FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

Quick Weekday Meals

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Quick Weekday Meals

Even though my schedule is busier than ever these days, I’m finding that taking the time to make quick, homemade lunches and dinners is key to keeping energized throughout the madness.  Every meal listed below was prepared in less than twenty minutes and kept me plenty full as I hopped around town from project to project.

Filet with Zucchini & Onions

Filet with Zucchini & Onions

  • Heat cast iron grill pan over medium-high heat
  • Coat filet lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper
  • Grill on each side for approximately 4 minutes {or until desired temperature is reached}
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of organic unsalted butter {or coconut/olive oil} in a saucepan over medium heat
  • Add 1/2 onion {coarsely chopped} to butter and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned
  • Add 1 small zucchini {coarsely chopped} to onions and butter and cook, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is tender {less than 5 minutes}
  • Season with salt and pepper

Shrimp n Greens

Shrimp & Greens

  • Heat 1 tablespoon of organic unsalted butter {or coconut/olive oil} in a frying pan over medium heat
  • Add 6 peeled and deveined shrimp to butter
  • Season with salt and pepper and cook for about 2 minutes on each side or until cooked all the way through
  • Remove shrimp from pan and set aside
  • Add two to three large handfuls of baby spinach to the same frying pan
  • Season with salt and pepper and stir until wilted
  • Place spinach and and shrimp on a plate and sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes

Chicken Sausage & Asparagus Quinoa

Chicken Sausage & Asparagus Quinoa

  • Bring 1 cup of water to boil in a small saucepan
  • Add 1/2 cup rinsed quinoa to water, cover, reduce heat, and let cook for 12 minutes
  • Remove from heat, keep covered, and let sit for 4 minutes
  • While quinoa is cooking, heat a grill pan over medium-high heat
  • Lightly coat chicken sausage with olive oil and let grill until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees {this sausage took about 15 minutes}
  • While sausage is cooking, add 2 tablespoons of organic unsalted butter {or coconut/olive oil} to a frying pan over medium-high heat
  • Add 1/2 onion {coarsely chopped} to butter and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned
  • Add 1/2 bunch of asparagus {coarsely chopped} to the onions and butter until the asparagus is tender, but still firm {about 5 minutes}
  • Add quinoa to veggies, season with salt and pepper, and serve with sausage

Grouper & Mixed Greens

Broiled Grouper & Greens

  • Coat grouper lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper
  • Broil for about 10 minutes, until fish is opaque and flaky
  • While fish is cooking, place a handful or two of greens on a plate
  • Drizzle greens with coconut oil and massage oil into greens
  • Season with salt and pepper
  • Squeeze juice of 1 key lime {or 1/2 regular lime} over greens
  • Top with fish and serve

Key Lime & Vanilla Bean Custard Cups

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Key Lime & Vanilla Bean Custard

I’ve been playing around with this recipe for few days and what I’ve ended up with, what’s pictured in the photo above, is one of my favorite desserts of all time. Custard, key lime, vanilla bean, and {what wasn’t able to fit in the title block} salted, toasted coconut flakes – magnificent, I tell ya!

Coconut Milk Custard

I toyed with regular coconut milk {light consistency} and culinary coconut milk {cream consistency} and the culinary coconut milk made all the difference in the world.  If you aren’t able to get your hands on culinary coconut milk, then try your best to find canned coconut cream {I’m not sure about the boxed variety}.

Key Lime & Vanilla Bean

And key limes…  This Florida girl has such a special place in her heart for anything key lime.  They are so adorable and somehow embody parts of childhood for reasons unknown {could it be just a lifetime love of real key lime pie?}.  But if you’re unable to find key limes at your local grocer, a regular lime should suffice.  This recipe calls for zest and juice of two key limes that could simply be replaced with zest and juice of one regular lime.

Key Lime & Vanilla Bean Custard 2

After fully chilled, this custard is a perfect cross between traditional custard, key lime pie, and crème brûlée.  I’ve helped myself to a cup after every dinner since Saturday and… I just can’t foresee when I’ll stop re-stocking my fridge with custard – it is that good!

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Cucumber & Cilantro Chicken Salad

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Cucumber Chicken Salad

Have you ever been such a busy bee that when you came home from the grocery store you realized, not only did you forget something, but you brought home another thing that already had fair representation in the fridge?  Like cilantro. I’ve purchased cilantro three times  in less than a week.  Not good.

Cubed Chicken Breast

Luckily my roommate’s gym schedule is about an hour behind my yoga schedule. And since we both go to the grocery store on a daily basis {I wish I was joking}, I knew he could pick up that onion that slipped my mind.  And as far as the boat loads of cilantro?  I’d just whip up a batch of super summery chicken salad and pretend the overstock was all on purpose.

Chicken Salad Ingredients

And then I’d be thankful.  Because chicken salad with cukes, red onions, cilantro, lime, and homemade mayo is such a darn good combo.  Season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of cayenne pepper and man oh man, you’ve got yourself something special.

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Homemade Grapeseed Oil Mayo

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Homemade Mayo

At some point during every summer, I start craving massive amounts of sandwich salads {minus the sandwich part}.  Chicken, tuna, egg – I could easily rotate the three every day from May to August.  Insert a slaw here and there, and you’ve got yourself the happiest of girls.

But then there’s mayonnaise.  I strategically create salads and slaws that have simple ingredients and then add a mystery ingredient condiment to bind it all together?  It just doesn’t make sense.  So I turned to Melissa Joulwan, fellow Austin food blogger, for her paleo olive oil mayo recipe.

And then I failed.  Hard.  Not because of her instructions or impatience.  But because I didn’t sample the olive oil before creating the most beautiful, fluffy, poisonous tasting mayo ever.

So I went back to the grocery store on a mission to purchase the lightest tasting oil I could find.  I walked away with grapeseed oil and ended up with a beautiful, fluffy, delicious mayo the second time around.

Using only egg, lemon juice, salt, and grapeseed oil completely changed my perception of mayo.  I eat eggs and use lemon juice/oil as salad dressing on the regular, so there was no longer anything mystery about it.

If you’re a sandwich salad lover as well, I highly suggest you make your own mayo this summer!