"You cannot reason with a hungry belly; it has no ears."
— Greek proverb

Chicken Caesar Salad Sandwich

Courtesy of the Contessa, Barefoot,I am encouraging yall to try this heavenly spin on a classic... in a sandwich form! I couldnt find the recipe online, so I am going to do my best to replicate it (i also dont have a photo, sorry!).

What Youll Need:
- Loaf of you favorite bread (i like fresh ciabatta or pulgese)
- Sun dried tomatos (stored in oilve oil)
- Your favorite caesar dressing
- Low fat sour cream
- Arugula
- Fresh Parmesan cheese (NOT grated)
- One (1) clove of garlic
- Two (2) chicken breasts (with the ribs)

Directions:
Chicken
- Pre heat oven to 400 degrees
- Rub chicken with oilve oil and s&p and a little oregano
- Cook for about 40 -50 minutes depending on size
- Let cool and remove from bone; slice

Assembly
- Slice bread to desired size and place in oven or toaster oven for about 5-6 minutes or until toasted
- rub bread gently with fresh garlic (easier if you cut clove in half
- Mix 1 tbls of sour cream with about 2-3 tbls of caesar dressing and spread on both halves (Barefoot doenst do this but I find that it makes it less drippy)
- slice sun dried tomato and place on bottom half
- next place the chicken
- shave a few pieces of fresh parmesan cheese and lay on top of the chicken
- top with a mound of arugula and close her up!

Enjoy with a glass of your favorite white wine!

A Marge-a-rita for Marge on her b-day!

Marge's Risotto!

Again, sorry no photo :( I always forget to visually capture the goodness.

Anywho, I love risotto and have tried lots of different ingredients, but I think this recipe is my favorite.

To preface, my risotto has some base ingredients and procedures, so you can add your favorite ingredients if mine arent to your liking.

Note: this requires about 30 minutes cooking time and constant attention :)

What you'll need for any good risotto:
- one cup of arborillo rice (yeilds about 5 cups cooked - enough for 3 people)
- one small yellow onion, chopped
- 2-3 cloves of garlic depending on your taste, chopped
- 3 cups of your favorite white wine (I use chardonay)
- 4-5 cups good chicken or vegtable stock
- salt & pepper
- 2 tbls olive oil
- 2 tbls butter
- 1 tsp of onion powder

What youll need for THIS risotto:
- 1 cup peas (frozen are best)
- 3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola

Directions:
- saute chopped onions and garlic in olive oil for 2-3 minutes
- add rice and cook for 1 minute, make sure to stir frequently
- once you see little brown bits on bottom of pan, add 1 1/2 cups of wine and stir frequently until wine has disolved
- add remaining 1 1/2 cups of wine and stir until disolved
- next add 1 1/2 cups stock, stir frequently until disolved
- repeat above
- repaeat above again
- at this point, taste the rice to see if it is cooked; if it isnt, add more stock
- next add peas, onion powder, salt and pepper and stire well
- lastly add butter and cheese and stir until melted

Serve hot - It will melt in your mouth!

Enjoy!

Maple-Glazed Salmon with Pineapple Salsa

I absolutely adore Paula Deen from the Food Network so much. She reminds me of my Mom and Aunt Kathy all rolled into one. She is spunky and fun, and her recipes always look incredible, but not usually the healthiest. I was pleased to find this recipe for Maple-Glazed Salmon with Pineapple Salsa. Healthy, light and refreshing...just what a girl needs to fit into those skinny jeans.

Ingredients:

4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets

Marinade:
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon pineapple juice
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, mashed

Pineapple Salsa:
1 medium size ripe tomato, chopped into small cubes
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 pickled jalapeno pepper slices, deseeded and finely chopped
1/2 cup pineapple chucks, fresh or canned
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar

First, place the salmon fillets in a resealable plastic bag. Next, combine marinade ingredients in a non-reactive bowl or measuring cup. Pour marinade over fillets and refrigerate from 1 to 24 hours. (I did the minimum of 1 hour but would recommend letting it soak for at least 3 hours)

While your fish is marinating, prepare the pineapple salsa. Place all ingredients in a small, non-reactive saucepan. Simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes. Cool. Refrigerate until ready to serve with the salmon.

After the salmon is finished marinating, in a grill basket sprayed with cooking spray, grill the salmon, skin side down, over hot coals. Flip after 2 to 3 minutes and cook for another 1 to 3 minutes, or until desired doneness. If you are not lucky enough to have a grill (me!) I broiled the salmon for 15-18 minutes, and it was amazing still!

The recipe says to serve with pineapple salsa spooned on the side but I just placed it right on top. Elon LOVED the recipe and it was uber easy, try it for yourself!

Steak Sally!

My apologies, I forgot to take a photo so this is someone elses steak sally!

This is a healthy and hearty salad that even a dude would like :)

Here is what you need:
- Romaine Lettuce
- CHerry tomatoes
- Chick Peas (drained)
- Bundle of Asparagus
- Steak (round cut or flank steak cut)
- Blue cheese or gorgonzola (yes, they ARE different - gorg is more pungeant)
- Homemade croutons (see Menu a la Marguerite's blog on crouts!)

Directions
Steak:
- coat steak in a little oliv oil, balsamic vineger, worchester (sp)sauce and s&p
- grill about 5 minutes on each side and let rest another 5 minutes to juices distribute
Asparagus:
- coat in olive oil, chil pepper, paprika, s&p
- place on a peice of foil and place foil on top of grill
- grill about 5 mins, then toss and grill another few mins until browned
Dressing:
Whisk together 2 tbls balsamic vineger, 1/4 cup oliv olive oil, tsp honey, tsp pepper and a pinch of kosher salt.

Next, assemble lettuce tomatoes (I like to salt mine with kosher salt), chick peas, croutons and blue cheese crumbles. Then drizzle dressing over. Slice steak and place on top warm so the juices mix in with the dressing.

ENJOY!