Fresh Ground Chicken Burger - 251 Calories

Now that you learned about the meat grinder, I'll tell you how to put it in action.

6 Ounces of fresh coarse ground chicken breast
1/4 Yellow bell pepper, diced
2 Slices of red onion, each slice 1/4 inch thick, coarsely chopped
1/2 Scotch bonnet pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 Ounce sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 Teaspoon of chili powder
1/4 Teaspoon of black pepper
1/8 Teaspoon of salt

Light the charcoal grill and keep the grates about 2 inches from the coals.While the coals are getting ready, combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well. Form into a patty about 1 inch thick. Spray both sides with olive oil from the misto. When the coals are totally gray, place the burger on the grill and close the cover. I like abit of a smokey flavor so I'll throw a wood chuck on the edge of the coals. Cook for about 5 - 7 minutes then flip the burger, close the cover, and cook about another 5 - 7 minutes or until done. To test doneness (that's a word in my dictionary), when you press the center of the burger, it should be firm, not hard (overcooked) or mushy (undercooked). DO NOT USE A MEAT THERMOMETER!! Piercing the meat will cause the juices to run out of it and the burger will get dry. That goes for ALL meats. When I see someone do that, I want to snatch the thermometer and smack some sense into them, but I digress. Test by for doneness feel. There will be quite abit of trial and error in this method but once you master it, it's worth it!
Serves 1

The Meat Grinder

I know, the title sounds like a porno, so now that I have your attention, I'll explain. Many people think ground chicken is healthier than ground beef, and it almost always is. The only issue is, what parts of the chicken are ground? When supermarkets make ground chicken, generally it's some white meat, mostly dark meat, possibly skin and some cartilage. The other issue is the cost. Ground chicken can cost upwards of $5.00 per pound or more. Sure you can sometimes find it cheaper but then the quality may not be as good. That being said, I decided I wanted to grind my own chicken. I ordered a manual hand crank grinder (almost exactly the same kind my mom and grandma had) from Gander Mountain for about $35. 

I picked up the grinder today, took it out of the box and put it together. It was very simple to put it together and use. I bought boneless/skinless chicken breast from Sam's Club for $1.88 per pound, took one breasts, cut it in cubes, and ran it through the grinder. I chose the coarse blade as I didn't want it mushy. I made a burger out of it and grilled it (the recipe will be in a different post). Because of the low fat content, I sprayed the burger with a light coating of olive oil from the misto and had to watch the grilling very carefully so it doesn't dry out. 

The long and short of it is, for minimal extra work, you get pure white meat ground chicken for $1.88 per pound. You can't beat that!!

Grilled Chicken and Vegetables in a Yellow Coconut Curry Sauce - 279 Calories

So you didn't take anything out for dinner, but the prepared clean eater that you are, grilled a stack of boneless chicken breasts last night for a week's worth of lunches. This recipe takes no more than 10 minutes from the time you take the ingredients out of the refridgerator to the moment you sit down to enjoy this quick meal.

1 7 Ounce pre-grilled chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
15ish Snow pea pods
I jalapeño pepper, seeded and sliced thin
1/2 Red onion, sliced thin
1 Cup unsweetened coconut milk (I use Silk)
1 Tablespoon sweet curry powder
1 Teaspoon black pepper

Spray a nonstick pan with habanero oil with a misto (see yesterday's post - you can use any flavored or non flavored olive oil) and preheat the pan on medium high. Once hot, add the chicken and vegetables and sauté for three minutes. Add coconut milk, curry powder, and black pepper. Sauté until the vegetables are tender and the coconut milk has been reduced to about half. Remove from heat and serve.
Serves 1

Scotch Bonnet Pepper Olive Oil

When I cook, I like to use different flavored olive oils. Garlic olive oil is easy, fill a glass bottle 1/2 way with garlic cloves and completely fill the bottle with olive oil. Pepper oil is alittle different to make.

1 Scotch bonnet pepper, cut in 8 - 10 pieces, LEAVE THE SEEDS and do not handle with bare hands (see above picture)
2 Cups of olive oil

Heat 1 cup of olive oil on high. Add the pepper to the oil. Sauté for 3 minutes and remove the pan from the burner. Let cool. Once cool, remove the cooked peppers and discard. Pour into a glass bottle. Add the second cup of oil and mix well. Following the directions on the misto, add oil to the misto sprayer. The misto sprayer is fantastic for cooking with oil and adding little to no calories but still giving food the olive oil flavor. More on the misto at www.mistooliveoilsprayer.com. I got my misto at The Kitchen Collection store at the Palm Beach Outlets for $9.99. I have two so far. One for garlic oil and the other for the pepper oil.

Ground Chicken Stuffed Pepper with Sautéed Tomato and Kale - 312 Calories

It's been a rough week and I've only been cooking very simple food or eating leftovers. Hopefully I'll be back in the saddle! This recipe calls for kale. Kale can be kind of bitter so eating it isn't for everyone. You can use spinach in place of kale and it won't effect the calorie count by much.

6 Ounces of ground chicken breast
2 Cups of kale, chopped
1/2 Red onion, half of it diced, half of it sliced
1 Jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced
1 Yellow pepper, seeded (you can really use any color you want) with the top cut off and diced
2 Plum tomatos, diced
1 Teaspoon of chopped garlic
1 Teaspoon of black pepper
1 Teaspoon of oregano
1/2 Teaspoon of salt
1/2 Teaspoon of sage
Splash of vegetable broth
Splash of Riesling wine

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl combine chicken, the dicedonion, jalapeño, garlic, and spices. Mix well and stuff the pepper. Place pepper on cookie sheet (you may need to fold up a piece of foil and place under the pepper so it will stand up straight) and bake until done. Approximately 25-35 minutes. The top should get brown.

While the pepper is cooking, spray a nonstick pan with the misto and heat the pan on high. Add onion and sauté for two minutes. Add tomatos and sauté for two more minutes. Add kale and the splashes or wine and vegetable broth. Cook until tender. Salt and pepper to taste.
Serves 1

Ground Chicken Pasta Sauce over Kelp Noodles - 201 calories

The sauce was cooked a few days ago and placed in the refrigerator. Kelp noodles can be found at Whole Foods in the ethnic aisle. I use them in a lot of recipes when pasta is needed or if there is a saucy dish. Alone they don't have much flavor. They assume the flavor of whatever they are mixed with. One of the best things about kelp noodles is the low calorie count, they are only 6 calories for 4 ounces!

1/3 of the previously cooked pasta sauce
4 ounces of kelp noodles
A splash or two of vegetable broth

Bring a pot of water to boil and add the kelp noodles. In another pot, add the pasta sauce and heat on medium. After the noodles have boiled for 5 minutes, drain and add to the pasta sauce. If you would like the sauce "saucier", add a splash or two of vegetable. Heat thoroughly and serve.
Serves 1

Seafood Stew - 322 Calories per serving (Serves 2)

This is a quick and easy seafood stew that serves 2.

5 Ounces of haddock (or any white meat fish) cut into chunks
8 Ounces of sea scallops (each scallop cut in half)
4 Ounces of shrimp
1/2 Cup imitation crab
4 Cups organic vegetable broth (I use Swanson organic broth)
1 Jalapeño (I leave the seeds to make it hotter)
1 Seeded Anaheim pepper
1/2 Red onion cut into 1/2 inch chunks
4 Cup baby spinach
1 Tablespoon chopped garlic
1 Tablespoon basil
1 Teaspoon kosher salt
1 Teaspoon sage

Bring vegetable broth to a boil. Add vegetables (except spinach) and spices and boil for for 5 minutes. Add seafood and reduce heat. Cover and simmer until the scallops are done and the vegetables are tender. Add spinach and cook until wilted then serve.
Serves 2