Foil Baked Salmon

One of our favorite ways to cook salmon is this easy foil baked salmon recipe, perfect for the BBQ or the oven, and due to it's popularity (combined with its exceptional health benefits), we were asked if we would reprint the recipe.

Our fast and easy recipe for BBQ or foil baked Salmon is not only rich in Omega 3 fatty acids which are proven to be heart-healthy but also Vitamin D, often referred to as the sunshine vitamin. Many studies have been conducted substantiating the health benefits of both Omega 3 and Vitamin D to the human body.

We are all aware that salmon is high in Omega 3 (more on Omega 3 in future blogs) but not many of us know that salmon is also high in Vitamin D. The Canadian Cancer Society recommends Canadians consume 1,000 IU of vitamin D every day (1 glass of milk contains 100 IU whereas 3.5 oz or 100 gm of cooked salmon contains 360 IU of vitamin D).What is vitamin D and why do you need it? Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium, thereby making bones stronger. A Vitamin D deficiency in children can cause rickets, a bone disease that causes skeletal deformities and soft bones. In adults a vitamin D deficiency can cause osteoporosis which leads to decreased bone mass and tissue and increased risk of bone fractures and breaks, especially as we get older. Although vitamin D is absorbed naturally by the human body through exposure to the sun's rays, long winters in northern climates make it difficult to maintain adequate levels naturally as the sun's rays are not strong enough through the winter months (however we must be careful as increased sun exposure also leads to other critical health issues such as melanoma and other skin cancers). Certain foods such as cow's milk which are fortified with vitamin D, fatty fish such as salmon and herring, and multivitamins can help boost the body's vitamin D levels.

Try this fast and easy, great tasting BBQ Foil baked Salmon Recipe and do something wonderful for your body and your taste buds!!

BBQ Foil Baked Salmon
4-6 oz portions of Salmon, skin on (120-180 gm portions)
5-6 sprigs fresh dill
1 whole lemon, sliced
freshly ground pepper, to taste
Heavy duty foil

With an olive oil sprayer, grease a piece of foil large enough to make a foil packet. Place the salmon pieces, skin side down, on the foil. Season with pepper to taste. Place 5 or 6 sprigs of fresh dill (depending on the size of your salmon) and cover with lemon slices. Lightly seal packet. BBQ on medium heat 8 minutes or until salmon reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees F (salmon will continue to cook and meat temperature will rise 5 to 10 degrees after you remove it from the grill). Carefully open the foil packet and remove the salmon with a lifter (the skin will stick to the foil, making it much easier to lift the salmon off the skin).Serve immediately with salad and rice.

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Halloween Appetizers - Monster Claws with Dipping Sauce

With Halloween just around the corner, we thought now was the perfect time to bring you some frightfully delicious Halloween appetizers, starting with Monster Claws with Dipping Sauce. Increase the number of 'claws' to suit the number of people at your party.

These easy to make appetizers are from our collection of great Kraft appetizer recipes and are sure to be a hit with all the little ghosts and goblins at your Bash. These kid-friendly appetizers can also be turned into a quick and easy main dish to serve the little ghouls on Halloween night before they go out trick-or-treating!!

Monster Claws with Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:
4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 lb/450 gm) gut lenghtwise in half
1 pouch Shake'N Bake extra crispy original coating mix
8 red pepper triangles (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 cup Kraft original BBQ sauce

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 400 F.
2. Coat chicken with coating mix as directed on package. Place on baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
3. Bake 13 to 15 min or until chicken is done.
4. Make 1/2 inch slit in thinner end of each chicken strip; insert red pepper triangle in slit for the monster's claw. Serve with sauce.

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Easy Party Appetizers - Sweet Vidalia Onion Dip

At the Amateur Chef we are always searching for great recipes for easy party appetizers, so we were thrilled when we found this amazing Sweet Vidalia Onion Dip appetizer recipe. Vidalia onions, an unusually sweet variety of onions due to the low amount of sulfur in the soil in which the onions are grown, are the key ingredient in this easy appetizer recipe.

The Vidalia onion was first grown near Vidalia, Georgia in the 1930's. In 1986, Georgia's state legislature passed 'the Vidalia Onion Act of 1986' which trademarked the name 'Vidalia Onions' and limited the production area to certain counties in Georgia. Shortly afterwards the Vidalia Onion was named as Georgia's official state vegetable.

Our delicious and easy appetizer recipe for Sweet Vidalia Onion dip uses only 4 ingredients and is best served with an assortment of crackers, nacho chips or thin baguettes slices.

Make extra servings of this amazingly simple appetizer recipe as it is certain to be a hit at your next party.

Sweet Vidalia Onion Dip

2 large vidalia onions, chopped
2 8oz pkgs cream cheese
3 heaping tblsp mayonnaise
1 1/2 cups grated Swiss or Parmesan cheese

Mix all ingredients together and bake for 35 minutes.

Enjoy!

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Pork Cutlets with Morel Mushrooms

Morel mushrooms are a staple of many different types of cuisine. Although morel mushrooms are usually dried or canned, they can also be purchased fresh.

In some of the easiest and best morel mushroom recipes, the morels are gently sauteed in butter and seasoned with fresh pepper and salt, or soaked in an egg batter and lightly breaded.

Morel mushrooms also make a great addition to sauces for easy and stress-free gourmet entertaining, such as this great recipe for Pork Cutlets with Morel Mushrooms.

Pork Cutlets with Morel Mushrooms

1 pound pork cutlets, cut very thin
2 cups morel mushrooms
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup of your favorite brown sauceto taste
salt and pepper

Trim fat from pork cutlets and pound until thin, approximately 1/4 inch thick.
Melt butter in a saute pan and add the cutlets and mushrooms. Saute two minutes, then add the white wine and cook 30 seconds.
Add the brown sauce and finish with a little whole butter.

Quick and easy, and absolutely delicious!

Recipe courtesy The Great Morel.

Enjoy!

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Outback Blue Cheese Dressing Recipe

Generally, a signature dish that keeps us coming back to a restaurant is also the recipe we most want to make at home, as is the case with the ever popular Outback blue cheese dressing recipe.

The delicious Outback restaurant blue cheese salad dressing recipe is a closely guarded secret, as we discovered when we asked if they would share their homemade blue cheese dressing with our readers, so we went on our own search for the best copycat Outback blue cheese dressing recipe we could find.

And from the recipe folders courtesy of Chef Pablo's Restaurant Recipes, we found this top rated copycat recipe for:

Outback Blue Cheese Dressing Recipe

"This is as close as you’ll get to the real recipe from Outback Steakhouse"

Candied cinnamon pecans
1/3 cup pecans sliced-lengthwise
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 Tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons butter, melted

Salad
3 cups chopped butter or bibb lettuce
3 cups chopped red leaf lettuce
3 cups chopped iceberg lettuce
1 green onion, chopped

Blue cheese vinaigrette dressing
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Slice each pecan half into at least three lengthwise pieces.
Combine the cinnamon and brown sugar.
Toss the pecans with the melted butter, then with the cinnamon/sugar mixture, making sure to coat them all evenly.
Put the nuts on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 5 to 8 minutes, until sugar is caramelized.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and slide the pecans off of the parchment to cool.
Chop all of the lettuce into small bite-sized pieces; and rinse them with cool water.
Slice the green onion.
Whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients.
Place the chopped lettuce into a serving bowl large enough to allow you to toss the salad.
Add the vinaigrette and toss thoroughly.
Sprinkle with the chopped onion.
Break the cooled pecan slices apart and sprinkle them over the salad.

Enjoy!

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Roasted Butternut Squash with Walnuts and Pasta Bows

While searching for butternut squash ravioli recipes, we stumbled instead across this great recipe for roasted butternut squash with walnuts and pasta bows and thought it sounded enticing and much faster to make than a butternut squash ravioli.

Butternut squash is in season from early fall through the winter, and can be stored in a cool dry place for up to 3 months. Butternut squash is a good source of fiber, vitamin C, vitamin A, manganese, magnesium and potassium. Baked, mashed or pureed, butternut squash is a healthy and nutritious addition to hearty soups and butternut squash ravioli recipes, as well as this delicious Roasted Butternut Squash recipe with Walnuts and Pasta Bows.

Roasted Butternut Squash with Walnuts and Pasta Bows

Ingredients

3 tbsp (45 ml) vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp (15 ml) fresh rosemary leaves, very finely chopped
1 tsp (5 ml) honey
1 tsp (5 ml) white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp (2 ml) salt
1/2 tsp (2 ml) freshly ground black pepper
4 cups (1 L) butternut squash, cubed
1/3 cup (75 ml) walnuts, chopped
1 pkg (300 gm) whole wheat pasta bows
1/3 cup (75 ml) dried cranberries
1/2 cup (125 ml) crumbled blue cheese or chèvre-style goat cheese (we prefer the goat cheese)
1/4 cup (50 ml) fresh parsley leaves, chopped

Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 450°F (220° C). Whisk the vegetable oil with the garlic, rosemary, honey, vinegar, salt and pepper.
2. Toss 2 tbsp (30 mL) of the oil mixture with the butternut squash. Spread in a single layer on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Roast, turning occasionally, for 30 minutes or until fork tender and well browned. Add the walnuts during the last 4 minutes of roasting.
3. Meanwhile, cook the bows according to package directions. Toss the hot cooked pasta with the remaining oil mixture, roasted squash, walnuts, dried cranberries, blue cheese and parsley. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Tips
Butternut squash is often conveniently sold already cubed in the refrigerated case of the produce section. Be sure to cut the cubes to equal sizes for even cooking.

Recipe courtesy Catelli Pasta

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Patty Pan Squash

Pattypan squash is a summer squash easily identifiable by its small size, round and shallow shape and scalloped edges. Patty pan squash comes in three varieties - yellow, green or white - and is at it's most tender when immature (no more than two to three inches in diameter). Pattypan squash is a good source of magnesium, niacin, vitamin A and vitamin C, with one cup containing only 20 to 30 calories for the health conscious chef.

In many gourmet patty pan squash recipes, the flesh of the squash is scooped out and mixed with flavorings then stuffed back into the shell for creative presentation, as is the case with this wonderful pattypan squash recipe that we found, courtesy of AllRecipes. This one is truly a keeper!!


Stuffed Pattypan Squash

INGREDIENTS
6 pattypan squash, stem and blossom removed
6 slices bacon
1/2 cup diced onion
1 1/2 cups soft bread crumbs
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Bring one inch of water to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add squash, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, or until a fork can pierce the stem with little resistance. Drain, and slice off the top stem of the squash. Use a melon baller to carefully scoop out the centers of the squash. Reserve all of the bits of squash.
Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Remove bacon to paper towels, and set aside. Saute onion in bacon drippings. Chop the reserved squash pieces, and saute them with the onion for one minute.
Remove the skillet from heat, and stir in the breadcrumbs. Crumble the bacon, and stir into the stuffing along with the Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stuff each squash to overflowing with the mixture, and place them in a baking dish. Cover the dish loosely with aluminum foil.
Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until squash are heated through

Enjoy!

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