Mason Jar Salads

Since my addiction to all things Pinterest has been growing, I kept seeing posts of these mason jar salads. I've been wanting to try them for a few weeks and I finally have my kitchen in a state where I can start cooking (sort of) again. I made enough for lunch this week - so five salads total, two buffalo chicken and three Cobb. These are supposed to last 7-10 days in the fridge. I was skeptical but they totally last over a week! I think I ate my last one 8 days after I made it. Unbelievable!! I did not put the dressing in the bottom as many of the links said I could - that was too big of a leap of faith for me - but it's easy enough to add that in at work or wherever you're eating your meal.

Mason Jar Cobb Salad
This was not my favorite and I don't know that I'll make it again - seemed too high in calories to be worth eating a salad - but since it's pretty and some of you may like it I'll post the recipe.

Ingredients (layer in order from bottom to top):
1 large hard boiled egg
1.5 slices of thick cut bacon, cooked crispy
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
3 oz precooked grilled chicken breast strips (I used Costco brand)
6 grape tomatoes
1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped

Keep Separate: 2 tbsp light blue cheese dressing (I like Marie's brand)



Mason Jar Buffalo Chicken Salad
This one was really, really good and so easy - especially if you cheat and use precooked chicken and pregrated carrots like me!

Ingredients (layer in order from bottom to top):
1/2 cup carrots, grated
3 oz precooked grilled chicken breast strips mixed with 2 tbsp wing sauce (I used the medium Kroger brand and it's really good!)
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped

Keep Separate: 2 tbsp light blue cheese dressing (I like Marie's brand) OR light ranch, if you prefer



Mason Jar Pear and Walnut Salad
After first drafting this post I made a third jar salad, but didn't remember to take a picture of it. For what it's worth, I think this was my favorite of all of them, but because of the pears it would only last 3 days I suspect.

Ingredients (layer in order from bottom to top):

1/2 pear, chopped
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
1/3 cup dried cherries
3 oz precooked grilled chicken breast strips
1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped

Keep separate: 2 tbsp light vinaigrette dressing (I used the Wendy's pomegranate vinaigrette since I had some packets leftover.)
2 tbsp Fresh Gourmet glazed walnut pieces

Summer Squash Sausage Skillet (See what I did there?)

My first of (hopefully) many recipes for the new lower-carb plan I'm trying. A lot of these will be appropriate for the South Beach Diet Phase 1 - when I started in January 2011 I was on the South Beach diet and lost quite a bit of weight on it, but without the horrible effects of Atkins since you still get to eat vegetables. So without further ado...

I forgot to take a picture with the cheese on it - too hungry.

Yield: 3 servings

Ingredients: 
3 zucchini
3 yellow summer squash
3 Jenni-O hot Italian turkey sausage links
30 grape tomatoes
3/4 cup low-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and salt to taste







Preparation:
1. Spray skillet with nonstick cooking spray - I used the olive oil flavor but it really doesn't matter. Turn the stove on medium-high heat and put the turkey sausage links in the skillet to brown.
2. While your sausage is cooking, slice up your squash and zucchini. I used my new favorite kitchen tool, my mandolin, but if you're slicing by hand you want them about a quarter inch thick. Put all your slices in a big bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt, red pepper, and italian spices to taste and then mix it all up to coat in the olive oil. (Make sure you are watching your sausage - they'll need to be turned!)
3. Once the sausage is completely cooked through, take it out of the skillet and add in the squash and zucchini. Let it cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until they start to turn translucent, about 7-8 minutes.
4. While the zucchini and squash is cooking, slice up your sausages into 10 pieces each (this just makes it easier to portion evenly). Add the sausage back in after the squash and zucchini has started to turn translucent, throw the tomatoes in, and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
5. Top each serving with 1/4 cup of low fat mozzerella cheese. Devour.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

This was a recipe I made last week and never got around to posting, probably because it just turned out okay. It was a little bit tricky. Next time I make it, I'm definitely going to make some edits, the first of which will be to pre-cook the rice. Mine turned out a little too al dente (can you use that for rice?) and if it was all the way cooked I think it would've tasted much better. Other nitpicks I had include cutting the peppers the wrong way (whoops) and not having any foil to cover them when they went in the oven. That said, this recipe is really low calorie, pretty low carb, and filling!

Yield: 3 servings with leftover filling (I split the "filling" in half and froze it so I only used 3 peppers for this one, so if you don't want to do that, use 6 peppers, and it will make 6 servings. A little confusing.)

Ingredients: 
3 green bell peppers (or 6 if you want to use all the filling)

1 pound ground turkey

1/3 cup chopped onion

salt and pepper to taste

1 can whole peeled tomatoes, 14.5 oz, chopped

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

1/2 cup water

1 cup shredded 2% Cheddar cheese (or you can use Mexican blend)

2 cans condensed tomato soup, 10.75 oz

water as needed

Preparation:

1. Cook rice according to instructions on package (I didn't do this step, but I would use my rice cooker. Remember, brown rice takes MUCH longer to cook than white rice, so factor that into your prep time).

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the tops off the peppers, and remove the seeds. Cook peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes; drain. Sprinkle salt inside each pepper, and set aside.

3. Saute turkey and onions in a skillet until turkey is browned, about 5 minutes. Drain off excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. 

4. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, 1/2 cup water and Worcestershire sauce. Cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. 

5. Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray (pick your dish carefully; you don't want the peppers to fall over, so the dish should be just big enough to fit all the peppers side by side). Stuff each pepper with the turkey and rice mixture and place peppers open side up in the baking dish. 

7. Combine tomato soup with just enough water to make the soup a gravy consistency (if you're only making half the recipe, only use one can of soup). Pour over the peppers.

8. Bake covered (I didn't cover them...next time I would use foil) for 30 minutes.

These made great leftovers and work lunches. As I said above, pack up half of this yummy filling and put it in the freezer. Next time you want this meal, it's as easy as prepping the peppers and popping them in the oven!

Asparagus, Fried Egg, and Parmesan with Rosemary

My breakfasts rarely contain any form of vegetables (I don't count potatoes) since I gravitate toward eggs, meats, and breads or grains. I love asparagus and never thought about having it for breakfast, so this was a great recipe to get in some veggies early in my day. 

As written, this is a super low carb recipe, but you could easily add an english muffin underneath it or throw some bacon on top to make it really tasty. It does take a while, so this is definitely a weekend breakfast for me -- I'm too lazy on the weekdays!


Yield: 2 servings (but easily can be made for however many people you need)

Ingredients:
2 eggs
Fresh asparagus, about 16 spears
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Rosemary, 2-3 sprigs
Parmesan cheese, shredded, 2 tbsp
Cooking spray
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line the asparagus spears in a shallow baking pan (a pie plate works great). Drizzle olive oil lightly on the asparagus, shaking the pan to coat. Break apart the rosemary springs and place on top of the asparagus.

3. Roast in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes, or when the tips of the stalks start to brown.

4. Using a nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray (or you can use butter or extra virgin olive oil to coat the pan). Crack the eggs in the pan carefully without breaking the yolk. Cook the eggs over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until the whites are solid. Carefully flip the egg over and cook for another minute, then remove from heat.

5. Place the roasted asparagus on a plate and lay the egg on top. Finish with cheese, salt and pepper to taste (use sea salt and fresh ground pepper for an extra special flavor). Serve immediately.