Week 49 - Pretzels & Pomegranates

PDF Version of Meal Plan

We were hit with a little bug this week... luckily nothing too severe but as a result the menu was altered slightly.  I'm posting it as it was planned.  Also, because we were busy decorating, shopping, making treats for work, etc... I had planned a week that included mostly standard fare - ie. food that I could make quickly and without having to refer to recipes.  

Recipe Links

Almond Milk, Oh She Glows
Mushroom & Beef Barley Soup, Our Ohio
Simple Turkey Chili, AllRecipes.com
Easy Overnight Oatmeal, Marin Mama Cooks
Chia Jam, Eat Good 4 Life
Pretzel Chicken Bites, Kirstin Schell
Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Vegan Parmesan, Oh She Glows
Pumpkin Spelt Muffins, 100 Days of Real Food
Freezer Chocolates, Practical Paleo

Meal in the Spotlight

 

Pretzel Chicken

Since the menu this week was filled with meals I've made and reviewed numerous times I'll just talk about the one new recipe we tried that happened to be a big hit with everyone.  My sister sent me a link for this recipe saying she tried it last week and really liked it.  Marin's been loving pretzels lately so it was definately worth a shot.

A couple of modifications I made to the recipe:

1. I cooked mine in a skillet using just enough coconut oil to coat the pan and added a little more after I flipped the chicken so that each side was nicely crisped... but not quite deep-fried.  My sister baked hers and said they turned out great that way too. 
2. I used only about 1/8 cup of Maple Syrup.  I couldn't justify using 1/2 cup of my precious maple syrup for dipping raw chicken.  I thought they were still plenty sweet, but the coconut oil may have helped with that too.

The results - awesome!  We all loved them.  The chicken was moist and tasty, with a nice crunchy coating.  I ate one cold and it was great that way too so double the recipe and pack leftovers for lunch!

And since I didn't plan to write my post this way I didn't even pause to think about taking a picture. But speaking of pretzels... I fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) realized this week how easy it is to make soft pretzels!!  That could be dangerous!  I made this batch of pretzel bites to share at work.  Yummm-mee!

Pretzel Bites

Tip of the Week 

De-seeding Pomegranate

I just happened to stumble on this tip this week and seriously... it blew my mind!  I used to de-seed pomegranate by breaking it in pieces and pulling the seeds out.  Messy and time-consuming.  Then I came across the "bowl of water" tip... basically the same technique but you pull the seeds in a bowl of water.  Less messy but still time-consuming.  When I watched this video I was skeptical that it could be that easy but I tried it and it worked exactly like it did in the video!!  Seriously.  Fast, not too messy and actually pretty darn fun.  Another bonus is the seeds fall out really clean.  Plus the guy in the video is pretty cute so it's worth a watch even if you don't like pomegranate.  Here's a festive looking treat you can make to test this out... Dark Chocolate Pomegranate and Ginger Bark.  Sounds delicious!

 

Pomegranate - before and after de-seeding

Happy Weekend!

Sandra