Italian Butter

You can use this on fish, beef, bread, or even potatoes.  It's super simple to make.

Ingredients

1 stick of salted butter

2 T of Italian parsley

3 cloves of garlic (or 2 large)

1/4 t of kosher salt

Zest of 1 lemon

Let your butter soften at room temperature until it is easily broken up by a fork.

Cut up the parsley and garlic until finely chopped.  Add to the room temperature butter.  Add in the zest of 1 lemon (about 2 teaspoons), and the salt.  

Mix up with a fork until all ingredients are incorporated.  Put in a glass jar and store in the refrigerator until hardened.

Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients
3 zucchinis
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 c diced white mushrooms
1/4 c diced Italian parsley
1/4 parmesan cheese
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
Olive oil, to drizzle




Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Lightly spray a sheet pan so the zucchini won't stick after baking.  

Slice the zucchini in half length-wise.  Using a spoon run it along the center to "scoop" out an area to place your "stuffing".

Next, dice the red bell pepper, mushrooms, and parsley and place in a bowl.  FOODIE TIP: use a spoon to scrape out the stump and the brown insides of the mushrooms.

Mince the garlic and add to the bowl, along with the parmesan, salt, and pepper.  Give it a good toss to mix everything evenly. Spoon the mixture into the middle of each zucchini.

Over the top of the zucchini, drizzle a little olive oil.  
Cook for about 45-55 minutes or until the zucchini has softened and the stuffing has browned.

Sliced Baked Potatoes

 Ingredients
4 small russet potatoes
4 T of butter, melted
3 cloves of garlic, minced,
1/2 t of crushed dried rosemary
1/2 t of season salt (or kosher salt)


Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Scrub and wash your potatoes.  With a sharp knife, cut small vertical slits across the potato.  You will want to cut almost to the bottom of the potato, but not all the way through.  Place the potatoes on a baking sheet with non-stick spray.  
Melt your butter and add minced garlic, rosemary, and season salt.  Give it a quick stir and drizzle the butter mixture over your potatoes.  Make sure to get the butter in the cracks and crevices of each potato.  

Cook for about 40-50 minutes.  Once done, add a little sour cream and serve.  

Sausage and Veggie Pasta

Ingredients
6 links of mild Italian sausage
1/2 pound of pasta
1 green pepper
1.5 cups of spinach
1/2 cup of chopped kale
1 red tomato
3 cloves of garlic
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
1 t. of olive oil

1/2 cup of parmesan cheese

First, start cooking your sausage in a grill pan.  While it's cooking, boil your water and get your pasta cooked.   Once it's cooked, drain the pasta and add it to a large bowl. I chose pasta "wheels" but bow tie, penne, or any other chunky pasta works.  After the sausage is browned and cooked thoroughly, set it off to the side to rest.  Keep the pan on the stove for your veggies.

Dice up your green pepper and tomato.  Throw on the pan you used to cook your sausage (no olive oil needed).  Add minced garlic in with the green pepper and tomato and let cook until browned.  While the pepper, tomato, and garlic are cooking, put a little olive oil into a small lidded pot and add in the kale and spinach.  Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and cover with a lid to let it steam.  This only takes a couple of minutes at most.   

Cut up your sausage into small bite-sized rounds and add to pasta.  Add in all of your veggies and give a good toss.  Sprinkle on some parmesan cheese and serve. 

Holiday White Sangria

Make this ahead of time to let the fruit and wine meld together.  Let it set for at least 4 hours and then serve in wine glasses.  It's sweet and fruity so it goes best with dessert or with some cheese and crackers.

Ingredients
1 bottle of pinot grigio
1 cup of simple syrup
1/4 cup of orange curacao  
1 lemon
1 clementine
1 green apple
1/2 cup of whole cranberries


First you'll want to make the simple syrup, which is just literally equal parts water and sugar heated up until the sugar dissolves.  I use 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar.  Make sure you don't over heat it or else you end up with a very thick syrup.  As soon as the sugar dissolves, let it sit and cool to room temperature before adding to your sangria.

Add your simple syrup into a large pitcher, along with the pinot grigio and orange curacao. 

Next, slice up half of the lemon and the whole clementine into rounds.  Make sure to remove any seeds before adding into the pitcher.  Cut up about half of the apple into thick chunks and add to your sangria.  Add the cranberries and give it a stir.  

Place in the fridge immediately and let the flavors come together.  Serve in glasses and enjoy!

Cranberry Clementine Cake with a Sugar Glaze

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Ingredients
1 box of butter golden cake mix
3/4 cup of chopped cranberries
3/4 cup of chopped clementines (about 3)
1/2 powdered sugar
1 T of milk
1/2 t of vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Use vegetable spray to coat two loaf pans (you can choose to use 8x8 pan, 9x9 pan, or make these into cupcakes).

Follow the directions on the cake mix box to create the cake base.  You will typically use water, eggs, and butter, but the exact amounts may vary by brand.  Use your mixer and combine until smooth, about 4 minutes.


Chop up the cranberries and clementines into bite-sized chunks.  Fold the cranberries and clementines into the cake batter.

Pour the mixture into the two loaf pans and bake for about 35 minutes.  The top should be golden and the middle should be firm.

Let the cake loaves cool on a rack completely.

While the loaves cool, combine the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract into a small bowl.  Stir the ingredients with a spoon until they are combined and smooth.  Drizzle over the top of the cake loaves.  

Eat within a few days or freeze immediately.

Quick Pick: Beef Stew

Ingredients
1 lb to 1.5 lbs. beef roast
1 large russet potato
3/4 cup of chopped carrots
1/2 red onion chopped into large chunks
1 large (or 2 small) garlic cloves minced
1 package of onion soup mix 
1 t. rosemary
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
32 oz. of beef stock


I usually create this the night before, stick it in the fridge overnight, and then pull it out in the morning and place it in my slow cooker

base.  It cooks all day and makes for a nice warm meal when you get home.  

Make sure you place your beef at the bottom of the slow cooker pot.  I then chop up my carrots, potato, and onion and place the ingredients around the outside of the slow cooker around the meat.  I add all the herbs and spices and then dump my stock over top of everything.  

I would let this cook 6-8 hours.  Basically, fix it and forget it.  Once you get home from work all you have to do is grab a bowl.

Chicken Salad

Ingredients
3 large or 4 medium sized chicken breasts
1/2 cup of chopped celery
3 green onions/scallions
1 T tarragon
1 t basil
1/4 t mustard
Dash of onion powder
Dash of garlic powder
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup of lite mayo

First, you'll want to grill your chicken breasts.  I just throw these on the grill with whatever else I'm cooking and then set them aside.  No need to add any seasoning to the chicken, we'll take care of that later.  

Once the chicken has been cooked, let it thoroughly cool.  Foodie Tip:  I usually make the chicken a day in advance and then throw it in the fridge over night.  Once your chicken has cooled down, you will shred it with your fingers.  I break it up into little bite sized pieces.  I know it's gross touching it with your hands, but it's also the best method.

Now chop up your green onion and celery.  Make sure you wash your celery.  There tends to be a lot of dirt on celery, so use a vegetable brush to help.  Slice each celery in half length-wise and then chop.  Throw into the bowl with your chicken.  Add in your spices, mustard, and mayo and give a good toss.  

You can add grapes to this if you choose, but I like it just as is.  This will keep for a few days in the refrigerator, but it probably won't even last that long!  Eat it as is, on bread, or on top of some greens.  It's awesome in lunches and on picnics too.

Garlic Roasted Red Potatoes

Ingredients
5 red potatoes
1 T of olive oil
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 t of salt
1 T rosemary

This side dish is super simple and rustic, but takes a while to cook (1 hour).  So, prep your ingredients, place them on a pan and put them in your oven while you finish the other parts of your meal.   Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut your red potatoes into cubes and place in a bowl.  Add olive oil, garlic, and salt, and toss the potatoes until coated.  

Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray and put potatoes on the sheet. Place the potatoes in the oven and cook until tender and brown (45 minutes to 1 hour).  Flip the potatoes after about half way in to ensure they cook thoroughly.  
Once the potatoes are done, chop the rosemary and sprinkle on top. 

Chocolate Ginger Snap Bark

Ingredients
2 cups of white chocolate chips
1/2 cup of milk chocolate chips
1 t of pumpkin pie spice
1.5 cups of smashed ginger snap cookies


First, layer a large baking sheet with wax paper. 

Place ginger snap cookies in a Ziploc bag, close, and get smashing!  You'll need enough ginger snaps to make about 1.5 cups.  Make sure you have chunks, so don't get too crazy and have ginger crumbs instead.  Spread out the broken ginger snaps on the wax paper/baking sheet, but don't go to the edge.

Melt the white chocolate.  You have two options either a double broiler, or by microwave.  I prefer the microwave because it saves time, and dishes.  Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 20 second intervals, stirring after each, until the chocolate is melted.  Add in the chocolate chips and melt for an additional 20 seconds, then stir.   Add in the pumpkin pie spice and give it a quick stir.  

Pour chocolate mixture over the ginger snaps, then place in the refrigerator until hardened.  

Take out and break into chunks.  This is an awesome homemade (and easy) Christmas gift.  Just put in a large mason jar, bow, and go!

Bringing a little holiday JOY

I loved my "fall" sign so much, I decided to try my hand at crafting a sign for Christmas.  

To start, I went to Hobby Lobby where just about everything I bought was 50% off.  I started with 3 large wooden letters that were $1.25 each.  Then I used some twine and a red-white chevron ribbon that cost about $1.25 for a spool at the craft store.  I made a quick trip to Michaels and got the embellishments (about 4 wreath picks will do).  They ranged from 50-75 cents and were available in aisle with wreath making materials.  I chose to go sparkly, since I was using more rustic materials as my base. I then cut the various picks and embellishments into smaller parts for gluing. 


I stared off by wrapping the "J" with twine.  Tip: Use lots of hot glue to secure the twine!  I cut the ribbon for the "O" in half and then began to wrap it tightly, using glue to help secure the ribbon as I went.


I wanted to do something fun for the "Y", and thought "why not combine the two techniques?"  I cut and measured my ribbon to fit the length of the "Y", and glued one end to the bottom/backside of the "Y".  I attached the edge of the twine to the bottom right hand side of the "Y" and began to wrap.  When I got to the ribbon, I alternated over and under with the ribbon, which gave it a cool effect.  This was a long process (think about 2 hours from start to finish), so get your wine and favorite DVR program going, while you do this project.  

I then glued the embellishments on. TIP: if you are drinking your wine and make a couple of "mistakes" the embellishments go a long way to covering them up :)

Zucchini Squash Couscous

This is my absolute favorite thing I make!  It's easy, colorful, and is good as a meal or side dish.  It is also great as leftovers!

Ingredients
1 box of parmesan couscous
1 yellow zucchini squash
1 green zucchini
4 oz. of diced pancetta
1/4 cup of shaved parmesan cheese
4 gloves of minced garlic
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. black pepper

Cook the couscous as directed on the package.  Then let it sit while you are making the rest of the dish in a separate pan.

In a deep pan (I use a wok) add in the pancetta. Foodie Tip: Don't add any extra oil or butter.  It will make your dish extra oily.  Let pancetta cook till it starts to brown and then add in your garlic.  Give it a good toss.  Foodie Tip: The garlic will burn easily, so you'll need to keep an eye on it!

Cut the zucchini and zucchini squash into small rounds about 1/8 inch think.  Foodie Tip: Try to keep the rounds around the same size to ensure even cooking (you may even want to cut larger rounds in half).


Once the garlic has soften, add in the zucchini, zucchini squash, salt, and pepper.  Give a good toss to mix everything up and place a lid over the pan.  Stir occasionally.  Once the zucchini and zucchini squash start to get translucent it's done!  

Add in the couscous and give a good stir.  Cook for an extra minute and then pull the pan off.  Add in the shaved parmesan cheese, toss, and serve.

Apple and Brie Croissants

Ingredients
1 can of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls 
1 medium sized granny smith apple
1 wedge of brie cheese

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Unfold your rolls and break apart the triangles.  Place on a lightly sprayed metal pan.  

Cut up the apple into thin square slices and brie into 8 1/2 inch chunks (you won't use the entire apple).  Place a slice of apple and a piece of brie onto each triangle.

Starting at the large end, wrap the dough over the apple and brie.  Fold in the edges as you go, and roll till the point is on top.  Tuck all lose ends/edges under otherwise the brie will leak out.

Cook for about 10 minutes.  The brie will be hot, so make sure you let it cool slightly before popping one in your mouth.

Pizza Pumpkin Seeds

Happy Halloween Everyone!  Just made these pumpkin seeds last night.

After carving and pulling out the guts of our pumpkin, I separated the guts from the seeds in a colander (this took a little bit of time, but a lot of water and elbow grease does the trick). 

After, removing the seeds form the guts I placed the seeds in a bowl.  In a smaller separate bowl, place seasonings and mix.

Ingredients
1/2 t. oregano
1/4 t. basil 
1/4 t. crushed rosemary
1/4 t. parmesan grated cheese
1/4 t. sea salt
1/8 t. pepper 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Add the mixed seasonings onto the pumpkin seeds and give a good toss.  On a large baking sheet (spray with a little cooking spray so the seeds are easily removed) spread out your seeds evenly.  Cook in the oven for around 15 minutes.  Snack and enjoy!

Quick Pick: Slow Cooker Potato Soup

Ingredients2 cans of cream of potato
2 Russet potatoes
1 cup of cheddar cheese
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
4 oz. of pancetta
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2.5 oz of water
1 green onion, diced (optional)

This is simple, and yes I know I cheated by using a cream of potato soup as a base, but if you are looking to make potato soup and don't have much time it's a good way to start.  

Dump the two cans of cream of potato into the crock pot.  

Peel and dice two Russet potatoes into 1/4 inch cubes (they cook more evenly and are more tender if cut small).  Dump the potatoes into the crock pot.

Add in cheddar cheese, whipping cream, pancetta, salt, pepper and water into the crock pot and give it a good stir.    

I usually set this up before going to work and keep my crock pot on low.  Cook for a good 6+ hours or until the potatoes are tender. 

Sprinkle the green onion on top as a garnish if you choose.

Cinnamon Sugar Personal Apple Pies

My secret ingredient...a little pumpkin butter.  You can check out my recipe on my blog for the "how to" on easy pumpkin butter, but if you are in a time crunch you could always substitute store bought apple butter in a pinch.  This makes six individual servings.

 

Ingredients

1 package of frozen puff pastry dough (comes in 2 sheets)

1/4 cup of pumpkin butter

1 T cinnamon

2 T sugar

1 large green apple (can use a red apple if you want)

First, let your puff pastry dough thaw for about 30-40 minutes.  You still want it to be cold so you can work with it, so if it gets to room temperature you need to put it back into the fridge. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  While you are waiting for your oven to heat up, combine cinnamon and sugar together and mix.

Unfold the puff pastry dough and flatten it.  With a knife, cut into thirds and then cut each third into half.  Take a fork and "dock" the dough.  This is important so your dough cooks evenly and doesn't puff too high during the cooking process.

Spread about a tablespoon of pumpkin butter on each puff pastry rectangle. The pumpkin butter should be a thin layer, so don't make it too thick. Foodie Tip:  Don't go to the edge of the pastry, so that you have room to crimp the pie together!

Slice up the apple into 1/8 inch (or thereabouts) slices.  You'll place about 3 to 4 slices of apple on each pie.   Sprinkle about 1/8 of a teaspoon of cinnamon sugar on top of the apples (add more if you feel like it).  

Now take out the second sheet of puff pastry and cut it into six pieces (as you did earlier) and place a piece on top of your individual pies.  With a fork crimp the sides (you can also do this with your fingers too).  Take a knife and cut a small "x" in the top of your dough to let air escape while cooking.  Sprinkle a layer of cinnamon sugar on the top, and place in the oven.

The pies are done in about 20 minutes.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Bread

Check out this awesome bread.   Sweet, with pumpkin and fall spices, and a little chocolate too.   Had one piece, and then went back for another!

Ingredients

1 box of Duncan Hines spice cake
1 can of pumpkin
3/4 cup of milk chocolate chips
3 eggs
1 cup of water 
1/3 cup of vegetable oil
1 t. nutmeg
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. cloves

Preheat your oven to 350. 

Add the cake mix to a bowl.  Add in your eggs, water, vegetable oil, canned pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves. 

Beat with a mixer for around 2 minutes or until the ingredients are all incorporated.  

Toss in the milk chocolate chips and fold into the mixture with a spatula.  If you don't want the extra calories you can always opt out of the chips, but if you really love chocolate then add more :)  

Spray two bread pans and pour half of the mixture into each.  This cooks for around 40 minutes, depending on your oven.  Insert a toothpick, if it comes out clean then the bread is done.  If not, leave it in a little longer.  Let the bread cool in the pan before cutting and serving.

Mexican Corn

This is a simple side dish that feeds 4+.  

Ingredients
2.5 cups of corn
1/2 orange pepper diced
1/4 queso fresco cheese
1/4 cup of cilantro, chopped
1 t. cumin
1 t. basil
1 t. oregano
1/2 t. sea salt
1/2 lime, juiced


You can choose to use either fresh grilled corn and shave it off the cob, or use 2 10 oz. bags of frozen corn that you've heated up in the microwave.  It seriously tastes great either way, and if you are looking for a shortcut than go with the microwave.  Roast/grill the orange pepper until softened, then dice into cubes and add to the corn.  Add cumin, basil, oregano, and salt to the mixture next.  Add in your cilantro.  I tend to love cilantro, so I always add a lot, but if you are cilantro hater than you don't have to add it.  Crumble up the queso fresco.  You can chop it, but it's easier to just shred with your fingers.  Add in lime juice and give a toss.  

Salsa Cruda

This salsa is so amazing you could eat it with a spoon!

Ingredients
8 roma tomatoes, diced into cubes
1 C of cucumber, diced 
1/2 C of red onion diced
1/2 C of cilantro, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, de-seeded and diced (you can leave in the seeds to make it hotter!)
2 limes, juiced
2 T balsamic vinegar
2 T oregano
2 t of sea salt
1 t of basil (I usually don't use fresh basil for this, but you could if you have it around)
A dusting of black pepper


Combine all ingredients into a large bowl and stir.  This salsa is great right away, or let it sit in its' juices and marinate.   Either way, this makes enough to can and save for later or serve at a party.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

Who doesn't love pumpkin and cheesecake?  These mini cheesecakes are awesome if you want to eat a little treat, or if you are having a party and inviting over friends.  The recipe makes 12. 

Ingredients

1 cup of graham cracker crumbs

1 T of sugar

3 T of melted butter

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese softened

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 t of vanilla

1 egg

1/4 cup of canned pumpkin

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Mix graham cracker crumbs, 1 T of sugar, and butter and press into muffin cups. Beat cream cheese, 1 cup of sugar, vanilla, egg, and pumpkin until smooth.  Pour over graham cracker crusts.  Cook for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cheesecake comes out clean.  Let cheesecakes coo.  Once at room temperature, put them in the refrigerator to chill.   

Cheesy Hashbrown Potatoes

This is by far my favorite potato recipe of all time.  It's rich, cheesy, and oh so unhealthy, but if you can spare the extra calories it's well worth it.  This was handed down to me by my mom and grandma and is such a hit at parties.  I've been asked about this recipe more than any other. 

Ingredients

1 two lb. package of hashbrown potatoes partially thawed

1 can cream of potato soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 c. sour cream

10 oz. shredded cheddar cheese

2 T of onion, chopped

1 t. parsley

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

Paprika (to sprinkle on top)

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.  Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl except for the paprika.  Lightly butter a 13x9 inch baking dish, and put ingredient mixture into the dish.  Sprinkle paprika on top of the dish.  Bake uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.