Raspberry pie

Jake and I usually make a fruit pie for Thanksgiving (either blueberry or raspberry). This year I did it all on my own :) He usually does the lattice weaving, but I think I did a pretty darn good job for my first time!

Crust:
Ingredients:

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups shortening
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

• In a large mixing bowl, combine all-purpose flour, shortening, sugar, and salt. Blend together with a pastry cutter until crumbly.
• In a small bowl, mix egg with water. Blend into flour mixture. Chill in refrigerator until ready to use.

Filling:
Ingredients:

• 1 quart fresh raspberries
• 1 1/4 cups white sugar
• 8 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 6 tablespoons water
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie

Directions:

• Mix together raspberries, sugar, cornstarch, minute tapioca and water. Mix and let sit while you make your pie crust.
  
• Put berries in bottom crust.
• Put on top crust and crimp edges. Make slits in the crust to allow the steam to escape. (Or lattice weave as pictured above)
  
• Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake for 45 minutes. (Mine only cooked for 35 more minutes instead of 45)
  

Broccoli Cheese soup

Yum yum! This is from cookinglight.com. Pretty simple, and quite delicious!

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 (16-ounce) package broccoli florets (used frozen florets)
  
• 2 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk (used fat free)
  
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 ounces light processed cheese, cubed (such as Velveeta Light) (I couldnt find "light" so I used regular)

Directions:

• Heat a large nonstick saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat.
  
• Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes or until tender.
  
• Add broth and broccoli. Bring broccoli mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
  
• Reduce heat to medium; cook 10 minutes.
• Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until well blended.
  
• Add milk mixture to broccoli mixture. Cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly.
  
• Stir in pepper.
  
• Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until cheese melts.
• Place one-third of the soup in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Return pureed soup mixture to pan.

Apple Crisp

This was my first attempt at an apple crisp, and let me tell you...it was EXCELLENT. I couldn't stop eating it!

Ingredients:
Main:

• 10 cups all-purpose apples, peeled, cored and sliced
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup water

For the crisp:

• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
• Place the sliced apples in a 9x13 inch pan.
  
• Mix the white sugar, 1 tablespoon flour and ground cinnamon together, and sprinkle over apples. Pour water evenly over all.
• Combine the oats, 1 cup flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 45 minutes.

Cowboy spaghetti

This is actually a Rachel Ray recipe. As much as I usually don't like her food, this was REALLY good!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound spaghetti
• Salt
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
• 3 slices smoky bacon, chopped (you can omit this, its just to crumble over the top...)
  
• 1 pound ground sirloin
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 to 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• Ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce, eyeball it
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
• 1/2 cup beer (I dont think I used a whole 1/2 cup...I just poured some, its to deglaze the pan)
  
• 1 (14-ounce) can, chopped or crushed fire roasted tomatoes (I couldnt find fire roasted, so I got diced tomatoes with green chilis...gave the dish a great flavor!)
  
• 1 (8-ounces) can, tomato sauce
• 8 ounces sharp Cheddar
• 4 scallions, chopped (omitted)

Directions:

• Heat a pot of water to a boil. Add spaghetti and salt the water. Cook to al dente or with a bite to it.

• Heat a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil and bacon.
  
• Brown and crisp bacon, 5 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon. Drain off a little excess fat if necessary. Leave just enough to coat the bottom of the skillet.
  
• Add beef and crumble it as it browns, 3 to 4 minutes.
  
• Add onions, garlic and stir into meat.
  
• Season the meat with salt and pepper, hot sauce and Worcestershire.
  
• Add 1/2 cup beer and deglaze the pan. Cook 5 to 6 minutes more then stir in tomatoes and tomato sauce.
• Add hot spaghetti to meat and sauce and combine. Adjust seasonings and serve up pasta in shallow bowls. Grate some cheese over the pasta and sprinkle with scallions. Garnish with crisp bacon

Rigatoni Oreganata with Tomato Sauce and Bread Crumbs

This was super easy to make, and fast as well. A great recipe for a weeknight. It came out really good too. I got it from Foodtv.com. Its an Emeril recipe.

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons
• 1 pound rigatoni
• 1 cup small diced onion
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh oregano leaves (I used dried)
  
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh basil leaves (I used dried)
  
• 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup reserved pasta cooking water
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley leaves
• 3/4 cup dried bread crumbs
  
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to broil.
• Set a large, 4 to 6-quart stockpot filled with water over high heat and bring to a boil.
• Season the water with the kosher salt, 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the rigatoni.
• While the pasta cooks, set a 14-inch saute pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil
• Once the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and slightly caramelized, 3 to 4 minutes.
  
• Add the oregano and basil.
  
• Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste and stir well to combine.
  
• Continue to cook the sauce until it is slightly reduced, about 4 to 5 minutes.
  
• Add the heavy cream to the pan.
  
• By this time the pasta should be almost al dente.
  
• Drain the pasta and reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.
  
• Add the pasta and the 1 cup of reserved cooking water to the sauce in the pan and season with the salt and pepper.
  
• Continue to cook, tossing the pasta, until it is well coated with the sauce and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Sprinkle the parsley over the pasta and toss. Spread the bread crumbs over the pasta and place the pan in the oven to broil until the bread crumbs are caramelized, about, 3 minutes, being sure to rotate the pan after 1 1/2 minutes. Remove the pasta from the oven, allow it to cool for 5 minutes, and serve with Parmesan sprinkled on top.

**I cooked everything on the stove top but then put it all into a baking dish b/c my pan has a plastic-like handle...and well I didn't think that would go over well in the broiler ;)

Beef Noodle Bake

A friend at work, Rhonda, gave me this recipe the other day so I figured I'd give it a whirl. It got approval from both Jake and Josh (brother-in-law). woohoo! The only thing is that next time I might add some italian seasonings or something for a bit more flavor. Overall it was delish!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lb ground beef
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cans (8oz each) tomato sauce (I used 3 per Rhondas suggestion)
• 1 c. sour cream
• 1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, cubed and softened
• 1 t. sugar
• 1/2-1 t garlic salt (I just used some garlic powder and salt b/c i didnt have this)
• 7 cups uncooked wide egg noodles, cooked and drained
• 1 c. (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese (again, per Rhonda I used more...almost a whole bag)
• ADDED:
• mushrooms
• fresh garlic

Directions:

• In a large skillet, cook beef and onion (garlic and mushroom if you add) until the meat is no longer pink; drain
  
• Remove from heat; stir in the tomato sauce, sour cream, cream cheese, sugar and garlic salt
• Place 1/2 the noodles in a greased 13x9x2 baking dish, top with 1/2 the beef mixture. Repeat layers.
• Cover and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until heated through
• Sprinkle with cheese
• Bake 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted
  

Lemon Garlic Tilapia

No picture, sorry! This was good and again very easy to make.

Ingredients:

• 4 tilapia fillets
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
• Rinse tilapia fillets under cool water, and pat dry with paper towels.
• Place fillets in baking dish. Pour lemon juice over fillets, then drizzle butter on top. Sprinkle with garlic, parsley, and pepper.
• Bake in preheated oven until the fish is white and flakes when pulled apart with a fork, about 30 minutes.

***NOTE: Instead of just pouring the lemon/butter/garlic over the fillets, I sauteed it a bit first. I think it would have been too much of a raw garlic taste w/o doing that first. Once it was sauteed, i then poured it over the fillets and cooked.

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce

This dish has a great flavor. Its not dry at all, has a nice sauce to keep it moist. Delish!

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces uncooked medium egg noodles
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon (im not a fan of tarragon so i used a teeny bit of dill. you can use parsely or basil instead too)
  
• 1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
  
• 1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and keep warm.
• Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Place chicken breast halves in a shallow dish.
  
• Combine 1 tablespoon flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Sprinkle flour mixture over chicken; toss to coat.
• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
  
• Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned.
  
• Remove chicken from pan.
  
• Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan.
  
• Add garlic, tarragon, and mushrooms to pan; sauté for 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates and mushrooms darken.
  
• Add white wine to pan; cook 1 minute.
  
• Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
  
• Stir in broth, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently.
• Return chicken to the pan.
  
• Cover and simmer 2 minutes.
  
• Uncover; cook 1 minute or until chicken is done.
  
• Stir in noodles; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated.
  
• Place about 1 1/2 cups chicken mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.

I didnt stir the noodles into the chicken. I just plated the noodles then put the chicken over it.

Dijon Chicken with Panko Crust

This chicken was very tasty. Its extremely easy to make too. Great for a work night when you don't have a lot off time to cook. I made with it garlic mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus (for the asparagus i marinated it in EVOO, minced garlic, salt and pepper then roasted for about 10-15 minutes).

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup (1/8 lb.) butter, melted
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced or pressed (as usual I used more)
  
• 1/2 cup panko (Japanese-style bread crumbs; see notes)
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese (I had fresh grated romano on hand so I used that)
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced parsley (used dried parsely)
  
• 8 boned, skinned chicken breast halves (6 to 7 oz. each)

Directions:

• In a large bowl, whisk together butter, mustard, and garlic. In another bowl, mix panko, parmesan, and parsley.

• One at a time, turn chicken breast halves in butter mixture to coat completely. Dip rounded side of each breast in panko mixture. Place breasts crumb side up in a 10- by 15-inch baking pan.

• Bake chicken in a 500° oven until crumbs are golden and breasts are no longer pink in center of thickest part (cut to test), about 15 minutes.

Cornish Hens with Garlic and Rosemary

These hens were very juicy and tender. The rosemary and garlic gave them a nice flavor too. I made sugar snap peas with this...and if you can't tell from the picture I overcooked them a bit. oops.

Ingredients:

• 4 Cornish game hens (I only made 2)
  
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary (Only used 2 since I only made 2 hens)
  
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 24 cloves garlic
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 1/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, for garnish

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

• Rub hens with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Lightly season hens with salt and pepper. Place 1 lemon wedge and 1 sprig rosemary in cavity of each hen. Arrange in a large, heavy roasting pan, and arrange garlic cloves around hens. Roast in preheated oven for 25 minutes.

• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a mixing bowl, whisk together wine, chicken broth, and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil; pour over hens. Continue roasting about 25 minutes longer, or until hens are golden brown and juices run clear. Baste with pan juices every 10 minutes.

• Transfer hens to a platter, pouring any cavity juices into the roasting pan. Tent hens with aluminum foil to keep warm. Transfer pan juices and garlic cloves to a medium saucepan and boil until liquids reduce to a sauce consistency, about 6 minutes. Cut hens in half lengthwise and arrange on plates. Spoon sauce and garlic around hens. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, and serve.

I found that using the amount of wine/broth for the recipe of 4 hens wasn't even really enough for 2 hens. I would probably double the sauce next time.

Yummy chocolate trifle

Jakes coworkers wife (Katherine) made this a few weeks back. My cousin Sam and her husband were coming over to visit so I decided to give it a shot. It is SO good and really easy to make.

Ingredients:

• 2 packages chocolate pudding (I used fat free)
• milk (for the pudding)
• 2 8oz containers of cool whip (again, I used fat free)
• 1 package oreos (I used reduced fat)

Directions:

• Mix the pudding according to the directions on the package
• Layer the pudding, cool whip, then crumbled oreos. Repeat until you get near the top.

And voila! You're done! I dont think it gets much easier than that!

Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde

For something that is for the most part 'healthy', these were really good. The recipe says it makes 8, but I only fit 6 in my dish and really there wasnt enough filling to make 8. I might have used a bigger size tortilla though.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 1 (7-ounce) bottle salsa verde
  
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• Cooking spray
  
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled queso fresco (I couldnt find this so I used shredded cheddar)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder 4 lime wedges
• Cilantro sprigs (optional)
  

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425°.

• Combine first 4 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth.
  
• Combine chicken and cream cheese in a large bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa mixture. Reserve remaining salsa mixture.
• Bring broth to a simmer in a medium skillet. Working with one tortilla at a time, add tortilla to pan; cook 20 seconds or until moist, turning once. Remove tortilla; drain on paper towels.
  
• Spoon about 1/4 cup chicken mixture down center of tortilla; roll up.
  
• Place tortilla, seam-side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, broth, and chicken mixture.
• Pour remaining salsa mixture over enchiladas; sprinkle evenly with queso fresco and chili powder.
  
• Bake at 425° for 18 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with lime wedges. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.

Bacon and cheese stuffed burgers with Avocado Tomato salad

With a new grill comes lots of grilling time! I wanted to try to make some yummy burgers so this is what I came up with...I also wanted a nice cold salad and really wanted avocado, so I made this salad YUM!


Burgers
Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb chop meat
• 1/4 chopped onion
• 4-5 cloves of garlic- chopped
• about 1T worchetershire sauce
• any blend of reduced fat shredded cheese
• 4-5 strips turkey bacon- cut into pieces
  
• salt
• pepper

Directions:

• Mix together everything but the cheese and bacon.
• form about 4 pattiesmix the cheese and bacon together
• place about 1T cheese/bacon mixture into each patty and close the patty up around the mixture.
• Grill to taste

Avocado Tomato Salad:

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe avocados
• 2 ripe tomatoes
• 1/2 red onion
• balsamic vinegar
• EVOO

Directions:

• Cut the avocados and tomatoes to bite sized pieces
• chop onion
• mix together in a bowl and pour balsamic vinegar and EVOO over this to taste.
  

Our first steak on the new grill!

Jake and I have never had a grill...so we've never made any steaks! For his birthday, his parents got him a grill. We went and picked it up yesterday...and then I put it together all by myself (yes, I know...I'm awesome). I marinated the steaks for about 24 hours. They came out pretty darn good. I also made 2 other new side items; garlic mashed potatoes and broccoli with garlic butter and cashews. The potatoes were beyond good. I couldnt get enough of them! The broccoli was also pretty tasty...and Jake surprisingly liked it!















Steak marinade (I used rib eyes for the beef):

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons Dijon-style prepared mustard
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (I used a lot more than 2)

Directions:

• In a medium bowl, combine the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, ground black pepper, mustard, onion, and garlic. Mix together well, and use to marinate your favorite meat.
• I first stab the meat on both sides a few times with a fork so the marinade can get in. Then I put the steaks in a ziploc bag and pour the marinade in. I left them in the bag in the fridge for about 24 hours...I'm sure anything more then 2 hours is fine..I just like to leave it a long time.

Garlic mashed potatoes (SOOOO good!)

Ingredients (this is scaled down from a 100 serving recipe)

• 2 pounds unpeeled red potatoes, quartered
• 5 ounces butter, room temperature
• 2 ounces Romano cheese, grated
• 1 tablespoon and 2-3/4 teaspoons chopped garlic (I used roasted garlic- 1 whole head)
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Directions:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
  
• Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 45 minutes; drain.
  
• Stir in butter, cheese, garlic, salt and oregano. Mash with a potato masher or with an electric mixer. (I used my kitchenaid mixer....just put a few potatoes in at a time, mush them up...repeat until all potatoes are mushed...then add everything else)

Broccoli with garlic butter and cashews:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds fresh broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup chopped salted cashews

Directions:

• Place the broccoli into a large pot with about 1 inch of water in the bottom. Bring to a boil, and cook for 7 minutes, or until tender but still crisp. Drain, and arrange broccoli on a serving platter.
• While the broccoli is cooking, melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper and garlic. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Mix in the cashews, and pour the sauce over the broccoli. Serve immediately.

Sauteed Tilapia with lemon-peppercorn pan sauce

I was looking for something quick and easy for dinner tonight, well this one caught my eye. I dont know if green peppercorns and capers are the same thing...if not, I used capers instead (which I'm sure I'd prefer if they are different!) This is a very light meal. It was quite tasty!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth (i used 1/2 c. broth and 1/4 c white wine)
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons drained brine-packed green peppercorns, lightly crushed
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 2 (6-ounce) tilapia or sole fillets
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons butter
• Lemon wedges (optional)

Directions:

• Combine first 3 ingredients.
• Melt 1 teaspoon of butter with oil in a large nonstick skillet over low heat.
• While butter melts, sprinkle fish fillets with salt and black pepper. Place the flour in a shallow dish. Dredge fillets in flour; shake off excess flour.
• Increase heat to medium-high; heat 2 minutes or until butter turns golden brown.
  
• Add fillets to pan; sauté 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.
  
• Remove fillets from pan. Add broth mixture to pan, scraping to loosen browned bits.
  
• Bring to a boil; cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 3 minutes).
  
• Remove from heat.
  
• Stir in two teaspoons of butter with a whisk. Serve sauce over fillets.
  
• Garnish with lemon wedges, if desired.
  

Sweet potato fries with avocado dip

I needed something to go with the buffalo chicken strips, so I decided to try these fries since they also had a "kick" to them. The avocado dip also intrigued me. I found this on foodnetwork.com. The fries did not, unfortunately, come out crunchy but I thought they still had a nice flavor, especially with the dip!

Ingredients (fries):

• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled or unpeeled, cut into 4-inch long and 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick fries
  
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, or more as needed
  
• 1 teaspoon paprika
  
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander (omitted since I did not have it)
  
• Coarse ground rock salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
• Place the sweet potatoes in a large bowl and toss with olive oil until the sweet potatoes are coated. Add the paprika, chili powder, coriander, salt, and pepper; toss to distribute evenly.
• Arrange the coated fries in a single layer on the prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes on the lower rack until the sweet potatoes soften. Transfer the pan to the upper rack of the oven and bake 10 minutes longer, until fries are crispy. Serve with Avocado Dip.

Avocado Dip

Ingredients:

• 1 avocado
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup cream cheese
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped.
• 2 scallions, white and light green part only, chopped (omitted b/c Jake doesn't like them)
  
• 1 lime, juiced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

• Place the avocado, mayonnaise, cream cheese, jalapeno, scallions, and lime juice into a blender or small food processor. (I just hand blended them w/ a potato masher)
  
• Blend for 1 minute or until you have a smooth paste. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Buffalo chicken fingers

This recipe came from another blog "Ambers Delectable Delights". I believe she got the recipe from cooking light. These are so yummy. Jake loved them!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper (used black since I don't have red)
  
• 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely crushed cornflakes
  
• 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch-thick strips
• Cooking spray
• 1/3 cup hot sauce (Franks Red Hot)
• 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (Tabasco)
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 cup fat-free ranch dressing (We used blue cheese)
  
• 4 celery stalks, cut into 1/4 x 3-inch sticks (omitted...by accident....I bought them and forgot)
  
• 4 carrots, cut into 1/4 x 3-inch sticks (omitted, on purpose :-P)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• Combine first 6 ingredients in a shallow dish, stirring with a whisk.
  
• Place egg whites in a shallow dish.
  
• Place cornflakes in a shallow dish.
  
• Working with 1 chicken strip at a time, dredge in flour mixture. Dip in egg whites; dredge in cornflakes. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken strips, flour mixture, egg whites, and cornflakes.
• Lightly coat chicken strips with cooking spray.
  
• Bake at 400° for 10 minutes or until done, turning once.
• Combine hot sauce, pepper sauce, and Worcestershire in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in butter. Drizzle hot sauce mixture over chicken. Serve with ranch dressing, celery, and carrots.
  

Rosemary pork chops

I really had high hopes for these. They were soo sooo easy to make, but I bombed with them. I put too much rosemary on them and it was just so overwhelming. I might try them again sometime with less rosemary.

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about 1/2 inch thick)
  
• Cooking spray

Directions:

• Preheat broiler.
• Combine first 4 ingredients.
  
• Rub the mixture over both sides of pork chops.
  
• Place the pork chops on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; broil 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

Chicken Stroganoff

I am on a healthy kick right now...well, I'm trying to be. So my new favorite recipe site is cookinglight.com. That is where I found this recipe. I was a little weary of it, but it came out pretty good! You can even make this into beef stroganoff if you just exchange the chicken broth for beef broth, and the chicken for beef!

Ingredients:

• 4 turkey-bacon slices (I used 8, and it didnt make any drippings, so I just used some cooking spray)
  
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/4-inch strips (I cut them into chunks, not strips
  
• 1 1/2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 2 garlic cloves, minced (used 4)
  
• 1 (8-ounce) container reduced-fat sour cream (used fat free)
  
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles
  
• added mushrooms

Directions:

• Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp.
  
• Remove bacon from pan; crumble.
  
• Add onion and chicken to drippings in pan; sauté 6 minutes.
  
• Add bacon, broth, salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic; bring to a boil.
  
• Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
• Combine the sour cream and flour, stirring until smooth.
  
• Add sour cream mixture to pan, and bring to a boil. (I added the broth to the sour cream so the sour cream would not be chunky...just stir in the broth a little at a time to the sour cream mixture then put it back into the pan)
  
• Reduce heat, and simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
  
• Serve over egg noodles.

Salsa, ole!

One of the girls at work had her husband make salsa to bring in to a party. I couldn't stop eating it, it was so good. I asked her how they made it and she gave me the basic ingredients. While mine did not come out the same, it's still pretty darn good! I dont really have measurements because I had to keep adding stuff as I went along.

Ingredients:

• 4 roma tomatos
• 1 small onion
• 2 dried hot peppers
• cilantro-chopped
• Adobo
• about 1T Red wine vinegar
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 drops of Daves Insanity hot sauce

Directions:

• Roast the tomatoes at 350 for about 20-30 minutes. I put a little olive oil on them.
• take the hot peppers and place them in a bowl, cover with water and microwave about 30 seconds. Set aside.
• Put the roasted tomatoes, diced tomatoes, cilantro, vinegar, lime juice, and adobo into a food processor. Mix it all up in there.
• Chop up the onion and mix in with the rest.
• Add the hot sauce if desired.
  

Avocado Feta Salsa

I was making Easter dinner this year and wanted to try a new appetizer. Well I saw this recipe randomly and decided to try it. It's really good, but next time I might put a little less feta.

Ingredients:

• 2 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 1 ripe avocado - peeled, pitted and chopped
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced (I put like 4-5)
  
• 1 tablespoon snipped fresh parsley (omitted)
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano (omitted)
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red or white wine vinegar
• 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• chopped cilantro- a bunch of it....

Directions:

• In a bowl, gently stir together tomatoes, avocados, onion, and garlic. Mix in parsley and oregano (Cilantro). Gently stir in olive oil and vinegar. Then stir in feta. Cover, and chill for 2 to 6 hours.

Parmesean crusted Tilapia

Jake and I went to BJ's today and bought some tilapia. I have never had tilapia before but heard it was a more mild fish. Well, Jake is out tonight with his friends so I decided to try and make this for myself. WOW! This is really good, he is missing out. I am definitely going to have to make this again. Now, I didnt really follow all the ingredients and measurements...so bear with me.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
  
• 1/4 cup butter, softened (I used I can't believe its not butter spray)
  
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise (used reduced fat mayo)
  
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil (I used Dill instead)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon celery salt (I used regular salt)
  
• 2 pounds tilapia fillets (I used 2 filets...)
  
• Panko flakes
• a dash of Cayanne pepper
• a dash of paprika
• 2 cloves minced garlic
  

Directions:

• Preheat your oven's broiler. Grease a broiling pan or line pan with aluminum foil.
• In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Season with dried basil(dill), pepper, onion powder and celery salt(regular salt), also add in the panko, cayenne, garlic and paprika. Mix well and set aside.
• Arrange fillets in a single layer on the prepared pan. Broil a few inches from the heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the fillets over and broil for a couple more minutes. Remove the fillets from the oven and cover them with the Parmesan cheese mixture on the top side. Broil for 2 more minutes or until the topping is browned and fish flakes easily with a fork. Be careful not to over cook the fish.

Golden Pork Chops

I had pork chops I needed to use and wanted to do something different with them. I got this recipe from my favorite place, allrecipes.com. While the pork was "ok"...I dont think I'd make this again.

Ingredients:

• 6 pork chops
• 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh sliced mushrooms
• 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed golden mushroom soup (I used 1 can golden and one can cream of mushroom)
• a little bit of white wine

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Rinse pork chops, pat dry and place them in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• In a separate small bowl, combine the onion, mushrooms and soup (and wine). Mix together well and sponn over the chops.
• Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, then uncover and bake for 15 more minutes. (Note: Time could be less or more depending on the thickness of the chops.) Pork chops are done when their internal temperature has reached 160 degrees.
  

Chocolate Truffle Cookies

My mom had been asking me to try this recipe for a while. Yesterday she asked if Jake and I wanted to come over because she was having my cousin and her husband over. I said I would and that I'd make the cookies finally. YUM!! These are really good...but make sure you have a nice tall glass of milk to go with them. They are chocolatey!

Ingredients:

• 4 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

• In the microwave or in a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt unsweetened chocolate, 1 cup of the chocolate chips, and the butter stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
  
• In a large bowl, whip eggs and sugar until thick and pale, about 2 minutes.
  
• Stir in the vanilla and the chocolate mixture until well mixed.
  
• Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually stir into the chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining 1 cup chocolate chips.
  
• Cover dough and chill for at least an hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Roll chilled dough into 1 inch balls. (the dough is very sticky. I used 2 spoons to pull it out an plop it on the pan) Place on ungreased cookie sheets so they are 2 inches apart.
• Bake for 9 to 11 minutes in the preheated oven. (mine cooked about 12-14 minutes) Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

**Note: When baking cookies, I like to place a cookie sheet on the lower oven rack under the rack where the cookies will go. This helps prevent burning the bottoms of your cookies.

Cornish Hens

Well, I was going to try a new recipe but didn't have all the ingredients or the time, so I went with my tried and true whole chicken recipe. The hens have a very slight different taste than a chicken. I don't really have measurements on this one b/c I just throw stuff on it.

Ingredients:

• 2 cornish hens
• dried dill
• lemon pepper
• salt
• pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• dried rosemary
• 3-4 medium sized red potatoes
• butter spray or EVOO
• 1 small onion
• water
  

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350
  
• Place hens in a glass baking dish (I used a 13x9 pyrex)
• spray with spray butter or sprinkle with EVOO
• sprinkle on all herbs/spices. I use a lot of dill because it's my favorite
• put garlic slices on hens
  
• cut up potatoes into small pieces and place around the hens
• slice onion and put around hens, also add slices of garlic
  
• pour water into the dish, so as to almost cover the potatoes
• sprinkle more dill/rosemary/salt/pepper onto potatoes
• cook for about 1-2 hours, baste the hens a few times
  

French Dip Sandwiches

This sandwich is fantabulous!!! Its a crock pot recipe and extremely easy. I got it from another recipe blog. Hope you enjoy as much as Jake and I did!

Ingredients:

• 1 3-lb chuck roast
• 1 can beef broth (I use fat free)
• 1 can water
• 1 package onion soup mix
• rolls
• I added baby bellas
  

Directions:

• Trim excess fat from meat
• In medium bowl, mix together the broth, water and soup mix
• Place meat in crock pot
• Pour soup mixture over meat
• Put crockpot on low heat for 6-8 hours
• I sliced up baby bellas and put them in after 6 hours and let them cook for about an hour
• Once meat is done, take it out and place on a dish where you can pull the meat apart.
• I toasted our rolls and also added a nice horseradish sauce

***This is sooo good. The horseradish sauce gives it a nice "zing". We also added a little salt and pepper on our own sandwiches per our taste.

chili

I got this recipe from a friend who got it from allrecipes.com. I have tinkered with the recipe a bit (as usual). I love making this. Its so good and so easy.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds lean ground beef (I used ground turkey usually)
  
• 1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice
• 1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed (I omit)
  
• 1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed (I omit)
  
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
  
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin (I probably use a little more than what's called for)
  
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• I add about 6-10 cloves of garlic (minced in chopper)
  

Directions:

• Place ground beef in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and crumble.
• I sautée the onion and garlic in some EVOO prior to doing the next step
  
• In a large pot over high heat combine the ground beef, tomato juice, tomato sauce, kidney beans, pinto beans, onions, bell pepper, cayenne pepper, sugar, oregano, ground black pepper, salt, cumin and chili powder. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours. (Note: If using a slow cooker, set on low, add ingredients, and cook for 8 to 10 hours.)

***I top my own bowl with fat free shredded cheddar cheese. I also eat it with crumbled fat free saltines.

****The chili is somewhat liquidy, however it is much thicker the following day if you have leftovers....or if you cook it the day before to eat the next day.

Super easy chicken marsala

I half followed a recipe on allrecipies.com to make this. I'm going to write it out how I did it (or to the best I can b/c I didnt measure)

Ingredients:

• 5 thin boneless/skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. pepper
• 1 t. oregano
• 2 T butter
• 2 T EVOO
• 1 pkg mushrooms; sliced
• 1 c. marsala wine

Directions:

• In a ziploc bag, mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and oregano.
• place the chicken breasts in the bag and shake until they are coated.
• In a large skillet, melt the butter and oil on medium heat
• Place the chicken in the skillet and brown on each side
• Add mushrooms and wine; cover and lower heat. Simmer until chicken is done.
  

Burgundy Pork Tenderloin

This is one of the best pork dishes I've made. Another very simple recipe that is wonderful! I got this one from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds pork tenderloin (mine was like 1 1/2 lbs)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 stalk celery, chopped (I omitted this)
  
• 2 cups red wine
• 1 (.75 ounce) package dry brown gravy mix
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced thin (something i added to the recipe)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place pork in a 9x13 inch baking dish, and sprinkle meat with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Make slits in the meat, and slide the slices of garlic into them. Top with onion and celery, and pour wine over all.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes.
• When done baking, remove meat from baking dish, and place on a serving platter. Pour gravy mix into baking dish with wine and cooking juices, and stir until thickened. Slice meat, and cover with the gravy.

The garlic I added inside the meat gave it a wonderful flavor. I made this with mashed potatoes. Excellent. The pork was very tender.

Sweet Mustard Chicken Bake

I got this recipe from one of the women on "thenest". It's super easy and really good! I will definitely make this one again.

Ingredients:

• boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used 6)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

• preheat oven to 375

• stir honey, mustard, and butter together and pour over seasoned chicken.

• cover and bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is done
  

Maple Dijon Pork Chops

Yum-O! I got this recipe from my friend Graces blog. I loved it. Jake thought it had too much of a "syrup" flavor. If I had real maple syrup instead of this crappy kind, I think it would have been better.

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon butter
• 4 (4-ounce) boneless pork loin chops, trimmed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (I used some sugar free crappy syrup...)
  
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage (I used dried sage)
  
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (I used dried thyme)
  
• 2 teaspoons heavy cream (I used light cream)

Directions:

• Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
  
• Sprinkle pork chops evenly with salt and pepper; add pork to pan.
  
• Cook 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.
  
• Remove from pan; keep warm.
• Add broth and next 4 ingredients (through thyme) to pan.
  
• Bring to a boil, and cook for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened.
  
• Stir in cream, and reduce heat to medium.
  
• Return pork to pan; simmer 3 minutes or until pork is done, turning once.

**I made this with brown rice. I also doubled the measurements for the gravy so we would have some for the rice.

Pepperoni Bread

Sorry, no picture :(
A co-worker gave me this recipe on 12/31/07 so I figured, why not make it for new years eve!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 lb pepperoni
• 1/4 lb genoa salami
• 1/4 lb swiss cheese
• 1/4 lb provolone cheese
• 2 pkg crescent rolls
• 1 12 oz jar roasted peppers; drain and slice into thin strips (i didnt use this)
• 4 eggs
• parmesean cheese

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350
• grease a 9x13 pyrex dish
• place 1 pkg rolls on bottom of dish, spread out into rectangle shape
• layer cold cuts and top with peppers.
• beat egg and cheese, pour over the cold cuts (reserve some to put on top layer)
• place remaining package of rolls over the meat
• brush with egg
• cook about 40 minutes covered; then 20 minutes uncovered
• let rest, then cut and serve
  

Chicken Parm

I got this recipe from The Foodie Fashionistas blog. It is pretty tasty!

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• 1-2 eggs
• 1/4 c breadcrumbs
• 1/4 c panko
• fat free mozzerella
• sauce
  

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  
• Beat egg in a large flat bowl. Mix breadcrumbs and panko together in second large flat bowl. Dip one chicken breast in the egg and then dredge through the breadcrumb mixture. Repeat for each chicken breast.
  
• Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Spray each side of chicken cutlets lightly with cooking spray. "Fry" each cutlet on each side just until the breading starts to brown and crisp up slightly.
  
• Place cutlets on a baking sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray. Bake for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. Spray reverse side when you flip the cutlets. After 25 minutes, spread about 2 tablespoons sauce over each cutlet and sprinkle 1/4 cup cheese over each. Bake until cheese is melted.

chocolate trifle

I made this for dessert on Christmas. I didn't have my trifle bowl, so it went in that big bowl! This is extremely sweet, I really only had like 2-3 bites. I brought it to work the next day and people housed it...so I guess it was good!

Ingredients:

• 1 (19.8 ounce) package brownie mix
• 1 (3.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 1 (1.5 ounce) bar chocolate candy (I skipped this)

Directions:

• Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and cool completely. Cut into 1 inch squares.
• In a large bowl, combine pudding mix, water and sweetened condensed milk. Mix until smooth, then fold in 8 ounces whipped topping until no streaks remain.
• In a trifle bowl or glass serving dish, place half of the brownies, half of the pudding mixture and half of the 12 ounce container of whipped topping. Repeat layers. Shave chocolate onto top layer for garnish. Refrigerate 8 hours before serving.

Annettes pork chops

Annette, my mother in law, made these pork chops while we were out in Vegas visiting one year. They seemed really weird, but I gave them a shot...and boy are they good! I made them tonight for me Jake and Josh. We each had 2, they were so good!

Ingredients:

• 6 pork chops
• 1 1/2 jars salsa
• around 4 t cumin (add more per your taste)
• 1 small can green chiles
• 1 1/2 bricks of fat free Philly cream cheese (or more/less depending on how much you like)
• some shredded cheddar cheese (i used colby jack)
  

Directions

• brown the pork chops on each side
• while chops are browning, mix together the salsa, cumin and chiles.
• once the chops are browned, pour salsa mixture over them, lower heat and cover
• cook about 10 minutes, or until done
• slice the cream cheese and lay on top of each chop
• cover for another minute or two
• sprinkle with cheddar cheese
  

Monas Meringues

My friend Mona made these once for a little gathering at her house. They are so good, and so lite that you can eat like 5 of them!

Ingredients

• 4 egg whites (room temperature)
• 8 T Sugar
• 1 T Corn Starch
• 1 t Baking Powder
• 1 pint Whipping Cream
  

Directions

• Preheat oven to 250 (yes, 250)
  

• Beat egg whites really well until fluffy. Add two tablespoons of sugar per egg white. Whisk in 1 tablespoon of corn starch (strain it in) and 1 teaspoon of baking powder.

• Scoop about a tablespoon and a half onto the parchment paper and bake in the oven for 1.5-2 hours. For the last 30 minutes, reduce heat to 2:00 degrees. Cool down and test for gooey center..if too gooey, put back in the oven. Don't let them brown...they can be a tan-ish color...but you don't want them to brown
  

• Whip whipping cream and add a little sugar to taste (a teaspoon or two). Top with fresh strawberries, blueberries or in-season fruit.

Christmas Appetizers

Pita Trees

Ingredients:

• 4 flavored or plain pita folds or pita (pocket) breads (about 6” diameter)
• 16 thin pretzel sticks, halved
• ½ c. fat-free sour cream
• ½ c. guacamole (i made my own)
  
• 2 T finely chopped parsley
• ¼ t. garlic-pepper blend
• ¼ c. very finely chipped red bell pepper

Directions:

• Cut each pita fold into 8 wedges. Insert pretzel stick half into center of bottom of each wedge to form “tree trunk”.
• In a small bowl, mix sour cream, guacamole, parsley and garlic-pepper blend. Spread about 1 teaspoon of mixture on each pita wedge
• Blot bell pepper with paper towel to remove excess moisture. Sprinkle about ½ teaspoon on each wedge or arrange to form a garland. If desired, cover a refrigerate up to 8 hours before serving.

*These were good, but I would leave the red pepper off (personal taste), they just made them look cute!

**For variety, use cilantro instead of parsley

Smoked Salmon Cheese cups

Ingredients:

• 1 package frozen mini fillo shells (15 shells)
• 3 oz. Chevre (goat) cheese, crumbled
• 1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 2 oz smoked salmon, flaked
• 2 T shredded fresh parmesan cheese
• 1 T chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 T whipping cream
• ¼ t. salt
• 1/8 t. fresh ground black pepper
• 2 T chopped pecans, toasted** (I did not use the pecans at all)
  

Directions:

• Thaw fillo shells as directed on package. In medium bowl, mix all remaining ingredients except pecans until well mixed. Spoon into 1 quart resealable food storage plastic bag. Seal bag; cut ½ inch off 1 corner of bag.
• To serve, pipe or spoon cheese salmon mixture into each cup. Sprinkle each with pecans.

*My personal opinion on these is that I did not like the shell...it was a weird texture. Next time, I would make this more as a spread for crackers. The filling was delicious

**To toast pecans, heat oven to 350. Spread pecans in ungreasesd shallow pan. Bake uncovered 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until light brown.

Chile-Lime Shrimp with Creamy Chipotle Dip

Ingredients:

• 2 limes
• 24 uncooked extra large deveined peeled shrimp with tail shells left on
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped (I used 5-6 cloves)
  
• ½ t. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/3 c. mayo
• 2 T honey mustard
• 1 large chipotle chile in adobo sauce (from 7 oz can) finely chopped
• 1 t. adobo sauce
• 1 T chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

• Reserve 1 lime for garnish. Grate 1 teaspoon peel from other lime. Cut lime in half; squeeze enough juice to measure 2 T. Set peel and juice aside.
• Butterfly each shrimp by cutting along the outside curve through the fleshiest part for about 1 ½ inches, cutting almost to the inside curve. (I didnt do this because of time restraints, i left the shrimp regular) The shrimp should spread open.
• In 1 gallon resealable food storage plastic bag, mix oil, garlic, pepper flakes, lime juice and grated lime peel. Shake lightly to mix. Add shrimp. Seal bag; rotate to coat all shrimp. Refrigerate 30-60 minutes to marinate. (I think mine marinated like 2 hours b/c I was working on other stuff)
  
• Meanwhile, in small bowl mix mayo, honey mustard, chipotle chile and adobo sauce. cover; refrigerate until serving.
• Heat oven to 400. Remove shrimp from marinade, place in 15x10x1inch baking pan. Open each shrimp, arranging in pan so that cut portion is on pan with tail tucked in. Discard marinade.
• Bake 5-7 minutes, rearranging shrimp halfway through baking time, until they are pink. Place on serving platter; sprinkle with cilantro. Spoon dip into bowl. Cut reserved lime into wedges. Garnish dip with wedges. Serve shrimp with dip.
  

*These are soooo good. The chipolte dip is amazing. I highly recommend these shrimp!