My Quinoa Vegetable Soup Photo!

This was the very first time I had ever cooked or eaten quinoa! I have been wanting to try it for a while, and with all the rave reviews of this soup, I just had to try it!
Here's my picture.This soup was super yummy. Very good on a cold Alaska evening! I topped mine with cheese and sour cream because I can't resist either!

My Puttanesca Photo !!

If you haven't tried my Mom's Shrimp Pasta Puttanesca, you need to ! NOW !! I made it last night and it was soooo delicious !! The smell as you cook it is enough to make you want to give everyone else a piece of bread and just sit down with the whole pot !!
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I left out the anchovies because when I was chopping them up they had bones in them ! We decided we won't bother with them next time ! AND I used normal tomatoes because I couldn't find anything called Plum Tomato and I had normal ones in the fridge !! Oh, and I sliced, rather than chopped the garlic. I LOVE BIG BITES OF SLICED GARLIC !!
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I served it with Asparagus/Spring Onions on a bed of fresh spinach.





Asparagus and stuff ...


This is a really yummy dish that I adapted from one Shay made while I was visiting her in Denver !
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I just chop up a couple of bunchs of asparagus, and some spring onions. I line a baking dish with non-stick baking paper and just spray a bit of olive oil on top of the veggies before putting them in a hot oven. ( or you can do in the broiler but I find they are more tender done in the oven ) I just watch them but usually it takes about 10/15 minutes for them to be done (tender but not mushy !!). To serve, top with soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, sesame oil and sesame seeds. I do this to taste, I start by filling half a cap full of each ... it's a subtle flavor, don't go overboard !
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Variations.
1. I have served this on top of sliced grilled red bell peppers ! And topped with avocado !
2. I have served on a bed of fresh baby spinach or rocket (arugula) !
3. I'm going to try sprinkling with fetta cheese one time ...
4. I don't always add the sesame seeds to the top !


Granola Peanut Butter Balls


Granola Peanut Butter Balls

www.foodnetwork.com

2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons peanut butter
2 cups granola
2 to 4 tablespoons milk, or as needed

In a large bowl, mix together the honey and peanut butter. Using a spatula, stir in the granola. Add enough milk to just moisten--you want it to stick together. Form into balls. Chill until ready to serve.

Yields: 16 balls

In the picture above, I drizzled a little melted chocolate on the tops. These are so yummy, and nutritious!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps



What you need :
500g (1lb) chicken mince (can you buy chicken mince in the States ? If not, just grind some chicken breast in the food processor.)
1 tbls garlic
6 spring onions (scallions), chopped
1 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbls sesame oil
1 tbls gresh ginger
8 oz can of water chestnuts, drained, chopped ( the water chestnuts, not the can ! )
2 tbls hoisin sauce
3 tbls soy sauce
1 tbls cornstarch
1 oz asian vermicelli rice noodles ( you know, the clear ones ... )
head of iceberg lettuce ( or two depending on size )

How to make it :
Heat oil on med/high heat. Add ginger, garlic, spring onions. Cook for a minute, add chicken. Cook 3 or 4 minutes. Add water chestnuts. In a bowl, mix soy, hoisin, vinegar, cornstarch and 1/4 cup water. After chicken browns, add mixture to pan. Boil and let thicken. Readuce to low and simmer 1 min. Prepare vermicelli rice noodles according to package directions and add at the end. The ones I buy only require you to pour boiling water over them and let set for 5 minutes. These are not essential to the recipe ! You could even leave them out !

How to serve it :
Pull apart lettuce leaves. Put in big bowl and cover with ice water. I put out a big bowl with the chicken mixture, and the bowl of lettuce leaves in the ice water. When ready to eat, scoop a small amount of hot chicken mixture into lettuce leaf. YUM !

Salmon, Brown Rice, and Spinach


This was a YUMMY meal!!!
Rory's Salmon Marinade (adapted)
1/2 cup Soy Sauce
2 teaspoons horseradish
1 teaspoon wasabi
2 Tablespoons pressed garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 4-oz Salmon steaks
Thoroughly combine all but salmon in ziplock bag. Add Salmon. Marinate in fridge throughout day.
Place Salmon grill, skin side down (grill on high). Grill exactly 3 minutes, then flip. Grill exactly 3 more minutes then remove and serve.
Reduce the remaining marinade on stove top. Cook enough brown rice for 4 people. Serve marinade over rice to add yummy flavor.
Sesame Stir-Braised Spinach (from BestLife - 8 food you should eat every day)
Heat 4 cloves of minced garlic (we added more...of course! and left the garlic in larger minced pieces) and 1 teaspoon sesame oil in skillet. Add 2 Tablespoons water and bag of fresh baby spinach. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Drain. Add 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds.
Serve!

Shrimp Pasta Puttanesca

Well, I've set myself up as a blogger and this is officially my first post EVER! We'll see if it really sends! My inaugural recipe is for the dinner I cooked while being filmed as my entry into Rachel Ray's cooking contest. It's simple yet elegant and above all, very, very tasty!

INGREDIENTS (for 4 servings)
6T olive oil
8 (or more if you like) cloves of garlic, chopped (not too small)
8 boned anchovy fillets, chopped
2T capers
16 pitted kalamata olives, sliced
8 ripe plum tomatoes, sliced about 1/4" thick
1/2t pepper (or to taste)
8 oz shrimp, peeled
1T each fresh Italian parsley and basil, rough chopped
8 oz long pasta (I use whole wheat thin spaghetti or cappelini (which is just a little thinner)

PREPARATION
--Put the pasta water on to boil.
--Saute the garlic in the oil till it's soft and starting to turn a little brown, then stir in the anchovies and then the capers. When they smell amazing, hold onto your hat and stir in the olives. When they are warmed through (and you have come back to your senses from the perfume), add the tomato slices and the pepper. Bring to the boiling point and then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring a few times gently to cook evenly but not break the tomatoes.
--After the 15 minutes you should have a lovely saucy juice in the pan. Gently place the shrimp into the sauce and gently cover them with the tomatoes so they can heat through. (They will be cooked when the pasta is done.) At the last minute stir in the parsley and basil.
--Put the pasta in the boiling water to cook. When it's done to a perfect al dente, drain it and divide it into portions on 4 plates. Spoon 1/4 of the sauce onto each lovely pile of pasta.

Mexican Chicken Soup


Mexican Chicken Soup

(www.foodnetwork.com)

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium rib celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
6 cups chicken broth, low-sodium canned
1/4 cup canned green chiles
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can posole drained (also called hominy) or frozen corn kernels
4 canned whole peeled tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup cooked skinless shredded chicken breast (about 4 ounces)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, garlic, chili powder, and cumin, and cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth, bring to a boil, reduce the heat slightly, and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add the green chiles, posole, tomatoes, and oregano and cook for another 5 minutes.

Pull the saucepan from the heat and stir in the chicken, cilantro leaves, and lime juice. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Serve hot.


Nutrition Information per serving Calories 250 Fat 11 grams Carbohydrates 25 grams Fiber 5 grams Protein 16

Lentils & Veggies of the Stir Fried Variety

We had this for dinner last night. I loved it. Rory liked the flavor but isn't big on lentils. I told him we are going to acquire him a taste for them ! It was too spicy for the kids.
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Serves 4
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1 tbls sesame seeds
1 carrot, sliced
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1 cup zucchini, chopped
handful trimmed snow peas
Oil ( I used Olive)
1/2 a red bell pepper
1 tbls finely chopped garlic
1 tbls chopped peeled ginger
1/4 stp crushed chilli flakes
can of lentil ( brown or green )
3 or 4 spring onions, thinly sliced
3 tbls soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
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Dry toast the sesame seeds and set aside.
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Steam the carrots, broccoli, zucchini and snow peas for 5 minutes. Still want them crisp but tender. Pour into strainer and rinse with cool water so they stop cooking.
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Heat oil in fry pan (med-high heat) add red peppers. Cook for a couple minutes. Add garlic, ginger and chilli flaskes. Cook briefly ... add steamed veggies, lentils, soy and sesame oil. Cook and stir for 3 or 4 minutes til heated through.
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I served on brown rice. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on top.


Quinoa with Spinach and Mushrooms

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped fine
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 cup quinoa
1/2 cup white wine
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (8 ounce) package sliced mushrooms
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup white wine (we used a sweet wine...i suppose dry would be fine as well)
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (we use dried)
salt and pepper to taste
1 (10 ounce) bag washed spinach leaves (this is way too much, we just throw in a handfull or 3)
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese (we used feta once and it was just as good...and keeps longer in the fridge)

DIRECTIONS
Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in quinoa until well blended.
Pour in 1/2 cup white wine and cook, stirring, until absorbed by the quinoa, about 30 seconds. Stir in 1 3/4 cups chicken broth, 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, and 1 teaspoon chopped thyme. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Pour in 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, 1/4 cup white wine, 1/4 cup chicken stock, and 1 teaspoon chopped thyme. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the mushrooms soften, about 5 minutes.
Once the quinoa has cooked, stir in the mushroom mixture, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove quinoa from the heat and stir in spinach leaves, which will wilt. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese.

This is yummy and way more filling that you'd think! Plus, Aunt Kathy sent me an article telling about how spinach is pretty much the perfect man-food. So if you have a man, feed him some of this... =)

Eggplant Parmesan

I am not and original cook. Most of the recipes I will be sharing, either came from a book or http://www.foodnetwork.com/. :o)
Thank you Bonnie for the invite! I can't wait to try all this great food!
Here's my first contribution. Sorry no picture. Next time I make it I will be sure to snap a photo, and edit this post.

Eggplant Parmesan
Recipe courtesy Juan-Carlos Cruz - http://www.foodnetwork.com/

1 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup egg substitute
1 medium eggplant, sliced into 6 (1/2-inch) rounds
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed and then minced
1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes
2 (15-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place bread crumbs on a shallow plate. Pour egg substitute onto another shallow plate. Place a wire rack on top of a cookie sheet. Take a round of eggplant, dip it into the egg substitute until fully covered, and then drag through the bread crumbs until completely coated; transfer to a wire rack. Repeat for each round of eggplant and then bake in oven for 15 minutes.

While eggplant is baking, heat olive oil in a 5-quart nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add the chili flakes and stir to incorporate. Add the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste and stir to blend completely. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, stir in the basil, and remove from heat.

Remove eggplant from oven and leave oven at 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a medium-sized casserole dish (about 13 by 11 inches) with the eggplant rounds. Pour the tomato sauce over the eggplant. Top with the cheeses. Bake for 30 minutes until cheese is soft and bubbly. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.


Nutrition Information
Nutritional Analysis per servingCalories 245
Fat 10 gramsSaturated Fat 4 grams
Carbohydrates 26 gramsFiber 5 grams

Non-Cook "Lasagna"



Ok ... I realize this photo looks odd. Like, perhaps something you would like to NOT put in your mouth !! BUT ... it is yummy and I assure you, once you make it, you will not be able to stop putting this in your mouth !! I love it. We had it for a light dinner tonight. Rory had it on fresh white crusty bread. I had it on whole wheat rice crackers.
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1/2 a zucchini, finely sliced
2 cups tightly packed fresh spinach, processed til finely chopped
1/2 cup avocado, mashed
AND
1 ripe tomato, seed and chop (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
1/2 cup red bell pepper
2 tbls olive oil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp salt
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Process everything under the AND ... til smooth.
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Layer zucchini, spinach, avocado, tomato sauce. Do a few layers. I think I got three in a rectangular tupperware and four or five in a square tupperware ... It's best if you leave it set a few hours in the fridge before you eat it. The flavors really develop !
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See ... it is edible !!


Labels

Hello blog authors,

I've added "labels" to the side bar. If you wouldn't mind giving your post a "label" when you do it, I think it will make searching for recipes easier when we have them by the hundreds and thousands !! :) You can give more than one label ... for example, I gave the Artichoke and Cumin dip the labels Artichoke and Dip. Just separate them by a comma. Easy. If you don't know how to label, just let me know !

Bon

Artichoke and Cumin Dip

The photo isn't the best ... but this was TASTY !!!


2 x 400g (14oz) cans artichoke hearts, drained

2 garlic cloves ( I'm pretty sure I used 4)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

olive oil

ground black pepper


This is so easy. Add first three ingredients and a generous drizzle of olive oil to your food processor. Process to a smooth puree and season with black pepper to taste. The recipe I used said to drizzle with olive oil when you serve, but I didn't. Come to think of it, I didn't use any pepper either.


I served with whole grain rice crackers. The recipe said to serve with vegetable crudites, for dipping. I think that would be good too !! Am going to try them when I get eatin' on the leftovers !!


The yummiest thing you'll put in your face

The famous Spicy Chicken Upside-down Whole Wheat G. St. Lasagna:

Whole wheat lasagna noodles (uncooked)
1/4 lb chicken breast, chopped into little pieces (the size you'd use for Thai Chicken Soup)
2 T pesto
1-2 squeezes of chili pepper paste (to taste)
1/2 cup Romano (or Parmesan), finely shredded
1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese


Cook chicken with chili paste, when chicken is cooked through, stir in pesto. Set aside.

Stir together spinach and cottage cheese. Set aside.

In a meatloaf pan, spray non-stick spray. Layer one of the noodles, spread on chicken and pesto, sprinkle Romano cheese on top. Layer 1 or 2 more noodles, to cover chicken, spread on spinach mixture. Layer 1 or 2 more noodles, to cover, then sprinkle on mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 375 for 35-45 min. (I could be making that temperature up...so check it often) until the cheese is browned on the edges and noodles are al dente.

Flip pan upside-down onto a plate and let sit for 5-10 min. Remove from pan and enjoy!

Makes 3 Servings.

Quinoa Vegetable Soup

I know you all have this recipe (especially since it was Shay who gave it to me) but I thought I'd post it to start us of. I only had to cut and paste so it was easy ! Tonight I am trying a new recipe. Lentil Shepherd's Pie. If it's good, I'll post it!


INGREDIENTS :
3/4 cup quinoa
1 tbls canola oil
2 onions finely diced
3 carrots finely diced
2 zucchini finely diced
½ cup corn
1 red bell pepper finely diced
1 tbls minced garlic
2 tsp salt
12 cups vegetable stock
28 oz can of tomatoes ( I like them diced but you can use any )
1 tbls cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1/3 cup fresh cilantro

METHOD:
Rinse and drain quinoa. Add quinoa to a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir 10 minutes til starts to crackle and turn golden. Transfer out of pan and set aside.
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In a heavy stock pot on medium/high – heat oil. Add onion, carrot. Cook 1 to 2 minutes or til onion is translucent. Add zucchini, corn, bell pepper, garlic and salt. Cook 3 minutes or til begin to soften. Add stock. Cover. Bring to the boil over high. Stir in quinoa. Simmer over med/low heat 10 minutes or til quinoa is tender (this always takes longer than 10 minutes … ) Add tomatoes and juice from can. Stir in cumin and ground coriander. Simmer uncovered over medium heat 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro.
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Serve with grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado and corn chips.
I put the cheese, sour cream and avocado on top and then let everyone choose what to do with the corn chips. Some crush on top … some dip. Some, like me, do a bit of both !!
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YUMMY !!! The whole family loves this soup. Even my kids, who are 5 and 3 ...

First Post ...

Having become very discouraged with trying to find healthy recipes that I KNOW WILL BE GOOD ... I've decided to enlist the help of my Mom, two of my cousins and my best friend Shay. All are great cooks and amazingly healthy eaters ... I keep getting emails about all the great things they are cooking. So ... here is my attempt at getting all of those recipes and ideas and hints and tips and nutritional discoveries at my fingertips. Actually, it's more about me feeling like I'm a part of it all but we'll just keep that to ourselves !!