Ah-Maz-Ing Salmon!

Stephen just kept saying this salmon was incredible. It really was. SO delicious and easy and packed with Omegas! Seriously, make this! I served my salmon up with some garlic couscous and parmesan baked asparagus.

3-4 salmon fillets

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon butter

5 cloves garlic

2 green onions, chopped

salt pepper

Directions:

• Season both sides of the salmon with salt and pepper
• Heat coconut oil and butter in a large pan
• Saute garlic 2-3 minutes
• Add salmon and cook about 4 minutes on each side. You will want to salmon to be browned on the sides and feel firm. Most important part is not overcook it!
• Garnish with green onions.

Crafting Fun

So when Stephen and I re-did our kitchen (pictures below), we painted our dining room too. Before the we painted, we had a shelf above a door going into our sun room that just had our favorite wine bottles lined up in a row. I wanted to do something that looked a little cleaner and something that would give me a chance to craft! With some awesome inspiration from Pinterest (of course), this is what I came up with.

 However, let me tell you, typically I don't post the "don'ts" on my blog, however I think the bottles wrapped in hemp are a don't. To be honest, each one took over an hour to do and they didn't even turn out all that cute. AND the natural hemp one turned out to be almost the same color as my wall so its a camouflage decoration :)  Needless to say, I love the "EAT" but will be looking for more inspiration for the rest of the shelf.

Kitchen Update

Stephen and my first big homeowner project- a kitchen update!! Had to share some pictures of the process :) Stephen did all the demo of the original kitchen, with some help by my dad on the back splash, then they removed the old sink and Stephen installed the new sink! My mom and I did the painting! We are so in love with the end results.

Pesto Crusted Tilapia

Another pesto recipe, but very different. I think this might have been the most moist fish I have ever made and maybe even eaten. It was so good, perfect amount of pesto flavor and great crunch. 3 ingredients, takes about 10-15 minutes. Definitely recommend this dish! I served ours up with some steamed broccoli and roasted fingerling potatoes!

2 tilapia fillets (1-2 per person)

1 cup basil pesto (I got mine from Costco its SO good)

panko bread crumbs

Directions:

• Wash and dry your fresh tilapia fillets
• Coat each fillet in basil pesto and then coat in panko breadcrumbs
• In a large pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil or coconut oil
• Cook the fillets for about 5 minutes per side until the crust is brown and the fish feels firm
• Serve!

Ratatouille Pasta

I made Ratatouille a while back and I wanted to make it again, but had no desire to cut up and perfectly arrange the veggies in a dish. So I just did something similar to a ratatouille and served it over pasta! Was packed with veggies and delicious AND vegan and gluten free!

1 eggplant, chopped into cubes

1 red pepper, chopped

2 zucchini, chopped

1 yellow squash, chopped

1 pint of mushrooms, chopped

1 yellow onion, diced

5 cloves garlic, chopped

1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon oregano

salt and pepper

corn penne

Directions:

• In a large pan, add olive oil and saute onion and garlic. 
• Add the rest of the veggies and seasonings and saute about 5 minutes
• Add the marinara sauce and let cook about 20 minutes, until sauce it hot and all veggies are cooked but still have some firmness. 
• Cook pasta according to bag instructions
• Serve ratatouille over the pasta! 
• Top with a little parmesan cheese. 

Chicken Salad

I have probably made this one before- but just wanted to use up some of our lettuce last night. Decided to use a rotisserie chicken I bought over the weekend and make a delicious chicken salad! I wanted to try a new dressing so I found this sesame ginger at the store. With the ingredients I used for the salad, it seems a little funny, but this dressing is SO good with this salad!

2 cups arugula 

1 cup spinach

1 cup mixed greens

1 can red beans, drained and rinsed

1 can corn, drained and rinsed

1 package mushrooms, sliced

3 carrots, chopped

4 green onions, chopped

1 can olives, drained

1 cup rotisserie chicken, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

Sesame ginger dressing

Garlic Butter Tilapia

As part of our New Years Resolution, we have been trying to eat healthier. Now that we are off the cleanse, we are going to try to eat fish 1-2 times a week. It is so packed with awesomeness, and tastes delicious, why not?! This week we made some tilapia. I love tilapia. It is mild, light and takes on whatever flavors you assign it. This one was definitely good & super fast! I served it up with some steamed broccoli and zucchini cakes (from Costco).

1 pound Tilapia (for me it was 4 fillets) 

1 1/2 cups sugar plum tomatoes (or any tomatoes), sliced

1 yellow onion

3 tablespoons butter

1 lemon

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions:

• In a sauce pan, add butter and let melt. Then add onions, garlic, salt and pepper and let cook down about 10 minutes. 
• In a separate saute pan, add olive oil and let it get hot. 
• Salt and pepper both sides of the fish and then add to the saute pan, letting one side get brown.
• When you flip the fish, add the onion and butter mix to the fish and let it cook about 5 minutes. 
• You will notice the fish is about done after 5-7 minutes on the second side. Add the tomatoes and let it all cook another 4-5 minutes. 
• Serve up and squeeze a little lemon juice over the whole thing.