Herb Crusted Chicken Tenders

These little bite size treats taste great on a salad, dipped in Sweet and Sour Sauce or cold for lunch. The Panko Bread Crumbs give it a more Japanese flare and make them more crunchy. This is also great when madde with eggplant instead of chicken.

Ingredients
Chicken tenders, about one pound
2 brown eggs
EVOO
T Herb De Provence
1/4 cup Almond Milk
salt and pepper
2 cups Panko Bread Crumbs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Drizzle EVOO in a 9 x 12 pan and brush the bottom.
Mix eggs and Almond Milk in a pie plate.
Combined Panko Bread Crumbs, Herbs, Salt and Pepper.
Dredge Chicken in the egg mixture then in the bread crumbs.
Place breaded chicken in the 9 x 12 pan.
Sprinkle with EVOO
Cook for 45 minutes or until brown and crunchy.

Open Faced Breakfast Sandwich

My new fast go-to breakfast layers spinach, eggs and cheese over multi-grain bread. After cooking I flip the whole thing onto a warm piece of toast and the cheese continues to melt. Your first bite is a delicious blend of spinach, gooey egg yolk and melted cheese.

Ingredients
handful of fresh spinach
1 brown egg
EVOO
Tabasco sauce
slice of your favorite cheese (I like American)
1 piece of toasted multi-grain bread
salt and pepper

Directions
Hear small frying pann and drizzel in EVOO.
Add Salt and Pepper.
Add Spinach and stir until almost cooked.
Add egg on top without breaking yolk.
Cook 3 to 4 minutes.
Flip and add lice of cheese cooking only 30 more seconds.
Place cheese size down on to the multi-grain toast.
Drizzle with Tabasco Sauce.

To Vegan or Not To Vegan? That is the question. My answer... Not.

Many of my friends have been asking me if I am vegan. Some even went so far as to almost not invite me to a fabulous event this weekend- Chicago Gourmet; an interactive, epicurean affair showcasing more than 100 of Chicago’s finest restaurants and chefs, as well as hundreds of renowned vintners, spirit makers and premium breweries from around the world. It's held at in spectacular Millennium Park! I mean come on. I am a foodie through and through, to miss this event would have been a travesty not only to me but to all of you who enjoy reading the blog and get inspired to dabble in these recipes.

So here it is, am I a vegan? No. Do I like to try vegan-inspired meals? Yes.

I believe we need to eat what our bodies tell us it needs. For me, my body often revolts against sugars and some meats and often loves, to the point of never wanting to let it go, breads. I try to introduce a fair and balanced diet to myself (often times by trial and error) and a blog filled with yummy fresh foods. Sometimes this is a vegetarian dish, sometime a vegan and sometimes we throw in some meat.

The summer months are easy to experiment and go vegan. With all the fresh veggies available to us, our activity is up, we are not feeling that sense of cocooning and cooking hearty foods.

But fare not my maidens, non-vegan, non-vegetarian recipes are still on their way so keep up with The Fresh Foodie. But in general... eat more fruits and veggies.. PLEASE????

Bananalicious Vanilla Ice Cream

This is a simple, vegan ice cream with no added sugar. I peel my bananas, place them in a baggie then freeze them for ease to use later.

Ingredients:
3 frozen bananas
1 tsp. vanilla [use high quality vanilla or vanilla bean to get the best flavor]
1/4 c. almond milk

Directions:
Using your Vitamix or food processor, cut up frozen bananas and add vanilla.
Begin to blend and slowly add almond milk. Add more almond milk if it is too sticky.

Do You Measure Up? I Don't

I don't bake. Really, I don't bake. My dyslexia (for real I have it) doesn't allow me to measure and put items in in a certain order at a certain time. When I have tried to bake in the past my daughter Anna will come to the kitchen once the goods are in the oven and say, "What's that mom?" I turn to look to see I forgot to add the sugar, eggs or flour! As I move to a more healthy diet and a diet without dairy and meats, these baked goods do not fit to well with the lifestyle so, SO LONG TO BAKING! I'll leave it to the pros (or Anna).

As I meditated on this, I realized, when I am writing the food blog I pick up the measuring cups and measure the ingredients simply to give you an idea on how much I am using but really, I don't measure. It got me thinking, if I don't measure, how many other people don't want to measure? So from this day forward I WON'T MEASURE UP! Fresh Foodie Blogs will give you measurements like this:
a 15 oz can of this
a handful of that
three medium size of the other thing.

For you who get anxiety and are new to cooking, I'll include (for now) the measurement using cups, teaspoons and tablespoons. But to really begin getting creative in the Fresh Foodie Lifestyle, to make exciting and appealing meals for you and your family, detach and Don't Measure Up, just do your thing!

Don't Attach To Your Spices: Out with the Old in with the New!

You know me, I love my herbs fresh from the garden. But living in Illinois, the garden only lasts a few months. At the end of the season we can take our left over herbs, add them to ice trays, put a little water in the ice trays, freeze them and pull them out in the winter months to use them. But come on! Not all herbs and spices can be grown in our back yard so, off the store we go!

But first, open your spice cupboard. If its anything like mine, the spices will come tumbling down: three paprikas (my hubby's go to spice), 2 celery salts and too many cinnamon to count. But when do these go bad? In cleaning up my spice drawers this morning the first thing I thought (seriously) was how many calories am I burning?! Up and down the chair, over to the trash can, reach and pull, I even think few yoga poses showed up while doing this. What I found was many out dated spices (who knew) and some spices that do not even have "best when sold by" date. Are they good, are they bad (and some were just plain ugly!)

Most foodies will tell you that spices loose their flavors after six months. The manufactures will go longer with this (helps them jack up the prices). If your spice has an expiration date longer than today, obviously throw it out. If the expiration date is over six months from today, here's what I do. I open it take a yummy sniff and if I don't smell a strong scent; i.e. if I can't tell what spice it is with my eyes closed, trashola!

Heading to the grocer, be careful not to buy too many weird herbs that you may pay $6.00 for and only use one. Also, be mindful not to buy too many HUGE containers of herbs because remember, we are now buying six months worth. If a recipe calls for one of these (weird) spices, get creative and swap that spice for one you have on hand. When eating out, notice spices in some of your meals that you like. Ask the waiter (if you don't know) what the spice is and bring this new spice into your repertoire because now you know you like it and it's time to invest in a six months supply!

Clean, purge, organize and getting ready for a great next season of cooking! (While your at it, move on over to the vitamin and medicine cabinet. Chances are they need a bit of a purge as well.)

Almond Kisses

As I try to go more dairy-free, this recipe came to me as my cravings for my beloved Hershey Kisses wouldn't end. The honey adds a bit of caramel taste and the texture is sure to remind you of a turtle candy. I keep mine in the freezer until I crave them as I think they taste better that way.

Tools
Cookie Sheet
Parchment Paper

Ingredients
1/2 cup vegan carob chips
1 cup Dry roasted with sea salt almonds
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon honey (local is best)

Directions
Add carob chips and honey to a microwave safe bowl and melt 30 seconds.
Stir mixture and melt for another 30 seconds.
Immediately dip almond "tops" into the mixture and place on a parchment covered cookie sheet.
Repeat until done.
If the carob becomes too sticky, melt again for 20 seconds, stir and continue.

Place candy in the freezer for at least one hour.