From The Fifth Foodie

for those of you that don't know, i have another blog called From The Fifth Foodie.

check it out if you want some delicious, healthy, and quick recipes.

thanks!

Greek Burgers & a Cocktail!!!

I really cannot get over the beautiful weather that El Paso has been having lately. I absolutely love it. This type of weather screams fun in the sun and to me there is no better way to have fun in the sun than having a cocktail in your hand while grilling delicious food for friends and family. But sometimes grilling can get a little mundane when you cook the same few things over and over.

I think everyone can agree that burgers are one of the easiest and most common meals to grill. Think about it, how many times have you gone to a barbeque and that has been on the menu? Lots, right?! And don’t you feel like you could cook burgers in your sleep because I know I sure feel that way!

Your standard burger can get a bit tired, so here is a delicious recipe that will mix up your repertoire! And I promise that it just as easy to make as a “regular” burger and 100 times tastier!!!

I have also included a recipe for a refreshing cocktail that my friend Adrienne shared with me that will ensure everyone drinking it is having fun in the sun!

Enjoy!

Greek Turkey & Lamb Burgers with Special Sauce
(Serves 4)

Ingredients for Sauce:
1/4 cup mayo
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 ground cumin
1/8 ground red pepper

Directions for Special Sauce:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, mix, and then put in the fridge to chill until burgers are done.

The sauce should look something like this!



Ingredients for Burger:
1/4 cup diced onion
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
8 ounces ground turkey
8 ounces ground lamb



Directions for Burger:
Combine all the ingredients into a large bowl, mix well with your hands, and then form 4-6 patties (depending on how big you want them).



Now spray the grill with cooking spray so that the meat doesn’t stick. Next, fire up the grill- getting the temp to about medium- then throw the patties on there. Cooking for about 4-5 minutes on each side.



Once the burgers are done, place them on a bun, a pita, or big piece of lettuce how I did, add a dollop of the sauce, and enjoy the deliciousness!!



Recipe courtesy of Cooking Light

Caipirinha Cocktail
(Serves 1)

Ingredients:
1/2 lime, quartered
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 ½ ounces of cachaca
ice cubes

Directions for Caipirinha:
In a large rocks glass, squeeze and drop in limes. Add sugar- crush and mix well with a spoon. Pour in the cachaca and plenty of ice. Stir well and drink that sucker up!

Recipe courtesy of I Want That

Something New & Something Old

i have been getting pretty tired of making the same recipes, so this morning i decided i was going to make something new. i knew i wanted seafood, but i didn't feel like the usual salmon or trout.

...then it hit me- use the scallops you bought at Costco over the weekend!!!!

i have to admit i was a bit nervous because i have never tried scallops. yes... i know.... this is completely bizarre coming from someone who eats seafood more than anything else!

anyways, since i have never made scallops before and i am trying to eat healthy, i decided to head over to CookingLight to find a recipe.

**SIDENOTE** If you have never used a recipe from CookingLight you are missing out! EVERYTHING is healthy and delicious!

anyways, i ended up finding a recipe not only for scallops but also for some asparagus; i have become so bored with how i usually make it so it was refreshing to find a new and EASY recipe!

i also made your standard brown rice.

this meal was SERIOUSLY amazing. i am totally going to start cooking with scallops more often!! so quick, so easy, and so healthy!

this entire meal was only 325 calories!!!

again, i forgot to take a picture because i was so starving!!

but thanks to Cooking Light you can get an idea of what it looked like!

Thanksgiving Yumminess!

This Thanksgiving was awesome! It was my two brothers, my SIL, and my dad. Me and L, my SIL, made most of the meal and it was seriously one of the best, if not THE BEST, Thanksgiving meal I have ever had! Onto the best part- what we ate!

We started out with a shrimp cocktail that I completely forgot to take a picture of!

Here is the turkey that I made! I prepped it by rubbing coarse sea salt all over it and then washed it off. After that, I stuffed it with half an onion, some garlic cloves, and half a lemon. I also put in some sprigs of rosemary and some salt and pepper. This year I decided to use a cheese cloth that I had soaked in a dry white wine and 1 cup of butter. The turkey roasted for about 4.5 hours and the cheesecloth was on it up until the last hour. Every 30 minutes I basted it with the left over butter and wine sauce and the juices from the bottom of the roasting pan. It was seriously the most tender and juicy turkey I have ever made- I have made three previous to this. I am not sure what I can attribute that to, but my guess is either the cheesecloth or the fact that I got a natural kosher turkey this year.

I also made homemade gravy. The recipe can be found here. As you can tell, I got the turkey and salad recipe from this newsletter as well!

Next up we had a delicious mixed greens salad with goat cheese, dried cranberries, walnuts, and a homemade dressing! I used arugula, radicchio, and endive. It was amazing! I didn't even know I liked endive! The dressing is muy bueno and super easy to make. You take 3 garlic cloves, 2.5 teaspoons of dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, and 1/3 cup of red wine vinegar and whisk them in a bowl. While whisking you slowly add in 1 cup of EVOO and then season with sea salt and pepper to taste!

One of the sides I made was a brussel sprout and dried fig dish. My friend D sent me a link from the New York Times with a list of Thanksgiving sides and this one looked delicious! It is also soooo easy to make! You put 2 tablespoons of EVOO in a pan and then throw in some chopped bacon and fry it until it is cooked the way you like it. I did mine for about 7-8 minutes. After that, throw in some chopped brussel sprouts and a handful of dried figs, mix it all together a couple of times then add in 1/3-1/4cup of water. Then just let it sit there and occasionally stir it. You will know when it is done when the figs and sprouts are tender. This was seriously so delicious! My SIL even said later that she didn't even know she liked brussel sprouts and wanted the recipe!

To me, it is not Thanksgiving unless you have green bean casserole! Such a classic! You can find the recipe here!

Sorry that the pic is a bit out of focus! These are the delicious Yukon Gold mashed potatoes that my SIL made. They were seriously so creamy and fluffy!

She also made a delicious stuffing! I cannot remember all that was in it, but I think there were onions and celery. So good!

To top it off, my SIL made a delicious pecan pie. I have never in my life tried pecan pie, but this was TO DIE FOR! Seriously, I think pecan might beat out pumpkin pie as my favorite! She also made a pumpkin roll. None of us have tried it yet because we were stuffed like a turkey, but I assure you it looks like it is going to taste great! We also had some bubbly- Moet Chandon!

And lastly, a pic of the entire spread!

La Brunch

Over the weekend I met up with the girls below at Cafe Chloe


I had what I always get here; the brie and herb omelet.


With a delicious Blonde Ale from a local brewery.

The Best Burger in SD

If you want a great burger in San Diego, look no further than OB (that is Ocean Beach for all you non-natives). Hodads is where it is at! Absolutely delish!


I love the laid back vibe!



And the cluttered decor!



And let's not forget the mini bacon cheeseburger with a Dos XX Lager! YUM! Thank God I worked out today! :-)

Let Them Eat Seafood

Lunch today at JRDN restaurant at Tower 23 in San Diego. Delish!


Strawberry Mango Mojito on the left; Watermelon Mojito on the right


Oysters on the half

New Move New Meals

As most of you know, I recently moved to Austin to study for the Texas Bar. Being the type of person who doesn't feel "normal" unless I am always challenging myself, I decided that in addition to studying for the bar, I would also try to really eat healthier. I cannot take all the credit for this though: i owe it to my momma.

The past couple of years my mom has gotten in FANTASTIC shape! She eats so healthy it is insane and exercises pretty much everyday; if I had that type of discipline, I would rule the world... really! Seeing how great she feels and not to mention looks now (even though in my eyes my mom has always been the most beautiful person on the planet!), I decided that it was time I did the same. What I like about what my mom has done is that she does not limit what she can eat in ANY way. She is just really smart and logical about what she puts into her mouth. I want to be logical when it comes to my body, just like her.

My mom helped me drive to Austin. We had a lot of fun on the ride here and the 2 days she was in town. One of the fun things we did was go to whole foods. I wanted my mom to help me pick out healthy stuff, NOTHING bad. I am usually a pretty good eater, but I have been known to buy "bad" stuff and over-indulge! Boy did she help! We did not buy one bad thing!! We got lots of organic veggies and fruits; fresh fish and chicken. I got nothing pre-made so that I would be forced to cook and eat healthy lol. And I have!!! Now, after that long story, I will share a recipe with you :-)

Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry

I marinated boneless skinless chicken tenders overnight with a ginger teriyaki sauce (that only has 20 calories per tbsp) i got from whole foods.

Then i cooked it in a pan on the stove. I started on high and then moved to medium/low.

Then i cut up a ton of veggies: zucchini, red bell pepper, mushrooms, and broccoli and stirfried them on the stove with a little olive oil! I did that for about 5 minutes which I think was too long because the veggies were not crisp like I wanted! So next time, I will probably only do for about 3 minutes!

After the veggies were done, I threw them in a bowl with the chicken and mixed them around!

I totally spaced out on taking a picture of the finished product, but I assure you that it looked as great as it tasted!!!

Enjoy!!

How To

If you are like me, then you probably enjoy brown sugar on a regular basis. I use it almost every morning in my oatmeal. Something that really drives me mad about brown sugar is how hard it becomes, even when in a sealed tight jar! Some mornings you will find me banging my jar against the counter to try to loosen the sugar; others I will be stabbing the sugar with a knife. Neither of this accomplish much of anything. But I have found a solution that will keep your brown sugar as soft as the day you bought it: MARSHMALLOWS!




That's right! Just throw a couple of marshmallows into the jar and voila- Soft Brown Sugar!

How To

Ever wonder how to get that pesky garlic or onion smell off of your hands?

Well there are 2 solutions that work and do not require you buying ANYTHING:

1. You can rub your hands against anything that is stainless steel, like your sink, then wash and viola they don't smell anymore!

2. Wet your hands, shake some salt onto them, then wash with cold water!


Now, if only it was that easy to get your garlic breath fresh!

Reservations, PLEASE!!!

I don't watch cooking shows. For some reason I just cannot get into them. Either the host annoys me with their shrill voice or their food looks pretty gnarly. But I am obsessed with the man to your left and his show
"No Reservations."

If you have not seen this show which airs on Monday night on the Travel Channel then you should really make a point to one of these days. If you have seen the show then you probably know why I like it so much- food, travel, culture. These are 3 of my favorite things and these 3 things are what "No Reservations" focuses on... It also doesn't hurt that it is hosted by a handsome middle aged man that looks like he can teach you a few things. ;-)

But really, I think the reason I am so obsessed with the show is because it inspires me. I know, I know, on its face that sounds cheesey, but please let me explain. You have someone who each week goes to a different location in the world and immerses himself in the culture, the food, the people, and the sights. That is so fearless! (Even if he does have a crew there with him to help out). Most people I know, including myself (at this point in time), would never have the balls to do that. But this show makes me want
to do that. It makes me want to push myself. Crazy that a show has the possibility to change my life? Perhaps, but I like it!

chicken

Today for the first time in over 4 years, I made chicken. IT WAS DELICIOUS!!! I am so glad that I finally have learned how to make chicken!!! It was actually bbq chicken and I used this delicious marinade that I bought @ Trader Joe's yesterday.

I also made zucchini with it. I used a new recipe which calls for olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The zucchini was a little too sweet for my liking, but was still good. Next time though I think I am going to just use olive oil.


To top it all off, my beverage was Simpler Times Lager.

So tasty and a perfect way to begin my week!

Saturday

On Saturday me, E. and M. had what ended up being a wine and cheese thingy here @ my house. It all happened very organically- which is something I am a HUGE fan of.

Me and E. were just hanging out after finishing a delicious lunch of rainbow trout, steamed broccoli, and an herb salad (all made by yours truly!) when M. called. We told M. to come over and join us for a glass of wine. Well, thanks to trader joes, we took it one step further and ended up making a cheese, fruit, and veggie plate. Then we just sat outside and soaked up the sun listening to some laidback tunes all while chit chatting and snacking on our cheese, fruit, and veggies and sipping on our wine. it was really mellow and nice. me likey. especially because it didn't cost too much and the weather was so great!

note to self: must do again!!

:-)