Clean Eating Toasted Chicken Fajitas

Mike and I both love fajitas and quesadillas. I usually make them once every week or two. They're incredibly easy, full of flavour, and make great leftovers. Now that I have my Cuisinart Griddler, I am determined to make use of it for any meals possible. So knowing that there is a wrap involved, I knew I had to toast my fajitas this time. It is such a small thing to add into the recipe but it made a huge difference. We normally just heat the tortillas up in the microwave once assembled to melt the cheese. They often come out a little soggy. But now I just wrap everything up, pop it on the grill press and it toasts the wrap while also melting the cheese inside. YUM!

Ingredients

-2 boneless/skinless chicken breasts cut into strips

-1/2 of each red and green peppers cut julienne style

-1 small onion thinly sliced

-olive oil

-pepper to taste

-2 tbsp chili powder

-2 tsp cumin

-1/4 cup water

-4 large whole wheat tortillas

-avocado

-salsa

-cheese of choice

1. Heat olive oil in pan (I use a wok) and add chicken strips. Cook for 3-4 mins each side or until cooked through.

2. Mix water and spices in a bowl, and add to chicken.

3. Steam vegetables (I use a steamer).

4. Stir steamed veggies into chicken until seasoning is evenly mixed.

5. Assemble fajitas to your liking. I had fresh avocado slices, some clean organic salsa, the chicken and vegetable mixture, and topped with grated cheese.

6. Wrap up and place on panini grill for about 4 mins.



Chicken, veggies and spices in the wok




Assembling my tortilla




Fajita getting toasty on the grill



Clean Eating Sweet & Salty Pork Stir Fry

I've only started eating pork in the last few years. It can actually be a fairly lean meat if you buy the correct cut and trim all access fat.
I love Asian inspired food, and so when I found this recipe on Clean Eating Magazine's website I was excited to test it out. 
You can find the original recipe here. I made some changes so here is my recipe:

Ingredients
-1 lb pork tenderloin trimmed of fat and cut into 1 inch cubes
-2 cups brown basmati rice
-broccoli
-mushrooms
-baby carrots
-1/2 tbsp garlic powder
-pepper to taste
-2 tbsp low sodium tamari
-1/2 tbsp rice vinegar
-1 cup orange juice
-olive oil (I use a sprayer)

1. Cook rice according to package directions-I use a rice cooker
2. Choose your preferred method to cook vegetables-I use a steamer
3. Spray pan with olive oil and add pork. Cook for 3-4 minutes and then add pepper and garlic powder before flipping and cooking for another 3-4 minutes. Add tamari and rice vinegar.
4. Add orange juice and stir in vegetables.
5. Serve over rice and enjoy!



Veggies in the steamer





Pork getting full of flavour





Mixing the veggies in




The finished product...a yummy stir fry!



Portobello Mushroom and Avocado Panini

So this one isn't clean, and it could be a little healthier, but it was VERY tasty! It was also another excuse to use my Cuisinart Griddler (which I have at least twice a week since New Years).

Ingredients
-Any type of bread can be used here. I got some herbed panini buns from the grocery store.
-Portobella mushroom cut into slices
-Avocado cut into slices
-Any other toppings, I used a little mayo
-Olive oil in a sprayer
-Cheese of choice, I used jalapeno havarti for some spice

1. Saute mushrooms.
2. Spray olive oil on outsides of both top and bottom buns.
3. Place bottom bun on grill and add toppings, then top with other bun.
4. Grill for 5-7 minutes.

I added a Greek salad to this quick and easy meal.

Healthy Grilled Salmon and Veggies

I received a Cuisinart Griddler as a gift at my bridal shower. I had secretly wanted this for over a year and would always see it going on sale at Canadian Tire. However, I could never justify spending close to $100 on something I didn't "need". So needless to say it was one of my favourite gifts. I received it in August, and only opened it and used it for the first time on New Years Eve to make paninis. It was awesome! I think this is going to become my new cooking method of choice. Who needs a stove?
This recipe was actually from the book that came with the Griddler, you know the one with the instructions. There are a few recipes in there and I had already taken salmon out for dinner so I thought this would be perfect. The recipe is actually for a "not fried fish and chips" but I just used the seasoned oil mixture part for the fish. I substituted the grilled potatoes for roasted ones in the oven. Here is the recipe, enjoy!

Ingredients for seasoning mixture:
-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
-1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
-1/2 tsp garlic powder
-1/2 tsp dried thyme
-1/4 tsp sea salt
-1/8 tsp paprika
-1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
-2 salmon fillets

To be honest I always eyeball my spices, so I did not follow the measurements by any means.

1. Mix oil, lemon juice, and spices
2. Coat salmon fillets in mixture (I let mine marinate in it while I got everything else ready)
3. Grill salmon (You can cook this in a pan, a counter top grill, or a BBQ)

I used the following veggies:
-red pepper
-zucchini
-portobella mushroom

I seasoned my veggies with a little bit of olive oil, garlic powder,black pepper, and parsley, and then grilled them.

I used about 15 mini potatoes and cut them in half. I seasoned them with olive oil and Cajun seasoning and cooked them in the oven for about 30 mins at 350 degrees.  

Potatoes seasoned and ready for the oven

Salmon marinating in seasoning and oil mixture

Veggies all spiced up and ready to grill

Salmon on the flat top and veggies on the grill top

Salmon grilling

Veggies grilling

The finished product YUM!

Clean Eating Slow Cooked Pork "Roast" and Veggies

It has been quite some time since I've posted anything, but I'm hoping that I will have more time in 2013 now that all of my wedding planning is over.
Here is a very simple clean recipe that I threw together in my crock pot. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
-2 pork loin chops (boneless and trimmed of fat)--> I got mine at Costco and they are very thick so I was able to cut the 2 chops into about 5-6 pieces for easier cooking
-seasoning/herbs of your choice--> I used poultry seasoning because I find that it has a good mix of herbs that really taste good on any kind of meat
-3 small/medium sized potatoes cut into 2 inch cubes
-4 medium sized carrots cut into sticks
-1 small onion cut into large pieces
-1.5 cups low sodium vegetable broth

Directions:
1. Rub seasoning on meat inside slow cooker
2. Add in vegetables and broth
3. Cook on low for about 6 hours

That's it! How could it get any simpler? It ended up being a tasty and hearty meal, enjoy!

My Life According to Instagram: July-Dec 2012

Once I got engaged and realized I would have less than 5 months to plan a wedding, my blogging obviously went on the back burner so I would have time to run around like a chicken with it's head cut off. So here are some photos from my Instagram from July-Dec of 2012!







Mike and I at our good friends wedding. We were both in the wedding party:)





Good friend Melissa and I at her wedding



Me with 2 of my bridesmaids at my bachelorette



Visiting my brother in Ottawa





BRIDE-getting ready the morning of the big day in a shirt I made







All dolled up and ready to rock!




Yoga on the beach in the Dominican Republic

 

One of my honeymoon dinner outfits



Honeymooners!



Very neat wedding gift we received from friends with our wedding "theme"



Loving my wedding band:)







One of the teasers our photographer gave us!





First Christmas dinner at our house



My new Canon Rebel T4i from the best husband ever!







 


 

My Maids...And How I Asked Them

There are a few things you hear constantly when you get engaged:

"Let me see the ring"
"Did you set a date?"
"Where are you getting married?"
"Who's in your wedding party?"

This last question was one that I thought about a lot over the past few years. I always knew Mike and I would get married one day, and to tell you the truth, the girls I had in mind a few years ago are almost completely different than the ones that will actually be standing with me that day. That just goes to show how much can change in a couple of years.

So how did I choose my girls? Well I thought about it long and hard. Who has been there for me? Who doesn't judge me? Who can I see myself still being close with in 10 years? Who do I have the most fun with? Who knows ME? Once we decided how many would be in our wedding party, it was easy for me to know who I would choose. And also hard for me, knowing there were a couple girls that are all the things I listed above but we just didn't want a larger wedding party.

So here are my girls:

Maid of Honour-Shauna
I've known Shauna for 5-6 years now. We met because her husband and Mike grew up together. We went to their wedding 5 years ago, and when we would visit from Calgary and see them we always had a good time. When we moved back to Ontario over 2 years ago, we became a lot closer. She has the same kind of humour as I do, and I can literally tell her ANYTHING without worrying if she will think I'm weird. She's my soul sista!



Shauna (on the right) and I in Jamaica last year

 Maid-Jenny
Jenny and I went to high school together, but we weren't really friends then. We dated the same guy (at different times!) and I don't think she liked me that much at first. After high school we started hanging out through a mutual friend, and we've been close friends ever since. It's been almost 10 years! Jenny and I have had our ups and downs, and while I was in Calgary we would lose touch every now and again. But I always knew if I needed her, even if we hadn't talked in a long time, she would be there for whatever I needed. We've been through a lot together, and any time I was down she was the first person there helping me pick myself up.

Jenny!

Maid-Kristen
Kristen and I met while we were both living in Calgary. She is dating another Mike who went to high school with my Mike (confusing I know). After they moved out west, some of our mutual friends came to visit, and we all got together one of the nights. We were pretty much inseparable after that. A year later, when it was my last night in Calgary before moving home, we were in my parents foyer after a night out crying and hugging about how much we would miss each other. We talked about how we would be in each others weddings one day. And now that day has come! 


Kristen!

Maid-Lisa Lisa is Mike's sister. I grew up with 2 brothers, and always wondered what it would be like to have a sister. I felt that it was very important for me to have her as a bridesmaid, because I know we will be in each other's lives forever. She is an extremely talented graphic designer and I'm SO excited that she has been able to help me design all the wedding stationery. She also co-hosted my bridal shower with my future mother-in-law and did an amazing job.


Lisa!

Asking my maids was something I wanted to hype up a little. I had seen these "be my maid" boxes on a blog I follow quite awhile ago, and was instantly in love with them.



Photo from rinserepeatblog.com

Check out the Rinse. Repeat. blog tutorial where I drew my inspiration. I pretty much followed the tutorial other than changing the wording, photos, and colours. I also added their initia to the front of the box, and I freehanded all the writing rather than using stickers or a stencil. Instead of using pre-scalloped cards, I printed the descriptions out and glued them to cardstock, then cut the edges using scallop scissors. The last difference was the VISA gift card. After going to the store to buy them, and realizing there was a $6 fee to activate them, I opted for just making a little money holder out of card stock and just giving them cash instead.

Here's how mine turned out!

All 4 girls were very surprised by the boxes and thought they were neat and cute. They all said yes of course and now they have been by my side helping me every step of the way. As I had mentioned before, my future mother-in-law and sister-in-law hosted an amazing shower for me. All of my bridesmaids were able to be there as well as my mom who was visiting from Calgary. I was overwhelmed with all of the guests gifts and well wishes. I'm not used to having so much attention on me, but I guess I will have to get used to it for the wedding!