Finally! I'm finally sharing this crowd-pleasing recipe with you! I first made these taquitos a few months ago for a Super Bowl party because I wanted to try something fun and festive but I wanted to steer away from my all-too-common chip/dip combo. These taquitos were amazing! They were crispy and cheesy and a little bit spicy. This adaptation makes a double-batch (about 24-26). It takes a little bit of time to make the filling and roll each one, but it's totally worth it to have a freezer full of these little gems! I usually cook a few of them immediately for dinner and freeze a majority of them. They make for a fantastic last-minute snack for guests and even a quick dinner when you are parenting solo, as I have been this past week! Creamy Chicken Taquitos
Makes 24-26 2 cups shredded, cooked chicken 8 ounces cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup salsa 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice 2 tsp chili powder 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp onion powder 3 garlic cloves, minced 6 tbsp cilantro, chopped 1 cup frozen corn kernels, defrosted 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded 1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded 24-26 6-inch flour tortillas Cooking spray Kosher salt Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. In a large bowl combine shredded chicken, cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic, cilantro, corn and cheeses. Mix until well combined. Briefly heat the tortillas in the microwave so they roll easier (about 10 seconds per 10 tortillas). Place a tortilla on a work surface. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of filling onto the top 1/3 of the tortilla. Fold the top part of the tortilla over the filling and towards you. Continue to roll tightly until you have a taquito. Repeat with the remaining tortillas until you have used all of the filling. If you are baking immediately, place the taquito seam-side-down on the prepared baking sheet. Spray lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt. Baked about 15-20 minutes until crisp and golden brown. If you are freezing for later use, place the taquito seam-side-down on a freezer safe plate that is small enough to fit in your freezer. I use a quarter sheet jelly roll pan. Spray lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt. Freeze for about 30 minutes. Transfer to a freezer safe bag. When ready to eat, bake at 425 F for 15-20 minutes until crisp and golden brown. Serve with sour cream, salsa or guacamole. **Tip - when making Freezer Meals I always write down the name of the item, the date and any cooking instructions, ie, 425 F for 15-20 mins.
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Happy Cinco de Mayo!! Don't worry, my calendar is correct - I realize that I'm 3 days late, but for very good reason! On Sunday, May 6 I participated in my very first marathon. I organized a relay team to run in the Pittsburgh Marathon. I ran the first leg, which was 5.5 miles. I completed it at a turtle's pace but I'm quite proud of my 1:01:43! This was a huge accomplishment for me because though I've always loved running, I've never been very good at it or confident of myself. Let me tell you, this field was intimidating! 25,000 REAL RUNNERS in one spot! My first thought was "Boy, I wish I'd trained more", but once we got started I realized what these events are all about - FUN! That was the biggest surprise to me. I expected the runners to be very serious and the spectators to be a handful of people crazy enough to get up way early on a Sunday to watch a bunch of people run (well, half crazy...us runners were the real crazies!). I was so wrong! There were thousands and thousands of spectators cheering us on every step of the way and the runners themselves were in full-on party mode! They were shouting and cheering and dancing...it was insanely amazing and I'm so happy that I finally got to run in a marathon. It's especially moving for me that my first experience was in a city that I love more than anywhere else in the world. Thank you Pittsburgh for letting me enjoy you on a whole different level!! I will run again! To that end, the night before the marathon was Cinco de Mayo. I spent the day eating rather bland, carby foods. I realized everyone else was throwing back some margaritas and eating yummy, Mexican goodness, but I knew that wasn't the right food for the night before the biggest race of my life. I decided to make up for it with a small Cinco de Mayo feast on Siete de Mayo! Today I'm going to share my guacamole recipe with you. I absolutely adore avocados. I've made them into guacamole countless times, topped salads with them, smashed them down into a paste for sandwiches and even made them into dessert. I have always sort of 'winged it' with guacamole, but I found this recipe a few years ago and it was just perfect for my taste. The original recipe calls for a serrano chili pepper, but I've omitted it because I want the flavor of the avocado to shine through. If you want your guacamole a little spicy, just add 1-3 chilies to the first step when you make the 'paste'. Also, I soak my onions for a few minutes to reduce their bite. If you prefer the bite of raw onions, you can omit the soaking step as well. Go ahead, make it your own! Guacamole
1/4 cup white onion, chopped 3/4 cup torn cilantro kosher salt, big pinch 3 avocados, diced 1 plum tomato, halved, insides discarded, then diced Soak onion in a small bowl with cold water for 10-15 minutes. Drain. Place onion, cilantro and kosher salt in a pile on a cutting board. Chop, then mash into a paste with the flat side of a large knife. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl. Add diced avocados and mash with a wooden spoon until well combined, but still chunky. Stir in the diced tomato. Adjust seasoning with additional kosher salt. Cover with plastic wrap placed directly down on top of the guacamole to reduce oxidation. Place in the refrigerator to allow flavors to meld until you are ready to eat it. Source Food Network Magazine - May 2010 Last year when I started back on Weight Watchers I missed baking, in a bad way. Luckily, Weight Watchers had several recipes on their website that involved flour, sugar, measuring, etc. I'm not a huge fan of some of their weight loss techniques (artificial sweeteners, fat-free, 'fake' foods, etc) but with a few modifications, this recipe turned out to be perfectly delicious and healthy. JP even asks for these often for her school snack! I keep them in the freezer and throw a few in her snack box in the morning and they are thawed out by snack time. If you want a chocolate fix right now and can't wait, just pop them in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Super easy and great to have on hand! Banana Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins
Makes about 36 mini muffins 1 cup plain, low-fat yogurt 1/2 cup 2% milk 1/2 cup uncooked, quick oats 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1 large egg, beaten 1 large banana, mashed 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips Preheat oven to 375. Coat mini muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Combine yogurt, milk, oats, vanilla extract and egg. Set aside for 5 minutes for oats to soften. Stir in mashed banana. In a separate bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into yogurt mixture to moisten ingredients. Do not beat. Dough will be very thick. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into prepared mini muffin tins. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Source Adapted from Weight Watchers So, I remember years ago, it was Thanksgiving 2004. My parents and sister decided to join my husband and me at my in-law's house for Thanksgiving dinner. After dinner my parents, sister and I drove to King of Prussia for some Black Friday shopping while my husband spend a few days with his dad at a hunting camp. I was so excited to go to King of Prussia Mall again! A place I had yearned to go to for years, then when I lived in West Chester I was able to frequent often and became quite familiar with this beautiful mammoth. This trip was also exciting for me because my husband and I had just signed the papers to buy/build a new townhouse with a shiny new stainless steel kitchen! After spending 12 hours in a mall full of endless choices I found myself leaving with two small bags. One bag from Pottery Barn with a few Christmas ornaments. And one bag from Williams-Sonoma with a shiny new cookbook filled with healthy recipes! A brand new kitchen and a new cookbook filled with HEALTHY recipes!?!? I could hardly contain my excitement! This could be life-changing! Fast forward a few months to when we moved into our new house with the shiny kitchen. At that point life was pretty crazy. Not only were we in the middle of a move, but I was also a few months pregnant with sweet little JP! Cooking was the last thing on my mind. And so the cookbook sat....sat on a shelf, then in a closet and most recently in a box in the garage. Sure, I'd made one or two recipes from it but for the most part, this book just got pushed aside for something else. A few weeks ago when I'd realized I'd eaten a few too many cupcakes I was tempted to buy a new, healthy cookbook. Just then I remember this little gem and started to search for it. I found it in a plastic tote in the garage and I'm so happy I did! Looking through it now the recipes seem FAR less involved and complicated as I thought they were back in 2004. Maybe it's because I'm a much better cook than I was then, but I think alot of it is because so many ingredients are so widely available today compared to 2004 (Broccolini?? Goat Cheese??). Overall, this is one of the easiest dishes I've ever made. There is very little prep work, it comes together very quickly and it's a perfect pasta dish for the warm summer months up ahead. If you don't usually salt your pasta water make sure you do AND make sure you use the recommended 2 tablespoons. You'll thank me later!! Pasta with Tomatoes, Arugula & Goat Cheese
3/4 pound ziti, fusilli or cavatappi 2 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided 2 cups loosely packed arugula 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved 1 garlic clove, minced 1/4 cup (1 ounce) fresh goat cheese, crumbled Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of salt to the boiling water before adding the pasta. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Before draining pasta, reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Drain pasta, mix in arugula and place in a warm bowl. While the pasta is cooking, add olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil heats up add tomatoes to the pan and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute an additional 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, season with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Place over warm pasta. Add crumbled goat cheese, tossing to combine all ingredients. Add a little of the reserved pasta water if the dish is a bit dry. Season with fresh ground pepper to taste. I’m back! What a crazy two weeks it’s been for me! I chaired the Book Fair at my daughter’s elementary school all last week. This is the third Book Fair for me in 11 months and each time I start the week out feeling pretty ok on Monday, but drag-my-feet-tired by Friday. Each time I have a Book Fair I start the week off so normally – keeping up with laundry & cleaning, staying on track with my running, keeping healthy and wholesome meals on the table. And each time I fail at each one of those things by Tuesday. This Book Fair was no different. I did manage to do my 4 ½ mile training run Tuesday night, but besides that, everything else fell to the wayside…including my beloved blog. In retrospect I would have loved to have shared something really cool with you yesterday to celebrate 3 years of being a stay-at-home-mom (hooray!) but it just didn’t happen. All that being said, I’m back! I’m excited to get back to my kitchen adventures and blogging! When I first saw this recipe I thought it looked refreshing and healthy. I had planned on making it Sunday morning for a nice, relaxing brunch at home, but with no groceries in the house, it had to stand in for a refreshing dessert. For those of you who have never used basil in a sweet dish I really encourage you to give it a try. Basil in anything just screams summer to me. I’ve had much success pairing it with strawberries and in this smoothie it works really nicely with the lemon simple syrup. Even though we had this as a dessert, this would make a fantastic breakfast smoothie or brunch accompaniment. To save time you can make the lemon simple syrup the night before and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. Lemon Zest Simple Syrup
Makes 1 1/2 cups 1 cup sugar Zest of 1 lemon 1 cup water In a small saucepan, combine sugar, water and lemon zest over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat. Allow to cool for at least 20 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh sieve lined with a cheesecloth or durable paper towel to remove lemon zest. If not using the same day, store in the refrigerator. Sweet Basil Smoothie Makes 4 6-ounce servings 1 1/4 cups plain non-fat Greek yogurt 1 cup packed basil leaves Lemon Zest Simple Syrup (entire recipe) 1 cup crushed ice Combine Greek yogurt, basil, Lemon Zest Simple Syrup and crushed ice in a blender. Puree until smooth and frothy. Pour into frosted glasses and serve immediately. So, I told my family yesterday that we were having pizza for dinner. Naturally, they were all happy about that. Then, when this Shaved Asparagus Pizza arrived at the table boy did they ever change their tune. My 6-year-old refused to eat it: "Are you kidding me? No sauce?" This was totally expected from her. My hubby looked a little skeptical, but he is always my biggest supporter and will try every single thing I make. Me? I like asparagus, but I felt defeated before my first bite by everyone's reaction. No one was geared up about dinner. And then....WOW! By the first bite this pizza really blew me away!! The asparagus cooked down nicely and some of it was even a little crunchy. The Boursin cheese was filled with creamy herbs and the fresh mozzarella was just perfect! The crust is a real treat in itself. You can use your favorite pizza dough recipe or even store bought if that's your thing. I'll share this crust recipe with you in a few days. In the end Hubby agreed that this was a pretty amazing pizza! It was hard not to devour the whole pie last night but we managed to save some for lunch today. We just threw it back on the pizza stone for a few minutes and it was just as good as last night. I know this will be making an appearance on our menu again very soon. I just HAD to get this recipe out to you so you can make this pizza soon and enjoy all that asparagus out there!! Shaved Asparagus Pizza
Pizza dough Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing 1 lb asparagus spears 4 oz fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced 5 oz spreadable garlic herb cheese, such as Boursin Kosher salt and pepper, to taste Preheat oven and a pizza stone at 500 for at least 30 minutes. Allow pizza dough to come to room temperature during this time. After 30 minutes roll out the pizza dough to a 12-14 inch round and place on a pizza peel generously covered with cornmeal or semolina. Lightly brush dough with extra virgin olive oil. Cut the tough stems off the end of the asparagus spears. Using a vegetable peeler, shave each spear into thin ribbons. This looks like a LOT of asparagus, but it cooks down nicely. Place the sliced mozzarella on the pizza dough in an even layer. Pile shaved asparagus on top of mozzarella. Dot the top of the pizza with chunks of the Boursin cheese. Sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Transfer pizza to pre-heated pizza stone. Having enough cornmeal on your pizza peel is crucial for the pizza to slide smoothly off of the peel and onto the stone. Bake about 12-14 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is brown. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool slightly before serving. I'm about to make a confession. A confession that may get me beaten by 90% of the people I know. I don't like chocolate cake. There. I said it. It's out there. I like chocolate candy, chocolate pudding and sometimes chocolate ice cream, but not chocolate cake. That's why I'm super excited to share with you my little creation I call a Chocolate Milk Cupcake! It tastes like, well, chocolate milk! Super moist with a hint of chocolate in the cake topped with buttercream that not only has chocolate milk in it, but also chocolate syrup. To finish it off I top it with a bit of that fleur de sel that I love so much to give you that salty sweet satisfaction! When I first started getting serious about cupcake baking I came across an incredibly delicious eggnog cupcake on Annie's Eats. Everyone, everywhere loved these cupcakes. After the holidays passed I was wondering how I could tweak this recipe a bit and make it a year-round favorite. I swapped out the eggnog for chocolate milk, made some other additions and this little baby was born! Chocolate Milk Cupcakes with Chocolate Milk Buttercream Makes 12-14 cupcakes For the cupcakes 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour ** 1/4 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 cup Creme de Cacao 1 cup chocolate milk - whole milk variety 1/4 cup canola oil 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup sugar Preheat oven to 350. Line a standard cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment mix together Creme de Cacao, chocolate milk, canola oil, vanilla and sugar. Beat on medium speed until well blended. Gradually add dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined. Scoop the batter into cupcake liners filling them about 2/3 full. Bake for 22-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. ** These cupcakes can be made Gluten Free by using 1 1/3 cups high-quality Gluten Free Flour Mix. I use Gluuteny Basic Flour Mix from Gluuteny. For the Fleur de Sel Buttercream
Makes enough to frost 12-14 cupcakes 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (I use Plugra European butter) 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted 2 tbsp chocolate milk 1 tbsp vanilla 2 tbsp chocolate syrup 1/8-1/4 tsp fleur de sel Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Cream the butter for about 1 minute. Add 1 cup of confectioner's sugar and mix on low until well combined. Add chocolate milk, vanilla, chocolate syrup and fleur de sel, mixing for about 30 seconds. Add the remaining 1 cup of confectioner's sugar and mix until just incorporated. Increase mixer speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer frosting to a large pastry bag fitted with a large tip and swirl frosting onto cupcakes. Drizzle with additional chocolate syrup. Check out these cute little marshmallow pops! Aren't they adorable?? I made these yesterday for my 6-year-old daughter's class party today. In the age of so many nut allergies you find yourself limited as to what you can give as party treats. These definitely fit the bill of being nut-free because they are sugar and sugar topped with more sugar! Kiddos love them! Parents...well, I'm sorry! These are so incredibly easy to make you have to give them a try! I used Easter colored sprinkles but you could whip these up for any event (baby showers, Halloween, Christmas, etc.) One suggestion I will make is to try to find the marshmallow bag with the most 'round' marshmallows in it. I had a good bit of oddly shaped, squashed ones. They worked out fine, but the rounder ones made for the prettiest pops. Here is what you need and what I did (Sorry, but I hesitate to call this a recipe because it's just so easy!) Marshmallow Pops
Marshmallows - regular size Lollipop sticks - you can find these at craft stores in the candy section Variety of colored sugar sprinkles Insert lollipop sticks into the marshmallows. Push the sticks almost to the top of the marshmallow. Dip the marshmallow in a bowl of water. Blot excess water off onto a paper towel. Hold marshmallow pop over a bowl of sprinkles. Using a spoon drop the sprinkles over the lollipop until it's completely coated. Prop up in a cup to dry. Source As seen in Food Network Magazine via Sugarlicious, Meaghan Mountford I admit it. Coleslaw is not something I usually enjoy (unless it's served on a Primanti's sandwich, but that's another kind of blog!) I usually pass it up at picnics and push it to the side of my plate when it arrives unannounced at a restaurant. I was reluctant to try this recipe but I needed a side dish for the Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches and this looked easy and had mostly ingredients I already had on-hand. I'm so glad we tried this! It's tangy and refreshing - it tastes healthy and sinful at the same time. It's the perfect complement to the chicken sandwiches and I think it would go wonderfully with any summer picnic dish! Lightened-Up Classic Coleslaw Serves 6 1 5.3-ounce container nonfat Greek yogurt (or 1/2 cup) 1/4 cup mayonnaise (reduced fat is fine) 1/4 cup cider vinegar 1 tbsp honey 1/2 tsp kosher salt 1/4 tsp black pepper 1 16-ounce bag pre-shredded coleslaw mix 2 tsp caraway seeds (optional) In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper. Add the coleslaw mix and the caraway seeds, if using. Toss to coat. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate up to an hour.
Source Very slightly adapted from So Easy, by Ellie Krieger Today I want to share with you a newly discovered recipe from a cookbook I've had for a while. This recipe is a take on tasty, comforting pulled pork sandwiches, but it uses chicken instead. The original recipe called for a store-bought rotisserie chicken and a quick stove-top execution. I decided to make some modifications and give this a try in the crock pot using fresh chicken breast. To my excitement the meal came out amazingly tasty with perfectly balanced flavors! An added bonus is that both of my toughest critics (JP & Bean) gobbled up their dinner! We even had enough leftover to make sliders for lunch the next day! This sandwich paired with some lightened up coleslaw just screams summer to me. I am planning on doubling this recipe and taking it to some picnics this summer along with some homemade hamburger buns (which I swear by these days!) I'll be sharing those recipes with you all soon! Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
Makes about 6 regular sized sandwiches or 10-12 sliders 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast 1 medium onion, chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce 1/2 cup water 1/3 cup cider vinegar 5 tbsp molasses 1/4 cup tomato paste 1/2 tsp liquid smoke 1/4 tsp black pepper Place all ingredients in a slow cooker set to low. Cook for 5-7 hours. Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred on a plate with two forks. Return shredded chicken to slow cooker and stir to combine. Serve on hamburger buns. Source Adapted from So Easy, by Ellie Krieger |
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