Grapefruit Balsamic Glazed Chicken Breasts

This week's entry is simple and easy to make. I have this wonderful bottle of Grapefruit Balsamic Vinegar sitting on my counter from olivetreekc.com.  It is lip smacking good and today I decided to make a little sauce to drizzle on the grilled chicken I was having for lunch.

I typically prepare chicken on my George Foreman Grill, seasoning it with basic salt, pepper along with a little sprinkle of chili and cumin for added kick.  I fix enough for heat and eat or to slice and dice on salads during the week to make meal prep easier. 

Grapefruit Balsamic Glaze

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon Grapefruit Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Water
1/2 teaspoon Truvia
1 grilled chicken breast

Directions:


Place the ingredients in a small saucepan or a small saute pan (I use my non-stick saute pan for easier cleanup).
Mix the ingredients together with a whisk and heat over medium heat.
Let the mixture reduce, stirring constantly.

When the mixture thickens, drizzle it as a glaze over your sliced chicken breast and serve with a vegetable of your choice.

and that's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!

Baked Apple Snacks

Making Baked Apple Snacks is an ideal project for a chilly winter day!  I'm anxious to put these snacks into a pretty bowl for after dinner munchies that will satisfy my sweet tooth and be light on calories!

As part of my healthier eating efforts, I eat apples a lot to satisfy my cravings for sugar.  I love this time of year when the apples are beautiful and crisp.  My favorites are Pink Lady, which I used for this recipe, a new variety that I discovered this year which is Jazz, and a couple of other favorites are Honeycrisp and Fuji.  I'll be experimenting with this recipe with the different varieties to find the one that I like best.

Yesterday I bought a new "toy".  Close friends tell me I'm the queen of kitchen gadgets.  And, uhm...well, maybe this confirms it.  I purchased a Mandoline.  I believe that having the right tool for the job is very important and in this case it was indispensible in saving me time and achieving the very extremely thin apple slices called for in this recipe.   The apple slices need to be very thin so they crisp up easily.  
An apple corer is also a tool that you'll need to have handy to make these.

Baked Apple Snacks

Servings:  2

Ingredients:

2 Apples, sliced to an 1/8th inch thickness

Stevia

Cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 235 degrees F.

Wash and dry the apples.

Slice each apple into slices 1/8th inch thick.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place the apple slices on the parchment.  Sprinkle the apple slices with Stevia and Cinnamon to your taste.

Place the cookie sheets into the oven for 60 minutes.
After 60 minutes, remove the sheets from the oven and flip the apple slices.

Sprinkle them with Stevia and Cinnamon.

Return the cookie sheets to the oven and bake an additional 60 minutes.

Remove from the oven, cool on the cookie sheets and store them in an airtight container.

...an apple a day...in a whole new way!

 ....and that's What's Cooking At Cathy's ~ Enjoy!

Cajun Baked Tilapia

I have had a tendency to shy away from posting the super simple recipes on the blog because for the most part there isn't a written recipe that I use.  I just put the things together.

After bemoaning to a friend over the weekend that I haven't made anything exciting because of my quest for healthier eating and losing a few (ok more than a few) pounds she reminded me that not everyone had the inspiration to just throw simple things together or that not everyone knew how to cook.

So while I'm dieting and improving my eating habits, I'll be sharing simple  and quick recipes that are part of my current quest for healthier eating and I hope you give them a try and enjoy!

Today I'm fixing baked fish.  I find that Tilapia is one of my favorites.  It is mild and not overtly "fishy" which lets the seasonings shine and cooks up in a flash.  I typically purchase Tilapia filets frozen so I have it on hand but I have also purchased fresh filets from the supermarket.

Cajun Baked Tilapia
Servings:  2

Ingredients:

2 4 ounce Tilapia filets
1 teaspoon Cajun Spice
Non Stick Spray

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Line a cookie sheet with foil and coat lightly with non-stick spray. This will make clean up a breeze.
Place the filets 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet.
Sprinkle the top of each filet with 1/2 teaspoon of seasoning (or add more if you prefer to kick up the spice).
Place sheet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily.

.....and that's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!

Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet

Today I want to share how to quickly make a frozen treat that is refreshing and easy on the calories.  Ruby Red Grapefruits are plentiful and readily available at the grocery here in the heartland of America in the winter months.  I prefer the sweetness of the ruby reds to white grapefruit and their lovely color makes them eye appealing too.  This dessert is a tasty way to add some vitamin C to your diet.


This recipe doesn't have exact measurements.  I have instructions that include "sweeten to taste".  Ruby Reds are really sweet and tart and the sweetness may vary from fruit to fruit.  By either making and using simple syrup to use as liquid to the desire quantity or just adding water and artificial sweetener (I use Stevia), you can adjust this to your preference. 


If you are watching your calories, make this with Stevia, and you can indulge your love for frozen treats guilt free!


Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet


Ingredients:


2 Ruby Red Grapefruits, seeded and juiced 
1 teaspoon Grapefruit Zest
Water
Sugar or sweetener to taste*


*I used Stevia.  If you are using sugar you need to make simple syrup and use that instead of just water so you are sure to have all the sugar dissolved and avoid a gritty texture.
Directions:
Zest the grapefruit, carefully avoiding the white pith which will make it bitter.
Juice the grapefruits with a reamer or juicer.
Add the water and zest to the juice until you have 1 2/3 cups of liquid.  Mix well.  
Taste and adjust sweetness to taste.


Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze.

Serve immediately or repackage and freeze for use later. 

...and that's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!

Balsamic Chicken Wraps

Like much of the population, I have made a goal for myself in the new year to lose some weight and eat healthier.  I have established my benchmark and goal and have enlisted a friend to keep me on track.  I am determined!
As a result, the blog will include recipes that I am making to help me on the way to becoming thinner and healthier.

To start the saga, I purchased some chicken breasts on sale at the local market.  They were a deal because they had skin on and ribs. 
I first set up my Kitchen-Aid and attached the meat grinder.  This machine is a beast and I love using it.  If you don't have one or don't have any desire to grind your own meat, you can purchase pre ground chicken at the market.  

 A good sharp knife and about 10 minutes and my chicken looked like I had purchased it skinless and boneless.

I carved each breast into strips that would easily go into the grinder and what resulted was lovely lean freshly ground chicken.

Balsamic Chicken Wraps

Ingredients:

30 ounces ground, skinnless, boneless chicken breast (4 large)
2 cups red cabbage leaves, finely chopped
14 green cabbage leaves
3 teaspoons roasted minced garlic
6 Tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

Grind or finely chop the chicken.  Mix together the chicken and garlic, vinegar, onion powder, grated ginger, salt and pepper.
In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the chicken thoroughly.  With the balsamic, it is moist enough you will not need additional oil.

Finely chop the cabbage.  Red cabbage will provide interest and color, but I opted to use green since that is what I had on hand. 

Add the finely chopped red cabbage  (I used more green rather than buy red) and saute until the cabbage is tender.

Clean the green cabbage leaves and remove the core end by cutting a "v" at the base.
Microwave the green cabbage leaves in small batches for 10-15 seconds to soften them.

Place 1/3 cup chicken mixture on one cabbage leave and roll into a wrap.
Repeat untl all filling is used.

Wraps can be reheated in the microwave for 1 minute on high.

I ended up with the nearly white interior leaves and opted to use three of them to make "cups" to hold the meat mixture and promptly ate them up for lunch!

   ....and that's What's Cooking at Cathy's ~ Enjoy!