The Dish List

Layered Mediterranean Dip

2012-02-09T12:55:00.000-08:00

I'm a fan of Pioneer Woman's site. Her humor, style, and country life are so fun to read about. Even better, I love her recipes. There's no shame in butter, right? She now has a food site, Tasty Kitchen, and last week a foodie blog friend of mine, Natalie, spotlighted this Mediterranean dip. Mmmm ... it is one my new favorite turn-to healthy finger snacks/appetizers. Enjoy!

Cilantro-Pecan Pesto Layered Mediterranean Dip

For the Pesto:
1 1/2 cups fresh cilantro leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil, divided
2 T pecans, chopped
2 T pine nuts
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Process cilantro, garlic, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in a food processor until a rough paste forms. Add pecans, pine nuts, and cheese, and process until blended stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the processor running, pour the remaining oil through the food chute in a slow and steady stream; process until smooth.
Pesto can be chilled for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 1 month if desired. Yields 3/4 cup.

For the remaining layers:
2 cups hummus, any flavor
1/2 cup baby cucumber, chopped
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, chopped
1/2 cup grape tomatoes, chopped

For garnish:
pita chips
feta cheese

Assembling the layered dip:
Spread pesto on a platter. Layer the remaining ingredients on top of pesto in the order listed. Top with the garnish ingredients and serve with pita chips.

Who Dished it first? Tasty Kitchen

Brown-Sugar Pound Cupcakes with Brown Butter Glaze

2012-02-06T16:22:00.000-08:00

This weekend I tried a new cupcake recipe and I just had to share it here as one of my new favorite dessert Dishes.

First of all, I've never made a brown butter glaze until now and I've been missing out on a lot! What a deliciously buttery sweet glaze and what a fun alternative to the typical butter-cream frosting. I'm also a fan of the density of the cake as it's not your average light and squishy cupcake. What I especially like about this recipe is NO leftover frosting! One of my pet peeves is not coming out even after you've frosted and I'm glad to say that this glaze recipe makes just enough for the two dozen cupcakes.

This is a very rich recipe so plan to enjoy your one or two cakes and share the rest.

Brown-Sugar Pound Cupcakes with Brown Butter Glaze
Yield: 2 dozen cupcakes

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners.

Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl cream butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the addition of buttermilk, ending with the dry. Scrape sides of bowl and begin filling muffin tins 3/4 full. Bake for 25 minutes.

Set rack with cupcakes over a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spoon brown-butter glaze over tops and let stand until set. Serve glazed cupcakes immediately.

Brown-Butter Glaze
Yield: enough glaze for 2 dozen cupcakes

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
2 t pure vanilla extract
2-4 T whole milk

Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Carefully pour butter into a bowl, leaving sediment behind. Add sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk to butter and stir until smooth. If glaze is too thick add more milk. Use immediately.

Who Dished it first? Martha Stewart

Peppermint Bark Popcorn

2011-12-22T14:03:00.000-08:00

Don't you wish you were my neighbor? We made plates of fudge and this delicious peppermint bark popcorn for neighbors and friends this Christmas. I love this recipe for peppermint bark popcorn because it's easy to make large batches as gifts and it tastes amazing!

Peppermint Bark Popcorn

16-20 cups popped popcorn
1 pound white chocolate almond bark
1 6 ounce box candy canes, crushed (about 1 generous cup)
2 teaspoons peppermint extract or a few drops peppermint oil to taste
3/4 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Place popcorn in a very large mixing bowl.

Melt almond bark according to package instructions. When completely melted, add extract or peppermint oil. If using extract, it's normal for the almond bark to seize (get lumpy) which is okay, just stir very quickly because the more you wait the more it will seize.

Pour melted bark mixture over popcorn, adding crushed candy canes on top. Stir to coat evenly. Pour popcorn onto waxed paper, parchment, or foil and spread out.

Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth. Drizzle over popcorn mixture. Let popcorn dry completely until chocolate and almond bark are hardened. You may place in the fridge to speed the process along.

When chocolate is hardened, use your hands to break it into large chunks and then serve.

Who Dished it first? Our Best Bites

Middle Eastern Eggplant Salad

2011-11-30T10:34:00.000-08:00

I'm slowly venturing into my own uncharted territory of eating eggplants. I don't know if it's my unfamiliarity with the squash or previous negative experiences but I fear eating eggplant. So...this middle eastern eggplant salad was a giant leap for me. Yum! I'm glad I took this jump. This salad is easy to make and surprisingly kid friendly seeing as my kids ate it up.

Middle Eastern Eggplant Salad

2 medium red bell peppers
1 medium tomato, peeled and seeded
3 Tablespoons no-salt-added tomato paste
2 Tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
Dash of ground red pepper
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat broiler.
Cut bell peppers in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet; flatten with hand. Broil 12 minutes or until blackened. Place in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 10 minutes. Peel and chop.
Place tomato in a blender; process until smooth. Combine tomato puree, tomato paste, 2 Tablespoons water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, ground red pepper, and garlic in a blender; process until smooth.
Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add eggplant; cook 30 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in bell pepper and tomato mixture. Cook 5 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and black pepper.

Who Dished it first? Cooking Light, July 2009

Cranburgers

2011-11-26T09:54:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. If you have any leftover cranberry sauce or turkey gravy then I have the recipe for you.

My first reaction to this recipe was definitely not positive. I'm not a huge fan of cranberry sauce, especially jellied cranberry sauce. My husband on the other hand loves the mixture of cranberries and turkey. In honor of his taste preferences and because I love a good hamburger I decided to make this meal.

The verdict: Thanksgiving dinner in a bun. Serious!

The patties are moist and packed with Thanksgiving flavors of thyme, turkey, cranberry, and even gravy. I would definitely cook these in a fry pan instead of a grill because I'm not sure how well they will would hold together. The burgers held for me but they were delicate. I overlooked adding oil to my fry pan and since turkey is a leaner meat the patties were stickier than I would have liked so be sure to add the oil.

The best compliment I can hope for is my husband sincerely praising the dinner after each bite he takes. This meal hit that nail on the head! He L.O.V.E.D. it! Gravy and jellied cranberry on a turkey burger. You might be surprised. No, you will be surprised.

My photo was not pretty. It looked like a gravy bleeding burger. This photo is courtesy of Taste of Home.

Cranburgers

1 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce
1 cup turkey-flavored stuffing mix
1/4 tsp. ground thyme
1-1/2 lbs. ground turkey
1 Tbsp. oil
6 lettuce leaves
6 hamburger buns
1/3 cup turkey gravy, warmed
6 slices jellied cranberry sauce

In a large bowl combine whole-berry cranberry sauce, stuffing mix and thyme. Crumble turkey over mixture and mix well. Shape into six patties.

In a large skillet, cook burgers in oil over medium heat for 6-8 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees and juices run clear.

Place burgers on lettuce-lined buns; top with a spoonful of gravy and a slice of cranberry sauce.

Who Dished it first? Taste of Home magazine October/November 2010

Baked Caramel French Toast

2011-11-21T15:56:00.000-08:00

I love easy morning breakfasts that are warm and delicious. This breakfast casserole recipe includes preparing the dish the night before using a loaf of French bread and baking it in the morning. Easy! I've eaten many variations similar to this but most use eggs as a main ingredient whereas the focus of this dish is bread and caramel. Delicious!

Baked Caramel French Toast

1 (1 pound) loaf French bread, cut diagonally in 1 inch slices
8 eggs
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup butter
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
3 Tablespoons light corn syrup

Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish; arrange the slices of bread in the dish. In a large bowl beat together eggs, milk, cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over bread slices, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup; heat until bubbling. Pour over bread and egg mixture.

Bake in preheated oven, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Serve warm.

Who Dished it first? AllRecipes

Nerd Ice Cream Sandwiches

2011-11-18T15:30:00.000-08:00

We still have a lot of Halloween candy in our house. I handed out 900+ pieces one by one to the swarm of kids at my door and I'm not exaggerating. My kids even donated some of their candy loot to the pot but we still have candy to get rid of. So, since I can't make these sweets go away as fast as I want we'll just eat and enjoy.

My kids were so excited when I told them what I made for dessert. Nerd ice cream sandwiches! Chocolate, ice cream, and candy all in one. What kid wouldn't be happy to eat one of these? My kids were all too willing to pull out their Halloween candy, contribute the Nerds, and roll away.

I liked the tart flavor and crunch the Nerds add to the cookie sandwich. The cookies held together when squished but I thought they were somewhat dry. The ice cream covered the dryness of the cookie but eaten alone (I snuck a bite fresh from the oven) they were not as enjoyable. Possibly they're meant to be dry so they don't crumble under the pressure (lame joke) or I might have over-baked them. Either way, the dough is fabulously rich in bittersweet chocolate flavor and we enjoyed our sweet treat.

Nerd Ice Cream Sandwiches

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
3 cups vanilla ice cream
1 1/2 cups tiny tart candies such as Nerds

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Drop 24 slightly rounded Tbsps of dough onto the baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake until firm around the egdes but slightly soft in the middle, 9 to 12 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
Form sandwiches with 2 cookies and 1/4 cup ice cream. Freeze until firm, about 10 minutes or up to 1 day. Before serving, place the candies in a bowl and roll the edge of the ice cream in the candies to coat.

Womens Day (October 17, 2011 magazine)

Curry-Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Chickpeas

2011-11-16T23:45:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to eat healthier, save dollars, and rotate my long-term food storage I'm making an effort to cook more meatless meals. This dish is one of my new favorites. De-li-cious!!

What I love about this curry spaghetti meal is:

The whole wheat pasta adds a great nutty flavor to the dish.
I didn't have curry powder on hand so I used the substitution of the 5 spices listed below. I really liked the fresh flavor of the spices versus premixed curry and will definitely be using this fresh mixture in the future.
The fresh goat cheese topping adds a tart flavor that completes the blend of pepper heat and warm curry.
The Hawaiian chile pepper I had on hand is very hot so for the my kids' benefit I substituted a shake of cayenne pepper to give the dish some kick but not too much.
Garbanzo beans/Chickpeas. ("Tomato. Tomahto.") I love these little beans. They add a solidity to this dish making it more than just noodles and sauce. They're like the meatball to this Mediterranean pasta.

Curry-Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Chickpeas

1 lb whole wheat or other whole grain spaghetti
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 fresno or other fresh chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 Tbsp mild curry powder (or about 2 tsp turmeric, 1 1/2 tsp each ground cumin and coriander, and a scant 1/2 tsp each ground cinnamon and cardamom)
1/2 cup dry white wine, chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 can (28 to 32 oz) san marzano tomatoes
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained
Grated aged goat cheese or tangy pecarino-romano cheese, for topping
Flat-leaf parsley or cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped, for garnish

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it and add the pasta. Cook to al dente; drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.

While the pasta is working, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil, a couple of turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the onion, chile pepper and garlic and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Add the curry powder (or your own curry blend) amd season the salt. Stir to toast the spices for a minute. Deglaze the pan with the stock.

Add the tomatoes and crush with a potato masher or wooden spoon. Add the chickpeas and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced, 15 to 20 minutes.

Toss the pasta with the sauce and reserved pasta cooking water to combine. Top with the cheese and parsley (or cilantro).

Who Dished it first? Rachael Ray

Kale Slaw with Peanut Dressing

2011-11-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

I love green salads, preferably made with romaine or green leaf. For me Iceberg is like eating crunchy water and lacks the high vitamin content I want while spinach really feels too similar to eating leaves. I know, I am eating leaves. I just don't want to feel like I'm eating leaves. Know what I mean?

If you want your dark green leafy veggies but don't want to feel like a rabbit as my husband puts it, here's a fun way to eat your greens and enjoy great flavor. Kale is a vitamin-rich leafy green that's crisp and firm (not wilty like spinach) and the strong flavor of the leaf is masked by the peanut dressing. My husband the devout carnivore had seconds of this salad and I even heard a compliment or two.

Kale Slaw with Peanut Dressing

2 large bunches curly kale, center ribs discarded, very thinly sliced crosswise (about 10 cups)
1 yellow, orange or red bell pepper
2 carrots, thinly sliced crosswise
1/2 cup vegetalbe oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup salted peanuts
2 Tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 cup salted peanuts

Toss 2 large bunches curly kale, center ribs discarded, very thinly sliced crosswise (about 10 cups); 1 yellow, orange or red bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, halved crosswise and thinly sliced lengthwise; and 2 carrots, thinly sliced crosswise, in a large bowl.

Puree 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, 1/4 cup salted peanuts, 2 Tablespoons packed light-brown sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt in a blender until smooth.
Pour dressing over vegetables just before serving. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped.

Who Dished it first? Martha Stewart

Persimmon Milkshake

2011-11-14T11:11:00.001-08:00

Persimmons. This month I received some in my veggie/fruit coop box and didn't know what to do! Last year I made a bundt cake that was good but not my favorite. This year my persimmons sat on my counter waiting. They do make great fall decorations! These cute little orange fruits with a star center are so new to me I just don't know how to eat them. Some like their taste plain like apple slices but we're not yet accustomed to their taste.
When my neighbor sent me her recipe for persimmon milkshakes I was excited to try it out. This shake is sweet and light with a very distinct cinnamon flavor that reminds me of Christmas. Plus, it is low in calories without added sugar. Mmmm!

Persimmon Milkshake

1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tray of ice (12 cubes)
2 persimmons, quartered
1 banana
dash of nutmeg
big pinch of cinnamon
add sugar if your banana is not sweet

Blend all ingredients until frothy and serve immediately.

Who Dished it first? My neighbor, the very one who introduced me to persimmons.

Banana Nut Muffins

2011-10-09T23:53:00.000-07:00

I recently reviewed Santé Nuts over on Moana Saves. Besides enjoying these lightly roasted nuts in a fresh spinach salad I also tried a new banana nut muffin recipe. I like that this recipe calls for 4 mashed bananas, more than I usually use in a bread. The muffins were moist and the flavor delicious. To quote my husband: "I think this is my new favorite best banana bread recipe."

Banana Nut Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 over-ripe bananas

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and lightly butter one muffin tin.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork in a small bowl so they still have a bit of texture. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whisk, whip the remaining bananas and sugar together like you mean it, for a good 3 minutes. Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Fold in the nuts and the mashed bananas with a rubber spatula. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins to fill them about halfway. Give them a rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.

Bake until a toothpick stuck in the muffins comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before turning the muffins out. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 12 muffins

Source: Tyler Florence’s Banana Nut Muffins recipe

Free eCookbook From Gooseberry Patch

2011-09-26T15:03:00.000-07:00

I have a thing for cookbooks and books from Gooseberry Patch are a favorite because of their downhome country style cooking.

Today Amazon is offering two free Gooseberry Patch cookbooks, Pumpkin Cookbook and Circle of Friends Burger Recipes. It's fall and what better way to get excited then downloading a free cookbook. The Apple-Pumpkin Butter with Pumpkin Biscuits? Sounds delicious!

image source - these scones look yummy too!

Healthy Food

2011-09-22T00:37:00.000-07:00

My kids are always hungry, especially when they come home from school. Most days when they ask if they can have candy or cool off with a sugary popsicle I tell them yes if they first eat something healthy like a piece of fruit.

Our family's latest healthy after-school snack is milkshakes made with greek yogurt, a variety of tropical fruits and a handful of spinach. This treat provides protein so they feel full, it's cold so they cool off and it's loaded with healthy fruits and veggies. My kids LOVE my green milkshakes. Someday they'll realize that green isn't the most flavorful color when it comes to milkshakes but for now they're are blissfully happy.

I laughed so hard when I watched this mom serve her kids green milkshakes. I love all of the Kid History YouTube videos but this one with a mom trying to help her kids eat healthy foods hit home for me. Enjoy! "I'm on top of the world lookin' down on creation..."

Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Chile Sauce

2011-09-04T02:59:00.000-07:00

Heaven on a plate. That's what I'm calling this meal. De-licious!

I have two tomatillo plants growing in my garden but I don't have a lot of experience cooking with tomatillos. I've made the fabulous tomatillo ranch salad dressing that I could drink straight if you asked me to. I also love green enchilada sauce and once I realized it was prepared with tomatillos I decided to try and make some myself. Well, once I made this recipe the very next morning I planted four more tomatillo seeds. If my plants grow like I hope they will I'll soon be roasting tomatillos, making this sauce and freezing it by the quart. I have never tasted green enchilada sauce with such flavor as this. Can I gush with praise any more? It's divine!

Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Chile Sauce

Chile Sauce:

1 pound tomatillos, husked

1 white onion, peeled, sliced, quartered or whole

4 garlic cloves

2 jalapenos

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves

1/2 lime, juiced

Enchiladas:

Extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 medium onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups chicken stock, storebought

Chopped cilantro leaves

1 deli roasted chicken (about 3 pounds), boned, meat shredded

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

10 large flour tortillas

1/2 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Chopped tomatoes and cilantro leaves, sour cream and guacamole for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

For the Chile Sauce:

On a baking tray, roast tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapenos for 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables and any juices on the bottom of the tray to a food processor. Add the cumin, salt, cilantro, and lime juice and pulse mixture until well combined but still chunky. (I loved the chunkiness of the sauce!)

For the Enchiladas:

Meanwhile heat a 2 count of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and caramelized - this should take 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin then cook for a further minute. Sprinkle on the flour and stir to ensure the flour doesn't burn then gradually add the chicken stock to make a veloute. Continue stirring over a low simmer until the flour cooks and the liquid thickens. Turn off the heat, add half of the roasted tomatillo chile salsa, some additional fresh chopped cilantro and fold in the shredded chicken meat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Change the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees F and begin assembling the dish. Take a large baking dish and smear the bottom with some of the reserved tomatillo salsa. Now take the flour tortillas and briefly flash them over the stove-top flame (or put them briefly under the broiler if using an electric stove). Using a shallow bowl, coat each tortilla lightly with the reserved salsa mix. Put a scoop of the shredded chicken-enchilada mix on top of the tortilla followed by a sprinkle of the shredded cheese. Fold the tortilla over the filling and roll like a cigar to enclose it. Using a spatula place the tortillas in the baking dish and continue to do the same with all the tortillas. Finally pour over some more of the salsa and top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until bubbly and cracked on top. Garnish with cilantro, tomato, any remaining tomatillo salsa and sour cream and fresh guacamole if desired.

*My Notes: I roasted the tomatillos, onions and jalapenos for 20-25 minutes or until they began to lightly brown. I also used the requested chile sauce ingredient amounts but it was not enough sauce to pour into the pan, coat the tortillas, include in the chicken veloute AND pour on top of the enchiladas. Once I realized this I used a bit of canned green sauce to coat the pan and the tortillas but the rest of the sauce I used was the chunky fresh tomatillo salsa.

Who Dished it first? Tyler Florence. Thank you, my Spanish food inspiration!

Healthy Steps Tropical Fruit Popsicle

2011-09-04T02:18:00.000-07:00

Kitchen tools for a healthier lifestyle

Don't we all want a healthier lifestyle? I sure do. Recently in an attempt to improve my eating habits and ultimately my health I began a food journal. My friend calls it our confession journal as we record all we eat and are now more aware of what we're eating as well as our portion sizes. ("Forgive me food journal for I have sinned. That chocolate cookie was too tempting.") What I like most about keeping a food journal is that I'm better at managing my portion sizes. Portion sizes. Now that's something we've all heard before.

How does all this talk of eating healthy and portion sizes tie in with this photo of tropical fruit and a funny looking kitchen gadget? I recently reviewed a few products sold by Healthy Steps including this fruit popsicle mold. Healthy Steps? That sounds like a weight loss step by step plan. No, it's more like a healthier lifestyle facilitated by kitchen gadgets.

The Healthy Steps website is a gold mine of information for those of you seeking to improve your eating habits. I found a link to the Healthy Steps YouTube channel where I watched a great video about food journaling (yay!) and their new dressing cruet. I want this! Too much salad dressing is a weakness of mine and using a cruet that measures the recommended 2 Tablespoon serving size would be fantastic! I also read their recipe selection and learned more about the benefits of eating avocados. The avocado pro tool would be so handy in my kitchen especially with the avocado tree I have in my backyard.

The first words I heard after my daughter tasted her tropical fruit popsicle: "Mom! This is really good!" Our fruit pop was filled with fresh papaya, passion fruit and a sugar-free orange-mango fruit juice. What I liked about the popsicle mold was the push-up design where you push the handle up as you slowly eat the popsicle. We did have problems with juice leaking once the popsicle began to thaw but that just means you eat faster! Eating a fiber rich, low-sugar, fruit filled popsicle is a great healthy summer treat. I was also sent one of Healthy Steps portion control gadget, the shalt shaker. This is a great measuring dispenser for those who want to limit the amount of salt in their diet. Some of the other portion control gadgets I dream of owning are: starch server and the ice cream scoop.

To keep up on all the latest and greatest from Healthy Steps, follow them on Twitter, like their facebook page, and read their blog. I know I'm already making plans to follow Healthy Steps and learn new ways to improve my eating habits.

BUY: The Healthy Steps website lists retailers that sell their products. Check them out!

I was not compensated for this post. Any and all opinions here are mine.

Busy Eating Over at Moana Saves

2011-08-31T02:19:00.000-07:00

My recipe posts have been slow lately. In my defense it's August and so HOT! I know that's not much of an excuse but this heat seems to be sapping all of my energy.

I've also been busy over at Moana Saves reviewing products. I review all sorts of things from shoes to kids toys. Some of the food items I've most recently reviewed include a cookbook, a cooking app featuring Chef Fabio Viviani and Bertolli olive oil, Nakano seasoned rice vinegar, another great cookbook, chocolate, seafood, and I've even been cooking with Pringles.

So, my apologies for the sporadic and seldom posting.

Tako Poke

2011-08-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

The other night my husband and I went on a casual date to watch the sun set over the ocean. On our way to the beach we stopped at a local superette that's known for it's fabulous poke which is seasoned cubed raw fish. (Pronounced pok'e(h), not poke like a finger poke)

There's tako poke with fresh raw octopus, limu poke (seaweed with ahi), shoyu poke (soy sauce and red pepper flaked ahi) all with rice underneath. Usually you don't mix the three but we were feeling ambitious.

This photo is for you, Mom.

Sitting on the shore listening to the quiet rush of the waves and watching the sun set over the vast Pacific was surreal.

If you're feeling ambitious I found this Food Network recipe for tako poke. I on the other hand am happy to leave the preparation of this meal to the professionals.

Tzatziki Sauce

2011-08-17T14:32:00.000-07:00

My cucumber plant is still producing madly so in addition to making cucumber tea sandwiches for the first time, I also made tzatziki or Greek yogurt with cucumber. This sauce is light and adds great flavor to a chicken pita sandwich.

Tzatziki
3 cups Greek yogurt
juice of one lemon (about 3 T)
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 medium cucumbers, seeded and diced
about 1 T kosher salt for salting cucumbers
1 T finely chopped fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste

Peel cucumbers, then cut in half lengthwise and take a small spoon and scrape out seeds. Discard seeds. (If you use the small seedless or European cucumbers with few seeds, you can skip this step.) Slice cucumbers, then put in a colander, sprinkle on 1 T salt, and let stand for 30 minutes to draw out water. Drain well and wipe dry with paper towel.

In food processor with steel blade, add cucumbers, garlic, lemon juice, dill, and a few grinds of black pepper. Process until well blended, then stir this mixture into the yogurt. Taste before adding any extra salt, then salt if needed. Place in refrigerator for at least two hours before serving so flavors can blend. (This resting time is very important.)

This will keep for a few days or more in the refrigerator, but you will need to drain off any water and stir each time you use it.

Who Dished it first? Kayln

Turkey Burgers with Avocado Mayonnaise

2011-07-31T01:31:00.000-07:00

I received sprouts and tomatoes in this week's fruit and veggie co-op box and was so excited to make this favorite recipe only to find it wasn't on this blog. So, I'm a couple year's too late but here is one of our all-time favorite turkey burger recipes (served on my homemade hamburger buns). It's simple yet packed with flavor.

I also like the variety of healthy nutrients found in the avocado, sprouts and tomatoes. This was initiation for my children into the wonderful world of sprouts and they loved them! My eldest child said: "Mom, these parsley things taste like green peas." We've eaten sprouts for lunch all week now. Mmm, mmm!

Turkey Burgers with Avocado Mayonnaise

1 lb ground turkey
1/4 c Panko bread crumbs
1 t chili powder
1/2 t garlic salt
1/2 t seasoned salt
1/2 t pepper
1/4 c mayonnaise
1 avocado
2 t lemon juice
1/4 t garlic powder
shake of tobasco sauce (optional)
4 whole wheat burger buns
1 small tomato
1 c alfalfa sprouts

Heat grill. In medium bowl combine first five ingredients; mix well. Shape the turkey mixture into four 5-inch patties. When ready to grill, oil grill rack. Place patties on gas grill over medium-high heat. Cook for 10-15 minutes or until no longer pink in center, turning once. Meanwhile, in blender combine mayonnaise and peeled and pitted avocado, lemon juice, garlic powder and tabasco sauce. Blend until smooth.
To serve, spread bottom halves of hamburger buns with mayonnaise mixture. Top with turkey burger, tomato slice and sprouts.

Who Dished it first? this is a family recipe

Cucumber Sandwiches

2011-07-20T23:40:00.000-07:00

It's summer and that means my menu preferences are dishes that don't require turning on my stove or oven. Yesterday we drove to the other side of the island to explore the beaches and enjoy some "staycation" fun before school starts. As I packed our picnic lunch I realized my fridge was overflowing with cucumbers. Since I couldn't see us munching on cucumber spears/slices while sitting on a sandy beach (sand and finger foods don't mix) I bravely decided to pack our lunch with a completely different and random choice of sandwich, cucumber sandwiches.

Have you ever eaten cucumber sandwiches? I've never attempted these before and while searching for a recipe I found that most cucumber sandwiches are simply white bread and thinly sliced cucumbers. Hmmm...the English seem to enjoy them but cucumbers and sponge bread just didn't sound like a hearty enough lunch for beach play. That's when I found this version with pickled cucumbers and an herb infused cream cheese spread. I served our sandwiches on freshly baked whole-wheat bread and my kids devoured their lunch. I'm not sure if it was because they were starving after the sun exposure but even my youngest and pickiest eater requested seconds.

Just a note: In my opinion eating these with wheat bread does detract from the subtle cucumber/cheese filling flavor but it makes a much heartier and lasting meal. Also, slicing your cucumber with a mandoline would be ideal since it would give you extra thin slices.

Cucumber and Cream Cheese Sandwiches
1 medium cucumber
1 cup water
1/2 cup vinegar
8 ounces softened cream cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon dill - optional
a loaf of white or sourdough bread

Wash the cucumber, then peel and thinly slice. Mix the water and vinegar in a bowl and let the cucumber slices soak for half an hour. Remove and drain thoroughly.

One half hour before serving mix the cream cheese, mayonnaise and the spices. Put a thin layer of the cream cheese mixture on two slices of bread and place the cucumbers between the two. Cut the crust off the sandwhich and cut diagonally twice; you will have four triangles.

Who Dished it first? Fun Tea Party Ideas

Here's a photo from the Fun Tea Party Ideas website of a crustless triangular cucumber and cream cheese sandwich on white bread, just perfect for a tea party snack!

Honey-Mustard Pork Chops

2011-07-16T18:42:00.000-07:00

I love meat cooked on the grill but I must admit that pork is my least favorite. Whenever I grill pork it still ends up chewy and hard to swallow and lacking flavor, that is until I found this marinade. One secret I've learned is that the longer you marinade the better it tastes. This marinade has great flavor with the combination of mustard, honey, parsley and all the other ingredients. Even better, my husband helped me grill this to perfection.

Honey-Mustard Pork Chops
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup honey
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 Tablespoon minced fresh parsley
2 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
6 boneless pork loin chops

In a small bowl combine all the ingredients (excluding the pork). Pour half the marinade into a large re-sealable bag; add pork chops. Seal bag and turn to coat, refrigerating for 6-8 hours or overnight. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade for basting.

When you are ready to grill, drain and discard the marinade. Grill pork, covered, over medium heat 4-5 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees, basting frequently with reserved marinade.

Who Dished it first? Taste of Home

Baked Oatmeal

2011-07-08T19:03:00.000-07:00

Here is a great recipe for all you moms with young kids going back to school in the fall. Mornings can be hectic and it's easy to serve cold cereal for breakfast on school mornings because it's quick. Try this recipe as it is a tasty healthy alternative and all the preparation is done the night before.

I like to eat oatmeal for breakfast but it can get boring. This is a great way to perk up your bland oatmeal.
I'm also going to remember this dish for the next time I'm asked to feed a large crowd. What I especially like about this version of oatmeal is that I don't have to stand by the stove and constantly watch the oatmeal to make sure it doesn't boil over or burn. Hooray for easy oatmeal!

Baked Oatmeal

1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup honey
2 eggs, beaten
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup fruit or nuts

In a bowl mix together the butter, honey and eggs. Add in the oats, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, vanilla and milk. Mix and then fold in fruit/nuts of choice. Grease a 9x9 baking dish and pour the oatmeal mixture in. Cover tightly and place in fridge over night.

In the morning preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. When the oven is hot, uncover your oatmeal dish and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with milk.

My Notes: I used 3/4 cups mashed strawberries (a little more than the recipe called for) and 1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts. As my youngest would say, this was a "strawberry shortcake" treat.

Who Dished it first? this recipe is adapted from Your Homebased Mom

Red White and Blue Cupcakes

2011-07-07T00:53:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July. Ours was perfect with a beach visit in the morning where a paddle board competition with 500+ boarders was going on. Next we went to a potluck with friends and delicious food and lastly was fireworks on the beach. For the potluck I wanted to bring a festive dessert and that's when I decided to make these cute little cupcakes. The cakes made from scratch were flavorful and dense and everyone at the party loved the tri-colored theme.

Red White and Blue Cupcakes

2 cups white sugar
1 cup butter
4 eggs
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup milk
red and blue food coloring

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line the muffin tins with paper liners.

In a medium bowl cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla. In a separate bowl combine the flour and baking powder, then add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally, stir in the milk until batter is smooth.

Divide the batter into three equal portions. In one bowl add red food coloring and in a second add blue food coloring; mix the batter until the coloring is even. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins, starting with the blue, then the white and lastly the red. This batter makes exactly 24 muffins so be sure to spoon only a small spoonful of each batter into the tins.

Bake 20-25 minutes; cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Red White and Blue Buttercream Frosting

3-4 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cups soft butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 Tablespoons milk
red and blue food coloring

Combine the powdered sugar and soft butter, blending for 2-3 minutes. Add the vanilla and milk and blend again until combined. Place 1/2 cup of frosting in two separate bowls adding red food coloring to one and blue to another. Keep the frosting in the fridge until you're ready for icing to keep it firm.

When you're ready to ice the cupcakes place red frosting on one side of your frosting bag, blue on the other and a large amount of white frosting in the center.

Who Dished it first? me

I'm adding this recipe to Sweet as Sugar Cookies weekend link party! Come check out the sweet selection.

Roasted Tomato Turkey Burgers

2011-07-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

I'm a product reviewer at Moana Saves, a fantastic site with reviews and many great giveaways. I review everything from children's games to personalized iPad cases to a whole list of food items (Bacon Hot Sauce, Beano's sandwhich sauce, The Everything Bean Cookbook, etc). Recently I had the chance to review some food products from Giada De Laurentiis's gourmet food line sold at Target. I'm having so much fun with Giada's Pepper & Eggplant Tomato Spread. This sauce is for mixing with your pasta or serving on a baguette but I'm experimenting with it and finding new ways to enjoy it's roasted pepper, tomato and eggplant flavor. My latest invention, these turkey burgers, was a huge hit with my family. The addition of the sauce added great flavor to the patties, served bun-less alongside rice and vegetables.

Roasted Tomato Turkey Burgers

1 pound ground turkey

1 1/2 Tablespoons Giada De Laurentiis's Pepper & Eggplant Tomato Spread (sold at Target)

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/3 cup italian breadcrumbs

1/2 teaspoon garlic pepper

1/2 teaspoon season salt

1 egg

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

Mix all ingredients excluding the ricotta cheese. Form 5 small patties, reserving additional meat mixture. Place a spoonful of ricotta on each patty and top with additional turkey mixture, sealing the ricotta in the center of each patty. Grill 5-7 minutes on each side or until the meat is fully cooked.

*My notes: these are moist patties with the addition of the cheese filling so be careful as you flip them on the grill.

Who Dished it first? this is an original by me on The Dish List

Guest Posting on Perry's Plate

2011-06-11T11:00:00.000-07:00

Today I'm guest posting on Natalie's blog, Perry's Plate. I love her blog, her taste in food, her photography...I could go on and on! Thanks Natalie for featuring this delicious sweet potato curry chicken recipe! Make this curry. You won't regret it!

Sweet Potato Chicken Curry

2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
1 bay leaf
1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
1 ½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 ½ cups vertically sliced onion
1 ½ teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained or 2-3 medium-sized fresh tomatoes
1 large peeled sweet potato
¾ cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
½ cup frozen green peas
3 small carrots
½ Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

First is the ingredient preparation. Peel and dice the sweet potato into ½ inch cubes for a total of about 2 cups. Next finely grate the carrots and set aside. Dice the chicken into 1-inch cubes and set aside in a separate bowl. In a small bowl combine the curry powder, coriander, turmeric, salt, black pepper, red pepper and bay leaf.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and sauté 5 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove the chicken from the pan and reduce heat to medium; add the onion, cooking for 10 minutes or until tender. Increase heat to medium-high, return chicken to pan and cook one minute to warm the chicken. Stir in ginger and garlic and cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Add curry powder mixture, broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 1 hour.

Stir in potato and chickpeas. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes. Add peas and carrots, cooking 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Remove from heat, discard the bay leaf, stir in lemon juice and serve.

Yield: 7 (1 cup) servings

Who Dished it first? this recipe was adapted from Cooking Light

Cooking with "Everything Beans"

2011-06-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

I have never been inspired to eat black bean burgers. Beans in place of delicious beef or turkey? That just didn't sound appetizing to me. It's not that I don't like black beans. I actually love black beans. But a mushy patty made from beans inside a hamburger bun? The following burger recipe definitely changed my perspective.

The story behind trying to eat more meatless bean dishes comes from my inspiring sister-in-law, Rebecca. My family and I enjoy eating beans but I've never made a point of specifically planning a menu with meatless bean meals like Rebecca does. Recently I had the opportunity to review The Everything Bean Book, a digitalized cookbook (eBook). In it I found recipes for white bean alfredo, chickpea wraps, and among other great recipes this fabulous Mexican black bean burger. These toppings plus the additional crunch of tortilla chips really make this burger desirable. (I have a few patties frozen and I'm thinking this is going to be my lunch today!)

Mexican Black Bean Burger (patty) recipe

How I served my burger:
Top with salsa, avocado slices, tortillas chips (adding this crunch is a must!) and my cilantro lime sour cream.

Cilantro Lime Sour Cream
1/2 cup sour cream (may substitute with greek yogurt)
2 Tablespoons minced cilantro
Juice of half a lime
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients and spread on your black bean burger bun.

Do You Use Canned Beans?

2011-06-08T14:47:00.000-07:00

Living on an island makes for some expensive grocery bills! I was talking with a visitor at church on Sunday and he said he was shocked to purchase 2 potatoes at the store and pay $2.40! Another person joked: "Well, you have to realize that we only eat every other day and that's how we can afford to live here." (ha, ha!)

One trick I've found to saving money with my food budget is cooking hard beans instead of buying canned beans. I like to cook a large amount of beans and then store them in 1-2 cup portions in the freezer. Some of the benefits of keeping cooked beans on hand are:

I can easily toss in a handful of beans to a recipe that might not normally call for beans
I'm more inclined to plan my menus with beans instead of meat (great health benefits!)
My grocery budget is a lot less costly since dried beans are comparatively inexpensive
Using cooked beans instead of canned reduces the indigestible sugars that normally cause gas
Storing dried beans keeps you prepared in case of a disaster. Knowing how to cook your beans and include them in your diet is even more important.
Our bodies are adjusting to eating more beans. If a natural disaster were to occur and our diet consist of our food storage our bodies won't go into shock eating an increased amount of fiber.

Just a side note, this month I received an email from the emergency response system saying the tropical storm season has begun and to be prepared if a hurricane was to hit. Experiencing the tsunami warning a few months ago after the Japan quake and now living in hurricane territory it's not an option to not be prepared for a natural disaster.

Also, if you need recipe ideas for adding more beans to your diet check out this cookbook.

There are lots of ways to cook beans. My preference is as follows:

rinse and drain the beans
place in a slow-cooker (turned off) and fill with water; soak the beans overnight to soften.
drain the soaking water and refill at least 2 inches above the bean line
turn the slow-cooker on low and cook for another 5-7 hours or until the beans are soft (check the water level throughout this process to make sure it doesn't get too low)
drain any excess liquids and let the beans cool
divide the beans into 1-2 cup portions, placing them in freezer bags
beans defrost fairly quickly or can be added frozen to any soup or stew.

Here is some additional information that I've gathered from online sources:

COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY, COOPERATIVE EXTENSION:

Soak dried beans overnight or at least for five hours. (This isn't necessary for dried peas and lentils.) Discard the water, add fresh water, cook for half hour and discard the water. Rinse beans thoroughly until water runs clear. Cover with fresh water and cook until tender. This method will help prevent "gas," which is caused by complex carbohydrates (raffinose sugars) that are not broken down in digestion. When they ferment in the large intestine, they produce carbon dioxide, hydrogen and a little hydrogen sulfide, that can cause gas.

If you want to include more beans in your diet, but increase your "comfort zone" with them, you should:

Start slowly by eating beans only a couple of times a week at first. This helps your body adjust to digesting them.
Drink lots of fluids to help the digestive system handle the increased dietary fiber.

Other helpful hints for cooking beans are to add one tablespoon of oil to beans to keep the foam down while cooking. If your recipe calls for tomatoes, lemon juice, vinegar or other acidic foods, add these items after beans are tender. The presence of acid keeps beans from softening. Also, contrary to advice you may have heard, DO NOT use baking soda when cooking beans. It robs them of their nutritional value.

USA WEEKEND MAGAZINE:
Soak and rinse beans several times to remove gas-producing sugars, USDA researchers advise. Always change the water before cooking.

Adding garlic and ginger, dried or fresh, to a cooking pot of beans can reduce the beans' gas-producing properties, according to research in India.

WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY:
Beans are full of starch including some that do not digest easily. Digesting this starch can produce gas, giving rise to the rhyme Beans, beans, the musical fruit.... There are several ways to quiet this music so you can enjoy the health benefits of beans.

Gradually increase the amount of beans you eat, so your digestive system can adjust.

Soak beans overnight then discard the soaking water. Some, but not all, of the hard-to-digest carbohydrates dissolve into the water and are then poured off.

This quick method also helps reduce gas: Cover beans with water. Bring to a boil for 2-3 minutes. Let set at least one hour, but preferably four hours. The longer beans soak, the more gas-causing substances are removed.

Try Beano, a product found in the pharmacy section or on the bean aisle of the grocery store. Its natural enzymes help digest gas-producing carbohydrates.

Source

Teriyaki Pork-and-Mango Stir-Fry

2011-06-07T00:37:00.000-07:00

It's mango season here in Hawai'i!

Last night as my family walked down the street in the cool evening weather we noticed many neighbor friends outside with their 15 foot-long poles with metal cages on the ends to pick ripe mangoes. I don't have a tree but my family and I regularly snack on dried mango and my husband loves "mango nectar" juice purchased at the store. (Hopefully a tree of our own is in the plan for this summer.)

A neighbor friend has a large mango tree and I think her family has eaten mangoes every night for the past week. (She was the one who found and shared this recipe.) I don't usually think of Asian dishes as including tropical fruit but my husband lived in Taiwan and he has corrected my assumptions. He tells me that often he came home to find large sacks of mangoes hanging on his front door. In my husband's opinion this tropical/Asian dish was a 9.5 out of 10.

Teriyaki Pork-and-Mango Stir-Fry

1 pound boneless pork chops

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 small head napa cabbage, cored and thinly sliced crosswise (about 7 cups)

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, finely chopped (about 2 tablespoons)

3 tablespoons store-bought teriyaki sauce

2 mangoes, cut into matchsticks

2 cups bean sprouts

On a work surface, place a pork chop between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and, using a meat mallet, pound 1/4 inch thick; repeat with the remaining chops. Slice into 1/4-inch-thick strips. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the flour and salt; add the pork and toss.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Shake off any excess flour from the pork and arrange in a single layer in the skillet. Cook until browned and crisp on one side, about 3 minutes; turn and cook, stirring, until browned all over, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the cabbage to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Stir in the teriyaki sauce, then toss with the pork and mangoes. Top with the bean sprouts.

Who Dished it first? Rachael Ray

My Notes: This definitely needed additional salt to taste on the finished product.

Hamburger Italia, i.e. Lasagna on a Bun

2011-06-04T23:31:00.000-07:00

I recently reviewed the George Foreman GRP4B Next Grilleration™ Removable Plate Grill over on Moana Saves. As part of the review I came up with a unique hamburger recipe that my kids like to call: "lasagna on a bun." In an attempt to be a little more classy, I call this "Hamburger Italia!" (Or would "Italiano" make more sense? I don't know.)

Hamburger Italia

1 pound ground beef

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

¾ cup fat-free Ricotta cheese

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

3 Tablespoons fresh basil, finely diced

1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, finely diced

2 large tomatoes

7 button mushrooms

In a small bowl combine the Ricotta and Parmesan cheese with the basil and parsley. Mix thoroughly and set aside. Prep the mushrooms and tomatoes by thinly slicing them and setting aside.

Place the ground beef in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and form into four ½ inch thick patties, leaving ground beef to spare. Divide the mozzarella cheese evenly among each patty, placing it in the center. Seal the cheese inside each hamburger patty with the remaining ground beef. Place the meat on your and cook the burgers for 7-10 minutes or until they reach your desired doneness; remove from the grill. Cover the hamburgers to keep warm while you prepare the rest of the burger.

Grill the mushrooms on your George Foreman by placing them inside, closing the lid for browning. They should be done in 5 minutes. Next place the tomatoes on the grill and season with salt and pepper. Close the lid and grill for 3-5 minutes, creating a ‘sun-dried tomato’ effect. Carefully remove the tomatoes from the grill and immediately place them on your burgers; they will be delicate to handle. (*Note: You can saute the mushrooms in a frying pan with a little butter if you don't have the grill. For the tomatoes: place them on a foil lined baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil and a shake of salt & pepper, broiling for 5-10 minutes or until done.)

While the mushrooms sauté and the tomatoes “sun-dry”, spread the ricotta mixture on the bottom side of a Kaiser roll. (This is the heavy half of your finished product and therefore needs to be the bottom half of the roll.) You want a good thick spread of cheese mixture. On the other half of the roll spread butter. Place both in the oven to broil. The buttered half will brown faster so be sure to watch it and remove once it’s brown. The ricotta mixture needs to get browned and slightly crispy on top.

To serve, place the meat and tomato on top of the ricotta mixture and top with the browned mushrooms.

Who Dished it first? This is an original by your's truly; Me!

Notes: The ricotta-covered bun can get soggy. Make sure this is the last thing you do before eating. Also, fresh herbs are a must in my opinion as they add a light and fresh flavor that dried herbs can't duplicate.

Grilled Pizza

2011-05-31T20:46:00.000-07:00

I grilled my first pizza. Mmm! This white pizza had an oil-based sun-dried tomato sauce made by Beano's, fresh mushrooms, mozzarella and parmesan and slivered fresh basil on top. Delicious!

Pizza Dough
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 Tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups flour
olive oil
pizza toppings

Proof (prep) the yeast by combining the water, yeast and honey in a liquid measuring cup. Let this sit until the yeast begins to bubble. In a separate mixing bowl combine the flour and salt and add the dough hook to your mixer. Pour the yeast mixture into a mixing bowl and mix for 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and place in a separate bowl that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover and let sit for one hour or until dough has doubled in size.

While the dough is rising it's important to prep your toppings because when the pizza is cooking on the grill you'll need to spread toppings fast. I pulled out a large tray and set the pizza toppings, all sliced and diced, on the tray.

Once the dough has risen you want to turn your grill on so it can be preheating for at least 10 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface, forming it into a rectangular or "log" shape. I like to make small individual sized pizzas because it's easier to handle on the grill and the toppings cook faster on a smaller surface area. If you want smaller pizzas cut the dough into 6 pieces and roll them out to 1/4 inch thickness. (This isn't a thin-crust pizza; the dough gets stretched when rolled but will immediately begin to shrink once you stop rolling it. It will also puff while cooking.) Spread olive oil on one side of each pizza and you're ready to grill!

Place the pizzas, oil side down, on your grill and immediately close the grill lid. This will allow for convection cooking. After 4-5 minutes check the underside of the pizzas; you want to see lightly browned grill marks. If the dough is cooked brush olive oil on the uncooked side and flip all the pizzas over. Quickly spread the ingredients on the pizza tops, then close the grill lid again for 5 minutes. Check the underside of the pizza again for grill marks and when cooked remove and serve immediately.

*My Notes: I've learned my lesson that grilled pizza is best cooked with sliced mozzarella and not shredded. It makes for easier spreading of ingredients and less mess!

Who Dished this first? me.

Watermelon 'Otai (Juice)

2011-05-23T22:31:00.000-07:00

Mmmm, watermelon juice! I'm told that in Tongan you call this drink 'otai and I read on Wikipedia that in Somoan it's "vai meleni". Either way, if you want to enjoy your watermelon island style with milk, coconut and sugar then you'll love this cool treat. I'm convinced that it hits the spot on a hot afternoon (if I'm not watching my weight, of course).

Watermelon 'Otai (Juice)
1 Ripe Seedless Watermelon halved and sliced (this is the smaller round watermelons)
1 can crushed pineapples or 1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 can of evaporated milk
1/2 Cup Sugar
Water
Ice Cubes

Prepare the watermelon by mashing the watermelon with a fork in a large bow. If this becomes tedious try squishing the watermelon with your fingers, making sure the end product is small pieces. If you don't use a seedless watermelon make sure that most of the black seeds are removed with a spoon.

Stir in the pineapple and it's juices, coconut, evaporated milk and two cans of water using the can of milk. Add Sugar and stir, adding more to taste. You may add ice cubes when you're ready to serve.

Who Dished it First? The Polynesian Kitchen with a slight alteration by me.

Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos

2011-05-20T02:47:00.000-07:00

Tacos and sweet potatoes? Both in the same sentence? Take my word for it, this is a good one. In fact, it won a recipe contest! This sweet potato taco recipe is from the cooking blog Perry's Plate. The health-conscious & food-fabulous blogger responsible for all the great posts over at Perry's Plate is the one and only Natalie.

There are so many great reasons for cooking a foil packet dinner. First, it's the easiest way to get your kids involved in dinner prep. Sprinkle, pile, stack and done! Even better, your dinner preparation is quick and your cleanup a cinch. We ate our foil packets on paper plates on the back porch picnic table so my cleanup was only the silverware and cutting board. Love it!

Besides easy prep and delicious taste I'm really happy my kids ate this right up. My eldest actually asked for two packets! I love finding ways to sneak spinach into our meals.

Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos
1/2 lb ground beef or turkey
2-3 T taco seasoning
1/2 cup tomato sauce (4 ounces)
1 can black, kidney, or pinto beans, drained
2-3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 6 cups total)
2 T butter
salt
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole for garnish
6 12-inch long pieces of aluminum foil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Brown ground meat in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in taco seasoning, tomato sauce, and beans. Set aside.

To assemble packets, spray the foil with non-stick spray. Place 1 cup sweet potato cubes in the center of each piece. Top with a small piece of butter (about 1 tsp) and a pinch or two of salt. Sprinkle some chopped spinach over the sweet potatoes, followed by about 1/3 cup of taco meat and sprinkle of cheese. Fold the sides in, then bring the top and bottom ends of the foil together in the center and fold, sealing the packet.

Repeat with remaining ingredients, placing the packets on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Serve with sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole.

Makes 6 servings.

Who Dished it first? Natalie at Perry's Plate

Fiesta Black Bean and Corn Salsa

2011-05-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

Dear Blogger: Do I dare post again? I apologize for the duplication of this post but the previous post was deleted. Hopefully this one sticks around.

Just say the word salsa and I smile. I grew up in a home where salsa was a fridge staple just like ketchup and it was eaten as often if not more often than any other condiment. (Remember watching those Pace Picante commercials on TV in the '90s? "This stuff's made in New York City?!?")

This corn salsa is a great crowd pleasing fresh alternative to anything made in NYC. (*wink*) My dad is the guacamole, salsa, Mexican relish maker in our family and once he made this dip we were all hooked. The ingredients are easy, fresh, and so delicious.

Fiesta Black Bean and Corn Salsa

3 green onions, finely diced
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
2 diced tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can sweet corn, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 package Italian dressing powder
2-3 avocados
fresh lime juice

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour or until you're ready to serve. Prior to serving, pit and mash your avocados and add them to the salsa mixture. Squirt the juice of one lime on top to add flavor and keep the avocado from browning. Serve!

Who Dished it first? This yummy recipe is courtesy of my Dad.

Mexican Wedding Cake Cookies

2011-05-09T20:11:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Cinco de Mayo over the weekend with some friends and I have to say that it was the perfect party. Good friends + yummy Mexican food (my favorite) = the perfect combination! I wanted to make a dessert to share but every recipe I found online was fried. That's when I found this recipe for Mexican Wedding Cake Cookies. I've tasted similar cookies in the past and thought they were dry and lacking in flavor but I decided to blindly make this recipe (first time ever!) for a potluck. Brave? Maybe more crazy than brave.

The reason I made these cookies was because of the recommendation source. My source was one of my favorites, Pioneer Woman. Seeing as the purpose of my site is to share recipes that I highly recommend and Ree over at Pioneer Woman has never led me astray I decided to bite the bullet and try baking the cookie. (Added bonus: these cookies have a short and simple ingredient list so I didn't have to go to the store.)

The verdict: If you're careful and don't overcook it, the cookie literally crumbles in your mouth. It's similar to a buttery shortbread but much lighter. This is definitely a recipe we'll be making again.

Mexican Wedding Cake Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened to room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
2-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped/coarsely ground pecans

Toast pecans in oven at 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes. Using an electric mixer, beat butter on medium speed in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add 1/2 cup powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until well blended. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cinnamon and salt. Slowly add dry mixture to wet mixture, beating until well blended. Mix in pecans with a wooden spoon.

Divide dough in half; form each half into ball. Wrap separately in plastic; chill until cold, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Working with half of chilled dough, roll dough with palms into 1-inch balls. Arrange balls on large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake cookies until light golden brown on bottom and just pale golden on top, about 16-18 minutes. Check cookies throughout baking to be sure not to over bake. If baked too long, bottoms will burn and cookies will be very dry.

Pour 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar in pie dish. Cool cookies 5 minutes on baking sheet. Gently toss warm cookies in powdered sugar to coat completely. Transfer coated cookies to rack and cool completely. Roll cookies in powdered sugar again once cooled. Repeat procedure with remaining half of dough, or reserve remaining powdered sugar and freeze dough for later use. Cookies can be prepared 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature. For extra powdered sugar on your cookies, save leftover powdered sugar and sift over cookies just before serving.

Who Dished it first? This is Shared Sugar's version of a combination of Bon Appétit and Betty Crocker recipes.

Fried Onions & Sauce = the Perfect Steak Side Dish

2011-05-01T18:08:00.000-07:00

We're splurging on the calories here today on The Dish List as I serve up a recipe for fried onions and sauce, the perfect sides to a grilled steak. What's unique about these onions is the addition of cornmeal to the flour mixture, adding a great crunch to every bite.

Cornmeal-Fried Onion Rings

1 large Spanish Onion

1 cup buttermilk

salt and pepper

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup yellow cornmeal

1 quart vegetable oil

Peel the onions, slice them 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick, and separate them into rings. Combine the buttermilk, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Add the onion rings, toss well, and allow to marinate for at least 15 minutes. (The onion rings can sit in the buttermilk for a few hours.) In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

When you're ready to fry the onion rings, preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

Heat the oil to 350 degrees F in a large pot or Dutch oven. (A candy thermometer attached to the side of the pot will help you maintain the proper temperature.) Working in batches, lift some onions out of the buttermilk and dredge them in the flour mixture. Drop into the hot oil and fry for 2 minutes, until golden brown, turning them once with tongs. Don't crowd them! Place the finished onion rings on the baking sheet, sprinkle liberally with salt, and keep them warm in the oven while you fry the next batch. Continue frying the onion rings and placing them in the warm oven until all the onions are fried. They will remain crisp in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Who Dished it originally? Ina Garten on the Food Network

Have you ever eaten the Awesome Blossom at Chili's restaurant? This sauce is very similar:

Fried Onion Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup sour cream

2 Tbsp ketchup

1/2 tsp seasoning salt

1/4 tsp paprika

1-2 tsp hot sauce

Mix all the ingredients together and chill for at least a half hour before serving.

Mango Bars

2011-04-27T13:54:00.000-07:00

If you like lemon bars then you'll love this tropical alternative. Made with mango and topped with coconut this bar has a great blend of flavors. Enjoy!

Mango Bars

1/2 cup macadamia nuts
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup cold butter, cubed
1 medium mango, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1 cup flaked coconut

Place nuts in a food processor; cover and process until finely chopped. Add 2 cups flour, confectioners' sugar and salt; cover and process until blended. Add butter; pulse just until mixture is crumbly. Press into an ungreased 13x9 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.
In a clean food processor, combine mango and orange marmalade; cover and process until smooth. Add sugar and remaining flour; process until combined. Add eggs and lemon peel; process just until combined. Pour over crust and sprinkle with coconut. Bake for 23-28 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars and serve, refrigerating leftovers.

Originally Dished in the April/May 2011 Taste of Home magazine.

Turkey Mini Meatloaves

2011-04-20T17:39:00.000-07:00

My sister-in-law has a great meal tradition of cooking with beans or lentils twice a week. I love this idea of meatless meals more often. Not only is it less expensive but it's healthier. This recipe unfortunately isn't meatless but the addition of kidney beans stretched the meal allowing for more leftovers and better health. I love to cook a large amount of beans and freeze them in individual ziploc bags. This is how I had the idea to pull out these kidney beans and add them to our average-joe barbecue meatloaf meal. What I really like about using ground turkey instead of ground beef (besides the flavor) is the amount of moisture the meat retains. Even with the loaves cooked individually they each retained a great amount of moisture.

Ground Turkey Mini-Meat Loaves

an original recipe by Jayne at The Dish List

1 pound ground turkey

1 1/2 cups cooked kidney beans

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup diced onions

1/2 cup bell peppers

1 garlic clove

olive oil

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Saute the bell peppers and diced onion in the olive oil until onions become translucent. Add the garlic to the onion mixture the last minute. Remove from pan and place in large mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Spray a mini loaf baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and fill each mini-loaf with the ground turkey mixture until it is rounded on top. (The meat will cook and shrink.) Bake 15 minutes or until cooked through.

Breakfast with Coconut Manna & Superfruit Juice

2011-04-20T17:24:00.000-07:00

As a child I grew up with a father who loved to cook breakfast. My dad makes the most fabulous waffles topped with fresh strawberries that he would usually buy after making a special trip early in the morning to a nearby strawberry farm. These gourmet waffles or strawberry shortcake meals were usually Saturday morning breakfasts and the rest of the week included a warm bowl of oatmeal. My dad instilled a love of warm home-cooked breakfasts in me and I'm hoping to do the same with my kids.

We like to include cooked cereal in our weekly meal plans but it can get a little boring. I was excited to receive some Coconut Manna from Swanson Vitamins and thought it was the perfect addition to our morning hot cereals. This creamy organic coconut delivers fiber, protein and nourishing fats as well as great taste. There are lots of other uses for liquid coconut like desserts, dressings and sauces. Plus, anything named "manna" has got to be good. Right?

Another morning routine we're trying is Maqui SuperFruit Antioxidant Juice. Maqui has been enhanced with acai, pomegranate, blueberry and raspberry juices. According to Swanson's website, "the exceptional free radical fighting properties associated with maqui can be attributed to stores of naturally-occurring anthocyanins - a powerful class of antioxidants that have been shown highly effective in quenching free radicals." My girls love fruit smoothies even if they're green from the addition of spinach. To make them a little more healthy I'm adding a few tablespoons of Maqui. Doesn't it feel great starting your morning with healthy food?

*Other bloggers can receive products from Swanson to review by contacting blogs@swansonhealth.com

I was not compensated for this post although I did receive product samples to facilitate my review. Any and all opinions are my own.

The Best Homemade Granola Ever!

2011-04-16T00:54:00.000-07:00

Rolled oats are a great way to start your morning. I'm okay with eating oatmeal and grew up with a dad who LOVES it and cooked it often. (Best oatmeal combo in my opinion includes coconut flakes and dried pineapple tidbits. No added sweeteners needed.) My kids are also pretty good at eating their morning oatmeal including little Miss. Picky-pants who ate her bowl with dried blueberries this morning. I'm not complaining 'cause we all know the healthy value of eating our oats but oatmeal can get a little boring. To add variety to our oat breakfasts I've also made many a granola recipe. Granola is great as cereal, over yogurt, by the handful, etc. I like granola but I've never been one to desperately want a bowl of it or eat it by the handful as a snack until I made this recipe. Oh. my. goodness. This granola is A-mazing! I especially love the large coconut curls that toast as you bake the oats. Mmmm. I think these coconut chips are the secret recipe that makes the granola so delicious. Our gallon ziplock bag of this granola was gone in 3 days. Even the painters who were here the morning I baked this cinnamon treat were asking what it was because the smell was so heavenly.

The best part of this granola recipe is that ANYONE can make it. Really. Making granola is the easiest thing since boiling water. It's healthy, easy to make and delicious. What more can you ask for?

Cranberry Coconut Granola
an original recipe by Jayne at The Dish List

8 cups rolled oats
2 cups chopped pecans
2 cups coconut
2 cups cranberries
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large 11x14 rectangular pan with cooking spray. Mix together oats, pecans, coconut, cranberries, nutmeg and cinnamon. Measure the oil, honey and brown sugar in a microwavable dish or saucepan. Microwave (or cook on the stovetop) until melted. Add the vanilla and pour over the oat mixture. Spread mixture evenly in pan and bake for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Be sure to store in an airtight container.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cupcakes

2011-04-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

Baking the perfect cupcake is harder than it sounds. First, the cake consistency needs to be moist and light and packed with flavor. Second, I love a little surprise in the middle of the cake whether it's cream, jelly, chocolate, etc. Third, good frosting is a must. This chocolate chip cookie dough stuffed cupcake recipe meets all these criteria. The cake batter made from scratch is delicious and I love biting into it and getting the surprise of uncooked (eggless) cookie dough in the middle.

One trick I read that helps cupcakes retain their moisture is to immediately remove the cake from the pan after baking and placing it in a sealed container to let them steam while cooling. I tried this on half of my cupcakes and it really does create a much moister cake. The only problem I found was that the liners began to sweat themselves off the cakes. Some cakes didn't lose their liners possibly because the batter was filled all the way to the rim of the paper. I tried removing the cakes before they completely cooled and this seemed to somewhat help prevent the loss of paper. Next time I think I'll try another trick of using a large ice cream scoop to make your cupcakes more uniform in size and hopefully tall enough to avoid losing their paper.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cupcakes

• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1½ cups light brown sugar, packed
• 4 large eggs
• 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and brown sugar. Beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir together to blend. Add the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl on low speed, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Blend in the vanilla. Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula and mix by hand.
• Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the filling:
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 6 tbsp. light brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 7 oz. sweetened condensed milk
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• ¼ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

•To make the cookie dough filling, combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the flour, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips.
• To fill the cupcakes, cut a cone-shaped portion out of the center of each cupcake. Fill each hole with a chunk of the chilled cookie dough mixture. You can be generous with the cookie dough mixture.

For the frosting:
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
• 3½ cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ¾ tsp. salt
• 3 tbsp. milk
• 2½ tsp. vanilla extract

• To make the frosting, beat together the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until creamy. Mix in the confectioners sugar until smooth. Beat in the flour and salt. Mix in the milk and vanilla extract until smooth and well blended.
• Frost the filled cupcakes as desired, sprinkling with mini chocolate chips and topping with mini chocolate chip cookies for decoration.
(*My Notes: This makes a lot of frosting but if you're using a pastry bag you'll need all of it.)

Decoration Ideas:
• Tiny chocolate chip cookies
• Mini chocolate chips
• Chocolate shavings

Who Dished it first? Fox News

Coconut Cream Pie

2011-04-12T18:13:00.000-07:00

Cream pies are my go-to favorite. At Thanksgiving I skip the traditional pumpkin and pecan and head straight to the creamies. Banana cream was a previous favorite but this sweet pie is puttin' up a fight for #1 in my book. The cream has a great pudding consistency but what really sets this apart from other coconut creams is the meringue. Most coconut creams are topped with a whipped cream topping but this meringue is light and toasty like a marshmallow. I also love that the egg yolks used in the cream leave egg whites to be used and the meringue takes care of that. (I hate leftover egg yolks or whites.)

Coconut Cream Pie

1 blind-baked 9-inch pastry shell
2 1/4 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup for egg whites
3 eggs, separated
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups toasted coconut
1 Tablespoon butter

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a saucepan, whisk the 2 cups of the milk and 3/4 cup sugar together. Place the pan over medium heat and bring the liquid up to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks together. Temper the hot milk into the egg yolks. Whisk the egg mixture into the hot milk mixture. In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in the remaining milk, making a slurry. Whisk the slurry into the hot milk mixture. Bring the liquid up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook the mixture, stirring constantly, until the filling is thick, about 4 to 6 minutes. Fold in the vanilla, coconut, and butter. Mix well. Pour the filling into the prepared pan and cool the pie completely. Using an electric mixer with a whip attachment, whip the egg white to soft peaks. Add the remaining sugar and whip the egg white to stiff peaks. Spread the egg whites over the top of the pie. Place the pie in the oven for about 3 to 4 minutes, or until the meringue is golden brown.

Recipe courtesy of Emeril on the Food Network.

Hawaiian Pineapple Relish

2011-04-12T00:22:00.000-07:00

We're settled in our new house and enjoying the back yard already. Saturday we had some friends over for a cookout as a farewell to a good "bro" (brother) of ours. (Malosi and the rest of the Te'o family: you'll be missed! Enjoy playing for the "Cougs" in Provo!) In order to jazz up our hot dog meal plan I made this pineapple relish. FYI: our Hawai'ian friend told us that a true Hawai'ian doesn't eat a dog with a bun. He then proceeded to inform me that he could eat the entire bowl of relish if I let him. A cook always loves that kind of compliment. The picture isn't fantabulous because it was served on a paper plate and photographed with an iPhone but my daughter picked this bright pink bloom that I think sets off the colors of the pineapple relish nicely.

Pineapple Relish

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 cup diced sweet onion
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1 1/2 cups finely diced fresh pineapple
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh lime zest
1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, minced

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the oil onion and green pepper. Saute until the vegetables are soft. Add the pineapple, the salt and the pepper. Cook over medium heat, uncovered, until the liquid reduces, about 30 minutes.

Deglaze the saucepan with the vinegar and add the lime zest, mustard and garlic. Cook uncovered over low heat until the liquid is reduced again, about 20 minutes more. Transfer to a bowl, let cool then refrigerate, covered, until ready to use. Aloha!

Adapted from the Food Network

Oh the joys of moving with Swanson Vitamins Saving the Day

2011-03-31T01:07:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the sparse posts lately. Long story made short our house is a mess as we quickly and unexpectedly move to a new house 2 blocks away. Oh the joys of moving. Ugh! Thank goodness Swanson Vitamins included some healthy snacks in the sample box they sent me for my review because my cupboards are currently bare.

The first snack was Soyjoy, an all natural baked soy and fruit bar. These are not like your typical fruit or granola bar. I think a good description would be that soyjoys are like fruitcake in a bar, meaning dense yet flavorful. My favorite flavor was blueberry with an ingredient list of raisins, wild blueberries, pineapple, coconut, cranberries and white chocolate chips. Doesn't that sound good? I have to say that these passed the "picky-kid" test in my home. We tried the banana, blueberry and berry flavors. (If you're like me you throw away all candy that is banana flavored but these bars were good enough to eat.) Even better, soyjoy passed the healthy test with no artificial flavors, colors, hydrogenated oils, gluten and 0 g trans fat.

The second snack sent to me was Pumpkin Crunch Clusters. My kids and I love to eat trail mix for our snack because it's the perfect on-the-go snack to take to the park or keep in my purse plus it satisfies hunger. These clusters are edible just plain but we enjoyed them mixed in with our our trail mix. The seed clusters are salty so I doubled up on sweet (raisins, dried mangos). I *heart* healthy snacks!

*Other bloggers can receive products from Swanson to review by contacting blogs@swansonhealth.com

I was not compensated for this post although I did receive product samples to facilitate my review. Any and all opinions are my own.

Make Your Cupcake and Eat It Too!

2011-03-17T10:32:00.000-07:00

At a young age my daughter showed signs of a food allergy. After numerous tests we think she is most likely lactose intolerant. (Don't get me started on food allergies!) When Swanson Health Products sent me a gluten, dairy & nut free cupcake mix my kids shouted for joy! Not only has Something Good created a food product under stringent procedures that ensure they manufacture safe allergy free products but it's also baker friendly. Baker friendly? What I mean is the kit is simple to put together (just add eggs and water to the batter packet) and the icing mix and sprinkles are included.

My eldest child is getting to an age where I trust her more to bake a dish completely on her own so these cupcakes were her project. Again, it was helpful that the ingredient list was simple. I also liked how the baking instructions are printed on the back of the box in a clear format. Lastly, the best part about this mix is that even though it's gluten, wheat, dairy, tree nut, soya, GMO, peanut, fructose and even trans fat FREE the cupcakes taste delicious! The vanilla is sweet, the cake has a good density and the color is a clean white. I love baking a "white" cake that in the end really does in fact look white. So pretty!

Check out that "Allergy Awareness" list!

The only cupcake issue we struggled with was the moisture content in the frosting. We live in a very humid environment so with most frosting recipes we decrease the liquids. I did the same with this recipe and still had to add extra powdered sugar. The frosting turned out so runny we couldn't keep it in the frosting bag without drips flowing out nor could we get a beautiful scalloped design. All in all, taste trumps appearance in my book and the flavor of these cupcakes was very good.

*Other bloggers can receive products from Swanson to review by contacting blogs@swansonhealth.com

I was not compensated for this post although I did receive product samples to facilitate my review. Any and all opinions are my own.

Sauce Winner

2011-03-11T22:05:00.000-08:00

The winners of the Country Bob's All Purpose Sauce are #2 (Emily) & #14 (Amber).

I apologize for the slight delay in announcing the winner but when there's a tsunami then all else goes on the back-burner. Thanks to everyone who entered and thank you especially to Country Bob's for the complimentary sauce!

Healthy & Hearty Banana Nut Muffins

2011-03-06T00:08:00.000-08:00

I love to feed my family whole-grain, heart healthy food so I jumped at the chance to review a package of wheat bran sent to me by Swanson Health Products. A little background on Swanson: I enjoyed reading the story of the founding of the company. In the late 1950s Leland Swanson, founder of Swanson Health Products, was struggling to play his beloved sport of golf because of arthritis. After some personal research he began taking supplements to increase his health and eventually after a small mail-order beginning Swanson became the company it is today.

Now on to the ingredient of wheat bran. Bran is the "hard outer layer of grain and is often produced as a by-product of milling in the production of refined grains. Bran is particularly rich in dietary fiber and essential fatty acids and contains significant quantities of starch, protein, vitamins and dietary minerals." (Wikipedia) Basically, wheat bran is the good stuff that is often left out of milled flour. I wanted to bake something special yet kid-friendly for breakfast with the wheat bran. I found a Banana-Bran-Nut Muffin recipe on Bob's Red Mill site but I was concerned that the bread would be unappealingly dense. That's when I pulled out the package of Bob's Red Mill aluminum free baking soda also sent to me by Swansons. I didn't know what that meant but from a little internet research I found out that some companies chemically produce baking soda whereas Bob's Red Mill is mined naturally with water in northwestern Colorado. Why is this important? Although no definitive correlation has been shown regarding health problems (Alzheimer patients have high aluminum content in their brains) aluminum can also be the source of a slight tin flavor in your baked goods.

The Verdict: With an ingredient list of wheat bran and wheat flour I was doubtful these muffins would be moist let alone enjoyable to my children. The result was two of my kids ate 3 muffins each in one sitting! The muffins are very moist and flavorful. I did add a dusting of granulated sugar to the tops of the muffins for the benefit of my young children. (The noticeably sugary-topped muffins were the first to be eaten.) I am anxious to continue baking with the aluminum free baking soda to see if I can taste a definitive difference. Still, it had to be good baking soda to create a plump muffin when you're baking with such heavy grains.

Banana-Bran-Nut Muffins

Recipe source: Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods

1 1/4 cups wheat bran
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoons salt
3 Tablespoons brown sugar, packed
3/4 cups chopped walnuts
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/4 cups plain lowfat yogurt
1 large overripe banana

Preheat oven to 400°F. Insert paper liners in muffin tins, set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the bran, whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, brown sugar, and walnuts and stir until well mixed.

Measure the oil and yogurt into the blender (or processor) and add the banana, broken up. Blend at medium speed until uniform, then pour over the dry ingredients. Stir gently until all is wet. Spoon the batter into the foil liners and bake for about 20 minutes.

Makes 12 muffins.

National Pancake Week

2011-02-25T22:48:00.000-08:00

Recently I received a package of King Arthur Flour's white whole wheat flour to review over on Moana Saves. Since the package was only 5 pounds I left it on my counter for weeks while I debated the different recipes to try with the prized amount of flour. One night as I was planning to cook my typical dinner standby (breakfast for dinner!) I decided to use a portion of the precious flour (yes, it's that good and can not be wasted!) in King Arthur Flour's whole grain pancake recipe. I reviewed the flour over on Moana Saves but I just want to say that this recipe includes whole wheat flour AND oats yet it was still such a light and flavorful pancake. Mmm-mmm!

Homemade Whole-Grain Pancake Mix

Recipe courtesy of King Arthur Flour with my addition noted in red below

4 cups King Arthur white whole wheat flour
1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3 1/2 cups old-fashioned or rolled oats
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 cup vegetable oil

(*My notes: When cooking my pancakes I used 2 cups of the dry ingredient mix, doubling the pancake instructions below. My sole variation was adding 3-4 small over-ripe bananas, throughly mashed, to the wet ingredients prior to combining wet and dry to make the pancake batter.)

To make the mix:

1) Grind the oats in a food processor until they're chopped fine, but not a powder.

2) Put the flour, oats, and all other dry ingredients into a mixer with a paddle. Mix on slow speed, and drizzle the vegetable oil into the bowl slowly while the mixer is running.

3) Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks at room temperature, or indefinitely in the refrigerator or freezer.

To make pancakes:

1) Whisk together 1 cup of mix, 1 cup of buttermilk (you can use soured milk, but buttermilk gives noticeably superior results; a combination of half plain yogurt and half milk also will do), and 1 large egg. Don't worry if it seems thin at first: the oats will soak up the milk, and the mix will thicken a bit as it stands. Let the batter stand for at least 20 minutes before cooking.

2) Heat a lightly greased griddle to 350°F (if you've got a griddle with a temperature setting; if not, medium-hot will do).

3) Drop the batter onto it in 1/4-cupfuls (a jumbo cookie scoop works well here) to make a 4" diameter pancake. If you have English muffin rings, use them; they make a perfectly round, evenly thick pancake.

4) When the edges look dry and bubbles come to the surface without breaking (after about 2 minutes, if your griddle is the correct temperature), turn the pancake over to finish cooking on the second side, which will take about 2 minutes.

5) Serve pancakes immediately, or stack and hold in a warm oven.

Yield: a batch using one cup of the mix will make about eight 4" pancakes.

Note: If you don't have buttermilk in the house, try the yogurt and milk combination first; if you happen to have buttermilk powder, try this: In place of the buttermilk, add 1/4 cup buttermilk powder to 1 cup of dry mix, then stir in 1 cup water and 1 large egg. The results won't be as magnificent as using liquid buttermilk, but you'll still have very tasty pancakes.

Variation: Add 1 tablespoon orange juice to the dry mix along with the buttermilk. We've found that the acidity and sweetness of the orange juice helps mellow the tannic taste some people perceive in whole wheat flour; while the pancakes won't have any orange flavor, they may taste slightly milder to you, if you're not a fan of whole wheat flour (but still want to get more whole grains into your diet).

BBQ Fun with Country Bob's

2011-02-23T17:05:00.000-08:00

Have I ever told you how much I love hamburgers? Without a doubt my dish of choice is a hamburger. Whether it's PW's Blue Cheese & Bacon Burgers or Cheese-Stuffed Southwest Turkey Burgers from Perry's Plate or even a plain ol' grilled beef burger with ketchup and mustard...I love them ALL!

Recently Country Bob's sent me some of their all-purpose sauce to try along with a pamphlet that included some of their favorite recipes. As I scanned the pamphlet my heart skipped a beat when I read: "Honolulu Bob Burgers". What better recipe of choice to try with Country Bob's than a Hawai'ian style burger with fresh pineapple! Below is the recipe along with a few alterations of my own.

Honolulu Bob Burgers
Recipe originally found at Country Bob's, altered by me @ The Dish List

2 pounds ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
2 eggs
1/3 cup bread crumbs
County Bob's All Purpose Sauce
1 small pineapple, sliced to desired thickness (can substitute with well-drained canned pineapple slices)
sliced Cheddar cheese
1 small purple onion, thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon butter

Place the ground beef in a large bowl and add the desired seasonings to taste. Shape a handful of the ground beef mixture into a patty and repeat with the remaining beef. In a separate pan, melt the butter and add the purple onions. Cook over medium heat until the onions begin to brown and caramelize. Remove from heat and set aside.

Grill the patties over hot coals until cooked on one side. Turn the patties over, spread with the desired amount of Country Bob's All Purpose Sauce and top with a pineapple slice. Grill for several minutes or until cooked through. At the last minute add the cheese slice on top of the pineapple and grill until melted. Place the patty on a bun and top with the caramelized onions. You may add more Country Bob's sauce if desired.

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I enjoyed the flavor of Country Bob's All-Purpose Sauce served on my BBQ hamburger. The savory yet sweet sauce has a slight kick to it, enough to make your mouth water for more. To purchase your own bottle of sauce you can purchase ONLINE or find the nearest store location HERE.

The kind people at Country Bob's have generously offered to send TWO Dish List readers their very own bottles of Country Bob's All-Purpose Sauce. To enter just leave a comment answering this question: Who grills the food in your house, the man or the woman?

To earn an additional entry, do one (or all) of the following and leave a separate comment for each thing you do:

1. Follow Country Bob's on Twitter.
2. Like Country Bob's on Facebook.
3. Like The Dish List Facebook page.
4. Follow The Dish List on Twitter.

Only one person per email/household/IPaddress can enter this giveaway. He/she must be 18+ years old and reside in the U.S. This giveaway ends on 3/10/11 HST (Hawaii Standard Time). One winner will be chosen randomly via Random.org. I will notify the winner via email and he/she must respond to claim the prize within 48 hours or I will draw another winner.

I was not compensated for this giveaway although I did receive samples of products to facilitate the original review. Any and all opinions here are mine.

Retail Therapy with CSN Stores

2011-02-15T17:11:00.000-08:00

Feeling the wintertime blues? Punxsutawney Phil thinks we'll have an early spring but really what does a groundhog know. I think the best fix for your winter blues is a little springtime retail therapy. If your kids are anything like mine they are biting at the bit for a brand new swing set to enjoy this summer. We've looked at other sets in the past and one of our biggest concerns has always been the shipping. This set sold through CSN Stores ships free!

You might be asking how this relates to food. Well, the generous people over at CSN Stores are sending me a nifty new cooking product for review. Ahh, the joys of retail therapy!

Chicken Thighs in Red Wine Vinegar

2011-02-14T11:38:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day!

Today is the day for candlelight dinners and romantic strolls along the beach. If you're avoiding the holiday restaurant crowds like we are and you're still not sure what to make for dinner I think this is a perfect choice. It is loaded with flavor and substance for the husband but little does he know that it has a lower calorie count for the woman. My philosophy is: save calories while eating the main dish so that you can enjoy more dessert! We all know that Valentines Day is one day when you must save room for the dessert!

Chicken Thighs in Red Wine Vinegar
Adapted from Gina's Skinny Recipes

8 lean chicken thighs, skin removed
salt and pepper
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 cups fat free chicken broth
1 tbsp honey
4 small diced tomatoes
1 tsp butter
¾ cup thinly sliced purple onion
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp light sour cream

Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a medium saucepan, combine vinegar, honey, 1 cup of chicken broth and tomatoes. Boil about 5 minutes or until it reduces down to about 3/4 cup. Remove from heat.

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat and add chicken. Cook on both sides, until brown, about 6-8 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet and cook on low until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken back into the skillet with the onions and garlic, pour the sauce over the chicken and add the additional cup of broth. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes until tender. Add the sour cream the last minute of cooking. Before serving you may top your dish with fresh parsley if desired.

*I actually forgot to add the sour cream to this dish and it still tasted fabulous!

A Different Kind of Brownie

2011-02-13T21:16:00.000-08:00

It's Sunday and my family wanted dessert with their dinner. In an attempt to appease their sugar tooths (teeth? tooth?) and my desire to eat healthier I tried a new brownie recipe. These brownies are low fat, high in fiber, high in protein and they are made from a box and can. Hmm... What in the world is this dessert made of? The ingredients are simple: 1 box of brownie mix and 1 can of black beans. That's all. No eggs or oil. Are these going to taste good? The verdict: everyone enjoyed these moist and fudge-like treats. The beans do make for a denser brownie similar to fudge but the cocoa covers any residual bean flavor. My husband is a purest when it comes to dessert and especially chocolate. After a wicked glance from me to forgo questions in front of the children he said he honestly enjoyed the brownie's taste and texture. I know I haven't converted him to black bean brownies every time but with his gourmet taste pallet he still can't figure out what ingredient I substituted in the recipe.

Now I know that if I'm stranded with only a brownie mix and a can of black beans (and a way to cook) then I can make brownies! This is great practice for me as an island resident who is trying to build up her food storage and plan for a day when the docks are closed due to either worker strike or natural disaster. When that day comes at least we'll be enjoying a plate of fudgey brownies!

Black Bean Brownies

15 oz can black beans
19.5 oz box chocolate brownie mix

Open a can of beans then drain and rinse well*. Put beans back in the can and fill can with water. Put beans and water in blender until smooth. Mix pureed beans with brownie package mix. DO NOT add eggs or oil. Spray baking dish with Pam. Cook brownies according to package directions. Cool and serve.

*My notes: I usually soak and cook my lentils and beans ahead of time instead of purchasing them canned since it's cheaper and has less sodium. I usually cook a large amount of beans in the crock-pot and then drain and freeze them for later use. I'm assuming if I was using home cooked beans that I would weigh 15 ounces of beans and add enough water (not too much!) to fill in the spaces between the beans. Recently I purchased more canned items because if I'm without electricity (as unfortunately I OFTEN am) then I'll have beans ready to eat.

King Arthur Flour Kids Pizza Dough Kit

2011-02-08T21:41:00.000-08:00

This week I reviewed a kids pizza dough kit from King Arthur Flour over on Moana Saves. The kids had a great time making pizza and I had a great time sitting back and watching them do the work. Check out the review!

Whole Wheat Pita Bread

2011-02-03T13:32:00.000-08:00

I am playing tour guide this week as family is in town. Don't you love hosting friends and family? It means doing activities you wouldn't normally do (yesterday I went on a catamaran ride in the beautiful sea-green ocean) and eating out (I ate a fabulous seaweed crusted fish with wasabe butter the other night at a local restaurant. To. DIE. FOR!). Living more than 2000 miles from relatives has been hard but on the bright side our family is more inclined to visit us seeing as we live in a tropical paradise and they are freezing on the mainland this winter.

One of our visitors is my sister and she is totally schooling me in my efforts to fulfill a New Year's resolution of dieting. The other afternoon she was eating store-bought humus with vegetables for lunch. That's when I jumped up and said: "Let me make you some delicious home-made hummus!" I whipped up the hummus in no more than 10 minutes and then pulled some of these pitas from the freezer that I had pre-cooked.

I love whole wheat breads because they taste great, they're freshly baked at home without preservatives (I grind my own wheat flour) and the whole grains are healthy for me and my family. The Foodie Bride has adapted a recipe from Gourmet (May 2003) for pita bread and I am loving it! Next on my list of recipes to make is some fabulous Greek gyros!

Whole Wheat Pita Bread
Recipe courtesy of Gourmet 2003 (adaptation per the Confections of a Foodie Bride)

Ingredients:
2¼ tsp. instant yeast
1 tbsp. honey
1¼ cups warm water (105˚-115˚ F), divided
1½ cups bread flour, divided
1½ cups whole wheat flour, divided
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. salt
Cornmeal, for sprinkling

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the yeast, honey and ½ cup of the water. Stir gently to blend. Whisk ¼ cup of the bread flour and ¼ cup of the whole wheat flour into the yeast mixture until smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside until doubled in bulk and bubbly, about 45 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap and return the bowl to the mixer stand, fitted with the dough hook. Add in the remaining ¾ cup of warm water, 1¼ cups bread flour, 1¼ cups whole wheat flour, olive oil and salt. Knead on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Transfer the ball of dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat, and let rise in a warm draft-free place, about 1 hour, until doubled in bulk.

Place an oven rack in the middle position. Place a baking stone in the oven (if using) and preheat to 500˚ F.

Once the dough has risen, transfer to a lightly floured work surface, punch down the dough and divide into 8 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten one ball at a time into a disk, then stretch out into a 6½-7 inch circle. Transfer the rounds to a baking sheet or other work surface lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Once all the rounds have been shaped, loosely cover with clean kitchen towels. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, until slightly puffy.

Transfer 4 pitas, 1 at a time, onto the baking surface. (Note: These can be baked on a baking stone or directly on the oven racks. If baked on the rack don't use the cornmeal.) Bake 2 minutes, until puffed and pale golden. Gently flip the pitas over using tongs and bake 1 minute more. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely. Repeat with the remaining pitas. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or place in freezer for later consumption.

Piecrust Cutters

2011-01-24T19:33:00.000-08:00

Such cuteness! I had to share this fun little post-Christmas gift I gave myself. Williams Sonoma had an after holiday sale and I just had to purchase their piecrust cutters. The fall pack is discontinued for now but it includes four leaves, my favorite being the maple leaf. The other day I made a chicken pot pie and instead of using a normal pie crust top I cut 50+ maple leaves to cover my pie. Time consuming? Yes. Great looking? Yes, yes!!

Today I made one of our favorite side dishes, the Tomato Basil Pie. With a little extra dough I embellished the pie with another leaf design. I think it looks too good to eat. My family thought otherwise and they ate it up without any comments. Some day when my children are older hopefully I'll hear some: "Aw! How cute!" or "Wow Mom! This is the best looking pie I've ever seen!"

The second set I bought on clearance is the winter holiday set. I can't find these anymore on William Sonoma's site but hopefully next year they come back. My favorite is the holly leaf. Besides cutting the crust pieces for embellishments or layering them to make a piecrust top you can use the large "cut" piece as your pie topper. In the end it will look somewhat like a lattice pie but with the shape of your cutter instead of squares. I love the idea of creating a picture landscape on a berry pie with reindeer prancing, gingerbread men marching and snowflakes falling. Too much? Probably.

Chicken Marinade

2011-01-24T19:24:00.000-08:00

I was looking for a new chicken marinade and found this on AllRecipes. Let me tell you, this recipe has some zing! Soy sauce + lemon juice + vinegar + Worcestershire created a mixture that left my mouth hopping!

We ate this with the mushrooms featured here. It was a fabulous combination.

Chicken Marinade
Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 T dry mustard
1 t salt
1 T black pepper
1 1/2 t finely minced fresh parsley

In a medium bowl mix together oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire, wine vinegar and lemon juice. Stir in mustard powder, salt, pepper and parsley. Use to marinate chicken before cooking as desired. The longer you marinate, the more flavor it will have.

Sauteed Mushrooms

2011-01-23T21:02:00.000-08:00

Do your kids refuse to eat mushrooms? Do YOU? My oldest child is the one who silently pushes the tomatoes and mushrooms to the side of her plate and says she's full. The litmus test for this recipe is that she actually ate the 'shrooms without a single complaint! We didn't even have to mention our typical bribery of dessert. I guess that says something for this tasty side-dish.

Sauteed Mushrooms
Recipe courtesy of Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network

2 pounds mixed wild mushrooms
1/2 cup good olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots (4 large)
4 T (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 t kosher salt
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
2 T chopped garlic (6 cloves)
1 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

Directions

Brush the caps of each mushroom with a clean sponge. Remove and discard the stems. Slice the small mushrooms thickly and cut the large ones in a large dice.

Heat the olive oil in a large (11 - inch) Dutch oven or saucepan. Add the shallots and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the butter, mushrooms, salt, and pepper and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, until they are tender and begin to release their juices, stirring often. Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 more minutes. Toss in the parsley, sprinkle with salt, and serve warm.

*My Notes: I had a lot of common white button mushrooms and used those instead of a wild mushroom mix. Also, this dish had a lot of oil so I think I'll cut down the amount of olive oil next time I cook it.

Italian Sausage Risotto

2011-01-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

I made an Italian Sausage Risotto for dinner and there was happiness in the land! My family loves this recipe! My husband, who was doubtful that risotto could compare to his beloved Asian fried rice, served himself thirds. My kids loved the recipe as evident in this conversation we had after dinner:

Kindergarten-aged Daughter: "Mom, can I have these leftovers in my lunch at school tomorrow?"
Me: "Sorry, no. It has meat and you need a microwave to warm it up to eat it."
Daughter: "Can I have the leftovers when I get home from school as a snack?"

A risotto is a class of Italian dishes of rice cooked in broth to a creamy consistency. To make this more than just a deliciously flavored rice with meat and peas I added some sliced mushrooms and served it alongside a fresh green salad. This will definitely become a favorite meal in our future menu plans.

Italian Sausage Risotto
Recipe courtesy of Once a Month Mom

   * 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
   * 16 ounces Italian Sausage links (like Johnsohnville), sliced
   * 1 cup apple juice
   * 1 cup onion, diced
   * 1 Tablespoon garlic, minced
   * 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
   * 1.25 cups rice
   * 1 cup Chardonnay or dry white wine (can also sub apple juice)
   * 3.5 cups chicken broth
   * 1 cup peas, frozen
   * 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
   * 1/2 cup Romano Cheese, grated

In a large saucepan, cook the sausage in apple juice. When finished cooking, remove from pan and slice. Heat oil in a large stockpot, add sliced sausage and onion, cooking until browned and softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and thyme, cook for one minute longer. (*I added sliced mushrooms at this point as well.) Add wine and rice and stir until the liquid is absorbed. Stir in 3 cups of the chicken broth. Lower the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until broth is absorbed. Add the rest of the chicken broth slowly, stirring until rice is cooked and creamy. Stir in peas and cheeses; cook until heated through. Serve.

Freezing Directions:
Follow all directions above. Allow to cool. Package in freezer containers. To serve: Thaw. Slowly warm on stove top, in slow cooker or in microwave. You may need to add a little chicken broth to bring it back to it’s creamy texture.

*My Notes: I used ground Italian sausage instead of sliced. I cooked the meat in 1 cup apple juice and continued adding the other ingredients without removing the meat from the pan. (I did drain off some of the meat fat which might have drained off my apple juice if it hadn't already evaporated.) I didn't add another cup of apple juice later in the recipe (no wine for us!) but instead just added the broth.

Bleu Cheese Dipping Sauce

2011-01-10T15:37:00.000-08:00

Betty Crocker is offering a free cookbook download including 20 recipes divided into seasonal categories. Click here to download the Betty Crocker cookbook. The recipes look fun and easy for even the simplest day of cooking.

One of the recipes featured in this download is Betty's Buffalo Chicken Sticks. Lately I've found quite a few recipes online relating to either buffalo flavoring (sandwiches, fajitas, wings) and bleu cheese (bleu and bacon burgers HERE and HERE, etc). I just can't get enough of these flavors so I decided to whip up my own version of a fresh bleu cheese dip. Enjoy!

Bleu Cheese Dipping Sauce
An original Dish List recipe

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 T freshly cut chives
1/2 T freshly cut parsley
1 T powdered ranch dressing mix
1/3 cup bleu cheese

Mix together all ingredients, breaking the bleu cheese into small pieces. Chill for at least an hour prior to serving to allow the flavors to blend.

Braised Kabocha Squash and Chicken

2011-01-08T16:21:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of a Kabocha Squash? It's also called a Japanese pumpkin. No? Either had I until recently when one came in my fruit and veggie box from our local coop.

I have to admit that this little green guy sat on my counter for a month as I searched for the perfect recipe. I found many recipes for slicing, seasoning (some with chili powder and cayenne. Wow!), and baking. Finally I found this gem of a recipe on the website for The Washington Post and we all (children included) enjoyed this sweet yet savory recipe.

I know what your first thoughts must be. Squash chunks with meat? And it's an Asian dish? Are you sure it's good? Yes! The meat and soy sauce bring savor along with a slight sweetness of the squash. My main disclaimer about this recipe is the carving of the vegetable. Be warned because it takes a good ten-plus minutes with a sharp knife and a strong arm. My second disclaimer is that I'm posting this recipe exactly as Chef Kaz Okochi of Kaz Sushi Bistro would have it even though I haven't cooked it per his exact instructions. (See my notes at the bottom of this post.) I usually don't post a recipe without trying it exactly per the original recipe but since some of my neighbors have the same squash sitting all by his lonesome on their counters I thought I would share this recipe before experimenting with it more. Plus, like I said, this recipe is kid-approved in my house so it must taste good enough to share. Agreed?

Braised Kabocha Squash and Chicken
Courtesy of The Washington Post

1 3-pound kabocha squash
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 ounces ground chicken*
1 tablespoon minced ginger root
2 1/2 cups plus 1 1/2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon mirin*
2 1/2 tablespoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon potato starch or tapioca starch*

Use a long, heavy knife to cut the squash into quarters. Discard the seeds and strings inside; peel each quarter and cut the flesh into 1/2-inch cubes. There should be about 4 1/2 cups.

Heat the oil in a large saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers. Add the chicken and ginger and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring to break up clumps, until no pink remains in the chicken. Add the squash and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring once or twice, until it is well coated. Add 2 1/2 cups of water and cook for 5 to 6 minutes; the squash should be submerged.

Combine the sugar and mirin in a measuring cup, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and add to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes, then add the tamari or soy sauce and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the liquid in the pan or skillet has reduced by half. The squash should be firm but tender and easily pierced with a fork.

Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons water with the potato starch or tapioca starch in a measuring cup and add to the pan. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly; the sauce will thicken almost immediately and will take on a smooth sheen when it's done. Divide among individual bowls and serve hot.

*My Notes: I didn't have a couple of ingredients, including mirin or the preferred starch and ground meat. Instead I substituted rice vinegar for the mirin since they're very similar and cornstarch for the potato or tapioca starch. Ground chicken is expensive and hard to come by (someday I'll have my own meat grinder!) and I love the flavor of ground turkey but we ate our last package the previous night so I resorted to using ground beef. Believe it or not this dish still tasted good with ground beef.

If you try this recipe with the ground chicken or turkey before I do feel free to leave a comment with your reaction!

Bacon & Bleu Burgers

2011-01-06T16:29:00.000-08:00

It's a new year and one of my resolutions is to be more efficient in my menu planning. A good friend of mine referred me to Once a Month Mom's website where she documents monthly menu plans and the accompanying ingredient shopping lists to make you a once a month mom. What does being a once a month mom mean? This website lists meal ideas and shopping lists as well as thorough instructions on how to cook one day in the month and freeze these prepared meals. I haven't had my own big day of cooking and freezing because I'm first experimenting with the recipes to see which I like but so far I haven't been disappointed.

This recipe of bacon and bleu burgers is really good! If you don't like bleu cheese I think you'll still enjoy this recipe. The combination of flavors is really mouthwatering and the cheese adds a lot of moisture but the flavor is subtle and not too overpowering.

Bacon & Bleu Burgers
recipe courtesy of Once a Month Mom

1 pound ground beef
2/3 c bacon crumbles
1/3 c bleu cheese

Cook bacon in 400 degree oven on a cookie sheet for 15-20 minutes or until crisp. Remove, allow to cool and chop in food processor. In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients until well incorporated. Make a large ball of the meat and then divide into fourths. Make 4 quarter pound hamburger balls and then mold into patties. Cook on hot grill for 3 minutes on each side or until hamburgers are cooked to desired preference. Serve on buns with additional toppings if desired.
Freezing Directions:
You can make up these hamburgers and freeze them using sheets of wax paper to divide them and then place them in freezer bags. To serve: Thaw, cook and serve according to previous instructions.

Melted Snowman Cookie

2010-12-23T20:55:00.000-08:00

I made these treats today to give to our neighbors. I thought it was especially humorous since we live on a tropical island and the only snowy man you'll find here is a melted snowy man. (My kids are actually requesting we visit the beach during winter break and make a sand-snowman.)

This is a great sugar cookie recipe. I've made many different versions of the basic sugar cookie and this one rates in my top 5 favorites. I also liked the runny frosting as it has a great melted snow effect. The frosting eventually hardens and would look pretty in bright colors on other cookie shapes. We found the melted marshmallows to be a bit tricky to work with but I've included some tips in my notes below.

Brownie/Cookie Giveaway

2010-12-21T14:37:00.000-08:00

Do you like chocolate?

Do you like chocolate made in France by a chef?!?

I recently reviewed Ruth's Brownies made with Valrhona chocolate and included is a giveaway through December 27th. Hurry HERE for a chance to win!

Cranberry Upside Down Muffins

2010-12-16T13:09:00.000-08:00

I had fresh cranberries in my fridge so for breakfast this morning I made these little beauties. If you're not a fan of the tart flavor of cranberries then you won't like this recipe. I liked that the batter is sweet and cake-like in flavor. My only complaint is the muffin's density; these are hearty (read "heavy") muffins but they taste great.

Serving note: Add butter and a sprinkle of sugar on top of your muffin. Enjoy!

Cranberry Upside Down Muffins

recipe courtesy of joyofbaking.com

Cranberry Sauce:

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

3/4 cup granulated white sugar

1 tablespoon orange juice or water

1 tablespoon grated orange zest

Muffin Batter:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated white sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place rack in the middle of the oven. Butter well or spray, with a non stick vegetable spray, 12 muffin tins.

Cranberry Sauce: In a medium sized saucepan place the cranberries, sugar, orange juice (or water), and orange zest. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar dissolves and the cranberries start to pop open, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly while you make the batter.

Muffin Batter: In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, egg, vanilla extract, and melted and cooled butter.

Add the milk and egg mixture to the flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Do not over mix the batter or the muffins will be tough when baked.

Evenly divide the cranberry mixture among the 12 well greased muffins cups and then evenly spoon the batter over the cranberry sauce. Place in the oven and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until very lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool for about 2 minutes, and then invert them onto a cooling rack so the the cranberry topping is face up..

Makes 12 regular-sized muffins.

*My Notes: I had half a grapefruit in the fridge and used the juices (no zest) in my cranberry sauce. The cranberry flavor was so overpowering that I'm not sure if I tasted the citrus flavor. Also, remember to add a little melted butter and sugar for serving!

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

2010-12-14T17:10:00.000-08:00

I'm so glad these cookies are finally eaten and no longer a temptation. Unfortunately, they're eaten and gone because I ate the three remaining cookies this morning. This recipe is so GOOD!! Thanks to my bro Steve who sent me word of this fab recipe.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Ingredients

1 (8-ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature

1 stick butter, at room temperature

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 (18-ounce) box moist chocolate cake mix

Confectioners sugar, for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg. Then beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner's sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and "gooey." Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners' sugar, if desired.

Spinach Soup

2010-12-10T12:16:00.000-08:00

"I do not like green eggs and ham.

I do not like them, Sam I Am"

Most days our tropical Hawaiian weather is a natural deterrent to any desire I might have of enjoying a hot bowl of soup. Yesterday on the other hand the weather was chilly and I realized I really wanted to eat soup for dinner. Unfortunately I didn't know what soup I wanted to eat. I didn't want a tomato-based soup nor did I want chicken noodle. Most of all I didn't want to go to the store at 4PM (rush-hour at any local grocer!) in a heavy downpour of rain (with flash flood warnings to boot!). I also had an abundance of frozen fresh spinach that I've collected over the past month and haven't known what recipe to use it in. That's when I found this lovely soup recipe. My 7 year old had this reaction:

"Mmmmm! Mom, this tastes like broccoli! We should eat this every day."

The best part about this recipe is that it's extremely easy and fast to prepare!

Pioneer Woman's Spinach Soup
(recipe found here)

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
10 ounces, weight Spinach
2 cloves Garlic, Finely Minced
4 Tablespoons Butter
½ whole Medium Onion
¼ cups Flour
5 cups Whole Milk
2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper (Optional)
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
cheese and bacon for garnishing

Preparation Instructions
In a large skillet heat olive over over medium heat. Add spinach and garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly until wilted. Add spinach to a blender or food processor. Pour in 1/4 cup hot water and pulse until pureed. Set aside.

In a large soup pot, cook onion in butter over medium heat until onions begin to soften. Sprinkle flour over the top and stir to combine. Cook for about 2 minutes, then pour in milk, stirring occasionally. Add salt, pepper, and cayenne and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in pureed spinach, then cook another 3 to 5 minutes until thickened.

Check seasonings, adding more salt, pepper, or cayenne as needed. Serve in a bowl. Add a little grated cheese and bacon bits on top if you prefer.

My Notes:
*I have so much spinach in my house that I've resorted to freezing the fresh leaves. When I removed it from the freezer I put it in a bowl and microwaved it for 1 minute. This can replace the wilting process on the recipe instructions. If you follow this procedure just skip the olive oil process and add the garlic the last 1 minute of cooking the onions in butter.
*I only had stringy mozzarella on hand for garnishing but it tasted wonderful with the spinach/onion flavor. My husband loved the bacon and liberally garnished his bowl with this porky treat. If you decide to add bacon make sure you lightly salt the soup since the bacon adds a good salty flavor.
*I added the milk way to quickly and didn't whisk it like I think I should have. The result was flour clumps in my soup. (I was rushing to get dinner on the table before my three kids completely lost their composure!)
*I did not add cayenne pepper since I have wee-ones in my household.

Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T14:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas is my favorite holiday. I love giving gifts, focusing on the birth of Christ, gathering with family, singing carols, and most especially I love the looks on my children's faces Christmas morning. My SECOND favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. My reason? Simply put, I love good food. This morning I had a call from a friend asking for my turkey brine recipe because she tried it last year and loved it. Well, the recipe is not "mine" per say but I'm always happy to pass along good recipes. In fact, this brine recipe is so good it recently bested Bobby Flay in a...Throwdown! THE Bobby Flay! How exciting is that?!?

For all you food loving fans, here are a couple of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes that will be gracing my menu plan this week:

Pioneer Woman's Turkey Brine

Candied Coconut Sweet Potatoes

Cape Cod Cranberry Relish

Creamy Mashed Potatoes (another Throwdown best from PW)

A Different Cranberry Sauce

2010-11-16T15:10:00.000-08:00

Okay. My Thanksgiving confession is I don't like cranberry sauce. My first impression of the sauce was as a young child at my grandmother's house. I still remember seeing the ring marks from a can on the jelly-like red substance that stood firm in the serving bowl. I guess even as a child I felt that if a food looked far from it's natural state it wouldn't taste good (and most likely wasn't healthy for me).

I probably never gave the stuff a fair taste test until a few years ago when my dad made this recipe. As a little introduction to my wonderful dad, he loves stores that give samples (Trader Joes, Costco) and most of the time he gets the recipe, buys the ingredients and makes the dish at home. Yes, that marketing strategy works very well on my dad. I love this version of cranberry sauce or relish to be exact. It's light and fruity and most definitely fresh. I'm excited to make this recipe for our Thanksgiving seeing as we now live in Hawaii and can include fresh pineapple. I LOVE pineapple bought fresh on the islands. Mmmm.. Now if I can only find a market that sells sugarloaf or white pineapples I will be completely pineappley satisfied.

Cape Cod Cranberry Relish

Slightly adapted from recipe featured at a local Albertsons store; source is Decas Cranberry Sales, Inc.

1 lb fresh cranberries, washed and picked through
2 small navel oranges, well washed (or 1 large)
1 c sugar
half a fresh pineapple, cut in 1-in chunks (or canned pineapple tidbits)
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut in 1-in chunks
1/2 c chopped dates
1 c chopped walnuts, lightly toasted
Additional sugar, if necessary

Remove the peel of the oranges with a zester. Place the peel and sugar in a food processor. Pulse until peel is ground and well mixed with sugar. Scrape frequently. Add the cranberries and pulse until chopped well. Place in a large mixing bowl. Remove the white pith from the remaining oranges, cut oranges into 2" chunks, and process in the food processor by pulsing quickly. Add to cranberries and orange. Repeat the process with the fresh pineapple chunks and apples and add to cranberries and orange. Add the chopped dates and nuts to the cranberries and fruit, stir well and cover. If desired, add additional sugar to taste. Refrigerate 24 hours before serving. Serves 4-6.

Tomato and Basil Pie

2010-10-26T12:26:00.000-07:00

My mom-in-law recently sent me an email with the subject line of: "You've got to try this!" When you get an email from mom with those words in the title you know the recipe must be good.

Last week my husband and I were invited to a work potluck dinner. I wasn't sure what to bring but when I saw my pile of freshly picked tomatoes this recipe came to mind. Feel free to call me crazy for making a dish for guests that I have never tasted! Thankfully the dish turned out great! I loved the lightness of the filling compared to a more dense quiche. Also, don't be afraid of the amount of basil. It works! For my next pie I might make the addition of green onions and cheddar like the lovely Mrs. Paula Deen does in her variation of this recipe.

*Note: This photo is of the pie before you spread the mayo/cheese mixture on top.

Tomato and Basil Pie

(Recipe from Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

9-inch prepared pie crust, unbaked*
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
5 plum or 4 medium tomatoes
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
Additional basil for garnish

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Prepare and bake your 9-inch pie crust. Remove from oven and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Cool on a wire rack.
Cut tomatoes into wedges and drain on paper towels. Arrange the wedges on top of the melted cheese in the baked shell. In a food processor, combine the basil and garlic, processing until coarsely chopped. Sprinkle over the tomatoes.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the remaining mozzarella cheese, mayonnaise, Parmesan and pepper. Spoon cheese mixture over basil mixture, spreading to evenly cover the top.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is golden and bubbly. Serve warm garnished with basil leaves. Serves 4 to 8.

*I used the Betty Crocker recipe of flour, salt, shortening and water.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

2010-09-03T23:34:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: I'm married to a Chemist and to him cooking is like chemistry in that you must follow the recipe word for word and MEASURE everything! (I usually just shake, sprinkle and eyeball my ingredients and it drives him nuts.) I must say that he is a fabulous cook, especially when it comes to an intricate recipe that requires patience and lots of work. I on the other hand like to tweak and change recipes as I go along but I don't inform him of this until I see the smile of enjoyment on his face after he has taken the first bite. Tonight's experience was no exception. (*wink*) He loved this recipe! It's an even greater compliment that my husband enjoyed my version of an Asian dish because he lived in Taiwan for two years and he knows what the authentic food really tastes like.

Tonight I really wanted to make Asian Lettuce Wraps because I had a 3-pack of iceberg lettuce I needed to use but I didn't have ground chicken like I used in my previous posting for this recipe. I had a package of ground turkey so I searched online to see if any recipes use this ingredient in place of chicken. (We love the taste of ground turkey and use it often as a healthy alternate to ground beef.) When I couldn't find a recipe that looked tasty or didn't require ingredients that were not in my cupboard I decided to wing it. To my husband's great pleasure the recipe turned out fabulous! Even better was that my kids LOVED this! It isn't often that my 7 year old is the last one to leave the table but tonight she was.

(Photo credit)

Asian Lettuce Wraps

(Who "Dished" it first? Me!)

1 pound ground turkey

1/2 of a red bell pepper (about 1/2 cup), diced

2-3 stalks celery, diced very small

1/2 cup finely grated carrots

1-2 teaspoons garlic

2 green onions, finely diced (I didn't have any so I used a shake or two of onion powder)

Sauce: (I have seen sauce recipes that include sesame oil and hot sauce but I was all out and I wanted to keep the heat out of this recipe for my kids' sake.)

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons rice vinegar (I didn't have any tonight so I used apple cider vinegar)

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger

Brown the ground turkey in a sauce pan drizzled with olive oil. Add the vegetables when the meat is cooked and saute for 1-2 minutes. (You can reserve the carrots to add at the very end. I've done that before but tried this tonight where I add them at the beginning at since they were so finely shredded I didn't taste a noticeable difference. I think the real difference is presentation and preserving the bright orange color.) Add three-quarters of the sauce mixture, reserving the remaining sauce for dipping. Simmer this mixture until the sauce is reduced and there is almost no liquid in the pan. While this is simmering wash, dry and separate your lettuce leaves. When the meat mixture is prepared serve it on individual lettuce leaves dribbling a spoonful of the reserved sauce on top of each.

**My notes: The soy sauce mixture can be salty so I would use low-sodium soy sauce if you have it. Traditionally lettuce wraps are served with the reserved sauce for dipping but my family is usually happy without the extra sauce. In fact, recently I'm experimenting with adding less than 3/4 cups of sauce to the meat mixture. Leave a comment to tell me if you like it with less sauce.

Hamburger Buns

2010-08-22T21:10:00.000-07:00

I made hamburger buns from scratch!! I can't believe it! I'm not a professed baker of breads but with the exorbitant costs here in Hawaii I thought I would give these a try. The best part is they turned out and tasted fabulous!

Light Brioche Burger Buns

Ingredients:
3 tbsp. warm milk
1 cup warm water
2 tsp. instant yeast
2½ tbsp. sugar
1½ tsp. salt
1 large egg
3 cups bread flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2½ tbsp. unsalted butter, softened

For topping:
1 large egg beaten with 1 tbsp. water, for egg wash
Sesame seeds

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the milk, water, yeast, sugar, salt and egg. Mix briefly to combine. Add the flours to the bowl, and mix until incorporated. Mix in the butter. Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed for about 6-8 minutes. The dough will be somewhat tacky, but you want to avoid adding too much extra flour which will create tough buns.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1-2 hours.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Using a dough scraper, divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Gently roll each portion of dough into a ball and place on the baking sheet, 2-3 inches apart. Cover loosely with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise again, 1-2 hours, until puffed up and nearly doubled. (*I live in a very warm climate and mine were large enough to bake after less than 30 minutes.)

Set a large metal pan of water on the lowest rack of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400˚ F with a rack in the center. Brush the tops of the buns lightly with the egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake the buns about 15 minutes rotating halfway through baking, until the tops are golden brown. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Source: adapted from Smitten Kitchen, originally from Comme Ça via The New York Times

Mango Shortbread Bars

2010-08-22T21:05:00.000-07:00

Living in Hawaii we're blessed to eat fresh tropical fruits. We've tried papaya milkshakes for breakfast and pineapple floats for dessert (fresh pineapple juice with pineapple ice cream). The other night I noticed our mangos were getting over ripe so I looked online for a fun recipe to make with them. This mango shortbread had a tasty crust (3 cubes of butter...it better be good!) and the mango flavor was nicely complimented by the nutmeg and cinnamon.

Mango Shortbread Bars

Allrecipes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups butter
1/2 cup white sugar
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
4 cups sliced mango
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In large bowl, cream together butter and 1/2 cup sugar. Blend in 3 cups flour and press 1/2 of mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
In a medium bowl, stir together mango, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour, cinnamon and nutmeg until well combined. Pour mango mixture over shortbread in pan. Sprinkle remaining shortbread mixture over mango mixture. Press down lightly.
Bake 1 hour, until topping is golden brown. Let cool 15 minutes in dish before cutting into bars.

Calzones

2010-08-22T20:53:00.000-07:00

We love Italian food in our house. One of my favorite qualities of Italian cooking is the wide range of ingredients that most often are fail-proof. For instance, pizza is so versatile we love to experiment with toppings.

Our new favorite recipe that is bound to be an outlet in our food creativity is calzones. I found this recipe and I love the creaminess of the ricotta, the sausage is delicious and the dough surprisingly light and flavorful. I can't wait until next time I make this to add some mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, and maybe cook it one or two with pepperoni per the kids' request.

Ricotta Calzones with Sausage
Taste and Tell's slight adaptation from The New Best Recipe

DOUGH
4 cups bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon warm water

RICOTTA FILLING
1 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta cheese
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 ounces hot or sweet sausage
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing on tops
Kosher salt or coarse sea salt for sprinkling on tops

FOR THE DOUGH: In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk the flour, yeast, and salt to combine. Attach the bowl, and with mixer running on medium-low speed with the dough hook, add the olive oil, then gradually add the water. Continue to mix until the mixture comes together and a soft, elastic dough is formed - about 10 minutes. Lightly spray a large bowl with cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled - 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

FOR THE FILLING: In a medium bowl, stir together the cheeses, egg yolk, oregano, salt, and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Remove the casings from the sausage. Cook the sausage in a skillet, breaking it up into 1/2 inch pieces, until it is cooked through. Stir in garlic and red pepper flakes until fragrant, about 10 seconds and remove from heat. Set aside to cool.

TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on the rack. Heat the oven to 500 degrees for AT LEAST 30 minutes. Divide the dough in half, and then divide each half into thirds, giving you 6 pieces of dough. Gently shape each piece into a ball and set on a piece of parchment paper that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 15 minutes, but no more than 30 minutes.

Form the calzones by rolling each piece of dough into a 9-inch circle then placing 1/2 cup of the filling on half of the circle and topping with 1/6 of the sausage. Fold the top half of the dough over, leaving a 1/2 inch border uncovered. Lightly press the dough to seal it. Beginning at one end, place your index finger diagonally across the edge and gently pull the bottom layer of the dough over the tip of your finger. Repeat until the calzone is sealed.

With a very sharp paring knife or razor blade, cut 5 slits, about 1 1/2 inches long diagonally across the top of each calzone. Make sure not to cut completely through the calzone, but to just cut through the top layer.

Brush the top of each calzone with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake until golden brown - about 11 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before serving. While the first batch is baking, prepare the second batch.

Hawaiian Salad with Grilled Chicken

2010-08-01T01:02:00.000-07:00

In honor of our recent move to the Hawaiian Islands I have this tasty and fresh salad recipe to share.

Tropical Salad

Allrecipes

* 1 head romaine lettuce, torn

* 3 green onions, chopped

* 6 slices of bacon, crumbled (I used 8 pre-cooked slices)

* 1 can pineapple tidbits, drained and reserved for dressing

* 1/2 cup macadamia pieces

* 1/4 cup toasted coconut

* 1/4 cup pineapple juice

* 3 Tbs. red wine vinegar

* 1/4 cup olive oil

* salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, onions, bacon, macadamias, coconut and pineapple. In a container with a tight fitting lid, combine the other ingredients. Shake to mix. Pour over the salad right before serving.

We grilled up some chicken and served it with the salad.

Hawaiian Grilled Chicken

* 6 boneless chicken breasts

* 2 cups pineapple juice

* 2 T Worcestershire sauce

* 2 T soy sauce

* 2 T brown sugar

Combine all the ingredients, except the chicken. Pour the marinade over the chicken and refrigerate. The longer the chicken marinates, the better. Cook them on the grill. (*Six chicken breasts makes a lot of chicken. If you serve the chicken with the salad like we did I cooked fewer chicken breasts. Other times I've served the chicken over rice alongside the salad and that was tasty too.)

Chicken Ranch Pizza

2010-05-17T14:18:00.000-07:00

I made the PERFECT pizza dough the other night. The recipe made two crusts and this recipe is how I prepared the first pizza. It was delicious!! Unfortunately, the second pizza turned into a complete wreck. First, I grabbed the container of enchilada sauce and not the container of tomato sauce. That pizza quickly became a new Mexican style pizza. To make matters worse I had a hard time transferring the pizza to the stone. In the end everyone said they liked the taste of the pizza but it sure looked a mess with ridges and bumps from the wrinkled transfer onto the pizza stone.

Chicken Ranch Pizza
Ingredients: (These amounts are all approximates and can be adjusted per your preference. Bacon would be a good topping as well but we are trying to limit our pork intake.)

1 pizza crust
1/3 cup Ranch dressing (enough to thinly cover the crust)
¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
½-1 grilled chicken breast, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 tomato, seeded and diced
2-3 green onions, chopped
¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven and a pizza stone to 500° F. Prepare your crust for toppings. Spread the Ranch dressing in a thin layer evenly over the unbaked crust. Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella. Top with grilled chicken, tomato and green onions. Sprinkle with shredded cheddar. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and browned. Slice, serve, and enjoy!

Perfect Homemade Pizza Crust

2010-05-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

I make homemade pizza more often than purchasing it but I have never been completely satisfied with my crust recipe. When I read on Annie's Eats that she prefers this pizza to ordering out I had to give it a try. The verdict was that this recipe makes a delicious dough!!! We all thoroughly enjoyed it!

Basic Pizza Dough
Recipe from Annie's Eats
Yield: enough dough for 2 medium pizzas or 4 calzones

Ingredients:
½ cup warm water
2¼ tsp. instant yeast
4 cups (22 oz.) bread flour, plus more for dusting
1½ tsp. salt
1¼ cup water, at room temperature
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:
Measure the warm water into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Sprinkle the yeast over the top. (*While the yeast is proofing I added 1 tsp. honey since I've always learned that yeast needs a bit of sugar to work properly. I then let it sit until the yeast began to foam.) In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the bread flour and salt, mixing briefly to blend. Measure the room temperature water into the measuring cup with the yeast-water mixture. With the mixer on low speed, pour in the yeast-water mixture as well as the olive oil. Mix until a cohesive dough is formed. Switch to the dough hook. Knead on low speed until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 1½-2 hours.

Press down the dough to deflate it. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Form each piece of dough into a smooth, round ball. (If freezing the dough, wrap in plastic wrap and freeze at this point.) Cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no longer than 30 minutes.

To bake, preheat the oven and pizza stone to 500˚ F for at least 30 minutes. Transfer the dough to your shaping surface, lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Shape the dough with lightly floured hands. If the dough springs back a lot while you are trying to shape it, let it rest for 15 minutes and try again. This allows the gluten in the dough to relax and should make shaping easier. Brush the outer edge lightly with olive oil. Top as desired. Bake until the crust is golden brown, and cheese is bubbling, 8-12 minutes.

Annie's tips on freezing the dough: (Yes, FREEZING! Isn't that great?!?) I was cooking both pizzas at once so I haven't attempted to freeze the dough yet but I'm excited to try this.

If you don’t plan on using your dough immediately, freeze it. To do this, mix up the dough as usual and let it rise as normal. After dividing the dough into two equal portions, wrap each tightly in plastic wrap and store inside a freezer-safe bag, and transfer to the freezer immediately. (Reuse these bags to avoid being wasteful!) The double layer is important here. Even after the dough is moved to the freezer, it will continue to rise a bit before the rise is completely suspended. It always, always pops through the plastic wrap so the extra layer of protection is needed to prevent exposure.
Freeze the dough until it is ready to be used.

The day you plan to use the dough, transfer it to the refrigerator in the morning to thaw in time for dinner that evening. (If using the dough for lunch, transfer to the refrigerator the night before.) The dough that has been frozen tastes every bit as good as fresh, so it is incredibly convenient to have available for a quick, throw-together meal. Before making the pizza, take the dough out of the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes to take off the chill.

I’ve had many questions pertaining to the need to freeze the dough if you plan to use it the very next day. It seems logical that you could simply refrigerate it immediately after the rise and use it the following day. However, I have tried this and it didn’t go well. The refrigerator is not cold enough to stop the rise quickly and the result is an over-risen, crazy puffy monster dough. My solution? I still use the freezer initially to completely stop the rise, and then I transfer the dough to the refrigerator until it is ready to be used. (I think another solution would be to use less yeast in the dough initially, but I don’t feel super comfortable altering recipes and changing amounts of yeast, so this is my preferred method.)

Notes regarding using a pizza stone:

I have heard many people say that using a stone is a MUST! Here is what Annie says:

A pizza stone is an integral part of really good homemade pizza. Why? The stone is preheated with the oven, producing a very hot surface for baking the pizza. When you slide the assembled pizza onto the stone, the bottom of the crust starts baking immediately, producing the perfect crisp bottom that provides the slices structural integrity, while the top portion is still soft and chewy.

I have a stone and a large wooden board that I used for preparing the pizza. Once I was ready to transfer it to the stone my pizza stuck and I could not move it! What a mess! Next time I'm definitely using parchment paper. I cooked both of my pizzas so for the second I cooked it on a metal pizza pan with 1/2 inch holes int he bottom. This created a beautiful crust so maybe with more practice I'll have a better opinion of using a stone.

Sloppy Turkey Joes

2010-05-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

As a family we are trying to trim the amount of red meat we eat and I had a lot of ground turkey in the freezer so I looked for a turkey version of sloppy joes and this is what I found. We all loved the recipe, especially served with our version of Tyler Florence's coleslaw.

Sloppy Turkey Joes
Rachel Ray

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
1 package, 1 1/3 pounds, ground turkey breast or lean ground turkey
1/2 red onion
1/2 red bell pepper
1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (recommended: McCormick Montreal Grill Seasoning or Mrs. Dash seasoning for poultry)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup tomato sauce,( 8- ounce) can
4 crusty sandwhich rolls, split

Directions

Drizzle olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the ground turkey, diced onion and red bell pepper. In a small bowl combine: grill seasoning blend, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and the tomato sauce. Pour the sauce evenly over the meat and stir everything together. Turn the heat down to simmer and cook the sloppy mixture for 10 minutes. Serve over toasted rolls!

Heart-Healthy Pork Chops Parmesan

2010-05-02T21:52:00.000-07:00

Heart-Healthy Pork Chops Parmesan
Devin Alexander
Recipe Copyright ©2005, American Heart Association, "No-Fad Diet"

vegetable oil spray
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
egg substitute equivalent to 1 egg, or 1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 slices whole-wheat bread
1/4 cup snipped fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried, crumbled
1/4 cup shredded or grated Parmesan cheese
10 medium to large fresh basil leaves or 1 teaspoon dried, crumbled
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried, crumbled
2 teaspoons fresh oregano leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried, crumbled
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 boneless center-cut pork chops (about 4 ounces each), all visible fat discarded

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly spray an 8-inch-square baking pan with vegetable oil spray.

Put the flour and egg substitute in two separate shallow bowls.

In a food processor, process the remaining ingredients except the pork chops until the bread is chopped into crumbs and the herbs are coarsely chopped. Put the mixture into a third shallow bowl.

Set the bowls with the flour, egg substitute, and bread-crumb mixture and the baking pan in a row, assembly-line fashion. Coat a pork chop with the flour, shaking off the excess. Coat it with the egg substitute, then with the bread crumb mixture. Place in the baking pan. Repeat with the remaining pork chops.

Bake for 45 minutes, or until the pork is no longer pink in the center.

Serves 4; 1 pork chop per serving

Nutritional Value Per Serving:

    * Calories: 251
    * Total Fat 9.0g
    *     Saturated Fat: 3.0 g
    *     Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.0 g
    *     Monounsaturated Fat 4.0g
    * Cholesterol: 75 mg
    * Sodium: 267 mg
    * Carbohydrates: 11 g
    *    Fiber: 1 g
    *     Sugar: 1 g
    * Protein: 21 g

Feta-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

2010-04-30T18:30:00.000-07:00

Photo from Better Homes and Gardens (BHG)

Feta-Stuffed Chicken Breasts
adapted from BHG

1 tablespoon snipped dried tomatoes (not oil-packed) or oven roasted tomatoes (see comments below)
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 1/4 pounds)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons softened cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 350F.

Place tomatoes in a small bowl. Cover with boiling water. Let stand for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry; set aside. Meanwhile, using a sharp knife, cut a pocket in each chicken breast by cutting horizontally through the thickest portion to, but not through, the opposite side; set aside.

In a small bowl, combine feta, cream cheese, basil, and tomatoes. Spoon about 1 rounded tablespoon into each chicken pocket. If necessary, secure openings with wooden toothpicks. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.

In a large oven-proof skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, cook until browned, flip over, and cook on second side until browned. Move skillet to the preheated oven and bake until chicken is no longer pink and registers 170F on an instant read thermometer, about 25 minutes.

**My Notes: I did not have dried tomatoes so I very thinly sliced one Roma tomato, placed the slices on a cookie sheet and drizzled olive oil on top. Then I put them in the oven on broil until they began to dry out and slightly darken. I thought I would need to chop the tomato even more before adding it to the cheese mixture but the tomato blended nicely.

Roast Cabbage

2010-04-20T09:22:00.000-07:00

This recipe is healthy, tasty, and most importantly very easy! I had some cabbage growing in the garden that I wanted to eat so I looked around and found many internet references to roasting cabbage wedges.

Roasted Cabbage
1 cabbage
olive oil
salt
pepper
1 lemon

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut cabbage into about 6 wedges. Be sure leave the core intact so that each wedge has 1/6th the core. This helps keep the leaves of cabbage intact in the wedge. Arrange cabbage on a rimmed baking sheet. Brush both sides of wedges with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast, flipping halfway through, until edges are brown and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes. Squeeze lemons over cabbage.

*I forgot to squeeze lemon on top and it tasted just fine. Next time I'll give the lemon flavor a try. I thought about using lemon pepper as a part of the seasonings as well.

Creamy Mashed Potatoes

2010-03-28T19:00:00.000-07:00

My husband is the official mashed potato maker in our home. That's because he is VERY good at it! The other night we invited my brother over for dinner since his wife was out of town. I realized as I was planning the menu that we always make mashed potatoes when he visits since it's an effort to step up the meal quality. Since the meal I had planned was pot-roast and who doesn't like potatoes with their roast I decided to try a new recipe to give my ol' brother some variation. To make things even more exciting I made the potatoes instead of my husband. ("Ooooooooo! Ahhhhhhh!) End result: these were a HIT!

Creamy Mashed Potatoes
(Pioneer Woman)

5 pounds Russet Or Yukon Gold Potatoes
3⁄4 cups Butter
1 package (8 Oz.) Cream Cheese, Softened*
1⁄2 cups (to 3/4 Cups) Half-and-Half
1⁄2 teaspoons (to 1 Teaspoon) Lawry's Seasoned Salt
1⁄2 teaspoons (to 1 Teaspoon) Black Pepper

Peel and cut the potatoes into pieces that are generally the same size. Bring a large pot of water to a simmer and add the potatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 to 35 minutes. When they’re cooked through, the fork should easily slide into the potatoes with no resistance, and the potatoes should almost, but not totally, fall apart.

Drain the potatoes in a large colander. When the potatoes have finished draining, place them back into the dry pot and put the pot on the stove. Mash the potatoes over low heat, allowing all the steam to escape, before adding in all the other ingredients. Turn off the stove and add 1 1⁄2 sticks of butter, an 8-ounce package of cream cheese and about 1⁄2 cup of half-and-half. Mash, mash, mash! Next, add about 1⁄2 teaspoon of Lawry’s Seasoning Salt and 1⁄2 a teaspoon of black pepper. Stir well and place in a medium-sized baking dish. Throw a few pats of butter over the top of the potatoes and place them in a 350-degree oven and heat until butter is melted and potatoes are warmed through.

(When making this dish a day or two in advance, take it out of the fridge about 2 to 3 hours before serving time. Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 20 to 30 minutes or until warmed through.)

*My Note: I didn't do the last step of warming it in the oven because of a lack of time. Thankfully my mashed 'taters were still steaming hot for service at dinner.

Pot Roast

2010-03-28T18:50:00.000-07:00

I have always struggled to cook the perfect pot roast. I'm not sure why I struggle since it's not like I'm attempting rocket science! I cook a moderately good roast but what I really love is the beef that just shreds with a fork and is moist. This recipe is what I can confidently call a fool-proof recipe! There are no onion flavor packets or confusing techniques. This is just simple searing and roasting...and mmmm was it good!

Ree appeared on the today show this month to demonstrate this recipe. She commented that she doesn't like to put potatoes in with the roast to cook since they get soggy. I agree! Leaving them out allows for the juices to pool and later be used in a delicious gravy.

Pioneer Woman's Pot Roast
PW

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 whole (4 To 5 Pounds) Chuck Roast
2 whole Onions
6 whole Carrots (Up To 8 Carrots)
Salt To Taste
Pepper To Taste
1 cup Beef Broth
2 cups To 3 Cups Beef Stock
3 sprigs Fresh Thyme, or more to taste
3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary, or more to taste

First and foremost, choose a nicely marbled piece of meat. This will enhance the flavor of your pot roast like nothing else. Generously salt and pepper your chuck roast. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Then add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (or you can do a butter/olive oil
split). Cut two onions in half and cut 6 to 8 carrots into 2-inch slices (you can peel them, but you don’t have to). When the oil in the pot is very hot (but not smoking), add in the halved onions, browning them on one side and then the other. Remove the onions to a plate. Throw the carrots into the same very hot pan and toss them around a bit until slightly browned, about a minute or so. If needed, add a bit more olive oil to the very hot pan. Place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it is nice and brown all over. Remove the roast to a plate. With the burner still on high, use beef broth (about 1 cup) to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a whisk to get all of that wonderful flavor up. When the bottom of the pan is sufficiently deglazed, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway (about 2 to 3 cups). Add in the onion and the carrots, as well as 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme. Put the lid on, then roast in a 275F oven for 3 hours (for a 3-pound roast). For a 4 to 5-pound roast, plan on 4 hours.

Round Steak with Vegetable Gravy in the Slow Cooker

2010-03-28T18:35:00.000-07:00

I love a good family-friendly recipe, meaning my kids clean their plates with a smile and the food is healthy. I found this recipe the other day on Eat at Home and I was convinced I should make it when Tiffany said: "I found this recipe stuck in my tattered recipe binder, jotted on a calendar page from 1998. I used to make it quite a bit, but somehow forgot about it. " With those two sentences I was sold! We made this today for Sunday dinner and everyone loved it!

We served this with penne pasta since we have eaten a lot of potatoes this week. My only comment is that the round steaks shrink, a lot, so plan accordingly.

Round Steak with Vegetable Gravy in the Slow Cooker

Recipe from Eat at Home

   * 3 carrots, peeled and diced
    * onion, diced
    * small green pepper, diced
    * 2 stalks celery, diced
    * 2 lb. round steaks
    * 1/2 cup ketchup
    * 1 Tbs. vinegar
    * 1/3 cup water
    * salt and pepper
    * 2 Tbs. flour
    * 1/2 cup water

Place the meat in the crockpot. Put the diced veggies on top. Mix the ketchup, vinegar, water and salt and pepper together. Pour over the meat and veggies. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 5-6 hours.

Remove the meat from the slow cooker. Turn it up to high. Mix the flour and 1/2 cup water together in a container with a tight-fitting lid. Shake it to combine until smooth. Whisk into the broth in the slow cooker and let it cook just a few minutes until it’s thickened a bit.

Lemon Cheesecake Cheese Ball

2010-02-16T21:39:00.000-08:00

Photo from NPR

Last week received an invitation to a Valentine party and this was the hors d'oeuvres we made. I wanted to make something somewhat healthy (fruit) and yet with plenty of fun flavor. The lemon brought a light and fresh flavor to this treat and we all loved it! This recipe is a keeper!

Lemon Cheesecake Cheese Ball
(Original Recipe from NPR, this adaptation found on Annie's Eats)

10 oz. cream cheese
2½ tbsp. sugar
Zest of 1 large lemon
4 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 graham crackers

Combine the cream cheese and sugar in a medium bowl. Stir together with a spoon or spatula until well combined and smooth. Mix in the lemon zest and lemon juice until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a ball, wrapped tightly. Refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours. Reshape if necessary once firm.

Coarsely crush the graham crackers and transfer the crumbs to a plate or bowl. Roll the cheese ball in the crumbs until evenly coated. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Cooked Mexican Pinto Beans

2010-01-29T13:28:00.000-08:00

In my attempt to serve more meatless dinners as well as learning to cook with dried beans I found this yummy recipe. I'm sure it is just an average mexican pinto bean recipe but I have always wanted to learn how to make refried beans without the 'refried' and I was so happy when my first attempt was successful! Even my picky 2 year old ate a whole bowl!

Refried Beans (without the Refry)
Recipe and photo from AllRecipes

Ingredients

1 onion, peeled and halved
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (I used 1 can diced green chili peppers)
2 tablespoons minced garlic
5 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, optional
9 cups water

Directions

Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.
Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

My Notes: I cut my onion into maybe 8 pieces so that it would mash easier with the beans at the end. Cooked beans can end up very bland so just be sure to add salt to taste. I also added a few sprinkles of hot sauce to give it more pep.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 139 | Total Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 0mg

(Sorry I don't know the serving size. This recipe makes 15 servings so I would assume a serving is about 1/2 to 3/4 cup)

Chili Seasoning Mix

2009-12-13T18:45:00.000-08:00

I love a warm meal on a cold winter's night. This past week we've had a lot of rain and chilly weather so for Sunday dinner I decided to make some yummy chili. I have tried so many different chili recipes and purchased mixes and this recipe compares with the rest. This was a tasty chili mix that we all enjoyed and plan to use again. I found this recipe on 'Our Best Bites' as a bulk mix recipe to give in gift bags as cute holiday gifts.

(Photo from Perdue.com)

Chili Seasoning Mix Recipe from OurBestBites.com
This makes one gift serving, so multiply by however many you'd like to package up. **You only need 4 Tablespoons for a normal-sized chili meal so I quartered this recipe my first time. Now that I know we like the flavors of this mix I'm going to mix a larger batch and save it for future use.

1/2 C chili powder
1/4 C ground cumin
2 T garlic salt
2 T dried oregano leaves
1 T ground coriander
1 t cayenne pepper or chipotle chili powder (add more if you like spicy chili)

If you are making a big batch, make sure to mix it very well so all of the spices get evenly distributed.

Hearty Chili

1 lb ground beef, turkey or sausage (you can leave out the beef to make it a vegetarian chili)
1 onion, diced
1 red or green bell pepper, diced
4 T chili seasoning mix
2 16oz cans pinto beans (I sometimes even use black beans)
2 16 oz cans kidney beans
1 28oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 14oz can beef broth

Drain and rinse beans and set aside. Combine meat and onion in large pot over med-high heat and cook until browned. Drain and discard fat. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

*I made this by soaking and cooking kidney beans on low over night in the crock pot. This morning I put the remaining ingredients in and let them all cook on low until dinner. I just love a Sunday dinner that cooks itself!

The Best Enchiladas Ever!

2009-12-02T11:03:00.000-08:00

Living in southern California we are definitely eating our fill of Mexican foods. I am loving it since this is what I have eaten all my life and I just happen to prefer chips and salsa over dessert (most of the time). My husband on the other hand is a self-proclaimed beef and potatoes guy. The other night I called him to say that yes we were eating Mexican food again for dinner but that I had rave reviews about this recipe and it didn't look too spicy. Well, this turned out REALLY good and my husband was happy to finish off the casserole dish. I was even cooking for my Aunt from Kansas that night and she loved this so much that she made it for her family the weekend she got home.

I thought the flavors in the chicken were so delicious that I didn't even serve this with sour cream! I took a taste with a little sour cream and actually tasted better without. This simple yet very tasty recipe is my new turn-to for enchiladas!

Picture from empower foods

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
from yourhomebasedmom.com

6 Tbsp honey
5 Tbsp fresh lime juice (1-2 limes)
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2-3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
8 – 10 flour tortillas (depending on size)
1 lb of a Mexican blend cheese (monterey jack, colby, cheddar), shredded
1 large can of green enchilada sauce

Mix the honey, lime juice, chili powder and garlic powder together with the shredded chicken. Allow it to sit for at least 1/2 hour or you could do it hours before and just cover and refrigerate.

Pour 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce into bottom of a 9 x 13 pan. Place chicken and cheese into middle of a tortilla and spoon about 1 tablespoon of enchilada sauce over it and roll up. Place seam down in the pan. Reserve about 1-2 cups of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Pour enchilada sauce over the top of rolled enchiladas and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.

*Jayne's Notes: This recipe was PERFECTION! Next time I may try it with Cilantro Lime Rice as recommended.

Candied Coconut Sweet Potatoes

2009-11-28T13:41:00.000-08:00

This year for Thanksgiving we gathered for a large extended family dinner with my dad's side of the family. I remember when I was young we used to get together with these same relatives but once my uncle became sick and passed away and my grandma as well we didn't gather as often. I really enjoyed this mini reunion and seeing family that I haven't seen in many years.

I have never thought of sweet potato casserole as a must-have for Thanksgiving dinner. A few years ago when Dan and I started making our own dinner for just our little family we made sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top which the kids ate. This year I saw this recipe for sweet potatoes with coconut crumble on top and I just had to make it. With my ridiculous fashion of cooking a brand new and never tested recipe when guests come for dinner, I made this recipe and we all loved it! It will definitely be a staple on our traditional Thanksgiving dinner table.

Candied Coconut Sweet Potatoes
Recipe from Our Best Bites

4 C mashed Sweet potatoes (4 med sweet potatoes or abt 2 large sized cans)
6 Tbs Sugar
6 Tbs butter (no margarine), softened or melted
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 can Sweetened Condensed Milk (eyeball it)
1 t vanilla

Topping:
1 C brown sugar
1 C sweetened coconut flakes
6 Tbs melted butter

Note: You can make these up to a day or two ahead of time, just keep them well covered in the fridge and don't put the topping on until just before baking.

If using fresh sweet potatoes, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick each sweet potato with a fork and place on foil in the oven. Cook for 40-60 minutes or until tender. Once they've cooled enough to handle, slice in half and scoop out the insides into a mixing bowl.

To the mixing bowl add in sugar, butter, eggs, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Your butter should be soft enough to blend up easily so nuke it in the microwave before you add it to the bowl if you need to. You could mash it all up by hand, but an electric mixer works great. Spread this mixture evenly into a 9 x 13 pan.

For the topping, combine brown sugar and coconut and then pour melted butter over and combine. Sprinkle the potatoes with the topping and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 40-50 minutes.The top should be nice and browned and bubbly so just keep an eye on it.

Jayne's Notes:
*I highly recommend using fresh sweet potatoes. Their preparation is just like baking a normal potato so it's real easy. Also, the canned potatoes have added sugar so be aware that this recipe already is plenty sweet and you may want to leave out the sugar in the batter if you used canned yams.
*I increased the crumble topping mixture because we all like a bite of yummy crumblies with our sweet potatoes. I ended up doubling the sweet potato mixture (allowing me to use the entire can of sweetened condensed milk) and making the crumble recipe x 2 1/2.
*The original recipe said you could leave the sweet potatoes slightly clumpy and not fully beat the mixture smooth. Next time I try this idea and beat the batter ingredients separately to allow them to fully mix and then mix it with the sweet potatoes until just barely mixed yet still lumpy.

Picture via Taste of Home