Carrot Fries-quick, simple and delcious

Ok, as I am writing this post, I am chowing down on these carrot fries. I might need to make another batch because these things are amazing! Last weekend my husband and I checked out the farmers market, in hopes that we could get some amazing, fresh, colorful produce. Boy, did we hit the jackpot! We came home with onions, lemons, limes, potatoes, fresh herbs, peaches, strawberries, tomatoes, the list goes on...

But perhaps the most impressive thing we bought were these GIGANTIC carrots that are just this beautiful, vibrant orange. We got a bag of six for $3.00. They were a steal! So of course, with all these carrots in the house, I needed to find a creative way to use them up. I was browsing pinterest last night, and I pinned a recipe for "carrot chips", but to me they are more like fries. :)

Aren't they gorgeous? These little fries could not be easier to make either. You know me, I like easy recipes that taste like you spent hours preparing (shhhh) Ok, so first things first, ingredients:

carrots
olive oil
whatever spices and seasonings you like best

The amount of carrots depends on how hungry you are! The carrot I had was HUGE so I sliced up one into matchsticks. To cut matchsticks, cut the carrot lengthwise in half. Take the halves, and cut down the length into thin, perfect little carrot fries. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the carrots in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil, and sprinkle with whatever seasonings you'd like. I used salt, pepper, and garlic. They are sweet and almost a little spicy from the pepper-but you could also use any kind of dried herb you have on hand. Salt, pepper, oregano, garlic and parsley, just salt and pepper, the possibilities are endless!

Next, bake in a 350 degree oven for 12 minutes, cool completely and CHOW DOWN! I just love how bright and vibrant the color is in these fries, it makes them sooo appealing to me.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! This is becoming a regular snack for me. Not only do they taste great, they look just as good....

Homemade ice cream without an ice cream machine!!

I am really super excited about this post. I was looking at my favorite blogs awhile ago, and I stumbled on this post from Kevin & Amanda for homemade ice cream that you can make without an ice cream machine! I was a little skeptical at first, but after reading the post I HAD to try it. And with only two ingredients, it could not be easier. Note: this is not the healthiest of recipes, but my family is coming to visit this weekend and I am SURE that the kiddos will LOVE putting their own mix-ins to the ice cream and eating something that they created :)

First things first, here are your ingredients:

1 pint of heavy cream
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
your choice of mix-ins

That's it! First, take a hand mixer, or stand mixer and beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. While it is beating, take the sweetened condensed milk and put it into large, deep tupperware container, using a spatula to get every bit out of the can. Take your mix-ins and add it to the condensed milk. I used chocolate sauce, hazelnuts, and pieces of chocolate chip cookie for good measure. Once the heavy cream is thick like whipped topping, fold it into the sweetened condensed milk until well combined. Put the lid on the container, and freeze for 6-8 hours. When you return you will have a whole lot of sweet, creamy, delicious ice cream goodness that everyone will love! I am a nut about toasted coconut, so I put some on top. It was PERFECT! I seriously suggest you try it. It has easily become my favorite ice cream topping ever.

I am really looking forward to seeing my family this weekend and making ice cream with them and treats with my nieces and nephew. I have not seen them in  over a month, and it has been way too long...I will be sure to take lots of pictures of all of the kids creations :)

ENJOY!

Lightened up Mac & Cheese with Cauliflower

Ok, so I have been on a bit of a hiatus lately. I have kind of been slacking off, and not experimenting and cooking as much as I was before. I needed a little inspiration. Ok, Ok, I am not even going to lie. I have been spending most of my time pinning recipes, but not trying any of them. Well it stops here! I recently found a really awesome blog through pinterest called Eat Yourself Skinny. The girl that runs this blog is a genius! She has a whole recipe box filled with literally hundreds of lightened up food, including nutrition information and points+ values. As I was scrolling through her recipes, I was really craving mac & cheese and POOF-she's got an incredible lightened version, and I had everything in the house to make it! Let me tell you this recipe is a keeper. You still get all that awesome cheesiness, and creaminess, but with a wholeee lot less calories and fat.

First things first!! Ingredients:

1 (14.5 oz) box Ronzoni Smart Taste elbow macaroni, or penne pasta

1/2 head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets

1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs

4 Tbsp reduced-fat grated Parmesan cheese

8 oz. grated sharp cheddar( I used extra sharp white cheddar)

4 oz. fat-free cream cheese

1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 Tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped 

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add macaroni and cauliflower.  Cook until the cauliflower is fork tender. Drain, but reserve a 1/2 cup of the water.  In a separate bowl, combine Italian breadcrumbs, 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan cheese and the chopped parsley to make the beautiful topping for this mac & cheese. Set aside, because that we will be the grand finale of this dish

Place the cheddar, cream cheese, 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese, half-and-half, salt and pepper in the already heated pot you just used and mix in the macaroni and cauliflower.   Stir until well-combined and cheese is completely melted and ooey, and gooey and amazing-don't forget to add the reserved water from before!

Place in 8 greased ramekins (or a 9x13 baking dish) and top with bread crumb mixture.  Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes, or until bubbling and the crumbs are browned.  Enjoy! ( and trust me, you will enjoy!) The cauliflower works perfectly in this dish, and it is an excellent way to get some extra veggies in your diet!

 

 

Spinach and feta meatballs with homemade pasta sauce

Spaghetti and meatballs is one of my very favorite meals. I love it because my dads side of the family is Sicilian, so it's basically in my blood. Seeing as I do have Sicilian roots, I felt it necessary to learn how to make my own pasta sauce-a sauce my family would be proud of. I had a few tomatoes on the vine leftover from grocery shopping that I had not used yet, that were at their peak of ripeness. They were gorgeous. PERFECT for sauce! I also had onion, garlic cloves, tomato paste-hey I was in business! Sauce is one of those things that you can make a ton of, and store it in mason jars for later use, or you can put them in mason jars and freeze! I like knowing exactly what is going into what I am eating so this recipe is definitely a keeper-no more store bought sauce for us! For my sauce I used:

4 very ripe tomatoes, diced
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of water, or dry red wine 
1 large onion, chopped (or 1 1/2 cup frozen onion)
3 garlic cloves, chopped
a healthy pinch of sugar
a healthy pinch of cinnamon
dried oregano
1/4 cup tomato paste

I know, the sugar and cinnamon sounds strange but it cuts the acidity of the fresh tomatoes, and makes the sauce sweet-which I absolutely love. If you are not a fan of sweet sauce, just omit completely.

Take out that trusty, huge stockpot and heat the oil over medium heat (I have burned oil many, many times, and medium heat is the best way to go) and add the onion and garlic. Cook until the garlic smells heavenly and the onions are soft and clear. Next add your tomatoes and crush with a potato masher until very juicy. Add the water, or wine if you choose, and the spices. Bring to a boil. Add the tomato paste and stir until well combined, and simmer for 20 minutes. And there you have it! Super simple and a good way to use up those tomatoes you aren't sure what to do with. :)

Next, the meatballs. I knew I wanted to incorporate vegetables in them, so I went looking in my fridge and saw that we had fresh spinach and feta and onions-perfect! The feta allows you to omit using salt in the meatballs, which saves sodium intake, and the caramelized onions it gives it a flavor that just bursts through the roof!

As always, first things first! Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef, turkey, chicken - I always use extra lean meat
10 oz spinach-if it is frozen, thaw it out, if it is fresh-cook it first
4 oz feta cheese
1/2 onion, cut into half-moons and caramelized
1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
and the sauce you just made :)

Take out a big glass bowl and add all ingredients, except the sauce. Mash them all together and roll them into perfect little meatballs, like so:

Next, take out a deep skillet and add just a tiny amount of oil, add the meatballs and cook until browned on all sides. Don't nudge them around too much because they will break. They are ready to be turned when they move easily, and do not stick to the bottom of the skillet.

(Don't they look tasty with all those onions in them??)

Once they are browned on all sides, remove from the skillet onto a plate, and drain the fat, if any. Add your tasty sauce to the skillet, re-add the meatballs, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the biggest meatballs is cooked through. Serve over your favorite pasta-next time I might try to make my own pasta. These little meatballs were perfectly stuffed with cheese, spinach and feta-this one is a keeper! Enjoy! :)

Tex-Mex Chicken Soup: light on calories, but heavy on taste!

I was at the grocery store with my husband the other day, and the new issue of "cooking light" was displayed at the check-out line. It had the most amazing looking grilled veggie pizza on the cover, and I have been dying to find a good veggie pizza recipe, so I thought why not? And bought it. Boy, let me tell you I am glad I did because it had a recipe in it for a light tex-mex chicken soup that turned out so hearty, and flavorful I ate 3 bowls of it in the last two days!

I absolutely loved this soup because not only was it super easy to make, it had real great, fresh ingredients and real rich flavored spices to make it a filling, spicy, soup. And, with the different textures from the chicken, and the crunch of the corn, and the bite of the jalapeno-it really turned out amazing. First things first! Ingredients:

1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion (fresh or frozen-doesn't matter!)
3 garlic cloves-minced
1 bell pepper-chopped
1 jalapeno-seeded and minced
1 tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp pepper
3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (you can get them at the grocery store for like $5)
2 cups corn (fresh or frozen-canned has high salt content)
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 large tomatoes-chopped
1 can-no salt added-black beans (drained and rinsed)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro (optional)

My husband used to work in a Mexican restaurant, and when they closed he brought home all the dried peppers, chilis, and spices-so I already had all of these things on hand. The upside of buying these spices is that, guaranteed you will use them over and over again!  First I did all my prep so that the oil didn't burn in the stockpot before I could get the onion in there. I chopped the onions, garlic, jalapeno, and pepper and mixed them up in one big pile. Next, I heated the oil in a big 'ol stock pot over medium high heat, and added my big pile of veggies. Saute for about 3-5 minutes. Next, add the chili powder, crushed red pepper, salt, cumin, and pepper and saute for about 30 seconds-1 minute. Add the shredded chicken, corn, chicken broth, tomatoes, and beans; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 6 minutes or so. Top with fresh cilantro if you choose. There you have it! A healthy, filling soup. Each serving (1 cup) clocks in at:

186 calories
5.4g of fat
18g of protein
18.4g of carbs
4g of fiber
67mg of calcium
571mg of sodium-It sounds high, but you saved about 500mg using low sodium ingredients! 

Now if you'll excuse me, I have another bowl waiting for me...

Mini kale frittatas with herbed goat cheese

Lately I have been trying to fit lots of greens into my diet, as well as my husbands. We were not getting nearly enough leafy greens so I bought a ton of spinach, and most importantly kale. Kale has recently been named a "superfood" because it is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein and is rich in calcium. It's basically one of the healthiest vegetables there is. Last time we went grocery shopping I bought a few bundles, figuring I would find uses for it. I wanted to make a frittata this morning out of spinach and feta BUT realized a had a little bit of kale left. So, I used that in place for the spinach, and used a very creamy and flavorful goat cheese in place of the feta. The goat cheese was reasonable at $3.99 for a few ounces at Farm Fresh. It is loaded with all sorts of herbs and the taste just pops in these little frittatas.

Making them could not be easier either. You only need a few ingredients, and you can make it in a 9" pie plate, or you can make individual frittatas (like the one above) by using a muffin pan :) To make them you will need:

2 cups chopped kale
3 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, sliced thin
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
6 eggs
crumbled goat cheese

In order to chop the kale you first have to remove it from the rib. After doing so, cut it into thin strips. Heat the 3 tbsp oil in a 10" skillet and heat the garlic, kale and red pepper until the kale begins to wilt, around 2 minutes or so

Next, in a medium bowl, crack the eggs and whip them up real good, and add the kale mixture-whisk until well combined. Grease 6 wells in a standard sized muffin pan (that makes 12 muffins). I have a wilton muffin pan that I got from my mother a million years ago, and I still use that one today :)

Using a laddle, or a very large spoon, fill the prepared wells about 2/3 of the way with the egg mixture. Then sprinkle the tops with as much, or as little goat cheese as you would like. I like a lot!

Then, pop 'em in the oven and bake for 23-30 minutes until the tops are set, and the goat cheese is melted. Once they cool a little, the tops may cave in a little bit-totally normal. We aren't making perfect souffles here!  If you prefer, you can leave them in until the tops get browned, but I like mine just done enough...

 PERFECT! :D

Chicken Souvlaki salad with homemade dressing and tzatziki sauce

Yesterday I was really missing home, and a lot of the restaurants and hidden gems that I used to eat at. One of these places is a little diner tucked in between consignment stores on Main St. called Rachel's. On Mondays, at the chiropractor I used to work at, we had weekly staff meetings, and we would normally order from Rachel's-and their open chicken souvlaki salad was uh-mazing. Now, after week after week of eating the stuff it got a little tiring but I was really wanting it BIG time yesterday. Naturally, I tried to recreate it myself, and I got pretty darn close!

Rachel's makes everything from scratch, including the dressings and sauces and making my own as well was a challenge I was definitely up for. Let's start with the tzatziki sauce! It is made from yogurt, and cucumbers, and garlic and not only is it great with souvlaki, it tastes really good as a veggie dip as well, and it is SO refreshing, especially with cucumber in it.  I just happened to have everything needed to make it right in my fridge:

8 oz plain yogurt (regular or Greek)
1 cucumber, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 of a lemon, juiced
1 tbsp fresh dill
3 chopped garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste

This one is easy peasy-just throw everything in the trusty food processor and blend until a it turns into a lovely sauce. Store in the fridge in a squeeze bottle or mason jar!

Next, comes the Greek salad dressing. You know the one-when it sits on the table the oil is on the top, the vinegar at the bottom, and all the herbs and spices are sitting at the bottom of the bottle, and you have to shake it up real good before you use it. Yeah, that one. Equally as easy, and it turned out just like the kind you get it the restaurant. It was oily, and herby, and garlicly-divine! And, as always, can be made with stuff you probably already have in your kitchen:

1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-3 minced garlic cloves
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
pinch dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste

I always use fresh garlic, and not the jarred kind so I chop and mince all the garlic myself. Mincing the garlic would be your first step but if you have minced, jarred garlic-use about 3 tsps. Combine the lemon juice, vinegar, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl. Slowly whisk, slowly stream the olive oil into the lemon/vinegar mixture until it begins to emulsify (thicken), then just transfer to a squeeze bottle, or mason jar and store in the fridge! I reserved about a cup of the dressing to use as a marinade for my chicken, and let it soak for about 3 hours in the fridge.

I do not have a grill, but I have a cast iron panini grill for the stove, so I just used that and it worked great! Before grilling the chicken, I pounded it so flatten it out a little, so it would grill up faster without drying up or burning and it worked perfectly! Then, I served it with a spinach salad topped with fresh tomato, feta, and whole grain pita and BOOM-Chicken souvlaki salad. Keep the dressing and sauce on hand, and it will play a huge role in a quick weekday meal. Winner winner, Greek chicken dinner ;)