Mud Run Recovery Dinner

Today, my sisters and I ran the mud run in Philly. It was fun, tiring and hard (for me).

So tonight I needed something easy but filling and boy did I find it.

Sausage and Veggie Stir Fry!!!!!

2 Hot Sausage links
1/2 of a zucchini
1/2 an eggplant
1 cup rice prepared
cumin
garlic salt
chipotle seasoning
red pepper flakes
carmelized onions

While some onions are carmelizing, cut your veggies.  Mine were fresh from my garden!

I cut it thin so it cooked quicker.  When onions are beginning to carmelize add your veggies.

Your veggies with desired amounts of  seasonings.

Let your veggies cook for a couple of minutes then add 2 sausage links, casings removed.

Cook until sausage is cooked through.  Serve over rice.

Butterbeer

An era ends today......from this Potter fan to you....... I bring you BUTTERBEER

Beantown Baker is responsible for this recipe....search her site.

Leftover Makeover

So a hazard of cooking from recipes and living by yourself, is that you ALWAYS have leftovers.  Unlike some people, I hate leftovers. There are very few things I enjoy having over and over again.  So, tonight I sat pondering on my couch what to do for dinner because I did NOT want any of the meatloaf leftover from last night. I contemplated ordering Chinese, but didn't (because I haven't ordered since I moved into my house and don't know where to order from).  I thought about a pizza joint, but everything on the menu I'd eat was full of fat and grease (and I've been eating well). 

So I reinvented my meatloaf and couscous dinner into Stuffed Tomatoes.

I cored and emptied 3 small tomatoes

I then took some of last nights meatloaf and cut it into smaller pieces.  I added some of the leftover couscous too.  I then threw in some cheddar cheese and some carmelized onions.

I then stuffed each tomato as full as I could with the mixture.

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes.  When the timer went off, I added some cheese on top and some balsamic vinegar and baked for 5 more minutes.

Talk about a totally different meal......it was delish!

BEST Turkey Meatloaf

So I made the most amazing meatloaf ever tonight. 

I followed most of the recipe from Giada (click here for recipe)

I didn't use parsley, I substituted fresh basil
I used Three types of feta cheese (regular, tomato basil, and garlic flavored)

So, because I linked the recipe and mostly followed it, I will just tell ya what I did.



First, mix everything, but the meat gently in a bowl.

Then add the ground turkey and mix gently until the stuff in the bowl is well spread throughout the meat.  Shape the meat into a loaf and place in a greased pan.

Bake at 375 for 45 min.  Keep an eye out on it though.  I take 5 min off everything because my oven is strange.

While it bakes, clean up your kitchen.....this is what mine looked like.

Take it out and eat it.  This was so moist and full of flavor.  I didn't need to add anything to it to serve (to myself). No ketchup, no BBQ sauce....though I did try it with some Tzatziki sauce.  I preferred it without!

Also pictured above is couscous and a veggie salad I made (cucumber, tomato, black beans, balsamic vinegar and apple cider vinegar.)

Fat Fido did not appear today....must've been too hot for even him!

ZUCCHINI!!!!!!!!!

So I picked a monster zucchini from my garden.

I needed to do something with it, so tonight I made Zucchini Bread and Pan fried marinated zucchini.

So the Zucchini Bread recipe, I got from  Smitten Kitchen
I didn't add any of the extras, but it was delicious!


You Need:
2 cups of shredded zucchini
3 cups flour
1 3/4 of Sugar
3 Eggs
1 cup oil
3 tsp of cinnamon
1/8 tsp of nutmeg
1tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt


Whisk eggs in a bowl.  Then add sugar and oil.  Finally add zucchini and vanilla.
In another bowl mix flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then add the flour slowly to the egg mixture.....Eventually  your batter should look like this:

Add batter to 2 WELL GREASED loaf pans....... (I only had one)

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 55-65 minutes, ensuring the middle is baked.

 YUM.....


So while the bread was baking, I started my zucchini marinating.

You need:
zucchini
balsalmic vinegarette salad dressing
plastic baggie


Cut zucchini into slices.

Place zucchini in a plastic baggie and season with salt and pepper. Add desired amount of dressing and let sit for at least 30 min.

So I pan fried in some olive oil on my grill.

Cook til desired doneness.

I ate them all!!!!


In brighter news....FAT FIDO came out again tonight (enter Fido picture collection!)

Gnocchi on video

So I managed to somehow delete 2 segments of the video which made editing interesting.....

Enjoy!

Caramel filled Chocolate Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

It was a rainy day, well beyond rainy.....MONSOON type weather. So I cooked and baked.  I will be posting a video tomorrow of homemade gnocchi, but for now cupcakes take the post

You will need
Boxed cake mix (sorry, I was feeling lazy) and the stuff for it.
1 package Cream cheese softened
1 stick butter softened
3-4 c confectioner's sugar
1 bottle of caramel ice cream topping

The box mix called for oil.  I know cupcakes aren't healthy but I didn't want the oil so I used applesauce.

Bake according to package directions.  Then remove from pans and allow to cool

Icing- let me start by saying I was NOT happy with the consistency of the icing.  Not even a little.

cream the cream cheese and butter together. 

Add 3/4 cup of caramel.  Mix well.

Add confectioner's sugar a cup at a time and mix well.  My icing was very liquidy and I even put it in the fridge to help it set up, but not for long enough apparently.

When cupcakes are cool, use a small paring knife to cut a hole in the middle of the cupcake and remove the top.

Then squeeze desired amount of filling in the hole.

Before you replace the top, cut or pull off enough of the plug to allow filling to stay in place. Otherwise you will have overflow.

Replace top.

Ice cupcakes as desired.

Eat and enjoy!!!!!

Stuffed Meatballs!

So I really wanted to play with ground lamb tonight, but my grocery store didn't have any.  I was in the mood to experiment, so I wanted to play around tonight.  Let's just say I was in the kitchen for awhile, but I am extremely happy with the outcome!!!

I made stuffed meatballs and couscous. Never had couscous before, but I am now a HUGE fan.

Goat Cheese stuffed Veal Meatballs with Tzatziki Sauce
1 lb ground veal (no lamb, hey, try a new meat)
1/2 red onion
8 cloves garlic (4 smashed, 4 minced/finely chopped)
Olive Oil
Rosemary (I used dry)
Thyme (I used dry)
Salt and Pepper
Bread crumbs (I didn't have any so I crushed up crackers and added some seasoning)
1 Egg

Tzatziki Sauce
2 cups low fat plain Greek yogurt
1/2 a cucumber (seeded and diced)
2 cloves garlic
3 tsp hot sauce



Step 1- Carmelize your onions.  Make sure your oil is hot before you add your onions and be sure to salt.

















With a minute or so left, add your smashed garlic cloves for flavor.  (You will take these out, so keep 'em big)

Take onions and place into the bowl you will mix the meat in.  Take out large cloves of garlic

While carmelizing the onions, make the Tzatziki sauce because it need to sit for about an hour in the fridge.


Take yogurt and strain.

 

Add strained yogurt to food processor or blender.  Also add cut cucumber, 2 whole garlic cloves, hot sauce in with the yogurt.

Blend until smooth and well mixed. Then place in fridge. 

Back to meatballs.


Add minced garlic to bowl of carmelized onions.

Then add your meat to the bowl with desired spices and egg. Add bread crumbs to help the mixture stay together.

Take  meat mixture and roll into small meatballs.  Leave a finger hole in the middle of each meatball to stuff.

Wash your hands and then cut and roll the goat cheese into little balls to stuff in the finger holes.

 

Gently move the meat to cover the cheese and roll to ball form. 

Bake at 350 for 20 min.

Couscous- Take box and follow directions.

I added feta cheese and black olives to it when done cooking.

Serve the meatballs with a little tzatziki sauce and marinara (I used homemade eggplant marinara from the freezer) if desired.  Spoon some couscous onto plate and enjoy.

FYI- Tzatziki sauce is amazing on couscous.


HUGE side note- I've been telling people about the guy that lives under my shed.  So while cooking, he wandered into the middle of the yard.  By the time I got my camera he paused at the shed for a picture.  I need to name him. (and find out officially what he is)