the rest of the mess

Cinnamon Peanut Butter Chickpeas

Jalapeno Cheese Dip
Failed to get a photo of this one, but it was awesome! I took it to a friend's for a party.

Cheesy Cauliflower Puree


Guacamole


Runny Egg On A Pita


Savory Pumpkin Grilled Cheese


Baked Acorn Squash

Super Bowl Eats

Black and Gold (yellow) for Steelers!
Too bad the Steelers didn't win, but at least we had good eats!

Super Bowl - MAC

Second recipe for Super Bowl was obviously Macaroni and Cheese! I've had this recipe saved for a while and it was a total coincidence (and surprise) realizing it was a recipe created by the mother of Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley - Janice Staples's Mac n Cheese.

Ingredients:
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 1 (16 ounce) package small pasta shells
- salt and pepper
- 1 pinch garlic salt
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 3 (11 ounce) cans condensed cream of cheddar cheese soup
- 2/3 cup shredded Havarti cheese
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the diced onion in a large pot of lightly salted water; bring to boil. Cook the pasta until close to done (about 8-10 minutes) and drain. Transfer the onion and pasta to a casserole dish. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic salt.
- Stir the butter and brown sugar into the pasta mixture until the butter melts. Add the cheddar cheese soup, Havarti cheese, Parmesan cheese, and 1/3 cup of Cheddar cheese; stir well. Sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese over top of the dish.
- Bake in preheated oven about 45 minutes.
- Change oven setting to broil and cook until top is golden brown, about 4 minutes.

This was so good! Another top macaroni and cheese recipe. It was the perfect combination of sweet and savory, with the brown sugar and onion. A big hit at the party and really really delicious!

Super Bowl - PB Truffles

Super bowl time! For the past four or five years I have made 7-layer dip for Super Bowl Sunday because it's an easy, chilled recipe that doesn't require any cooking. Well this year I broke that tradition and broke out some cooking - two recipes in fact! First up, Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
- 1/4 cup crushed salted pretzels
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
- Combine peanut butter and pretzels in a bowl. Chill for 15 minutes in the freezer. Roll mixture into balls (about the size of a tsp) and freeze 1 hour till firm. Roll balls in melted chocolate and refrigerate until set.

Super easy, but I totally messed these up! I forgot to freeze the balls before dipping them in chocolate, no wonder I got such a mess! They obviously still ended up tasting awesome, but would have worked better had I actually read the directions right. I also made the balls bigger than recommended, but in the end they tasted great and the Super Bowl party attendees loved them! That is, all the boys devoured them.

I got about 27 (should've been like 40 though had I sized them right) and were 3 points/serving.

My Final Recipe of 2010

Only fitting that my final recipe for 2010 would be for a New Years Eve party. Looking for a good finger food appetizer I decided to make Ricotta-Stuffed Roma Tomatoes from one of my favorite blogs - The Kitchen Sink Recipes. I stayed pretty true to the recipe and if anything just made more than the original called for.

Ingredients:
- 30 small to medium sized roma tomatoes
- 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp dried basil
- salt and pepper
- dried bread crumbs

Directions:
- Half and hollow out the tomatoes and drain of excess liquid and place on foil lined baking sheet, hollow side up.
- In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, herbs, pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
- Using a small spoon, fill each tomato half with about a tablespoon of the ricotta filling so the tomato is completely filled creating a slight mound.
- Pour bread crumbs in a small, shallow bowl.
- Take the filling tomato half and invert it into the shallow bowl of bread crumbs, pressing lightly so the crumbs adhere to the ricotta. Place the tomato back on the baking sheet, bread crumb side up, and repeat with the remaining tomatoes.
- Roast for 15 minutes at 400 degrees F until the bread crumbs have browned and the tomatoes softened.

I ended up hollowing out the tomatoes and mixing the ricotta on NYE morning and then before I went to the party I filled the tomatoes, covered the baking sheet with lots of plastic wrap (which ended up blowing off anyway), and then roasted them at my friends house.

The final product was good, but I think they would've been better if I had prepared them immediately. The filling was delicious, though, something I might use for another recipe one day. It ended up being the perfect recipe to round out all the other food and was pretty easy. The hardest part was hollowing out the tomatoes, but I managed. It's really hard to find a recipe, specifically an appetizer type recipe, that you can prepare in advance so I think these worked out well!

And that's it. My final recipe of 2010, my final entry of this resolution. Wow! Final thoughts and recap to come...

PB and Chocolate Chip "pod" Cookies

Last night I went to a Chrismukkah party and though it wasn't required to bring anything it was a perfect opportunity for me to bake cookies! As you know I rarely bake, unless for an occasion, so that's exactly what this was. I decided to make this recipe for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (Mr. Goodbar Cookies) that was one of the very first I found and bookmarked. It's from a Weight Watchers friendly blog that seems to no longer be active. But in any case, here goes.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and cover two baking sheets with parchment paper (I used a silpat for one and foil for the other)
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter together with a hand mixer on a high speed. Add in the egg and vanilla; beat until fluffy.
- With the mixer on a low speed, gradually beat in the flour mixture until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.
- Drop dough by tablespoons onto the baking sheets, forming 24 cookies total.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes
- Transfer to a cooking rack and cool completely.

The original recipe said to use the bottom of a drinking glass to press down on each dough ball and then use a fork to create criss-cross marks; I didn't do this. My dough was very crumbly and it was hard for the balls to stay together so when I tried to press them down they just fell apart, so I stopped. The original also mentions how her cookies didn't spread and mine didn't either! It was very frustrating. They ended up like little pods of cookies, as you see below.

In the end, yes they tasted good (I mean peanut butter and chocolate don't often taste bad together), but they looked not so good. They were definitely not an attractive cookie; however, still ended up being a success at the party and got eaten up! They're only 2 PointsPlus/cookie so definitely a good Weight Watchers option, if you can get past the weird look.

Another first - Thanksgiving cooking!

Well, seeing how my venture into cooking begun just about a year ago it's no surprise that I never helped cook the Thanksgiving meal. Part of that was because I usually arrive at my parents house on Thanksgiving day and the other part being that I was not at all interested in helping. But alas, a year later I have all these recipes under my belt and dozens more waiting to be made. Plus this year I arrived the day before the holiday, ready to help!

I discussed what to make with my mom ahead of time and chose options from my long list of bookmarked recipes. In the end we decided I would be responsible for the stuffing and sweet potato dish. Two perfect vegetarian friendly dishes!

The full recipe posts coming next, but the end result looked like so:

Without even trying there was no lack of food! All the staples were covered and it was exciting to have been a part of this!

Now on to the recipes...

Super Stuffed Mushrooms

The final recipe that I made for break-fast was Stuffed Mushrooms from Annie's Eats. I don't think I need to say much more to introduce them because they were a huge hit!

Ingredients:
24 whole fresh button mushrooms

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

2 tsp. vegetable oil

8 oz. cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Fresh rosemary, for garnish

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking sheet with cooking spray. Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Carefully remove the stems from the mushroom caps, setting the caps aside for later.

Add the stems to the bowl of a food processor (I actually used a blender). Add the garlic to the food processor as well, and pulse in brief bursts until the mushroom stems and garlic are finely chopped.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped mushroom stems and garlic and cook until all the moisture has disappeared, about 5-7 minutes. Lower the heat to medium-low. Stir in the cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, and spices.

Using a small spoon, fill each mushroom cap with a generous amount of filling. Arrange the mushroom caps on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the mushrooms are hot and liquid starts to form under the caps. Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with rosemary, and serve immediately.

Couple things... I didn't use bread crumbs so to keep this recipe gluten free. I also didn't serve these immediately. Due to timing, I baked them through, then reheated them just for a couple minutes at 350F before serving them. They were at room temperature, but still delicious! These got gobbled down really fast and ended up being way easier than I anticipated. I actually made 25 mushrooms and they really aren't so bad for you! Only about 1 pt/mushroom. This ended up being a much easier recipe than I was expecting and I would definitely make it again!

A Kugel by any other Name (Guest Post)

The day after our sister time in Brooklyn, I flew to Florida and visited with our grandmother.
We sat together as I pulled up pictures on my phone of her other grandchildren, of my new apartment and of our break-fast spread.
The first thing she said when she saw the picture of the spread:
“Did you make a noodle-pudding?”
She said it almost like a threat, like one of us better have made a “noodle pudding” or else…

“You mean a kugel?! Of course! I made it.”

A kugel by any other name is a kugel, and if you ask me, noodle kugel is the only kugel worthy of kugeldom.

I offer my kugel as the sweeter, yid version of mac & cheese.

I blended this recipe over the years from a few online versions and make it at least once a year for organized Jewish cultural face-stuffing.

I bet Laura could figure out the point value, but my estimation is that this is just enough points to taste awesome.

Ingredients:

12 oz. wide egg noodles

16 oz. cottage cheese (I usually use lowfat or fat-free)

16 oz. sour cream (I usually use lowfat or fat-free)

1 cup sugar (I use turbinado sugar)

5 eggs – beaten

1 tbsp real vanilla extract

1 cup golden raisins

1 tbsp cinnamon sugar (I don’t measure and I probably use more that a Tbsp…)

Directions:

-Cook, rinse and drain the noodles according to the directions

-Preheat the oven to 350F

-Beat the eggs and mix in the cottage cheese, sour cream, sugar, vanilla, and raisins. Mix well. (I do this while the water is boiling and the noodles are cooking)

-Pour cooked, rinsed noodles into a greased 9x13 pan

-Pour the mixed topping over the noodles and distribute evenly covering all noodles. (Many recipes suggest stirring the noodles into the mixture first and then pouring that into the pan, but I always find it messier and not any tastier)

-Add cinnamon sugar evenly as topping

-Bake for 50-60 minutes (I usually do 50, but if you like your noodles on top crunchy, go for 60)

-Cool

NOTE: I often will prepare the Kugel the day before, cover and refrigerate overnight. If you’re doing that, be sure to remove it with at least a half hour to reach room temperature before baking it.

A Most Refreshing "Summer" Salad

With all the carbs going on during break-fast it was important to have a nice salad option. This is a super easy, super delicious, refreshing and healthy salad actually found from Shape.com. The original recipe, Tomato, Corn & Edamame Salad says it serves 8 so we bulked ours up a little more.

Ingredients:

juice from one medium lime

3 tbsp olive oil

corn kernels cut from 3 ears of corn

2 large avocados, seeded and diced

2 cups frozen edamame

1 container grape tomatoes, halved

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

For Dressing - In a liquid measuring cub, slowly whisk together the olive oil and lime juice until the dressing is smooth and emulsified. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For Salad - Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Before you add the edamame, prepare an ice bath next to the stove to blanch the edamame and corn after you cook it (this stops the cooking process to prevent overcooked vegetables). Add edamame to the boiling water and let cook for about 3 minutes, or as directed on the package. Add corn to the edamame mixture for the last 30 seconds. Blanch in ice water and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with cherry tomatoes and dressing until combined. Add avocado cubes.

I actually made the salad the day before, covered with plastic wrap and stored in the fridge. Then prior to serving I added in the avocado, so to prevent it from browning. The original recipe also suggested serving this over greens, though I thought it was prefect the way it was! Very refreshing for a salad, colorful, and a great mix of flavors!

Strawberry Strata Re-Imagined

First up - Strawberry Strata via Giada De Laurentiis and the Food Network. If you click on the comments and reviews you'll see that many people had problems with this recipe. Mine however came out great! I changed up the directions and ingredients a little, based on what others suggested and it worked!

Ingredients:

4 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup ricotta cheese, room temperature

7 eggs

2 cups fat-free milk

1 1/2 packages fresh strawberries, chopped

1/2 cup honey, warmed PLUS extra honey for drizzling

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp vanilla

sugar

1 (12 to 16 inch) ciabatta loaf, crust removed and cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions:

- Remove crust from break and cut into pieces, set aside- Wash and cut up strawberries and mix in bowl with small amount of sugar, set aside

- Place cheeses in a large bowl and stir together with a wooden spoon.

- Add the eggs, 1 at a time, mixing until completely incorporated before adding the next.

- Stir in the milk, strawberries, honey, cinnamon, and bread.

- Pour into an 8 x 12 inch casserole dish

- To bake: preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake covered with foil for 45 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Remove the foil, sprinkle top with cinnamon, sugar, and drizzled honey and continue baking for 30-35 minutes.

The result? Total success! It was so good! I actually ended up making everything the day before, covering it in plastic wrap and holding it in the fridge, and then baking it the next day. It was finished an hour or two before people arrived; however, tasted great at room temperature. People seemed to be impressed and I was very happy with all the compliments, especially after reading some of the not so good comments on the website. We probably got somewhere between 12-20 servings, people sort of just scooped some on a plate. So I would estimate it's about 4 pts/serving.

before and after being baked

Also, with the crust from the bread we made chips! Drizzled them with olive oil and garlic powder, stuck in the oven at 350 deg F for about 10 minutes and ta da! They were great plain and also a great vehicle for the many dips people brought to break-fast.

Sisters in the Kitchen

A couple posts ago I shared my recipes for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which I celebrated with some friends in Chicago. Yom Kippur is the next major Jewish holiday that happened last week. It is both very much an eating holiday and not at all an eating holiday. The 25 hour fast makes it a not eating holiday; however, the break-fast that comes after that fast is a new chef's dream! It is an extreme opportunity to create an elaborate spread of food, usually along the lines of breakfast/brunch fare.

This year I was very fortunate to spend the holiday in New York with my sister, Franny, and bro-in-law, Mike. It was the first time in several years that we were together for the holiday and that being the case we decided to go full-on domestic! For the first time probably ever, my sister and I grocery shopped and cooked side by side in preparation for a super break fast at her new digs in Brooklyn.

The cooking fest started like this...

and ended like this...

In the next few posts you'll find all vegetarian recipes for Strawberry Strata, Noodle Kugel, Stuffed Mushrooms, Edamame Corn Summer Salad, and Banana Chocolate Chip Cake that were made between Franny and me. Mmmmenjoy!

Too Tangy Potato Salad

For Rosh Hashanah a friend and I co-hosted a pot luck style dinner at his house. For dietary and kosher reasons we decided to make it an all dairy pot luck. I made two recipes, the first of which was a Tangy Goat Cheese and Dill Potato Salad from Rachael Ray.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 pounds diced Yukon Gold Potatoes (I didn't have quite 2 1/2 pounds so added in regular baked potatoes too)
Salt
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/2 cup goat cheese crumbles
1 cup fat-free plain yogurt
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 small clove garlic, finely grated or minced
4 scallions, finely chopped, whites and greens
fresh ground black pepper
2 dill pickles, chopped
*The original recipe also called for 1/4 cup chopped dill and 4 radishes thinly sliced. I left both those out and subbed 1/4 red pepper, chopped.

Directions:
- Cover the potatoes with water and bring to a boil.
- Salt the water and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
- When potatoes are cooked, return them to the hot pot and add the white wine vinegar.
- In a bowl, whisk together the goat cheese, yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, and garlic.
- Toss the potatoes, scallions, and red pepper in the dressing and season with salt and pepper.
- Garnish the salad with chopped pickles and serve.

The final product? Eh. It was ok. Definitely more of a "grown-up" potato salad and a little too tangy for me. I liked the goat cheese flavor, but as a whole wasn't thrilled. The original recipe calls for white wine OR white wine vinegar as well as yogurt OR creme fraiche OR sour cream. Maybe one of those other options would've worked out better. Other people seemed to enjoy it ok, but I probably wouldn't make this again.

The Final Product!

You can see a wide variety of snacks including the 3 recipes I made and much more made by Shira and other friends!


All in all the party was a great success and quite delicious!