Cooking.. Recipes and Other Food Fun!

Two Taco Chili (Shout out to The Rev!)

2011-09-11T10:33:00.000-07:00

So the hubs and I had dinner with our friends The Wallaces (Rob, Carrie, Gracyn and Hudson). We proclaimed it Mexican nite and I brought enchiladas and homemade salsa and Rob (The Rev) Wallace made some delish chorizo cheese dip and an amazing taco chili! In honor of that fab meal I told my hubs that I would do my best to try to recreate it when he requested it last week for dinner. To be honest The Rev's chili was amazing so I had big chili shoes to fill. So below is the my attempt at the recipe. I call it two taco chili so that it is easy to remember really all you need it 2 of each of the following ingredients:2 pounds of ground sirloin 2 cans of diced tomatoes (drain the juice and set aside)2 cans of black beans (drained)2 cans of corn (drained)2 packets of taco seasoning2 jalapeños **optional**sour cream optional topping**cheddar cheese optional toppingBrown the mean in a large pot and once it is browner add the other veggies. Then once mixed add the 2 packets of seasoning and let simmer until you are ready to eat! This is a great easy quick dish for the crockpot or to take to a friend's house for football.

Celery Salad

2011-08-03T16:31:00.000-07:00

Celery Salad

So how often do you buy celery and have a LOT left over? I know when I get my veggie delivery that I am frequently trying to find ways to use my celery before it goes bad! This recipe will help y0u find a way to use that celery!

Celery Salad

2 cups of chopped celery

2 cups of chopped seedless cucumber (or scoop the seeds out of the seeded cucumbers) with the skin on

1/2 cup of chopped red onion

1 cup of chopped tomatoes

2 tablespoons of low fat mayo

2 tablespoons of dijon mustard

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of pepper

1/2 t4 teaspoon of garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon of dill weed

*1/2 teaspoon of diced jalapeno (completely based on taste)

Mix together in a large bowl and you can add extra mayo if you like more mayo. But to me the flavors of the celery salad come out with less. Mix together and put in the refrigerator for 1 hour or more. Serve cold!

Tuna Melt Pizza

2011-07-12T16:55:00.000-07:00

Dough and Sauce:
1 roll of refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough (pop-n-fresh dough)
-1/2 block of softened fat free cream cheese (or you can use the regular or 1/3 fat if you really need it!)
-1 tablespoon of yellow mustard
-1/2 teaspoon dried dill (or fresh if you have it.. i did in my Aerogrower)
-salt n pepper to taste

Toppings:
-3 cans of tuna drained
-2 tablespoons of fat free mayo
-1 tablespoon of yellow mustard
-1/4 of red onion diced*
-2 whole Claussen pickles diced* (or any dill pickle that's your fave)
-1 can of diced black olives*
-1 whole tomato sliced thin* (like you would for a sandwich.. not chopped)
-1 bag of shredded low fat cheddar cheese

*optional

Preheat the oven to 400. Spread out the dough on a cookie sheet. Bake the cough for 5 min and then remove. Next mix the softened cream cheese, mustard, salt n pepper and dill and spread on the dough. I used a pastry brush but you can use the back of a spoon. Then in a separate bowl mix the tuna, mustard, mayo and sprinkle over the pizza evenly. Then add the diced onion, pickle, olives, slices of tomato and shredded cheddar cheese and bake for 10 more minutes at 400 degrees.

We also added a little hot sauce on top of each slice and it was delish!

Chicken Tenders and Roasted Veggie Quinoa

2011-05-25T17:45:00.001-07:00

Chicken Tenders and Roasted Veggie Quinoa

Chicken and breading:

2 lbs of chicken tenderloins (or chicken breasts cut into tenderloins)

2 eggs whipped in a bowl

1/4 cup of flour

1/4 parm cheese

1 cup of crushed Frosted Flakes

Veggies:

1 ear of corn sliced off the cob

1 delicata squash (or 2 pieces of yellow or green squash)

1 green pepper (seeded and chopped)

1/2 yellow onion chopped

1 large tomato chopped

Quinoa- 2 cups prepared to the specifications on the box with salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Take the eggs and whip with a fork in a bowl. Then crush the Frosted Flakes in a plastic ziploc bag. Then empty into a bowl with flour and parm cheese. Take the chicken tenderloins and dredge in the egg then into the Frosted Flake mixture and lay on a 9x13 greased cookie sheet.

Set the chicken aside and cut the corn off the cob, chop the onion and pepper and add all three to a large cookie sheet on one end of the sheet. Then cut the delicata squash in half and core out the seeds. The lay on the other end of the cookie sheet and drizzle olive oil over the squash along with salt n pepper.

Put the cookie sheet with the chicken and the cookie sheet with the veggies in the oven and bake for 20 min or until the chicken is 180 degrees.

While the veggies and chicken are cooking.. take 1 quinoa in a medium saucepan and add 2 cups of water. Then bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling add salt and pepper to the boiling water/quinoa mix. Cover and lower heat to a simmer for 15 min. Then once cooked remove from heat.

Once the quinoa is done take the veggies out of the oven and add to the quinoa. Then chop tomato up and add to the pot of quinoa and veggies.

Take the chicken out and plate it along with the veggie quinoa and ENJOY!!

2011-05-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

1 lb of ground beef (browned and seasoned with S + P)
1 lb of bacon cooked and chopped
2 cups of chopped tomatoes
1 cup of chopped red onion
2 cups of fresh arugula
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup of chopped pickles
1 container of refrigerated pizza dough

Sauce:
1/2 cup of yellow mustard
1/2 cup of ketchup
1/2 cup of bbq sauce
1/2 cup of mayo

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll the pizza dough on to a large cookei sheet. Bake the dough for 5 min and then set aside. Next mix all the sauce ingredients together and brush it on the pizza dough saving 1/2 cup of the sauce for drizzling over the top of the pizza at the end. Then add the browned ground beef, bacon, tomatoes, onions, arugula and shredded cheese on the pizza in that order. Cook for 12-15 min or until the dough is golden brown. Then top the pizza with chopped pickles and drizzle remaining sauce over the top. Cut into slices and enjoy!

My First Catering Gig!

2011-05-09T17:08:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I had the honor and privelage of catering my good friends Josh and Scott's engagement shower! There were over 40 guests and it was a wonderful time!

Below are the pics and recipes that I made..

First up I made St Louis style BBQ egg rolls.. Super easy and fun! And for those that know me.. I am always turning things into filling for eggrolls :)

St.Louis Style Eggrolls

1 package (2 lbs of pre-cooked smoked pork- Y0u can buy a your grocey store.. or I found mine at Costco!)

1/2 cup of St Louis style BBQ sauce (sweet style)

1/2 cup of yellow mustard

2 pkgs of egg roll wrappers (usually in the produce aisle)

Mix pork, bbq sauce and mustard together and spoon a large spoonful into the corner of the eggroll wrapper. roll half way and then tuck in the corners and finish rolling sealing the end with a dab of water.

Paula Deen's Ooey Gooey Butter Cake- Got this one from the master :)

1 pkg yellow cake mix

1 stick of butter melted

2 eggs

8 oz of cream cheese

1 lb of powdered sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp of vanilla

Prehear oven to 350 degrees.Mix cake mix, butter and eggs together. spread into 13x9 pan. Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, eggs and vanilla together and pour on top. Cook for 40-50 min. It will be gooey :)

Croissants and Herbed Butter

Super easy and delicious :)

Buy some pre baked croissants (or bake them yourself.. pop n fresh style!)

Take a stick of butter and let it get to room temp. Then add:

1 tsp dried dill

1 tsp of garlic

1/4 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of pepper

Spread on the croissants and enjoy!!

Stuffed Mushrooms (*I sent this into Paula Deens Real Women of Philadelphia Cream Cheese Contest- still haven't won.. but hey it is worth making!)

1 box of large white mushrooms with stems removed

1 lb of breakfast sausage cooked

1 block of Philly cream cheese

1 cup of italian bread crumbs

1/2 cup of parm cheese

Mix in a bown until it is difficult to stir. Then spoon into mushrooms and cook in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes! Sprinkle with mozz cheese for extra gooey goodness!

Tenderloin on Focaccia Rolls with Boursin Cheese

1 large beef tenderloin seasoned with Montreal Steak Seasoning cooked to medium rare and sliced into rectangles

1 large focaccia roll cut into rectangles

2 containters of Boursin (garlic cheese)

Make into open faced sandwiches and serve warm

Thai Shrimp Salad Lettuce Wraps

1 lb of cooked and devined shrimp with the tails removed

2 cups of cooked rice (served cold)

3 small cucumbers diced and not peeled

2/3 cup od thai chili sauce (more or less to taste)

1 lb of bibb lettuce cleaned and pulled apart into cups

In a large bowl mix all the ingredients except the lettuce together and then spoon the mixture into the lettuce cups and serve!

Shelby's (almost) FAMOUS Loaded Baked Potato Salad

2011-04-18T14:21:00.001-07:00

Palmetto Organics delivered some DELISH veggies this week including the bag of fingerling potatoes and celery!! So dinner with the cul-de-sac club this weekend I decided to make my almost famous loaded baked potato salad. The recipe is below and it is one of my FAVORITE recipes ever!

Ingredients:

-1 bag of fingerling potatoes (20-30 small potatoes) diced into small bites and boiled in salted water 10-15 min or until the potatoes are soft
-1 small vidalia onion chopped
-2 stalks of celery chopped
-2 hard boiled eggs
-1/2 cup of chopped bacon (or turkey bacon)
-1/2 cup of low fat cheddar cheese
-1/4 cup of low fat pepper jack cheese
-1 cup of low fat mayo
-3 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
-1 tablespoon of vinegar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
-1 teaspoon of pepper
-1 teaspoon of garlic salt

Mix together and chill and serve!!! YUMMYLICIOUS!!!!

Filet Mignon and Tabouli

2011-04-03T16:33:00.000-07:00

We tried out the new grill with a DE-LI-CIOUS bacon wrapped filet mignon from Tillman's butcher on Old St. Augustine Rd here in Jax. Go there and get their Tillman's Freezer Special! $80 for an INSANE amount of meats.. pork chops, pork roasts, beef roasts, ground beef, hot dogs, sausage, bacon, ribeye, filet and a whole chicken for $80! All frozen but TOTALLY worth it!!!

As for the tabouli.. it was so delicious as well. It contained cherry tomatoes and parsley from my Palmetto Organic's delivery this week. Recipe is below!

2 cups bulgur
4 cups boiling water
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 lemons, zested
2 lemons, juiced
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
salt and black pepper to taste

In a large bowl, pour boiling water over bulgur. Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for 30 min. Stir in olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, mint, and parsley. Set aside for 30 minutes. Fluff bulgur with a fork, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Homemade Strawberry Margaritas

2011-04-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

You will need 1 large pitcher
1 container of washed and diced strawberries
4-6 shots of tequila
1 can of lemon-line soda
1 can of ginger ale
2 juiced limes
2 tablespoons of strawberry juice (or you can use 2 tablespoons of strawberry jam)

Mix all the ingredients into the pitcher and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon and add ice to fill up the rest of the pitcher.

Serve over ice and enjoy!!

Bleu Cheese and Bacon Dip

2011-04-03T13:13:00.000-07:00

1 large 16oz container of fat free sour cream
1 bag of pre-cooked real bacon pieces (or cook up and chop 1 lb of bacon)
1/3 cup of bleu cheese crumbles
1 teaspoon of your fave hot sauce (I use chipotle tabasco)
salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt

In a page bowl mix all the ingredients together and serve with crackers or tortilla chips. (We love the lime or jalapeno tortilla chips.)

Pork Chops with Steamed Green Bean and Roasted Squash

2011-03-15T16:23:00.000-07:00

Pork Chops:

4-6 pork chops (bone in or out)

1 stick of butter melted ( or 2 eggs for egg wash)

Breading ( in a large plastic ziploc bag):

2 cups of flour

1 tablespoon of garlic salt

1/4 cup of parm cheese

1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon of smoked paprika

1 tablespoon of pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. You will need a large pan with olive oil to sear the pork chops. Take each pork chop and dip in the melted butter to coat both sides. Drop it into the bag of breading an shake until covered. Repeat for all the pork chops. Lay each pork chop in the pan and sear approximately 3-4 min on each side. Then place the pan with the pork chops in the oven an cook for 40 min or until the meat is cooked to 165 degrees.

Steamed green beans:

Cut the ends of the green beans and place into a pot of boiling salted water. Cook 3-5 minutes but not too much as you still want them to snap when you break them in half. Enjoy!

Roasted Squash:

Peel the outside of the squash off. Then cut down the middle and remove the the seeds in the middle. Lay out with the scooped side up and drizzle olive oil over the squash and sprinkle salt and pepper over the top. Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour or until the squash is soft.

Applesauce

2011-03-15T16:13:00.000-07:00

So this week we got even MORE apples in our Palmetto Organics delivery!

So I am making the hubs a pie.. and I still had 4 apples left over.. so what to do??

Applesauce!

I was thinking it might be fun to try applesauce. So I gave it a shot and WOW it was easy and DELICIOUS!! Here is the recipe.. be prepared to be SHOCKED at how easy it is!

4-6 apples peeled and sliced

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 tablespoon of brown sugar

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon of salt

Peel and slice all the apples. Bring a pot of water to boil and drop in the sliced apples and boil until they are soft.. and 5-7 min. Drain the apples.

In a food processor add the apples, cinnamon, sugar, juice and salt. Blend in the processor until smooth!

Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf and Roasted Yellow Squash

2011-02-24T15:57:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:

1 small yellow onion
1 tablespoon of chipped garlic
2 lbs of lean ground beef
1 cup of panko bread crumbs
2 eggs
1/4 cup of ketchup
1/4 cup of mustard
1/4 cup of bbq sauce
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 lb of bacon- (chopped in half.. dice one half into small bits and cook. Leave the other half in strips)

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent and place in a large bowl. Then cook half the bacon that is chopped up and once browned drain on paper towel and place in the bowl with the onions. Add the remaining ingredients and mix loosely and place into a baking dish and shape the meat mix into a loaf shape.

Drape the half bacon slices over the top of the meatloaf and cook in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 45-50 min or until the meatloaf is done at 155 degrees with a thermometer.

Roasted yellow squash
5-7 yellow squashes diced into round discs
olive oil
salt and pepper

On a cookie sheet lay out the discs of squash and drizzle oil over the top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook at 375 degrees for 10-15 min.

My hubs and my coworker said this meatloaf is the BEST they have ever tasted.. I will gladly take the compliment ;)

Crockpot Chicken and Braised Cabbage and Parsnips

2011-02-21T16:09:00.000-08:00

Many of you have heard me talk about my crock pot chicken recipe. It is SO SIMPLE it is pretty crazy. Simply buy a whole chicken from the grocery and rub it down with your rub of choice. I use Lowery's seasoning salt. But you can use anything you like! Put it in your crock pot on low setting and leave it until you come home. 8 hrs and the chicken will be juicy and delicious.

I was a bit late today with setting up dinner in the crock pot. So I decided to put the chicken pieces in the crock pot at noon.

Crock pot Chicken

-cut up chicken pieces.

-diced fresh basil, dill and garlic.

-run them down with olive oil

-salt and pepper

-1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar

- drizzle about 1/4 cup of honey over the top

-3 tablespoons of lime or lemon juice

I put the crock pot on high and left to cook for 4-5 hours. When I got home the house smelled amazing and the chicken was tender and juicy!

Braised Cabbage and Parsnips

-2 tablespoons of butter

-2 tablespoons of olive oil

-2 tablespoons of mustard (yellow or Dijon)

-6 to 10 peeled and diced parsnips

-one half of a cabbage chopped

1/4 cup of white wine vinegar

1 and 1/2 cups of chicken broth

1 tablespoon of salt

1 tablespoon of pepper

1 tablespoon of garlic salt

1 tablespoon of hot sauce

2 tablespoons of soy sauce

Melt the butter, olive oil and mustard in a deep pan. Add the chopped parsnips and cabbage. Then add all the remaining ingredients and simmer on med-high for 30 min or until the parsnips are soft.

Superbowl Food-a-palooza!

2011-02-07T16:27:00.000-08:00

This year we really had no interest in who has playing in the Superbowl.. we are not big Black Eyed Peas fans ans the only interest the hubs had (which he told me secretly on Superbowl Sunday) was to eat my Superbowl super food! So here is the menu my faithful readers..

Mac N Cheese Eggrolls

1 box of yoiur fave mac n cheese (*or if you are me.. make your fave mac n cheese recipe and use the leftovers to stuff the eggrolls)
1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese
1 pkg of eggroll wrappers
Oil for frying
Ranch or bbq sauce for dipping

Take the eggroll wrappers and spoon a generous spoonful of mac n cheese in the a corner of the eggroll wrapper. Then place about a tablespoon of shredded cheese on top. Roll up the wrapper folding in the side corners and fry until golden brown!

**Also very delicious to add some lobster, bacon, a thinly sliced piece of tenderloin or even a piece of hotdog :) Have fun with it!

Guacamole

3-4 medium avocadoes
1 medium sized tomato
1 tablespoon of lime juice
1/4 cup of diced onion
1/2 of a jalapeno (seeds removed)
salt, pepper and garlic salt to taste

Core and spoon out the avocado adding all of the additional ingredients and mash together with a fork. Serve cold with corn chips!

Salsa

10-12 roma tomatoes
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro
1/2 cup of chopped onion
1 jalapeno seeds removed
3 tablespoons of lime juice
1 teaspoon of celery salt
1 teaspoon of garlic salt
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
*your fave hot sauce to taste

Pulse all of the above ingredients in a food processor (remember not to blend and make the salsa too runny) serve chilled with corn chips

Honorable mention:

I also made 3 racks of pork ribs and sausage "crack" dip. The sausage dip recipe is below:

1 roll of breakfast sausage browned
3 packages of cream cheese
2 cans of rotel
1/2 cup of sour cream

Mix all together in a crockpot until melted together nicely (1-2 hours) and serve with chips! Easy and delish!!

Peanut Butter and Banana Pancakes

2011-01-30T08:32:00.000-08:00

My Palmetto Organic delivery has delivered a lot of bananas the last 2 deliveries. And in our house we really don't eat a lot of cereal (which I used to always eat with bananas). I enjoy banana and peanut butter as a snack which is really good for you! So in an attempt to use up the bananas recently I made banana muffins and they turned out really yummy. But this morning I decided it might be fun to try peanut butter and banana pancakes :) The hubs loves pancakes and they are a perfect breakfast for a Sunday :)

Dry Ingredients (whisk together in one bowl):
1 and 1/2 cups of flour
3 tablespoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt

Wet Ingredients (whisk together in another bowl):
1/2 cup of fat free sour cream
1 cup fat free milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 ripe bananas mashed
1/4 cup of peanut butter (melted for 45 sec in the microwave to it will mix with the wet ingredients)

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients whisking together slowly. Preheat your skillet to 325 degrees and either put butter or non stick cooking spray in the pan so the pancakes won't stick. Ladle the pancake batter into the skillet and cook about 2-3 min on each side until golden brown.

Cover in a little powdered sugar or lite maple syrup!! DELICIOUS!

Pesto rubbed ricotta stuffed pork chops with organic corn

2011-01-25T17:01:00.000-08:00

A few of you who know me know that I am a proud owner of an Aerogarden. What is an Aerogarden you might ask? Well it is a small plastic container that has very bright light bulbs and little pods of seeds where those who are garden-ally challenged can grown a fun indoor garden. Flowers, herbs, tomatoes, salad lettuce etc. It allows you to grow it all inside with minimal interraction and be able to reap the benefits of the fruits of the garden.

I personally have the 6 pod variety and it is currently growing 2 types of basil, 1 pod of cilantro, 2 dill and 1 pod of chives. Let me just say the basil grows like CRAZY! So as I noticed it overflowing the plant/pot I decided it was time to make a recipe with pesto!

Pesto:
1 large handful of basil
1 handful of oine nuts
1 handful of parmesan cheese
olive oil

Place the first 3 ingredients in a food processor and pulse until well chopped. Then drizzle in olive oil while turning the processor on. The pesto should not be too thick but also should not be too runny. Kind of a warm butter consistency.

Pork Chops:
4 pork chops (butterfied so you can stuff them with stuffing)
salt and pepper both sides

Stuffing: Mix together the following...
1 cup of fat free ricotta cheese
1/4 cup of cooked bacon (ot turkey bacon)
1/4 cup of shredded swiss cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butterfly the pork chops and stuff with a heaping spoonful of stuffing. Then spread the top of the porkchop with a thick layer of pesto. Repeat on all porkchops and cook for 30-45 min or until the chops are 160 degrees (done) :)

I then took the DELICIOUS organic corn on thw cob from Palmetto Organics and boiled them and cut the kernals off and serve!

ENJOY!!!

Shepherds Pie

2011-01-24T17:03:00.001-08:00

My mother and I took what has to have been one of my favorite trips of all time to London, England at the age of 16. We had a blast!! One of the best things (and there truly were SO many things) about this trip was the awesome food we were able to eat while there. Nutella was a breakfast must! But the true "English" meal was that of the Shepherds Pie.

Now as many of you know.. I am not a big green peas fan. And most all of the shepherds pie I have eaten in the past contained those squishy green little devils. Ugh. So this week when my friends from Palmetto Organic delivered my veggie delivery I was sent, among other things, Yukon Gold potatoes, Lacinato kale and red scallions.

So when devising my menu this week I thought... "hmm.. maybe this is the week I try shepherds pie!" And so I did! Now this recipe is not your average run of the mill shepherds pie.. it is my take on it! Hopefully you will enjoy!

The layers are in the following order in a 9X13 glass baking dish:

LAYER 1:
2 lbs of grond beef (or ground chicken or turkey) browned
2 tablespoons of worshire sauce
1 teaspoon of chopped garlic
1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper

LAYER 2:
1 box of mushrooms sliced(sautee in a pan 5 min or until cooked with the ingredients below)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 clove of garlic chopped

LAYER 3:
1 bunch of kale (chopped and sauteed with ingredients below)
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon of dried onion flakes
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

LAYER 4:
4 Yukon gold potatoes (peeled, boiled and mashed with the ingreients below)
2 tablespoons of butter
1 cup of milk
1 red scallion chopped and mixed in with the potatoes

LAYER 5:
2 cups of shredded cheese (low fat cheddar is what I used)

LAYER 6:
2 cans of pop n fresh crescent rolls rolled out on top

Cook all the layers listed above and assemble in the order given. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and cover the top of the pan with foil. Cook covered for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue cooking 15 more minutes or until the crescent roll topping is golden brown, Enjoy!

Eggplant Parm

2011-01-17T17:03:00.001-08:00

As some of you may know I am allergic to tomato paste. So when Palmetto Organics delivered eggplant the first recipe that came to mind it eggplant parmasean. The only problem is many eggplant parmasean recipes call for tomato sauce... which includes tomato paste. So I decided to make my own tomato sauce (minus the tomato paste) and give the eggplant parmasean a try!

Sauce:
2 cans of dices tomatoes and their juice
1 small cam of dices black olives drained
2 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
8-10 leaves of fresh basil
2 tablespoons of olive oil

Cheese filling:
1 8 or 12 oz container of fat free ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 cup of parmasean cheese
salt/pepper

1 pound bag of shredded mozzerella cheese

Eggplant:
1-2 medium eggplant sliced about 1 inch

Dredge for eggplant: (in one bowl)
1/2 cup of italian panko
1/2 cup of flour
1/4 cup of parmasean cheese

2 eggs (in another bowl)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

Blend the sauce ingredients and place on the pan and warm. While the sace is warming heat about 1 cup of vegetable oil in a pan. Dredge the slices of eggplant in egg and then in the panko/flour mix and fry each side until golden brown and drian all slices on a plate with paper towl.

Add a light layer of sauce in an 8 by 10 baking dish. Then layer the eggplant on top. Then add another layer of the cheese mixture and then top with shredded mozzerella cheese. Then top with another layer of sauce and repeat. Cover the dish with left over shredded cheese and bake for 45 min in the 375 degree oven.

Once cooked let sit uncovered for anbout 15 min to set and serve!!!

Italian Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash

2010-12-15T17:44:00.000-08:00

4-6 acorn squash
1 tube of mild pork sausage
1 can of diced Italian tomatoes
1 pound of cooked rigatoni noodles
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup of grated parm cheese
salt and pepper
olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the tops and bottoms off the acorn squash. Then cut in half ans scoop out the middle with the seeds and discard. Line a cookie sheet with foil and place the squash halves with the flesh up. Salt and pepper the flesh generously and drizzle with olive oil. Bake in the oven for 1 hour until the flesh is soft.

Cook the pasta until al dente and drain and set aside in a large bowl.

While the squash is cooking brown the pork sausage in a pan. Drain the sausage and put into the large bowl. Open the tomatoes and drain the juice. Add the tomatoes to the bowl. Then add the 2 cups of mozzarella cheese and parm cheese and mix together. Next scoop the sausage/tomato/noodle mixture into the squash "bowls" ans cook for an additional 20 min or until the cheese is melted.

Serve and enjoy!!!

PopCorners

2010-11-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

On our flight to NYC this past weekend for turkey day we flew my FAVE airline JetBlue. And if the extra legroom, tv on every seat and Blue Moon beer on board were not enough of a reason to fly JetBlue, there is yet another..

POPCORNERS!!

PopCorners are popcorn/chips that have only 4 grams of fat and deliver all the deliciousness of popcorn4rn minus the annoying kernels that get stuck in your teeth. AND did I mention they have 5 AMAZING flavors!? JetBlue had the delightful kettle flavor. However they also cary sea salt, white cheddar, cheezy jalapeno and butter!!

Go to their site www.popcorners.com and see if there are any stores near you that carry these yummy snacks. If not? Email them and they will work to get them into a store near you! And if that was not good enough you can order them by the box!!

I am going to write Santa now to ask for them in my stocking. I suggest you do too :)

Thai Ginger Shrimp (Taste of Thai style!)

2010-11-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

My close friend Norianne and I used to go to a great hole in the wall Thai place here in Jax called Taste of Thai. At least once a month on Friday nite we would go there for dinner to "carb up" on their amazing dishes. Norianne is alergic to shellfish and I am not so she would enjoy the chicken and I woulde eat up some shrimp! The dishes were healthy, hearty and oh so thai-licious.

This week the Palmetto Organic fruit n veggie delivery included some great asian veggies including bok choy, ginger root and asian greens. So with these in fridge I thought I might give the Ginger Shrimp a try! It turned out almost exactly like Taste of Thai! AMAZING! Not to mention the Hubs ate a huge bowl and he doesn't even like Thai. So I thought I should share the recipe..

Oil to cover the bottom of a large pan
1 red pepper chopped thin
1 bunch of bok choy chopped
2-3 tablespoons of chopped fresh ginger root (*simply buy a small piece of ginger root, peel it and chop it up.. a little goes a long way)
3-4 green onions chopped
1 can of asian style shitake mushrooms (in the asian food aisle) drained
1 can of chicken broth or veggie broth either works great
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
20-25 peeled and deveined shrimp (or chicken for friends who are unable to eat shellfish)

jasmine rice

Take all the vegetables and saute until the red peppers are soft and the bok choy is wilted. Add the broth, salt n pepper and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook an additonal 5 min or so to cook the shrimp.

Spoon the veggies and broth over the jasmine rice and enjoy!!

Grandma's Polish Glumpkis in the crockpot!

2010-11-02T15:14:00.000-07:00

My Grandma Aldrich used to make "glumpkis" a lot I have been told. Recently I told my cousin Jennifer that I wanted to make these and try to do them as a crock pot meal!

It was a SUCCESS!!! Below is the recipe enjoy!

1 large head of cabbage (got mine from my organic produce delivery~ palmettoorganics.com)

Meat Mix
1 lb of ground beef and pork (easily found as a meatloaf mix in the meat section)
2 tablespoons of dried onion mixture (onion soup mix is great)
1 tablespoon of salt
1 tablespoon of pepper
1 cup of uncooked rice
1/2 cup of parm cheese

Cooking Sauce
1 small can of tomato juice
1 can of beef stock
2 tablespoons of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
dash of hot sauce

Steam the cabbage for about 5-10 min. Then set aside to cool. While the cabbage is cooling mix together the meat mixture in a bowl. Once the cabbage is cool take each leaf off and fill it with a spoonful of the mixture and wrap it up and put it in your crock pot bowl. Continue until all the meat and cabbage is rolled up.

**Now you can do this the night before and place the crock pot in the fridge. Then the next morning plug in the crock pot and pour the cooking sauce mix over the cabbage rolls and cook on Low for 6-8 hours.

Then when done you can drain the sauce off the rolls and make it into a "gravy" by making a roux with butter and flour and pour in the sauce and it will thicken. Then once this pour over the glumpkis and serve!!!

Mini Breakfast Pizzas

2010-10-31T20:26:00.000-07:00

2 cans of pop n fresh pizza dough
3 cups of frozen hashbrowns
3 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
3 cups of crumbled bacon (cooked)
10 eggs beaten
1/2 cup of parm cheese
1 tablespoon of salt
1 tablespoon of pepper
Dash of hot sauce

Get 2 muffin tins (counting 12 muffins per tin). Spray them with nonstick cooking spray including the tops of the tins. Roll out the dough and cut into small squares and place in each individual tin. Now top with a bit of hashbrowns, cheese and bacon. Then mix the eggs and next 4 ingredients and slowly pour over each mini muffin tin until it covers the filling.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and bake both tins for 20 min or until they puff up and the egg is cooked. Once cooked pop out and serve. Makes 24 individual breakfast pizzas!

Mini Taco Pizzas

2010-10-23T13:44:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

2 12 count muffin tins
cooking spray
2 cans of Pillsbury pizza dough
1 can of fat free refried beans
1 bag of shredded cheese (Mexican style or cheddar or pepper jack would be great)
2 tomatoes diced
1 lb of lean ground beef
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon of cumin
salt n pepper
sour cream

Cook the ground beef in a skillet and add the spices. Once the meat is cooked set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray 2 muffin tins. Lightly flour your counter top and roll out each pizza dough container and then cut into 12 even squares. Take each square and lay into each muffin tin with the edges hanging over. (You will be folding them over the filling shortly). Fill each muffin tin with a spoonful of refried beans. Now add a spoonful of meat to each muffin tin. Then top each muffin tin with shredded cheese. Now that each little muffin tin is full, fold the edges back over the filling making a little pocket. Bake in the oven for 12-14 min or until the tops of the dough are golden brown.

Once they are cooked, chop up the tomatoes and add a spoonful to the top of each mini pizza. Then finish with a dollop of sour cream. **Hot sauce would be great on top as well... maybe even add a black olive!

LOWFAT Broccoli and Cauliflower Bake

2010-10-12T16:08:00.000-07:00

As part of my "veggie surprise" recipes... meaning the veggies delivered each week are a surprise so I am coming up with new ones!! Keep a look out!!

Veggies
1 small bunch of broccoli
1 small bunch of cauliflower
1/2 yellow onion

Sauce
1 cup of skim milk
1/2 cup of fat free sour cream
2 tablespoons of flour
1/4 cup of grated parm cheese
2 tablespoons of salt
1 tablespoon of pepper
dash of hot sauce (I use smoked tabasco but any kind in your fridge will do)

Topping
2 cups of ITALIAN panko bread crumbs
2 cups of shredded swiss or shredded "Italian mixed cheese'

Clean and chop up the broccoli and cauliflower. Place them in a pot with about 1 cup of water in the bottom. (Enough to steam them..) Pace with the lid on for about 15-20 min or until the veggies are more tender to the touch.

While the veggies are steaming, chop th onion and sautee it in olive oil until translucent. In a separate large pot mix the sauce ingredients together with a wisk on low heat. Next dump the veggies and onions into the large pot with the sauce and mix to coat the veggies with the sauce. Remove the pot from heat.

Next take a medium sized baking dish and scoop half the veggie mizture into the bottom and cover it with half of the shredded cheese and hlaf the bread crumbs. Then spoon the remaining veggies on top and add the remaining shredded cheese and bread crumbs.

Cover with foil and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly!

Palmetto Organics Fruit n Veggie Delivery

2010-10-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile!

I recently signed up for an organic produce delivery called Palmetto Organics (www.palmettoorganics.com. Basically they deliver to your door a basket of fresh organic veggies grown by local farmers. You go to their site, pick the size basket you want depending on the size of your family (1+, 1-2, 4+ or kids basket) then you pick how often you want them delivered to your door (weekly or biweekly) then you pay using a credit card and they deliver to your door!! They bring an awesome mixture of fresh fruits and veggies in a silver "cold" bag that they leave in your cooler (which you leave outside your door with ice or ice packs). Then when you get home they are waiting for you!

So I signed Mike and I up for the every other week delivery for 2+ people. It gives you up to 9 pounds of fruits and veggies. And this week we got an AMAZING and I mean AMAZINGLY fresh mix of a medium bunch of green leaf lettuce, a medium bunch of swiss chard, 1 bag of fingerling potatoes, 2 medium yellow onions, 1 cauliflower bunch, 2 smaller bunches of broccoli, 4 asian pears, 4 granny smith apples, 2 nectarines and 4 plums. They will tell you the Friday before your delivery what will be in your basket. If you are allergic to anything/don't like certain veggies or fruits simply let them know when signing up and they will replace it with something different. The fruits and veggies change every week so you get to change it up! They change based on the season so of course you will get a great mix as the months go by. And all of those fruits and veggies I got were only $30!!!! Yes you read that right! 9 lbs of organic fruits and veggies for $30! And we get them delivered every other week! No muss no fuss!!

I highly suggest it and if you live in Jax check out their site and see if these healthy fruits and veggies will be a great addition to your diet!

Lamb Burgers

2010-08-23T15:39:00.000-07:00

Well Mike and I just got back from a weekend trip to Charleston, SC to see my good friend Erin get married to the man of her dreams Todd!! We had a blast!! Part of the awesome weekend was a late night trek to a small tapas/micro brew on tap restaurant at 11:30pm! And at this restaurant they served some of the BEST lamb sliders we have ever had. So the hubs requested I figure out my own version of the lamb sliders.

Tonight I went to my grocery store (Publix) who did not already have ground lamb. They gladly broke open a leg of lamb and ground up 2 pounds for me. And below is the recipe I created!! Enjoy!

Lamb Burgers

1 pound of ground lamb (ask your grocery butcher.. they were very happy to help me!)
1 teaspoon of marjoram
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
1 teaspoon of basil dried or fresh-chopped)

Red pepper salsa
1/2 cup of diced roasted red pepper (can get them already roasted in the pickle aisle)
1/4 cup of sliced yellow onion
3 teaspoons of garlic

Tatziki Sauce
1 cup of Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of dill
1/4 cup of diced cucumber
1/4 cup of smashed feta (optional... smashed means smash the feta into the bottom of a bowl with a smooth until it is broken up and not cubed or crumbled)
1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic

Mix all of the lamb burger ingredients together and make into 4 burger patties. Place in a nonstick pan and cook 5 min on each side (medium/ medium well in the pan). Remove from heat and set aside.

Saute all of the red pepper salsa items starting wtih the onion first in some olive oil. Sautee them until they are opaque.. about 5 min. Then add the chopped garlic and cook another minute and then add the chopped red pepper and saute another 5 min or until it is all mixed together and looks like "salsa". Remove from heat and set aside.

Mix all of the tatziki sauce items together and top the burger along with the red pepper salsa on a wheat bun or in a pita and enjoy!

Stuffed Pork Chops

2010-08-11T15:57:00.000-07:00

So I realized that I really don't have a pork recipe on here yet. (With the exception of my crockpot pork loin recipe.. gotta post that one! YUM)

Stuffed Pork Chops

4 boneless porkchops
1 cup of chopped fresh spinach
1/4 cup od chopped mushrooms
1 cup of shredded smoked gouda cheese
1/2 cup of panko bread crumbs
1/2 tblspn of chopped garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil
salt n pepper

In a bowl combine all of the above except the pork chops. Mix all of the ingredients by pressing them all down with a spoon and really mix them together well and let set 10-15 min.

While the stuffing is sitting, butterfly the pork chops. Then salt and pepper the inside and outside of the butterflied chops. Then hold the chop in one hand (similar to how you would hold a taco) and spoon in the stuffing in until it is almost overflowing. Then fasten closed with 2 toothpicks and place in an oiled baking dish. Complete this for all 4 pork chops. *The stuffing measurements above are only for up to 4 pork chops.

Bake at 375 for 30-45 min or until 155 degrees inside :)

Serve over rice or with mashed potatoes!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

2010-07-28T16:06:00.000-07:00

This was an awesome accidental recipe! Give it a shot and you will LOVE it! MY hubs is a fan of the frozen kind with a million fat grams. This one was MUCH healthier!

2 chicken breasts butterflied and pounded to 1/4 inch thickness
1 cup of shredded swiss
4 slices of ham
4 tablespoons of fat free honey mustard
1 cup of panko breadcrumbs
1 egg beaten
6 toothpicks
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Butterfly the chicken breasts and pound out to 1/4 inch thickness. Then lay out and put 2 pieces of the ham on either side of the pounded chicken breasts. Then add 1/2 cup of shredded swiss to the middle of the chicken breast. Now add 2 tablespoons of honey mustard on top of the cheese. Roll the chicken breast and secure closed with 3 toothpicks at the top, middle and bottom to be sure the filling doesn't fall out.

Next roll the chicken in the egg wash and then coat in breadcrumbs Place in your oven baking dish. Repeat with the other chicken breast. Place in oven and cook for 35-40 min at 375 degrees or until the chicken is done.

Serve over rice with veggies!! YUM!!

Layered Ham n Cheese Breakfast Casserole

2010-07-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

Sauce:
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup of flour
2 cups of milk
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard

Filling:
10-12 slices of bread
1 lb of deli ham thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups of grated Gruyere cheese
6 fried eggs over easy

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

For the sauce: melt the butter in a pan and then whisk in the flour until it makes a paste. Then whisk in the milk slowly as the sauce thickens. Next add the spices and mustard with the whisk until well mixed. Take off heat and set sauce aside.

Pour some sauce in a casserole pan to cover the bottom. Then add a layer of bread about 4-6 pieces. Then add a layer of ham to cover the bread. Then add a layer of cheese. Repeat: sauce, bread, ham and cheese.

Next place in the oven for 30 min to bake. With 15 min to spare start frying the eggs to over easy. Once they are cooked, remove the casserole from the oven and add the eggs to the top of the casserole. Then add one final layer of cheese and the last of the sauce. Place back in the oven for 3 min to melt cheese.

Remove from the oven and cut into servings. Makes 6-8 servings.

*Hot sauce is great on top!!

Salmon Burgers

2010-07-07T13:13:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! It's been awhile.. but I have a new recipe for you! The hubs is on a health food kick so I came up with this one!!

Salmon Burgers

2 medium fillets of salmon
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of lime juice
1 tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of sriracha hot sauce (Asian chili hot sauce)
1 teaspoon of ginger powder
1/2 cup of panko bread crumbs
1 egg

Cut the salmon skin off the fillets and then cut up the salmon and put it in a food processor. Then add the oil, juice, sesame seeds, soy sauce, hot sauce and ginger powder and pulse until the mixture is "ground beef' consistency. Transfer the salmon mix to another bowl and add the bread crumbs and egg and mix with your hands until well mixed. Split into 4 equally sized patties and sear in a non-stick pan 5 min on both sides. Finish cooking in the pan in a 350 degree oven for 10 min.

Asian Mayo
1/2 cup of hellmans mayo
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of sriracha hot sauce
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Mix together and spread on a bun with the salmon burger!

Toppings for the burger include: flash boiled watercress (sub for lettuce) and sliced tomatoes~

Enjoy!

Italian Stuffed Mushrooms

2010-05-02T13:25:00.000-07:00

I have been craving stuffed mushrooms lately. So I thought I thought I would play around and see what I could come up with...

6 Portobello Mushrooms (Or 2 containers of white mushrooms stems removed and cored) and cleaned
1 roll of Italian Pork Sausage (I use the mild kind) fully cooked
1/2 block of cream cheese
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of Italian bread crumbs
1 cup of chopped roasted red pepper (you can roast your self or get them in a jar)
1 cup of grated mozzarella cheese (use 1/2 in the mix and 1/2 cup to sprinkle on top)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and pre-cook the mushrooms on a baking sheet for 7 min (unstuffed). Then in a bowl mix the cooked sausage, cream cheese, parm cheese, bread crumbs, red peppers, and 1/2 cup of mozz cheese. Once mixed stuff the mushrooms until they are overflowing. Place on baking sheet and sprinkle mushrooms with remaining mozz cheese and bake another 7 min.

You can serve them over the following:

Risotto (cook 1 cup of aborrio rice according to the box.)
1/2 block of cream cheese
1/2 tsp of Italian Seasoning
1 cup of Fresh Spinach

Cook the risotto per the directions on the box. When finished cooking stir in cream cheese and Italian seasoning. While the cheese is melting into the risotto, in a separate pan saute (1 tblspn of olive oil and 1 tblspn of butter) 1 cup of fresh spinach until wilted.

Place the risotto on the plate, top with half the spinach and then top with 1 or 2 portobello mushrooms and enjoy!!!

Lasagna Fritta- With Meghan!

2010-03-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

Hello all my blog fans!! (All 10 of you glorious peeps)

I am making a special dindin for my oldest pal Meghan tonight. I will be making a spin on the Olive Garden appetizer called Lasagna Fritta.

Ingredients:

10 cooked lasagna noodles
2 eggs
2 cups of ricotta cheese
2/3 cup of parm cheese
1/3 cup of chopped kalamata olives
1/2 cup mozz cheese
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon pepper
1/2 tablespoon garlic salt
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup of milk
Veg oil to fry
1 can of Alfredo sauce
1 chopped tomato (or 1 can of diced tomatoes)

Precook the lasagna noodles. Set aside to cool. In a bowl mix ricotta cheese, 1/3 cup of parm cheese, 1 egg, olives, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder and mix. Once the cheese mixture is mixed, take the cooled lasagna noodle and dry each noodle as you go. On a cookie sheet lie each noodle out on the sheet and take a heaping spoonful of the cheese mixture and spread evenly along the noodle. Then sprinkle a little of the mozz cheese on top. Now roll each noodle up. Place on the cookie sheet and continue rolling all the noodles. Once completed put the cookie sheet into the freezer for an hour to set.

In two separate bowls, one mix the other egg and 1/4 cup of milk. The other bowl mix bread crumbs and rest of the parm cheese. After the noodles are set, remove them from the freezer. Cut them (length wise) and dredge each roll up in the egg/milk mixture and then in the bread crumb/parm cheese mixture and place into hot oil to fry. 2 min per side.

Once fried, place some of the alfredo sauce on the plate and place the fried frittas on top. Then pour more alfredo over top along with diced tomatoes and serve!

2 words: Cheeseburger Doritos

2010-02-17T14:57:00.000-08:00

Anyone who knows me may remember back about a year ago when I was singing the praises of Doritos "mystery flavor" where they had a contest to name the flavor.

My idea was Doritos in Paradise.. because they truly tasted like a cheeseburger in all its yumminess.

Imagine my surprise when at the grocery today I saw them.... Late Night Cheeseburger Doritos.

Holy UNBELIEVABLE corn chips BATMAN! These bad boys are INSANE. So good.. you truly end up either eating a whole bag.. or going to get a cheeseburger immediately after.

My husband is on lock-down from these chips. Now if only I can restrict myself to only a handful.

Ask me what handful I am on now.... 4th.

Seafood Balls... no smart butt comments please..

2010-02-16T14:27:00.001-08:00

Seafood Balls

2 fillets of white fish diced (baked until done and refrigerated.. I used basa fillets.. tilapia would also be good)
12 cooked shrimp (diced) (**If allergic to shellfish double the fish amount above instead)
1 cup of cooked rice (white, jasmine, Cajun.. whatever you have!.. make sure it's cooled)
1/4 cup of Italian bread crumbs
1 can of corn (drained)
1/3 cup of tartar sauce
1 egg beaten
1 tablespoon of Cajun seasoning (if no Cajun seasoning use 1/2 tablespoon of red pepper 1/2 tablespoon of garlic salt)
salt and pepper

Flour and vegetable oil for breading and frying

In a bowl mix all of the ingredients above in a bowl until it is well mixed and sticky. Refrigerate for about 2 hours until everything is cold. Take out and put oil into a fryer heat to about 375 degrees. Take a spoonful of the mixture and shape into a ball. Dredge in flour and fry 2-3 min until golden brown.

Serve with additional tartar sauce or cocktail sauce or ranch dressing!!

Mardi Gras Meat Pockets- Happy Birthday Steffy!

2010-02-13T12:37:00.001-08:00

So for Steph's big 30th bday shinding last night i wanted to make something "New Orleans" style but really wasn't feeling seafood and wanted it to be easy to make. Oh, and it had to be an appetizer size since it would be a party!

So after much deliberation, and finding a BOGO at Publix for biscuit dough I came up with the Mardi Gras Meat Pockets!

2 cans of biscuit dough (Publix puts them as "2 fers" or BOGO like every other week)
1 package of Jimmy Dean Italian pork sausage
1 package of smoked sausage
1/4 pound of shredded Havarti cheese
1/2 tablespoon of Cajun seasoning (Tony's is Steph's fave.. you could also sub with 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder)

First take the entire package of Italian sausage and cook it until it is done and pour into a bowl. Chop one of the smoked sausage links into small pieces and mix with the Italian sausage. Add the Cajun spices and mix the meat together.

Next take the biscuit dough and for each biscuit cut it in half so that it becomes 2 round disks.. (the idea is to make them thinner and you will get double the pockets!). Once you slice each biscuit in half lay them all out on the counter and roll them thinner with a rolling pin.

Now take each disk of dough and put a little shredded Havarti cheese in the middle along with a spoonful of the meat mixture. Fold the dough into a "pocket" or a half moon shape sealing the meat and cheese inside. Lay out on a cookie sheet.

Place pockets into a 375 degree preheated oven and cook for 17 minutes or until the pockets are golden brown. Serve with ranch dressing for dipping!

1st Julia Recipe! Poached Fish w/ a Beurre Blanc Sauce.. I give my attempt a C. UGH!

2010-02-09T15:26:00.000-08:00

Well tonight I attempted my first Julia Child dish. I made her poached white fish and beurre blanc sauce.

I went to the store and bought unsalted butter just as it says in the book. Also I bought dry vermouth wine to cook with, beautiful little shallots and wite wine vinegar which took me 10 min to decide what kind to buy.. as there were white wine "vinegars" to chose from as then others labeled "white wine" and no wording of "vinegar' in sight! So I was perplexed as to the right kind to get. Alas I picked a middle of the road (price-wise) white wine vinegar.

Let's say that the poached fish turned out very nicely.. very tender and flaky fish that poached beautifully in a white wine and stock. I was quite happy with how it turned out.

As for the beurre blanc sauce.. it did not turn out at all. I was really upset! I followed the instructions to a "T" even whisking each tablespoon of butter in by hand. And nothing thickened the way it was supposed to.. the butter separated into the white "stuff" that skimmed the top of the pot and the "yellow" liquid was below it.

I am not at all sure what I did wrong. But I put a lot of effort into it. I guess this means I will either A. need a better pot to cook in or B. need a pro chef to show me what the crap to do!

I am really upset. Oh well I guess I just try to press on to the next choice from the book... though I am concerned when it comes to hollandase sauce. Will that one turn out any better? I hope so.

Alas my sweet hubs ate his fish and even some of the butter sauce and said it tasted good. He loves me :)

Perhaps a dessert next?

Cornish Game Hens with Mushroom Risotto

2010-02-08T18:19:00.000-08:00

Well tonight I made cornish game hens for dinner. This would be the 3rd time I have made cornish hens. The fist time was for my husband and I on Christmas this past year. I had never made cornish hens before.. and as I am with all chicken my biggest concern was not that is was juicy or even tasted good. My biggest concern was that it was all the way done so I would not get salmonella. :)

And since it as turned out so good now three times in a row.. I thought I would share with the blog!!

Roasted Cornish Hens Stuffed with Mushroom Risotto and Fried Squash

2 cornish hens (thawed- and I usually fin them at my grocery as a "buy one get one"!)
2 cups of risotto rice
1 container of chopped mushrooms
1 can of chicken stock
3 tablespoons of butter

Seasoning for cornish hens:
salt and pepper
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon of hot sauce
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon of grill seasoning

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil so that you can close it over the top of the hens to lock in the steam while it is cooking. Rinse and dry the hens and place breast side down in the pan. Melt the butter, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce and mix together. Season the hens with salt and pepper on all sides and in the cavity of then. Sprinkle the grill seasoning all over the hens as well as in the cavity. Set birds aside.

Now make the risotto rice according to the directions on the package. While it is cooking saute the mushrooms in a pan with salt and pepper and the 3 tablespoons of butter. Once they are cooked through, mix into the fully cooked risotto. Put a portion of the risotto mushroom mixture (about 1/2 total) into another small bowl and use it to stuff each hen. (Be careful not to use this small amount for anything else as you will be stuffing a raw chicken with it. If you do not use it all throw it out.)

Once you have stuffed the hens with the risotto you can pour the butter mixture over both birds and then fold the foil over the top of the birds so you lock in the moisture and put them in the oven. Cook for 1 hour and 30 min. Then remove from the oven and open the foil to expose the hens. Put back in the oven for 30 min longer uncovered to brown the top of the chicken.

Once the hens are done remove them from the oven and put each on its own plate and serve with side of additional remaining risotto!

Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls-Super Bowl Snack Recipe

2010-02-07T09:25:00.000-08:00

For the Super Bowl tonight I am making Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls! Recipe below...

2 cups of cooked finely chopped chicken
1/2 cup of wing sauce
1 cup of ranch dressing
1 cup of shredded mozzerella cheese
1 package of egg roll wrappers
1/4 cup finely chopped carrots (optional)
Vegetable oil for frying

Heat the vegetable oil in a fryer or in a pot to 350 degrees. In a bowl mix the chicken, wing sauce, ranch and mozzerella cheese until all are thoroughly coated and mixed together. Open package of egg roll wrappers. Take out a wrapper and lay it on the counter. Add a spoonful of the mixture to the middle of the egg roll wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and slide the mixture covered toward you beginning to roll the wrapper up. Fold in the corners of the wrapper then finish rolling the egg roll. Put the egg roll into the hot oil fry 3-4 min or until light brown and crispy. Once done use tongs to remove the egg roll from the oil and let drain and cool on paper towel.

Enjoy!!

McClure's Pickles

2010-02-06T11:09:00.000-08:00

So about 3 years ago I went to NYC to visit my pal Meghan Lisi. It was in December, the lights were up and the city was decorated to the nines for the holiday season.

We went out to catch a theatre show for a friend of mine named Bob McClure. I knew him when I was in high school at Interlochen Arts Camp. After the show we met up with Bob and a few of his friends for drinks. It was there that Bob presented me with an awesome gift. An amazing jar of vinegar and spicy pepper laced goodness that up until that point I had only heard about. You see, Bob and his brother decided to take an old family recipe for pickles and turn them into a small business. Hence McClure's Pickles were born. They started making them out of their family home in Michigan and both he and his brother found a few vendors in Michigan and NYC and started to sell them. Word travel fast and the McClure brother's pickles became one of the hottest gourmet pickles on the market! And here I was in NYC with this awesome jar of pickles which I promptly fed ex'd back to FL and enjoyed!!

Flash forward 3 years to Mike and I watching one of my favorite channels, The Food Network and a show called "The Best Thing I Ever Ate" comes on. This show has all of the Food Network personalities talking about their favorite foods. And last night's episode featured McClure's pickles! Both Bob and his brother made the episode as well and it was pretty cool to see their product featured on the show.

So may I proudly recommend (along with the Food Network personalities) McClure's Pickles!

www.mcclurespickles.com

Go buy yourself a jar and try them yourself! They are pickl-icious!

My entry to the "blog-o-sphere"

2010-02-04T18:14:00.000-08:00

After much consideration, requests for my recipes, cooking for fun that happens almost daily and well thinking "what the heck" I have created my own cooking blog!

I must also confess that after viewing the movie/food/cooking/acting masterpiece "Julie and Julia" I felt compelled to give this a shot!

In honor of starting this blog I did what Julie Powell did and got myself a copy of "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck. I felt it only necessary to get myself THE book by one of the best chefs of all time to start my first and only professional training.

Initial first impressions upon receiving the book in the mail today:
1. Best $20.00 (including shipping) I have spent to support my cooking addiction!
2. They cover is ALL in this book.. including pictures! This baby has pictures ranging from how to hold the knife when chopping, to how to make a roux, to suggestions on which wines to serve with which meal! (P.S. Anyone who knows me knows I am a VINO fan! So this should be interesting!)
3. The cooking portions are for 4-6 people which means one of two things; one: LEFTOVERS!! which will be good for the wallet or two: my bro and sis-in-law will be eating my cooking a lot more than normal!

My plan is.. of course with my schedule (and wallet) permitting to make 1-2 recipes from this cookbook a week. That of course can be a soup, side dish, main course or a dessert!

In addition, as I like to play around with my own recipes in the kitchen, I will be writing about them and posting the recipes here on the blog for you to read/try too!

Happy Cooking!! Or more importantly EATING!!

Taco Pizza

2010-02-04T16:02:00.000-08:00

My first personal recipe I am posting!!!

Note: Go buy a spring form pan- $20 totally worth it and can use it for cakes too

Taco Pizza Ingredients:
1 roll of thin pizza dough (Pillsbury is great)
1 can of refried beans
1/3 cup of sour cream
1 lb of cooked ground beef
1 bag of shredded taco cheese
1 cup of salsa (or chopped tomatoes)
1 can of chopped black olives
1 cup of taco sauce mild (Taco Bell or Ortega)

Additional for toppings:
Sour cream
Shredded lettuce

Roll out the dough onto an ungreased spring form pan. The edges of the dough should hang over the edge of the pan. Cook the ground beef in a pan and set aside. Mix the can of refried beans and 1/3 cup of sour cream in a small pan until warm and mixed.

Now take the 1 cup of taco sauce and spread on the bottom of the pizza dough in the pan. Then layer on top of that the bean/sour cream mixture. Then add the cooked ground beef on top of that. Next layer the bag of shredded cheese and then add the can of chopped olives.

Now take the edges of the pizza dough hanging over the edge of the spring form pan and fold each over the top of the mixture so that it looks like a pie and all of the ingredients are encased in the pan and covered in dough.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 min until the dough browns on top. Remove from the oven and let cool. Remove the outside of the spring form pan and cut slices. Top each slice with a a handful of shredded lettuce and a dollup of sour cream.

ENJOY!!

The "Cube"- The must buy of the week

2010-02-04T15:48:00.000-08:00

Target has wine in a cube called "the cube". I highly suggest the pinot grigio, sav blanc and cabernet.

The BIG cube is the best buy at $15.00 a cube. And it has a spout so it keeps for weeks in the fridge with no spoiling!

1 BIG cube = 4 bottles.

It is one of the best buys for wine I know of!! Go get it!