Jalapeño, Jack & Bacon Breakfast Grits

Grits are one of those foods that can be completely disgusting or simply amazing. It's all in the way they are prepared. Luckily, working at a BBQ restaurant for 4 years gave me exposure to some delicious cheddar grits, and I have always been a fan. 

My boyfriend was reluctant to try this, as he has only tried the slimy, tasteless version. I promised him that he would like my recipe, I mean, how could he not? My grits have cheese, bacon, and jalapeños. That's a winning combination. Is decided to top it all off with a fried egg, and it was amazing! The yolk combined with the spice of the peppers, the salt of the bacon, and the richness of the cheese is simply amazing! 

Jalapeño, Jack & Bacon Breakfast Grits

Ingredients:

8 slices thick-cut bacon, diced

2 small or 1 large jalapeño, seeded and diced

1 cup skimmed milk

3 cups low sodium chicken broth 

1 1/2 cups hot water

1/2 cups corn grits/polenta

1 tsp. salt

2 cups reduced fat shredded Colby Jack cheese, divided

4 eggs

1/4 cup green onions, sliced (for garnish)

Directions:

1. In large sauté pan or cast iron, add bacon and jalapeños. Cook over medium heat until bacon is crispy. 

2. Remove from heat, transfer bacon and peppers on to plate with paper towel. Pat with towel to remove grease. Drain grease from pan and set aside. 

3. In large sauce pan, add milk, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil and slowly add the grits and stir with whisk. Reduce heat and continue simmering 5-7 minutes or until grits have thickened, stirring frequently. 

4. In the mean time, fry eggs in frypan used for cooking bacon. I prefer mine sunny-side up, but cook eggs however you like them. Remove eggs from pan and set aside. 

5. Once grits reach desired consistency, add salt, bacon, jalapeños and half of the cheese. 

6. Transfer to fry pan, top with remaining cheese and broil in oven 2-3 minutes to melt cheese.  

7. Top with green onions, spoon evenly in to four bowls and top each with 1 fried egg. Enjoy!

Coconut Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins

Coconut Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins 

Tis' the season for an abundance of zucchini! Summer means zucchini overload, which is fine by me! My grandma gave me some zucchini from her garden this past weekend. I just happened to have all the ingredients to whip up some zucchini bread, and decided to put a little twist on it. If you follow my blog you know about my coconut obsession, so I opted to go in a sweet direction, adding coconut oil, shredded coconut, and some chocolate chips! At about 250 calories per muffin, this recipe is perfect for breakfast or a low-guilt dessert! 

Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 medium zucchini, shredded squeezed and drained

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1 large egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin pan and set aside. 

2. In large bowl whisk together both flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt. 

3. In another bowl, mix together zucchini, sugars, oil, egg, and extracts. 

4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Finally, mix in shredded coconut and chocolate chips. 

5. Spoon mixture evenly in to muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes and remove from tin. Enjoy!

Easy Weeknight Chicken Teriyaki

Easy Weeknight Chicken Teriyaki

Cooking a healthy dinner every night might be difficult for those of us who are super busy. Don't resort to greasy, fatty, high-calorie and low nutrition options at fast food restaurants! This recipe is perfect for a quick and healthy week night meal. This recipe is also a great dish for meal prepping. Just cook up a big pan and portion out for the rest of the week! Yum!

Ingredients:

1 tbsp. olive oil or coconut oil

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, chopped in to bite-sized pieces

1 bag fresh or frozen stir-fry vegetable mix

1 small can water chestnuts

1 small can baby corn

1/2 bottle Teriyaki sauce

Sriracha chili sauce to taste

Directions:

1. In large fry pan, heat oil on medium heat. Add chicken breasts. Sautée until cook thoroughly, stirring every few minutes. 

2. Add vegetable mix, water chestnuts, and baby corn to pan. Drizzle with teriyaki sauce and mix well. Cover pan and let simmer about 7-10 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring every few minutes. 

3. Add sriracha sauce and additional teriyaki sauce if desired. Serve over rice or chow mein noodles.

4. If you're feeling fancy, garnish with sriracha drizzles and chopped green onion.

Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

I've said it a million times, breakfast is by far my favorite meal of the day, hands down. However, finding the motivation to cook breakfast every day is hard. This recipe is great because you get all the delicious layers of breakfast-y goodness and you can prepare it the night before! My recipe makes enough for 2-4, but double it and make enough for company too! My recipe below gives low-cal substitutions for those of you watching your weight! Yum!

Ingredients:

4 uncooked Johnsonville original breakfast sausage patties (or 1/2 log Jennie-O turkey breakfast sausage or 1 cup Morning Star Farms breakfast sausage crumbles)

1 tsp oregano, divided 

4 large eggs (or 6 egg whites)

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 cup Mexican Four Cheese Shredded Cheese (or light/reduced fat shredded cheese blend), divided

20 frozen Ore-Ida Crispy Crowns tater tots (or sweet potato tots)

1 tbsp chives, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. 

2. In fry pan, cook and crumble sausage until fully cooked, stirring frequently. Drain excess grease and add 1/2 tsp oregano. Spread evenly across bottom of small casserole dish. 

3. In cereal bowl, whip together eggs with fork. Season with salt, pepper and remaining oregano. Pour over sausage in casserole dish. 

4. Sprinkle 1/4 cup shredded cheese over egg mixture. Place tater tots evenly across top of egg mixture. 

5. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until eggs are fully cooked. Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese and bake an additional 5 minutes. 

6. Allow casserole to cool 5-10 minutes. Garnish with chives and enjoy!