Pumpkins, pumpkins…everywhere!

Blame it on the Autumn leaves falling or the pumpkin displays in front of the stores around town – I have been on a major pumpkin kick lately!  I even went out on a mission yesterday afternoon to find a pumpkin cupcake…thankfully I found a delicious one at New Moon Cafe!  Unfortunately, this didn’t fully fulfill my pumpkin craving, so I have collected a few creative pumpkin recipes to try.  

Click on the photos for the recipe

Appetizers:

Pumpkin Pie Dip by Sugar & Spice & Frugal Advice

Fried Pumpkin Ravioli by The Hip Hostess

Roasted Pumpkin on a stick
(drizzle oil, sprinkle herbs & bake in 350 oven 30-40 min)

Meals:

Roasted Pumpkin Salad from ExclusivelyFood

Thai Pumpkin Satay from CooksRecipes

Savory Pumpkin Tart with Aged Cheddar by CooksRecipes

Roasted Pumpkin Whole Wheat Pizza by LaDue & Crew

Desserts:

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting from The Yuca Diaries

Pumpkin Pie Cookie Bites by AndreasRecipes

Mini Pumpkin Tarts by FamilyFun

Delicious Summer Salad… Golden Beets, Mixed Greens & Goat Cheese

This salad got rave reviews from the people at the table, so I thought I’d share it with my readers…

Serves 4-5

Ingredients: 3 (cooked) Golden Beets, 4 oz organic mixed greens, 2 oz crumbled goat cheese, handful of dried fruit & nut mix that has almonds & cherries (i.e. Back to Nature Martha’s Vineyard Blend).
Salad dressing suggestion: a balsamic or blush wine vinaigrette (i.e. Brianna’s)

Directions:
Wash & cut the beets into small chunks.
Steam beets for 10-15 minutes (should have slight crunch).
Set out or in fridge until no longer steaming/room temperature.
Wash & put salad mix in large bowl.
Sprinkle crumbled goat cheese, dried fruit/nut mix & golden beets on the top of the salad mix.
Serve with a vinaigrette or oil & vinegar.

Yum!

 

Quick Meals…Vegetarian Stir-Fry

I had a bunch of leftover veggies in the fridge from my CSA, so I decided to throw them into a stir-fry (along w/a few other items).  Turned out delicious.

Ingredients: (for 4) snap peas, 1 (large or 2 small) yellow squash, 1 (large) zucchini,  1/2 onion, 1/2 can water chestnuts, soy sauce, Soy Vay’s Veri Veri Teriyaki (or any Teriyaki sauce) & 4 cups rice.  Optional items I threw in: nuts (crushed), chives & 1 package Seitan.

Directions:

Cook time: approx 25-30 minutes.

Cook the rice in a rice cooker or on the stovetop per directions while you cook up the stir-fry ingredients.

1. Wash & chop up the squash, onion & zucchini

2. Wash & snap ends off of snap peas

3. Chop up the Seitan

4. Wash & chop chives into little pieces

5. In a little bit of oil (sesame or olive oil) cook the veggies up for a few minutes in a wok or large pan on medium-high heat

6. Add in the Seitan, water chestnuts & chives to the pan/wok

7. A minute later, add in the snap peas

8. Add in about a tablespoon of soy sauce

I love this Teriyaki sauce- made by Soy Vey (company started by a Chinese-Jewish couple)!  

9. Pour in some of the Teriyaki sauce (to taste)

10. Add in about 1/4 a cup of nuts (optional).

Once the veggies have been cooked (don’t over-cook, they should still have a slight crispness to them), serve warm over rice.

Yum yum!

Was even yummy for lunch re-heated the next day – a great leftovers meal!!

Fun Foods for 4th of July!

A long weekend is upon us-July 4th-a time for bbq’s, beers, bon fires and fireworks! 

Here are some ideas I’ve come across for you to serve at your 4th of July festivities…

Appetizers:

Deviled Eggs- Looove the idea to put them in a carton!
Recipe 

Red, White, and Blue Nachos
Recipe

7-Layer Southwestern Dip
Recipe 

Chicken Satay with Peanut Chutney Sauce
Recipe

Garlic-Spinach Dip with Pita Chips
Recipe

The recipe says to serve with tortilla chips or toasted pita wedges- I’d recommend pita wedges or pita chips!

Sides:

Snow Peas with Toasted Almonds
Recipe 

Orzo, Feta, and Tomato Salad
Recipe 

Spinach Tortellini with Beans and Feta
Recipe

Red, White, and Blue Potato Salad
Recipes 

Roasted Potato Salad with Mustard Dressing
Recipe

Grilled Vegetable Focaccia
Recipe

Main Dishes:

Grilled Salmon with Garden Mayonnaise
Recipe 

BBQ Chicken with Spicy Peach Glaze
Recipe

Chipotle Barbecue Burgers with Slaw
Recipe

Bulgur Bean Burgers
Recipe

Sweet-Hot Baby Back Ribs
Recipe 

Desserts:

4th of July Cupcakes
Recipe 

Star-studded Blueberry Pie
Recipe

Fruit Cheesecake Flag
Recipe

Red, White, and Blue Trifle
Recipe 

Quick Meals…Cheesy asparagus, bacon & egg on toast

I didn’t really feel like making anything extravagant for dinner the other night, so I scrounged around in my fridge/freezer for ingredients…I had some leftover asparagus to use from my CSA, alfredo sauce from a calzone, bits and pieces of cheese left from appetizers from a BBQ, 1/2 a bagel & bread that was going to go stale soon & also some eggs that needed to be used.  So what did I end up making with this random assortment of ingredients? Cheesy asparagus, bacon & eggs on toast!  

This could technically be yummy for dinner, lunch or breakfast…

Ingredients (even tho I technically listed them above…) for 2:
Asparagus (at least 3 stalks for each slice of toast)
4 slices toast
4 pieces bacon (I used tofu, but you can use turkey bacon or pork bacon)
4 eggs
Salt & pepper to taste

For the cheese sauce: an assortment of cheeses (i.e. cheddar, parmesan, feta & gouda), approx 2 tablespoons butter, approx 2 tablespoons flour & milk.  Optional: clove garlic, salt & pepper, herbs to taste.

Directions:

 See my Eggs Benedict post for how to make the cheese sauce…I added some crushed garlic, pepper, a pinch of salt, herbs & a little bit of leftover alfredo sauce to this cheese sauce, though!

Leave the cheese sauce on simmer (uncovered) on the back burner & cook the rest of the ingredients.

Steam the asparagus (takes a few minutes, depending on the size of the asparagus).

Cook the bacon in a pan.

Fry your eggs over easy (or any way you like) & add a little salt & pepper

Lastly, toast your toast…

And then you can really put the ingredients on in any order you want…

I put the asparagus on first.

Then the bacon.

Then the eggs on top.

Lastly, I added the cheese…

Unfortunately, the meal didn’t turn out quite as well for me as I hope it does for you…Turned out my toast was freezer burnt & I think that the eggs might have been just past their prime…Oh well, I’ll have to try it again some time w/fresher ingredients!  At least the cheese sauce turned out amazing!

Quick meals…great picnic foods

Warmer weather means it’s time for a picnic!  Here are some ideas for what to pack in your basket and head off to the beach, meadow, woods, park….

PB&J
Sometimes you just gotta be a kid again and have an old favorite! 

BEET SALAD 
Grate, add pistachios and/or dress with a little lemon, olive oil & parsley.  For added flavor, crumble some goat cheese or bleu cheese.

HUMMUS, TABOULI & PITA
Slice up some pita bread & enjoy dipping it in a tub of hummus w/a little tabouli!  I grew up on this snack, so I can attest to just how good it is…

COLD PEANUT NOODLES 
Recipe 

PASTA SALAD
Cook pasta al dente, add some pesto, sliced cherry tomatoes, peas, (optional: cooked chunks of chicken) & olive oil.

BAGUETTE & ASSORTED CHEESES
Get a fresh loaf of bread from your local bakery & an assortment of artisan cheeses.  Throw some grapes and/or olives in your basket, too…and a bottle of wine…
BAD IDEAS:-Ice cream…um duh…
-Fried chicken…hello sogginess!
-If it’s going to sit in a hot basket for a while, then anything with mayo is a bad idea!
-Chocolate…sorry chocahaulics it’ll just melt on a hot day!

Quick Meals…Quesadillas!

I may be a pale redhead, but even I can get into the Cinco de Mayo spirit!  Here is a fun quesadilla recipe I put together…TWO versions!

Ingredients (for 2): 2-4 tortillas (I used whole wheat for a healthier option), 1  zucchini or squash, 1 package spinach (frozen thawed or fresh), a clove of garlic, 1 package seitan, 1 Tbl olive oil & 1 Tbl butter.  Garnish/condiments: sour cream & salsa!

Directions:

For both of the versions, saute up some spinach in a little bit of olive oil and crushed garlic.

Grate up about 1/2 a cup of cheese or so.

In a separate pan, saute the chopped up seitan and then add in the zucchini/squash (or even a pepper!) until cooked/no longer raw.

OPTION 1:

Spread out the spinach evenly between the two tortillas.

Sprinkle on the seitan and zucchini/squash.

Spread the cheese over the veggies and place the other tortilla on top.

Put the quesadilla in a lightly buttered and warmed pan (medium) until lightly toasted on one side.Carefully flip the quesadilla over, cover the pan with a lid.  Electric stove: turn off the heat/gas stove: turn heat down- let the quesadilla sit for a couple minutes (until the cheese has totally melted & both sides are toasted)

Option 1 done!

OPTION 2: 

If you aren’t quite as hungry or want an option for lunch, this one uses just 1 tortilla.

Put the spinach, zucchini/squash and cheese on one side of the tortilla and fold the other half over.

Put the quesadilla in a warm (medium heat), lightly buttered pan and toast one side.

Carefully flip the quesadilla over, cover the pan with a lid.  Electric stove: turn off the heat/gas stove: turn heat down- let the quesadilla sit for a couple minutes (until the cheese has totally melted & both sides are toasted)

Option 2 done… ole!!

Quick Meals…Polenta with goat cheese and a tomato sauce

I hadn’t eaten Polenta in a while & my boyfriend had never had it, so I decided to create this meal a couple weeks ago.  I loved it, but turns out he’s unfortunately not crazy about Polenta.  Oh well.

                                                                                             

Ingredients (serves 3-4): 1 can diced organic tomatoes (preferably herbed), 1 roll Polenta (I bought San Gennaro’s Sun Dried Tomato & Garlic Polenta), goat cheese (you only need about 1/2 a roll/2 oz), spinach (thawed frozen or fresh), onions (diced), 2 cloves garlic (minced) & olive oil.  Optional add: chicken sausage (sliced)

Directions (takes about 20 minutes): 

First, I cut up, washed and sautéed the spinach in a medium-sized pan, then I added some garlic, the diced onions and the cut up sausage.
Next, I added the diced tomatoes to the veggie mixture.
Set the pan on low-medium and allow to simmer while you cook the polenta.  

Slice up the polenta roll into pieces just under a half an inch thick (make sure not too thin!) and place in a pan with a little bit of oil on medium-high heat.  For best results, grill the slices!  I put them in the oven for a few minutes after sautéing them to get them a little crispy around the edges.

Remove the tomato sauce from heat and scoop out into your serving dish or onto the plates.
Arrange the polenta on top of the tomato sauce. 

Add chunks of goat cheese on top of the tomato sauce & serve. 

Yum Yum!

Quick lunch…a creative salad

For anyone who claims that salads are boring, they are clearly not trying the right salads.  My salads are rarely boring.  I LOVE a good salad!  

Ingredients:

• Red leaf lettuce (cut & washed)
• Sliced apple (I used an Empire)
• Crumbled gorgonzola cheese
• Craisins (packaged dried cranberries)
• Pecans (crushed/broken in half by hand)
• Balsamic dressing (I used Annie’s Natural)

This salad was not only nutritious- it was delicious!

For lunch, I often pair a yummy salad like this with a small cup of soup or another small side (i.e. 1/2 a cup of orzo salad or chicken salad).