Parmesan Crusted Zucchini

If you like zucchini, you will LOVE this side dish. Not the healthiest way to make it, but it is SO good! And it's super quick and easy to make too!

*1.5 T Butter
*1T olive oil (or a little less)
*1 small onion (sweet or white)- sliced into slivers
*1 large zucchini- cut into 1/2 inch half moons
*1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
*seasonings (Nature seasoning, salt, pepper...)

First put the butter and oil in a pan over medium heat. Wait till butter is melted. Add onions. Saute them for 4 minutes. Add zucchini. Season. Saute until Zucchini is fork tender, but not mushy. Pour mixture into a baking dish (i use a small glass pyrex. Sprinkle cheese over top. You can either bake for 10 minutes at 450, or what I like to do is broil on high for 2-3 minutes till cheese is starting to get brown and bubbly. (keep your eye on it, don't let it burn:) )

Enjoy!!

Sauting the onion and zucchini in the butter/oil mixture

Put in baking dish and cover with cheese

I love it when the cheese gets a little bit toasted and crunchy!!

Mahi Mahi with a fresh fruit Salsa

This is SOOO good!! You can really make the salsa with any fruit you want, it works best with really ripe fruit. My friend who gave me the recipe makes hers with just peaches. I like a few different fruits. The fish is good by itself, but what really makes this dish is the sweet chili sauce (must be Mae Ploy brand) and the salsa!

This makes enough for 2-3 people, depending on how hungry you are. I like to serve it along side Rice a Roni Rice pilaf. It works really well together. But any rice or potato would work great!

*12 oz Mahi Mahi- thawed or fresh (cut into two, three or four pieces)
*dash salt, dash pepper
*1 T olive oil
*1/2 T butter

*Small ripe peach, take skin off and dice
*Medium ripe mango, peeled and diced
*1/2 cup fresh pinapple, diced
*1/2 cucumber, de-seeded and sliced into 1 inch pieces
*1 T white vinegar
*1/2 tsp sugar
*dash salt
OPTIONAL- You can also add 1/4 tsp of sesame oil and some sesame seeds. Not required, but if you have them on hand, it adds a nutty flavor.

*Mae Ploy Sweet Chili sauce

1. Season fish on both sides with salt and pepper. Bring the butter and oil to high temp in a skillet. Once it's hot (just be careful not to burn butter) place fish into skillet. Cook for about 5-6 minutes per side, or until done. Place on plate.

2. Mix the fresh fruit, cucumber, vinegar, sugar and salt in a bowl (and sesame oil and seeds if you wish). Serve over fish.

3. Use the chili sauce on the side to dip fish in or drizzle over top.

LOVE THIS

I used less than a quarter of the pineapple

This can be found at some grocery stores... I had to call a few before I found it. It really makes the fish!

Pan Fry on Medium-High till done through and crispy on outside, but not too high that you burn the butter.

Fish should be slightly blackened and crispy on outside.

Mahi Mahi with fruit salsa

If your local store doesn't carry the chili sauce, I know Amazon has it for a good price. This is a must have sauce... really makes the fish!! (It's great with any asian meals I think!

Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup

I went to one of my favorite restaurants while visiting back home and they had this amazing soup!! My mom came up with this recipe that duplicates it pretty close. I love the tanginess. I have to warn you, I can't tell you exactly how I made it... I'm one of those add more of this, taste, add more of that, taste, type of cook. Below is the recipe my mom gave me. I cut it in half since there are only two of us eating it. Half the recipe made enough for two meals plus I froze have for another two meals.  Here is the recipe, see my notes below on how I cut it in half and what things I added more of.


3 lbs ground sirloin - brown
1 large sweet onion - diced
1 red cabbage – sliced and diced
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 large can stewed tomatoes
1 box of beef stock
1 cup long grain rice (not minute rice)
1 lemon – juice
½ cup brown sugar
dash of vinegar to taste
seasonings– Nature Seasoning and Montreal spicy


Brown meat add onion, tomatoes, broth, lemon, and sugar - simmer 10 minutes.
Add rice and simmer covered for 20 minutes.
Add cabbage and simmer 10 more minutes until cabbage is tender.

This makes a huge batch. You may want to cut it in half. Then just use the small cans of tomatoes and a small can of stock.


*** I used 1 1/2 lbs of meat, a small sweet onion, 3/4 of a small red cabbage, small cans of tomatoes, 3/4 cup of rice, I used the whole box of beef stock, the whole lemon, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar.  For seasonings I used Nature Seasoning, Lawry's, Salt and Pepper. After I added cabbage, I left pot on low for about an hour. I kept adding a little more seasonings, lemon juice, and vinegar to get the tanginess I like. You may like it sweeter and the original recipe may be fine for you, but I like it more vinegary.

Enjoy!

It's a thicker soup, like chili. You can add more liquid if you want.

Tater Tot Casserole

I know everyone either has this recipe, or at least one that is VERY similar. There are a million ways to make this. It's so easy, a great way to get kids to eat some green veggies, and we really like it. The way I make mine may be wasteful for your family since I use two kinds of soups and use half of each can, instead of using just one can of soup like many do. But I make a lot of casseroles and I save the other halves of the soup and use it later in the week for a different casserole or dinner.

Ingredients:

* 1/2 can Campbell's Cheddar Cheese Soup
* 1/2 can Cream of Mushroom Soup  (Or instead of using the cheddar soup you can just use one can of the Mushroom soup. We just like the creamy, cheesy taste of the two combined)
* 1 can French Cut Green Beans
*Tater Tots (I end up using 1/2-3/4 a bag.
*1 lb Ground Beef
*Seasonings (I use Nature Seasonings, a little salt and pepper and a touch of Lawry's)
*Ketchup to serve with

1. Preheat oven to 375. Cook Ground beef in pan till completely done. Season as desired. Mix in the soup(s).
2. In 9x13 pan, spread the meat/soup mixture evenly.
3. Drain green beans and pour green beans over meat.
4. Completely cover top with Tatertots
5. Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes (until tater tots are done and browned)

Serve with ketchup. I usually also make my Cheesy Rolls to serve along side of this dish. Makes great left overs as well!

I used generic tater tots this time... Much better if you use Ore-Ida Brand.

Add soup to cooked meat

Add Meat/Soup mixture to bottom of pan

Top with Green Beans

Cover with Tater Tots. 

Bake till Goldon

Serve with Ketchup!

McCormick's Recipe Inspirations- Apple & Sage Pork Chops

McCormick's have great seasoning packets with recipes on the back and the seasonings pre-measured in little containers.  http://www.mccormick.com/Products/Recipe-Inspirations.aspx
I bought the Apple & Sage Pork Chop one at the store to make sure I liked it before buying all the seasonings. Now that I like it, I will make sure to have all 5 seasonings on hand instead of buying the pre measured packets.  You can buy the packet yourself, or if you have the ingredients on hand, you can just follow the recipe...

Ingredients:

Recipe Inspirations Package (They use all McCormick brand obviously, but I'm sure you can use whatever...)
  *1 1/2 tsp Rubbed Sage
  *1 tsp Minced Garlic
  *1 tsp Thyme Leaves
  *1/2 tsp Ground Allspice
  * 1/2 tsp Paprika

Other ingredients:
  *1 T flour
  *1 tsp salt
  *4 boneless pork chops, 1-inch thick (about 1 1/4 lbs)
  *2 T olive oil (I used organic canola oil)
  *1 medium onion (I didn't have one on had, so I omitted this)
  *2 red apples, thinly sliced
  *1/2 cup apple juice
  *1 T brown Sugar

1. Mix Flour, all of spices in package, and salt in small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of the pork chops with 1 T of the seasoned flour.

2. Cook pork chops in hot oil in large skillet on medium-high heat until browned on both sides. Remove from skillet. Add onion, cook and stir 3 minutes or until tender. Add apples, cook and stir 2 minutes.

3. Stir in juice, sugar and remaining seasoned flour until well mixed. Return pork chops to skillet. bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until desired doneness.

I served this with a side of roasted potatoes and steamed veggies. We REALLY liked it! It was different and very flavorful! Since this one was such a hit, I will definitely be trying more of McCormick's recipe ideas as well as buying their brand seasoning!

The seasoning packet... sold at my store for $1.99

Add pork chops back to pan with apples (and onions if you use them) and bring to a boil

After you simmer for 5 mins covered... ready to serve

I served with roasted potatoes, steamed veggies and Conundrum wine!

Healthier version of traditional lasagna- with Turkey Meat and Spinach.

I was craving lasagna but really am trying to eat healthier. I googled a bunch of recipes trying to find one that sounded good, but none looked good. So i took a few recipes that looked decent and took away what I liked from them and made up my own recipe. We really, really like it! And I felt good knowing it was made with lean ground turkey, organic tomatoes, fat free cottage cheese and low fat ricotta. The only think I didn't go lean on this time was the shredded cheese- which you can. But I love real cheese. I may just do less next time I make this. Also, if I can find whole grain, no bake noodles I may try those next time as well.

INGREDIENTS

*1 T extra virgin olive oil
*2 garlic cloves- minced
*1 tsp sea salt
*Italian seasonings (to taste)
*1.25 lbs Lean Ground Turkey
*Can Diced Tomatoes with oregano and basil
*1 jar spaghetti sauce (I like Prego traditional)
*8 oz fat free cottage cheese
*8 oz low fat ricotta
*1 egg
*1 box- no bake noodles (I used 9 noodles in my pan)
*1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
*1/2 cup fresh shredded parmesan cheese
*5-10 oz chopped spinach (I used frozen and chopped it. I also only used 5 oz since my husband isn't a big    spinach fan)


1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. In a skillet, heat up the olive oil and garlic. Add turkey and cook till done. Add sea salt, italian seasoning (1-2 tsp?), can of tomatoes and chopped spinach. Stir well. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on low for 10 mins. Drain any excess liquid.
3. In medium bowl, mix cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, 1 egg and about 1 tsp of italian seasoning. Mix well.
 4. Pour a little spaghetti sauce to coat bottom of a 9 x 13 baking pan. Add 3 noodles. Spoon a little sauce on top of each noodle. Add half of meat mixture evenly. Then layer by adding 1/2 of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese. spoon some sauce over. Add 3 more noodles and repeat layers adding the rest of the meat, cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Add final 3 noodles. Pour the rest of the spaghetti sauce over the top and sprinkle the parmesan cheese over top. Cover with foil and bake for 40 mins. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.

I serve with fresh, warm bread and vino! :)

Simmered Turkey, tomato and chopped spinach with seasonings

Mixture of Cottage Cheese, Ricotta, Egg and Italian Seasonings

Start by coating bottom of pan with sauce and start with your first 3 noodles

Ready to bake...

Done and ready to enjoy!!

This pan is on my wishlist... I hate soaking and scrubbing a pan... especially after lasagna... baked on cheese is the worst. This line is amazingly easy to clean! I love Mario Batali's Dutch oven as well!

Baked French Toast Casserole By Paula Deen

I have made this twice now and everyone loves it. It's dangerously good! I got it right from the food network website and copied and pasted it here. I will also give the link. I don't take any credit for this recipe what so ever. Just wanted to share a delicious breakfast/brunch recipe that I plan on making for every Easter brunch! I also took pictures of my own I will attach...

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time:

20 min

Inactive Prep Time:

8 hr 0 min

Cook Time:

40 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Dash salt
• Praline Topping, recipe follows
• Maple syrup

Directions

Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French ToastCasserole.

Here is the direct link...  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/baked-french-toast-casserole-with-maple-syrup-recipe2/index.html

Bread in Egg/Milk mixture after sitting overnight

Mixing the topping

Spread on topping

Baked and ready to cut and serve

DELISH!! Serve with warm syrup!

Summer Pasta with Veggies

I call this summer pasta, because it's light and is great loaded with veggies that are in season in the summer.

You can make this two different ways. You can leave it just as is, with the pasta, veggies and olive oil. Or you can add a light cream sauce as I did. By light, i don't mean calorie or fat free... i add only about 1/2 cup of this sauce so it's more of just a coating/flavoring and not an actual sauce.

This time I made it I only used zucchini and carrots since I had them on hand and this was a last minute meal plan. At the end I also added left over steamed broccoli that we had for dinner the night before. When I usually make this I like to make it with zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, asparagus and bell pepper (orange or yellow). I'm sure mushrooms or artichoke hearts would work great too. Get creative and add any of your favorites! Also, sometimes I add left over rotisserie chicken shredded up. Add this at end and just cook on low a few mins till warm.

*2 T olive oil
*1 tsp minced garlic
*2-3 cups chopped veggies
*1 box pasta (penne, bow tie, cork screw... (I love Ronzoni Smart Taste Penne)
*ground black pepper and salt to taste

optional
*1 T butter
*1 T flour
*1/2 cup milk (2% or whole works best)
*1/2 cup mozz or parm cheese for topping

1. saute garlic in olive oil. Add veggies and continue to saute over medium heat until they are fork tender. You don't want them too cooked and soggy. Add your seasonings.

2. While veggies are sauteing, boil your noodles till they are al dente. Drain and return to pan and remove from heat.

3. If you are doing no sauce, at this time add the veggies to the noodles and stir together. You can add a touch more olive oil if you like. Top with some cheese table side.

4. If you would like to do the sauce, I start it when the veggies and noodles have about 5 mins left to cook. All I do is melt the butter in a pan. Once melted, add the flour and whisk together well. Once mixed and smooth, add the milk slowly. Keep stirring. Cook on low for 2-3 mins. Add this to pan that the noodles and veggies are in. Stir well and, again, add cheese table side.

Enjoy!

saute garlic in olive oil

here I added the 'light' sauce

served with cheesy rolls (see recipe under sides) and talapia. 

Cheesy Rolls

These are one of my signature recipes... I make them all the time and everyone LOVES them. I'll have a dinner party and I'll make a huge awesome (in my opinion) meal that I slaved over all day, and they ask me for THIS recipe and rave about these... these take me 2 mins + bake time. Simple and delicious!

*1 roll Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
*Italian Seasoning
*Garlic salt
*Shredded cheese (I use whatever I have in my house, cheddar, mozzarella, colby-jack mix... anything works

1. break crescents into the eight triangles
2. pinch of italian seasonings and a pinch of garlic salt on each
3. about 1T cheese on each
4. Roll and bake as directed on package.

YUP... They are THAT easy!!

We love them along side salads, anything we serve with mash potatoes, and especially on spaghetti/pasta night!

the seasoning I use

sprinkle seasonings

large pinch of cheese