Apple & Pear Glazed Chicken with Prosciutto Brussel Sprouts and Almond Yams

The herbs and spices in this Chicken recipe are so festive and are sure to bring some joy to your tastebuds! 

Apple & Pear Glazed Chicken  

2 Chicken Breasts 

olive oil

1 tablespoon butter 

2 pink lady apples

1 pear

1/4 cup honey 

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon cloves

2 cloves of garlic chopped

1 lemon 

s & p

Cook chicken breasts in a cast iron pan till golden brown and remove from heat. 

Peel and slice apples & pears caramelize in cast iron pan, with butter, honey, cinnamon, cloves, garlic, lemon juice and salt & pepper.

Once apples and pears are a dark glaze colour throw the chicken breast back in and toss and warm up & serve.

I served with Prosciutto Brussel Sprouts & Yams.

For the Sprouts I simply put in a baking dish with olive oil and about 100 grams of prosciutto bits (from Oyama sasuage on Granville Island) and baked for 30 mins.

I just laid out the Yams on a cookie sheet, brushed with olive oil and sprinkeled with blanched slice almonds, viola! 

I would recommend having a good peeler in the kitchen, I used to have a pampered chef one but it grew leggs and went missing :( Good thing I had a little helper to do the peeling :)

Lamb & Balsamic-glazed Root Vegetables

This recipe was inspired from my British Columbia Seasonal Cookbook that I picked up from Edible BC one day wandering around Granville Island on my lunch break. This book is fantastic they have recipes for all the seasons and give a nice little historical descriptions about the foods they have chosen for the recipe. For this particular recipe the authors describe that before greenhouses and imports "root vegetables" were an important winter food since they were easy to grow, lasted months in the cellar and were carbohydrate-dense and thus filling. This dish uses the sweetness of reduced balsamic vinegar to enhance the earthy flavors of these winter staples. 

First Preheat oven to 375. Combine ingredients of the marinade and set aside. 

The Veggies:

purple potatoes

parsnips

yam

rutabaga

beet

carrots 

yellow onion 

garlic (bulb) 

 Chop into preferable size chunks and put in baking dish. Then smother and toss in the marinade. 

Marinade pt.1

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 extra virgin olive oil 

2 tbsp honey 

1/4 cup fresh parsley 

Lastly Add 

2 sprigs of fresh thyme 

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

Bake in the oven for about an hour. 

I picked up the rosemary Lamb from the Granville Island market and just seared in the cast iron pan, sliced and served on top of the root vegetables. 

The root veggies are even good cold for taking to work the next day :)

Sweet & Savory Delight

Price Smart foods now has portioned out applewood smoked bacon packaging which is fantastic when cooking for just 2. This little breakfast I whipped up was a nice combination of sweet and savory. I spread some herb and garlic borison cheese on cinnamon raisin english muffins then placed a couple strips of bacon on top along with some grilled mushrooms and steamed spinach. Lastly I placed an over easy egg on top and sprinkled some tex mex cheese on top. We were out of milk so substituted with some festive eggnogg in our coffees and it was delish! 

Asparagus Rolls

You have to excuse the poor quality photo, I forgot to take a nice pic of this platter before leaving the house :(

 I used to work for Yellow Rose Catering Co. in Kelowna about 7 years ago and I still remember  the delicious asparagus rolls they used to make, and i'd get to snack on the leftovers from the weddings :) I attempted making these tasty morsels for my potlatch christmas party and they were a huge success. 

This is how I made them.

First I warmed up 2 bars of plain cream cheese in a med size bowl then added some cream, about a tablespoon of creamed horseradish and fresh ground pepper. 

Then I spread the cream cheese on a slice of meat (I used mesquite turkey and rosemary ham) placed a spear of picked asparagus on top and rolled up, then cut into bite size pieces and stabbed with a fancy toothpick. I used some parsley to garnish the plate as well as the jalapeno and garlic from the pickled asparagus jar. It only took me about 45mins to shop for all the ingredients and prepare the platter. Happy Holidays :)

The Diavola

I've never been much of a pizza lover but my boyfriend introduced me to Ragazzi Pizza Co. and after trying some of their lip-smacking pizzas I too became a fan. Two of our favorites are the Cacciatore & the Diavola. I wanted to attempt making something like the Diavola at home. I headed to the market and got most of my ingredients from Dusos including the pizza dough. Since I don't have a round platter or a rolling pin I just stretched out the dough on a cookie sheet after throwing it in the air a few times like a real pizza maker. Then I spread on the pizza sauce, put on a layer of spicy capicollo, added olives, roasted garlic, jalapenos, sun dried tomatoes and asiago cheese. I like it nice and crispy and it took about 35 mins in the oven at 350 degrees, its best to keep an eye on it and take it out when its just the way you like it. 

Sleeping Bag Snacks.

This tasty treat I decided to make at home after being charged $4.50 for  1 roll at Dusos on Granville Island (whatta rip!) I was shocked that they even put it in a huge container that was the size of a kleenex box (so unnecessary). I ended up get two bunches of asparagus at the produce stand on the left of Dusos for $6 and the prosciutto was $4.50 for 100grams at Oyama Sausage just to the right of Dusos. This snack literally took me 10 mins, just sautéed the asparagus, wrapped it up in prosciutto and sprinkled fresh parmesan. 

With the second bunch of asparagus I made a different variation. I spread sun dried tomato cream cheese on medium sliced smoked turkey breast, plopped in a slice of spicy chorizo (leftover from pizza making, will post later), added some spinach leaves then the asparagus and rolled into a delicious sleeping bag snack! 

Chef at Home

            

Michael Smith is the host of cooking show Chef at Home which is hands down one of my favorite cooking shows. He is always experimenting with different flavors and really encourages his viewers to make modifications and try new things on their own. I myself am not very good at following recipes religiously, I like to play around and add create a dinner without my nose in a book. Recently I have discovered Chef at Home actually airs during my lunchtime workout so I can be deliciously inspired while huffing away on the elliptical (having the Victoria Secret fashion show on during my workout would probably increase my productivity much more!)

The dish above was what I made last night inspired by Michael Smith with my own a simple yam addition. I make yams alot since they taste so good and are packed with vitamin B6 and potassium which help reduce the risk of heart disease and control blood pressure. I simply wash, slice, layout on pan, brush with olive oil, season and broil in the toaster oven for about 45mins. They should always be the first thing to get going since they take so long and by doing them in the toaster oven you can save energy & $$ :) 

Fennel Apple Salad

Yield: 4

Ingredients

For the Vinaigrette:

• 2 granny smith apples, quartered and cored.
• 1 cup of cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 heaping tbsp of Dijon mustard
• 1 cup of olive oil
• Salt and pepper

For the Salad:

• 1 bulb of fresh fennel, sliced thinly and fronds reserved
• 1 granny smith apple, sliced thinly

Directions

For the Vinaigrette:

To make the vinaigrette, place 2 granny smith apples, cider vinegar, brown sugar and mustard in a small saucepan and cook until soft. Puree with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

For the Salad:

Put the sliced fennel, fennel fronds and sliced granny smith apple in a large salad bowl and toss with a few spoonfuls of the warm apple vinaigrette.

Pot Steamed Salmon

* I used wild Coho salmon since it has a milder flavor than Sockeye. I also cooked with the skin on since it retains more flavor that way. 

Yield: 2

Ingredients

• 2x6 ounce filets of fresh salmon, skin removed
• 2 cups of orange juice
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of capers
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Bring orange juice to a hearty simmer. Add chopped onions, olive oil and capers and let simmer for 5 minutes until the mixture reduces by at least half. Add salmon and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and steam for five minutes.

mmmmm Pumpkin Lasagna

After following a link to this  recipe off talented writer Cassandra Andertons facebook page I couldn't wait to make it! Right after work I headed to the market to get my fresh and organic ingredients. There was a link to how the make the puree from scratch which added an extra hour on the preparation for this dish but completely worth it! I substituted the white noodles for organic whole wheat ones and skipped pre-cooking them since they actually become tender from the juicy puree in the oven. I also used organic dark maple syrup and added a sprinkle walnut bits to the top layer. This recipe was a hit, my boyfriend loved it and so did his friend who dipped into it :)  I a few pieces to work and they were enjoyed by all, even the head chef at my evening job was impressed! 

Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.foodmayhem.com/2009/10/more-pumpkin-lasagna-please.html

~enjoy :)