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

spinach smoothies

i realize as i see these pics now that i'm probably not helping my cause: promoting healthy spinach smoothies {as a replacement for my almost-daily vanilla coke from sonic}... sorry if these green bubbly images are less than appealing, was just looking for an alternative form of green energy for my afternoon slumpies.

if you're brave enough to try this, it was really quite nice.  i promise you won't even taste the spinach. add wheat germ for folic acid / b vitamins & a nice texture, and local honey to help fight allergies.

ingredients

• 1 cup ice cubes
• 1 cup fresh spinach
• 2 bananas
• 1 TBLS wheat germ
• 2 TBLS honey
• 1 - 2 cups vanilla soy milk depending on your desired consistency

preparation

blend it to your liking and feel good about your healthy choice :)  *kids like these, too.

   

PW's Blackberry Cobbler

I just love the Pioneer Woman, don't you?  I found this "Betsy's Cobbler" recipe in her first cookbook and then googled it now to add here, and wow - what lovely pictures she took!  Check out her recipe and step by step directions here. 

*Doesn't her cobbler look de-licious?  You can ignore my pics or use them as validation that if you try this, yours will turn out amazing, too - just 5 ingredients, so simple... yum.  And of course you could do this with blueberries, peaches, raspberries, whatever your heart desires.

up close & personal

Directions straight from the PW's website:

Ingredients

• 1 stick Butter
• 1-¼ cup Sugar
• 1 cup Self-Rising Flour
• 1 cup Milk
• 2 cups Blackberries (frozen Or Fresh)

Preparation Instructions

Melt butter in a microwavable dish. Pour 1 cup of sugar and flour into a mixing bowl, whisking in milk. Mix well. Then, pour in melted butter and whisk it all well together. Butter a baking dish.  Now rinse and pat dry the blackberries. Pour the batter into the buttered baking dish. Sprinkle blackberries over the top of the batter; distributing evenly. Sprinkle ¼ cup sugar over the top.  Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or until golden and bubbly. If you desire, sprinkle an additional teaspoon of sugar over the cobbler 10 minutes before it’s done.

*And check out this link if you're like me and you don't keep self-rising flour in your pantry.  You can turn your All Purpose into self-rising super easily!

Let's make this again, because it was really yummy the first time...
here we are round 2 with more blackberries... pre-oven:

 and warm & delicious post-oven:

Black Bean Jicama Fruity Fruit Salsa

What to name this random concoction... I don't know, and I barely even remember what all's in here since I made this a few weeks ago and lots of life has happened since then :) The idea behind this salsa of sorts is really just to combine fresh seasonal southwest flavors, savory & sweet, to then pile high on grilled flank steak, chicken or tortilla chips - how can you go wrong. Mix in your own ideas/herbs, etc, and enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup jicama
  
• 1 mango
  
• 1 medium red onion
  
• 1/2 pint grape tomatoes
• 2 kiwis
• 1 can rinsed black beans
• juice & zest of one lime
• splash of red wine vinegar
  
• fresh cilantro
• 1 clove garlic
  
• olive oil
• cayenne or red pepper flakes
• cumin
• salt & pepper to taste
• *optional, lots of fresh avocado!
  

Preparation:

Dice, quarter, chop up in any 'ol way, the veggies & fruit of your choice. Dress with olive oil, lime juice, cumin, salt & pepper and any other spice/seasoning you choose, remembering the standard 3:1 ratio for dressings: (3 parts oil to 1 part acid/vinegar, in this case, lime juice or red wine vinegar + seasoning). *I would have added heaps of avocado, but I served a deconstructed guacamole the same night, but didn't get a picture before it got eaten :)

Fruity Crumbles

I really do love Ina Garten - her recipes are so classic & reliable. This fruit crumble dessert is one I'll definitely make again because I love its versatility and flexibility for any season, no matter the fruit you have on hand. Plus, you can make these individual crumbles ahead of time and bake them off for dinner or even a couple days after you've assembled them. Yay leftovers :)

Ingredients

For the Fruit:nocoupons

• 2 pounds firm, ripe peaches (6 to 8 peaches)
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup fresh blueberries (1/2 pint)

For the crumble:nocoupons

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until their skins peel off easily. Place them immediately in cold water. Peel the peaches, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the blueberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. Spoon the mixture into ramekins or custard cups.

For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas. Rub the mixture with your fingertips until it's in big crumbles, then sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Place the ramekins on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

If you want to make these early, store the unbaked crumbles in the refrigerator and bake before dinner.

Here's what mine looked like:

Blanching beauties

Ice bath to chill these girlies down

Making the crumble

Tossing the fruit in all kinds of yumminess...
(for the fruit, I actually used nectarines, a granny smith apple, some strawberries & blackberries b/c that's what I had on hand)

Assembly line

Warm & bubbly and dressed up with a little ice cream

I like how the fruit bubbled up & dripped down the ramekins.
- will definitely make these again :)

migas with amigos!

Dave & Laura are in town for Tday and we've had a great time catching up - dinner at the porch last night & breakfast migas this morning :) *Miss you guys, so glad you came to stay with us!

Here's my quick recipe for Breakfast Migas
(we call them birthday migas - nothin' fancy, but oh so good)

Ingredients:

• 14 eggs (serves ~4 with leftovers)
  
• splash of heavy whipping cream
  
• 5 flour tortillas (+ extras for rolling up the migas)
  
• 5 slices of bacon, crumbled
  
• 1/2 poblano pepper, small dice
  
• 1/2 bell pepper, small dice
  
• 1/2 red onion, small dice
• 1/2 cup tomatoes, small dice
  
• fresh cilantro
  
• 2 potatoes, dice
• 1 yellow onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• olive oil
• butter, ~2T
  
• salt & pepper
• garlic salt
• red pepper flakes
• 2 cans black refried beans
• fresh fruit
  
• coffee, juice, etc :)
  

Preparation:

Breakfast Potatoes-

Dice potatoes, season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic salt, and toss in olive oil on a sheet pan. Toss in whole cloves of fresh garlic, and roast in the oven at 450 for ~45 mins or until done.

Migas-

Cook bacon, set aside on paper towel & crumble. Slice up tortillas into 1/4" x 2" strips. Remove most of the bacon grease and add ~2T butter; cook up those tortilla strips over medium heat and set aside. Saute the peppers and red onion in the yummy bacon/butter residue until soft, add tomatoes. Meanwhile, crack eggs into a large bowl, season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, & splash of cream. Whip them up. Add eggs to the veggies and cook over low heat, stirring often. Add in the bacon & tortilla strips and cook until fluffy & done.

Black Refried Beans-

Saute a few of the peppers & red onion in olive oil and add the refried beans to warm, season to taste. If necessary, thin with veggie stock.

Fresh Fruit-

We diced up 2 granny smith apples and tossed with fresh pomegranate seeds and a tiny drizzle of Texas wildflower honey. Tart, wonderfully fresh & yummy :) *Add honey greek yogurt if you'd like a creamy dip.

Pomegranate tip-

For easy de-seeding, I've found if I slice the pom in 1/2 equator-wise and submerge it in a bowl of cool water, then I can gently pluck out the seeds and break apart the fleshy membrane. The water will keep the purply juice from staining your fingers, and the seeds will sink while the pithy part floats :)

*Hope you enjoy as much as we do!

Sherbety Goodness

I've been in a blending mood lately, so anything I can throw in my blender I do! this smoothie came about late one night after a few weekends of travel and zero groceries in the house... luckily we always have a bag of frozen fruit (I buy a Dole mix at Costco with peaches, pineapple, & strawberries), orange sherbet and ginger ale. Yum :) May rival my favorite smoothie ever, the Strawberry Surfrider at Jamba Juice. Bring on the brain freeze.

Ingredients:

• ~3 cups frozen fruit
• ~3 scoops orange sherbet
• ~1 can of ginger ale
  

Preparation:

Adjust according to your preferred thickness & blend away :)

Shower Power

With our busy schedules these days, cooking has been a luxury, much less actually blogging about cooking :) but here are a few easy yummies from a recent baby shower my sweet girls & I hosted for our dear friend Sarah. We didn't get pics of each dish below, but you can kind of see them in the group shot above. Yay for baby showers & easy entertaining! (The recipes below were scaled to serve ~20 lightly-lunching ladies, feel free to scale back if you don't need to feed that many.)

Chicken Caesar Salad

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• (balsamic, extra virgin olive oil, garlic salt, kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper, dash of red pepper flakes, 2T dried rosemary for chicken marinade)
  
• 3 romaine hearts
  
• 1 cup shredded parmesan
• 3/4 bottle of Newman's Own Caesar Dressing (I know, shame, it's bottled, but my favorite!)
• 3 lemons, sliced thinly
  

Preparation:

Marinade the chicken in a shallow dish with your preference of seasoning, (I use balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic salt, kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper, dash of red pepper flakes, 2T dried rosemary for mine), then grill on indoor grill pan and slice for salad. Chop the romaine hearts and slice the lemons. Toss romaine, parmesan, lemons and sliced chicken in a large bowl with Newman's Own Caesar dressing. Voila! :)

Farm Egg Frittata

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of diced yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup of diced orange bell pepper
• 1 minced clove of garlic
• 1 cup of thinly sliced red onion
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup chopped grape tomatoes
  
• ~10 spears of asparagus cut on the bias to 1/4" pieces
• 1/2 cup crumbled bacon (optional)
  
• 9 eggs
• 2 sheet of pre-frozen puff pastry dough for the crust
• 12" baking/quiche dish
  
• salt & pepper
• red pepper flakes
• extra virgin olive oil
  

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350°. Pull the puff pastry dough out of the freezer and let it thaw under a damp towel to keep it moist. Sauté the veggies in a little olive oil just until soft, seasoning with a few red pepper flakes, salt & pepper. Remove them from the heat and put to the side in a small bowl. Add crumbled bacon to the mixture. Roll out the puff pastry dough and press into a 12" baking dish, laying 1 sheet of dough on top of the other at a 90 degree angle, like an "x". Crack 9 eggs into a bowl and season well. Combine the cooled veggies with the egg mixture and pour into the baking dish. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until done! (I did the veggie mixture the night before, as well as cracked the eggs into a double-lined plastic baggie for quick assembly before the shower.) *Here's a similar version.

Creamy Dill Pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 lb box of large corkscrew pasta (like Barilla's Cellentani)
• 6 cups heavy whipping cream
• lots of fresh dill (~2 .66oz clear boxes from the herb section of your grocery store)
• salt & pepper and garlic salt to taste
  

Preparation:

I love this pasta because it's rich & creamy and so simple to make. Reduce cream in a saucepan at a low simmer and season well with salt & pepper and garlic salt. The goal is to thicken the cream sauce, but the thickness is up to you, I'd say you want it tight enough to cling to the corkscrew pasta, about 40-50 mins+ on a low simmer, stirring gently all the time. Meanwhile, boil the corkscrew pasta in salted water until al dente. De-stem and chop fresh dill. Toss the pasta, dill & cream sauce together and season to taste.

This pasta can be served warm or room temp (and is even tasty out of the fridge cold.) *You could certainly cut this recipe in half! Although make sure you have enough cream & dill since they're what gives the pasta flavor.

Granola Parfaits

Ingredients:

• * I used Emeril Lagasse's Whole Lotta Nuts granola recipe, or you can purchase 'homemade' granola from the bulk section of your grocery store.
• 2 27oz large containers of organic creamy vanilla yogurt
• drizzle of orange blossom honey to fold into yogurt
  
• assorted fresh berries (blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, peaches)
• We assembled 20 6oz parfaits.
  

Preparation:

Prepare the granola or purchase store bought. Fold honey into vanilla yogurt and assemble parfaits: granola, yogurt, fruit, and repeat! These are yummy immediately, and even nice as a yogurt "muesli" if you refrigerate leftovers.

*A big thanks to Catherine for bringing fresh goodies up from her farm near Austin! Other dishes not listed above were tomatoes, feta & basil, toasted croissants with honey butter & blackberry jam, a delicious cucumber dill salad, lemon poppyseed muffins and chocolate & vanilla petit fours.

Grapefuit Greatness

I don't know why, but I've been craving grapefruit every day for the last couple of weeks. I did a little reading online to make sure 1 to 2 a day is okay (it's actually not okay for people taking cholesterol-lowering drugs), but for me, it's all good and I love 'em - so juicy, crisp & refreshingly tart.

Women's Day has this to say about grapefruit:

"Whether sliced in half and sweetened with a sprinkle of sugar, squeezed for fresh juice or tossed in a salad, grapefruits are no ordinary citrus. Packed with nutrients including vitamin C, folic acid and potassium, grapefruit also contains naringin, a compound which accounts for the fruit’s characteristic bitter flavor and which is often used to assist in weight loss. Additionally, pink grapefruit is relatively rich in antioxidants, while ruby-red grapefruit also contains lycopene, the phytochemical that helps reduce artery damage. So what are you waiting for? Here are a few recipes that should make it easy to mix this nutritious winter fruit into your daily diet, from a delicious Shrimp Avocado and Grapefruit Salad to the sweet Blushing Grapefruit Cupcakes."

Here are some great grapefruit recipes:

• Ginger-Grapefruit Granita

• Shrimp, Avocado & Grapefruit Salad
  
  
• Blushing Grapefruit Cupcakes

• Pink Grapefruit Spritzers

• Grapefruit Salad with Citrus Dressing

• Jicama-Grapefruit Salad
  
  
• Chicken with Ruby Grapefruit and Cranberry Salsa
  
  
• Three Citrus Granitas
  
  
• Green Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette

Thanks Tonny, for bringing us Texas Ruby Reds from the Valley!