I've been MIA for awhile. With sickness circling through our house (several times each person), trip to Vegas and Thanksgiving, there hasn't been much cooking going on (unless Kraft Mac & Cheese counts). So, it's back to the grind and I made a new dish tonight. One that I think will become a staple in our house. And the best part about this dish, is you can add all different types of fillings!! It's perfect!
I found a crustless spinach quiche recipe from Cooks.com, but I modified it... I added 2 more eggs. It called for 3 eggs and that just didn't seem like enough eggs for a quiche. So I made it with 5 eggs.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
5 eggs, beaten
1 cup flour
1 cup and 2 tbsp milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 box frozen spinach, thawed
8 oz Cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz Pepperjack cheese, shredded
Parmesan cheese, shredded (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine eggs and milk in a large mixing bowl. Add flour, baking powder and salt (I used garlic salt instead of regular salt) gradually to egg and milk mixture. Add cheese and thawed spinach (make sure to squeeze out the excess water from the spinach with your hands); mix well.
3. Pour into a well greased 13x9 pan (I used nonstick cooking spray to grease my pan). Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese. Bake 30-35 minutes.
4. Cool for a half hour, cut into squares.
Side Notes:
1. Recipe called for 16 oz shredded Cheddar cheese. I used half Pepperjack and half Cheddar. I loved the taste the Pepperjack brought to the dish.
2. Instead of baking in a 13x9 baking dish, you can also cook in two round pie dishes.
3. This dish is perfect for breakfast, brunch or dinner!
Give it a try! Hope you enjoy it!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Potato Casserole
I'm jumping around with my postings, but I decided to post my potato casserole that has become a popular favorite amongst my friends. I made this potato dish for my women's group yesterday and all the women raved about it. It's perfect as a breakfast or dinner dish. You can serve it with eggs, ham, chicken, beef... anything really. This is my aunt's recipe (one of my FAVORITE dishes growing up), but I've modified it a bit.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 bag frozen shredded hash browns, thawed
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
8 oz light sour cream
4-8 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 small can diced green chiles
Splash of milk (about 1 tbsp)
Generous shake of Ground Cumin (probably about 2 tsp)
Generous shake of Garlic Salt (probably about 1-2 tsp)
2 cups crushed corn flakes
2 tbsp butter, melted
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Mix all ingredients, except corn flakes and butter, in a large mixing bowl. Transfer to baking dish and press down so potato mixture is even.
3. Top with crushed corn flakes (make sure mixture is completely topped). Pour melted butter over corn flakes, starting with the edges first, then drizzling in the center.
4. Bake, uncovered, about 40 minutes, or until bubbly. Let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.
Side Notes:
1. I suggested 4 - 8 oz of sharp cheddar cheese, because it depends on how cheesy you like your dishes. I like to use a little more cheese, but sometimes if I'm low on cheese, I just use what I have. The dish tastes great either way. Try using jack cheese, pepperjack cheese, or colby cheese. All taste great with this dish.
2. You can use Healthy Request cream of mushroom soup to make this dish healthier.
3. If you don't have corn flakes, you can substitute bread crumbs. Top with melted butter.
4. You could add meat (such as ham, sausage, chicken) to this dish to make it a complete meal.
5. My aunt always made this as a breakfast side, it went great with her homemade quiche!
I hope this side dish quickly becomes a favorite in your house, as it is in ours!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 bag frozen shredded hash browns, thawed
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
8 oz light sour cream
4-8 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 small can diced green chiles
Splash of milk (about 1 tbsp)
Generous shake of Ground Cumin (probably about 2 tsp)
Generous shake of Garlic Salt (probably about 1-2 tsp)
2 cups crushed corn flakes
2 tbsp butter, melted
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Mix all ingredients, except corn flakes and butter, in a large mixing bowl. Transfer to baking dish and press down so potato mixture is even.
3. Top with crushed corn flakes (make sure mixture is completely topped). Pour melted butter over corn flakes, starting with the edges first, then drizzling in the center.
4. Bake, uncovered, about 40 minutes, or until bubbly. Let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.
Side Notes:
1. I suggested 4 - 8 oz of sharp cheddar cheese, because it depends on how cheesy you like your dishes. I like to use a little more cheese, but sometimes if I'm low on cheese, I just use what I have. The dish tastes great either way. Try using jack cheese, pepperjack cheese, or colby cheese. All taste great with this dish.
2. You can use Healthy Request cream of mushroom soup to make this dish healthier.
3. If you don't have corn flakes, you can substitute bread crumbs. Top with melted butter.
4. You could add meat (such as ham, sausage, chicken) to this dish to make it a complete meal.
5. My aunt always made this as a breakfast side, it went great with her homemade quiche!
I hope this side dish quickly becomes a favorite in your house, as it is in ours!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Texas-Style Chili
Last Wednesday I made Texas-Style Chili. This one is probably not for kids (I say this because my children who eat just about anything couldn't eat this). It's got some heat. So, if you are a lover of spicy foods, this is a good recipe to try. Denis absolutely loved this chili. I will for sure make it again! I would advise to make this on a weekend when you've got some time on your hands. I made this on a Wednesday and it took just way to long. We didn't eat until 7:30pm (and started at 4pm). This recipe came from the Food Network Kitchens cookbook. I actually checked this cookbook out from the library... did you know you could check cookbooks out from the library?!?! I didn't... I'm extremely excited about this!!!!! :-D
This chili was good, but if you've got a sensitive tongue, make sure you've got a gallon of milk handy!!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
7 ripe medium tomatoes (about 4 lbs)
2 medium onions, quartered through the root end
2 poblano chiles
2 jalapenos
8 cloves garlic
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, chopped
1 tbsp dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (preferably Mexican cinnamon)
1/4 tsp ground cloves
4 lbs beef chuck, cut into 1/2 cubs
1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 chili powder, plus 2 tsp
1/4 cup ground cumin, plus 2 tsp
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 12 oz bottles Mexican lager-style beer
2 cups water
Garnishments - sour cream, shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, chopped scallions, and/or salsa
Directions
1. Position a rack about 6 inches from the broiler and preheat to high. Line a broiler pan with foil. Spread the tomatoes, onions, poblanos, jalapenos and garlic on the pan and broil, turning until charred on all sides. Cool slightly. Stem the roasted chiles, catching the juices and seeds that run onto the pan, and put them in a food processor with the tomatoes, onions, garlic and chipotles. Pulse until coarsely textured; add the oregano, cinnamon and cloves and pulse briefly.
2. Spread the meat out on a sheet of aluminum foil, pat dry, and season generously with salt. Heat some of the oil in a Dutch oven or other heavy bottom pot over high heat and brown some of the meat well on all sides, taking care not to crowd the pot. Transfer the cooked meat to a plate and repeat until all of the meat is cooked.
3. Whisk the 1/3 cup chili powder, 1/4 cup cumin and the flour into the meat drippings to make a paste. Whisk in the beer. Return the meat to the pot along with the collected juices, the tomato mixture, the water and the 1 1/2 tbsp salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Uncover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender and the sauce is thick, about 1 hour.
4. Just before serving, stir in the remaining 2 tsp each of chili powder and cumin.
Side Notes:
1. I bought a big beef chuck roast and cut it myself into 1/2-inch cubes. This saved A LOT of money. It's time consuming, but worth the money. Plus - you can shave off a lot of the fat that way.
2. Ground cloves are VERY expensive. A small container ON SALE was $10.00. I would suggest buying the ground cloves in a bulk section. I know Sprouts and Winco carries spices in their bulk sections. Any store that has a bulk section, probably has ground cloves. I got 1 oz of ground cloves for $.71 as opposed to paying $10 for 2 oz.
3. The recipe says to save the seeds... I knew this dish was going to be spicy enough, so I discarded the seeds. That's where a lot of the heat is in chiles. If you like spicy, keep the seeds.
4. I used regular oregano and cinnamon. Couldn't find Mexican spices in the regular grocery store. If you have a Mexican market near you (there are several in LaHabra for those of you in North OC) they will have the Mexican oregano and cinnamon.
5. I served with homemade cornbread. Cornbread is the obvious side dish to chili and it helped cut some of the heat too.
If you like heat, I hope you give this chili a try. It really was tasty! And if you've got a cold, it'll clear you sinus' too! LOL
This chili was good, but if you've got a sensitive tongue, make sure you've got a gallon of milk handy!!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
7 ripe medium tomatoes (about 4 lbs)
2 medium onions, quartered through the root end
2 poblano chiles
2 jalapenos
8 cloves garlic
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, chopped
1 tbsp dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (preferably Mexican cinnamon)
1/4 tsp ground cloves
4 lbs beef chuck, cut into 1/2 cubs
1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 chili powder, plus 2 tsp
1/4 cup ground cumin, plus 2 tsp
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 12 oz bottles Mexican lager-style beer
2 cups water
Garnishments - sour cream, shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, chopped scallions, and/or salsa
Directions
1. Position a rack about 6 inches from the broiler and preheat to high. Line a broiler pan with foil. Spread the tomatoes, onions, poblanos, jalapenos and garlic on the pan and broil, turning until charred on all sides. Cool slightly. Stem the roasted chiles, catching the juices and seeds that run onto the pan, and put them in a food processor with the tomatoes, onions, garlic and chipotles. Pulse until coarsely textured; add the oregano, cinnamon and cloves and pulse briefly.
2. Spread the meat out on a sheet of aluminum foil, pat dry, and season generously with salt. Heat some of the oil in a Dutch oven or other heavy bottom pot over high heat and brown some of the meat well on all sides, taking care not to crowd the pot. Transfer the cooked meat to a plate and repeat until all of the meat is cooked.
3. Whisk the 1/3 cup chili powder, 1/4 cup cumin and the flour into the meat drippings to make a paste. Whisk in the beer. Return the meat to the pot along with the collected juices, the tomato mixture, the water and the 1 1/2 tbsp salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Uncover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender and the sauce is thick, about 1 hour.
4. Just before serving, stir in the remaining 2 tsp each of chili powder and cumin.
Side Notes:
1. I bought a big beef chuck roast and cut it myself into 1/2-inch cubes. This saved A LOT of money. It's time consuming, but worth the money. Plus - you can shave off a lot of the fat that way.
2. Ground cloves are VERY expensive. A small container ON SALE was $10.00. I would suggest buying the ground cloves in a bulk section. I know Sprouts and Winco carries spices in their bulk sections. Any store that has a bulk section, probably has ground cloves. I got 1 oz of ground cloves for $.71 as opposed to paying $10 for 2 oz.
3. The recipe says to save the seeds... I knew this dish was going to be spicy enough, so I discarded the seeds. That's where a lot of the heat is in chiles. If you like spicy, keep the seeds.
4. I used regular oregano and cinnamon. Couldn't find Mexican spices in the regular grocery store. If you have a Mexican market near you (there are several in LaHabra for those of you in North OC) they will have the Mexican oregano and cinnamon.
5. I served with homemade cornbread. Cornbread is the obvious side dish to chili and it helped cut some of the heat too.
If you like heat, I hope you give this chili a try. It really was tasty! And if you've got a cold, it'll clear you sinus' too! LOL
Chicken Pot Pie Bubble Bake
Well, once again I'm behind again in my blogging... sorry! I was going to catch up this weekend, but Dayne and I had a rough weekend. We were both really sick! Thankfully Denis took great care of us!! He even cooked both days and made homemade candy apples (delicious). I'll blog his candy apple recipe too (it's Alton Brown's recipe), but first I've got to get caught up with my recipes.
Last Monday I made Chicken Pot Pie Bubble Bake. This recipe came from my Pillsbury Pot Pies & Casseroles magazine (can you tell I'm making my way through this magazine???). It turned out really delicious. It's definitely a do-again!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 can (10 3/4oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 1/3 cups milk
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 cups refrigerated cooked potato wedges (this can be found in the produce section near the bags of shredded carrots and butternut squash)
3 cups cubed deli rotisserie chicken (without skin)
1 bag (1lb) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 can (12oz) Pillsbury Grands! Jr. Golden Layers biscuits
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (2oz)
Directions
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 13x9 glass baking dish with cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix soup, milk and Italian seasoning. Stir in potatoes, chicken and vegetables.
2. Separate dough into 10 biscuits, cut each biscuit into quarters; add to potato mixture. Stir gently to mix well; spoon into baking dish.
3. Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes or until top is golden brown and biscuits are no longer doughy inside. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 4 to 6 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
Side Notes:
1. I didn't use the pre-cooked potatoes. It's much cheaper to buy a couple of red potatoes and cook them yourself in the microwave. This is what I did. I bought 3 medium sized red potatoes (it's about 2 cups), cut into small wedges. Placed cut potatoes into a microwave safe bowl, sprinkle with garlic salt. Add 1tsp of water and cover with a damp paper towel. Cook in microwave for 3 minutes. Check potatoes. Microwave another 2 minutes if they are not soft enough. Viola... you've got yourself cooked red potatoes!
2. To save more money, you could use left over chicken you might have from another dish, or cook your own chicken instead of buying a rotisserie chicken. Just depends on how much time you have. I used the rotisserie chicken because I had forgotten to thaw out my chicken.
3. I couldn't find the Jr. Grands (and I've never even heard of them). So I just used the Grands Layers (which is 8 biscuits) and cut those into 6th's (instead of quarters). I'm assuming it turned out the same.
4. If you don't have frozen mixed veggies... use whatever frozen veggies you have; green beans, broccoli, corn, carrots, cauliflower. Or try using fresh veggies, and saute them up just a bit to soften them. These recipes are so versatile... get creative and use what you like.
5. I didn't continue cooking the additional 4 to 6 minutes because my dish was already bubbling after 35 minutes (my oven is possessed and never bakes according to recipes). I just sprinkled the cheese on after I pulled it out, let it set 5 minutes. Cheese was melted and ready to serve.
6. This dish would be perfect for a holiday potluck. :-)
Hope you give it a try and enjoy it as much as we did!
Last Monday I made Chicken Pot Pie Bubble Bake. This recipe came from my Pillsbury Pot Pies & Casseroles magazine (can you tell I'm making my way through this magazine???). It turned out really delicious. It's definitely a do-again!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 can (10 3/4oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 1/3 cups milk
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 cups refrigerated cooked potato wedges (this can be found in the produce section near the bags of shredded carrots and butternut squash)
3 cups cubed deli rotisserie chicken (without skin)
1 bag (1lb) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 can (12oz) Pillsbury Grands! Jr. Golden Layers biscuits
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (2oz)
Directions
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 13x9 glass baking dish with cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix soup, milk and Italian seasoning. Stir in potatoes, chicken and vegetables.
2. Separate dough into 10 biscuits, cut each biscuit into quarters; add to potato mixture. Stir gently to mix well; spoon into baking dish.
3. Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes or until top is golden brown and biscuits are no longer doughy inside. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 4 to 6 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
Side Notes:
1. I didn't use the pre-cooked potatoes. It's much cheaper to buy a couple of red potatoes and cook them yourself in the microwave. This is what I did. I bought 3 medium sized red potatoes (it's about 2 cups), cut into small wedges. Placed cut potatoes into a microwave safe bowl, sprinkle with garlic salt. Add 1tsp of water and cover with a damp paper towel. Cook in microwave for 3 minutes. Check potatoes. Microwave another 2 minutes if they are not soft enough. Viola... you've got yourself cooked red potatoes!
2. To save more money, you could use left over chicken you might have from another dish, or cook your own chicken instead of buying a rotisserie chicken. Just depends on how much time you have. I used the rotisserie chicken because I had forgotten to thaw out my chicken.
3. I couldn't find the Jr. Grands (and I've never even heard of them). So I just used the Grands Layers (which is 8 biscuits) and cut those into 6th's (instead of quarters). I'm assuming it turned out the same.
4. If you don't have frozen mixed veggies... use whatever frozen veggies you have; green beans, broccoli, corn, carrots, cauliflower. Or try using fresh veggies, and saute them up just a bit to soften them. These recipes are so versatile... get creative and use what you like.
5. I didn't continue cooking the additional 4 to 6 minutes because my dish was already bubbling after 35 minutes (my oven is possessed and never bakes according to recipes). I just sprinkled the cheese on after I pulled it out, let it set 5 minutes. Cheese was melted and ready to serve.
6. This dish would be perfect for a holiday potluck. :-)
Hope you give it a try and enjoy it as much as we did!
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Vegetable Soup
This past week has been cozy, soup weather. I finally invested in a large stockpot... so I decided to make Vegetable Soup tonight. I love making soup, because you can put WHATEVER you want in it! You can use whatever you have in the fridge and pantry. Next time I make vegetable soup, I'll probably end up using completely different vegetables. My favorite soup to make is Chicken Tortilla Soup, but I didn't have what I need to make it to it's tastiest potential. I think this week I'll be making Chicken Tortilla Soup, so stay tuned for that recipe. I am going to list out exactly how I made tonight's soup, but feel free to add or omit whatever type of veggies suit your taste buds.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1lb bag carrots - peeled, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tomato, chopped
1 can green beans, drained
1 can sweet & crisp corn, drained
2 cans diced tomatoes, Mexican style (do not drain)
3 potatoes - peeled, cut in small pieces
2 - 32oz low-sodium, fat free containers of chicken broth
4 cups water
Garlic Salt
Pepper
Ground Cumin
Chili Powder
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Directions
1. Heat olive oil on a medium-high heat in a large 12qt stock pot. Add onion, carrots and celery. Saute for about 3-5 minutes. Veggies should be starting to turn tender.
2. Add broth, water and diced tomatoes with juice.
3. Add corn, green beans, chopped tomato and potatoes.
4. Add all the seasonings to taste. Start off with 2 tsp of each (except pepper - only 1 tsp for pepper). Taste your broth and add more to the liking of your taste buds. I use more Ground Cumin and Chili Powder because I really like those flavors.
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low (simmer) and cover. Cook for about an hour or until all veggies are tender.
Side Notes:
1. Other veggies that would be great in this dish are mushrooms, squash, zucchini, parsnips, fresh green beans, broccoli.
2. Beef broth would also make a great base for this soup.
I'm serving our soup with salad and biscuits. This soup is great as a meal itself or start to a meal. Have fun with this soup! Hope you enjoy it!!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1lb bag carrots - peeled, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tomato, chopped
1 can green beans, drained
1 can sweet & crisp corn, drained
2 cans diced tomatoes, Mexican style (do not drain)
3 potatoes - peeled, cut in small pieces
2 - 32oz low-sodium, fat free containers of chicken broth
4 cups water
Garlic Salt
Pepper
Ground Cumin
Chili Powder
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Directions
1. Heat olive oil on a medium-high heat in a large 12qt stock pot. Add onion, carrots and celery. Saute for about 3-5 minutes. Veggies should be starting to turn tender.
2. Add broth, water and diced tomatoes with juice.
3. Add corn, green beans, chopped tomato and potatoes.
4. Add all the seasonings to taste. Start off with 2 tsp of each (except pepper - only 1 tsp for pepper). Taste your broth and add more to the liking of your taste buds. I use more Ground Cumin and Chili Powder because I really like those flavors.
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low (simmer) and cover. Cook for about an hour or until all veggies are tender.
Side Notes:
1. Other veggies that would be great in this dish are mushrooms, squash, zucchini, parsnips, fresh green beans, broccoli.
2. Beef broth would also make a great base for this soup.
I'm serving our soup with salad and biscuits. This soup is great as a meal itself or start to a meal. Have fun with this soup! Hope you enjoy it!!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Chocolate Chip Cookies
I was feeling blah today... and with the weather as gloomy as it was, I decided it was time to bust out some homemade cookies. Growing up, my mom and I always made cookies on cold, rainy days, such as today. My mom spent the afternoon with the boys and I, so I invited her to stay and make cookies with Dylan and I. This is her recipe, I cannot claim it as my own. You can use chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips... basically any flavor "chip" they make. I prefer the good old fashioned chocolate chip cookie, with a glass of cold milk. Yum!
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
3/4 granulated sugar
3/4 light brown sugar, packed
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 package chocolate chips (12oz bag)
1/2 cup nuts (walnuts, pecans), chopped (optional)
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Mix together. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, add butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Beat with a mixer until smooth.
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing completely with butter, sugar and vanilla. This mixture should be very creamy when both eggs are beaten in.
5. Slowly add in the flour mixture, spoonfuls at a time, until all is added and mixed well.
6. Mix in quick oats, chocolate chips and nuts by hand.
7. Place cookies by spoonfuls onto baking sheet. Should be able to fit 12 cookies on each baking sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.
8. Should yield about 3 dozen cookies (depending on spoonful sizes).
Side Notes:
1. I use whole wheat flour, rather than all-purpose flour. It doesn't change the taste or texture of the cookie and adds lots of nutrients that the white flour does not contain.
2. I like to sometimes split my batter before I add the chocolate chips and nuts. I will mix half the batter with one type of chip and the other half with another type.
3. Adding coconut is a great flavor booster too. It goes especially well with chocolate chip and butterscotch chip cookies. To bad Denis like coconut! :-( I love it!
Hope you enjoy the cookies!!! :-)
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
3/4 granulated sugar
3/4 light brown sugar, packed
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 package chocolate chips (12oz bag)
1/2 cup nuts (walnuts, pecans), chopped (optional)
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Mix together. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, add butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Beat with a mixer until smooth.
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing completely with butter, sugar and vanilla. This mixture should be very creamy when both eggs are beaten in.
5. Slowly add in the flour mixture, spoonfuls at a time, until all is added and mixed well.
6. Mix in quick oats, chocolate chips and nuts by hand.
7. Place cookies by spoonfuls onto baking sheet. Should be able to fit 12 cookies on each baking sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.
8. Should yield about 3 dozen cookies (depending on spoonful sizes).
Side Notes:
1. I use whole wheat flour, rather than all-purpose flour. It doesn't change the taste or texture of the cookie and adds lots of nutrients that the white flour does not contain.
2. I like to sometimes split my batter before I add the chocolate chips and nuts. I will mix half the batter with one type of chip and the other half with another type.
3. Adding coconut is a great flavor booster too. It goes especially well with chocolate chip and butterscotch chip cookies. To bad Denis like coconut! :-( I love it!
Hope you enjoy the cookies!!! :-)
Natalie's Spaghetti
Tired of the same 'ol boring ground beef and tomato sauce spaghetti? Try adding fresh veggies and turkey sausage to your standard spaghetti recipe.
Spaghetti has always been a family favorite of ours. I love that I can add whatever I want to it, and it turns out great every time. One standard ingredient that I always like to use is turkey sausage. It adds an incredible flavor to the sauce. Tonight I had fresh veggies on hand and I popped those in the spaghetti pot as well. I will list specifically how I make my spaghetti, but you can use whatever type of meat, noodles and sauce you like.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 lb turkey sausage (hot or sweet flavors)
1 lb ground turkey
1 medium yellow onion, chopped finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 package sliced crimini mushrooms
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped finely
1 red bell pepper, chopped finely
1 green bell pepper, chopped finely
2 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp Italian herb seasonings
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large can whole, stewed tomatoes
1 jar spaghetti sauce (whatever type you like, I used Trader Joe's tomato basil sauce)
1 can of large black olives, drained (optional)
1 lb whole wheat spaghetti noodles
1/2 tbsp olive oil
salt
Parmesan cheese
Directions
1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms and mix well with onions, heat for another 2 minutes.
3. Add peppers and mix with other veggies. Continue sauteing the veggies for another 3-4 minutes. Sizzle in pan should dull and peppers should give off some juice.
4. Add the turkey sausage (remove from casings) and ground turkey. Add garlic salt and Italian herb seasonings. Brown meat completely.
5. Add can of whole, stewed tomatoes and chop up with spatula, add jar of spaghetti sauce and olives.
6. Cover and lower heat to simmer.
7. While sauce is simmering, fill a large pot with water, add 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and sprinkle of salt. Bring to a boil.
8. Cook noodles according to package.
9. Fill a plate with spaghetti noodles, top with meat and veggie sauce. Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and enjoy!!!!!
I served the spaghetti with a fresh garden salad, fresh baked bread (from the store, not by me) and butter.
Side Notes:
1. You can omit the meat and make just a veggie spaghetti or vice versa.
2. You can use all types of veggies, such as eggplant, tomatoes, asparagus, squash, zucchini, etc.
3. Whole wheat noodles have more texture than regular noodles and are naturally al dente tasting. If you want to try a healthier noodle, but don't want to go the extreme of 100% whole wheat, try using a multi-grain noodle. They have a great taste and texture and have more nutrients than the plain white noodles.
Give it a try, doctor up your spaghetti with flavor and good for you ingredients! Hope it becomes a family favorite, just like it is in our house!
Spaghetti has always been a family favorite of ours. I love that I can add whatever I want to it, and it turns out great every time. One standard ingredient that I always like to use is turkey sausage. It adds an incredible flavor to the sauce. Tonight I had fresh veggies on hand and I popped those in the spaghetti pot as well. I will list specifically how I make my spaghetti, but you can use whatever type of meat, noodles and sauce you like.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 lb turkey sausage (hot or sweet flavors)
1 lb ground turkey
1 medium yellow onion, chopped finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 package sliced crimini mushrooms
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped finely
1 red bell pepper, chopped finely
1 green bell pepper, chopped finely
2 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp Italian herb seasonings
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large can whole, stewed tomatoes
1 jar spaghetti sauce (whatever type you like, I used Trader Joe's tomato basil sauce)
1 can of large black olives, drained (optional)
1 lb whole wheat spaghetti noodles
1/2 tbsp olive oil
salt
Parmesan cheese
Directions
1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms and mix well with onions, heat for another 2 minutes.
3. Add peppers and mix with other veggies. Continue sauteing the veggies for another 3-4 minutes. Sizzle in pan should dull and peppers should give off some juice.
4. Add the turkey sausage (remove from casings) and ground turkey. Add garlic salt and Italian herb seasonings. Brown meat completely.
5. Add can of whole, stewed tomatoes and chop up with spatula, add jar of spaghetti sauce and olives.
6. Cover and lower heat to simmer.
7. While sauce is simmering, fill a large pot with water, add 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and sprinkle of salt. Bring to a boil.
8. Cook noodles according to package.
9. Fill a plate with spaghetti noodles, top with meat and veggie sauce. Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and enjoy!!!!!
I served the spaghetti with a fresh garden salad, fresh baked bread (from the store, not by me) and butter.
Side Notes:
1. You can omit the meat and make just a veggie spaghetti or vice versa.
2. You can use all types of veggies, such as eggplant, tomatoes, asparagus, squash, zucchini, etc.
3. Whole wheat noodles have more texture than regular noodles and are naturally al dente tasting. If you want to try a healthier noodle, but don't want to go the extreme of 100% whole wheat, try using a multi-grain noodle. They have a great taste and texture and have more nutrients than the plain white noodles.
Give it a try, doctor up your spaghetti with flavor and good for you ingredients! Hope it becomes a family favorite, just like it is in our house!
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