Greek Couscous Salad

From Friday to Tuesday we had a glimpse of spring weather. Indeed, Monday and Tuesday got into the 60s! The sun was shining. Scarves, hats, and mittens were unnecessary. Boots were left on the mat at home.

Then there was last night. The rain/hail/snow/windstorm came back with vengeance. It woke me in the middle of the night for a few hours while it was trying to break through my windows. In the morning I could hear people scraping the icy snow mixture off their cars. I almost threw the covers over my head and declared I wasn't coming out until winter leaves us alone.

Unfortunately real life doesn't allow me to do that. So I'll settle for spring on my plate. In the form of this couscous salad. It goes perfect as a side to a grilled pork chop, chicken breast, or piece of fish. Make it. Sip a fruity cocktail. Pretend spring is out of hibernation for real.

Greek Couscous Salad 
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cooked couscous
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/4 cup diced red onion
kernels from one ear of corn
1/3 cup sliced black olives
1/3 cup feta cheese
juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
Stir together the couscous, vegetables, olives, and cheese. Squeeze the lemon juice on top and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, to your own taste.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Italian Stuffed Peppers

When I was a little girl, I was a figure skater. I would spend early mornings before school at the rink. And evenings for team practice. Saturdays I would volunteer to teach even littler kids. It was great.

I think I need to dust off my skates. Our weather warmed on Saturday afternoon resulting in freezing rain and a whole lot of melted snow. Of course when it refroze Saturday night, we got an ice rink on every surface. Like an inch of frozen solid ice on the parking lots and sidewalks. That makes walking (even in boots) difficult. Hence the need for ice skates.

These stuffed peppers are hearty and delicious for the cold weather. They may not protect you from the inevitable slipping and falling on your behind, but they will make you feel safe and warm at your kitchen table.

Italian Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients:
1/3 lb ground beef
1 medium tomato
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped peppers (red, banana, green, etc)
1 baby eggplant, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
handful of basil, roughly chopped
1/3 cup tomato juice
1/3 cup bread crumbs
handful of shredded mozzarella cheese
2 whole green bell peppers, tops removed, cored and seeded

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F.

Brown the ground beef in a pan over medium heat until no longer pink, about 4-5 minutes. Drain fat. Add the tomato, onion, chopped peppers, eggplant, and garlic. Cook until the veggies are softened, about 4-5 minutes. Add the basil and tomato juice and stir to combine. Stir in the bread crumbs. Remove from the heat.

Place the whole green peppers in a baking sheet sitting up. Fill with the beef mixture. Top with shredded cheese. Bake for 40 minutes.

Serves 2.

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

Boy it is getting hot out there.

Today we had a high of 22 F!! That is practically Caribbean weather, right? Well, at least relative to the high of -11 F with a windchill of -45 F on Monday. Yeah, it was really cold.

And when you are really cold, you need a chili to warm you up. Here is one of my favorites. It is a white chicken chili packed full of flavor after cooking all day in your slow cooker. The leftovers are perfect reheated or repurposed into nachos or a salad, so make the whole batch, ok?

Now I'm off to resume my comfy place on my couch with my slippers, blanket, and a mug of steaming hot cocoa. I'm not leaving until the weather warms to at least freezing.

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili (adapted from Fix-it and Forget-it)
Ingredients:
1 lb dried great northern beans
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 1/2 cups diced bell peppers (I used a combination of red, yellow, and green)
2 jalapeno peppers, diced (I seeded one and left the other with seeds, but adjust for your desired spice)
1 medium onion, diced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
4 cups chicken broth (homemade or low sodium store-bought. If using store-bought, omit salt)
2 cups water

Directions:
The night before, rinse and pick over the northern beans. Place in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Let soak overnight.

The morning of, drain the beans. Place them back in the saucepan and cover again with water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain the water.

Mix together the beans, chicken, peppers, onion, garlic, cumin, salt, broth and water in the crock of your slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours (or high 4-5 hours). Stir and season with additional salt and pepper as desired.

Ladle into bowls and top with shredded cheese, Greek yogurt or sour cream, or additional garnishes as desired.

Makes 8 servings.

Lasagna Soup

Oh hey there fancy pants!

I have been wearing my fancy pants for almost all of November and fancy pants apparently do not allow for blog posting. Actually, I kid, it is the job interviewing and flying all over the country that does not allow for blog posting. I do [almost] officially have a job as a professor starting Fall 2014. I'll tell you details at a later point once I dot all the i's and cross all the t's.

For now I'll just share with you a comforting fall or winter soup. I love lasagna but with an always busy schedule I rarely have the time to assemble and bake the whole casserole. This soup completely lives up to the flavors of tomato, cheese, and pasta that I crave but without the time commitment. I filled it with a little bit of ground beef and a ton of mushrooms because that is how I prefer my lasagna, but feel free to do your thing.

Lasagna Soup (adapted from Paula Deen)
Ingredients:
1/3 lb ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 cups chicken stock (homemade or low sodium store-bought)
2 cups water
28 oz can petite diced tomatoes
15 oz can tomato sauce
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt (+ more to taste)
freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 cups broken lasagna noodles
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
shredded mozzarella cheese, about 2 cups

Directions:
In a Dutch oven, cook the ground beef, onion, bell pepper, and garlic over medium-high heat for about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned. Drain. Stir in the mushrooms, thyme, brown sugar, stock, water, tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the broken noodles and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parmesan cheese.

Preheat the broiler. Ladle whatever soup you are going to eat into ovenproof crocks/bowls. Sprinkle each with about 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Broil about 6-inches from the heat for about 3-4 minutes until melted, browned and bubbly.

Serves 6-8.

Creamy Tomato and Artichoke Soup

When my parents were visiting, my mom left me all of her magazines that she has read during the car trip. I love my traditional cooking magazines but I do enjoy perusing her Midwest Living, LHJ, and Woman's Day because they can surprise me with an intriguing recipe here or there. Case and point -- Creamy Tomato and Artichoke Soup from LHJ.

I know we've talked tomato soup and grilled cheese before. However, I've focused on the grilled cheese part because I have nothing against a can of Campbell's tomato soup. Open it up, mix it with a little milk and water, heat, and you're ready to go.

But if you've got a little extra time, you should definitely be making this tomato and artichoke soup. It is nice and creamy because of the milk and half and half, but it has a little extra tang from the artichokes. There is more texture to the soup because of onions and artichokes.

Really, it doesn't take too much more time than opening the can. You should do it!

Creamy Tomato and Artichoke Soup (adapted from Ladies Home Journal March 2013)
Ingredients:
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions (both green and white parts)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tbsp flour
1 cup vegetable broth (homemade or low sodium)
1 cup milk
5 oz artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped
16 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup half and half

Directions:
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, green onion (save some of the green parts for serving), and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and flour and stir about 1 minute to heat through. Stir in the broth, milk, artichokes, salt and crushed tomatoes. Bring to simmer (do not boil in order to avoid scalding the milk). Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft. Add the half and half.

Serve garnished with additional green onions... and accompanied with a grilled cheese! 

Serves 3-4.

Beef and Black Bean Chili (Slow Cooker)

Seriously busy time in my life right now, y'all! Hence the lack of posts. Luckily, I've been able to make some yummy food that I cannot wait to share with you; unfortunately, I haven't had time to type up the recipes, come up with witty stories, and post them.

So here's a post-- very bare bones in terms of an introduction but yummy food nonetheless. This is an alternative to your "normal" chili that I would certainly suggest if you are a black bean lover. The beans and meat soak up a lot of the liquid so be prepared for a thick chili. Perfect for a cold windy day... especially since it will be cooking all day in the crockpot!

Beef and Black Bean Chili (adapted from Martha Stewart)
Ingredients:
1/3 lb top loin steak, cut into 1/4 inch pieces (or beef stew meat would work as well)
1 1/2 cups tomato juice (low or no sodium)
2 cups water
1 cup dried black beans, rinsed
1/2 large red onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp kosher salt (more or less to taste)
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
sour cream, for serving

Directions:
Combine the steak, tomato juice, water, black beans, onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper in your slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-9 hours (or high for 5-6 hours). Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.

Serve garnished with sour cream.

Serves 3-4.

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup

Brrr it's cold in here.
There must be some Torros in the atmosphere.
O E O E O.
Ice ice ice.

Seriously ice ice ice; today has a windchill of -7. NEGATIVE SEVEN. I almost froze off my toes, fingers, nose, and ears walking into work from my car today. And I was wearing a scarf, hat and mittens. Yeah. Brrrrr cold. It is days like today that I miss North Carolina winters. I long for lows in the 20-30s and varied elevations that can block some of the wind.

Days like today also make me want hot, steaming soup. Good thing I made this chicken noodle soup last week so I had leftovers to warm up for lunch today. It helped warm my core (although my extremities are still feeling phantom breezes).

The best thing about this recipe is that it is quality comfort food. Not only is the weather in full winter force, but many people have been succumbing to the flu. This will remedy both those things. I know when you are sick you have no desire to be cooking anything, but this is perfect because even your significant other with no kitchen experience can whip it up in a heart beat. I used leftover chicken thighs from a recipe I was testing for a fellow blogger last week. You could certainly use a precooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. Or just quickly boil a few chicken breasts and throw those in. To make it even more simple for your loved one to wait on you, they could pick up prediced onion, carrots and celery.

Do it! Your body will thank you.

Chicken Noodle Soup (adapted from a recipe card from Kroger)
Ingredients:
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1 tbsp flour
4 cups vegetable stock (homemade) or low sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1/4 tsp salt, more to taste
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper, more to taste
3 tbsp pearled barley
1 1/2 cups chopped, cooked chicken thighs and/or breasts
3 oz whole wheat spaghetti noodles, broken in half
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

Directions:
Heat oil in a large pot oven medium high heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and saute for about 3 minutes. Stir in the flour and mix to coat. Whisk in broth and water. Add salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the barley, bring back to a boil, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the barley is tender. Add the chicken and noodles. Bring back to a boil and cook 8-10 minutes until noodles are cooked completely and chicken is hot. Stir in parsley. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, as desired.

Serves 4-6.

Mandarin Orange Spinach Salad

The holidays are over and we're back into the swing of things.

I guess I'm still a novice food blogger because although I had great intentions of posting delicious recipes and witty commentary during my time off from work, I found myself relaxing and enjoying the time almost completely unplugged. The lack of turning on my computer resulted in a lack of blog posts.

I did some cooking and baking with the family for the holidays (don't worry, recipes to come!). I got to spend time with the cutest niece in the entire world. When I got back to town last Thursday, I had a nasty cold that kept me on the couch on Friday (despite my plans of working that day). Then Scott came to town, well we spent the weekend in St. Louis, for New Years. All in all a successful holiday season for this girl.

I also got to meet up with some friends from college and from high school while I was in Michigan. With the latter group, we had pizza lunch and I volunteered to bring a salad. This salad was quick and easy to whip together and enjoyed by everyone the girls, in particular. A healthy start for the new year!

Happy 2013!

Mandarin Orange Spinach Salad
Ingredients:
8-10 oz fresh baby spinach
15 oz can mandarin oranges, drained
1/4 large red onion, chopped thinly
1/3 cup craisins
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
Toss together the spinach, oranges, onion, craisins, almonds and cheese.

Whisk the mustard and vinegar in a small bowl. While whisking, stream in the oil.

Either serve with the dressing on the side or toss with the spinach mixture.

Sweet Potato and Peanut Tomato Soup

You guys, can you believe that it is one week until Christmas?!?!

I am definitely in the holiday spirit! I've found a Christmas station on the radio (which is a hard thing to do when you're celebrating your first holiday season in a new city), I've done a bit of baking and packaged up treats to give to my co-workers (you'll see that recipe tomorrow!) and my shopping is almost all done. I have even already wrapped most of my presents (this is the beauty of not having to fly home). Now I'm just counting the hours until I'm on vacay. ;)

The weather has finally reached winter temperatures and that has gotten me in the mood for comfort food in the form of soup. This past weekend I made this delicious creamy soup. Spoiler alert- it contains no cream! Which means that it is a LOT healthier than most cream-based soups. Instead, it is the combination of the pureed sweet potato and the peanut butter that gives that creamy feel. The flavor is reminiscent of tomato soup with an extra kick from the chilies and of course the peanut taste is prominent as well. It is almost like a Thai-inspired tomato soup. It tasted great the first day but may have been even better after flavors had time to meld in the fridge and I reheated it for lunch the next day.

Note that I used homemade vegetable broth (that contains no salt) and no salt added tomato juice. This allowed me to adjust the seasoning as I desired (and avoid excess sodium). Even if you purchase low-sodium broth and juice, you will certainly not need to add an entire tsp of salt. Make sure to taste and season!

Sweet Potato and Peanut Tomato Soup (adapted from Eating Well)
Ingredients:
3 medium sweet potatoes
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
3 cups tomato juice, no salt added
4 oz can chopped green chilies
1 tsp ground all-spice
2 cups vegetable broth (homemade or store bought)
1/2 cup smooth natural peanut butter
1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
freshly ground pepper, to taste
chopped peanuts, for garnish
chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Directions:
Rinse and wash the sweet potatoes. Prick them with a fork multiple times. Place them in a microwave safe container and microwave on high for 7-10 minutes until soft and cooked. Allow to cool.

Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 1 minute. Add the ginger, tomato juice, chilies and all-spice. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

After potatoes have cooled, peel them and chop into bite sized pieces. Add half of the chopped potato to the pot. Combine the remaining half with the vegetable broth and peanut butter in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Mix into the pot on the heat. Add the salt and pepper, tasting and adding additional if you desire. Simmer for at least 5 minutes to heat through (you can keep it on the heat for longer if you want).

Serve garnished with chopped peanuts and fresh parsley.

Serves 4-5.

Turkey Enchiladas

I apologize for all the turkey recipes.

I'm actually done with all the leftover turkey in my house, but I have this ONE LAST recipe to share with you regarding what to do with your extras from Thanksgiving. Of course, you may already be done with your turkey and that is ALL GOOD. You can definitely sub in some CHICKEN for ANY of these recipes. So please bear with me for this last post and next week we'll be on to different things like COOKIES, SOUPS and other delights.

Why am I typing in ALL CAPS for SO MANY words today? Who knows? You just do the things that feel RIGHT. Am I right?

Let's talk about these enchiladas. I got it in my mind that I was going to make turkey enchiladas even before I left for Thanksgiving weekend. I saw this recipe and feel in LOVE. Just think, a spicy sweet cranberry tomato sauce smothered over deliciously filled tortillas. Yum! However, we didn't have any leftover cranberry sauce because we DEMOLISHED it in a blink of the eye. I debated purchasing a can or just making some more, but I decided instead to adapt my go-to red sauce enchiladas to incorporate the leftover turkey. Sooo YUMMY. Totally works with CHICKEN too. ;)

Turkey Enchiladas (adapted from Annie's Eats)
Ingredients:
1 tsp canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 jalapeno, diced (include however many seeds you want for your spice threshold)
2 garlic cloves, diced
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 cup turkey stock (or vegetable broth)
1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked turkey
2 cups shredded cheddar jack cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
10 8 inch corn tortillas

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 F.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the onion and jalapeno and cook until they have softened, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin and sugar and mix to coat the onion and pepper with the seasonings. Whisk in the tomato sauce, turkey stock and grape tomatoes. Bring to a simmer, lower the heat and cook until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded turkey and mix to coat. Cook for about 5 minutes more.

Place a thin mesh strainer over a large bowl and pour the liquid into the strainer to remove all of the solids. Combine the turkey and vegetable mixture with 1/4 cup sauce, 1 cup of cheese and the chopped parsley. Mix well.

Spray a large baking pan with cooking spray.

Microwave the corn tortillas wrapped in a damp paper towel for about 1 minute so they are pliable. Add about 1/3 cup of the turkey mixture to the middle of each tortilla, roll up tightly and place in the baking pan. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes until the cheese is bubbly.

Let cool slightly before serving. Garnish with sour cream and additionally chopped parsley.

Turkey and Noodles

How to work-out when you are a chemistry postdoc (or graduate student):

Of course, you can go running outside, swim laps in a pool, or lift weights at the gym, but I want to share with you a number of fool-proof ways to stay "fit" while you're working in a lab.**

1. Make sure you join a lab that is NOT on the ground floor (the science they do is not that important-- the key is the location, location, location). It is particularly good if you can find a lab space that is on the 4th or 5th floor or down in the basement. Then make sure you walk up and down the stairs at least twice a day; especially when you are carrying your computer to and from work.

2. Utilize those same stairs if you need to run an instrument on another floor. For example, if you have 13C NMR time for a few hours and go back down and check it every hour or so. Your butt will thank you.

3. Find TWO full 4 liter bottles of solvent; place them in the nice rubber carrying cases. Perform bicep curls with them. Start with hexanes and move your way up to chloroform.

4. When you are stuck collecting fractions from a column (whether it be flash or HPLC or FPLC), do lunges and squats in front of your hood or instrument.

5. Fill up your ice bucket with 5 pounds of dry ice everyday. While you are walking back to lab, straighten your arms and lift up and down. Or over your head. Work all your different arm muscles.

6. Make sure when you are picking a parking lot for your car permit that it is at LEAST two to three blocks away from your building. You will have to walk back and forth everyday (once again carrying that computer).

7. Invest in lots of textbooks and the like. Stack them all up and carry them around when you walk about campus. Not only will you look smart, you'll be burning more calories.


Okay, now use up an extra turkey you still have in your fridge and make this turkey and noodle recipe. My mom always makes it after Thanksgiving, you should too!

Turkey and Noodles (Recipe from my Mom's kitchen)
Ingredients:
2 cups chopped or shredded roasted turkey
1 can cream of chicken soup
3 cups turkey stock (or chicken broth)
2 tbsp onion, diced (or 1 tsp dried minced onion)
6 oz Kluski egg noodles
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:
Whisk together the soup, stock and onion in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Add the noodles, lower the heat, and cook for 5-6 minutes until they start to soften. Stir in the turkey. Continue to cook for 10-15 minutes until the noodles are cooked completely through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 3.

**Disclaimer: I am not a registered trainer or even that fit, for that manner. Please perform all "work-outs" at your own discretion and with the utmost regard for safety in your own lab. ;)

Turkey Stock

Question--- what's the difference between stock and broth?

I did some googling (side bar: can you believe that google is in the dictionary as both a noun and a verb? Google wasn't even started until the late 1990s and now we use the word so often; it is crazy.) and found a few answers. First, I think in order for something to be a "stock", it needs to have been made with bones. But then how can there be vegetable stock? I dunno. Broth, on the other hand, is typically made with more meat pieces, salt and other seasonings that make it something you could eat directly from the pot. Most places that you look, however, say that chefs tend to use the words interchangeably, especially when they are homemade. Since I don't add any salt to either stock or broth, I wouldn't suggest eating them directly from the pot without seasoning. But regardless of what you call them, I would definitely encourage you to make them at home. My parents and I made this turkey stock on Thanksgiving because why throw away the carcass without getting a little something extra from it? Play around with the vegetables and seasoning and use what you have in your fridge (or even scraps from your freezer would work). Alternatively, just sub bones and skin from a chicken to make chicken stock.

Turkey Stock (adapted from Vegetable Broth)
Ingredients:
1/2 to full carcass of roasted turkey, plus skin
1 medium onion, cut into quarters
2-3 celery stalks, cut into large chunks
8-10 baby carrots
1 bay leaf
large handful of fresh parsley
4-5 fresh sage leaves
2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
2-3 peppercorns
Cold water

Directions:
After you have carved your turkey and picked off most of the meat (you don't need to pick it clean, some meat will help to flavor it), break down the bones and add them plus any skin and fat to a large pot. Add all of the vegetables and seasonings. Cover with cold water. Turn on the stove and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3-8 hours.

Pour the liquid through a small mesh strainer and remove all of the solids. Let cool to room temperature (or you could cover it and put it outside if it is colder out there); you don't want to put it directly into your fridge because the heat will warm up the inside of your fridge and it may not be at the correct temperature for everything else you have in there. Once it has cooled to room temperature, place it in the fridge overnight. In the morning, skim off the fat using a spoon or fat skimmer (you can leave some fat if you would like, if you remove it all, you have fat free broth!). Portion into 1 cup and 2 tbsp (ice cube tray) aliquots and freeze.

Thaw and use in place of chicken stock or broth for whatever recipes you desire!

Remember when you use this that you will want to taste your dish and salt generously. Unlike the stock/broth that you buy in the store, this is salt free!

Butternut Squash, Broccoli and Spinach Mac and Cheese

I have this white board hanging in my kitchen where I always plan out my meals for the week. The planning out of weekly meals probably stems from my mom who has been making menus on the backside of her grocery list for as long as I can remember. This ritual of planning is important to me for several reasons:

First, I can avoid all of those unnecessary trips to the grocery store by only going once a week. This cuts back on impromptu purchases that can make a dent in the wallet. If the menu planning goes along with looking at the grocery ads, it can also save some additional cash.

Secondly, it helps keep variety in my life. You know me and my love of cooking magazines, cookbooks, and food blogs. By planning out my meals I can insure I have the ingredients I need to whip up something new and different each week. It is easy, if you don't have a plan, to fall into the rut of the same recipes day-to-day or week-to-week. For me, that just isn't fun.

Thirdly, it helps me to eat healthy. The stops by a fast food joint or the popcorn for dinner don't happen nearly as often if I am looking forward to my planned dinners. I always make sure to have enough veggies for a side salad or something of the equivalent to enhance my main dish.

Lastly, since I cook for myself, it allows me to plan out what to do with leftovers. Like if I'm going to make a butternut squash for ravioli then I'll most likely have leftovers. And what should I do with that extra squash? Well, make a nice mac and cheese, of course. I came across a delicious looking recipe that used sweet potatoes and spinach in a hearty mac and cheese dish. I adapted it significantly to utilize the butternut squash, add some extra vegetables (like broccoli) and changed up the cheese for my preference (and to use what was in my fridge). It worked out great, I tell ya!

So are you a menu planner? If not, I would suggest trying it out. You'll save some money, add some variety to your life, and maybe even eat a little healthier. What's on your plan for this week?

Butternut Squash, Broccoli and Spinach Mac and Cheese (significantly adapted from Naturally Ella)
Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked pasta (I used whole wheat rotini)
1 cup broccoli florets
1 handful fresh spinach
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup butternut squash, cooked and mashed
1/2 tbsp butter
1/2 tbsp flour
1 garlic, minced
1/4 small onion, diced
1 oz cream cheese
1 American cheese single

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 F.

Bring a pot of water to boil. Add the pasta and cook for about 4-5 minutes until almost done. Add the broccoli and boil for another 2-3 minutes. Finally add the spinach and cook for about 30 seconds. Drain the pasta and vegetables.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened. Sprinkle in the flour and cook while stirring for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the milk and cook until thickened slightly. Add the squash and cook until hot. Add the cream cheese and American cheese and stir until melted.

Pour the cheese mixture over the pasta and vegetables in a bowl. Toss to mix thoroughly. Pour into a baking dish. Bake for 25 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Serves 1.

Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies

I like winter and colder weather for a few reasons. I enjoy wearing my slippers around the house and cuddling up with a blanket on my couch. I love the feeling of extra blankets on bed when I'm falling asleep at night. The being cold right before you get into a nice warm shower is just wonderful. Snow covered trees and bushes are breathtakingly beautiful.

But some of those reasons are also why I don't like the cold weather. Like being comfy and cozy on the couch doesn't make me motivated to wash dishes (actually not much makes me motivated to wash dishes). And the warmth of my bed in the morning does nothing for getting me up and going early in the day. My showers take longer because why would I want to leave the hot water? And snow has a tendency to turn to an ugly grey color that is not quite as admirable.

Ah well, winter is something you deal with (the good, the bad and the ugly) when you live in the Midwest. In the words of Master Stark "winter is coming" and we gotta drag out our boots, coats, hats, mittens and scarves.

If you want to warm up your house a little bit without turning the heat up, I would suggest some baking. I've got grand plans of cookies, bars, candies and the such this holiday season so stay tuned for recipes. And feel free to send me your address and then maybe you'll get a goody bag in the mail (because we all know I shouldn't eat all the treats I make). 

To start off holiday baking season, I'm sharing with you some pumpkin butterscotch cookies that I made for Thanksgiving. Since our Thanksgiving festivities were smaller in number of people this year, we decided to make only one pie-- apple, which is definitely my favorite. My mom wanted something pumpkin-y and she really enjoyed my last pumpkin cookie, so I figured we should give these a whirl. I had made them before (like back in the day before Pinterest and this blog) so I knew they would be good. They are a nice soft cookie that is bursting with flavor. The dominate flavor is definitely the butterscotch but your mouth is left with pumpkin and cinnamon goodness at the end. I would recommend them for any holiday cookie platter!

Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies (adapted from Annie's Eats)
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
dash of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 canola oil
1 cup pumpkin puree (homemade or storebought)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon) in a bowl.

In a larger bowl, gently beat the eggs with a whisk. Whisk in the sugar until light in color, about 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the oil, pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. Stir in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until just incorporated. Gently mix the in butterscotch chips.

Drop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 14-16 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. Allow to cool slightly on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack.

Makes 36-40 cookies of about 2-2.5 inch diameter.

Wheat Rolls

Have you heard the good news?

The greatest show EVER is coming back; well, technically it is a whole new show but it is based on the child of two of the main characters and will have some of the same stars. You know what I'm talking about, right? BOY MEETS WORLD! Now we are going to have Girl Meets World!

Can you just imagine Cory Matthews, the first love of my life, as a father? And Topanga, she'll be the prettiest mom on the block. Any thoughts of whether crazy Uncle Eric will have settled down with a lovely lady? What about Grandma and Grandpa Matthews? Will be get to see Joshua all grown up? Will there be a third actress for Morgan? Oh and we could never forget Shawn, Angela or MR. FEENY.

FEENY!

           FEENY!

                   FEE-EE-EE-EE-EENY!

We'll see how it unravels. I, for one, cannot wait! Come on over, I'll make the bread (like these delicious wheat rolls we had for Thanksgiving) and we'll get watching a seven season marathon of BMW!

Wheat Rolls (from King Arthur's Whole Grain Baking)
Ingredients:
1 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
3 tbsp honey
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup instant dried potatoes (not cooked)
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, for topping

Directions:
Combine the water, orange juice, cubed butter, honey and salt in a large bowl. Begin to mix in the flours with a wooden spoon, but using your hands when the spoon no longer suffices. Knead the dough until you have a smooth dough, about 8-10 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap; allow to rise until it is puffy about 2 hours (maybe less if your house is warmer than mine).

Lightly grease a 9 X 13 inch baking pan.

Gently deflate the dough and transfer it to a lightly greased countertop. Divide into 16 equal (or as close to equal as you can get) pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Place the rolls into the prepared pan, making sure any seams are facing downward and spacing them evenly. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap and allow to rise for about 2 hours. They will once again get puffy and end up touching each other.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Remove the plastic wrap and bake until they are brown on top, about 25 minutes.* Remove from oven and brush with melted butter, if desired. Serve warm.

*If you are planning on freezing the rolls: I removed them from the oven, let them cool, covered them with foil and froze them. The day before Thanksgiving, I removed them from the freezer to let them thaw. To reheat, bake in a preheated 350 F oven for 8-10 minutes. Then brush with the melted butter.

Green Bean Bundles

While I was growing up we had family friends that lived almost right across the street. The daughter, Aimee, is my age and we went to school together for as long as I can remember. Once we were late for 3rd grade because we were playing on the snow banks in the church parking lot we had to walk through. I remember this vividly because I have always been, and will always be, a rule follower and walking into the classroom during the pledge of allegiance is not the action of a good little girl! We would play for hours with these plastic animals in her basement- my favorite was the family of white tigers. Sometimes when her mom and my dad were both out of town on business trips, we would combine the remainder of our families and head out to dinner at Ponderosa (don't even get me started on how terrible that place is...); the waitress once thought that Aimee and I were twins. 

Because both of our extended families were located in states far away, there were many Thanksgiving that we would break bread together. I don't know why (I will hazard a guess because my sister HATES green bean casserole) but one year Sara showed up with these green bean bundles. Both families loved them and they have become a permanent staple of our Thanksgiving feast. These guys a lot less labor intensive than the traditional GBC (especially if you make it from scratch, which is yummy, but not good for the mushroom haters) but a third of the ingredients is bacon. Come on, you can never go wrong with bacon, right? So try them out, even your green vegetable haters (aka my dad) will eat a bundle or two.

Green Bean Bundles (from the kitchen of our childhood neighbor, Sara)
Ingredients:
2 16-oz cans whole green beans, drained
12-16 slices bacon, cut in half
1 8-oz bottle French dressing

Directions:
In the microwave, cook the slices of bacon until they are slightly cooked but still malleable (about 1-2 minutes total). Pat dry with paper towel.

Arrange the green beans into bunches of 8 and wrap a half slice of bacon around each bundle, securing with a toothpick. Place all the bundles in a large baking dish. Pour the dressing over the beans. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Bake uncovered for 40 minutes, turning over the bundles halfway through the cooking time. Serve hot.

Orange Cranberry Sauce

I know this is a little backwards-- sharing with you Thanksgiving recipes AFTER the holiday. But I certainly cannot post recipes before I have actually made the dishes and until this blog has been around for awhile, I won't have the holiday dishes until after the holiday. So bear with me, ok? And enjoy the insight into Thanksgiving in my parents household.

Typically, Thanksgiving is all full of tradition at our house. Yes, the food is pretty traditional, but it is more the activities that make the weekend. My dad makes a pie (or two or three) early in the morning and a cinnamon crisp from extra crust for breakfast. We watch the Lions football game (because we're in Michigan). We eat food. We take at least one walk around the block (either before or after dinner or both). We scour the multitude of ads and make our plan of attack for Black Friday. We (the girls only-- my mom, sister and I) get up nice and early and head out with the crazies for some shopping which typically includes a soft pretzel partway through the morning and long lines and coupons and everything else associated with the madness of the day. Then we head home laden with bags to rest up for the afternoon. Friday night (and sometimes Saturday depending on the schedule) kicks off the Christmas season with leftover turkey sandwiches, chips and dip, pickle tray, and raw veggies in front of the television playing "White Christmas". We sing along (because obviously we know all the words) and lament the fact that every year the housekeeper cannot help but pick up the phone and overhear the wrong part of the conversation between Bob and Ed.

Well this year, unfortunately my sister and her family did not get to make the trip to Michigan for Thanksgiving. So we did a few things differently. Some of those included food! We have also been a canned cranberry sauce family (and don't get me wrong, I love the ridged deliciousness) but I had been itching to make my own and my parents were all for it. So we did. I read a lot of recipes online and we decided to add orange to enhance the flavor and start with a small amount of sugar and work our way up. We like tart things for the most part, so feel free to up the sugar if you want.

We all loved it. It is safe to say this is a permanent replacement (or depending on how many people are in town for the holiday maybe a permanent addition?) to our Thanksgiving feast. It would go great with pork or beef, if you are looking for a quick and easy side for Christmas as well. My only regret-- that we didn't make more!

Orange Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients:
12 oz bag of fresh cranberries
zest of 1 orange
juice of 2 oranges, plus water to reach 3/4 cup
dash of cinnamon
4 tbsp granulated sugar
4 tbsp brown sugar

Directions:
Rinse and drain cranberries. Place them in a medium pot. Add the orange zest, juice with water, cinnamon and 3 tbsp of each sugar. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Taste the cranberries and add last 1 tbsp of each sugar if still very tart. You can add additional sugar, equal amounts of each type, until you get to your desired sweetness. The total of 8 tbsp leaves it pretty tart; I've seen recipes up to double that amount so go wild if you want it sweeter.

Remove from the heat and refrigerate for a few hours until it sets up. Serve cool.

Makes about 2 cups of cranberry sauce.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all! I'm thankful for so many things in my life including my family, friends and you! Thanks for reading and sharing this journey with me.


Here are some pictures to share our day of food with you. A few recipes will follow eventually. I hope you are enjoying your meals, football, basketball, and shopping this weekend.

Tom, the turkey!

A little bit of wine

Sausage, cornbread and sourdough stuffing

Green bean bundles

Whole wheat rolls

Lime jello salad

Citrus cranberry sauce

Mashed red potatoes

The full spread!

My dinner plate

Apple pie (sorry it's half eaten :))

Okay. I'm about to fall asleep into a tryptophan coma.

Happy thanksgiving!

P.S. Make sure you save the bones from your turkey--- we're making turkey stock!