New England Clam Chowder

New England Clam Chowder

 

So it’s officially holiday season and I had a taste for something different. So I decided to make New England clam chowder. Now I do add bacon and celery to mine and trust me it does not take the clam flavor away. Of course anything with bacon is better right??? J But to me it adds more flavor and the extra ingredients help the soup from being bland. (Just potatoes and clams). This soup doesn’t take long to make once you do the prep work. And if you have an onion cutter (something I live by prep will be a breeze) so try it and tell me what you think.

 

 

Ingredients

·        6 slices of thick cut bacon

·        2 cans of claim juice

·        1 1/2 cup of water

·        4 cans of chopped claims reserve liquid from 2 cans

·        1 onion diced

·        3 celery stalks diced

·        2 cloves of minced garlic

·        1/3 cup of all-purpose flour

·        3 baking potatoes diced into small cubes

·        8oz heavy cream

·        ¼ tsp dried thyme

·        2 bay leaves

·        Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.      Cut bacon into small pieces.

2.      Cook bacon in large stock pot until bacon is crispy.

3.      Pour 2 cans of claim juice and 1 cup of water in stock pot.

4.      Add juice from 2 cans of clams to pot.

5.      Pour in diced onion and celery.

6.      Cook for 10 minutes until onion and celery become translucent.

7.      Add minced garlic cook for about 30 more seconds.

8.      Stir in flour with whisk continue to stir and cook for another minute, don’t let flour turn brown. (this will change the color of the soup)

9.      Add the potatoes, thyme and bay leaves.

10.   Add ½ cup of water cook for about 10 more minutes.

11.   Stir in heavy cream and chopped claims. Continue to cook for 10 more minutes until potatoes are tender.

12.   Season with salt and pepper to taste.

I ALSO SERVED MINE WITH OYSTER CRACKERS

 

Tomato Basil Salad

After thanksgiving I wanted to eat something quick and light. So I decided to make an easy tomato basil salad. You can make this in about 5 minutes. You can eat on its own or make as a side dish. You can make ahead of time or refrigerate and it’s even better when the vegetable marinate in the dressing.

Ingredients

     ·        Cherry Tomatoes

·        Avocado

·        Fresh Mozzarella Balls

·        Salt

·        2 tbsp. Dried Basil Flakes (or fresh) I used dried since I had them on hand.

·        ½ cup Balsamic & Basil Vinaigrette

Easy Steps

1. Cut cherry tomatoes in half add to bowl.

2. Cut Avocado add to mixture.

3. Add mozzarella balls to mixture.

4. Add Dried Basil Flakes to mixture.

5. Add Salt to taste

5. Add ½ cup of Balsamic & Basil Vinaigrette.

 
Makes 4 servings.

ONE PAN SMOTHERED CHEESE PORK CHOPS

 So it’s been awhile since I posted on my blog, but when I made these cheesy smothered pork chops I knew I had to share. For this dish you would need a cast iron skillet or a nonstick oven proof skillet.

Ingredients

·        2 yellow onions peeled, cut in half, and sliced into half-moon shaped slices

·        3 tbsp. butter

·        1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

·        1 and 1/4 cup of beef stock

·        4 boneless pork chops

·        Salt and pepper

·        Dried thyme

·        Garlic powder

·        3 tbsp. all-purpose flour

·        4 slices provolone cheese

·        1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

 
 

 

 

 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

Melt butter and olive oil in skillet over med-high heat.

Add sliced onions and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes until soft.

Add ¼ cup of beef stock to onions and cook for 12 to 15 minutes until onions are soft.

While onions are sautéing, season both side of pork chops with salt, pepper, thyme and garlic powder.

Transfer onions to a plate.

Add a drizzle of olive oil to skillet on medium heat.

Cook pork chops on both sides for 5 minutes each until golden brown,

Transfer pork chops to plate.

Return onions to skillet and sprinkle with flour.

Stir to coat and cook for a minute.

Add remaining cup of beef stock and stir until mixture comes to a boil.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Put pork chops back in skillet.

Spoon beef stock on top of pork chops.

Top each pork chop with a provolone cheese slice.

Add a stack of Swiss cheese to each pork chops.

Put onions on top of chops and put in preheated oven for 8 minutes until cheese is melted.

Before servings spoon more stock from skillet over pork chops.

 

 

 

This recipe makes 4 servings and takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. Enjoy.

 

 

Aimee Nicotera conditioning 2x2 vol 3 dvd review

Aimee Nicotera
2x2 conditioning Vol 3 DVD review

As you may or may not know, one thing I love to do is review and buy workout DVDs. My favorites are oldies, step, aerobics and weights. I just ordered this DVD to add to my collections of about 100 DVDs.  after completing it the first time I must say it wasn’t a favorite, the second time I warmed up to it. The one thing the instructor kept saying is that this is something different, and she was not lying. The whole workout consists of using a stability ball so it’s a must, no getting around it.
Equipment: stability ball (as stated before it is a must)
Length: 58 min including bonus ab portion (but you can do the workout without ab section)
This workout has a pretty dim background with 2 backup talents. The guy is doing the modified version of each workout and the girl is doing the advanced version of each workout. This is what I love because you always have someone to follow along with. There is also a neat time clock in the main workout timing down the 2 minutes of workouts.
Warmup-consist of using the ball (which was my first) about 5-7 minutes of stretching and lounging
Main workout- 2 minute drills taking turns with cardio and strength. Length around 30 minutes. Use the ball the whole time. Cardio consist of up/downs, skaters 2 variations, shuffles mostly low impact. Strength consists of pushups, superman’s, squats and back lounges.
Stretch – consist of using the ball as well  basically a repeat of the warmup stretches.
Bonus core on ball- 15 minutes of core work using the ball, crunches, twist, windshield wipers and more.
Overall this was a workout that truly takes you out your comfort zone again it’s not my favorite using the ball the whole time but, I will keep and add to the collection.