Today Dustin and I celebrate our 2nd Wedding Anniversary!  I can't believe 2 years have gone by already.  Time flies when you are happy and having fun!  I thank the universe every day our paths crossed.  I'm one lucky girl to have such an amazing husband and partner in crime <3

We had Lemon Caper Chicken with Garlic Green Beans and Lemon Saffron Couscous for dinner.  Watched the Diamondbacks game and ended with mini chocolate pudding pie bites.

I look forward to our third year of marriage and becoming parents! :D

Ash <3

Parmesan Tilapia with Roasted Summer Squash over Tomato, Lemon, Basil Brown Rice

12 oz tilapia
1.5 tablespoons mayo
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup parmesan
Salt and Pepper to taste
Yellow Squash
Brown rice
1 tomato diced
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup white wine

Preheat oven to broiled. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in skilled. Mix mayo, parmesan, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, dash of tabasco, salt and pepper.  Place tilapia in dish and cover with mixture. Cook rice per instructions. Put fish in oven and check constantly. When golden brown pull out of oven.

Combine cooked rice,  1/4 cup lemon juice and white wine, basil, tomatoes, and salt and pepper.

Serve tilapia over roasted summer squash and tomatoes brown rice.

Soooo yummy!!  It melts in your mouth and has amazing flavor! 

Ash.

Asian Pork over Roasted Vegetables and Lemon Saffron Israeli Couscous

Started getting recipes from a recipe service Dave Ramsey endorses. And I can definitely see and taste why!!

1 tablespoon olive oil
12-16 ounces boundless pork chops
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 cup chicken broth warmed
1/2 teaspoon ginger
Crushed garlic to taste
Yellow squash cut into medallions
2 Red peppers sliced
1.5 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon each salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Heat oil in skilled. Slice pork into thin strips, toss in hot olive oil about 3 minutes. Add soy sauce , chicken broth, ginger, and garlic. Cover, simmer about 10 minutes.

Toss vegetables in oil, soy, and pepper. Roast on a foil covered basing sheet in oven until browned.   Watch carefully.  Serve hot pork on a mound of the roasted vegetables

I used the fresh summer squash from my garden and it was delicious. All together a very fearful and easy meal!  Fast too :) 

I also served it with lemon saffron Israeli Couscous.

Ash!

Fish Tacos and Lime Cilantro Rice

In attempts to be healthy and incorporate fish into our diets I adapted a recipe from eatingwell.com and made it my own. The rice is a play off how I think chipolte makes there's but healthy! 




Fish Tacos and Cilantro Lime Rice

2-4 Tilapia Fish Filets
1 Cup Wheat Flower
1 Teaspoon Cumin
1 Teapsoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Pepper
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder

Each teaspoon is going to be halfed between the flower and the panko bread crumbs so each recieves 1/2 teaspoon

1 Cup panko bread crumbs
3 Tablespoons Peanut/Grape Seed/Olive Oil
1/2 to 1 bottle Light Cerveza
4-8 Corn Tortillas

Garnish

Sour Cream or Greek Yogart
Shredded Lettuce
Diced Sweet Peppers (The baby red/yellow/orange sweet peppers)
Diced Green Onion
Chopped Cilantro
Tomatoes
Lime wedges
Shredded Cheese

Lime Cilantro Rice

3-4 Cups Brown Rice
4-6 Cups Water (brown rice needs more water to steam/cook)
1/2 Cup Fresh Lime Juice
1/4 Cup Chopped Cilantro

For fish, cut into bite size chunks.  Mix flower and 1/2 teaspoons of seasons.  Add beer half a bottle at a time and mix well.  You want a batter to dip the fish in so the panko crumbs stick.  The consistency should be similiar to pancake mix.  Drop all of the fish chunks in batter and let sit for 10 min.  While setting put oil into a frying pan and warm at medium to medium hot depending on your stove top.  While oil is warming put rice into steamer/pot with water and 3 tablespoons of the lime juice, this way the lime juice also cooks into the rice.  While rice cooks mix the panko bread crumbs in with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of spices.  Once oil is hot take individual fish pieces out of the batter and dredge in panko bread crumbs and put in pan.  Watch the fish and how fast they brown depending on your cook top.  If you need to up the heat or lower the heat do so.  Since you don't want to over crowd the pan (this can drop the oil temp and slow cooking, so cook enough fish where they still have room to cook). While fish is cooking I will turn the oven on to 275 and place a cookie sheet with a wire rack in it to set the fish after they are cooked on while cooking the remaining batches.  This helps keep the fish warm and crispy.  While fish and rice are cooking take a large piece of foil (about 15 inches or less depending on amount of tortillas) and a damp paper down and lay the paper towl on the non shiny side of the foil.  Layer the tortillas so they are over laping about half way on the paper towel.  Once done fold over foil like a present and place in warm oven with fish to warm the tortillas. 

Once rice is finished add in remaining lime juice and fresh chopped cilantro.  Stir and its ready!  I don't add spices to mine but you can if you want!  Once fish is done simply put together and enjoy!!

I'd highly recommend the addition of the sweet peppers.  They really gave it an extra yumminess!

<3 Ash

Yogic Expantion

Blissful Yoga Studio offers 20 different yoga classes.  It is my mission to take all of them except prenatal and kids yoga.

Here is the Run down of amazing classes :)

-All Levels
-Ashtanga Primary (Monthly)
-Blissflow
-Candle Light Yoga Level I/II
-Hot Yoga
-Hot Yoga I/II
-Intro to Yoga
-Level I/II
-Level II/III
-Restorative Candle Light
-Restorative Yoga
-Stretch & Restore
-Vinyasa
-Ying Yoga
-YinYasa
-Yoga Core
-Yoga Fit
-Yoga Wall (ABSOLUTE favorite class)

The purple classes are the ones that I have already taken.  This week I'm going to give Vinyasa a go and Yoga Core :)

I really like the additional strength I'm getting from taking these classes in addition to hitting the gym 5 days a week.  I've lost 8.25 inches off my body in the first month and am pumped!!  The energy alone is worth it.  The yoga has helped in stretching out my muscles after the weight lifting and the yoga gives you a hell of an aerobic work out in addition to strength and endurance.  And clarity of mind!

<3

A little Paint back in my Life

After a long sabbatical, I finally brought paint to canvas again a few weeks ago. Here is some of the beginnings of a series yet un.named. :)

Excellent Garlic Parmesan Crutons (homemade)

1 loaf two day old French bread
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 cup shredded/shaved parmesan
Spray Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Cube the bread into desired curton size. Place in a bowl and add in all ingredients except spray olive oil. Mix by hand in bowl to combine ingredients and bread cubes. Next take spray olive oil and quick coat while turning bread cubes with hand to lightly coat cubes and help ingredients stick. Pre-heat oven to 350  place on a cookie sheet and sprinkle remaining ingredients over bread cubes. Place in oven for 10-15 minutes or until crisp and starting to brown. Allow to cool and enjoy with salads or by themselves ;)

BBQ Pulled Pork in the Crock

I love my crock pot. Very much. Here is a recipe for a pulled pork that has my husband thanking Jesus Christ himself. It's good stuff.
One 4-5 lbs Pork shoulder
1/3 cup each : Apple cigar vinegar, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, and liquid smoke
1 cup brown sugar
3 garlic clove minced
Salt and pepper ( tablespoon of each-ish)
1 onion sliced, leaving in discs
1 quart vegetable stock
1-2 bottles of your favorite BBQ sauce (we love fresh and easy's honey BBQ sauce!)
Mix the ingredients together until brown sugar dissolves. Wash the pork should and pat dry. Take a fork and stab the meat on both sides. This allows the marinated to fully flavor the meat.
I use a vacuum sealed in this next process. It sucks the air out and the marine into the meat then seals the package.
Place meat in a big baggie or dish.  Place some of the onion slices under and on top of the meat. Pour the marinade over the meat. Cover and allow to marinade for 24 hours turning several times.
Once the pork shoulder has marinated, place in a crock pot. Pour remaining marinade and onions ontop of the meat. Pour vegetable stock over the shoulder until just covered. Cook on low setting (8-10th hours) 
Once crock pot switches to warm remove the shoulder bone from the meat. It should slide out very easily. Remove the meat and onions from the from the crock pot. Pour on your favorite BBQ sauce and serve up!
Slow cooked pulled pork in a crock pot. Eat your heart out dickies!

Garden 2011

I am very excited for the coming weeks to start my garden.  I finally have a backyard to call my own and cultivate some veggies and fruits (aka saving money and food you grow just tastes that much better!)  Also I'm a big fan of cooking with fresh herbs especially.  I had a good sized herb garden when I lived in ABQ.  10 different herbs giving a lot of variety and full flavor.  Fresh herbs make a difference!   They can be grown all season from spring till beginnings of fall depending what the local climate is.  Last year I watched my friend Laura grow a bad ass garden with the most surprising plant.  Artichokes.  You don't really think of how they are grown but man, pretty cool and if you don't cut the bloom (the actual artichoke) it blooms this insanely gorgeous bloom somewhere between light indigo and a tad bit of periwinkle in color.  She also grew bell peppers, tomatoes, and other things.  Over the past year I through some food docs and books by Michael Pollan, I changed the way Dustin and I ate.  Instead of buying everything prepared, actually take the time to make it from scratch myself.  Have the power over what goes into the food as well really make it what we want.  Major removal has been HFC or high fructose corn syrup.  I also want to make jams and can some of the tomatoes/make pickles/peppers to have for the winter :)

So here is my garden:

Veggies:
Artichoke
Beans: (Greensleeves, Royal Burgundy, and Yellow Wax)
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Carrots (Kaleidoscope)
Chile (self explanatory!)
Cucumbers (Bush Champion and Pickling)
Bell Peppers (Multicolor and Sweet Gypsy Minis)
Lettuce Mix
Summer Squash
Tomatoes(Roma, Sweet Cherry, Heirloom)
Zucchini

Fruit:
Blackberries
Blueberries
Melon (Charemtais-French)
Raspberries
Strawberries
Watermelon

Herbs:
Basil(Sweet, Lemon, Lime)
Chives
Cilantro
Dill
Lavender
Lemon Balm
Oregano
Parsley (Italian Flat Leaf)
Rosemary
Safe
Stevia
Thyme


Dustin and I will be using 2 x however long they are's to make a box that will be two 2 x's tall staked with posts at each corner.  Saw it done at the Depot ;) Lol  Looked official, and they had the boarder stuff flagged off for repairs on the outdoor shelves.  I still want to go back and take a look, but the 2 x whatever length looks good to me :)  I just want them built so I can rent the roto till and dig some ground up.  In the process we are also going to reseed the grass.  After a long hoooot summer and a hair storm that beat it to crap we are going to start fresh.  We both really want a green lawn.  So we are getting a cracked out seed that apparently will also grow on bricks and is heat tolerant.. so here's to hoping!!

Once the planters are built and grown tilled we are going to use the existing sprinkler heads to turn into a drip system.  You just buy a different head that has multi ports to then run watering tubing.  Plants watered.  Also I will do spot watering and weeding.  I read a few places to put mulch on top of the soil to keep it warm and moist and prevent weeds.. we will see.  I will need to mix in some good stuff in the existing dirt to make it healthy.  Also a trick from Laura.  EARTHWORMS.  The woman is a genius and her mom's garden is insane.. :)

So there it is.  I'm also going to be chronicling the progress of the garden and what I learn here and on my blog.  Flow me :) Ask Questions.  Growing your own food is fun, rewarding, and yum!   No wax, no worry, no chemical pesticides. 

Get ready for some gardening!


Ash!

PS: Make sure you check your Zone for gardening.  You can do this on Burpee.com  The also have great seeds.  I will get my seeds anywhere I see them.  Walmart/Target/Home Depot/Lowes.  Home Depot is around the corner so that will be mostly where I get mine and they are Burpee seed sellers.  I also will be ordering seeds from Burpee.  Their kaleidoscope carrots are to awesome to not grow.  I will also buy plants at the Depot or Walmart (yea guilty) or Target.. and a website that is bad ass.  Possibilities are endless.  You can also Google seeds.

Chicken Nuggets

If you haven't seen the youtube of the magic goop that a certain red/yellow hamburger joint uses for their "chicken nuggets", you may want to... then make mine instead!!

This recipe is an adaption from watching Nigella Lawson on the cooking channel.  I have changed some of the recipe ingredients to my taste and dietary desires.

2-3 cups buttermilk
2-4 chicken breasts, trimmed
Coarse salt
Fresh Ground pepper
garlic powder
Box of Panko Bread Crumbs
Oil

I start off by washing all of my meats.  They've sat in the packing if even for a day still give yourself a true blank slate and peace of mind.  Luke warm/cool water.  Pat chicken dry.  Next cut the chicken breasts into nugget chunk sizes with a knife or kitchen sheers.  Kitchen sheers are easier and my choice of weapon.  (Make sure if you use the sheers they are immediately washed with hot water as anything with meat should be)  Space the chicken out so an even season can be applied.  Sprinkle a layer to taste of salt, pepper, and garlic salt.  Add more if you know you like your meat more seasoned, less if you don't like as much season.  Pour the butter milk into a gallon zip lock bag.  Put the chicken into the bag with the butter milk.  Seal and massage around for 5 min.  Place in fridge for up to 2 days of marinading.  I marinated for 2 days and the chicken was fabulously tender.  The buttermilk tenderizes the meat :)

Once meat has marinated for chosen time, place in a shallow bowl panko bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  You will have to refill your dish a few times during cooking.  Have a tall side sauce pan with a 1/2 cup oil heated.  Take the chicken from the buttermilk directly into the panko bread crumbs and coat well.  Once coated place in oil in pan and cook on both sides until crispy brown and chicken is cooked.  Once cooked place on a rack above some paper towels and allow excess oil to drip off.  You can also bake the nuggets, my husband just has some southern in him.  If cooking in oven follow breading and then place on a greased sheet.  Cook at 425 for 15-20 minutes.

Waaaa la!  That is what an actual chicken nugget is.  Not random pink breaded goo.

Ranch, Honey BBQ Sauce, Wing Sauce, and many more dipping sauces make great friends with the nuggets

Tomato Rice Soup for the two I love!

My best friend Liz is in town this week and I couldn't be happier.  She lives back home in Albuquerque so we see each other major holidays if that.  So having her here is awesome!  I need me some best friend time.  (since 4th grade!) 

So at the request of my hubby and the agree of the bestie I made tomato rice soup with grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.  Might I say a FINE choice.

While I'm usually inclined to make my tomato soup from scratch, while shopping and found 1.99 pints of fresh made organic tomato and basil soup at fresh and easy on sale.  Their soups are usually full of flavor and yum, so I decided to be a tad lazy and let F/E make the soup.  I steamed rice in the rice steamer and grilled up some grilled cheeses.  This may not be the most "healthy" meal, but man the comfort is there <3



Tomato Rice Soup and Grilled Cheese

2 pints tomato soup (organic or fresh if you can)
2 cups fancy quality rice rinsed
2 cups water
2 slices of bread
2 2% Cheddar Singles
Butter/Margarine

Start the rice in the rice cooker.  It is always same parts rice to water.  I highly recommend investing in a rice cooker if you do not have one. 

While the rice is preparing, start warming the soup in a pan on the stove, covered.  Stir every 5 minutes and allow soup to start to bubble.  Once bubbling reduce to medium low for 5-10 minutes or until soup is hot.  Rice should be done by now.

For grilled cheese put a thin layer of butter on eat side of all four slices.  Place a cheese single between a pair of slices and drop on a griddle on medium.  Watch to make sure bread doesn't burn!  Turn once brown.  Slice any way you like.  I like mine cut on the diagonal twice making 4 little squares, the hubby likes it half down the middle, and the bestie likes it one cut on the diagonal.

Now that sandwiches are done spoon desired amount of rice in bowl.  Follow with a ladle of hot tomato soup... and dinner is served!

You can of course add cheese, sour cream, Tabasco, and many other condiments.

We went the old school way :) Belly's full of warm comfort food equals happy laughing people.  And made Liz sleepy. 

Hubby and I are now in the living room sharing some tea.  Well he's playing Black Ops COD and I'm blogging :)

Tomorrow may be Monday, but tomorrow we make a pork shoulder. Oooh the possibilities :)