Pomegranate Glazed Drumsticks

I've been having some issues lately with the formatting on my blog. There is very little that I know about HTML, and for some reason the little bit I do know has not really been working for me. And I am very picky about how my posts are formatted (Mmm, you think I have some control issues?). I'm trying my best to get over it. So please excuse any odd formatting you may see.

Oh, and this recipe is so easy it's ridiculous. But so good that I just had to post it.

Pomegranate Glazed Drumsticks

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6-8 chicken drumsticks

Salt and pepper

2 c pomegranate juice

1 T agave nectar

In a small skillet, stick together pomegranate juice and agave nectar. Bring to a simmer and let reduce by half, for about 10-15 minutes. Season drumsticks with salt and pepper. Baste drumsticks with glaze. Grill drumsticks over medium-high heat, basting them with the glaze every 5 minutes. Cook for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through.

African Meat Pies - Take 1

I try more and more to cook gluten free, even for my boyfriend, Stephen. But sometimes I just have to make something that I know he loves. He grew up eating African meat pies and talks about them a lot. So I found this recipe and decided to give them a try. Unfotunately, I can't remember where I found this recipe. But I might as well retype, because it did not have very good directions.

Oh, and this is Take 1 of the meat pies because Stephen was so excited about these that he has already told me the other versions of fillings that he wants. So there will be more versions to come. And he's hoping those versions will come sooner rather then later.

African Meat Pies

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3 1/2 c flour

Pinch of baking soda

Pinch of salt

2 eggs, separated

2 sticks butter, cubed

1/4 c water

1 lb ground beef

1 t extra virgin olive oil

2 carrots, diced

1/2 onion, diced

Salt and pepper

Ground red pepper, to taste

Put flour, baking soda, salt and butter into food processor and pulse until the texture looks like coarse sand. Add 2 egg whites and 1 egg yolk. Turn food processor on and slowly pour in the water. Process until dough forms and starts to pull away from the sides. Pour the dough out of the food processor and knead to form into a uniform ball. Wrap the ball with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Add ground beef, salt and pepper to skillet and brown through. Pour out excess grease. Add carrot and onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until tender. Let meat mixture cool. Lightly flour board or surface you plan to roll the dough out on. You want about a 6 inch round that is about 1/8 of an inch thick. You can either roll it out first and cut it into the 6 inch round or roll it out thicker, cut a smaller round then roll it out again to a 6 inch round. Place about 2 tablespoons of filling in the middle of the dough round. Dip your finger in water and wet the outside of the dough round. Close the dough into a half moon and seal the dough together. Use a fork to further seal the dough and make a crimped edge. Prick the top of the half moon with a fork 2 or 3 times. Mix remaining egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of water. Brush tops of meat pies with egg wash. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes, until browned.

Stuffed Tilapia

I've been looking at my computer for the last 5 minutes trying to figure out what recipe I'm going to post. Why? Because I have gotten so far behind on posting the things I've been making. I made this tilapia probably about a month ago. Since I made it for my family, I kept the filling dairy free, but it would be great with some yummy cheese in the mix.


Stuffed Tilapia
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6 tilapia fillets
Salt and pepper
1 T extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 c mushrooms, chopped
4 c packed baby spinach
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 c walnuts, chopped
Pinch nutmeg
28 oz tomato puree
1/2 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T dried oregano
2 t dried basil
Red pepper flakes, to taste

In a medium pot, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium heat. Add minced onion to the pot and let sweat for 2-3 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and let saute for another minute. Stir in tomato puree and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a large skillet, heat remaining 2 teaspoons of oil over medium heat. Saute mushrooms for 6-7 minutes, or until browned. Add garlic and let saute for another minute. Stir in spinach, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Let spinach wilt, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in walnuts. Season tilapia with salt and pepper. Put 1-2 tablespoons of filling on the thick part of each tilapia fillet and roll tilapia over filling. In a small casserole dish, spread a thin layer of the tomato sauce. Lay each stuffed tilapia fillet in baking dish, with seam side down. Top stuffed tilapia with the rest of sauce. Bake tilapia in a 375 degree oven for 12-15 minutes, or until tilapia is cooked through and flaky.

Guinness Braised Short Ribs

I always aspire to make holiday themed foods throughout the year, but all too many times just don't get around to it. But this year, I at least somewhat achieved that goal with this Irish influenced dish. I just happened to make it for my boyfriend, Stephén, last week. Either way, he loved it.


Guinness Braised Short Ribs
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2 t extra virgin olive oil
2 lbs beef short ribs
Salt and pepper
1/2 onion, sliced
1 carrot, cut on bias
1 T fresh thyme
Red pepper flakes, to taste
2 gloves garlic, minced
3 c low-sodium beef broth
12 oz Guinness
1/2 lb red potatoes, halved

Heat oil in a dutch oven on the stove over medium heat. Season short ribs with salt and pepper. Sear ribs for 4-5 minutes per side. Remove ribs from the dutch oven. Add onion, carrot, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to dutch oven. Saute for 2-3 minutes, or until slightly tender. Add garlic and let cook for 1 minute. Pour 1 cup of beef broth to dutch oven and scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Add the rest of the broth, the Guinness, the ribs and their juices to the dutch oven. Turn the heat up to medium high and bring to a simmer. Let simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes. Cover and cook in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Add the red potatoes, salt and pepper to the dutch oven. Recover and let cook for another 30-35 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

Sauteed Broccoli, Squash and Mushrooms

I give my boyfriend, Stephén a hard time about being anti-vegetables. But I must admit, I'm not the biggest fan of veggies myself. But for some reason I have been obsessed with these sauteed broccoli, squash and mushrooms lately. Seriously, I've been eating them like it's my job. I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm sure I will tire of them soon, so I'll just go with it while it lasts.


Sauteed Broccoli, Squash and Mushrooms
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2 t+ extra virgin olive oil
1 pint cremini mushrooms
1 yellow squash
1 broccoli crown
1 shallot
Salt and pepper
1 clove garlic, minced

Quarter mushrooms, slice squash down the middle and cut them in half moons, trim broccoli into bite size pieces and thinly slice the shallot. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Add mushrooms to skillet and saute for 4-5 minutes, or until browned. Add more oil if needed. Add squash, broccoli and shallot to the skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 more minute.

Agave-Walnut Chicken

I had every intention of posting this recipe last week. Especially since I made it about two weeks ago, but somehow time just got away from me. I don't know what happened. Maybe this week will be better, though it doesn't seem to being shaping up that way. By the way, this was a big hit with my picky eater niece, Siena.

Agave-Walnut Chicken

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adapted from Rachael Ray Mag

1 1/2 lb chicken drumsticks

Salt and pepper

2 t extra virgin olive oil

1 c walnuts, chopped

1 c chicken broth

1/4 c apple cider vinegar

3/4 c agave nectar

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, totaling 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove chicken from skillet. Add vinegar to skillet and use a wooden spoon to scrap up the brown bits. Stir in chicken broth, agave nectar and walnuts. Add chicken back to skillet, turning to coat with sauce and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Roasted Red Potatoes

These potatoes are, in a word, AMAZING. I know what you're thinking... It's roasted red potatoes, that's not a big deal. But these potatoes, my friends, were brined. So they're seasoned on the inside! Big deal!!! You must try these.


Roasted Red Potatoes
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2 lbs small red potatoes
1/4 c kosher salt
1 T agave nectar
10 peppercorns
2 1/2 c hot water
6-8 ice cubes
2 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Pierce potatoes with a fork several times. In a large bowl, stir hot water together with salt, agave nectar and peppercorns until the salt is dissolved. Add ice cubes to chill water down. Add potatoes and let brine for 5-6 hours. Rinse potatoes. Toss potatoes with oil, salt and pepper. Roast in a 375 degree oven for 45-60 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Are you a fan of the Biggest Loser? I can't get enough of it. And I always feel kind of guilty for eating dinner while I'm watching it. But obviously not guilty enough to stop doing it. Tonight I'm going to try to get this recipe posted without getting too distracted by the Biggest Loser. I'm already not doing a very good job. It doesn't help that my friend, Jenni and I have a tendency to text each other throughout the show about what's happening.


Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
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2 t extra virgin olive oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
2 T fresh rosemary, chopped
Pinch red pepper flakes, to taste
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c wild rice
4 c chicken broth
1 c dairy or nondairy milk
2 c cooked chicken, diced
1 c baby spinach

In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallot, salt, pepper, rosemary, red pepper flakes and wild rice to pot. Let shallot saute and wild rice toast for 5-6 minutes. Add chicken broth, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover pot. Simmer for 45-50 minutes, or until rice is tender. Stir in milk and chicken. Let chicken heat through for 2-3 minutes. Stir in spinach and remove from heat.

Chicken with Strawberry Salad

My boyfriend, Stephen, is not a picky eater. He will eat whatever I feed him, but he is not a fan of pairing sweet fruit with a savory dish. So I save these kinds of recipes for my family. And yes, I know, there is something wrong with him. But I love him anyway.


Chicken with Strawberry Salad
adapted from Rachael Ray's look + cook
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4 chicken breasts
2 t extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
1/2 c balsamic vinegar
1 pint strawberries, sliced
3-4 small basil leaves, thinly sliced
1 c baby spinach, thinly sliced
4-5 slices turkey bacon, cut on bias

In small pot, bring balsamic vinegar to a simmer and reduce by half. Let vinegar cool then toss with strawberries, basil, spinach, salt and pepper. In large skillet, cook turkey bacon over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes per side, or until crisp. Remove bacon and drain on a paper towel. In same skillet, add oil and heat over medium heat. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook chicken for 7-8 minutes per side, until cooked through. Let chicken rest for 10 minutes, then slice on an angle. Top chicken with strawberry salad and turkey bacon.

Stuffed Pork Chops

Since going gluten and dairy free (amongst other things such as corn, egg, soy, beef, peanut, pork, shellfish and sugar) I have been debating with myself about whether or not to truly make this a healthy blog and only post the food I can eat. But reality is that I make things for my boyfriend, Stephen, that I can't eat. So I think that I'm finally willing to accept that some of the recipes here will be healthy recipes that support autoimmune disorders and some recipes will be whatever it is that I'm making for Stephen that day. Recipes like this one...


Stuffed Pork Chops
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4 thick-cut pork chops
2 t + 1 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 c mushrooms, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1/4 c sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 T chipotle puree, see note
2 T parsley, chopped
2 t flour
3/4 c chicken broth

Using a paring knife, cut a pocket in the middle of each of the pork chops. In a medium skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of oil over medium high heat. Saute mushrooms and shallot for 4-5 minutes, or until mushrooms are browned. Add sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper and chipotle puree. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in parsley and remove from heat. Using a spoon, stuff the mushroom mixture into the pork chop pockets. Secure pocket with toothpick. Season both sides of pork chops with salt and pepper. In a large, oven safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Sear pork chops for 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer skillet to 350 degree oven for 7-8 minutes, or until pork chops are cooked through. Remove pork chops from skillet. Return skillet to stove over medium heat. Sprinkle flour in skillet and whisk with remaining oil in skillet. Let cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in chicken broth, scraping up all the brown bits from the skillet. Let broth thicken. Pour over the top of the pork chops.