Foodie Friday: Layered Salad

I'm excited to join the Food Friday recipe exchange again, particularly this fall.  I love the warm colors the fall brings and that's something I have truly missed while living in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for three years - never an orange leaf there but here, I am looking forward to casseroles, crockpot recipes, and stews, yum!

But for now I have to share this salad because I really love salads, unless I'm in the mood for comfort food in which case the green leaves become the bed of my comfort food.  My goal is to make my comfort food healthier because in the Northeaster United States you can't help but crave warm, creamy meals when it's cold outside.

This is a very simple salad.  Here are the ingredients:

1 hard boiled egg

1/4 cup chopped cooked chicken breast (use those leftovers)

2 TBS Feta or Goat cheese

1/4 cup sliced grape or cherry tomatoes

2 cups mix Arugula and Spinach

Drizzle a bit of olive oil and Balsamic Vinegar

Top with a handful of Trader Joe's Whole Grain chips for a little crunch

Layer it, add more, use any meat or fish you have leftover and enjoy!!

You should go to the Foodie Friday blog, I bet you can make a menu for the whole month. Everything looks delicious!  I'm on my way there now!  Enjoy!

Foodie Friday: Very Veggie Salad

Today is Food Friday at Designs by Gullum where lots of people go to share their goodies on Fridays.  Go check them, there's something for everyone.

 I have not been eating enough veggies so I'm shooting for a mostly vegetarian (Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian to be exact) menu in an effort to improve my health, energy, and life.  It's amazing how on day one of eating nothing but veggies, berries and drinking water all day I felt fantastic despite the fact that I was running on about 3 hours of sleep.  I'm on day 5 and still feel fantastic.

Anyway, here's my Very Veggie Salad -- enjoy!

Uncooked Ingredients--how much you use it's up to you:

 Mache

 Chickpeas

Radishes

baby carrots

craisins

mozzarella cheese

(I used 2 mozzarella cheese balls- that comes in small balls soaked in olive oil)

Cook the following Ingredients in  a bit of olive oil:

zucchini

baby bella mushroom

Toss it all together (or Not!) --  enjoy!

Foodie Friday: Perfect Winter Beef Stew

Foodie Friday is a great day to share some delicious recipes.  This is hosted by Gullum at Designs by Gullum.  Visit her site to see so many other yummy recipes from other participants.  

But before you go, enjoy this Perfect Winter Beef Stew.  It is by far, my favorite and I found it in the KraftFoods website last year.  Since then, it has become a favorite in my house.

Ingredients

3/4 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing

2 lb.  beef for stew, such as beef chuck roast, cut into 1-inch chunks

6 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, chopped

3 cups  sliced fresh mushrooms (about 1/2 lb.)

1 large onion, chopped

6   carrots (about 1 lb.), sliced

1-1/2 lb. potatoes (about 3), peeled, cut into large chunks

1 can  (14-1/2 oz.) stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) beef broth

*Optional.... I sometimes add Celery or other veggies, depending on the mood.  One time I added sweet potatoes and it was just as yummy.

Prep Time:15 min  Total Time:  2 hr 15 min  Makes: 8 servings, 1-1/4 cups each

What You Need!

3/4 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing

2 lb.  beef for stew, such as beef chuck roast, cut into 1-inch chunks

6 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, chopped

3 cups  sliced fresh mushrooms (about 1/2 lb.)

1 large onion, chopped

6   carrots (about 1 lb.), sliced

1-1/2 lb. potatoes (about 3), peeled, cut into large chunks

1 can  (14-1/2 oz.) stewed tomatoes, undrained

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) beef broth

Make It!

POUR dressing over beef in resealable plastic bag. Seal bag; turn to evenly coat beef with dressing. Refrigerate 30 min. to marinate.	COOK bacon in large saucepan on medium heat 5 min. or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon from saucepan; drain.
ADD mushrooms and onions to saucepan; cook on medium-high heat 10 min. or until tender, stirring occasionally. Remove meat from marinade; discard marinade. Add meat, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, broth and bacon to saucepan; stir.	BRING to boil, stirring occasionally; cover. Simmer on low heat 1 hour 15 min. Uncover; simmer 15 min. or until meat is done and sauce is thickened, stirring occasionally.

KraftKitchen Tips

Special Extra

For extra flavor, add 1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves with the broth.

Substitute

Prepare using KRAFT Light Italian Dressing.

How to Prepare Stew in Slow Cooker

Marinate beef and cook bacon, onions and mushrooms as directed. Remove beef from marinade; discard marinade. Add beef, onions, mushrooms and remaining ingredients to slow cooker. Cook 10 to 12 hours on LOW (or on HIGH 5 to 6 hours). Stir in 2 Tbsp. flour mixed with 2 Tbsp. water. Cook 15 min. or until sauce is thickened.

Foodie Friday - Cheesy Nachos

Today I bring an easy special treat for our Foodie Friday recipe show off day.  This fun event is hosted by Michael from Designs by Gollum.  You have to go there and see all the cool recipes everyone posted. 

These nachos we love because they are easy to make and so much fun to eat.  If you keep the ingredients handy you can make a nice treat for unexpected company or hey, how about Monday night football!

Ingredients:

Tostitos scoop chips - they are perfect for holding in all cheese and salsa!

Tostitos restaurant style salsa - how hot you say?  Your choice, we always do mild.

Shredded Mexican cheese or any mix of cheese you like.

Directions:

Place the scoop chips on a microwave safe plate.

Fill each little scoop with salsa.

Top with cheese.

Microwave on high for 1 to 1.5 minutes - until cheese is melted.

Top each scoop with a dab of sour cream and diced avocado (optional).

Note:  you can also broil this using an oven safe plate or cookie sheet, put it in the middle rack, set the over to broil and watch it until cheese is melted; only takes about 5 minutes.

Enjoy!!

No really..... Enjoy!!

Foodie Friday: Mac 'N Cheese with Pep!

This is a family favorite and to be honest, we all talked about our Josh, now in college, because he is so in love with food and this was one of his favorites.  Gosh, we really miss him.  I hope you all like this easy recipe.  Be sure to stop in over at Michael's at Designs By Gollum for links to more fabulous Foodie Friday recipes.

Mac 'N Cheese with Pep

Feel free to substitute the Pep with any meat such as sausage, chicken, prosciutto, bacon, it's limitless.  Also, the cheese can be any combination you like, from strong flavored to mild and light.  We love lots of cheese so we mix it up and go with a lot of cheese.  Here are the instructions and ingredients.  Enjoy.

1 cup elbow macaroni

1 cup milk

1 cup cheese (we used italian and sharp cheddar)

1/4 Italian flavored bread crumbs

2 large eggs

1/4 cup chopped pepperoni

 

 

 

  

Cook the macaroni according to directions on the box minus a few minutes.  You want these to be al dente because they will cook longer in the over and you don't want them to be soggy.

Set your oven to 350 degrees.

While you wait, whip the eggs a little bit, combine eggs and milk.

Add eggs and milk to drained macaroni.  Add the cheese and pepperoni.

Sprinkle a layer of bread crumbs over the pasta.

Sprinkle with cheese and then again a little more bread crumbs.  This will make the best crust ever!

Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes.  Don't let it dry up, you want to take it out of the over while you could still see milk bubbling.  Let it sit for about 5 minutes before serving!

Voila!

Foodie Friday: Buttered Tilapia & Semillon Wine

Hosted by Gollum, foodie friday is a fun way to experience food from a different perspective. I love sharing my recipes and reading what others have posted as well. Stop by Designs by Gollum to see more.

My recipe for today is a favorite of ours. My son, now in college, made this one last time before we took him to school this week. Tilapia is a mild fish, not very fishy tasting but delicious. We first read about this recipe on AllRecipes.com. However, we've made just a few changes based on what we like to arrive at this Very Easy meal. Mostly, we love the way the butter makes the fish taste and feel so we increased the amount of butter. Tried making it with Olive Oil but it just wasn't the same.

Ingredients:

1 lb Fresh Tilapia

1/2 lemon

1/2 cup butter (not margarine)

1/4 cup Parsley

1 large garlic clove

salt and pepper to taste

Start by rinsing your fresh Tilapia under cool water. Pat dry with a paper towel and place in a 9X13 pan.

Mash or mince your garlic and spread over the fish.

Drizzle with 1/2 lemon's juice & melted butter.

Sprinkle with parsley, salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered in middle rack, at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes. Fish is done when it flakes separates easily with a fork.

Done!!

We serve this dish with a Mushroom & Onion Risotto and our favorite garden salad which is topped with Havarti cheese, almonds, and craisins. A great wine with this meal is featured below. Although the kids don't get the wine, they get the apple juice or water, it was a great way to say farewell to our college bound son.

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Now here's Neil from On The Grapevine to share some more interesting facts about wine. This particular one goes well with my Buttered Tilapia.

Semillon is my favourite white wine. The grape is used in France as a blending component to make the dry white wines of Bordeaux but more famously it is used in the production of the sweet dessert wines of Sauterne eg. Chateau d’Yquem.

In Australia it is also used to make both styles but predominantly as a single varietal wine although it is sometimes blended with Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. I have never found much Semillon in the USA, either locally made or imported, but in my opinion it is well worth seeking out.

The most famous Australian Semillon comes from the Hunter Valley in New South Wales. Usually of low alcohol (10-11%) and unwooded, when young it is a crisp dry wine smelling of apples, grass/hay and tasting of citrus. However on aging, the same wine develops into a full flavoured toasty, honeyed wine that is now considered a classic Australian wine style.

In other areas of the country it is allowed to ripen more thus producing wines of higher alcohol, more body and with flavours more like tropical fruit, passion fruit and figs. These wines are also more conducive to the wine maker’s input so many are either barrel fermented, left for a time on the lees, allowed to go through malolactic fermentation or barrel aging (or a combination of all or some).

All these processes increase the complexity of the wine adding creamy, buttery and nutty tones to aroma and flavour.

A dry Semillon is great with any seafood, pasta dish or white meat but is just as acceptable to be drunk by itself outside, with feet up, on a warm summer’s day.

Enjoy!

Foodie Friday: Easy BBQ Baby Back Ribs & Red Zinfandel

Foodie Friday!!!

Hello again everyone. I have so missed participating in Foodie Friday but now I'm back with a very tasty, summer recipe and some wine to go with it. You just might find yourself baking or grilling these babies real soon. Enjoy! Please visit Designs by Gollum for more tasty recipes.

Serves 4 (or 2 depending how hungry you are)

2 racks of Baby Back Ribs

2 TBSP oil (olive or canola works fine)

Garlic Powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

1/2 red onion

1/2 cup water or better yet - vegetable broth

1 bottle of original BBQ Sauce

You may want to cut the rib racks in half to make it easier to fit in a large pan.

Wash the ribs, pat dry with paper towel. Rub them with oil. Sprinkle with garlic powder - just a little; salt and pepper. Slice up onion and place in a shallow pan, top with ribs. It's OK if they overlap :-)

Add broth or water to the pan. Cover the pan with aluminum foil.

Cook at 350 for about 1.5 hour. Check for doneness. Meat should be tender and pull apart easily.

When done, remove foil, drain excess water from the pan. Brush ribs with BBQ sauce. Lots of BBQ sauce. I love it sticky, gooey, yummy. OK sorry.

Return to the oven and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Check it often so it doesn't burn. Keep adding BBQ sauce, and cook another 5 minutes longer. Oh yummy. This is a deliciously messy meal.

I serve this with Potato Salad, Garden Salad, Corn Bread, and of course a nice glass of Red Zinfandel.

Speaking of Zinfandel - here's Neil from On The Grapevine once again with a little background on the Zinfandel family of wines. Enjoy!

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Photo from Wines.com

Zinfandel is a very popular wine grape variety in the USA with 21,000 ha (52,500 acres) under vine in California alone. It is third only to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the red grape growing stakes there. It is not popular in Australia where only 140ha (350 acres) are grown. In fact Australia exports most of this variety to the USA. It tends to be a little fickle from a viticulture point of view, demonstrating uneven ripening, rain damage and bunch rot as well as not coping well with mechanical harvesting.

DNA testing revealed that it was genetically matched to the Croatian variety Crijenak Kasrelanski (where it originated) and the Italian variety Primitivo. All three however have developed distinctive clonal differences in their country of cultivation over several hundred years. It is thought that the variety arrived in the USA into Boston via Austria around 1830 and made its way to California in 1850.

Wines made from this grape come in many different styles. In the USA, these range from rose¢s and light reds through to big alcoholic reds and fortifieds as well as late harvest dessert wines. White Zinfandel is a semi sweet blush ie. pale pink, wine that has picked up some colour from its short contact with the red skins of the grape during vinification. It could also be called a Rose¢ but this term is usually used for pink wines that are dry.

In the USA sales of White Zinfandel are six times that of the red wine.

White Zinfandel goes with pasta dishes (especially those with creamy sauces), fish, pork, lamb, hams, mild cheeses, antipasto, egg dishes, Asian and Indian food and most desserts.

Red Zinfandel wines can have an alcoholic content of 15% or more and many can be ‘hot’, big, full bodied and even jammy. But on average, with good wine making techniques, Red Zinfandel can have good fruit, with blackberry, raspberry, plum and cherry aromas and flavours. They can also have hints of earthiness, chocolate, leather and spice, but are not usually considered too complex. The tannins are usually moderate, generally balanced with good acidity and a pleasant mouth-feel.

Foods that go well with Red Zinfandel include sausage, beef, lamb, pork and venison, all either braised, grilled or roasted. Because of its lower tannin content, this wine can take some heat from chillies. Ribs with a spicy barbecue sauce are considered almost a classic match. Zinfandel friendly cheese include aged Parmesan, Dry Monterey Jack and Manchego. Zinfandel also goes well in recipes that include tomatoes, eggplant, mushrooms and olives.

Visit Neil at On The Grapevine to read more about wine, grapes, and travel adventures.

Foodie Friday- Granny Smith Nutty Salad

It's foodie friday again...my favorite time of the week especially when I have something to share.  This is hosted by Gollum.  Visit her at Designs by Gollum for more tasty treats.

I love to have fruits and nuts in my salad so I'm always coming up with a different combination to keep things interesting. We had this for dinner on Thursday night and it was delicious.  Mr. Navy made steak on the grill so we topped this with a few slices of meant and, yum, very tasty.  If I had craisins and bacon bits I would have added that too but it was good none the less.  Enjoy!

Romain Lettuce

Granny Smith Apple

Walnuts

Parmesan Cheese

Olive Oil

Lime juice

Don't bother with measurements, you know how much you should be eating...toss it all together and add grilled chicken, beef, or salmon for  nutritious, filling meal.

Foodie Friday: Egg White Pizza

Hosted by Gollum, foodie friday is a fun way to experience food from a different perspective.  I love sharing my recipes and reading what others have posted as well.  Stop by Designs by Gollum to see more.

My foodie:

Egg white pizza 

Is it a pizza if it doesn't have dough? Is it a frittatta if it doesn't have cream? You decide.

Basically, this is  breakfast or lunch I make on days I feel I need to increase my protein and whenever I need a little change with my veggies.  I love this dish, any time of day.  I hope you will too.

Ingredients:

Cooking Spray or a tsp of olive oil

1/2 cup egg white

4-5 stalks of asparagus

1/2 plum tomato

1/2 cup uncooked baby spinach leaves

2 TBSP of cheese - any kind you like

Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Coat the bottom of a pan with cooking spray or olive oil and heat on Medium to High.
   
2. Gently pour in egg white, sprink with salt and pepper and let it cook for about a minute. 
   
3. Cup up asparagus and add to the egg white, let cook another minute.
   
4. The eggs should be looking almost done at this point if not give it a little more time.
   
5. Add the plum tomato, then baby spinach leaves, and sprinkle the cheese on top.
   
6. Cover and let it cook until the cheese melts and the spinach leaves are a little wilted.
   

My coffee and my breakfast were done about the same time--it's a quick and easy meal to make.

Slide off the pan and onto a plate, eat and enjoy!! It's filling, healthy, and delicious!

Foodie Friday- Tuna Roll Up

I can't believe it's Saturday and I'm just now getting to this. I was so prepared this time I even took pictures while I was making my lunch and thought ...hmm this would be a great one to share. Anyway, sharing I will do. Don't forget, visit our hostess Gollum at Designs by Gollum for more tasty treats.

This is very delicious and very healthy tuna roll up -

Ingredients: 3 oz can of tuna in water, cheese (anything you like), carrots, 1 TBSP lite mayonaise, Romaine lettuce leaf, (also not shown here because I ran out - craisins and sun flower seeds)

Mix the tuna, seeds, craisins and mayo. Layer the lettuce, cheese, carrots, and tuna mixture.

Roll it up and Presto!

Enjoy!

Foodie Friday

Foodie Friday hosted by Gollum is so much fun.  I said before, I love all the neat recipe ideas we get to share, so read mine and then go over to Designs by Gollum to see all the other awesome recipes and hey, maybe, just maybe, you'll add your own. 

Here goes my recipe for this week - sorry I don't have a photo this time:

Veggi-Packed-Pita

Ingredients:

1/2 pita pocket (whole wheat)
1/4 cup cooked, cut up chicken breast
1 cup veggies (zucchini, squash, portabella mushroom)
1 cup uncooked baby spinach
2 table spoons olive oil
1 slice pepperjack cheese

cook the veggies in olive oil, just before they are done, add the chicken and spinach, cover and let cook at low heat for a few minutes or until chicken is heated through.

Place the cheese in the pita pocket, add the veggie mix, enjoy!

I felt so full after this one I thought I cheated--it is absolutely delicious, filled with nutrients, protein, vitamins, fiber--it's just awesome!

**Note:  you can add or replace the cheese and the veggies for something you would rather have.  I had this yesterday and after it was all done I added a couple of slices of Avocado and used Asiago cheese - still delicious.

Enjoy!