Whole Wheat Pumpkin-Applesauce Muffin Cakes 12/30/2009

I was given a bag of Whole Wheat Flour and decided to look for a healthy recipe that I can make and serve as part of a brunch. I settled on this recipe and it was definitely a good choice. The original recipe called for more salt and for regular applesauce. I changed it a bit to make it more healthy. This tastes great warm but they are even better the next day. Kids will love them and probably wouldn’t know that they are eating something healthy. I hope you enjoy these as much as I did. ENJOY!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

• 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda

• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt (I reduced the salt by 1/2 teaspoon)

• 2 Teaspoons Pumpkin Spice

• 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

• 1/3 Cup White Sugar

• 2/3 Cup Brown Sugar

• 1/4 Cup Oil

• 1/3 Cup Buttermilk

• 1/2 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce

• 2 Eggs, Slightly Beaten

• 1 /2 Cup Canned Pumpkin

• 1/2 Cup Raisins

Optional: • 1/4 Cup Chopped Nuts of your choice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Grease muffin pans/bread pan using non-stick cooking spray. (you may use muffin liners instead)
3. Whisk together flour, baking power, baking soda, salt, pumpkin spice and cinnamon in large bowl and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, white sugar, oil, applesauce, pumpkin, buttermilk, and beaten eggs and mix well.
5. Slowly pour the pumpkin mixture into the dry ingredients, stirring as you pour. Mix well until smooth.
6. Fold in raisins and nuts (optional).
7. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan or bread pan.
8. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes in the oven, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted and tops spring back when lightly pressed.
9. Cool pan on wire rack for about 5 minutes before removing.
10. Serve warm with margarine or butter.
11. ENJOY!

★ NUTRITION INFOMATION: Calories: 227 – Total Fat: 7.7g - Cholesterol: 31mg - Sodium: 273mg - Total Carbs: 37g - Fiber: 3.4g - Protein: - 4.5g

Serves: 12

3 Potato Cheesy Garlic Mashed Potatoes 12/15/2009

Ready to Serve

My husband and I are major fans of mashed potatoes. Over the years we have grown to love mashed potatoes with garlic and cheddar cheese. I have been making this delicious side dish for years. My sister-in-law always requests that I bring it for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is always a hit and everyone gets seconds and thirds of these mashed potatoes. These cheesy garlic mashed potatoes are rich and extremely tasty. If you like a creamier texture, you can substitute heavy cream in place of the milk. You will not be disappointed and you will be convinced that these potatoes are better then your local steak house’s mashed potatoes. This is OH SO GOOD!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 2 Idaho Potatoes, cleaned and cubed, leaving skins on.

• 3 Red Potatoes, cleaned and cubed, leaving skins on.

• 2 Large Sweet Potatoes, cleaned and cubed, leaving skins on.

• 3 Tablespoons Minced Garlic

• 1/4 Cup Butter

• 3/4 Cup Milk

• 1/2 – 3/4 Cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese (if you like it cheesy, use 3/4 Cup)

• 1 Teaspoon Salt

• 1/2 Teaspoon Black or White Pepper

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Gently, add cubed potatoes.
3. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer/boil for about 45 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
4. Drain water very well.
5. Add garlic, butter, milk, salt and pepper.
6. Using a hand masher, mash potatoes and ingredients well. (For chunkier mashed potatoes, don’t mash too much)
7. Add shredded sharp cheddar cheese, blend into mashed potatoes well.
8. Serve as soon as possible or move potatoes into an oven safe serving dish, cover with aluminum foil and place into a pre-heated oven to keep potatoes warm.
9. ENJOY!

Simply Delicious Garlic and Basil Pesto 11/20/2009

Close Up

This is one addictive and simply delicious recipe for all of you pesto lovers. I was introduced to pesto at my Aunt’s house one evening. My husband and I was immediately hooked to the deliciousness of this sauce. We shopped for it and amazed at how expensive pesto is. So I decided to look for an easy recipe since it would be my first attempt at making it. The recipe that jumped out of me had one of my favourite things in the recipe, GARLIC. That night, with all the right ingredients ready, I made this awesome sauce. I did make my usual alterations to the recipe to fit my taste buds and my pocketbook. Everyone knows how expensive pine and Brazilian nuts are, so I substituted those nuts for that super-food, almonds. This is one recipe that you can make quickly and easily using a blender or food processor. You can use it in so many other recipes, like Pesto Bread sticks. It also makes for a great dip or spread. I ended up mixing pesto in with wheat penne. The second time I made this, I served the pesto over vegetables, chopped cooked chicken and linguini. Very yummy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 3 Cups Chopped Fresh Basil Leaves

• 1 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (for a thicker pesto, reduce oil by 1/4 Cup)

• 3/4 Cup Almonds (original recipe calls for 1/2 Cup Pine & 1/8 Cup Brazilian Nuts)

• 2/3 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese (you may substitute ready to use cheese like Kraft Parmesan Cheese)

• 3 Tablespoons Minced or Chopped Garlic (original recipe calls for 2 Tablespoons)

• 1/2 Teaspoon Chili Powder

Directions:

1. Place the clean basil into blender or food processor.
2. Pour 1 Tablespoon of oil in with basil and blend into a paste.
3. Gradually add nuts, cheese, garlic and chili powder.
4. Slowly pour remaining oil into blender/food processor.
5. Blend ingredients until smooth and well combined.
6. Scrape sides and continue to blend on medium speed for about 2-3 minutes.
7. For best taste, pesto should be heated up in the meal it’s being prepared with.
8. Serve as soon as possible.
9. ENJOY!

 

Served!

 

 

Mouthwatering Pumpkin Scones 11/05/2009

Served Warm

Tis the season for pumpkin this and pumpkin that. Trust me, I don’t mind all the pumpkin recipes coming out of the woodwork or all the pumpkin treats for sale in places like Starbucks or my local bagel shop (the BEST pumpkin Cream Cheese ever!). I love it all and so I decided to give this pumpkin scone recipe a try. I did made some modifications, as usual, and I believe it came out tasting and a lot healthier then the Starbucks Pumpkin scones they sell for like $5. I recommend serving these lovely scones warm with a side of melted butter for dipping. These scones are coated with 2 kinds of sugary goodness. I highly recommend trying this recipe and you too will fall in love with Pumpkin Scones. Oh, these are good eats!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scone Ingredients:

• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour

• 7 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar

• 1/2 Tablespoon Baking Power

• 1/2 Tablespoon Baking Soda

• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt

• 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Pumpkin Spice

• 1/2 Cup Canned Pumpkin

• 1 Large Egg

• 3 Tablespoons Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer (if you don’t have any on hand, use Half & Half)

• 6 Tablespoons COLD butter, cut into small pieces

Plain Glaze Ingredients:

• 1 Cup & 1 Tablespoons Powered Sugar

• 2 Tablespoons Milk or Soy Milk

Spiced Icing Drizzle Ingredients:

• 1 Cup & 3 Tablespoons Powered Sugar

• 2 Tablespoons Milk or Soy Milk

• 1/2 Teaspoon Pumpkin Spice

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 425° degrees F.
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin spice in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, creamer/half & half, and egg.
4. Add cut butter into to the dry ingredients.
5. Using a pastry knife or regular fork, combine butter and dry ingredients well.
6. Continue to mix butter and dry ingredients until no chunks of better are visible.
7. ★YOU MAY USE A FOOD PROCESSOR: Place dry ingredients and cut butter into processor’s bowl and pulse until it is the texture of cornmeal or sand. Move into large bowl.★
8. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, then form the dough into a ball.
9. Pat out dough onto a well lightly floured surface and form into an approximate 1-inch thick rectangle that is about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide. (Add more flour if necessary)
10. Using a large knife or pizza cutter, slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions.
11. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangle slices of dough. (If you prefer smaller scones, slice them again.)
12. Using a spatula, gently place each scone onto a lightly oiled OR parchment paper lined baking sheet.
13. Bake for 14 – 16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown.
14. Insert toothpick in center of one of the scones to check if it’s done baking.
15. While scones are cooling, prepare plain glaze by combining ingredients in a medium bowl with an electric mixer or use a whisk and whisk briskly. Mix until smooth.
16. Using basting brush, paint (1) one coating of glaze over entire scone. (If you don’t have a basting brush, use a butter knife) Place coated scone back onto the cooled or another baking sheet. Line baking sheet with piece of wax paper or parchment paper.
17. As glaze dries and firms up, prepare spiced icing/drizzle by combining ingredients in a small bowl.
18. Mix with electric mixer or use a whisk and whisk briskly. Mix until smooth.
19. Using a whisk, drizzle this thicker icing over each scone.
20. Allow icing to dry before serving (about 1 hour).
21. Store scones in container that is NOT air tight. Some containers that are really air tight will make the scones “sweat” and they wouldn’t look so pretty.
22. ENJOY!

Addictive Pumpkin Muffins 10/18/2009

Well it’s that time of year again where there is an abundance of goodies out there featuring pumpkin as it’s main flavor. There’s even a pumpkin spiced TastyKake Krimpet for sale for a limited time only. Every store I go to there’s pumpkin pies, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin cheese cakes, all waiting to be inhaled by me or one of the many other pumpkin fans out there. I have even seen an increase of people boasting about how they just ate pumpkin pancakes for breakfast or dinner on their Facebook status (no joke!). So, with pumpkin in mind, I set out for an easy and healthy pumpkin bread recipe. This version is low-fat made with no oil. I must say, if you do plan on using a sugar substitute for an even healthier treat, make sure it is a heat stable sugar substitute. When I made this, I did not use a sugar substitute because I wanted to try the recipe with real sugar. The only things I modified were the amount of sugar I used (I swear it didn’t need the extra sugar the original recipe called for) and I didn’t use nutmeg (not a big fan of the nutmeg). I will make a note about the original ingredients in the listing below incase you would like to make it with more sugar and with the nutmeg. Enjoy the fall weather and enjoy even more these delicious and quite addictive pumpkin muffins.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Cups Raisins

• 4 3/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour

• 2 Cups White Sugar (original recipe called for 4 cups)

• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder

• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Soda

• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt (I reduced the salt by 1 teaspoon)

• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Cinnamon

• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Pumpkin Spice

• 6 eggs

• 1 – 29 ounce can pumpkin

• 1 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce

Optional: • 1 1/2 Teaspoons Nutmeg  • 1 1/2 Teaspoons Ground Cloves  • 1 Cup Chopped Walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Grease muffin pans/bread pan using non-stick cooking spray. (you may use muffin liners instead)
3. Soak raisins in hot water for 10 minutes to plump them up and then drain. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin spice (and other spices if you want).
5. In a separate bowl, using a whisk, mix the eggs, pumpkin, and applesauce, until smooth.
6. Add mixture to the dry ingredients and stir thoroughly to make a smooth batter.
7. Stir raisins into the batter. (adding walnuts, stir them in as well)
8. Spoon batter into prepared muffin or bread pan.
9. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes in the oven, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
10. Serve whenever. They’re quite delicious cut in-half and slightly toasted with a little butter or margarine.
11. ENJOY!

★ NUTRITION INFOMATION: Calories: 200 – Total Fat: 3.3g - Cholesterol: 35mg - Sodium: 206mg - Total Carbs: 42g - Fiber: 1.6g - Protein: – 4g

Serves: 36 Muffins

Maddening Delicious Mexican Lasagna 10/06/2009

Served

Digging through my refrigerator one day I came to realize I had too many packages of tortillas, whole wheat, jalapeno and sun dried tomato. I noticed they were getting a bit stale so I decided to look around for a recipe where I can utilize most of these tortillas and the rest of the salsa we had on hand. I used ingredients I had on hand and the only thing I bought was low fat sour cream. I found a recipe and change it up, as usual, so I can use what I had. The dish came out extremely delicious and a touch spicy. I would have liked it if it were more spicy since we are going into cold/flu season and eating spicy foods helps ward off illness cause of the vitamin C. I highly recommend kicking it up a notch, if you can handle it, and to use any ‘flavor’ of flour tortillas of your choice (I used all three I had on hand). I believe this dish could be made without the chicken and be made with ground beef, and I also believe it can also be a delicious vegetarian dish. So go and make some delicious Mexican Lasagna, you will not regret it, it’s so easy, anyone can whip it up in 10 minutes. Enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 Cups Salsa (I used Mild, you can use any kind you prefer)

• 1/2 Cup Taco Sauce

• 1 – 15.5 ounce Can Black Beans or Any Mexican Style Bean

• 2 Cups Chopped, Cooked Chicken Breast

• 1 Teaspoon Chili Powder

• 1/4 Teaspoon Cumin

• 1 1/2 Teaspoon Cilantro

• 1 Cup Sour Cream

• 1 Package of 9-Inch Flour Tortilla, any style or flavor (number of tortillas varies depending on size of baking dish)

• 2 Cups Pre-shredded Mexican Cheese Mix (you may use Sharp Cheddar or use Monterey Jack Cheese)

Optional: • 1 Green Pepper, Chopped  • 1 Jalapeno Pepper, Chopped  • Chopped Pitted Black Olives  • Shredded Lettuce for Garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Using a 2 Quart rectangle baking dish, evenly spread 1/4 – 1/2 Cups (amount may vary depending on size of baking dish) Salsa on the bottom of the baking dish; set aside.
3. Combine remaining salsa, beans, chicken, chili powder, cumin, and cilantro in a large bowl.
4. To assemble, place one – two (amount may vary depending on size of baking dish) tortillas on top of the salsa. Trim tortilla(s) to fit.
5. Top tortillas with one-third of sour cream. Spread evenly.
6. Top sour cream with one-third of chicken mixture. Spread evenly.
7. Top chicken mixture with one-third of cheese. Spread evenly.
8. Repeat layers two more times, except the last layer of cheese.
9. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in oven for 20 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and top remaining cheese on top and bake UNCOVERED for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and top is bubbling.
11. Let stand 10 minutes.
12. Serve and if desired, sprinkle shredded lettuce on top with a dollop of sour cream.
13. ENJOY!

Preparing the Layers                                                                                    Fresh Out of the Oven

Delectable Sweet Potato Latkes 09/27/2009

Served

With the recent Jewish Holiday, Rosh Hashanah, about 2 weeks ago and tonight’s celebration of Yom Kippur, I decided to make latkes in honor of my Jewish friends. My friend Paul posted a picture once of his Potato Pancake which he made from scratch, which I was quite impressed with. He tells me they are so delicious and when I get the chance, to try them. Since I am not Jewish, I know I couldn’t wait for Paul to make them for me, so I decided to do it myself. I found a recipe that called for sweet potatoes, one of my favorite things to eat. As usual, I switched things up a bit and it turned out quite delectable. They taste like they should be served along with other desserts, cause it is slightly sweet and could be dusted with powdered sugar. maple syrup or whipped cream. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do. I look forward to making more and serving them to my friend Paul (who LOVES Potato Pancakes). Enjoy.

I’ve learned from what I’ve read online, that latkes are potato pancakes made from grated potatoes mixed with eggs, onions, and flour, then fried in vegetable oil. The texture is crispy on the outside and tender within. They’re served hot and often dipped in apple sauce or sour cream. The Maccabbee soliders ate latkes made from cheese, vegetables, or fruits which were brought to them on the battlefields. However, they didn’t eat potato latkes, as potatoes weren’t available until the 16th century.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 2 Medium Sized Sweet Potatoes, Peeled and Shredded.

• 2 Eggs, Lightly Beaten

• 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

• 2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour

• 1 Teaspoon Ground Cloves

• 1 Teaspoon Pumpkin Spice

• 2 Teaspoons Ground Cinnamon

• 1/4 Vegetable Oil for Frying

Preparing the Potatoes:

1. Peel and cut the potatoes into small to medium pieces.
2. Shred potatoes using a food processor with the grader attachment in place.
3. Remove shredded potatoes and rinse well in colander.
4. Place shredded potatoes into a large bowl and add water to cover potatoes.
5. Let potatoes soak for about 10. ★ Soaking the potatoes help remove as much of the starch as possible. It fries better with less starch. Water should look frothy and dirty.
6. Place potatoes back into the colander, drain and rinse again.
7. Repeat step 3 and soak for another 10 minutes.
8. Again, place potatoes into the colander, drain and rinse. Drain as much water out of the potatoes as much as possible. The less water the less the oil will splatter.
9. Using your freshly washed hands, squeeze potatoes to remove excess water.
10. Let stand, in colander, in the sink while preparing the batter.

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine eggs, brown sugar, flour, cloves, pumpkin spice and cinnamon; mix well.
2. Heat oil in a large heavy skillet to 375° degrees. Keep the flame medium-high.
3. Using your clean hands, add shredded sweet potatoes and mix well.
4. Form mixture into small pancake sized cakes. ★ I recommend forming all the pancakes first before frying. Your hands will get messy.
5. Gently place pancakes into the hot oil and fry.
6. Flip each pancake after frying for about 4 to 5 minutes (pancakes should be brown on the bottom).
7. Make sure you cook them until they are really brown and look slightly burnt around the edges.
8. Carefully remove pancakes with a slotted spatula, letting excess oil drip back into the pan before moving pancakes to paper towel.
9. Drain a layers of paper towels that are on a dinner plate.
10. Serve hot!
11. ENJOY!

All Mixed Up                                                                    Frying it Up in the Pan                                                                  Served HOT

Easily Made Hot Dog Sandwich 09/25/2009

Ready to Eat !!!

Ever since I was a kid, I have always loved hot dogs. I especially love to have a Stewart’s hot dogs along with their delicious root beer served in a frosted mug. I decided to share this simple recipe for all my hot dog loving friend’s out there. My mother use to make hot dogs for the family and when we didn’t have buns, she would make hot dog sandwiches. Now that I am grown up, I have switched from eating full fat and salty hot dogs to a more low fat and low sodium hot dog. I swear by Hebrew National’s jumbo 97% fat free beef hot dogs. When they are on sale, I snatch up as many as I can. They have no artificial flavors, no fillers, no by-products and no artificial colors, plus they’re kosher. My husband doesn’t even notice the taste difference between a low fat hot dog to a full fat hot dog. These hot dogs are only 40 calories and 1 gram of fat per hot dog and the number ingredient is BEEF. I recommend these hot dogs to all my friends and family. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. I prefer my hot dog sandwiches with chopped onion, cheese and ketchup (sorry, I LOVE ketchup). To make this sandwich more ‘healthy’, I use Arnold’s Bakery Light 100% Whole Wheat bread along with fat-free sliced cheese. I know I know, fat-free isn’t good for you, but it’s what I have in my fridge right now and I used it while I was Weight Watchers. Speaking of Weight Watchers, if you copy as I do in preparing the sandwich, it comes out to be very low in points. I believe it’s like 4 points for everything, including the ketchup (it’s been awhile since I’ve been on WW). This is great for kids, of all sizes and ages. You can dress your sandwich anyway you wish, so go and enjoy a easy lunch or dinner.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 2 Hot Dogs (Any brand of your choice will do)

• 1/4 Cup Chopped Onion

• 1 Tablespoon Ketchup or Mustard (Any brand or kind of condiment of your choice will do)

• 2 Slices of Bread, slightly toasted (Any brand of your choice will do)

• 1 Slice of American Cheese (Any brand or kind of cheese of your choice will do)

Optional Toppings: • 1 Green Pepper, Chopped  • 1 Tablespoon Relish

1. Bring to boil 2 Cups of Hot water in a pot.
2. Once water begins to boil, remove from heat.
3. Place 2 hot dogs into water and cover.
4. Let stand for 7 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, place both slices of bread into a toaster and toast on light.
6. Once bread is done, remove from toaster and set aside.
7. Carefully remove hot dogs from water and place on plate.
8. Using a sharp knife, carefully slice each hot dog down the length of each hot dog until they are ALMOST in half.
9. Gently open up each hot dog and flip them over and flatten onto one piece of bread. See Photo below for reference.
10. Add chopped onion or other kind of toppings.
11. Place slice of cheese on top of hot dogs.
12. Gently take the bread with the hot dogs and cheese on it and place into a toaster oven.
13. Toast for about 30 to 60 seconds, depending on what kind of cheese you use. Keep in mind that Fat-Free cheese melts faster.
14. Remove from toaster oven and put condiments (ketchup, mustard, relish, etc.) on top of cheese.
15. Place other slice of bread on top, cut in half and serve.
16. ENJOY!

*I prefer to boil my hot dogs, but feel free to prepare them anyway you like.*

Cut and Flattened

Most Delectable Baked Ziti 09/23/2009

Fresh Out of the Oven

I used this particular recipe a few years ago when I threw a Christmas party and it was a big hit. My guests had seconds and thirds, which is a good thing. I’ve been meaning to make this delicious dish again, but other recipes have gotten in the way. I guess deep down I was just being selfish, because once you have this dish, you will not crave the usual Baked Ziti ever again, I promise you. As you can see in the “Fresh Out of the Oven” picture, half of the dish was topped with sautéd green peppers. I received a bag full of home grown green peppers and I decided to add it as a topping for my husband, who LOVES it hot and spicy. Feel free to add green peppers to the whole dish as a topping or cook it along with the ground beef, onion and garlic. You can opt not to use ground beef/turkey to make it a lovely vegetarian dish. Throw in more vegetables too!

I highly recommend making this dish, especially if you like it cheesy. Next time I make this, I will use real Parmesan cheese. I keep on saying that, but I keep on forgetting to pick some up at the grocery store. So I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do! Serve with garlic bread and grated parmesan cheese.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Dry Ziti Pasta (I used Whole Wheat pasta that I had on hand)

• 1 Medium Sweet Onion, Chopped

• 1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic

• 1 Pound Organic Ground Beef or Ground Turkey (You can choose to go meatless, it’s still quite delicious)

• 1 – 2 to 3 pound Jar of Traditional Spaghetti Sauce

• 6 ounces/6 slices of Sliced Provolone Cheese

• 1 1/2 Cups Sour Cream

• 8 ounces Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

• Grated Parmesan Cheese

Optional: • 1 Green Pepper, Chopped

1. Preheat Oven to 350° degrees.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add pasta and cook according to directions on the box. About 8 minutes.
3. Drain pasta and set aside.
4. In a large skillet, brown onion, garlic and ground beef/turkey over medium head. (Add green pepper at this step if you want to)
5. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer for about 15 minutes.
6. Using a bunched up piece of wax paper, grease a 9″ x 13″ baking dish with olive oil. Make sure you cover sides.
7. Layer ingredients as follows: 1/2 of pasta (bottom), Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 of sauce mixture, remaining pasta, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture.
8. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
9. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven.
10. Remove aluminum foil and bake for another 10 minutes.
11. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve.
12. ENJOY!

Serves 10 – NUTRITION INFOMATION: Calories: 515 – Total Fat: 24g - Cholesterol: 67mg – Sodium: 894mg - Total Carbs: 47g – Fiber: 4g - Protein: – 26g

Cooking the meat & pasta                                                   Simmering the meat sauce                                                             First layer of pasta

Provolone and sour cream layer                                                    Second layer of pasta                                                             All ready to go into the oven

Southwestern Shepherd’s Pie 09/18/2009

Served!

One day while I was reading the Sunday paper I came across a very unique take on the classic Irish/English dish, Shepherd’s Pie (an English meat pie). I usually make the traditional Irish recipe in March for my yearly Saint Patrick’s Day Feast, which my husband always looks forward to. I decided to give this recipe a whirl and see how it stands up to the original dish. I was quite pleased with the results and I hope you will too. My husband said he can’t wait for me to make this again. I hope you enjoy this as much as we did. I really enjoyed the slight spicy kick and I hope you do to.

As I’ve said in previous posts, I cannot eat peppers, so I post it as an option. To stay close to the original Southwestern Shepherd’s Pie recipe I did use Del Monte’s Fiesta Corn with Red & Green Peppers (not a whole lot, just enough that didn’t make me sick).  I recommend preparing the sweet potatoes in advance or while you are preparing the meat mixture, it will save you some time. Enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mashed Sweet Potato  Ingredients:

• 2 Pounds Sweet Potatoes/Yams, peeled and cut into chunks (leave the skins on for an extra health benefits)

• 2 Tablespoons Butter

• 1/2 Cup Milk

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

• 1 Medium Sweet Onion, Diced

• 3/4 Cup Carrots, Chopped

• 2 Tablespoons Minced Garlic

• 1 Pound Organic Ground Beef or Ground Turkey

• 1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste

• 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder

• 1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin

• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

• 2 Cups Chopped Tomatoes

• 1 – 15 Ounce Can of Corn, Drained (if not using the optional  peppers, I recommend using Fiesta Canned Corn-I used Del Monte)

• 1 – 16 Ounce Can of Black Beans, Drained and Rinsed.

• 1/4 Cup Chopped Cilantro

Optional: • 1/8 Teaspoon Pepper

Optional: • 1/8 Teaspoon Salt

For a Spicier Kick Add: • 1 Small Green Bell Pepper, diced and • 1 Tablespoon Green Jalapeño Pepper, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 400° F.
2. Place sweet potatoes in sauce pan with water to cover.
3. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes.
4. Drain; remove potatoes from pot and place into large bowl.
5. Add butter and milk to boiled potatoes.
6. Mash well and set aside.
7. Heat olive oil in a large pot/large frying pan with high sides or wok (which I used) over medium low heat.
8. Add onion, carrot and bell pepper (If adding Green Pepper); cook, constantly stirring, for about 10 minutes.
9. Add garlic and jalapeño pepper (If adding Jalapeño Pepper); cook, constantly stirring, for about 2 minutes.
10. Increase heat to medium; add ground beef and brown, constantly stirring, for about 5-8 minutes.
11. Add tomato paste and spices, except for Cilantro, constantly stirring, for about 2 minutes.
12. Add tomatoes; simmer until liquid reduces, about 8- 12 minutes.
13. Add corn, beans and 4 Tablespoons cilantro. Combine well.
14. Spoon into a 9″ x 9″ backing dish, spreading evenly. (I used a larger backing dish so it would yield more servings, see photo)
15. Spread mashed sweet potatoes over the meat mixture.
16. Bake in preheated oven until browned, about 30 minutes.
17. Garnish with remaining cilantro.
18. ENJOY!

Serves 4 to 6 – NUTRITION INFOMATION: Calories: 460 – Total Fat: 19g - Cholesterol: 80mg - Total Carbs: 49g - Protein: – 29g