Goat cheese stuffed chicken with dried fruit and fresh herbs

I absolutely love goat cheese! I am always looking for different ways to serve it. Whether it is rolling it in fresh herbs and serving it as a spread for crackers, slicing it and putting it on a homemade pizza, or my favorite, stuffing it in chicken ;) I love the sweetness you get from the dried fruit, mixed with the bright flavors of the fresh herbs, this is a match made in Heaven! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts



• 1/4 cup dried apricots, diced



• 1/4 cup dates (pits removed) diced



• 1/4 cup diced onion



• 2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley



• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme



• 1 small log of goat cheese (around 1/4 of a cup)



• 4 thin slices of prosciutto Olive oil & salt

Pre-heat a pan to med-high heat, coat with olive oil, saute onions until carmelized. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix goat cheese, onions, dried fruit and herbs, set aside. Slice a pocket in each chicken breast to stuff your goat cheese mixture in. Being very careful not to cut all the way through. Put a few tablespoons in each breast, do not overstuff. season your chicken breast with sea salt and pepper, wrap one slice of prosciutto around each breast. Sear chicken until golden brown on each side (around 3 minutes on each side). Place chicken in a baking dish and bake until cooked through, around 15-20 minutes. Squeeze a slice of lemon over each breast and drizzle with the juices from the baking dish.

I served this chicken with wild mushroom cous-cous (Near East brand), a mixed greens salad and I pan fried some goat cheese medallions with my left over mixture. Simply coat them in italian bread crumbs and form a circle, pan fry in olive oil until golden brown on each side.

I gurantee this will become a fast favorite! Stay tuned for a more savory variation of this dish: Goat cheese stuffed chicken with sun dried tomatoes and crimini mushrooms in a lemon white wine sauce :)

Creamy Chicken and Sausage Pasta

Ok, I must admit I splurged a little with this dish! I made up for it with whole wheat pasta and loading it with veggies though ;) Truthfully, if you don't allow yourself to splurge every now and then, you're asking for a binge session! Moderation is key, and using simple substitutions can really save you from splurging too much.

My family loved this pasta! I made enough to send everyone with leftovers the next day, so if you want to make a smaller portion, I would cut the recipe in half because this makes enough to feed a small army! Also, this dish would be great served fra diavolo style, add in some red pepper flakes if you like it spicy! Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed


• 1 package smoked sausage, sliced and quartered (you can substitute turkey sausage for a lower fat/caloric content)


• 1 large yellow or red bell pepper, julienne cut


• 1 medium sweet yellow onion, julienne cut


• 2 medium zucchini's, sliced and quartered


• 1 pint crimini mushrooms, sliced


• 2 garlic cloves, minced


• 1 jar veggie, mushroom or spinach spaghetti sauce (you're looking for it to be loaded with veggies)


• 1 jar tomato basil Philadelphia cooking creme (you can substitute 1 block of softened lowfat cream cheese for a lower fat content)


• olive oil


• sea salt and fresh black pepper


• basil and garlic seasoning


• 1 package whole wheat penne pasta (prepare as directed for al dente pasta)

Heat a saute pan to medium heat, coat your pan with olive oil. Season your chicken breasts with salt, pepper and basil & garlic seasoning, add chicken to hot pan and cook until golden brown and cooked through, add sausage just before chicken is done. Once sausage is heated through, drain meat and set aside in a large bowl. In the same pan, add more olive oil, season your veggies with salt and pepper and saute your peppers, onions and zucchini until vegetables are fork tender and caramelized, add mushrooms and garlic and saute for an additional 2-3 minutes, being careful not to burn garlic. Add cooked veggies to your chicken and sausage, set aside. In the same pan heat your cooking cream and tomato sauce, being sure to scrape up the delicious brown bits on the bottom of the pan, this will put the flavor of your sauce over the top! Simmer the sauce for a few minutes allowing the flavors to meld, pour sauce over meat and veggie mixture, add pasta, mix carefully, top with parmesan cheese. Serve with some whole wheat rolls to soak up the creamy, delicious sauce, yum!

Fresh tuna sandwiches with arugula and sweet pickle mayo

James and I LOVE fresh tuna steaks! I usually sear my tuna steaks and serve it over a mixed greens salad with ponzu, but having it as an open faced sandwich really puts a fun twist on this delicious fish! I often hear that people are intimidated at preparing tuna steaks at home, don't be! It is far more simple than it seems, and quite honestly, is hard to do wrong! Tuna holds up well and is such a delicious piece of fish on it's own, it really doesn't need much to make it a beautiful dish. The trick is to not overcook it, medium rare makes a perfect tuna steak in my opinion, and anything beyond medium will result in a dry, flavorless fish. Trust me :)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup olive oil or lowfat mayo


• 1/2 cup diced sweet pickles


• 4 (4-6 oz) fresh albacore tuna steaks


• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling


• 4 tsp. herbes de Provence (My favorite seasoning for fish, but you can substitue with various dried herbs)


• 4 slices sharp white cheddar cheese


• 1 (1 lb loaf) ciabetta bread, halved horizontally


• 2 cups arugula


• sea salt and fresh pepper to taste

In a small bowl mix mayo and pickles and set aside. Pre-heat a grill pan at medium-high heat. Season steaks with salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with herbes de Provence. Grill for 3-4 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Place a slice of cheese on each fish during the last minute of grilling. Brush the bottom half of the bread with olive oil, cut into 4 equal squares, grill on grill pan, cut side down, for around 1 minute, until golden brown. Spread the bread with the sweet pickle mayo, place tuna steak on each piece of bread, top with arugula and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!


*This photo was actually taken last year, we found out shortly after this that Noah was allergic to tuna, but I stumbled across these photos and had to share :) This is one of my favorite Giada recipes, she is my inspiration in most everything I prepare.

Eddings Four

If you enjoy reading this blog, please visit my blog that is dedicated to my beautiful little family, www.eddingsfour.blogspot.com :)

Turkey Meatloaf with Sundried tomatoes and Feta Cheese

I LOVE this meatloaf! I am not a fan of meatloaf at all, but this baby is SO good! I served it with herbed parmesan mashed potatoes and lowfat crescent rolls. I'm so glad it's fall and I can use my oven again...I've missed you old friend. My bbq pit and pool will feel lonely for the next few months ;) Yes, I said the next few months, because here in Texas, you can start swimming again in March!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground turkey meat


• 1/2 cup whole wheat dry bread crumbs


• 1/4 cup diced sun dried tomatoes in oil


• 2 garlic cloves minced


• 1/4 cup olive oil


• 3 egg whites


• 1/4 chopped flat leaf parsley


• 1/2 cup feta cheese (you can use reduced fat, but I tend to splurge on feta seeing that is already a lower fat cheese)


• 1 1/2 tsp. sea salt


• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients (with your hands of course!) do not over mix, this will toughen the meat. Coat a loaf pan with cooking spray and spread the meat mixture in the loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes.

Herbed Parmesan Mashed Potatoes:

• 6 medium sized russet potatoes (cleaned and cubed)


• 1/2 stick smart balance butter


• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese


• Basil and Garlic herb seasoning


• Sea salt and pepper to taste

Boil potatoes until fork tender. Drain and return to pan. Mix/mash all ingredients until potatoes are smooth and creamy, do not under salt!

Enjoy!

Strawberry Stuffed French Toast

Not only did my kiddos beg for seconds, they licked the plate! No, really...they licked the plate ;)

Ingredients:

• 8 slices Whole wheat bread


• 4 oz lowfat cram cheese, softened


• Strawberries, sliced


• 1 tbs sugar substitute, plus extra for garnish (I use splenda that measures cup for cup of sugar)


• Cinnamon for garnish


• 2 eggs


• splash of milk

Mix the cream cheese with the splenda and spread one tbs on each slice of bread. Layer strawberries on one slice and top with the other slice, repeat this four times. Pre-heat your griddle or a saute pan on medium heat, coat with cooking spray. Whisk your egg and milk mixture and dredge each sandwich in the mixture. Cook until golden brown on each side. Garnish with a sprinkle of splenda and cinnamon and serve with warm sugar free or light syrup. Enjoy!

-Cole

James' Stuffed Jalapenos

Wow, has it really been a year since I last posted? It's amazing what can happen in a year! I will save that for another post ;) I would like to officially say, I'm back!! I am posting a recipe that is actually my husband's, so proud :) This recipe is SO good and SO easy and is so significantly lower in fat and calories than it's ugly cousin the fried stuffed jalapenos, it's insane! I highly recommend you give it a try!

Ingredients:

• Fresh Jalapenos, medium size



• Lowfat cream cheese



• Turkey bacon

Method:

• Cut the jalapeno's in half and scrape out all of the seeds and ribs (we make sure to do this well so the kids can enjoy them as well, this will take the majority of the heat out)



• Drizzle your jalapeno's with olive oil, sea salt and fresh pepper, grill until tender BEFORE you stuff them (considering it is now fall, you can use your grill top on your stove for these if you don't want to bust out the charcoal!)



• Remove from grill and allow to cool



• Fill each jalapeno half with cream cheese and carefully wrap each half with one strip of turkey bacon, secure with a toothpick.



• Grill until each jalapeno is very tender, by doing this, you are removing that very harsh flavor you get when biting into a fresh jalapeno pepper, and what is left is carmelized, smoky, subtly spicy goodness...mmmmmm, delish!

I make homemade ranch to dip these beautiful babies in. I use a package of hidden valley ranch dry mix, follow the directions but substitute olive oil lowfat mayo and lowfat milk.

The picture above was taken after half were literally snatched up by my very hungry family, so the picture isn't so pretty, but at least you get the idea ;)

Enjoy!
Cole