Smoothie

So...today was a really bad food day. I didn't feel like anything and I had a smoothie for dinner. However, there were some redeeming ingredients in the smoothie - like peanut butter for protein. I've never put peanut butter in a smoothie before - thank you Better Homes and Gardens for the recipe! I omitted the milk because I didn't have any and added ice. I also put in a banana, strawberries, blueberries and a kiwi.

All the ingredients

Side view

Things I learned from this recipe:

Peanut butter in a smoothie - smart idea!

Would I make this recipe again?:
Definitely

The recipe from the June 2013 issue of Better Homes & Gardens:

1C yogurt

1C milk

1C banana

1C of other fruit

If you want a protein boost, add a spoonful of peanut or other nut butter, or a scoop of whey power or wheat germ.

Serves two (or really one if you're having it for dinner)!

Chicken with Chile-Cheese Rice

I decided to give long grain rice not cooked in my rice cooker another go. I've never had good luck with it and I continued my streak tonight. For some reason we don't get along. I cooked the dish at least 20 minutes longer than it said to in the final step and many of the grains were still not fully cooked. So strange. If I cared enough, I'd probably read some tips on how to cook it better, but in all honesty, I will probably just avoid recipes that call for it. That being said, the flavors of the dish were excellent and the chicken did not get overcooked even with the extra time. I loved the cheesy bites and the two jalapeños really added a kick but were not too hot.

Step 1 - chicken

Step 2 - the jalapeños

Step 3 - chicken re-added

Step 4 - the extras

Things I learned from this recipe:

I don't understand how to cook rice when it doesn't come from my rice cooker.

Fresh cilantro is a must.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Maybe

The recipe

Cajun Chicken Wraps

Let me start off by saying "Yum!" and this recipe only took 20 minutes start to finish. The chicken tenders cooked quickly, the cajun season was delicious, the extra fresh lemon squeezed on was perfect, and the cajun mayo was great. I bought fresh tortillas in the refrigerated section of the grocery store and they tasted great as well. We ate two each but I could easily see eating one for lunch. I have nothing else to say except it's definitely worth making!

Things I learned from this recipe:

Weight Watchers recipes never cease to amaze me. So few ingredients such great taste.

Would I make this recipe again?:

Definitely

The recipe

Potato Salad

Eric noted that it seemed like we've been eating a lot of summer-ish food recently. I think it must be the weather and me willing it to get warm. As one who doesn't like to disappoint, tonight I made hotdogs (I used the leftover chicken sausage from gumbo night) and potato salad - a summertime favorite! Eric is fairly picky about potato salad (shocker) but we both really like this recipe because it doesn't require a lot of mayonnaise. People I've made it for really enjoy the vinegar taste, as do I. Eric wasn't really thrilled about this recipe because it actually does call for turkey bacon and the texture of it always got to him as fake. I finally started cooking the bacon longer in an attempt to make it crispy and it worked. I think it does a lot for the salad and will make it like this going forward.

Things I learned from this recipe:

Turkey bacon can really be made crispy like pork bacon. Five to six minutes total and it's pretty darn crispy! 

Would I make this recipe again?:

Absolutely

The recipe

Turkey Lettuce Wraps

I had leftover uncooked turkey from chili night and wanted to make a foolproof meal after the disaster last night so I decided on lettuce wraps. I have no actual recipe for this dish, but they are inspired by the wraps everyone loves from P.F. Chang's. We've been eating these for a couple of years, and usually eat them at lunch because there isn't much to them, but for a late dinner they're plenty. I love using the live Butter Lettuce rather than iceberg, shredded carrots, chopped peanuts and cilantro. I also like to use the soyaki sauce from Trader Joe's (really any type of marinade sauce works) on the turkey after it's done cooking and let it simmer in the sauce for a few minutes. 

I thought this "recipe" was a bit of a cheat and that I shouldn't include it, but Eric convinced me it really is my own recipe and I should share it. I always thought I needed to know exact measurements when I make a dish and it is funny to realize I really do just throw this dish together. The hardest part about relaying this recipe is trying to figure out how much of each ingredient I use. If you do end up making it, feel free to throw on as much or as little of the toppings as you like!

The fixin's

Things I learned from this recipe:

Eric should be in charge of grinding up the turkey. For whatever reason, he is far superior at this task.

Would I make this recipe again:

Of course.

The recipe (serves two):

1/2lb ground extra lean turkey

1/4C Trader Joe's soyaki sauce

8 leaves of Butter Lettuce

1/4C shredded carrots

1/4C chopped peanuts

cilantro for garnish