Grilled Chicken Avocado Sandwich with Spicy Mayo

I adore this Grilled Chicken Avocado Sandwich Recipe. They are so simple, but completely delicious. I hate spicy, but for some reason I love the kick of cayenne in the spicy mayo with the cool avocado and flaky, buttery, amazingly delish puff pastry. It’s pretty much perfection.

Watch How to Make a Chicken Avocado Sandwich

The first time I had this recipe I knew it looked good, but it seemed a tad odd to use puff pastry for a sandwich. I am forever converted. You truly must try it yourself to understand, but it’s quite amazing.

Have you ever even had Puff pastry? It’s purdy darn delicious. We don’t make our own. We let the professionals handle it, and Pepperidge Farm does it so well! They make a fantastic puff pastry, and so I stick with them.

This recipe is adapted from Giada De Laurentiis, so unfortunately I cannot take the credit, but I’m all about sharing recipes that are delicious even if I didn’t think it up myself. We had already been inspired by a sandwich and had puff pastry lying around so when I saw her show making something similar I had to pounce!

Ingredients for Grilled Chicken Avocado Sandwich Recipe

It really doesn’t take many ingredients at all to make these grilled chicken sandwiches, so let’s run through everything you’ll need:

• Puff Pastry: You can find puff pastry in the freezer section of the grocery store by pie crusts.
• Chicken Breasts: boneless and skinless
• Montreal Chicken Seasoning: a blend of spices and herbs like garlic, onion, salt, paprika, orange peel, and bell pepper
• Kosher Salt: adds flavor
• Olive Oil: helps grill the chicken
• Mayonnaise: whatever your favorite brand is
• Cayenne Pepper: adds some heat to the mayo spread
• Baby Spinach: adds freshness
• Read more

Easy Korean Beef with Cottage Cheese Protein Bowl

Craving something quick, healthy, and packed with flavor? This High-Protein Korean Beef with Cottage Cheese is your new go-to! Juicy, savory ground beef cooked in mouthwatering Korean-style pairs perfectly with creamy cottage cheese for a surprising twist. Ready in under 30 minutes, this nutrient-packed dish is perfect for fitness lovers and flavor seekers alike—comfort food meets clean eating!

I HATED cottage cheese as a kid, 100% because of texture. I mean, it is kinda weird, right? Now I love it though I will say all cottage cheese is not created equally. I love the fat free Good Culture brand in case you were wondering.

So, when all of this viral high protein bowl stuff started I was pretty skeptical of eating meat and cottage cheese together unless it was an Americanized lasagna or our Ravioli Lasagna, but just like my kid self, I was totally wrong!  I love making all sorts of high protein with cottage cheese recipes, but none have hit the spot quite like this Quick Asian recipe!

We have taken our favorite Korean ground beef and made it into a cottage cheese bowl! If you are suffering from dinner decision fatigue and you’re looking for something quick and easy but still full of flavor, then try this healthy ground beef recipe!

Ingredient Breakdown

It sounds weird, I know. Meat and cottage cheese? But trust me—this combo hits every craving: creamy, savory, sweet, spicy, and fresh. It’s kind of like Korean bibimbap meets a protein bowl. You’ll need a few ingredients to make the sauce and then a few more components to make the bowl. Here is everything you’ll need:

For the Ground Beef

• Canola or Vegetable Oil: Helps cook and crisp the ground beef.
• Ground Beef: I like to use 80/20 or 85/15 for maximum flavor but if you want to go more lean, 90/10 will work great too.
• Garlic: Use fresh, minced garlic cloves.
• Soy Sauce: Adds rich, umami flavor to the sauce.
• Orange Juice: Adds bright, citrus flavor and freshly squeezed orange juice is preferred.
• Brown Sugar: Adds sweetness and rich flavor.
• Sweet Chili Sauce: Adds a little heat and bold flavor.
• Toasted Sesame Oil: Adds that signature Asian flavor.
• Cornstarch: Helps thicken the sauce.

For the Bowl

• Cottage Cheese: I prefer the fat free small curd cottage cheese, but you can use any type of cottage cheese you want. I mentioned above that Good Culture brand is my favorite, especially for savory dishes.
  • PRO TIP: If you can stand the texture of cottage cheese,

How to Smoke Salmon Recipe [+Video]

Smoked salmon is a delicious and versatile dish that can be enjoyed as a snack, appetizer, or part of a main course. Learn how to smoke salmon at home with our easy-to-follow recipe and video tutorial below.

We start this recipe with a dry brine that loads the salmon fillets with flavor and prepares them to soak in all the smoky flavor. This is a hot-smoked salmon recipe made on a wood pellet smoker.

We have covered all our bases when it comes to salmon here on the blog. We have air fryer salmon, grilled salmon, baked salmon, salmon in a salad, salmon bowls and stuffed salmon. We have been working on a smoked salmon recipe for years, and we have finally nailed it!

Ingredients for Smoked Salmon

Aside from the salmon filets, you’ll need just a few ingredients for the dry brine rub and then a few ingredients for the seasoning mix you rub all over it before smoking it. Here is what you will need:

Dry Brine

• Kosher Salt: adds flavor
• Brown Sugar: adds sweetness and flavor
• Black Pepper: adds flavor and tiny bit of heat

Smoked Salmon

• Salmon Filets: You can get smaller individual filets or get one big filet and then slice it into servings afterward
• Dijon Mustard: adds flavor
• Butter: adds rich flavor and helps keep the salmon moist
• Brown Sugar: adds a little sweetness and helps caramelize the outside of the salmon
• Dill: I almost always prefer fresh herbs for recipes, but for this one, I prefer dried dill.
• Smoked Paprika: adds more smoky flavor
• Salt and Black Pepper: adds flavor
• Maple Syrup: used to baste the fillets as they smoke

The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

What is the Best Salmon for Smoking?

I always look for farm-raised salmon when it comes to smoking. They tend to have a higher fat content which helps them stay tender and flaky through the smoking process. King salmon is my go-to. Coho or Atlantic salmon is my backup. You want to avoid really lean salmon like sockeye salmon.

Why Brine Salmon

This brining process will eliminate some of the moisture from the inside of the fish while simultaneously infusing it with salt, which will help preserve the salmon and its moisture and help create a pellicle (see section below).

What is a Pellicle?

One Skillet Mexican Street Corn Chicken

Spice up your weeknight dinner with this easy one skillet Mexican street corn chicken recipe! Featuring tender chicken, charred corn, and a flavorful sauce, this dish is sure to be a hit with the whole family.

We are so obsessed with Mexican street corn here that we have been trying it all sorts of ways…elote corn salad, sheet pan Mexican street corn, in a pasta salad, and I still have so many ideas!

It pairs so deliciously with chicken, and I’ve tried this easy chicken dinner recipe a few ways. This version is my absolute favorite! We basically take tradition Mexican street corn and pile it over some crispy juicy chicken.

At first, I thought it would be best with grilled chicken, but that wasn’t it. It felt like two separate dishes and I didn’t like whole breasts as it didn’t feel as casual and easy to eat. So I cut the chicken into the bite-sized pieces and pan fried it, and it came together beautifully! If you are looking for a new chicken recipe, then give this one a try!

Ingredients for Mexican Street Corn Chicken

Try this delicious and easy one pan Mexican street corn chicken recipe for a flavorful and satisfying meal. With just a few simple ingredients, you can have a taste of authentic Mexican street food in your own kitchen! Here is everything you will need:

• Corn on the Cob: We prefer fresh corn, but you can use frozen corn too if you need to. Scroll to the section below for more details.
• Egg: used for dredging the chicken
• Flour: sticks to the egg on the chicken to create a light crispy breading on the chicken
• Kosher Salt: adds flavor
• Black Pepper: adds flavor
• Chicken Breasts: I prefer the flavor and texture of boneless, skinless chicken breasts in this recipe cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil: helps cook the breaded chicken
• Chili Powder: adds a little heat and traditional elote flavor
• Smoked Paprika: adds rich smoky flavor
• Onion: Just a simple yellow onion works great.
• Garlic: adds flavor
• Salted Butter: helps sauté the vegetables and adds rich flavor
• Mexican Crema: a signature Mexican street corn ingredient that can be found in the refrigerated Latino food section
• Lime: adds acidity and flavor
• Cotija Cheese: another essential component for Mexican s

Easy One Skillet Pesto Asparagus Quinoa Recipe

This Easy Pesto Asparagus Quinoa Recipe is a fresh, vibrant dish packed with creamy pesto, tender asparagus, fluffy quinoa, and melty cheese — all baked to bubbly perfection. It’s a wholesome, one-pan wonder that’s bursting with flavor and ready in no time!

This one skillet pesto asparagus quinoa recipe is one of our favorite healthy dinners that takes hardly any work on your part. Vibrant basil pesto is the perfect addition to take simple quinoa to spectacularly delicious! We are using vegetable broth to cook the quinoa too which makes this a scrumptious vegetarian recipe!

Casseroles have always done well here at Oh Sweet Basil! They are family friendly and usually easy on the budget. We will forever loooove our teriyaki chicken casserole and of course, my mom’s busy day casserole. But this asparagus pesto quinoa casserole is probably our most healthy casserole, so everyone needs to try it!

What is Quinoa?

Quinoa is a flowering plant with edible seeds. Quinoa is gluten-free, high in protein and one of the few plant foods that contain all nine essential amino acids.

It is also high in fiber, magnesium, B vitamins, iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin E and various beneficial antioxidants.

Quinoa is often used as an alternative for grains such as rice. In fact, we transformed our popular cilantro lime rice into cilantro lime quinoa. It’s fabulous!

What is Needed to Make Pesto Quinoa with Asparagus?

You only need one skillet and a few simple ingredients to make this easy weeknight dinner recipe! Here is everything you’ll need:

• Olive Oil: Helps cook the asparagus and tomatoes.
• Asparagus: Trim the spears and chop them into 1-2″ pieces.
• Sea Salt: Amplifies the flavor of the dish.
• Grape Tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes also work great.
• Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Adds extra flavor to the dish.
• Quinoa: Any type of quinoa works great in this recipe. We used white quinoa this time.
• Vegetable Broth: Adds more flavor than just using water. It can be substituted with chicken broth if desired.
• Pesto: You can make your own from scratch or buy a bottle at the grocery store.
• Mozzarella Chees