of course there is always dessert) I ordered a molten lava cake, which of course was delicious, but I will say I think the recipe I have is better--I will post it the next time I make it. It is so easy.

We had subpar breakfasts every morning, but the lunches provided by the hotel were pretty good. This day was Italian food, so I liked it.

One reason why I love the Marriott hotels...

On our last day there, we walked around the mall for a few hours till we had to leave for our flight. We came across Le Madelaine, a French cafe, and I have always wanted to eat there. I wasn't really hungry though because I had just eaten lunch, but I ALWAYS have room for dessert...especially when it is rich, moist, delicious chocolate with a ganache filling...mmmmm.

All in all, I had a blast even though training isn't always fun. I was glad to get home though. And I only have one week left until we go to Hawaii!!

~Au Gratin Potatoes~

Well these were a slice of heaven! I think I got this recipe from a cookbook that Costco gave me on Black Friday last November. I don't often cook starch anymore, especially potatoes (mostly because potatoes are usually cooked in some super fattening way...). Now, to be clear, this isn't the healthiest way to eat potatoes either, but it is a delicious way to eat them! (And according to Costco, it's healthy...) So on occasion, I will make these, perhaps on a random slow Sunday. I made these potatoes with a Coca-Cola Roast and buttered carrots--very yummy meal. Jeremy got seconds too, so that must mean something. My father-in-law Jed gave me a food slicer for Christmas, and holy cow is it sharp! It's so sharp the first time I used it, I sliced my finger open pretty good...after that I was afraid of it. But the other night I made myself use it--it's such a time saver. The only thing I will do differently when I make these next will be to slice the potatoes even thinner.

Serves 6-8

You'll Need:

2 pounds your favorite potatoes

3 Tbs. sea salt

1 Tbs. garlic powder

dash of pepper

Dried minced onions, or minced fresh onions, to taste

3-4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

1 quart low-fat milk

Get Busy:

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Peel the potatoes and slice them very thin. Layer 1/3 of the potatoes in the pan. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the salt, garlic, pepper, onions, cheese and milk. Repeat with 2 more layers. Bake until the potatoes are tender, 60-90 minutes. Done! These were so good--I hope you like them.

~Lasagna Toss~

Ahhh this is so delicious!! And this is one of the easiest recipes to make--ever. If you mess up making this, something may be wrong with you. It's that easy. If you like the taste of lasagna, you will love this--because it tastes just like lasagna! It cooks up real quickly, too.

~

I got this fabulous recipe from Jeremy's family. I remember the first time I had it, I was really skeptical. After the first bite, I fell in love with this dish (I don't know how you couldn't--it's so easy to throw together).

Serves 6

You'll Need:

1 lb. big seashell whole wheat pasta

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 jar of spaghetti sauce

2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 lb (16 oz.) small curd cottage cheese

Get Busy:

Cook the ground beef, drain any fat. Meanwhile, cook the pasta until al dente. Once the pasta is cooked, combine with ground beef and other remaining ingredients. Yep--that's it. I told you it was easy. And soooooo good. :-)

~Caramel Cinnamon Rolls~

Oh. My. Gosh!!!!! These are so uh-MAZING! Caramel cinnamon rolls are a different take than normal cinnamon rolls--there is no cream cheese involved. Cream cheese got ousted by a phenomenal homemade caramel sauce. I dated a guy in high school whose dad makes these bad boys. I wanted the recipe in high school, but he said I had to marry into the family to get them. My mom however, finally snagged the recipe from him. Yesssss. This recipe made about 30 good-sized rolls. I took them to work and they were gone in a flash (and not everyone got one). So I'll be taking another pan to work tomorrow (also so I don't eat them all...) Oh these were soooo sooo good.

I will say, it is a wise idea to make these on a weekend when you don't have a ton going on...Total time, these take almost 4 hours to make from start to finish...and honestly, it is worth every minute of the time.

Ohhh look at the caramel goodness...nom nom nom.

I honestly can't say enough of these. Much thanks to the Coelhos for letting my family have this recipe! I personally have never loved cinnamon rolls, but these in my opinion are much better than original cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting.

Makes about 30 rolls

You'll Need:

2 packets of quick-rise yeast

10 c. all-purpose flour

2 c. milk

3/4 c. sugar

3/4 c. oil

1 egg

1 Tbs. salt

Caramel Sauce:

2 sticks of butter

1 c. packed brown sugar

1 Tbs. Karo syrup

Other Ingredients Needed:

1 stick of butter

Sugar/cinnamon mixture (a lot)

Get Busy:

Dough: Place 1 tsp. sugar and two packets of yeast in 1 c. lukewarm water. Let stand 10 minutes. Heat 2 c. milk but not to boiling. In a large mixing bowl, mix sugar, oil, egg and salt. Add the warm milk; then add the yeast. Add 8 c. flour and knead in the last 2 cups. The dough should be sticky. Knead the dough for 10 minutes, until the dough is elastic-like. Place in a buttered bowl and let rise for 2 hours, covered, until it is doubled in size. Punch down; let rest for 10 minutes.

Sauce: Melt 2 sticks of butter in a small saucepan. Add the brown sugar and Karo syrup. Cook on low but DO NOT boil--maybe 10 minutes; set aside. Lightly flour the counter. Roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/2 inch thick. Spread one stick of room-temperature butter across the dough. Cover with a cinnamon/sugar mixture (heavy on the cinnamon)--and seriously, put a lot. Roll; cut about 1 inch thick with a fishing line or floss. Place in a buttered pan. Coat the rolls with half of the caramel. Let rise for 45 minutes to an hour. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Start checking them at 15 minutes. Once done, cover them with foil and flip them upside down (I didn't do this part because I was taking them to work the next day and wanted to keep them in the pan). Coat with remaining caramel. For extra saucy/caramely rolls, double the sauce. I promise you won't regret making these!

~Easy Taco Soup~

Well, there truly cannot be an easier soup recipe than this, and it tastes so good! This tastes good with tortilla chips or quesadillas (or just by itself, let's be honest). Jeremy really liked this too! In fact, he made sure to let me know that he got seconds ha ha. Taco soup has just right amount of spice to it. Really, there can't be an easier homemade soup than this. Open a few cans, dump the good stuff in, and let the crock pot do the work.

Serves 4

You'll Need:

1 can (15 oz.) chili with beans and meat

1 can (15 oz.) whole kernel corn, with liquid

1 can diced or stewed tomatoes, with liquid

1 can tomato sauce

1 can black beans, with liquid

1 1/2-3 Tbs. dry taco seasoning mix (great homemade recipe here)

Get Busy:

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Serve with quesadillas or tortilla chips. Yup; that's it. I told you--easy. And soooooo good. Enjoy!

~Carmelized Baked Chicken~

This must be one of the easiest recipes I have ever made and sooo delicious!! I made this tonight with sauteed zucchini. We have pretty much omitted all starch from our dinners, which I think is great because our meals are pretty healthy. Protein and veggies, protein and veggies. This dish takes 5 minutes to assemble and then cooks for about an hour and fifteen minutes.

It doesn't get much easier than this folks! It also doesn't taste much better than this! This tasted similar to teriyaki chicken, but even better.

Serves 2

You'll Need:

2 large chicken legs

1 2/3 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 c. soy sauce

1 2/3 Tbs. ketchup

3/4 c. honey

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper

Get Busy:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in an 8x8 dish. In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the olive oil, soy sauce, ketchup, honey, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour over the chicken. Bake in the oven for 1 hour to an hour 15 minutes (or until the chicken is cooked). Seriously, sooooo easy.

This was delicious with zucchini. The next time I make this I will also make brown rice (healthy) because there was a ton of sauce in the pan that would have been yummy over some rice. Enjoy!