our summer staple: grilled veggies.

Okay so this is the thing I have to tell myself I can only put on the menu once a week, every week while I'm planning meals... it is SO good and SO easy. One of the things that makes it so easy is its versatility, you can (and should) use whatever veggies you have around, I try to switch up the line up quite often because I like to try new things with old recipes and because we like a lot of food variety.  But some of the ingredients are kind of the backbone, almost always present in this dish... So I've listed the foundation ingredients and then as many of the other ingredients we've put into it, I would recommend picking 2-5 of the non-foundation ingredients each time you make it.
*the more people you plan on serving, the more extras you'd want to add in, or increase the amount of each one. 

What you need every time:
-grilling pan
-1 Tbsp olive oil or grapeseed oil
-1 tsp salt (kosher if you've got it)
-1 tsp creole or cajun seasoning salt
-1 tsp dried or fresh oregano
-1 tsp dried or fresh basil
*I actually eyeball the oil and spices so I tried to approximate quantities here, add or take away based on your own preferences. 
-garlic, 2-5 fresh cloves minced or garlic salt
-sweet onion, halved or quartered and chopped (at least 1)
-bell pepper, cleaned out, quartered and chopped (at least 1, we use all types)

Extras: pick 2-5
-hatch peppers (when in season)
-zucchini, halved or quartered and sliced
-yellow squash, halved or quartered and sliced
-mushrooms, sliced
-asparagus, roughly chopped
-red onion, halved and sliced
-cooked red potatoes, cubed* (2-5 depending on size, how many you intend to feed and how many leftovers you want)
-cooked sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed* (1-2)
-pineapple, fresh cubed or canned tidbits (drained)

*important to note: for both red and sweet potatoes make sure you "BAKE" them first in the microwave, I wash and poke them then roll them up in a paper towel and cook for 5-7 minutes in the microwave, you want them to be pretty soft to the touch.

Instructions:

1. Chop all the veggies you've chosen to add to your mix, like I said before, cook the potatoes before you cube them.
Put all your ingredients into a big mixing bowl.

2. Add olive or grapeseed oil and spices/salts and mix, you want all the veggies to have a bit of a coating of oil so they don't burn on the grill.

3. Put your veggies into a grilling tray, grill, stirring occasionally to keep any section of it from charring too much and to make sure all the veggies cook evenly. Taste one of the slower veggies to cook (like squash) to make sure they aren't too crisp and uncooked.

4. Dish up and serve, we most often use our veggies as a side to grilled chicken or fish, or as the filling for grilled fajitas, etc...

I don't have a picture post grilling this time, we ate it up too quickly... but here is a phone pic from another batch. (I wasn't kidding when I said we eat it a lot)

Hope y'all enjoy as much as we do.

Crock pot chicken gyros love.

This recipe is my new favorite. It's fast, it's easy, it's healthy. Yep. Favorite. 

Bear in mind, the original recipe my aunt shared with me called for boneless beef and it's delicious that way too. 

Chicken Gyros

2 lbs. chicken breast sliced 1/4 in. thick

(I thawed it just enough to be able to cut through it easily) 

1/4 cup olive oil

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Greek Pita Flat bread 

Directions:

 In a mixing bowl, mix oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Add chicken and stir to coat. Pour chicken and mixture in crock pot. Cover and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours, until meat is tender. I used a knife and fork at this time to shred the chicken. It fell apart. :) 

Warm pitas in pan spritzed with olive oil if you'd like. 

Yogurt-Dill Sauce

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1Tbsp. dill (heaping)

 1/4 tsp   salt.

Combine all ingredients and mix well.

We LOVE our dill sauce so next time I'd probably make a 1.5 batch of it. 

Serve with any or all of the following toppings. The dill sauce is a MUST. (This IS Greek food for heaven sake.)

Diced cucumbers

Diced tomatoes

Feta Cheese 

Diced red onion

low-fat, creamy bean and chicken burritos.

I hope I don't need to put "fast and easy" in the titles of any meal recipes I post any more, because if they aren't I most likely won't be posting them. And I'm okay with that.

This is an adaptation of a meal I grew up having at home that's a bit healthier than the original.
It's delicious, it's a great leftover and it's generally a picky eater pleaser.

Ingredients:
1 can shredded chicken, drained (you can boil or bake your own chicken of course, then shred)
1 can beans, rinsed and drained (you can use pinto, black or red beans)
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese (you can do more or less, I just eye-ball it)
1 can (10.5 oz.)low-fat, low-sodium cream of chicken soup
1 can diced green chili peppers, drained
1 cup low-fat (or fat free) sour cream
8 flour tortillas, mine are 7" (use wheat tortillas to be extra healthy)
Toppings:
2 c. shredded romaine lettuce
diced tomatoes, sour cream, hot sauce, salsa, pico or whatever toppings your family likes best.

Directions:
Combine soup, sour cream, and chili peppers.
Add 1 cup of  creamy mixture to shredded chicken and beans and mix.
In a sprayed (I use an olive oil spray) 8x8 or 6x12 dish (I used Pyrex) lay out the tortillas and divide the chicken mix evenly between them, roll them up burrito-style (they stay closed best with the openings on the bottom).
Spread remaining creamy mixture over the top of the burritos.

Top with cheese.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes, take the foil off for the last 10 minutes to ensure the cheese fully melts.

Top with shredded romaine lettuce and whatever toppings make your family happy. Serve!
We served it with fresh fruit and a bit of Sangria soda this last time, delicious!

zesty shredded chicken: 5 ingredients in the crock pot and done.

I am an "easy cooker" by nature, I like things to take very little effort but also be delicious and healthy. So when someone tells me that they have a crock pot recipe that has no pre or post prep involved, I'm usually quite keen to give it a go.  This is one of those recipes. :)

I actually got this recipe from my Momma when I had to head up the big Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet dinner for our church congregation several months ago. I needed something I could prepare and freeze beforehand since I was out of town for the actual event but something that was also cheap and good tasting. (We've all been to at least one not so delicious big event dinner, right?)
So, instead of less healthy and much more expensive beef for the taco salad we served, I made this.

This dish is so versatile, not only can it serve as the base tons of different dishes, it can EASILY serve masses, you can make a double family-sized batch and freeze some for an even quicker meal later, or make just enough for one meal.
The recipe I'll share is intended to be used as part of several different meals for a family of 4.

INGREDIENTS:
8 oz Zesty Italian Dressing (I used Kraft, you can get light or fat free, whatever your usual preference)
1/2 T chili powder
1/2 T cumin
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 lbs chicken breast (I put mine in frozen)

Directions: 
1. Mix dressing and spices together and pour over chicken in the crock pot.
2. Cook for 6 hours, shred chicken within the last hour and mix together. (you can do whatever time setting works best for your schedule that day of course.)
3. Serve as part of whatever dish you'd like, I've used it on my favorite go-to salad (see recipe), loaded nachos with mozzerella cheese,  black, red, or pinto beans, green onion, cheese, salsa and sour cream, taco salad, chicken fajitas or as a topping for loaded baked potatoes.

My boys both love this chicken too, and because it's shredded even my 11 month old (with no teeth...) can eat it really well, he had a dinner of shredded chicken, pinto beans, and cantaloupe last night and was in heaven.

Tomato, Basil and Parmesan White Beans.

Tomato, Basil and Parmesan White Beans.

This is a favorite of ours for a few reasons;

it is 250 calories per serving (1 cup), it takes 15 minutes total to make AND it is delicious. 

Picture a favorite pasta dish with creamy white beans instead of pasta.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 cans Great Northern, drained and rinsed

(or other white beans, but Great Northern are my favorite, hands down)

2 cans, tomatoes, petite diced

(any type works but I prefer the Italian-style or the kind with chili peppers to add some spice)

*when fresh tomatoes are available you can ALWAYS substitute fresh for canned

1 tsp Italian seasoning or Basil

*substitute fresh Basil if you can get it.

½ cup Parmesean cheese, grated (or the kind in the can)

1 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1.In a skillet, sauté the garlic in the olive oil.

2. Add beans, tomatoes and seasoning. (I don’t drain my canned tomatoes)

3. Cook for 7-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

4. Add Parmesan cheese and lemon juice and stir until fully mixed/melted.

Serve with wheat crackers or a baguette. Fresh veggies or a salad make perfect sides.

This dish makes excellent leftovers too, which is a big deal around here.

Enjoy!

This recipe is based on one of our favorite dishes from Zonya’s Lickty-Split Meals. A cookbook we use more than most. Her meals are quick, healthy and easy. (win-win-win) I highly recommend picking this one up, we got ours on Amazon.