Green Goddess Grilled Cheese Panini

I heart cheese. That's not news. I heart paninis, too, and that's probably equally newsworthy. There's a panini blog I follow, Panini Happy. She has all sorts of amazing sandwiches on there that I'm dying to try. Ummm...grilled mac and cheese with pulled pork?! Yes, please!! I had seen her post about this Green Goddess Grilled Cheese on St. Patrick's Day and thought it sounded fantastic. I found myself needing to be somewhere near our Saturday's Farmer's Market recently and decided to stop in to get the fresh herbs I'd need to make this.

Panini Happy's Green Goddess Grilled Cheese Panini
Source: PaniniHappy.com

1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 oil-packed anchovy, finely chopped
1 teaspoon lime zest (about 1 lime)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 ounces cream cheese, cut into smaller cubes
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
8-12 slices sourdough bread
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Add garlic and anchovies to a mini-prep food processor and pulse for a few seconds until it’s really finely chopped, almost like a paste (if you don’t have a food processor, you can always just chop the ingredients really well with a knife on a cutting board).

Add in the lime zest, parsley, tarragon, cilantro, basil, shallot, mustard and cream cheese and pulse again until well blended. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl and stir in the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.

Preheat the panini grill to medium-high heat.

For each sandwich: Spread a generous amount of the cheese mixture onto one slice of bread. Close the sandwich with a second slice of bread. Brush a little olive oil on top. Grill for 5 to 6 minutes until the cheese is melted and oozy and the bread is toasted. Serve immediately and enjoy!

*****

I'm lazy and didn't chop everything on my own...I tossed it all in my food processor to let it work for me. What's the point of having machines in my kitchen and me doing all the work they can do? Oh, but I didn't have any shallots. I don't know why my grocery store is so hit or miss with shallots. they aren't that uncommon an item are they? Oh what I'd give to have a store that carries everything nearby. I shouldn't complain...when we first moved to this area there was only one grocery store. Now I at least have choices. Anyway.

The cheese filling on this was FANTASTIC. Before it cooked it had a really garlicky bite to it, but that mellowed a lot while the cheesy goodness melted while the sandwich was on the panini press. My only complaint was my bread choice. I didn't buy sourdough bread for this because I figured we could just use the regular whole wheat bread we use on a regular basis. I was WRONG. Don't make my same mistake. This sandwich needs a sturdy bread, not lame-o Oroweat Double Fiber Whole Wheat bread. And be generous with the filling on said sturdy bread. It's worth it. Oh, and don't forget to put the leftover spread away and sitting on your kitchen counter all night because you'll be a sad cheese-lover in the morning when you come downstairs and discover your mistake. I'm just saying...learn from my mistake.

I'd totally make this again but only with a better kind of bread.

Sandwich filling:

Flank Steak with Cilantro-Almond Pesto

By this point, the husband and I have both just about given up on doing Phase One of the South Beach Diet (i.e. no carbs). He quit a few days ago, I decided once I hit my pre-Christmas weight I'd go back to having good carbs. However when I did my meal plan for the week, we were both still gung ho about no carbs. None of the recipes I had marked in my South Beach Diet cookbook sounded interesting to me (or not many at least), so I figured I might as well try some of my go-to recipe websites for low carb ideas. MyRecipes.com came through for me with a few ideas. I had recently bought some London Broil and figured I could substitute that for the Flank Steak called for in this recipe. The idea of a cilantro pesto--and a pesto that didn't have olive oil as an ingredient--intrigued me.

Flank Steak with Cilantro-Almond Pesto
Source: MyRecipes.com

3/4 cup fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted
1 tablespoon chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 tablespoons plain fat-free yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed
Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Prepare grill.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a blender; process until finely chopped (about 15 seconds). Add yogurt and juice; process until smooth.

Grill steak 6 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices. Serve steak with pesto. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.

Nutritional Information
Calories:209 (47% from fat)
Fat:10.8g (sat 3.9g,mono 4.9g,poly 0.8g)
Protein:24.6g
Carbohydrate:2.4g
Fiber:0.6g
Cholesterol:57mg
Iron:2.5mg
Sodium:152mg
Calcium:36mg

*****

This was ridiculously easy. The only difficult part was grilling the london broil. It's such a thick cut of meat I wasn't realy sure about the cooking time. I think the first side went about eight minutes on the grill, and the second side was around six or seven. It actually could have been on there a little longer because the middle was pretty rare. Of course, it didn't help that it was dark out and I couldn't tell how done the meat was. Note to self: invest in some sort of grill light.

I loved the flavors of the pesto. So did the husband. I don't think the kids tried any of it. We agreed it would be really good smeared on tortillas and then the meat used like fajita meat. This is definitely something I'd make again--low carb diet or not--because it came together really fast and was super tasty! Plus the pesto ingredients (aside from the jalapeno) are all things I generally have on hand.

Some pieces of meat may have still been mooing...


Cilantro-Almond pesto...yum!

Pioneer Woman's Pico de Gallo

This will be my second time making PW's pico de gallo recipe, although apparently I didn't post it before. I really, really love pico de gallo...the chunky vegetables, the combination of fresh flavors...yum. And of course I have yet to go wrong with a PW recipe!!

Pioneer Woman's Pico de Gallo

5 whole Plum (roma) Tomatoes
1/2 whole Large (or 1 Small) Onion
3 whole Jalapeno Peppers
Cilantro
Lime Juice
Salt To Taste

Chop jalapenos, tomatoes and onions into a very small dice. (Leave seeds in your jalapenos for a hotter pico). Adjust amount of jalapenos to your preferred temperature. Next, chop up a nice-sized bunch of cilantro. Just remove and discard the long leafless stems before chopping. No need to remove the leaves from the stems completely. Place all of these ingredients together in a bowl and give it a good stir.

Squeeze the juice of half of one lime into the bowl. Add salt to taste and stir again.

*****

Yum. That's all I have to say about that.

Fish Tacos

What a crazy weekend we had! That's why I'm just now posting for the weekend on Monday. I'll have to do a separate post on why our weekend was so crazy--it's because my husband is the best husband ever!! But, I'll post on that next.

Last week the husband had requested fish tacos for dinner one night. I wanted to find a new way of doing them and RecipeZaar.com of course came through for me!


Fish Tacos
Recipe #26516

1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 package taco seasoning mix, divided
1 lb cod or white fish fillet, cut into 1 inch pieces (about 4)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 (12 count) package taco shells, warmed or flour tortillas
Toppings (shredded cabbage, chopped tomato, lime juice, taco sauce)

Combine sour cream, mayonnaise, cilantro and 2 tablespoons seasoning mix in small bowl.

Combine fish, vegetable oil, lemon juice and remaining seasoning mix in medium bowl; pour into large skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until cod flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Fill taco shells with fish mixture. Top with toppings.

*****

This is my new favorite way to make fish tacos. The sauce was fantastic, although it made way too much. I'll cut it in half next time because I had to throw out a lot of it (I couldn't come up with anything to do with what was left). We all really liked this--even the boy who usually isn't very fond of fish tacos. I had some catfish nuggets in the freezer that needed to be used up, so that was the fish I use. For toppings we had tomatoes and avocados. I was kind of kicking myself because I had just thrown out half a head of cabbage on Saturday because I didn't know what I was going to use it for, and I could have used it last night as a taco topping. Oops!

Chipotle Shrimp

I'm holding a cookbook hostage from the library. I do this often because I fall in love with them and don't want to return them, so I keep renewing them. This particular one is Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday. I've gotten it before and really liked what I made from it, and I happened to spot it several weeks ago when I was looking at cookbooks at the library. I'm honestly not entirely sure how long I've had it now...I think I've renewed it three times now. I really should just buy it or see if it's on Google Books. Jen B. turned me on to Rick Bayless, and I just heart him now. I was super excited when he won his round of Top Chef Masters on Bravo.

Anyway, I was looking for something to do with shrimp recently and looked in this cookbook for ideas. One recipe stood out--Chipotle Shrimp. I had everything on hand except a can of diced tomatoes, which I had regretfully used just a few days before I looked up the recipe. D'oh! So I slated it for tonight so the husband and I could have it after the kids go to bed. I'm super excited to try it. The picture looks fantastic!!

Chipotle Shrimp

1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice (preferably fire-roasted), drained
2 to 3 canned chipotle chiles en adobo
1 Tbsp chipotle canning sauce
2 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped or crushed through a garlic press
About 1-1/2 cups fish or chicken broth or water
Salt
1 to 1-1/4 pounds medium-large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tail left on if you wish
About 1/4 cup (loosely packed) roughly chopped cilantro, for garnish

Pour the drained tomatoes into a blender or food processor. Add the chipotle chiles and chipotle canning sauce. Process until smooth.

In a very large (12-inch) skillet, heat the oil over medium. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant and golden, about 1 minute. Pour in the tomato mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Add enough broth or water to achieve a light tomato sauce consistency. Taste and season highly with salt, usually about 1 teaspoon.

Add the shrimp to the pan. Cook, stirring nearly constantly, until the shrimp are cooked through, about 4 minutes. Stir in a little more broth or water if the sauce has thickened too much.

Scoop onto dinner plates and sprinkle with the cilantro.

*****

Mmmmm...I can't wait! I think I'm going to make some basmati rice to go with this with some cilantro and lime in it. We're also making margaritas. I love doing mini date nights with the husband on Friday nights!

*****

Wowie, wow, wow!!!! This dinner was AMAZING. Just amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I dare say this is the best dinner I have ever made and one of the best dinners I've ever eaten. This is highly embarrassing, but I licked my plate. Seriously. I could not get enough of this. The husband thought a few bites of his were too spicy, but I thought they were all fine. I ended up making Chipotle Copycat Lime Rice which was awesome, too. I think that will be my new go-to rice to accompany Mexican dishes.

Tex-Mex Stuffed Burgers

Here's another recipe from the latest Cook's Illustrated I purchased, the Summer Entertaining one. It's so stinkin' hot here in Phoenix I am trying to turn to the grill for as many dinners as I can. Yeah it sucks standing out there in the heat at the hot grill, but at least my house isn't heating up from the oven or stove. Although, I do have plans to use the stove for some potatoes I'm making to go along with this (another recipe from this issue). I had completely forgotten this is what I had planned for tonight, so I got really excited when I checked my menu plan for the week and saw this listed for tonight.

Cook's Illustrated Tex-Mex Stuffed Burgers

1.5 pounds ground chuck
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
4 tsp minced canned chipotle chilies in adobo sauce
4 tsp yellow mustard
4 tsp taco seasoning (from packet)

Break beef into small pieces in medium bowl and add cheese, cilantro, chilies, mustard, and taco seasoning. Using fork, toss until evenly distributed. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions, lightly pack into 1-inch thick patties and grill on hot side of grill, uncovered, until well seared on first side, 2-4 minutes. Using a wide metal spatula, flip burgers and continue grilling, about 4 minutes for well done. While burgers grill, toast buns on cooler side of grill, if desired.

*****

I'm really excited to try this. Apparently so is the husband because he set his Facebook status that he's excited for Tex-Mex Burgers. Usually when I use chipotle chilies I use one or two then freeze the rest and forget they're there, so this week I planned on using chipotles later in the week so I avoid that problem. I think the only change I'm making is that I'm not using ground chuck, and I'm only using a pound of ground beef. Dinner can't get here soon enough!

*****

These were very tasty burgers. Although, they needed a little something more...either a slice of cheese on top or some kind of creamy sauce. The husband put ranch on his and liked it, but I thought that seemed weird. Maybe some kind of sour cream sauce or a chipotle mayonnaise? I don't know. I'd definitely make them again, though.

Crab Quesadillas

A few weeks ago, a recipe I used to make all the time popped into my head. I think the last time I made it was before the boy was born. I had a coupon for imitation crab, and it was on sale, so I figured I'd get it and make these. They're so easy, and they're really tasty. I don't know how I forgot about them--we used to have them pretty often, and we really like them. They're another Cooking Light recipe.

Crab Quesadillas
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fat-free sour cream
3/4 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1/2 pound lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
4 (8-inch) fat-free flour tortillas

Preheat broiler.

Combine first 6 ingredients, stirring well. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons cheese over each tortilla. Divide crab mixture evenly among tortillas. Fold in half, pressing gently to seal.

Place the filled tortillas on a baking sheet. Broil for 1 minute or until the tortilla is lightly browned.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 quesadilla)

CALORIES 275 (28% from fat); FAT 8.6g (sat 3.7g,mono 3.2g,poly 0.9g); IRON 2.2mg; CHOLESTEROL 58mg; CALCIUM 187mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30g; SODIUM 484mg; PROTEIN 18.5g; FIBER 2g

Cooking Light, APRIL 2004

*****

I didn't have green onions, but I didn't really miss them in the filling. And, like I said, I used imitation crab instead of real. Obviously it's not quite as good, but it does the job. Of course I used more cheese than was called for as well. I know when I used to make these I did them differently than the broiler, but I couldn't remember how. I may have just done them in a skillet, but this time I used the broiler. I watched them carefully so they wouldn't burn and then once they were browned, I took them out and flipped them over so the cheese would completely melt. I know the recipe says four servings, but the husband and I each had two, so I would say it's really two servings unless you have a lot of filling sides with it. I was going to make some pinto beans to go on the side, but I didn't have pinto beans in the pantry. Oops. I have two more bags of imitation crab in the freezer, so we'll probably have this again sometime in the future.