yummy...

i have become a "snacker", and this is my current snack of choice (can be found at whole foods). these snapea crisps are addicting, especially the caesar flavor…

chicken with roasted sweet potato salad...

i'll be the first to admit i don't always eat healthy, but my stepdad made this for dinner over the weekend and it was too delicious not to share…

Chicken with Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

ingredients:
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into thin slices
1 red onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt & pepper
4 6 ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bunch spinach, thick stems removed (about 4 cups)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

directions:
1. heat oven to 425
2. on rimmed baking sheet, toss the potatoes, onion, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper. roast until tender, about 20-25 minutes.
3. meanwhile, heat remaining tablespoon oil in a skillet over medium heat.
4. season the chicken with salt & pepper and cook until browned and cooked through, 5-6 minutes on each side.
5. in large bowl, toss the warm potato mixture with the spinach, lime juice and salt. serve with chicken on top.

soup to warm your bones...

It definitely felt like a soup day yesterday, so i attempted to make a butternut squash & apple soup. i've never made this kind of soup before and i was pretty please with the taste & consistency... also, this was probably the most easy soup recipe i've ever made, no lie.

image courtesy of simply recipes

INGREDIENTS1 large yellow onion, chopped2 ribs of celery, chopped1 carrot, chopped2 tbsp butter2 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, chopped (I bought pre-pacakged chopped from Trader Joe's)2 green apples, peeled, cored, chopped3 cups chicken broth1 cup water3/4 cup agave nectar (but i used more like 1 cup)pinch of cinnamon & nutmeg

Directions

1. Set a large saucepan over medium-high heat and heat the butter for 1-2 minutes. Do not let it turn brown. Add the onion, celery and carrot and sauté for 5 minutes (just to soften).

2. Add squash, apple, broth and water. Bring to boil. Cover, turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until squash and carrots soften. Puree (i used my immersion blender) until smooth.

3. Add agave nectar, salt and spices to taste.

sunday chow-down...

sundays are for eating, end of story. this weekend was no exception.  for lunch we had a homemade mac & cheese and for dinner the husband made a delicious pork chop with vinegar peppers & potatoes. i had about 2 dozen apples from apple picking with my girlfriends on saturday so i whipped up some apple crisp for dessert too. i think by the end of winter i'll be about 300 lbs if we continue on this eating path...

mac & cheese
ingredients:
1 block of white cheddar
1 block of orange cheddar
3 cups milk, plus some extra (maybe another cup)
2 tablespoons truffle oil
bacon bits (i used the pre-made stuff in a jar, use as much or as little as you want)
2 cups panko crumbs
1 box of elbow macaroni

directions:
1. cook the pasta according to the directions. drain & set aside. pre-heat the oven to 375
2. shred the cheese (or just buy the pre-shredded stuff, much easier).
3. heat the milk in a medium saucepan, slowly stirring in the cheese until it's melted. be sure to set aside & reserve some of the cheese for the topping
4. add the truffle oil to the cheese mixture.
5. combine the cheese mixture with the cooked pasta, adding in the bacon.
6. in a separate bowl mix the left over shredded cheese with the panko crumbs.
7. spread the pasta & cheese mixture into a baking dish, top with the panko crumb mixture.
8. add the remaining cup of milk to the baking dish so it fills up the dish a little
9. bake, uncovered, for about 45 minutes...make sure the top doesn't burn

apple crisp
ingredients:
5-6 medium apples (i mixed and match types of apples), peeled & cored
3/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup butter, softened
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon grond nutmeg
vanilla ice cream

directions: 
1. pre-heat the oven to 375, grease the bottom of a baking dish with some butter
2. spread the apples in the pan.
3. in a medium bowl stir the remaining ingredients (except the butter & ice cream). spread this mixture over the apples
4. put dabs of butter over the top of the mixture and bake about 30 minutes until topping is golden brown (make sure the apples are tender too)
5. serve with ice cream

since i didn't make the pork chops i can't really give you his recipe...but here's one that looks about right.

roasted corn chower...

maybe i'm jumping the gun, but fall is the beginning of soup season for me. last night i made an adaptation of this roasted corn chowder, and it was so.dang.good! i highly recommend it. i was too lazy to make the 'guacamole mixture' that goes on as a topping, but it was still good without it...

INGREDIENTS:

3 1/2 cups of frozen corn

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 jalapeno, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

3 1/2 cups chicken broth (but you can use vegetable broth to make a vegan version)

1 lime

salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. lay frozen corn out on cookie sheet and toss with olive oil, salt & pepper. roast at 375 for 15-20 minutes

2. heat oil in large stock pot and add onion, jalapeno & garlic. Cook until onions are translucent, about 4 minutes

3. add roasted corn, cumin and broth. simmer until heated thru

4. add cilantro and blend with immersion blender until desired thickness

5. squeeze juice of one lemon and salt & pepper to taste

bourbon sippin'...

we have a lot of bourbon sitting on our bar right now. the husband is a big fan of the kentucky native libation and is usually gifted a bottle (or two or three) here and there for special occasions. the other night we tried dinner at boston chops, a newish steakhouse bistro in the south end and on the cocktail menu was a drink which i think was named #smashed (but i could be wrong about the name). it was a bourbon drink and even i ordered it it sounded so delicious. let me tell you, this is a dangerous drink, it tastes soooo damn good. i looked it up, it's a variation of the kentucky kiss. our drink had either basil or mint muddled into it, but otherwise it's about the same. i think i'm going to whip us up some this weekend...

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Bourbon
• 1 oz strawberry puree (easy puree recipe here)
• 1/2 oz lemon juice
• 1/2 oz maple syrup
• basil or mint for muddling

Preparation:

1. Muddle either basil or mint 
2. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
3. Shake well
4. Strain into a chilled lowball glass
5. Top with soda

my big fat greek dinner...

i typically cook italian or mexican or good old fashion american foods- because it's all i know how to do really. but last night i attempted some greek dishes, found on pinterest, and they turned out AMAZING. for reals people, make this, it's easy and delicious and husband approved.

grilled eggplant with garlic-cumin vinaigrette, feta & herbs- i pre-made the  vinaigrette & cheese/herb topping for the eggplant so when they were done on the grill they were ready to be dressed. make extra dressing, it's so dang good...

greek chicken cutlets- i marinated the chicken over night which made it WAY more juicy after the husband grilled it. i also pre-made the salad topping before hand (and added some garden cucumbers to the mix too)...

summer cookin'...

i think i might have to make this night summer italian meal for the husband, my mouth is watering just looking at the pictures of this food. the baked eggplant parmesan & sausage boat recipe is from gina's skinny recipes and the summer bruschetta is from style me pretty living....yummmm....

the lazy girl cooks...

i know i can't be the only person on the planet who doesn't actually enjoy cooking. i mean, i do like to cook, but it feels like so much time & effort to create something that literally takes like 5 minutes to eat... at least the way i inhale my food anyway. maybe when i'm cooking for 2 on a more regular basis (come july!) it'll be worth it, but right now it falls into that "i'd rather be doing anything than this" category for me.

thank god for any/all recipes that have the words "quick" and "easy" in them. i made the pioneer woman's quick & easy roasted red pepper pasta sauce last night...good god was it easy to make and tasty. i'm telling you, this woman is a freakin' genius. i changed the recipe a little to...

1. only used about 2 tablespoons of butter instead of the 4 the recipe called for- only used them to sauté the onions, garlic & peppers in the beginning

2. instead of transferring the sauteed vegetables into the food processor i just used my immersion blender right in the sauté pan, make it more chunky than the puree she's going for...and less damn things i have to clean at the end

3. never added any broth to it, and just a dash of 2% milk to lighten it up (didn't have any cream on hand)- could probably forgo any milk/cream anyway

4. added some fresh chopped basil from my herb garden, highly recommend that.

summer cocktails...

now that we have officially switched back to it being lighter longer, i've proposed to a friend a few summer cocktails we should start thinking about throwing back in the warmer months...

 pretty in pink
4 oz. Sparkling white wine
2 oz. lemonade

½ oz. lemon juice

splash of cranberry juice

garnish with mint leaves

dirty shirley
1oz cherry flavored vodka

5-6 oz sprite

Dash of grenadine syrup

garnish with a cherry

moscow mule
1 oz vodka

1 tsp simple syrup

fresh lime juice

1/2 cup ginger beer

1 sprig fresh mint

1 slice of lime

which would you choose to drink this summer?

confession...

i have a confession to make. i love chain restaurants. are you horrified? so you can imagine my excitement when i came across the copycat & clone recipes on pinterest today of all my favorites...

via outback

...bring on the fat girl jeans!

bad commute= heavy weekday drinking...

i am sooo making myself one of these today after work...the 2 hour commute to go 6 miles the last two days is reason enough for me...

thank you a beautiful mess for this recipe today...i'm drooling at my office desk.

comfort food for the weekend...

there is no better comfort food than beef shorts ribs. ok, ok...so there is one better one, mac & cheese, but whatever. the boyfriend is going to be the lucky recipient of this delicious recipe tomorrow night... i'm already drooling thinking about it...

Ingredients:

5 pounds bone-in English-style short ribs, meat and bones separated

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 onions, chopped medium

1 carrot, peeled and chopped medium

1 celery rib, chopped medium

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried 

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups dry red wine

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Arrange beef bones in a dish and microwave (in batches, if microwave is small) until well browned, 10 to 15 minutes; transfer to slow cooker.
2. Dry short ribs with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12‑inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown half of short ribs well on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes; transfer to slow cooker. Repeat with remaining tablespoon oil and remaining short ribs; transfer to slow cooker.
3. Add onions, carrot, celery, tomato paste, and thyme to fat in skillet and cook over medium-high heat until onions are softened and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in wine and vinegar, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps. Bring to simmer and cook until reduced to 1 cup, about 5 minutes; transfer to slow cooker.
4. Stir broth and bay leaves into slow cooker. Cover and cook until beef is tender, 9 to 11 hours on low or 5 to 7 hours on high.
5. Transfer short ribs to serving platter and tent loosely with aluminum foil. Let braising liquid settle for 5 minutes, then remove fat from surface using large spoon. Strain braising liquid, discarding solids, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in parsley. Spoon 1 cup sauce over short ribs and serve with remaining sauce.

pesto stuffed portobellos...

ok, so not to keep harping on veganism, because really, i swear, i am as carnivorous as they come. but i took my mom & stepdad out for my mom's (ahhh, 60th!) birthday dinner last night to a vegan restaurant in somerville, true bistro, (side note, i would have thought an uber liberal/crunchy/hippie/free thinking place like nearby cambridge would have more vegan restaurants, but they don't) and it was SO good. so good, that i would absolutely, 100% eat there again. so good, that i actually stole the menu and gave it to my parents so they could study it and maybe recreate some of it home. so good, i've actually been making some vegan recipes of my own...

i found this vegan pesto stuffed portobello recipe that looked pretty yummy, but just couldn't bring myself so make it 100%, so i faked it a little... umm, i used regular store bought pesto & i used shaved parmesan cheese too (because that vegan 'cheese' just looks plain nasty), and at the end i took off the foil and turned the heat u to 375 to brown the cheese a little on top... and holy hell does it taste good!..

 

easy noodles...

image & recipe via the cutting edge of ordinary

craving an easy asian noodle bowl? try this recipe (taken from one of my other favorite bloggers, pioneer woman), easiest thing ever, although i had to guy a few of the different oils (but it's good to have those items stocked anyway). i made two alterations to the recipe; i added extremely thinly sliced slivers of red pepper and i also added a dollop of peanut butter to the sauce.

i also used trader joe's fresh rice noodles in this recipe (which happen to be vegan). if you do use them literally only cook them in boiling water for about 1 minute (disregard their cooking instructions), because they getting gooey & sticky much beyond that. and buy two packages to use...two individual packages come inside, but i ended up using three because the sauce goes a long way...

vegans anonymous...

i can't believe i am admitting this...but my mom & step-dad have become vegans. yes, you heard me correctly. i can't believe i am related to vegans either, says the girl who can't live without medium rare steaks. they announced this just after thanksgiving to our shock & horror. and while i've given them A LOT of shit for it, i've come to accept it. i'm even taking them to dinner for my mom's upcoming birthday to this vegan restaurant, true bistro...not going to lie, their menu actually looks delicious. and i mean hell, my favor president of all time is now a vegan, soooo, maybe i can live with this.

i know i've blogged about these cookbooks before, but my boss just brought in this barley & pomegranate salad he made from plenty and it was delicious...and if i'm not mistaken, it appears to be vegan???...

Barley and Pomegranate SaladServes 4
1 cup pearl barley
6 celery stalks (leaves picked and reserved), cut into small dice
¼ cup olive oil
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 small garlic cloves, crushed
⅔ teaspoon ground allspice
salt and black pepper
3 tablespoons chopped dill
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
seeds from 2 large pomegranates.

1. Rinse the barley with cold water, then place in a medium saucepan and cover with plenty of fresh water. Simmer for 30 to 35 minutes, or until tender but still with a bite.
2. Drain the barley and transfer to a mixing bowl. While it is still hot, add the celery, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, allspice and some salt and pepper. Stir, then leave to cool down completely.
3. Once cool, add the herbs, celery leaves and pomegranate seeds and mix in. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking; then serve.

weekend brain dump...

my past two weekends have been really good ones...2013 is off to a great start!

last weekend mom and i spent a mother/daughter new years day antiquing and sewing. while i was less successful in my antiquing endeavors, mom picked up this adorable little wicker suit case and this perfect sunbeam bread sign to add to her growing collection of old screen doors she has hanging in her pantry...

we worked on a couple of sewing projects in moms sewing studio. first up was an infinity scarf. mom made me one last year for christmas and i loved it, so i wanted to try to make one of my own. we loosely followed the 'koos loop' pattern published in the december 2011/january 2012 of threads magazine and another random pattern. you can use of to 4 different pattern/textured fabrics in this project, but i chose to use 3. i am definitely going to make these for all my girlfriends, they are great, easy little gifts to make and are so versatile...

then we made this beach towel project i've been wanting to make all year since pinning it on pinterest, and by we i mean mom...i ran out of steam...and well, let's face it, she's just way more talented (and patient) than i am. i bought a cheap pillow from target and then bought these 2 beach towels from home goods at the end of the summer seasons so they were on sale too... i can't wait to use it at the beach this summer!...

this weekend the boyfriend and i had a little fun together too. we started out by stuffing our faces with this amazing pot pie i made. i can't take the credit for it, as it was passed on to me by a friend who made it for me a few months ago, but i did make a few alterations to the recipe and it turned out so delicious. i highly recommend making this on one of these cold weekends...

after dinner we treated ourselves to the movies. if you haven't seen lincoln yet you totally should. it was wonderful and so were daniel day lewis & tommy lee jones, no joke, if these two don't win awards for their roles i'll be shocked. i was so inspired by lincoln's foresight for our nation and for human rights, so the boyfriend and i decided to talk more about it over beers at the relatively new yard house by fenway afterwards...

 

and last but not least, i have jumped on the downton abbey bandwagon and so glad i did. when i was sick a few weeks ago i caught up on the first two seasons, i can hardly contain my excitement for the return of season 3 tonight!...

hope ya'll had a great weekend too.

white chicken chili

i love any recipe that requires very little effort and still tastes good, and that's exactly what plain chicken's white chicken chili is. holy hell people, it was SOOO good and such an easy sunday recipe. i did change a few things from her original recipe (my alterations) are in italics. be careful with the amount of chili powder & cayenne too, if you don't like heat i would put a little less in...

ingredients
1 rotisserie chicken, skinned and meat removed and chopped
1 medium onion, diced
3 cups chicken broth
2 cans cannellini beans, drained
1 can green chiles
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper


directions
In a Dutch oven, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes. top with your favorite toppings.

giving the gift of cookbooks...

if you're looking for a good cookbook to give your favorite foodie/chef then you should get these two books. i've bought them for several people now, all whom tell me it's their favorite cookbook...

 

plenty

jerusalem

get cookin'...

are you ready for this? best.dinner.party.menu.ever, coming your way from a wonderful friday night vermont hostess...she just sent me the recipes for the amazing food she served us...

delicata squash salad...

chicken pot pies...

salted caramel chocolate cookie bars...

get cooking friends, you will not be disappointed by this deliciousness!