My Endless Summer

Easy Peezy Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

2013-11-25T08:07:00.001-08:00

I've been wanting to make these rolls that I saw on Bloomdesignonline

http://bloomdesignsonline.com/2013/10/make-it-monday-pumpkin-pie-rolls.html

It did not disappoint. I'm not really a pumpkin pie fan but I like pumpkin on occasion and with my kids home from school this week for the break it was a perfect time to try it! My hubs on the other hand loves pumpkin pie so he was definitely excited for this! Easiest thing ever when you get the crescent rolls from the grocery store. Got them from Costco on sale too, so they were very cheap. And I made two batches because the recipe had so much leftover filling.

For the rolls-

2 cans crescent rolls

For the filling-

1 cup pumpkin puree

3 tablespoons butter melted

1/4 agave

1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

dash of ginger & allspice

For the glaze-

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tablespoon milk

1 Tablespoon butter melted

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Touch of vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix together the ingredients for the filling until well combined.

Unroll crescent rolls. Press seams together so that you have a rectangle.

Spread a thinish layer of the filling on top of the rolls- just split the filling between the two cans rolls. Roll up the dough from the curly side. Cut the roll into 8 equal pieces. Place slices in a buttered 8 inch round cake pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes until golden brown. While these are baking, whisk together ingredients for glaze until smooth.

Remove rolls from oven and let cool slightly (5 minutes) spread glaze generously over tops of rolls & grub!

Disclaimer: eating 3 DOES make you feel sick...in case you were wondering...

Nutty Vegetarian Pasta

2013-01-07T10:51:00.001-08:00

We are doing 2-3 vegetarian meals a week in 2013! so i needed to expand my horizons so I jumped over to The Smitten Kitchen. This was one of those meals created by being inspired by a cauliflower walnut pasta salad but then branched off on my own. I'm happy with how it turned out and so for the first time in many months I'm blogging it for posterity!

Ingredients
1 head Cauliflower- cut into florets
1 lb whole wheat thin spaghetti pasta cooked in salt- save a cup of pasta water
1-2 sweet bell peppers- chopped
2 zucchini diced
1/2 small container ricotta cheese
3/4-1 cup walnuts- chopped
1 large purple onion- chopped
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
Parmesan cheese
1 lemon
Evoo
Salt and pepper
Garlic powder or minced
Cayenne (optional)

Pasta-Cook the pasta 1 minute under the package cook time. Toss in a glog of evoo, 1/2 cup pasta water (add more if needed), and 1/2 juiced lemon. Add some Parmesan cheese to lightly coat. Salt, pepper, and garlic powder it to taste.

Walnuts-In a pan toast walnuts until golden in 1 tb of butter or evoo. Remove from pan & toss in pasta.

Veggies-Heat a bit of evoo in a pan and sauté the purple onion and garlic. Add cauliflower and cook until slightly golden. Sprinkle cayenne, salt, and pepper. Put a glug of the white wine vinegar. Add bell peppers for a couple minutes, then the zucchini. Continuously stir veggies. If the bottom looks like its too hot, add some water or wine to pick up the stuck pieces on the bottom. Cook until soft and yummy but not mushy.

Add ricotta cheese to pasta.

Plate some pasta, cheese, nut mixture and top with the veggies. Serve with bread of your choice! I added feta to my leftovers the next and if was delish!

The "Turn Any Meat Lover into to a Vegetarian" Sandwich

2012-05-15T12:33:00.002-07:00

So, my hubs has named the "Turn Any Meat Lover into to a Vegetarian" Sandwich because it's that good. It's full of so many yummy veggies and a homemade pesto that you forget what's not there. It's really good the next day slightly reheated too!

The "Turn Any Meat Lover into to a Vegetarian" Sandwich
makes 6 sandwiches
Thick bread or Ciabatta (i love TJ's Tuscan Italian loaf)
2 Bell Peppers, sliced into rings
1 white onion, sliced in rings
3 Zucchini sliced long ways
8ish artichoke hearts, chopped
Roughly a handful of sundried tomatoes , chopped
1 package of Mozzarella cheese (slice it)
1 batch of Homemade pesto (you will have leftovers to use all week)
EVOO
Cooking spray
Cayenne, salt, and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees & put 2 cookie sheets in there to heart also.

Heat up some EVVO and saute the veggies starting with the zucchini. I like to watch for the my veggies to turn bright and then add a bit of soy sauce and cayenne. Remove it from the pan and do the same thing to the onion & bell pepper but add minced garlic too.

Make your pesto (click on the link above for recipe) or pop open the jar. :)

Layer your sandwiches with everything! Spray both sides of your sandwich and put them on the 1st hot cookie sheets, stack the 2nd cookie sheet on the top of the sandwiches. If your sheet is light like mine, I put a baking dish onto to keep it down.

Set the timer for 5-10 minutes and out comes a golden & delish sandwich!

Homemade Pesto

2012-05-15T12:06:00.000-07:00

I have always loved pesto and when a friend of mine told me how to make it about 7 years ago, my whole whole opened up :) This great on: any so so sandwich to make it amazing, any good pasta to make it delish, or like my newest son eats it- scooped out of a spoon!

Homemade Pesto Recipe

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1/2 cup freshly grated Romano cheese (or Parmesan)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup pine nuts or walnuts

3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/3 cup lemon juice

2 handfuls of Spinach leaves if you want

Put all ingredients in the blender or food processer and blend until creamy. If you plan on freezing it, didn't put the cheese in until after you defrost it.

Sweet Potato Burgers

2012-05-15T11:53:00.005-07:00

Hello Blog World! It's been awhile I guess but i have some great new recipes to share. I recently went off dairy (and back on now) due to a possible allergy for my little nurser. So, I was forced to eat cheese free but tried some new yummy vegan & dairy recipes. This burger was a huge hit and now on our dinner rotation! This recipe was slightly adapted from a great vegan blog Healthy Happy Life.

Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers
makes 7-8 large patties
2 cans cannellini white beans, drained
1 large sweet potato, baked/peeled/mashed (about 2 cups)
2 tsp agave
1/4 cup wheat flour
Additional seasoning (whatever you have on hand - I used a few dashes cayenne, black pepper salt to taste if needed
plentiful Panko crumbs
oil for pan
avocado
Dijon mustard
rain buns or thick bread
romaine
onion
olive oil bell pepper

Directions:
1. Bake or microwave sweet potato. Peel, place in large mixing bowl.
2. Add drained beans to mixing bowl. Mash beans and potato together.
3. Mash in seasoning, flour and any additional seasoning. Your mixture will be quite soft and moist. But you should be able to form a patty. Add more flour or a scoop of breadcrumbs - or dry rice to thicken the mixture if needed.
4. Saute the onions & bell peppers.
5. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a pan over high heat.
6. Form a patty from mixture and coat in Panko crumbs. Thick coating. Then drop the patty in the pan. Repeat until the pan is filled. Cook until browned on both sides. You could also bake. If baking, use less Panko.
7. Transfer cooked patties to paper towel. Cool for a few minutes.
8. Serve on the bun/ bread, toasted with garlic & all the toppings.

The creator of this recipes suggests mustard but my family isn't a fan of it so I just put a little in the mixture to give it a bit of flavor but not to spread on the bun.

Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark

2011-12-05T21:59:00.000-08:00

So, I thought that those Rolo Turtles were good but... Wow, this is even better. I could reach my limit with the caramel turtles but sadly (for my ars) I haven't found it with these yet. These are super easy but a bit more labor intensive than the Rolo Turtles, worth it though. This was a total Pinterest item and as you can tell it came through. I got it from Legume Loyalist. She has some awesome step by step pics if you want to see it in detail for any reason.

Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark

makes 1 sheet of bark

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) of butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 bag of mini pretzels
12-oz bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
sea salt

1. Wrap a baking sheet with tin foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. NOTE: use a cookie sheet with sides or your caramel will boil and ooze and set off your smoke alarm! Or foil the sides up to contain the bubble. If you don't you will have to evacuate your children and hubby as you clean up burnt sugar and pretzels...not fun.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. As it melts, cover a cookie sheet in an even layer of mini pretzels.
3. Once the butter is melted, add the sugar and stir to incorporate. Let the sugar and butter to softly simmer and bubble, but don’t let it boil, so adjust the heat accordingly. Stir occasionally. The browning process should take about three minutes from when it starts to bubble.

4. Once the sugar and butter have caramelized, pour the mixture evenly over the pretzels on the baking sheet. I used a small ladle and kinda dumped it in each one and spread it all over after with a spatula. The caramel does hardens pretty quickly. Bake the pretzel-caramel mixture in the oven for 5-7 minutes.

5. In the meantime, set up a double boiler. Fill a saucepan about a quarter ways full with water. Place the pot over a medium flame. Take a large, heatproof bowl and set it on top of the saucepan. Be sure that the water in the pot will not touch the bottom of the dish, otherwise your chocolate will burn! Also if any water gets in there it will be ruined so make sure the bowl is super big. Pour the chocolate chips into the bowl and stir constantly until they’re completely melted. If your chocolate is a bit old (like from the mega pack at Costco) it won't get creamy but it will melt and you can kinda spoon it out and spread it all over.

6. So, pour the chocolate over the pretzel-caramel mixture evenly.
7. Spread any remaining thick spots of chocolate with a spatula. Sprinkle sea salt evenly over the bark. Place it in the fridge to cool and harden for about an hour. Once it’s done, the tin foil should pull off easily and you can break the sheet into smaller, bark-like pieces.

New Swift Mamas product blog

2011-12-01T22:35:00.000-08:00

Check out my new Swift Mamas product blog and please follow me to help get the word out. It's still a work in progress but it gets better every week, updated with my products and information. Let me know any feedback that you have so I can make it better. Please refer your friends and family to this small local business! Thank you friends!!

Rolo Pretzel Turtle Bites

2011-12-01T20:46:00.001-08:00

I first heard about these tasty treats from my Favorite Aunt Judy. Then I saw them on Pinterest and my "interest" was renewed. These little desserts are tricky looking and tasting but they are my new go-to dessert because they are so, so, so easy! If you run in my circle of parties this Christmas, don't even try to steal this treat. I will be bringing them whenever I can since I have 1 1/2 bags of white chocolate chips my hubby bought and small amounts of time. Perfect dessert for a crazy season! I hope you love them too.

1/2 bag small mini pretzels
1 bag chocolate covered caramel candies aka Rolos
60ish pecan halves
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
2 TB Crisco

Rolo Pretzel Turtle Bites
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Arrange the pretzels in a single layer on a parchment lined cookie sheet and put one chocolate covered caramel candy on each pretzel. Bake for 4 minutes.

While the candy is warm, press a pecan half onto each candy covered pretzel.

In a pan mix white chocolate chips and yum, Crisco. Mix until melted and smooth. Put in a snack bag and barely cut the corner. Beware it will be hot! I burnt my hands a bit...wrap a paper towel around the bag if you are a softy like me.

Drizzle the white chocolate zig zaggy on top & you'll feel like a culinary genius! I did :)

Cool completely before storing in an airtight container to gift or serve...or just eat them.

Potato and Beef Stew

2011-11-28T19:01:00.001-08:00

This was a last minute "what do we got?" dinner that turned out very yummy! It is hardy, pretty easy, and dairy free for all you lactose free peeps. Even my non-soup-eating Hubs commented how good it was... We ate it with crusty bread toasted sliced and a salad.

Potato and Beef Stew
4 baking potatoes, skinned
1 cup wheat quinoa
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can corn
3 cubes of frozen cilantro or 3 TBS of chopped fresh
5 green onions, chopped
Chicken stock or bullion (I use Better Than Bullion-natural ingredients and cheap)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
Chunks of steak
Extra Virgin Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Hint of cayenne
Optional: Scoop of sour cream, if desired

Boil the potatoes until easy to put a knife through. Cook quinoa to directions with stock instead of water. Drain and chop cooked potatoes and add to quinoa in a large pot.

Add stewed tomatoes, corn, cilantro to the pot with a cup of stock. Cook on low heat and add some slat, pepper, and cayenne (if you want).

Put 2 TBS EVOO in a pan with garlic and green onions. Cook for 2 minutes and add the bite sized pieces of beef. Brown on all sides but don't over cook and add to your pot. Give it a mix and then add sour cream if you want. Enjoy!

OMG Delish & Fast Turkey Sandwich on Focaccia Rolls

2011-09-29T21:32:00.000-07:00

OMG Delish & Fast Turkey Sandwich on Focaccia Rolls

This is a really fast and yummy meal! It's so easy it's ridiculous because you could buy this in a restaurant for $10 bucks or make it at home for everyone for $10. You can make this vegetarian by taking out the meat and adding cooked eggplant, sauteed zucchini, tomatoes or whatever. I served it with steamed broccoli & cauliflower but you can serve whatever your fam likes as a side.

Ingredients:

4 focaccia rolls

1/2 lb sliced turkey

3/4 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes (soaked in EVOO)

3-4 big handfuls of baby spinach slightly chopped

1 cup of spinach artichoke dip

Directions:

Slice the rolls and spoon a little EVOO from the the sun dried tomatoes on top. Toast for a minute in the broiler. Take em out and spoon 1/4 spinach artichoke dip on one half with 1/4 the sun dried tomatoes. Layer the turkey on the other side. Broil on low for 1-2 mins. Watch it close so it doesn't burn. Take it out and put the spinach on the dip side and close it up! Slice it and enjoy!

2011-08-29T20:52:00.000-07:00

Citrusy Paprika Shrimp Quesadillas
These quesadillas are easy, delicious, and summery! They were a huge hit with my family and will be with your if you love seafood. I saw the recipie in my RRay Magazine.

INGREDIENTS

1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked sweet paprika (half a scant palmful)
1 teaspoon onion powder (1/3 palmful)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (eyeball it)
Salt and pepper
Juice of 1 lime
A small handful of cilantro or flat leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
1 slightly underripe avocado, pitted, removed from skin and very thinly sliced or diced
1/2 lemon, juiced
8 large tortillas, heated to soften slightly
2 plum or vine-ripened tomatoes, seeded and diced
4 scallions or green onions, very thinly sliced or chopped
2 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Cooking spray
Note: you will need metal skewers to prepare this recipe or just pan cook

Serves 6
PREPARATION

Pre-heat an outdoor grill, indoor griddle, grill pan, or pan (what I did) to medium-high heat.

Coat the shrimp lightly in EVOO, then season with the smoked sweet paprika, onion powder and garlic powder; season with salt and pepper (I also added Cayenne for a kick). Thread the shrimp onto metal skewers or skip the skewers if you are lazy like me & are doing it in the house. Grill until pink and firm, about 2 minutes on each side. Douse with the lime juice, then remove the shrimp from the skewers and chop; sprinkle with the cilantro. Dress the avocado with the lemon juice.

Build the quesadillas on the tortillas in assembly line fashion: On one half of each tortilla, arrange the shrimp, tomatoes, scallions or green onions, avocado and cheese. Fold over the other tortilla half, then spray lightly with cooking spray. Grill, turning once, until crisp and the cheese has melted, about 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.

PS I used the low fat Monterey Jack and it was still really good.

Photo Card

2011-06-28T15:28:00.001-07:00

Hello Boy Baby Announcements

Create beautiful birth announcements at Shutterfly.com.

View the entire collection of cards.

Dulce's Banana Nut Bread

2011-04-07T21:01:00.000-07:00

Dulce's Banana Nut Bread
I have searched for the best banana nut bread because I always have a couple "cheetah" bananas, as we call them in my house. I have sampled some decent ones but this one is still my favorite. It also calls for whole wheat flour so that's a plus. That is also why it looks a bit dark on the top. Dulce was our resident lunch time supervisor and PTA president when I started teaching 9 years ago. It got me hooked and it hasn't let me down!

Ingredients

1/2 c butter
1 egg
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c white sugar
3 large bananas, mashed
1 c whole wheat flour
3/4 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp finely grated orange
1/2 tsp cinnamon
optional: cinnamon sugar for dusting the top

Directions

Heat oven to 350
Cream butter, eggs, sugars, and bananas. Mix in remaining ingredients.
Pour into a greased and floured 9 x 5 loaf pan or 2 mini pans.
Bake for 50-60 mins or 30-40 for 2 minis.

Eat with whipped cream, cream cheese, or butter warm from the oven!

Super Easy Roast Beef Sandwich

2011-04-07T18:10:00.000-07:00

Super Easy Roast Beef Sandwich
This was one of those recipes that developed on the aisles of the grocery store. It's a cross between a pregnancy craving and being dead tired from work... so you know it'll be both easy and good!

Ingredients
1 large ciabatta loaf
1 package or 10oz of roast beef

1 package or 8 slices of sliced swiss cheese

3/4 cup sliced pepperoncinis

2 large onions, sliced into rings a cut once

2 handfuls of baby spinach

Dijon mustard (optional)

butter and garlic powder to spread on the bread

EVOO and 1 TB soy sauce

Directions

Turn broiler on low to heat. Sautee onions in EVOO. Add soy sauce, salt, and pepper to taste. Cook until soft and tender.

Slice ciabatta loaf long ways and spread butter and sprinkle garlic powder. Broil until lightly golden. Lay out the whole package of roast beef on loaf. Lightly dab Dijon mustard on the meat and add spinach. Add onion and pepperoncinis, top with swiss cheese.

Broil as far away from the flame as possible until cheese is bubbly and bread is even more toasty. Slice and eat open faced. Serves 4-6.

Chunky Apple Whole Wheat Oat Muffins... With butternut squash purée

2011-01-09T16:35:00.000-08:00

With Brown Sugar topping

This was adapted from The Smitten Kitchen and Deceptively Delicious. I saw these two recipes and decided to combine for a treat (delicious warm with whipped cream) or for breakfast with some scrambled eggs and fruit. These super moist muffins will keep well for several days, and the brown sugar adds a crunchy touch. You can leave the sugar off though and they are still good.

Yield: 18

Ingredients

1 cup (4 ounces) whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon and some for sprinkling
1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed, divided
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup butternut squash purée
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

Directions
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Grease and flour 18 muffin cups and set aside.

With out brown sugar topping

Mix together the flours, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add the granulated sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar. Beat until fluffy. Add the egg and mix well; stop once to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the butternut puree. Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the apple chunk

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar and a couple shakes of cinnamon on top. Bake for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to 400°F, and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins for 2 minutes in the tin, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Hot Potatoes

2011-01-03T20:03:00.000-08:00

I'm starting my 1st Blog of the New Year cooking low fat and "Of the Land..." almost! It's called Hot Potatoes because it's supposed to be spicy but I'd kick it up a notch next time for our family. It was pretty easy and my fam loved it. The original recipe is in the Feb issue of Rachel Ray but she makes it as Super Bowl appetizers with tiny Golden Potatoes and pickled jalepeno. That would be good too. My hubby wants to chop up all the taters, ditch the boat idea, and bake it so it all gets crispy...

Ingredients:
*9 potatoes (medium & small)
*1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
*1 1/2 cups cooked ham diced and slightly grilled
*1 or 2 fresh Ortega chile/Anaheim Chile diced
*2 small florettes of broccoli, chopped fine-ish
*2/3 cup plain yogurt (I used the nonfat Greek)
*salt & pepper
*Chile powder to sprinkle on top
*Lowery's salt
*EVOO spray or whatever spray...
*light sour cream for the top or a bit more plain yogurt

Directions:
Boil the potatoes in water for about 20-25 mins, until it's tender. Remove and cut the potatoes in half, scooping 1/2 of that half out, making a boat. Put the scooped potatoes aside for the filling. Chop one completely and chop the scooped potato. Add to the bowl.

At some point while the potatoes are cooking, add the broccoli to the boiling water for 4-5 mins to flash cook. Remove promptly, chop, and put in a large bowl. Meanwhile pan sear the ham on medium high heat and add to bowl. After it cooks a bit, add the yogurt and cheese.

Saute the fresh Ortega chile in EVOO spray on medium heat, add some water to deglaze the pan get the ham leftovers in the chiles. Add to bowl. Season with salt (a tiny bit if you are going to use Lowery's) & pepper, mix.

Turn all the potatoes boat side down and spray with EVOO so they don't stick. Flip over and fill. Spray the tops with EVOO, sprinkle Chile powder & a bit of Lowery's salt on top. Bake for 20 mins at 425* Top with light sour cream or plain yogurt. Yum!

Crème Brûlée Cheesecake Bars Recipe

2010-12-23T15:16:00.000-08:00

Ok, these are seriously addicting so watch out but they are so good. My friend made them for me and now I'm hooked. Even the hubby was all over these! He even asked are these Crème Brûlée or something? I was shocked and amazed at his finely attuned senses to know that! But it just proves how delish this dessert really is.

INGREDIENTS:

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1 box (4-serving size) French vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs plus 3 egg yolks
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup toffee bits, finely crushed

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, pudding mix, brown sugar, melted butter, 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1 whole egg until soft dough forms. Press dough in bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of pan.

2. In small bowl, beat cream cheese, sour cream and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add remaining whole egg, 3 egg yolks and remaining 1 1/2 teapoons vanilla; beat until smooth. Spread over crust in pan.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set in center. Immediately sprinkle top with crushed toffee bits. It will make them seep with Crème Brûléeness after the crushed toffee bit are added. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate about 3 hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

Continental Cheese Spread

2010-12-23T14:59:00.000-08:00

Sure the name sounds a little funny but this is a great app for the holidays. No, not for your smart phone, as in hor devour. My uncle has been making it for Thanksgiving for many years and I'm alway the one making the biggest dent in the bowl. It's good on everything! It's actually not going to make you gain weight, which is a plus because it's made with fat free cream cheese. You can of course pump it with fat and it'd be even better I'm sure but it doesn't even need it!

Ingredients

1 package (8 ounces) fat-free cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon fat-free milk
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced green onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Directions In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and milk until smooth. Beat in the Parmesan cheese, parsley, onion, garlic, thyme and pepper until well blended. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Serve with crackers, baguette, tortilla chips, veggies, pita chips, or anything else you want to put in your mouth.

Yield: 1 cup.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (2 tablespoons) equals 38 calories, 1 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 4 mg cholesterol, 191 mg sodium, 2 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 5 g protein.

Fried Banana Wontons with Black & White Drizzle

2010-09-05T18:55:00.000-07:00

I saw this in the Sept. 2010 issue of the Rachel Ray Magazine and I knew I had to try it! It didn't let me down! I was easy and delicious. We ate it for breaky with eggs but it will be a great dessert too. I'm probably making it next week for our small group. This recipe makes 12 wontons, but you can easily double the recipe for a bigger crowd...Yes, I know it's been along time since my last blog but... what can I say, I'm here now so that counts for something right! :)

Fried Banana Wontons with Black and White Drizzle

1/2 C choc chips
1/4 C heavy cream
24 wonton wrappers
2 bananas, sliced
1 egg white, 1 tsp of water beaten
6 TB butter
1/2 cream frache or a bottle of "tshhht" aka Whip Cream (that's the sound my kids would make when they were little to tell me they wanted a squirt in the mouth of it, yes we do that...)

Melt the choc chips and heavy cream in the microwave in a small bowl, stirring often. 2 rounds at 40 sec each did it for us. Be careful not to burn it. Lay out the wonton papers. Now here is a fork in the road... you can either fold them (make triangles), making 24 or top 12 with the wontons ontop like a sandwich. This is a personal decision. I did it the sandwich way but I might try it the triangle way next time. Top the wontons with banana slices and seal them with the egg mixture (respective glue), push it snug to seal the top and bottom. Add some butter at medium heat and add your first batch of wontons. Cook on each side for 2 minutes. Remove when golden brown. Wipe pan and repeat. Pile onto plates and top with chocolate sauce and cream! Delish!

Good Morning Huevos!

2010-07-16T16:07:00.000-07:00

Good Morning Huevos! Breakfast Casserole with homemade Pico de Gallo salsa

Despite the weather being so hot that chocolate melted IN my kitchen, I have apparently have been inspired this week, which is great. This breakfast I whipped up with ingredients I had on hand. I like to call it Good Morning Huevos!

Good Morning Huevos!

6-8 corn torillas chopped into little pieces
1 container of egg substitute or 8 eggs
salt and pepper (to taste in the egg mixture)
Cayenne Pepper (to taste in the egg mixture)
Garlic Powder (to taste in the egg mixture)
grated zucchini
1 can Ortega Chilies
8 slices of sliced ham
cup of shredded cheese
handful of feta cheese
Sour Cream

Salsa

very large tomato chopped and drained a little
3/4 onion slices super fine and chopped small
cilantro (I used the frozen cubes I have)
1/4 lemon or lime
5 cloves garlic
8ish leaves of basil
salt & pepper
Cayenne Pepper or whatever spice you like to give a little kick, Chile con Limon

Oven to 375. Spray your pan, add 1/2 the tortillas, chilies, 1/2 cheese, feta, zucchini, and ham. Then the rest of the tortillas and cheese. Pour on the egg mixture. Bake for about 40 minutes or until cooked throughout.

While you are waiting, you can make the salsa. Blend the garlic, basil, and cilantro in a mini food processor or chop them all finely. Add the tomato, lemon, hot spice, s & p. Mix and your done! So easy!

Top the egg bake with the fresh salsa and sour cream. Make more and you can eat it tomorrow!

Zucchini Bread

2010-06-21T12:09:00.000-07:00

These were really yummy! I gave them as gifts to my kids teachers and my custodians at work.

Zucchini Bread
*2 1/4 cups whole wheat all-purpose flour
*1 cup all-purpose flour
*1 1/2 teaspoons salt
*1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
*2 teaspoons baking soda
*1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
*1 cup sugar
*1 cup agave sweetener (kinda pricey, I'll prob use all *white sugar next time)
*1 cup vegetable oil
*4 eggs, beaten
*1/3 cup water
*2 cups grated zucchini
*1 teaspoon lemon juice
*1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flours, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon, sugar, and agave. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini and lemon juice. Mix wet ingredients into dry, add nuts and fold in. Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes. Mini bundts 17 minutes.

Healthy Zucchini & Spinach Sloppy Joe's

2010-06-21T11:54:00.000-07:00

It's Zucchini time of year and we already have had about 10 from our plants so besides sautéing them, we had to figure out some new recipes. Matt wanted "Sloppy Joe's" so I had to figure out how to make that work with zucchini.

Healthy Zucchini & Spinach Sloppy Joe's

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 Tb butter or EVOO

2 big handfuls of baby spinach chopped

1 can stewed tomatoes

dried onions

garlic powder

salt & pep

1 1/2 tomato sauce (I like Classico)

2 1b ground meat

soy & Montreal seasoning

Wheat Buns (we used the sandwich thins and they were... too thin, tasty though)

Parmesan for the buns

Cook the zucchini in the 1 Tb butter or EVOO for a couple minutes, then add the dried onion and spinach. Cook it for a bit to some water out. Add the stewed tomatoes, garlic, salt & pepper. Cook it down to get more water out.

Cook the meat of your choice (we used beef) and season with some Montreal seasoning. Drain and add a couple dashes of soy sauce. Toast buns with EVOO spray & Parmesan cheese.

Add the meat and sauce to the veggie mixture and mix. Spoon on to buns and enjoy!

Centerpiece Bundt Cakes

2010-06-21T11:34:00.000-07:00

So i got this idea out a Martha Steward Living Magazine and thought it would be perfect for the Bridal Shower that I was throwing. You double to great ideas into one: dessert and flowers. We did 2 large Bundt cakes and a few mini ones. They turned out so delicious and beautiful. We didn't even frost them, I just sifted powdered sugar over the tops and added the fresh flowers!

Tortellini with Jalapeño Chicken Sausage and Zucchini

2010-04-21T19:15:00.000-07:00

So this was one of those surprise meals. You know, the ones that you kinda know the ingredients you have or want to use but you aren't sure what combo you are going to do. I got most of the ingredients at Trader Joe's (TJ's) but I'm sure you can look around and find them else where. So this one is really easy and a bit spicy but my kids loved it because the sausage looks like hot dogs...

Tortellini with Jalapeño Chicken Sausage & Zucchini

*1 package of Jalapeño Chicken Sausage (TJ's), cut long ways and chopped

*1 lb of Tortellini (I like the TJ's kind)

*1/4 cup sour cream

*1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (some to mix in and some to sprinkle)

* salt & pepper, soy sauce, EVOO, 1 TB Basil

*4 zucchini, cut long ways and chopped

*1 lemon

*1 small onion finely chopped

Boil your pot of water for the Tortellini and cook when ready.

Sauté the onion in a little olive oil and a dash of soy sauce. When they are soft, add the Jalapeño Chicken Sausage and crisp a little. Then add the zucchini stir frequently. By now the Tortellini should be done, drain it but pour a couple tablespoons of pasta water into the veggies & meat. Put a lid on the mixture and cook a bit.

Put the Tortellini back in the pot and add a "glug" of EVOO, 1/2 of the cheese, and the sour cream. Added about a tablespoon of cubed (frozen in cubes from TJ's) basil. Mix it all together. Scoop the Tortellini and top it with the veggies and meat. Sprinkle cheese, grind some pepper, and squeeze some lemon and you are done!

Mo's Amazing Apple Dip

2010-04-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

This is an apple dip that will make you question your self control...

Mo's Amazing Apple Dip
-1 block cream cheese, softened
-1/3 cup brown sugar
-1 bag toffee bits
-1 jar Mrs.Richardson's Butterscotch
-Granny Smith Apples-sliced
Mix cream cheese and brown sugar until completely blended and put into a shallow dish. Top with the Mrs.Richardson's Butterscotch, then the toffee bits. Best if refrigerated for at least an hour, but it's still delish without doing that.

Variations: Hot fudge and caramel sauce. The caramel sauce was kinda thin but the fudge was great for a change!