Tea time Baby Shower

This past weekend we celebrated one of my favorite mommies-to-be (and I actually am pretty much surrounded by them lately, it seems) with a Tea/Shower at our girlfriend's lovely loft in the ballpark neighboorhood. It was wonderful, and my co-hosts came up with all kinds of yummy munchies.

Here were my tiny tea sammies, on dark rye, filled with garden veggie cream cheese and finely diced ham:
and here is the whole spread, complete with diaper cake from the amazing Becca (it was her first one, isn't it beautiful?) She also made the artichoke balls, in front on the left, which I will try to get the recipe for (very tasty)
Behind the balls (HA, stop it!) on the riser-style serving dish are Amy's amazing Crostini with garlicky white bean spread, which was insanely good, imo... it is actually a Skinny B!tch recipe, from Skinny B!tch in the Kitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin -

Garlicky White Bean Spread on Crostini
Makes 40 bite-sized appetizers
10 slices whole-wheat bread
1–2 tablespoons refined coconut oil, melted
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained
2–4 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons chopped fresh Italian parsley and/or bail
Additional chopped fresh Italian parsley and/or bail, or diced roasted red peppers for garnish
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Trim off crusts of bread if desired and cut each slice into quarters. Brush bread with coconut oil and arrange pieces in a single layer on 1 or 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Bake for 8–15 minutes until dry and slightly browned.
While crostini is cooling, combine beans, 2 cloves garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper in food processor. Puree, stopping to scrape the bowl as needed. Taste and add more garlic or salt as desired. Stir in the 2 teaspoons of chopped parsley and/or basil.
Top each crostini with about 2 teaspoons of bean spread. Top with a sprinkle of chpped hers or a couple of pieces of diced peppers, if desired. Arrange crostini on a platter and serve.

Yum!!

Becca also wrapped brie in pizza dough (or Kristen did, really, with some momentarily hillarious results due to improper dough-to-cheese ratios) instead of the usual puff-pastry, and I liked it better, I think.. it held up to all the cutting and digging that goes along with trying to actually SERVE yourself some of the brie...

Anyhoo - I have been lazy about this blog lately, but there are big posts coming - I have been doing testing for my first "truly simple, truly healthy, truly delicious" recipe, and let's just say that The Hub has endured some less-than-stellar versions of Mac and Cheese as I try to perfect my own recipe that actually fits that description.

Back from Indy with a huge salad hankering!!

This was my dinner last night... mmmm.. I arrived home from visiting my Sis and BIL (with The Hub AND my parents as well!) in Indy and I was craving a big salad.. It probably has to do with the amount of "mid western delicacies" I like to consume while visiting them.. Steak n' Shake, for instance, is one that I MUST have every single time I go out there.. (hello beloved pump cheese, you make everything better, you orange dream, you...) but I digress...

I wanted a really good, really hearty salad so I mixed Kale, Romaine, & Radicchio and tossed in a drizzle of balsamic and some salt and pepper; then added an ounce of Gorgonzola cheese, some grilled onion, and perfectly ripe (and huge) whole tomato, and 3 oz of grilled chicken seasoned with herbs de Provence. OH YEAH - it hit the spot - perfect balance of peppery greens, balsamic, cool tomatoes and warm chicken melting the blue cheese just a touch... mmmmm.. so. good. (Thank you Sunflower Market for your always fabulous prices on salad fixins!)

The Hub, however, wasn't into it... I made him a beef fajita quesadilla using some roasted green pepper, thin strips of grilled round steak seasoned with Chili Powder, and cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Proof that the grill makes everything better? Behold the crunchy, grilled goodness:


Simple and easy all the way around...

Cheese Steak sammies

One of my favorite portion control tricks is to chop or shread meats and pile them to add volume and make them look "bigger"... Case in point - I took 5 oz of chuck steak and turned it into two mounded cheese steak sammies.. one for The Hub:

And the slightly less caloric version for me:
..and there was meat left over!!

BTW - my project this summer is to make some lighter versions of The Hub's faves (like the mack and cheese on his plate above) that are actually easy to throw together, so stay tuned!

To make these cheese steaks, I chopped the steak and tossed in Worcestershire Sauce and some black pepper; then tossed the meat in a hot skillet and shuffled until just cooked before adding some 2% cheese... couldn't be easier or faster. (I was also able to pass off leftover Mac and Cheese from lunch the day before as a fresh yummy side dish by adding a bit of liquid to refresh - avoiding picky eater pouting)

She freezes WHAT?

The Hub was evidently unaware that the majority of the eggs he eats nowadays are frozen.. I figured this was common knowledge since there are plastic containers filled with stacks of these little froze egg pucks (which I freeze in muffin tins and then pack in plastic containers with a piece of wax paper in between each one)... I load up during sales or when I find the grade B eggs at my King Soopers - duh - does he not know me AT ALL!?

Seriously, I will freeze anything once just to see if it works - and I refer to this website quite a bit as well (and others as well): About.com freezing

I freeze milk (and coconut milk) in 1/4 cup messurements so I can grab what I need for recipes:

Good deals on fruits and veggies result in stocking up and freezing as well - I currently have parcooked carrots, roasted sliced red and green peppers, cooked corn removed from the cob, strawberries, and jalepeno and adobo peppers, which I ALWAYS have in there- all frozen in ziplocks with the air squeezed out, and waiting for me to use their goodness.

Of course you are talking about the girl who used to freeze individual portions of Pizza Hut pizza when she lived alone... BTW - it worked perfectly.

Happy hording, people!

Chicken Piccata Improvised

Recently I had a suggestion that I should make Chicken Piccata for The Hub as something different that he would enjoy -and I agreed whole-heartedly!

Actually, I kind of started craving it - but alas, there were no capers in my fridge or pantry cabinet.. :(

NEVER FEAR - DIRTY MARTINI MIX IS HERE!!
I needed something salty and pickle-ie tasting, like capers, so I improvised. Refering VERY loosely to the recipe provided by the suggester (because I don't want her horrifed looking at this and thinking "that is NOTHING like my piccata!") I used two b/s chicken breasts, which I seasoned lightly with lemon pepper and then pan sauteed (I skipped dredging out of laziness more than anything, I admit it) until done but still nice and juicy.
Then I removed those to a plate and tented with foil while I squeezed the juice of two lemons into the skillet and used it to deglaze the pan a bit. I followed that with one ounce of dirty martini mix (a big bottle of olive brine used to keep us drinkers in afternoon cocktails once the olive jar runs dry) and let the mixture reduce until it was a glaze.
I added the chicken back to the pan and turned to coat and make sure everything was good and hot, and it got served with steamed broccoli and carrots.

I have to say, it was good... it tasted "picatta-y"..

McGyver has nuthin' on me.

Sweet and Spicy Shrimp Salad

Shrimp was on sale for $3.99 an lb this week so I grabbed a pound for us.. I think we could have done with 1/2 lb - it was actually a LOT of shrimp for two people. (I had yummy leftovers the next day for lunch!)

Anyway, I actually prepared this a lot like my sweet and spicy chicken - using the same spices as a rub before cooking (I toned down the amount tho, sprinkling instead of rubbing it all over like I would with chicken so it wouldn't overwhelm the shrimp) and then cooking it in a hot skilet until just pink and opaque before removing it from the heat and finishing it with honey thined with a little apple cider vinagar. [
I tossed that to coat all the shrimp and let it sit while I mixed some spinach and romaine with carrots and green peppers and radicchio (which I watched The Hub pick out while wrinkling his nose) all together and then added a dressing made from:
a generous drizzle of red wine vinegar
a teaspoon of olive oil
1/8 teaspoon of yellow mustard
and a good sprinkle each of Garlic Powder, Salt, and Black Pepper

I heaped the shrimp on beds of the salad and it was ready to enjoy!

Great summer dinner!!

Stolen Moments - cooking quick and healthy for kids..

Or, in my case, for the very picky Hub!! I thought some of these were great ideas!
The zucchini and the mac and cheese look really promising!!
Check it out here

PS - what do you think of the pumpkin puree in the pizza recipe? Would that work or be gross?