SO WHAT DO YOU EAT?

Caveat...Let  me begin by saying that my photography skills are just not that great.  Okay they down right suck.  That doesn't stop me from taking pictures and sharing them with you.

Earlier this week I mentioned eating and dieting and moderation.  Because of that discussion I wanted to share a couple recipes I made this week. 

The first is Chicken Caprese.  It was my first time making the recipe and it involved rolling the chicken.  The other problem I had was oven problems.  Mine is on its last leg.  It heats up; it cools down. 

Recipe was not pretty.  I can do better but the filling was absolutely light and delicious.  It needs some adjustments.  I need to improve my rolling skills.  I did take a pic of a rolled chicken but I am afraid to share.

Here is the recipe.  Chop 1/2 cup tomatoes, 2 Tbs. of fresh basil and several cloves of garlic. 

 





Mix the basil, tomatoes and garlic with salt, pepper and 1 TBS of balsamic vinegar.

 



The boy then pounded one pound of chicken to about 1/4 inch thick.  Salt and peppe the chicken, then split the chicken into two pieces and add half the mixture to each piece.  Rolled the chicken with the mixture inside and placed toothpicks to keep the chicken rolled.   Add mozzarella to the top of the chicken.

I tried and tried to pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees to cook the chicken for 25 minutes.  Pre-heating the oven?  What an adventure!  It took me a lot longer to cook the chicken than 25 minutes.  Ultimately though it was delicious. 

 

Sautéed spinach and shallots made the perfect side dishes.  Both the caprese chicken and sautéed spinach were low in calories and loaded with flavor. 

 

The second dish was my mother's meatloaf, mashed potatoes and roasted carrots.  Typically the meatloaf is cooked in the oven but with my crazy ass oven I decided to go with 4 hours on high in the crockpot. 

 

This meal is higher in calories than the Chicken Caprese...no question about it but I only had s small amount of each.  The meatloaf is meaty, flavorful and satisfying.  You only need a small amount and sometimes you just need a little comfort food!

 

Here is the recipe...

 

DUTCH MEATLOAF

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (from Lilac Hedge Farm) 3 slices of bread, pulled apart 1/4 tsp. pepper 4 oz. (1/2 can) tomato sauce 1 egg, beaten 1 1/2 tsp. salt 1 med. shallot, chopped 1 tbsp. ground mustard Lightly mix all ingredients, form into loaf and place in shallow pan in 350 degree oven. SAUCE: 4 oz. (1/2 can) tomato sauce Prepared mustard, Dijon type 2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar 1 tbsp. brown sugar Combine all ingredients, pour over loaf. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.   Next time we discuss food I want to talk about Big Ass Salads...