0
0
As a food nerd, my eating habits are a slight contradiction. Most of the time, and by most I mean 85 to 90 percent of the time, I eat pretty clean and mostly low carb. Why? Because the other 10 to 15 percent of the time, Im eating something that probably isnt the best for me with a side of yeah, Ill be doing 25 more burpees to burn this off later. The struggle is real, my friends.
I grocery shop, prep and cook most of my meals for the week on Sundays, and Im always looking for ways to brighten up my clean dishes with bold flavors without adding too much fat or unnecessary calories. When I received the opportunity to review products from Cookwell & Company, my inner food nerd jumped for joy at the opportunity to ditch the monotonous chicken breast and veggies for a while.
Long-time friends Will Petty, Kyle Green and Brian Cimino started Cookwell & Company on a dare “ could friends whod known each other their entire lives start a company based on a their mutual love for food and still maintain their friendship? Looks like they did. The company specializes in sauces, marinades, salsas, soups, two-step mixers and a dozen other products that will take fresh veggies and proteins.
For this post, I decided to review the Garlic & Molasses Marinade, the Thai Green Curry from the Global Palate Line and Veracruz Meal Mixer. Each recipe using the products is detailed below.
GARLIC & MOLASSES SALMON
I wasnt sure if this marinade would go well with salmon only because there was a cow, chicken and pig and pig on the bottle, implying that those would be the appropriate proteins for this dish. Arent you glad I dont mind a challenge? This salmon was incredibly flavorful, easy to make, very light for a weekday meal and hearty enough, with the appropriate sides, to be enjoyed for a Sunday dinner as I did.
INGREDIENTS:
- ¼ cup Cookwell & Company Garlic & Molasses Marinade
- ¼ cup Olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Parsley
- 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
- 4-5 pieces of salmon
*NOTE “ because I wanted to use the marinade for other recipes, I added a little bit of olive oil to stretch out the flavors. Feel free to leave off the oil and double the marinade mix for your own recipe at home.*
DIRECTIONS:
Mix the marinade, olive and parsley in a bowl. Lightly salt, pepper and garlic powder each side of the salmon. Pour the marinade mixture over the salmon in a large pan. Marinate the salmon in all of the ingredients for at least 30 minutes. I wouldnt do any longer than 1.5 hours only because the marinade starts to break the salmon down.
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Shake off any of the excess marinade before searing the salmon in a skillet on medium-high heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side. You are only adding a nice sear and crunch crust. The fish will not be cooked all the way through.
Transfer the salmon to a cookie sheet and cook in the oven for 5-7 minutes until the fish is flaky and cooked through. Enjoy!
GARLIC & MOLASSES CHICKEN, SHRIMP AND VEGGIE KABOBS
Perfect for the summer months on the grill, these kabobs are the ideal entrée for a large crowd because it gives your guests the ability to customize their meals. These kabobs are light and easy to prepare for overnight marinating and skewing the following day. Like the salmon above, I added a cup of olive oil to the mixture so that I could stretch out the marinade and keep the flavor.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup of Cookwell & Company Garlic & Molasses Marinade
- 1 cup of olive oil
- S&P (salt and pepper)
- Garlic powder
- 5 garlic cloves
- Lemon juice
- Parsley
- 3 lbs of protein (shrimp, chicken, sausage)
- Veggies of your choice (onions, bell pepper, mushroom)
DIRECTIONS:
For sanitary purposes, each protein needs to be marinated in its own bowl. In each bowl, combine the garlic & molasses marinade, olive, salt, pepper, garlic powder and parsley. Mix each in the marinade respectively. Cover and allow them to marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
Moving on to the other kabob ingredients, prepare the veggies by chopping them into 1-inch pieces. To the veggies, add the garlic cloves, garlic powder, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil
Place on skewers and grill to perfection!
SHRIMP COCONUT THAI GREEN CURRY
Ever since my vegetarian/meat-free month back in June, I have been obsessed with Thai food. To me, its much easier to find a vegetarian option in Asian cuisine because they use so many veggies and flavorful sauces that make up for the loss of meat. I quickly chose the Thai Curry Sauce when I saw it as an option.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 bottle of Cookwell & Company Thai green curry
- 1 ½ cups of premium coconut milk
- 2 large shallots
- 3 gloves of garlic
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 bag of medium-sized shrimp
- Lime juice
- ¼ cup of fresh cilantro
- ¼ white wine
DIRECTIONS:
On medium heat, saute shallots and garlic for 3 minutes. Add the wine and bay leaves and cook until wine is reduced by half. Add the shrimp and cook for another 3-5 minutes until the shrimp turns slightly pink.
Pour the entire bottle of Cookwell & Company Thai Green Curry sauce into the skillet. Cook for another 3-5 minutes. Add the coconut milk and cook until the milk is warm and well incorporated with the curry and shrimp. Finish the dish with cilantro and fresh lime juice. Serve with brown or jasmine rice!
TILAPIA VERACRUZ
There is nothing I like better than quick and easy meals. And I dont know what other delicious and healthy meal can be made at home in less than two steps. This recipe was so simple and will be something that I make again and again.
INGREDIENTS:
- 4-5 pieces tilapia filets (these usually come in 4-5 oz pieces)
- Cookwell & Company Veracruz 2-step mixer
DIRECTIONS:
Salt and pepper each tilapia filet. Sauté one side of fish until its golden brown. Right after flipping the fish to cook the other side, apply two to three tablespoons of the Veracruz mixture. Cook for another 3-5 minutes until the fish is done. Top with parsley or cilantro for garnish and to brighten the flavor.
(Disclaimer: I was provided with complimentary Cookwell products, and all thoughts are my own.)
Foodie Feedback