Friday Recipes

It's finally Friday. Yay! Here are six recipes to help you through the weekend, including Grilled Barbecue Chicken and Potato Kabobs and Kiwi-Blueberry Tart. Enjoy!

SOY GOOD SMOOTHIE

This recipe, as well as the next one (Mango Madness), is from “20 Super Healthy Smoothie Recipes” on the Runner’s World website. Both are originally from The Editors of Prevention.

This one begins, “Skipping breakfast can leave you starving mid-morning—and reaching for the junk food temptations. Instead, sip this on-the-go soy smoothie.”

Servings: 1

1 cup calcium-fortified vanilla soy milk

1/2 cup frozen blueberries

1/2 cup corn flakes cereal

1 frozen banana, sliced

Combine the milk, blueberries, cereal, and banana in a blender for 20 seconds. Scrape down the sides and blend for an additional 15 seconds.

Nutrition Information: Calories: 350; Protein: 9 g; Carbs: 74 g; Fiber: 7 g; Sugar: 44 g; Total fat: 3.5 g; Saturated fat: 0.1 g; Sodium: 192 mg

MANGO MADNESS

This recipe begins, “Take advantage of a ripe mango’s disease-fighting ability with this delicious smoothie recipe.”

Servings: 2

1 can (8 oz) juice-packed pineapple chunks

1 cup fat-free frozen vanilla yogurt

1 large ripe mango, peeled and chopped

1 ripe banana, sliced

Crushed or cracked ice

Combine the pineapple (with juice), frozen yogurt, mango, and banana. Blend until smooth.

With the blender running, gradually drop in enough ice to bring the level up to 4 cups. Blend until the ice is pureéd.

Nutrition Information: Calories: 251; Protein: 6.5 g; Carbs: 60 g; Fiber: 4 g; Sugar: 50 g; Total fat: 0.5 g; Saturated fat: 0.2 g; Sodium: 68 mg

LENTIL MINESTRONE WITH GREENS

This is from Martha Rose Schulman in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Martha wrote, “A number of greens work well in this hearty Italian dish. Chard and turnip greens are growing in my garden, so those are ones I’m using now, but I wouldn’t hesitate to use kale, either.”

Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Time: 1 hour 15 minutes.

This was originally featured in “Lentils: A Versatile Staple Flavors Classic International Dishes” and can be viewed online here.

Check out Melissa Clark’s guide “How to Cook Beans”.

Ingredients

For the Lentil Minestrone with Greens

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

Salt, preferably kosher salt, to taste

1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes, with liquid

1 pound lentils (brown or beluga), washed and picked over

2 1/2 quarts water

A bouquet garni made with a bay leaf, 2 sprigs each thyme and parsley, and a Parmesan rind

1/2 pound Swiss chard, mustard greens or kale, stemmed, washed in two changes of water, and roughly chopped (about 6 cups)

Freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup elbow macaroni or other soup pasta (optional)

Freshly grated Parmesan for serving

Preparation

For the Lentil Minestrone with Greens

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot over medium heat, and add the onion and carrot. Cook, stirring, until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add half the garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir together for a minute, just until the garlic is fragrant, and add the tomatoes and their liquid. Turn up the heat slightly and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down and smell fragrant, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the lentils, water and bouquet garni, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Add the remaining garlic, salt to taste and add the greens. Continue to simmer, covered, for another 15 minutes. Add freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in the pasta, and continue to simmer until the pasta is tender, five to 10 minutes. Remove the bouquet garni and serve, passing grated Parmesan at the table.

Tip

Advance preparation: The soup can be made up to a day or two ahead of time, but do not add the pasta until you are ready to serve. Reheat and add as directed. A note about salt: From now on, I will indicate a preference for kosher salt in my recipes. Because of its crystalline structure, kosher salt is not as salty as fine sea salt.

BASIL AND TOMATO CHICKEN BREASTS

This is from Derrick Riches, who runs the Barbecue & Grilling site for The Spruce. Derrick wrote, “This is a great way to prepare chicken breasts. The combination of tomatoes, basil, and balsamic vinegar gives this dish a fantastic Italian-inspired flavor.”

Time: 24 minutes; Prep Time: 12 minutes; Cook Time: 12 minutes; Yield: Serves 4

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, skinless and deboned

4-6 tomatoes, quartered

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup fresh basil, loosely packed

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, ground

1/2 teaspoon pepper flakes, optional

Directions

Combine garlic, tomatoes, vinegar, oil, basil, black pepper, and salt in a food processor. Reserve a small amount of the chopped tomatoes and chopped basil for garnish.

In a large resealable plastic bag, add chicken and 3/4 of the marinade. Make sure chicken is well coated. Seal bag and allow to marinate for 2-4 hours in the refrigerator. In a small saucepan, bring the reserved 1/4 of the marinade to a boil for 1 minute, reduce heat and allow mixture to simmer for 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat grill. Place chicken on grill and cook on medium heat for 10-12 minutes, turning once. Remove chicken from heat, top with cooked sauce and garnish with diced tomatoes or chopped basil.

GRILLED BARBECUE CHICKEN AND POTATO KABOBS

This is from Tablespoon (tbsp.), and begins, “You don’t need to slave over the grill for delicious barbecue flavor. These kabobs get the job done fast!”

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

8 (10-inch) bamboo or metal skewers

Slaw

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil

1 package (14 oz) shredded tri-color coleslaw mix

1 unpeeled apple (Fuji or Gala), cut into matchstick pieces

Kabobs

1 lb baby red potatoes, quartered

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon barbecue seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 medium sweet onion, cut into 1-inch wedges (1 cup)

1 1/4 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch wide strips (about 6 thighs)

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

Directions

Heat gas or charcoal grill. If using bamboo skewers, soak in water 10 minutes; drain.

In large bowl, beat vinegar, honey, mustard, pepper and 1/2 teaspoon salt with whisk. Beat in 1/4 cup olive oil in a thin stream. Add coleslaw mix and apple; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate.

In large microwavable bowl, mix quartered potatoes and water. Cover; microwave on High 8 to 10 minutes, stirring once, until just tender when pierced with a knife. Carefully uncover and drain; set aside to cool.

In large bowl, mix 1/4 cup olive oil, the barbecue seasoning and 1 teaspoon salt. Add potatoes and onion; toss to coat. On each of 4 skewers, alternately thread potatoes and onion, leaving 1/4-inch space between each piece. In same bowl, place chicken; toss with remaining oil and seasoning in bowl. On remaining 4 skewers, thread chicken.

Place kabobs on grill over medium heat. Cover grill; cook 5 minutes. Brush kabobs with barbecue sauce; turn, and brush other sides with sauce. Cook 3 to 6 minutes longer or until chicken is no longer pink in center and vegetables are tender and browned in places. Serve with slaw.

KIWI-BLUEBERRY TART

This was found in an article on Prevention, titled “11 Recipes with Fresh Blueberries.” Click here to see the article and all twelve recipes.

SERVINGS: 4

2 store-bought pie doughs

4 mini tart pans

2/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1 tbsp light brown sugar

1 1/4 cups quartered sliced kiwifruit

1/4 cup blueberries

Heat oven to 375°F. Unroll 2 store-bought pie doughs and cut into 4 circles (5 1/2" diameter).

Press into 4 mini tart pans with removable bottoms (about 4 3/4" diameter). Prick with fork and freeze until firm, 10 minutes.

Line tart shells with foil and pie weights (or dried beans) and bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Remove foil and pie weights and bake until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Let cool completely.

Stir together 2/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream and 1 Tbsp light brown sugar. Remove shells from pans and top evenly with sour cream mixture, 1 1/4 cups quartered sliced kiwifruit, and 1/4 cup blueberries.

NUTRITION (per serving) 308.2 cal, 3.7 g pro, 36.6 g carb, 1.9 g fiber, 18 g fat, 8.5 g sat fat, 276.4 mg sodium