The recipe for Asian Almond Slaw Salad was developed in partnership with Fisher Nuts.

Anyone have Spring Fever yet? I think it’s safe to say always have spring fever, for the most part. Our weather situation in Florida is nothing to complain about but I cherish the small pocket of time it feels like spring here, which is right about now. I spent most of this last weekend in the yard trimming landscaping and planning for flowers. Cleaning up my herb pots is next on the list. Nothing feels as good to me as a few hours of work in the sunshine (when it’s not sweltering hot).

This is the time of year that I am also ready to get back in the salad. I say that all the time but January is just not a big salad month for me, and I have to be honest, I’m missing raw, crunchy veggies in my life right now. I pulled together this Asian Almond Slaw Salad in honor of getting back in the salad and sharing a heart healthy recipe with you since February is American Heart Month. I think it’s safe to say you already know that fresh fruits and veggies are considered heart healthy foods, but did you know that nuts are too?

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Are you all familiar with Instagram? I know some of you are (since I follow a few of you who follow this blog). Instagram, for those of you who don’t know, is a fun little photo-inspired social media hang out. It’s a happy place, a community of some sort, where you can keep up with others (and vice versa) through the eyes of the camera on your phone. And if you aren’t into the whole sharing thing, it’s all good because there’s also a private option which enables you to use all the creative filters Instagram offers without having to make those photos public. Fun stuff.

So what does Instagram have to do with this Stuffed Cabbage Casserole? Well, I’ve met some pretty cool people through Instagram, not sure how honestly, but I can tell you if you post any picture that happens to do with food, healthy living, the beach or flowers then I pretty much get sucked in. I follow a gal named Powercakes on Instagram and have spent some time exploring her blog lately. It’s full of fitness inspiration as well as really great clean recipes, one of which inspired this version of Stuffed Cabbage Casserole.

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One of the recipes that was shared with us during the Bush’s Beans Culinary Event was these delicious scallop tacos.  I will admit, I was not a huge scallop fan until I tried these.  I have ordered scallops a few times out at restaurants and I just wasn’t thrilled with the texture or taste.  I never say never when it comes to food, so I was excited to try them again.  Jeffrey Saad created this recipe for us and demonstrated how to perfectly sear the scallops during his presentation.  I learned how important it is that your seafood (or any meat that you are going to sear) is dry before putting it into the hot skillet.  This ensures that the scallop (or whatever you are searing) gets that crisp outer crust that searing is all about…if water is left on the scallop then the result is more of a steamed scallop…and that is not what you want when you are searing.  Make sense?

(touch your food…best way to when to know the scallops are done is when they bounce a bit after being poked.  If they are mushy then they still need more time.  Let them spring back at you a bit…and don’t overcook.  Keep in mind they will continue to cook for a bit after you take them off heat.)

I made these the weekend after I got home from my trip for my hubby and a couple of friends.  I think it’s safe to say they were a HIT.  They were pretty easy to put together once I got some of the prep work out of the way earlier in the day.  I shredded the cabbage, made the beans, the chipotle sour cream, the green chile chutney earlier that afternoon…which left just searing the scallops and toasting up the tortillas when it was time to eat.  I set it up as an assembly line on the kitchen counter and we all had fun putting our tacos together.  They were DELICIOUS.

(Team Scallop:  Kristen, Sandy, Cheryl and Laura cooking alongside Jeffrey Saad)

The green chile chutney was the star of the show in my opinion.  Wow, I’ve never tasted anything like it.  I didn’t have a jalapeno so I substituted a red onion to balance out the heat with more sweet.  It was amazing.  During the cooking event, I picked Jeffrey’s brain about pickling and chutneys so I was excited to try this out.  Once made it can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 weeks…it would make a great topping for just about anything…sandwiches, eggs, salads, rice….seriously anything.

If you watch Cooking Channel then you may have seen that Jeffrey has a fun new show coming out…United Tastes of America actually premieres today!  I’m excited to watch as he explores food on a whole other level!

BUSH’S® Seared Scallop Tacos with Black Beans and Green Chile Chutney

Ingredients:

For Scallop Tacos:

• 8 large sea scallops
• Salt and pepper
• 1 Tbsp  canola oil
• ½ cup  cabbage, shredded
• 6 each  corn or flour tortillas

For Black Beans:

• 1 clove  garlic, chopped
• 1 can (15 oz)  BUSH’S® Black Beans, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup  chicken broth
• 1 tsp  smoked paprika

For Green Chile Chutney:

• 6 each Anaheim green chile
• 1 tsp  cumin seed, toasted and ground
• 2 tsp  oregano, toasted and ground
• ¼ cup  apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup  sugar
• ½ tsp  kosher salt
• 1 each  red onion, chopped  (original recipe uses jalapeno)

For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream:

• 1 can (7 oz) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice

Directions:

1. To roast peppers:
   Blacken Anaheim chiles over an open flame (holding chiles with tongs) or broiler.  Place chiles in small bowl and cover with aluminum foil to allow skin to steam loose.  After 10 minutes, wipe off skin with fingers.  Seed and chop into ½" pieces.
2. For Scallops:
   Pat scallops dry and remove rubbery lip from side of each scallop.  Season with salt and pepper.
   Add oil to medium sauté pan over medium high heat.  Once oil is hot (you see a haze coming off the oil), add scallops to pan.  Sear until you have a nice golden crust.  Flip scallops over and continue cooking until you see the side of the scallop go from translucent to opaque.  Remove from pan and set aside.
3. For Black Beans:
   Add garlic to the same sauté pan.  Stir briefly just to soften then add beans, chicken broth and paprika.  Turn to low and cook 5 minutes.  Set aside to cool.
4. For Green Chile Chutney:
   In a medium size skillet (non-stick is ideal) over medium high heat add cumin and oregano.  Toast for 1 minute just until you can smell the cumin and oregano.  Immediately add vinegar, (don't breathe in as the vapor of the vinegar rises) sugar and salt.  Bring to a boil.  Add Anaheim chiles and red onion (or jalapeno) and simmer until a thick sauce consistency (about 8 minutes).  The chutney will thicken as it cools so stop cooking when the chutney is still saucy (easily flows from side to side as you tilt the pan).  Using a rubber spatula move chutney into a small bowl and let cool. The remaining chutney will last for three weeks in the refrigerator.
5. For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream:
   Puree chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in a blender or food processor.  In a medium bowl mix together 1 teaspoon of chipotle puree, sour cream and salt.  Squeeze in lime juice and mix well. (Tip: store rest of chipotle puree in small ziplocks in freezer. I portioned out 2 tablespoons into snack size baggies.)
6. Toast tortillas over an open flame (using tongs), in a non-stick pan or under the broiler and lay on plate.
7. Place three tablespoons of black beans across each tortilla.
8. Cut the scallops into rough ½" pieces and lay on tortilla.
9. Top with the chutney, cabbage and chipotle chile sour cream mixture and serve.

Created for BUSH’S® Beans by Jeffrey Saad, Chef, Culinary Entrepreneur and Host of “United Tastes of America” for the Cooking Channel.

Good luck with the new show Jeffrey!

All of these fantastic culinary event photos were taken by Faith Echtermeyer of St. Helena, CA.  Thank you so much Faith!

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Before I get into this week’s Craving Ellie in my Belly recipe, I wanted to tell you all that Aggie’s Kitchen was included in RN Central’s Top 100 Healthy Mom Blogs! I was very excited and honored about this since this is my first time ever being included in any type of “list”…go check it out, there are so many mom related blogs listed full of lots of great information!!
Thank you so much RN Central!

Now on to this week’s recipe…Sesame Stir Fried Chinese Greens. This recipe was chosen by Joanne of Apple Crumbles…don’t you just love that name? 😉 Check out the CEimB group page to see how everyone cooked up this recipe!

I used a combination of Napa Cabbage and Bok Choy and served it with Mary Ann’s Zucchini and Chicken Stir Fry. I thought the greens turned out very good, but mine seemed to be a bit watery. I think it might have been my fault, I didn’t really take the time to dry them out after rinsing them so a lot of the leftover water must have landed into the pan. I am curious to see what everyone else in the CEimB group thinks of this recipe, I felt like it might have been missing something…maybe it needed a little kick or something? It still was a great, quick and light side dish…perfect for an Asian inspired meal. I think next time it would go perfect with a nice piece of marinated grilled chicken or fish.

Sesame Stir Fried Chinese Greens

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 2 pounds baby bok choy or Napa cabbage, sliced thin
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Directions:

1. In a wok or large frying pan heat the oil over high heat until very hot. Add the bok choy and stir-fry until they begin to soften slightly, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil and cook until just done, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Recipe by Ellie Krieger

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Check out Food Network for a printable version of this recipe!

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