What the what?!

Really?

It's been 4 months since my last post.

Unacceptable!!

I mean, who has a blog that they love, full of glorious FOOD, and then don't post to it.

Sad.

Guess I better change that!

New posts, coming soon.

Sweet and SpicyTofu (with cucumber salad)

 

Tofu. You never know what to do with it because it doesn't taste like anything.

That's a good thing.

It gives you the opportunity to do whatever you want with it! I've been on an Asian kick lately so I gave it a try. The husband was so kind as to throw together a cucumber salad as well!

Adapted from Running To The Kitchen.

Ingredients:

Tofu

1 block extra firm tofu, pressed & cubed
1/2 tablespoons cornmeal
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Sauce
1 clove of garlic
1½ tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
juice of ½ a lime
1½ tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon chopped mint

 

• Toss the cubed tofu with the corn meal in a large bowl.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
• Add the tofu and let cook for about 5 minutes per side until golden brown, mine took about 15 minutes until I was happy with color and texture.

 

• While tofu cooks, add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and whisk together.

 

 

• Remove the tofu to a plate.
• Add the sauce from the bowl to the hot skillet and let cook for about 30 seconds.

 

 

• Add the tofu back to the skillet and toss until fully coated with the sauce.

You could have this with rice, but like I said, the husband made me a cucumber salad to go with it. It was delicious so I've included the recipe from Our Best Bites

 

 

Sweet and Spicy Cucumber Slices
1-1/2 lbs cucumber (about 3 medium), peeled, halved lengthwise & thinly sliced

2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 c rice vinegar, seasoned or regular

1/2 c water

3 Tbs sugar*

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

2 Tbs minced red onion

• Place cucumber slices in a colander sitting over a bowl, sprinkle with salt and toss well.  Let sit for 1 hour refrigerated.  Toss the cukes a few times while they drain as well.  While cucumber slices are draining, prepare marinade below.
• Combine vinegar, water, sugar and red pepper in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cook until reduced to a 1/3 cup (about 10 minutes).  If for some reason you boil for too long, just add a little water until you have 1/3 C. Remove reduction from heat and add onion.  Let mixture cool to room temp.
• When cucumbers are done resting, pat them dry with a few paper towels and then combine with the vinegar reduction.  This can be served immediately, but for best results refrigerate until well chilled.

 

Spinach, Avocado and Sriracha Breakfast Sandwich

Hey you!!

Yeah you! The one who never eats breakfast on the weekend because you're busy making sure everyone else is taken care of? Try this. No joke, less than 5 minutes.

Ingredients:                                                                                                                       

 

1/2 pita bread                                                                                                             

1 egg

spinach

avocado

sriracha

 

Directions:

 

Toast your pita.

Smear some avocado.

Layer the spinach.

Top with a fried egg.

Top with sriracha.

You're done. GO! GO! GO!

Lasagna Soup

If you know me, you know I love lasagna. You also know I love to make lasagna. From scratch.

Yeah... not so doable during the week. I found this one in Food Network Magazine... it may not be my lasagna, but its a good stand in for a cold winter night.

Sorry about the pictures... my camera died and I was trying to get as much juice out of battery life as possible.

Ingredients:

8 ounces lasagna noodles, broken into piece (10 noodles)
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1/2 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
3 gloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp. tomato paste
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil, plus thinly sliced leaves for topping
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
Ricotta cheese, for topping

• Cook your noodles as directed... when you drain them leave them in the colander and toss with the olive oil to keep moist.
• Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy soup pan over medium high heat. I use my chowder pot for this one.
• Add the onion and cook until they're softened. Go with your preference on this one... I like my onions crunchy.
• Add the sausage, garlic and oregano. Break up the sausage as it browns.
• Add the tomato paste, stir and cook until it gets to be a really dark red color.
• Add the chicken broth, tomatoes and 1 cup water. Cover your pot and let it simmer.

• Once its simmered, uncover the pot and cook until it slightly reduced (about 10 minutes).
• Stir in your noodles, basil, parmesan and heavy cream.

Cook to your liking and serve!

 

*Note - make sure to break up your noodles into bite sized pieces before you cook them. I wasn't thinking straight (too much red wine... can't make lasagna without it) and didn't make them small enough. Ended up with fist sized bites and a lot of slurping action. 

 

Beef and Sweet Potato Turnovers

Show of hands... who like sweet potato? (If you're not raising your hand, we're not friends anymore.)

Still with me?

Good.

OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! I wanted to make out with my plate when I was done with these. I can't even explain how melt in your mouth yummy these are. And look! They're even relatively healthy. :) Btw... this came from Real Simple... one my favorite magazines.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 pound ground beef

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 sweet potato, grated

2 cups baby spinach

2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed, halved

1/2 cup grated Cheddar

Heat your oven to 400°, and your oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the beef and cook until no longer pink. Stir in the garlic and let it get fragrant.

No, this isn't cheese... it's sweet potato!! Grated on a cheese grater.

 

Add the sweet potato and spinach to your skillet. Stir to combine, letting the spinach wilt.

 

Dividing evenly, spoon the beef mixture onto one side of each piece of puff pastry, leaving a ¼-inch border.

 

 

Top with the cheese, fold the dough over the filling, and press firmly to seal.

Transfer the turnovers to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

 

 

Golden delicious. And I'm not talking apples.

 

This was filling by itself, but would be great with a side spinach salad. Maybe with a bit of pear, feta and honey balsamic. So many flavors, so little time! 

 

 

*Note - this recipe says it makes 4 servings... I made it into 2. 1/2 of one of these was definitely not enough for me. I also had a LOT of leftover filling.

*Note - Since the beef and spinach are hot when you are trying to close the turnovers, don't be surprised if your puff pastry starts to fall apart. DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT! Mine had small holes here and there but everything seemed to stay in tact and my cheese did not froth out. 

Zucchini Crust Pizza

Eating healthy is hard.

Super hard.

I had a craving for pizza. Not wanting to blow my hard work on more than one weekly occasion zucchini crust was my compromise. Surprisingly... this was easier than it looks.

And look! Only 3 Ingredients.

1 large egg or 2 small ones

About 3 small-medium zucchinis (mine were about 8″)

1.5 cups grated parmesan or mozzarella.  I liked parmesan best for this one.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Grate the zucchini. Let it sit. Squeeze the water out.  If you have cheese cloth, good for you. If not... press into the zucchini with your fist until you get the majority of the water out of the vegetable and your colander.

 
Mix your grated zucchini with egg and grated cheese.
 

Spread some parchment paper out on a pizza pan. A baking stone would probably work best, but work with what you got.

Toss it in the oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes, until the edges have browned.

I did mozzarella and prosciutto for this pizza. Wicked easy. Put your sliced prosciutto in your oven or toaster oven and watch it crisp (have a towel handy for excess drool).

Once it crisps, let it cool and chop into strips.

Mmmmm... see that? Semi-crispy on the edges.

Now... toss your sauce and toppings on top of the crust and put it back in the oven.

Let. The cheese. Melt.

Enjoy! (wine goes great with this one)

 



Healthified Vanilla Caramel Popcorn

I'm always trying to find sweet treats that won't completely blow my points. So... when I saw a version of this I was like YES!!! DO IT!!! MAKE IT NOW!!!

So I did.

And I'm not sorry. Nope. Not one little bit.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup low fat/calorie butter (I used ICBINB)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 12 cups air popped popcorn

Pop your popcorn... and set aside. I used kernels, popped them in a soup pot with no oil or butter. Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.

Toss your toppings ingredients into the same pot. Melt until the sugar has just dissolved*. 

Toss your popcorn into the pot and coat as well as you can. Lay everything out on a baking sheet covered in foil**.

Bake for 15 minutes, stirring once, and there you go! Sweet, unsalted treat that's not absolutely horrible for you.
 

                      
Notes:
*Since there isn't a lot of liquid your topping may be a little stickier than you think it should be. Even though there were kernels here and there that had more caramel on them, the actual flavor made it to each and every wonderful piece.
**I'm not sure if this is why the kernels came out so crispy, but, I covered the popcorn in another sheet of foil. I was worried there would be unpopped kernels, that they would pop in the oven and start a fire. I love cooking with gas... but I love not starting fires more.

Mozzarella Stuffed Turkey Meatballs

Hold on. *nom nom nom* I'm just *nom nom* finishing up... *nom nom nom* Ate these less than 2 hours ago... they were too good not to share.

This girl, right here, deserves an award. These meatballs are so large, and lovely (insert giggle here), I couldn't keep them out of my mouth (insert another giggle here... grow up)! Seriously... they are easy (that's what she said) and so delicious my whole family loved them. I adapted the recipe a bit, but try it. You won't be sorry.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey (try an Italian Seasoned batch, adds extra flavor and spice)

1 egg

1 c. bread crumbs

1 tbsp. dried oregano

1 tbsp. dried basil leaves

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 c. Parmesan reggiano cheese, shredded

12 cubes pieces of fresh mozzarella

3 tbsp. olive oil

1-26 oz jar spaghetti sauce

 

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients down to the mozzarella . Save that for later.

 

Roll your sleeves up, wash your hands, and get in there to mix it all in with your fingers. Gross, I know, but trust me, the end result will come out SO MUCH BETTER.

Separate you meat mixture into 12 lumps. Here's a step by step of how I stuffed them...

Flatten your meat lump.

Place the cheese in it.

Fold over the sides like you're tucking the mozzarella in for a warm, gooey, delicious sleep.

See. Told you it was easy.

Swirl your pan with a few swigs of olive oil and toss your balls in. I know you're still laughing, but focus. Foooocus. Brown them on as many sides as possible, turning often, for about 10 minutes.

Once you've browned them pretty good, toss you jar of sauce in the pan, reduce your heat, and cover.

Simmer 20-25 minutes. I stirred occasionally to coat everything with sauce, I love me some sauce. Once you see the mozzarella starting to leak out, give it a stir, 3-5 more minutes and you should be good to go.

See below for melty, meaty, yummy goodness. Trust me when I say 2 is enough.

And don't forget the wine!!

 

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Who doesn't love carrot cake? :)

I've never made carrot cake, but after this... I want to make it a million times over. This recipe is adapted from Simply Sweet, and is a cinche to whip up.

Cupcakes:

1 cup pecans
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 large egg
3/4 pound carrots, coarsely grated

Frosting:

8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

Heat your oven to 350. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg in a large bowl; set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the brown sugar, oil and egg.

Fold in the carrots and 1/2 cup of pecans.

Add the carrot bowl to the flour bowl and mix until just combined. You want it to be moist but not overly wet. It will take longer for your cupcakes to bake, and, your carrots will clump together.

Divide the batter into twelve muffin cups and bake, rotating once for 20 minutes. Let them cool a bit on a wire rack before you add any frosting.

You ready? Make your frosting...

Beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Gradually add your confectioners' sugar (and be careful... my kitchen looked like it snowed). When its smooth, toss it in the fridge until its hardened slightly.

Delish! Big hit for a birthday treat. :)

Balsamic Glazed Steak Rolls

Oh my my my my my my...

Ok, I'm not a huge fan of steak, and here's why; I'M TOO CHICKEN TO TRY ANYTHING THAT'S NOT WELL DONE. People, please! If you eat meat, there's no reason to kill your lunch a second time. Don't overcook your meat because man, it is so good when its still juicy. And there is so much more flavor!

These little steak rolls are awesome. You get your protein and your veggies wrapped all in one. They are really not that hard to make, and look! Aren't they pretty?

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 – 2 lb skirt steak/ 8-10 thin sliced sirloin
• Worcestershire sauce
• Steak Seasoning (I'm partial to McCormick's or anything low sodium)
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Veggies

• 1 carrot
• 1 red bell pepper
• Approximately 1/2 a zucchini (I love zucchini so I used a whole one)
• 5-6 scallions (only cut lengthwise to match the rest of your veggies)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced good

 

For the Balsamic Glaze

• 2 tsp butter
• 2 tbsp finely chopped shallots (small but flavor PACKED onions)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 cup beef broth

 

First... prepare your steak. Flatten it out as thin as you'd like. Go ahead... beat that sucker thin.

 

If you had a full skirt steak (I had personal sized steaks), cut everything into 3 inch strips, season with your steak seasoning, and toss into a bag with your Worcestershire sauce and olive oil. Put it in the fridge until your ready to assemble... like the Avengers... get it? No? Ok... moving on.

While your steak is marinated slice all of your veggies. Obviously they have to be real then if you intend to put a lot in your roll.


When you're done with the veggies, make your glaze.

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Toss your chopped shallots in with your butter and sauté for a few minutes until they are translucent. And your vinegar, brown sugar, and beef stock, stirring well to let everything mix. Allow everything to come to a boil and reduce by half. You'll see that it'll start to thicken. When you see the butter start to separate, turn the heat off and transfer it to a bowl. Sorry no pictures guys... was trying to do too many things at one time.

In the same pan, toss in your 2 cloves of garlic and allow the flavor to start seeping out. Then toss all your veggies in and sauté for no longer than 2 or 3 minutes. You want them to still be crunchy.

Now that everything is set... STEAK ROLLS ASSEMBLE!!! 

Lay your marinated rolls out and place a handful of veggies on top.

 

 

 I put a toothpick in each of mine to hold them together, but you don't have to. Heat up a frying pan, toss a little olive oil in, and cook your meat on all sides until the doneness meets your approval.

 

 

Serve it with the glaze spooned over the top. My goodness... delicious... and made well for leftovers too.