Jiffy Healthy Waffles

The kids like these healthy homemade waffles lots.  They're quick and easy and they taste great, too!

1 package of Jiffy muffin mix (blueberry, chocolate, whatever)
2 egg whites
1/3 C. milk

Options:
1 scoop protein powder (add more milk to get right consistency)
chocolate chips if you're doing chocolate waffles
fresh or frozen blueberries, maybe?

Could also try... Pumpkin muffin mix?  Banana mix?  Can't really think of anything that wouldn't be good.  And I can think of lots that would be good with chocolate chips. :-)

Combine ingredients, spray your waffle iron liberally (I do it before each waffle) and cook to desired doneness.  Enjoy!

Herb Butter

Kat sent me this recipe forever ago, and we finally got around to trying it.  I still need to practice grilling steaks, but the butter was for sure a keeper and will be repeated.  The only problem is I made WAY too much, so next time, I will just make what I think I will use that night.  Here's the recipe!

1 stick of butter, softened
big pinch of steak seasoning
1 T. rosemary, minced
1 T. thyme, minced
2 T. parsley, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced

Cream together and then roll up in plastic wrap, let harden in the fridge, and enjoy atop steaks and potatoes and anywhere else you can use butter!

White Chicken Chili

My friend Kathleen gave me this recipe, and since slow cookers are a working mom's best friend, I had to try.  I'll be honest... I liked the chili, didn't love it.  Christopher said it was his favorite that he has ever had, so that means that I will for sure make it again.  I also had the leftovers for lunch for the rest of the week and I think that it is one of those recipes that tastes better after a day.  It was very good for sure, and very healthy, just sort of mild, I guess, compared to other chili's I've had.  Maybe that's the point. :-)

White Chicken Chili
1 small onion
1 small can diced green chills
2-3 chicken breasts
3-4 cans of white chili beans and their liquids
1 32 oz container of chicken broth
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. coriander
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper

Optional:
cilantro, garnish
cheese- cheddar, monterey jack, shredded and to top with

Throw everything (except cilantro and cheese!) into the slow cooker and let it go for 8 hours on low.  Shred the chicken before serving!  Top with fresh cilantro and cheese if you so desire.  I had cheddar on hand and that was good, but keeping with the white theme, I think that monterey jack would work, too.  :-) Enjoy!



 

Veggie Spaghetti Squash

My sister Kat was in town a couple of weeks ago for another Ironman event and she had sent me this recipe.  I bought the spaghetti squash with good intentions to use it that weekend, but alas, life happened and the spaghetti squash plans didn't.  I was cleaning out my pantry this morning and found the surviving spaghetti squash hiding in there, and decided to go all out and treat myself to a lunch that actually took a little bit of work.  I am glad that I did because it was delicious, I am still full, and I have had a ton of veggies!  Which is extra good because today is Halloween, and I am sure there will be some candy consumption tonight.  Total aside, but because I don't want to forget, my kids are being ANGELS right now- they cleaned out Christopher's closet (the room is a mess) but they brought every single pillow from the house in there and they are curled up together watching YouTube Minecraft videos.  LOL  Anyway, here's the recipe.

Veggie Spaghetti Squash

Spaghetti Squash, cooked and shredded
olive oil
garlic
onion
tomatoes, fresh preferred but sundried/jarred could work?
feta cheese
basil, fresh and chopped

Options- pick any or all, whatever you have and/or like:
spinach, fresh and chopped (if you have it)
broccoli, roasted or steamed
asparagus, roasted/steamed and chopped
olives, if you are so inclined... I am not

Saute the onion and garlic in some olive oil.  Add the tomatoes and give it a minute or two... then toss in the cooked (and warm) spaghetti squash.  Add whatever other veggies you want, then the feta and basil.  Toss to combine and serve!  Yum!

I only used about 1/4 of the cooked squash, and I eye balled the ingredients... but it worked really well and I am still very satisfied. :-) Enjoy!  And thank you, Kat!

Healthy Hot Wing Chicken Strippers

Jason loves his hot wings, and I love Native New Yorker's "hot strippers," although I always laugh when I have to place my carryout order for that.  Full disclosure, I actually prefer the "honey hot" flavor, which just sounds even more stripper-ish.

Alas, I decided to try to make my own- and they were awesome!  Super easy, very healthy and if your chicken tenders are on a good sale price, they cost about $2.oo/lb out the door, which is way better than Native's $9.99/lb, plus the extra frying calories etc.

Healthy Hot Wing Chicken Strippers
chicken tenders (about a pound, two if you have a crowd)
Frank's Hot Sauce (Buffalo, whatever, half a jar will make a pound easy)
honey, if you like a touch of sweet
ranch, if you like

If you have time and the motivation, marinate your strippers in a bag with the hot sauce.  Transfer to a hot, greased grill and let cook for just a few minutes on each side.  The tenders are small and thin and they don't take long to cook.  Toss the grilled tenders with extra sauce in a mixing bowl (whisk in the honey with the sauce before adding the chicken, if you're so inclined) and serve with ranch.

Enjoy!

Appletini Jell-O Shots

I am going to a 4th of July party tomorrow at a close friends house and wanted to bring something festive.  Her dad is quite the Appletini maker and so he helped to inspire this creation.  I never really found a recipe for this- just saw ideas and variations and made this my own.  I did try one tonight and it was really good!  You can definitely taste the alcohol, almost an after effect, but it isn't so strong that it is unpleasant at all.  I think the cherries are adorable and fun!  I recommend using lime flavored jell-O.  I heard there is a sour apple flavor, which I am sure would work great, but I never found it.  You definitely want the bright green color.  The recipe is easy to double, and I would imagine you could do more with it too if you had a big enough pan!  I bought my 2 ounce containers and lids (125 of them!) from Smart and Final for about $6 total, and I have enough left over to try this out again!  So many possibilities!  I am inspired! ;-)   

Appletini Jell-O Shots

3 oz box of lime jell-O 

8 oz. water

5 oz. Sour Apple Pucker

3 oz. Vodka (I used regular but apple flavored would certainly work.) 

maraschino cherries

disposable 2 oz. cups and lids (maybe sprayed muffin tins would work?)

This makes about 16 one-ounce cups (which I guess makes sense since that is how much liquid you use!)  Actually, I made a double batch and got 35, which is about 17, so I guess those cherries fill up the cups a touch. :-) 

Boil 8 oz of water and put one cherry in each cup while you wait.  Add in the Jell-O mix and stir for two minutes, until fully dissolved.  Add in the Sour Apple Pucker and Vodka, and then transfer to a measuring cup with a spout so it is easier to pour.  Fill each cup just to over the cherry, about half way.  Let chill in the fridge for at least 3-4 hours or overnight.   

Bristol Farms Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies

So this recipe is getting blamed on my mom, ALL THE WAY.  First of all, every time we come to visit, she has at least a few of these gigantic gourmet cookies sitting on her counter, just calling my name.  They are worth every calorie but they're intense!  Well, she found the recipe and sent it my way, and now I've made it twice in under a week.

It is a very easy and basic recipe, no fancy ingredients needed.  I could have sworn it was chocolate on a peanut butter cookie, but it turns out, it is just a basic cookie with peanut butter in the chocolate frosting that I am tasting.  They taste good on day one, but they will knock your socks off on day two.  None have ever survived longer than that, but I would imagine, as long as you keep them covered from the beginning, they'd keep just fine and in theory, could probably freeze too.  They do not move when they cook at all- I made a double batch of small cookie scoop size balls and fit a ton of cookies on one sheet.  No eggs, baking soda or powder- nothing.  What you see is what you get.  I baked my cookies for probably close to ten minutes, both when I made them big and small.  It is kind of hard to tell that they are "ready," so I had to try to move them softly and sort of pick them up to see if there was any color on the bottom.  The recipe makes about 14 big scoop size cookies, which is not a lot!  One or two of these bad boys all satisfy you, though, in their defense.  This recipe is easy enough to double, however, and if I am making it for a lot of friends, I suggest making smaller cookies. :-)

Bristol Farms Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies
1/2 cup butter 
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla 
1 1/2 cups flour 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
2 tablespoons milk

For the filling: 
3/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips 
2 tablespoons peanut butter 
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375.  Cream the butter, add the sugar and then vanilla.  Mix in flour and salt.  Roll into even size balls and push your thumb into each cookie to make a depression.  Bake until light golden brown, about 8-12 minutes, depending upon size of your cookie.  Let cool. 

To make the filling, melt the chocolate chips (carefully, without burning) and add in peanut butter, corn syrup, vanilla and water.  Put into a piping bag with a large Wilton 1M tip.  Cool a bit (might need some time in the fridge, 5-15 minutes depending upon how hot your chips were) and then swirl some of that chocolate goodness on top of each cookie.  

Enjoy!  

Sugar Cookies

So my new thing is going to be making sugar cookies.  It is too easy to eat A TON of the regular drop cookies- and sugar cookies are just less appealing to me.  To eat, anyway.  It has been a turn off in the past, but now, I sorta like that they take a lot of effort- you have to chill the dough, roll them out, cut the cookies, bake them, ice them one color at a time... I think it might be good for me, in an artsy kind of way.  Here are the icing recipes that I am using so far:

Decorated Rolled Sugar Cookies
1 1/2 C. butter, softened
2 C. white sugar
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla
5 C. flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt

Combine all ingredients (wet first, then the dry, just like normal) and then let chill in a fridge for at least an hour and up to over night.  Roll out on parchment paper to 1/4-1/2" thick.  Cut out shapes, pull away scraps and roll them on a new sheet of parchment paper.  Transfer the parchment paper with the cookie cut outs and bake in a 400 degree oven for 6 minutes or so.  Let cool completely before frosting. 

Icing: 
2 C. powdered sugar
4 t. milk
4 t. light corn syrup
1/2 t. vanilla (or almond) extract
food coloring

Mix everything together and then separate into different bowls, add food coloring and go to town!  This is the kind of icing that goes on shiny and dries hard, so you can stack the cookies- it looks very professional.  Well, not when I make them just yet... but it could be.  It dries just right.  Takes about 20 minutes for the first coat to dry before you can add on top of that without having it run- and then after about 90 minutes or so, they are ready to stack. 



Sugar Cookie Icing from Grandma Squires
1/4 C. shortening
1 lb (4 C.) powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla extract
milk until it is the right consistency

I haven't made this one yet, but I think it is more of a Lofthouse cookie style of frosting... still delicious and what she uses for Christmas cookies.

This recipe also came from Grandma Squires.  I made it tonight for St. Patrick's Day (added green food coloring, of course) and they turned out really good.  I didn't have time to chill the dough and they were still delicious.

Drop Sugar Cookies 
1 C. white sugar (or 1.5 C powdered sugar)
1 C. butter
1.5 t. vanilla (or you can use .5 almond extract + 1 t. vanilla)
1 egg
2 1/3 C. flour
1/2 t. baking soda

Preheat to 375.  Beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy.  Stir in vanilla and egg, then flour and soda.  Cover and fridge for 2 hours (if you have the time) otherwise just go for it.  Bake for 6-7 minutes (if you use the big cookie scoop to measure, and then roll into a ball shape) and pull them out before they look done, as always.

This frosting is pretty darn good, very much like the Lofthouse Cookies.  Jason said the combo of these two made perhaps the best cookie he has ever had in his whole life.  He seemed genuine when he said it, too!

Lofthouse Frosting
1/2 C. butter, at room temp
1/2 C. Crisco (I use butter flavored)
1/8 t. salt
1 T. vanilla extract
5 C. powdered sugar
1/4 C. (whole) milk, added slowly until you get the consistency you like.

Combine the butter and Crisco until light and fluffy.  Add everything else.  You can use this to spread with a spatula, or you can put it in a bag and pipe it on.

Cheddar Bacon Cauliflower Chowder

Made this with my sister yesterday for lunch and it was SO delicious, healthy and light.  I ate a big bowl and a half of it wasn't overly stuffed or heavy.  Kat says that it freezes and reheats really well and to be totally honest, I am excited for our leftovers for today!  Hooray!

Cheddar Bacon Cauliflower Chowder 

Ingredients*:
8 slices center-cut bacon, chopped (half used for garnish)
1/2 small onion, chopped OR 1 teaspoon onion powder
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt & pepper
4 C. shredded or grated cauliflower (1/2 large head)
2 T. water
2 T. flour
2 C. chicken broth, divided
2 C. milk
3-4 dashes hot sauce (or more or less)
2-½ C. (12oz) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided (half used for garnish)
2 green onions, chopped (optional)

Ideas: steamed chopped broccoli or real baked potatoes, cubed, would be a great addition!  Maybe sour cream as a possible garnish, along with the chives

Directions:

1. Whisk together flour and 1/4 cup chicken broth in a small bowl then set aside.
2. Saute bacon in a large soup pot over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate then remove all but 1 Tablespoon drippings from the pot. Add chopped onion (if using,) celery, and garlic to the pot then season with salt and pepper and saute until vegetables are tender, about 4-5 minutes.
3. Add cauliflower and onion powder (if using) to the pot then stir to combine. Add water then place a lid on top and steam cauliflower until tender, stirring a couple times, about 5-7 minutes. Add remaining chicken broth and milk then turn up heat and bring to a boil.
4. Slowly whisk in flour/chicken broth mixture while stirring, then turn down heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes, or until chowder has thickened. Turn off heat then stir in 2 cups cheddar cheese until smooth, then stir in half the cooked bacon. Taste and adjust salt, pepper, and/or hot sauce if necessary. Serve topped with remaining shredded cheese, cooked bacon, and green onions, if desired.

*Use a food processor’s chopping and grating blades to make prepping veggies and cheese a breeze!

Serves 8, 265 calories, 7 grams of carbs, and 15 grams of protein per serving

Peanut Butter Fudge

Found this on Pinterest and the whole thing went from conception to being made, cleaned up and consumed in under an hour- and it was all staples that we had on hand.  Definitely a winner and the piece that did survive the night tasted even better on day two.  And, it does have some semi-healthy redeeming qualities too! :-)

Peanut Butter Fudge
1 C. peanut butter, natural is healthiest but creamy or crunchy, whatever you have
¼ C. coconut oil, melted
2 Tbsp. honey
¼ tsp. salt (sea salt)
½ tsp. vanilla (optional)
¼ C. powdered sugar, optional*

Combine the melted oil and peanut butter and oil, then add honey, salt and vanilla and stir until blended.  Add in the powdered sugar if you want to.  Pour into a lightly greased 5x7 pan (I used a bread pan) and freeze until set, 20-30 minutes.  Cut into squares and enjoy!

This only made a tiny amount.  I wouldn't make more unless it was for a party because this is so delicious and it is really easy to just eat the whole thing with a fork.  At least for me, it would be.


* You only need to add powdered sugar if you plan to keep it out of the freezer for more than five minutes.  I did add the sugar and thought the taste and texture was great- but I suppose if you wanted to keep it even more minimal, you could skip it.

Pretzel M&M Hugs

 

These take a fair amour of supplies- they are definitely not cheap or quick- it takes a while to unwrap all those hugs!  They are fun to make though, Kate and I had a good time last Christmas.  And they are really pretty!

Pretzel M & M Hugs*

pretzels, square or circle is ideal, butter crisps work well
hershey hugs (they're pretty melted, kisses would work too) 
M&M's (Christmas colors, or Valentine's, or whatever holiday you're close to) 
parchment paper


Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Align pretzels on cookie sheet in a single layer then top each pretzel with one Hershey's Hug chocolate. Bake in preheated oven for 4 - 5 minutes, until the chocolate is shiny and soft (but NOT melting, the chocolates should still hold their shape). Remove from oven and carefully place one M & M in the center of each soft Hug and press down on M & M to spread the chocolate.

* You can do the same thing to make Turtles using Rolo's and pecan halves- yummy!  

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies

Kat turned me on to this recipe and I think they're really good.  I passed some out to coworkers and everyone was quiet!  Jason says that means they didn't like them.... and maybe I do just because I did the work and have a vested interest in liking healthy cookies.  :-) Oh well.  I think they were good.

Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies 

1 c instant oats

¾ c whole wheat flour (measured correctly)

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

2 tbsp coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 large egg, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ c maple syrup

¾ c grated carrots (about 1 smallish medium)

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the maple syrup until thoroughly incorporated. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the carrots. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes. (If chilling longer, cover with plastic wrap, ensuring it touches the entire surface of the cookie dough.)
2. Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
3. Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops on the baking sheet. (If chilled longer than 1.5 hours, flatten slightly.) Bake at 325°F for 12-15 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for at least 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.

Notes: It’s incredibly important to measure both the oats and flour correctly, using the spoon-and-level method described in the links above. If scooped from the container using the measuring cup, you’ll end up with 1.5 times as much, which will dry out your cookies and make them crumbly. 

To make your own instant oats, pulse 1 cup of old-fashioned oats in a food processor 5-8 times. 

For the gluten-free flour, I used as follows: ½ c (60g) millet flour, 2 tablespoons (17g) brown rice flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) tapioca flour, and ½ tsp (1g) xanthan gum. 

Melted margarine may be substituted for the coconut oil or butter. Regardless of which is used, be sure that the egg is at room temperature before whisking it in. A cold egg added straight from the fridge would rapidly cool the fat source, resulting in small blobs of semi-solid coconut oil, butter, or margarine. 

Honey or agave may be substituted in place of the maple syrup. 

If the cookies are still really flimsy after cooling on the baking sheet for 15 minutes and threaten to break apart, let them cool completely on the baking sheet. That won’t let them crisp up too much, and they’ll still stay soft for an entire week! 

To hear more tips and see the texture of the cookie dough before and after baking, watch my video on how I bake my oatmeal cookies. 

Chicken Enchiladas

Walked my a colleague's classroom right before Christmas and she called me in and offered me some enchiladas.  It was early in the day, maybe 9:45 AM, and I wasn't even in a lunch food mood, but these turned me around.  I tracked her down and she was generous enough to share her recipe with me.  Just made it tonight for the family and everyone loved it, so it will definitely happen again.

Chicken Enchiladas
1 lb. shredded chicken
1 can of Las Palmas enchilada sauce
8 oz. shredded cheddar
8 oz. shredded monterey or colby jack
1 small can sliced black olives
corn tortillas
green onion, optional
cilantro, optional
black olives, optional

Combine the shredded chicken with about equal parts of cheese and maybe some black olives and cumin sprinkled in until it is all mixed.  (You can make the shredded chicken in the slow cooker in advance, or just buy the pre-made shredded chicken near the BBQ puled pork in the grocery store.  If you use the grocery store stuff, make sure you squeeze it out before mixing it up.)  Heat the corn tortillas on a skilled just until warm, if you feel like it.  I got carried away and forgot to do this part way through and it seemed to still work just fine.  Dip a tortilla in the can of sauce and then add a handful of the chicken mixture.  Roll it up and place it seam side down against the edge of a 9x13 pan.  (I use my big lasagna pan.)  Repeat with remaining tortillas and fill the pan.  I had probably ten going length wise and then two rows of two on the remaining side, and then half of two below it to fill the pan.  Pour a little bit more sauce over the top, cover with cheese (generously) and then sprinkle with black olives and green onion if you have it.  Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly.  It doesn't need to be covered and seemed to cook up just fine.  Let it stand for five minutes before serving.  I like to garnish with sour cream, green onion and cilantro, if you have it!

Slow Cooker Shredded Beef Enchiladas

My friend Nicole turned me on to this recipe, originally from Mel's Kitchen, and it was delicious!  You make your own enchilada sauce out of the salsa, beef stock and juice that comes from the meat.  A tiny bit labor intensive, but not as much as you'd expect for something that tastes this good.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 (2-3 pound) chuck or sirloin beef roast
• 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup (8 ounces) salsa
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch or flour
• 10 6- or 7-inch flour or corn tortillas
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• Fresh cilantro (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. In a 4- or 5-quart slow cooker, add the beef roast. Whisk together the broth, vinegar, salsa, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Pour over the roast, cover the slow cooker, and cook on low for 8-10 hours until the beef is tender and shreds easily. 
2. Remove the roast from the slow cooker and place in a large bowl or shallow pan (like a 9X13). 
3. Pour the mixture from the slow cooker into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch (or flour) with about 2-3 tablespoons water (a bit more water if using flour). Whisk the slurry into the simmering liquid and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened slightly, 4-5 minutes. Add additional salt and pepper to taste, if needed.
4. Pour about 1/2 cup sauce in with the beef and toss. Spread another 1/2 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9X13-inch pan. Toss the cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses together.
5. Fill each tortilla with some of the beef mixture and a sprinkle of cheese. Roll up and place in the pan. I usually try and fit ten enchiladas in a 9X13-inch pan (if the pan is lengthwise, two rows of five). 
6. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas (you may not need to use all the sauce if you feel like it will drown the enchiladas or you may need to reserve some for an additional pan if you made more enchiladas due to a larger roast, etc.). 
7. Top with any remaining cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes until bubbly and hot. Let the enchiladas rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
8. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro, if desired, and serve.

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

So I have seen this recipe floating around Pinterest for a while not and never tried it.  But this weekend, fall was in the air, and the ingredients were handy, and it seemed like it would be healthier than making true scratch pumpkin muffins.  I am so glad I gave it a try because these were really good!  And I think they are kind of healthy (pumpkin is a veggie, right?) and I figured the mini muffins out to be about 50 calories each.  Minimal effort, and amazing taste/texture.  Kids and Jason approved as well.  

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

1 box yellow cake mix

1 15 oz can pure pumpkin

optional - brown sugar

Mix the pumpkin and the cake mix and spoon into greased muffin tin.  I used my mini muffin tin and am glad I did, they are perfect for one biting! The bigger ones would work too I am sure.  When you spoon the mix in, it will be sort of stiff and weird shaped but that's totally OK, they taste fabulous.  I guess you could go and flatted the tops of all of them if you were so inclined- but I wasn't.  I did sprinkle some brown sugar on top of them though, just as a lazy chef's streusel, and that added a nice touch to them, so I definitely recommend taking that extra step.  You could make a more proper streusel if you wanted to and I am sure it'd be amazing but this worked and the energy output matched what I had in mind.  

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or so (probably closer to 20 for full size muffins) and enjoy!  

Ginger Glazed Mahi Mahi

Kat and I made this one night after a Hot Yoga class, and it was her first time having fish tacos!  She loved it and so did I.  Super light, healthy and satisfying.  Mahi is only 30 calories per ounce (I think) and super high protein.  Win win.  

Not sure how important the ginger is, I didn’t really notice it- but it is in the title so maybe it adds something. Kat and I chopped up the fish and served it in corn tortillas with a slather of sour cream (lazy white sauce) and cheddar cheese.   I burnt the glaze too the first time but it might be worth trying again, although in the tacos it wasn’t necessary. 

Ginger Glazed Mahi Mahi

3 T. honey
3 T. soy sauce
3 T. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger root
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tsp. olive oil
4 – 6 oz. mahi mahi
salt and pepper to taste
1 T. vegetable oil
optional - corn tortillas, sour cream, cheese

In a shallow glass dish, stir together the marinade (everything except fish and vegetable oil.)  Season the fish with salt and pepper and place them in the glass dish.  If the filets have skin, place them skin side down.  Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Remove fish and reserve marinade.  Fry fish with a small amount of vegetable oil for 4-6 minutes on each side, turning only once, until fish flakes easily with a fork.  Remove filets to a serving platter and keep warm. 

Pour reserved marinade into the skillet and heat over medium heat until the mixture reduces to a glaze consistency.  Spoon glaze over fish and serve immediately. 

Puerto Rican Shredded Pork

Made this initially with my sister Kat and then again this weekend at home.  It is really good and flavorful but not at all spicy- which is a win for the kids.  Super easy and I am wondering if you really need to brown the meat and blend the marinade first?  Might be able to just throw it all in and I don't know that it wouldn't work just as beautifully. Super healthy and easy.

Puerto Rican Shredded Pork
2-3 lb. pork sirloin roast, boneless
1 tsp. veg oil
4-5 cloves garlic
1 T cumin
1/2 T coarse salt
1 t. dried oregano
4 oranges, juiced, or 1 C. fresh orange juice
4 limes, juiced

Brown the pork in a tiny amount of oil (optional?) and combine all other ingredients in a blender (optional) and then cook for 8 hours on low, 4 hours on high.  Shred pork and discard all but 1 C. of the cooking juices.  Cook for another 15-30 minutes.

Serve in lettuce wraps, corn tortillas or taco shells.  Top with pico de gallo, chopped cilantro, and/or avocado.

Grilled Pizza

One of Christopher's friend's parents built a brick pizza oven in their back yard and invited us for a pizza party this last spring.  I kid you not, this was some of the best and most interesting pizza of my life.  They had each person stretch out their own dough and then go build the pizza that they wanted, using ingredients that were set out at the next table in cute little bowls.  It only cooked for about five minutes or so in the oven, and then everyone shared pretty much all of the pizzas, just going from table to table to get what they wanted. 

I think that this can be adapted to the regular BBQ grill if you make sure to olive oil up the grates (heavily, with a paper towel) and use fresh pizza dough, which I usually buy at either Trader Joe's, Fresh 'n Easy or even my local pizza place sells bagged dough if I ask nicely.  You have to cook the dough by itself on one side for a few minutes, get some nice char marks on it, then flip it over and cook it partially before you add toppings.  Also, make sure you use sauce sparingly when grilling your pizza or it is easy to have it turn into soggy mush.  When I do put the toppings on finally, I usually keep it on low/medium heat (indirect would probably be smart once the crust is cooked) and then close the grill cover so it is mostly just warming ingredients and melting cheese.  

It is worth mentioning that my pizza's are almost never pretty and round like these ones are.  I guess if I practiced enough they'd get better, but this is sort of a special treat so it doesn't happen too often- and I end up eating pizzas that look more like Tennessee.  That's OK, they still taste delicious!  

Here are some of the ingredients that they used and that I recommend for a fabulous pizza party.

·      The Usual Suspects
Pepperoni, Sausage, Pineapple, Black Olives, Ham, whichever standard toppings you prefer

·      Barbeque Chicken – BBQ sauce, cheddar and mozzarella cheese, roasted or grilled chopped chicken, red onions, bell peppers and cilantro

·      Apple Gorgonzola– Alfredo sauce base, Gorgonzola and Mozzarella, thinly sliced green apple, walnuts, fresh greens on top after baked - optional.

·      Baked Potato Pizza – Sour cream as sauce, cheddar cheese, chopped potato mixture (just microwave some small reds and give them a rough chop/mash, then salt and pepper lightly), fresh rosemary, chopped garlic, bacon bits (optional)

·      Pear and Gorgonzola – Pears, Gorgonzola cheese, mozzarella, caramelized onions (optional)

·      Marguerita – Red sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh basil leaves

·      Southwestern – Sour cream base, black beans, grilled chicken, cheddar cheese, cilantro

Blackened Salmon

My friend Phuong from Pleasanton taught me how to cook salmon initially, and then she had posted some food picture that looked amazing (I'll see if I can find it for this post!) and so I begged her to share her secrets with me.  I tried it once and it was really good, but I think that like all things, practice makes perfect, so there is room for me to improve here.  Worth every minute though because salmon is so healthy and yummy and just full of things that are great for me and also the kids growing bodies.  Here we go!

Blackened Salmon
salmon filets (Costco's Kirkland frozen individually wrapped are a great start)
black pepper
onion powder
garlic powder
paprika
dill
olive oil spray

Mix up the spices so you have a rub, or you can just sprinkle it on as you go.

Thaw salmon and dry with paper towels.  Generously salt salmon and put in the fridge for an hour or more on top of paper towel.  When ready to cook, pat paper towels on salmon to dry more.  On each side, sprinkle spice mixture and spray with olive oil.

Heat pan (ridged grill pan is better) on high heat so the pan is super hot.  This allows the salmon to blacken.  Spray pan with olive oil.  Sear salmon on one side for about four minutes (until it's seared black) and then turn it over and sear for 3 minutes or so.  It should feel fairly firm and not have a lot of "squishy" give to it when it is ready.

Phuong says "the trick is to have the salmon dry by patting it dry, salting it so the water is drawn out, and giving it time in the fridge to dry it out- and of course, having the pan super hot."  Thank you, Phuong! :-)

Peanut Butter Pie (No Bake)

Made this also in LA with Kat and it was really good, kind of a nice summer-y cold dessert that feels light but still decadent. We did ours as a pie but the picture above shows bars.  If we'd waited longer, maybe ours would've looked like that too, but I don't know that we gave it the full four hours to chill.

Peanut Butter Pie (No Bake) 
Chocolate pie crust (or make your own)
4 oz. cream cheese (reduced fat is OK)
1/2 C. plain greek yogurt
1/2 C. creamy peanut butter
2/3 C. powdered sugar
1/4 C. chopped roasted peanuts, optional, but really good

Cream the greek yogurt, peanut butter, cream cheese and powdered sugar.  Pour into prepared crust and sprinkle with peanuts.  Chill for four hours and serve!

Peanut Butter Cookies (Flourless/GF)

Made these with my sister Kat on our last LA trip and they were really good.  We gobbled them all as soon as they came out of the oven, and afterwards we both regretted it because they seem like the type of cookie that would get better on day two (OK, hour two) than when they're piping hot, but even so, they were really good.  They're also so pure and simple in the ingredient list.  However, don't even think about doing the cool criss cross fork thing to them, they just fall apart.  Roll them as well as you can and then go with it.  Yum!

Peanut Butter Cookies (Flourless/GF) 

1 large egg
3/4 C. sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 t. vanilla (I hear that they make a GF if you're particular about that)
1 C. creamy peanut butter (unsweetened is OK per the original recipe.)

Combine and bake at 350 for 5-7 minutes.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Chiffon Fudge Cookies

My friend Nicole makes these around Christmas time and seriously, they are probably the very best cookie I have EVER had.  They totally melt on your tongue- they're strange cause they're kind of fudgy but also kind of dry, but moist at the same time- I don't know how to describe it and it's been many months since I have had the pleasure.  You definitely need a mixer for these, could not do them by hand.  I don't have a KitchenAid but I bet it would come in handy for these.  Also, Nicole says to splurge on the best quality of bittersweet chips you can find, says you can taste the difference. :-)

Chocolate Chiffon Fudge Cookies

3 cups bittersweet chocolate chips, divided 

6 large egg whites, room temperature

4 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, divided

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tablespoons cornstarch

½ teaspoon salt

Place 2 cups chocolate chips in a microwave-safe container.  Melt chips in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds or so, for about 2 minutes or until no longer lumpy.  Set aside to cool slightly.

Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites in a large bowl to soft peak stage.  This means that you fluff them up until it forms a peak when you pull the beaters out, but then they fold over on themselves.  Gradually beat in 2 cups confectioners’ sugar.  Continue beating meringue mixture until it reaches stiff peak stage, which means when you pull the beaters out, they stay formed as peaked little mountains.

In a separate bowl, whisk 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt.  On low speed, beat dry ingredients into meringue just until combined.  Stir in lukewarm chocolate and remaining cup chocolate chips.

Cover and chill dough for 1 hour (up to overnight).  Don’t skip this or your cookies will be flat.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cookie sheets with parchment or slipat (do not skip with these cookies… they will stick)

Place remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar in bowl.  Roll 1 level tablespoon of dough into a ball; roll in sugar, coating thickly.  Place on prepared sheet.  Repeat with remaining dough, spacing 2 inches apart.  Bake until puffed and tops crack, about 10 minutes.

Cool on sheets on rack 10 minutes.  Transfer to rack to cool

Makes about 48 small cookies.