This stuffed acorn squash dish was originally inspired by one of my very favorite bloggers, Joanne, whose blog, Eats Well with Others, is always entertaining and filled with mouth watering treats. Last fall she featured 12 weeks of winter squash recipes, which inspired me to stuff some squash of my own. This is a wonderful meal because the veggie, side, and main dish are all combined into one neat little container! I simply filled roasted acorn squash with quinoa, thyme, leeks, and turkey sausage, and then added in cranberries and goat cheese for a little tangy sweetness to balance out the savory flavors. I’ve also made it with ground turkey and pork sausage – you really can’t go wrong. This is truly an easy and tasty dish that never disappoints.

Also, thanks to everyone for your blogiversary wishes and for entering my giveaway! The lucky winners were numbers 12 and 96 – congrats to Sophie and Christine!

Sausage and Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 acorn squash, cut in half with seeds and pulp removed
1 1/2 cups quinoa
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 leek, white and light green parts only, chopped
1 pound turkey sausage, casings removed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup dried cranberries
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375˚F. Place squash cut side down on a large cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 375˚F for 35 to 40 minutes or until tender.

Meanwhile, place quinoa and chicken stock in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until all water is absorbed. Stir in thyme and salt.

Place leeks and turkey sausage in a large nonstick skillet and heat over medium high heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until sausage is browned and leeks are tender. Add garlic and cook one additional minute.

Stir cooked quinoa, cranberries, and goat cheese in with browned sausage mixture. Pile quinoa and sausage mixture evenly into cooked squash. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 392 calories, 9.7g fat, 6.6g fiber, 20.9g protein per serving
Cost: $1.74 per serving

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of all our goodies from Eva’s farm share this week, but the bounty was similar to last time, except we got green peppers and wheat berries instead of the baby spinach and golden beets. I made quick use of the green peppers in fajitas and the Swiss chard in Camilla’s tasty Lentil Soup with Italian Sausage and Swiss Chard, but I’m still stumped on the wheat berries – any suggestions?

I was also able wrestle away some of the sweet potatoes from Apolinaras this time (and by wrestle away, I mean hide in the back of the cabinet!), and decided to whip up a soup with them since it’s been so rainy and windy in Boston lately. I decided on a Thai twist because I was craving the sweet potato curry from Sugar and Spice, so I simmered the sweet potatoes with fresh ginger, lemongrass, red curry paste, lime juice, and coconut milk. The lovely orange hue made me smile and the flavor did not disappoint – yum!

Thai Sweet Potato Soup
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
1 tablespoon red curry paste (or to taste, 1 tablespoon makes it pretty spicy!)
4 cups chicken stock
2 three-inch pieces lemongrass
2 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled, and cut into chunks (4 cups, 32 ounces peeled)
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup light coconut milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro, for garnish

Directions:
Heat oil over medium high heat in a large stockpot and sauté onions for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Add ginger and curry paste and sauté one minute. Add chicken stock, lemongrass, and sweet potatoes to the stockpot and simmer with the pot covered for 10 to 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove lemongrass and stir in lime juice, coconut milk, and salt. Puree until smooth with an immersion blender. Ladle into bowls and garnish with cilantro. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 303 calories, 9.4g fat, 7.4g fiber, 5.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.31 per serving

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than with a giveaway. I love buying presents – I’m one of those people who will brainstorm and research until I find the perfect gift. So, I’ve actually been thinking about this giveaway for a couple months now and slowly accumulating items for two prize packages that I would love to receive!

The first prize set ties in with my new blog design that is finally up (yay!) and is a Martha Stewart Cupcake carrying case, Williams Sonoma Daisy Crown Cupcake Pan, and a cute set of 6 spring sprinkles from Target.

The second prize set is an adorable apron from Anthropologie, a shower gel set from Sephora featuring apple pomegranate, vanilla cupcake, guava passion, and coconut crème scents, and a Stila Mango and Pomegrante Crush lip gloss set.

When you comment, just let me know which prize set you like the most and that’s the one you will be entered to win.

There are two ways to enter:
1. Leave a comment letting me know which of my recipes you’d like to try most.
2. You can get an additional entry for each time that you’ve blogged about one of my recipes (if you were inspired by one of my recipes and changed things a bit, that counts!). Post each link in a separate comment.

Remember, don’t forget to tell me which set of prizes you would like to be entered to win in each comment. Entries must be in by 11:59 pm EST on Friday, March 5. Good luck and thank you for following me on my foodie adventures. I’m already excited to see what the next year will bring!

p.s. The winner of the CSNstores Crème Brulee set giveaway was commenter number 55, Ashley – congrats!

I’ve always loved the Olympics (just hearing the theme song makes me smile!) and have been glued to the couch the past week enjoying the games every night. Since I usually don’t watch nearly this much TV, I’ve been keeping my restlessness at bay by multitasking and brushing up on my vector art skills while designing a new header for my blog! The change was inspired by my recent WordPress crash and Apolinaras’ comment that the fonts in my header look like they’re stuck in the early web development age of the 90s – LOL, thanks honey! I agree though, it’s time for a makeover! I’m having fun with it, although I’m tired of watching Adobe Illustrator tutorials every time I can’t figure something out (which is often…). I’m starting over from scratch, so stay tuned for the big reveal later this week!

The downside to all the Olympic festivities is that I haven’t been cooking anything exciting for the past week. Luckily, I have a few recipes saved just for occasions like this that I can still share! Today’s treat is one I made right before Christmas but thought would be more appropriate to share after the holidays when people would be more interested in lighter dessert options. I decided to make a creamy faux mousse (no eggs are involved) of roasted butternut squash and apple cider. It’s rich, creamy, and indulgent. I served it in martini glasses topped with toasted walnuts and gingersnap cookies, but it would also be lovely as part of a layered trifle.

Oh, and I’m submitting this to Natasha’s 5 Star Mousse Makeover!

Roasted Butternut Squash Mousse
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash, cut in half lengthwise and seeded
1/2 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup apple cider
1 8-ounce container light whipped topping, thawed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts
6 gingersnap cookies

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Use a pastry brush to evenly brush flesh side of the squash halves with melted butter and place flesh side down on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400˚F for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender. Let squash cool for 10 minutes. Remove flesh from the squash halves with a spoon and mash with a fork until smooth (my yield was 2 cups).

Place mashed butternut squash, powdered sugar, and apple cider in a pan over medium heat and heat for 5 minutes or until sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool completely and puree in a blender until smooth.

Mix squash puree, 2 cups of whipped topping, and vanilla extract until smooth. Place into serving bowls and sprinkle evenly with nuts and remaining whipped topping. Garnish with gingersnap cookies. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 220 calories, 9.8g fat, 2.5g fiber, 2.8g protein per serving
Cost: $0.93 per serving

And what better way to celebrate than with a giveaway! CSNstores.com is a Boston based online retailer that has a huge selection of home and office items, from bar stools and fitness equipment to wine refrigerators and bakeware. They have generously offered to give a BonJour Bain Marie set, which includes everything you need to make Crème Brulee successfully at home, to one lucky reader! The set includes a pro torch and four square ramekins that fit snuggly into a pan that contains a water bath – nothing says celebration like a perfect Crème Brulee!

There are two ways to enter:

1. Check out CSN’s over 200 online stores and leave a comment letting me know which one you had the most fun browsing.

2. Tweet about this giveaway or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Then come back and leave an additional comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Wednesday, February 24 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck and thanks to CSN for hosting the giveaway!

Anyway, I thought it was a perfect chance to see if we could actually use all the veggies in a farm share every week before getting one for ourselves. Look at the haul – organic red onion, baby spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce, grapefruit, apples, parsley, golden beets, sweet potatoes, Yukon potatoes, and carrots! Apolinaras immediately claimed the grapefruit and sweet potatoes, and then I set about the task of figuring out what to do with the rest of the goodies!

I set the potatoes and golden beets aside so I could make a mash of them to serve alongside Tom Colicchio’s braised short ribs on Valentine’s Day (which the carrots and onions went into). The short ribs were amazing by the way, and I highly recommend the recipe! My next order of business was tackling the Swiss chard, which I was curious about but had never used before. I knew it could be cooked similarly to spinach but tends to a little bitter, so I decided to use it in a quinoa side dish with my sweet leftover sweet golden raisins. Eva also suggested pine nuts went well with the greens, so I tossed some of those in too, along with garlic, onions, and a bit of lemon juice for some acid.

I settled on pairing the quinoa with champagne poached salmon, which was one of the entrée choices at our wedding, because I stumbled upon a super old bottle of sweet champagne at the back of our liquor stash when I was looking for the ingredients for our Valentine’s Day cocktails. I used to like sweet champagne but my tastes have changed and I’m a fan of the dryer stuff now – I think this particular bottle moved with us from Chicago over 2 years ago! This was a wonderful way to finally finish it off. The champagne flavor is subtle, but you can definitely taste it, and the salmon paired well with the quinoa. Thanks so much to Eva for the farm share – I’m already looking forward to picking up next week’s box!

Champagne Salmon with Swiss Chard Quinoa
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2/3 cup quinoa
1 1/3 cups chicken stock
1 bottle sweet champagne
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 dried bay leaf
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 salmon filets (ours were 7 ounces each)
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 bunch Swiss chard, stem removed and coarsely chopped (2 packed cups)
1/3 cup golden raisins
Juice of half a lemon

Directions:
Place quinoa and chicken stock in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, place a lid on the pot, and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until all water is absorbed.

Place champagne, vinegar, bay leaf, and 1 teaspoon salt in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and bring liquid to a simmer. Place salmon filets in the pot and simmer for 10 minutes or until salmon is cooked through.

Meanwhile, place pine nuts in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, or until toasted. Remove pine nuts from the skillet and pour in olive oil. Sauté red onion for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Stir in Swiss chard and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes or until wilted.

Place cooked quinoa in a large bowl and stir in cooked Swiss chard, pine nuts, raisins, lemon juice, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Serve poached salmon over quinoa. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 684 calories, 30.1g fat, 7.0g fiber, 50.0g protein per serving
Cost: $5.54 per serving (not counting the champagne)

You didn’t think I could resist dreaming up a treat for Valentine’s Day did you? I’ve always enjoyed the holiday and have fond memories of pouring through all the cartoon cards in my heart decorated box in grade school and placing small boxes of chocolate outside the dorm doors of all my girlfriends in college. I’ve also always loved stocking up on Dove hearts when they go on sale! Now I use the holiday as an opportunity to pour over cookbooks and blogs and come up with an indulgent gourmet meal. I haven’t decided on the menu yet for this year, but I’m leaning towards braising short ribs!

When I think of Valentine’s Day, I think of chocolate covered strawberries and truffles, so why not combine the best of both worlds? These truffles contain a rich and creamy strawberry center that I initially had a bit of trouble with – in fact, it took 4 batches of wasted strawberry puree until I achieved the consistency I was looking for (thank goodness I was using the less expensive frozen berries and not the out of season expensive fresh ones)! But my patience and persistence paid off and I finally nailed it. The strawberry centers are simply coated with chocolate. I did drizzle a bit of white chocolate over the truffles and included the directions for this in the recipe below, but would probably actually skip this step next time because I think it detracts a bit from the gorgeous red strawberry centers and it was extra work. The filling is a bit sticky when it warms up, so be sure to chill the dough as needed to avoid this. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Truffles
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup pureed strawberries (I pulsed 8-10 thawed frozen whole strawberries in the food processor)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
Several drops of pink gel food coloring

Directions:
Place strawberry puree, sugar, and butter in a small nonstick pan over medium low heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until reduced to 1/2 cup. Mix reduced liquid with flour and salt in a small bowl. Chill truffle filling for 1 hour in the fridge or until cold.

Carefully roll chilled strawberry filling into 12 round truffles and place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or until cold.

Melt semisweet chocolate chips in a shallow bowl on High 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth, microwaving an additional 10 seconds as needed. Mix in 1 tablespoon oil. Using 2 forks, dip strawberry centers into melted chocolate and cover evenly. Place on waxed paper and smooth tops with the back of a spoon, if needed. Cool in the fridge until chocolate is set, about an hour.

Melt white chocolate chips in a shallow bowl on High 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth Mix in remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil and pink gel food coloring and place chocolate in a pastry bag with a number 4 tip. Drizzle chocolate over truffles. Makes 12 truffles.

Nutrition: 106 calories, 4.1g fat, 0.8g fiber, 0.9g protein per truffle
Cost: $0.34 per truffle

One night, a few months ago, while I was attempting to edit a particularly blah set of photos, I thought to myself – I really wish I had professional help. Oh a whim, I googled “Boston food photography” and was immediately blown away by the mouth-watering photos on professional food photographer Gary Tardiff’s website. Before I lost my nerve, I quickly sent him an email asking if he would be willing to give a group of local food bloggers some tips. Now I really wasn’t expecting to hear anything back, so you can imagine how excited I was when Gary said he would love to have us all visit his studio!

So instead of posting a recipe today, I’m going to give you a behind the scenes look at a professional food photographer in action and share some of the wonderful tips he gave us! Spending the afternoon with Gary was absolutely amazing! He spent over 3 hours demonstrating how he takes such gorgeous pictures and answering all our questions!

Gary has been a professional food photographer for 32 years and mainly does advertising work for companies and restaurants, like Chili’s, Dunkin Donuts, Kraft, and Pillsbury, to name a few. 95% of his photos are taken in his studio in Southie, which has a kitchen stocked with every type of food prop you can imagine (we were all insanely jealous of his wall of colorful plates). He stressed that 99% of the food he photographs is real and prepared just the way it would be at home.

Here are some of my favorite tips:

Understand and use the exposure triangle – ISO, shutter speed, and aperture – to your advantage. Exposure is the amount of light that reaches the camera’s sensor. I already had a basic understanding of this concept but really loved his analogy of thinking about it because it can get confusing! He said to imagine a perfect exposure as a half full glass of water (with underexposure being less than half full and overexposure being entirely full). Shutter speed is how quickly the water from the faucet above the glass is turned on and off. Aperture is the size of the stream of water (how far the faucet is opened, with a large aperture being a larger stream of water). The size of the glass is ISO (how much water is needed to half fill the cup, which is how sensitive the camera sensor is to light).

There are many ways to get the glass half full and all three parameters relate to one another. With food photography, you should have a nice light source and can usually use a low sensitivity ISO of 100 or 200 (the lower the ISO the less noise you have, but the higher the number the more sensitive the sensor is to light, so in a low light situation (e.g it’s cloudy out) you may need a high ISO and have to deal with slightly more grainy photos), so you mostly have to worry about the aperture and shutter speed relationship. Aperture changes the depth of field, so you may want to pick the aperture first and then adjust the shutter speed as needed to get the correct exposure. For example, if you decide to use a small aperture to get a large depth of field (so an entire plate of cupcakes is sharp) then the shutter speed will need to be longer – the faucet is a small stream of water so it must be left on for a longer period of time. If you decide to use a large aperture to get a shallow depth of field (one cupcake is sharp and the rest are blurred in the background), then the shutter speed will need to be shorter – the faucet is a large stream so you need to shut it off quickly. In general, in food photography, we’re not worried about capturing motion and mostly concerned about depth of field, but if, for example, you want a quick shutter speed to freeze the motion of a drizzle of caramel about to hit a cupcake, you can select your shutter speed first and then adjust the aperture as needed to retain the correct exposure.

Along these lines, play with the depth of field. Your DSLR standard kit lens may not be the best for food photography because the aperture range is limited. With a large aperture, only the part of the picture you are focusing on is sharp and the rest is blurred (e.g. f/1.4 – as a side note, f stops are like fractions so just like 1/2 is bigger than 1/4, f/1.4 is larger than f/10) so you have a shallow depth of field. With a smaller aperture (e.g. f/10), more of the image becomes sharp and you get a larger depth of field. For example, on my standard 18-55mm Canon zoom lens, the maximum aperture is only f/5.6 at 55mm. If you invest in a prime 55mm lens (a stable lens that does not zoom), you can get a f/1.4 or f/1.8. I just added one of these to my wishlist! While it’s nice to eventually learn how to manually focus your camera (selecting ISO, aperture, and shutter speed on your own), many cameras have semi-automatic settings you can use where you pick your aperture, for example, and then the camera selects the correct ISO and shutter speed for you. This is a great starting point. Also, Gary actually never uses a macro lens, so you can certainly get great shots with just the prime!

Use a tripod. First, it slows you down, so instead of quickly snapping a shot it makes you think more about what you want to feature in the photo. Second, it prevents blurry photos when you’re using a long shutter speed.

Always adjust the white balance directly on your camera before taking your shots. Basically, you take a picture of something white and then tell the camera that’s what white is (your camera manual should have specifics on how to do this!). This is important because different types of light have different hues (e.g. tungsten incandescent bulbs cast a yellow hue). Gary does use Photoshop, where you can adjust white balance with a raw image, but prefers to get the image as close to perfect as possible when he’s taking it. Also, always shoot in raw format and then make adjustments. Shooting in JPEG already compresses your image and colors are lost!

Set up a lighting studio that mimics natural light and play with the lighting until you’re satisfied with the image. This is fun and doesn’t have to be expensive! Here’s what Gary set up:

He always backlights the food. In this case, the light on the left side of the photo is being softened (this reduces the number of harsh shadows) by the screen in front of it. He uses vellum paper (which can be bought at art supply stores) mounted on a wooden frame for the screens. He also uses different sized mirrors and white particle board to reflect light where needed.  I really enjoyed watching him in action playing with the light and I’m now dreaming of turning our extra bedroom into a lighting studio!

Take the time to learn how to set the focus points on your camera instead of using autofocus. Your camera doesn’t know what you want to focus on!

And finally, have fun with different props and colored plates.  When shooting Adrienne’s loaf of bread, Gary placed the loaf on a small wooden cutting board and then placed a bread knife and napkin in front of it.  In less than 30 seconds his picture immediately looked better than any of mine!  I definitely want to improve in this area.

I hope these tips have been helpful to everyone!  A HUGE, HUGE, HUGE thank you to Gary for taking time out of his busy schedule to help us!  Also, I’m still processing everything we went over, so check out everyone’s blogs for more tips I may have missed and examples of the food we brought and took pictures of in Gary’s studio!

From left to right,
Back row: Shannon, Jen, Sophie, me, Chels
Middle row: Lauren, Adrienne, Elina, Mary Kate
Front row:  Nicole, Cara, Kelly, Jen, Sues

I apologize if you had trouble with my blog earlier this week. I tried to upgrade my WordPress account and the theme completely crashed – ugh. Luckily, my better half is a computer whiz and very supportive of my blogging. He stayed up until 5am – yes, 5am – to fix it (I know, I know, I’m a lucky girl!)! The whole experience left a sour taste in my mouth though and I’m leaning towards changing themes. Perhaps it’s a sign that a blog makeover is in order! Anyway, I really wanted to prepare one of Apolinaras’ favorite dishes this week since he was such a good sport about being my tech support.

I finally settled on this risotto, since he always drools over it (he affectionately calls it his crack risotto), but decided to mix things up a bit by adding gruyere cheese, mushrooms, and asparagus. It turned out perfectly and Apolinaras definitely appreciated my efforts!

Gruyere Risotto with Asparagus and Mushrooms
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped asparagus
2 cups mushrooms
1 tablespoon butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups shredded gruyere cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice (juice from half a lemon)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large pan and sauté asparagus and mushrooms until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, melt butter over medium high heat in a large stockpot. Sauté the onion for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté for an additional minute. Add the rice and stir until well-coated and translucent. Reduce heat to medium and stir in 1 cup of chicken stock. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the stock has been absorbed; add another cup and continue in this way until all the chicken stock has been absorbed, for about 30 minutes. Stir in gruyere cheese, lemon juice, and salt and simmer an additional 5 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. Stir in asparagus and mushrooms. Scoop into bowls and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 404 calories, 19.6g fat, 1.5g fiber, 14.4g protein per serving
Cost: $2.58 per serving

I don’t get my fryer out often, but it’s completely worth doing so to make homemade plantain chips. They are 100 times better than the ones you can buy at the store and really take these nachos over the top. The fresh plantain chips are topped with a heavenly black bean sauce, cheddar cheese, and pico de gallo. Apolinaras and I usually devour half a batch by ourselves for lunch one day (don’t judge!), and then warm the leftovers up the next day in the oven, but they are best fresh. Oh, and I wrote out the recipe for how much black bean sauce you’ll need for the nachos, but I always actually double it and use the extra sauce to spice up chicken breasts. Enjoy!

Plantain Nachos
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Pico de Gallo:
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt

Black Bean Sauce:
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 15.5-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed (about 3/4 cup)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
Juice of half a lime

Plantain Chips:
Vegetable oil for frying
3 green plantains, peeled
1 teaspoon sea salt

Remaining Ingredients for Nacho Assembly:
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

To prepare the pico de gallo, mix the tomatoes, red onion, lime juice, cilantro and salt together in a small bowl. Allow to rest for an hour at room temperature to let the flavors blend.

Prepare the black bean sauce by heating olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeno and sauté for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add garlic and sauté an additional minute. Place black beans, vegetable mix, cumin, salt, and lime juice in a food processor; pulse until well blended.

To prepare the plantain chips, heat vegetable oil in a deep-fryer to 375˚F. Cut the plantains in half and slice them lengthwise into long thin strips (no more than 1/8-inch thick). Deep fry the plantain strips, in small batches, until golden brown on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chips to a paper towel-lined pan to drain. Cool and season with salt.

To assemble the nachos, preheat the oven to 350˚F. Lay 1/2 of the chips on a large baking sheet covered with foil. Top the chips with half the bean sauce, in small spoonfuls, making sure to evenly cover each chip. Sprinkle the bean-covered chips evenly with half the shredded cheeses. Spread the remaining chips on top of the first layer and repeat the process of covering them with the remaining black bean sauce and cheeses. Bake at 350˚F until the cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to sprinkle the pico de gallo evenly over the nachos, making sure to drain out any extra liquid. Serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 416 calories, 24.9g fat, 7.0g fiber, 7.9g protein per serving
Cost: $0.83 per serving

Apolinaras and I have a similar outlook on life and agree on all major issues that couples tend to fight over (family, money, politics, etc), but sparks always fly over desserts! I like to indulge in treats laden with butter and sugar since I don’t bake very often and feel like one real cookie satisfies my cravings more than several more healthy imitators. Apolinaras, on the other hand, is a health nut and is always trying to convince me to lighten things up. Unfortunately, this means I usually end up baking something only one of us actually enjoys. This needs to change! So, I decided to challenge myself this weekend and see if I could whip up a batch of muffins that weren’t completely bad for you that I would actually still gobble up with a smile.

I had a bunch of golden raisins left after making a Moroccan Beef Meatball Tagine from a recent issue of Bon Appetit, so I decided to center my muffins around them. Although applesauce is commonly added to low fat baked goods to keep them moist, I didn’t want to buy a jar just for one recipe, so I decided to puree a pear instead. In addition, I reduced the amount of sugar I normally use, used low fat sour cream and white whole wheat flour, and topped the muffins with an almond meal crumble topping. These muffins tasted like coffee cake AND Apolinaras wasn’t completely disgusted by the nutritional profile – problem solved! Well, for muffins at least…

Golden Raisin Almond Crumble Muffins
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Crumble Topping:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2/3 cup almond meal

Muffins:
1 medium Barlett Pear, peeled, cored, and chopped
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
1/4 cup butter, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped golden raisins

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cups. To make the crumble topping, mix the melted butter, brown sugar, and almond meal in a small bowl.

To make the muffins, pulse pears and sour cream in a food processor until smooth (I had 1 cup of liquid after pulsing); place in a large bowl and stir in butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in golden raisins.

Scoop muffin batter evenly into the 12 prepared muffin cups. Top muffins evenly with the crumble topping. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Makes 12 muffins.

Nutrition: 260 calories, 14.2g fat, 2.2g fiber, 3.3g protein per serving
Cost: $0.34 per serving

Reeni, who writes one of my favorite blogs, Cinnamon, Spice, & Everything Nice, was recently musing about how side dishes are worthy of more attention, and I completely agree!  Side dishes can be an afterthought and our regular rotation includes couscous, quinoa, brown rice, and sweet potatoes. How boring – it’s definitely time to mix things up! I brainstormed for a bit and finally decided to create a mushroom and cheese tart with a mashed potato crust.

Now I’m not one to normally use potato flakes, and have actually given my mom a really hard time about using them in the past, but I decided it would be important to be able to control the amount of the moisture in the pie crust, so I picked up a box. I mixed the flakes with water, butter, and salt, and then pushed them up the sides of a tart pan. Then I baked the crust until it was golden brown and filled it with layers mushrooms, garlic, leeks, and gruyere. I couldn’t resist topping it off with some crumbled goat cheese (surprise, surprise!). The tart was a hit and a lovely way to spice up our side dish rotation!

Mushroom Tart with a Mashed Potato Crust
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 cups mashed potato flakes
2 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, chopped
24 ounces mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups shredded gruyere cheese
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Mix potato flakes, water, butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl until smooth. Press dough into a 10-inch greased tart pan with a removable bottom and bake at 350˚F for 40 to 45 minutes or until potato crust is golden brown and cooked through. Push down with the back of a spoon, if needed.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium high heat in a very large nonstick skillet. Add leeks and mushrooms to the pan and sauté 7 to 10 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Stir in remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Heat oven broiler. Place half the mushroom mixture in the cooked potato tart crust, followed by the gruyere cheese, and remaining half of the mushroom mixture. Top evenly with crumbled goat cheese and rosemary. Broil for 2 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and tart is warmed through. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 255 calories, 17.0g fat, 2.4g fiber, 11.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.52 per serving

An additional foodie goal of mine this year is to enter more contests. I really enjoy the whole recipe development process and there are some incredible prizes! The Tyson Fantasy League Party Master Contest recently caught my eye on Contest Cook.  I’m an aspiring party master! For my Super Bowl party I would want to serve cute football themed appetizers. Yes, my inner Martha is coming out to play again! I decided my entry would revolve around a twist on my avocado chicken cake recipe, but this time I would shape the cakes to resemble footballs and use a sauce to decorate them!

These football cakes are delicious, come together quickly, and are a great way to use up your leftover rotisserie chicken. I just mixed shredded chicken with roasted red peppers, red onion, garlic, and panko, and used a bit of mayo and an egg to hold everything together. Then I shaped the mixture into footballs and coated them with more panko. I crisped them up in a bit of olive oil and then squeezed some ranch dressing on top to mimic the football details. So cute! I’m biased of course, but I think the recipe is a winner and I entered it in the contest. But, now I need your help!

Only the 10 top recipes with the highest number of votes on February 1 will be considered by the judges for the grand prize, so I would extremely grateful if you could go here and vote for my Football Chicken Cakes! You do have to register, which I know is annoying, but the promotion is also an instant win game, so every time you log in to vote you could win a prize like a grill/cooler combo, MP3 player, football video game, etc. When you register, be sure to follow the requested format for your phone number and birth date, otherwise the page won’t load. You can vote every day until February 1 and I would truly appreciate each and every vote! Thanks everyone!

Football Chicken Cakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups shredded leftover Tyson Rotisserie Chicken
1 cup panko
1/3 cup chopped roasted red peppers
3 tablespoon chopped red onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbsp light mayonnaise
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup ranch dressing

Directions:
In a large bowl, mix together chicken, 1/3 cup panko, roasted red peppers, red onion, garlic, mayo, egg, and salt. Form 8 cakes shaped like footballs; coat cakes in remaining 2/3 cup panko.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet; add 4 cakes and cook until light brown, about 3 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and 4 cakes. Place ranch dressing in a squeeze bottle and decorate football cakes. Makes 8 appetizer sized servings.

Nutrition: 193 calories, 9.9g fat, 1.3g fiber, 15.6g protein per serving
Cost: $0.78 per serving

I just got back from San Diego, where I attended a conference for work. The days were packed with lectures and the hotel was a bit isolated on Coronado Island, so I didn’t actually get to spend any time sightseeing. Good thing I’ve already been to San Diego a couple times! I did enjoy the amazing weather and got to see my friend John, who was nice enough to pick me up from the hotel. We had seafood at Peohe’s, where I enjoyed fantastic coconut crusted shrimp and mahi mahi with a banana and Frangelico sauce – yum! The food at the hotel was actually pretty good too and I’m still thinking about the tempura wasabi tuna wrap I had for lunch one day. I was disappointed that I didn’t get any Mexican food though. After trying tamales for the first time in Phoenix, I really wanted to sample some more authentic dishes!

Since I was still craving Mexican when I got home, I decided to whip up some enchiladas. But, my plans changed when I realized we didn’t have any tortillas! Luckily I had some polenta on hand from Trader Joe’s (I impulsively purchased it a few weeks ago with no plans for it) and decided to top polenta rounds with my shredded chicken mixture. This was a really easy dish and the polenta reminded me of those delicious tamales!

Mexican Polenta Rounds
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 18-ounce precooked polenta roll, cut into 8 round slices
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded (I poached mine)
1/2 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup frozen corn, cooked
1/2 cup prepared enchilada sauce
1 4.5-ounce chopped green chiles, drained
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and cook polenta rounds for 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, mix shredded chicken, black beans, corn, enchilada sauce, green chiles, and red onion in a medium bowl.

Preheat broiler. Place cooked polenta rounds on a greased cookie sheet and top evenly with chicken mixture (pile them up as high as they’ll go without toppling over – I did have a little extra chicken mixture). Sprinkle evenly with cheddar cheese and broil for 3 to 5 minutes or until chicken is warmed though and cheese is melted. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 700 calories, 23.0g fat, 11.6g fiber, 48.9g protein per serving
Cost: $2.85 per serving

Have you ever thought you didn’t like an ingredient and then suddenly realized that you’d actually been enjoying it for years? This recently happened to me. I never liked Whoppers growing up and remember being thoroughly confused about why someone would prefer a chocolate malt over a milkshake. But this all changed when the lovely Shannon announced she was hosting a Boston blogger cookie exchange. I decided it would be fun to come up with a cookie version of my very favorite Ben and Jerry’s ice cream flavor, Chubby Hubby. Between the fudge covered peanut butter filled pretzels and streaks of fudge and peanut butter, I was completely hooked the first time I tried it! So you can imagine my surprise when the label of the pint I picked up for “baking research purposes” said the ice cream itself was vanilla malt! Huh, how come I never noticed this before? I was a bit flustered. I mean, how could I have been enjoying malt ice cream and turning my nose up at Whoppers over all these years? I think the answer is that the flavors of Chubby Hubby are perfectly balanced. I would have never thought to pair malt with pretzels, peanut butter, and chocolate, but I am sure glad the geniuses at Ben and Jerry’s did!

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any malted milk powder at the store, so I picked up some Whoppers and decided to use peanut butter cookie dough as the base instead. I sandwiched coarsely chopped pretzels and Whoppers between two layers of cookie dough and then baked the bars up and topped them with a chocolate ganache. The bars were very rich and I loved getting a bit of Whopper and pretzel in each bite!

All the cookies at the exchange were delicious and unique! Ready for your mouth to water? I got to pig out on Adrienne’s Lime Meltaways, Bridget’s Chocolate Almond Orange Macaroons, Elina’s Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, Kelly’s Cookie Dough Truffles, Mary-Kate’s Black and White Cookies, Nicole’s Lemon Almond Cranberry Crescents, Shannon’s Maple Bacon Toffee Oatmeal Cookies, and Tina’s Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Bars! The event was so fun and I think Shannon wants to make it an annual tradition, so I am already looking forward to next year!

Peanut Butter Chubby Hubby Bars
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mini pretzels, coarsely chopped
1 cup Whoppers candy (malted chocolate balls), coarsely chopped (I just cut mine each in half)
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Mix butter, sugar, eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Mix in flour, baking powder, and salt. Spread half the dough in a greased 13×9-inch pan. Sprinkle pretzels and Whoppers evenly on top; drop remaining dough in chunks on top and spread evenly, until all the pretzels and candy pieces are covered. Bake at 350˚F for 23 to 28 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

In a medium bowl, microwave chocolate chips and milk on High 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Spread ganache over cooled peanut butter bars and refrigerate for an hour or until ganache is set. Cut into 32 bars after the pan reaches room temperature (this makes it easier to cut the ganache). Makes 32 servings.

Nutrition:  288 calories, 15.4g fat, 1.4g fiber, 5.7g protein per serving
Cost:  $0.21 per serving

Some foods are so versatile that they are perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Bacon is definitely one of these ingredients, but I just realized that hash browns also fall into this category. Shreds of crispy golden brown fried potatoes just make everything better! I was recently spending a lazy Sunday morning trying to brainstorm a unique way to serve salmon, since we’ve in a bit of a rut with it, and realized over my omelet and coffee that I should try serving salmon with a breakfast twist – over hash browns!

The dish really came together wonderfully. I mixed turkey bacon and onions with shredded potatoes and parsnips and then fried them up in a bit of oil until they were golden brown. While the hash browns were cooking, I baked the salmon filets, which were topped with a quick pear and ginger sauce. The sweet tender salmon was perfectly complemented by the savory crisp hash browns. Mmm, I’m definitely going to be making this again, but with a bit of fresh parsley on top for a touch of color!

Pear Glazed Salmon with a Potato, Parsnip, and Bacon Hash
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 slices turkey bacon, chopped
4 medium potatoes, peeled and shredded
1 parsnip, peeled and shredded
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup canola oil
1 Barlett pear, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 tablespoon fresh chopped ginger
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
4 salmon filets

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and cook bacon over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until crispy. Drain on paper towels.

Mix shredded potatoes, parsnips, onion, and 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl; mix in cooked bacon. Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet and evenly spread half the shredded potato mixture in the pan. Cook 14 to 18 minutes, turning once, or until hashbrowns are crispy. Repeat with remaining potatoes and 2 tablespoons oil.

Meanwhile, place pear, ginger, vinegar, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor and pulse until well mixed. Evenly spread pear sauce over the salmon filets and bake in a greased pan at 350˚F for 15 to 20 minutes or until cooked through. Serve salmon over the hashbrowns. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 676 calories, 30.4g fat, 6.6g fiber, 47.4g protein per serving
Cost: $4.11 per serving

It snowed all weekend here in Boston, so I decided it was time to bake up some warm and comforting homemade bread! I was originally planning on tackling a recipe from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice, but was out of yeast and not about to set out in the snow just to get one item from the store, so I decided to make a cheesy cornbread instead. I’ve seen a few recipes for Southwestern cornbread with cheddar cheese and jalapenos, but decided that a Mediterranean twist would also be delicious. I figured the flavor combo would work well since polenta is such a staple of Italian cuisine.

I stuffed the cornbread with caramelized shallots, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta, and then put a bubbly layer of melted mozzarella goodness on top. Mmmm. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that we devoured 6 out of the 9 pieces the same day that it was made… There’s nothing wrong with cornbread for lunch, right? Good thing the gym is open again! Oh, and you definitely want to serve it warm!

p.s. I’m submitting this to 5 Star Foodie’s Cornbread Makeover!

Mediterranean Cornbread
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots (4 large)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup feta
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet.  Sauté shallots for 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized.

Meanwhile, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together butter, eggs, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until most of the lumps are dissolved. Stir in the caramelized shallots, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta. Pour the batter into a greased 8×8-inch square pan. Bake at 350˚F for 23 to 27 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Preheat broiler. Evenly spread shredded mozzarella cheese over the cooked cornbread. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cool for 5 minutes and cut into 9 squares; serve warm. Makes 9 servings.

Nutrition: 331 calories, 19.1g fat, 1.7g fiber, 10.4g protein per serving
Cost: $0.58 per serving

Happy New Year! Did anyone else make any foodie resolutions? My goal last year was to get my blog up and running, and I remember spending the first few weekends in January designing the header and side bars for my little site. This year I just want to continue challenging myself in the kitchen and would like to cook at least one new recipe a week. I made a lot of progress in this area last year – I roasted my first chicken, played with royal icing and fondant, and conquered my fear of yeast. But, I have an ever-growing list of foods to master! I want to finally learn how to cook all the different cuts of meat, conquer pasta, and make my favorite Indian dish, saag paneer (if anyone has an Indian cookbook recommendation, please let me know!). Oh, and I’m hoping to convince my family to let me host Thanksgiving! I could go on and on… I spent part of today organizing and prioritizing the long list of recipes I’ve saved from around the blogosphere and my cookbooks, and I’m already looking forward to getting in the kitchen! Things definitely started out on the right track because I braised lamb for the first time last night and it turned out perfectly! I also wanted to make something special for our first 2010 breakfast.

I was inspired by Elly’s delicious moussaka a few months ago and really liked how the potatoes were fried first and then served as the base of the dish.  So, I decided potatoes needed to be used in this way in a breakfast casserole. I topped the potatoes with shredded gruyere, mushrooms, and asparagus, and then poured an egg mixture on top – so good! I made enough for an 8 inch square pan, but the recipe can easily be doubled for a 13×9 if you’re having company. You can also fry up the potatoes and cook the veggies the night before so all you have to do in the morning is whip up the eggs! Yay for 2010!

Egg and Potato Squares with Gruyere, Asparagus, and Mushrooms
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large baking potato, peeled and sliced lengthwise
1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
2 cups sliced mushrooms (8 ounces)
1 cup sliced asparagus (4 ounces)
4 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and pan-fry the potatoes on both sides until they are light golden brown. Place the fried potatoes slices evenly in the bottom of a greased 8×8-inch baking dish. Sprinkle gruyere cheese evenly on top.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet and sauté mushrooms for 5 to 7 minutes until tender. Repeat with remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and asparagus. Evenly top gruyere cheese with the veggies.

Whisk eggs, milk, flour, and salt together in a large bowl. Pour over the veggies. Bake at 350˚F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 355 calories, 21.7g fat, 2.8g fiber, 19.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.68 per serving

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I’m in the lobby of the Bright Angel lodge at the Grand Canyon right now sitting next to the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate, and taking advantage of the free internet! Apolinaras and my brother Richard braved a snow and ice covered slippery trail down into the canyon today, but since I’m a bit of a klutz, I decided to walk around the South rim with my parents. Talk about gorgeous views! Phoenix was very warm though, and we all had fun hiking up a rocky Camelback Mountain trail, where a festively decorated Christmas tree and bush greeted us at the top of the peak. Richard even left a little ornament on the tree! It’s been so great spending time with everyone!

Food wise, I’ve really been enjoying all the delicious Southwestern flavors, so I was inspired to share this easy and tasty quesadilla recipe. This isn’t an authentic recipe, but it’s still one of my favorites because two types of salsa are involved! The quesadillas are filled with salsa and cheddar cheese and then served with fresh Pico de Gallo on top. So delicious! I did make Christmas dinner (chicken parm and lemon garlic shrimp pasta) and brunch (egg casserole, bacon, and pastries) with a very limited supply of dishes and ingredients in our condo in Phoenix, but I already can’t wait to get back into my own kitchen and work on some ideas that have been brewing on our trip!

Chicken Salsa Quesadillas
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into small chunks
1 16-ounce jar salsa
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup chopped red onion
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 8-inch whole wheat tortillas
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and sauté chicken for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, or until no longer pink in the center. Mix cooked chicken with salsa in a large bowl.

Meanwhile, make the Pico de Gallo by mixing chopped tomatoes, red onion, lime juice, cilantro, and salt in a large bowl.

Preheat broiler. Place 3 tortillas on a large greased cookie sheet. Spread half the shredded cheese evenly on the tortillas; top with the chicken mixture, the remainder of the cheese, and the remaining 3 tortillas. Place quesadillas in the oven and broil for 2 to 5 minutes on each side, or until cheese is melted and quesadillas are heated through. Cut tortillas into 4 wedges and top with Pico de Gallo. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 366 calories, 15.8g fat, 4.5g fiber, 32.5g protein per serving
Cost: $1.36 per serving

The countdown to our flight to Arizona has begun and we’re playing our favorite game of trying to finish up all the perishables in our fridge before we go. We got a little off track when Apolinaras brought a half gallon of milk home on Sunday and thawed six pork chops, but there are only two porkchops left, so I think we still have a shot! Even the huge roll of goat cheese from Costco is over half way gone and I’m going to make this pizza tomorrow night to use up the rest of it. I also found a cup of extra pumpkin puree in the fridge that was leftover from making Apolinaras his favorite low-fat oatmeal cookies the other day and decided to make myself a little treat.

I whipped up a super thick and creamy pumpkin pudding and was planning on just eating it straight out of the bowl, but some puff pastry shells caught my eye.  I was experimenting with recipe ideas for the Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Contest (which are due December 31, so you still have time to enter!), and had some extra shells, so I filled them with the pudding instead! I topped the little tarts with some toasted walnuts and powdered sugar and they were just a wonderful quick and easy holiday treat. Merry Christmas!

Pumpkin Puff Pastry Tarts
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 (10 ounce) package Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Shells
1 (3.4-oz.) package instant vanilla pudding
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 cup pure pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoon toasted chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon powdered sugar

Directions:
Prepare the puff pastry shells according to the package directions. Let baked shells cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes, and remove the tops.

Meanwhile, prepare the pumpkin filling. In a large bowl mix instant pudding, milk, condensed milk, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie spice. Refrigerate 10 minutes or until set. Scoop pumpkin filling evenly into the puff pastry shells. Sprinkle toasted walnuts and powdered sugar evenly on top of each tart. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 277 calories, 4.8g fat, 1.8g fiber, 6.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.77 per serving

Apolinaras insisted I open my gift early so I could figure out how to use it before we visit the Grand Canyon over the holidays. He’s just the best! We don’t know anyone in Arizona, but my parents wanted to spend Christmas someplace warm this year and found a great deal on a Phoenix condo with their time share points. I was actually pretty disappointed that we wouldn’t be spending Christmas at my parents’ house because I love traditions and snow, but I was outvoted by everyone else. Oh well, I’m going to do my best to still get into the Christmas spirit, because it’s not where you are that’s important, but who you’re with, right? My mom did cheer me up when she promised I could make Christmas dinner in our condo. Anyway, I’ve been slowly plugging away at this book, which contains tips specifically for the T1i, but between playing with my new toy, baking Christmas goodies, and trying to wrap everything up at work, I actually haven’t had much time to cook real dinners. Except this one.

I love roasted potatoes and decided to make a meal out of them by throwing in some green beans, mushrooms, and chicken sausages. Then I tossed everything with a flavorful lemon horseradish mustard sauce. This meal comes together quickly and is so healthy that I think it balances out all the Christmas cookies I’ve been indulging in at work!

Roasted Potatoes and Sausages with Green Beans and Mushrooms
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
5 red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1-inch chunks (2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 ounces fresh green beans with trimmed ends
5 shallots, chopped (1 cup)
1 12-ounce package sliced mushrooms
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 12-ounce package fully cooked chicken sausages, sliced into 1/2-inch thick rounds
1/4 cup horseradish mustard
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Place potatoes in a 13×9-inch pan and toss evenly with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bake at 400˚F for 30 minutes. Remove pan from oven and stir in green beans. Bake for an additional 15 minutes at 400˚F or until potatoes and green beans are tender.

Meanwhile, heat remaining one tablespoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add shallots and mushrooms to the pan and sauté for 7 to 10 minutes or until veggies are tender; add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and place in a large bowl. Add chicken sausage slices to the same pan and sauté for 7 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned and warmed through.

Mix horseradish mustard and lemon juice in small bowl until smooth. Place mushroom mixture, chicken sausage slices, and horseradish mustard sauce in the 13×9-inch pan with the roasted potatoes and green beans. Mix all ingredients in the pan until thoroughly combined. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 309 calories, 11.2g fat, 4.3g fiber, 22.0g protein per serving
Cost: $1.65 per serving

If you’re having a bit of déjà vu, it’s because I posted a similar dessert sushi recipe back in March when I started my blog. But, I’ve since tweaked the original recipe after a few email requests and I think this version is definitely worth sharing! In all honestly, I don’t think this will be the last dessert sushi variation you’ll see on my blog. I think I’ll always be a bit obsessed with it and working towards improving my recipes and trying new techniques and flavor combinations!

The sushi itself contains a chocolate “seaweed” cookie dough wrapper, which is stuffed with coconut sticky rice and fruit. I played with the chocolate sushi wrapper ingredients and found that the dough is easier to work with when I used cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate. I’ve also included additional measurements so you can make it if you don’t have a kitchen scale. Plus, you know I couldn’t resist filling the sushi with red and green fruit (strawberries and kiwi!) so it would be perfect for Christmas!

Christmas Dessert Sushi
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup jasmine rice
1 1/3 cups (11 ounces) light coconut milk
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 ounces quartered strawberries (2-3 medium strawberries)
1 1/2 ounces kiwi, sliced into long rectangular strips (3/4 of a medium kiwi)
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Directions:
Combine rice, coconut milk, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, stirring regularly, until the mixture boils. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender and sticky. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, mix butter and remaining 4 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl until creamed. Add milk, vanilla, and cocoa powder and mix until smooth; stir in flour and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Roll chocolate dough into a 12-inch log and place down the middle of a large sheet of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper on top of the log and use a rolling pin to roll the log into a 12×6-inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of waxed paper.

Spread room temperature coconut rice on top of chocolate dough rectangle in a 12×5.5-inch rectangle, leaving a 1/4-inch border on both long sides of the rectangle. Line up quartered strawberries horizontally down the center of the coconut rectangle. Line up sliced kiwi below the line of strawberries. Roll up dough into a cylinder like a “sushi roll” by lifting up waxed paper and sealing the ends of the dough together. Roll the roll on the counter and press together firmly. Remove waxed paper from the roll and cut into 16 dessert sushi pieces with a sharp knife. Fill in any gaps with extra fruit, if needed.

Place melted chocolate into small soy sauce containers. Serve dessert sushi with chocolate “soy sauce” and eat with chopsticks! Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 209 calories, 10.6g fat, 1.3g fiber, 2.7g protein per serving
Cost: $2.92 total

Party season is finally here! I’ve been getting into the holiday spirit by having hot chocolate after dinner every night and singing along to Christmas carols in the car (I was in chorus in high school and know all the words!). But tomorrow things will get into full force with our first work holiday party! I’m a huge fan of appetizer-only spreads because you get to try so many yummy treats and these little cranberry pecan brie bites are one of my favorites.

These little guys are very tasty and super fast to throw together.  I just lined mini muffin cups with pie crusts (I usually use the refrigerated Pillsbury ones), stuffed them with chunks of brie, and then topped them off with a cranberry pear spread and chopped pecans.  So easy and they are always a hit!

Cranberry Pecan Brie Bites
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 box (15 oz) refrigerated pie crusts, softened according to package directions
1 large Bartlett pear, peeled, cored, and chopped (8 ounces)
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 ounces brie, cut into 24 3/4×3/4-inch chunks
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions:
Heat oven to 375˚F. Unroll pie crusts and place on a flat work surface. Use a 2 1/2-inch round cutter to cut 12 rounds from each crust. Press each round in the bottom of 24 cups of an ungreased mini-muffin cup pan and press dough up the sides to form cups.

Meanwhile, place chopped pear, cranberries, and salt in a food processor, and process for 1 to 2 minutes or until well mixed.

Place one chunk of brie into each mini-muffin cup and top evenly cranberry mixture. Sprinkle chopped pecans evenly on top. Bake at 375˚F for 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes and remove from mini-muffin cups. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 231 calories, 14.6g fat, 1.7g fiber, 4.4g protein per serving
Cost: $0.63 per serving

I figured it’s about time that I actually post a cake recipe – you know, since my blog is called Cake, Batter, and Bowl and all… I couldn’t resist the cute word play on Shake, Rattle, and Roll when I was brainstorming names with my Dad over Christmas last year, but in reality the title wasn’t totally appropriate because prior to starting this blog my favorite cake to make was from a box of Pillsbury’s Funfetti mix! I had made my mom’s famous chocolate cake from scratch a couple of times, but didn’t really get into other recipes until I kept running across cakes on the blogosphere that I was inspired to make. Even though I kept gaining more and more experience, for the longest time I was still too intimidated to experiment on my own. However, this all changed when I was encouraged to come up with an original cake recipe (details about that in a future post). I actually had fun dreaming up flavor combinations when I got into it and found it wasn’t quite as challenging as I had envisioned. No cakes fell in the oven or were inedible because they were too dry. I even managed to nail the frosting consistencies and improved my piping skills. These cupcakes were one of the first ideas that popped into my head.

I decided they needed to be stuffed with shredded apples and spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and cloves. Then I topped the cupcakes with a cream cheese frosting with a hint of lemon and toasted pecans. My very favorite part of this recipe is the caramel drizzle. Caramel is actually pretty easy to make at home, since you don’t even need a candy thermometer. I used apple juice as the base instead of water and it turned out so well! This recipe is broken down by each component so it doesn’t get too confusing, and you really only need a couple tablespoons of the caramel for the cupcakes, so you’ll have lots left over for other treats!

p.s.  The winners of my Hotel Chocolat giveaway were Danielle and Biz – congrats!

Spiced Apple Cupcakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large Gala apple, cored, peeled, and shredded (should have 1 1/2 cups of shredded apples)

Cream Cheese Frosting:
2 2/3 cups powdered sugar
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Caramel Drizzle:
1/4 cup unsweetened 100% apple juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped

Directions:

Prepare the Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Mix together flour, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, baking powder, and salt and sift the mixture into a large bowl. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer in a large bowl until creamed. Add in eggs and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Slowly mix in sifted flour mixture until smooth. Mix in shredded apples. Line a standard 12-cup cupcake pan with cupcake liners and evenly spoon cupcake batter into the liners, filling cups 3/4 full. Bake cupcakes at 350˚F for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean and the tops are light golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then transfer cupcakes to a cooling rack. Cool for 20 minutes or until cupcakes are room temperature.

Prepare the Cream Cheese Frosting: Place powdered sugar, cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, and lemon juice in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until smooth, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed.

Prepare the Caramel Drizzle: Meanwhile, prepare caramel drizzle. Place apple juice and sugar in a medium saucepan, stir well, and bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring frequently, or until mixture is a caramel color. Monitor closely so the sugar does not burn! Remove pan from the heat and pour in slowly stir in cream and vanilla. The mixture will boil up. Return pan to the heat and boil an additional 2 to 5 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and allow caramel to cool to room temperature.

Cupcake Assembly: Place cream cheese frosting in a decorating bag with a 1M decorating tip. Frost cupcakes evenly. Top cupcakes evenly with chopped pecans. Drizzle caramel sauce over the top of each cupcake, using a new decorating bag with a 4 tip. Makes 12 cupcakes.

Nutrition: 379 calories, 15.7g fat, 1.2g fiber, 3.8g protein per cupcake
Cost: $0.67 per cupcake

When Hotel Chocolat recently contacted me about trying their premium chocolates, how could I resist? Hotel Chocolat (shok-o-la) is a UK chocolatier that specializes in high-end luxury chocolates, so I jumped at the chance to check out their new hip shop on Newbury Street in Boston.

The store itself was warm, sleek, and inviting, with shelves and tables brimming over with their signature chocolate slabs, truffles, and whimsical chocolate bars. I expected the cool contemporary store, but was surprised by the very wonderful, friendly, and unpretentious service (and yes, I was shopping anonymously!)! I immediately felt at home asking all my foodie questions.  All their chocolates are organic, and they actually own a cocoa plantation in St. Lucia and see the chocolate making process through from start to finish.

After perusing the store and sneaking in a few pictures, I decided I needed to sample a variety of treats. I selected the Christmas Goody Bag, which contained a cute solid milk chocolate penguin and Santa, milk chocolate Christmas pudding slab with crunchy shortbread cookies, Christmas Star hazelnut and caramel truffles, and a bag of Munchkin Snowballs, which are mini shortbread cookies surrounded in white chocolate and dusted with sugar!

Everything was incredibly rich and decadent. I couldn’t stop myself from ripping into the package on the train and was immediately transported to another place with just one luxurious bite!  The chocolates sets are the perfect holiday hostess gifts and I was so happy I was able to try them – thank you Hotel Chocolat!

And don’t worry – Hotel Chocolat didn’t forget about you! I’m giving away a Christmas Goody Bag and Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar to two lucky readers!

There are two ways to enter:

1. Check out Hotel Chocolat’s Christmas Chocolate Gifts and leave a comment with a link to the item you most want Santa to leave in your stocking!

2. Tweet about this giveaway (using #cakebatterbowl), or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Don’t forget to come back and leave a second comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Saturday, December 5 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck!

I hope everyone in the States had a lovely Thanksgiving! We spent ours in Iowa with my family and are gearing up to head to the airport any minute now. I wanted to get this post up before we left though because Eralda just published my very first guest post! Eralda’s blog, The Split Pea, is full of spell-binding stories, pictures, and delicious recipes, so I was very honored when she asked me to come up with a recipe for her blog. I decided to do a twist on a traditional summer tomato panzanella, and ended up making a fall version with toasted pumpkernickel, roasted beets, and goat cheese. Check out Eralda’s blog for the picture and recipe!

The next day, I whipped up these tasty chicken paninis with the leftover pumpernickel bread and goat cheese. I made the goat cheese into a spread by mixing it with a bit of milk and parmesan cheese, and topped the chicken with crispy tart apple slices, which really elevated the sandwich to a whole new level!

Pumpernickel Chicken Panini with Goat Cheese and Apples
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 boneless, skinless, chicken breast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3 ounces goat cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons milk
4 slices pumpernickel bread
1/2 half granny smith apple, cored and sliced

Directions:
Cut chicken breast in half lengthwise and sprinkle evenly with salt. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a nonstick skillet and cook chicken 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in the center.

Meanwhile, mix goat cheese, parmesan cheese, and milk in a small bowl.

Spread each piece of bread evenly with goat cheese spread. Top goat cheese with chicken and apples on two slices, and place the other two slices of bread on top, goat cheese side down. Place sandwiches in a preheated panini press and cook until bead is crispy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 563 calories, 25.6g fat, 4.3g fiber, 50.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.83 per serving

I love stuffed mushrooms and serve them almost every time we have friends over, but I’ve been wanting to lighten them up for awhile now since the usual cream cheese-filled versions are very heavy. When I was making my Truly Outrageous Baked Sweet Potatoes, I was thinking about what else I could stuff with sweet potatoes and mushrooms immediately came to mind. So, this week I stuffed mushrooms with mashed sweet potatoes, turkey bacon, and caramelized shallots, and then topped them with chopped hazelnuts. I thought the flavors really complimented each other well and these little apps are light enough that you can eat as many as you want without spoiling your dinner! This is also a great way to use up any leftover sweet potatoes you may have from Thanksgiving!

I also have to share pictures of the cake I made for my lab mate’s baby shower today! Raffaella is having a little girl, so I made a Sky High pink strawberry cake with chocolate frosting and tackled making marshmallow fondant for the first time. I followed Annie’s awesome instructions for making decorations and was super proud of how well everything turned out, especially the very cute fondant baby sneakers (made with this template) that topped the cake. I think one of the best things about having a blog is that I’m constantly inspired to challenge myself and try new techniques and recipes that are outside of my comfort zone. The cake was a huge hit and several strangers even complimented it on the subway on my way to work! I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

Sweet Potato and Bacon Stuffed Mushrooms Topped with Hazelnuts
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
24 mushrooms, stems removed
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1 cup chopped shallots
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 sweet potato, scrubbed
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped hazelnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375˚F. Spray a large cookie sheet with cooking spray and place mushrooms on it, cap side down.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a medium nonstick skillet. Sauté chopped turkey bacon for 5 to 7 minutes or until crispy. Remove and drain.

Add remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil to the same skillet; add shallots, reduce heat to medium low, and sauté shallots 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Meanwhile, prick sweet potato several times with a fork and microwave on high for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender. Remove cooked flesh and place in a medium bowl (my yield was 1 cup).

Mix mashed sweet potatoes with bacon, caramelized shallots, apple cider vinegar, and salt; stuff mushrooms with sweet potato mixture and top evenly with chopped hazelnuts. Bake stuffed mushrooms at 375˚F for 20 minutes. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 152 calories, 9.2g fat, 2.4g fiber, 7.1g protein per serving
Cost: $0.92 per serving

I can’t believe Thanksgiving is less than a week away! If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably already planned your menu, but I wanted to share this tasty mashed potato recipe just in case you’re still looking for a way to mix things up a bit! It was inspired by one of the TV shows both my hubby and I enjoy watching together – Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations on the Travel Channel. When Tony had a show on Chile a few months ago, he devoured mashed potatoes with pumpkin, celery, and spinach in wine country – yum! They sounded so tasty that I actually immediately grabbed my laptop and wrote down the flavor combination.

I was really pleased about how well they turned out and I will definitely be making them again! I’m not a huge celery fan, but I do like fennel and I think it’s a nice substitute for celery. The pumpkin flavor really came through, but wasn’t overpowering, and I love that the greens were mixed right in for a little added nutritional boost!

Pumpkin Mashed Potatoes with Fennel and Spinach
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
10 red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into chunks
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 bulb fennel, trimmed and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 15-ounce cans pure pumpkin puree
1 10-ounce package frozen spinach, cooked and well drained
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Bring a large stockpot of water to a boil over high heat and boil potatoes for 18 to 22 minutes or until tender. Drain and place in a very large bowl.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium high heat in a medium skillet and saute fennel for 6 to 8 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and saute one additional minute.

Mash potato chunks in the large bowl with a fork. Mix in fennel, pumpkin puree, spinach, buttermilk, and salt. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 228 calories, 1.7g fat, 8.6g fiber, 7.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.05 per serving

We had a blast in Chicago this weekend, but now I’m exhausted and it’s only the beginning of the week! There wasn’t a moment of downtime between Emily’s wedding downtown, navigating our way through the suburbs to visit our friends with babies, and squeezing in meals with both our brothers (Rick Bayless’ XOCO was excellent by the way, and I’m still dreaming of the pork belly soup and Aztec hot chocolate!). We had so much fun seeing everyone and I can’t wait to go through our pictures!

One of the highlights of the trip was that I got to meet Meghan of You’re Gonna Bake it After All! Meghan and I bonded right away because we started our blogs around the same time and both went to graduate school in Chicago. In fact, we both got our PhDs in cancer biology, believe it or not – what a small world! She is just as gorgeous, smart, warm, and down to earth as she comes across in her blog, and it really felt like we had been friends for a long time as we chatted over brunch at Yolk. When I ordered the Tuscan Frittata, she just smiled knowingly and commented that she thought I may get that one because it was topped with goat cheese. Yep, she knows me well! So today’s spiced pumpkin soup recipe is for Meghan, who is a big soup and turkey bacon fan!

Spiced Pumpkin Soup with Turkey Bacon
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 slices turkey bacon, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon garam marsala
3 cups chicken stock
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large stockpot over medium high heat and add bacon to the pan; cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until crispy. Drain on paper towels.

Add onions and carrots to the same stockpot and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic, curry powder, turmeric, and garam marsala, and sauté one additional minute or until fragrant. Add chicken stock, pumpkin, 3/4 of the cooked turkey bacon, and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender and puree to desired smoothness. Mix in white wine vinegar. Scoop into bowls and garnish with remaining turkey bacon. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 220 calories, 11.3g fat, 4.0g fiber, 10.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.15 per serving

I’ve been looking forward to this week for awhile now, because I get to see my good friend Susie not once, but twice, in two different cities! Susie is one of my best friends from college. We initially bonded as partners in organic chemistry lab, where we amused ourselves (and horrified our TA) by bringing in a CD player and dancing along to Salt-N-Pepa in the middle of lab. She’s been my favorite person to hit the dance floor with ever since! Her hubby Brian had business in Boston earlier this week and she tagged along, so we got to have dinner with them at Giacomo’s in the North End, and then Susie and I had lunch the next day and she checked out our lab. And, to top things off, we’re both going to a wedding this weekend in Chicago, where we still can’t wait to hit the dance floor, 10 years later!

We usually don’t gravitate towards Italian restaurants, since I can cook many Italian favorites decently at home, but Giacomo’s specializes in seafood and everything there is unique and incredible! They don’t take reservations, so you have to wait in line, but it’s so worth it – I always have to stop myself from licking the plate! One of my favorite dishes is an addicting butternut squash ravioli served with a mascarpone cream sauce and asparagus. I was really inspired by the butternut squash and pasta pairing, but wanted to lighten things up a bit, so I made a sauce of roasted butternut squash, spinach, buttermilk, and rosemary, and then tossed it with whole wheat pasta. Mmmm, this was a great way to enjoy butternut squash!

Roasted Butternut Squash and Spinach Penne Pasta
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 butternut squash, cut in half lengthwise and seeded
1 pound whole wheat penne pasta
1 cup chopped shallots
1 clove garlic, minced
1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Use a pastry brush to evenly brush flesh side of the squash halves with 1 teaspoon olive oil and place flesh side down on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400˚F for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender. Let squash cool for 10 minutes. Remove flesh from the squash halves with a spoon and mash with a fork until smooth (my yield was 2 cups).

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta in a colander, return it to the pot, and keep warm.

Heat remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large skillet and cook shallots for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and cook 1 additional minute. Add spinach and roasted mashed butternut squash to the pan. Stir in buttermilk, milk, rosemary, and salt and stir until smooth, about 2 minutes. Mix pasta and sauce until the sauce evenly coats all the ingredients. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over each serving. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 403 calories, 6.8g fat, 12.6g fiber, 19.1g protein per serving
Cost: $1.05 per serving

Wednesdays have quickly become my favorite night to relax in front of the TV because I love Top Chef and have become addicted to Glee. I was so disappointed this week when Glee wasn’t on due to the World Series and the “Top Chef All Stars Dinner” was on instead of a new episode. I thought it was pretty boring overall, but did perk up a bit when they showed the clip of Carla working her magic and whipping up an incredibly creative green eggs and ham dish. Why didn’t I think of that? I loved all the Dr. Seuss books growing up – in fact, “Go Dog Go” was the first book I could read by myself. Anyway, I decided to come up with my own version of green eggs and ham as a little tribute to Carla, who SO should have won last season!

I knew I wanted to make the eggs green naturally, so I decided to whip the eggs together with spinach and basil until they were well incorporated in the food processor and then scramble them. I topped the eggs with a bit of crispy prosciutto for my ham component. The basil flavor really came through and I thought this was a great way to sneak in some spinach. I also really enjoyed the contrast of the soft eggs with the crispy prosciutto. This is another recipe I look forward to making for our future kiddos someday!

Green Eggs and Ham
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2 slices prosciutto, chopped
1/3 cup cooked chopped spinach
8 fresh basil leaves
4 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and sauté prosciutto 3 to 5 minutes or until crispy. Remove prosciutto from the pan and drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, place spinach, basil, eggs, milk, and salt in a food processor and mix until well blended. Place eggs in the same pan the prosciutto was cooked in and sauté 2 to 3 minutes or until cooked, stirring frequently. Top scrambled eggs with crispy prosciutto. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 189 calories, 13.8g fat, 0.8g fiber, 13.2g protein per serving
Cost: $1.20 per serving

You know what else I think about when I look back on the 80s? Baked potatoes! 1983 was a good year for my family, my brother was born, and Wendy’s put baked potatoes on their menu. My whole family always ordered baked potatoes over French fries at Wendy’s since their fries were sort of subpar. A few years later, my very favorite thing to do at the mall was hit the baked potato stand in the food court (which sadly, seem to have disappeared). I think they actually had some pretty decent toppings, like cheese and broccoli, but I was a picky eater and only had eyes for the huge tub of fake butter. I think the butter weighed more than the potato itself, making it oh so good. So, in honor of the 80s, I decided we had to have baked potatoes for dinner tonight!

I actually just nuked my sweet potatoes in the microwave in order to speed things up and then mixed the flesh with shredded chicken and some spices. I was thinking about how I always like having a perfect bite of both stuffing and mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving and was inspired to top the potatoes with crumbled cornbread. Then I added a bit of goat cheese because it just makes everything better!

Truly Outrageous Baked Sweet Potatoes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed
2 cooked boneless chicken breasts (I poached mine), shredded
Juice of one lime
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups crumbled cornbread
3 ounces crumbled goat cheese

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and saute onions for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft; add garlic and saute one additional minute.

Poke sweet potatoes several times with a fork and microwave on high for 15 to 20 minutes or until cooked. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out flesh with a spoon. Place flesh in a large bowl with the onion mixture, shredded chicken, lime juice, thyme, chili powder, and salt, and mix until well combined.

Preheat broiler. Place sweet potato mix evenly in the potato shells on a large cookie sheet. Top evenly with crumbled cornbread and goat cheese. Broil for 2 to 5 minutes or until warmed through. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 296 calories, 7.9g fat, 3.5g fiber, 24.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.19 per serving

Happy Halloween! We’re currently putting the final touches on Apolinaras’ costume and I’m hoping I can convince him to let me post a few pictures, but I don’t want to push my luck too much. I’m very excited that I even convinced him to dress up – this is only his second time doing so in our 8 years together! It rained several days this week and I couldn’t help but think back to the year my brother was a green stegosaurus. Our grandma, who was very passionate about sewing, always made our Halloween costumes, so we were in the fortunate position to be anything that we could dream up. Richard went through a period of wanting to work at a museum and decided to be a dinosaur one year. His costume was adorable, but he had a long tail that was filled with stuffing like a pillow and it rained that Halloween. His entire tail got completely soaked and became so heavy that the poor little guy had a lot of trouble lugging it around behind him, so we didn’t haul in very much candy that year. I’m happy the weather is supposed to be clear tomorrow so all the little trick or treaters can enjoy themselves!

Whenever it’s gloomy and rainy out, I always start craving mac & cheese. I’m a tiny bit embarrassed to admit that I usually just make the stuff from the blue box (in my defense, it’s actually pretty tasty with a few modifications – I use half the amount of butter, add buttermilk, and tons of cheddar cheese). But, I recently made the real deal for the first time and it was definitely worth the extra effort. The caramelized shallots, crispy sage, and buttermilk make this version extra delicious and indulgent, and I love the cute orecchiette pasta.

p.s. I’m submitting this to Natasha’s 5 Star Mac & Cheese Makeover! Be sure to check out her blog soon for the round up!

Caramelized Shallot and Crispy Sage Macaroni and Cheese
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound orecchiette pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped shallots
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded gruyere cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage

Directions:
Prepare pasta according to package directions. Briefly, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add pasta and cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender and drain.

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large pan. Add shallots and cook 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Meanwhile, melt 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth and cook one minute or until mixture starts to brown. Whisk in buttermilk and cream, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and mix in cheddar cheese, gruyere cheese, and salt. Cook 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and mixture is smooth.

Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add sage and turn off heat.

Mix orecchiette pasta, caramelized shallots, cheese sauce, and crispy sage in a large bowl until well combined. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 685 calories, 41.2g fat, 2.2g fiber, 24.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.85 per serving

Hmm, this is my third post in a row featuring pumpkin and I have a couple more pumpkin recipes all ready to go! Sorry for the lack of variety – I’ll try to mix it up and refrain from posting the others for awhile, but I have to get this one in before Halloween!

For my sweet Halloween treat, I wanted to make truffles that tasted like pumpkin pie and looked like cute little mini pumpkins. I think I’m at 90% of the way there with this recipe. The taste is right on (pumpkin pie and white chocolate – yum!), but my pumpkin shaping skills need a bit of work…these are supposed to be pumpkins, not basketballs! Anyway, this was actually my third attempt at getting the truffle filling right, so I was glad to have finally nailed it! Canned pumpkin puree is a tad watery, so I was having consistency issues, until I realized that the best solution was to simmer the puree for awhile to remove some of the water. I also colored white chocolate for the first time with my gel food coloring kit, which worked surprisingly well.  If I can successfully cover truffles in chocolate, anyone can!  I was planning on cutting up chocolate for the pumpkin stumps, but then I saw pecans and decided that was the way to go. These little guys are RICH, so you only need one to satisfy your sweet tooth craving!

Pumpkin Pie Truffles
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups white chocolate chips
Several drops of orange gel food coloring
15 small pecan pieces

Directions:
Mix butter, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie spice in a small nonstick pan and heat over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 1/2 cup.

Mix cooked pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, and salt in medium bowl until well combined. Chill dough for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Shape chilled dough into 15 1-inch balls. Place on waxed paper on a cookie sheet and chill in the refrigerator while preparing chocolate.

Melt white chocolate chips in a shallow bowl on High 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Mix orange gel food coloring with the melted chocolate until smooth. Using 2 spoons, dip pumpkin balls into melted chocolate and cover evenly. Place on waxed paper and top each truffle with a pecan piece “stump”. Serve after chocolate sets, about 5 minutes. Makes 15 truffles.

Nutrition: 141 calories, 7.5g fat, 1.2g fiber, 1.2g protein per truffle
Cost: $0.19 per truffle

I apparently have a bit more Martha in me than I’ve previously appreciated because when I stumbled upon some habanero lime flour tortillas at Trader Joe’s the other night, my eyes got wide with excitement and I squealed, “they’re orange, they have bright orange tortillas!!” Before Apolinaras could ask why I was causing a commotion over tortillas, I had already dashed away in search of black beans and canned pumpkin. You see, I’d been mulling over savory Halloween treat ideas and when I saw the tortillas I was immediately inspired to make Halloween pumpkin quesadillas!!

On the ride home I brainstormed a bit and decided that I’d use a cookie cutter to cut little pumpkins out of the tortillas and then carve jack-o-lantern faces into them using a sharp knife. I already knew I wanted to stuff them with the pumpkin and black beans I had picked up, along with some shredded chicken, lime juice, and adobo sauce. But what really make me grin was when I came up with the idea to top the filling with cheese so that the cheese would cause the eye, nose, and mouth holes to “glow”! I got home and immediately went to work “carving” my pumpkins. I had so much fun making these and they’re super cute, if I do say so myself! They are the perfect treat to serve at a Halloween party and I’m already thinking it will be a fun Halloween tradition to make these every year with our (future!) kids too! Oh, and they taste great! Enjoy!

Halloween Pumpkin Quesadillas
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 package Trader Joe’s Habarnero Lime Flour Bright Orange Tortillas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cooked boneless chicken breasts (I poached mine), shredded
Juice of one lime
1 teaspoon adobo sauce from a can of chipotle peppers (or to taste)
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Use a pumpkin shaped cookie cutter to cut tortillas into small pumpkin shapes (I got 3 pumpkins per tortilla). Carve faces into half the pumpkins.

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet. Add onion and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and cook one additional minute. Add pumpkin, black beans, shredded chicken, lime juice, adobo sauce, and salt to the pan and stir until smooth and heated through.

Preheat broiler. Place non-carved pumpkin shaped tortillas on a large greased cookie sheet. Spread filling evenly on top of the pumpkins, and top evenly with cheese. Place carved pumpkin tortillas on top and broil for 2 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and quesadillas are heated through. Makes 5 servings (of 3 pumpkin quesadillas each).

Nutrition: 667 calories, 24.7g fat, 6.7, 10.7g fiber, 46.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.87 per serving

I’m not much of a mixologist, but I was inspired to tend bar after seeing Erin’s recipe for pumpkin spice latte martinis – what a great idea, I didn’t even know pumpkin liqueur existed! When POM Wonderful recently offered to send samples of their new iced coffees, I immediately thought about Erin’s creation and knew I wanted to try their iced coffee in a pumpkin martini of my own! We received samples of Café au Lait and Chocolate flavors, and the Chocolate flavor was ok, but the Café au Lait was delicious. I mixed the iced coffee with pumpkin liqueur, vodka, and butterscotch schnapps this weekend and was pleasantly surprised about well the drinks turned out! They were so yummy, in fact, that I couldn’t stop at just one… Thanks to Erin for the inspiration and to POM Wonderful for the Café au Lait Iced Coffee!

Pumpkin Martinis
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 part POM Café au Lait Iced Coffee
1 part spiced pumpkin liqueur
1/2 part vodka
1/2 part butterscotch schnapps

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a martini shaker filled with ice. Shake well and strain into martini glasses.

Nutrition: 275 calories, 0.6g fat, 0.0g fiber, 0.1g protein per martini (based on each part being 1.5 fl oz, measured in a standard jigger)
Cost: $1.50 per martini

I was super excited when my friend Shannon organized an apple picking field trip the other weekend to Smolak Farms! Not only would I get to check out a local orchard for the first time, I also would get to meet several of my favorite fellow Boston food bloggers, including Nicole, Kelly, Elina, and Lauren. We all had a great time chatting and discussing which apple varieties to use in our future apple concoctions (check out their sites from some great pictures!), and to top it all off I picked up a pack of spiced apple cider and donuts to enjoy after we got home!

So what exactly do you do with 10 pounds of apples? I’m actually not a huge fan of raw apples. I had one daily for years and then suddenly one day I couldn’t bring myself to even take one more bite, so I guess I just overdid it, but my hubby polished off quite a few and I helped by doing a bit of baking! Apolinaras requested a low fat and sugar apple crisp and I also made my favorite apple coffee cake, which is always on our table when we have weekend guests. Since it’s an upside down cake, there ends up being a lovely spiral of apples sitting atop a moist cake layer spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and cloves. The walnuts add an extra crunch! SO good.

Apple Spiral Chai Coffee Cake
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Apple Layer:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tart baking apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

Cake Layer:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

Prepare the apple layer. In a small bowl, mix butter and brown sugar. Spread sugar mixture evenly in greased cake pan. Fan apple slices in two concentric circles on top of the sugar mixture.

Prepare the cake layer. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, baking soda, and salt. Mix thoroughly with a fork and set aside. In another large bowl, mix the butter, sugar, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Slowly mix in the flour mixture and then the walnuts.

Bake at 350˚F for 35-40 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes or until the cake comes away from the edges of the pan, then run a knife around the outside of the pan, and immediately invert on a serving platter, and cut into wedges. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 330 calories, 25.1g fat, 2.0g fiber, 4.7g protein per serving
Cost: $0.55 per serving

Poor meatloaf. I think meatloaf tends to get a bad rap, but I will always have a soft spot for it because it was the first dish I ever made for Apolinaras. I was a baby of 22 and just starting to get comfortable in the kitchen when I invited him over for dinner. We’d only been dating for a few weeks, but he had actually already cooked for me and made a lovely bacon wrapped chicken, which only made me a bit more nervous about my own culinary skills. I decided on meatloaf and roasted potatoes with green beans because it was cold out and I was craving something comforting. Even though I was living in grad student housing and had a very small kitchen with maybe 3 feet of counter space, I managed to get the meatloaf in the oven in plenty of time, only to make a frantic phone call to my mom half an hour later because I thought I had burned the onions (don’t worry, they were actually just caramelized!).  Much to my relief, everything somehow came out perfectly and Apolinaras was hooked – he still requests meatloaf often to this day!

I’ve experimented with various versions over the years and this is my favorite. It’s very moist and flavorful because it’s packed with cooked veggies and sun dried tomatoes. No sauce is needed – it is absolutely perfect on its own!

Sun Dried Tomato Turkey Meatloaf
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 carrots, chopped
4 shallots, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1 large egg
1/4 cup crushed croutons
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet and sauté carrots for 5 minutes. Add shallots and pepper and sauté 5 more minutes or until veggies are soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Mix cooked veggies, sun-dried tomatoes, ground turkey, egg, crushed croutons, parmesan cheese, oregano, basil, and salt in a large bowl with hands until well combined. Form meat into a loaf and place in a greased pan. Bake meatloaf at 350˚F for 40 to 45 minutes or until cooked through. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 262 calories, 4.0g fat, 2.0g fiber, 27.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.30 per serving

Our whirlwind NYC tour would not have been complete without visiting a few famous bakeries! The two at the top of my list were Bouchon and Levain, so the first thing we did after checking into our hotel was head up to Bouchon Bakery in the Time Warner Center right next to Central Park. I will probably never make it to The French Laundry or Per Se, so I was excited to sample a bit of Thomas Keller’s genius at Bouchon. We had a light lunch (I highly recommend the rich dark meat chicken veggie and herb dumpling soup!), so we still had room for double chocolate and Nutter Butter cookies, which were incredible! Bouchon was our favorite bakery and my mom actually kept suggesting we head back there for another meal during the remainder of our trip!

After lunch we headed up to the Upper West Side so we could sample the famous cookies at Levain. We got a chocolate chip walnut and dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookie and enjoyed them outside on a bench in front of the bakery. Both cookies were still warm with a crispy outside and gooey middle. They were really really good, but were they the best I’ve ever had? Probably not. But, I still think Levain is a bakery everyone should visit at least once!

Next up was Amy’s Bread, a cute bakery in Chelsea Market that features both breads and desserts. I had a butterscotch cashew bar, which was delicious, but the real highlight was meeting Emily (which I know you’re all super jealous about!), the gorgeous superstar blogger of Sugar Plum! I’ve been a huge fan of Emily’s blog for a long time now.  In fact, her blog was one of the ones that inspired me to start my own! She was also the first person to ever comment on my little blog. She’s just as sweet and funny as she comes across on her blog and I think we could have chatted all day!

I was also very excited that to meet up with my good friend Annika. She treated me to an amazing spread of sweets at Billy’s Bakery, which is around the corner from her apartment (lucky girl!). We reminisced about causing trouble in college and turning 30 and overdid it on a piece of ice box cake (which tasted like a huge Oreo – yum!), cheesecake, carrot cake cupcakes, and a stack of snickerdoodles!

The last sweet spot of our trip was a visit to M&Ms World in Times Square. My mom is a HUGE M&Ms fan and collects their dispensers. She picked out a couple things for her birthday and we both got cute matching measuring spoon sets (I seriously can never have too many, I swear all my 1/4 teaspoons are hiding out together in some random drawer because I can never find one when I need it!).

So, of course I had to come up with a recipe featuring M&Ms for this post! The cookies were inspired by the butterscotch cashew bars I had at Amy’s. To play with the salty and sweet contrast even more, I mixed chunks of pretzels into the dough. My original plan was to top the cookie bars with a homemade caramel sauce (which I’ve recently discovered is actually pretty easy to make), but I realized our cream had gone bad while I was heating the sugar, and using milk didn’t exactly work out. Anyway, you can never go wrong with chocolate, so I made a quick ganache instead and topped the bars with it and then sprinkled as many M&Ms and beautiful whole cashews on top that I could. The cookies themselves were really crunchy, so I had to be very careful getting them out of the pan. I actually lifted them all the way out (I think lining the pan with parchment paper would work really well) and then cut them on a cutting board with my chef’s knife. They are very tasty though and definitely worth this extra hassle!

M&M Cashew Pretzel Bars
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped pretzels (I used the honey wheat pretzel rods from TJs cut into eighths)
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup whole cashews
1/2 cup M&Ms

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Mix butter, brown sugar, flour and baking powder in a medium bowl until smooth. Mix in chopped pretzels. Spread dough evenly into a greased 8×8-inch pan (or line the pan with parchment paper so the bars can be easily pulled out of the pan) and bake for 15 minutes at 350˚F or until lightly browned and set. Cool for 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, microwave chocolate chips and milk on High 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Spread ganache over cooled pretzel bars and top ganache evenly with cashews and M&Ms. Refrigerate for an hour or until ganache is set. Cut into 16 bars. Makes 16 servings.

Nutrition: 194 calories, 10.7g fat, 0.9g fiber, 2.2g protein per serving
Cost: $0.37 per serving

The first thing I always do when I’m planning a vacation is figure out where to eat. In fact, I would say our days tend be structured by what activities are around the restaurants we want to visit! I had more difficultly than usual planning our NYC trip because my mom is a bit of a picky eater and the city is just so large, but my mom was a great sport and we made our way successfully all around the city on the subway. I can’t fit all the yumminess of NYC in one post, so I’m just going to focus on the restaurants we visited in this post and feature all the sweet treats we sampled in the next one!

We spent our first night in the city dining at Craft. I was actually a bit nervous about visiting Craft because I am a huge Top Chef fan and didn’t want to be disappointed by Tom Colicchio’s flagship restaurant, but I shouldn’t have worried because both the food and unpretentious service were wonderful! I convinced my mom that we should start with the octopus appetizer, and I was completely tickled when she actually admitted she enjoyed it (it was the best octopus I’ve ever had!). Meals are served family style at Craft so while I had the braised short ribs (which were so tender that they were served with a spoon!) and my mom had the duck, we shared an arugula and lemon salad, gnocchi, zucchini, and a mix of oyster, baby shiitake, hen of the woods, and trompette royale mushrooms – yum! We just had an ice cream and sorbet sampler for dessert since we were so stuffed and I would return just for the amazing raspberry sorbet! The cute surprise at the end of the night was that the hostess handed us super moist zucchini muffins to enjoy for breakfast the next morning!

The next morning we were still stuffed from dinner, but we put on our game faces and took a long walk to make room for pizza! A visit to NYC would not be complete without sampling the best pizza the city has to offer, so when I came across Scott’s Pizza Tours, I immediately signed us up. Scott is a super enthusiastic pizza historian. We rode a huge yellow school bus through Manhattan and Brooklyn and visited four pizzerias, where we learned about the history of pizza and ovens, and got to sample a slice of pie at each stop. Our favorite place was Luzzo’s, but don’t take my word for it, check it out for yourself! I would highly, highly recommend this tour for any pizza loving foodie!

Over the last couple of days we relaxed in Central park, spent a few hours wandering through the MoMA, visited Times Square and hummed along at the fun Broadway muscial Mama Mia, chowed down on dirty water hot dogs, and enjoyed a feast of lobster egg rolls, tuna tartare spring rolls, twice cooked long beans, sweet and crispy jumbo shrimp, and roast duck and noodles at Buddakan. We sure packed a lot into a few short days! I was definitely in food blogger mode when I saw Warhol’s famous Campbell’s soup series in the MoMA and immediately knew it would be the perfect picture for a blog post about soup, which brings me to today’s recipe.

I was craving a nice light and healthy veggie soup when I returned home and that decided roasted yellow peppers should be the star. This is a very light soup because I didn’t use any cream or milk, but it’s still very smooth because I thickened it by adding some butternut squash!

Roasted Yellow Pepper and Leek Soup
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 yellow peppers, seeded and cut into fourths
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks (white and light green parts only), chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 12-ounce package frozen cooked butternut squash, thawed
4 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven broiler. Place peppers skin side up on a greased cookie sheet and broil for 15 to 20 minutes or until outsides are black and charred. Cool at room temperature for 10 minutes or until cool to touch. Remove blackened skins and roughly chop roasted peppers.

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large stockpot and sauté leeks and carrots until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Add roasted peppers, butternut squash, chicken stock, and salt, and use an immersion blender to puree until smooth. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes. Garnish each bowl with parmesan cheese. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 176 calories, 5.8g fat, 7.1g fiber, 5.9g protein per serving
Cost: $1.93 per serving

I can’t believe almost a week has gone by since my last post! I just got back from an extended weekend trip to NYC with my mom and we were enjoying the city so much that I didn’t quite get around to posting this recipe while we were there. We’ve been meaning to take this trip for a few years now and had an amazing time. I can’t wait to go through my pictures and post a little recap of all the foodie spots we visited!

I’ve been dreaming about cookie dough a lot lately and I think the only thing better than eating cookie dough straight out of the bowl is enjoying it in a dessert! This is a really easy no bake recipe that comes together in no time, but is just incredible with the perfect ratio of cookie dough to ice cream.  This is one of my go to dessert recipes when we have people over because it’s a huge crowd pleaser. I love the pie with mint chocolate chip ice cream (which I’m sort of sad is now always natural and no longer the bright green color I enjoyed during my childhood!), but feel free to substitute your favorite ice cream flavor.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream Pie
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
1 6-ounce Oreo pie crust
3 cups mint chocolate chip ice cream, softened
1/2 cup hot fudge ice cream topping, warmed

Directions:
To prepare the edible egg-free cookie dough, mix butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a large bowl until creamy; add milk and vanilla and mix until well blended. Gradually mix in flour and salt; stir in mini chocolate chips.

Spread edible chocolate chip cookie dough evenly in the bottom of the Oreo crust. Place heaping spoonfuls of ice cream on top of cookie dough. Lightly press and smooth top with back of spoon. Freeze pie 2 hours or until firm.

To serve, set pie out at room temperature for 10 minutes to soften and cut into 8 wedges. Garnish each piece with warmed hot fudge ice cream topping. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 376 calories, 13.7g fat, 2.1g fiber, 4.3g protein per serving
Cost: $0.69 per serving

I secretly enjoy checking out wedding registries and seeing what makes couples tick. Are they more excited about the monogrammed towels and fine china or the obscure kitchen gadgets and fancy knife sets? I’m sure you can guess which category we fell into! I was recently browsing through my good friend Emily’s wedding registry to send her a shower gift. Emily is a great cook (her hummus is seriously the best I’ve ever had!), and while I know people want everything on their registries, I still had a great time carefully selecting the kitchen items I thought she would enjoy and use most often.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it to her shower because it was being held in Chicago (but we are super excited to go to the wedding in November!), but browsing through her registry made me wonder what they were serving at the shower. That’s just how my mind is wired! I hope they were serving something like this quiche, which I think would be perfect for a fall brunch shower. It’s gourmet enough to serve to company because it’s stuffed with prosciutto, fresh sage, and roasted butternut squash – yum! I’ll definitely be making this again.

Roasted Butternut Squash, Prosciutto, and Sage Quiche
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 leek (white and light green parts only), chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 eggs
2 cups milk
4 slices chopped prosciutto (1/2 cup)
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 10-inch pie crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Place squash on a greased cookie sheet and drizzle evenly with 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bake squash for 25-30 minutes at 400˚F or until tender. Lower oven heat to 350˚F.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and saute leeks for 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and saute one additional minute.

Beat eggs and milk in a large bowl until well mixed. Mix in butternut squash, leeks, prosciutto, cheese, sage, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Line a 10-inch pie pan with prepared pie crust; pour in quiche mixture. Bake at 350˚F for 45 to 60 minutes, or until set. Cool slightly and cut into 8 wedges. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 330 calories, 20.4g fat, 2.0g fiber, 14.1g protein per serving
Cost: $0.91 per serving

Dear disappointing Boston restaurant,

My hubby and I can rarely resist ordering crab cakes when we eat out, and I was really looking forward to trying your twist on our favorite appetizer during our recent visit to your restaurant. So, you can imagine our disappointment when we couldn’t see or taste the crab in the 4 bites of our $15 appetizer. Perhaps you should rename this dish to something more appropriate, like tasteless fried breadcrumbs?

Although we won’t be frequenting your establishment again (the meal did not get any better as it progressed), I do have to thank you for inspiring me to make my own crab cakes at home for the first time. Crab cakes are something I’ve been hesitant to try putting together myself, because I was nervous about ruining the expensive lump crabmeat. But after our horrible experience at your restaurant, I realized that I couldn’t do any worse than your chef, so I went ahead and splurged on the one pound $15 tub of fresh lump crabmeat from Costco. I used avocado in place of mayo and crushed plantain chips instead of breadcrumbs, and served the cakes over black beans, mango, and red peppers – yum! They were just as good as any restaurant version I’ve had and I made 3 huge dinner-sized portions for the fraction of the price they would cost at a restaurant! So thank you for pushing me to step outside my comfort zone in the kitchen!

Sincerely,
A Boston food blogger

Avocado Crab Cakes with Crushed Plantain Chips
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 green onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound lump crabmeat
1/4 cup mashed avocado
1/2 cup crushed plantain chips
1 egg, beaten
1 lime
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 mango, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped

Directions:
Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and sauté onions for 2 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

In medium bowl, mix together the lump crabmeat, onions, avocado, plantain chips, egg, juice of half the lime, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Shape mixture into 6 crab cakes.

Meanwhile, mix black beans, mango, red pepper, juice of the remaining half of the lime, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a nonstick skillet. Add 3 crab cakes and cook until golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and 3 crab cakes. Serve crab cakes over the black bean, mango, and red pepper mix. Makes 3 large servings.

Nutrition: 514 calories, 22.1g fat, 14.6g fiber, 24.4g protein per serving
Cost: $6.17 per serving

My loaded sweet potato skins were featured on the Glamour Magazine Health and Fitness blog yesterday, how cool is that? Ever since I started my blog, I feel like I always have something to look forward to in my inbox, whether it’s an email update about a comment, a question from a reader, or a cool opportunity like this one!  So thank you for making food blogging so much fun!

So, I promised to tell you what I did with the extra sweet potato flesh I had after making the sweet potato skins. I knew I wanted to make a dessert. My first thought was to make a sweet potato cheesecake since I had some leftover cream cheese in the fridge, and I really wanted to do little mini layered cheesecakes, because they are just so cute! So, I mixed ginger snap crumbs with the mashed sweet potatoes and topped them with a creamy cheesecake layer mixed with pumpkin pie spice and crunchy pecans. I baked them in muffin cups, since I still haven’t gotten my hands on real mini cheesecake pan.  They turned out really well, but I need to stop talking about that pan and just order it!

Mini Sweet Potato Cheesecakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup crushed gingersnap cookies
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Mix mashed sweet potatoes, crushed gingersnap cookies, and salt in a large bowl until smooth. Line two muffin pans with cupcake wrappers and evenly spoon sweet potato mixture into 16 cups. Bake at 350˚F for 25 to 30 minutes or until set. Push down sweet potato layer with a spoon and cool slightly, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix cream cheese, egg, vanilla extract, and pumpkin pie spice in a medium bowl until smooth. Evenly spoon cream cheese mixture over the cooled sweet potato layer and top with chopped pecans. Bake at 350˚F for 28 to 32 minutes or until cheesecake layer is set. Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes and then cool in the fridge for an hour, or until chilled. Carefully remove cupcake wrappers from each mini cheesecake. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 256 calories, 16.7g fat, 2.7g fiber, 4.6g protein per serving
Cost: $0.54 per serving

Football season is finally here! Ok, so I admit I actually only know this because I saw a game on while I was browsing through the tv channels on the elliptical at the gym. I’m not actually a huge football fan, and much to my brother’s horror, I’ve never tailgated at a college football game (I went to a small division three college where we sat on the grass to watch football games), but I can be convinced to watch a bit if it means I have the excuse to whip up some football season munchies!

I decided to make these loaded sweet potato skins last night to enjoy with our gin and tonics. I topped the crispy sweet potato skins with a black bean sauce, cheddar cheese, and turkey bacon. These were really tasty and I used the leftover mashed insides of the sweet potatoes for another treat that will be up in my next post!

Loaded Sweet Potato Skins
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 sweet potatoes, scrubbed
6 pieces turkey bacon, sliced into small pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
Juice of half a lime
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Poke holes in the sweet potatoes and bake for an hour at 400˚F or until soft. Allow sweet potatoes to cool slightly and then cut them into quarters. Scoop out some of the insides of the sweet potatoes, leaving a 1/2-inch shell.

Meanwhile, place bacon in a medium skillet over medium high heat and cook 7 minutes or until crispy. Drain bacon on paper towels. To make the black bean sauce, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet over medium heat and sauté onion for 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté an additional minute. Place onion mixture, black beans, lime juice, cumin, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor and pulse until smooth.

Mix remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt in a small bowl and use a pastry brush to coat both sides of each potato skin with olive oil. Bake potato skins on a large greased cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 400˚F. Flip potato skins over and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until skins are crispy. Evenly top crispy potato skins with black bean sauce, shredded cheese, and turkey bacon. Bake 2 to 3 minutes at 400˚F or until cheese is melted. Makes 16 loaded sweet potato skins (8 servings).

Nutrition: 258 calories, 12.2g fat, 6.4g fiber, 10.6g protein per serving
Cost: $0.85 per serving

I have a problem – I can’t stop stuffing things with cheese! I recently saw arancini (Italian rice balls) filled with cheese on Lisa is Cooking and Brown Eyed Baker, and immediately started drooling. Of course, I wanted to add my own little twist, so I drew inspiration from a yummy rice dish I had in New Orleans a few months ago that featured shredded pork and kicked up BBQ sauce.

I mixed brown rice with eggs, BBQ sauce, turkey bacon, and panko, and then used the mixture to encase little chunks of cheddar cheese. Then I carefully coated the rice balls with more panko so they would be crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside after I baked them. We both really enjoyed these little bites, and I managed to convince myself that they were healthy since I used brown rice and turkey bacon and baked them instead of frying them… Thanks to Lisa and Michelle for the inspiration!

BBQ Rice Balls Stuffed with Cheddar Cheese
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked brown rice
4 slices cooked turkey bacon, chopped
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
2 eggs
2 cups panko
3 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, cut into 20 small cubes

Directions:
Mix rice, turkey bacon, BBQ sauce, eggs, and 1 cup panko in a medium bowl.

Encase each of the cubes of cheese with the rice mixture, shape into balls, and roll in the remaining cup of panko. Place on a greased cookie sheet.  Place sheet in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400˚F. Bake balls at 400˚F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes 5 servings (of 4 balls each).

Nutrition: 389 calories, 11.2g fat, 3.2g fiber, 14.8g protein per serving
Cost: $0.75 per serving

Thanks so much to everyone for the bday wishes! We’re continuing the celebration this weekend by going out for dinner and on a little shopping spree! There’s something about the seasons changing that makes me want to buy a whole new wardrobe.

It feels like summer is almost over, but a few weeks ago during the hottest weekend of the year, my baby brother drove up to visit us after a business trip in NYC! It was his first time in Boston, so we went on a Duck Boat tour and checked out parts of the Freedom Trail, harbor, and Harvard Square. Two of the highlights were visiting the Harpoon Brewery (where they let you sample as many kinds of beer that you’d like on tap for free!) and indulging in a delicious Italian feast in the North End. After dinner we decided to have a throwdown and bought cannolis from both Mike’s Pastry and Modern Pastry, which have a bit of a rivalry. The ricotta filling is sweeter at Modern and the shells are more crispy because they fill them as you order them. But, the cannolis at Mike’s are double the size for the same price and are covered in more chocolate, which is always a good thing! In the end, I voted for Modern, Richard voted for Mike’s, and Apolinaras couldn’t pick a favorite, so it was a tie. The moral of the story is that you really can’t go wrong with either choice!

I was inspired by our cannoli battle to make these cute little cannoli chips! I decided to use pita chips as the base since they’re so crispy, and then topped them with sweetened ricotta cheese and mini chocolate chips. Not quite as good as the real thing, of course, but a very satisfying treat that comes together quickly and is perfect for using up that last bit of ricotta at the bottom of the tub! I suggest making the entire batch of ricotta at once and then topping just the chips you’re going to eat that day so they don’t get soggy.

Cannoli Chips
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
24 pita chips
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:
Mix ricotta cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl until smooth. Spread 1 tablespoon of ricotta mixture onto each pita chip and sprinkle mini chocolate chips evenly on top. Makes 24 cannoli chips (4 servings).

Nutrition: 309 calories, 14.3g fat, 1.1g fiber, 13.5g protein per serving
Cost: $0.73 per serving

It’s my birthday tomorrow and I’m turning the big 3-0!  I’m not exactly sure how this happened so quickly, but I’m excited for the future and by the fact that Apolinaras promised to bring home my favorite carrot cake cupcakes from Petsi’s Pies!

Speaking of birthdays, I realized that I never posted the dessert I made for Apolinaras’ birthday last month. He actually doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth, and I usually make this cake by Paula Deen for him that features pineapple and coconut, but this year he said he didn’t even want a cake since he was still in cutting mode for his bodybuilding. I couldn’t take no for an answer though and decided to whip up something healthy that he would still enjoy. I combined fresh pineapple with low-fat cottage cheese, lime juice, and sugar, ran it through my ice cream machine and then made mini sundaes layered with toasted coconut and fresh strawberries. You can definitely taste the cottage cheese, which Apolinaras really enjoyed, but I have to admit I prefer the real deal. But, it’s a nice light treat for those days that you’re craving something sweet but don’t want to undo the progress you made in the gym!

Pineapple Ice Cream Sundaes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 cups chopped fresh pineapple (one pineapple, my 4 cups were 25 ounces)
2 cups low fat cottage cheese
Juice of one lime
3/4 cup sugar (or to taste)
1/2 cup toasted shredded coconut
2 cups chopped strawberries

Directions:
Place pineapple, cottage cheese, lime juice, and sugar in a food processor and pulse until sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth. Place mixture in the fridge and chill until cold, about 2 hours. Place mixture in the ice cream maker and churn according to the machine directions. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving. Layer pineapple ice cream with toasted coconut and strawberries to make mini sundaes. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 192 calories, 2.2g fat, 2.3g fiber, 8.5g protein per serving
Cost: $0.92 per serving

So I finally got around to making plantain gnocchi again, but was so tired that I didn’t even make a sauce to go with them and just ended up topping them with some fresh tomatoes. They were still delicious though, mainly because they were stuffed with chunks of cheddar cheese! I actually overstuffed them (but really, can you ever have too much cheese?) and they ended up looking more like dumplings than gnocchi. So we had to call them koldunai, which is the Lithuanian word for dumplings.

The only trick with these little guys is that the amount of flour you’ll need to get the dough to the right consistency may vary. The first time I made them I used smaller plantains and needed less flour. But if you’ve made gnocchi before, you shouldn’t have any trouble, and they’re worth the extra effort!

Plantain Gnocchi/Koldunai Stuffed with Cheddar Cheese
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 black-brown plantains, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 8-ounce block of sharp cheddar cheese, cut into small chunks
3 chopped tomatoes or several cups of your favorite salsa

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Boil the plantains for 10 minutes or until tender. Remove from the pan and mash thoroughly in a medium bowl.

After letting mashed plantains cool to room temperature for about 15 minutes, mix in the egg. Mix in salt and flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until soft dough forms (you may need to add a little more flour, depending on the size of your plantains, when I had 1 3/4 cups of mashed plantains I needed 2 1/2 cups of flour). The dough should not be too sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface; use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large square and then cut the square into 2×2-inch squares. Place a chunk of cheese into the middle of each square of dough and seal the cheese inside the dough. Makes about 40 gnocchi.

Bring large pot of water to boil. Working in batches, boil gnocchi until they are tender and float to the top, about 3 to 5 minutes. Mix gnocchi with fresh tomatoes or your favorite salsa. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 435 calories, 4.2g fat, 3.4g fiber, 16.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.09 per serving

My hubby and I shop for the majority of our groceries together on the weekends, but Apolinaras usually heads to the store by himself when we need something during the week. I try to help him out by structuring the list so it goes in order of the store aisles and usually he remembers everything. But, there’s one thing he never forgets and actually will get without me even asking – mini whole wheat bagels! I go through them really quickly because I like to have one as a snack after work when I’m starving but still need to throw something together for dinner. I also like to make quick mini bagel pizzas when Apolinaras is at one of his networking events and I’m on my own for dinner. But my favorite way to enjoy them is in mini breakfast sandwiches! I’ve already professed my love of breakfast sandwiches and make them practically every weekend.

I decided to mix things up this week adding roasted tomatoes and creamy ricotta cheese mixed with fresh basil, along with my usual eggs and turkey bacon. I think a normal serving is two little sandwiches, which I noted below, but I actually couldn’t resist them and ate three! I was completely stuffed afterwards, but it was worth it. They are addicting!

Mini Bagel Breakfast Sandwiches
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 slices turkey bacon
2 small tomatoes, sliced
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
6 mini whole wheat bagels, split and toasted

Directions:
Cook bacon in large skillet over medium high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet; drain on paper towel. Cut each strip in half.

Clean out skillet and add sliced tomatoes. Saute for 5 to 7 minutes over medium high heat or until tender, flipping once.

Spray medium nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Whisk eggs, milk, and salt, in a small bowl and add to the skillet. Cook until eggs are set on the bottom and bubbly on top. Cut in half and turn eggs over to finish cooking until eggs are set, then cut eggs into six equal portions.

Mix ricotta and basil in a small bowl until smooth.

Spread ricotta cheese mixture on bottom half of each mini bagel. Top with the tomato, eggs, and bacon. Cover with top halves of muffins. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 456 calories, 16.5g fat, 2.6g fiber, 24.9g protein per serving
Cost: $1.16 per serving

Apolinaras kept popping his head in the kitchen last night while I was prepping dinner because he was so excited we were having salmon. Apparently he thought a little cheering from the sidelines would hurry things along because he kept doing little dances to amuse me. But his plan backfired because I couldn’t stop giggling, which just slowed things down! I didn’t have time to cook this weekend, so I was multitasking and things took a bit longer than usual to come together. I first made a baked pasta dish to enjoy for lunches this week and then went back and chopped a bunch of fresh summer veggies to make a sauce for the salmon. It was close to 11pm before the salmon made it on the table, but it was well worth the wait. I know Apolinaras was a huge fan because I got a text after he ate the leftovers today letting me know again how much he enjoyed it!

Cumin is a spice I frequently reach for since it’s so tasty and versatile. I rubbed the filets with a mixture of cumin, salt, and chili powder and then topped it with a sauce starring fresh corn and red peppers.  We had a bit of the sauce left over and have been enjoying it on chicken breasts!

Cumin Rubbed Salmon with a Fresh Corn and Red Pepper Sauce
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
Kernels from 2 fresh ears of corn
2 garlic cloves, minced
Juice of half a lime
11/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon hot chili powder
4 salmon filets (ours were 7 ounces each)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and sauté red onion, jalapeno pepper, and red pepper for 5 to 7 minutes. Add corn and sauté 2 to 3 minutes or until all veggies are soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Place veggies, lime juice, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor and pulse until a smooth sauce forms.

Meanwhile, mix remaining 1 teaspoon salt, cumin, and chili powder in a small dish. Sprinkle spice rub evenly over salmon filets and lightly rub it into the filets. Heat remaining tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and sear the salmon filets on both sides. Bake salmon for 10 to 12 minutes at 350˚F or until cooked through. Spoon sauce over the salmon. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 413 calories, 20.1g fat, 3.1g fiber, 41.8g protein per serving
Cost: $3.00 per serving

Shannon and I went on a shopping mission a couple months ago in search of mini-cheesecake pans from the Williams Sonoma outlet. We couldn’t find the pans, but the trip wasn’t a complete loss because Shannon scored a gorgeous stainless steel sauté pan and I scooped up a real pizza pan. I had previously been making pizzas on a cookie sheet!

I’ve mentioned before that I don’t make pizza very often because we get it a couple times a week during lunch meetings at work, but I have been craving it lately because all these meeting are canceled in August due to so many people going on vacation! So, I finally got out my new pan and whipped up a tasty pizza. I mixed caramelized shallots and apricot jam for the sauce, and then topped the pizza with mozzarella and feta cheese. I think this would be a great as an appetizer too if you cut it into small squares or maybe used puff pastry as a base (I’ll be trying that next!).

Caramelized Shallot Apricot Chicken Pizza
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound of your favorite pizza dough
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped shallots
1/2 cup apricot preserves
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Heat oven to 500˚F. Prepare pizza dough. Heat oil over medium heat in a large nonstick pan. Add shallots and cook 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized. Reduce heat to low and add apricot preserves, mustard, vinegar, and salt. Stir 1 to 2 minutes or until preserves are melted and sauce is thoroughly mixed.

Spread pizza dough into desired shape. Spread shallot apricot mixture evenly over crust. Top evenly with chicken. Sprinkle mozzarella and feta cheese evenly on top. Bake at 500˚F for 10 – 14 minutes or until crust is deep golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 378 calories, 12.8g fat, 2.7g fiber, 21.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.05 per serving

Our apartment balcony is filled with foliage. My plant tending days ended after the demise of Petey, a plant my good friend Britt and I attempted to care for in college, so I’m lucky that Apolinaras has a green thumb! He’s already dreaming of the day we have a real yard, but for now is happy tending his mini-vegetable garden. He has six different herbs growing that I frequently use, along with jalapeno and banana peppers and cherry tomatoes. He also planted an avocado pit that has sprouted, so we’ll see how that goes. Anyway, our cherry tomatoes are finally beginning to ripen and we’ve just been popping them straight into our mouths off the tree every day. But this weekend our little plant was particularly bountiful and he managed to harvest a whole handful of cherry tomatoes! When he brought them in on Saturday and proudly announced that we had enough to use in a recipe, I immediately knew I wanted to make a pasta dish packed with summer veggies.

This pasta is mixed with fresh zucchini, cherry tomatoes, and chicken, but my favorite part is the rich and creamy sauce, which I made by blending roasted eggplant, red onion, garlic, herbs, and ricotta together. This is one of those dishes that is even better the next day!

I also wanted to share the other foodie project I worked on this weekend. I went crazy with different icing colors and decorated sugar cookies for a surprise baby shower for my labmate Sima. Big thanks to Michelle and Julie for posting such easy to follow decorating directions! This was my first time working with royal icing and I was pretty proud about how cute the cookies turned out!

Summer Veggie Pasta with an Eggplant and Ricotta Sauce
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound whole wheat penne pasta
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 eggplant, cut into small chunks (mine was a little over a pound)
1 red onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
2 zucchinis, cut into small chunks
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta in a colander, return it to the pot, and keep warm.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet and sauté eggplant for 5 minutes. Add red onion and cook 5 to 7 minutes, or until veggies are soft, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Place eggplant mixture, ricotta cheese, vinegar, salt, oregano, and basil in a food processor. Pulse until a smooth sauce forms.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet over medium heat and sauté zuchinni for 5 minutes or until tender. Remove zucchini and add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Add chicken and sauté 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked and no longer pink in the center.

Mix pasta, sauce, chicken, zucchini, and tomatoes until the sauce evenly coats all ingredients. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 449 calories, 11.5g fat, 10.7g fiber, 34.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.43 per serving

I think I inherited my love of peanut brittle from my grandpa. My brother and I always gave him a few boxes of brittle for Christmas when we were growing up and I can’t see peanut brittle and not think of him! Whenever I’m in a gourmet candy shop I may peruse the bonbons, but I inevitably end up skipping over the chocolate and buying a box of homemade peanut brittle. I just love the stuff.

This was actually my first time making brittle, because I only recently got a candy thermometer. It was one of the many kitchen items (along with confetti mixing bowls made from recycled plastic, a cupcake decorating set, new measuring cups and spoons, and tons of Tone’s spices which are packaged in Iowa and SO cheap there) that made it into my suitcase on my way home from Des Moines last month. I had to borrow a backpack from my parents and check my original bag since I didn’t have enough room in it for all my new purchases (cute new shoes may or may not have also been involved…). Sigh, I have no self control!

I decided to do a twist on my mom’s traditional brittle and used cashews instead of peanuts.  I also added a touch of honey and topped the brittle with sesame seeds. This flavor combo was inspired by the yummy sesame and honey covered cashews I like to munch on at work from Trader Joe’s. I used too much honey in the first batch, which overpowered the candy and caused it to be too sticky, but this second batch turned out perfectly.  Yay for finally being able to make brittle whevever I crave it!

Honey Sesame Cashew Brittle
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup water
1 cup salted cashews
2 teaspoons sesame seeds

Directions:
Stir together sugar, honey, and water in a small saucepan with a candy thermometer. Bring mixture to a boil and continue to boil the mixture until it reaches 250°F. Then pour in cashews and continue to boil until mixture reaches 300°F. Quickly pour mixture onto buttered parchment paper lining a 8×8-inch square pan. Sprinkle sesame seeds evenly over the top. Cool for 1 hour or until at room temperature. Break candy into irregular shaped pieces and store in a cool place in air-tight containers. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 197 calories, 6.9g fat, 0.1g fiber, 2.1g protein per serving
Cost: $2.55 total

I know, I know, you’re thinking – another dessert sushi post? But, this is a special version because it was inspired by the lovely Molly Jean, who writes one of my favorite blogs, The Rookie Chef. I got to meet Molly when I visited my parents in Des Moines over the fourth of July and we had a great time chatting at Gateway Market. Back when I posted my recipe for Green Monster Cookies, which was inspired by the Red Sox, Molly asked if I could come up with a dessert that celebrated the Chicago Cubs. I was excited about this concept, since I used to live in Chicago, but had no creative ideas until Molly mentioned how much she liked my dessert sushi (versions one and two), and then a light bulb went off – duh, I should make dessert sushi with the red C logo of the Chicago Cubs on the inside!

I decided to make the rolls entirely out of eggless sugar cookie dough because I love eating it so much! I colored part of the dough blue for the outside “seaweed” portion and part of it red for the Cub’s C logo for the middle of the roll. Then I added shredded coconut to the uncolored dough for the “rice” portion. I had so much fun working on this project and was delighted when the rolls came out on my first try! The end pieces didn’t turn out as well as the ones pictured, so I used the extra cookie dough from the unsightly pieces to fix the others where needed. I actually had trouble eating these little guys at first because they were so cute, but they were so rich and delicious that none went to waste. Go Cubs!

Chicago Cubs Dessert Sushi
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Blue and red food coloring
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup hot fudge ice cream topping, warmed, if desired

Directions:
Mix butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamy. Add milk and vanilla and mix until smooth; stir in flour and salt.

Mix 1/3 cup (3.5 ounces) of sugar cookie dough with blue food coloring in a small bowl. Mix 1/3 cup (3.5 ounces) of sugar cookie dough with red food coloring in another small bowl. Mix remaining uncolored dough with coconut.

Roll blue sugar cookie dough into an 10-inch log and place down the middle of a large sheet of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper on top of the log and use a rolling pin to roll the log into a 10×5-inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of waxed paper.

Set aside 1/4 cup (3 ounces) of the uncolored coconut dough. Roll remaining coconut sugar cookie dough into a 10×4.5-inch rectangle as described above. Center coconut sugar cookie dough rectangle on top of blue sugar cookie dough rectangle.

Roll red sugar cookie dough into a 10×3-inch rectangle in the same manner. Center red sugar cookie dough rectangle on top of uncolored coconut cookie dough rectangle.

Roll remaining 1/4 cup uncolored coconut dough into a 10-inch log and center it on top of the red dough rectangle.

Roll up dough into a cylinder like a “sushi roll” by lifting up waxed paper and sealing the ends of the blue dough together. Leaving waxed paper on, freeze roll for 30 minutes or until solid (the freezing step simply makes it easier to cut the roll into pieces).

Remove waxed paper from solid roll and cut into 14 equal cookie dough sushi pieces. Warm hot fudge ice cream topping according to directions on the package and place into small soy sauce containers. Serve cookie dough sushi with hot fudge dipping sauce and eat with chopsticks, if desired. Makes 7 servings.

Nutrition: 310 calories, 15.2g fat, 1.9g fiber, 3.6g protein per serving
Cost: $2.71 total

I spent the first part of this week at a conference in Vermont with my lab mate Dave. The food at these things tends to be pretty mediocre, but we did have a delicious meal at American Flatbread in downtown Burlington (which was a super cute area!). Our flatbread was topped with local maple-fennel pork sausage, sundried tomatoes, caramelized onions, cheese, and herbs – yum!  The other foodie highlight was visiting the Ben and Jerry’s Factory on the way home! It was completely packed, but we still had a great time stuffing ourselves with ice cream and going on the factory tour.

When we got home on Wednesday night, I discovered the fridge was pretty bare, but I managed to find some whole wheat naan in the back of the freezer, and decided to make a quick flatbread of my own with an Indian twist. I topped the naan with a curried chickpea mash and edamame. I’ve always enjoyed chickpeas and edamame together and thought this was a very tasty quick and easy dinner!

Naan Flatbread with Curried Chickpeas and Edamame
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 pieces frozen whole wheat naan (I used a 12-ounce package from Trader Joe’s)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 tablespoons curry powder (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (15-ounce) can chick peas, drained and pulsed in a food processor until mashed
1 cup cooked shelled edamame

Directions:
Prepare naan according to the package directions. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium pan and sauté onions for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Reduce heat to low. Add sour cream, curry powder, and salt; mix for 1 to 2 minutes or until sour cream has melted. Stir in mashed chick peas. Spread mixture evenly over naan and top with edamame. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 440 calories, 12.3g fat, 13.3g fiber, 16.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.31 per serving

I recently splurged on some of those cute little fresh mozzarella balls marinated in olive oil and herbs. They are so addicting! We enjoyed them when our friends visited last weekend, but I bought a huge tub because I wanted to play with them in a new recipe. I noticed Elly had posted a fantastic recipe for chicken parm burgers and was inspired to use ground chicken to make small chicken parm appetizers!

I decided to use a ground chicken mixture to encase the little mozzarella balls and then coated the balls in panko so they would be crispy on the outside like chicken parm! Then I served them with a marinara dipping sauce. This was my first time using ground chicken, and I was surprised that it was so much moister than ground turkey. I didn’t even end up needing an egg to hold the mixture together. My hubby was a big fan of these, and I’m blaming him for the fact that they disappeared within a day!

Chicken Parm Bites Stuffed with Mozzarella
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped shallots
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground chicken
1 1/4 cups panko
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
16 small fresh mozzarella balls
1/2 cup of your favorite marinara sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a small skillet and sauté shallots for 5 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Lightly mix together shallots, ground chicken, 1/4 cup panko, oregano, basil, and salt in a large bowl. Carefully encase each mozzarella ball evenly with ground chicken mixture and then roll each ball in remaining 1 cup panko until evenly coated. Place balls on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 350˚F or until chicken is cooked through. Place a toothpick in each ball and serve alongside the marinara sauce. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 279 calories, 16.7g fat, 1.7g fiber, 18.9g protein per serving
Cost: $0.90 per serving

My favorite part of Trader Joe’s is the cereal aisle. They have so many unique choices! I normally have one of the high fiber/protein super nutritious ones for breakfast, but always enjoy a cup of the less healthy ones for dessert after dinner. They have one with chocolate one that is really delicious and I recently devoured a box featuring pomegranate and blueberries together. It was so good that I immediately knew I wanted to create a real dessert with this flavor combo.

I originally attempted this crumble a couple weeks ago when Reeni hosted BSI with the Blogger Secret Ingredient of blueberries. But, it turned out to be a disaster! I reduced some pomegranate juice down to a syrup and then threw it on a bunch of frozen blueberries. The syrup solidified on just the blueberries it hit and the whole thing turned out to be a huge watery mess after it baked. But, the dessert was much more successful after I tweaked a few things this weekend. I simply simmered the blueberries in the pomegranate juice until the mixture reduced and then thickened the mixture with a bit of cornstarch. The tang of the pomegranate juice really complimented the blueberries! The key to the crumble topping is the almond meal (from Trader Joe’s of course!). Please do not substitute anything else because it adds another layer of flavor and seriously elevates the topping from good to super addicting!

Pomegranate Blueberry Crumble
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
8 cups blueberries (I used half fresh and half frozen)
2 cups pomegranate juice
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cold water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Stir together blueberries, pomegranate juice, and granulated sugar in a large stockpot over medium high heat. Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until liquid reduces by half. Mix cold water and cornstarch together in a small bowl and add the mixture to the blueberries. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens to desired consistency, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the crumble topping by mixing the brown sugar, almond meal, flour, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. Stir together butter and vanilla and mix with flour mixture.

Pour the thickened blueberry mixture into an 8-inch square pan and top evenly with the crumble mixture. Bake at 350˚F for 15 to 20 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 369 calories, 10.1g fat, 5.0g fiber, 3.9g protein per serving
Cost: $0.94 per serving

I really enjoy every aspect of having friends over for dinner (except for the cleaning part, of course!) and was especially excited for the meal we had last night with our friends Geeti and Puneet because Geeti is also a huge foodie. We had an absolutely amazing feast of Indian dishes when we went over to their house last time, so I took extra time planning the menu in hopes that our meal would be at least half as good as theirs!

Things didn’t start off too well because I was locked out of our apartment with two huge IKEA bags full of food two hours before they were supposed to arrive! My hubby was at the gym and I had gone running that morning and accidently left my house keys in my ipod case. Luckily, our building manager was home and was nice enough to let me in. The only other mishap was that I over toasted the pine nuts – again. I swear this happens to me half the time because the little guys toast too quickly and I forgot to set a timer for them. But overall, I think all the dishes were successful and I really enjoyed these cute little appetizers.

Most of the appetizers I usually make involve some sort of bread or pasty, but I felt like doing something a bit lighter this time and decided to top cucumber slices with hummus, roasted red peppers, and crumbled feta. That’s it – you don’t really even need a recipe for these tasty little apps! They’re light and flavorful and the best part is that no oven is needed.

Cucumber Hummus Appetizers
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cucumber, sliced
1 cup hummus
1/3 cup chopped roasted red peppers
1/3 cup crumbled feta

Directions:
Top cucumber slices evenly with hummus and evenly sprinkle roasted red peppers and feta over the hummus. Makes about 20 slices or 4 servings.

Nutrition: 150 calories, 3.1g fat, 4.6g fiber, and 7.3g protein per serving
Cost: $0.91 per serving

Sometimes I get in a dinner rut and forget how much I enjoy cooking with certain ingredients. I was recently reminded that I hadn’t used chicken sausage in a long time after seeing a few delicious and quick meal recipes on Meghan’s fantastic blog, You’re Gonna Bake It After All. Chicken sausage is so versatile and easy to use when you forget to defrost chicken or don’t have time to cut up and sauté the raw stuff! Since it’s precooked, all you have to do is warm it up in the microwave. It’s also great for hot summer nights when you don’t want to heat up the kitchen. So, I decided to try a new brand at Costco a few weeks ago (Benetino’s Smoked Mozzarella Chicken Sausages with Artichokes and Garlic – yum!) and made a delicious pasta dish with it!

This pasta is on the lighter side because it doesn’t have a thick sauce, but it’s still very flavorful since it’s packed with sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. My favorite kind of pasta dishes are those that contain both the veggie and protein components of your meal all in one pot!

Chicken Sausage Pasta with Broccoli and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound whole wheat penne pasta
8 cups frozen broccoli florets
5 chicken sausages, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Warm broccoli florets and chicken sausages in the microwave according to the package directions. Toss pasta with broccoli florets, chicken sausages, olive oil, vinegar, sun-dried tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 467 calories, 14.6g fat, 11.1g fiber, 29.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.48 per serving

Nope, this isn’t a recipe for chicken parm, although that’s what you’d think if you just saw the picture, but it was inspired by this Italian favorite. My hubby loves my chicken parm and loudly proclaims to anyone that will listen that he can never order it in a restaurant because my recipe is the best. It’s a rather cute compliment and he requests the dish all the time. I decided to mix things up a bit today by using Latin flavors. I knew I wanted to coat the chicken with plantains (one of my favorite ingredients lately!), and then it was only natural to top the plantain crusted chicken with salsa and cheddar cheese.

I told Apolinaras when I began making it that this could be a successful dish or a complete failure, because I wasn’t sure if the shredded plantains would stick to the chicken. I had three chicken breasts to play with and the first one didn’t turn out too well, because I didn’t have enough oil in the pan and the plantains stuck to the bottom. But, after adjusting for this problem, the second two came out perfectly! We usually cut our chicken parm pieces in half because they end up being so big, but Apolinaras ate a whole one, and then finished my extra half an hour later! We will definitely be adding this recipe into our chicken rotation.

Plantain Crusted Chicken
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 yellow plantains
2 chicken breasts
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Peel and shred plantains (I used the attachment on my food processor, they will be rather moist).

Place chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound with a flat mallet, until they are about 1/2-inch thick. Put the flour and salt in a shallow dish and mix well. Lightly dredge both sides of the chicken in the flour, and then use a spoon to spread the shredded plantains on one side.

Heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a small nonstick skillet. Place the chicken, plantain side down, in the pan. While the first side of chicken cooks, coat the top side of the chicken with shredded plantains. Turn the chicken over after two to four minutes, or until plantains are golden brown. Repeat with the remaining side and transfer to a 13×9-inch baking pan. Pour remaining tablespoon oil into the pan and repeat with the remaining chicken breast.

Evenly spread the salsa over the plantain crusted chicken and then evenly sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 371 calories, 12.3g fat, 2.5g fiber, 32.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.06 per serving

While I was visiting my parents in Des Moines last weekend, my mom and I put on our aprons and chef hats, and collaborated on this breakfast treat. She’s the first source I go to when I need any advice in the kitchen because she’s an awesome high school culinary arts teacher! Her classroom consists of several commercial kitchens and a café her students run, which is open to the public for lunch a few times a week. She not only prepares her students for a restaurant career or culinary school, but also takes them to national culinary competitions, where they cook or bake in teams or individually. I wish I could have taken her classes in high school! I’m hoping to convince her to write a guest blog post about her program and famous chocolate cake when her kids are back in school next year.

I already developed a pancake recipe with my mom in mind since she loves sweets for breakfast, so it was only natural that we come up with another breakfast treat. We decided Boston Cream Pie French Toast would be delicious and my mom had the brilliant idea of using soft dinner rolls to make little mini French Toast stacks! We cut each roll into 3 slices and cooked them up as French toast and then filled the layers with vanilla pudding and topped the stack with chocolate ganache. They tasted very indulgent, but are not really all that bad for you. We had ours with strawberries, but I think any kind of fresh fruit would also be great. Oh, and check out my mom’s cool strawberry fan – she’s always teaching me something!

Boston Cream Pie Mini French Toast Stacks
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 soft dinner rolls (ours were about 2 1/2 inches on each side), cut into 3 slices each
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup vanilla pudding (we made instant with 1 3/4 cup milk so it would be on the thick side)
8 strawberries, sliced

Directions:
Whisk 1/2 cup milk, eggs, and vanilla in a pie pan until smooth. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Working in batches, dip 12 roll slices into egg mixture on both sides and cook about 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

In small microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and remaining 1 tablespoon milk on high for 45 seconds, stirring once after 25 seconds, until melted.

To assemble the stacks, layer the first third of each roll, 2 tablespoons vanilla pudding, another third of the roll, 2 tablespoons pudding, and the final one third of the roll. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of chocolate ganache on top of each stack. Garnish with sliced strawberries. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 257 calories, 10.0g fat, 2.5g fiber, 8.4g protein per serving
Cost: $0.89 per serving

Happy 4th of July! I’m in Des Moines right now visiting my parents and we gobbled up some delicious hot dogs today. Apolinaras started laughing when I told him about my plan to come up with a great hot dog recipe, because he doesn’t think hot dogs are blog worthy. But I totally disagree, a good hot dog is a completely satisfying summer treat and it’s really the same as posting a unique sandwich recipe!

Anyway, these hot dogs are special because they’re coated in pretzels! I basically breaded them like you would for chicken parm and then served them on a bun topped with melted provolone, caramelized onions, and a tangy honey mustard sauce. The pretzels add a nice crunch and these dogs were SO good! Check out my mom’s super festive plates too – the only time you’ll see anything other than white is when I’m making a mess in her kitchen.  I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday weekend with their friends and family!

Pretzel Coated Hot Dogs with Caramelized Onions, Provolone, and Honey Mustard
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 beef hot dogs
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup crushed pretzels
2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 tablespoon honey
6 slices provolone cheese
4 whole wheat hot dog buns

Directions:
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a small pan. Add onions and cook 10 to 15 minutes or until caramelized, stirring frequently. Remove onions and add remaining olive oil to the pan.

Meanwhile, coat each hot dog heat in flour, then in the egg, and then in the pretzel crumbs. Brown hot dogs on all sides by cooking for 5 to 7 minutes over medium high heat or until golden brown and warmed.

Mix mustard, vinegar, and honey in a small bowl until well combined.

Preheat the oven broiler. Spread one and a half slices of cheese over each open hot dog bun. Toast in the broiler for 2 to 5 minutes or until buns are toasted and cheese is melted.

Assemble the hot dogs by placing one hot dog on each bun and topping each with the onions and honey mustard sauce.  Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 546 calories, 35.0g fat, 2.9g fiber, 22.9g protein per serving
Cost: $1.69 per serving

My problem on weekends is that I tend to sleep in until after noon and then half the day is already gone! Plus, then I end up not being able to fall asleep until very late on Sunday night, which makes it hard to get up on Monday morning. But, I struggle to change this habit for two reasons, 1.) maybe my body just needs the sleep? and 2.) I better enjoy it now because I’m sure I won’t be able to sleep in after we have kiddos! I’ve decided middle ground may be the way to go and got up by 10:30 both mornings this weekend. I was super productive and ran a bunch of errands and assembled my DIY light box!

I can’t believe I didn’t get around to putting this light box together earlier! My hubby bought the lights months ago when he volunteered to make my light box, but when I learned of his grand plans to use PVC pipe and curtains to make a huge lighting studio, I realized things had gotten a bit out of control. I found this site and made a cheap version myself. I’m still playing around with it, but it’s nice to finally feel like a real food blogger!

I also made this lovely salad this weekend. The flavors were inspired by the Salad of Hiramasa Sashimi course we had at our anniversary dinner at Craigie on Main. I made a caramelized shallot vinaigrette that I mixed with spinach, roasted beets, mango, avocado, and toasted pine nuts. I don’t make “fancy” salads very often at home, but I think this one is worth taking a few extra minutes to assemble! It was also my first time roasting beets and I can’t believe I haven’t done it before.

Roasted Beet, Mango, and Avocado Spinach Salad
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 large beet, scrubbed
1 cup chopped mango
1/2 avocado, chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon apricot jam
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups packed fresh spinach leaves
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Wrap beet in aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet, and roast in the oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until tender. Let cool for 10 minutes, then peel and slice into chunks.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and sauté shallots for 7 to 10 minutes or until caramelized. Cool to room temperature and whisk in remaining tablespoon olive oil, red wine vinegar, apricot jam, and salt.

Toss spinach leaves with vinaigrette, roasted beets, mango, and avocado, and top with toasted pine nuts. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 435 calories, 32.3g fat, 7.6g fiber, 6.5g protein per serving
Cost: $2.01 per serving

Have I professed my love of feta yet? You can probably tell from my recipes that I’m completely obsessed with goat cheese, but feta is a close second. My hubby always wonders what I’m going to do with the one and a half pound tubs of crumbled feta we get from Costco, but it always disappears really quickly! I crave veggies more in the summer and recently decided to make a roasted veggie tart. Eggplant and zucchini just remind me of summer! And the feta adds another layer of flavor and richness to the dish.

I made another chickpea crust to keep things on the lighter side. But, I mixed in some herbs and lemon zest this time. This is a very tasty way to sneak your veggies in and is also pretty enough to serve to company!

Roasted Eggplant, Zucchini, and Red Pepper Tart with Feta
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 eggplant, cut into small cubes
3 medium zucchini, cut into small cubes
2 red peppers, cut into small chunks
4 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Heat oven to 400ºF. Toss eggplant, zucchini, and red peppers in 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt and spread onto a large cookie sheet. Bake at 400ºF for 20 to 25 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Reduce oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Pulse chickpeas, flour, lemon zest, oregano, thyme, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in a food processor until soft dough forms. Spread dough evenly over the greased tart pan. Bake the crust for 20 to 25 minutes at 350ºF or until light golden brown.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a medium skillet. Add red onions and cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Remove from heat. Toss onions with other roasted veggies and feta cheese.

Bake at 350ºF for 20 to 25 minutes or until crust is set. Cool for 10 minutes. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 242 calories, 12.5g fat, 6.6g fiber, 7.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.98 per serving

Does anyone else hoard baking chips? My drawer is currently overflowing with regular chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, mini chocolate chips, mini M&Ms, regular M&Ms, Heath toffee chips, and Andes Crème de Menthe chips. And I recently used all my peanut butter chips! I don’t know what it is about the baking aisle. I feel the need to constantly replenish my chip stocks with different kinds even if I have no plans to use them in the near future. I guess I like keeping my options open!

This was actually my first time using Andes Crème de Menthe chips, and I really liked them. They taste just like Andes mints, which have been a favorite of mine since childhood. I would be happy just eating the remaining half of the bag straight on their own! I decided to pair the chips with pistachios that I ground up in the food processor. I like adding ground nuts instead of a bit of flour in cookies because it adds so much flavor. And, of course I made bar cookies because I’m too lazy to make individual cookies! I’m sure I’ll end up buying more chips the next time I’m at the store, too bad I still can’t find cinnamon chips!

Pistachio Mint Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup pistachios
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 cup Andes Crème de Menthe baking chips

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Lightly grease an 8×8-inch square pan. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar; mix in egg and vanilla.

Pulse pistachios in a food processor until ground. Stir in ground pistachios, flour, salt, and baking powder until soft dough forms. Stir in mint chocolate chips. Spread dough in bottom of the greased pan. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 23 minutes or until set. Cool for 30 minutes and cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Makes 16 servings.

Nutrition: 226 calories, 14.1g fat, 1.1g fiber, 3.3g protein per serving
Cost: $4.73 total

Please don’t judge this recipe by the picture. It’s not the best looking pasta dish to begin with and my hopeless photography skills definitely don’t help do it any justice, but I can guarantee you that it’s worth making! I was recently asked whether I usually end up trying new recipes or cooking old favorites during the week. You can probably tell from my blog that I’m always trying new dishes or experimenting with flavor combinations, but there are a few pasta dishes that I crave often and make at least once a month. One is my peanut sauce pasta and another is this toasted almond and roasted red pepper pesto pasta. Both are very comforting dishes that are so good that I inevitably end up sneaking back to kitchen to eat more forkfuls over the pot….

This recipe comes together in 20 minutes, so it’s perfect for a quick weeknight meal. The pesto is made of shallots, garlic, toasted almonds, roasted red peppers, and tomato sauce. I threw the fresh basil in because we have an abundance of it in our little balcony herb garden right now, but I’ve also made the pasta without it, so you don’t need to buy a package of basil just for this recipe. Goat cheese is perfect on top because the creaminess balances nicely with the crunch of the almonds. So simple, but so good!

Toasted Almond and Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Pasta
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound whole wheat fusilli pasta
1 1/2 cups (9 ounces) whole raw almonds
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 12-ounce jars roasted red peppers, drained
1 1/2 cups of your favorite tomato sauce (I’m a fan of Prego)
12 fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon salt
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta in a colander, return it to the pot, and keep warm.

Place almonds on a cookie sheet and toast for 10 minutes at 350ºF or until almonds are golden brown.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté shallots for 5 to 7 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Place toasted almonds, shallot mixture, red peppers, tomato sauce, basil, red pepper flakes, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until a smooth pesto forms. Toss pesto with pasta in a large pot until well mixed. Place pasta on serving dishes and garnish by sprinkling goat cheese over each serving. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 489 calories, 24.8g fat, 11.8g fiber, 17.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.28 per serving

I’ve been wanting to develop another dessert sushi recipe for awhile now since I know it’s something people are very interested in (my Fruit-Filled Coconut & Chocolate Dessert Sushi recipe gets more google hits than any other recipe by far on my blog). I finally found the perfect opportunity to do so this weekend when I noticed that Rachel at Coconut & Lime is having a contest to celebrate her five year blogoversary! She has 900 original recipes on her blog, which is quite inspiring. I was happy when I recently realized I had finally posted over 30 recipes and could register for Food Blog Search! Anyway, I decided to come up with a recipe using Rachel’s favorite ingredients, coconut and lime.

One of the first things that came to mind when I started thinking about this flavor combination was cheesecake. So, I made a chocolate dough that substituted for the “seaweed” and piled on a coconut and line cheesecake layer as the “rice” and then filled the roll with fruit. I just used kiwi and mango this time, but I like to use strawberries when we have them around. This recipe is a bit tricky, so definitely use it as a starting point. The amount of fruit I add varies a bit depending on the way it’s cut. I have a couple more dessert sushi ideas floating around my head, so don’t be surprised to see a few additional twists at some point!

Coconut & Lime Cheesecake Dessert Sushi
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
7 tablespoons granulated sugar
Juice of one lime
2 cups shredded coconut, toasted
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 ounces colorful fresh fruit, sliced into long strips
3 ounces milk chocolate, melted

Directions:
Mix cream cheese, 4 tablespoons sugar, and lime juice in a medium bowl until smooth. Stir in coconut.

Meanwhile, melt butter and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in the microwave for 1 minute on high. Stir in remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth; stir in flour and salt until a soft dough forms.

Roll chocolate dough into a 13-inch log and place down the middle of a large sheet of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper on top of the log and use a rolling pin to roll the log into a 13×6-inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of waxed paper.

Spread coconut and lime cheesecake mixture on top of chocolate dough rectangle in a 13×5.5-inch rectangle, leaving a 1/4-inch border on both long sides of the rectangle. Line up sliced fruit down the middle of the sushi roll and roll up dough into a cylinder like a “sushi roll” by lifting up waxed paper and sealing the ends of the dough together. Roll the roll on the counter and press together firmly. Remove waxed paper from the roll and carefully cut into 16 dessert sushi pieces with a sharp knife.

Place melted milk chocolate into small soy sauce containers. Serve dessert sushi with melted milk chocolate and eat with chopsticks! Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 317 calories, 19.2g fat, 1.9g fiber, 3.8g protein per serving
Cost: $3.42 total

There’s nothing better than sitting outside drinking margaritas and munching on guacamole and chips in the summer! We always order guac when we see it on a restaurant menu and I love to make it at home too since it comes together so quickly. Avocados are part of my hubby’s weightlifting diet, but he’s not allowed to have chips, so I thought it would be fun to come up with a more nutritious way to enjoy guacamole. I dreamed up these cute little black bean cups that are very healthy and flavorful!

I made the dough with black beans, cumin, whole wheat flour, and olive oil, and then pressed it into mini-muffin cups. Then I filled the little cups with this yummy Roasted Pepper Guacamole I saw on Culinary Wannabe’s lovely blog. I love the color and flavor the red peppers added to the guac! These adorable little appetizers are the perfect healthy treats to bring to a BBQ this summer!

Mini Bean Black Cups Stuffed with Guacamole
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup of your favorite guacamole

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray a 24 cup mini-muffin tray with cooking spray. Pulse black beans, flour, cumin, paprika, salt, and olive oil in a food processor until soft dough forms. Place dough evenly into the 24 mini-muffin cups and form mini-cups by spreading dough up the sides of each cup. Bake the cups for 15 to 20 minutes at 350ºF or until set. Cool completely, about 30 minutes, and fill cups evenly with guacamole. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 261 calories, 15.0g fat, 8.1g fiber, 7.2g protein per serving
Cost: $0.55 per serving

This recipe is for my mom. She love pancakes and considers them a breakfast treat. She would often make pancakes on the weekends while my brother and I were growing up and always took the extra time to spell out our names (7 pancakes – score!). She usually ended up making me two Ks, one to munch on while she finished the rest of the letters of my name, and one at the very end to replace the one I had already eaten! I don’t make pancakes very often, but when I do, I want them to be special. My mom also loves the Cheesecake Factory and goes there just about every weekend for Sunday brunch. So, this recipe combines her love of strawberry cheesecake and pancakes!

I usually use whole wheat flour in everything, but I’m not a fan of it in pancakes for some reason, so I tried white whole wheat flour for the first time and was pleased with the results. I added graham cracker crumbs and sliced strawberries to the pancake batter and then drizzled a cream cheese sauce on top instead of syrup. So good and I can’t wait to make these for my mom when we visit in July!

Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (3 crackers pulsed in the food processor)
2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sliced strawberries
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:
Mix the flour, graham cracker crumbs, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl. Stir in the egg, buttermilk, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract until just combined. Stir in the strawberries.

Pour 1/3 cup scoops of batter onto a greased nonstick skillet over medium heat. Flip the pancakes when bubbles start to appear on top, after about 3 minutes. Cook the other side until golden brown. Makes 6 pancakes.

Mix cream cheese, milk, and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon butter, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract in a small bowl until smooth. Drizzle over pancakes. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 423 calories, 21.8g fat, 2.6g fiber, 9.1g protein per serving
Cost: $0.78 per serving

When I was in New Orleans several months ago, I ordered a Crawfish Roll on a whim from one of the food vendors. I didn’t really know what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a yummy eggroll filled with a crawfish/seafood stuffing. It was so good and I knew I wanted to come up with a version to serve as an appetizer at home.

I’m 99% sure the eggroll was stuffed with grits (although I’d never had them before!), so this is my first attempt making them. I knew I didn’t want too must moisture in the filling, so I kept them on the drier side after cooking them, and then mixed in some Cajun spices, red peppers, green onions, and shrimp. I had a little leftover goat cheese so I mixed it with a bit of lime juice and served it on top!

Cajun Shrimp Rolls
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 green onions, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry yellow grits
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cooked shrimp, chopped
8 spring roll wrappers, thawed
2 ounces goat cheese
Juice of one lime

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium pan and sauté green onions and red peppers for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Remove from heat.

Combine grits and chicken stock in a small pot and bring mixture to a boil. Simmer for 5-10 minutes or until grits are tender. Stir in paprika, cayenne pepper, oregano, thyme, and salt. Mix in vegetable mixture and shrimp.

Evenly fill spring roll wrappers according to the package directions. Briefly, top each wrapper with an equal amount of shrimp mixture across the center, from point to point. Roll up bottom point, tuck in sides and roll up. Using moistened fingers, wet the last point and roll up to seal. Place rolls, sealed side down, on a large cookie sheet and bake at 350˚F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Meanwhile mix goat cheese and lime juice in a small bowl. Serve rolls with goat cheese mixture. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 143 calories, 3.6g fat, 0.8g fiber, 8.0g protein per serving
Cost: $1.07 per serving

Apolinaras and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary yesterday! I will restrain myself from being too mushy, but I will say I am thankful every day to be married to such incredible partner. He balances me out, reminds me what really matters, supports my ambitions, and will be the best father when we have kiddos.  I know I am one lucky girl!

To celebrate, we splurged on the six course tasting menu at Craigie on Main in Cambridge. We were both blown away by both the food and unpretentious service. We ended up being served six savory courses and three dessert courses, all of which featured seasonal ingredients from local farms. The highlight was when Chef Tony Maws personally delivered the last savory course (Pork Two Ways: organic grilled vermont suckling confit with a crispy skin and pork belly with barley couscous, fresh greens, and crispy shallots). Our other favorite courses were the Salad of Hiramasa Sashimi (with a gold beet-pine nut-mango salsa, avocado, whitefish roe, and shiso), Curry Oil-Poached and Roasted Dayboat Sea Scallops (with their roe and a ginger pineapple-marjoram sauce), and Crispy Tempura of Maryland Softshell Crabs (with fresh hearts of palm, cipollini onion, and a chorizo sauce). These descriptions do not do the food justice – everything was amazing! I also got to try geoduct and rabbit sausage for the first time and had my first poached egg served with a ragout. I’ve been scared of runny yolks my entire life, but I had already decided to be more adventurous than usual and eat everything they gave us, so I dug in and was surprised that it was rather tasty! The desserts were also excellent (tea-infused panna cotta, olive oil and chocolate mousse, peanut butter cookie sandwiches with grape coulis, and a chilled rhubab puree). Everything was phemonomial and I highly recommend it if you’re ever in the Boston area! They also have a bar and brunch menu, which we’re now eager to check out.

I also did a little celebratory cooking. Apolinaras requested my goat cheese risotto, which I stuffed with fresh asparagus and wild mushrooms for lunch yesterday and then I made a special treat for breakfast this morning –  Banana Bread French Toast Kabobs with Strawberries and Pineapple! The flavors were inspired by my mom’s favorite fruit salad of bananas, strawberries, and pineapple. I made my beloved Betty Crocker banana bread recipe (with 2 1/4 cups of whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose and walnuts), and then made it into French toast by dipping each slice in a mixture of buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla and toasting them up in a hot skillet. I threaded pieces of the French toast along with fresh strawberries and pineapple onto skewers and served it with syrup and a bit of yogurt with toasted coconut on top to dip the fruit into – yum! I thought it was a very cute presentation, but my practical hubby rolled his eyes a bit (“wouldn’t it be less work to serve everything separately?” – I have always loved his honest opinions!). So, perhaps these kabobs would appreciated a bit more at a girly event like a brunch bridal/baby shower!

Banana Bread French Toast Kabobs with Strawberries and Pineapple
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 slices of banana bread
1/2 cup low fat buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 strawberries, hulled
12 chunks of fresh pineapple

Directions:
Whisk buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract in a pie pan until smooth. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Dip banana bread into egg mixture on both sides and cook about 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Slice each piece of French toast into 1 inch squares and make kabobs by alternating a strawberry, chunk of pineapple, and two squares of French toast onto each skewer until fillled. Makes 4 kabobs (2 large servings). Serve with syrup and yogurt topped with toasted coconut, if desired.

Nutrition: 649 calories, 12.4g fat, 6.9g fiber, 21.4g protein per serving
Cost: $3.52 per serving

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Ours was very relaxing. I finally found our ice cream maker and whipped up a yummy strawberry-mango sorbet. We also had a date at Costco (Am I the only one that considers going to Costco together a date?), and came home with a rotisserie chicken since it was too nice outside to turn on the oven. I decided to develop a chicken cake recipe with the leftovers – crab shouldn’t have all the fun! The flavors were inspired by all the mouth-watering Mexican dishes on Pam’s blog, For the Love of Cooking.

I just took the chicken off the bones with my hands and tore it up and then mixed it with some mashed avocado, red onion, and spices. Then I covered the outside of each cake with some panko crumbs so they would be crispy on the outside, browned them in a little olive oil, and topped each one with a bit of salsa. I realized looking over these pictures that I need to work on my food styling skills – there is salsa all over the plate! We were starving though, so I’m lucky I got any pictures at all. This is a great way to spice up any leftover chicken and I think the cakes would also be really good on top of a salad with corn and black beans!

Avocado Chicken Cakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped red onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups cooked shredded chicken
1/2 avocado, mashed (mine was a little less than 1/2 cup)
1 cup panko
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
5 tablespoons of your favorite salsa

Directions:

Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and sauté onions for 5-7 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

In medium bowl, mix together the shredded chicken, onion mixture, avocado, 1/3 cup panko, cumin, paprika, oregano, salt, and egg. Shape mixture into 5 cakes that are 1/2-inch thick; lightly coat all sides of each cake in the remaining 2/3 cup panko.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a nonstick skillet. Add 2 chicken cakes and cook until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and 3 chicken cakes. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of salsa over each chicken cake. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 468 calories, 13.9g fat, 1.8g fiber, 45.3g protein per serving
Cost: $2.15 per serving

Having just visited San Diego last fall for our friend Renee’s wedding, I decided to take it easy on the tourist attractions during this trip and instead use my time off from the conference to unwind. I slept in late, ate breakfast while enjoying the amazing views from my hotel balcony, lounged by the pool, did a little shopping in the Gaslamp Quarter, and even caught a movie. But the best part was that I was able to visit with several of my friends who now live in San Diego – Renee, who I’ve known since second grade, and Yaling and Clark, who I went to grad school with in Chicago.

I also had some fabulous food. After my talk on Friday, I went to Osetra Watergrill with several colleagues, where I savored every bite of their tempura-dipped spinach-wrapped tuna. I met Renee and her hubby Max on Saturday at Red Pearl Kitchen, which had excellent cocktails including the Red Pearl, a mix of pomegranate vodka, champagne, cranberry and pineapple juice. We also went to Extraordinary Desserts, which had several cases full of gorgeous treats. I had carrot cake, my absolute favorite (it was one of the cake flavors at our wedding), and it was amazing! Yaling and Clark treated me to dinner at Sushi Ota on Sunday night. Everything was beyond incredible (order the salmon belly!). The right side of my brain is already spinning with new recipe ideas, but today’s recipe is inspired by another place I look forward to going to for breakfast when I travel – McDonald’s.

Yes, McDonald’s! I will admit that I love their Egg and Sausage Biscuit sandwiches but only indulge when I have travel because they have 510 calories and 33g of fat – ouch! I decided to come up with a version I could enjoy anytime that is a bit more nutritious and used some of my favorite ingredients – goat cheese, mushrooms, and turkey bacon.  Now I can look forward to having a yummy breakfast sandwich every weekend!

Egg, Bacon, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 slices turkey bacon
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 ounce goat cheese
2 whole wheat English muffins, toasted

Directions:
Cook bacon in large skillet over medium high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet; drain on paper towel. Cut each strip in half.

Clean out skillet and add olive oil. Saute mushrooms and onions for 5 to 7 minutes over medium high heat or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Spray small skillet with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Whisk eggs, 1 tablespoon milk, and salt, in a small bowl and add to the skillet. Cook until eggs are set on the bottom and bubbly on top. Cut in half and turn eggs over to finish cooking until eggs are set.

Mix remaining 1 tablespoon milk with goat cheese in a small bowl until smooth.

Spread goat cheese mixture on bottom half of the muffins. Top with the mushroom mixture, followed by the eggs and bacon. Cover with top halves of muffins. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 313 calories, 14.4g fat, 5.8g fiber, 19.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.17 per serving

I’m back from San Diego and it was quite the trip! I’m already looking forward to going through my pictures and posting a recap this weekend, but for now, all I want to do is curl up and go to sleep. For some reason I thought it would be a great idea to take the red-eye back to Boston on Sunday night so I’d be able to go into work on Monday. I can usually fall asleep anywhere, including planes, but there was turbulence the entire time and I didn’t get a wink of sleep at all! I’m not the best flyer to begin with because I get motion sick and a little nervous (my physics loving hubby always makes fun of my fear of mechanical failure), so you can imagine how much I enjoyed the flight. I was just exhausted by the time we landed at 7am and took a long nap before going to work, but I’m still tired today. I was actually in the mood to cook something tonight though after eating out for so many days in a row. So, here is a quick and healthy shrimp fried rice recipe that is filling enough to be a main dish.

I make this recipe all the time and it comes together in 20 minutes because the prep time just involves chopping up a few green onions and then adding frozen edamame, corn, and red peppers from my favorite Trader Joe’s  succotash mix. On nights I don’t want to get out the rice cooker, I make the 10 minute boil-in-a-bag Success brand brown rice to speed things along. I also like using precooked shrimp to save time (I always have a huge bag from Costco in the freezer because they are great to throw on salads). It was so nice to fill up on something homemade and nutritious after feeling bloated from so many restaurant meals loaded with salt! Don’t get me wrong, we had some amazing meals that have inspired a few recipe ideas, but there’s nothing better than returning home after a long trip!

Shrimp Fried Rice with Edamame, Corn, and Red Pepper Succotash
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 bag Trader Joe’s frozen succotash
2 eggs
4 cups cooked brown rice
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
3 cups frozen precooked shrimp

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and sauté onions for 2 to 3 minutes or until soft. Add frozen succotash and heat for an additional minute or until thawed. Crack eggs into the pan and stir constantly until eggs are cooked through and scrambled. Add rice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and shrimp, and stir until all components are well mixed and the shrimp is warmed through.  Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 430 calories, 13.9g fat, 6.8g fiber, 30.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.80 per serving

It’s Wednesday night, and if all goes well, this post will go live on Friday. I’m leaving for San Diego early tomorrow morning for another work conference and thought I’d see how the scheduled post function works! Hopefully by the time you’re reading this, I’ll be all done with my talk and relaxing by the pool! I’m very excited that I’ll get to see two of my very good friends who live in San Diego, and of course, I’m already looking forward to our meals together at their favorite restaurants. I’m not even entirely dreading the long flight because I know I’ll be fairly well entertained between the TVs on JetBlue and the two new foodie books I got from the library (Spiced and The Omnivore’s Dilemma).

I’ve been meaning to post this risotto recipe for awhile now. My hubby said it was one of the best dishes I’ve ever made! We have a little rating system for my blog. Both my hubby and I give every recipe a score, and only those that receive an 8 or above from both of us are posted. And believe me, he’s a tough critic! There are several recipes that he’s given a 5 or 6 that I’ve had to go back and rework before posting. Sometimes he’ll tell me specific ingredients he thinks should be added or subtracted (“mushrooms, it needs mushrooms” or “way too much lime juice”) and sometimes his comments are more general and less helpful (“it’s ok, but nothing special”). I love his honest feedback though, and I think he truly enjoys being quality control. He gave this risotto a 9.5, which is very high for him. This is the kind of dish that we fight over who gets to take the leftovers to work. My favorite part is that it tastes completely indulgent and bad for you, but really isn’t too naughty.

I’ve professed my love of goat cheese before, and knew it would be lovely in a creamy risotto. I added a base layer of flavor with shallots and garlic, and then stuffed it full of zucchini and yellow squash. It’s the perfect summer risotto, and one that I’ll definitely be making again. Ok, off to pack!

Goat Cheese Risotto with Yellow Squash and Zucchini
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 yellow squashes, chopped
2 zucchinis, chopped
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup chopped shallots
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup Arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock
4 ounces goat cheese
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pan and sauté squash and zucchini until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, melt butter over medium-high heat in a large stockpot. Sauté the shallots for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté for an additional minute. Add the rice and stir until well-coated and translucent. Reduce heat to medium and stir in 1 cup of chicken stock. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the stock has been absorbed; add another cup and continue in this way until all the chicken stock has been absorbed, for about 30 minutes. Stir in the goat cheese and salt and simmer an additional 5 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. Stir in squash and zucchini. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 355 calories, 13g fat, 2.9g fiber, 11.9g protein per serving
Cost: $2.64 per serving

My parents flew in from Des Moines this weekend to visit us for Mother’s Day! We visited the aquarium and the longest continuous running restaurant in the US, the Union Oyster House, and also watched a Red Sox game and toured the Sam Adams Brewery (which my hubby loudly proclaimed was much more fun than going to a museum…yep, you get free beer!). On Sunday, I made a simple Mother’s Day brunch before they left. The weekend just flew by and I already miss them!

My dad is a baseball nut and loved checking out such a historic stadium. Even though the guys had sore knees by the end of the game due to the tight seating (my mom is the baby of the group at 5’10”), we all enjoyed the game. The Red Sox were trailing by three runs until the sixth inning when they scored two home runs and brought five people home. One of the homers sailed over the Green Monster, which is the nickname of the super high left field wall at Fenway that prevents many home runs. Of course, when I think Monster, I think Monster Cookies! I really wanted to create a fun Green Monster Cookie, and although my cookies didn’t turn out bright green, they were quite tasty!

I’ve always imagined that Monster Cookies were born when someone whipped up a batch of cookies with whatever ingredients they could find in the pantry that day. I followed this strategy by poking through my cupboards last night and looking for ingredients to use. I ground up some almonds and green tea, and then mixed in coconut and oats. I was a little disappointed the green tea didn’t tint the cookies green, but the layers of flavor were wonderful and I love the playfulness of the green M&Ms on top!

Green Monster Cookies
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup almonds
2 tablespoons green tea
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup green M&Ms

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Lightly grease an 8×8-inch square pan. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar; mix in egg and vanilla.

Pulse almonds and green tea in a food processor until ground. Stir ground almonds and green tea, flour, oats, salt, baking powder, and coconut into the wet ingredients until soft dough forms. Spread dough in bottom of the greased pan. Sprinkle M&Ms evenly on top and press lightly into the dough. Bake 20 to 23 minutes or until set. Cool for 30 minutes and cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Makes 16 servings.

Nutrition: 186 calories, 10.6g fat, 2.0g fiber, 2.8g protein per serving
Cost: $3.45 total

I’m not one of those people that can ignore hunger pains. I get super cranky when my tummy is growling and can’t concentrate. So whenever I end up working late, I take a short break and head over to the Au Bon Pain in the hospital to buy dinner. My intention is always to get a healthy salad, but it almost never happens. When I’m tired and wishing I could have left work hours ago, I crave comfort food, which for me, is a nice big bowl of creamy broccoli and cheddar soup and a piece of focaccia!

It was dreary and drizzling all week and I knew I wanted to make a nice big pot of comforting soup to enjoy. This recipe was inspired by a recent trip to Trader Joe’s where I found a package of super cute mini-ravioli. I always find some amazing new ingredient there!  All the fresh veggies really brighten up this soup and the mini-ravioli and cream make it very filling. I rarely cook with cream, but I had some left over from the ganache I made earlier, and didn’t want it to go to waste. I noticed Cara uses low fat cottage cheese to make her asparagus soup super creamy, so I’m definitely going to try that next time!

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Florentine Soup with Mini-Ravioli
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 vine-ripened tomatoes, cut in half
4 red peppers, cut into fourths
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 leeks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups Trader Joe’s mini-ravioli
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 cups (4 ounces) fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Preheat the broiler. Place sliced tomatoes and red peppers on a large cookie sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Toss the veggies to make sure they are evenly coated with the oil and broil for 5 to 8 minutes, turning once, or until blackened. Discard any extra liquid, peel the veggies, and let cool.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large stockpot and sauté chopped leeks for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Place roasted tomatoes, red peppers, and sauted leeks in a food processor and pulse until well blended. Pour blended veggies back into stockpot and add chicken stock and salt. Bring the soup to a boil and add mini-ravioli. Boil for 15 minutes or until mini-ravioli are tender. Add cream and spinach and stir until spinach has wilted. Makes 6 servings. Garnish with feta cheese.

Nutrition: 403 calories, 19.9g fat, 5.0g fiber, 15.6g protein per serving
Cost: $2.20 per serving

I fell in love with cardamom a few years ago when I started drinking chai and have found it’s also lovely in baked goods. While perusing the fridge this weekend for something to satisfy my sweet tooth, I noticed the low-sugar orange marmalade my hubby enjoys and was inspired to make cookies flavored with orange and cardamom!

I’m a huge fan of bar cookies since they come together so quickly and decided to spice a simple sugar cookie dough with orange zest and cardamom. The bars made our place smell so good as they were baking. After they cooled I spread melted orange marmalade on top and then topped that layer with a chocolate ganache. They’re quite tasty and the cardamom really comes through. It you haven’t baked with cardamom before, I’d suggest starting with 1/2 teaspoon for the batch and then adding more if you end up liking it as much as I do! I’m desperately trying to distract myself right now, so I won’t end up eating another one!

Orange Cardamom Chocolate Bars
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
1/2 cup orange marmalade, melted
3/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Grease an 8×8-inch square pan. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Mix in egg and vanilla; stir in flour, salt, baking powder, cardamom, and orange zest until soft dough forms. Spread dough in bottom of a greased pan. Bake 20 to 23 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Spread melted marmalade evenly over cooled bars. Refrigerate about 15 minutes or until marmalade is set.

In small microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and heavy whipping cream uncovered on high 1 minute, stirring once after 30 seconds, until melted. Spread evenly over marmalade layer. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until chocolate ganache is set. Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Makes 16 bars.

Nutrition: 214 calories, 10.1g fat, 0.9g fiber, 2.1g protein per serving
Cost: $3.75 total

This weekend was lovely in Boston and my hubby and I took full advantage of the unusually warm weather by taking a long walk around our neighborhood. We live within a 5 minute stroll of many shops and restaurants and one of our favorites is a small family-owned meat market called McKinnon’s. They have every cut of meat imaginable and a nice selection of fresh seafood. We always end up with some sort of impulse purchase when we visit, and this weekend was no exception – I picked up a package of mussels! I had never prepared mussels before, so I was a little intimidated, but decided to go for it anyway. There’s nothing worse than ruining an expensive ingredient, but luckily everything went smoothly after I did a little research on the internet and found this site explaining how to properly clean and debeard them.

Coming up with an idea for the sauce was much easier because I knew I wanted to use coconut milk and curry paste. One of our favorite restaurants in Chicago, Opera, used to serve mussels in an amazing coconut curry sauce and we’ve missed this tasty appetizer ever since we moved to Boston! It was nice to enjoy one of our favorite dishes for a fraction of what it would have cost in a restaurant.  Mussels will definitely be on our list the next time we go to McKinnon’s!

Coconut Curry Mussels
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
1 14-ounce can light coconut milk
Juice of one lime
1 teaspoon red curry paste
1 stalk lemongrass
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large stockpot and sauté red peppers and greens onions for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add coconut milk, lime juice, red curry paste, lemongrass, ginger, and salt to the pot and bring mixture to a boil. Add mussels and boil until mussels open, about 5 minutes. Discard any mussels that do not open. Place the mussels in two serving bowls and continue to simmer the sauce for 5 to 10 minutes or until it reduces and thickens a bit. Remove lemongrass and pour sauce over mussels. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 287 calories, 21.3g fat, 3.0g fiber, 12.7g protein per serving (assuming you finish all the sauce!)
Cost: $3.00 per serving

Back in February, our friend Catherine invited us to stay at her family’s house by the Berkshire East Ski Resort. It was only my third time skiing, having grown up in the flat Midwest, and I’m a bit of a klutz, so I was cautiously looking forward to it. Catherine’s boyfriend Jonathan, a skiing phenomenon who just missed making the US Olympic team, gave me a lesson and by the end of the day I could actually get off the ski lift without falling off and make it down all the green runs successfully. It was an amazing experience and now I’ve got a bit of the ski bug and can’t wait to go again next year! Everyone in Catherine’s family was so warm and hospitable and we felt right at home!

After a long day on the slopes, Catherine’s mom served us a fantastic Italian meatball lasagna. I had never had lasagna with meatballs in it before and loved how cute and tasty they were and immediately knew I was going to come up with a version at home. I finally got around to experimenting with this idea and decided to do a twist on her recipe and pack my lasagna with Greek flavors!

Now, this is not a quick and easy weeknight dish. Multiple steps are involved and it takes some time, but I think it is completely worth it! I like to put cooked veggies in my meatballs because I think it helps keep them moist, so I packed the meatballs with onions, red peppers, and garlic, and layered the lasagna with the mini-meatballs, roasted eggplant and zucchini, ricotta, and feta. Yum – it was super tasty and filling and I’ve already looking forward to leftovers!

Greek Meatball Lasagna with Roasted Eggplant and Zucchini
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2-inch thick rounds
2 zucchinis, sliced into 1/2-inch thick rounds
1/4 cup olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
2 eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons ground oregano
1 package whole wheat lasagna noodles
1 15-ounce package part-skim ricotta
5 cups of your favorite tomato sauce
2 cups crumbled feta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Place sliced eggplant and zucchini on a large cookie sheet and drizzle with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Toss the veggies to make sure they are evenly coated with the oil and bake at 450ºF for 20 to 25 minutes or until roasted.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and sauté chopped onions and red pepper for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Let cool to room temperature.

Reduce oven heat to 350ºF. Place cooled onion and pepper mixture with ground turkey, 1 egg, breadcrumbs, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon oregano in a large bowl and knead until well combined. Roll into 35 small meatballs (will be about 1 1/4-inches in diameter) and place onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350ºF for 20 to 25 minutes or until no longer pink in the center.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook lasagna noodles according to the directions on the package. Mix the ricotta, remaining egg, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon oregano in a medium bowl until smooth.

To assemble the lasagna, place a layer of 4 noodles in a greased 13×9-inch pan and top it with half the ricotta mixture, half the roasted veggies, all the meatballs, 3 cups tomato sauce, and 1 cup feta. Top this layer with 4 more noodles, the remaining half of the ricotta mixture, the remaining half of the roasted veggies, 2 cups tomato sauce, and 1 cup feta. Then place the remaining 4 noodles on top and sprinkle evenly with all mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350ºF for 45 minutes or until cheese is melted on top. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 442 calories, 21.6g fat, 5.6g fiber, 29.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.56 per serving

When I got home from New Orleans this week, I found 3 salmon filets that my hubby had defrosted in the fridge. Apolinaras is a great cook and loves to grill and throw meals together with whatever is laying around. Because he doesn’t ever follow recipes or write things down, he’s never able to quite recreate the same dish twice. But, he has several variations on a theme he routinely makes that are quite good, like pasta with garlic, cheese, and shrimp, and spicy turkey patties with couscous. He’s always very proud when I come home to a delicious dinner he’s prepared that is ready to eat – I know I’m a lucky girl! He has not, however, tackled cooking fish yet, because he’s afraid of over cooking it and drying it out. Whenever I try to show him how easy it is, he tells me I cook it perfectly and makes one of his cute faces that makes me heart melt. He’s wiggled his way out of learning so far, but I am determined to teach him eventually!

Anyway, when I saw the defrosted salmon, I knew it was a present for me. I decided to make a citrus and soy sauce marinade with garlic and ginger. While the salmon finished cooking in the oven, I reduced the marinade to make a thick sauce to spoon over the top of the cooked salmon. I love the variety of frozen veggie mixes at Trader Joe’s and recently discovered one called the Brittany Blend, which is a mix of green beans, wax beans, and baby carrots. I steamed an entire package and served it alongside the salmon. It was a super healthy meal that came together in no time at all.

Citrus Glazed Salmon
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup orange juice
Juice of one lemon (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon honey
2 garlic cloves, chopped
3 salmon filets (7 ounces each)

Directions:
Whisk together orange juice, lemon juice, soy sauce, ginger, honey, and garlic, and marinate salmon filets for 20 minutes to an hour in the fridge.

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and sear the salmon filets on both sides. Bake salmon for 10 min at 350ºF or until no longer raw in the center. Meanwhile, add marinade to the skillet and boil for 10 minutes, or under reduced to desired consistency.

Nutrition: 378 calories, 14.7g fat, 0.4g fiber, 47.5g protein per serving
Cost: $2.71 per serving

I had gumbo with chicken and Andouille sausage for dinner tonight, followed by hot chocolate and beignets – yep, I’m in New Orleans! I’m here for a scientific conference and walked around the city tonight for a couple hours after my talk this afternoon. I was stressed about the talk (which thankfully, went really well!), so it great to finally blow off some steam!

There’s a music festival in the French Quarter this weekend with over 150 bands playing on 17 different stages, so it was really fun people watching – everyone was dancing and chowing down on food and drinks from the various vendors. I still have “When the Saints Go Marching In” stuck in my head! I had a bowl of gumbo, and then went back and got another because it was so good. I know, I know, I should have sampled something different, but I just couldn’t help myself! I’ll have to check out some other New Orleans’ favorites tomorrow. I’m already looking forward to the extra beignets I snagged for breakfast tomorrow.

After having all that delicious gumbo, I was inspired to post one of my favorite soup recipes. Black bean soup is so flavorful and healthy. It’s definitely not the most beautiful meal out there, but it’s a tasty one pot meal that involves minimal clean up!

Spicy Black Bean Soup with Turkey Bacon
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
8 slices turkey bacon
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 carrots, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken stock
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions:
Cook turkey bacon, 4 pieces at a time, in a large stockpot over medium heat. Remove cooked bacon and crumble. Add olive oil to the same pan the bacon was cooked in and sauté carrots and onions until soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Add chicken stock, black beans, cumin, salt, crushed red pepper flakes, and bacon, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender and puree to desired smoothness (I like to leave mine a tad chunky!). Mix red wine vinegar and corn starch in a small dish, and add to the soup. Simmer another 5 minutes or until desired thickness is reached. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 344 calories, 9.7g fat, 11.6g fiber, 20.0g protein per serving
Cost: $0.69 per serving

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter! I hit up the candy aisle to see if I could find some Easter candy on sale this weekend and was disappointed that almost everything was already sold out! Only the small regular solid chocolate eggs were left – they just can’t compete with Reese’s peanut butter, Nestle crunch, or Butterfinger eggs! I almost walked away. Regular chocolate eggs didn’t seem too exciting, but then I was struck by their uniformity. Suddenly inspired, I scooped up a pack and raced over to the produce section to pick up some plantains.

You see, I’ve been thinking about gnocchi lately. I fell in love with this recipe for sweet potato gnocchi with a brown butter and sage sauce a few years ago and when I bought plantains last week for my Caramelized Plantain Dessert Quesadillas, I was thinking I should try to make a few into gnocchi. Plantains have a high starch content like potatoes do, so I figured they would also hold together well as gnocchi. I didn’t get around to it, but the thought was still lingering with me when I was looking at the little chocolate Easter eggs, and I was suddenly inspired to stuff them into plantain gnocchi as a dessert! Now, while I was excited about this concept, I didn’t really expect this crazy idea to work – most of my crazy ideas end in a pile of inedible food going down the garbage disposal. So, you can imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when everything came together on the first try.

I made the gnocchi with green, yellow, and black-brown plantains, since I wasn’t sure if the starch content would affect the ability of the gnocchi to hold together. The gnocchi cooked up nicely with all three kinds, but the ones from black-brown ones tasted the best since they’re a little sweeter. Then I rolled the dough out, cut it into squares, and sealed each piece around a chocolate egg. They cooked up beautifully and warm chocolate oozed out when I cut them in half. I tossed the chocolate stuffed gnocchi with this delicious strawberry sauce I saw on Meghan’s blog, You’re Gonna Bake It After All. Definitely not your typical dessert, but pretty tasty. I think I’m going to make the gnocchi again without the chocolate and with a savory sauce of some sort!

Chocolate-Filled Plantain Dessert Gnocchi
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 black-brown plantains, cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 bag of chocolate Easter eggs
1/2 cup of your favorite fruit sauce

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Boil the plantains for 10 minutes or until tender. Remove from the pan and mash thoroughly in a medium bowl.

After letting mashed plantains cool for 10 minutes, mix in the egg. Mix in flour, about 1/2 cup at a time, until soft dough forms (you may need to add a little more flour, depending on the size of your plantains).

Turn dough out onto floured surface; use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large square and then cut the square into 2×2-inch squares. Place a chocolate egg into the middle of each square of dough and seal the chocolate inside the dough.

Bring large pot of water to boil. Working in batches, boil gnocchi until they are tender and float to the top, 3 to 5 minutes. Mix gnocchi with your favorite fruit sauce. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 281 calories, 8.2g fat, 2.5g fiber, 5.3g protein per serving
Cost: $2.68 total

I’m on the hunt for new chicken recipes. We’ve been eating more poultry than usual lately due to my hubby’s weightlifting diet. While I haven’t joined him in slurping down protein shakes and chowing down on egg whites every morning, I try to keep things interesting for him at dinner by cooking a variety of chicken recipes. His hard work is definitely paying off – his favorite pair of jeans fell off the other day! I’m really proud of him and especially happy that he is now able to give me a bunch of tips in the gym. I’ve been lifting the same way since college and have always wanted to get a personal trainer to teach me some new moves, but now my hubby is knowledgeable enough to customize my workout for me! He helped me modify my squat technique last weekend and I was sore for 3 days. Every step hurt and for once we were both in need of some high-protein chicken!

This is a great chicken dish because it can be thrown together in less than 10 minutes. I just spread a mixture of lemon juice and mustard over the top of the chicken breasts, and then sprinkled a crispy topping of panko, pecans, lemon zest, and thyme on top. It’s super fast and flavorful.

Pecan Crusted Chicken with Lemon and Thyme
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons mustard
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/3 cup panko
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Zest of one lemon, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Mix lemon juice and mustard in a small dish. Place chicken breasts on a cookie sheet and cover evenly with mustard mixture.

Mix panko, pecans, lemon zest, thyme, and salt in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over chicken; press down into the mustard mixture. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 404 calories, 14.4g fat, 2.1g fiber, 57.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.87 per serving

I recently read about Sugar High Fridays on Heather’s blog Diary of a Fanatic Foodie. It’s a fun monthly event dreamed up by Jennifer at The Domestic Goddess, where bloggers post an original dessert recipe. When I read Heather’s theme this month was desserts inspired by your favorite travel destinations, I immediately knew I wanted to create a recipe with caramelized plantains. Plantains are used in savory and sweet dishes in the Caribbean and are especially yummy when they are fried and coated with cinnamon and sugar. They are 100x better than caramelized bananas!

I decided to caramelize the plantains in the oven instead of frying them, and then layer them between Nutella and whole wheat tortillas. I brushed the quesadillas with butter and cinnamon and sauted them on both sides, until they turned golden brown and the cinnamon was baked into the tortillas, and then topped them with some chopped strawberry “salsa.” Each bite took me back to the beaches and flavors of the Caribbean! I really enjoyed coming up with this recipe and look forward to future Sugar High Fridays!

Caramelized Plantain Dessert Quesadillas with Nutella
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 black-brown plantains, sliced into 3/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup Nutella
2 whole wheat tortillas
3 strawberries, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Mix 1 tablespoon butter, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and brown sugar in a small dish. Mix butter and sugar mixture with sliced plantains in an 8-inch square baking dish. Bake at 350ºF for 20 minutes or until plantains are caramelized.

Spread Nutella evenly over tortillas. Top Nutella on one tortilla with caramelized plantains (you will probably have a few extra pieces to enjoy on their own!) and then place the remaining tortilla on top, Nutella side down.

Mix remaining 1 tablespoon butter and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a small dish. Use a pastry brush to evenly coat one side of the quesadilla. Place the quesadilla, buttered side down, in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, brush remaining butter on the other side of the quesadilla. Flip over and sauté the other side as well. Cool slightly and cut into wedges. Serve with strawberry “salsa,” if desired. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 230 calories, 10.0g fat, 3.6g fiber, 3.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.88 total

I was super excited when the lovely folks at POM Wonderful asked if I would be interested in sampling their pomegranate juice a few weeks ago. I’d noticed so many great pomegranate juice recipes on the blogosphere, and couldn’t wait to try a few. The juice is really delicious and packs a nutritional punch. It’s so good, in fact, that it all somehow disappeared before I had the chance to develop a recipe with it! I replenished our stock and hid the new bottle in the back of our fridge where my hubby doesn’t poke around.

I decided to keep things simple and do a twist on the classic lime rickey. I had never heard of a lime rickey before moving to the East Coast. It’s a traditional New England beverage that is served at all the little beach places on the coast. It’s usually a mix of club soda, lime juice, and simple syrup. I wasn’t in the mood for a super sweet drink, so I decided to skip the simple syrup step and just mix a little seltzer water, pomegranate juice, and fresh lime juice. It was very refreshing and I enjoyed mine with a splash of gin!  Thanks POM Wonderful!

Pomegranate Lime Rickey
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup pomegranate juice
1/2 cup seltzer water
Juice of half a lime
1/4 cup gin, if desired

Directions:
Mix all ingredients. Makes 1 serving.

Nutrition: 80 calories, 0.0g fat, 0.2g fiber, 0.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.28 total

We have a serious hummus/pita bread ratio problem at our house. Whenever we get a tub of hummus from Trader Joe’s and a pack of pita, the hummus disappears before we’re done with the pita bread! Most of the time I discover the poor forgotten pita in the back of the fridge weeks later. Well, this time I was determined not to let it go to waste, and whipped up this hummus to enjoy with it.

I recently saw a sweet potato and black bean burrito on a restaurant menu, which sounded like a fabulous flavor combination. We are big fans of sweet potatoes and black beans and always have both ingredients in our pantry. I combined mashed sweet potatoes and black beans with some lime juice and adobo sauce for extra kick. Very simple, but really good – I’m now looking forward to next time we have extra pita bread lying around so I have an excuse to make this again!

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Hummus
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes (from 2 cooked sweet potatoes, skins removed)
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon adobo sauce from a can of chipotle peppers (or to taste)
Juice of 1 lime
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Pulse sweet potatoes, black beans, adobo sauce, lime juice, olive oil, and salt in a food processor until well blended. Serve with pita bread! Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 89 calories, 2.5g fat, 3.6g fiber, 3.2g protein per serving
Cost: $2.72 total

My hubby found the lid of our food processer in the recycling today. How in the world did it get in there?!? Luckily he noticed it before emptying our bin on the curb and disaster was avoided. I haven’t gotten enough sleep this week, and apparently it caught up with me! Whenever I’m having a super busy week, I go on autopilot in the kitchen and whip up a simple pasta dish that takes care of both the protein and veggie components of the meal.

I make this dish at least once a month and always have all the ingredients on hand because it’s one my favorites! Hearty whole wheat penne, chicken, and broccoli florets are coated in a light and spicy peanut sauce. Simple, easy, delicious.

Peanut Sauce Pasta with Chicken and Broccoli
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound whole wheat penne pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
8 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 1/2 cups cold chicken stock
2 tablespoons cornstarch
6 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (or to taste)
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked and no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken from pan. Meanwhile, prepare broccoli in the microwave according to the package directions.

Mix chicken stock and cornstarch together in a small bowl. Add soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, honey, and crushed red pepper; mix well and add peanut butter.

Pour sauce mixture into skillet the chicken was cooked in and heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, or until peanut butter melts, and sauce thickens and bubbles. Mix pasta, sauce, chicken, and broccoli, and stir until sauce evenly coats all the ingredients. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 508 calories, 14.7g fat, 8.g fiber, 36.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.01 per serving

We rarely order pizza or make it at home, because I get free pizza at lunch meetings at least two times a week at work. This is a very common perk in science, and I’m sure I could find pizza to eat at seminars every day if I hunted around enough! But, I actually started craving pizza after Maria recommended this whole wheat crust recipe. I loved this dough because it was very tasty and easy to throw together. You just mix and knead the dough in the food processor and only have to let it rest for 20 minutes, which is just enough time to prepare all the other ingredients.

I decided to focus on one of my favorite ingredients for this pizza – goat cheese. It just makes everything better in my opinion! While I enjoy traditional pizzas with dollops of goat cheese used as one of the toppings, it’s just not enough for me – I want to taste the goat cheese in every bite! In this pizza, I replaced the traditional pizza sauce with a thick goat cheese spread and then loaded it up with some garlicy veggies on top. It was so good that I may actually start craving homemade pizza more often!

Goat Cheese Pizza with Spinach, Mushrooms, and Tomatoes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 pound of your favorite pizza dough
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 8-ounce package fresh sliced mushrooms
1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups fresh spinach (4 ounces)
6 ounces goat cheese
6 tablespoons milk
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped red onions
1 tomato, chopped
1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Heat oven to 500˚F. Prepare pizza dough. Heat oil in nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until mushrooms are tender, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and spinach and sauté 1-2 more minutes or until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat.

Mix goat cheese, milk, parmesan cheese, and salt in a small bowl until smooth. Spread pizza dough into desired shape. Spread goat cheese mixture evenly over crust. Top evenly with mushroom and spinach mixture, red onions, and tomato. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Bake at 500˚F for 10 – 14 minutes or until crust is deep golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 267 calories, 11.9g fat, 3.4g fiber, 14.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.04 per serving

My kitchen is currently overflowing with Pillsbury brownie mixes and refrigerated cookie dough. Don’t worry, I’m not just looking for a sugar high  - I’ve just started working on recipes for the 44th Pillsbury Bake-Off! Recipes are due April 20 and I encourage all my fellow food bloggers to enter. You’re such a creative bunch and you only need one good idea to win a trip to Orlando and the chance to compete for $1 million!

When I got the exciting call I was a finalist for the last Bake-Off, I was sure that this coffee cake recipe was the one they picked…it wasn’t, but I promise it’s really delicious and super easy to make. It’s also very versatile – you can easily change the kinds of nuts and fruit you use. My mom is addicted and now asks for it every single time I’m home! Ok, I hope I’ve inspired at least one person to have fun creating some recipes – time to get back to the kitchen!

Apricot Pecan Spiral Coffee Cake
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Land O Lakes Unsalted Butter, softened
1/2 cup packed Domino Light Brown Sugar
1 cup Fisher Chef’s Naturals Pecan Pieces
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 (11-oz.) Pillsbury Refrigerated Crusty French Loaf
1/2 cup Smucker’s Apricot Preserves, melted

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Grease 8-inch round cake pan. In small bowl, combine butter, sugar, pecan pieces, dried apricots, and cinnamon; mix well.

Unroll bread dough onto floured surface, forming a 13×12-inch rectangle. Spread melted preserves evenly over dough. Sprinkle evenly with nut mixture and press lightly into dough.

Cut dough into 8 even 12-inch long strips. Roll up 1 strip into a spiral. Place spiral on next strip, matching ends of strip as you work, and continue rolling. Add 2 more strips to the spiral in the same way. Place spiral into center of greased pan. Cut remaining 4 strips in half to form 8 6-inch strips. To finish the spiral, loosely wrap remaining strips around the centered spiral in the pan, one at a time, matching ends of strips as you work. Spread completed spiral to fit pan, if needed, by pushing the center of the spiral down and out, so spiral fills and touches edges of the pan.

Bake at 350˚F for 28 to 33 minutes, or until coffee cake is golden brown. Immediately invert on serving platter, cool for 5-10 minutes, and cut into wedges. Serve warm. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 372 calories, 17.6g fat, 2.2g fiber, 5.3g protein per serving
Cost: $5.70 total

Why is it that I can remember every single morsel of food from a great restaurant that I visited 5-10 years ago, but can’t for the life of me remember to bring my wallet/cell phone/lunch/book to work? We have a wonderful bread store right across the street from us, and I was immediately reminded of a sandwich I had over 4 years ago at Disney World when I saw a gorgeous loaf of spinach, garlic, and onion ciabatta. I love Disney and I’m already looking forward to using our (future!) kiddos as an excuse to go back. My hubby and I had lunch in Cinderella’s castle in the Magic Kingdom and I ordered a sandwich called the The Mariner. It was basically an amazing salmon BLT that I could have eaten everyday!

I buy frozen salmon in bulk from Costco (well, not really in bulk, one package has 7 filets), and usually throw a marinade on it while it defrosts overnight. This time I decided to keep things simple, and just used a bit of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. After searing the salmon in a pan, I assembled all the other sandwich ingredients while I waited for the salmon to finish cooking in the oven. Instead of mayonnaise, I added sliced avocado for some creaminess. I gobbled the whole thing up and will definitely be making this simple dish again!

Salmon Sandwiches with Avocado, Bacon, and Tomato
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
2 salmon filets
4 slices turkey bacon
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/2 tomato, sliced
4 slices ciabatta

Directions:
Whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt and marinade frozen salmon overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 350ºF. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and sear the salmon filets on both sides. Bake salmon for 10 min at 350ºF or until no longer pink in the center. Meanwhile, place bacon in a skillet and cook over medium-high heat until crispy.

Assemble the sandwiches by placing half the avocado on a slice of bread, followed by the salmon, tomato slices, and bacon. Top with the remaining slice of bread. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 689 calories, 28.8g fat, 3.3g fiber, 50.4g protein per serving
Cost: $2.85 per serving

Girl Scout cookie season has arrived! We scooped up five boxes from two troops selling boxes at the Davis and Harvard Square T stops. Despite our best attempts to ration the treats, one box of samoas has already disappeared…but they’re small, so you have to eat more than one at a time, right? I really enjoyed being a Girl Scout and especially loved camping. My favorite part was making pie-iron pizzas, banana boats, and S’mores over the campfire, and I decided it would be fun to come up with a more “grown-up” S’more dessert that could be served anytime!

Instead of using graham crackers, I decided to use crushed gingersnaps and hazelnuts in the crust, and top it with a rich Nutella-chocolate brownie layer and toasted marshmallows. I ended up with completely scorched marshmallows that almost set off our fire alarm the first time I made this, so definitely monitor the tart very closely when you use the broiler. This dessert is super rich and definitely best served right out of the oven while the marshmallows are still warm and gooey!

Nutella S’more Tart
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
3 cups crushed gingersnap cookies
1 cup finely chopped hazelnuts
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup Nutella
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chocolate chips
3 cups mini-marshmallows

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, thoroughly mix gingersnap crumbs, hazelnuts, and 1/2 cup melted butter. Press in bottom and up side of ungreased 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom.

In a medium bowl mix remaining 1/4 cup butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and Nutella until smooth. Mix in flour, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Carefully spread dough evenly over the tart crust. Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes or until brownie layer is cooked through and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Spread mini-marshmallows evenly over tart and return to the oven for 5 minutes or until marshmallows are melted. Carefully spread the melted marshmallows evenly over the top of the tart. Turn on the broiler and toast the top of the tart for 1 to 2 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes and remove the tart from the pan. Use a well-buttered sharp knife to the cut the tart. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 413 calories, 27.2g fat, 2.9g fiber, 5.1g protein per serving
Cost: $6.90 total

I returned from a lab ski trip today (which turned into a snowshoeing trip since it was raining and the slopes were icy), and my hubby immediately requested I make him another protein-packed quiche. He has recently gotten very into weightlifting and is surviving on egg whites, chicken breasts, broccoli, spinach, and grapefruit for the time being. Poor guy. I came up with this quiche recipe several weeks ago to spice things up for him a bit and have been making one every week since then.

This quiche is made completely of egg whites and is packed with spinach and turkey bacon. I only needed to add a touch of blue cheese since a little goes a long way. The interesting part of this recipe is that instead of a standard pastry crust, I decided to develop a more nutritious crust made from chickpeas, whole wheat flour, and a touch of olive oil – I even managed to sneak some of his protein powder in it!

Protein-Packed Quiche with a Chickpea Crust
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup scoop protein powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 pieces turkey bacon
2 1/4 cups egg whites
1 cup milk
1 10-ounce package frozen spinach, thawed and well drained
1 ounce crumbled blue cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 9-inch pie pan. Pulse chickpeas, flour, protein powder, and olive oil in a food processor and spread dough evenly over the greased pie pan. Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes at 350ºF or until light golden brown.

Meanwhile, place bacon in a skillet and cook over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove from heat and crumble.

Whisk together the bacon, egg whites, milk, spinach, blue cheese, and salt in a medium bowl until smooth; pour into the pie pan over the prebaked crust. Bake at 350ºF for 40 minutes or until set. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 202 calories, 7.7g fat, 4.3g fiber, and 17.0g protein per serving
Cost: $0.85 per serving

Our friend Mick recently brought us a cute little jar of pure maple syrup from his family’s shop up in Vermont. I used some on pancakes and a little to make Ashley’s excellent Maple Almond Butter Cookies, but really wanted to do something savory with it as well. This quick and easy side dish is full of some of my favorite ingredients: whole wheat couscous from Trader Joe’s that takes under 10 minutes to prepare, delicious dried figs, and crunchy toasted walnuts. I will admit that turkey bacon isn’t as good as the real thing, but it’s a staple in our house since it’s so much lighter. Thanks Mick for the syrup – we’ve really been enjoying it!

Maple Fig Couscous with Toasted Walnuts and Bacon
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole wheat couscous
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 slices turkey bacon, sliced into small pieces
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2/3 cup chopped dried figs

Directions:
To prepare couscous, combine chicken stock and salt in a sauce pan, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, pour in couscous, and stir well. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the walnuts in a dry skillet and heat over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes, stirringly frequently until toasted (or you can bake them at 350ºF for 10 minutes). Remove toasted walnuts from the pan, and add the olive oil and chopped bacon, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until crispy. Remove skillet from the heat, and whisk in the maple syrup, vinegar, mustard, and figs.

Fluff couscous with a fork and stir in the maple vinaigrette mixture and toasted walnuts. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 320 calories, 14.0g fat, 6.2g fiber, 13.2g protein per serving
Cost: $0.66 per serving

When my hubby and I got married, we had a sushi feast at our rehearsal dinner. To keep with the theme (like all good brides strive to do…), I wanted to serve dessert sushi. I searched the internet to see if there was something I could make and called bakeries, but couldn’t find anything that looked delicious. I think we ended up serving cheesecake. A few years later, I dreamed up these whimsical dessert sushi rolls that I love to serve with chopsticks and melted chocolate “soy sauce”.

I struggled a bit writing up this recipe, because the amount of fruit I use each time really varies depending on how it’s cut. So, take this recipe as a starting point and make it your own. You can vary the kinds and amount of fruit, add a little toasted coconut to the rice, etc. Have fun with it!

Fruit-Filled Coconut & Chocolate Dessert Sushi
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup jasmine rice
11 ounces light coconut milk
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 ounces quartered strawberries
3/4 ounces kiwi sliced into long rectangular strips
3/4 ounces mango sliced into long rectangular strips
3 ounces milk chocolate, melted

Directions:
Combine rice, coconut milk, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, stirring regularly, until the mixture boils. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender and sticky. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, mix butter and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl until creamed. Add milk, vanilla, and melted semi-sweet chocolate and mix until smooth; stir in flour and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Roll chocolate dough into a 13-inch log and place down the middle of a large sheet of waxed paper. Place another piece of waxed paper on top of the log and use a rolling pin to roll the log into a 13×6-inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of waxed paper.

Spread room temperature coconut rice on top of chocolate dough rectangle in a 13×5.5-inch rectangle, leaving a 1/4-inch border on both long sides of the rectangle. Line up quartered strawberries horizontally down the center of the coconut rectangle. Line up sliced kiwi and mango above and below the line of strawberries, respectively. Roll up dough into a cylinder like a “sushi roll” by lifting up waxed paper and sealing the ends of the dough together. Roll the roll on the counter and press together firmly. Remove waxed paper from the roll and cut into 16 dessert sushi pieces with a sharp knife.

Place melted milk chocolate into small soy sauce containers. Serve dessert sushi with chocolate “soy sauce”  and eat with chopsticks! Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 209 calories, 10.6g fat, 1.3g fiber, 2.7g protein per serving
Cost: $2.92 total

Wow – I was hoping we were done with the snow for this year, but Mother Nature had other plans for the Northeast. I actually don’t mind the snow too much, because I don’t have to worry about driving on the slick roads. I have a pair of cute snow boots (thanks Mom!) that keep my toes warm during my commute on public transportation. This weather  does, however, make me want to curl up with a big bowl of soup, so that’s exactly what I made tonight.

This recipe was inspired by the great chicken florentine soup I always order when I go to Biaggi’s with my parents in Iowa. Of course, I couldn’t bring myself to add any cream, so I thickened it up with some potatoes and added plenty of leeks and garlic. The best part is that this is a one pot meal so there is minimal clean up. I usually double the recipe if we we’re in the mood for leftovers.

Chicken Florentine Soup
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken stock
3 red potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut into small cubes
2 cups (4 ounces) fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions:
In a large stockpot, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat and sauté leeks for 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Add chicken stock and potatoes to the pot and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to puree the mixture until smooth and creamy. Add chicken and spinach, and simmer for 10 more minutes or until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center.

Whisk flour and salt into the milk until smooth, and gradually stir the milk into the soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and simmer until ready to serve. Makes 4 servings. Garnish with parmesan cheese.

Nutrition: 355 calories, 10.8g fat, 1.8g fiber, 43.2g protein per serving
Cost: $1.53 per serving

After college graduation, I backpacked through Europe with my friend Britt. One of the highlights of our trip was hiking through the olive orchards and vineyards of the Cinque Terre, a gorgeous section of cliffs in the Italian Riveria. My favorite meal there was an incredible pesto lasagna served in Manarola. When I finally became comfortable experimenting in the kitchen, a few years later, the first dish I wanted to perfect was this yummy pasta. It is only natural that the first recipe I created is the subject of my first blog post!

My pesto lasagna is a much lighter version of the one I had in Italy, because there is no heavy cream sauce involved and the pesto itself is made with chicken stock (and a touch of olive oil) and thickened slightly with roasted shallots and garlic. The lasagna is packed with whole wheat lasagna noodles, chicken, and spinach. I usually serve it with a salad and freeze a portion for later. I’m still hoping to head back to Italy at some point to have the real thing, but for now, I’m happy to be able to indulge in this lighter version!

Light Pesto Lasagna with Chicken and Spinach
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 box whole wheat lasagna noodles
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup chopped shallots (about 4-5 shallots)
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted (bake for 5 min at 350ºF)
2 cups fresh basil (1.5 ounces)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (1.5 ounces)
2 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup chicken stock
15 ounces part-skim ricotta
1 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1 egg
4 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook lasagna noodles according to the directions on the package.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat and cook chicken for 5-7 minutes, or until cooked through and no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken and add shallots to the same pan; sauté 5 minutes or until the shallots are soft. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute.

Place shallot mixture in a food processor, along with the 2 remaining tablespoons of olive oil, pine nuts, basil, parmesan cheese, goat cheese, and chicken stock. Pulse until a smooth pesto forms.

Mix the ricotta, spinach, and egg in a medium bowl until smooth.

To assemble the lasagna, place a layer of 4 noodles in a 13×9-inch pan and top it with the ricotta mixture, half the chicken, half the pesto, and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Repeat this layer.  Then place the remaining 4 noodles on top and sprinkle evenly with the 2 remaining cups of mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350ºF for 45 min.  Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition:  465 calories, 19.9g fat, 4.3g fiber, and 35.9g protein per serving
Cost:  $1.40 per serving