Jalapeno Steak

I love spicy food, and jalapeno peppers are my number one favourite flavour for spice. Must be the bit of mexican in me ;) .

Here is another simple recipe for a lazy Sunday.


You will need:

2 large tenderloin steaks
1 sweet onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
pinch of salt
1 large jalapeno, minced
1/2 bottle of Clubhouse Montreal Steak Spice Marinade



First off! You will need to let your steak marinade in the steak spice for at least 30 minutes. As with all meats, the longer the better. So if you are going to work,  I suggest placing the steaks in a zip lock bag with the marinade in the fridge before you head off !


Step 1:

Prepare all vegetables, then  pour some olive oil into a sauce pan over medium heat. Place vegetables in the pan.


Step 2:

Slice the marinated steaks thinly as if you are going to make a stir fry. Add to pan with the vegetables.



Once the steaks are cooked the tenderness that you like, remove from heat.  Serve with rice and steamed vegetables, or any side dish you please. This spicy steak really hit the spot for me, I hope it does for you too!

Green Pesto Chicken Pasta

I am back! Here I have a simple yummy recipe for those nights when you just feel like giving up. On dinner. I totally winged it and didn't even copy this one from anywhere. So here you go, it is healthy and leaves some leftovers for lunch as well!


Ingredients:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 bag of fresh spinach
• 1/2 bag of frozen green bean & carrot mix
• 2 tbsp pesto
• 1 tbsp margarine
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp herb and garlic cream cheese 
• 5 fresh kale leaves, torn into pieces

Directions:

1. Place a saucepan on the stove and put in the olive oil, turn heat on medium.
2. Mince the garlic, dice the chicken then add to saucepan.
3. While the chicken begins to cook, place a medium sized pot of water on the stove on high, for the pasta.
4. Add in spinach, green beans, and torn pieces of kale into the chicken garlic mixture.
5. Once the water has boiled in the pot, add in your favorite kind of pasta.
6. When the chicken is done cooking turn the burner off and place a lid on top until the pasta is finished.
7. Drain pasta, place back into the pot, then add margarine, garlic cream cheese and pesto.
8. Dump the chicken mixture into the pot of pasta, and mix well.
9. Serve hot with fresh grated parmesan!

These ingredients I had on hand, but you really can substitute any vegetables. Same with the pasta, you can use gluten free noodles or whole grain ones, it still tastes delicious! Today I felt like I didn't eat enough veggies so I made sure to add lots of greens to my dinner.


Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Sourdough Starter (from Allrecipes)

Have you ever wondered where the heck do you buy sourdough starter? Or any "unusual" baking ingredients? A lot of these items you cannot buy in your regular grocery store. Many things you can make from scratch, right in your own kitchen. If you want to make your own sourdough at home, here is the most simple, handy recipe for you to use for sourdough starter. I will keep posting cheaper and healthier alternatives for baking ingredients for everyone, as much as I can. All credit for this recipe goes to Esther Nelson, here is the link : http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sourdough-starter/


And here is the recipe!

Ingredients:

1. 1 pkg dry active yeast (.25 ounce)
2. 2 cups warm water
3. 2 cups all purpose flour

1. In large non-metallic bowl, mix together dry yeast, 2 cups warm water, and 2 cups all purpose flour and cover loosely.
2. Leave in a warm place to ferment, 4 to 8 days. Depending on temperature and humidity of kitchen, times may vary. Place on cookie sheet in case of overflow. Check on occasionally.
3. When mixture is bubbly and has a pleasant sour smell, it is ready to use. If mixture has a pink, orange, or any other strange color tinge to it, THROW IT OUT! and start over. Keep it in the refrigerator, covered until ready to bake.
4. When you use starter to bake, always replace with equal amounts of a flour and water mixture with a pinch of sugar. So, if you remove 1 cup starter, replace with 1 cup water and 1 cup flour. Mix well and leave out on the counter until bubbly again, then refrigerate. If a clear to light brown liquid has accumulated on top, don't worry, this is an alcohol base liquid that occurs with fermentation. Just stir this back into the starter, the alcohol bakes off and that wonderful sourdough flavor remains! Sourdough starters improve with age, they used to be passed down generation to generation!

Overnight Apple Oatmeal

If you know you have a crazy busy morning ahead of you, this is great and super easy to prepare the night before. It saved me so many days that I almost ran late for work. I hope you enjoy this recipe, I didn't copy it off of anywhere,  I just guessed out the measurements at the time and it happened to turn out perfectly , which like, never happens. Anyways here you go!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup dry oats
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 cup almond/soy milk
• 1 chopped apple
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp hemp hearts
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Stir all of the above ingredients in a to go container, or in a decent sized breakfast bowl, and set in the fridge.
When you are ready to eat in the morning, pop it in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes , then stir until well mixed. Top with brown sugar or honey. Shovel into mouth. Yum.  Oh , don't forget your keys. Or phone. Have a good day!

Creamy Mango Protein Smoothie...With a kick!

When I work in the mornings, I usually get up at around 5:00 a.m. At that time, I never really feel like eating a big meal , and I find that protein smoothies will do the trick and curb my hunger until around 10:00-11:00 a.m. (Or I drink one at 5, and bring an extra, and drink another at work when it isn't busy!)

This is basically just a mish-mash of whatever I had on hand, and it blended quite well together, I really enjoyed it- it tastes sinful but is actually healthy! Enjoy, here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 cup frozen mango chunks
• 1/2 cup frozen or fresh cranberries (can use raspberries or blackberries too!)
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• dash of cayenne pepper

Optional: 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1 tbsp matcha



FuN fAcTs! :

The cinnamon in this smoothie will help stabilize your blood sugar throughout the morning, the protein will curb your hunger, the cayenne pepper is a great metabolism booster, along with the lemon which is very high in vitamin C, which helps you burn fat . Cranberries add a slight tartness to even out the sweet, and are also great for cleansing the urinary tract. The matcha is a great antioxidant, and pick-me-up! It is much more concentrated than steeped green tea, since it is actual green tea leaves ground up, no waste there! I subbed out real milk for the almond, because I am a "lactard". Haha. Also, it is a much lower calorie alternative to milk and is good for your skin and hair! The chia seeds (if you chose to add them) are very high in omega 3's, and dietary fiber.

Mediterranean Quinoa & Kale Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh kale leaves, torn apart into small pieces
• 2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 handful of jarred roasted red peppers
• 5 pitted kalamata olives, sliced 
• goat cheese or feta , crumbled (any amount! I like to put in about 1/3 cup)
• 1/4 cup shelled pistachios
• 1 handful sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, chopped
• 10 fresh grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 pinch garlic salt
• 1 tbsp balsamic
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp greek seasoning

Directions:

 

In a bowl, combine all of the above ingredients. Make sure the quinoa is still hot when you do this, so that all of the flavours can combine together. Set in the fridge for about an hour or two, then serve!

That was simple !

Spicy Peanut Tofu Stirfry

I was craving a mixture between a stir fry and Thai food one day and came up with this, and I think it is the most delicious thing I have created yet, without a plan. I am sharing you this secret recipe for the BEST peanut sauce in the world. It's gold I tell you.. GOLD!! Anyways, here are some dim pics I took with my phone, hopefully you find them helpful. Have a good one guys!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 zucchini diced
• 1/2 green bell pepper diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper diced
• 1-2 cups broccoli florets
• 3 cups spinach
• 1/2 sweet onion diced
• 3 cloves russian garlic, minced
• 1 package of firm tofu

Sauce:

• 1 heaping tablespoon of peanut butter
• 1 heaping tablespoon of hoisin sauce
• 1 heaping tablespoon of  Thai sweet chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, heat up a tablespoon or two of olive oil and add onions, garlic and tofu.
2. Once the tofu looks crispy, then add in the soy sauce, peanut butter, hoisin and chili sauce.
3. Stir so that everything is coated evenly, you may need to add 1/4 cup of water to water down the sauce if it is too thick.
4. then add in the peppers, zucchini, broccoli and spinach and place a lid on top so that the veggies can steam.
5. Once the vegetables are steamed , mix everything thoroughly so that everything is coated with the peanut sauce.
6. Serve immediately with a drizzle of chili sauce on top!