Veggie Chili

I have been wanting to whip up a veggie chili for a while now and I finally forgot about the weather outdoors (high in the 90s yesterday, yes October 19th) and hunkered down to make it. We plan to whip this up for October's family dinner later this month so we tried out our own version of veggie chili. I might make a couple small adjustments for that version... we shall see. Siblings, don't put your nose up yet. I think you might actually enjoy this stuff. If not, we'll have tortilla chips on hand! ;o) 

I got the idea for using zucchini from a pin I recently put up on Pinterest for Spicy Vegan Chili by acozykitchen.com. I guess this is vegan chili as well if you don't use the cheese topping! Credit for the idea to use RO*TEL to spice things up goes to another pin for Chicken Tortilla Soup by shopchopnserve.blogspot.com.

Ingredients:

1-2 T vegetable oil

1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise, then sliced thin

1/2 white onion, rough chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/2 green pepper, diced

1 can original RO*TEL (tomatoes with green chilies)

1 can petite diced peeled tomatoes

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

a few shakes of cumin

a few shakes of chili powder

dash or two of salt

dash or two of freshly ground pepper 

Warm vegetable oil over medium heat in large pan or medium pot. Throw in garlic and onion to start things off. After the air is potent and you are getting hungry, add in the green pepper and zucchini. After that cooks and slightly browns for a couple minutes, add in the canned goods (tomatoes and beans) and the spices. Let simmer on medium low heat for approximately 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. From first chop to last bite it was a total of one hour! We were able to enjoy this on a busy night. 

Top with: cheese, diced onion, cilantro, sour cream... the options are endless. We stuck with just some shredded medium cheddar cheese and served with tortilla chips.

Makes approximately 4-6 servings depending on the level of starvation.

I really liked the spice that the RO*TEL added to the dish. This was a winner in my book!

lasagna rolls

much of my inspiration for trying new recipes comes from pinterest and/or google reader. i usually add recipes that i find + like from google reader to pinterest so i can remember which recipes i want to try.

so, about a month ago mindy and i tried out the lasagna rolls while mike and tim worked on fixing tim's sweet ride that was out of commission. i haven't been eating much meat lately so i was pumped to find these spinach lasagna rolls (pinterest). i like this idea because tim likes meat when he can have it, and i don't have to make a full pan of the same type of dish. the lasagna rolls are the perfect alternative to the layered up traditional dish.

the first time around i made 1/2 a pan with organic ground beef, 1/3 with the normal recipe (no meat), and 1/6 without spinach but with meat for mindy lousky. (and the first time around i forgot to save cheese for the top... oops. last nights batch was purely vegetarian. i added 'separated' next to the mozz cheese which would have helped me. fantastic recipe. i hope you try it.

spinach lasagna rolls
recipe slighly adjusted from tasty kitchen

1 package/pound lasagna noodles
1 10oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed
15 ounces ricotta cheese, low fat
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, separated
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4+ cups pasta sauce (we use ragu - 7-herb tomato)

in a large stock pot, bring water to boil. boil the lasagna rolls for about 6 minutes. the noodles need to be slighly firmer than al dente since they'll be baking for a a few minutes once they get their filling.

defrost spinach in microwave on 50% power if not completely thawed yet. squeeze out all the liquid and set spinach aside.

combine ricotta, parmesan and 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, salt, pepper, and spinach. stir well and set to side.

in a 13x9 baking dish,  place 1 cup sauce on the bottom and spread to coat evenly.

drain the lasagna noodles in colander and run cool water over to stop the cooking and make them easier to roll.

lay out a few lasagna noodles at a time. add about 2 tablespoons of the filling and spread out along each noodle.  i spread about 1 T of sauce over the cheese on each noodle before rolling. roll up and place seam side down in the baking dish. repeat until all filling/noodles are rolled up in the pan.

cover the rolls with 1 1/2 cups sauce and cover with foil. bake in 350* oven for about 40 minutes. remove foil, sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozz cheese and place back in the oven for another 15 minutes. i placed sliced french bread in the oven at this time and it was perfectly warmed when the lasagna rolls were done.

allow to sit for a couple minutes before serving.

enjoy.

Oreo Brownie Overload

I got the recipe from cookies and cups that I follow through Google Reader and I had added the recipe to my Pinterest. You can get the recipe directly from the printable page for 'dreamy oreo brownies'. I am making slight adjustments in the directions based on how they turned out for me - and how I will do them next time around. See the link for the original recipe.

1 box brownie mix (with ingredients noted on package directions)
1 package Oreo cookies, divided equally in thirds, all coarsely chopped
1/2 tub Cool Whip, thawed
1 8oz package low-fat cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
Original recipe calls for semi sweet chocolate chips and vegetable oil to add a layer of chocolate on top. I will not do this step in my next making of this dessert.
Prepare brownie mix according to package directions, fold in 1/3 of the chopped Oreos. Spray non-stick cooking/baking spray on a 13x9 pan. I did 8x8 and they were crazy thick so note my suggestion of 13x9. Dump the batter in the pan and bake according to directions. Do the toothpick check and once clean let the brownies cool completely.

While the brownies cool, mix the cream cheese and powdered sugar until combined and smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip and 1/3 oreos with spatula. Try not to eat this by the spoonful because it is beyond delicious and totally fantastic. Spread on top of brownies once cooled.

Top with the remaining 1/3 package chopped cookies and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notice the dreamy oreo brownies I made and pictured below have the layer of melted chocolate chips. That is not necessary - it is heavenly and Oreo Brownie overload enough without that. If you must, I would suggest drizzling 1/2 cup of melted chocolate chips over the brownies instead of 1 1/2 cups layered in to the dessert.

bell pepper egg-in-a-hole

simple and fantastic! this is my new breakfast item to replace a good ol' fried egg.

i saw the idea from a picture on pinterest: 

http://pinterest.com/pin/80831915/

so i cooked up an egg inside a big slice of green pepper last night. it might have overflowed a little but was still  tasty. served on a slice of whole wheat toast.

smores brownies

smores brownies

idea from a martha stewart recipe, i think. i have the printout in the kitchen.

preheat oven at 325. line 8x8 or 9x9 pan with heavy duty foil leaving enough on the edges to lift brownies out after baked. spray with non-sticking baking spray.

graham cracker base

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

6 T butter, melted

pinch of salt

2 T sugar

bake 325 for 18 minutes

brownie layer

brownies from a box, made following directions on box for cake-like brownies

pour 2/3 of mix on graham cracker crust. bake 25 minutes (or until crispy on top and 'done' based on the toothpick method). i used the remaining 1/3 of the mix to make some brownie bites in my mini cupcake pan

marshmallow tops

~4 cups small marshmallows

put broiler on low. adjust level in oven to lower portion of the oven so the marshmallows are about 5 or 6 inches from the broiler. bake for about 2 minutes or until toasty. stare at these puppies while they bake and brown! take them out if they are getting too toasted and/or bubbly. 

remove brownies from pan and place on cooling rack using the foil 'handles'. peel the foil away from the marshmallows to make for easier cutting after completely cool. 

granola bars

i made granola bars! crossing off #39: make granola bars of the wolsey to do list!

yet again, i have found a great recipe from the martha stewart everyday FOOD magazine that my sista jill scripps got me hooked on.

emeril's nutty granola bars
p. 36 of the march 2011 issue

ingredients:
3/4 cup honey (separated, a note that would have been helpful for me!)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for baking dish
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/3 cups slivered almonds (6oz)
coarse salt
1 cup raisins or other dried fruit (i used whati had in the cupboard... what i thought were dried blueberries but are actually craisins flavored with blueberry juice)
1/3 cup cream almond butter or other nut butter (any guesses on what i used? yep, PB!)
1/4 cup light-brown sugar

1. preheat oven to 325*. in a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup honey and butter over low. (i didn't pay attention to the 1/4 cup... i just went with the whole 3/4 cup... oops!) cook, stirring,until butter melts, 2 minutes.
2. in a large bowl, combine oats, almonds, and a pinch of salt. drizzle honey mixture over oat mixture and stir to combine; wipe saucepan clean. spread mixture evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes, stirring occassionally. let cool completely on sheet, 10 minutes. return to bowl and add raisins or dried fruit of your choice; stir to combine.

3. lightly butter an 8-inch square baking dish. in saucepan, combine 1/2 cup honey (i went with about 1/4 cup since i had used toooooo much in the first place, and this might have helped hold them together better), almond butter (or PB) and brown sugar over medium. Cook, stirring occassionally, until mixture comes to a boil and sugar dissolves, 10 minutes. Drizzle over oat mixture and stir until combined; transfer to baking dish. with a spatula firmly press granola into dish.

refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour, then cut into 16 bars or squares. (store in an airtight containter at room temperature, up to 5 days).

a couple notes: i am not sure why an 8x8 is needed. i think a 13x9 would be just fine and make for more traditionally sized granola bars. also, i would recommend an unsweetened dried fruit. these are mighty tasty but with the additional honey due to my mix up and sweetened craisins/bluisins it is defintely on the sweet side.

these are great for snacks. i should have made a drive to mesa, gilbert or queen creek this week to share. i'm not sure tim and i will make it thru all of these on our own.

super easy potato soup

adapted to what i had on hand from: http://www.food.com/recipe/unbelievably-easy-potato-soup-74275

3 large potatoes, cut in small chunks

1/2 small onion, finely chopped

place veggies in pot. fill pot with water just about to the veggies level

boil, then let simmer for 20-30 minutes or until tender

randomly mash with a fork or spatula (or potato masher if you are fancy)

add 1/2 cup milk (used 1%), could use half and half or whatever your heart desires

if you think the soup needs thickening, mix a little cornstarch or flour with 1/4 cup milk. then add to soup and let simmer for a couple minutes.

add lots of salt + pepper to your preferred taste.

serve with some cheese, green onions.... and bacon if you have it on hand!

no-pork fried rice

we haven't been buying much meat lately. i have picked up a little chicken and a little turkey deli meat as that's all i can handle right now. please don't share your thoughts on deli meat right now... its nearly all i've got. this last week we only ate out once... with mom and dad at el charro. (that's impressive for us) i am excited to keep it up. i think it makes it easier that we don't have close friends to meet out for dinner. although i would probably trade close friends for the bill of eating out. this is a recipe blog though... so... we've REALLY been trying to keep the grocery shopping to the basics and stick to planned meals or things at home. in making a meal plan this week i gave tim the march issue of every day food. i love this magazine. its small and has loads of awesome recipes without the annoying overload of ads. tim picked out a couple recipes to try out this week... one being a pork fried rice recipe. i knew right away that we were going to make it a no-pork recipe. below is my adapted recipe from martha stewart every day foods version.




cook up two cups of rice (one cup uncooked) the way you cook it

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 bunch scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced

1/2 bag of frozen stiry fry veggies (picked up safeway brand on sale + had broccoli, snap peas, green beans, water chestnuts, celery, carrots, onions... was perfect for this!)

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

(i adjusted measurments and omitted pork, fresh ginger, fresh carrots and frozen peas and replaced with frozen stir fry veggies. you could easily use the full bag of frozen veggies for this.)

heat a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. while that heats up lightly beat two eggs and 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce together. add eggs to pan and move pan around until eggs cover bottom of pan. cook without stirring about a minute. fold, remove from pan and place on a cutting board or plate. cut the eggs into thin slices.

add 1 tablespoon oil  to the pan and swirl to cover. add frozen veggies, white part of scallions and garlic. stir for about 3 minutes or until veggies are cooked and warmed through. add the rice wine vinegar and remaining soy sauce. then add the sliced eggs and rice. stir until well covered with deliciousness.

top with green scallions and serve!

we really enjoyed this dish tonight.

more on caramel smore cups

You may have recently seen me post the link for Caramel Smore Cups.

I made two batches today and boy are they tasty. Tim and I both tried one out and BOY are they DELISH!

seriously heavenly. need a simple dessert? i'm not kidding. SIMPLE!

now off to make the pumpkin crumb coffee cake

zucchini bites

this is an easy summer side dish or appetizer. i've made it a few times this summer - and finally decided to take a picture. and this has been a perfect use of leftover breading from chicken bites or other breaded chicken recipes. {ritz/parm mix consists of 1 sleeve Ritz and 1/4 cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese... blended together in food processor}

you need: 2 zucchini, ritz/parmesan breading mix, marinara sauce

preheat oven to 425*
slice zucchini about 1/4" - 1/3" thick
rinse in water
cover in ritz/parmesan breading mix
place on foiled and Pam'd baking sheet
cook for about 10 minutes, turn zucchini over
cook for another 10 or until crispy... or desired doneness.

enjoy with hot marinara sauce.


oh, and my 3rd time making these was a charm. i realized in order to make them as crispy as i like i needed to place the pan on the bottom row in the oven. worked much better.

grilled avocado

again, this recipe is from 'summer grilling' from come back to the table.

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lime juice
2 large ripe avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup picante sauce (or chopped tomato and jalapeno) {i think she meant pico de gallo type combo... NOT pace picante sauce :o)}
shredded cheese {of your liking... probably monterey jack or a white cheese. not sure how cheddar would do}
snipped fresh cilantro

Stir together olive oil and lime juice. Bruch avocados with the mixture, and sprinkle the cut sides of the avocado with salt.

Grill cut side down on grill rack for about 5 minutes until browned. {remember, preheat on high, turn to low right when adding food}

Turn avocado halves and fill them with picante sauce and shredded cheese. Cover and grill 5 minutes more until cheese melts. Remove from grill, sprinkle tops with snipped cilantro. Serve on a bed of salad greens if desired, or as a side dish to grilled meat or fish.

{these are my little add-ons above. i would have waited a little longer for the cheese to melt more thoroughly... and i was going from memory so i just put the cilantro in with jalapeno and tomato mixture.}

Grilled Pizza & Grilling Tips

Grilled Pizza: (please note these directions are either directly from 'summer grilling' class at come back to the table or my rough interpretations of them.)


Make pizza dough... or a new trick we learned at an italian cooking class this last weekend... buy dough at a local pizza shop or at whole foods. for northern colorado - pulcinelli's is awesome and its 3 bucks for a large dough. not bad for the time saved. lindsay - i know that wouldn't happen with you or your fam ;o)


Okay, you have the dough. split the dough into two or 3. roll out into a rough round shape. in the meantime, preheat the grill on high. place pizza dough on a rimless baking sheet covered with coarse cornmeal. make sure the dough doesn't stick to the pan anywhere so that when you go to slide it on to the grill... it goes on smooth. turn the grill down to low right before putting the pizza on. drizzle olive oil, salt and pepper on the top of the crust. when the pizza is stiff, turn it with tongs. olive oil, salt and pepper the cooked side. top with pesto and cheese (or the toppings of choice). close the lid and cook until dough is cooked and toppings are warm/melted.


so the big tip?! preheat grill to high... but always cook on low to medium!

the pesto one was 1/2 of the large dough at pulcinelli's... the canadian bacon/pineapple one is a full large dough.

Ckn parmesan

This is my first mobile posting on the blog. But this was chicken parmesan we made a couple weeks ago.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

EDIT: per lindsay's comment/request...

i used the same breading as i do with the chicken tenders/bites (ritz & parmesan combo). i used 2 chicken breasts and cut them in half lengthwise (to make 2 thinner pieces of chicken). then i placed them on parchment paper and covered them with it as well. i then used a heavy pan and pounded them down a bit. there are actual kitchen tools for this - sometimes the opposite side of a meat tenderizer... but a pan will do just fine.

then lightly cover them in olive oil and bread with ritz/parm mixture.

baked at 425 until done (about 20 minutes... and i flip half way through)

then top with some pasta sauce and parmesan and/or mozzarella cheese. throw back in the oven for about 5 minutes for sauce to heat through and cheese to melt. serve on pasta.

White Chocolate Raspberry Crunch

recipe from a lady (loree) at work... the front and center dessert in this picture = delish!!

Layer #1
2 ½ cups crushed pretzels
¾ cup butter
3 tbls sugar
Melt butter in bottom of 9X13 pan then added the other ingredients and press flat onto the bottom.
Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Let cool.

Layer #2
8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup sugar
8 oz Cool Whip
½ bag white, mini chocolate chips melted
Mix together until smooth and spoon over pretzel layer.

Layer #3
6 oz box of raspberry jello
2 cups boiling water
20 oz raspberries

Mix jello and water (don’t use the amount of water on the box).
Add berries and refrigerate until slightly jelled. Pour over cream cheese mixture and refrigerate.
Sprinkle with rest of mini chocolate chips before serving.

Loree’s notes – I use frozen berries in layer 3 and make it before layer 2, just leaving it on the counter. Then when I have the cream cheese mixture in the pan the jello mixture is jelling and I add it. You can substitute any fruit or berries you want. I got this with strawberries and am looking forward to trying it with blueberries.

berry-topped brownie bites

just wanted to show you the berry-topped brownie bites. i topped with raspberries, blackberries and strawberries.

ganache didn't turn out exactly like i would have liked. white ganache was a little too runny. you can tell i went back and added plain white chocolate on top because it looked like a runny mess.

the semi-sweet chocolate ganache was almost perfect, maybe just a little too thick.

and one shot of it with a couple other 'competitors'... i got 1st out of 10 desserts.
the white chocolate raspberry bars pictured below were SOOO heavenly.
and so were some mint chocolate brownies.

berry-topped brownie bites

i'm going to make Ganache-Topped Brownie Bites for a chocolate bake-off at work on friday. i think i'll top with raspberries and blueberries to make it colorful... what do you think is a good topper?


while searching i found this: Brownie Ganache Torte with Raspberries (Gluten Free) and thought traci might like to know about it. :o)

chili & baked potatoes

{written at 8:30 pm... but backed the time up so i wouldn't be the current recipe up here! :o)}

we needed something to eat tonight, and no meat was defrosted. so i threw the following together. we both really enjoyed it.

2 baked potatoes (i did it in the microwave)

1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 large white onion, finely chopped
1 can chili beans (just beans - not the kind with meat)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can diced green chilies
1/4 cup medium Pace chunky salsa (or whatever salsa on hand)
just shy of 1 tablespoon chili powder
just shy of 1 tablespoon cumin
5 twists of cracked black pepper
3 twists of cracked sea salt

cook the above ingredients together for about 15-20 minutes... while baked potatoes cook in microwave. tim was taking care of some computer stuff, so i decided to throw the baked potatoes in a square baking dish lined with foil. cut them open and fill with a good scoop of chili. top with a tablespoon or two of shredded cheddar cheese and bake for 5-10 minutes on 350.

smoothie idea

got this recipe from someone on facebook. i've yet to try it out... probably because its still snowing here in CO.

the recipe intrigues me because it calls for spinach. sounds like a great saturday morning drink in the summer. i wanted to keep it somewhere so i could ck it out later. so here it is.

1 cup OJ (all natural)
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 tsp vanilla ext
1/2 cup Organic Strawberry yogurt
Handful of ice cubes
1 cup frozen strawberries
2 cups spinach.

Blend and enjoy!

Sometimes switch it up by adding mangos, a banana, or frozen blueberries)

cranberry-walnut chicken salad

you want to see a delectable chicken salad?

check this out:
cranberry-walnut chicken salad

chicken salad pita

courtesy, of... you guessed it - my cell phone

i put two cans of tyson canned chicken in a bowl, added in 1/4 cup chopped celery/red pepper combo. i'd probably use more veggies next time around. then added in mayo made with olive oil/reduced fat. i probably ended up using a little less than 1/4 cup... but honestly add a little at a time until its the consistency you want. then i added 2 teaspoons mrs. dash in.

served in pita with 2 small slices colby/montoreyjack cheese, lettuce and 2 tomato slices.

as you can see, i had 1/2 pita with a little container of unsweetened applesauce for lunch today.