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.  

Cooking Show: Spice is Nice! Fajita Rice, Cinco de Mayo Salad with Chicken, Ginger Soy Shrimp Salad and Frozen Mango-Peach Cocktails

Our recent cooking show featured recipes to wake up your taste buds.

A bit of spice makes everything nice! 

My friend, Maribeth, cooked with me and we covered all the bases with salads, festive rice, and a fruity, frozen concoction to wash it all down.

Frozen Mango-Peach Cocktails

We've featured this recipe on a previous show, but it bears repeating!! Toss frozen mango chunks, simple syrup, lime juice, peach schnapps and ice cubes into a blender and minutes later you'll be sipping this tropical cocktail.  

Fajita Rice with Chicken

Easy clean-up because you only need one pan! Rice, veggies, seasonings, broth, rotisserie chicken--stir it up, let it simmer, sprinkle with cheese...

 ...add your favorite toppings and voilà!

A fabulous combination of spicy/melty/creamy/YUM.

Cinco de Mayo Chicken Salad with Salsa Dressing

A meal that's easy to throw together if you're pressed for time! 

This has recently been the go-to salad in my house.  I marinate the chicken for 15 minutes (a simple mix of olive oil and spices) and while it's marinating I prep the salad and whisk together the dressing.

 Ginger/Soy Shrimp Salad

If you're in the mood for an Asian-inspired salad, we've got you covered!

Another quick salad where you're going to marinate the protein (in this case, shrimp) while you prep your salad and dressing.  A few minutes under the broiler is all it takes to cook the shrimp!

Cooking Show: Slow Cooker Ribs & Chili, Wedge Salad and Roasted Potatoes

We're still waiting here in New England for this seemingly endless winter to end.

Snow in April? Check.

Comfort food still on the menu? Check.

I've been looking forward to spring for months (since the first week of January), but until warmer temperatures actually arrive I'm still cooking comfort food and our latest cooking show menu featured a few favorites!

Slow Cooker Baby Back Ribs

Fall-off-the-bone perfection.  When they're done, throw them onto your grill or stick them under the broiler for a minute or two to crisp them up!

Click here for the printable recipe.

Slow Cooker White Chili.   Perfect chili for a chilly day!

Roasted Parmesan Potatoes.  

My friend, Amy, cooked with me and she has informed me that these are "Everyone's new favorite potato!"

They are so quick and easy to prepare.  No special skills required!

And finally....

Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

I admit that this was my favorite recipe of the night.  Try this and you will agree that salad can be a comfort food!  Crunchy lettuce, creamy dressing and sweet tomatoes topped with crunchy pancetta.  What's not to love?

Cooking Show--Tomato Recipes

I feel like I beat this subject to death...but am I the only one who wants to skip right through winter and into summer?

I'm not even going to pretend that winter tomatoes can compare to summer tomatoes...but cooking with ingredients that remind me of summer is one way to beat the winter blues.  Bring on the tomato recipes!

We started with BLT Salad with Buttermilk Dressing.

So simple, yet so good!  The assorted tiny tomatoes are very sweet and flavorful, drizzled with a creamy buttermilk dressing...I can close my eyes and almost feel like summer is here.  Almost.

Italian Chicken Wraps with Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette

A couple of tablespoons of sun-dried tomatoes in the dressing provide a big punch of flavor!

Creamy Tuscan Shrimp with Pasta

Another recipe where a handful of sun-dried tomatoes add a wallop of flavor!

My friend, Trish, was cooking with me and we discussed adding a few mushrooms in...we ultimately decided against this, but next time I make this recipe I'm planning on adding some 'shrooms!

 Oatmeal Sheetcake with Caramel/Coconut Frosting

Okay, this recipe certainly departs from our tomato theme, but Dan the Awesome Cameraman is a fan of all things sweet. We haven't filmed a dessert since November and I want to keep him happy!

This dense cake is oozing with cinnamon flavor, and the caramel topping (perfectly browned by placing the frosted cake under the broiler for a minute) adds a crunchy texture.

Cooking Show: Holiday Treats!

We filmed an episode of the cooking show last week.  'Tis the season, so I tried to feature recipes that are special enough for the holidays, but I didn't want them to scream, "CHRISTMAS!!" 

You can confidently prepare these recipes for a special occasion, yet they are easy enough to make that you may want to add them to your usual rotation!

 Cranberry-Pistachio Cake Bars

Fresh cranberries and whole pistachios add festive pops of red and green. There is no leavening agent in these bars (whipping the eggs provides the volume), and the combination of the dense texture, tart cranberries and crunchy sugar on top is a winning combination!

Click here for the printable recipe.

Salted Caramel Chocolate Martini

So simple to make: equal parts chocolate liqueur, salted caramel Baileys®, light cream and milk. 

You can prepare one or two in a cocktail shaker or make 'em by the pitcher like we did!  Dip the rims of the glasses into caramel syrup and toffee bits, add a swirl of chocolate syrup on the bottom of the glass. Don't forget the whipped cream on top!

I was sort of debating whether or not to use the toffee bits on the rims...the toffee has a tendency to slowly slide down the side of the glass.  Each and every one of us licked our glasses clean, however!

I may have used a spoon to fish out the bits that sank into the syrup in the bottom of the glass.

 Snow-Capped Molasses Cookies

This is one of those recipes where the results are so much more spectacular than the effort you put in!  

The batter doesn't require any chill time--just mix, scoop and bake. They are crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside and sweet with a hint of spice.  Dip them into white chocolate after they've cooled.  Cookie perfection!

Click here for the printable recipe.

 Gingerbread Dutch Baby Pancake

Incredibly easy and quick.  You will have the ingredients mixed and ready to go while your oven is still heating up.

 Festive Fruit Salad with Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

Such a fabulous contradiction of flavors!  Sweet, sour, minty and a tiny drizzle of the vinaigrette really puts it over the top.

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: Lemons!!

My friend, Gayle, recently told me that she lived in California when she was a child and there was a lemon tree in her yard.  My reaction was like, GET OUT!!!

It was fitting that Gayle should join me for our recent cooking show!  Lemons were the featured ingredient in each recipe that we prepared.

Gayle also told me that they had an avocado tree as well.  Mental note: future show.

Okay, back to lemons.  We started with Limoncello & Raspberry Fizz.  So refreshing!

Next, we prepared salad with grilled lemon chicken and lemon vinaigrette.

Click here for the printable recipe for the vinaigrette.  It's loaded with fresh herbs and a little goes a long way!

Toss together a salad using your favorite fresh salad ingredients.  We used 4 cups of romaine, 1/2 English cuke (chopped), 1 cup of grape tomatoes, 1 avocado (sliced) and 1/4 cup of kalamata olives.

We also used my favorite Grilled Lemon Chicken in this salad. It's one of my summer staples!  I like to prepare a large batch of this chicken at the beginning of the week and use it in weeknight dinners.

It's a great addition to salads, sandwiches, pasta and as you're about to see--pizza!!

Yes, PIZZA. Specifically, Chicken & Broccoli Pizza with Lemon Cream Sauce.   All the recipes you need--pizza dough, grilled chicken, cream sauce--are included in the link!

If you like Bertucci's Silano pizza, this is my attempt to replicate it.  It disappeared quickly when we finished filming the show...I think it was a hit!

Finally, we finished up with a Lemon/Almond Tart.  Sooo good, and also gluten-free.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cooking Show: Strawberries!

Strawberry season is here!

When I was a kid, I never knew how lucky I was to grow up in the vicinity of so many strawberry farms.  

My mom always picked more than we knew what to do with.  I'll be honest, my favorite strawberry recipe isn't a recipe at all.  It goes like this: pick them, wash them, eat them!  Supermarket strawberries just can't compare to sweet, juicy, fresh-picked strawberries!

If you find yourself with an abundance of strawberries and are searching for a few good recipes, look no further.  Here are a few recipes from our recent, strawberry-themed cooking show!

Strawberry Lemonade!

For the adult version, top it off with a shot of limoncello.  Click here for the printable recipe.

Baked Strawberry Oatmeal Crumble

This makes a great breakfast!  Or dessert, topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Chicken and Strawberry Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

This salad is my go-to summer salad.  It's so quick and easy to prepare!  You can also throw it into a wrap.  Click here for the printable recipe.

And finally, Strawberry Galette with Chocolate Crust.  Serve this warm, topped with whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream!

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!