Rumbi Island Aloha Mango Chicken Salad

White chicken breast meat cut into chunks (about a cup)
3 cups chopped Romaine Lettuce 
1/3 cup red pepper diced into pieces
1/4 cup red onion, sliced very finely and then diced tiny
feta cheese crumble a tablespoon over each salad when serving
1 mango diced into half inch squares
slivered almonds
tortilla strips over the top

Citrus Salad Dressing
1/4 cup frozen orange juice from concentrate (I just did 1/2 C of orange juice)
1 Tablespoon fresh lime
1/3 cup rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar (I did rice vinegar)
1/4 cup sugar 
1/3 cup salad oil
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon Lawry's or Johnny's Seasoning Salt
A few shakes of pepperI prefer to set all the ingredients out in their own bowl and everyone can dish up the quantities they like.  And it also keeps longer in the fridge when it's not combined.

Asian Chicken Salad

 

Salad:

Romaine Lettuce mix

Purple and Green Cabbage

Carrots

(for the above items I have found it is easiest to buy the packaged salad mix called "field greens" it has all of those items already in it, or buy a bag of romaine and a small bag of broccoli slaw.)

Green onions

Slivered Almonds

Brown Rice Noodles

Put all these items in a bowl and mix well

Breaded Chicken (Costco) or Grilled Chicken

Dressing:

Put all items in a blender and mix until combined well.

1 Clove garlic

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup purple onion

1 tsp dijon mustard

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup mayo

1/2 cup veg oil

1 Tbs Poppy seeds

I usually try to make it in the morning so it has all day for the flavors to combine.

Make as side salad, or serve in warm bake at home tortillas.

*We ate this at a girls Christmas party.  AMAZING.  My new favorite dinner or lunch.  If eating with tortillas, never mix dressing with salad before.  Keep them separate so you can store salad in fridge for days. I promise, it stays good.

Grilled BBQ Chicken Sandwhiches with all the Toppings

2 large chicken breasts
Stubbs BBQ sauce (original)
Pepper Jack Cheese
Avocados
Tomatoes
Mini Peppers (come in a bag of all colors)
Mayo
Tort  Crusty Rolls from Costco

Smother chicken in BBQ sauce and place on grill, re-smothering as needed while cooking.  Remove Pepper centers and roast on the grill.  When chicken and peppers are finished, place on roll with all other toppings.  Serve with salad, fruit, chips, or sweet potato fries!  (Clayton loved, loved, loved these.  A fun spin from the sometimes sloppy shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches)

Roasted Red Pepper Chicken Melts

Ingredients:

• 7-ounce jar of roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry (about 3/4 C)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 2 cups cooked shredded or (or a few chicken breasts grilled and sliced)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, or several slices
• a handful of fresh basil leaves
• 1 large french baguette (about 24″ long) or 4 large hoagie buns

Directions: 

Place roasted red peppers, garlic, mayo, and lemon juice (if you don’t have a lemon, sub red or white wine vinegar, or just leave it out!)  in a food processor.  Add a pinch of salt and a few cracks of fresh ground pepper.  Process until smooth and then store in the fridge until ready to use.  You can make the sauce ahead of time.

Slice bread in half to open it up.  Lightly brush with olive oil or butter and place under a broiler until golden brown and toasted.  Remove from oven and spread red pepper sauce on the bottom half of the bread.  Layer chicken on top of it and top with cheese.  Place back in the broiler just until cheese is melted.  Top with basil leaves.  Spread red pepper sauce on other side of bread and put sandwich together.  Slice in to 4 large hoagies, or 8 smaller sandwiches.

Notes:

I like to make these open faced. We have made them about once/week since discovering them last month. Jordan especially LOVES them. I sometimes use rotisserie chicken so I barely have to turn the oven on (it heats up our apartment so badly!). I place the basil under the cheese before I toast it. We have it with fresh fruit and it's a perfect summer meal! 

Recipe and picture from: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2013/05/italian-chicken-hoagies-with-roasted-red-pepper-sauce/

Pasta Primavera

Pasta Primavera

 

3 Tbs butter

1 lb asparagus (tough ends removed and cut into 1 inch pieces)

1 zucchini (halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch chunks)

8 oz mushrooms (trimmed and sliced thin)

1 cup frozen peas

2 cloves garlic (minced)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 (14.5) oz can petite diced tomatoes

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 lb angel hair pasta

1/4 c minced fresh basil ....I just use the basil from my spice rack, and I put like 2 tbs in

1 1/2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Grated Parmesean cheese (for serving)

 

Cook the fettuccine.  Meanwhile, melt 1 tbs butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add asparagus and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes.  Transfer to a medium bowl.  Repeat with zucchini and mushrooms.  After the mushrooms are lightly browned add the peas and garlic and cook about 30 seconds.  Transfer to the bowl with the asparagus and zucchini.  Season the vegetables with salt and pepper.  Add the tomatoes with their juice and the red pepper flakes to the skillet.  Simmer until the tomatoes have thickened slightly, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the cream and simmer about 5 minutes.  Drain the fettuccine after cooking and transfer to a serving dish.  Stir in the vegetables, tomato sauce, basil and lemon juice and toss to coat.

Baked Fish Sticks with Tartar Sauce and Sweet Potato Fries

Baked Fish Sticks with Tartar Sauce and Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients: 

Fish Sticks:

• 1 lb white fish such as cod, halibut, or tilapia (I used halibut)
• 1 Tbs canola oil
• 1-2 eggs
• 6 Tbs flour
• 1 tsp seasoned salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 C panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 C unseasoned breadcrumbs

Tartar Sauce:

• 1/2 C mayonaise
• 2 Tbs sour cream
• 1/4 tsp dried dill
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 Tbs finely minced onion
• 1 T minced dill pickle
• 1 pinch seasoned salt
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Tartar Sauce: Mix all tartar sauce ingredients and stir well to combine. Chill for at least one hour before serving. (The longer the better, make ahead if you can!)

Fish Sticks: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush canola oil on a rimmed baking sheet and set aside.

Crack egg(s) into a shallow dish and beat lightly (start with one egg and crack another if you run out). In a separate shallow dish combine flour, seasoned salt, pepper, and paprika. In one more shallow dish combine panko and bread crumbs.

Cut fish into sticks about 3-4 inches long and 1/2-1 inch tall.

Working with a few pieces of fish at at time, dredge first in flour and then shake off excess. Then dip each piece in the beaten egg, and finally the bread crumb mixture. Make sure all sides are well coated with bread crumbs and then place fish on the baking sheet.

When all pieces are on baking sheet, place in oven and cook for about 10 minutes. Cool for a few minutes and then serve with tartar sauce for dipping.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

• 1 lb peeled sweet potatoes cut into 1/4″ match-sticks
• 2 T extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 t cumin
• 1/2 t oregano
• 1/2 t coriander
• 1 t kosher salt
• 1 t parsley
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

*you want 1lb sweet potatoes after they are peeled, sliced, etc. If you weigh them at the store make sure you have a little more than a pound to allow for the peeling, and tossing of small pieces.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a small bowl combine cumin, oregano, coriander, salt, parsley, and pepper. 

Place sweet potatoes in a pile directly on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.  Use hands to toss until all pieces are well coated.  Sprinkle seasoning mixture on top and toss again with hands to coat. 

Arrange sweet potatoes in a single layer so that pieces are not touching each other.  Place pan in oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Use a metal spatula to gently flip fries and then return pan to oven. Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes or until fries are starting to lightly brown and crisp.  Remove pan from oven and cool 5 minutes.  Serve immediately.

Notes:

We love ourbestbites at our house! I guess this should really be a summer post, but we inherited some free halibut from a friend's brother who lost electricity during hurricane Sandy and couldn't keep the fish he caught in Alaska frozen. I don't often make breaded items just because to make enough for our family it is kind of time intensive. However, because the cooking time is only 10 minutes, it makes up for some of the three-dipping prep work. We also LOVE sweet potato fries at our house, and this is one of the best recipes I have tried! I haven't tried the honey-lime dip (see link below) but I'm sure it's great, too. The tartar sauce was great, but I may adjust it to my tastes (like make with plain yogurt instead of mayo). These could've been two separate posts, but I like to put like things together. We make sweet potato fries as a side to all sorts of dishes though. The boys thought it was great that I gave them permission to use their fingers at this meal - they loved picking everything up and dipping it in a sauce! 

As you know, I like to do most of my prep work in the morning. So I cut up the fish into appropriate sizes, mixed the tartar sauce, and mixed up the flour and bread crumb mixtures. That allowed me just to bread the fish and pop it in the oven that night! 

Recipe and pictures from: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/04/baked-fish-sticks-with-tartar-sauce/ and http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/03/baked-sweet-potato-fries-with-honey-lime-dip/

Roasted Tomato Penne

Roasted Tomato Penne

Ingredients:

• olive oil (I use about 1/4 C for the amount of tomatoes I usually use)
• 3-5 cloves minced garlic, depending on your taste
• salt and pepper to taste
• dash of crushed red pepper flakes
• tomatoes, chopped (I use enough to fill the bottom of a 9x13, usually about 4 cups I think. I esp like this with halved cherry tomatoes and use 3 of those 10.5 oz containers)
• 1 box whole wheat penne pasta, cooked according to package directions
• Toppings:
• freshly grated parmesan cheese
• fresh chopped basil

-Optional:
-Add 1 C raw shrimp before cooking to add some additional protein and round out the meal. I love either way. I am sure you could add chicken and other items per your preference.

Directions:
Combine olive oil, garlic, salt, and peppers. Add tomatoes and toss in olive oil mixture. Spread in 9x13 pan and roast at 450F for about 18 minutes. Toss with pasta and top at the table with parmesan cheese and basil.

Notes:
The amounts are not exact and the recipe is very forgiving. This is very versatile depending on your taste and what you have available. Any type of tomato turns out yummy. Pair with chicken or fish or just have as a main dish (that's what we do, occasionally adding shrimp). You can add in zucchini and onion if you like. It is so easy but tastes elegant and fresh. Perfect taste of summer, but we eat it all year round! Lots of other yummy recipes use roasted tomatoes as an ingredient as well. Roasting is my favorite way to prepare veggies.