Baked Avocado Salsa

We have 3 avocado trees and since it is officially avocado season- we are SWIMMING in them! It's awesome- so I've been trying every recipe I can that includes avocados! This was super yummy, and we loved it as a salsa or topping! Click HERE for the link.

Enchilada Pasta Casserole

I found this on Pinterest- it looked like a great, easy casserole... and it was! Click HERE for the link.

Chicken and Orzo Skillet Dinner

I actually used pork tenderloin when I made this, but chicken would be good, too!

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite sized pieces
8 cups water
12 oz uncooked orzo
2 cups chopped tomato
2 tsp no-salt-added tomato paste
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp black pepper
3 cups baby spinach leaves
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

DIRECTIONS:
Heat a nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken and saute 6 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Bring 8 cups of water to boil in a large saucepan. Add orzo; cook 8 minutes or until orzo is al dente. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Add reserved cooking liquid, chopped tomato, tomato paste, 1/2 tsp salt, and peppers to skillet; cook over med-high heat for 2 minutes. Add chicken, pasta, and 3 cups of spinach leaves, stirring until spinach wilts. Remove from heat; sprinkle with cheese.

Sea Asparagus Pesto

I bought a jar of Sea Asparagus Pesto from a Famer's Market (you can find it HERE) and made some shrimp pasta with it. I just boiled the pasta (also homemade organic from the Farmer's Market!) and cooked the shrimp in olive oil in a skillet. It was super light and yummy... although my favorite way to eat the pesto was on my toasty, crunchy bread (also fresh baked at the Farmer's Market!!)! Yum... so awesome to try new things here!

Vanilla French Toast

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup 2% milk
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch salt
• 6 slices texas toast bread
• strawberries
• granola
• whipped cream
• pure vanilla syrup

DIRECTIONS:

In a shallow bowl, beat eggs; add the milk, sugar, vanilla and salt. Soak bread for 30 seconds on each side. Cook on a greased hot griddle until golden brown on both sides and cooked through. Top with strawberries, granola, whipped cream (homemade is the best!), and pure vanilla syrup (my husband recently traveled and brought some home that was from New Zealand... so good!). 

Zucchini Boats

I found this on pinterest- and had some zucchini from a local Farmer's Market and also bought some organic marinara sauce there, too! These were delicious!! Click HERE for the recipe.

Chocolate Avocado Mousse

We have 3 avocado trees, so I am always looking for more ways to use them! This is a paleo recipe, but so yummy and Hawaiian! We ate it the first night with strawberries and vanilla wafers, but then I put it in a graham cracker pie crust and topped it with whipped cream... it was awesome! You can't taste anything but chocolate mousse!

INGREDIENTS:
4 avocados
1 cup agave nectar
1 TBL vanilla
1 cup cocoa powder

DIRECTIONS:
Blend all ingredients together, and enjoy!

Grilled Chicken Florentine Pasta

INGREDIENTS:
2 chicken breasts
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
Cooking Spray
8 oz. linguine
2 TBL canola oil
3 TBL all-purpose flour
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 cup whole milk
1 cup chicken broth
3 oz. Parmesan cheese, grated
4 cups fresh spinach leaves

DIRECTIONS:
Prepare grill to medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray, and grill for 8 minutes on each side or until done. Let stand 10 minutes. Carve chicken and thinly slice.
Cook the pasta according to package directions, drain well; keep warm.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add flour and garlic; cook until garlic is browned (about 2 minutes), stirring constantly. Add milk and broth, stirring with a whisk; bring to a simmer, and cook 2 minutes or until thickened. Add cheese, stirring until cheese melts. Add remaining 1/2 tsp salt, remaining 1/2 tsp pepper and spinach; stir until spinach wilts. Add pasta and chicken; toss to combine.

Hawaiian Salad

One of my favorite things about living in Hawaii is the Farmer's Markets! The weather here is generous to fresh produce happening all year long! This salad has become one of my favorites- it's a North Shore medley of greens, wild grown tiny tomatoes and Lilikoi Papaya Seed Dressing. If you visit Oahu, make sure you come to a Farmer's Market and try it first hand... but you can also order the dressing on this website: http://hawaiisspecial.com/. The other lettuce that is AMAZING is the Pupukea Greens. YUM!

Pork Chops with Roasted Apples and Onions

INGREDIENTS:
2 1/2 tsp canola oil
1 1/2 cups pearl onions
2 cups Gala apple wedges
1 TBL butter
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
4 bone-in center-cut pork loin chops
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp cider vinegar

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over med-high heat. Add 1 tsp oil to pan; swirl to coat. Pat onions dry with a paper towel and add them to the pan; cook 2 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring once. Add apple to pan; place in oven. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes or until onions and apple are tender. Stir in 2 tsp butter, thyme, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.
Heat a large skillet over med-high heat. Sprinkle pork with remaining salt and pepper. Add remaining 1 1/2 tsp oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add pork to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove pork from pan; keep warm. Combine broth and flour in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add broth mixture to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook 1 minute or until reduced to 1/4 cup. Stir in vinegar and remaining 1 tsp butter. Serve sauce with pork and apple mixture.

Green Beans with Mustard Vinaigrette

INGREDIENTS:

16 oz green beans, steamed

1 1/2 tsp olive oil

1 1/2 tsp cider vinegar

1 tsp stone-ground mustard

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the last 5 ingredients in a small bowl, whisk well. Add to the green beans and toss well to coat. 

Lemony Grilled Shrimp Salad

INGREDIENTS:

2 tsp grated lemon rind

1/2 tsp smoke paprika

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

7 tsp olive oil

24 shrimp- peeled and deveined, tails off

Cooking Spray

6 cups baby arugula

1 avocado, peeled and diced

1 cup peeled jicama, cut into strips (optional)

2 TBL lemon juice

1 TBL white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp sugar

1 oz queso fresco, crumbled

DIRECTIONS:

Combine rind, paprika, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tsp oil and shrimp in a medium bowl. You can either cook them on a grill (thread them through a skewer) or sauté them in a skillet. Combine the arugula, avocado and jicama in a large bowl and toss gently. Combine the remaining 2 TBL oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, lemon juice, vinegar and sugar in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add just mixture to shrimp mixture and toss gently to coat. Divid the salad among 4 plates and sprinkle evenly with queso fresco. 

Black Pepper and Molasses Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Mango Slaw

I found this great recipe in an old Cooking Light magazine I had! So yummy and easy... I picked up some jalapeno cheese buns from our deli and warmed those up in the oven- perfect! I did make double the sauce to cover the chicken! 

INGREDIENTS:

Rotisserie Chicken, pulled apart

3 TBL ketchup

1 TBL cider vinegar

1 TBL prepared mustard

1 TBL molasses (or honey)

3/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/8 tsp ginger

Sandwich Rolls

Dill Pickle Chips

DIRECTIONS:

Combine first 9 ingredients in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover and cook, stirring occasionally about 20 minutes. After warming and pulling apart chicken, fill the buns and top with sauce and pickles!

For the Mango Slaw:

INGREDIENTS:

Package of Cabbage and Carrot Coleslaw

1 cup chopped mango

1/4 cup vertically sliced red onion

1/4 cup canola mayo

1 TBL cider vinegar

1 TBL sugar

1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the last 4 ingredients in a small bowl and stir well to make the dressing. In a larger bowl, combine the coleslaw, mango and red onion and toss well with the dressing.