Triggerfish with Toasted Pecan Butter

Posted on September 5, 2014 by cookingonthebrightside

Wow friends, I knew I had been a bad blogger lately but I didn’t realize how bad! I’m sorry.

Perhaps in order to make it up to the masses, I’ll share a creation I’ve been holding for a little while.

You see, a while back (about 2 year ago) my parents stopped at a nearby mobile seafood market and picked up a variety of things, including Triggerfish, which ended up in my kitchen. Having never done anything with this fish before, I just did what I knew best – sauteed it and covered it with a delicious sauce of butter, wine, lemon and capers. It was delicious – so I shared it with all of you wonderful people.

Then something crazy happened. I realized that I was not the only one who was at a loss for how to prepare Triggerfish. Because people were Googling their hearts out for recipes. And coming to my little blog here.

Now, this blog is a hobby for me right now – my work has been crazy lately and that’s fine. But I get really excited when I get 30+ visits in a day. Well, my Triggerfish recipe started picking up steam a while back – 20-30 hits a day. Then the husband (who also geeks out a little over stats) wanted to see how many I had overall.

As of today, that little recipe I whipped up has over 10,000 views. Which is crazy to me – but obviously, y’all want some Triggerfish!

Well, it’s your lucky day because I aim to please. Hopefully you like this one as much as the last…let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see – I love hearing from my readers!

Triggerfish with Toasted Pecan Butter (Serves 2 / 9 WW pts. per serving)

8 oz. Triggerfish, cut into 2 portions

2 Tbsp. fat-free milk

1 Tbsp. flour

1 Tbsp. peanut oil

1 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. reduced calorie margarine

1/4 cup chopped pecans

Cayenne pepper, salt, pepper

Lemon

Just a reminder that the skin on Triggerfish can be pretty tough – so I score it before cooking with it to keep the fish from curling too much.

Heat your oven to 350. Layer your chopped pecans on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

In a shallow dish, mix together flour, a dash of cayenne, a dash of salt, and a dash of pepper.

In another shallow dish, add milk. Dip fish fillet in the milk and then dredge in flour mixture.

Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add fish and saute 4-5 minutes on each side until cooked through.

While fish is cooking, melt butter in a small skillet. Add pecans and a pinch of salt and a pinch of cayenne. Stir and pour over fillets. Voila – super easy and delicious meal in under 30 minutes!

Hope y’all have a great weekend!

Orange Mustard Glazed Pork Chops

Posted on February 14, 2014 by cookingonthebrightside

So the first thing I thought of when I woke up today?

This epic scene from Friends. Because we all know I can’t go a day without something relating back to the best show of all time. Could I be any more predictable?

So Happy Valentine’s Day to all of my readers – I love y’all to chocolate-covered pieces!

Obviously, today is a day to let the love flow. I’ve never been a huge fan of a big outing or major to-do on the holiday, but I think any day designated to tell the people you love just that can’t be all that bad.

In addition to a silly card and a bag of the hubby’s favorite candy (anything peanut butter and chocolate) I usually plan a nice meal in for us to celebrate. One year that involved my Mustard Glazed Lamb – and another year that involved us ordering pizza. It is what you make it people.

This year I have a special little treat – which I won’t divulge quite yet since I have a good hubby who reads my blog – but I’ll have to share it with y’all next week. Too fun.

Anyways – obviously I try out a lot of new recipes on my husband. Some good. Some not. Some “meh” – but I always look for an honest response from him on whether or not I should put it in our regular rotation.

Well a few weeks ago, I tried a new recipe from Cooking Light and it was pretty good. The next week I found myself with some ingredients to use up and figured I’d make the same recipe again with some modifications. It must have been better the second time around, because the hubby took a bite and said “Whoa, tell me about this one!”…like he had never had it before. It certainly made me chuckle, but it also made me smile that I didn’t have to coax out an opinion. Clearly, this one was a keeper – just like the Mr. (Awwwww).

Give it a try and let me know what you think! It’s pretty easy to throw together and the time it spends in the oven gives you time to clean up, assemble sides, etc.

Orange Mustard Glazed Pork Chops (Serves 2 – 8 WW points/serving)

Original recipe from Cooking Light found here.

2 6 oz. boneless lean pork chops, trimmed

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

2 Tbsp. orange marmalade

1 1/2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 red onion cut into chunks

1 Tbsp. dried rosemary (or 4 fresh sprigs)

1/2 tsp. canola oil

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

In a small saucepan, whisk orange juice, marmalade and mustard together. Bring to a boil, reduce slightly and cook about 10 minutes, allowing it to thicken.

While sauce is heating, season your pork chops with salt and pepper on each side. Add oil to an ovenproof skillet and heat to medium. Cook chops 5 minutes. Sprinkle with rosemary turn and add onion wedges. Pour the sauce over the chops into the pan and bake 10-12 minutes until cooked through.

Plate chops and spoon sauce and onions over top. This is great with some roasted veggies and any sort of potatoes or bread.

Hope y’all have a great weekend…and Happy Valentine’s Day!

French Onion Pork Chops

Posted on November 15, 2013 by cookingonthebrightside

So we are officially halfway through November. Does that seem ridiculous to anybody else?

I know my last post was more of a “reflective” post – being that it is November and Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Well, today, I have 2 more things to add to my thankful list – PLUS a recipe, which I am sure you’re thankful for, right?

Day 14 – I’m thankful for friendships that stand the test of time. The husband and I got together with one of my good friends and her husband the other night – just to catch up. To be honest, sometimes I just suck at making the effort. But you know what? True friendships shouldn’t require a ton of effort (in my humble opinion). We hadn’t seen these friends in months – but after 10 minutes, it was like no time had passed. This has been a friend of mine since 7th grade, and I love that our husbands get along and enjoy when we all spend time together. It’s not just maintenance in my mind, but the growth of a friendship that allows it to stand the test of time.

(Sorry, didn’t know you’d need a shovel for that one – DEEP!)

Day 15 – Honestly? I’m thankful for a weekend with no plans. Tomorrow is the first Saturday in over 2 months we have not had something going on. And I am so pumped about it. I just need a day to relax and restore, catch up on my ~~educational~~ crappy TV shows, flip through my cooking magazines, and maybe get some good ole quality time on Pinterest. How else am I going to know how to make reindeer pancakes for Christmas?!

Now, on to the recipe. This is the time of year when I know we all crave the rich, delicious foods we see on the magazine covers – but perhaps dread the impact on our waistlines. Have no fear – I have a delicious recipe that is easy, full of flavor, and low in WW points.

French Onion Pork Chops (Serves 2 / 7 WW pts. per serving)

2 5 oz. lean pork chops, trimmed

1 egg

1/3 cup whole wheat bread crumbs

1 packet onion soup mix (I use Lipton’s)

Butter spray

Onion powder

Black pepper

Heat your oven to 400.

Start by trimming the fat from your pork chops. Then place each chop between two sheets of wax paper and pound to about 1/4 – 1/2 inch thickness with a meat mallet. I find they cook a little quicker and are less likely to dry out with this method.

Sprinkle both sides with onion powder and pepper.

Whisk egg and pour in a shallow dish. Mix together bread crumbs and onion soup mix and add to a separate shallow dish.

Dip chops in egg. Spray with a little butter, and then press into the crumb mixture.

Add coated chops to a baking dish and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, flipping halfway through.

I served this with some roasted brussel sprouts and a green salad, but I’m sure any vegetable would go well with this dish!

Told you…easy and delicious. If you give this one a try, let me know what you think AND if you make any modifications – I love hearing how people amp up recipes!

Hope y’all have a great weekend!

Chicken with Pepperoni Marinara Sauce

Posted on October 25, 2013 by cookingonthebrightside

Dear October,

Where did you go?

Y’all, seriously. I just looked at my calendar and freaked out a little. I have been a very very bad blogger! It has been absolute chaos (the fun kind!) in our house these past few weeks. Just a little overview:

Wrapped up Sept. with a church community service project and then drove to Oxford, MS for a cousin’s wedding and some family birthday celebrating.
Then finished our bathroom (woot woot!).
Rang in October by celebrating our 2nd anniversary which included a delicious meal cooked by my husband and one of the best dining experiences I’ve had in my life at a restaurant I’d been dying to try. I may have made reservations in July to make sure we got there.
Hosted a couple’s shower for some friends – I love throwing parties, but they leave me exhausted. At least we had leftovers to eat for 3 days before we packed up again!
Headed to Orlando for another wedding – this time one of my best friends from college. Spent a day with Mickey and the gang, ate our way around the world at Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival (which was AMAZING), got some girl time with my besties (sadly minus my Punk – but gotta keep her baby safe!) and celebrated the marriage of two wonderful people.
And this past weekend we celebrated another wedding – one of the husband’s best friends from college. He was in the wedding – so a whole weekend of festivities.

So – all of that to say. Hi. I’m back. And happy to be back in my kitchen cooking meals for 2 people for a little while. In order to get back in the swing of things, I needed a super easy recipe with stuff I had on hand and I found this little gem on the Cooking Light website.

Chicken with Pepperoni Marinara Sauce (Serves 4 / 7 WW pts. per serving)

Original recipe found here.

4 (5 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I buy thin sliced or cut a big one in half)

1 tsp. olive oil

Garlic powder and pepper

1/2 tsp. minced garlic

2 tsp. Italian herb seasoning

1/4 tsp. garlic salt

16 slices Turkey pepperoni, chopped

1 1/2 cups marinara sauce

1/2 cup reduced-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded

Heat a large saucepan to medium. Coat with nonstick spray and add olive oil.

Sprinkle chicken breasts with a little garlic powder and pepper on each side. Add to skillet and cook 3-5 minutes on each side until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken and set aside.

Add garlic and chopped pepperoni to pan and cook about 2 minutes. Pour in marinara sauce and stir in Italian herb seasoning and garlic salt. You may want to add a little more salt or some pepper depending on the sauce you purchase – I like to cut the sweet a little.

Pour sauce over the chicken breasts and add 2 Tbsp. cheese on top of each piece. (To make this an easy one-pan meal – I pushed the sauce to one side and then added the chicken back in.) Cover for 2-3 minutes until cheese has melted.

This was super easy and required ingredients I usually have on hand – so it worked out perfectly, I didn’t even have to make a run to the store! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did…

Have a great weekend y’all!

Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas

Posted on September 20, 2013 by cookingonthebrightside

Sooo, here’s the thing about our ~~not-so~~ major DIY project:

I have zero patience.

As in, I am annoyed that it’s not just done. As in, I found myself wanting to just stay home from work in order to get stuff done at home. Pesky jobs. You know, other than funding the project.

The good news is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Which is good considering we’re throwing a party in 2 weeks and well, the half bath is kind of crucial for that type of event.

I am loving watching everything come together and to see the fixtures and miscellaneous items we’ve ordered arrive. I always panic when I pick out things that aren’t “meant” to go together – like at my wedding, thought I had a theme in my head but was so freaked out it would just look like a bunch of random crap. It did not. So I think I need to have a little faith in myself. And my husband. And vice versa. *Wink wink.*

Luckily we have lights on for now and barring a few more hours of allowing paint to try, we should have lights from here on out – which is fantastic for my sanity! It means I don’t have to come home and chop and prep like a mad woman with the daylight hours waning.

So obviously, that means we need to celebrate. And you know how we celebrate on this blog, right? Buffalo chicken.

I figured if my buffalo chicken tacos turned out to be a hit, these had to be. Y’all. They are delicious – I highly suggest them for a delicious dinner the next time you just want to park on your couch and watch a big game. Super easy and they do not take long to throw together. I know you might think I’m ashamed of my love for all the buffalo things – but I’m not. Not even a little.

Give these a try and let me know what you think!

Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas (5 WW pts. per enchilada)

5 whole wheat and/or high fiber tortillas

1 cup shredded chicken breast

1/4 cup shredded fat-free cheddar cheese

1/4 cup shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

2 green onions, chopped

1 medium stalk celery, chopped

1 10 oz. can red enchilada sauce

1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp. Frank’s Red Hot Sauce

1/3 cup reduced-fat blue cheese crumbles

Preheat oven to 350.

In a small bowl, mix together enchilada sauce with 1/3 cup hot sauce. Adjust as your heat tolerance dictates.

Mix cheeses together in a small bowl.

In a medium bowl, mix shredded chicken with 1/4 cup shredded cheese, green onions, celery, 2 Tbsp. hot sauce and about 1 Tbsp. of the enchilada sauce mixture.

Add a thin layer of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a lightly greased casserole dish.

Add 2-3 Tbsp. chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla. Roll lengthwise and fold ends under and place seam-side down in the casserole dish. When all of the tortillas are filled, pour remaining enchilada sauce over top. Add remaining shredded cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with blue cheese and cook another 5-7 minutes until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted…yeah baby.

Add to your plate…

And of course, devour.

Have a great weekend y’all!

Hoisin Plum Chicken

Posted on September 13, 2013 by cookingonthebrightside

So it has been interesting in my house for the past week.

Well, more like in the half bath and kitchen. You see, the husband and I decided to re-do our half bathroom downstairs right by the kitchen. So for the past few weeks, our kitchen table and counter tops have been covered with cabinets to be painted, hardware to be replaced and lots of other goodies like paint trays, brushes, and tape.

Last week, in order to finish priming, we took out the light fixture in the bathroom. Which just so happens to be on the same circuit as our kitchen light (not appliances, thank goodness). Know what that means? This food blogger has been trying to squeeze in all prep work upon arriving home now that it’s starting to get a little darker out earlier.

Cooking in the dark. Probably not as much fun as dancing in the dark. (All 80’s fans – particularly my Biffer – you are welcome for that awesome reference.) The name of my blog now feels like a web of lies…

Anyways, I have managed to whip up a few things with enough lighting to give the people what they want – delicious recipes!

Twice this week, I’ve had people comment on some of my recipes having lots of ingredients – which I know can be overwhelming. Guess what – this one is super easy and has minimal prep work and just 10 ingredients (including salt and pepper!). It’s a surprising combo of flavors – a little sweet BBQ flavor with some tart from the fruit, and the green onion brings it all home for me. Try this one out and let me know what you think!

Hoisin Plum Chicken (2 servings / 5 WW pts. per serving)

2 thin cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts, raw (4-5 oz. each)

1/2 Tbsp. olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 medium scallions, chopped

1 small plum, diced

1/4 tsp. minced garlic

2 1/2 Tbsp. Hoisin sauce (found in the Asian section of your grocery store)

1/4 cup fat-free chicken broth

1/2 lime, juiced

Begin by heating oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides. Add to skillet and cook 4-5 minutes on each side. Set aside and keep warm.

Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, onion, plums and broth to skillet and cook 3-4 minutes. Stir in hoisin sauce and stir. Cook 1-2 minutes until slightly thickened and stir in lime juice. Add salt and pepper to taste and pour sauce over chicken breasts.

Serve and devour. Told you it was easy!

Have a great weekend y’all – I’ll be working in our bathroom and hopefully getting the lights back on soon!

Pesto Orecchiette with Sausage and Brussel Sprouts

Posted on August 2, 2013 by cookingonthebrightside

Y’all, I was such a big girl this week.

I mean, almost a grown-up. And that says a lot being that I’m 29 and 1.

I have confessed to y’all that I have a ~~bizarre~~ perfectly normal fear of balloons. And needles.

This week – I faced both.

Wednesday we celebrated Baby Way’s (my youngest nephew) first birthday. So my 3 older nephews decided to put on a balloon show – which involved them throwing the balloons off of their 2nd floor into the entry way, with various spins and tosses. That part I handled like a champ.

However, you know that screechy sound balloons make when they have hands and feet on them? Like they are about to burst any minute? I heard that one a lot – because they didn’t want to put their balloons down and lose them. But you know what, Aunt Mary kept her cool. I survived!

Then, the next morning, I had my annual check-up and had to get my blood taken. Yes, as in with a needle. The past 2 times I’ve had this done, I’ve apparently gotten inept or brand new nurses who don’t know what they heck they are doing – so they’ve had to stab me with a needle twice. Which is one more time than I can handle without losing the blood in my face and my eyes rolling back in my head as I endured the torture. (I’d make a terrible spy – clearly I’m not to be trusted with government secrets). Thankfully, I had a pro this time around. I warned her I was a huge baby and she was nice. I still didn’t enjoy it, but at least I wasn’t reduced to a crumpled heap of Mary.

I know, I’m so mature.

So weeks like this one call for one thing – comfort food. For me, pasta is a great comfort food – it’s warm, usually has some form of cheese included and it’s super easy to throw together. Honestly, what good is comfort food if it takes forever to make and leaves a giant mess?

I discovered this dish on Pinterest (love) and it’s definitely in my comfort food rotation from now on! It’s easy, doesn’t make a giant mess, and it’s like a nice, big, warm hug that’s perfect for enjoying in your stretchy pants curled up on your couch – but also fancy enough that you can serve it to guests.

Pesto Orecchiette with Sausage and Brussel Sprouts (Serves 4 / 11 WW points per serving)

Adapted from original recipe found here.

8 oz. whole wheat orecchiette

2 1/2 links Chicken Sausage, Italian style (I used Archer Farms brand)

1/2 pound brussel sprouts, peeled and halved

4 Tbsp. store-bought Pesto sauce

1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic

1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

4 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan

Preheat your oven to 400.

To prep your brussel sprouts, cut off the bottom “stem” and peel away exterior leaves. Then cut in half. Toss in a small baking pan with 1 Tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast 25-30 minutes, stirring every 10 or so minutes.

While the brussel sprouts are cooking, heat remaining olive oil in a medium skillet. Slice sausage into 1/8-1/4 inch thick slices. Saute in olive oil over medium for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until chicken is browned and cooked through.

Boil the water for your pasta and cook according to directions.

When everything has cooked, drain pasta and stir in pesto. Add cooked sausage and roasted brussel sprouts, stir until incorporated.

Plate and top each serving with 1 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan.

All we needed with this dish was some yummy garlic bread and a glass of red wine. Perfect way to enjoy a James Bond movie night with my husband…

Hope y’all have a great weekend!

cookingonthebrightside

Adventures in Eating, Drinking and Being Mary

Tag Archives: weight watchers main course

Triggerfish with Toasted Pecan Butter

Orange Mustard Glazed Pork Chops

French Onion Pork Chops

Chicken with Pepperoni Marinara Sauce

Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas

Hoisin Plum Chicken

Pesto Orecchiette with Sausage and Brussel Sprouts