Zucchini Fritters with Tomato Chutney

I have been blessed with many visitors this past week due to the early blooms of the Cherry Blossoms. My grandparents rolled through town on their way back north from Florida this past Tuesday. We spent a wonderful afternoon strolling through the blossoms and taking in the authentic DC restaurant scene at Old Ebbitt's Grill downtown. My Nana had never seen the blossoms in full bloom and we couldn't have picked a more perfect day to take in the sites. We were all surprised by how white the actual blossoms were at full peak. 

Nana and Pa Haman

The weather was absolutely amazing and put me into the an early spring mood! Bring on the warmer weather. Next into town, were my fabulous parents who came in for a long weekend. I was crossing my fingers for the weather to hold out but mother nature did not want to cooperate. So pulling on our rain coats and popping out the umbrellas we ventured out in the misty rain for a much different scene at the blossoms. 

Mom and Dad

Well, apparently the color comes towards the end of the peak because they had a richer pink color that day. So while we did have to put up with a little bad weather we were rewarded with a unique experience that included gorgeous color. And since the parents were in town I was treated to a stock piled fridge! Thanks Mom and Dad :) 

So what was a girl to do with all this fresh produce and warm weather on her mind but put together a delicious spring supper. I used this recipe, Zucchini Fritters, as a starting point and used what I had on hand. The original recipe uses stewed grape tomatoes but I wanted to use up a can of diced tomatoes I had, plus speed up the cooking time because yes I was hungry! 

Zucchini Fritters

2 smaller zucchinis, rinsed and grated

4 scallions, finely chopped (reserve 1 Tbsp. for garnish)

1 egg

Zest of 1 lemon

Scant 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan

1/4 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and Pepper to taste

Olive oil for frying

In a large bowl, combine grated zucchini, scallions, egg, zest of lemon, parmesan, and ricotta until incorporated then fold in flour, season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large frying pan. Create small fritters with about 1/4 cup of mixture and flatten before placing in hot oil. Cook fritters for about 5 minutes each side on medium high heat (olive oil will begin to smoke if over high heat so be sure to reduce the heat). Remove from pan and cool on paper towel lined plate. Serve with tomato chutney(recipe below). 

Tomato Chutney

1- 15 oz. can no salt added diced tomatoes

1 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

1 tsp. italian seasoning

Salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Cook until tomatoes begin to reduce and thicken about 6-7 minutes. 

The fitters came out crisp on the outside with pillowy insides. The tomato chutney added a nice sweet and sour finish. The lemon zest and scallions are a must to add a brightness and fresh pop of flavor. This would be a wonderful starter to a more substantial meal or used as a main dish with a side salad for lunch. 

I am so thankful to have a family that is willing to travel hours just to spend a little time with me. I had a wonderful week full of great memories I will cherish. These kind of weeks remind me of how lucky I am to live in a city as beautiful as DC and to have the people that I do in my life. If you have never had a chance to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom in person, I highly recommend you carve out a spring weekend end of March/beginning of April to check it out. Be sure to check ahead of when they will be at peak bloom because it only lasts about a week. 

Jefferson Memorial 

St. Patty's Day Fare

Happy St. Patrick's Day a day late! Hope you all enjoyed your Irish roots for the day. It was a gorgeous day down here in VA, and I got to start my day with a nice long 6 mile run! Training for races really takes its toll on a girl. After that I finally got my hair cut after almost a year of letting it grow I took the plunge and chopped off quite a few inches. It was a very productive day for me so I treated myself with a scrumptious Reuben sandwich and a Guinness for dinner. Now, since I live by myself purchasing beer is a toss up because I always have leftovers. I never can seem to finish a six pack on my own. I think inevitably I get sick of whatever beer I choose to purchase and drink wine instead.  So I searched the internet for an Irish inspired recipe that included Guinness and came up with this French Onion Soup with Guinness. Who doesn't love a nice steamy cup of french onion soup topped with gooey cheese? Well I sure do! I adapted the recipe to accommodate my pantry and to cut it down to two servings. WARNING: If you don't like Guinness you won't like this soup!

Irish Onion Soup
1 Tbsp. canola oil (a tad less really)
1 large Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
1 cup water
1/2 of a 11 oz. bottle of Guinness
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 oz. aged cheddar, grated or sliced thinly
1 small dinner roll, toasted and halved
Salt and Pepper to taste






In a large stockpot, heat canola oil over medium heat and add onions, garlic, brown sugar, and salt. Cook for about 20-25 minutes stirring often until onions begin to brown. Add broth, water, Guinness, and Worcestershire cook an additional 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 400. On a foil lined baking sheet place two oven safe bowls.  Put half of the bread in each bowl, top with about 1 1/2 cup of soup, then top with cheese. Bake for about 10 minutes or until cheese has browned slightly on top. WARNING: DO NOT eat directly after it comes out of the oven! It is hot! I know I learned the hard way! Let cool for at least 5 minutes.

Reuben Sandwich
2 slices Jewish Rye Bread
1 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. Thousand Island Dressing
1/4 cup sauerkraut, squeezed of all liquids
1 slice Swiss cheese
3-4 slices of thinly cut deli Corned Beef

Create the sandwich layering ingredients. Butter the outside of the bread. Cook on grill pan for about 3-4 minutes each side or until cheese is melted and sandwich is heated through.

The soup came out with a very distinctive Guinness flavor. The cheese pairs well with the flavor of beer and the bread soaks up all the yummy broth. This sandwich is an all time favorite of mine and I eat it almost every St. Patty's Day! It is my once a year corned beef...kind of like my once a year burger!

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my blog. I enjoy writing it and hopefully you get some good ideas for recipes!

Pizza...Strawberry Balsamic Chicken with Turkey Bacon & Red Onion

So I was diligently planning out my weekly meals, browsing through Pinterest for ideas and I came across this Strawberry Balsamic Pizza with Chicken, Sweet Onion and Applewood Bacon. I had the majority of the ingredients already on hand, but since I don't eat regular bacon I added turkey bacon to my shopping list. I could have omitted the bacon all together but as I was reading the ingredient list on the recipe I thought of the flavor profiles. It felt to me that the smokiness you get from the bacon was integral to the overall taste of this dish. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I made a few small tweaks to the recipe mainly because it is what I had on hand. 

Strawberry Balsamic Chicken Pizza with Turkey Bacon & Red Onion

1/2 cup strawberry preserves

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. Sriracha (if you like it spicy add an extra tsp. for nice heat) 

1 pkg. pizza dough 

1 cup diced, cooked chicken breast

4-5 thin cut slices of turkey bacon, cooked then torn by hand 

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion

 3/4 cup shredded Italian Blend cheese (mozz and parm) 

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup fresh strawberries, diced into small pieces

Kosher salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a small saucepan, bring the balsamic vinegar to a simmer over medium high heat. Let it simmer for 4-5 minutes or until it reduces by half and thickens. Remove from heat and add Sriracha and strawberry preserves, mix well. In a small bowl combine chicken with 2 Tbsp. of the balsamic sauce. Roll out pizza dough on pizza stone, pour the remainder of the sauce on top of the dough leaving a border for crust. Sprinkle half of the cheese on top of the sauce then top with chicken, turkey bacon, and onion, finishing with the remainder of the cheese. Cook for about 8-10 minutes. Once the cheese is melted and crust golden brown remove from oven. Top with cilantro, strawberries, and a few small pinches of salt. Serve it up with a nice green salad. 

As I enjoyed my dinner, I literally felt like I had ordered this from a restaurant. The flavors were intense and melded so well together. You get the smokiness from the turkey bacon, the heat from the Sriracha, a nice freshness from the strawberries and cilantro, a kick from the onion and a sweetness from the balsamic and preserves. The best is if you can get all of the separate tastes together in one big bite, it's divine! 

In case you're a Pinterest geek like me and if you like any of the recipes or pics you see, feel free to Pin it :) Be on the look out for a classic St. Patty's Day post coming up this week! 

Lemony Chicken with Honeyed Roasted Veggies and Baby Broccoli

Hey all, did you miss me? I have been slightly MIA lately since I have been on a little health kick. That means no baking deliciously sweet goods or fancy schmancy dinners with all of my favorites. With the slew of weddings, showers, and events I am planning to go to this summer I am determined to look fabulous in a dress. Therefore, my meals have been consisting mostly of rabbit food. Don't get me wrong I like to eat healthy. I strive to eat healthy for the majority of my meals. I mean really health and fitness is my business so I should. But for me to blog about a boring salad would be just plain wrong. But tonight I did put together a deliciously healthy and easy to throw together meal that I wanted to share with you.

The meal started with the roasted vegetables. A favorite past time of mine during these cold winter months. But I wanted to switch it up just slightly. So I used carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes (kicked out my usual red onion) and added a touch of honey to sweeten things up. Next, was trying to keep with the healthy theme and use what I had in the pantry for my chicken. And lastly use up the broccoli that had been in my fridge since Saturday.

Honeyed Roasted Vegetables
3 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into similar size pieces
3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into similar size pieces
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into similar size pieces (catch me drift :)
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. honey
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together honey and olive oil. Place chopped vegetables on a large baking sheet. Drizzle honey & olive oil over veggies and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 25-30 minutes or until vegetables are soft, tossing the vegetables about half way through so they can caramelize on two sides.

Lemony Chicken
2 thin chicken breasts, trimmed of all fat
1 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 garlic clove, chopped
Juice from a small lemon
Salt and Pepper

In a shallow dish, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and salt & pepper. Marinate the chicken breasts in mixture for about 5 minutes (not too long because the acid from the lemon juice will begin cooking the chicken).  Preheat a grill pan (or if you're lucky enough an actual grill). Cook chicken for about 3-4 minutes each side (depending on the thickness of the chicken breast) or until the center is no longer pink.

Steamed Baby Broccoli
In a large saucepan, put about 1-2 inches of water. Place baby broccoli with stems on in saucepan. Cover and steam for about 5 minutes, until the broccoli is just cooked but still has a slight bite to it. Drain and drizzle with olive oil, season with salt & pepper.

Hopefully, I will have more deliciously healthy meals to share with you in the near future. I hope you are all keeping warm and that the spring weather graces us with it's presence sooner rather than later.