200th POST!

Another momentous occasion...this is the 200th post! 

200 posts +30min/post=6000 minutes of my life dedicated to bringing you GREAT recipes!

I'm honored to have 26 followers and hope you all enjoy ready this blog,

thanks so much for coming on this crazy ride with me! 

ONTO THE FOOD!

Doesn't this look delicious!?!

Well I must tell you THAT IT WAS!

This was our Easter dinner and it was fantastic with a nice glass of red wine.

Logan was less enthused about the lamb, a little "gamey" for him...but I thought it was awesome.

The yogurt sauce was a PERFECT accompaniment and the orzo side was tasty as well.

While you will probably not eat lamb everyday, it is a nice special occasion meal and actually was not as expensive as I would have thought.  

However next time I might splurge for a more expensive cut, because this was a little fatty.

This also might taste delicious with a sirloin or some sort of beef...let me know if you try it.

Did I mention this only takes 20 min?

A restaraunt quality meal in 20 min! YES it can be done.

Try to PROVE ME WRONG!

ENJOY!

Lamb Chops with Yogurt Sauce

4 lamb rib or shoulder chops (8oz each)

S&P

2 T olive oil

1/2 cup plain low fat yogurt

1 T minced shallot

2 tsp chopped fresh cilantro

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Season both sides of the lamb chops with salt and pepper.  Heat oil over med-high heat.  Cook the lamb until it reaches 140 degrees (med-rare), 4-6 min per side.  Let rest, covered for 10 min.

Meanwhile, make the sauce; in a med bowl, whisk together the yogurt, shallot, cilantro, and lemon juice.  Season with S&P, serve with the lamb.

Serves 4.

Orzo and Snap Pea Salad

S&P

1/2 lb orzo

1 lb sugar snap peas, trimmed and halved crosswise

2 small yellow squash, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2 in pieces

3 T fresh lemon juice

2 T olive oil

2 T finely grated parm 

Cook orzo for 5 min in a pot of boiling water.  Add peas and squash and cook until the orzo is al dente and the veggies are crisp-tender, about 3m in.  Drain well and return to the pot.

Add the lemon juice, olive oil, and cheese.  Season generously with salt and pepper.  Toss to combine.

Serves 4.

Logan Rating: ***

Epic Phyllo Fail

The end product doesn't look too bad, does it? 

Thank God it turned out...but I had my fair share of doubts and temper tantrums.

I forgot to take the phyllo out of the freezer...ok ok so I know its my fault, but I'm still allowed to complain, right?

Anyway I thought maybe I could "defrost" it on top of the oven while it was preheating.

Not so much...this was the result.

Epic Fail!

Phyllo is hard enough to work with when its fully defrosted. 

But I prevailed and just threw pieces of phyllo together...thank goodness it tasted GREAT!

I loved it...even though I also forgot to add the peas.

Obviously I was struggling this night...

But I promise this is a great tasting recipe and you should definitely out due me in the presentation department! 

ENJOY!

Lighter Chicken Potpie

2 bone in skin on chicken breasts (I used boneless, skinless)

S&P

3 T olive oil

4 carrots, sliced into 1/4 in thick pieces

1 onion, finely chopped

1/4 tsp dried thyme

1/4 cup all purpose flour

2 1/2 cups milk

1 package (10oz) frozen peas, thawed

2T fresh lemon juice

6 frozen phyllo sheets (each 12x17) THAWED!

Preheat the oven to 400.  Place chicken on a rimmed baking sheet; season both sides with S&P.  Roast until chicken reaches 165 degrees, 20-30 min.  Let cool; slightly; remove skin and bones and shred meat.

While chicken is roasting, heat 2 T oil in a large saucepan over med.  Add carrots, onion and thyme; season with salt and pepper.  Cook until carrots are tender, stirring occasionally, 8-10 min.

Add flour; cook, stirring one min.

Gradually add milk, whisking until smooth.  Cook, stirring occasionally until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens, about 6 min.

Remove from heat; stir in peas, lemon juice and chicken and season with S&P.  our filling into a 9 inch round baking dish or deep dish pie plate.

Stack phyllo on a work surface.  Using a plate or pot lid as a guide, cut an 11 in round from the stack with a paring knife, discard trimmings.  Stack two rounds on work surface, and brush gently with 1 tsp oil; top with another two rounds and brush with 1 tsp oil.  Repeat with remaining two rounds and 1 tsp oil.  Place stacked phyllo over filling and press down about 1/2 in from the edge so phyllo fits inside rim of baking dish, with edges sticking straight up around rim.

Bake until crust is lightly golden and filling is bubbling, 20-25 min.  Let cool 15 min before cutting and serving.

Serves 4.

Logan Rating: ***

Silk Road

We had a "Silk Road" supper club.

I made red bean curry and homemade naan!  

It was amazing!  

Even though these don't count towards my tally, I thought I must share them with you all.

If you like naan, you should make it from scratch. 

Its SO easy, which I never would have thought.

And curry...oh man...you can just never go wrong!

Recipes here and here.

ENJOY!

Logan gives this *****, even though its not a blog recipe! :)

So fast its freaky...freaky fast!

Ok, so I know that is Jimmy John's slogan, 

but why can't I use it too?

In case of any copyright lawsuits...Jimmy John's I give you all the credit for your freaky fast sandwiches.

Anyway, onto the food

This pasta was seriously freaky fast.  

It says in the book that it takes 30 min, but I'm telling you I think it took me less than 20.  

Not only is it fast but it is quite good.

I was able to make it a little less guilt ridden, also

by using fat free 1/2 and 1/2 (I know some of you are cringing) as well as adding less bacon and parmesan than the recipe called for.  As summer is fast approaching and swim suit weather is creeping up, I just can't be cooking with heavy cream!  What are you guys crazy??!!  Anyway full fat or less fat it is still GOOD, I swear!

Logan's not on a "diet" and he still thought it was great.

That ought a tell ya something :)

ENJOY!

Spaghetti Carbonara

8oz bacon (8 slices), cut 1 in thick crosswise (I cut after I cooked)

S&P

1 lb spaghetti

3 large eggs

3/4 cup grated parmesan, plus more for serving

1/2 cup half and half

LOOK AT THAT INGREDIENT LIST! 

SO SHORT and CHEAP, I LOVE IT!

Set a large pot of water to boil.  In a large skillet, cook bacon over med heat, stirring occasionally until crisp, 8-12 min; transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

Salt the water, add pasta and cook until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together eggs, parm, and half/half.  Set aside.

Drain pasta, leaving some water clinging to it.  Working quickly, add hot pasta to egg mixture (or egg mixture to pasta if your egg mixture is in a tiny bowl like mine!).  Add bacon; season with S&P and toss all to combine.  The heat from the pasta will cook the egg...Martha promises!  So if you have any cases of salmonella...take it up with MARTHA!  

Serves 4.

Didn't I tell you this was quick AND easy!

So fast its FREAKY! :)

Logan Rating: ***

HOPPY EASTER! :)

Hope you all have a wonderful Easter!

We will be celebrating by going for a hike and then having a BBQ with some friends!  Rest assured that there will be a recipe for me to share with you all shortly.

In the mean time...here's to hoping you have a better Easter than this guy! :)

Cold weather calls for warm meals

As I'm typing this the sun has FINALLY come out in MT.

I guess it has been on vacation for the last few weeks,

glad to see it has made an appearance today.

The other day, however, when I made this meal it was still M.I.A.

So I felt a nice warm oven meal was in order. 

Unlike Logan I am a vegetable fan, so I chose to serve this baked mac n cheese with some roasted mushrooms, recipe found here. 

They were pretty amazing...I added too much parsley at the end, but was still able to enjoy them.

This is a great staple meal, easy and quick to prepare, could even be prepared the night before and then thrown into the oven after work.  

I've tried MANY baked mac n cheese recipes and I must say so far this is my fave.

I did add a little bit of "slap ya mama", which gave it the perfect ZING.

I hope that the weather wherever you are is turning spring like, but if not, or even if it is, try this!

ENJOY!

Macaroni and Cheese

1 lb elbow pasta

4 T butter

1 small onion chopped

1/4 cup all purpose flour

4 cups milk

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional) 

1 1/4 cups shredded yellow cheddar

1 1/4 cups shredded white cheddar

S&P

8oz ham, diced (I skipped this)

2 slices white sandwich bread (I used wheat)

Preheat oven to 375.  Cook the pasta according to package directions; drain and reserve.  Meanwhile, in a 5 qt heavy pot, melt the butter over med heat.  Add onion; cook until softened 3-5 min.  Whisk in the flour to coat the onion.  In a slow steady stream whisk in the milk until there are no lumps.

 Cook, whisking often, until the mixture is thick and bubbly and coats the back of a wooden spoon, 6-8 min.  Stir in cayenne, if using, and 1 cup each of the yellow and white cheddar.  Season with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.

Toss pasta with the cheese mixture; fold in the ham (if using).  Transfer to a 9x13 in baking dish. 

In a food processor pulse the bread until large crumbs form. 

Toss together with remaining cheese and 1/4 tsp salt.  Top the pasta with the breadcrumb mixture.

Bake until top is golden, about 30 min.

Serves 8.

Logan Rating: ****

This meal is just missing a Margarita...

Look at this fiesta on a plate!

Doesn't it look delicioso?

I absolutely love Mexican themed food, 

and I'm telling you, all this meal needed was a margarita to make it PERFECT!

The salad was like a taco in a bowl and the black bean cakes were spicy awesomness!

MARTHA you are a genious!  I know you know that...but just a reminder!

I mean come on, sweet potatoes in black bean cakes, who thinks of that??

AMAZING!

I halved the recipe, and immediately after tasting the first one, wished I hadn't.

The dipping sauce is great also, its a spicy sour cream, don't skip it...so good!

Try these together as a meal or separately would be alright also.

And if you love spicy black beans formed into smooshy "cakes" as much as I do,

MAKE EXTRA!

ENJOY!

Bean, Corn, and Tortilla Salad

1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 package (10oz) frozen corn

1/4 cup salsa

1 bunch scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced

3 plum tomatoes, sliced into thick rounds

S&P

1 package romaine hearts, cut into bite size pieces

3 cups broken tortilla chips

1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into cubes

3/4 cup coarsely grated pepper jack cheese

In a medium saucepan, heat beans, corn, and salsa over medium until warm.

Remove from heat.  Stir in scallions and tomatoes and season with S&P.

In a large bowl toss together romaine and chips.  Divide evenly among four bowls; top with bean mixture, avocado, and cheese.

Serves 4 as a main course.

Spicy Black Bean Cakes

2 T olive oil

4 scallions, thinly sliced

6 garlic cloves, pressed

1-2 jalapeno chiles, finely chopped (ribs and seeds removed for less heat if desired)

1 T ground cumin

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed

S&P

1 large sweet potato, peeled and coarsely grated

1 large egg lightly beaten

1/2 cup plain dried breadcrumbs

lime sour cream for serving (recipe below)

Heat broiler.  In a small skillet over med heat, warm 1 T oil and cook scallions until softened, 1 minute.  Add garlic and jalapeno and cumin; cook until fragrant 30 seconds.  Transfer to large bowl.

Add beans to the bowl; mash with a fork or a potato masher, leaving about 1/4 of beans whole.  Season generously with S&P.  Fold in the sweet potato, egg, and breadcrumbs.  Divide into 8 balls of equal size; flatten into patties.

Brush baking sheet with remaining 1 T oil; place patties on the sheet 1/2 in apart.  Broil 4 in away from heat until golden brown , 8-10 min.  With a thin metal spatula carefully turn cakes.  Broil until crisp, 2-3 min more.  Serve with lime sour cream.

Serves 4.

Lime Sour Cream

1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream

2 tsp fresh lime juice

1 small jalapeno chile, minced (ribs and seeds removed if desired)

salt

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and season with salt.

Logan Rating: 

Salad-***

Cakes-****

25 Followers!!! THANKS everyone!!! Keep em coming!

There is a first time for everything.

This was my first time with fennel.

I was surprised...it was pretty good.

Interesting flavor, but worked really well in this salad, 

which was a nice, fresh, light twist on a side dish.  

I didn't really like the parsley, in fact

I think I realized this week that I don't like parsley at all...bummer.

The salad paired really well with this Asian glazed salmon, which was REALLY good.

Another springy meal in some seriously not so springy weather.

I'm still willing the warm weather to arrive!

ENJOY!

Fennel, Orange, and Parsley Salad

2 medium fennel bulbs

5 medium oranges

2/3 cup fresh parsley leaves (LESS, in my opinion)

2 T slivered pitted black olives

1tsp olive oil

S&P

Trim fennel bulbs.  Quarter, core, and thinly slice the bulbs crosswise.

Using a paring knife, remoe the peel and pith from the oranges.  Separate into segments over a large bowl (to catch the juice) then add the segments to the bowl.

Add the fennel, parsley, olives, and olive oil; season with S&P.  Gently toss and serve.

Serves 4.

Salmon Steaks with Hoisin Glaze

1 T fresh orange juice

2 T hoisin suace

2 tsp honey

4 salmon steaks (each 8-10 oz and 1 in thick)...I couldn't find steaks, so I just used fillets

S&P

Heat broiler.  In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, hoisin sauce and honey to make a glaze.

Rinse the salmon steaks, and pat dry.  Season both sides with salt and pepper.  Place the steaks on a rimmed baking sheet.  Brush generously with the glaze.

Broil the salmon about 4 inches from the heat source, basting once, until opaque in the center, 10-13 min.

Serves 4.

Logan Rating:

Salad:***

Salmon:****