Cream Braised Brussels Sprouts

I've been wanting to try this recipe for a couple years now but I only ever seem to buy frozen Brussels sprouts.  I got some sprouts in my Bountiful Basket this week so I was super excited to try this recipe and I wasn't disappointed.  You should try them!

I actually forgot to use the lemon juice and they were so yummy anyway.  I'm not sure if I'll put it in next time or not...

Cream Braised Brussels Sprouts

3/4 lb. Brussels sprouts
1.5 Tbs butter
¼ tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 Tbs fresh lemon juice, or more to taste (optional)

First, prep the Brussels sprouts. Trim the stem end of each sprout and pull off any ragged or nasty outer leaves. Cut the sprouts in half from stem end to tip, and then cut each half in half again. Ultimately, you want little wedges.

In a large (12-inch) skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the Brussels sprouts and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sprouts are nicely browned in spots, about 5 minutes or so. I like mine to get some good color here, so that they have a sweetly caramelized flavor.

Pour in the cream, stir to mix, and then cover the pot. Reduce the heat to low or medium low: you want to keep the pan at a slow simmer. Braise until the sprouts are tender enough to be pierced easily with the tip of a paring knife, about 20 -35 minutes. The cream will have reduced some and will have taken on a creamy tan color.

Remove the lid, and stir in the lemon juice. Taste for seasoning, and adjust as necessary. Let the pan simmer, uncovered, for a minute or two to thicken the cream to a glaze that loosely coats the sprouts. Serve immediately.

Recipe from orangette.blogspot.com

Roasted Cauliflower

This recipe is really simple but soooo yummy!

Roasted Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower 1 tsp salt (taste) 4 tbsps olive oil

	Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
	Trim the head of cauliflower, discarding the core and thick stems; cut florets into pieces about the size of ping-pong balls.
	In a large bowl, combine the olive oil and salt, whisk, then add the cauliflower pieces and toss thoroughly.
	Line a baking sheet with parchment for easy cleanup (you can skip that, if you don't have any) then spread the cauliflower pieces on the sheet and roast for 30 minutes to 40 minutes, turning half way through, until most of each piece has golden to dark brown spots (even nearly burned looking spots are okay and tasty).
	Serve immediately and enjoy!

Feta Chicken Salad

I made this to take to work for lunch.  It's so simple and seriously delicious!  And it's healthy - bonus!! I didn't have a yellow pepper so I left it out.

Feta Chicken Salad

2 C shredded chicken breast
1/2 C cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 C chopped English (seedless) cucumber
1/2 C chopped sweet yellow pepper
4 tsp lemon juice
4 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp Greek or Mediterranean seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 C crumbled feta cheese

In a large bowl combine the first 4 ingredients.  In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice, olive oil, Greek seasoning, salt and pepper.  Pour over chicken mixture and toss to coat.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Just before serving, sprinkle with cheese.




*Disclaimer: the original recipe from Taste of Home Healthy Cooking magazine also called for 1/2 C finely chopped red onion but seriously - why ruin a perfectly delightful dish!?  Just sayin'... 

Rumbi Rice Bowls with Rumbi Rice

Mmmm! These are so yummy! I made them once before without the Rumbi Rice and just used regular rice, but I'm tellin' ya, ya gotta do the Rumbi Rice too. I think it makes the dish! And don't be tempted to sub kidney beans for the small red beans (just in case you're thinking like I often do - "hey, I've already got kidney beans. I wonder..."). They are similar in color only.
This recipe is kind of labor intensive if you try to do it all at dinner time, but you could do lots of the prep work ahead of time (chopping vegetables, making the sauce) and then it would go together fast at the end.

Rumbi Rice Bowls with Rumbi Rice


Rumbi Rice
2 c. long grain white rice
2 1/2 c. water
1 (14 oz) can coconut milk (about 1 1/2 c.)
1/2 T. sugar
1 can small red beans, drained and rinsed

Combine all ingredients in a rice cooker. Gently stir it all together so the beans are all mixed. Place lid on and start the rice cooker. (I actually didn't cook my beans with the rice, but stirred them in at the end.)

If you don't have a rice cooker, combine the water, coconut milk and sugar in a large saucepan. Stir in rice and beans. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover reduce heat and simmer 18-20 minutes until the rice is tender.


Chicken & Veggie Mix:
1 T. oil
4 carrots, peeled and grated (I sliced mine)
3 celery stalks, sliced
1 zucchini, chopped into small cubes
1 1/2 c. chopped broccoli florets
2 c. chicken, grilled and diced

Heat vegatble oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add carrots, celery and broccoli. Saute for 1-2 minutes. Add zucchini and continue sauteing until the vegetables are crisp tender. Combine with the chicken and keep warm.

Spicy Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce
3/4 c. teriyaki sauce
1 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. chili garlic sauce (I actually used Sriracha)
1 tsp. fresh ginger or 1/4 tsp. ground
pinch of salt
pinch of brown sugar
1 T. cornstarch
2 T. cold water

Combine everything but the cornstarch and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Combine cornstarch and water and SLOWLY add to sauce for thickening. (You may not need it all). Allow to simmer for a minute. Cool to room temperature.

To serve, place rice and chicken and vegetable mix in a bowl and drizzle with the sauce. Start with a little bit of sauce because you don't need much to add flavor and you don't want to make it too spicy at first.

Recipe slightly modified from favfamilyrecipes.com

Double Chocolate Banana Bread

I had some browned bananas and thought this would be a nice change of pace  - and it was!  You can really taste the banana and the chocolate, which is, of course, a divine combination.  I also tossed in a pinch of flaxseed meal and used low-fat sour cream to healthify it a little.  Next time I want to use Greek yogurt in place of some of the butter but I didn't have any on hand this time.  Also, I tweaked the recipe to include the oat bran but if you don't like that you can use flour in it's place.

Our mini loaf pans are tiny so this made 7 mini loaves which was fun and they took 30ish minutes to cook.

Double Chocolate Banana Bread

3/4 C flour

1/4 C oat bran

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2 Tbsp baking cocoa

1/2 C butter, softened

1/2 C sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 C mashed bananas (3 bananas)

1/2 C low fat sour cream

1 C mini chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350.  Lightly grease one 9x5 loaf pan or several mini loaf pans.  

Combine flour, oat bran, baking soda, salt, and cocoa; set aside.  In a separate large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy.  Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla, banana, and sour cream.  Gently mix in the dry ingredients and chocolate chips until well incorporated.

Pour batter into prepared pan(s) and bake for 60 minutes for regular loaf pan or 30-45 minutes for mini loaf pans (depending on size of the mini pan), until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes.  Turn the bread(s) out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. 

Altered slightly from a recipe from King Arthur Flour.  

Grilled Chicken Taco Salad

I made this for dinner last night and it was so yummy!  It looks and tastes like an expensive restaurant salad and really it's quite easy - just a lot of chopping.  :)

Grilled Chicken Taco Salad

Chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise (so you have 2 thin pieces)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Dressing:

Your favorite ranch dressing

Your favorite salsa

Salad:
1 head lettuce, roughly chopped (I used a combination of red leaf & romaine)
1 large tomato chopped
1 avocado, diced
1/2 C black beans, rinsed & drained
1/2 C frozen corn, thawed
1 C queso fresco cheese, crumbled
Tortilla chips, broken into bite size pieces

Preheat grill.  Combine spices (cumin through pepper) in a small bowl; mix well.  Coat each side of chicken with seasoning.  Grill chicken until internal temperature is 165 and chicken is no longer pink.  Allow chicken to rest for a few minutes then slice each breast.

Combine ranch dressing with salsa to taste; set aside.

Fill each plate with lettuce, top with one sliced chicken breast, tomato, avocado, black beans, corn, cheese and tortilla chips.  Serve with salsa ranch dressing on the side.


Tweaked from a recipe found on the internet somewhere...

My Favorite Play Dough Recipe

I've tried several play dough recipes and this one is, hands down, my favorite. It's super quick, it's easy for Ava to help me make it, it makes a soft dough, it lasts a long time, and (most importantly) it's not too loaded with salt so your hands don't feel sick-nasty the second you touch it. :)  

Play Dough

1 C Flour
1 C Water
1/4 C Salt
1 TBSP Vegetable Oil
2 tsp Cream of Tarter
Food Coloring (actual coloring or a kool-aid packet will do)
Sparkles, optional
Little helping hands.

Pour all ingredients in a sauce pan. Stir until everything is mixed well. Once the mixture is (mostly) clump free. Heat over MEDIUM heat. Stir, Stir Stir. Just keep stirring until the Play Dough is formed. It will  form one big clump. Remove from heat, and knead by hand.

Note: You can add the food coloring and/or sparkles at the end so you can make several colors in one batch.

Nutty Peach Breakfast Cake

I made this for breakfast this morning and it was delish.  I think you could even make it for dessert and serve it with some whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.  I added some butter to the topping to hold it all together.  I didn't measure how much I used though, so just add a few tablespoons, or leave it out if you want.  I also changed the name from "Nutty Peach Quick Bread" to Breakfast Cake, because to me, it's more like a breakfast cake than a bread.  : )

Nutty Peach Breakfast Cake

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 cups diced peeled ripe peaches

1/2 cup chopped pecans

TOPPING:

1/3 cup quick-cooking oats

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

Butter (optional)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in honey and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Fold in peaches and pecans.
2. Pour into a greased 8x8x2" baking pan. Combine the oats, brown sugar and butter with a pastry blender until well blended; sprinkle over batter. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 20 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. 

The original recipe said to bake this in 3  5-3/4-in. x 3-in. x 2-in. loaf pans, but I don't have loaf pans that size, and some other reviewers said that they used cake pans and such, so that's what I did.  : )              

Lemon Balsamic Vinaigrette

I made this dressing to go with a Calamari salad that I threw together one night.  We both really liked it.  I added a clove of minced garlic to the dressing, but I'm sure you could leave that out and it would be just as tasty.  : )

Lemon Balsamic Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest

1/2 lemon, juiced

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon white sugar

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced (optional)

Blend all ingredients together until well combined. 

Mango Lassi Crunch Muffins

I really liked these muffins, though it's funny that they're called "crunch" muffins, because there's no crunch aside from the pecans.  The recipe says to add the crunchy topping, then cover it with batter....they would probably have more "crunch" if you just added the crunch to the top and baked them, instead of covering it.  Anyway, they're yumalicious!

Mango Lassi Crunch Muffins

For the Crunch:
1/2 C. white chocolate, melted
1/2 C. Rice Krispies
3/4 C. pecans, finely chopped
3/4 C. Nilla wafer cookies, chopped*

For the Muffins:
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 C. vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3 C. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 C. vanilla yogurt
2 C. fresh mango, chopped

To prepare the crunch, preheat the oven to 250°.  Toss the pecan pieces, Rice Krispies, and cookie pieces in a small bowl to blend.  Add the white chocolate ad continue to toss (using a fork, as the chocolate may be still be hot) until small clusters form.  (I started by using a fork, then found it easier to use my hands when it was cool enough to touch.)
Spread the clusters on a parchment or wax-paper lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.  Finished crunch will be slightly browned and fragrant.  Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, begin preparing the muffin batter by creaming the sugar and oil in a large bowl.  Add the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla, beating until incorporated.
In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl.  Add the dry ingredients to the creamed sugar, alternating with the yogurt, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary and beating until just incorporated.  Fold in the mango.

Preheat the oven to 350°
Line a muffin tin with paper liners.  Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins so that each is about 1/3 full.  Use your hands to gently break up the crunch clusters and sprinkle about 1 teaspoon over the top of the batter.  Top the crunch with approximately one tablespoon more of batter.  The crunch does not need to be completely covered but each liner should be filled to its top.  Bake for 24-26 minutes.  Finished muffins will be slightly browned at the edges and golden across the top.  Allow muffins to cool slightly before removing from pan.  Yield: Approximately 24 muffins

*The original recipe called for Maria cookies but said that Nilla wafers, or any other simple vanilla cookie may be substitute.

Recipe from scarlettabakes.com

Creamy Pesto Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Mushrooms

This is another yummy recipe from ourbestbites.com.  I used frozen homemade pesto and I just put in two ice cubes worth - so maybe 3 Tbsp.  I like a little less pesto than this called for since it has such a strong flavor.

Creamy Pesto Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Mushrooms
Recipe by OurBestBites.com
1/2 recipe Guiltless Alfredo Sauce
1/2 lb Farfalle/Bowtie Pasta (that's 1/2 a 16oz box or a little over 3 cups dry pasta)
3.5 oz Pesto (that's about 1/3 cup, or 1/2 of a 7oz container they sell in stores)
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
8oz mushrooms (about 3 C sliced)
3-4T pine nuts
Parmesan cheese
extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
black pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

1.  Prepare your Guiltless Alfredo sauce (combine 1 cup low-fat milk, 1.5oz low fat cream cheese, 1 T flour, and 1/2 t salt in a blender and blend.  Melt 1/2 T butter in sauce pan and add 1 minced garlic clove.  Saute until tender and add milk mixture.  Bring to a simmer, cook until thickened stirring constantly, about 3-5 minutes)  Add 1/2 C grated parmesan cheese and stir. Cover immediately and remove from heat.)   When it's finished, just make sure it's covered and set it aside.  
2.  Place a large stock pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil.

3.  Slice mushrooms.  Place tomatoes and mushrooms on a foil-lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil (3-4 T should do it)  toss with your fingers making sure everything is coated and then lightly sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.  Cook in the pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes.  You can tell the tomatoes are ready when the skins start to split. Don't overcook them or they'll be mush!
4.  When water comes to a boil add a little salt and the pasta. 

5.  Toast pinenuts in a skillet or in a toaster oven - watch closely so they don't burn!
 

6.  Add pesto to alfredo sauce and stir to combine well.
 

7. Tomatoes and mushrooms should be done about now, take them out of the oven.

Put it all together!  Place pasta in a large bowl and combine with as much sauce as you need.  Place tomatoes and mushrooms on top and sprinkle on lots of fresh parmesan cheese.  Sprinkle pine nuts on top and serve.