Cooking Show: Breakfast for Dinner, Part III

It's been a while since we've filmed a show with a "Breakfast for Dinner" theme (click here and here to be taken to recipes from the previous shows).  I was joined by my friend, Maureen. We did our best to prepare a few breakfast recipes that are also great at dinnertime!

I love breakfast recipes, but I don't typically have time to make them in the morning hours. At dinnertime, however--when I've usually put aside the time to actually cook something--I find that making breakfast can actually save time, because many breakfast recipes require less time to prepare than traditional dinner recipes.

(Click on the recipe title to be taken to the printable recipe.)

Hash Brown Frittata

Layered with hash browns, ham, eggs, veggies and cheese!  

 Bacon, Spinach & Tomato Breakfast Wraps with Avocado

These are one of my favorite wraps.  I would eat them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Or breakfast, lunch AND dinner!

 Apple Dutch Baby Puff Pancake

You could serve this topped with maple syrup, whipped cream...or ice cream...

Madras

The perfect choice if you're feeling like you might want to mix up a special fruity drink to go with your breakfast-dinner!

Cooking Show: Bahama Mama Drinks, Cajun Shrimp Pasta and Valentine's Day Baking

You could say that our recent cooking show was a mish-mash of recipes.  My friend, Amy cooked with me.

We were all business as we tried to wish away our winter doldrums with cajun shrimp pasta and a tropical cocktail.

We were in a party mood, however, by the time we finished cooking our desserts!  Valentine's Day is right around the corner, so we prepared a couple of recipes featuring my favorite combination: chocolate and raspberries.

(Recipe titles are printable links; click on the title to be taken to the recipe!)

Bahama Mama

Amy and I both agreed that we can't wait for this cold weather to end!  We sipped this drink with our eyes closed and imagined that we were somewhere tropical.

 Cajun Shrimp Pasta

Just enough spice to warm you up during this cold weather! 

Nutella Puff Pastry

Amy and I made this into a heart shape to fit with our Valentine's Day theme.

Make it into any shape that you want, or leave it whatever shape the pastry happens to be, just please MAKE THIS.

It is so easy to make and it's SO GOOD!

Brioche Panini with White Chocolate Mascarpone and Raspberry

It was impossible to decide which dessert recipe to give you so I decided to make both.  

Please don't let my horrid photography skills deter you from making this.  Ignore the ugly picture!  

After we finished filming, this dish was quickly snarfed down. Just imagine slices of buttery, pillowy soft brioche bread, crispy on the outside, with a warm center of creamy white chocolate mascarpone and sweet raspberry.  

Happy Valentine's Day!

Cooking Show: Gluten-Free Pasta Party!

I've been toying with the idea of a pasta-themed cooking show for a while.  I knew that I didn't want to do a run-of-the-mill show with a basic spaghetti/meatballs/tomato sauce menu, but other than coming up with a couple of different sauces I still couldn't figure out what else I could do to make it more interesting.

Enter my friend Joanie.  She agreed to cook with me for the show, and I told her about my idea for a pasta show featuring a couple of different pasta sauces.  She replied, "and how about using pasta that isn't wheat pasta?"

Bingo!

We could prepare the sauces, and then critique the gluten-free pastas.

We paired a creamy tomato sauce with chick pea spaghetti, and soy fettucine with an alfredo sauce.

First up was the soybean pasta Alfredo with Chicken and Broccoli.

Heavy cream is a hallmark of classic Alfredo; however, I use light cream in my Alfredo sauce instead. Making this swap only sacrifices calories, not flavor! 

Click here for the printable recipe.

As promised, Joanie and I offered our critique of the soy pasta.  We were happy to be in agreement!  But that's about all that we were happy about.

The positives: 1. The pasta remained firm in texture.

                        2. It only took about 2 minutes to cook the pasta 

                            

The negatives: 1. There was no flavor at all to the pasta.  It did not even retain the slightest

                            bit of salty flavor from the salted water that it was boiled in.

                         2. The pasta did not hold the sauce at all.  It slid right off and pooled on the plate.

I would not recommend soy pasta!

Next on the menu was chickpea Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce.

This is a very simple, quick, flavorful red sauce.  The addition of a bit of cream at the end gives it a nice, rich texture.

Click here for the printable recipe.

Once again, Joanie and I were in agreement as we critiqued the chickpea pasta.

The positives: 1. It was very flavorful!
                        2. It held the sauce very nicely.
                        3. Chickpea pasta has about 3 times as much protein as traditional pasta!

The negatives: 1. It doesn't turn entirely soft and mushy, but it does get starchy-soft on the
                             surface.  It still retains a bit of a bite...but if you prefer a true al dente pasta
                             you would probably be disappointed.

Lemon Drop Martini

We did not prepare these drinks on-camera; however, if you watched the show and noticed Joanie and I sipping these delightful concoctions and you're wondering what they were, click here for the recipe!

Cooking Show: Summer Produce

Our recent cooking show focused on summer produce.

More specifically, recipes to make if you have an overabundance of summer produce!

My friend, Lisa, cooked with me. Lisa loves to cook as much as I do!  It didn't take long before our assortment of seasonal fruits and vegetables turned into a mouth-watering array of delicious dishes.

(Click on the titles to be taken to the printable recipes.)

Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan

If your garden is overflowing with eggplant, then this is the recipe for you!

My husband did not grow up in a house where eggplant was served and he has a very strong aversion to unfamiliar foods.  He does not even like the word "eggplant."  However, his absolute favorite dishes are chicken parmesan and veal parmesan.  I knew he would like this if only he would try it!  

The first few times I served him eggplant, he ate it without complaint and grudgingly said, "I guess I would eat anything if it had enough tomato sauce and cheese on it."  

I would be kidding myself if I said that this is now one of his favorite foods, but I do know that he really likes it!  

Watermelon Margaritas

Okay, maybe you don't have watermelon growing in your garden. Watermelon is one of my favorite summer fruits, and it only seemed right that while it's in season and at its peak we should feature this drink!

Heirloom Tomato Caprese Salad

There is no printable link for you to click on here because there really is no need for a printable recipe!

Here you go: heirloom tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, balsamic glaze, basil.

Got that? Four ingredients!  Slice the tomatoes and mozzarella, drizzle it with balsamic glaze and sprinkle with finely shredded basil.  SO GOOD.  Excuse my shouting.  But it's SO GOOD.  Is there anything better than fresh-sweet-heirloom tomatoes in the summertime?  I think not.

Lemon/Blueberry Zucchini Bread with Lemon Glaze

If you are lucky and have an overabundance of zucchini and blueberries on hand you can make this today.

If not, go to your supermarket and get yourself a small zucchini and a half pint of blueberries so you can make it today.

I can not tell you how long this bread will stay fresh because in this house it is always devoured within 24 hours.  The last three times that I made this bread I shared it with three different people and all of them asked me for the recipe.  It's that good!  No matter how often I make it (even three times in one week), it disappears fast.  

New Recipes for the New Year

Happy New Year!

The idea for our latest cooking show was sparked during a recent trip to the supermarket.  Another shopper noticed the spaghetti squash in my cart and started asking questions:

"Is that a spaghetti squash? What are you going to make? How do you cook it?"

It only took me a few minutes to answer her questions.  It was her final comment that caused the rusty gears in my head to start turning: "It sounds easy enough.  I guess I just need to branch out and try new things."

Hmmm, I thought to myself, the next cooking show could revolve around that theme.  We all get stuck in a rut now and then.

Maybe you've never cooked spaghetti squash before, or maybe you're looking for a twist to your usual prep methods --like baking slices of eggplant parm individually, instead of frying and layering them casserole-style. My friend, Joanie, joined me for this show.  At the end of the night she declared, "I think I may have found my new go-to recipe for eggplant parm!"

Bubbly Raspberry Cocktails

It seemed fitting that we should pop open a bottle of bubbly to toast 2018! We added a handful of fresh raspberries and a few spoonfuls of vanilla ice cream to create Bubbly Raspberry Cocktails. Mmmmm.

Click here for the printable recipe.

Spaghetti Squash Alfredo with Prosciutto and Asparagus

We jumped right into preparing our first dish.  We made our sauce while the spaghetti squash was roasting, and then shredded the squash and served it right in the shells.

{{Are you laughing at these pictures?  I forgot to take pictures after we finished cooking! We were already digging in and filling our plates when I suddenly remembered that I needed to snap a few photos for this blog. Instead of asking everyone to freeze what they were doing so that I could grab my DSLR camera to try and take photos, I made do with my iPhone. On my best day, I take horrendous photos. THESE photos, however...yikes.  Please accept my apologies!}}

Pasta with Chicken and Mushroom/Wine Sauce

There is so much going on here.   Sautéed chicken cutlets, bow tie pasta, wild mushrooms.  The mushroom/wine sauce is heavenly...and crumbling crispy pancetta on top sends over the top!

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Skip the frying and layering.  This recipe for eggplant parm is quick compared to the traditional method, and this platter was the one that was empty at the end of our cooking session!

Cooking Show: Recipes with Lots of Fruits and Veggies!

My friend, Kerry, joined me for the latest episode of the cooking show.  The recipes we prepared were loaded with fruits & veggies.

Recipes that are perfect for this hot summer weather, when you're looking for something refreshing and not heavy!

We started with Tropical Mimosas.  

Okay, they're nothing like mimosas, there is neither orange juice nor champagne in these drinks.  I just thought it was a nice name for a light, fruity drink.

They're sort of a riff on Pina Coladas, but I swapped out the coconut creme (which has lots of calories) for coconut seltzer (no-calorie seltzer for the win)!

Next up was Brussels Sprouts Salad with Buttermilk Dressing.

Why bother with store-bought dressing when you can whip up buttermilk dressing of your own? If you don't have buttermilk on hand you can make your own substitute--for the 1/3 cup that is called for in this recipe, simply put 1 teaspoon of white vinegar into your measuring cup and then add milk to the 1/3-cup mark.  Stir and let it sit for five minutes.  Voilá, buttermilk substitute!

Arrange the salad ingredients in rows so that your family can easily spoon out their favorite combination...or avoid the ingredient that they don't want, as the case may be.  There are a few members of this household who avoid the gorgonzola!

We also used brussels sprouts in our Ginger/Honey/Soy Chicken Stir Fry.

If I had to to come up with a nickname for this recipe, I would call it Egg Roll Stir Fry.  With the shaved brussels sprouts and shredded carrots, the flavor is reminiscent of an egg roll, but without the calories of the deep-fried egg roll wrap.  Score!

Finally, we ended with Nectarine Crisp.

Similar to apple crisp, but it takes less time to prepare because unlike apples you don't need to peel the nectarines!

Cooking Show: Quick Meals Before Rushing Out The Door!

The theme of our recent cooking show was a timely subject for me.

I thought that my days of rushing out the door to get to a ball field were over, but now that I'm coaching softball again I find myself trying to throw together a last-minute dinner almost every night.

I made a list of dishes that I had made over the previous few days, figuring that anything I had made while in the throes of softball season would be a good fit for this show!

(Click on the titles to be taken to the recipes.)

We started with Mango Margaritas.

Toss some frozen mango chunks, tequila, triple sec and simple syrup into a blender, mix it up and add a lime wedge.  Done.

Next, we prepared Marinated Grilled Chicken and Pasta Salad.

To be taken to a blogpost with step-by-step instructions for the pasta salad, click here.

Each of these recipes can be prepared in advance and pulled out of the fridge when it's dinner time.  I like to prepare a large batch of the chicken and use it throughout the week in salads, sandwiches, wraps and quesadillas.  Which brings us to ...

Rice Tortilla Quesadillas.  Which aren't really traditional quesadillas, because I don't follow any quesadilla recipe that I've ever seen.  I use leftovers!  It's a great way to pull together a quick meal while emptying out your fridge at the same time.

Since I didn't want to feature my fridge full of leftovers on the cooking show, I made these quesadillas with ingredients that I might typically have on hand.  The only sure thing that I use every time I make them is

1. Olive Oil spray, so they don't stick to the pan.

2. Rice Tortillas.  You can find them in the frozen food department at your supermarket.  They're
    really crispy, which is a huge hit with my family.  No soggy quesadillas in this house!

3.  Cheese.  It holds everything together.

We made a variety of quesadillas.  Roast Beef and Cheese. Ham, Avocado, Tomato and Cheese (my
favorite). And Cheesy Chicken Quesadillas with Spinach.

And finally, Caramel Coconut Chocolate Bark.  No baking involved!

Fall Cooking Show! Beef Stew, Pumpkin Dip, Apple Cider Cocktails, Apple-Pumpkin Dog Treats

We filmed another episode of the cooking show last week!

Our theme was Fall, so I prepared a few recipes heavy on apples & pumpkin.

And I made Beef Stew, which always reminds me of fall because that's when I add it back into my cooking rotation!

Printable Recipe

A nice, warm bowl of stew is perfect for those chilly fall days.

Apple Cider Cocktails with Caramel Vodka

Printable Recipe

Serve them chilled or warm.

Dan the Awesome Camera Man chose the warm cider and declared (in his lovely Irish brogue), "It warms the cockles of my heart!"  

Pumpkin Dip

Printable Recipe

Serve it with graham crackers, gingersnaps, cinnamon pita chips or apple slices for dipping.

And last but not least, Apple-Pumpkin Dog Treats, because dogs also like fall-themed food!

Printable Recipe

Happy Halloween!