Favorite Roasted Vegetables!!!

I went to make these roasted veggies again this week and realized I have never posted the recipe here...which is crazy because I make these all the time! I don't even remember where I initially found the recipe, but it was part of a complete meal and the veggies were what spoke to me so I make them as a side often now.

My favorite combo for the veggies is 2 zucchini, 1 russet potato, 1 red bell pepper and 1 red onion (or at least 1/2 of one).

We typically serve it with pork loin but they are good with any type meat or even by themselves!

photo found online

RECIPE:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Mix together:

1 t salt

1/2 t onion powder

1/2 t oregano

1/2 t basil

1/4 t thyme

1/2 t sugar

some pepper

2 cloves garlic

2 T olive oil

2 T red wine vinegar

Chop up your veggies of choice and mix with marinade until well coated.

Spread on a lined baking sheet and bake 20 minutes.

Stir around the veggies and bake an additional 10-15 minutes.

The Best Steak Fajitas!

We have made these steak fajitas from Mel's Kitchen Cafe a few times already since discovering them only a couple weeks ago! My grocery store sells "stir-fry steak" that is already cut into thin strips so it makes this the easiest and most flavorful meal! I get the meat marinading the day before and then we grill them up right before meal time and the flavor is out of this world. I haven't even ever made the chipotle sour cream that she included in the original recipe. I sautee some onion and peppers that have been cut into strips and we also top them with guacamole and cilantro (and a little cheese for some of the family). We have charro beans on the side with some chips and salsa and it has become my kids' favorite meal of the week!
(I provide corn and flour tortillas)

Ingredients:
Fajitas:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (from about 4-6 limes) – zest the limes before juicing; you’ll need the zest later
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
10 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank steak
Chipotle Sour Cream Sauce:
1 cup sour cream, light or regular
1 teaspoon minced chipotle in adobo sauce (more or less to adjust spiciness)
2 to 3 teaspoons adobo sauce (spooned from the can of chipotle chiles)
1 tablespoon fresh lime zest (from about 2 limes)
For Serving:
Tortillas and other toppings of choice, like tomatoes, cilantro, cheese, sautéed or grilled peppers, pickled onions

Directions:
For the fajitas, whisk together the oil, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, sugar, cumin, salt, paprika, and coriander. Place the steak in a dish (like a 9X13-inch pan) and pour the marinade over the top, turning to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.
Preheat grill to medium-high (I set my pellet grill to 375 degrees). Grill the steak until desired doneness; 4-6 minutes for medium rare (add time if needed for a more well-cooked piece of meat). Remove the steak from the grill and tent with foil for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving.
For the chipotle sour cream, stir all the ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate (can be made 2-3 days in advance).
Serve the steak slices on tortillas with the chipotle sour cream and any other favorite toppings or sautéed or grilled peppers and onions.

Chicken Shawarma Bowls

YUM!!! This meal was so easy and so tasty! Great for kids because they can personalize it themselves and it would be great for meal prepping too. The main recipe below is from Skinnytaste, but I used Mel's Kitchen Cafe's hummus/yogurt recipe (it is our go-to all the time!). I served ours with pita bread (for the kids) and with a mix of quinoa and cauliflower-rice for Mike and I. Plus topping choices of cucumbers, tomatoes, kalamata olives and feta cheese. A definite hit in our house!

Chicken:
1 pound (2) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Juice from 1 medium lemon
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon curry powder
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Place the chicken breasts, 1 at a time, in a Ziploc bag. Pound each breast to an even thickness, about ½-inch thick, being careful not to puncture the bag. Place pounded chicken breasts back into bag and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine olive oil and lemon juice. Whisk until combined. Add the garlic, cumin, paprika, turmeric, curry powder, cinnamon, red pepper, salt and black pepper and whisk again.
Pour the marinade into the bag with the chicken, massaging it to evenly coat. Refrigerate and marinate for at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
Over medium-high heat, grill the chicken for 3 minutes or until it no longer sticks to the grill. Turn the chicken and grill an additional 3-4 minutes. Allow the chicken to rest for 5 minutes then slice it thinly, across the grain. Top each breast with 2 tablespoons sauce and a sprinkle of parsley.

Yogurt-Hummus Sauce:
2/3 cup Greek yogurt (nonfat or regular)
1/3 cup hummus (storebought or homemade)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, finely minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1/2 teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon coarse, kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Directions:
For the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until smooth. Add hot water a teaspoon at a time to thin the sauce, if needed.

Rosemary Ranch Chicken

I made this chicken to go with the alfredo we had last night, but the chicken itself was sooo good I thought it deserved it's own post because we will definitely be making this on its own in the future. I found it on The Recipe Club and we all absolutely loved the unique flavor of the marinade...seriously delicious!!!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup good ranch dressing
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste
1 tablespoon white sugar
4-6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Directions:
Mix all top ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir until sugar is disolved. Place chicken in a gallon size Ziplock bag. Pour marinade over chicken. Squish bag around until all chicken in coated. Refrigerate until ready to use at least 30 minutes, preferably a few hours or overnight (I only had time to let it marinade 1 hour). Grill on the BBQ or in the oven on broil. (I used a grill pan)

Shredded Lime Chicken Tacos

I was looking for a good shredded chicken recipe to make so we had another taco option for Ella's birthday. I found this marinade on All Recipes, changed a couple ingredients and threw it in the crock pot instead of of dicing and cooking the chicken. I was a little nervous serving a brand new recipe for a party, but luckily this chicken was great! I froze some of the leftovers and plan to use it in enchiladas or tortilla soup in the future...can't wait!!!

Ingredients:
* 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cubed
* 1/8 cup red wine vinegar
* 1/2 lime, juiced
* 1 teaspoon white sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
* 1/2 white onion, chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:
Mix together vinegar, lime juice, sugar, salt, pepper, onion, garlic and cilantro. Put in crock pot with chicken and cook on low 6 hours. Shred chicken apart with forks and serve in tacos with toppings of choice!

Chipotle Pork Chops with Spicy Side Salad

I was on the hunt for another pork chop recipe and thought this one from Tickle My Palate sounded awesome. It was SOOO good...a hit with the whole family! It wasn't hard to make and was a great combination of flavors. I made a wild rice mix to go with it and thought it was perfect. I ate the leftover side salad with chips like a salsa and it was delicious. Definitely give this one a try this summer!
Pork Chops marinade (I used 3 small ones) :
4 T olive oil (I'll just use 3T next time)
3T fresh lime juice
1T minced garlic
3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce chops with seeds and about a teaspoon adobo sauce
pepper to taste
(set aside some for side dish...I set aside almost 1/3 cup)

*Pour on meat. Ready to grill after marinated for an hour.

Spicy Side Salad:
1 ear grilled corn (I used 2)
1 can black beans drained
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes drained
1 diced avocado (use a big one, mine was small and I wished there was more)
marinade blend
chopped green onion
salt and pepper (to taste)
cilantro

Miner Marinade

Ok, so I just named it that because it's a marinade my family uses a lot in the summer. I have requested this chicken more than once for my birthday dinner I think...it is heavenly, especially when it is thrown on the BBQ! I just realized I had never blogged it, and this is one recipe I definitely need to preserve for the future, so here it is!
(today for lunch I threw one diced chicken breast into some Brown Rice and Veggie Salad and LOVED it...for dinner we served it with Zucchini Mozzarella Medley)

Ingredients:
-3/4 c. olive oil
-1/2 c. soy sauce
-2 T. Worcestershire sauce
-1/2 t. salt
-1 t. pepper
-1/4 c. wine vinegar
-1 t. parsley flakes
-2 cloves garlic, mashed

Directions:
-Mix all ingredients together. Let your meat of choice marinade overnight in it!

Lemon and Garlic Grilled Chicken

This is another winner from My Kitchen Cafe ...we LOVED it!!! I will use less salt next time, but the overall flavor was SOOO good! I doubled the recipe and can't wait to use the leftovers in her Lemon Cream Pasta later in the week!

Ingredients:
Juice of 1 lemon, approximately 3 T
3 T olive oil
1 t minced garlic, about 2 medium cloves
1 t salt (I recommend only using 1/2 t.)
1/4 t pepper
1/2 t dried oregano
1 pound chicken breasts

Directions:
-Combine all marinade ingredients. Place chicken in a ziploc bag and pour marinade over chicken. Seal bag and place in fridge overnight.
-Grill (or cook in frying pan).
-Note: If you cut your chicken into smaller, bite-sized pieces and then marinate it, you can get away with only letting it marinate for 5 or 6 hours instead of overnight.

Teriyaki Chicken (Freezer Meal)

The flavor of this chicken was DELICIOUS! And who doesn't love marinaded chicken thrown on the grill?! Amy made this chicken for our freezer group and used her own recipe (which she was kind enough to share).

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup pineapple juice
4 chicken breasts

Directions:
Mix marinade ingredients together and throw in a freezer bag with the chicken breasts. If you use it as a freezer meal, just defrost and cook as you please when ready to eat!

Lemon Herbed Fish Fillets (Freezer Meal)

Sorry for the bad picture, I nearly forgot to take one before we started eating. This was the first freezer meal we tried that someone else prepared and we all really liked this one. It was a nice change of pace to have the fish and it was healthy too (not to mention easy to prepare and easy to serve). I served it with a mushroom rice mix and moms green beans. Even the girls ate theirs up! The recipe I'm posting says it is to make 4 servings, but it was barely enough for our family (and is another from the 30 Day Gourmet).

Ingredients:
- 1 lb. fish fillets (these were tilapia)
- 1 t. lemon pepper
- 1/2 t. garlic powder

Freezing Directions:
-Place fish in quart sized freezer bag. Sprinkle seasoning in bag. Make sure it is well distributed and not in clumps. Seal, label and freeze.

Serving Directions: (write this on bag)
- Allow fish to thaw completely in refrigerator or thaw in microwave. Place fish in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or lined with foil. Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until fish flakes easily.