BBQ Chicken Salad with Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

I love this salad! I love that it is a light, easy, quick to throw together, plate licking good meal. The dressing is so incredible, I seriously could drink it. The hint of bbq tops it off to pefection. For Mother's Day, my sweet husband  made me this for dinner. I just love that he knows me so well. I had been telling him lately, that I had been craving a really good salad. He must have noted that and made the perfect dinner for me! It was delicious and what was even better was that I didn't have to cook! 

Mels Kitchen Cafe is one of my amazing go to websites when I need another idea for dinner. I have tried so many of her recipes and they have all been wonderful! I made this salad for a bridal shower and everybody raved about it! It really is amazing. 

With summer coming up, this would be a perfect summer meal to make. You can just throw your chicken in the crockpot in the morning and everything else comes together really fast. Super easy delicious meal. 

BBQ Chicken Salad
Courtesy of Mels Kitchen Cafe

3 cups cooked, shredded chicken
2 cups BBQ sauce
½ head iceberg lettuce
cored and chopped
2 romaine hearts chopped
1/2 red onion diced
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cubed small or shredded
4 ounces Monterey jack cheese, cubed small or shredded

Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise, light or regular
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 to 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
DIRECTIONS:

For the salad, combine the cooked chicken and BBQ sauce in a medium bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use. In a large bowl, toss together the iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, red onion, cilantro, corn, black beans and cheese. Toss the mixed salad with about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the dressing, if desired. Otherwise, you can serve the dressing on the side. Place salad on plates and top with the prepared BBQ chicken and additional dressing.

For the dressing, combine all the ingredients together and whisk (or shake, if using a jar) vigorously to combine. You could also run this through a blender to make it even more smooth. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Marinated Tuna with Garic Lime Sauce

This is one of our family's favorite dishes, hands down. I came up with it during my first attempt at cooking fish. Yes, I had never cooked fish during the first 7 years of our marriage. I really didn't love fish and I had no idea how to cook it. Shortly after moving to Dominica, I got brave and bought some fresh yellowfin tuna from the beach (it doesn't get fresher than that).  I decided to attempt to make something with it and the flavors came together beautifully. I changed up a few recipes I use to make our favorite lime chicken. Let me tell you, it was divine. There is just something about that garlic lime cream sauce that adds a bit of perfection to the fish. I was not a huge fan of fish before coming to Dominica. But this recipe changed my ways! Yes, we are all huge fish eaters here and our kids love this dish. For those of you who aren't fish fans, or for those of you who are scared to cook fish, make this recipe. It is actually really easy. And doesn't take too long to throw together. I usually make my sauce while the fish is cooking. I promise you will love it! 

Garlic Lime Ginger Tuna Marinade
Adapted from Jen's Lime Chicken recipe

1/4 cup Sprite or 7-up
1/2- 3/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1-2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
black pepper

Marinate 1-2 hours. Grill

Garlic Lime Cream Sauce
Adapted from Emeril Lagasse

1/2 cup Sprite or 7-up
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons shallots, minced (I have used green onions when I couldn't find shallots)
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 turns freshly ground black pepper (if you don't have a pepper grinder just add a few shakes)
1/4 cup heavy cream
8 tablespoons butter (1 stick), cut up, at room temperature
Esscence Seasoning, to taste (I found this at Wal-Mart, but if you don't have this, see bottom for recipe)


Combine the soda, lime juice, shallots, garlic, cilantro, salt, pepper and Esscence seasoning in saute pan over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce by half. (Or just boil for about 7 minutes).  Stir in the cream and simmer for 3 minutes. Whisk in the butter and remove from the heat. Continue whisking until all of the butter is incorporated. Garnish with chopped green onion. Serve over grilled Garlic Lime Ginger Tuna.

*Note: Evaporated milk can be substituted for the heavy cream. I have made it with both and it does not affect the taste or texture.

Emeril's Esscence Seasoning

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablspoon dried leaf oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight jar or container.

Beef Stroganoff

Clearly we have been in a bit of a mushroom mood lately! I made this the other night and it was like a little taste of home. It is like a spruced up version of my Mom's homemade Stroganoff. It is so easy to throw together and everybody loved it! And when I say "loved it", I'm talking all of my boys went back for seconds and thirds! So creamy and delicious!

Beef Stroganoff
Adapted from Paula Dean

1 pound ground beef
All-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
3/4 cup beef broth
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
salt and black pepper
1 cup sour cream
cooked egg noodles

Cook ground beef. Drain fat. Set aside. In another pan, saute onions, garlic and mushrooms in the butter and oil. Saute for a few minutes, until the onion is tender. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon flour. Put the beef back into the pan with the onion and mushrooms. Add the mushroom soup and beef broth. Cook over low heat for about 30 minutes, covered. Adjust seasoning to taste, adding salt and pepper, as needed. Stir in the sour cream the last few minutes, right before you serve. Serve over cooked noodles.

Mushroom Marinara Sauce

Spaghetti is one of those super easy meals that makes a frequent appearance at our house. For two reasons- it is an inexpensive meal and it is quick and easy to throw together! Seriously, I can have a good dinner ready in under 30 minutes! I am not talking open up a can of spaghetti sauce, I am talking- yummy homemade spaghetti sauce! It has seemed like life is so crazy lately, and a few nights out of the week we are getting home late and need some quick easy meals to be able to throw together.

I have been searching for the perfect marinara sauce recipe for quite some time. I have tried a lot of different recipes that have been ok, but none that have wowed me. I have tried a few different combinations and thrown in a few different things in my attempt to make a great marinara sauce. I am really picky when it comes to spaghetti. I'm not a big fan of store bought spaghetti sauce. And I hate it when the noodles are overdone. Seriously, it is amazing how much of a difference it makes when you have a great sauce and perfectly "al dente" noodles!

The other night I think that I finally came up with a winning combination! I threw in some mushrooms and I think that made all the difference! This comes together so fast and tastes wonderful! It would be perfection topped with a few Italian meatballs!

Mushroom Marinara

3 Tablespoons EVOO
4 Tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, diced (or 2 small onions)
3 teaspoons garlic
1- 8 ounce container mushrooms, sliced
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
1- 6 ounce can tomato paste
1- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
1/8 cup beef broth
1/2 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon Chicken Flavor
1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
salt
pepper
crushed red pepper

In a large sauce pan heat EVOO and butter over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic. Cook about 2 minutes then add in the mushrooms. After the mushrooms are sauteed to perfection, turn off heat and stir in Parmesan cheese.

In a blender, combine diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Blend. I don't puree mine completely, I like it a little chunky. Then add tomatoes to mushroom/cheese mixture and heat over medium heat. Add tomato sauce, beef broth, chicken bouillon, balsamic vinegar, and brown sugar. Add salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to taste. {Depending on how much heat you want depends on how much crushed red pepper to add. I usually shake a few shakes in.} Simmer for 15- 30 minutest. Serve!

New Name, New Look, New Blog!

Some of you might notice a little change with the name and look of the blog! I can thank my friend Katie Price at Priceless Design Studio for that! Though I probably drove her completely in sane with my indecisiveness, she came up with an amazingly lovely design. I love it! Since the change, I have added a few more posts- so take a look around. It is still a work in progress, but it is done! Yay! I am so excited to have a real home to house my recipes and ideas! Welcome to Lovely!