10 Minute Meals: Salmon Patty with Spinach and Sweet Potato

                                         

Super simple, super clean AND super yummy dinner idea!  Grilled salmon patty over a bed of sauteed spinach and sweet potato!  Takes about 10 minutes to cook it all! Here's the recipe!

Ingredients

1 sweet potato

1 handful of fresh spinach

1 salmon burger

1.  Wash the sweet potato and poke it with a fork several times.

2.  Wrap it in a paper towel, without drying it off after washing it, and place it in the microwave. 

3. Most microwaves have a baked potato setting. If yours does, press it and press 1 for 1 potato unless you're making multiple at a time.  

4.  While the sweet potato cooks, take out a skillet and spray it with coconut or olive oil. 

5.  Grill it on a skillet for 5  minutes on each side.  Set aside.  

6.  Spray the pan with coconut or olive oil and cook the spinach for about 5 minutes, mixing it around as you cook it.  

7.  Serve all on a plate and ENJOY! This recipe is for one but you can easily make this for a family of 4 in just as much time.  

Two of my Favorite Al Fresco Sausage Recipes

Sausage!  One of my family's favorite food to grill and have for dinner because there are SO many different ways to enjoy it! You can grill them, serve them over pasta, pair them with veggies, have them as a sandwich! Now... the KEY is to find a sausage that is not only tasty but is also clean and preferably chicken.

As a health and fitness coach, I want to feed my family only the best and I was pretty excited when I was asked to try Al Fresco's Sweet and Smokey BBQ sausages!  They are made with lean, skinless chicken meat, 30% less sodium than all pork sausage and gluten free!  Plus they're already fully cooked so they're ideal for a quick and easy meal!

When we have sausage, they're usually grilled on the BBQ, whether they're raw or fully cooked, because it gives them an extra yummy flavor, but when we had these, we just tossed them for a few minutes in a skillet and they were ready to eat!  I've made them a few ways in the past week and below are two of the recipes that were a hit with the family! One is over salad and the other is over clean and healthy carbs!

Sausage Summer Salad

• Al Fresco Sweet & Smokey BBQ sausage
• Spring mix salad blend
• Sliced grape tomatoes
• Sliced cucumbers
• Sliced peppers

Slice the sausage and saute in a skillet for 3 to 5 minutes, then set aside.  Add the spring mix salad blend (spinach, arugula, baby greens, etc) in a bowl.  Add tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.  Add the sausage on top. Toss in balsamic vinegar, a hint of olive oil, lime juice and enjoy! Pair with a baked sweet potato if you'd like to add some clean and healthy carbs to your meal!

Sausage, Quinoa and Spaghetti Squash

• Al Fresco Sweet & Smokey BBQ sausage
• Small spaghetti squash
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1/2 can Italian chopped tomatoes
• favorite seasoning

Slice the sausage add it to a skillet along with the chopped tomatoes.  Saute the sausage and tomatoes in the skillet for 5 to 7 minutes.  Remove and set aside.  

To make the spaghetti squash, slice the squash in half, take out the seeds and loose interior as you would a pumpkin, then place face down on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool when done, then scrape out the "spaghetti" with a fork.  Set aside.

While the spaghetti squash is cooking, make your quinoa.  Place the quinoa in a skillet with 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water.  Bring it to a boil, cover and simmer until all liquid is absorbed.  When done, set aside.  

After sausage, spaghetti squash and quinoa is done, it's time to make your dish! First place spaghetti squash on a plate. Top with some quinoa and blend slightly.  Then top with sausage and tomatoes, then serve and enjoy! 

These are just two of the many recipes you can enjoy with Al Fresco sausages!  If you'd like to see more, head over to the Al Fresco Summer Sweepstakes and vote for your favorite one! You'll find lots of grilling recipes using the Sweet & Smokey BBQ variety I used above in my recipes and if you vote, you'll be entered to win $500 PLUS a high quality grill valued at $500 as well!  If you have a recipe of your own, you can also enter it into the contest!  Click HERE to see the recipes, vote and enter! Contest runs from June 20th through July 31, 2016.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of al fresco. The opinions and text are all mine.

Roasted Acorn Squash & Eggplant: A Delicious, Clean, Paleo Friendly Side

I love roasted veggies and these 2 are one of my faves. So easy to make and they take very little prep. I make them to snack on but also as a side dish. Below are the recipes for both. You can prep and cook them together as long as you cut them the same thickness. Before you begin, preheat the oven to 375.

Eggplant
Slice the egg plant, cutting off each end, into slices about 1/2 inch thick.

Place them in a Tupperware container and marinate for a few minutes in balsamic vinegar, splash of lime & your favorite seasoning.

Set aside.

Acorn Squash
Slice the acorn squash, cutting off the top first, into slices about 1/2 inch thick. Once you see the inside, scoop out the "guts" as I call them. The seeds and lose interior. Continue slicing until you've sliced the entire squash. 

Spray a cookie sheet or a baking rack on top of a cookie sheet with olive oil or any non stick spray. Place the acorn squash on top. Then sprinkle lightly with your favorite seasoning and I also like to add a little parmessan cheese. Then place the eggplant on the sheet or rack and bake for about 30 minutes or until they're golden brown.  I like to use a baking rack so I get the grill marks and it resembles BBQ roasting vs oven baking but both are fine and turn out just as yummy! Hope you enjoy them! I make these every week!