Jerk Chicken with Mojo Sauce

I'm not a huge fan of jerk chicken, or jerk anything really. It's usually too hot for me, yet there have been occasions where the jerk part isn't so much hot as it is flavorful.  When we were in New Orleans, for example, I had some jerk chicken that was in fact flavorful and not hot.

The star of this show was the mojo (prounced mo-ho) sauce.  Two terrific island delights, jerk seasoning and mojo sauce. Yum.  It wasn't quite like a vacation on the beach, but it was pretty darn close.

Jerk seasoning hails from Jamaica and is most often on grilled meats. Mojo sauce is a simple mix of orange and garlic.  It's used as a baste and glaze in this recipe.

I didn't have any chicken in the freezer so I used pork. I'm not sure that really makes that much of a difference what meat it gets put on and since I had pork...pork it is.

If you're not a fan of allspice this recipe isn't for you. It's very prominent in this recipe.  I most likely wouldn't make this recipe again - though only because I have hundreds of chicken/pork/meat recipes to make.

Photo by Jenn Wraspir

Jerk Chicken with Mojo Sauce
Makes 4 chicken breasts

For the Mojo sauce -
1/4 c frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 T fresh lime juice
1 T honey
1 T minced garlic
1 T olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

For the Chicken -
2 T brown sugar
1 T garlic powder
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
4 boneless chicken breasts
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat grill to medium-high heat
Whisk together all the ingredients for the mojo sauce in a bowl and set aside.

Combine brown sugar through nutmeg in a separate bowl.  Rub it on the chicken coating it nicely.

Grill chicken. Baste the chicken with the mojo sauce as you grill it.

Jenn note - I kept some of the mojo sauce on the side to use as a dipping sauce with the chicken - or um pork in my case.  

Chicken Stuffed with Pesto, Ham and Cheese

Just looking at that photo and I salivate.  This meal has everything in it I love...chicken, ham, fontina cheese and pesto. Yum.

I made this last night and while I didn't cook my chicken all the way through and apparently attempted to give myself food poisoning, the flavor was delicious. Super simple to make, and assuming you bake your chicken thoroughly, not going to poison you.

I made my own pesto.  Pesto is so easy to make that I find it unnecessary to buy store made pesto.  Besides once I make pesto, I make enough for three or four servings. That's a win-win to me. It freezes real well too.

Chicken Stuffed with Pesto, Ham, and Fontina Cheese

Photo courtesy of Can You Stay for Dinner.com

Courtesy of Can You Stay for Dinner? Original recipe is here.
serves 2

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (~6 ounces each)
2 thick slices smoked ham
1 ounce fontina cheese, grated
2 tablespoons basil pesto
1/2 cup homemade or store-bought seasoned bread crumbs [JW note: When I make this again, I don't think I'll use any breadcrumbs.  I didn't find it added much - but then again, I used store bought instead of homemade - which always makes the difference
2 teaspoons olive oil

Butterfly each chicken breast by slicing it thinly open like a book, taking care not to slice completely through both sides of the breast. Evenly distribute the ham, cheese, and pesto among one side of each opened chicken breast. Fold the empty sides over to cover the filling. Dredge each filled chicken breast in a shallow bowl filled with the breadcrumbs. Place them on a greased wire rack set on top of a roasting pan. Lightly brush the tops with the olive oil and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees F.

Southeast Asian Pork Loin

I'm not a huge fan of the pork loin so I made this with pork chops ( cut about an 1" thick). I know the loin and the chop doesn't taste that different. The loin is so big though and chops are perfect for a single gal.

This dish was super flavorful and super easy. I think the marinade would go well with chicken too.

Photo courtesy of Epicurious

Southeast Asian Pork Loin
Makes 6 servings
201 calories

1/3 c rice vinegar
1/4 c ketchup
2 T vegetable oil
2 T lime juice
2 T light brown sugar
2 T fish sauce
1 T soy sauce
1 T chili garlic sauce (you can find this in the Asian food aisle usually)
1 T minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 lb boneless pork loin (roast), trimmed

Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.

Whisk together all the ingredients except the pork. Place pork and marinade in a ZipLoc for about an hour.

Grill pork, covered, over direct heat, for 20 minutes, roatating every 5 minutes.  Before rotating, dip pork back into the marinade in a bowl; discard any remaining marinade after grilling.

[JW: I didn't really do this part since I was using pork chops. But hindsight being what it is, this would have been good to do and would have flavored them a lot more.

Continue to grill pork until an instant read thermometer registers 150 degrees. Remove pork from grill, tend with foil, and let pork rest at least 5 minutes before serving.

Crash Hot Potatoes

I've seen these potatoes done on a number of Food Network shows and I kept thinking it'd be a fun little change to potatoes.  For Sunday Dinner - these made the rotation.

I made a couple small changes - shocking I know. I added parmesan cheese to the top of them when I put them in the oven.  Delicious.

These were super easy to make, but does take some time to cook them up. I used the bottom of a coffee cup to smash them since I didn't have a potato smasher like Pioneer Woman suggests.

Crash Hot Potatoes
Recipe by the Pioneer Woman
Serves 6

Photo by the Pioneer Woman

12 small yellow potatoes
Kosher salt
3 T olive oil
Fresh ground pepper

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, boil the potatoes in lightly salted water until fork tender, about 12 inutes.

Preheat oven to 475.

Place the potatoes on a baking sheet. Using a potato masher, gently press each one. The top of the potatoes should be really textured.  Drizzle the tops with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Bake until golden brown and crisp, about 15 minutes.

Sooo good. You'll want to make them all the time.

Smoked Salmon Crostini

The photo for this recipe is what had me hooked.

Courtesy of MyRecipes.com

Don't those look delicious. I knew I had to make them. And voila, Sunday Dinner.

We had a small crowd this week so I knew these would work well.

Super easy to make, but does take some planning ahead. The salmon mixture needs to sit for an hour or so. Mine sat for about 4 and it was sooo darn good.

Smoked Salmon CrostiniRecipe from MyRecipes.com
Yields 24 servings - 2 crostini per person

1/2 c chopped fennel bulb (JW note: if you've not had fennel - try it. It has a light, licorice flavor, but is so refreshing in this type of recipe.)
1/4 c chopped green onions
1T extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp chopped fresh dill
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 1/2 ts fresh lemon juice
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
3/4 lb cold smoked salmon, cut into thin strips
48 (1/2 inch thick) sliced french bread baguette, toasted
1/2 c light garlic and herb spreadable cheese
Dill sprigs for garnish.

Combine the first 8 ingredients (fennel through salmon).  Cover and chill for at least an hour.  Spread each toast slice with 1/2 tsp cheese, top each with 1 T salmon mixture. Garnish with dill sprigs.

Weight Watchers Turkey Enchilada Casserole

I worked from home today and figured I'd make this recipe since it had all the ingredients and had planned to make it last week. 

I'm not usually a fan of enchilada casseroles, and especially low cal ones.  This one, turns out is easy and darn good.  In fact, I was pleasantly surprised how good it is.

There are a few things I'd change with this recipe, and did.

First, I put chili powder on the turkey.  Besides salt and pepper, I added the chili powder to give the turkey a bit more flavor. 

Second, if I made this again, I'd incorporate black beans somehow. I think they'd add a nice texture to this.

Again, super easy to make and well worth it.

Turkey Enchilada Casserole
Recipe from Weight Watchers
Makes 8 servings


Photo by Jenn Wraspir

1/8th of the casserole = 218 calories

2 tsp olive oil
1 lb ground turkey (the recipe actually says ground "skinless" turkey - I didn't know they made ground turkey with the skin)
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 (10 oz) cans of enchilada sauce
1 (4.5oz) can of mild chopped green chilies
1 tsp red wine vinegar (interesting...I missed this when I was cooking)
1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro
8 6-in corn tortillas, halved
1 cup shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a 7X11 inch baking dish with non stick spray; set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl in 1 tsp of the oil, then add the turkey, half of the onions, half of the garlic and 1/4 tsp salt. Cook, breaking up the turkey with a wooden spoon until browned, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Swirl in the remaining 1 tsp olive oil, then add the remaining onions, garlic, 1/4 tsp salt, oregano and cumin.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until well softened, above 8 minutes.  Stir in the enchilada sauce, chilies and vinegar; bring to a boil.

[JW note - its important for me to mention I didn't follow this recipe.  I added the chilies and spices to the turkey.  I hadn't read the recipe well enough.  I'm not sure it would make that much of a difference.]

Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until the flavors are blended, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro.

Arrange one-third of the tortilla halves in an overlapping layer on the bottom of the dish. Spoon one-third of the turkey mixture over the top; top with one=third of the sauce and sprinkle with one-third of the cheddar.  Repeat the layering twice. Cover the pan loosely with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake 5 minutes longer or until the cheese is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

[JW note - I actually think sprinkling the casserole with olives and green onions would add some nice flavor too. I had my 1/8 serving with a bit fat-free sour cream too. Delicious!]