"Un-fried" Squash

As I mentioned in my Fried Squash post, southerners love their fried squash. It can be breaded or battered. But... since we're trying to be healthy here, I decided to try an un-fried version! I think it tastes just as good as the fried version! In fact, it was so good I didn't feel like it needed any kind of dipping sauce. It was delicious on its own.

"Un-fried" Squash

Makes: 4 servings

2 summer squash

1/2 cup canola oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried Italian herbs

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp sea salt

• Rinse the summer squash and pat them dry. Cut the squash into 1/2" circles. Set aside.
• Make the marinade by mixing together the canola oil, garlic, herbs, pepper flakes, and salt.
• Add the squash and marinade to a gallon size plastic bag, then toss to coat the squash. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Remove the squash from the marinade and grill on high for 2 minutes per side.
• Serve as an appetizer or as a side dish.

Three Olive Tapenade

I just love olives. They're so salty and pungent. Yum! Olive tapenade is the perfect snack for olive lovers. It's a mix of finely chopped olives with some other yummy flavorings. For this particular recipe, I kept it pretty simple because I wanted the olives to be the star of the show. But I've seen some other recipes that include capers, anchovies, or roasted red peppers. Feel free to play around with it and add your own spin!

Three Olive Tapenade
Makes: 8 servings

1 1/2 cups black olives
1/2 cup kalamata olives
1/2 cup green olives with pimiento
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

• Combine all of the ingredients into a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.
• If you prefer a smoother texture, continue to puree for 2 minutes, periodically scraping down the sides.
• Serve at room temperature or cold.
• Serve on crostini (toasted bread rubbed with garlic) or with veggies. You can even spread it on some chicken breast then bake in the oven!

White Bean Salad

I don't think white bean salad gets nearly enough credit for how delicious it really is. Some might think of it as old fashioned or boring. But I beg to differ. White bean salad is a delicious appetizer that can be served on crostini (toasted bread rubbed with garlic) or on individual spoons as pictured here. The latter is an impressive presentation and makes it a great "grab and go" appetizer for a party.

White Bean Salad

Makes: 4 servings

15 oz can of white beans (also called northern beans)

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp red onion, minced

1 tbsp parsley, chopped

1 tbsp chives, chopped

pinch sea salt

• Drain the beans well, but don't rinse them.
• Combine all of the ingredients and mix well.
• Serve at room temperature or cold.

Note: this recipe tastes even better when refrigerated overnight. This is true with pretty much any recipe that includes raw garlic, onions, scallions, or the like.

Taiwanese Pepper Chicken

A Chinese buffet opened up recently near us. I love buffets especially when it comes to Chinese food. I always want a little bit of everything. But most Chinese food restaurants serve their dishes in family style platters. So we end up ordering around 5 different dishes and then come home with enough left-overs to feed a seven nation army. Anyhow, we decided to try out the new buffet on father's day and we ended up trying a new dish we had never had before: pepper chicken. We loved it so much, I knew I had to come home and try to recreate it. Well, after a few weeks, I had actually forgotten all about it. Then, like a sign from the universe, I stumbled across a recipe for Taiwanese salt and pepper pork while I was browsing the Food board on Reddit. The recipe looked really similar to the chicken we had so I used it as inspiration for this chicken dish. I should note that the dish we had at the restaurant had green bell peppers in it. I didn't happen to have any bell peppers when I made this. But I did have some jalapeño peppers from my garden and, since this family has a pathological love of all things spicy, I thought it would make a decent substitute!

Taiwanese Pepper Chicken
Makes: 4 servings

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp flour
3 tbsp corn starch
2 tsp cracked black pepper, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red chili pepper, sliced
1 jalapeño pepper, sliced
canola oil for frying

  

• Fill a stainless steel pan with 1" of oil. Preheat oil over medium-medium-high heat.
• Cut the chicken breasts into 1" cubes.
• Mix together the egg, soy sauce, and 1 tsp of the cracked pepper.
• Toss the chicken in the egg mixture.
• Add the flour and corn starch. Toss to coat.
• Fry the chicken in the oil for about 3 - 4 minutes until it is golden brown and cooked through. You'll probably need to do this in two batches so you don't overcrowd the pan.

• Remove the chicken from the oil and set aside.
• Allow the oil to cool and then transfer it to a holding container so that you can dispose of it later. Reserve about 2 tbsp of the oil in the pan.
• In the reserved oil, saute the garlic and peppers until fragrant, about 1 minute. Then add the remaining 1 tsp of cracked pepper.

• Toss the chicken in the garlic and pepper mixture. Serve with rice and vegetables.

Note: if you don't have an electric spice grinder (I don't!) then it will take you an incredible amount of time to grind up the amount of black pepper needed for this recipe. You're definitely going to feel the burn in your arms. But... it's worth it! I promise!

Spinach Sauté

This recipe is pretty similar to my Spinach and Mushrooms recipe from a couple months ago. But I added a little flair to it with some red pepper so I figured it deserves its own post. Plus spinach is in peak season right now so you can never have too many spinach recipes!

Spinach Sauté
Makes: 4 servings

8 oz mushrooms
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, very thinly sliced
1 red pepper, 1/2" dice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter or margarine (I used Smart Balance)
4 big handfuls of baby spinach
pinch of sea salt

• Rinse the mushrooms well, cut off the stems, then cut them into thin slices.
• Over medium heat, saute the mushrooms, garlic, onions, and peppers in the olive oil and butter. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt over the mixture. The mushrooms will release quite a bit of liquid. The liquid will eventually evaporate. Continue cooking until the mushrooms are a light golden brown and the onion and pepper are soft. Total cooking time will take about 12 - 15 minutes.
• Add the spinach to the mushroom mixture, sprinkle another pinch of sea salt on the spinach. Cook until the spinach is just wilted, about one minute.

This is a great side dish for dinner or toss in some sliced grilled chicken for a filling lunch!

Bruschetta

At this point, I think everyone has heard of bruschetta. It's one of those foods that has really picked up in popularity over the last decade or so. In its simplest form, bruschetta is made of diced tomatoes, minced garlic, basil, olive oil, and salt. That's it. You might see some folks make it their own by adding something special like red wine vinegar, scallions, or something else. But sometimes I really like the classic. Just very basic - and delicious - flavors.

Bruschetta is usually served on top of crostini. That's just a piece of toasted bread, usually with some garlic rubbed on there. Crostini can be served with all kinds of great toppings including bruschetta, olive tapanade, or other meats, cheeses, and vegetables.

 Bruschetta
Makes: 4 servings

4 ripe tomatoes, cut into a 1/2" dice
2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
1 tbsp fresh basil, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp sea salt

Crostini:
1 baguette, ciabatta, or other crusty bread
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic

• Make the crostini by slicing the bread on a bias (that means at an angle). Toast the bread pieces either on a grill or under a broiler.
• Remove the bread from the heat, immediately rub each piece with the garlic while the bread is still hot. Then brush with a small amount of the olive oil.
• Now make the bruschetta. Mix together the tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil, and salt.
• Serve the bruschetta on the crostini pieces right before serving. If you do this too early, the bread with get soggy.

Some people like to serve their bruschetta with a little sprinkle of shredded parmesan or asiago cheese. I'm a firm believer that not everything can be improved with the addition of cheese. I think this recipe is just the right balance of flavors as is. That being said, if you're a cheese fiend, go ahead and sprinkle some on there.

Bruschetta can also be used to top a piece of grilled chicken or fish or even mixed in with some hot pasta. Go ahead and get creative!

I was so excited to use the fresh tomatoes and basil from my container garden in this recipe. It stinks living in an apartment sometimes but I won't let that stop me from growing fresh veggies!

Baked Tacos

We really love tacos in this house. We'll turn anything into a taco flavored version of the original - taco pizza, taco salad, you name it! Tonight, we just wanted plain tacos. We've always had soft tacos. For some reason, I've never made hard shell tacos in the entire 10 years Matt and I have been together. Come to find out, the corn taco shells actually have a lot less carbs in them than the soft flour tortillas. I think we'll be making these a lot more often now!

I got the idea to bake the tacos from a friend. And they turned out great! I hope you like them.

Baked Tacos
Makes: 4 servings

8 corn taco shells
1 lb ground beef, turkey, or chicken
taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheese such as cheddar or Monterey Jack
Taco toppings such as lettuce, tomatoes, scallions, salsa, hot sauce, etc.

• First, bake the empty taco shells so they get warm and crispy. Place the taco shells on a baking sheet and bake at 325° F for 5 - 6 minutes.
• While the shells are baking, brown up the meat in a skillet on high heat until thoroughly cooked and no longer pink, about 4 - 5 minutes. Stir in the taco seasoning and remove from the heat.
• Remove the taco shells from the oven, stuff them with the taco meat, then top them all with shredded cheese.
• Place the tacos back in the oven for about 2 - 3 minutes until the cheese is melted.
• Top with your favorite toppings!

Honey Ginger Glazed Carrots

I've said this before and I'll say it again: if you don't like vegetables, it's probably because you're making them wrong. And not that it's your fault, you were probably shown wrong. But today is a new day! Vegetables, like any other food, need to be cooked well and seasoned well in order to taste good. Just steaming them and plopping some butter on there just isn't enough (in most cases). Imagine if you just steamed a piece of chicken and then sprinkled a little salt on there and that's it? Yuck...

So how do you add flavor? There are two ways:

1. Cooking method - grilled, braised, roasted, sauteed, etc.
2. Flavorings - compound butter, various herbs and spices, cheese sauce, teriyaki sauce, pesto, etc.

Honey Ginger Carrots

Makes: 4 servings

1 lb baby carrots

1 tbsp butter or butter substitute (I use smart balance)

1 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp ground ginger

parsley for garnish

• Saute the carrots in the butter and olive oil over medium high heat for about 10 - 12 minutes until the carrots are soft but still slightly crunchy - not mushy at all.
• Add the soy sauce, honey, and ginger and toss the carrots. Continue to cook for about one more minute. The sauce will thicken into a nice sticky glaze.
• Serve with some fresh parsley. I picked mine fresh from my garden! It added a nice delicate lemony flavor.

That's it! This is a nice quick recipe that you can pull together while you've got some chicken or fish baking in the oven. It will taste way better that those frozen deals with the pre-made sauces

*You could also use fresh grated ginger for this recipe if you want. Just remember to double the amount.

Baba Ganoush

I made some grilled egg plant for dinner which turned out really yummy. But I had a bunch left over and I wasn't really sure what to do with it. After some thought, I settled on Baba Ganoush. This is another yummy treat that I learned how to make when I was working at the country club. It's a dip made from roasted egg plant, garlic, and sesame tahini and it is delicious! If you love hummus, you will probably love this too!

I'll give you the instructions for how to make this with grilled eggplant since that's what I had on hand. But if you don't want to go through the extra work of grilling it, you can just cut the egg plant in half and roast it in the oven until it is golden brown and soft then scoop out the soft center.

Baba Ganoush
Makes: 4 servings

1 large eggplant
1/2 cup canola oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1/4 cup sesame tahini
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt

• Wash the eggplant then slice it into 1/2" slices all the way down.
• Make the marinade by mixing together the oil, garlic, salt, and pepper.
• In a plastic bag, toss together the eggplant with the marinade. Allow the eggplant to soak for at least 30 minutes before cooking.
• Preheat the grill on high. Once hot, place the slices on the grill and cook for about 3 - 4 minutes per side.
• Place the eggplant slices in a food processor and puree. The mixture will seem a little lumpy. Add the sesame tahini and lemon juice and continue to puree; the mixture smooth out.
• Taste the dip and add salt as needed.
• Serve with naan bread, pita bread, veggies, or anything else you could possibly dip in there! This can be served hot, room temperature, or cold.

In case you've never used sesame tahini before, this is what it looks like. It comes in a jar and it's pretty runny stuff; it's a pour-able liquid. You can find it in the Asian section of almost any grocery store. Tahini is a great ingredient to keep on hand. You can use it in marinades, salad dressings, and all kinds of dips.

Pizza Chicken Roulade

A chicken roulade, in case you were curious, is just a piece of chicken that has been stuffed and then rolled up. With pizza chicken roulades, I stuffed them with the big slices of sandwich pepperoni that you get from the deli and fresh mozzarella and then braised them in tomato sauce. Braising refers to a process where you sear the meat or vegetable either on a grill or in a hot pan, then you finish the cooking process gently by simmering or baking in liquid, usually a sauce.

Pizza Chicken Roulade
Makes: 4 servings

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
12 slices of sandwich pepperoni
8 oz fresh mozzarella (not the aged kind)
2 tbsp canola oil
1 jar of pasta sauce
4 pieces of fresh basil

• Cut the chicken breasts in half length-wise so that you have four thinner pieces of chicken.
• Place one piece of chicken between two pieces of plastic wrap. With a meat tenderizer, rolling pin, or other heavy instrument, pound the chicken flat. It should be about 1/8" thick. Repeat with the remaining pieces of chicken.
• Lay out a piece of chicken, layer 3 slices of pepperoni onto the chicken. Top with 1/4 of the mozzarella cheese, cut into slices. Roll the chicken up. To keep it together, you'll need to place about four toothpicks in there. Repeat with the remaining chicken, pepperoni, and cheese.
• Heat the oil in a stainless steel skillet over medium high heat.
• Place the chicken in the pan and sear on both sides for about 2 - 3 minutes per side. The chicken will still be raw in the middle.

• Pour half of the sauce in the bottom of a 13" x 9" glass baking dish. Place the chicken on top of the sauce in a single layer. Top the chicken with the remaining sauce.
• Bake at 400° F for 25 - 30 minutes until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and no longer pink.

• Serve on top of rice, pasta, or even roasted vegetables. Garnish with fresh basil.

Avocado Salad

I actually got the recipe for avocado salad from my boss. She was eating it at work one day and it looked really good so I asked her about it. She told me she had it at a restaurant and it was so good she went home and recreated it. It's super simple but amazingly delicious. You can make a single serving for a light lunch or several servings as an appetizer for a get-together.

Avocado Salad

Makes: 1 serving

1 ripe avocado

3 - 4 paper thin slices of red onion

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp lime juice

pinch sea salt

• Cut the avocado in half and remove the pit. Cut each half into slices, then scoop them out of the shell. Place the slices in a glass bowl.
• Add the onion, olive oil, lime juice, and sea salt. Gently fold it all together with a spoon or rubber spatula.
• Serve on a bed of baby spinach, with some tortilla chips, or with a warm flour tortilla.

Garlic & Vinegar Marinade

Matt and I have some friends here in Charlotte who are originally from the Buffalo, NY area. Whenever they go home on vacation, they bring us back some Chiavetta's marinade. It's made from cider vinegar, garlic, and a whole bunch of other goodies. Instead of waiting for another bottle of Chiavetta's, I decided to try to make my own. I think I came pretty close! I know it may sound a little weird that it's primarily made from vinegar, but it's really delicious. I promise!

Garlic & Vinegar Marinade
Makes: 8 servings

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp corn starch
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp coarsely cracked black pepper
1 tsp onion powder

• In a small sauce pan, combine the water, soy sauce, and corn starch. Whisk together.
• Cook over medium-high heat until it bubbles and starts to thicken. Remove from the heat.
• Add the vinegar, garlic, black pepper, and onion powder. Stir until combined.
• Transfer to a mason jar or other glass container. Allow to cool in the refrigerator.
• Left-overs can be stored for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

Since this is a vinegar based marinade, you don't want to leave the meat in there for more than about 4 hours. Anything longer will start to break the meat down and make it mushy. This goes great on boneless chicken breast, chicken on the bone such as thighs or leg quarters,  pork chops, or pork tenderloin. This recipe makes enough to marinate about eight pieces of chicken.

Spinach & Mushrooms

As promised, I'm trying to get as much use as I can out of the wonderful spring fruits and vegetables. I just love spinach, especially baby spinach. This is a quick, simple vegetable side dish with a ton of flavor. This might even be the one that gets your kids to eat spinach!!

Spinach & Mushrooms
Makes: 4 servings

8 oz mushrooms
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter or margarine (I used Smart Balance)
4 big handfuls of baby spinach
pinch of sea salt

• Rinse the mushrooms well, cut off the stems, then cut them into thin slices.
• Over medium heat, saute the mushrooms and garlic in the olive oil and butter. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt over the mushrooms. The mushrooms will release quite a bit of liquid. The liquid will eventually evaporate. Continue cooking until the mushrooms are a light golden brown. Total cooking time will take about 12 - 15 minutes.
• Add the spinach to the mushrooms, sprinkle another pinch of sea salt on the spinach. Cook until the spinach is just wilted, about one minute.
• This makes a nice bed for a piece of grilled chicken or steak!

Spanakopita (Spinach Pie)

Spanakopita is a traditional Greek snack. The name translates to spinach pie in English. It's made out of layers of delicate flaky phyllo dough and a filling made out of spinach, feta, onions, and egg. Sometimes it is made as one large pie and then individual servings are cut. It can also be made into little individual servings by folding the phyllo dough into little triangles. I prefer the latter preparation. It looks really nice and it makes for great little finger food when you're hosting a special occasion.

Spanakopita
Makes: 30 triangles

10 sheets of phyllo dough, thawed
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, finely diced
4 scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
18 oz (2 boxes) frozen chopped spinach, thawed
4 oz crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
pinch of salt
1 tbsp butter, melted

• Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onions, garlic, scallions, and a pinch of salt. Cook for 5 - 6 minutes until the onions are soft but not brown.
• Transfer the onion mixture to a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
• Take the thawed spinach and grab a small handful. Squeeze most of the moisture out of the spinach and then place it in the mixing bowl with the onion mixture. Repeat with the remaining spinach. This step sounds a little gross but it's very necessary. You'll be surprised how much liquid comes out and that liquid will make the spanakopita soggy if you skip this step.
• Add the feta and Parmesan cheese to the spinach and onion mixture. Mix it all together. Taste the mixture to make sure it doesn't need any salt. Add some if necessary.
• Once the seasoning has been adjusted, add the beaten egg to the spinach mixture.
• Now that the filling is done, you can start assembling the triangles. This is the most time consuming part of making these. First, open your package of phyllo dough. Wet a paper towel then wring it out as much as you possibly can. You want it just barely wet. Use the damp paper towel to cover the rest of the phyllo dough while you're working with a sheet. This will prevent the dough from drying out and cracking.
• Brush a baking sheet with the melted butter. Set aside.
• Take one sheet of phyllo dough and cut it into thirds length-wise with a pizza cutter.

• Place a small spoonful of filling at the top and off to the right of one of the strips.

• Now you'll need to start folding. You fold these like you would a flag. I'll explain. Grab the upper left corner and fold it down to the right so that you form a triangle at the top.

• Now take the top right corner and fold it straight down.

• Take the top right corner again and fold it down and over to the left.

• Take the top left corner and fold it straight down.

• Repeat until you get to the end and have a perfect triangle. Place it on the buttered baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining phyllo dough and filling.

• If you're making these a day ahead, you can stop at this step, cover it up with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it. Then place it in the oven the next day about an hour before you're ready to serve.
• Bake at 350° F for 45 minutes. The tops will start to brown pretty quickly. But don't worry, they won't burn, I promise.
• These are great served hot out of the oven or cooled to room temperature.

Collard Greens

Hi, Frank!

Collard greens are definitely a Southern staple. I had heard of them before we moved here, but only because we feed them to our iguana, Frank. So it took me a while to think of them as people food and not just iguana food. But I've definitely gotten over that mental block by now and I love collard greens! They are so yummy.

Collard Greens
Makes: 6 servings

2 cups water
1 ham hock (or leftover ham bone from a ham dinner)
1 large head of collard greens
1/2 cup finely chopped ham
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
malt vinegar

• Tear all of the collard leaves apart and thoroughly wash each of them individually. This will take some time and effort but it's necessary because collards tend to have a lot of dirt on them, even when they're pre-washed.
• Once the collards are clean, cut the stem out of the center of each leaf and then chop it up into large 2" x 2" pieces. Set aside.
• Place the ham hock or ham bone in the water. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to a simmer. Continue simmering for one hour.
• Remove the ham bone and set the broth aside.
• In a large soup pot over medium low heat, saute the garlic in the olive oil.
• Once the garlic is cooked, add the ham broth to the pan along with the chopped ham. Bring the broth to a boil.
• Add the collard greens in batches until you can get all of it in the pan. Toss the collards with a pair of tongs until all of it is coated with the ham broth.
• Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and continue to cook for 30 minutes until the collard greens are soft.
• Serve the collard greens with a splash of malt vinegar.

Surprisingly, these freeze really well. So if you're a family of three (like us!) then you can serve half and freeze the other half for later!

Crispy Pork Chops

If you haven't noticed from my posts, we mostly eat chicken. Matt can't really eat steak because of his braces - poor guy, only 6 more months to go! So tonight I decided to change it up with some pork chops. I shallow fried them with crunchy panko bread crumbs. Something to note about shallow frying, you really shouldn't ever use a non-stick pan for deep frying or shallow frying. Non-stick pans are made for cooking in medium to low heat. The extremely high temperatures achieved by frying with hot oil can cause the non-stick coating to warp and flake off. So make sure you're using stainless steel for this recipe.

Crispy Pork Chops

Makes: 4 pork chops

4 thin boneless center cut pork chops

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 seasoned salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 cup flour

1 egg

1 tbsp milk

canola or vegetable oil for frying

• Combine the panko, seasoned salt, and cayenne pepper. Set aside.
• Whip together the egg and milk, set aside.
• With a meat tenderizer, pound the pork chops flat. This will help them cook more evenly and quickly.
• Dredge the pork chops in the flour, then the egg wash, then the panko mixture. Set aside while the oil is heating up.
• Fill a heavy bottomed stainless steel frying pan, heat about 1/2" of oil over medium heat.
• Once the oil is very hot, place the pork chops in the pan. If you're using a medium pan, you may need to do this in batches of two at a time. You don't want to overcrowd the pan.
• Cook the pork chops for about 3 - 4 minutes per side until they are brown and crispy and fully cooked on the inside. Allow to rest for two minutes before serving.
• I served mine on a bed of collard greens. Yum!

Island Mousse

During the holidays, my sister, Lina makes a special dessert. It doesn't really have a name, but I call it cranberry mousse. She mixes pureed cranberries with cool whip and crushed pineapple. It's very low sugar and super yummy. However, the season for cranberries has passed, so I made a little alteration and made it with coconut instead. I think you'll like it!

Island Mousse
Makes: 4 servings

8 oz can of crushed pineapple, drained
8 oz (small) tub of cool whip
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut

• With a rubber spatula, gently fold all three ingredients together.
• Serve in individual cups.
• Garnish with a gingersnap or a single graham cracker.

Spinach Salad with Grapefruit Dressing

This is THE BEST salad you will ever have in your life! I cannot get enough of it. I know that the combination of spinach and grapefruit sounds a little weird. But trust me, it's amazing. I'm not a big fan of grapefruit, it's a little too tart for my tastes. But on this salad, it compliments all of the other ingredients so well. Try it!!!

Spinach Salad with Grapefruit Dressing
Makes: 1 serving

Salad:
2 big handfuls of baby spinach
2 tbsp walnuts
2 tbsp crumbled blue cheese
1 large pink grape fruit, cut into segments

Dressing:
1/4 cup cranberry juice
1/4 cup pink grapefruit juice
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 shallot, finely minced

• First make the dressing. Whisk together the cranberry juice, grapefruit juice, olive oil, sugar, salt, and shallot. If you've never used shallots before, they look a little bit like a really small onion and they have a very mild onion flavor. Sometimes they're sold in bulk or they might be sold in a little mesh bag of four or five. This is what they look like:

•  Once the dressing is made, set it aside.
• Now toast the walnuts. Place them in a dry pan over medium heat. Swirl them around in the pan until they start to brown and become fragrant. Remove from the heat.
• Assemble the salad. Start with a bed of the spinach; top it with the toasted walnuts, blue cheese, and grapefruit segments.
• Drizzle the salad dressing over the salad. The leftover dressing can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Ok, time for some science. When making a vinaigrette like the one above, you're creating an emulsion. An emulsion is a suspension of one liquid in another - in the case of salad dressing, that would be the suspension of the vinegar in the oil. When creating an emulsion, it helps to have emulsifiers - that is something that helps the suspension stay together. With bottled salad dressing, you will usually see xanthan gum in there as the emulsifier. However, you can also use any kind of chopped vegetables as an emulsifier (hence all the little bits of veggies that you see floating in Italian dressing). With our grapefruit vinaigrette, the minced shallot acts as the emulsifier, helping the dressing stay together. The more you know!

Chocolate Strawberry Trifle

I served this chocolate strawberry trifle with Easter dinner (we had our dinner on Saturday night). I love trifles because they're so versatile and so delicious. My favorite trifle involves chocolate cake and chocolate pudding. Yum... Anyhow, this strawberry trifle was also yummy and it makes great use of the strawberries that are coming into season!

Chocolate Strawberry Trifle

Makes: 10 servings

1 boxed vanilla cake, prepared

16 oz (large) tub of cool whip

6 oz (1/2 bag) mini chocolate chips

16 oz (pint) strawberries

• First, prepare the cake according to the directions on the package. It's easier to bake it in a 13" x 9" cake pan, but you can also make two round cakes instead. Allow the cake to cool completely.
• While the cake is cooling, cut up the strawberries. You can either slice them or quarter them.
• Once the cake is cool, cut it up into 1" cubes.
• In a large bowl, toss in some cake cubes, then strawberries, then cool whip, then chocolate chips. Repeat two more times until you have three layers total.
• You can garnish the top with a strawberry, a maraschino cherry, or a sprig of mint.

Baked Chiles Rellenos

Chiles rellenos is a traditional Mexican dish. Typically, they are made with a roasted poblano pepper, stuffed with meat and cheese, then coated in an egg batter and fried. My version is a little bit different. Mine are made with anaheim peppers. I also skipped the meat. And I figured since we're already stuffing the thing with cheese, maybe we can skip the frying and bake it instead. This method of slow roasting makes the peppers nice and sweet.

These can be served with beans and rice for a great Meatless Monday meal. Or you can serve them as a side for chicken or fish.

Baked Chiles Rellenos
Makes: 4 servings

4 anaheim peppers
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese

• With a small paring knife, cut the tops off of the peppers and remove the seeds.
• Mix together the three cheese.
• Stuff each pepper with 1/4 of the cheese mixture. The peppers are long and skinny so you'll probably need to stuff them a little at a time.
• Once the peppers are stuffed, place them all side by side on one large piece of aluminum foil. Fold up the foil making sure that it's tight against the tops so that the cheese doesn't come out when it melts.
• Bake at 350° F for one hour until the peppers are fork tender. Allow to cool for five minutes before serving.