Broccoli Salad....

This has to be my most favorite summertime salad. I am sure it came from the 1970's when Betty Crocker was mixing sweet and savory as well as making a multitude of Jello salad creations.  This does not have Jello involved, but defiantly has the sweet and savory.
The original recipe calls for bacon. I know we all LOVE bacon... but my waist line needs some help so I opted to come up with a version which included other savory ingredients.



Broccoli Salad (my FAVORITE version)
3 heads of Broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces
3 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese
8 oz Sunflower seeds
8 oz dried Cherries
1/2 large red onion diced

Combine following until well blended:
1 cup Mayo
1/3 cup white Balsamic Vinegar
2/3 cup Sugar
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Pepper

Mix all ingredients together, chill and serve.

Impromptu Ingredients
For the Sunflower Seeds:
8 oz crumbled bacon or 8 oz sliced almonds or 8 oz pine nuts or 8 oz cooked cooled edaname
For the dried Cherries:
8 oz Golden Raisins or 8 oz diced Apricots
You can replace the red onion with 1/2 cup sliced scallions to tone down the "onionyness"

Rice Pilaf.....

I used to make rice pilaf from a box all the time for my husband and I. Well I did until we started to have kids and what we put into our bodies became more important to me.  I now opt out of many pre-packaged, freeze dried, chemically laden foods as possible. 
I recently bought a box... (oh lord I did say that out loud!)... of rice pilaf. I have never seen my kids be so enthusiastic over their food.... so that got me thinking, there has to be a better way to make rice pilaf then to have to purchase one made out of unnatural or over processed ingredients. So here is my version of it. The base recipe will get you something delicious and there are add ins to play with if you'd like to change it up.

Rice Pilaf
1 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup broken spaghetti
2 Tsp butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cup chicken stock

1. Saute the rice, pasta and butter till pasta begins to brown over med high heat
2. Add the onions and saute until soft.
3. Stir in the chicken stock, cover and simmer for 15 min.
4. Salt and pepper to taste, serve and enjoy

Add-ins:
1/2 cup sliced almonds or toasted pine nuts added at end
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms added with 5 min remaining for simmer
1/2 cup chopped broccoli added with 5 min remaining for simmer, then 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese added at end.

I like this version way better. I already purchase organic basmati rice, whole wheat pasta and veggies so I know they are without chemicals.
I make my own chicken stock, so I know how it is flavored.
And like my veggies to still be crisp and not reconstituted.

Please let me know if you have any other awesome add-ins. I'd love to try them!

Quinoa... what the heck is it?

I started seeing this new item on the shelves at the supermarket and heard friends talk about trying it, so I thought what the heck, let's give it a try.  Now the first thing I had to do was to figure out what exactly it was.....
Quinoa - pronounced keen-wah - is a seed from a species of goosefoot plant. It contains all essential amino acids and it a complete protein. It's high in fiber, potassium, vitamin E, iron, and magnesium to mention a few. There are three varieties - white (mild flavor) red (nutty flavor) and black (not as common-stronger flavor)
Interesting tid-bit: The Incan warriors used to eat it rolled in balls of fat, believing it gave them strength.

I saw a recipe on Pintrest in which they made Quinoa Bites.... I opted to modify the recipe to what I had in my house at that time... mushrooms & cheese. 

Mushroom Quinoa Bites
3 1/2 c cooked red Quinoa (cooled)
3 large eggs - beaten
1 1/2 diced sautéed mushroom (cooled)
1/4 c chopped chives
3 tsp minced garlic
1 cup parmesan cheese
3 Tbs flour

1/4 tsp marjoram

salt & pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients

Grease mini muffin tin pan

Fill to the top of each section with the mixture

Bake 15 - 20 minutes at 350 degrees

Serve warm  - makes 48

I made them for card night with friends; I did get some good reviews. They are best when eaten warm.
Happily, the best reviews I got were actually from my girls who devoured as many as they possibly could!
If they like them then it's a keeper for sure!

Although I think I will also try this combination but made as a risotto.... I think that would be delicious too!

Kiwi Bars....

I love lemon bars, the tanginess, crumbly crust and layer of confectionery sugar on the top are like a perfect symphony to me. So, in my attempts to make a convertible citrus bar recipe, where you could switch out the lemon for grapefruit, lime, blood oranges etc., an new creation was born. Although I had a hunkering for a citrus bar, I found I had no citrus in the house that day, but I had plenty of Kiwi. Kiwi can be tangy, so I thought "what the heck" and away I went...

Did you know 2 Kiwi have 250% of your daily Vitamin C?

I have made this recipe twice now, and think I have it down. They are tangy, crumbly, and delicious... if you don't believe me you can ask my friend Steve who seems to love them.

Kiwi Bars

1 c flour

1/2 c softened butter

1/2 c powdered sugar

Cut together until the butter is crumbly and the size of peas

Press into an ungreased 8X8 pan

Cook at 350 for 20 minutes.

3 eggs

1 c sugar

3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 Kiwi peeled and chopped

Mix together in a blender till Kiwi is all pureed.

Pour over crust which has cooled for 2 min

Back at 350 for 45 min
Once cool cover with powdered sugar
Cut and serve

Couple notes:

1. Be sure you do not let your kids listen for the timer when they are watching Sponge Bob on TV, as in my last round, they were over cooked by 5 min and the edges were crispy.

2. Also be sure to use ripe Kiwi, they are sweeter and easier to blend.

3. If your Kiwi mixture looks a little yellow, add 1-2 drops of green food coloring to make the final product more appealing.

4. I love using my Immersion blender for pureeing. If you do not have one, you should really think about it!

Let me know what you think..... & Enjoy!

Corned Beef....

I really do not remember ever having corned beef when I was younger. I became more aware of the dish when I was in college and met my husband.... his family would have it every year for St Patricks Day.
I have to admit it was kind of a strange concoction for me... meat boiled for hours with the veggies thrown in and I am NOT a fan of mushy veggies. Bleeeccchhhh.

So when my husband and I began throwing our annual parties, I opted to do something about the regular way corned beef was cooked. For St Patricks Day, I seare the Corned Beef and then cook in Guinness... Delicious! I also have been added the veggies at the last possible minute, but alas this still never guaranteed mushless veggies. Recently I made Corned Beef and opted to roast the carrots and cabbage in the oven... they came out magnificently!

Corned Beef with Roasted Veggies

4lb Corned Beef with seasoning packet - rinsed

3 TBS Olive Oil
2 Cans of Guinness (or enough to just cover the beef)

6 Shallots peeled and cut in half with core intact

1. Heat a large pot - I use my large enamel cast iron pot

2. Add olive oil

3. Seare the meat, fat side down till crispy - 4 min
4. Flip meat and add shallots, seasoning packet and beer.
5. Cook covered for 4 hours.

1 large Cabbage head - sliced into 1/2 inch sliced with core intact

8 large carrots peeled and quartered
2 TBS Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

1. Combine all in a bowl, mix till coated
2. Bake at 400 for 25 min - or till at desired veggy crispness.





Now we also host a Oktoberfest Party each year, but the recipe for my Brisket Braised in Porter will just have to wait until closer to then....

Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili... with Turkey

What started with just having chili during a party for the Super Bowl, soon became the 1st Annual Super Bowl Chili Cook Off.... due to all the "chili smack talk" between our group of friends.

There were 6 entries (lets see if I can remember them all)
Vension Chili
Buffalo Chicken Chili
Dragon's Breath Chili
Chili Mac
Regular Chili
Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

In order to take place in the judging you had to eat a little of each chili.  I think almost every one at the party, even the kids partook in voting. Their were 3 places - best overall, spiciest and better luck next time.
The Venison won best overall, Buffalo Chicken won spiciest and My Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili won "better luck next time".... which I think happened because mine was the only chili with out meat.

So in order to make this chili the hit with family and friends I have opted to add ground turkey... I have to tell you it was delicious with no meat, but the turkey did add a little something extra making it even better.

2 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped
2 lbs ground turkey
3 Tsp garlic powder
1 TBS chili powder
1 TBS ground cumin
1Tsp cayenne pepper
2 Tsp Unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 Tsp ground cinnamon
1 15.5 once can diced tomatoes
1 15.5 ounce can black beans rinsed
1 15.5 ounce can red kidney beans rinsed
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 large sweet potato peeled and cut into small pieces

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan and cook the onion and pepper till soft over med high heat
2. Add the turkey to pan and brown
3. Add all spices to the pan and cook for 3 more min - stirring to blend spices well.
4. Add the tomatoes, beans, stock and sweet potatoes and cook over medium low heat for 1 hour.
5. Season to taste with salt & pepper and serve.

Succotash.....

With the warmer weather now upon us in the northeast, I am turning my thoughts on BBQ leftovers... Recently we grilled with some friends and ended up with an abundance of grilled corn on the cob...

Slowly grill unhusked corn over med heat turning about every 5 min for about 20 - 25 min.... Husk and enjoy! Not only does it taste awesome, it makes it easier to remove the corn silk, since it is steamed off inside the husk.  Just be careful! There is a lot of steam in there so be prepared when you start opening them. (Some people like to soak the corn before hand, but I think that does not give the good charring)

I have done this for parties, 1st wrapping them in aluminum foil then roasting them in my over at 400 for about 30 - 40 min, then placing an a cooler. (The foil helps to keep the cooler clean) The cooler keeps them nice and hot and there is no worrying about kids and boiling water in the middle of a get together.

So back to my point... left over corn on the cob. Of course you can reheat it by placing it into boiling water (with husk removed) and enjoy again off the cob.  I love to cut the left over corn off the cob and freeze it. Then I can bring it out in the winter months and still have that grilled flavor. 

One of my favorite ways to prepare this type of corn is in a succotash.... which to me means "corn and veggies"...
In general for 2 cups of corn you will need 1 cup of 2 other types of veggies.
Some suggestions:
1. Corn, edaname, diced tomatoes
2. Corn, diced peppers, sliced scallions
3. Corn, lima beans, diced onion
4. Corn, diced onion, diced jalapenos (*1 -2 TBSP depending - or heck a cup if you are really risky!)

Saute your aromatic (i.e. peppers, onions) till translucent/soft with 1 tsp olive oil
Add corn and other veggie. Saute until cooked, add salt and pepper to taste.

So simple but yet so delicious! I hope you try out some of these. #4 is my favorite, I'd love to hear which is yours.

Wildtree Products...

The other week I went to a paddle party. It's when you bid for items at a quarter a paddle and if your number is called you win the item which is up for bid.  I had never heard of these before about 5 months ago, when my sister introduced me.  I have to say they are very fun, and my girls enjoyed being able to hold up the paddle and were ecstatic when their number(s) were called. (This last time I spent $30 in bids and came home with over $70 in products.)

So tonight, I opted to make one of the items I won from a company called Wildtree.  If you love Tastefully simple and those other company's which offer ready to make food items, you will love Wildtree. They use grape seed oil, dehydrated spices and herbs instead of chemically made replacements. (I had never heard of this company before but opted to bid on the item just after reading the catalog.)

I "won" the Scampi seasoning Blend and Roasted Garlic infused Grape seed oil.  I followed the recipe on the package (almost verbatim, but I had no white wine so I instead used 3 TBS lemon juice) and it was DELICIOUS. There were NO leftovers. Both my daughters devoured their portions and were looking for more!

I am all for fast and easy meals, and I love the fact these do not have ANY ingredients I can not pronounce.
They do not have hydrogenated fats, preservatives, MSGs, artificial flavors, artificial colors and additives in the packaged food you find in the store.

If you get a chance check out there website - I think you will be very happy if you do:
http://wildtree.com/Home/default.aspx

Who knows maybe I will host a Wildtree party sometime in the future... Anyone want to be on the guest list if I go? Let me know!