Thursday 13 – Claudia's current favorite recipes

I love food. ?In fact, I love almost all food. I particularly have a fondness for fresh food – either freshly prepared or fruits and vegetables. ?I mean, I could live on oranges.

Well, and tuna.?

I know it’s weird, but I love canned tunafish. This is the single reason I am not longer a vegetarian or vegan. I craved tuna fish every single day for no less than three years.?

Yes, you’re right. There’s probably a pill for that.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you some of my current favorite recipes – found on the wonderful world wide web. I’m no photographer. ?Janet lives 3,ooo miles away and Tommie lives 1500 miles away ?so we are out of luck on the photo front.

Instead, I thought I’d share the link. And my thoughts about this food.

Thursday 13 – Claudia’s current favorite recipes

1. New Mexico?Green chili stew: Holy Crap, this is good. Wow. We made a crockpot full of this stew then ate it on literally everything we ate for a week. I froze some and gave it to D as a surprise for his lunch. He was a very happy man. If you haven’t tried Green Chili Stew, give it a shot. But start mild.??Even at it’s mildest, this is an incredibly flavorful stew.?Try it out and lemme know what you think.

—>BIG TIP:?Karen Baldwin says you must have fresh chilis. Unfortunately, they aren’t available year round. Try the Hatch brand canned chilis. (They sell those at Costco here.) Start mild, then move to hot. I found fresh chilis in the freezer section of our local Safeway. However, I think it’s a regional thing. If you’re a real pre-planner, you can also order chilis from Hatch, New Mexico over the internet.

2. Tequila Lime chicken:?This is a wonderful marinade. Whether you bar-be-que or simply bake the chicken, it’s great. If you read the link, she used boneless chicken thighs – which are not my favorite. I’ve used white fish (mahi mahi, telapia) and deboned split chicken breasts. Try it out and lemme know what you think. (BTW, Smitten Kitchen is a fun website for great food porn. I found it in a fit of eggplant lust.)

—>BIG TIP:?The longer you marinade the better.

3. Nikki’s Healthy Cookies: D has a moderate wheat intolerance. We found this out after he had been gorging on homemade sourdough bread. No more sour dough in this house. (Doesn’t that suck!) Anyway, I’m supposed to be talking about cookies…. These cookies are unbelievably good. Truly. Amazing. I made a batch then immediately had to make another. I used regular chocolate chips because we like them. ?Try it out and lemme know what you think. (Fabulous food on this 101Cookbooks, btw. Every time I’m there I try a new fabulous recipe.)

—->BIG TIP: You can make your own almond meal. I’m going to try pecan meal (because we have a lot) next.?

4. Lime Garlic Mahi Mahi: Confession time. We buy all this amazing fish at Costco. I really like fish (see note about tuna above) and it’s fabulous nutrition. ?This recipe dropped onto my screen in a moment of : “What do you mean you invited him over for dinner?” It’s easy, is a great reason to have limes in the house, and tastes fabulous. Because it hasn’t quite been bar-be-quing weather, I’ve only cooked this in the oven. Try it out and lemme know what you think.

5. Hummus:?Let’s face it. The Healthy Irishman is just hot. He has the accent. He has the quirky sayings ( ‘Bob’s your uncle’). He’s got the Celtic Tattoos. And he cooks. What more can a girl want? (I know someone who’s aiming to be his colleen. I’ll let you know when I get the details.) His recipe’s are quite good too. ?Of course, I want they healthy recipe for shepard’s pie and beef stew…. I’m thinking that might not exist.?Try it out and lemme know what you think.

6. Marinated Tofu: This recipe is modified from oen in Vegan with a Vengance. If you have even a passing interest in vegetarian recipes, this book will help you eat great food. Unfortunately the link doesn’t have the best tip from the book.?Try it out and lemme know what you think.

—>BEST TIP:?Tofu is stored in water. In order to get the tofu to marinade, you must get the water out of your tofu. The best way to do this is to wrap it in a towel (or paper towels) and place a heavy object on it (like a frying pan). Turn it midway through and leave it for 20 minutes.

7. Chicken tortilla soup: ?I was first introduced to this soup ?by the incredible Citizen Jane at Confessions of a Middle Aged Suburban Diva. And truth be told? I combine both recipes and make the soup in my crockpot (low 10 hours). OMG. If you are looking for a truly fabulous, low fat, high protein easy soup. This is it. It even freezes well for lunches. (I use quart sized zip lock bags because our freezer is the size of a Basketball players shoe.)?

—>BEST TIP: If you use the crockpot, add your boneless chicken breast late. I usually add it when there’s about 4 hours left to cook. This keep the chicken from tasting chaulky or dry.

8. Eggplant Stew:?Did I mention my eggplant lust? I’ve heard that it’s due to eating a low fat diet. But it’s the oddest thing – almost as odd as my tuna lust. Last February, I was wondering through Safeway when I saw these beautiful purple globes. It was as if the spot light shone on their beauty. I had to take them home. Once home, I had to find something to do with them. It was dumping snow and D was gone. I tried a few recipes in my spare time. This is easy – and fabulous. It’s easy enough to make without my beloved crockpot. Try it and lemme know what you think.

—>BEST TIP: You must peel the eggplant from the bottom to the leafy part not around. ?For whatever unknown reason, the eggplant actually tastes better.

9. ?Steak marinade:?We don’t eat a lot of beef. In fact, outside of the occasional beef stew or McD’s hamburger, we don’t eat it at all. When my friend Jen gifted us with Elk steaks, I had no idea what to do with them. Luckily I found this wonderful marinade. ?For those of you who eat the beast – elk, deer, beef or buffalo – this is a must try. Lemme know what you think.

10. ?Roadhacker’s Blackening Spices: Sigh. He took down his blog. I guess I’ll have to share it here.

3t dried Basil
1t dried Thyme
2t dried Oregano?

Mash these together. He uses a mortar and pestil. I use the back of a Tablespoon

1t Salt
3t Garlic Powder
4t Onion Powder
2t White Pepper Powder
1t Cayenne
4T Peprika
4T Black Pepper

I’ve used these spices on everything from pork to all kinds of fish (including shrimp).?Try it and lemme know what you think.

—>BEST TIP: Coat what you’re cooking with olive oil then sprinkle on the seasoning. Fry it up in a pan.

11. ?Potato Frittata:?We subscribe to Runner’s World. While D loves the running plans, I truly love the recipe section. ?Some recipes are just amazing. Others are out of this world. The recipe for a potato frittata is wonderful It’s easy, yummy, and fast. More than anything, it’s a great way to eat potatoes. (Mixed with the fiber in the vegetables, and the protein in the eggs, the potatoes shouldn’t elevate your blood sugar.) I’ve made this fritatta in the middle of the night when we are starving and can’t think of anything to eat. ?Mmmmmm! Try it and lemme know what you think.?

12. ?Chocolate Truffles:?We made truffles for our family and friends last Christmas. It was a first time for me to make anything like truffles. Mostly because, unlike tuna and eggplant, I don’t like chocoate that much. ?I’m sure there’s a pill for that too. Anyway, we tried approximately one billion recipes. We found that the recipes didn’t matter much. Truffles are all about technique. Every step ?has a trick. This site has fabulous pictures to help out. ?One site we found said that they keep the gaunache in the refrigerator at all times for impromptu dessert. We haven’t done that because… well, I have a lust for eggplant and tuna, not chocolate…. Try it and lemme know what you think.

13. Ok now it’s your turn. What is your favorite on-line recipe or recipe site? Leave it in the comments and I’ll link to you and the site.

• Tracey at Girls to Grow‘s favorite recipe is Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
• Pop Art Diva‘s favorite recipe is??VERY BEST ?EDIBLE TUNA CASSEROLE??
• All Rileyed up‘s favorite recipe is Caponata stew recipe
• Tommie from Tuesday Update‘s suggests Tavolini as a great place for recipes
• The Bumbles suggests Queen of the Castle as a great place for recipes
• Flowering Shrub suggests 24 hour beef roast, Vegetarian Shepard’s Pie, and Red-Peppered Sauce Halibut

Check out the new and improved Thursday 13