Pineapple Cilantro Lime Marinade

Happy summertime, friends! Paul and I absolutely love firing up the grill in the summer. We both have a mild grilled-pineapple addiction, so oftentimes we throw together some shish kabobs with pineapple, bell peppers, onions, and either steak or chicken, make some rice, and boom! Dinner is done. I got to daydreaming about a marinade that would incorporate our love for pineapple and be perfect for grilling, and this pineapple cilantro lime marinade is what happened!

The smell of charcoal makes me so happy! Is that weird? Our new townhouse has a nice big back porch, so I'm excited to buy a patio set one of these days and throw a cookout! Kabobs are definitely crowd pleasers. You can get creative with different meat, fruit, and veggie combos with different marinades!

This marinade is so zesty and summery! The pineapple flavor is strong (in the best way) and the lime juice balances the sweetness nicely. I'm a sucker for cilantro, and I think it's the perfect herb in combination with the pineapple and lime. Last but not least, a little cumin and onion powder a bring some depth and a savory smokiness to the marinade. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do!

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Pineapple Cilantro Lime Marinade

Marinade for 1 lb of meat

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Marinating Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup pineapple juice

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

1 lime (for zest and juice)

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/8 tsp black pepper

1. Rinse and chop cilantro.

2. Zest the lime.

3. Juice the lime and whisk all ingredients together.

4. Mix meat and marinade together.

5. Cover meat and marinade (or seal in a zip top bag) and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

6. Cook as you please! Grilling with pineapple, bell pepper, and onion is recommended.

1. Rinse and chop the cilantro.

2. Zest the lime.

3. Juice the lime and mix all of the ingredients together! So easy.

4. & 5. Mix the meat and the marinade together, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for an hour. Putting everything in a zip lock bag in the fridge works too! Here I chopped up chicken breasts in large chunks because I happen to be making shish kabobs, but you could marinate whole pieces of chicken as well! This marinade would be fantastic with steak, fish, or pork tenderloin! 

6. Cook the meat however you like! I love this marinade in shish-kabob form. I'm a sucker for grilled pineapple! I like to chop onion, bell pepper, and pineapple into large chunks and skewer them up with the chicken and grill! Here are the details of how I chop the accompaniments - I chop the top off of the bell pepper.

6. Continued:  Cut the fleshy part of the bell pepper away from the center. Cut as much of the white ribs off as possible (I hadn't trimmed the ribs yet in this picture).

6. Continued: Cut the outsides of the pepper into 1.5-2 inch pieces.

6. Continued: For the onion. Slice the scrunched up ends off of the onion.

6. Continued: Place the flat side of the onion down on the cutting board and cut the onion in half from the top.

6. Continued: Peel the onion apart and cut into 1.5-2 inch chunks. I like to peel the onion 2 layers at a time. I usually skewer two onion pieced together. I feel like they grill better and don't burn as quickly when they are packed together a little thicker.

6. Continued: Chop the pineapple in big chunks!

Slide the chicken, pepper, onion, and pineapple onto skewers repeating the pattern until all of the pieces are skewered! I way prefer metal skewers over wooden skewers - you don't have to deal with splintering wood! Grill the skewers up and enjoy!

Stuffed Pepper Soup

I am so DELIGHTED to be finally sharing this recipe! Stuffed Pepper Soup is a staple in my kitchen and in my family but it's been so HOT outside that I haven't been able to make it until now! Lucky for me, North Florida has a lovely fall season and I finally got to bust out this classic :) As I said, I've been eating this meal as long as I can remember. My mom is not a huge fan of cooking but she LOVES making this, and everyone loves eating it. The French bread and butter is an ABSOLUTE NECESSITY. The soup is just not the same without it. Don't skip that step. It really doesn't get much more simple than this! So few ingredient, but so much flavor, it amazes me really. The beef, peppers, and tomato flavors blend beautifully together with just one standard seasoning - salt. That's it, but I promise the basic ingredients come together in a wonderful way.

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Stuffed Pepper Soup

Makes 4 Servings

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs ground beef

1/2 cup rice

1/4 cup water

1 egg

46 fl oz tomato juice

46 fl oz water

3 green bell peppers

1 loaf French bread

1/4 cup butter

Salt to taste

1. Mix tomato juice and water in a large pot and turn heat to high. Mix ground beef, rice, water, and egg in a large bowl.

2. Slice off the top third of two of the bell peppers. Cut around and discard the stems. Discard any seeds. Tightly pack meat mixture in the hollowed out bell peppers.

3. Cut the remaining bell pepper and top pieces into 1 1/2 inch cubes, discarding stems and seeds. Form the remaining meat mixture into meatballs 2 inches in diameter.

4. Add stuffed peppers, meatballs, and pepper chunks to the pot. When the pot comes to a boil, cover and turn heat to low. Simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Add salt to taste. Serve with sliced French bread and butter. 

Mix the tomato juice and water in a large pot and turn the heat to high. To make your life easy simply pour the tomato juice in, fill the tomato juice container with water, add that to the pot, and mix!

Mix the ground beef, rice, water, and egg. Simple ingredients.

Slice the top third off of two bell peppers. The larger bases will hold some of the stuffing! Discard any seeds and stems. Don't waste the pepper pieces around the stems though!

All clean.

Tightly pack the meat mixture in the hallowed out bell peppers and add them to the pot.

Chop up the other bell pepper, discarding the stems and seeds like before.

Form the remaining meat mixture into 2 inch meatballs and add all meatballs and peppers to the pot!

When the pot comes to a boil, cover and simmer on low for an hour and a half. This is another one of those meals that makes your house smell scrumptious!

Salt to taste and serve with French bread and butter. This recipe is perfect for feeding large groups of people! Depending on the size of your pot, you could fill it with more stuffed peppers and meatballs for a larger crowd. I've even had two pots going on the stove at the same time for large groups! It's definitely hungry-man approved - my boyfriend puts in requests for this soup! The flavor tastes as if you put 49189173679 times more effort into the recipe than you really did, which is always good! Enjoy this easy and hearty family recipe :)

White Chili

There's something about a big bowl of chili that warms your soul (and your hands holding the bowl) on a cold fall or winter day. That's all I want when it's cold outside really - soup! I love me some classic chili w/ beef and a tomato base, but I decided to try something a little different for this recipe. The hearty veggies and beans are all still there, but beef is swapped for chicken and the broth is chicken stock and heavy cream (YUM). The cream gives this a wonderful richness that you wouldn't normally expect for chili, but if you're being health conscious, you could skip it I suppose.  And did I mention this recipe is SO simple? Cozy up on the couch with a throw blanket and a big bowl of White Chili and prepare for comfort.

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White Chili

Makes 4 servings

Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients  (( Healthier Ingredient Substitutions ))

2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1 orange bell pepper

1 white onion

8 3/4 oz corn

31.6 oz great northern beans

9 oz chopped green chiles

32 oz unsalted chicken broth

1/4 cup heavy cream   (( skip the cream ))

2 cloves garlic

2 Tbsp butter   (( 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil ))

1 1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp black pepper

Salt to taste

1. Dice onion and bell pepper. Melt butter over medium heat in a large pot. Sauté diced onion and bell pepper for 2 minutes. Mince garlic and add to pot, sautéing for another minute.

2. Add chicken broth, heavy cream, corn, beans, chiles, chili powder, cumin, black pepper, and salt to the pot and turn heat to high. When the soup comes to a boil, turn the heat to low and simmer uncovered for an hour, stirring occasionally. Enjoy!

Chop the pepper and onion and mince the garlic! The rest of the veggies are canned, so no prep required!

Shred two fully cooked chicken breasts. Using a cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store is a fantastic shortcut here!

Saute the chopped onion and pepper in butter over medium heat in a large pot. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.

Add all other ingredients besides the heavy cream and turn the heat to high. When the chili comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for an hour. Please ignore the amount of liquid in this picture - I've edited the recipe slightly since these pictures were taken!

Mmmm the luscious creamy goodness. This recipe is so hearty and the cream adds a rich element to the broth.

Loaded with hearty veggies and shredded chicken, this chili is definitely satisfying. And you know what I think would make it even better? Some cornbread. MMM! Definitely serving it with a side of cornbread in the future!

Spicy Chicken Stir Fry

 This stir fry recipe is VERY versatile. The sauce has a great mixture of flavors that would taste great on whatever vegetables and meat you wanted to use! Salty soy sauce, rich sesame oil, some zesty lime juice, a kick from red pepper flakes, garlic, and ginger. You really can taste each element individually. Once the sauce is done, switch up the veggies and meat as you like! I'm in LOVE water chestnuts and bell peppers so they always make it into my stir fry. Go with whatever you're in the mood for and whatever is fresh!  

Spicy Chicken Stir Fry

Makes 4 servings

Total Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups rice (brown rice if you'd like)

3 cups water

2 tsp chicken bouillon 

3 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp sesame oil

1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp fresh grated ginger

1 tsp lime juice

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1 chicken breast

1 bell pepper

1/2 onion

1 head broccoli

8 oz water chestnuts

1. Mix water, rice, and chicken bouillon in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 20 minutes.

2. While rice is cooking, chop florets off broccoli head and set aside. Slice bell pepper, onion, and chicken breast. Slice skin off ginger and grate. Chop garlic.

3. Mix soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, garlic, ginger, lime juice, red pepper flakes, chicken, bell pepper, onion, and water chestnuts. Set aside.

4. Bring a pot of a few cups of water to a boil and add broccoli florets. Cook for 2 minutes and strain. Return pot to the stove and turn heat to medium high (or use a wok instead if you have one!).

5. Add strained broccoli and chicken and vegetable mixture to the pot and cook until chicken is fully cooked, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Serve with fluffed rice and enjoy!

First, get the rice set up because it takes a while to cook. Bring rice, water, and chicken bouillon to a boil, reduce the heat to low and cook covered for 20 minutes. Chop the florets off the broccoli and set  aside. These will have to cook for a few minutes before getting stir fried with everything else! 

Slice the skin off of the ginger before you grate it.

Mmm is smells delightful!

Slice up the veggies and chicken! 

Mix together everything but the broccoli and (obviously) the rice mixture.

Bring a few cups of water to a boil in a pot and cook the broccoli for two minutes. Strain the broccoli and return the pot to the stove on medium high. 

Return the broccoli to the pot along with the chicken and veggie mixture. Stir constantly and cook until the chicken is done! About 5 minutes. By this time the rice will be about done!

Serve stir fried veggies and meat over the fluffed rice and enjoy! Switch it up with steak instead of chicken and use your favorite vegetables. The spicy sauce will season your favorite stir fry ingredients beautifully!