Our Christmas Filed under ( Appetizers, cheese, holiday food, onions, quick and easy, veggies )

The few days after Christmas is always a little bitter-sweet isn't it. You start boxing up your decorations, cleaning out your fridge and reminisce over Christmases past. We just barely cleaned up from Christmas, including vacuuming about ten pounds of dead pine needles. It feels good to have our house back to normal, but there's also a small emptiness it leaves behind.

We had such a lovely Christmas this year. Normally we go back to Idaho to spend it with family, but this year we stayed in Philly and kept things fairly quiet. I was a little homesick, but ultimately it was really nice not to have to travel and we got to establish traditions for our own little family.

Once of those traditions has always been to eat nothing but appetizers on Christmas Eve and watch Christmas movies until we go to bed. It's a lot of fun and adds to the excitement of the upcoming morning.

Since I was too excited to dig in, my pictures are less then blogworthy, but here's what we enjoyed Christmas Eve with the help of some friends...

Mini Caprese Skewers sitting in a layer of pesto, one of my favorite combos of all time!

I tried my hand at another cheese platter this year. Brie, Gouda and a very pungent Stilton made for a very delicious cheese platter, along with fruit and crackers. The Gouda was by far the crowd pleaser. This was actually my first time trying it and it just might be my new favorite cheese.

We also had a veggie tray, green olives, cured meats, a shrimp platter and a french onion dip with potato chips.
Gotta have chocolate chip cookies for Santa, they're his favorite ;)

Homemade baklava brought by our friends. It was so delicious that my husband ate some despite his pecan allergy. He said it was worth it.


Cream puffs, so easy to pop in my mouth, which is exactly what I did.

These were easily the star of the show. Baguette with Brie and caramelized onions. My friend brought these and I ate about four of them. The onions are sweet and the cheese is creamy, making these an almost dessert-like treat. With the extra Brie left in my fridge, I'm pretty sure I know what I'm doing for New Years!

There were also bacon wrapped scallops and water chestnuts, but I'm pretty sure they were eaten too quickly for pictures. And while I think I'm still full a week later from this feast, what are the holidays without good food right? I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season too, enjoy your last two days of 2010!

One of the BEST summer dips Filed under ( Appetizers, Dips, onions, party food, tomatoes )

This is such a healthy and refreshing dip to serve when the weather gets warm. It's also so easy:

2 cans black beans-drained and rinsed

2 can corn-drained

1 red onion chopped

2 avocadoes chopped

1 red pepper chopped

1 yellow or orange pepper chopped

2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes halved

1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 TB lime juice

1-2 tsp chili powder

1-2 tsp salt (kosher salt if you have it)

1-2 TB olive oil

Combine all of the veggies, including cilantro. In a small bowl combine lime juice, chili powder and salt. Then, wisk in olive oil to desired consistency. Add dressing to salad and toss well. Serve with tortilla chips.

Tips:
When making any sort of dish like this, it is best when all ingredients are chopped, as close to the same size as possible.

Citrus is so important when making anything with fruit or vegetables in it. It prevents browning and maintains freshness longer.

Corn and Black Bean Salad Filed under ( Beans, Dips, light recipes, onions, party food, quick and easy, salad, side dish, vegetarian, veggies )

I feel like after blogging for over three years, you're allowed throw in a repeat every now and again, especially if it's as good as this salad.

This is probably more of a dip then a salad, but really it can go either way. While it's probably served best as an appetizer or party food, I'd be perfectly happy eating a big bowl of this stuff for lunch, just throw in some whole grain tortilla chips and you've got one flavorful and nutrient packed lunch. This would also make a great addition to your taco salad, nachos, burritos or tacos. Gosh, I already want to make this again!

Corn and Black Bean Salad

Ingredients

2 cans black beans-drained and rinsed

2 can corn-drained
1 red onion chopped

2 avocados chopped (I omitted avocados this time around, but it is good)

1 red pepper chopped
1 yellow or orange pepper chopped
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes halved
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Vinaigrette
2 TB lime juice (fresh if possible)
2-3 tsp chili powder
1-2 tsp salt (kosher salt if you have it)
1-2 TB olive oil

Directions

When chopping veggies, try to make them as uniform in size as possible.

Combine all of the veggies, including cilantro, in a large bowl. In a small bowl combine lime juice, chili powder and salt. Then, whisk in olive oil to desired consistency, there won't be a lot of dressing, but it will be STRONG. Add dressing to salad and toss well. Serve with tortilla chips, those Scoops chips are great with this salad.

Cheesy Stuffed Shells Filed under ( cheese, light recipes, main dishes, meat, onions, pasta, spinach, turkey )

Since we are (hopefully) moving in a year, I've been trying to get rid of as much stuff as possible lately. And as painful as it's been, I've even been getting rid of some of my books, including my cookbooks. Let's face it, as much as I love cookbooks, there's no point in holding on to a book that hasn't been used in years.

I feel like I gained way more then I lost by getting rid of a few cookbooks though. Since I was forced to leaf through all of my cooking books and magazines, I was able to rediscover a TON of recipes that I haven't tried yet. I almost felt like I had just gotten a whole new stack of books and magazines, just by going through them.

This was a recipe that I couldn't wait to try. I have never made stuffed shells before, but when I saw that they were full about about five different kinds of cheese, there was no hesitation. These are hearty, meaty, gooey and very family friendly. They're also made over to be lighter, so pretty much everyone wins with this one. Enjoy!


Cheesy Stuffed Shells
Adapted from Taste of Home Healthy Cooking, April/May 2008

This recipe serves 12! It makes a ton, so you may consider halving if you aren't feeding a crowd.

Ingredients

3/4 pound ground beef (I used turkey)
1 Italian turkey sausage link, casings removed
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 large onion
1 package (10 oz) frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 cup reduced fat ricotta cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella, divided
1 1/2 cups 1% cottage cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese
1-2 teaspoons Italian seasonings (I always like extra seasoning, so go by taste)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1-2 teaspoons garlic salt (optional)
24-32 pasta shells, cooked and drained

SAUCE:

3 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon pepper
salt to taste (lighter recipes always omit salt, I know it's better for you, but I just can't stand it, so salt according to taste)

Directions

1. Crumble turkey or beef and sausage into a large nonstick skillet, add fennel seeds and onion. Cook and stir over medium heat until meat is cooked through. Drain if needed.

2. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in spinach, ricotta and egg. Add 1 cup mozzarella, cottage cheese, Parmesan, cheddar, Italian seasoning, garlic salt and pepper. Mix well.

3. Stuff pasta shells with meat mixture. Arrange in two 11x7 baking dishes, coated with cooking spray (I filled one 9x13 and one 8x8 for later). Combine sauce ingredients; spoon over shells. Cover and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Philly Cheese Steak Pasta Filed under ( beef, cheese, light recipes, main dishes, meat, onions, pasta )

Thank you for all the kind words concerning my daughter! She appreciated them too!


Our very first meal here in Philly was, of course, the Philly Cheese Steak. But when you live in Philly, they're not called Philly Cheese Steak, they're just called "steaks." You learn these things. And when you go to the famous Pat's or Geno's, there's a very specific way of ordering them. You can't use a lot of words, and you can't hesitate. You use the term "wit" if you want onions, specify what kind of cheese you want, and you get the heck out of the way, otherwise their is going to be trouble. It's a very serious business.

I LOVE our city's sandwich, especially with bacon, ohmygosh, drippy, greasy goodness. But as you can imagine, when you eat one, it's there to stay, usually right in my thighs, so I don't eat them often.

Instead, it's fun to find substitutes like this, still delicious, still cheesy and flavorful, but a lot nicer to my hips.

Philly Cheese Steak Pasta
Adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients

3 cups uncooked dumpling or wide egg noodles
1 lb beef boneless sirloin steak, about 3/4 inch thick
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 medium onions, chopped
1 small bell pepper, chopped
14 oz can beef broth
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup fat free half and half
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3/4 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350. Spray 11x7 inch glass baking dish with cooking spray. Cook and drain noodles as directed on package.

2. Meanwhile, remove fat from beef. Cut beef into 3/4 inch pieces. Heat 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook beef and pepper in skillet 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown. Stir in onions and bell pepper. Cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spoon into baking dish.

3. In medium bowl, beat broth and flour with wire whisk until smooth. Add to skillet; heat to boiling. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens; remove from heat. Stir in half and half and mustard. Spoon over beef mixture. Stir in cooked noodles.

4. Cover and bake 40 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered about 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and casserole is bubbly.

Serves 6: 1 1/3 cups

Per Serving: 260 cal, 5g fat, 2g fiber, 24g prot, 30g carb

Our Philadelphia Family!

French Onion Soup Filed under ( beef, bread, cheese, main dishes, onions, Soup )

I have a new love in my life, and he's simply delicious. He's French, very hot and beefy. He also at his best when you keep him full of bread, wine and cheese. I'm totally hooked, and even though I'd rather keep him all to myself, I suppose I'll introduce you...


A few weeks ago I became obsessed with owning a set of French Onion Soup bowls. I'm not really sure why, especially because up until that point I had never actually made French Onion Soup before, and yet, I needed these bowls! Well after a few weeks of online shopping and yearning, I finally got a lucky break at William Sonoma and am a proud owner of French Onion Soup bowls. It's the simple things that keep us happy, right?

Since then I've already lost count how many times I've made myself this luscious soup. It's the best lunch in the world and I really can't get enough. I think what I love about it is that it's so unique. Beefy broth nestling a bed of croutons and a gooey layer of cheese, mmm. What else could you ask for.

I told myself that I was going to try a bunch of different recipes, but truth be told, I can't deviate from Tyler Florence's recipe. It's so easy and delicious, I'm hooked!

French Onion Soup
Tyler Florence

Ingredients

•1/2 cup unsalted butter
•4 onions, sliced
•2 garlic cloves, chopped
•2 bay leaves
•2 fresh thyme sprigs
•Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1 cup red wine, about 1/2 bottle
•3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour (I quit doing the flour, it only seemed to make the soup unnecessarily lumpy)
•2 quarts beef broth
•1 baguette, sliced
•1/2 pound grated Gruyere

Directions

Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Now add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls into the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese.

Craving Ellie in My Belly: Her Pizza Adapted Filed under ( CEiMB, cheese, feta, light recipes, main dishes, onions, pizza, tortillas, vegetarian, veggies )

Joining the group Craving Ellie in my Belly was my way of killing two birds with one stone. Now I am signed on with two cooking clubs, and they both include eating healthy. Sweet! I'm really excited about cooking Ellie Kreiger recipes. She's always been a favorite of mine on Food Network and I've been happy with a lot of her recipes.

The reason I'm adapting this recipe is because, as of yet, the only food in this world that I just can't get myself to like, is goat cheese. Granted, I've never had it baked in a pizza, but I just couldn't bring myself to spend the money on it with the risk that I wasn't going to like it. So, I used feta instead, it's a cheese made out of sheep's milk, so kind of similar right? And since I was already adapting, I figured I'd use spinach which I already had in the fridge instead of arugula. The result? Fantastic! I plan to have it for lunch again very soon. It's quick, easy and PACKED with flavor, which is good. I read somewhere that if you eat foods that are very flavorful, you'll feel satisfied quicker and eat less. Give this pizza a try, you'll love it!

Feta, Caramelized Onion and Spinach Pizza
Adapted from Ellie Krieger
For One

Ingredients

1 tortilla, (I love the Carb Balance, they are one point each!)
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 spinach
2 tablespoons feta
salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Put the oil and onions in a medium skillet and cook over very low heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and caramelized, about 15 minutes. Turn the heat up to medium and add the spinach. Cook until the spinach is wilted, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the tortillas on a baking sheet and top each with some of the spinach/onion mixture. Crumble some feta on top of each, and bake for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes and cut each pizza into 4 triangles.

Mushroom and Havarti Panini Filed under ( bread, cheese, main dishes, mushrooms, onions, panini, sandwiches )

Whenever I visit my parents, I enter food heaven. My mom shares the same love for food as I do, and we have so much fun discovering new dishes together. This was something we came up with for lunch after looking through the fridge. My mom had a panini press that had yet to be taken out of the box, so it was high time to put it to good use.

I love paninis and each time I eat one, I probably say that it's my favorite, but seriously, this is my favorite panini! The baby bellas made it so meaty and rich, the caramelized onions added texture and sweetness, and the Havarti...well. Have you ever had Havarti? I hadn't until the day I ate this sandwich, and I've been slapping my face for missing out on twenty eight years of Havarti goodness. This cheese is amazing, it's has an ever so slightly pungent flavor, but is so soft and melts like a velvet dream. gaaaaaaaah. Go get some today and make this sandwich!

This sandwich is so simple that I'm not going to post an actual recipe, I'm just going to tell you how I made it, and you can adjust to taste and quantity.

Saute sliced baby bella mushrooms in olive oil. Once mushrooms are slighly browned and wilted, add kosher salt, pepper and dried thyme. Be sure that the mushrooms are flavored well, the second time I made them, I didn't add enough salt and the sandwiches weren't quite as good. At the same time you're sauteing your mushrooms, caramelize your onions. Place onions in a skillet with olive oil. Cook until onions are slightly soft. Add sugar until onions are sweet, then add soy sauce, all to desired taste. Onions should be a caramel color and very soft by the time you are finished cooking them. Assemble sandwich. I put down a layer of mushrooms, a slice of Havarti cheese and the onions. Putting the cheese in the middle will help glue the whole sandwich together. Get a napkin, your favorite beverage and devour!