Corn Dog Muffins

Got it off Pinterest! They were super yummy!

Pepitas

Pepitas, also known as pumpkin seeds are a super tasty snack. These didn't last very long this year though. Hana had some neighborhood friends hanging out in the garage while Joe worked to transform it into a haunted house and the six of them ate every last one of our pepitas! Want to know why they gobbled them up so quickly? Here's what you do:

Clean out a couple of pumkins, preferably to turn them into jack-o-lanterns.

Clean the pumpkin goo off the seeds and spread on a baking sheet to dry over night.

Spray with olive oil and season to your liking.

This year I used kosher salt, cayenne and garlic powder.

Bake at 250 until lightly browned. Mine cooke approximately two hours.

Turkey Taco Salad

Tonight I made taco salad with ground turkey breast. Instead of adding water with the taco seasoning mix, I added low-sodium V8. It was absolutely delicious and I don't see a reason to ever make taco salad with ground beef again!

Spicy Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey1/2 c red onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp cilantro, finely chopped

1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, finely chopped

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

4 slices reduced fat Mozzarella or Provolone cheese

4 toasted whole wheat hamburger buns

Mix first 6 ingredients in a bowl.

Form into 4 patties

Cook until meat is no longer pink.

I set aside enough to make a small patty for Hana and added everything but the chipotle chile in adobo sauce to hers.

Put burger together & enjoy! Yum! Yum!

Mexican Crockpot Chicken: *My Way

1 can no-salt-added corn, drained
1 can low-sodium black beans, drained & rinsed
1 small jar chunky salsa
1/3 small yellow onion, chopped
garlic salt
pepper
2 chicken breasts
shredded 2% milk cheese (I used Colby Jack)

Mix corn, beans, 1/3 jar of salsa, onion and put in bottom of crockpot. Place chicken on top, season to your liking with garlic salt & pepper, top with remaining salsa. Cover and cook on high 2 1/2 - 3 hours until chicken is done, careful not to overcook. Sprinkle cheese on top and cover until cheese is melted. Serve as is or over rice, even shred the chicken if you like and put in tortillas.

*There are tons of versions of this. Some add cream cheese or Velveeta and omit the onion and seasonings. This is my version! Next time I think I will try hominy in place of the corn and Rotel instead of salsa.

Joe's Baked Potatoes

These are easy, delicious and pretty darn healthy!

Clean your potatoes.
Rub olive oil on the outside.
Sprinkle kosher salt on the outside.
Use a fork to poke holes in the potatoes.
Place on a microwave-safe plate and cook for 10-15 minutes, until done/tender.

Works with regular baking potatoes or sweet potatoes. You'll be shocked to find that when you do this with sweet potatoes you won't need to add anything else to them when it comes time to eat them!

Spicy Mini Meat Loaves

1/2 c finely chopped yellow onion

3 tbsp dry bread crumbs (I prefer Panko)

2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, chopped

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp dried basil

1/8 pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

8 oz ground turkey breast

1 large egg white, lightly beaten

3 tbsp ketchup, divided

1 tsp Tabasco

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine onion, the next  11 ingredients and 2 tbsp ketchup in a bowl and mix well.

Spray muffin pan with cooking spray.

Distribute mixture evenly into three of the muffin cups.

Combine Tabasco with remaining 1 tbsp ketchup in a bowl; brush over meat loaf tops.

Bake at 350 for approximately 30 minutes.

Makes 3 servings. Serving Size: 1 muffin/loaf

DC Chicken Salad

Ever had The Corner Bakery's DC Chicken Salad? If not, you're missing out.

It's delicious and I (think) I found the recipe! I searched for it and found it here:

DC Chicken Salad

It's not "official," but it sure does taste like the real thing!



Goes great in a whole wheat pita pocket with a side of fruit. 

Here's the recipe:

4 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped into cubes or 1 small whole roasted chicken, de-boned and shredded

1/3 small red onion, finely chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1/2 granny smith apple, chopped

1/4 cup dried currants

1 1/2 ounces slivered almonds

1/4 cup Miracle Whip  ( I used 1/2 low fat Helman's mayo, 1/2 fat free plain yogurt) 

Mix together and serve. Would also be good over lettuce. Hana prefers hers in the shape of person with currant eyes and a strawberry smile.

You're welcome!



Tator Tot Casserole, Massey Style

I have seen this made several ways. Joe saw it on TV and requested I make it this week so I looked up quite a few recipes but nothing sounded great to me. I then decided to do it my own way. It turned out great! This is a new Massey family favorite! Hana and Joe devoured theirs and I thought it was pretty tasty myself.

1 pound lean ground beef

garlic salt

garlic powder

1 yellow onion, chopped

  2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (I used the traditional green bean, corn, pea & carrot mix)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 small can mushrooms

black pepper

frozen tator tots

shredded cheese

green onions, chopped

___________________________________________________________________________________

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Brown hamburger seasoned with garlic salt & garlic powder (to your liking) with yellow onions.

Spray 8x8 glass baking dish with cooking spray.               

Spread hamburger/onion mix into bottom of pan. 

Spread frozen veggies as next layer.

Mix soup (straight from the can) with mushrooms, garlic powder (to your liking) and pepper.

Spread soup mixture over vegetables to cover entirely. 

Layer tater tots on top.

Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour, checking after 30 minutes to see if tots are getting too brown. If so, turn down to 350 degrees.        

Sprinkle a bit of shredded cheese on top (I used 2% milk Colby Jack) and put under broiler for a couple minutes until cheese is bubbly and slightly browned.

Let sit 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with green onion. 

Hey, Scallywag!

We did it. We finally got some pirate ship shaved ice. And...disappointment. I wanted the workers to be dressed as pirates, maybe speak a little pirate lingo, the whole nine yards. Nothing. Actually, the customer service was below average, the ice wasn't as "shaved" as we like and the sugary, syrupy, juice stuff tasted watered down. Boo! Next time we'll go to our trusty ol' Shiver Shack! They might not be in a pirate ship, but they're super duper friendly and everything is delish!

Possibly the worst meal ever...

It sounded different and good enough to try. It came out of the cookbook I cherish and have never had a bad dish out of yet. This proves that nothing is perfect. That cookbook is not perfect and this recipe was far from perfect.

What was in it? Squash, zucchini, pasta, onion, rosemary, Dijon mustard, mozzerlla, proscuitto, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Doesn't sound too bad? Ugh! It was! I'll never make it again. On to the next recipe!

Blue Cheese Dressing

This isn't really a recipe, it's just something I've started doing that's absolutely delicious and I thought I would share. Joe makes a super yummy grilled salad  that he tops with blue cheese. I was eating salad for lunch the other day and really wanted one of Joe's grilled salads with gooey, melty blue cheese...then it came to me. I microwaved the blue cheese for a few seconds, got it all ncie and melted and stirred it into my salad. The outcome was a delicious "dressing" that coated every bite. Also, I used reduced fat blue cheese, so it was less fat and calories than most light dressings!

Jalapeno Pasta with Calabacitas Sauce

We bought fresh jalapeno linguine at our local farmer's market this past weekend and I searched the web for a recipe and came across this.: Pappardelle's Green Jalapeno Pasta with Calabacitas Sauce
I literally cut, pasted and then edited this recipe to exactly what I did.

Calabacitas Sauce
1 lb. Jalapeno Linguine
1 (11 oz) can of summer sweet corn, no salt added
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, sliced
3 medium zucchini, diced
3 Poblanos - roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
1/2 cup chicken broth
Garlic Salt and Pepper
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1. After all of your vegetables are prepped and ready to go, cook pasta in pot of rapidly boiling salted water until al dente (about 8-10 minutes). Drain and transfer to heated pasta bowl.

2. Heat butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add zucchini; sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add corn and chiles, sauté until corn is cooked, about 2-3 minutes. Add broth, salt and pepper. If it needs more liquid, add a few tablespoons of the pasta cooking water.

3. Serve sauce over pasta and top with grated cheddar cheese.
Serves 4-6

Next time I'll try it over rice!

Indian-Style Okra

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 pound sliced fresh okra
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• salt to taste
• chili powder
• diced tomato, canned
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

*I added these.

Makes 4 servings

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until tender. Stir in the okra, and season with cumin, ginger, coriander, pepper and salt. Cook and stir for a few minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover the pan. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until okra is tender.               

Nutrional Info Per Serving Calories: 126 | Total Fat: 8.9g | Cholesterol: 23mg

I served this over white rice & I found this recipe here:
AllRecipes.com Easy Indian Style Okra

Simple Salad

I don't have a picture, and this is by no means a gourmet dish, (or even a very creative one) but I've been enjoying something lately I thought I'd share with you. Just last week we had steaks and sweet potatoes. The asparagus I intended to cook had gone bad and I was in need of serving a vegetable but I didn't have much on hand to choose from. I ended up throwing all of the below in a bowl, mixing it up and it was very much enjoyed by all...especially Hana and myself!

There is no exact amount as this just happened, so use as much or as little as you like. Add some things, subtract some things, use a different dressing if you so desire.

grape tomatoes
chopped carrots
green onion
celery
Lite Ranch dressing

The second time I made this I didn't have green onion, only yellow, so that's what I used. Red would also be yummy! That time I also mixed in a little garlic powder and a pinch of shredded Colby Jack cheese because it was not served as a side but for lunch for Hana and me.

*Slow Cooker Beans & Rice

It is hot. H-O-T, hot. We're talking 100+ degrees outside, people. Welcome to summertime in Texas! As a native, I don't really mind it. Well, I don't love it, but I am used to it. Okay, okay, I'm as used to it as I can get. During the summer in Texas we sweat a lot, swim a lot, play in any kind of water a lot, own lots of shorts and flip flops and revive in the shade. This is the time of year when it's 95 in the shade and you cannot believe you hear yourself say, "Man, this feels nice!" When you've seen the outdoor thermometer read 104 several days in a row you quickly learn how to keep the inside as cool as possible. And since I like the inside of my house cold rather than cool, I've got a lot of tricks under my sleeve; keep the blinds closed, fans on high, lights off as much as possible, exhaust fan on when washing/drying clothes or showering and NOT TURNING THE OVEN ON! I don't know about yours, but my oven seems to heat my house in a heartbeat. It's probably because our kitchen opens into our living room, where we spend a lot of time. This time of year we eat lots of fruit, I make lots of sandwiches and salads - it's almost too hot to even care to eat! But I also lean on my crock pot quite a bit in the summertime when we need a hot meal. Mine doesn't give off much heat at all and not only do I not have to crank the oven, I don't have to slave over a hot stove either! So here's a yummy crock pot recipe:
3 c water
1 c dried red kidney beans
1 c chopped onion (I always cook with yellow)
1 c chopped green bell pepper
3/4 c chopped celery
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp paprika
3/4 tsp ground red pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 (14 ounce) package turkey smoked sausage
1 bay leaf
5 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp salt
3 c hot, cooked long-grain rice
1/4 c chopped green onions

Combine first 12 ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover with lid; cook on high 5 hours. Discard bay leaf; stir in salt. Serve over rice; sprinkle servings with green onions. Makes 4 servings (1 cup bean mixture, 3/4 cup rice and 1 tbsp green onions)

I think a little cheese sprinkled on top would be delicious, but I am an over cheeser and I refrained.

*From that favorite cookbook of mine: Cooking Light: Cook Smart Eat Well

Ham & Cheese Twice Baked Potatoes

4 baking potatoes

1 tbsp butter

1/2 cup milk (I used 2%)

1 tsp garlic (minced)

1/2 cup shredded Pepper jack cheese (I used 2%)

1 tbsp chopped parsley

1/2 cup ham

1/4 cup chopped green onions

salt

pepper

Preheat oven to 500.
Poke holes on potatoes with a fork and cook in microwave on high approximately 15 minutes, turning them once. Let them rest a few minutes and them split them in half and scoop out the inside leaving about a 1/4 inch thick shell. Keep pulp in a bowl to the side.
In a small skillet, heat butter over med-high heat. Add garlic and saute about 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add milk and bring to a simmer. Pour milk mixture over pulp and add 1/2 the cheese, parsley, ham and salt & pepper to taste. Mix well and stuff potatoes. Top with remaining cheese. Bake until cheese begins to brown.
Top with green onions

Turkey Mini Meat Loaves

Another great recipe out of my Cooking Light Cookbook!

1/2 c chopped onion (I usually cook with yellow)

3 tbsp dry breadcrumbs (I used Italian seasoned Panko)

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp salt (I used garlic salt)

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

8 oz ground turkey breast

1 lrg egg white, lightly beaten

3 tbsp ketchup, divided

1/4 tsp Tabasco

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Heat small skillet over med-high heat, coat with cooking spray. Add onion to pan and saute 5 mins or until lightly browned. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

3. Combine onion, breadcrumbs and next 7 ingredients in a lrg bowl. Stir in 2 tbsp ketchup. Spoon about 1/2 cup meat mixture into each of 3 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Place muffin pan on a baking sheet. Combine 1 tbsp ketchup and Tabasco in a small bowl. Brush ketchup mixture over meat loaf tops. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until thermometer registers 165.

I served this with a side salad and mock mashed potatoes. But instead of using sour cream in the mock mashed potatoes, I used some light green onion & chive flavored cream cheese I had on hand. YUM!



Notice the beautiful crystal wine glass paired with a

Solo paper plate? Now that's classy!

Carmelized Carrots

These are the carrots shown in the picture in the previous post. Preheat oven to 475. Combine 1 lb baby carrots, 1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce, 2 tsp brown sugar, 2 tsp olive oil, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray and bake for 15 minutes, or until tender. (This also came out of my Cooking Light cookbook)

Pork Tenderloin Studded with Rosemary & Garlic

Aunt Victoria was nice enough to share some of her yummy rosemary, as ours is still growing. Excited to have so much of it at my disposal, I decided to make this delicious dish out of my trusty ol' Cooking Light cookbook. 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 (1 lb) pork tenderloin, trimmed 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper Combine rosemary & garlic. Make several 1/2-inch deep slits in pork; place about half of rosemary mixture in slits. Rub pork with remaining rosemary mixture; sprinkle with slat & pepper. The recipe is to cook it in the oven, but Joe cooked it on the grill. I will post recipe for the carrots shown seperately.