Sweet and Spicy Broccoli Vinaigrette

I found this recipe in a cooking magazine a few months ago and now make it all the time. It is a great way to dress up broccoli (and convince the kids to eat it too!). I love steamed broccoli plain but this vinaigrette gives it a perfect kick. Leave the pepper flakes out for the kids and they will LOVE it!

1 broccoli bunch, broken and steamed
1 Tbs. butter, melted
1 Tbs. rice vinegar
1 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Red Pepper flakes to taste


Combine butter, rice vinegar, brown sugar, salt, and garlic powder in small bowl. Drizzle on top of broccoli and sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

simple

inexpensive

fast
kid-friendly

and DELIGHTFUL

Pea Pesto Linguini with Chicken

When it comes to a great tasting, healthy, money saving meal, this is the one that soars to the top of my list. I love it because I can change up the ingredients depending on what I have on hand. If I have extra spinach in the fridge I need to use up, I put more spinach in. If my basil plant is itching for a picking, I put extra basil in. If I don't have one of the three main ingredients (peas, basil or spinach) I just substitute for more of the other two ingredients. You can also really use any kind of pasta you have on hand. I like linguine, so that is what I use. If I don't have time for chicken, I omit the chicken. It all works beautifully with this meal. 

It really is quite versatile.
Oh and did I mention it is quite good for you??

10 oz. frozen peas, cooked until hot
1 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) spinach
1/2 fresh basil leaves (about 15 leaves)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup parmesan
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/3 cup olive oil

1/2 lb cooked whole wheat linguine (reserve a little pasta water for sauce!)

1-2 cooked chicken breasts

5-6 fresh grape tomatoes, halved or 3-4 sun-dried tomatoes, sliced

1-2 Tbs. fresh grated Parmesan

Pulse together hot peas, spinach, basil, garlic, Parmesan, salt and pepper in a food processor. With the machine still running, slowly add olive oil until well combined, about 1-2 min.

Add to hot linguini and pour in 1-2 Tbs. pasta water*. Top with fresh, or sun-dried tomatoes, chicken and shredded parmesan.

Serve with Homemade Garlic Bread

*TIP: Adding a little pasta water to your pasta and sauce works like a light glue allowing the sauce to mix beautifully with the hot pasta. 

Halley's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I know, I know, everyone has a great chocolate chip cookie recipe. I have been making these cookies since I was 15 years old. I found it by chance on the back of a chocolate chip bag and have never used another recipe since. My parents loved them so much I was dubbed the official chocolate chip cookie maker of my house as a kid. I continue to make these on a regular basis (I hate to admit how regular). My husband and son are now hooked...

Maybe it is the gooey, soft, ever so slightly doughy, chocolaty goodness but with a nice crunch around the outer rim of each cookie that has us under its spell.

Halley's Chocolate Chip Cookies

 2 ¼ cups flour

 ½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup cold margarine (not butter!)
 ½ cup sugar

 ¾ cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 bag chocolate semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375˚.

In medium bowl, mix together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together margarine, sugar, and brown sugar. Add egg and vanilla to mixture and beat. Slowly add flour mixture, continuing to mix. Stir in chocolate chips. Bake at 375˚ for 7-9 min*.


*TIP: Do not over bake. The trick to moist, borderline doughy cookies is to remove cookies from oven just before they look done. My best gauge is when they still look a little doughy but the very top ridges of the cookies are just turning golden brown. 

Homemade Buttermilk Flaxseed Pancakes

My 20 month old son is crazy about pancakes. He got to the point where he was asking for them every morning. We are a Krusteaz family, I grew up on it, but after a while of making pancakes everyday, I felt like I was constantly restocking our Krusteaz supply which was, to say the least, hurting our food budget significantly. So I had to come up with a different solution to appease both my son's raging pancake appetite as well as our tight budget. I decided to start making my own batter even though it might take me a little bit more time to prepare, it was worth it to save the money. So, I found this recipe online, made a few tweaks and viola!...  
Perfectly light and fluffy buttermilk pancakes that taste just like (if not better than) Krusteaz. 

Buttermilk Flaxseed Pancakes

1  cup buttermilk*

1 1/4 all-purpose flour

3 Tbs. ground flaxseed

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

3 1/2 tsp. baking powder

2 Tbs butter

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

In medium bowl sift** dry ingredients together. In separate bowl mix together wet ingredients. Combine the dry and wet ingredients in one bowl. Mix just enough to combine. Do not over mix or your pancakes will loose their fluffiness. Batter will be lumpy. Pour batter onto lightly greased flat griddle over medium heat forming 3 inch circles. Allow to cook for 20-30 seconds on each side. Serve warm with butter and warm maple syrup.

*TIP: Make your own buttermilk by adding 1 Tbs. of white vinegar for every cup of milk and allowing to rest for 5 minutes. Milk will appear curdled.  

**TIP: If you don't have a sifter or you want to save time mix dry ingredients using a wire whisk.

Double Potato Shepherd's Pie

 

This dish is the ultimate comfort food...

A mixture of ground beef and sausage in a tangy sauce layered with melted cheese, tender sweet potatoes and carrots topped with golden brown crusted but creamy garlic mashed potatoes.

I know I focus on healthy dishes but I threw "health" out the window when I made this one. Sometimes you just need to enjoy some good old fashioned comfort food.

Enjoy!

Double Potato Shepherd's Pie
2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, washed, peeled and cubed
1 clove garlic, smashed*
2 Tbs. butter
1/4 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground turkey sausage
1/2 onion, chopped
1 sprig of fresh thyme (1 tsp. dried)
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. paprika (I used smoked paprika)
3 Tbs. tomato paste
1/2 cup low sodium beef broth
3 tsp. red wine vinegar
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 carrots, peeled and julienned*
1 sweet potato
1/2 onion sliced and cut in half
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, cover potatoes and crushed garlic with enough water to cover by 1-inch. Add some salt and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-high and cook until fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes, return to pot, and mash together with butter and milk. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and set aside.

In a large pan heat 1 Tbs. oil on medium-high and add beef, sausage, thyme, chili powder, paprika and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until meat is brown. Stir in tomato paste and saute for a few minutes. Add stock and red wine vinegar and bring to a simmer. Remove mixture to a bowl. In the same pan, add another Tbs. oil and saute onions until almost tender, then add sweet potatoes, and carrots. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

To assemble, in a 9 by 12-inch baking dish layer half of beef, pressing down to pack in, then sprinkle the cheese on evenly. Pour the remaining half of the beef over the cheese and press down. Next, add the sauteed vegetables and top with the mashed potatoes, spreading out with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle top with paprika and bake for 30 minutes or until edges on potatoes turn golden brown.

*TIP: To smash garlic, lay the flat side of a large butcher knife on top of a single unpeeled clove of garlic and give it a good pound with your fist to break off the skins, if the clove is not smashed, repeat process with peeled clove. 

**TIP: To julienne is to cut the carrots in very thin slices about 3 inches long.

Chile Lime Pulled Pork Tacos

 My husband and I LOVE Mexican food.
Unfortunately the area in which we live is not known for its southern cuisine and in no way fulfills our all too frequent cravings for good authentic Mexican cuisine. So we have spent the last 4 years of marriage perfecting our taco recipe, slowly making it more and more...well... amazing!...and authentic.
I think we are finally satisfied with this combination.

 Eat your heart out Chipotle...

Chile Lime Pulled Pork

1-2 lb pork roast

1 1/2 Tbs. chili powder

2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1-2 Tbs fresh lime juice (1/2 lime)

In medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients and cilantro to create a dry rub. Place pork roast in bowl and coat with dry rub. Cover and allow to marinate in refrigerator for 2-3 hours (you don't have to marinate it if you don't have time).

Place in crock pot, drizzle with lime juice and cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-5 hours. Pork will fall apart when poked with a fork when done. :-) Pulled apart with fork.

Serve with Black Bean and Corn Quinoa, fresh tomatoes, avocados, cilantro, lime, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and homemade flour tortillas 

simple

inexpensive
 healthy...

and DELIGHTFUL

Black Bean and Corn Quinoa

 Quinoa (pronounced: keen-wa) is delicious and incredibly good for you. It is like rice but has a similar texture to couscous. It soaks up the flavor of whatever you cook it with. But the best part about quinoa is that each little grain is packed chalk full of EVERY essential amino acid our body needs.... which translates to lots of great protein with not a lot of fat. It is easy to digest and makes a great baby food (my next baby is getting quinoa made like cream of wheat...yum!). It is grown predominately in Bolivia and they are currently doing research to use quinoa as a way to fight world hunger (Jared actually worked on this as an undergrad at BYU... pretty awesome, I was jealous). With that said, it can be pricey. I bought my bag in NYC last summer for a great price and am still going through it. It goes a long way and lasts a long time. We make this dish 2-3 times a month and still have half the bag.

 So... if I haven't convinced you that quinoa is worth the extra trip to the store, you can use rice as a substitute 

(you may have to increase the seasoning).

Black Bean and Corn Quinoa

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped

2/3 cup uncooked quinoa

3/4 cups vegetable (or chicken) broth

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

dash of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes (I omit this when serving kids)

salt and pepper to taste

3/4 cup frozen corn kernels

1 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 Tbs. lime juice

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until  opaque.

Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes,
Stir frozen corn and black beans into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in cilantro and lime.

Serve with Chile Lime Pulled Pork with fresh tomatoes, avocados, cilantro, lime, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and Homemade Flour Tortillas 

 

simple

inexpensive
 healthy...

and DELIGHTFUL

Cheese Fondue

So, I have a thing for cheese.

I love it, plain and simple. 

 My brother married into a Swiss family and first introduced us to the great world of Swiss cuisine. This is actually a family recipe from my brother-in-law on my husband's side who is also half Swiss.  Isn't it great to have in-laws?
This is a great meal idea for dinner parties. Great food, great company, great interactions. 

We have it every year for New Years. 

1-2 cloves garlic

½  cup chicken broth 

½ cup apple juice
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded Romano cheese
1-1½ cups Swiss cheese
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 Tbs. water
1 Tbs. cornstarch
Fresh ground pepper
2 french bagettes cubed

Cook in an electric fondue pot or on a stove top in a saucepan. Mince one clove of garlic. Cut the other clove and rub the bottom and sides of the pot with the garlic. Mix apple juice and broth together and set aside. Shred cheese. Mix lemon juice, water, and cornstarch in a cup and set aside.
Saute minced garlic in 1-2 tablespoons of broth. You don’t want it to burn, but start to get tender. Add the rest of the broth and bring to a boil. Stir and scrape the bottom constantly.

Add shredded cheese slowly into boiling broth mixture. Turn temperature down to med-med high. You don’t want it to boil, just hot enough to melt the cheese. The cheese and liquid will start to separate, if it does then turn the heat up until it combines again. Once it has combined, add the lemon juice/cornstarch mixture. This should combine the cheese and liquid permanently. 

Season with fresh ground pepper to taste.

Serve with boiled yukon gold potatoes, pan-seared beef tenderloins, and steamed broccoli.

Thanksgiving Meatloaf

I love Thanksgiving dinner and hate to only have it during the holidays, but it is way too much work to have it more than once a year. So I found this recipe to appease my need for a Thanksgiving dinner throughout the year. 

It literally tastes like a thanksgiving dinner all in one.

Turkey, sausage, cranberries, stuffing, apples--served with mashed sweet potatoes and veggies... amazing.

Thanksgiving Meatloaf

1 lb. ground lean turkey breast

1/2 lb ground turkey sausage
1/2 tsp. rosemary
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. sage
1 large apple, chopped
1/2 white onion chopped
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1 egg
1 1/2 stuffing mix (if I don't have this on hand I will use whatever leftover bread I have)
1 1/2 cup turkey or chicken broth
salt and pepper
1-2 Tbs. olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a large casserole dish (or cookie sheet) with olive oil. In large bowl, combine turkey, herbs, apple, onion cranberries and egg. In separate bowl combine stuffing with broth until stuffing absorbs all the liquid. Add to turkey mixture and salt and pepper as desired. Mix well.
Turn out into greased casserole dish and shape loaf. Coat with olive oil and transfer to oven.

Roast until brown and cooked through (about 45 minutes).

                                                          

fast

simple

inexpensive

 healthy

and DELIGHTFUL

Homemade Wheat Flour Tortillas

A great way to save a little money is by taking a little time to "make your own". These are fast and very simple to make, and good for you. My husband is the official tortilla maker of our household. He does a great job making them moist and flavorful.

 Homemade Wheat Tortillas
1 cup of white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vegetable oil
3/4 cup warm water

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. In another bowl combine the warm water and oil.
Add the water/oil mixture to the flour mixture, one tablespoon at a time and mix the dough with a fork. Once the water is mixed in, add another tablespoon of water and repeat the process until all the water is mixed into the dough.
The dough will be sticky.
Knead dough for 5 min. Divide dough into golf ball sized balls. Allow to rest for 10 min. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out into 1/4 rounds. Cook on skillet over medium high heat for 20 sec. on each side.
And you're done! It really is that easy!

How to Pan-Sear Meat

Long and slow the way to go? Ever wonder why your chicken is so dry and tasteless after cooking it on the stove-top for 20 minutes because that is what your mom told you to do?  Whatever happened to crunchy on the outside yet juicy and tender in the middle? 

I wondered the same things too... for a long time... until I watched the food network and learned what I was doing wrong.

Long and slow is not necessarily the best description of how to get that great crunch on the outside and juicy in the middle. The key to great results is in the searing of the meat.

TO SEAR (verb): to make very hot or dry.

I know what you are thinking, "Great, now we have nothing but a dried out piece of meat", but quiet on the contrary. The key is that we are searing the outside of the meat, creating a perfect barrier preventing any of those tender juices from escaping...

Perfect.

Getting a Perfect Sear

First make sure your meat is DRY. This is very important in ensuring a great sear.
To do this, simply PAT WITH A PAPER TOWEL.
Set a frying pan on HIGH HEAT with 1-2 Tbs. olive oil or butter.
Season BOTH sides of meat with salt and pepper (salt first)
Wait until your oil is SLIGHTLY smoking. 
Carefully place meat in oil leaving plenty of space between them (do not overcrowd your meat).
Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes on HIGH HEAT. Do not move it until it is time to flip.
Flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Now, depending on what kind of meat you are cooking, turn your heat to medium low and allow to cook until done (or transfer to the oven to finish off). 
When meat is done, remove from heat and ALLOW TO REST for about 5 minutes before cutting and serving.

Good Luck!  

Good Old Fashioned Cheddar and Broccoli Rice Casserole

I make this dish on cold days when it is stormy outside and I need something to warm my heart.

Cheddar and Broccoli go so well together, and when they are combined with chicken, it makes for great comfort food.

Cheddar and Broccoli Rice Casserole with Chicken
2 cups uncooked white or brown rice
4 cups water
1 Tbs olive oil  (for cooking chicken)
2 chicken breasts, pan-seared
2 Tbs. butter/margarine
1/2 white onion, chopped
1/2 lb. mushrooms
2 Tbs. flour
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. chicken bullion seasoning 
2 cups milk
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
In medium pot, bring water to a boil. Add rice, cover and cook for 20 minutes. (do not lift the lid until after 20 minutes, this ensures your rice cooks quickly and evenly). Pan-sear chicken (see my tutorial). Using the same pan you cooked the chicken in (this way you can pick up the yummy bits of chicken flavor left in the pan), melt butter over medium high heat and saute onions and mushrooms seasoned with salt and pepper until tender and golden brown. Add flour and mix until bubbly. Add chicken bullion. Slowly whisk in milk. Allow to cook, stirring frequently, until sauce thickens.
When rice is done, pour into medium casserole dish (a 9x13 works fine). Pour sauce on top of rice. Slice chicken into large chunks and place on top of sauce. Sprinkle cheddar over entire casserole.
Cover tightly with foil and cook for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

inexpensive

warm

simple

fast...

and DELIGHTFUL.

This year's resolution

Make an online cookbook I can add to all year long and eventually print for myself...
starting now...