A Girl in the South

Moving Day!!!

2011-07-20T09:20:00.000-05:00

I've been meaning to move this blog for quite sometime, but I got caught up in writing at Tales From the Juice Box since it's baseball season and that seemingly is consuming my life! But I finally found a spare moment and have moved the site.

Please rebookmark me at www.agirlinthesouth.com - all of the old content is there and that's the only place that new content will be added. And yes, I'm starting new content again! In fact, I have new feature - Forty by Forty that begins this week and will be adding another new one in a couple of weeks - Eat the World!

So come join me a the new location and we'll cook up a storm!

When All Else Fails...

2011-03-11T14:23:00.001-06:00

When I haven't planned for dinner or when we're hungry and need something quick or when I just don't "feel like cooking" I have a go to meal. When all else fails, we have sausage and peppers. There are lot of ways to serve it, it's hot and it's comforting, and so it's an all around winner in my house.

My favorite way to eat sausage and peppers is on a nice thick crusty piece of bread. It's messy and delicious. However, I'd have to plan in advance for that since I'd need fresh crusty bread on hand. Sometimes, I don't want to plan. Sometimes, flying by the seat of your pants ends well. This was one of those nights.

There's no real "recipe" that I use for this but I'll give you the jist. I start with slicing a couple of bell peppers (I like using red and green, but only had green on hand) and slicing one nice sized white onion. The slices don't have to be perfect or super thin as the peppers and onions will cook down nicely regardless of size, but if you're in a real hurry, the thinner they are the quicker they become soft and pliable!

While I slice up the peppers and onions, I put links of Italian Turkey Sausage on the stove to cook. Now, I like hot Italian Turkey Sausage, but if you're not a fan of spicy, then the sweet is equally good.

Over medium high heat in a nice big skillet add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, then the peppers. Let them cook a few minutes before their friend, the onion, joins in the party.

When the peppers are soft and the onions are transluscent and just beginning to carmelize, add a couple of cups of marinara sauce. Now you can use the jarred if you like, but you know how I feel about that. Hopefully, you've been cooking along with me and have some of Lindrusso's Magnificent Marinara on hand! Mix the veggies and sauce together and lower the heat to medium or medium low. If you keep it on high...your stove will look like it has the chicken pox as your sauce splatters. Ask me how I know. ;D

While you've got all of this going on, throw a pot of water on to boil and cook up some of your favorite pasta. We like fettucine in this house and I had some on hand, so into the pot it went. Now if you have some good crusty bread, just slice it about 6 inches long and cut it open to stuff with the sausage, peppers and sauce!

When the sausage is done cooking, removing it from the pan and slice it into bite sized pieces. Take the sausage bits and toss it into your veggies and sauce.

End result? Dinner.

When Your Heart Breaks on Valentine's Day.

2011-02-14T20:15:00.001-06:00

I've never been a fan of Valentine's Day. I've always thought that if you love someone you should show them by how you act and how your treat them all throughout the year, not just one predetermined day that Hallmark has created into a monstrosity. Today, I really didn't like Valentine's Day.

The morning started with the weeone and I heading to a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. You see, the weeone's a pretty healthy kid. At a month shy of 9 years old, she's been on antibiotics twice - ever. She has asthma, and I talked all about her need to breathe a couple of years ago. What I never talk about is the acid reflux that often accompanies asthma in kids and that she's struggled with for several years. Lately, it's been out of control and today we found out it's probably not acid reflux she's been dealing with all this time.

Is this really that big of a deal? Probably not, but there was something about the weeone crying on an exam table because she has to have an Endoscopy and 24 hour esophageal probe inserted. There was something about her hearing that despite being of normal weight because of all the GI issues, she needs to lose weight. There was something about the perfect little weeone not being so perfect that was hard to hear on Valentine's Day.

The toughest...while sorting through her stash of Valentine candy from her school friends tonight she made a "I can definitely eat this"pile and a "the Gastro would say I shouldn't eat this" pile. Oh, and there was a "mom loves this candy" pile too. Sweet kid.

Food's about to change in this house. It's a good thing for both of us and I know we try to eat pretty healthy as it is, but some things are going to become definite no-go foods and there will be lots of new things I'm sure we'll try as a result of all of this.

Is this really that big of a deal? Definitely not, but there was something about Valentine's Day this year.

The Incredible Edible Egg!

2011-01-29T13:13:00.003-06:00

We like eggs at night in this house. I know I'm not alone in this phenomenon. There's a reason that plenty of restaurants serve their breakfast menus all day and it's because of eggs. That's my theory at least.

You see, eggs are warm and comforting and right. Eggs are the only perfect protein on earth (they contain every amino acid your body needs). Eggs are just a little bit of happiness.

Eggs with lots of really yummy stuff in them? That's dinner...er, um, or breakfast, or...um...errrr....brunch. Call it what you will. It's a meal and it's not just good, but good for you!

Quiche makes a regular appearance in our house, but Frittatas? Not so much. No particular reason for this other than the fact that I love the creamy goodness that is quiche. I thought it was time to give the Frittata a fair shake.

I didn't photograph the cooking of bacon because you guys see me cook bacon all the time...but it never hurts to look at cooked, crumbled bacon. I think God shows us he loves us by giving us bacon. It's got to be in my top 10 favorite things to smell and to eat.

Onions - I need to just grow them I use so many! I took my mandolin and sliced some yellow onion into pretty thin slices. I also drained and squeezed all the moisture from 2 packages of chopped frozen spinach. You need to squeeze as much liquid out as you can. Then in a pan on medium high heat, toss in a tablespoon of olive oil, the spinach and the onions and sautee them for about 5 minutes, adding salt and pepper as you do.

While those veggies are doing their thing, go in search of eggs. You'll need about 8 if you're working in a 10" skillet. Crack the eggs into something (I used a measuring cup), add about 1/2 cup of any cheese you'd like (I used Colby Jack since I had some grated already). I think Swiss is always great with spinach if you have that on hand.

Next you simply add your eggs and cheese in with your veggies. Stir everything up to combine it and let it cook a couple of minutes until the edges of the egg are set and cooked.

Move the skillet into a 425 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until the egg is cooked through.

When it's all cooked and ready, you're left with a really colorful and tasty meal. We had ours with grape tomatoes and toast, but you can serve it with anything that strikes your fancy.

Oh! And one more thing - this is really good 3 hours later when you want a snack! ;D

Bacon, Onion and Spinach Frittata
Serves: 6

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
5 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 of a large yellow onion thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups of frozen, chopped spinach, defrosted and drained of all liquid
Salt and Pepper to taste
8 organic eggs
1/2 cup Colby Jack cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Heat an ovenproof 10 inch skillet over medium high heat, add olive oil, onion and spinach, cooking for 5 minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add the eggs and cheese, stirring to combine. Let cook on the stove until the edges of the egg is set. Move the skillet into the oven to complete cooking, about 10 minutes or until the middle is set. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information: (serving is 1/6 of frittata) Calories: 208, Fat: 11g (sat fat: 3g), Protein: 12g, Carbohydrates: 17g, Fiber: 1g

Tackling the Scary Beast

2011-01-28T10:49:00.001-06:00

Sometime over the weekend the weeone and I always go through my vast piles of magazine pages I've ripped out or bookmarks on my computer of my "I want to try" recipes. If I plan on making 4 new things this week, I let the weeone pick 2. She gets to control exactly half of the menu. It could be the sides, the entrees, but half. This accomplishes a couple of things. #1- She's willing to try anything that she picked, and #2- She wants to help cook whatever she picked.

Last week one of the weeone's picks was Lobster Risotto. Shocked? Yep, I was too. I mean, what 8 year old says, "Lobster Risotto sounds like a good choice this week"? Apparently, mine. She's an adventurous kid. What can I say.

Here's the thing- risotto is a scary beast.

I've never understood why. I've made it on several occasions in several variations, and always with success, but there's something about risotto that seems "undoable". Is that a word? If not, I think it should be. You get my drift though, right? It seems like it's hard to make.

Interestly enough, several food magazines took the challenge of risotto on in the past couple of months, hoping to prove that risotto is NOT a big scary beast - risotto is actually easy-peasy.

I started with these three lovely lobster tails. Aren't they cute?

With no bodies, I couldn't let them swim in the ocean, but I DID let them swim in a bath of chicken stock and water! They boiled for about 4 minutes to cook them through then came out to cool down for a bit.

Once the lobster tails were cooled, I split them down the back and removed the meat. Now, don't toss the shells, we have plans for them!

The shells went into a ziplock bag and I then I took all of my frustration out with a meat tenderizer. ;D Yep, I crushed them. I took the crushed shells and tossed them back into the pot of stock / water to let the lobster flavor take over the liquid. This took about 20 minutes.

While my stock was being "lobsterfied" I diced up the lobster meat. I didn't want it too small, but bite sized.

Once the stock was ready I could really get started. I melted some butter and tossed in the Arborio Rice, letting it toast in the butter for about 2 or 3 minutes.

Here's where the fun really begins. You start by adding 1 cup of your hot lobster broth (that you've strained the shells out of) into the rice. STIR CONTINUOUSLY. Yes, I used caps. It's important. So you stir constantly until the liquid is almost completely absorbed then you continue to add the rest of the broth, 1/2 a cup at a time stirring always and adding only when the broth is completely absorbed from the last addition of liquid.

Once you've added all the broth, you should have a nice creamy risotto that's been infused with your lobster broth - YUM! Take it off the heat, add some peas and your lobster tail meat and...

Voila - you've got lobster risotto! Now, there are only 5 ingredients in this recipe, but it can be time consuming. Just know that it's gonna take at least an hour and you will be heavily involved for at least 30 minutes (stirring, mostly). I employed the weeone for a good bit of stirring, so I advise you procreate just for this purpose. It's handy to have those small people for these tasks!

I thought this was a really tasty treat of a meal. The weeone picked out the peas and lobster and just ate those and declared the risotto "too creamy" for her. Oh well. She tried. Maybe her tastes will change eventually and we'll have risotto again. But on the upside, she said we should eat more lobster!

Enjoy!

Simple Lobster Risotto

Total: 1 hour, 3 minutes
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
3 (5-ounce) American lobster tails
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice or other medium-grain rice
3/4 cup frozen green peas, thawed

Preparation

Bring broth and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Add lobster; cover and cook for 4 minutes. Remove lobster from pan; cool for 5 minutes. Remove meat from cooked lobster tails, reserving shells. Chop meat. Place shells in a large zip-top plastic bag. Coarsely crush shells using a meat mallet or heavy skillet. Return crushed shells to the broth mixture. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Strain shell mixture through a sieve over a bowl, reserving broth; discard solids. Return broth mixture to saucepan; keep warm over low heat. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add rice to pan; cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in 1 cup broth mixture, and cook for 5 minutes or until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Reserve 2 tablespoons broth mixture. Add the remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion is absorbed before adding the next (about 22 minutes total). Remove from heat, and stir in lobster, the reserved 2 tablespoons broth mixture, 2 tablespoons butter, and green peas.

Sustainable Choice: The American lobster population is well managed in Canada and the U.S.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 374
Fat:: 10.7g (sat 5.8g,mono 2.6g,poly 0.9g)
Protein:: 24.7g
Carbohydrate:: 44.4g
Fiber:: 4.1g
Cholesterol:: 80mg
Iron:: 2mg
Sodium:: 620mg
Calcium:: 63mg

To Keep You Warm on a Winter Night

2011-01-25T13:42:00.001-06:00

*Note to readers: I learned this week that the 2 spaces I was taught to put after a period ends a sentence is technically incorrect these days. I guess that's what I get for learning to type before computers were commonplace. So, I'm going to try with all my might to break that nasty habit. If you catch me double spacing, let me know...there might be something in it for you!*

When it gets cold outside we all crave hot comfort foods. It might be the only time I crave stew. I grew up eating stew on a somewhat regular basis because my father's a fan, but I've never been a big stew eater and the recipe I'm about to share with is the first time I've ever cooked stew in my life! Can you believe it?!?!?! Shocking, I know.

So, as a complete stew newbie, I relied heavily on a recipe, as in - I followed it EXACTLY - and I never do that! But it seemed like the thing to do with something I'd never tried before. So here's the scoop - it was easy peasy!

I started, as I often do, with diced onion in olive oil. This time they were joined by well chopped carrots and garlic. I cooked these for a several minutes before removing them from the pan, and setting aside.

Meanwhile, I'd been trimming and cubing a 2# chuck roast, which I then dusted in flour before sending into a hot dutch oven with olive oil. I browned the beef on all sides (this was done in 2 batches). It took about 5 minutes per batch of beef to get it all browned nicely. Then the beef was removed from the pan as well.

Into that same dutch oven went a cup of vino. This allowed all the beef bits to come off the bottom of the pot and join in the party! That cooked down for about 5 minutes before it was rejoined by the beef, onion, garlic and carrots from earlier. They were joined by diced, peeled plum tomatoes, beef broth, mushrooms, oregano, thyme, and a bay leaf. This was brough to a boil and then simmered at a lower heat for 45 minutes, covered. Then it was uncovered, joined by some sliced carrots and cooked for another hour at which point the basil and parsley were added.

This was a meal that was simple, hearty, all cooked in one pot and made everyone pretty happy! Well, the weeone didn't "love" it, but she ate the meat out! I'd make it again - so one set of thumbs up!

Italian Beef Stew

Total: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

7 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 pounds boneless chuck roast, trimmed and cut into cubes
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup dry red wine
3 3/4 cups chopped seeded peeled plum tomato (about 2 pounds)
1 1/2 cups fat-free, lower-sodium beef broth
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 (8-ounce) package cremini mushrooms, quartered
3/4 cup (1/4-inch-thick) slices carrot
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Preparation

1. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil to pan. Add onion and chopped carrot; sauté 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; sauté for 45 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove from pan.

2. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Place 1/4 cup flour in a shallow dish. Sprinkle beef with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Add half of beef to pan; sauté 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove from pan. Repeat procedure.

3. Add wine to pan, and bring to a boil, scraping pan. Cook until reduced to 1/3 cup (about 5 minutes). Return meat and the onion mixture to pan. Add tomato and next 6 ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover, and stir in sliced carrot. Simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour or until meat is very tender, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, basil, and parsley.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 334
Fat:: 13g (sat 3.9g,mono 0.8g,poly 6.6g)
Protein:: 40.6g
Carbohydrate:: 12.2g
Fiber:: 2.4g
Cholesterol:: 86mg
Iron:: 4.1mg
Sodium:: 387mg
Calcium:: 51mg

A Family Flashback

2011-01-14T07:26:00.000-06:00

Before we talk about things I've cooked...the weeone and I are happily back in our little abode! The floors are refinished and beautiful and *almost* all of the boxes are unpacked...maybe, just maybe, my lazy arse will get to wrapping that up this weekend! In the meantime, we've eaten Mexican, Chinese, Sandwiches, Mac and Cheese...yep - all from restaurants! Oh, wait - I made soup the other night, so I've, um, er....cooked! Oh well - here's a meal from last week -----

There are about six meals that immediately take me back to my childhood. Last week, I decided to pull out one of those for dinner. It's no accident that Beef Stroganoff is one of my father's favorites and I had been imposing on my parent's hospitality for a little over a week. Just seemed like the right thing to do.

Now, I don't have the recipe my mom used when we were kids and I've only made Beef Stroganoff a few times in my life, but I looked over a few recipe options and blended a few of them together to come up with what I think was a tasty and pretty healthy meal.

I started by slicing a 1 lb sirloin against the grain into about 1/4" thick slices and then sauteeing it until it was all nice and brown.

Once the meat was brown on all sides, I pulled it off the heat, and dumped it into a bowl. To the hot pan of beef juices, I added diced onion and a bunch of sliced mushrooms. Now, I've got to say that I generally don't eat fungus. It's a known fact among family and friends, however, in beef strokin'-off (as my friend Ashley calls it and makes me giggle) mushrooms are heaven. I don't know why....maybe I need a shrink.

Cook the mushrooms for 10 minutes or so until they're nice and soft and then dump them in that bowl over there with the beef. Now your hot pan is empty again! Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in it and then add a couple of tablespoons of flour....you know...make a roux, it's what we do! Once that's good and blended, I slowly added about 1 1/2-2 cups of beef broth, whisking the whole time so you don't get icky lumps.

If the weeone hovers over you watching closely to see if you secretly add any ingredients she would otherwise not eat, it will not speed up the process!

Now, once I cooked the "sauce" down for several minutes allowing it to thicken, I added the beef, onions and mushrooms, stirring to get them all hot and bothered again. To that I added some sherry followed by sour cream, stirring until it was the perfect consistency and color.

While all this is going on, you'll need to cook either some rice or egg noodles to pour all the yumminess over...but that's really all there is to it!

Voila! Dinner is served....

Beef Stroganoff

Serves 4-6

1 pound boneless sirloin steak, trimmed
Cooking spray
8 ounces mushrooms
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
1/4 cup dry sherry
3/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
4 cups hot cooked egg noodles
Fresh parsley sprigs (optional)

Slice the sirloin against the grain into 1/4 inch thick slices that are no more than 2 inches long. Over medium high heat, brown the beef on all sides. Set the meat aside. In the same pan, sautee the diced onions and mushrooms for about 7-10 minutes or until the onions are transluscent and the mushrooms are soft. Set the mushroom mixture aside with the beef. Melt the butter over medium heat and whisk in the flour until the mixure is smooth. Slowly add the beef broth, stirring the whole time to incorporate it without lumps. Simmer for several minutes until the sauce thickens. Add the beef and mushroom mixture back into the sauce as well as the sherry and sour cream, mixing and heating everything through.

Serve over hot egg noodles.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 352, Fat: 11.7g (sat 5.3g, mono 3.9g, poly 1g), Fiber: 1.8g, Cholesterol: 87mg, Iron: 3.1mg, Sodium: 355mg, Calcium: 40mg

Latkes...they're a good thing.

2011-01-02T12:03:00.000-06:00

It's true. I'm not Jewish, but I'm often jealous of the traditional Jewish foods. I could live on Brisket and Latkes, matzoball soup and the like. Fortunately for me, latkes squeezed themeselves into our family's New Years Day traditions, so I got to make them yesterday!

You see, my very German-Pittsburgh-raised-Steeler-loving-waste-not-want-not Father, aka Mr. Grumpy, aka Sandman, grew up eating pork, sauerkraut, mashed potatoes and applesauce on New Year's Day. Somewhere along the road "potato pancakes" were added to the mix. I think the potato pancakes he remembers were fried mashed potatoes, but he disagrees. (But between you and me, we know I'm always right....right??!?!!)

Fast forward to MY childhood and my mother (who grew up in the heavily Jewish area outside of Washington, DC) had changed potato pancakes to latkes.

And my lifetime obsession with latkes was born.

I love them as just potatoes with onions and flour and egg, but in recent years I've really enjoyed jacking with them a bit and seeing what fun flavors I could add. So, when Cooking Light Magazine featured multiple versions of latkes in their Dec. 2010 issue...I knew what I'd be cooking yesterday!

Cilantro-Jalapeno Latkes with Chipotle Sour Cream might be the most Tex-Mex this Jewish food will ever get! They were tasty and flavorful, but not spicy as I anticipated. My father said I could make them for him again (that's like a 5 thumbs up from Mr. Grumpy) and my mother's still using the chipotle sour cream this morning on leftover fried catfish. I take that as a WIN!

(For those who are unaware, I am temporarily cooking at my parents house as my floors in my house are finally being refinished and it's taking twice as long as was planned - hence the different kitchen in the photos!)

I started by making the sauce. It's simple - some sour cream, combined with grated lime rind, lime juice and chopped chipotle peppers.

Buy the smallest can of chipotles in adobo that you can. I can get a 7oz can, but nothing smaller. So you can chop the whole can if you like then freeze what you don't use in an ice cube tray. Once frozen, transfer the chipotle cubes to a freezer bag and you've chipotles to last you the whole year, just about!!!

Once the sauce was mixed, I refrigerated until it until the latkes were cooked. Next time, I think I'll just let the sour cream sauce sit at room temp because I'm picky and didn't care for the very cold sour cream on my very hot fried latkes. So, consider your pickiness when making that decision.

Now, if we were at my house, I'd have grated the potatoes with the help of my food processor, but instead I grated by hand!

Of course, just when I am finishing the potatoes, my mother reminds me of the mini food processor she has and she proceeds to grate the onions that way. She didn't get the great arm workout that I did!

Once the potatoes and onions are grated, you mix them in a colander and let them drain for about 30 minutes. Keep in mind that grated potatoes are going to brown a touch - don't let the color frighten you. It'll all be okay in the end, I promise!

After they're good and drained, you'll add to the potato mixture flour, an egg, some salt, cumin, chopped jalapeno and chopped cilantro. Here's where "to taste" comes into play. Next time I make these, I will add more cilantro and twice the jalapeno. I wanted a bit more heat in mine!

Mix all the ingredients then heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. You'll add 1/4 cup of potato mixture to the hot oil, flattening the tater mound with your spatula as you go. I was able to easily fit 4 latkes at a time in this particular pan. Cook them for about 3 minutes per side. I also turned the oven on to warm just to keep the done latkes hot while I finished them all.

The finished product was terrific. These are a keeper and definite repeater! And who knew that fried potatoes could be light????

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope your 2011 is full of good food, good friends and good laughs!

Cilantro-Jalapeño Latkes with Chipotle Sour Cream

David Bonom, Cooking Light, DECEMBER 2010

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 latkes and about 1 1/2 tablespoons sour cream mixture)

Ingredients

6 tablespoons light sour cream
1 tablespoon chopped chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
3/4 teaspoon grated lime rind
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
6 cups shredded peeled baking potato (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 cup grated fresh onion
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons finely chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
1 large egg
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil, divided

Preparation

1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

2. Combine potato and onion in a colander. Drain 30 minutes, pressing occasionally with the back of a spoon until barely moist. Combine potato mixture, flour, and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl; toss well.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons oil to pan; swirl to coat. Spoon 1/4 cup potato mixture loosely into a dry measuring cup. Pour mixture into pan; flatten slightly. Repeat the procedure 5 times to form 6 latkes. Sauté 3 1/2 minutes on each side or until golden brown and thoroughly cooked. Remove latkes from pan; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and potato mixture to yield 12 latkes total. Serve with sour cream mixture.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 260
Fat:: 11g (sat 2.2g,mono 6.9g,poly 1.2g)
Protein:: 5.6g
Carbohydrate:: 35.3g
Fiber:: 3.8g
Cholesterol:: 35mg
Iron:: 2.1mg
Sodium:: 268mg
Calcium:: 36mg

The Bloody Day After

2011-01-01T15:35:00.001-06:00

You know the feeling...the one where you had tooooo much fun last night? You wake up and find that the crack of light sneaking in under your bedroom door is too much, that the heavy breathing of the dog in your bed is too loud and you have the distinct realization that if you lift your head off of your pillow, your brain may explode. Yep. That's called New Year's Day!

Happy MMXI!

I did not wake up like the description above this year, but I've been there, we all have. So in honor of New Year's Day, the inevitable hangover and kicking off 2011 with a serving of vegetables, I bring you....

The Blood Mary, A Girl in the South Style!

To me, there is NO hair of the dog like a Bloody Mary. I don't like tomato juice, but this, I love. So go mix up a batch, kick back and watch some football and welcome in 2011! Thanks for reading y'all!

Bloody Mary, A Girl in the South Style!

Makes 4 drinks

20 ounces tomato juice

8 ounces vodka

4-6 shakes of Tobasco sauce

2-3 good shakes of Worcestershire sauce

1/2 -1 teaspoon horseradish

1-2 shakes celery salt

1-2 shakes black pepper

juice of 1 lime

Spicy pickled green beans (for garnish)

Mix all of the ingredients. Run the juiced lime wedges around the rim of the glasses dipping them in course ground salt and pepper. Fill the glasses with ice, the top with the Bloody Mary mix! Enjoy!

What do you get when you mix a Cow and Chocolate?

2010-12-07T10:13:00.000-06:00

A really damn good dinner!

Beef and chocolate are two of my favorite things, but I must admit I was a bit taken aback at the idea of a sauce for beef tenderloin that included cocoa powder. It certainly didn't stop me from trying it though!

It all started with a hunk o' beef. In this case, a portion of beef tenderloin. I buy a whole tenderloin and cut it down into useable sizes for the weeone and I, so I get 3-4 meals from one tenderloin. So it got a bath of salt and pepper followed by a searing good time on top of the stove making sure that all its surfaces were browned and the juices seared inside. The beef then hit the oven for half an hour at 425 degrees.

While the meat cooked, I started the sauce. In the future, I'll start the sauce first because even though the recipe say it takes 30 minutes for the sauce, I found it had to cook a lot longer to reduce to the consistancy it should. Anyway, I used my food processor to chop celery, carrots and shallots. I put them over heat in a large saucepan and let them cook for about 5 minutes.

Next up, my favorite ingredient - garlic. The garlic joined the party for just a minute or two before I added the wine, beef stock, tomato paste, bay leaf and thyme.

Those were brought to a boil and then I reduced the heat to let the sauce simmer for about 40 minutes or until the liquid was reduced to about 1/2 cup.

Once it was reduced, the sauce was run through a fine mesh strainer and mixed with cocoa powder and chopped rosemary, completing the sauce.

It was smooth and silky and rich and mind boggling really. I think I am in love with this sauce, despite the time it took to make. So, I wouldn't call this a weekday or everyday sort of meal, but man-oh-man - make it. You'll love it. So will any boy....I promise. ;D

Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Rosemary, Chocolate and Wine Sauce

2007 Ellie Krieger

Ingredients

1 (2-pound) beef tenderloin roast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped (about 1/4 cup)
1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
2 cups dry red wine
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 tablespoon unsweetened natural cocoa powder
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Season the meat with the salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil over medium-high heat until good and hot, then add the meat and sear until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes total.

Transfer the meat to a rack set on a baking sheet. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 140 degrees F for medium-rare, about 30 minutes, or to your desired degree of doneness. Remove it from the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and let rest until the sauce is nearly done before slicing.

While the meat cooks, make the sauce. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, carrot and celery and cook, stirring a few times, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the wine and broth and stir in the tomato paste. Add the bay leaf and thyme and bring to a boil. Simmer until the liquid is reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 40 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan. Stir in the cocoa androsemary and season with salt and pepper. Serve on the side with the sliced tenderloin.

Serving size 3 slices of meat and about 1 1/2 tablespoons of sauce, makes 6 servings

Per Serving: Calories 280; Total Fat 9g (Sat Fat 3g, Mono Fat 4g, Poly Fat 0g); Protein 31g; Carb 7g; Fiber 1g; Cholesterol 82mg; Sodium 375mg

Pizza - it's more than a phone call...

2010-12-06T14:55:00.000-06:00

I know, I know - the beauty of pizza is the fact that you dial a number on a crazy, hectic, busy day and some cutie little high school kid arrives thirty minutes later with a hot pie for ya'. I get it, and I promise, we do that plenty!

But sometimes I want my own pizza, a pizza that I have made from start to finish. So this past weekend I had the weeone and the teacups (two friends) all day on Saturday. We decided the best way to end the day was homemade pizzas! Sort of a "build your own pizza night". Everyone gets what they want - a rare occurance in this house.

I decided that afternoon to go ahead and make a double batch of Whole Wheat Pizza dough. It's a recipe that I think originated with Eating Well Magazine, but was then tweaked by Joe at Culinary in the Desert. It's my go-to pizza crust now. It's somewhat healthy (or at least that's what I tell myself) so then I don't feel so badly about all the cheese I'm about to put on top of it!

You start off with a cup each of Whole Wheat Flour and All-Purpose Flour. Now, I'm a King Arthur Flour lover. I don't know why...well, yes I do - because my friends who love to bake swear by it. You can get it in most major grocery stores, but you can also order it online. In with the flour go salt, yeast and a smidgen of sugar.

Then you turn on the food processor and add 3/4 cup warm water and a tablespoon of olive oil slowly while the processor forms the dough into a nice ball. Once it's in a ball, continue to run the food processor for about a minute to knead the dough for you. (I'm lazy - why should I knead? ;D )

Once you have a good soft dough, you put it in a bowl covered in cooking spray, cover it with a damp towel and set it aside to rise. It'll double in size and you'll get that great moment when you get to punch the dough and knock it back down to size. You can relieve and stress from that day.

Your dough's now ready to be used for pizza, stromboli, cheesy bread, or whatever strikes your fancy!

We formed individual pizzas for the kiddos, one giant one for me and Laxplays and I let them top 'em till their hearts were content!

Wanna see the final products???

This one's topped with Roasted Veggies! Yummy!

So the next time you're about to call Domino's or Pizza Hut or Double Dave's....remember there's another way to do pizza night! The kids will love, love, love it!

*** The recipe for the dough doesn't provide baking instructions, but I usually stick the crust alone in at 350 for about 7 minutes, pull it out, top it and then bake until everything's melted and bubbly!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

(Adapted from Eating Well)

And Stolen from Joe's Blog

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup warm water
1 tablespoon olive oil

Combine flours, yeast, salt, and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Combine warm water and oil in a measuring cup. With the motor running, gradually pour in enough of the liquid until the mixture forms a sticky ball. The dough should be quite soft. If it seems dry, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of warm water; if too sticky, add 1 to 2 tablespoons flour. Process until the dough forms a ball, then process for 1 minute to knead.

Lightly coat a large bowl with cooking spray. Place dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let rise about an hour, or until doubled in size. Punch down and let the dough rest for about 10 minutes before rolling.

*If you want to knead by hand feel free - knead for about 10 minutes. As made, this recipe makes about 1 pound of dough.

If you would like to make about 12 ounces of dough, here is the ingredient list to follow - the directions to prepare the dough is the same.

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup warm water (may need slightly more)
2 teaspoons olive oil

Beans, Beans, A Magical Fruit...

2010-12-04T10:00:00.004-06:00

When you're 8 years old and you live in Texas, refried beans are like a whole food group in your diet. The weeone has a standing order at Don Jose's (our fave little Mexican dive we've been eating at since I was 5). She gets a small chili con queso with flour tortillas followed by a side of rice and refried beans. And yes, I realize there is no meat in that meal....beans count, right? Even when they're laden with lard?

Anyway, when I came across the idea of mixing beans, rice and salsa and shoving them into a hollowed out poblano pepper I knew it would be a hit in our house! Poblanos are not that spicy, they just have a hint of spice most of the time, so they're a decidedly "Mexican" spin on stuffed peppers.

I decided that adding some chopped sauteed shrimp to the mix would make it even more yummy. So I took the peppers, sliced them in half lengthwise and put them in a baking dish. A cookie sheet would work fine as well.

I sauteed the shrimp after dusting them with a bit of cumin. (a few shrimp may or may not have inadvertantly fallen into my mouth during the cooking process)

Then the beans, rice, salsa and shrimp all were blended together - sort of like a modern-day family. ;D

Into the pepper halves the filling went and into the oven the pan went!

About 15 minutes into baking, I added cheese to the tops of each pepper. You cannot, repeat, cannot go wrong by topping anything with cheese!!!

When they came out of the oven I topped them with some chopped cilantro and....they quickly disappeared. The weeone gave these an A+ and said it was a "definite repeater". Ole!

Stuffed Poblano Peppers
adapted from a Cooking Light Recipe
Serves - 4

4 Poblano peppers, sliced in half and deseeded
1 can fat free refried beans
1 cup of your favorite rice (I used long grain wild rice), cooked
3/4 cup picante sauce
12 shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 cup 2% shredded Mexican Cheese Blend
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put empty sliced poblanos into the oven to cook for about 15 minutes.
2. Spray a non stick pan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Toss the shrimp with cumin and add to the heated pan, turning shrimp to cook fully. (3-5 minutes)
3. When shrimp is done cooking, cut into bite sized pieces.
4. Combine beans, shrimp, rice and salsa in a medium bowl. Then fill each poblano with 1/3 of a cup of filling or until all the filling has been evenly distributed among the peppers.
5. Bake filled peppers for 15 minutes, then top with the shredded cheese and return them to the oven until they are hot and the cheese is melted, approx. 10 minutes. When removed from the oven, top the peppers with the chopped cilantro and serve hot.

Nutritional Information - 1 serving = 2 stuffed pepper halves
Calories - 274, Total Fat - 5.8g (Sat - 3.6g, Polyunsat - 0.2g, Monounsat -0.1g), Chol - 42.4mg, Sodium - 1283mg, Potassium - 565.3mg, Total Carbs - 34.5g, Dietary Fiber - 7.5g, Sugars - 4.6 g, Protein - 18.2g

Did you just say Eggplant?

2010-12-03T07:20:00.000-06:00

Yes, eggplant. I am a fan. Maybe it's because it's a purple vegetable and not green, but I love eggplant. I don't love like I love zucchini because that's a whole separate and different level of love. But I really do love me some eggplant.

I don't cook with eggplant a lot because *whispers* the weeone thinks she doesn't like it. She does. I know this because I've covered it in amazing sauces before and she ate it. She just didn't know what she ate. Stealth Momma....that's me.

This time, I put it all out on the table and showed her my cards. I informed her that she was going to be having eggplant for dinner. Her reaction? "Okay." Um...well, that was anti-climatic!

So I had these two pretty eggplants ( good eggplant should be firm, don't be fooled into squishy ones!)

I sliced the eggplants into 1/2 inch slices, salted them and let them drain for about thirty minutes. Eggplant are a watery bunch and if you're gonna fry 'em, and we are, then you've gotta drain 'em. Two reasons - #1 watery things make hot oil jump out of the pan and do damage to your face and #2 watery things get soggy when breaded and fried.

Once they were good and drained, they went into bathe in egg and breadcrumbs. Now, I did not flour before the egg wash and crumbs because I thought I'd save a few calories along the way - I didn't miss it in the final product.

After I got them all well dredged and coated, it was time to spend some time in the cast iron skillet! I heated up some vegetable oil - not tons, just enough to thoroughly coat for pan-frying and started making the eggplant crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

The last step of eggplant parmesan is the layering and baking!!! In a baking dish I layered marinara, eggplant, sliced mozzarella, grated parmesan, marinara, eggplant, sliced mozzarella and more grated parmesan. Yum. A slice of mozzarella may or may not have been ingested along the way. Don't judge. ;D

Into the oven this went until it was all hot, melted and bubbly with a slight browned top.

Eggplant Parmesan Success!!! It's not neat and pretty, but my belly (and the weeone) said it's good. Now, go try it!

I Went, I Cooked, I Gave Thanks!

2010-12-02T08:52:00.001-06:00

I Went :

The weeone was spending Thanksgiving with her dad and typically I would just cook for myself at home or for friends or just lounge around in my pjs for three days nursing a rotating array of vodka and juice based cocktails until it was time to go back to work. But not this year. This year I decided I would head North (because silly Southern girls sometimes forget that it's not shorts weather in the North in November!). I left last Tuesday and flew from Houston to Harrisburg, PA...final destination? My brother's house in Lancaster. You see, I thought spending a few days with my brother, sister-in-law, two nephews and my parents would be a great way to be Thankful. And it was. I am thankful that we don't all live in one house together all the time! ;D

Me and my big brother, Doug

(this was the only photo I took of him in 4 days where he actually smiled)

My parents and the Nephews

(I'm going to get a comment from my mom saying how she hates this photo - bet ya $20)

The Nephews and Colleen

Is he hugging his mother?

No, of course not, he's trying to punch his brother

Colleen being a good sport

Colleen - I think they're bigger than you...

Yep...you have lost control of them

Aunt T...only take my photo when my little brother doesn't toss me to the floor!

I Cooked :

I did cook. I didn't do it alone! My sister-in-law, Colleen, is not a fan of cooking. She does it out of necessity. So we don't really speak the same language when it comes to the kitchen - I say mashed potatoes, she pulls out a package of instant, I pull out a bag of potatoes. ;D That sort of thing. But I have to hand it to her - she did some cooking for Thanksgiving! We had REAL mashed potatoes, chipotle mashed sweet potatoes, spinach madeleine, sourdough and italian sausage stuffing, cranberry apple relish, garlicky green beans....oh, and turkey and steaks! It was a feast for sure...and it was fun to make! If you tell me what you're interested in, I will blog any of those recipes! I'd like to think that Colleen had fun cooking too, but I think she really just tolerates me on this front. And that's why I love her...she just let me do it (plus she washes dishes as she goes along even if I was the one that made the mess!).

I Gave Thanks :

I am quite thankful this year. You guys know how uncertain my job has been (3 layoffs in less than 3 years), but somehow I'm still employed. I'm a single mom trying my best to raise a great weeone and I'm told she's pretty fantastic. I have a family that despite our differing ways of moving around and viewing this world, all love, support and respect each other for the choices that we make. I have a cast of characters that I call friends who stick with me through thick and through thin and let me be me...they even encourage the crazy and sometimes bring the wine. So, yes, I'm thankful.

I hope you and your family had as great a holiday as I did. If you laughed even half as much as us, then I'm sure you did!

And the Winner is....

2010-11-16T08:46:00.002-06:00

I dropped a list of all the entries from comments and twitter into the randomizer at www.random.org knowing that whoever came out as number 1 would win the pot.

And here's the list - Congratulations robyncz, you are now the owner of a Carribean Blue Le Creuset 8qt. Enamel on Steel Stock Pot. You get to cook like the cool kids now!

Email your address to agirlinthesouth@gmail.com within 48 hours and I'll have your pot off to you lickety split!

List Randomizer

There were 57 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

1. robyncz!!!!!

Timestamp: 2010-11-16 14:41:08 UTC

Finally - Happy Birthday to my big brother, Doug,....who doesn't read this blog and will never see that his sister does actually like him. ;D

Feeling Saucy?

2010-11-15T16:47:00.006-06:00

When you grow up with an Italian mother who makes great sauce, it ruins you for life. I can't eat red sauce in most Italian restaurants. There has to be a LOT of red wine to get me to do that. Unless I know that the guy in the kitchen has the right accent, an overbearing mother, and a serious temper - proving he's Italian - I'm suspect.

So you're probably not surprised to learn that a jar of Prego ain't gonna cut it around here. I need sauce that cooked down for hours, I need sauce that is rich and full of deep flavors. I need homemade sauce.

About 2 or 3 years ago I found a fellow Italian who had a simple and yet A-MA-Zing marinara recipe that I have now adopted as my go-to. It makes 9 cups so it keeps me in sauce for a while. That is a good thing. ;D I make this on the stove, but you could certainly do it in a crockpot.

It starts with a cool pot. Oh, you don't have one? I know this really cook chick that's giving one away tomorrow - HERE.

You start by heating some olive oil over medium heat. Once it's hot, toss in 6 cups of diced onions and a tablespoon of sugar. You'll cook these for about 30 minutes - until the onions are soft and brown and singing with happiness!

When the onions look hot, then it's time to let them swim. Pour in a couple of cups of a dry red wine. Let this cook for just a minute before you start adding everything else.

When the wine and onions seem to be getting along well you'll add all the seasonings, the bay leaves, and all the variations of tomatoes. Stir it all together, bring it to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 3 hours. Yep, 3 hours. It's not hard to make good sauce, you just have to be home for a while. ;D

I like to freeze this in 2 cup portions - that size is perfect for recipes for the weeone and I. If you're used to using jarred sauce and want to have the same amount as a jar - you'll need 4 cups...and since the recipe makes 9 you're going to have a wayward cup of sauce. Just warning ya'.

Lindrusso's Marinara Magnifica
On her Blog

Makes 9 cups

Dry red wine intensifies the well-blended flavors in this lusciously seasoned tomato sauce--magnifico! Serve over your favorite pasta.

1 tablespoon olive oil

6 cups chopped onion (about 3 medium)

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 cup dry red wine

1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil

2 teaspoons dried oregano1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

(2 bay leaves)

6 garlic cloves, crushed

2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes, undrained

2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained

2 (6-ounce) cans tomato paste

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat; add onion and sugar. Cook 30 minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally. Stir in wine; cook 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Yield: 9 cups (serving size: 1 cup)

NUTRITION PER SERVINGCALORIES 169(20% from fat); FAT 3.8g (sat 0.5g,mono 2.3g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 5.3g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 131mg; SODIUM 960mg; FIBER 6.5g; IRON 2.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30.9g

Buon Appetito!

It Takes a Lot of Clams...

2010-11-14T19:03:00.002-06:00

Anytime I hear someone use the word clams, I think about Fred Flintsone. It's true. I'm pretty sure you know that if I'm talking clams, I'm talking food, not money!

I was putting away a bunch of canned goods today that I bought at Costco. As I searched for space in my tiny cabinet, I got a good look at everything that I had and came across this can of chopped clams.

I have absolutely no recollection of buying this can and am wondering if I have ever been to the grocery store drunk because why would I buy a can of chopped clams? I couldn't even find any recipes in my ridiculously thick "to try" pile that included clams that could be a clue as to why they have been living in the back of my cabinet. Oh well...I had 'em, so it only makes sense to use 'em.

Despite my Italian heritage, Clam Sauce is not really in my repertoire, so I had to wing it. Turns out, I'm darn good at winging it...cause this was mighty tasty. In fact, I think I could bathe in this sauce. I could marry this sauce and have babies with this sauce (and that's saying something since my uterus has a sign across it that says "Closed for Business").

I started, as I often do, by chopping and sauteeing an onion. I only used half of the onion and put the other half in a container to use at a later date. Once the onions were close to translucent, a big pile of garlic joined in the fun. I think the theme of my blog should be "Garlic: It's what's for dinner." ;D

Next in the pan went some butter followed by the clams. Now I had drained the clams into a measuring cup so that I could use some of the clam juice a bit further down the line.

Next, in went the clam juice and wine. I also added a secret ingredient. Anchovy paste. Yes, I said anchovy paste. It sounds disgusting and torturous, but it's a great addition to any seafood sauce or dish. Trust me. Have I ever led you astray? I let the sauce cook for about 10 minutes so the flavors could tango, while I boiled 1/2 a pound of fettucine because I was out of linguine. Eh, you make do.

A chopped pile of flat leaf parsley was the last step before draining the pasta, plating and serving it up!

By the way, it finally started cooling down in Htown. I froze my tushy off while the weeone had a lacrosse camp this afternoon. And by froze, I mean it was like 55 degrees. Yes, Yankees, you may now laugh at me!!!

Don't forget you have one more day until I give away an 8qt Le Creuset Enamel on Steel Stockpot!

Linguine with Clam Sauce

Serves 4-6

(nutritional info is based on 5 servings)

1/2 large onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, chopped or minced

1/4 cup butter (4 Tbsp)

1/2 of the drained clam juice (about 1/2 cup)

1 can chopped clams (15.5 oz)

2 Tbsp dry white wine

Pepper to taste

1/2 pound linguine

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

Start a pot of water to boil the linguine and follow the package directions to cook. In a large skillet sautee the onion and once translucent, add the garlic continuing to sautee for 1-2 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until it thickens slightly. Serve over the linguine topped with chopped flat leaf parsley.

Nutritional Information:

Calories 320, Carbs 48g, Fat 6g, Protein 15g

Stock Up for Winter Giveaway!

2010-11-12T21:21:00.001-06:00

Even though it's like 85 degrees in Houston on November 12th, I know that most of you are starting to feel the chill of winter. I might see something below 75 by Christmas if I'm lucky! I keep cranking my a/c down really low so I can wear flannel pajama pants and sleep with tons of blankets, but alas...it doesn't affect the weather.

But you know what? When it gets cold...I make soup.

To make soup...you need a great pot. Hey! Hey! Hey! That's where I come in!!! I have a Le Creuset stockpot that I use to make large batches of soup and I love, love, love it! I think you need one too.

So, up for grabs is one Caribbean Blue Enamel on Steel Le Creuset 8 qt stockpot.

Isn't it pretty?

Since it's enamel over steel, it's really lightweight, so even full of soup you can easily lift and carry it!

How do you get it? Get 1 entry for each of the following -

#1 - In the comments, tell me what your favorite type of soup is!!!

#2 - Tweet a link to the giveway (make sure to @AGirlintheSouth)

Easy Peasy, right?

I'll pick a winner on Tuesday, November 16th...it's my brother's birthday, so I figure that day's as good as any!!! *The winner will have 48 hours to email me at the email listed over there -----> before I pick another winner.

GOOD LUCK!

Giveaways?

2010-11-12T09:01:00.000-06:00

I've never done a giveaway....but I seem to have a lot of readers these day - *waves hello* - but not as many followers. So, just to entice you to stick with me longterm, I'm going to "stock" someone's kitchen with a piece from Le Creuset....as soon as I get to 50 followers. So, is blue your favorite color?

Breakfast for Dinner - Ole!

2010-11-11T21:42:00.001-06:00

Is there anything better than breakfast for dinner? I suppose dessert for dinner or dessert for breakfast or maybe...well, you know what I mean right? right?

When I don't really want to cook, but I do want to cook I cook breakfast. It's generally quick foods, laden with either sugar or protein. I wasn't in the mood for French Toast (although remind me to have a serious discussion with you someday about Nutella Stuffed French Toast because it's A-MA-ZING!).

My go-to breakfast order when we go out on a Saturday or Sunday morning is not sugar laden...it's Mexican. It's Migas. Oh my how I love Migas. I don't speak Spanish, I have NO clue what Migas means and frankly, I don't care. All I know is that it's the perfect blend of eggs, veggies, spice, cheese and tortillas. When it's paired with refried beans Migas is happiness on a breakfast plate.

So. no real actual written out recipe...but Migas. yum.....

I started out by crisping up several corn tortillas in a cast iron skillet.

Once the corn tortillas were crisp, I diced onion, bell pepper and jalapeno and drained a can of Rotel tomatoes. I would have used fresh tomatoes and diced green chiles, but I didn't have any green chiles and really wanted them in there....hence the can of Rotel. Don't judge. I cooked.

I sauteed all the veggies next. I did sautee the jalapenos separately from all the veggies because the weeone doesn't like the heat (yet - I'm workin' on her!) and that way I could just add the jalapenos to just my Migas at the end.

While the veggies were sauteeing I took out all of my aggression on 6 poor, innocent, helpless eggs. It made me feel better. ;D I also added a bit of milk to the eggs. You know, habit. Then the eggs went into the cast iron skillet with the veggies and I mixed it all up while the eggs cooked.

Once the eggs were fully cooked, I mixed in the previously crisped tortillas (well the pieces the weeone broke them into for me!)

Last but not least....Monterrey Jack Cheese. You don't need a lot, but you need some. It makes it all get along somehow.

I topped it off with some salsa and nestled it onto the plate next to refried beans. Ole!

The weeone asked for seconds....need I say more?

Real World Cooking - Here we go again...

2010-10-31T22:10:00.003-05:00

So the thing about the real world is that you don't always have the right ingredients or the time to do what you really want to do in the kitchen. In the real world, today is Halloween. And since this Halloween fell on a Sunday aka "a school night" I wanted to eat dinner before we went trick-or-treating. I wanted something simple, tasty and reheat able. I also would like to pretend that it's fall outside and not 83 degrees right now.

With all those factors in mind I settled on a Texas favorite - King Ranch Chicken. Now, typically, K.R.C. is not the most low-cal, healthy casserole you can eat, but with a little tweaking it's easy to make it something you can have when the occasional urge hits. I also decided I would make Mini King Ranch Chicken Casseroles - individual servings ready to go!

So I started with a store bought deli roasted chicken. This is one of those great time savers that is worth the cost. You generally won't pay but $1.00 more for the roasted chicken than you would for the raw one from the meat department, but you save a ton of time by having this ready to rock and roll.

You can see that you get quite a bit of meat from this little bird. I'm going to use about 1 1/2 cups of chicken and this bird's generously provided about twice that. I'm thinking chicken salad for lunches this week....I diced up the chicken into bite sized pieces, making sure I had about 1 1/2 cups ready to go.

Next, I diced a small onion and 1 green bell pepper and sauteed them over medium heat.

Once they'd cooked about 4 or 5 minutes I tossed in the cut chicken, 1/2 of a can of the healthy version of cream of chicken soup, 1/2 a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles (Rotel!), 1/4 tsp of chile powder, 1/4 tsp of garlic powder, some salt and pepper.

They all got mixed together well and heated through.

Next I cut about 6 corn tortillas into strips 1" wide. I also sprayed the inside of my 7oz green Le Creuset ramekins with some Pam.

Now comes the fun part! I started layering.

1st - corn tortilla....

2nd - chicken mixture....

3rd - grated cheddar cheese...

Then you repeat the layers one more time and your ramekins are full and look like this -

At this point, you can either bake your casseroles or you can cover and refrigerate them. If you're ready to bake them, put them on a baking sheet, preheat your oven to 350 degrees, then bake the Mini King Ranch Chicken Casseroles for 18-20 minutes or until they're nice and bubbly. Dinner!!!

Individual King Ranch Chicken Casseroles
Serves 6

1 small onion, diced
1 small bell pepper, diced
1 1/2 cups diced cooked chicken breast
1/2 can cream of chicken soup (reduced fat works great here)
1/2 can diced tomatoes with green chiles (such as Rotel)
1/4 tsp chile powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt
pepper
6 corn tortillas (6")
4 oz 2% cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sautee onion and bell pepper over medium heat for 4-5 minutes. Add the chicken, cream of chicken soup, diced tomatoes with green chiles, chile powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix well and heat through.

Cut the tortillas into 1" strips. Spray the inside of 6 - 7oz ramekins with cooking spray. Layer tortilla strips, 1/4-1/3 cups chicken mixture then a bit of cheese. Repeat the layers ending with a filled ramekin. Place all 6 ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 18-20 minutes or until the casseroles are bubbling.

Calories 123, Fat 4g, Carbs 7g, Protein 14 g

Oh...and Happy Halloween!!!

I Have 12 1/2 Hours of Sanity Left

2010-10-31T11:30:00.001-05:00

It's true. In 12 1/2 hours I will throw myself into one straight month of literary abandon. No, I don't mean I'm going to bury myself in books and not come out to see the sun. It's time for National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo. What the heck is that, you ask? It's an annual event in the month of November in which the Office of Letters and Light encourages everyone who has ever thought, "I could write a book," to actually do it.

The challenge? Write a 50,000 word novel The time frame? 30 days The fear factor? High

I've participated in this before. This ain't my first rodeo. So, you would think that I'm prepared. Don't hold your breath. You think you have time. You think you'll write some character sketches and maybe research parts of your planned plot line or locations where your protagonist lives or drinks or works or whatever. Then you wake up and it's Halloween day and you've got 12 1/2 hours left, and there's a weeone to take trick or treating and there's laundry that needs to be folded and there's a dog that needs a bath so badly you can smell her from outside.

The great thing is that I'm not alone. There are countless others around the world today in the same boat. So what will I do? I will fold the laundry, I will take the weeone trick or treating, I will at the very least schedule a grooming appointment for the pooch, and sometime around midnight I'll start writing...and I'll keep writing until the story is done. Hopefully that will be before the end of the month and will include more than 50,000 words. :D

Oh, but don't worry. We still need to eat. I'll still be making dinner....

7th Annual Pumpkin Carving Party

2010-10-27T14:30:00.003-05:00

I think we all WANT to be that parent. You know, the one that spends an afternoon with their child carving halloween pumpkins? Sometimes, we just aren't. That's why this event even came into being. I figured we needed to carve a pumpkin and so did our friends, right? So doesn't it make perfect sense to invite our friends over and host the most dangerous party there is - A Pumpkin Carving! What's so dangerous, you say? Consider that this event is comprised of parents, children, knives and booze...and you have your answer.

So below are a smattering of photos from Sunday's party. You'll see carving, laughing, bobbing for apples, and just plain good snacks! We had a blast! Thanks to all of you who joined us for what had to be the HOTTEST Pumpkin Carving afternoon we've had yet!!!

The Beer...

The Weeone's costume

My only niece - isn't she adorable!!!

The Food

Frankenstein Cookie Cake

Monster Mouths

The Snake (hotdogs in crescent dough painted by the weeone with food coloring)

Friends!!!

Uncle Bill is the Weeone's OCP - Official Carving Partner!

The Girl Teacup and The Weeone

Bobbing for Apples

My youngest nephew

Aunt LaLa got in on the Carving this year too!

Happy Halloween Y'all!

It's Getting Hot in Here!

2010-10-25T17:52:00.006-05:00

First, yes, the Annual Pumpkin Carving Party was yesterday. Yes, it was fun. Yes, there are photos and I'll share them later this week so you THINK I cooked when I really picked up take out Chinese or went to grab Mexican food. ;D I'm devious that way.

It's October 25th. Remember just a few days ago when I praised Fall for it wonderousness? I take it all back. Fall is taunting me. I want those crisp, beautiful, cool fall days, but what do I get? I get a 90 degree Monday on October 25th. Most people find themselves drawn to cool things to eat on hot days. But you all know me better than that, right? So what do you think I made today?

Yep. Soup.

Now, I have had a life long love affair with Tomato Soup. It's my favorite soup. It's my soup soulmate. I luuuuurrrrvvvveee it. As a kid I ate the Campbells Tomato Soup and it was fine. As an adult who loves to cook, I love to make different types of Tomato Soup. I've made lots of different recipes over the years. Tonight, I wanted to wing it. No recipe, just me, my taste buds and whatever ingredients I had to make do with. Welcome to Real World Cooking 101.

Now, you can't have Tomato Soup without Grilled Cheese. It's like salt without pepper, mac without cheese, the weeone without headbands - it's just not right. And luckily I had half a baquette and some sliced sharp cheddar on hand!

Game. On.

So, here's how it went down in my kitchen tonight. I started with a full 32 oz container of chicken stock because, well, I think all soup recipes should start with a full 32 oz container of stock. It just makes the calculations so much easier. ;D Pour that into a soup pot that is at least 4 qts. Put the pot over medium heat.

To the stock I added 2 15oz cans of organic diced tomatoes. I didn't have any fresh or canned crushed, but you could use either. Although if you use fresh you'll cook them a bit longer.

I let the tomato and stock mixture heat until it just bubbled. Once it did, I added 1 cup of fat free half and half. You could use heavy cream here if you'd like, but I find that subbing the half and half is a nice way to cut the fat out but still get some creaminess.

At this point I added some Italian seasoning and salt and pepper, just a few shakes of one and a few grinds of the other. Let the soup come to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer it for at least 15 minutes. The next part is my favorite. I like gadgets. I do and I can't help it and I won't apologize for it. So it stands to reason that the part of making Tomato Soup where I get to wield my immersion blender would be fun. Power tools for the kitchen. So, yes, if you have an immersion blender then process the soup until smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender you can put the soup, in small batches (small is key here!) into a regular blender to process - be aware that hot soup in the blender can grow and force blender lids to go flying across the kitchen followed closely by the soup itself....not that I would know from personal experience or anything!

Now, you've got your soup! Next, the grilled cheese sandwiches. I fyou slice the baguette on an angle you get a prettier sandwich, but really, just slice it to the thickness you'd like.

Heat up a skillet or if you have a double burner griddle pan like mine - it's great for this sort of thing. It's also great for pancakes, in case you're trying to figure out why you should go buy one. ;D I know, I'm helpful.

Then butter one side of each slice of bread, put some cheese inside and....grill! Don't forget to flip before they get too dark unless of course someone in your family likes the slightly burned grilled cheese! We used to pawn the burnt ones off on my brother when we were kids.

So you put those two items together and you have dinner.

So, when it finally gets cold in Houston, how much do you want to bet I make ice cream....or popsicles....

Tomato Soup

Makes 4 2 cup servings

32 oz chicken stock

2 15 oz cans organic diced tomatoes

1 cup fat free half and half

Italian Seasoning to taste

Salt & Pepper

In a 4 qt pot heat chicken stock and tomatoes until they just bubble. Add half and half, stir in and heat to a boil. Add all seasonings. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Process with an immersion blender until smooth. Makes 4 2 cup servings.

Calories: 110, Fat: 0, Chol:12.5mg, Sodium: 930mg, Carb: 22.5g, Fiber: 3.5g, Sugar 15.5g, Protein: 7.25g

But I don't like salads!!!

2010-10-23T17:52:00.011-05:00

It's true. If the measure of being a girl is dependent on me loving and always eating salads...then someone's gonna be revoking my girl card any minute now, although my shoe collection might just save me. I just don't like them. I like the stuff in salad, just not lettuce in general.

Like most things in life there is an exception. There's a bar/restaurant in Houston called Cedar Creek Bar and Grill. It's one of a family of 4 bars/restaurants and this particular one is my favorite. Anyway, at Cedar Creek there are 4 things I love to eat: the Wimberley Salad, the Hill Country Burger, the French Fries, and the BLT. Yep, there's a salad on that list. Sometimes I go there and order the Wimberley Salad with a side of fries. I'm soooo not a typical girl.

The Wimberley Salad is baby spinach topped with applewood smoked bacon, dried cranberries, blue cheese and red onions. Hello! All tasty treats. I usually add grilled shrimp to it because Sarah G. now has me well-trained to eat lots of protein. (Aren't you proud, Sarah?)

Tonight I decided to duplicate this salad at home. Now, there's no real recipe, but I can certainly share the steps and the final result...wanna see?

Start by soaking your skewers if they're wooden! Wouldn't want them to burn on the grill!!!

Rinse the baby spinach -

Dice the red onion -

Cook the bacon - (anybody sick of watching me cook bacon yet? No? Good, because I'm a pork fat kind of chick! ;D )

Devein and shell the shrimp and then thread it onto the skewers-

GRILL!!!! I love this part....can you tell?

And the final salad? And, yep, that's a Cape Cod ready to drink in the background. ;D

Oh, and I like it topped with this Cranberry Balsamic Dressing but you can use whatever you like best.

Tonight's Sous Chefs....

The weeone, as always -

Lucy (my parent's puppy that I'm puppy sitting) and Maggie (our dog) -

That dinner was....yum....but can someone bring me a side of fries?

K. Thanx.

Fall...My favoritest time of the year!

2010-10-23T13:02:00.007-05:00

All of the seasons have one name, except for Fall. It's so special it gets two! So no matter whether you call it Fall or Autumn - it's a great time of year. Now, granted, in Houston, TX we get no "leaf peeping" or "crisp, cool air", but we do get a break from the heat. And, I find that if I venture out early in the morning I can pretend that I'm still back in Pennsylvania and it's a Fall afternoon!!!

This morning the breeze was great, so the weeone and I trekked out around 7:30 to head to a local produce market. If these sights look familiar it's because I blogged about this market about a year ago in Fruits and Flowers and Veggies, Oh my! We visit this market about once a month, but always find ourselves here when it's time to buy pumpkins! The back lots are full of vendors with pallet after pallet of pumpkins of every size, shape and color. We ended up with about 15-20 total. Yippee for pumpkins!

So, today we bought pumpkins and squash and strawberries and green onions and spinach and apples for bobbing and all sorts of other goodies. I love it here, but it's such a great experience for the weeone, too. She's at an age now that there are certain foods she'll ask if we can get, so I hand her some money and off she goes to negotiate with the vendors...it's a math lesson sometimes, that's for sure!

So here's a few sights from the market and few sights from our prep for our Pumpkin Carving Party tomorrow. Fun, fun morning. Now for a nap!

Garlic...it's not just for warding off Vampires!

2010-10-22T17:35:00.005-05:00

Apparently, there are those who think that garlic will ward off Vampires. In this house, we know better. But we have all sorts of super secret intel on vampires around here, well, just once particular group of sparkly vampires... but I digress.

Garlic. It's what's for dinner most nights. The weeone loves it as much as I do, so we use it a lot and in almost everything. I will say it hasn't made it's way into cakes or muffins, but I fear it's just a matter of time. Will someone come have an intervention with me if I post about garlic cookies or a garlic chocolate cake? K. Thanks.

I had some flank steak and the weeone said Friday night is a good night for Chinese (it's like she's my kid or something). So our Garlic Beef Two Ways was born.

I started out with about a 1 pound flank steak. I sliced it against the grain in about 1/2 inch strips and trimmed so they were no more than about 2 1/2 or 3 inches long.

Then onto the sauce. I sliced green onions....

...while the weeone combined soy sauce, a bit of sugar, dark sesame oil, and tons of minced garlic. The green onions were added to the sauce and then poured over the cut flank steak. We prepped this early so we put it in a storage container and stashed it in the fridge for a while.

When tummies started rumbling, the weeone took to cooking some rice (she's now rice proficient) and separating red leaf lettuce for me.

Meanwhile, I heated some oil in a cast iron skillet. I don't have a wok. I used to, but when you live in a 1940's cottage, space is valuable and I found I didn't use the wok often enough to warrant storing it. I'm sure a Chinese food chef would argue it's necessary, but, well...I don't lose arguements often, so I'll just do it my way, thanks!

In went the beef and sauce, and I stirfried it for about 4-5 minutes. I decided to throw in some shredded carrots near the end just because I had them and orange is a pretty color. I know. I'm easily distracted by shiny objects. I can't help it.

The finished product? Well the weeone is lettuce-free - a bed of rice with garlic beef...and the big clothespin-like cheater chopsticks. ;D

My way? Red leaf lettuce topped with a bit of rice then the beef mixture. Colorful, tasty, perfect.

Garlic Beef - 2 Ways

Serves 4

3/4 pound flank steak

1/2 cup green onions, sliced

2 1/2 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce

1 1/4 Tbsp sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp dark sesame oil

Canola Oil for stirfrying

4 cups cooked white rice

16 leaves Red Leaf lettuce

Cut the flank steak across the grain, at 1/2 inch intervals. Combine the steak slices with the green onions, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and sesame oil. In a cast iron skillet or wok, heat a tablespoon of canola oil. Stirfry steak mixture 2-4 minutes or until meat is cooked through. Add 1/4 cup rice, 3 slices of steak plus sauce to a leaf of lettuce and roll up to serve.

Serving Size - 4 filled leaves

Cal: 498, Fat: 14.8 (sat. 2.7g, mono 6.8g, poly 3.3g), Protein: 25.2g, Carb 62.2g, Fiber: 3.2g, Chol: 28mg, Iron: 8.7mg, Sodium: 581mg, Calc: 88mg

What do you expect from an Italian Chick?

2010-10-19T17:16:00.005-05:00

The Weeone and Pasta Face - Who can resist?

Pasta. That's what you should expect. Yes, we had Mac and Cheese last night. Yes, we had pasta again tonight. It's my right as an Italian. Plus, I have applewood bacon on hand and when I have something in the fridge that I don't always keep on hand I try to use it in as many recipes as possible. And as a result, tonight's meal? Fettucine Alfredo with Bacon

Now, we're trying to eat pretty healthy in this house so you might think that means no rich and creamy foods. Sarah G. would tell you otherwise, right Sarah? She'd tell you everything in moderation and with proper portions in mind. She'd also tell you that if you deprive yourself you'll eventually cave. What do I have to say about it? It sounded good and I have a fairly healthy version that's quite tasty....that's what I have to say about it.

To start, I boiled some fresh fettucine and reserved 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. I think fresh pasta is better than dried. It tastes better, cooks quicker, and did I mention it tastes better? It does. Buy it. Or if you have more free time than I do, make it (and then bring me some, mkay?).

Next...applewood bacon. I know, you've seen this process before...so I used a different pan and cut the slices in half. Doesn't that make it infinitely more interesting? Aren't you captivated?

In the pan with the bacon drippings I added a teaspoon of minced garlic. Now I have a great garlic press. It's from the Pampered Chef and it works wonderfully, but ever since I found this jarred minced garlic, my press has been put out to pasture. It's just easier and it's just as good. So, if you're short on time, skip the garlic hands and go for jarred!

Once the garlic had done its solo dance in the pork fat, I let a tablespoon of flour join the fun, stirring constantly. You're basically making a roux with these three ingredients to start as the base of your alfredo sauce.

Once I had my roux smooth and bubbly, I slowly added 1 cup of milk - I used 1/2 cup skim milk and 1/2 cup fat free half and half. Again, keep stirring on this step. No one likes scalded sauce!

I reduced the heat once the sauce was bubbling and added 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, stirring it until the cheese melted completely.

The end was in sight when I added the 1/4 cup of reserved cooking liquid, stirred it in and then tossed the fettucine in to coat it thoroughly.

When I plated the pasta, I topped it with the applewood bacon crumbles and fresh parsley. From start to finish? 25 minutes. Perfection. Serve this with a fresh Romaine salad and dinner is sublime!

Fettucine Alfredo with Bacon

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 (9-ounce) package refrigerated fresh fettuccine
2 slices applewood-smoked bacon, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup 1% low-fat milk
2/3 cup (about 2 1/2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid.

2. While pasta cooks, cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 4 minutes or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings. Add garlic to drippings in pan; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Sprinkle flour over garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly; cook 2 minutes or until bubbly and slightly thick, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low. Gradually add cheese, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in salt and reserved 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Add hot pasta to pan; toss well to combine. Sprinkle with bacon, parsley, and pepper.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 339
Fat:: 11.7g (sat 5g,mono 3.8g,poly 0.7g)
Protein:: 17.3g
Carbohydrate:: 38.4g
Fiber:: 2g
Cholesterol:: 22mg
Iron:: 0.5mg
Sodium:: 833mg
Calcium:: 291mg

Bad Day = Gooooooood Food

2010-10-18T18:09:00.006-05:00

Is there anything better at the end of a bad day than really good food? Yeah, okay, you got me - a really stiff drink is pretty damn good. But there really is a reason that some foods are called comfort foods. So when deciding what to make for dinner I factored in that pasta (a go to food when I'm in a bad mood) had to be included.

Looking through the menu that the weeone and I came up this past weekend, I found Bacon, Ranch and Chicken Mac and Cheese, but I didn't want chicken. I wanted fish...so I adapted the recipe, made Bacon and Ranch Mac and Cheese and paired it with Panko Crusted Tilapia and the weeone whipped up a lemon dill sauce. Yum!

***please note that there is not one vegetable in sight in this meal and I'm completely okay with that. ;D Just don't tell my Dietician...she'll kick my arse!***

So, I started out by boiling 8 oz of elbow macaroni. While that was cooking I took two Tilapia fliets, ran them through an egg white and some Panko bread crumbs that had been seasoned with paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and itty bitty bit of salt. They went onto a baking sheet bound for the broiler a bit later.

While I was readying the fish, I also cooked up a few slices of applewood smoked bacon. Now, I really only needed like 1 slice for the Mac and Cheese, but we're a pork fat kind of household and I knew as soon as the weeone smelled bacon, her homework would be abandoned and she'd find her way into the kitchen to steal some. For the record, I was right.

Once the bacon was cooked, drained, crumbled and set aside, I grabbed my favorite Le Crueset Green soup pot and melted some butter. The butter was soon joined by a tablespoon of flour and lots of whisking.

Once those were well combined and thickening 1 1/2 cups of skim milk and 1/3 cup of Cream of Mushroom soup were added to the quickly developing sauce. The weeone took over stirring responsibility for me for this step, waiting for it to boil the cooking for several minutes before removing it from the heat to let it cool a bit.

Once the sauce had dropped in temp somewhat the six cheese Italian Blend cheese went in for a swim. It was mixed in and melted along with garlic powder, onion powder and a pinch of salt.

Next, the elbow macaroni joined the sauce and was mixed it and then topped with some colby-Jack cheese as well as the crumbled bacon.

Everything was now ready to go under the broiler: the fish for 4 minutes per side and the Mac and Cheese for about 4 minutes just to melt the cheese topping.

During those 8 minutes the weeone mixed up about 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice and a teaspoon of chopped fresh dill. Sauce? Check.

This meal was a winner all around. I think adding a salad of some sort would round it out as when all was said and done, I was craving something green. Don't tell Sarah G. She'll think I've gone all healthy on her and I need her to know that french fries are still a priority in my life....along with vodka. After all...this is the sous chef I've got to deal with -

Bacon Ranch Mac and Cheese (adapted from the recipe below)

Bacon, Ranch and Chicken Mac and Cheese from Cooking Light

Yield : 4 Servings

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni
1 slice applewood-smoked bacon
8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups fat-free milk
1/3 cup condensed 45% reduced-sodium 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded six-cheese Italian blend (such as Sargento)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded colby-Jack cheese

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.

2. Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Finely chop bacon; set aside. Increase heat to medium-high. Add chicken to drippings in pan; sauté 6 minutes or until done.

3. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; sprinkle flour evenly into pan. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Combine milk and soup, stirring with a whisk; gradually add milk mixture to saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook 2 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat; let stand 4 minutes or until sauce cools to 155°. Add Italian cheese blend, onion powder, garlic powder, dill, and salt, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in pasta and chicken.

4. Preheat broiler.

5. Spoon mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with reserved bacon and colby-Jack cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts.

You Won't Find this in the Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-17T12:20:00.007-05:00

It doesn't quite feel like fall outside in Houston, but I am primed and ready for Fall flavors. If you know me well you know that this is my favorite time of year. Pumpkins, turkeys, crunchy leaves, over-the-top Halloween costumes - it all holds a special place in my tiny heart. So when I found an old magazine tear-out in my "to try" file with a recipe for Pumpkin Ravioli, I knew I had to try it. The ravioli are paired with a Gorgonzola sauce which I was hesitant to use thinking that Gorgonzola flavors would swallow up these pumpkin treats, but I was delightfully surprised to discover that the sauce is delicate, smooth and the perfect partner to tango with this pasta.

I started out by getting the water out of the canned pumpkin. It seems like you'll lose pumpkin by spreading it out on paper towels to absorb the moisture, but have a little faith. After a good five minutes you'll be left with pumpkin that pretty much peels up off the towels and easily transports itself into a mixing bowl.

While the pumpkin was draining I combined the breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, fresh minced sage, nutmeg, and salt.

And then the ravioli guts all came together.

You can make these ravioli up to 2 days ahead of time according to the recipe. You just cover them with plastic wrap so they won't dry out and refrigerate until you are ready to cook them and make their fun little sauce.

It's a pretty easy process to make ravioli from wonton wrappers. Lay out one wrapper (covering the rest with a damp towel so they don't dry out), add about 2 tsps of the pumpkin mix and then wet the edges, so that when you fold the wrapper over it seals and leaves you with a nice ravioli. Now my grocery store only has square wonton wrappers, which I find unfortunate because I think that round ones make for prettier ravioli - you can even sandwich two if you'd like.

To cook the ravioli, you heat water in a Dutch oven being careful NOT to boil, but only simmer the water. Add about half of the ravioli (while keeping the other half hiding under a damp towel) and cook for 4 minutes. The little buggers float when they're ready, letting you know that hot tub time is over for them. ;D You'll have to remove these from the water pretty carefully as they can tear easily. Keep the first half warm while you cook the second half.

Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan combine 1 cup of skim milk and 1 Tbsp of flour and heat to boiling while whisking continually. Keep the milk on the heat for about 1 minute or until you can really notice that it's thickening.

Then remove the sauce from the heat, add 1 1/2 Tbsp of butter and stir until it melts. Once it's melted, toss in your 1/2 cup of Gorgonzola cheese and stir gently until it's melted and incorporated.

To put it all together, place 5 or 6 ravioli in a bowl or on a plate and add about 3 Tbsp of sauce on top. You can sprinkle a teaspoon or two of chopped hazelnuts to top it off. Heaven on a plate. Shockingly tasty.

Pumpkin Ravioli with Gorgonzola Sauce

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh sage
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
30 round wonton wrappers
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Cooking spray
1 cup fat-free milk
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
3 tablespoons chopped hazelnuts, toasted

Preparation

Spoon pumpkin onto several layers of heavy-duty paper towels, and spread to 1/2-inch thickness. Cover with additional paper towels; let stand 5 minutes. Scrape into a medium bowl using a rubber spatula. Stir in breadcrumbs, Parmesan, salt, minced sage, pepper, and nutmeg.

Working with 1 wonton wrapper at a time (cover remaining wrappers with a damp towel to keep from drying), spoon 2 teaspoons pumpkin mixture into the center of wrapper. Brush edges of wrapper with water and fold in half, pressing edges firmly with fingers to form a half-moon. Place on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornstarch. Repeat procedure with remaining wonton wrappers and pumpkin mixture.

Fill a large Dutch oven with water; bring to a simmer. Add half of ravioli to pan (cover remaining ravioli with a damp towel to keep from drying). Cook 4 minutes or until done (do not boil), stirring gently. Remove ravioli with a slotted spoon; lightly coat with cooking spray, and keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining ravioli.

Combine milk and flour in a saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook for 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add butter, stirring until butter melts. Gently stir in Gorgonzola.

Place 5 ravioli in each of 6 shallow bowls, and drizzle each serving with 3 tablespoons Gorgonzola mixture. Sprinkle each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons hazelnuts. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 250 (33% from fat)
Fat:: 9.1g (sat 4.5g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.7g)
Protein:: 9.5g
Carbohydrate:: 33g
Fiber:: 3.1g
Cholesterol:: 22mg
Iron:: 2.4mg
Sodium:: 636mg
Calcium:: 162mg; Cooking Light, November 2007

What goes best with Asian food....

2010-10-14T18:58:00.006-05:00

I would argue that Lemon Drop Martinis are the perfect accompaniment to Asian food, but tonight the perfect thing? The weeone. I didn't take any photos of her and her chopsticks, but I sooooo should have. Hers look like a giant clothespin and have a spring...so she cheats, but it is so darn cute to watch her eat with them!!!

She picked out the menu for tonight. Stir-Fried Ginger Shrimp. She's a crustacean girl...like her mother.

So I peeled and chopped some ginger....

Sliced some onion...

Added the ginger and some salt and white pepper to the shrimp and let them sit for a few minutes.

Meanwhile, I heated up some canola oil (about a teaspoon) in a nonstick skillet. I tossed in the shrimp, and stir fried for a couple of minutes then pulled them out and set the shrimp aside.

Wiped out the skillet...do you know how hard that photo was to take???

Heated some more oil, then added the onions and some minced garlic.

They were joined by some celery (I bought this already cut because I just can't justify buying that giant stalk of celery at the store and then it going to waste!)

After a few minutes the shrimp joined in...

....followed shortly by a mix of water, soy sauce, cornstarch, sesame oil, sugar and chili paste.

That thickened nicely.

Believe it or not, I was out of rice....so we put this atop orzo. It is rice shaped pasta after all!

Two thumbs up....we loved it!

Stir-Fried Ginger Shrimp

Serves 4

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 teaspoon chopped, peeled, fresh ginger

dash of salt

dash of pepper

1/2 cup water

1 Tbsp mirin

2 tsp soy sauce, low sodium

1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp sugar

1tsp dark sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon chile paste with garlic

1 Tbsp canola oil, divided

1 cup thinly vertically sliced onion

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup diagonally cut celery

Place shrimp in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with chopped ginger, salt and pepper and toss well. Let stand 5 minutes.

Combine 1/2 cup water and the next 6 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.

Heat 1 teaspoon canola oil in alarge nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp mixture to pan; stir-fry for 2 minutes. Remove shrimip mixture from pan; set aside. Wipe pan dry with a paper towel. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons canola oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic to the pan; stir-fry 1 minute. Add celery; stir-fry 1 minute. Return shrimp mixture to pan; stir-fry 1 minute or until the shrimp are done.

Add water mixture to pan. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly with a whisk. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings of about 1 cup each.

Calories: 192, Fat: 6.7g (sat 0.8g, mono 2.9g, poly 2.3g), Protein: 23.8g, Carb: 7.2g, Fiber: 0.8g, Chol: 172mg, Iron: 3mg, Sodium: 594mg, Calc: 82mg

Back to School = Morning Quickies

2010-08-25T16:28:00.006-05:00

Okay, not that kind of quickie...get your heads out of the gutter and back into the kitchen!

Now that school has started breakfast needs to be several things in our house - 1) quick 2) self-serve and 3) stocked with protein. The weeone started 3rd grade on Monday (what? where'd the time go?) and now she doesn't eat lunch until 12:45 pm. So, not only is breakfast the most important meal of the day - it's gotta last!

If you're like me, the brain is not quite up to snuff at 7am and the idea of being creative and all Chef-like at that hour isn't really that appealing. Not to mention that not only do I have to get the weeone's butt out the door at 7:40am, but mine needs to be showered, dressed and ready for work as well.

This is one of my absolute favorite things to have for breakfast - it's the Crustless Quiche Muffin. No, it's not really a muffin, but it's a crustless quiche made in a muffin cup. One of the greatest things about this is that it takes about 5-7 minutes to prep them and 30 minutes to bake them and if you make them on Sunday night, you've got a week's worth of quiche ready to go!

You can add whatever veggies, meats, etc you prefer in your quiche ( I like gruyere and spinach, bu the weeone has not fallen in love with gruyere yet...I'm still working on her!).

Start by chopping and prepping everything to go into the quiche.

Crack your eggs in...

Add your fat-free half and half (or heavy cream if you prefer)....

Mix it up and divide it evenly into a muffin pan that's been sprayed with Pam BAKING spray - trust me on this one, the baking spray with flour is the way to go!

Bake them up until their solid and golden brown....I love how they puff in the oven.

Once they've cooled (and fallen), run a knife around the edge of the muffin cup and they pop right out! I store them in a food storage container in the fridge where the weeone can reach them so she can warm up a couple in the morning.

She likes hers with just salt and pepper, but Mommy takes hers with a dose of Tabasco!

Crustless Quiche Muffins

12 quiche

8 Large Eggs

1/2 cup fat free Half and Half

4 oz. Canadian Bacon, diced

1/2 cup Monterrey Jack Cheese, shredded

1/2 cup Bell Pepper, diced

1/2 cup White Onion, diced

Salt

Pepper

Spray the cups of a muffin tin with Pam with Flour Baking Spray. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients, mixing thoroughly. Divide amongst 12 muffin cups, and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until no longer jiggly and golden brown.

Nutritional Info (per quiche): Calories 54, Fat 3g, Carbs 3g, Proten 5g

Cathartic Cooking

2010-06-06T17:05:00.003-05:00

The Girl Teacup and the Weeone at their 2nd swim meet

So I left my kitchen for a while. We've been subsisting on convenience foods, sandwiches, ballpark delights, restaurants, vodka and cut fruit. It's been nice in some ways. It's been horrible in some ways. Mainly, it's been the way we've survived evening swim practices, finishing the school year and a very hectic work schedule for me. Now school has ended, swim practice is at 6:15am (who'd think that was an improvement other than a nutjob like me?), and work...well, work is probably why I found myself in my kitchen tonight.

Seven weeks ago my company announced that due to several things (including the passage and costs associated with the Healthcare Reform Bill) they'd be cutting about 50% of our sales force. That's a huge number. That's a scary number. That's a necessary number. My division will probably not be hit as hard as others, but it's been a long seven weeks of strategizing, crunching numbers, discussing possible scenarios and just plain worrying. Tomorrow the worry ends. Tomorrow morning, I'll be sitting at home by my phone awaiting a phone call to tell me if all the worry has been for naught or if I was right to worry. I'm sort of at peace with it going either way, but I still found myself this evening drawn to my safe place - my kitchen.

Now, even though I haven't been cooking a lot, I have been stocking the kitchen to some extent, so when we got home from today's Astro's game (where the bottom of the standings Astros beat the Chicago Cubbies!!!!) I started looking to see what proteins I had that were calling my name.

Pork. That's what I was wanting. The other white meat to some, comfort food to others. As a kid, my mother would make pan fried bone in porkchops that I adored. As an adult, I don't cook pork often enough.

Wasabi and Panko-Crusted Porkchops. Yum. The perfect blend of that other white meat, a little pan frying, and a touch of heat. Heaven on a plate.

This is a recipe that originated, I believe with Cooking Light magazine but that I discovered through their online forums. It's simple, quick and very worth the while.

A quick dredge of the porkchops through egg and panko breadcrumbs readies them to be dropped in ths skillet - a little heated peanut oil waiting for them.

Four quick minutes on each side and they're cooked. Pull the pork out, salt it and set it aside and then toss the contents of the sauce in the pan for a few minutes, add green onions and voila - your entree is done. Told you. Simple. And still yum.

By the way....there will be Happy Hour at my house tomorrow....no matter what news the phone call brings....so if you're in the area....come say hi. You never know, it might be Celebratory Cooking tomorrow night!

Wasabi and Panko-Crusted Porkchops

Cooking Light Magazine, March 2006

Yield: 4 servings (1 porchop and 1 tablespoon sauce)

2/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about 1/2 inch thick)
1 teaspoon peanut oil
Cooking spray
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon bottled ground fresh ginger (such as Spice World)
1/3 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons sake or dry sherry
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon wasabi paste
1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions

Preparation

Place panko in a shallow dish. Place egg white in another shallow dish. Dip pork in egg white; dredge in panko.

Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat; add pork. Cook for 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove pork from pan; sprinkle with salt.

Reduce heat to medium. Add ginger to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Combine broth and the next 4 ingredients (through wasabi) in a small bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add broth mixture to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in green onions. Spoon sauce over pork.

Nutritional Information

Calories:: 215 (28% from fat)
Fat:: 6.8g (sat 2.1g,mono 2.9g,poly 0.8g)
Protein:: 24.5g
Carbohydrate:: 10.8g
Fiber:: 0.9g
Cholesterol:: 65mg
Iron:: 1.1mg
Sodium:: 454mg
Calcium:: 15mg

Spaghetti Night...in 20 minutes!

2010-03-22T16:56:00.003-05:00

Mondays are not fundays...can we just all agree on that? Today is the Monday following Spring Break which has made it even more of a challenge. We spent a week moving a a leisurely pace, caring less about bedtimes and schedules and more about fun. I liked it. The laid-back schedule fits me. I'm told I'd fit in well in Europe...anyone want to take me there? I'd like to go to Portugal or Italy or Greece or...well, I digress.

My point up there was that Monday nights are not usually the greatest cooking nights. We're tired and we're rushed and it's Monday for heaven's sake!!! So, tonight...comfort food in 20 minutes. It's spaghetti night in our household!

Here's the deal...I'm a spaghetti snob. My mom is a great cook and an Italian woman so I sort of have been spoiled when it comes to good tomato sauces in life. I remember as a kid harvesting tomatoes out of our massive vegetable garden and my mom stewing them to freeze them so she could use them for sauce throughout the year. Yum is really all I can say. As a result, I don't like jarred spaghetti sauces. They just don't taste that great to me. I'll occasionally use one and doctor the heck out of it with my spice cabinet, but it always leaves me wanting.

I have a great marinara recipe, Lindrusso's Magnificent Marinara - and I'll be sharing that soon when I make a huge batch - but it's a longer process than a Monday night allows. So, spaghetti in 20 minutes and not out of a Prego jar? Simple. Good. Healthy.

I start by browing ground beef. I use 91% lean grass-fed, antibiotic-free, hormone-free sirloin. We don't need extra hormones in this house, that's for sure! Plus, it tastes better.

Once it's browned, I drain it. Even though I use a leaner beef, I like to get the excess grease out where I can.

In the same pot I just browned the ground beef, I toss in diced onions, shortly followed by some chopped fresh tomatoes and garlic...you know the drill, cook until everthing is happy - maybe 5 minutes. By the way, you should start your pasta water at this point....it takes some time to get it to a good rolling boil.

I like to add my spices at this point. Y'all know I love Penzey's so it's no surprise that I use Penzey's Tuscan Sunset as my Italian seasoning of choice. It's salt free so you can salt to your taste instead of someone else's. =) I also add some crushed red pepper when the weeone's not looking...it's amazing how she only thinks foods are spicy if she SEES the spicy ingredients being added!

Next, 1 can of Muir Glen Organic Tomato Sauce (it's just pureed tomatoes really) and some tomato paste as well. Mix them up...

Then for that great depth of flavor that makes spaghetti sauce sing...add some red wine. I add about 1/2 - 3/4 cup. I use a reasonable table red - nothing fancy, but something I would drink.

You should have boiling water by now to add your pasta to and it just takes a few minutes to get that cooked through.

If you've got a weeone - spaghetti night MUST, I repeat MUST include garlic bread. We just use sandwich bread with butter and garlic powder and toss it under the broiler.

Voila! Dinner is served....in 20 minutes. Take THAT Rachel Ray! ;D

It's all because of the weeone...

2010-03-17T17:56:00.004-05:00

Many posts could probably start out with that title, but this is most definitely accurate for this post. I haven't been cooking. There. I said it. We've been eating sandwiches and in restaurants and I've been generally very blah about food as of late. I guess we all get a moment, right? But today the weeone isn't feeling well. She's a bit under the weather, or she's hoodwinked us all again and just wants an evening tucked away in my bed watching tv and being doted on. Either are serious possibilities.

Anyway, when I arrived home from work her sad little eyes looked up at me and said, "Momma," yep, she calls me Momma and I hate it although secretly love it, "you haven't cooked for me in a long time. What's for dinner?". That's a guilt trip that will get you to do just about anything, right? So I busted out a soup recipe that I love. It's called Tomato-Tortilla soup, but I really think it's just a tomato soup that has some Mexican flair to it. It's yummy, quick and easy and despite the fact that it's not cold in H-town anymore, I'm making it.

So, like most good food, you start out with onion, garlic and cumin. =) Yep...my own version of the trinity!

Add in the chicken stock (by the way, I LOVE when you need exactly 4 cups of chicken stock. That's the exact amount that comes in a carton. I believe all soup recipes should be built around the inclusion of 4 cups of stock!), tomatoes, oregano, jalapeno and boil then simmer.

After all the work is done, you add some fresh lime juice, puree and voila! You've got a great tomato soup!

I got this new immersion blender for my birthday - thanks, Mom!- and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! It makes recipes like this a snap! If you're a soup fan and you don't have one....RUN, do not walk, and go invest a little $ into this little friend.

So...here's the final product...YUM!

Tomato-Tortilla Soup

by Ellie Krieger

Ingredients

2 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon canola oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 small onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 (14.5-ounce) cans no salt added diced tomatoes. with juice
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Brush both sides of each tortilla with oil, using 1 tablespoon of the oil. Cut the tortillas in half, then cut each half into 1/4-inch wide strips. Arrange the strips on a baking sheet, sprinkle with the salt, and bake until crisp and golden, about 12 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 teaspoons of oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic, jalapeno, cumin, and oregano and cook for 1 minute more. Add the broth and tomatoes, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir in lime juice.

Remove the pan from the heat and puree with an immersion blender or in 2 batches in a regular blender until the soup lightens in color but chunks of tomato remain, about 30 seconds. Serve the soup topped with the tortilla strips, a dollop of sour cream, and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Per Serving:

Calories 270; Total Fat 10g (Sat Fat 2g, Mono Fat 3.5g, Poly Fat 2g); Protein 9g; Carb 36g; Fiber 4g; Cholesterol 8mg; Sodium 335mg

Some things bear repeating...

2010-03-03T07:37:00.004-06:00

One of my favorite recipes is an Ellie Krieger recipe for Baked Shrimp with tomatoes and feta. I've posted it before, though it's been a long time. Last weekend when my parents had just come in from a very long drive back from Arizona, I thought I'd dust this one off and put it to good use over a bed of orzo. yum.

You do the the bulk of the cooking on the stovetop - the usual array of onions, garlic, tomatoes, etc. Then when you add the shrimp and feta, you pop it into the oven to finish it off. It can be served solo, but I found it to be especially good piled atop a bed of orzo.

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 (14.5-ounce) cans of no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices
1/4 cup finely minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon finely minced fresh dill
1 tsp dried oregano
pinch of red pepper flakes
handful of kalamata olives
1 1/4 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 3 ounces)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat the oil in an oven proof skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until the tomato juices thicken.

Remove from the heat. Stir in the parsley, dill, dried oregano and shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the feta over the top. Bake until the shrimp are cooked through and cheese melts, about 12 minutes.

Serve with orzo or pasta.