Chicken Sausages with Eggplant Caponata (AND a Pizza Idea)

(Here is the finished product. I put our chicken sausages on whole wheat buns with a serving of the caponata. I didn't serve a side dish, as my sausage links were pretty big and I figured the caponata was a full serving of veggies.)

(My caponata after I chopped it all up. Mmmmmm....grilled veggie goodness!)

(The cooked chicken sausages hot off the grill and resting for a few minutes. This was a delicious summer all-in-one, meal-on-a-bun!)

So far, my foray into clean eating has been pretty successful. We've had really tasty, yet healthy meals and I've lost 4 pounds! Pretty fantastic, eh? I love it when weight comes off, and I don't feel like I've really made any sacrifices food-wise. I'm eating 3 solid meals and 2 snacks a day, so I'm never hungry and I've found some great recipes that are so satisfying in the flavor department. To be fair, it does take a bit more planning to eat this way; but I'm motivated to keep going! I already notice a positive difference in how I feel, too. All around, I'm loving the changes.

I adapted this recipe from Clean Eating magazine and it was fantastic. I love grilled food, so this was right up my alley. The husband worked late on Friday night, so it was the kiddos and me for dinner (don't worry...I saved him a plate). My kids were pretty indifferent about this one, but they ate it well enough. However, my husband and I both gave it a thumbs up.

Chicken Sausages with Eggplant Caponata
Adapted From: Clean Eating magazine; By: Nancy S. Hughes, June 1, 2012

Ingredients:
Olive oil cooking spray
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/2 large red onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 chicken sausages (I used an Italian-flavored sausage with Parm and basil)
4 whole-wheat hot dog buns
1/2 jar of sun dried tomatoes, chopped and drained of oil
2 fresh Roma tomatoes, sliced
1 (8 oz) container pitted Kalamata olives, finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil, plus additional for garnish (I used dried basil)
2 cloves garlic, whole and peeled
2 tsp apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar (I forgot the vinegar; but I think balsamic would work, too)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat an indoor grill pan to medium-high and lightly coat grill with cooking spray.

Lightly spray both sides of eggplant,fresh tomatoes,and onion with oil, then place on prepared grill. Also, place whole, peeled garlic cloves on the grill.

Cook vegetables until brown and tender, about 6 minutes per side. Transfer vegetables to a cutting board. Set aside to cool slightly.

Place sausages on the grill pan. Cook according to package directions, or until sausage is cooked thoroughly. Gently open buns, but do not split in half. Grill buns briefly on each side while sausages cook for final 2 minutes.

Roughly chop the grilled eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, and onion and place in a medium bowl with olives, basil, sun dried tomatoes and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, place 1 sausage in each bun and spoon equal amounts of vegetable mixture over top of each. Sprinkle with additional basil, if desired.

UPDATE:
I had a lot of leftover caponata, so I decided to mix it with a half of a container of store bought pesto and turn it into a pizza topping. I bought some whole wheat pizza dough, layered a thin amount of store bought marinara over the crust, topped that with the caponata/pesto mixture, and then added my shredded mozzarella cheese. My son loves pepperoni, so we added those on top of the cheese and baked it (450 degrees for 15 minutes). It was delicious!!!! I love it when my recipes can multi-task. Definitely a good use for leftover pesto and caponata!

Jen's Italian Meatloaf, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Broccoli

It was the husband's birthday yesterday, so I decided to make him a dinner that he really enjoyed. This Italian meatloaf was a hit the first time around, so I thought I would make it again. I had to skip a couple ingredients, since I did not realize I was short-handed until I started cooking. The version I made last night did not incorporate green peppers or sun dried tomatoes. I must say, it was still good, but the original recipe was much better (in my humble opinion). The husband still really liked his birthday dinner, so it was really not a huge issue. Next time, I will just make sure I have everything on hand before I start cooking! I made steamed broccoli and garlic mashed potatoes to go with our meatloaf. Then, after dinner we went to my In Law's for birthday dessert. All in all, I think the hubs enjoyed his special day.

Jen's Italian Meatloaf

This is such a homey and comforting dinner! I love meatloaf!!!

Jen's Italian Meatloaf Surprise

I haven't made one of my "surprise" recipes in quite awhile! For those of you just tuning in, let me explain what a "surprise" dish encompasses. You see, I lead a rich fantasy life. Sometimes, I like to play mad scientist in my kitchen. I like to forage in my pantry and freezer and find items that need to be used and/or look interesting. Usually, I am inspired and I can concoct a dinner idea around whatever I find. There is no actual recipe, and I am not sure how it is going to turn out. I have a rough idea of what I want, but I never know how I am going to get there. The fun of a "surprise" recipe is not fully knowing where it is going, even as you start cooking. It is all just beakers, and Bunsen Burners, and smoking vials of formula in my kitchen, until POOF...dinner. Can you hear that???? I am even working on my evil, ghoulish, mad scientist-type laugh....MOOO-WHOOOO HA! HA! HA!

Tonight is such a night where I feel like experimenting on my family. I originally had a salmon recipe slotted for our evening meal, but for some reason, I just don't feel like making it. I switched around my menu plan and went to check out what I have on hand. I settled on a meatloaf of sorts; I thought that Italian meatloaf sounded good. I have a couple standard meatloaf versions that I make regularly, but I wanted something a little different. I actually want this dish to taste more like my stuffed peppers than my regular meatloaf. I am also going to make some roasted potatoes, and roasted asparagus to go with my masterpiece. I will give you a rough blueprint of what I am doing, but I will probably re-write the recipe after dinner (i.e. write down what I actually end up doing). I will make sure to post a review and photo to let you know how it all goes down, too. Wish me luck! MOOO-WHOOOO HA! HA! HA!

Jen's Italian Meatloaf Surprise

Ingredients:

Sauce:
1/2 onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green pepper, diced
5 sun dried tomatoes, drained and minced
1 small can of plain tomato sauce (no salt added)
1-2 Tablespoons of tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. of dried or fresh basil
1 small can of water (just use tomato sauce can)
2 Tablespoons of canola oil


Meat mixture:
1 egg
seasoned bread crumbs, Italian-style
1/2 cup of instant white rice
salt and pepper to taste
dried Italian Seasoning to taste (if needed)
dried oregano to taste (if needed)
1 lb. of ground beef
1/3 cup of Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
1 15 oz. can of drained diced tomatoes (no salt added) for topping

Directions:
Saute onions and green peppers in a skillet with canola oil over medium heat. Add garlic and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes,sun dried tomatoes, and tomato paste. Add small can of tomato sauce and water. Simmer until water evaporates. Turn off heat and set aside to cool slightly.

Mix all other ingredients (excluding marinara sauce that you just made and can of diced tomatoes)into a large bowl. Using a large spoon, combine 1-2 heaping spoonfuls of marinara sauce into the meat mixture. If meat mixture is too 'wet',add additional bread crumbs or rice as needed. Season mixture with additional spices, salt and pepper if needed.

Form into a loaf shape on a sheet pan. Pour and cover loaf with marinara sauce. Then add whole can of drained diced tomatoes on top of marinara sauce. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1/2 hour. Uncover and cook for an additional 1/2 hour.

Jen's Notes:
All quantities are approximate. The roasted potatoes and asparagus will be roasted on a sheet pan in the oven along with the meatloaf. I think I will cook the potatoes and asparagus with some salt, pepper, and olive oil; then roast for the last 1/2 hour of cooking at the same temp as the meatloaf. If they need additional crisping, I will turn probably take the meatloaf out to rest and crank up the oven temp (or broil) for 10-15 minutes to finish the job. After they come out, I will sprinkle it all with some Pecorino Romano cheese and call it good!



The Result:
I am really pleased with how this turned out! This was freakin' awesome. The husband said that this was his new, favorite meatloaf. It was exactly what I wanted...I love it when that happens. I need to start cooking more "off the cuff", because I certainly enjoy it more than following a set recipe. It is just more relaxing. I love being creative and responding to the food as it cooks. I think you can taste the difference, sometimes. That is what home cookin' is all about! I loved this whole meal, so we will certainly put it into rotation. I love it when a surprise dish becomes a family favorite! This is a keeper, for sure.

Copycat Carrabba's Chicken Bryan

I bought a huge log of goat cheese at Costco, since they had a great price on it. I think I paid $4.99 for a pound of goat cheese. It was a total steal! I love goat cheese, but I must confess, I don't have very many recipes that include it. I did an 'ingredients' search on recipezaar.com and found this dish. Oh, man I am glad I did! I hit the mother-load! Since I now have a bunch of goat cheese on hand, you will probably be seeing a few of my finds in the coming days and weeks.
We don't eat out at restaurants too much, so I was not sure what this dish was supposed to look and taste like...it was a total surprise. Since this was our dinner last night, I will finish my review in my 'result' section below. I chose baked potatoes and broccoli as side items, but my photo does not show the potato. Oops! I forgot to put it on the plate for my pic. I think roasted potatoes would be yummy, too. I am getting ahead of myself again...here is the recipe. I changed some quantities and ingredients, so I will amend the below recipe to include the differences for my version.

Copycat Carrabba's Chicken Bryan
Recipe #64356
By: keen5--Jun 11, 2003/this copycat recipe from Algy's Recipe Exchange

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced yellow onion
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup cold butter, sliced
1 cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
extra virgin olive oil, for brushing
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
6 ounces goat cheese,at room temperature
2 ounces of mascarpone cheese, at room temperature


Directions:
Saute garlic and onion in 2 Tbls. butter in a large skillet over medium heat until tender. Stir wine and lemon juice into skillet, increase heat to medium high, and simmer to reduce by half. Reduce heat to low and stir in cold butter, one slice at a time. Stir in tomatoes, basil, kosher salt, and pepper; remove from heat; set aside.

Brush chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and black pepper.
Grill chicken over hot coals 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through.

In a small bowl, combine goat cheese and mascarpone, mix well, and set aside. A couple of minutes before chicken is done, place equal amounts of cheese mixture on each breast. Spoon prepared sun-dried tomato sauce over chicken.





The Result:
This is my new favorite dinner. It was so decadent! Every bite was awesome. It was rich, but not in an overpowering way. It was buttery, creamy, tangy, and lemony, all at the same time. It was certainly an explosion of flavor. This dish paired nicely with the potato and broccoli, so I will probably keep the same side items when I make this dish again. The best part is that the sauce went with everything perfectly. I just spooned some of the sauce on my plain potato and I was in heaven. It was so good! I will definitely make this dish again.

Pork Chops Stuffed with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Spinach

This is one of my favorite stuffed pork chop recipes, from one of my favorite chef's, Giada de Laurentiis. It is so flavorful and savory...I heart it very much! I only make it once in awhile, but when I do, I consider it quite a treat. We actually had this for last night's dinner, so I will skip the fluff, and just get down to the nitty-gritty of the recipe. Needless to say, we all loved it and there are no leftovers for today.

I have to make a few adjustments based on our families preferences. The husband is not a huge fan of goat cheese (it is a little too tangy for him), but he will eat it in small quantities. I think this recipe calls for 2 ounces (or 1/4 cup) of goat cheese, but I actually cut it down to 1 ounce (or 1/8 of a cup) and find that it is the perfect amount. I usually make up the difference in quantity by adding more cream cheese. Also, the husband likes the flavor, but not the texture, of sun-dried tomatoes. I actually agree with him on this one. Sometimes large pieces of sun-dried tomatoes are a little too chewy for me, as well. I fixed this little issue by chopping the sun-dried tomatoes really finely before adding them to the filling. Problems solved! The texture is no longer a point of contention, and the sun-dried tomato flavor still shines through the dish.
I always end up with more filling than I need for the stuffing, so I actually top the chops with the remaining filling (I remove the chops from the pan, and put the filling on top right before covering them with foil); the filling gets all melty and warm through from the carry-over steam. It is so good!!!

I think this is another dish where the quick pan sauce really makes it yummy. So, don't skip the sauce step. Trust me.

I served this meal with Creamy Parmesan Orzo and steamed green beans. It was fan-freakin'-tastic!


Pork Chops Stuffed with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Spinach

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 sun-dried tomatoes, diced
1 (10-ounce) bag of frozen spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup (2 ounces) goat cheese ***(I only use 1 ounce)***
1/3 cup reduced-fat cream cheese
4 (4-ounce) center-cut pork chops
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 lemon, zested
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Directions:
Warm the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, salt, pepper, and thyme. Cook until combined, about 2 more minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Add the goat cheese and the cream cheese. Stir to combine and set aside.
Use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the thickest portion of the pork chop. Stuff each pocket with 1/4 of the spinach and sun-dried tomato mixture and close the pork around the stuffing. Season the outside of the pork with salt and pepper.
In a small bowl combine the chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, and mustard.
Warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot add the pork. Cook until golden and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side.

Transfer the pork to a side dish and tent with foil to keep warm. ***(Here is where I put the extra filling on top of the chop, before tenting with foil).***

Add the chicken broth mixture to the skillet over medium-high heat. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan as the chicken broth simmers. Reduce the broth by half to make a light sauce, about 8 minutes. Spoon some sauce over the pork before serving.

Guy's Cajun Chicken Alfredo

This is a recipe that I have been hanging on to for a while. I keep meaning to try it, but it always gets put on the back burner for something different. I found it on foodnetwork.com a few months ago and copied it. At that time, I went to the store and bought all the specialty ingredients just so I would have everything I needed on hand. Even after I bought all the stuff for this dish, I still did not make it. Well, the wait is over. I am going to finally make this tonight, because it does not require my leaving the house. I am not sure if I will change anything or not...I will decide if it needs any adjustment when I am preparing the recipe. Since this is my first time making it, I will let you know how it turns out later.


Cajun Chicken Alfredo
Recipe courtesy Guy Fieri

4 (5-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup blackening spice (recommended: Paul Prudhomme's Chicken)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1 cup roughly chopped marinated sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup white wine
3 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound cooked fettuccine
1/2 cup sliced scallions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Dredge the chicken breasts in the blackening spice and place in a cast iron skillet over very high heat. Blacken both sides of the chicken and place in the oven for 10 minutes, or until internal temperature of chicken reaches 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Slice in strips on the bias and set aside.
In a saute pan over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. Add garlic and lightly caramelize. Then add the sun-dried tomatoes and the chicken slices. De-glaze the pan with the white wine. Add the heavy cream, increase the heat to a simmer, and reduce the cream sauce by half.
When the cream sauce is to desired consistency, stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan, salt, pepper, and pasta.
Nest the pasta on large rimmed plates, pour sauce over pasta, and garnish with scallions and the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.

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