How about those Huskies, people?? Husky fever, Husky mania. It’s crazy around here! Men’s and women’s teams, both champions in the same year. The last time this happened was in 2004, and now again. Excitement is running high as you can well imagine, and I wanted to share some of mine with all of you.
I am an alumna of the Univ. of Ct. and I join in with all other alumni and fans to congratulate these super teams on their achievements. Way to Go! Bring on the parties, parades and celebrations.
Tuna Melt with Horseradish Mayonnaise
Let me introduce you to one of my very favorite sandwiches. It’s high time you met. You see, I’ve been making and enjoying this sandwich for quite some time now, but for some reason I never took photos of it. Bad lighting, too hungry (usually), cheese too melty, not attractive. Oh, and I never wrote down the ingredients before. I just make it on the fly.
This week I became determined to share it with you. Even though it seems like a pretty ordinary, everyone-must-know-how-to-make-this, kind of sandwich, I figured that if we love it made this way, you just might like it too. This particular combo of tuna fish, crunchy celery and scallions, and a tangy mayo-mustard-horseradish dressing on rye toast is mouthwateringly good. It makes a great lunch, and can become a full meal when paired with a hot bowl of soup. If you’ve never added some of these flavors to tuna fish salad, try it. You may be surprised at how good it is.
TUNA MELTS WITH HORSERADISH MAYONNAISE
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 475*F.
2. Combine 4 Tbsp. mayonnaise, the tuna, celery, scallions, parsley, and vinegar in a large bowl and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Combine the remaining 2 Tbsp. mayonnaise with the mustard and horseradish in a small bowl; spread on the bread slices and arrange on a baking sheet. Mound the tuna mixture on top and pat it into an even layer. Top each with 1 cheese slice, tearing it as needed to cover the tuna mixture.
4. Season the tomato slices with salt; Place 2 slices on top of each sandwich, then top each with another slice of cheese. Bake until the cheese melts, 5 to 7 minutes. Serve with dill pickles.
SOURCE: Carolyn’s Originals
Candied Orange and Golden Raisin Scones
As I’m sure you know by now I really love scones. I’ve never eaten a scone I didn’t like, but if they include dried fruits or ginger that scone and I will be friends for life. So this particular recipe had me at “candied orange” and when you add golden raisins and then soak all that in orange liqueur overnight before baking, then let me tell you these are the best scones imaginable.
They become crisp and golden with a light, flaky interior. The fruit offers a slightly chewy contrast. Orange zest and Grand Marnier, or any orange flavor liqueur, flavor the scones. Slather them with butter and enjoy with a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast. But really they could be dessert. The other aspect of this recipe that got me was the total yield is around 15 or 16 scones. So you can bake once, and freeze half of them to enjoy at a later date. These scones keep for 2-3 days in an air-tight container at room temperature.
Flaky and tender inside.
CANDIED ORANGE AND GOLDEN RAISIN SCONES
Yield: about 16 2-inch round scones
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Stir together candied orange peel, raisins, orange zest and liqueur in a small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 day.
2. Preheat oven to 350*F. Whisk flours together in a large bowl. Transfer half to a processor and add butter. Pulse to cut in butter (the largest pieces should be the size of small peas.) Add granulated sugar, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon salt to remaining flour in bowl; whisk to combine. With pastry blender or your fingertips, work in the flour-butter mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. Whisk together cream, whole egg, and egg yolk. Make a well in the center of flour mixture, and pour in half of cream mixture. Draw dry ingredients over wet ingredients with a rubber spatula, scraping bottom of bowl to incorporate all dry crumbs. Add remaining cream mixture, and gently mix just until incorporated–do not overwork dough.
4. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface, and press dough into a 6-by-9-inch rectangle. Sprinkle dried fruit mixture evenly over dough. With a short side facing you, fold rectangle into thirds, as you would a letter. Rotate dough a quarter-turn clockwise. Roll out dough to a 6-by-9-inch rectangle, folding and rotating once more.
5. Pat dough into a 1 1/4-inch-thick rectangle with floured hands, and cut out as many rounds as possible with a floured 2-inch round biscuit cutter. Gather scraps, reroll once, and cut out more rounds ( you should have a total of 16).
Note: In order to avoid rerolling scraps and cutting twice, I rolled my dough out to approximately 6-inch-by-10-inch rectangle, then with a sharp knife cut out 2″ squares, getting a total of 15.
6. Place scones 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Lightly beat egg white and brush tops; sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool on sheets. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Fresh from the oven and smelling delicious.
SOURCE: Martha Stewart Living
Chicken Cacciatore with Polenta
I love this meal served over polenta or pasta but I make it rather infrequently because it takes quite a bit of time to make. Especially when you slow cook it the way I usually do. This past weekend I decided to try this recipe that is prepared using a slow-cooker. By using boneless chicken thighs, the chicken doesn’t need all day to become falling apart tender. A cooking time of 4 – 5 hours is perfect.
Starting around noon, I browned the chicken as the recipe directs, made the sauce and put it all in the slow cooker and in about 4 hours it had reached saucy perfection, and the aroma in my kitchen was wonderful. I continued with the “quick” approach and made instant polenta to serve the cacciatore over. That along with an inventive green salad and a glass of wine was a perfect ending to a busy weekend.
When I make polenta I usually use Bob’s Red Mill Whole Grain Polenta which takes about 30 minutes to cook, and requires constant attention and stirring. This time I opted for Scalafani Instant Polenta, that cooks in only 3 minutes. You still need to stir it constantly, but for a much shorter time.
Hint: when making polenta always use a long handled spoon ( wooden is best) for stirring, because as it thickens it will “pop” as it boils and can burn your hands. (Ask me how I know.)
CHICKEN CACCIATORE
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Place flour in a shallow dish; dredge chicken in flour, shaking off excess.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil; swirl to coat pan. Add half of chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned.
Browning the chicken.
Place chicken in a 6-quart electric slow cooker. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken. Reduce heat to medium.
3. Add a drizzle more oil if necessary. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic, sauté 4 minutes.
Saute onions, pepper and garlic.
Add wine and tomato puree, stirring to blend ingredients.
Add puree and wine.
Bring to a simmer, adding diced tomatoes, capers, salt , peppers, and oregano.
Add tomatoes and seasonings.
Heat through. Add to slow cooker, pouring over chicken.
4. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours or until chicken is tender. Sprinkle with parsley.
Slow-cooker chicken cacciatore.
Serve it over polenta or pasta.
If you have leftovers, they can be easily transformed into soup: Shred the chicken, and place in a pot with sauce. Add unsalted chicken stock, diced zucchini, and diced carrots; simmer until veggies are tender. Add in any leftover pasta at the end. Serve with a little grated cheese on top. One meal becomes two. YUM!
SOURCE: Cooking Light
Cauliflower Fritters
If it looks like a potato pancake and it tastes like a potato pancake, it must be a potato pancake, right? Wrong!! These are cauliflower fritters, and they are delicious. Similar to the taste of a potato pancake, they make a fabulous side dish–we loved them!
As a continuation of my posts about cauliflower, I have this one for you. Another way to use this versatile vegetable and reap it’s health benefits in a fun way.
You can use either a bag of frozen cauliflower, or cook up some fresh cauliflower, mash, then mix with hash brown potatoes, cheese, onions, whole wheat flour and eggs. Use just enough oil to sauté them in a fry pan, and you will have crispy fritters. I made a dipping sauce to go with them that enhanced their presentation and flavor. I find it amazing how versatile cauliflower is and how it can mimic potatoes or rice. It makes a great stand-in for either of them with far fewer calories and carbohydrates.
CAULIFLOWER FRITTERS
Yield: Makes 8 – 10 fritters
Ingredients:
For the dipping sauce:
Directions:
1. Prepare cauliflower as package directs if frozen, or bring to a boil and cook until tender if using fresh.
2. Place cauliflower in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher. Stir in onion, flour, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon zest, potatoes, cheese and eggs. Mix to combine well.
3. Form into 8 – 10 patties. I used a large spoon, and dropped lumps of batter into the skillet, then flattened them slightly with a spatula. Using this method, I got 10 fritters.
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat. Cook patties 4 minutes on each side or until nicely browned. Repeat with remaining batter.
5. Make dipping sauce: Combine yogurt, 1/8 tsp. salt, and remaining ingredients. Serve sauce with fritters.
SOURCE: adapted from Skinny Taste
Cauliflower Soup
A cold stormy day calls for hot soup. We were hit with an unexpected snow storm the other day that threw everyone into a tizzy. What is it that is so often said about the last day of March, “out like a lamb”? Not this one. The lion roared again and tied up traffic for miles with multiple accidents. What did I do? I stayed home and sent a barrage of e-mails to the Weather Goddess. Enough is enough, Mother Nature. Check your calendar; it’s Spring!! 😀
Mr. D was so thankful for a steaming hot bowl of soup. He said it hit the spot. This soup is healthy and light. It has a creamy texture from the cauliflower and would lead you to think it was loaded with cream, but there’s not a drop of cream in it. I served it with a drizzle of olive oil on top. It would make a light lunch or first course or serve with a sandwich for a full meal as I did.
Serve with a drizzle of olive oil on top.
A serving of this soup is 1 3/4 cup, with 93 calories, 3 g. fat, 12 g carbohydrate.
CAULIFLOWER SOUP
Very few ingredients.
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. In a large saucepan or soup kettle, melt the butter over low heat. Add the onions and sauté until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the flour and cook about 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Add the chicken broth and cauliflower and increase heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer over medium-low heat until vegetables are tender (about 20 minutes.) Turn off the heat.
Cook the cauliflower in the chicken broth.
3. Puree with an immersion blender until smooth, or use a regular blender and puree in small batches. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.
Puree the cooked cauliflower with a blender.
Cauliflower Soup
SOURCE: adapted from Skinny Taste
Roasted Cauliflower with Cranberries and Crispy Onions
Cauliflower is a beautiful thing!! With its bunches of tightly clustered florets snuggled into green leaves, cauliflower looks somewhat like a flower. Cauliflower comes in colors other than white–and with added nutrients. Orange and green cauliflower provide us with beta carotene. Green cauliflower also has a little more protein. Purple cauliflower gets its color from anthocyanins, said to improve memory. Since its color fades with cooking, you will get the most benefits by eating it raw.
Cauliflower has been called the “skinny starch”. It has 16 % less carbs and 79 % fewer calories per 1/2 cup than potatoes. It also has lots of pectin– the same stuff that thickens jams and jellies–so pureed cooked cauliflower has a velvety texture that adds body to soups, and mimics potatoes when mashed. Cauliflower may also be shredded or finely chopped, then lightly sautéed to make a low-carb “rice” or “couscous”.
If you prepare cauliflower with a sense of adventure, its mild flavor and unique texture allow it to take the place of other higher calorie, higher-starch foods in winter dishes. Forget basic steamed florets. In this recipe you will see that roasty-browned cauliflower mixes well with dried cranberries and crispy French fried onions to make a side dish that goes well with just about any main entree.
ROASTED CAULIFLOWER WITH CRANBERRIES AND CRISPY ONIONS
Yield: Makes 6 – 8 servings
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375*F.
2. Cut cauliflower into small bite-size florets. Place on a large baking sheet and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 10 minutes. Remove cauliflower from oven. Add 1/2 cup of the French fried onions to the cauliflower on the baking sheet and toss to mix. Place the remaining 1/4 cup onions off to one side of the baking sheet (these will be used as garnish.) Roast mixture an additional 10 minutes or until cauliflower reaches desired tenderness and onions are brown and crispy.
3. In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.
4. Set aside 2 tablespoons each of dried cranberries and pistachios ( these will be used as garnish).
5. In a medium bowl, toss warm cauliflower mixture with dried cranberries and pistachios. Spoon ricotta mixture on top and fold gently, leaving large bits of ricotta. Garnish with reserved cranberries, pistachios and crispy onions. Serve immediately.
SOURCE: Eating Well
Broccoli and Rice Casserole
Broccoli, rice and cheese seem to have a natural affinity for each other and this recipe has been around in one form or another for years. But you know what? We never had it at our house when I was growing up. I remember having it at church potluck suppers, and I know my friends had it at their house, but this was not one of my mother’s side dishes. Other popular meals that my friends had were Shake and Bake Chicken and Hamburger Helper, but nope, not us. I felt so deprived! And even to this day, as a grown-up, when I hear or read about broccoli and rice casserole I still get that “left out” feeling. So I decided to take the bull by the horns and just make it. With all the people who have made this dish over the years, how hard could it be?
Success!!
I know that some people used “Cheez-Whiz” to make this dish real cheesy, but that, too, had been denied to me. So I followed the path I know and used a cheddar cheese. You can make this with fresh broccoli if you precook it sightly, or as a time saver use frozen broccoli florets. The type of rice you use can vary according to your taste. I used long grain white rice, but you could use a wild and white rice combination, brown rice, or any other variety of rice.
The finished casserole was indeed cheesy, and had a good proportion of broccoli to rice, so I didn’t feel that it was too heavy with carbohydrates. It’s filling and satisfying, and goes well with most any meat or fish, or serve with another vegetable and a salad for a meatless meal.
BROCCOLI AND RICE CASSEROLE
Yield: Makes 6 servings
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*F.
1. Saute onion in 2 T olive oil; when onion is translucent stir in rice. Cook and stir for 2 – 3 minutes more. Add 2 cups broth, bring to a boil, decrease heat and simmer about 40 minutes with the lid on. Stir a few times to prevent sticking.
2. Meanwhile cook (or thaw) broccoli, but not completely. You want it to be on the crisp side. Drain off any liquid. Mix in the soup and pepper.
3. Add the cooked rice and 1/2 cup cheese.
Mix rice into broccoli mixture.
Add the cheese and mix in.
Transfer to a baking dish that has been prepared with non-stick spray. Top with remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350*F.
It may be April 1st, but this dish is no joke! 😀
SOURCE: Adapted from The Casserole Connection
Chocolate Cherry Mousse Pie
This is a very special and “showy” pie that is great for special occasions or holidays. Today is a special occasion and I made it to celebrate. This post is my 500th since starting this blog just about 2 years ago. In that time I have published five posts/week and gained a following of over 300 readers worldwide. My goal from the beginning, (and still is) is to share with you recipes that are nutritious, mindful of dietary restrictions and special diets, reasonably economical to make with readily available ingredients, and taste fabulous. Whether you are a new-comer in the kitchen, or an experienced cook, there’s always something to learn. I pass along my trials and errors, my successes and failures, and encourage you to be adventurous with your cooking. These are recipes that I am proud to serve and hopefully you will be proud to serve also. By your responses to me, I think I must be succeeding. So I am very happy to have all of you as my “community” of readers. Thanks so much for finding this little blog and sticking with me. Love Ya!!
With Easter just ahead, this pie would make a nice addition to the dessert table. Besides being so pretty, its also a very luscious pie with two kinds of chocolate and cherries in a creamy white chocolate mousse. It’s sweet, yet very light. This is one dessert that will definitely disappear into the crowd…in a good way.
The surprise, once the pie has been cut, is the layer of dark chocolate that lies between the crust and the light airy filling. This really makes the pie interesting and the dark chocolate is a nice foil for the white, light filling. I liked putting some grated dark chocolate on top with the cherry garnish to give a hint of what’s waiting inside.
Ways to reduce the caloric impact of this pie would be to use low-fat condensed milk, low-fat cream cheese, and sugar-free instant pudding. I’m not sure if white chocolate pudding mix is available sugar-free, but vanilla flavor certainly is, and makes a good substitute. In place of whipped cream you could also use “light” whipped topping. Be sure to include the almond flavoring… it somehow adds to the whole taste experience.
WHITE CHOCOLATE CHERRY MOUSSE PIE
Yield: 8 – 10 servings
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan, over low heat, cook and stir 1/2 cup condensed milk and chocolate until the chocolate is melted and mixture is thickened, about 4-5 minutes.
Mix chocolate and condensed milk and cook till thick.
Mixture gets quite thick, like fudge. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Pour into pie shell and set aside.
2. Reserve 8 whole cherries for garnish. Chop the remaining cherries and set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until light. Gradually beat in water and remaining milk. Add pudding mix and remaining extract; mix well.
4. Fold in the whipped cream. Stir in chopped cherries.
Fold in whipped cream and chopped cherries.
Pour over chocolate layer in the pie crust. Chill 4 hours or until set. Garnish with whole cherries and chocolate curls before serving.
It’s like eating a cloud!!
SOURCE: Adapted from a Taste of Home recipe
Chili Mac
Talk about the need for comfort foods…..it continues here in the Northeast where forecasters are predicting more snow. A blizzard at sea they’re saying with howling winds and snow along the eastern seaboard and islands. Oh, no!! Is this an early April Fool’s Day joke??
Luckily I found this recipe to try and keep us warm. It is just a little different from my usual way of making chili. It uses ground turkey and includes macaroni, making a hearty, filling, family-friendly meal with enough to freeze for another meal if you want to. You can crank up the heat with ground red pepper, or keep it mild if there are sensitive palates at your dinner table.
Departing from my usual -make half a recipe- I made the whole amount with the intent of freezing half of it. This works well for a future meal when you are in a hurry. If you do plan to freeze part of it, be sure that the container you use fits in the freezer and also what you’ll be using to reheat it. You can also use a zip-lock bag and lay it flat in the freezer so it will stack nicely with other contents of the freezer. Include the name of the dish, date made and frozen, and instructions for reheating. Ideally use within 2 months to avoid freezer burn. To reheat, first thaw somewhat in the microwave until its pliable, then pour into a baking dish and bake for about 30 minutes to reheat. Melt some grated cheddar cheese on top for a “just made” look that no-one would suspect had been frozen.
CHILI MAC
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients:
All the seasonings
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Cook pasta in boiling water until almost al dente. Drain. Combine pasta with beans in a large bowl.
3. While pasta is cooking, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan and swirl to coat. Add onion, pepper, garlic and mushrooms. Cook for about 8-10 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Add to bowl with pasta and beans.
Sauté the vegetables.
Add turkey, cook for 5 minutes or until done, stirring to crumble.
Cook the turkey, stirring to crumble.
Add seasonings. (cumin through ground red pepper); Stir in marinara sauce. Bring to a boil.
4. Add marinara/turkey mixture to pasta and beans, toss to coat. Pour desired amount into prepared baking dish. Top evenly with grated cheddar cheese.
All mixed together.
5. Bake at 350*F for 10 minutes or until cheese melts.
Freeze the remainder, as described above, for another meal.
SOURCE: Cooking Light
Delicious on a Dollar 