JuBella.com – Get Your Creative Dose

Don’t you just love when you stumble across a blog that inspires you so much that you click away feeling super motivated, as if you can now go out and conquer your creative world. That’s how I felt after browsing the immaculate photography and recipes that are taken and written by Photographer Katie Quinn Davies. I left her blog feeling as though I could prepare beautiful dishes and create lovely photos to remember my own kitchen creations by! What I like most about many of Katies photos are the rustic tones that many of them have…so comforting and inviting don’t you think?

Be sure to look out for her first recipe book due to be published in 2012! Woo Hoo, and click the image below to see a short video highlighting her work and her inspirations via Martha Stewart Living!

So, although I was on a hiatus from blogging, I can say that I was still steaming up a bit of creativity in the kitchen. I cook A LOT! At least 3 times a day, so I figure if I am going to spend that much time in the kitchen, then I better make it fun, creative, and special! I love plating up dishes, planning menus, and coming up with simple ways to make breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, drinks, and even snacks for our family of five exciting! So, I thought I would share a few pics of some of my favorite dishes that I have prepared & plated this summer. One fine day I hope to publish an e-cookbook…only time will tell.

I MUST plan our meals 2 weeks at a time or else my grocery budget goes out the window, plus knowing what I am going to prepare for dinner seems to take a huge amount of stress out of my day! So, with that said, I hope these photos inspire you to cook up something new on your next menu! Do you plan your menus or do you just figure it out as you go? What is something new that you want to try cooking?

Good morning ladies and gents! I’m so excited that Spring has sprung! The flowers are blooming, the bees are buzzing, the wind is warm, the air is sweet, and the cherry blossoms are showing off their beauty! Of course a sweet spring morning deserves a sweet breakfast to go along with it right!

With that said, I wanted to share a super easy breakfast idea for French toast, as seen below. I simply placed pats of cream cheese(cold, not softened) in between two pieces of bread. I sprinkled a little sugar on top of the cream cheese , placed some sliced strawberries on top, and drizzled a bit of syrup in between the two pieces of bread. This will help keep the two pieces of bread together. I then proceeded to batter them up with my custard mixture (egg, milk, vanilla). I prefer to use a pastry brush to brush my custard on, as I used regular honey wheat bread, which is quite thin in comparison to french bread or challah. This way you can keep your hands clean and avoid the risk of oversaturating or having your filling coming apart in your custard mixture. You can sprinkle a little cinnamon on the bread before brushing your batter on. Garnish with berries and powdered sugar!

This breakfast is sweet, creamy, and super comforting; and goes great with a glass of orange juice! Enjoy!
Psst: if you really want to make it decadent, try adding some thinly sliced bananas to this or substituting the berries for baked cinnamon apples! You can also cut sown on the fat by using greek yogurt…toast your bread first and then dallop yogurt in between the bread along with your fruit!

This past Sunday I roasted a chicken that was flavored with lavender and glazed with fig preserves. I knew that I wanted something comforting and cheesy to go with it but I also knew that I did not want it to be macaroni and cheese. Most people love macaroni & cheese, but I’m just not that big of a fan! So, I decided that my comfort dish would involve cauliflower, portobello mushrooms, butter, and lots of cheesy goodness! It was quite fantastic and you know you have a winner win the 7 year old says: “that was so good, that was better than macaroni and cheese”…lol.

I simply boiled some cauliflower in salt water and once tender I took them off the stove, added lots of butter, a tad more salt, fresh black pepper, shredded monterey jack & cheddar and crumbled up some portobello mushrooms. Stirred it all together, put them in small ramekins and baked them until the cheese was bubbly! You should definitely give this a try, it’s scrumptious and just as comforting as traditional macaroni and cheese!

Currently the hubby and I are trying to cut down on our carbs (well, he is, I on the other hand have had my fair share of bread, donuts, and cookies in the past few days), so as of lately, most of my dinners simply include lots of veggies and a protein, which is either chicken, ground turkey, or fish. The other day I put together this dish that consists of: baked chicken, thinly sliced tomatoes, potatoes(cut into small squares), asparagus, white corn, and sweet green peas. I just sauteed the potatoes until they were tender and then added in the remaining veggies. I cooked them in a bit of olive oil, water, and butter until the asparagus turned a bright green and lightly seasoned them with salt, yellow curry powder, and a dash of garlic powder.

The chicken is seasoned with: salt, pepper, coriander, yellow curry powder, brown sugar, a dash of allspice, ginger, and Hungarian paprika. This is by far one of my favorite meals and it was so easy to fix. I think I am most successful with dishes that are light, colorful, quick, and layered with spices! You should definitely give it a try with your own twist! We drizzled some balsamic vinegar on top to add a little kick to it!

Last night we had a terrific meal. It was savory, sweet, fresh, and most importantly quick and simple. This meal consists of honey drizzled sweet potatoes, roasted chicken, and a wonderful medley of lightly sauteed cabbage, garlic, olive oil, mustard seeds, and green curry.

In my opinion the perfect meal covers four important bases: texture, aroma, color, and of course taste, and when you have a meal such as this one, you get to experience all four! Enjoy!

Roasted Chicken with Green Curry Cabbage & Honey Baked Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients
3 Roasted Chicken Breasts (I purchased mine from the market, but feel free to prepare your own)

3 T. Olive Oil
3 Garlic Cloves, whole
2 T. Mustard Seeds
2 Heaping tsp. Green Curry Paste
1 Small head of Green Cabbage, shredded
¼ tsp. Turmeric
Pinch of Cinnamon
Salt to taste

Directions: Heat your olive oil and garlic. Add your mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds begin to pop, add in your curry paste and cabbage. Toss to evenly coat your cabbage. Add your turmeric and cinnamon, and salt to taste. Cook and toss cabbage until they turn a bright green. Be careful not to overcook, as you want to maintain the crunch of the cabbage. Immediately remove from your pot and transfer to a serving dish. Serve on top of roasted /baked chicken breast.

Honey Baked Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
Sweet Potatoes, halved lengthwise
Butter
Honey
Cinnamon
Pecans, optional

Directions: Tear off the proper number of pieces of foil for your potato halves. Lightly spray each piece of foil with cooking spray. Cut your washed potatoes lengthwise. Place your potato halves individually onto your pieces of foil. Put a few pieces of butter on top of each half. Drizzle with honey and lightly seal. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about an hour or until tender.

To Serve: Place potato half onto a plate. Sprinkle with cinnamon and crushed pecans. Place your chicken breast onto your plate and top with a large spoon-full of spiced cabbage. Garnish entire plate with a drizzle of honey.

Oh, how I love the tableware and dining collections of Tableware Designer Rosanna Bowles of Rosanna Inc.. All of the cheerful and rich colors would bring any party to life, especially those that consist of sweet and divine desserts!

Tomatillos: tomate verde: Similar to the tomato, tomatillos are crisp like a green tomato and tart. They are used in lots of Mexican dishes especially in sauces and salsas. They come sheltered in a sticky husk that must be removed and the sticky substance must be washed off. When grocery shopping, pick tomatillos with the husks/skin that are stuck tightly to the tomato. Here is a salsa blend that I love to go along with taco salads…

Tomatillo Salsa

6 Tomatillos, cut into large chunks
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 C. Fresh Cilantro
2 tsp. Fresh Lime Juice
1 Clove of Garlic
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 Tbsp. Jalapeno Pepper, de-seeded and diced small
1 tsp. Honey

Blend all of the ingredients together. Toss in some diced roma tomatoes and 1/2 C. diced yellow onion. Serve with warm tortilla chips or on top of chicken or any of your favorite Mexican inspired meals!

You know the flavored waters that you buy at the market? So many of them are packed with ingredients that I would rather not digest and there is enough sugar in them to raise your insulin level..LOL. Not to mention all of the food coloring and artificial flavorings that are added. Ok, so to make a long story short I decided to make my own version of flavored water with fresh cherries, plums, and strawberries. It’s light, it’s refreshing, and delicately sweet!

Cherry Berry Plum Water
6 Strawberries, diced
1 Plum, diced
18 Cherries, pitted
4 C. Filtered Water
2-3 Tbsp. Agave Nectar or Honey
Mesh Strainer

Directions: Simply blend/liquify your fruit in your blender along with your water. Strain into a medium sized bowl. Be sure to press out the juice from the pulp with a spoon to get as much juice out of the pulp. Sweeten your water with agave nectar or honey. Serve chilled or over ice cubes. Garnish each glass with whole cherries!

Tonight we had a very simple and fresh dinner that consisted of chicken breast topped with fresh wilted spinach, fresh roma tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella with a garden salad on the side. Basically it is similar to spanakopitas or even beef wellington, but I used mozzarella instead of feta and I wrapped the whole chicken breast, instead of dicing it up. You can find the recipe below, but you really don’t need one, as it is quite easy to prepare!

Chicken Filo
Serves 4

Ingredients
3 T Butter – melted
1 T. Olive Oil plus more for cooking chicken
4 Large Chicken Breast – washed & trimmed of fat
1 Bunch of Fresh Spinach – washed
1 Garlic Clove, minced
2 Roma Tomatoes
Salt
Garlic Powder
Fresh Black pepper
Dried or Fresh Basil
Spicy Brown Mustard
Honey
Fresh Mozzarella
Finely Grated Parmesan
Filo Dough (16 sheets)
Pastry Brush

Directions: Season your chicken with salt, garlic powder, pepper, basil. and drizzle with olive oil. Heat your non-stick pan on medium with a drizzle of olive oil. Cook chicken until done, flipping often, as well as keeping the lid on to ensure plenty of plumpness and “juicyness”! Turn skillet off and set chicken aside.

Take your bunch of spinach and roughly chop them up. Throw them in a non-stick pan along with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and garlic and let them wilt a bit. immediately remove your spinach from the pan and place in a mesh strainer to drain excess water. Set aside.

Place the one tablespoon of olive oil into your butter and stir together. take your pastry brush and butter your first filo sheet with your butter and oil. Be sure not to over saturate the filo as it is VERY delicate. Now take another sheet of filo and place it on top of the first. Butter and oil this sheet. Continue doing this until you have four filo sheets. Butter and oil the top sheet.

Take your chicken breast and place it towards the edge of the filo sheets. using your pastry brush generously brush your spicy mustard on top of the chicken. Now place a few sliced tomatoes on top, then your a bit of spinach, and top it off with mozzarella. Gently wrap your chicken and veggies as you would a burrito until you reach the end. gently butter and oil the tops and tuck in the side edges. drizzle with honey and place onto your non-stick baking sheet. Repeat this process with the rest of your chicken breast. Bake on 350 degrees until crisp and lightly golden brown. Sprinkle with finely grated parmesan!

Tip The Cook: you can serve these up with your favorite marinara sauce or a side of spicy mustard.

I love this bread! It is a dense bread that makes the perfect partner to soups and hearty sandwiches. The flavor is wonderful and it bakes up beautifully!

Sun-Dried Tomato Bread

3 C. Bread Flour
1/2 tsp. Salt
2 Tbsp. Sugar
2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 tsp. active dry yeast
1 C. Sun-Dried Tomatoes
1 C. Milk
1 1/2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
Extra flour for kneading
2 tsp. Dried Basil
One Egg, for Egg Wash
1 Tbsp. Water

1. Combine all of your dry ingredients including your tomatoes.

2. Heat your milk in the microwave on high for about 20-30 seconds. You can also heat your milk in a saucepan over the stove for about one minute. Add milk to your dry ingredients. Add olive oil last. Combine until a ball of dough forms.

3. Knead for about 5 minutes. Form into a ball and place directly on your baking sheet. Normally you would place this in a bowl that is lightly oiled, but we are going to skip this step as we will not knead the dough a second time. Cover your dough, making sure you seal the sides of your pan, yet keeping enough slack for your dough to rise. Let sit in a warm spot until dough rises or doubles in size.

4. Sprinkle your dried basil over the top. Add about 1 Tbsp. of water to your egg and beat. Using a small pastry brush, brush your egg wash all over your dough. This will give your finished bread a beautiful glossy crust. Bake in your oven on 350 degrees until golden brown. One good way to tell if your bread is done is to tap on it. If it makes a hollow sound, then most likely it is ready to be taken out of the oven.

Like I said, this bread makes a really good hearty sandwich. Once your bread cools down enough to handle, cut it in half width wise, buttered each half, and pan toast them both. Then add some baby spinach, sliced roma tomatoes, shredded mozarella and grated parmesean to the bottom half. Top it of with a bit of dried basil and placed it into a 350 degree oven until the cheese melts. Now place the top of your bread on top and cut into desired size. Yum!

Isn’t this pretty. I love the pungent color of red cabbage and when adorned with a little bit of ginger..she is oh so happy! So next time you want something outside of the normal lettuce based salad try a medley of shredded red cabbage in the raw, fresh ginger and shredded carrots drizzled with a sweet Asian dressing.

This is one of my favorite dishes. It’s hearty, flavorful, and aromatic! It’s inspired by the rotis you might find in any East Indian cafe, but with my own twist! It’s actually sort of a fusion of rotis and gyros to be exact. I use the fry bread recipe to hold it all together. FYI: This is absolutely divine with the Indian Summer Mint Julep!

North African Inspired Chicken
1/2 lb. Chicken Breasts or 3 lrg. Chicken Breasts
1 tsp. Salt
3 Tbsp. Plain Nonfat Yogurt
1 Tbsp. Chopped Mint
1/4 tsp. Chili Powder
1/4 tsp. Turmeric
1/4 tsp. Coriander
1/4 tsp. Cumin
1/4 tsp. Black Pepper
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 C. Fresh Cilantro, chopped
2 tsp. Honey
Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

Directions: After cleaning your chicken breasts , cut them into large chunks. Place the chicken in a large bowl and with the tip of your knife poke small holes into your pieces..this will help keep your chicken tender. Now add all of your seasoning including the yogurt. Stir together so that the marinade covers all of the chicken. Pour onto a baking sheet, spreading the chicken apart so that they do not stick to each other. Bake in a 350 degree oven until done.

Lentils
1/2 C. Dry Lentils, washed
1/2 tsp. Turmeric
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 Chicken Bouillon Cube
2 1/2 C. Water

Directions: Boil until lentils are firm and tender. Do not overcook or your lentils will turn too mashed lentils..lol.

Dill Sauce
2 Tbsp. Plain Nonfat Yogurt
3 Tbsp. Sour Cream
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Yellow Curry Powder
1 tsp. Dill Weed
1 tsp. Honey

Directions: Mix all of your ingredients together and you’re done!

Curried Onions
You can make this as spicy or as mild as you like by adding more or less red curry paste.

1/2 White Onion
Red Curry Paste
Honey
Olive Oil

Directions: Finely chop your onions. add your desired amount of curry paste and a drizzle of honey and olive oil. Stir until well combines.

Garnish
Romaine Lettuce
Cilantro
Fresh Spinach
Roma Tomato

Plating: Place your fry bread flat onto your plate. Shred your lettuce, cilantro, and spinach leaves all together and place along the center of your bread, as if you were making a taco. Drizzle a bit of your dill sauce on top. Now add your lentils, then your chicken. Top with dill sauce, curried onions, and diced roma tomatoes. Fold to eat and taste the flavors!

Would you care for a little taste of India? This blend that I concocted out of pure desperateness of a smoothie blends lots of sweet spices and cool coconut milk. It’s my Eastern version of the classic Mint Julep…only creamier, a lot more aromatic, and has zero alcohol!

Indian Summer Mint Julep – non alcoholic
1 Coconut Milk
1 Mango, peeled & diced, keep a few pieces for garnish
1 Heaping Tbsp. or 2 Sprigs of Fresh Mint, chopped
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
2/4 tsp. Cardamom
2 tsp. Agave Nectar
2/3 C. Water
Ice (a couple of handfuls)

Directions: Simply blend all of your ingredients together. Place a sprig of mint in your glass and then pour a few ice cubes in to keep it in place. Pour over ice and garnish with a few pieces of sliced mango. Hit it with a drizzle of agave nectar.

This Mexican inspired dish is packed with flavor and sweet heat! I am quite new to cooking with peppers and I must say that I am borderline addicted to roasted poblanos! They are beyond delicious when de-seeded, roasted with olive oil and with the skinned peeled. I recently roasted some poblanos and stuffed them with the most tasty shredded chicken. Here is what I did:

Stuffed Poblanos

Shredded Chicken
2-3 Lrg. Chicken Breasts
1 tsp. Black Pepper
1 tsp. Paprika
1 tsp. Chili Powder
1 tsp. Turmeric
1/4 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
1 Tbsp. Agave Nectar
1 tsp. Lemon Juice
1/3 C Green Onions, chopped
1 Tbsp. Yellow Bellpepper, chopped
1 Tbsp. Red Bell Pepper, chopped
1 Tbsp.Orange Bellpeppers, chopped
1 C. Fresh Cilantro
1 tsp. Fresh Ginger, minced
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. Sour Cream

Directions: Wash and season your chicken with spices. Cook in a 350 degree oven until done. Once cooled shred chicken apart with your fingers. Add bellpeppers, cilantro, ginger, garlic, onions, nectar, and lemon juice.

In a large saucepan heat butter and Olive Oil on low. Sautee chicken and veggies on low for about 5 minutes. Add sour cream and stir. Pour your mixture into a large bowl and let marinate for 20 minutes.

Stuffed Poblano Peppers
4-5 Poblano Peppers
Olive Oil
Agave Nectar

Directions: While your chicken marinates, rub your poblanos down with olive oil and roast until blackened/blistering in a 400 degree oven. Let cool, slice down the tops of your pepper and de-seed, and peel off skin. Peppers should lay flat. Lightly brush the inside of your peppers with a bit of agave nectar.

Plating: Place some shredded lettuce down. Lay open your pepper on top. place a generous amount of shredded chicken on one side of the pepper and fold the side of the pepper over the chicken. Top with sour cream, diced roma tomatoes, and shredded cheese. Drizzle agave nectar on top. Serve with sour cream, chips,salsa, and roasted pineapple!