Fresh Food

When summer time comes I get in the mood for food with fresh ingredients. The other night we had home made strawberry lemonade and Italian Bruchetta. They were both so good!

Strawberry lemonade - the lemonade recipe is from pampered chef, but I added some fresh strawberry juice (you would have to have a juicer)

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
6 cups water
3/4 cups sugar

Just mix and enjoy!

Italian Bruchetta - this recipe comes from Laurie Story, a caterer, who I knew when Joe and I lived in the Kaysville.


3 large tomatoes chopped
1 small finely chopped onion
4 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp chopped oregano
2 tsp chopped basil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste

1 or 2 baguettes (depending on how much topping you like, I buy the take and bake ones from Smith's)

Mix all veggies and spices and adjust seasonings taste. Slice bread on a diagonal and lay on cookie sheet. Spray very lightly with vegetable or olive oil cooking spray (I didn't have cooking spray so I just brushed on olive oil) and toast under the broiler to lightly golden. Turn and toast the other side. Serve topped with the tomato mixture Use up immediately as the juices will start to separate.

Now I also added some soft mozzarella cubed up. It was SO good. I highly recommend adding it, you can buy it at Costco.


Fresh Salsa - This is another recipe I've been loving lately. I got this recipe from my Mom (I'm not sure where she got it) Sorry, I don't have a picture but I'm sure I'll make it again soon and will add it later.

8 Roma tomatoes diced
1 medium white onion chopped
1 jalapeño pepper seeds removed, diced
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic minced
juice of 1 lime
2 tsp sugar
1tsp cumin
1 TBSP vinegar (I use balsamic)
1 1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together and enjoy!

This makes a lot, but if you are going to eat right away try adding some other things too. I've added corn, black beans and diced avocado.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day I attempted to make some chocolate mint truffles I had during the cooking class I took at Thanksgiving Point.

Let me just start by saying I was extremely intimated by this recipe, but they were soooooo good that I decided to try it. And surprisingly, they were not as hard as I thought they were going to be!

White Chocolate Mint Truffles - Martha Moench

Ingredients for center:
1/2 cup whole fresh mint leaves, loosely packed
1 lb. White Chocolate
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 TBS. creme de menthe, peppermint schnapps, or 1 tsp. peppermint extract
1 stick butter

Ingredients for dipping:
1 lb bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate
3 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
1. Finely chop the mint leaves; set aside.
2. Cut the white chocolate into pieces. Melt the chocolate with the cream in a heat proof bowl set over gently simmering water. Watch it carefully as white chocolate burns easily. Don't let the water touch the bottom of the bowl. Turn off the heat and let it stand over the warm water until ready to use.
3. Whisk in the mint flavoring, the butter and the chopped mint leaves. Pour the mixture into a shallow pan and chill or freeze until set. Form the truffles into balls and refreeze before dipping. White chocolate doesn't set up as fimly as dark chocolate. Keep the truffle cream as cold as possible while you're working, going back to the freezer as often as needed to keep it firm enough to work with easily. Refrigerate or freeze as soon as they are finished.
4. To dip, melt 1lb of chocolate over simmering water. (There will be extra dipping chocolate left over, but this much is needed to "bathe" the truffle in chocolate.) Test the chocolate by putting a little on your lip - it should be warm to the touch but not hot. Drop a cold tuffle into the melted chocolate and turn it over with a fork, making suer to completely cover the truffle. Lift the truffle out on the tip of the fork tine and roll in the bowl of powdered sugar. Dip and remove one by one to keep the temperatures workable. If some of the chocolate doesn't drip off the truffles after dipping then the chocolate is too cold; if form marks remain in the truffle after dipping, it's too hot. you may need to reheat the chocolate a few times in the dipping process. When you have 4-5 truffles in the bowl of powdered sugar, spoon the powder over them and then put the bowl in the freezer until the chocolate has set. Take them out of the bowl and store in the freezer as powdered sugar gets moist in the refrigerator.
5. Truffles can be stored, covered, in freezer for up to three months.

Okay, so as I typed this out I realized I made a huge mistake! I used peppermint extract but 2 1/2 TBS instead of 1 tsp.! I thought it was weird I was using almost the whole bottle. But, I did not have fresh mint because I didn't know where to get it, so it ended up almost balancing out. I would say mine were still a little too minty. And for other alterations, I added green food coloring so the centers would be green and I just melted my chocolate in the microwave again. For the chocolate I just used Ghirardelli chocolate chips.

These are yummy! I may make them every year.

What's For Dinner?

I meant for this to be a weekly Column but I've been slacking. So to make up for that, I'm including two recipes in this post.

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

This is a recipe that my Mom got from a low fat pasta cook book. We changed it to be easier and meat free.

Ingredients:
8 lasagna noodles
2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion finely chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 egg white lightly beaten
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions:
1. Heat a large pot of water to boiling, and cook the noodles until just tender. Drain. Transfer to a bowl of cold water to prevent sticking. Meanwhile, preheat the over to 400 degrees. Spray an 11 x 7-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil until hot but not smoking over low heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion has softened, about 7 min. Stir in the spinach and cook until the spinach is heated through, about 4 min. Transfer to a large bowl and cool slightly. Stir in the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and egg white until well combined.
3. Lay the noodles flat and spread 3 tablespoons of the spinach mixture on top of each and tightly roll up each noodle. Place the rolls, seam-sides down, in the prepared baking dish.
4. Spoon the spaghetti sauce over and around the lasagna rolls, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover and spread the mozzarella cheese on top. Bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer, or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted.

Bean and Corn Chimichangas

This is adapted from a recipe I found on all recipes called Beef and Bean Chimichangas. I adapted it to again be easier and not have meat. It has quickly become a family favorite.

Ingredients:
1 small onion chopped
1 can corn
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 packet taco seasoning
1 can refried beans
8 flour tortillas
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 TBS butter melted

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and brush the baking sheet with the melted butter.
2. This step is optional, but I highly recommend buying the uncooked flour tortillas (you can find them at Smith's or Costco) they are so much fresher! (thanks Deann for the tip) So if you decide to do this you would need to cook the tortillas on the skillet first.

3. Saute onion over medium heat. Add corn. Cook for about 5 min. Stir in tomato sauce, add taco seasoning and stir until well blended. Cook until heated through and set aside.
4. Open the can of beans and spread a thin layer of beans onto each of the tortillas. Spoon the corn mixture down the center and then top with as much grated cheese as you like. Roll up the tortillas and place them seam-side down onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tortillas with melted butter.
5. Bake for 30 to 35 mins in the preheated oven, or until crispy.

I like to serve this with a side of Mexican rice. We prefer the Lipton brand pictured below.

I also cut up an avocado and tomato for a garnish, along with a dollop of sour cream.

The very Last One!

So the very last sister from Sharmea is getting married! We are so excited for you Carrie Ann, you have been waiting for Mr. Right for way too long! I'm glad you two finally found each other.
It was so fun to get together again, I haven't seen some of these girls in years, that is way too long! And we really missed the other's that weren't able to be there. I think we are definitely going to try to schedule more girl's night outs. Pictured: Me, Susan, Jodi, Amber, Amanda, Carrie Ann and Amber. To check out another picture go to Susan's Blog.




As is tradition with Sharmea showers, the theme was "Honeymoon" Carrie Ann got a lot of beautiful lingerie!













Sorry I forgot my gift at home, I promise I'm not always so flaky, pregnancy just does that to me! There it is on the kitchen counter, right where I left it! I promise, I'll bring it to your reception (or at least I'll try really hard to remember!)


But the important thing is I did remember the treats! And I promised the girls I would share my recipes. I really can't take credit for either, but I did add a lot of changes. I'll share the original and my changes.

Peanut Butter Brownies

I got this from a cooking class at Thanksgiving Point taught by Martha Moench

Now I've had the original recipe and it was fabulous, but I did easy it up. She made brownies from scratch. I just made mine from a box.

Ingredients for brownies:
1 package brownie mix plus the ingredients to make brownies. (the original recipes also added 1 cup roasted salted peanuts, coarsely chopped. I did not add them because I don't like peanuts)
Make brownies according to directions and cool completely.

Ingredients for frosting and ganache:
1 cup chunky peanut butter (not natural or old fashioned)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, divided in half, room temperature
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Tablespoon milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
7 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Next time, I will probably use creamy peanut butter instead of chunky, because I would prefer no peanut chunks. I did not have cream so I used skim milk, but I had to add 2 Tablespoons in order for the mixture to be creamy enough to spread over the brownies. For the semisweet chocolate, I just used semisweet chocolate chips.

Directions for peanut butter frosting:
Using an electric mixer, beat peanut butter and softened half of butter to blend. Beat in powdered sugar, salt and nutmeg, then cream (milk) and vanilla. Spread frosting over brownies. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to spread ganache.

Directions for ganache:
Stir chocolate and second half of butter in a small sauce pan set over simmering water until smooth. Let cool a few minutes. Spread to cover. Chill until set, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Can be made a day ahead.
I didn't melt the chocolate this way. I just melted the chocolate in the microwave. If you choose to microwave, you have to be VERY careful not to burn the chocolate. I put my micro on power level 5 and checked and stirred the chocolate every 30 seconds until it was creamy.

Strawberry Party Punch
This is a pampered chef recipe. I've made it before following the exact recipe and it was very good, and I would have made it that way again except I didn't have the exact ingredients this time. (Sorry I don't have a picture, I left the rest for Carrie Ann to finish off).

Original
4 packages (10 ounces each) frozen sliced strawberries, partially thawed
1 cup sugar
2 quarts strawberry soda
1 can (6 ounces) frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 quarts club soda, chilled

What I made last night
10 ounces frozen sliced strawberries, partially thawed
I did not add any sugar
2 liter raspberry soda
1 can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 liter of sprite

So there you go! Enjoy!

What's For Dinner?

Green Bean and Mushroom Medley

As a vegetarian, I often get asked, What do you cook for dinner? So I've decided to start posting some of the favorite recipes we had for dinner during the week.

Last night I tried a new vegetable side dish. I liked it, but I love vegetables. However, Joe really liked it too, which says a lot since he isn't a huge vegetable lover. Kennedy didn't like it as much because it was a medley, and she likes her vegetables separately. If you would like the recipe you can find it here.

I did vary from the recipe slightly. Instead of fresh green beans, I just used canned. Instead of garlic salt I used minced garlic. I only used the amount of seasoned salt (Bon Appetit) called for and omitted the salt. And I used black pepper instead of white.

I was really surprised with the amount of flavor with just these simple ingredients. And I'm sure it would taste great using whatever vegetables are your favorites.