Grilled Scallops with Citrus Salsa

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$20 * Calories: ~280

Ingredients:

2 red grapefruit, peeled
2 oranges, peeled
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 cup red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 pound sea scallops
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt

Directions:
1. Over medium bowl, cut gradefruit into segments and remove membranes; halve each segment. Repeat with oranges, but leave segments whole. Add lime juice, onion, cilantro, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, tossing to combine.
2. Preheat outdoor grill or heat indoor grill pan to medium-high. toss scallops in oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Grill 4 to 6 minutes, flipping halfway through, until opaque.
3. Serve scallops with citrus salsa.

Thoughts:
I've wanted to try scallops after seeing several episodes of Hell's Kitchen. Sea scallops are not cheap, but there is no way you could go to a restraunt and not spend more for a meal like this. They turned out good and I am now a fan of them. This recipe was VERY easy.

Beer-Braised Pork Chops

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$10 * Calories: 348

Ingredients:

2 tsp. olive oil
4 center-cut bone-in pork loin chops (8 oz. each)
salt and pepper
2 Anjou pears, peeled, cored, and cut into wedges (about 3/4-inch thick)
1 bottle (12 oz.) lager beer
3/4 tsp. dried sage or 3/4 Tbsp. chopped fresh sage leaves

Directions:
1. In large skillet on medium-high, heat oil. Season pork chops with salt and pepper. Add to skillet and sear until lightly browned, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer pork to plate. Drain all but 1 tablespoon fat from pan.
2. Add pears to skillet, and cook until golden, about 6 minutes. Transfer pears to plate with fork. Add beer and sage to pan.
3. With wooden spoon, scrape up caramelized bits from bottom. Return pork and pears to pan; bring to simmer. Partically cover skillet with lid, reduce heat to low, and braise until chops are cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Remove pork and pears from pan. Skim away any fat from liquid, increase heat to medium, and cook until sauce is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Serve chops with pears and sauce.

Thoughts:
This was really good. It wasn't hard to make, just a lot of moving ingredients back and forth. It had a lot of good flavor.

Thai Chicken Saute

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$10 * Calories: 403

Ingredients:

1 (3.5-ounce) bag boil-in-bag rice
1.5 pounds chicken breast tenders
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon fish sauce
4 teaspoons canola oil, divided
1 cup sliced onion
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 teaspoon bottled ground fresh ginger
1/2 cup light coconut milk
2 tablespoons Sriracha
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
4 lime wedges
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Cook rice according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Keep warm.
2. Toss chicken with cornstarch and fish sauce. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; saute 5 minutes. Remove chicken from pan. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in pan. Add onion, garlic, and ginger to pan; saute 1 minute. Return chicken to pan; cook 1 minute or until done. Stir in coconut milk, Srircha, sugar, and juice; cook 45 seconds or until thoroughly heated. Serve chicken mixture over rice with lime wedges. Sprinkle each serving with 1.5 teaspoons cilantro.

Thoughts:
The whole time I knew I was making this dish and was looking for the ingredients, Publix was out of fish sauce, so instead of fish I used a mixture of Worcestershire sauce and lime juice. It worked out well. I really loved this dish. I guess it hit me just right and I look forward to having it again.

Yo-Yo Cake Pops

My cousin, Bradley, is a huge yoyo fanatic, so for his birthday I made him some yoyo shaped cake pops. He wanted chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. Some of the pops had peanut butter candy coating per his request. 

Chicken Chimichangas

Yield: 6 servings * Overall Price: ~$10 * Calories: 380

Ingredients:

2.5 cups shredded cooked skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled queso fresco cheese
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
1 (16-ounce) can fat-free refried beans
6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
cooking spray
1/2 cup bottled green salsa

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees
2. Combine first 7 ingridients in a large bowl; toss well.
3. Spread 1/4 cup beans down center of each tortilla. Top each tortilla with 2/3 cup chicken mixture; roll up. Place rolls, seam sides down, on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Coat tops of chimichangas with cooking spray. Bake at 500 for 7 minutes. Serve with salsa.

Thoughts:
These were really easy to make and were really good. Queso fresco wasn't available when I went to the store, but shredded Monterey Jack worked just fine.

Girl Baby Shower Cake Pops

I was so excited I got to make pink rattles for a baby shower! They wanted strawberry cake with cream cheese frosting. 

Sorry this picture doesn't have good contrast.

Steak Baguettes with Pesto Mayo

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$13 * Calories: 346

Ingredients:

1 (12 ounce) boneless beef sirloin steak (about 1 inch thick), trimmed
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
2 tablespoons refrigerated pesto sauce
1 (12 ounce) piece white or whole-grain baguette, split in half horizontally
1 cup packed baby arugula (about 1 ounce)
3 (1/8-inch-thick) red onion slices
2 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced lengthwise

Directions:
1. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle steak with salt and pepper. Add steak to pan, and cook 2.5 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove the steak from pan, and let stand 5 minutes. Cut steak across grain into thin slices.
2. Combine mayonnaise and pesto, stirring until well blended. Spread mayonnaise mixture evenly over cut sides of bread. Layer bottom half of bread with arugula, red onion, steak, and tomato; top with half of bread. Cut sandwich diagonally into 4 equal pieces.

Thoughts:
This was soooo good! It was also easy to make. All the flavors just hit me and everyone else right. I can't wait to have this sandwich again!