Fire-Roasted Tomato Chicken w/ Capers & Onions

As you may have noticed, I'm a big fan of fire-roasted tomatoes (see previous recipe). They provide this chicken dish with a wonderful depth of flavor, and the capers a nice vinegary bite. At the last minute I also threw in some mustard seed because I really like the texture it adds.

One thing to remember whenever using canned tomatoes (and other canned vegetables) is to check the sodium content--you made need to adjust the salt in a recipe if an ingredient has already been seasoned.

Fire-Roasted Tomato Chicken w/ Capers & Onions

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, quartered and sliced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
4 boneless chicken breasts
3 Tbsp capers
1 Tbsp yellow mustard seed (optional)
1 14 oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil in dutch oven or large skillet and saute onion until soft, 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and cook 3-4 minutes more. Add chicken and brown on both sides.
2. Add remaining ingredients, stirring to combine. Cover and cook over medium-low heat 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

The cost:
onion: .45
garlic: .10
chicken: 8.99
capers: 1.99
tomatoes: 1.00

Grand total: $12.53; serves 4 over rice or quinoa with a side of roasted veggies

Smoky Rosemary & Fire-Roasted Tomato Beef Stew

The 2010 April Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Wolf of Wolf’s Den. She chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make Brunswick Stew. Wolf chose recipes for her challenge from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook by Matt Lee and Ted Lee, and from the Callaway, Virginia Ruritan Club.

This month's challenge didn't really appeal to me since I would have to make so many changes in order to be able to eat it, but it did inspire me to make this delicious rosemary and fire-roasted tomato beef stew!

The secret ingredient here: Smoked paprika that gives the stew a rich flavor (fine, it makes it taste like it's been simmering for 18 hours rather than 2, but you don't have to tell anyone :)) I also browned the meat first which adds an incredible depth of flavor, I highly recommend it even though it takes some extra time. I also had meant to add potatoes to this stew but ran out of space in the pot!

Smoky Rosemary & Fire-Roasted Tomato Beef Stew

1 pounds beef cubes
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 celery stalks, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
6 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 14 oz. can fire roasted tomatoes
2 cups soup stock
2 sprigs rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 tsp smoked paprika
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a large dutch oven over high heat. Brown beef cubes in batches (don't crowd the pan) and remove to a small dish.
2. Reduce heat to medium and add remaining oil and brown onions. Add garlic, celery and carrots and cook 3-4 minutes.
3. Return meat to pot and add stock, rosemary, bay leaves and smoked paprika. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for at least 1 hour (you can also finish this in a 350 degree oven for 1 to 1.5 hours). Season with salt and pepper to taste.

The cost:
beef: 11.99
onions: .45
celery: 1.19
carrots: .89
tomatoes: 1.00
rosemary: 1.99

Grand total: $17.51; serves 8

Hearty "Beat the Head" Salad

Sorry I haven't been blogging, I've been on vacation in Texas and and Florida for the past almost 2 weeks! While the vaca was nice, I have missed blogging so it's good to be back!

On another happy note, thanks for all the well wishes about my blood test for Celiac Disease. I just got the test results back and I don't have it!!! I am very relieved, but still planning to go back to being mostly gluten free since I feel so much better when I am. Thanks again for all of your support!

I got home from work last night and my apartment was stifling; the weather has been unseasonably hot, and the apartment building is not turning on the air conditioning until next week (which may be a good plan considering the temperature dropped back down to the 40's at night). Regardless, I was not willing to turn on my gas stove or oven because it really heats up my apartment, so I decided to make a hearty salad that would serve as dinner.

This salad is big enough for one, but you can easily make it for multiple people as well. I haven't included measurements for the veggies because you should feel free to mix & match or subsitute as you please!

Hearty "Beat the Heat" Salad

Ingredients:

Salad:
lettuce spring mix
baby heirloom tomatoes
orange pepper
scallion
cucumber
hearts of palm
small red beans (or chickpeas or edamame)
dried cranberries
almonds

Dressing:
1/2 tsp olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp agave
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp garlic powder
pinch of black pepper
shot of sriracha

Directions:

1. Combine salad ingredients.
2. Blend dressing and pour over salad. Serve immediately.

The cost:
lettuce: 1.99
tomatoes: 2.49
pepper: 1.29
cucumber: 2.29
hearts of palm: 1.39
beans: .69

Grand total: $10.14 (serves 4-6)

Dinner Party Salad: Spinach, Heirloom Tomato & Blood Orange Salad

I am a huge fan of blood oranges. They add great color to any dish, and have a more robust flavor than many other orange varieties, so they are really good salads and salad dressings.

Because of the snow I couldn't get anywhere but TJ's, but I would have added some thinly sliced fennel to this salad, I think it would have rounded this salad out nicely.

Spinach, Heirloom Tomato & Blood Orange Salad

Ingredients:

6 oz fresh spinach
1 English cucumber, sliced
8 oz baby heirloom tomatoes, halved
1 scallion, chopped
3 blood oranges
1 tsp orange zest
1 Tbsp light olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp agave nectar
1/4 tsp sea salt
pinch of garlic powder
pinch of black pepper
1/4 cup candied nuts (optional for garnish)

Directions:

1. Place spinach, cucumber, tomatoes, and scallion in a large salad bowl.
2. Segment oranges (here is a nice little demo), and add to salad.
3. Take what's left of the orange (center and membrane and such) and squeeze the juice into a small bowl. Add remaining ingredients (except nuts) and pour over over salad, tossing to coat.
4. Garnish with nuts (optional).

The cost:
spinach: 1.99
cucumber: 1.69
tomatoes: 3.49
oranges: .99
other ingredients: <1.00

Grand total: $9.16; serves 8

Pantry Raid: Tomato & Chickpea Stew

I went to a tweetup last night sponsored by a cool foodie group engaging in community service; I had to leave pretty early to metro there, but wanted to make sure I had a good dinner first so I threw together this tomato & chickpea stew from what I had in my pantry/fridge. It was easy, filling and super cheap. I haven't cooked much with smoked paprika, but the package said it's good with tomato based sauces--and it was!

Tomato & Chickpea Stew

Ingredients:

1 tsp light olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 can chickpeas
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup water
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
chopped parsley or cilantro (optional garnish)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in saucepan and saute onions until soft, 4-5 minutes.
2. Add remaining ingredients, stirring to combine and bring to a boil. Simmer 20-25 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over rice or quinoa with freshly steamed spinach.

The cost:
onion: .45
chickpeas: .69
tomatoes: 1.00

Grand total: $2.14; serves 2-3

Pantry Raid: Easy Vegan Chili

Lots of items have been on sale at Shoppers recently (more than .50 off, mostly canned goods), so my pantry is becoming quite overfull with canned corn, beans and and tomatoes. In order to remedy this situation, I decided to do a pantry raid that utilized the aforementioned items, and came up with a quick and simple vegan chili.

Note 1: You can put almost any vegetable you want in chili, so don't be afraid to experiment with whatever you have lying around!

Note 2: When it comes to the tomato base, I really like to use fire-roasted tomatoes because it gives you a deep, rich flavor without having to do much work :). Just remember, canned tomatoes, especially if they are flavored, frequently already have a lot of sodium and other spices in them so season accordingly.

Easy Vegan Chili

Ingredients:

1 tsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves
2 cans diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1 can corn, drained and rinsed
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can other bean (kidney, black, etc.), drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder (or I used curry)
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
chopped cilantro (optional garnish)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a small stock pot and saute onions until soft, 2-3 minutes; add garlic and cook until onions are browned and garlic is soft, 5-6 minutes.
2. Add rest of ingredients (except cilantro) and stir to combine; bring to a boil then turn down to medium-low flame and simmer at least 20 minutes until everything is heated through.

The cost:
onion: .45
garlic: .30
tomatoes: 2.00
corn: .88
chickpeas: .69
other beans: .69
[cilantro: 1.99]

Grand total: $5.01 [$7 with cilantro]; serves 4-6