Mexican Spiced Steak Kabobs with Guacamole

I cannot believe it has been a week since I posted. It is true... time flies when you are having fun. Evan and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary this past weekend. It was wonderful. We got up at 3:30 am to drive to climb a 14,000 foot mountain with a group from our church. We then drove to Frisco and had a picnic by the lake. It was perfect.

On to the food. This recipe, as so many as I have recently posted, is summer to me. Grilled steak vegetable kabobs with fresh mashed avocado and a side of summer's bounty of green beans. I used beef short ribs and they worked wonderful for this recipe. They are already trimmed and can easily be cut into 1 inch chunks. I cannot wait for you to try this and let me know what you think!

Mexican Spiced Steak Kabobs with Guacamole

Serves: 4

1.3 lbs boneless beef short ribs, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 orange bell pepper, cut into large chunks

1 red bell pepper, cut into large chunks

1 medium yellow onion, halved and then each half quartered

24 small grape tomatoes

4 Tbs olive oil

2 Tbs chili powder

3 Tbs garlic powder

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp sea salt

1.5 Tbs pepper

 For kabobs:

On six metal skewers, place the steak, peppers, onion and tomatoes, alternating each type of food on the skewer how you want it.

In a small bowl, whisk together with a fork the olive oil and spices. Baste onto prepared skewers.

Heat a grill over medium heat. Grill kabobs until steak is medium doneness- ours took about 10 minutes- turning throughout cooking. Serve with guacamole and steamed green beans.

For guacamole:

3 medium avocados, mashed

1 Tbs lime juice

2 Tbs fresh minced cilantro

Combine all ingredients and serve with kabobs.

A little help from the meat counter... Green Chile Chicken Sausage

Do you ever feel uninspired when it comes to your cooking? Do you ever want a meal that is crazy easy to make and tastes great? Me too. Hence, the above meal. Roasted Vegetables, roasted sweet potatoes and fresh made sausage from our local grocer. Just a trip to the grocery store and a little chopping is all the prep work. I have previously posted a recipe for sweet potatoes.

Let me make this note about the sausage. Beware of most sausages. They are full of spare meat parts, nitrates and tons of salt. Try to find a grocery store near you that makes their own sausage in house. I shop at our local Sunflower's Market where they make this delicious chicken sausage. They were able to tell me everything that went into it and they even have a glass window where I can see them processing the meat. Whole Foods and Earth Fare are two other options I have tried. The Chicken Apple Sausage is also great and perfect for breakfast. There are some prepackaged sausages that are okay, just make sure you read the label first and know what you are eating.

Grilled Green Chile Chicken Sausage
Serves: 4

4 medium to large green chile chicken sausages

Heat grill to medium heat. Add sausage. Cook 10-15 minutes until outsides are partially blackened and juices run clear from meat. Turn sausage every so often while cooking. Enjoy!

ROASTED VEGETABLES
Serves: 6

1 medium onion, large diced
1 red bell pepper, large diced
1 green bell pepper, large diced
2 zucchini, large diced
2 yellow squash, large diced

Place all vegetables on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Toss with 1 Tbs olive oil. Sprinkle with greek seasoning OR salt and pepper.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Snack Time: Fresh Summer Fruit

Do you ever struggle with what to eat in the hot summer afternoons? The heat is draining and you need some fuel. Make sure you reach for something healthy. There is just no fruit like summer fruit and keeping a big bowl of it chopped up in the refrigerator is the easiest way to be prepared for that afternoon hunger. Best of all, it is so sweet it tastes like a treat and you get added water from fruit! If you can afford to buy organic, please do. If not, try to find local berries. In the end, just make sure you wash the fruit well. It is always better to eat fruit of any kind that chips :)

FRESH SUMMER FRUIT

strawberries, cut into fourths

blueberries

raspberries

mango, diced

Place all fruit in a large glass bowl and store in the refrigerator. It is ready when you are hungry!

You can play with the ratio of the fruits to your liking. That is why I did not put exact amounts in the "recipe." Kiwi would also be good in this; just wash and cut it up with the peel on. The peel has great additional fresh fiber. 

Green Chili Turkey Burgers

I first made these burgers about two weeks ago and they are so good I have already made them again this week. They are called burgers because they are meat patties, but we eat them without a bun. As you can see from the photo above we had ours we a little unpasteurized cheddar cheese, mashed avocado and fresh tomato slices. It is actually heavenly. I have to thank Elana at www.elanaspantry.com for this recipe. I hope you enjoy!

GREEN CHILI TURKEY BURGERS

Serves: 4

1 (7 oz) can diced green chiles

1 lb ground turkey

1 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped

1/2 cup minced fresh onion

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp sea salt

1. In a medium sized bowl mix all ingredients together with your hands. Form into 4 patties.

2. Grill over medium heat for 4-5 minutes a side until cooked through. After flipping burgers, add cheese, if desired, in the last few minutes of cooking. 

3. Serve with mashed avocado and sliced tomato. 

Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Kabobs

This is a classic summer dish that I am so happy to get to make on my new grill. I have mentioned how much I love having a grill again! I would definitely recommend you use metal skewers because I tried it before with wood skewers and the skewers burned even though I had soaked them. This recipe is simple and delicious. It is also easy to make for a crowd. If you make a side to go with them one skewer is enough for each person. If this is the meal itself, which we did this time, each person will probably eat two skewers. I hope you will make it soon and let me know what you think!

GRILLED CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE KABOBS

Makes: 6 skewers

1 large red onion, but into large chunks

1 large red bell pepper, cut into large chunks

1 orange bell pepper, cut into large chunks

1 large yellow squash, cut into large chunks

2 green squash/ zucchini, cut into large chunks

14 cherry tomatoes of any color

1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into large chunks

1. Place/ string vegetables and chicken on skewers, alternating all the different ingredients to your liking. 

2. Drizzle skewers with olive oil and sprinkle with a grill seasoning of your choice such as Grill Shakers. 

3. Heat grill over medium heat. Grill skewers, rotating every few minutes, until the chicken is cooked through- about 10 minutes. 

4. EAT!

And here is a picture of my cute dog that is wondering why I interrupted her chilling to take pictures on her deck:)

Summer Chicken Salad with Avocado and Mango

We have been eating a LOT of salad around our house. It is just way too hot to cook with no air conditioning. It works out great, though, because we are getting to enjoy the fresh, raw deliciousness of summer produce. This salad is a version of a cobb salad without the bacon and cheese. The mango adds the best sweetness while the avocado is creamy and rich. Basically, it is perfect! 

I just made a big bowl of local lettuce and then placed all the "toppings" in separate bowls so people could add as much as they wanted of each thing. Therefore, this recipe will not have exact measurements. Just cut up as much of each ingredient as you think you need for each family member and let them have at it. I will say that one head of lettuce will feed about 2-3 people. A simple and satisfying lunch or supper. 

SUMMER CHICKEN SALAD WITH AVOCADO AND MANGO

Serves: as many people as you want!

1 head red leaf lettuce

chopped leftover grilled chicken

chopped boiled eggs (if you need to know how to boil the perfect egg check out my previous post on it)

chopped ripe avocado

chopped bell pepper of any color

chopped tomato

diced ripe mango (i like the yellow champagne mangos)

freshly ground black pepper, optional

1. Place all the lettuce in a big bowl.

2. Place other ingredients in smaller bowls of their own. 

3. Let each family member make their own salad buffet style! 

If you have any left over, throw it all in a storage container and eat it for lunch the next day!