Tuesday, June 26, 2012

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Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Cottage Pie

 Courtesy of Bob Greene's Best Life Cookbook.

I really enjoyed this for dinner. It was easy to prepare, took minimal cooking effort on my part, is packed FULL of veggies and made it seem like I had been slaving all day over it! This recipe made enough for Jason, Marie and I to have our fill, and Jason to have lunch the next day.

Ingredients:
 2 medium potatoes, skin on
2 tsp. olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt
Cooking Spray
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef or turkey
3-4 cups spinach, well-washed

  Kitchenware:
Pot, large enough to boil potatoes in
Skillet
9-inch pan

For the Potatoes:
Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes, add the oil and salt and mash until smooth. (I discarded the oil and used butter instead. I'll take a few extra calories for the flavor. I didn't like the taste of just the oil.)


While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the beef mixture:
 Preheat the oven to 375. (If your dish can fit in a toaster oven, it does well in it  as well!) Heat a skillet over medium heat, and lightly coat it with cooking spray. Add the carrots and onion and cook until slightly browned, about 4 minutes, stirring often. Add the meat and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir the spinach into the beef mixture.

In the oven-safe pan, place the beef mixture, and cover with the mashed potatoes. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes if cooking immediately, or about 20 minutes if it's been refrigerated. After baking, set to broil for 5 minutes, until the tops of the potatoes are browned. Serve.

Nutritional Information: (exactly as the recipe is posted) 4 servings, per serving: 282 Calories, 27g Protein, 24g Carbs, 5g Fiber, 4g Sugars, 8g Fat, 3 g Sat Fat, 69 mg Cholesterol, 68 mg Calcium, 276 mg sodium.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Scalloped Potatoes... Mad Hungry Style!

Since Oprah is the devil, and took over Discovery Health at the beginning of the year, I've become a fan of Martha Stewart's show in the mornings. Afterwards, Lucinda Scala Quinn hosts a show called Mad Hungry.(After watching an episode, you'll understand why) I already had steaks marinating for tonight, when her episode featured Steak and Potatoes (score!). Grocery shopping was postponed, as I HAD to watch this episode. Lucinda's potatoes of choice were scalloped. I've always steered clear of making these from scratch, as it is much more convenient  to add water to the box that Betty Crocker makes. I have been so wrong! Literally, she used 5 ingredients (4 if you only use cream) and it was so simple! I had everything to make it at home, but decided to go with her cheese of choice, Muenster. (Yes, I know it's almost $6 for a pound of Muenster, but it is WELL worth the coinage!) I didn't add in the carmelized onion that she did in her version (Jason's not a fan), but I bet it would be a lovely addition. For all that is holy in the food world, PLEASE buy a block of cheese and shred it at home. Not only does it save you money, BUT you don't have added preservatives and cornstarch in your cheese, and it melts a lot better!

Ingredients:
5-6 Medium Potatoes (I used Russets, but Yukons would be yummy too!)
2 c Heavy Cream (or 1 c cream and 1 c milk)
A few tablespoons of unsalted butter
2 c shredded cheese (Muenster)


  Kitchenware:
Peeler (or knife)
Knife
Cutting Board
Baking Dish (I used a 13x9 pan, but if you want thicker layers, go with a smaller pan)

Preheat oven to 375. Peel potatoes, and then thinly slice them. Pour a small amount of Cream onto your baking dish, just enough to cover the bottom. We are going to make three layers, so portion properly from here.Create a layer of potatoes, overlapping them a little. Add a layer of grated cheese, some more cream, salt and pepper. Repeat this until your layers are finished. On your final layer of cheese, add a few dabs of butter on top to help brown it once in the oven.
Cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes, uncover, and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Don't be afraid to experiment with cheese combinations! Let me know what you think, and how it turns out with your choice of cheese!



Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Our Christmas Card from Shutterfly

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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Shrimp and Mirlitons

Ingredients:
4 Medium Mirlitons
2 T crab boil (liquid)
4 T margarine
1 cup green onion, chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
garlic powder (or minced garlic) to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup bread crumbs




 Boil mirlitons until tender in salty water to which 2 tbsps of crab boil were added.
 Peel and cube the pulp. Sauté green onions, onions and parsley in margarine. Add shrimp and cook 10 minutes. Add mirliton, garlic salt, salt and pepper to taste and mix well. Pour into 9x13-inch casserole, sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake 30 minutes.

Mississippi Mud

Ingredients:  
 1 cup chopped Walnuts
1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 (3.9 oz) packages instant chocolate pudding mix
2 cups cold milk
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
vanilla to taste (optional)


 Kitchenware:
Medium Mixing Bowls
Large Mixing Bowl
9x13 Pan
Whisk
Stirring Utensil
Measuring Cups/Spoons

Preheat oven to 350. In a medium mixing bowl, combine walnuts and flour. Mix well, then stir in softened butter or margarine. Stir until ingredients are combined and mixture forms a ball. Press into bottom of a 9x13 inch pan. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, until golden brown. Remove and cool.

In another medium bowl, place pudding mix, and slowly whisk in milk. Mix until smooth; allowing to set up for 5 minutes then spread on top of cooled crust.

In a large bowl, whip cream cheese until fluffy.Beat in confectioner's sugar until mixture is smooth. Add in vanilla if you wish. In a separate bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form, then fold into cream cheese mixture. Spread over pudding layer. Chill before serving.





Coconut Pancakes


 Someone on my birth board just shared this recipe, and my mouth is watering... What can't you do with pancakes?!?!

 

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2  cups  all-purpose flour (about 6 3/4 ounces)
  • 2  tablespoons  sugar
  • 2  tablespoons  flaked sweetened coconut
  • 1  teaspoon  baking powder
  • 1/2  teaspoon  salt
  • 1  (13.5-ounce) can light coconut milk
  • 1  tablespoon  butter, melted
  • 1  large egg, lightly beaten

Preparation

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl. Combine coconut milk, butter, and egg; stir well. Add coconut milk mixture to flour mixture, stirring until smooth.

Pour about 1/4 cup batter per pancake onto a hot nonstick griddle or nonstick skillet. Cook 3 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Carefully turn pancakes over; cook 2 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned.