Sweet Pepper-Chicken Sandwich

Season 7's Estella Hays and I invented this recipe one day at the Ranch when we were bored with a plain chicken sandwich. The addition of bell peppers gives this sandwich added flavor, and the sprouted grain bread lends it a great texture.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon yellow or spicy mustard
2 slices Trader Joe's or other brand sprouted whole grain bread, toasted
1 large leaf romaine lettuce
3 ounces lean, low-sodium sliced chicken breast
1/2 roasted red bell pepper, cut in strips
1/4 cup shredded reduced-fat Mexican four-cheese blend

Directions
Spread the mustard on 1 piece of toast. top with the lettuce, chicken and bell pepper, ending with the cheese.
Place the half sandwich under a broiler or in a toaster overn for 20 to 30 seconds, until the cheese melts. top with the second piece of toast. Cut in half. Serve immediately.

Makes 1 sandwich.
Per serving: 310 calories, 31 g protein, 30 g carbohydrates (3 g sugars), 7 g fat (3 g saturated), 65 mg cholesterol, 6 g fiber, 1,380 mg sodium

Read more: http://www.ivillage.com/sweet-pepper-chicken-sandwich/139157#content#ixzz0n4ra4MtF
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Fruited Tuna Salad Pitas

Monday, April 26th, 2010

My last and final prize winner for the blue topaz is Valen who said, “Love that necklace and cake!”  Enjoy the necklace,  it is a simple yet beautiful design.
As the weather starts to warm up, it would be nice to have a few great meals that don’t require much effort or time in the kitchen.  This recipe for Fruited Tuna Salad Pitas came from my recent issue of Simple and Delicious.  It is perfect for those kind of days.  I have had a sweet tuna salad before with fruit in it and loved it, so I figured I would also enjoy this version.  It was tasty.
My family turned their nose up at it at first but loved it once they had their first bite.  My husband is not a fan of mandarin oranges and he didn’t mind them at all in this dish.  Light and refreshing, perfect for those I don’t want to cook nights!  The salad is intended to be put on a whole pita and eaten like a taco.  However, it would also work well inside a pita pocket if you’d prefer.  You could  place them on the flat bread recipe I have shared before.  You could even substitute chicken for the tuna too.

Fruited Tuna Salad Pitas

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 1 can (12 oz) white albacore water packed tuna, drained (regular tuna would also work)
• 1 can (11 oz.) mandarin Oranges, drained
• 1 medium apple, chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1 rib celery, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 4 (6 in.) pita breads
• alfalfa sprouts (or you could use lettuce if you prefer)

1. In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise and honey.
2. Stir in tuna, apple, pecans, celery, cranberries and salt.  Gently fold in the oranges.
3. Top each pita with sprouts followed by the tuna salad.

Chipotle Portobello Burgers

Here is yet another successful meatless meal.  Joey was actually surprised when I told him the "patty" was a mushroom.  He just assumed it was turkey or beef given how flavorful it was.  Success!  I'm honestly not surprised that its delicious - the mushroom caps are marinated in a spicy and flavorful chipotle dressing, grilled, and served on a burger bun with grilled onions, tomatoes, pepperjack cheese, and avocado. 

However, a word to the wise:  don't make these for company or on a first date.  They are incredibly messy to eat, and I would actually almost classify this as a fork and knife burger.  Joey and I have been married long enough that neither of us cares about being neat and clean... and let's face it.  No matter what I'm eating, I still manage to wear half.  Quite honestly, Caroline may very well be a cleaner eater than her mother.

We had a few mushrooms leftover, and I turned the ingredients into a salad for lunch.  Another success!  Loved this burger, and I'll be making it again and again this summer - just not for people that we need to impress.

Chipotle Portobello Burgers
adapted from Ezra Pound Cake, originally from Steven Raichlen
makes 4 burgers

Marinade

• 3-4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• coarse salt and ground black pepper

Burgers

• 4 portobello mushroom caps, wiped clean with a paper towel
• 1 large sweet onion, cut into rings
• 2-3 Tablespoons butter, melted
• 4 buns or rolls
• 4 slices pepperjack cheese
• 4 tomato slices
• 1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into slices

Combine the ingredients for the marinade in the food processor.  Puree until smooth, and pour over mushroom caps.  Turn to coat, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes - 1 hour.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.  Skewer the onions, or prepare vegetable basket for grill.

Grill mushrooms, gill side down, on the grill, brushing with extra marinade.  Brush the onion slices with oil and season with salt and pepper.  Grill alongside the mushrooms.  After 3 minutes, flip the mushrooms and onions, and brush with remaining marinade.  Allow to cook until tender and sizzling.  Lay a slice of cheese over each mushroom and continue to cook until it is melted and bubbly.

Brush buns with melted butter, and grill until toasted and lightly browned.

Starting with the bottom half of each bun, layer the onion, tomato, mushroom, and avocado.  Serve immediately.

Chopped Egg And Avocado Sandwich

Chopped Egg And Avocado Sandwich

My "Cooking for One" challenge is still on and i woke up really early today...spoke to my sister n' she wanted my Punjabi Paneer Makhani recipe n' i had to sent to her on email....so once that was done i still had time to get ready for work n' decided to make something that feels really fresh...I have 6 posts in my draft that i made which i haven't posted yet...just no time!!!! Month ends are a busy time at work. But this was so good...i just couldn't wait to post it....

Also, i really need to dedicate a post to two of my good friends, Veerendra Mishra and Preetha P (non-bloggers)who found it really hard to believe that i can cook... actually quote unquote..."cook, style n' take decent pics"....lol...sometimes even i'm still surprised...;)...so i'm dedicating this post to them ;)...also i have made an Avocado Milkshake along with this post...i remember when i was working with them in ABN AMRO Bank- Bangalore, i used to order this so often...i can't seem to remember the name of the chain of fruit juice shops we used to order it from..:(...anyways i'm told it's full of good cholesterol....

I'm a big fan of Avocado or Butter Fruit (as we fondly call it back home), when my friend introduced me to Guacamole for the first time....i got addicted to it for life....so when i came across this recipe i was 'Oh so keen' about trying it...so here you go...(pls note i'm going to give the measurements enough to make just one sandwich...please adjust accordingly if you want to make more....)

Ingredients:

1. Egg: 1 large (hard-boiled, peeled and chopped)
2. Onion: 2-3 tsps (chopped)
3. Parsley Leaves: 1 tbsp (chopped)
4. Dry Oregano: 1/4 tsp
5. Dijon Mustard: 1/4 tsp
6. Chili Mayonnaise *: 1-2tsp (yeah i went a little overboard with it...;) )
7. Ripe Avocado: half piece (the avocado needs to be halved, seeded, meat scooped out and diced)
8. Salt: to taste (just keep in mind that the Mayonnaise & Dijon Mustard will already have salt in it)
9. Black pepper: to taste (freshly ground)
10.Brown Bread: 2 slices (i have used a brown bun here but you can use any bread of your choice, lightly toasted)
11. Cheese of your choice: 1no (optional) (i didn't use it)

* i used chili mayo coz i love the flavour, you can use plain. but if you do want to use it and you only have plain mayo with you, all you need to do for a quick fix is just add chili flakes to your mayo n' mix well.

Method:

Step 1: In a bowl, mix the chopped Egg, Onion, Parsley, Dijon Mustard and Mayonnaise together.

Step 2: Toss in the chopped avocado, sprinkle with oregano, salt and pepper and gently mix well.

Step 3: Lightly toast the bread slices. Scoop a generous amount of the chopped egg and avocado on a slice of bread, add a slice of cheese (if using) and top with another slice of bread.

Here's a snap of my Avocado Milk Shake, i had the other half of Avocado which i didn't use in the sandwich right? i made the milk shake with it...as you can see it's served in a Big Beer Glass...i was missing RJ n' decided to have the milk shake in his Beer Glass (a gift from me)...and as you can see it was a lot...so i could have only this for breakfast and i got the sandwiches with me for lunch...;)