Jacket Potatoes

Jacket potatoes were my favorite restaurant entrée when I visited London. Not only are they delicious, but they were often the most economical choice on the menu. Quite simply, they're a loaded baked potato, but instead of the American tradition of chili or bacon and cheese, I chose to recreate an option I commonly went for when I was Britt acting as a Brit: tuna with corn and a sprinkle of cheese. It's like a tuna melt, only with a bit of Irish potato-ness to really warm your heart and your belly.

The Edibles:

• non-stick olive oil cooking spray
• tuna salad, about 2 cans-worth (either your own favorite recipe or I provided mine below)
• several pats of butter (1-2 T.)
• about 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
• optional: balsamic vinaigrette dressing

The Making:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Cook potatoes in microwave until soft (mine took about 4 minutes). Allow to cool for several minutes before handling.
3. Place potatoes on a piece of aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray. Crumble the sides of the foil around the potato. This will keep the potato together and make it easier to remove from the pan once cooked.
4. Cut down the longer length of potato, not all the way through. Cut several times across and push longer sides together to open. Use a fork to break apart potato flesh. Add a pat of butter to the flesh and spread around the inside.
5. Disperse tuna salad evenly amongst the opened potatoes. Spray potatoes generously with olive oil cooking spray. Top tuna mixture with as much shredded cheese as you like.
6. Bake in the oven 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and browning. Drizzle with a bit of balsamic vinaigrette if desired.

Tuna Salad (The Edibles... just mix together):

• 2 cans albacore tuna, drained and flaked
• 2-3 T. miracle whip or mayonaise
• 2 T. honey dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp. dried dill
• 1/2 tsp. dried chives
• 1 tsp. dried garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1/2 tsp. coriander
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 c. frozen corn

Watermelon Feta Salad on a Stick

It's officially summer. Despite the negatives that I associate with Chicago in the summertime (such as pressing up against sweaty commuters in a crowded train that smells like B.O.), there are overwhelming positives that make that El ride more bearable. One of my favorite things about summer is the fresh produce. It's the season for berries, tomatoes, and melons, and knowing this I rushed out and purchased my first (and most definitely not my last) watermelon.

This coupling has been on my mind since last summer. I love feta, I love watermelon, so the thought of pairing the two in a salad or something like that sounded simply marvelous. Feeling somewhat lazy and not really willing to make the trek to the grocery store to pick up any additional ingredients, I chose to make a small, simple appetizer that provides all the beauty of this sweet and salty combination. In the meantime, feel free to drool over this salad that inspired all of my desires. Perhaps a copy-cat (with variations, of course) will follow in the near future.

The Stuff:

• toothpicks (if you're feeling fancy)

The Edibles:

• watermelon, cut into large chunks
• fresh spinach
• crumbled feta
• balsamic vinaigrette

The Making:

1. Place one chunk watermelon atop one spinach leaf and top with a pinch of feta. Poke toothpick through spinach leaf, securing the watermelon in the spinach envelope. Drizzle lightly with balsamic vinaigrette. Serve to your most distinguished guests.

One Super Salad

I take my salads very seriously. I have noticed that there are quite a few people out there that are completely oblivious to just how marvelous and exciting a salad can be. If you're mindful of your portions, salads can be healthful and chocked full with high-flavor additions.

So today I feature a salad that stands as an example for just how beautiful, filling, and satisfying a salad can be. Change up the ingredients based on your tastes and what you have on hand. My rule of thumb is to always have a few colorful vegetables, something crunchy, something creamy, something with some healthy fats, and something just for fun. I'm always a fan of a beautiful plate, and this one really made me smile as I ate.

The Edibles (serves 1):

• 1/4 red bell pepper, chopped into large pieces
• 1/4 yellow bell pepper, chopped into large pieces
• 1/4 of a pint of cherry (or grape) tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1 large carrot, peeled and sliced thinly
• 1/4 of an avocado
• handful of real bacon bits
• about 2 T. hummus
• about 2 T. dried edamame
• about 2 T. crumbled feta cheese
• 1 small can albacore tuna
• homemade croutons (as many as you like), recipe below*
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 T. creamy balsamic vinaigrette (from Trader Joes)

The Making (for the croutons):

1. Preheat your oven to low broil. (You can also use high, but you'll have to watch them carefully).
2. To make croutons, tear up a slice or two of your favorite multi-grain bread into bite-size pieces. Spray with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkle with garlic powder, Italian seasoning (or just use oregano, parsley, basil, etc.), and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Broil the croutons; stay close to the oven, because they will cook quick. Once they begin to brown, flip them over and low broil on the other side. (Alternatively, if you're not feeling the whole "flip over each piece" idea, you can just cook on one side for a less all-over-crispy crouton.)

The Making (for the salad):

1. Arrange salad components on your plate. Be creative!

Rainbow Pasta Salad

I feel like meals are much more satisfying when they are visually appealing, and one way to do this is to incorporate a range of bright and colorful fruits and vegetables in your dishes. Word on the street is that different-colored foods offer different health benefits.

Here's the low-down by color (source):

Red fruits and vegetables: Contain nutrients such as lycopene, ellagic acid, Quercetin, and Hesperidin, to name a few. These nutrients reduce the risk of prostate cancer, lower blood pressure, reduce tumor growth and LDL cholesterol levels, scavenge harmful free-radicals, and support join tissue in arthritis cases.

Orange and Yellow fruits and vegetables: Contain beta-carotene, zeaxanthin, flavonoids, lycopene, potassium, and vitamin C. These nutrients reduce age-related macula degeneration and the risk of prostate cancer, lower LDL cholesterol and blood pressure, promote collagen formation and healthy joints, fight harmful free radicals, encourage alkaline balance, and work with magnesium and calcium to build healthy bones.

Green vegetables and fruit: Green vegetables contain chlorophyll, fiber, lutein, zeaxanthin, calcium, folate, vitamin C, calcium, and Beta-carotene. The nutrients found in these vegetables reduce cancer risks, lower blood pressure and LDL cholesterol levels, normalize digestion time, support retinal health and vision, fight harmful free-radicals, and boost immune system activity.

Blue and purple fruits and vegetables: Contain nutrients which include lutein, zeaxanthin, resveratrol, vitamin C, fiber, flavonoids, ellagic acid, and quercetin. Similar to the previous nutrients, these nutrients support retinal health, lower LDL cholesterol, boost immune system activity, support healthy digestion, improve calcium and other mineral absorption, fight inflammation, reduce tumor growth, act as an anticarcinogens in the digestive tract, and limit the activity of cancer cells.

White fruits and vegetables: Contain nutrients such as beta-glucans, EGCG, SDG, and lignans that provide powerful immune boosting activity. These nutrients also activate natural killer B and T cells, reduce the risk of colon, breast, and prostate cancers, and balance hormone levels, reducing the risk of hormone-related cancers.

Which leads me to share an almost embarrassingly easy concoction I whipped up. Its ease really makes me want to refer to it as a "non-recipe," because let's be honest, a pasta salad loaded with vegetables is really not original at all. Nevertheless, I wanted to share it if only to promote cooking with color.

To cook the chicken (which can totally be omitted if you're a vegetarian, Jeanne), I chose to braise it in my crock pot. When cooked this way, I have found that the chicken shreds way more easily than boiling, baking, or grilling. In fact I would argue that 6 hours on low, slowly cooking in chicken broth spiced with some garlic is really the only way to go with this one. If you plan ahead, this dish is a quick, fresh, and healthy dinner that you can have on the table in less than 30 minutes. And no, I am not the next Rachel Ray.

The Edibles:

• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced (or equivalent in jarred or powdered garlic)
• 2 halves of pepper of different colors, largely diced (I used green and yellow)
• 1 c. cherry/grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 c. carrots, sliced into matchsticks
• 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• 1/4 c. crumbled feta cheese
• 1 c. cooked pasta
• Britt's balsamic vinaigrette (see recipe below)

The Making:

1. Turn on stove to medium and cover a medium-sized sauté pan with olive oil cooking spray. Place garlic in the pan; once it begins to sizzle, dump onion in and stir frequently.
2. Let onion cook for 3-5 minutes, or until it is slightly translucent and has lost its super-oniony bite. Remove from heat.
3. Layer all the ingredients into an extremely large mixing bowl. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste, if desired. Cover salad and refrigerate at least one hour, or dive in if you're impatient like me!

Britt's Balsamic Vinaigrette

The Stuff:

• 1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 c. water
• 2 T. spicy or honey dijon mustard
• 1 T. olive oil
• generous shake of dried oregano
• generous shake of dried basil
• 1 clove garlic, or equivalent in jarred or powdered
• 1 & 1/2 tsp. sugar or 1 tsp. honey (cut this in half if you are using honey mustard)

The Making:

1. This one is tough. Combine all the ingredients together, and let it sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.