Haddock Bruschetta

At the end of the summer, we had an abundance of tomatoes and zucchini from our garden so I had been been brainstorming on how I could incorporate both into a delicious summer meal. I came up with what I call Haddock Bruschetta... yum! I typically browse recipes for some inspiration and either follow one exactly or alter/combine a few together. This one, however, I actually made it up as I went, and I was surprisingly impressed.


Haddock:

• 2 1/4-1/2 lb. haddock fillets
• 1-2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/4-1/2 cup of bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

Bruschetta Mixture:

• 2 tomatoes from our garden, diced
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

Sauteed Zucchini:

• 1 zucchini from our garden, quartered
• a little olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Drizzle olive oil over haddock fillets (both sides)
3. Combine bread crumbs, garlic powder, salt and pepper
4. Sprinkle bread crumb mixture over haddock fillets (both sides)
5. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes
6. In the meantime, combine bruschetta ingredients and mix in separate bowl
7. After the fish bakes for 15 minutes, remove from oven and top with bruschetta mixture
8. Bake for 10 more minutes
9. Saute zucchini on medium heat for approx. 10-15 minutes
10. Serve and Enjoy!

*** I used zucchini just because I was trying to use it up, but this meal would also be great with some cooked quinoa/brown rice or a small side of garlic bread. ***

 

Accent Nail - Love it or Lame?

As I've mentioned here, I frequent my nail salon quite regularly. I'm always looking for something new and different I can do to my nails, but tend to shy away from any sort of "nail art" that my manicurist (often) suggests. The latest trend I've been seeing a lot of recently is an accent nail and I am intrigued. Although I've yet to see this on a "regular" person on the streets, I've noticed it a lot in the celebrity/gossip/fashion mags and am tempted to try it out myself. What do you guys think?? 

LOVE it or LAME?

 

 

If you're on board with this trend, but don't know how to pick your accent color, refer to this post for some tips on color pairing!

 

 

Source: Photos courtesy of Pinterest.

Salmon with Avocado Lime Salsa

I am pretty much obsessed with anything that includes avocados, so when I came across this recipe on a fellow Merrimack College alumni's blog, I had to give it a try! The flavors of the avocado, lime and spices come together so well and are a perfect accompaniment to a fresh piece of salmon. For real, I could have eaten this for days.

Ingredients 

* Recipe makes enough for 2 people. *

SALMON:

• 1 lb. salmon cut into 2 portions
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. black pepper

SALSA:

• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 cup diced red onion
• Zest of 1 lime
• Juice of 1 1/2 limes
• 1 diced jalapeno pepper
• handful of cilantro, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

1)  Mix the salt, coriander, cumin, paprika, onion, and black pepper together.
2) Rub the salmon with the olive oil and the spice mix. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
3) Chop the avocado, onion, jalapeno and cilantro and combine in food processor. Pulse a few times until blended (but not completely smooth).
4) In a separate bowl, add lime juice, lime zest, salt/pepper and avocado mixture. Chill until ready to serve.
5)  Bake the salmon at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
6)  Serve the salmon topped with the chilled avocado salsa (I also served with brown rice).

Seriously, soooo GOOD. Make sure you check out Kelly's blog at www.kellycraves.com for some more delicious recipes and restaurant reviews!

Chicken Parm Calzone

Well, football season is back!! Which on top of cheering on your favorite team, means lazy Sundays, good food and Shipyard Pumpkinhead (in my household at least!). To kickoff the season, I decided to make a chicken parm calzone. Calzones are one of my favorite go-to's because not only are they ridiculously easy to make, but you can be creative and switch up the ingredients to satisfy your cravings - chicken parm, BBQ chicken, buffalo chicken, chicken and broccoli, meatball, steak & cheese... the possibilities are endless!

Ingredients:

• 1 ball of pizza dough (or make your own)
• 1 pkg. chicken (I used tenders)
• 2 eggs (in two separate bowls- 1 bowl with 1 egg-white and 1 bowl with remaining yolk from egg white and 1 whole egg )
• 1/2 - 1 cup flour
• 1/2 - 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce of your choice (I used Classico Tomato & Basil, but sometimes make my own)
• Cornmeal
• Olive oil
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2) Sprinkle a little cornmeal onto your pizza stone
3) Roll out dough into a semi-rectangular shape (make sure dough is room temperature before you start rolling)
4) Once dough is rolled, leave about 4 inches in the center and cut approx. 1/2-1 inch strips on each side (see picture below)
5) In the meantime, heat approx. 2 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan
6) Set up breading station
7) Bread chicken (dip in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs) and place in frying pan (NOTE: For breading, use the egg bowl that has 1 whole egg + 1 yolk. The egg white from one of the eggs will be used later)
8) Cook on med-high heat for approx. 5 min each side (or until browned and chicken is cooked through)
9) Set aside and let cool
10) Once chicken is cooled down, cut into pieces (approx. 1" cubes)
11) Place into bowl and add 1 cup tomato sauce
12) Add salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste and mix together
13) Spread approx. 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese on dough
14) Add chicken mixture and spread evenly
15) Top with remainder of mozzarella cheese.
16) Close calzone by criss-crossing the cut strips of the dough (see picture below).
17) Brush egg white on enclosed calzone (this helps to brown up the crust)
18) Bake for 25-30 minutes

  

   

 

 

GO PATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!