Knead to Cook

Food & fitness obsessed girl.

Pineapple Jalapeño Salsa.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Dips, Evolution Power Yoga 40 Days, Fruit, Gluten Free, Mexican, No bake/cooking required!, Snacks, Vegan, Vegetarian 4 Comments

This recipe is so versatile.  It can be served with tortilla chip at your next soiree or atop fish or chicken for a healthy option.  You can control the spice level with the amount of jalapeño you use or if you remove the inner seeds which contain all the heat.

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Ingredients:
1 bell pepper (I used red), diced
1/2 pineapple, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 cup of cilantro leaves, washed and roughly chopped
1 jalapeño, finely chopped.  If you want  more heat – leave the seed in, if not, remove before chopping
Drizzle of good olive oil

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients and place into a bowl.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors enhance and combine to make their magic.

— Knead to Cook

Jalapeño Topped Corn Bread with Honey Butter.

by Filed Under: Breads, Condiments 4 Comments

Every family has their food traditions.  One of our favorites is cornbread with honey butter when there is a Le Creuset Dutch oven filled with chili on the stove.  This corn bread can be varied to include the jalapeño peppers or not, if you aren’t a fan.  The perfect side for chili or soups and is easily prepared and baked.  You’ll never eat chili again without it after trying this recipe.

Ingredients:

1 cup of corn meal
1 cup of King Arthur’s All Purpose flour
1/3 cup of sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup of canola oil
1 cup of almond or cow’s milk (low fat or regular)
1 egg, room temperature
1 jalapeño, finely diced
1/4 cup of corn, cooked or canned

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 425 and spray a 9×9 baking dish with non stick baking spray with flour.  In your Kitchenaid stand mixer or in a bowl with a hand mixer, combine flour, powder, sugar an salt.  Then add oil, milk and egg.  Mix well to combine.  Then add the corn.  Stir by hand.  Then pour into your prepared pan.  Top with the jalapeño or not, depending on your preference.  Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and it’s lightly golden.  Set aside to cool then cut and serve.

Honey Butter

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter (I can’t believe it’s not butter or regular butter), room temperature
2 tablespoons of honey (I prefer raw but regular is fine)
1 pinch of salt

Directions:

In a bowl add all the ingredients and mix well until combined.  Leave at room temperature to warm up before serving.  Leftovers can be stored in a tupperware container.

— Knead to Cook

Peach salsa.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Dips, Fruit, Salsas & Guacamole, Side dish, Vegetarian 1 Comment

 

Eating the rainbow just got a whole lot tastier!  This fresh peach salsa is perfect alone with chips or atop chicken, pork or fish.  Tonight, it will sit along a lovely grilled pork tenderloin.

Ingredients:

2 peaches, pitted and chopped
1/4 of a red onion, diced
1/2 jalapeño, diced
1 yellow pepper, finely chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
1 handful of cilantro leaves, washed, chopped
1 lime, juiced
1 tablespoon of good quality balsamic vinegar
1 tsp of olive oil

Direction:

Add all of the ingredients to a bowl.  Toss and refrigerate for 2 hours or so to let the flavors meld.  Enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

Curried ginger chicken in the crock pot.

by Filed Under: Chicken, Condiments, Crock Pot 5 Comments

This recipe has simply come from necessity.  Tonight my daughter has a show at school and today was filled with running tons of errands for a rather large gathering we’re hosting Saturday evening.  This dish is quite aromatic.

For the chicken dish ~ Ingredients:

1/2 c of tomato sauce
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1.5 tbl of curry powder
2 tbl of freshly grated ginger
1-2 tsp of cumin (I added more but I just love it)
3/4 c of water
1 onion, medium sized, diced
Chicken breast – I was using tenders so I did 10 total (you can use breasts – 4 to 6 would work well)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp of freshly ground pepper

Directions:

In your crock pot on high (to cook in 4 hours) or low (6-8 hour cooking time) – add the first 6 ingredients. Whisk to combine.  Then add the onions to the mixture.  Combine.  Top with your chicken, salt and pepper.  Cover and cook.

For the sauce:
1 c of Chobani non fat plain yogurt
Juice from one lime
3 cloves of garlic
3/4 c of fresh mint leaves
1/4 tsp of cayenne
1 tsp of cumin
1/2 tsp of smoked paprika
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Blend together with your hand immersion blender or regular blender.  Place a dollop over the chicken dish and serve.  Garnish with mint leaves.

— Knead to Cook

Cilantro Lime Jalapeño Vinaigrette.

by Filed Under: Condiments, No bake/cooking required!, Sauces, Vegetarian 12 Comments

 

 

This dressing recipe is my absolute favorite… hands down!  It has just a bit of a kick for impact.  Refreshing, zesty… LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

Ingredients:

3 tbl of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbl of red wine vinegar
2 tbl of freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 jalapeño, diced up with seeds
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 tsp of a good Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp of honey
Fresh ground pepper
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp of ground cumin
1 handful of cilantro leaves, washed with stems removed

If you have a hand immersion blender, add everything except for the cilantro leaves and blend until creamy.  Then add the cilantro.  Blend until combined.  Serve with your favorite fish, salad, chicken or pork.

— Knead to Cook

Cilantro lime jalapeño hummus.

by Filed Under: Condiments, Dips, No bake/cooking required!, Vegetarian 16 Comments

If you love hummus with a kick… this is a must try!  Best made ahead of time & refrigerated.  Serve this with pita chips or veggies.  Packed with flavor, this is sure to be a favorite!

Ingredients:

5 cloves garlic, peeled
2 – 15 oz cans of garbanzo beans, I used low sodium version — drained and rinsed.
4 tbl of fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c or so of good olive oil
1 c of fresh cilantro leaves
1 jalapeño, stem removed

Directions:

In your food processor, place the cloves of garlic and pulse until finely chopped.  Then add the beans, lime juice and salt.  Puree for about 1-2 minutes.  It will look like a chunky oatmeal texture.  Then through the spout, finely pour a stream of the olive oil.  This will blend with the bean mixture and make a smoother, hummus type texture.  Then add the jalapeño & cilantro and pulse again until incorporated.

You can serve right away or refrigerate for 1-6 hours and then remove before serving, allowing enough time for it to return to room temperature for optimum flavor.

— Knead to Cook

Horseradish sweet & spicy pickles.

by Filed Under: Condiments, No bake/cooking required!, Vegetarian Leave a Comment

I had lunch on Friday with some of my favorite friends ever.  We went to this awesome, trendy cafe style pizza bakery and I noticed horseradish pickles on the menu.  I had to try them!  I’m a freak for spicy, hot, knock-your-socks-off food!  I then came home to make my own easy version and honestly… mine are better 🙂

I simply took a jar of sweet & spicy pickles with the juice that I already had in my pantry and added 3 tbl of freshly ground horseradish.  Place the lid back on the jar and give it a really good shake.  Store in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours (or days/weeks).  Then enjoy these on a sandwich or a burger.  I had them on my bean burger tonight and they were so good!  I can’t wait to try these this summer when we grow little pickle cukes.

 

— Knead to Cook