homemade granola bars

oh how I love the barefoot contessa. here's hoping her homemade granola bars will be the perfect apres-cycle snack with cider & hot toddies after our 'full moon lake ride' around white rock lake tomorrow evening with friends.

brussels sprouts

why don't we eat these little gems more often?

with a generous pour of extra virgin olive oil + kosher salt & fresh cracked pepper, these babies are so good. into the oven at 425 for ~20 mins... don't be scared of some crispy greeny-browny bits. to quote anne burrell, "brown food tastes good!" brussels sprouts always reminds me of my dear friend katie.

guacamole & jicama chips

i'm always trying to sneak veggies into my kids' bellies and jicama is a new one for us. a cross between a mexican yam & turnip, it's innocuous enough, the texture is almost like a crunchy asian pear (less sweet) or raw potato. jicama is high in vitamins A, C and B, along with calcium and phosphorus. pretty nice with guacamole and a fresh tomato salsa. oh fiesta.

look at this cutie...

ingredients:

• 1 jicama, peeled, cut in half, and sliced into bite-size "chips"
• 2 avocados
• 1/2 cup red grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 yellow tomatoes, halved
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• handful of cilantro
• 1//4 red onion, finely minced
• *1/2 jalapeno, minced
• 1 lime
• drizzle of evoo
• kosher salt & pepper

preparation:

toss tomatoes, garlic, onion, cilantro in juice of lime, evoo and s&p. *i did not include jalapenos because of my kiddos, but that could be nice... let the veg mingle & marinate a bit, then serve over scooped avocado (seasoned with kosher salt & pepper, squeeze of lime).  serve with jicama chips.

whole lotta nuts granola

i first found this emeril lagasse recipe when working for a triathlete in austin as a private chef (hehe, more like glorified grocery girl). it was his favorite guilty pleasure, loaded with all kinds of protein & energy in the form of nature's candy, seeds, nuts & dried berries. really good sprinkled atop greek yogurt with fresh fruit & honey.  i'd double the recipe and take some home for my own cutie triathlete, td.  now my little one likes to help me make it... as if she needs any more energy.

mix, mix, mix that melted honey, butter & vanilla into the oats, nuts, coconut...

bake at 325, stirring every 5 mins for ~20 mins

keep it in a jar on your counter or in a baggie in your purse for a fun crunchy snack, by itself or on top of greek yogurt, ice cream, etc

thai chicken salad

oh my goodness, look what i found in my blog posts drafts from ~2 years ago, thai chicken salad.  i recall it was pretty tasty after all.  might have to go with the pictures to discern just how this salad came together... maybe just follow the pics like an ikea direction packet :)

ingredients:

• ~2 cups grilled chicken, cubed
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• 1 mango, diced
• handful of fresh basil, torn
• handful of fresh mint, torn
• bibb lettuce
• 1 package of ramen noodles, prepared according to directions
• dressing, i'm guessing:... 1 T soy sauce, 1 T teriyaki sauce, ~2 T evoo or veg oil, juice of 1/2 lime, 1 tsp sesame seeds, salt & pepper, drizzle of sesame oil, squirt of sriracha sauce, little bit a brown suga... season to taste 

preparation:

toss together and enjoy... the dressing can be doubled and used to marinate the chicken prior to grilling.

rainy day soup

it's rainy & 55 degrees outside on this chilly january day. perfect soup weather. and since i couldn't bare to drag the kids to the store in the rain, i'm thankful soup loves odds & ends and is very forgiving. chop up whatever you have on hand.  here's what i've got going on the stove right now... thanks for enduring my iphone pics, prettier in person :)

ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 4 oz pancetta
• ~1 pint of mixed yellow & red grape tomatoes 
• 1 can garbanzo beans
• 2 32oz chicken 'stock'n a box', i love pacific's organic free range broth found at costco
• 2 cups dried bow tie pasta
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 2+ cups arugula & spinach
• 3/4 chopped parsley
• evoo
• salt & pepper

preparation:

saute' diced pancetta in ~1T olive oil until it begins to color. add the onion, celery & carrots and a generous couple of T of extra virgin olive oil + ~2tsp salt & pepper and sautee until softened & glistening.  add tomatoes and continue to cook veg until softened.  add chicken stock and bring to a boil.  add bow tie pasta and garbanzo beans and simmer until pasta is al dente. season with s&p. add 1/2 stick of butter.  {* i know that may sound like a lot, but this soup doesn't have much fat and the butter will richen it up a bit.}  wilt in spinach & arugula and fresh parsley. serve with fresh parm.