Chicken Quinoa Lettuce Wraps

Chicken Quinoa Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa (omit if no carb allowed at dinner)
1lb of chicken
1 bunch of romaine lettuce
½ cup red bell peppers
½ cup cucumber
¼ cup red onion
½ cup cilantro
2 tbsp Olive oil (use only 1 tbsp if you are only making 1 serving)
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
Splash of rice wine vinegar
Salt/Pepper to taste

Directions:

1.) Cook 1 cup of quinoa in 2 cups of water, bring to boil then immediately turn down to medium/low, cover and let simmer for 10-12 minutes.  Let cool. 
2.) Mince/chop chicken – cook in pan with a misting of olive oil. Add a little salt/pepper to chicken.
3.) Chop veggies, wash romaine lettuce.
4.) Mix all veggies in large bowl. Add olive oil, lemon or lime juice, and vinegar.
5.) Weight out chicken and/or quinoa based on phase, place in 1-3 washed romaine lettuce leafs.
6.) Scoop and add as much of veggie mixture to the top of quinoa/chicken mix.
7.) Make extras! Saves well in fridge for 1-2 days!

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 400.
2. Cut the sweet potatoes into sticks that are about 1/2 inch wide and 3 inches long.
3. Toss sweet potatoes with the olive oil and set aside.
4. Mix the spices, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, and sprinkle them over the sweet potatoes. Cover a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spread fries on top of it so that none are overlapping.
5. Bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown and crisp on the bottom. Then, turn them over and cook until the other side is crisp – for about 10 minutes more.

Pro-tip: Prior to cooking, soak pre-cut sweet potatoes in water for an hour. This will help make the fries crisper.

Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal

Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal

Ingredients:
1 cup of unsweetened almond milk
½ cup of rolled oatmeal
¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 small dash of salt

Directions:
1.) mix all ingredients in your saucepan, boil until cooked like regular oatmeal. Enjoy this fall treat!

Pan-Seared Skirt Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

For the Steak:

Sea Salt and Black Pepper
1 1/2 pounds skirt steak (cut it in half, crosswise)

For the Chimichurri Sauce:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 jalapeño, finely chopped
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Steak:
1. Lightly salt the steak and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Using paper towels, pat dry and season a second time with salt and black pepper.
2. Set a lightly greased cast iron pan on the stovetop, and set to medium-high heat. Cook steak 3-4 minutes per side until meat is pleasantly charred and medium-rare.
3. Transfer steak to a carving board and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
4. When you're ready to slice, find the direction of the grain (which way the muscle fibers are aligned), then slice across the grain rather than parallel with it. 
5. Serve with Chimichurri Sauce.

Chimichurri Sauce:
1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir until well combined. Please note: the consistency will be soup-like.
Optional: Prepare your Chimichurri sauce ahead of time and marinate your skirt steak for at least 3 hours or overnight prior to cooking. Then, top reserve sauce over cooked meat.

MetPro Phase Notes: Make sure you are correctly proportioning the fat (olive oil and steak) for your specific meal phase.

Cilantro-Lime Chicken With Avocado Salsa

Ingredients:
Chicken:
4 (6oz) boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 Tbsp lime zest
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil + more for brushing the grill
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
3 cloves minced garlic
salt and black pepper

Salsa:
1 1/2 medium avocados: diced
2 roma tomatoes: chopped
1/2 cup red onion: chopped
1 clove garlic: minced
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Directions:

1. Place chicken on a cutting board and cover with a sheet of plastic wrap
2. Pound out thicker parts of chicken for even thickness
3. Transfer chicken to a gallon size ziplock bag
4. In a mixing bowl whisk together: lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, 3 cloves of garlic and salt/pepper to taste
5. Pour marinade mix over chicken in the bag
6. seal bag and press out air (rest in refrigerator for 2-4 hrs) move chicken around a few times to ensure even marinating
7. Preheat grill over medium-high heat and brush grill grates lightly with olive oil.
8. Grill chicken: Internal temp 160-165 (about 4 minutes per side)
   Meanwhile.... 
9. In a mixing bowl mix together: avocado, tomato, onion, garlic and lime.
10. Spoon mixture over chicken and garnish with cilantro