Steak & Ketchup Stir-Fry

If you're like me, reheated steak just doesn't cut it. But this easy "stir-fry" recipe transforms leftover steak into a quick meal that's ideal for tomorrow's lunch. When my Mom was growing up, my Nana would simply combine sliced steak and ketchup- it's just that easy. Today, I've learned the recipe and it sort of reminds me of an Asian stir-fry because of the thin beef strips.

 I always thought adding ketchup to steak was off limits but this dish completely changed my opinion!

Ingredients:

Steak (cooked and sliced)--- 1 LB
Sweet Onion (sliced)--- 1/2 CUP
Ketchup--- 1/4 CUP
Garlic (minced)--- 1 Clove
Bell Pepper (sliced)--- 1/2 CUP
Salt and Pepper--- To Taste
Olive Oil--- 2 TBSP

Step By Step:

• Cut onion, pepper & garlic and saute in a large, oiled frying pan

• Once onion and pepper are tender, add steak and stir in ketchup

(Waggles is looking for his share of steak!)

• Because the steak is already cooked, it only takes about 5 minutes for the warm steak to absorb the tomato flavor from the ketchup

                                

Enjoy!

Beet & Berry Smoothie

Power through your day by adding some BLUE. Blueberry season is right around the corner and these fresh fruits go great with one of my favorite veggies--- beets! Along with a few easy to obtain and inexpensive ingredients, this colorful smoothie will have you feeling blue-in a good way!

Ingredients:

Beets (peeled and cooked)--- 2/3 CUP
Blueberries--- 1/2 CUP
Milk/ Greek Yogurt--- 1 CUP
Chia Seeds--- 1 TBSP

Additional:

Orange (sliced)--- 1/4 CUP
Ice Cubes---2 or 3

Step By Step:

• Cook beets by either boiling or roasting once tender, the skin should peel off 

• Add beets and blueberries to a blender

• Add milk or yogurt and top with chia seeds. Pluse until even and smooth

Enjoy!

Oven-Roasted Flounder with Mango Citrus Sauce

"Alex be sure to use these mangoes- they're becoming overripe", my Mom told me one night while I was prepping dinner. We defrosted flounder which has a very mild taste when eaten plain. So I completely ad libbed dinner and boiled down the soft mangoes until they were a sweet and thick sauce. Not only did they add a level of flavor to the fish, the mangoes also give dinner a summery feel!

Ingredients:

For the Fish:
Flounder--- 1 LB
Salt and Pepper--- To Taste
Lemon Juice--- 1 TSP

For the Sauce:
Mangoes (diced)--- 3 Small or 1 Large
Orange (diced)--- 1 (Large)
Water--- 1/4 CUP
Salt--- Pinch

Step by Step:

• Preheat oven to 425F

• Peel and dice mangoes into small pieces

• In a small pot, add mango chunks, orange & water. Bring to a boil then let simmer uncovered for about 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the fruit has thickened and is not too lumpy, the sauce can be removed from the heat.

• Season flounder and bake at 425F for 20 minutes

• Once fish is cooked through, serve with mango sauce  

"Egg-In-The-Middle" Meatloaf

Here's an old-school recipe that my Great-grandma would make for my Poppop when he was a kid. I've already made single-serve "mini-meatloaves" for the blog and here is another way to step up this classic dish!

Ingredients:

For the Meatloaf:
Ground Beef, Pork & Veal Mixture--- 1 LB
Whole Wheat Bread--- 3 slices
Milk--- 1 CUP
Sweet Onion (chopped)--- 3/4 CUP
Garlic (minced)--- 2 cloves
Paprika--- 2 TBSP
Salt--- 1 TSP
Pepper--- 2 TBSP

For the Hard Boiled Egg:
Egg--- 1 to 3

Step by Step:

• We found that the best way to hard boil and egg is to place the egg in a a small pot and bring water to a rolling boil, uncovered. Maintain the gentle boil for 11 minutes then turn off heat and remove pot from burner. Let eggs cool before using.

• In a bowl, pour milk over bread and tear slices apart until they are the size of croutons

• Cut onion and garlic and add to mixing bowl

• Add meat and seasonings to mixing bowl and knead in bread until you have a solid ball of meatloaf 

• Flatten loaf (a) on a work surface and place eggs (b) in the middle. Take ends and fold together (c) to seal-in the eggs. Place the seam side down.

(a)

(b)

(c)

• Place in a oiled loaf pan and bake at 375F for 45 minutes

• Let cool 5 minutes before serving so the meat & egg sets in place

Enjoy!

Overnight Oats

School is out for the summer and I'm back to work. Most days, I start my job at 6 in the morning so having a grab-and-go breakfast is really helpful. Overnight oats seems to be really trendy lately so I wanted to have The Recovery Kitchen join this movement! Feel free to use any fruit/nut/grain combination you want and I've found that equal parts milk & oats works best for me. In the morning  you'll wake up to a delicious pre-made breakfast!!  

Ingredients: Serves 1

Steel-cut Oats--- 1/2 CUP
Banana (sliced)--- 1
Blueberries (Fresh or Frozen)--- 1/4 CUP
Dried Cranberries--- 2 TBSP
Milk or Yogurt--- 1/2 CUP
Walnuts (crushed)--- 2 TBSP

Step by Step:

• In a jar, add oats and fruit

(As frozen berries defrost, their juices are absorbed by the oats)

• Add milk or yogurt. (Should be equal parts milk to oats)

• Seal jar, shake and refrigerate overnight

(See ya in the morning!)

• The next morning the oats should have completely absorbed the milk and fruit juices. Top with nuts for some extra crunch! 

Coconut Macaroons

Happy Mother's Day!! If you are still looking for a delicious dessert, why not impress Mom with these macaroons? Just 4 ingredients make up these sweets and it take only 20 minutes to whip up! Today, let's pay it forward and make our Moms a sweet treat!

Ingredients:

Coconut Flakes--- 14oz Bag
Condensed Milk (Sweetened)--- 14oz Can
Vanilla Extract---1 TBSP
Salt--- Pinch

Step by Step:

• Preheat oven to 350F 

• In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients until a thick paste is formed

• Scoop out 1 TBSP of the macaroon mixture and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

• Reduce oven to 325F and bake for 15 minutes. (Bottoms should be a light, golden brown)

•  Let cool 5 minutes before serving and have a Happy Mother's Day!

Baked Swordfish

It's finals week in Happy Valley and you bet I need "Brain Food"!! My mom always said eating fish before a test was a good move so I figured I would make swordfish and combine it with a few sides I've already posted on the blog. Polenta and Tzatziki sauce seem to complement just about any protein and because these sides were so fast to make I had plenty of extra time on my hands. (But to be honest, I probably should of used that time more wisely and studied more!)

Ingredients: Serves 2 to 3

Swordfish--- 1 LB

Cayenne Pepper--- 1 TBSP

Salt and Pepper--- To Taste

Polenta--- For Recipe click HERE

Tzatziki Sauce--- For Recipe click HERE

Step By Step:

•   Preheat Oven to 400F

• Make Tzatziki Sauce first (the longer it sits & seasons- the better!)

• Make Polenta

• Season fish with cayenne, salt and pepper

• Bake at 400F for 20 minutes

• Let rest a few minutes before serving 

Hope you enjoy and good luck to every student during finals week!