Garden Tomato and Cucumber Salad

Hard to believe we are already on the tail end of our summer season, but I will relish in the sweetness that is summer produce while I can!
Wearing myself out of a traditional salad with lettuce, I took a different route for lunches this week making more of a veggie salad. BYE lettuce! haha
If you can get to a farmers market or produce stand for the veggies in the recipe, I highly recommend. Fresh produce vs grocery store produce makes all the difference in flavor.


Ingredients:

• 1 large garden tomato, diced/seeded
• 2 small pickling cucumbers OR 1 large cucumber, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 small or 1/2 large red onion, sliced
• 1 15 oz can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 4oz container crumbled feta cheese
• 3 Tbs EVOO
• 2 Tbs red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• salt/pepper to taste

In large mixing bowl combine first 6 ingredients and season with salt/pepper. In a separate small bowl combine EVOO, vinegar, and oregano. Pour over veggies. Store in fridge overnight. 

This makes 3 lunch servings. 

If you want lunch for the week, I'd recommend doubling the recipe. 

Shrimp and Veggie Curry

Blew my own skirt up tonight. I've made curry numerous times now, but I knocked it out of the park tonight! 

This curry came together quite quickly yet tasted like it had been simmering for hours. Get ready to take a trip to Thailand in your very own kitchen! 

Ingredients 

• evoo or coconut oil (your call!)

• 2 Tbs red curry paste 

• 1 14 oz can whole coconut milk 

• 1/2 zucchini, sliced 

• 1/2 onion, sliced 

• 8 oz container of pre sliced baby Bella mushrooms 

• 2 garlic cloves, diced 

• 1 cup chopped cauliflower, roasted 

• 12 fresh shrimp, cleaned and peeled 

• salt to taste 

**Cooks note: I used leftover roasted cauliflower, so be sure to roast ahead of time. 

Preheat evoo in large skillet to medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté about 5 minutes. (Do NOT salt them until they're cooked, it will make them rubbery)

To mushrooms, add zucchini and sauté another 4-5 minutes. Salt to taste. Remove veggies from pan and set aside. In same pan heat 2-3 more Tbs of evoo and add onion and garlic. Sauté 2-3 minutes then add curry paste and can of coconut milk. 

Bring to a boil then reduce and simmer for 5 minutes. After 5 min, add shrimp. Cook shrimp in sauce for 3 minutes then add all veggies. Simmer another 2-3 minutes. Serve! 

Serving size:2 

* feel free to serve with jasmine rice! I will say though, it doesn't need it. Serve this in a bowl with a spoon and you'll be in foodie heaven. :)

* roasting veggies is easy: toss them with evoo, place on lined baking sheet and bake @425 for about 15 minutes 

* don't like my veggie choices? Pick your own 3! You could use green beans, broccoli, anything you think would be good! You could also just double up on shrimp and leave the mushrooms, zucchini, and cauliflower out!

Peach Sorbet

Hey friends! Long time! I recently started a little cleanse, some say it sounds like the whole 30. No processed foods, no alcohol, no processed sugars. (Meaning fruit is totally allowed!) Needing a sweet tooth fix, I decided to make my own 'sorbet'. While it may not be authentic, it's freaking delicious and the perfect summer treat. Did I mention it takes less than 5 minutes to make? 

Ingredients:

• 1-2 fresh peaches, peeled and diced

• 2-3 Tbs unsweetened coconut milk(not the canned, but the kind found with other milks)

Ahead of time, toss peaches in freezer. They actually freeze in a couple of hours so the wait isn't long. 

Place peaches and milk in food professor and process until smooth. How easy is that? 

Enjoy! 

• makes one serving 

While I haven't tried it, I highly recommend trying other fresh local produce too. I did try frozen store bought berries and it WASN'T good. Fresh is the way to go. 

Pumpkin Pound Cake

So as many of you know, I am able to participate in a weekly, "family dinner" with my sister and her fam. I am beyond blessed to have not only a kick ass family, but have some of them right around the corner.
Anyways....each week we tag team dinner/dessert and this week I am in charge of dessert. I was feeling less than inspired and quite defeated by prices of baking supplies. Knowing I had all ingredients for my great grandmothers divine sour cream pound cake, I took the easy road. This morning I woke up with the question, "can I make her infamous pound cake into a pumpkin pound cake?". If you google a recipe for such, you get a laundry list of ingredients, some of which you don't tend to keep around. After brainstorming with my momma, we decided this was a doable experiment.
Into the kitchen I went!
Well, hot damn, this pumpkin pound cake is perfection. I intend to top it with cinnamon whipped cream.


Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 cup canned pumpkin(NOT pumpkin pie)
2 sticks softened butter
4 eggs
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 Tbs cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. In large mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar with hand or standing mixer. Add eggs one at a time. In 2 separate bowls, combine sour cream and pumpkin in one, and flour/baking soda/cinnamon in another.
Alternating flour/soda and sour cream/pumpkin mixture mix into butter mixture, starting and ending with flour.  Stir in vanilla.
Spray and flour bundt pan. Pour in pound cake batter evenly.
Bake @350 for 1 hr 15 minutes. Check your cake @1hr by testing with tooth pick. Every oven will of course vary.
Allow to cool for 30 minutes before removing for pan.
Recommend serving with fresh whipped cream!
Picture to come tonight....after we chow down. :)

Sugar Free Pumpkin Spice Creamer

It's that time of year! The time we pull out our hoodies and cozy up with a warm cup of coffee. Oh right and also the time of year where you see pumpkin spice EVERYTHING! That being said, I too love a little spice in my life, but I don't enjoy all the added sugars both natural and substitutes. I created my own pumpkin spice creamer, and while it isn't Starbucks, it certainly gives your coffee that spicy hint of fall.


Ingredients:

1 pint coconut creamer
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice


In food processor or blender combine creamer, puree, and spice. Return creamer back to it's original container.
Add to your morning cup of joe and enjoy!


Tips:

- make your own pumpkin pie spice! (as seen in my pic, you probably have all those spices lying around anyways)
- the added beauty of sugar free coconut creamer is that it isn't dairy, therefore it can fit into a dairy free diet and also has a longer shelf life

Kick Ass Stir Fry

Ya'll,  I hate to brag, but I have perfected the stir fry. You're welcome. It's SO easy you can make it on a week night in 30 minutes! Be sure to read all of this as I will share my BEST tip yet!


Ingredients:

1 skirt steak OR 1 chicken breast, thinly sliced
1 bag OR 1 head of broccoli, chopped
1/4 cup soy sauce, plus 3-4 Tbs
3 Tbs corn starch
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 Tbs honey
1/2 Tsp red pepper flake(or more depending on how much heat you want)
1 Tbs freshly grated ginger
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup rice, cooked according to package directions

Along with 3-4 Tbs soy sauce, and 1 Tbs corn starch place meat in ziploc bag and toss to coat.
Then go ahead and get rice on and cooking, rice usually takes 30 minutes. In a bowl combine remaining soy sauce, corn starch, stock, honey, ginger, garlic, red pepper, and honey. Set aside.
Preheat large skillet to medium heat, add 2-3 Tbs olive oil and add meat. As I have said before, get good color on your meat. Allow to cook 4-5 minutes and remove from pan.
In same pan, add enough water to cover bottom of pan. Add broccoli and cover. Allow to cook only 2-3 minutes, enough for broccoli to steam.
Remove cover and add your "sauce" along with cooked meat.
Continue to cook until sauce thickens.
Serve on top of rice. Makes 2 dinner servings with leftovers.



Tip:
- YAY you kept reading! This is the best tip ever. Don't thaw your meat! When you are ready to cook, pull your meat straight out of the freezer and slice it frozen. Never has slicing meat been easier AND you can get super thin slices which is what makes stir fry so DAMN good. YOU ARE WELCOME. I can guarantee your mind is blown. Don't worry, this was life changing for me too. :)

Super Easy Chili

Finally made my way to Atlanta to see Steph's new place! We had a blast and finished up our weekend where we belong together.....in the kitchen. It was a crisp fall day and we decided to make chili. Not having a recipe on hand, we concocted our own and I gotta say it was dammmmn good! I highly recommend you give it a shot.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef(could totally use chicken, turkey, etc)
1 large onion, diced
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs cumin
1 Tbs chili powder
2 cans chili beans
1 can light kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 can rotel tomatoes, your choice of type

Heat dutch oven OR large pot to medium heat. Add ground beef and cook until caramelized/good brown color. Pour off most grease from beef, return to heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is transparent. Add spices. Cook another 2-3 minutes.
Pour in remaining ingredients. (beans and tomatoes) Bring to boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and allow to cook for 1 hr. (or more if you wish!)

Serve with cheese, sour cream, and chips!
Sorry no pic. Steph and I were way to excited to eat. But you all know what chili looks like. :)

Tips:

- Feel free to make this in the crock pot. If you do, be sure to still cook your meat ahead of time then add to pot.
-There is FLAVOR in the brown. Be sure to get color on your ground beef. Nobody likes grey meat!
- Bean choice is up to you! You can use regular kidney beans, pinto, black, possibilites are endless. I will say the chili beans add great flavor. (they are simply seasoned pintos)
- I recommend you don't cheat with the garlic. There really is no replacement for the fresh stuff!

Summer Pasta Salad

Tired of overpaying for take out each day for lunch? This is a super quick and easy pasta salad to leave you feeling satisfied both in your wallet and from hunger! Make it on a Sunday evening and you are set for lunch the entire week. 

1 ½ cup orzo(cooked according to package)

Handful of grape tomatoes

2-3 small cucumbers peeled and diced, or one large

1 can chick peas, rinsed

½ small onion diced

1 container tomato/basil feta (Publix has their own)

Handful of torn fresh basil(optional)

Garlic Expressions dressing

Ken’s Greek salad dressing

Cook/drain orzo and allow to cool. (don’t rinse it!!)

In bowl combine first 6  ingredients.

Add a few Tbs of both dressings. Toss to coat.

Tips:

·         - I like to let the salad sit overnight and then add more dressing if necessary. (remember you can always add more, but you can’t take away!)

·      -    I keep the tomatoes whole and slice them the day I eat. Otherwise the wetness of the tomatoes make the salad icky.

·         - If you measure a cup serving each day, this makes enough for 5 lunches. Toss in a side of fresh fruit and you’ve got lunch for the week. You’re welcome.

·        -  It’s summer! Get your produce at a local farmers market or produce stand. 

-    - Switch up your protein. Serve with grilled chick, salmon, steak, the possibilities are endless! 

                                                      Picture coming soon...............

Protein Breakfast Smoothie

Morning fellow foodies! Looking for a quick stick to your ribs breakfast? Protein. Smoothies are just the trick. I guarantee this breakfast won't leave you reaching for a mid morning snack. :)

Ingredients:

1 frozen banana

1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder

1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Tip:

-Peel your bananas and place in freezer safe ziploc bag. Keep bananas frozen and then you won't even need to add ice to the smoothie! 

-To cut sugar use both unsweetened coconut milk and whey protein. Whey protein has over half the sugar content of regular protein powder!

Carbonara

This post is per the request of my best friend. While this is probably the most requested recipe from friends, it for some reason hadn't made it to my blog. SO here ya go!

Ingredients:

4-6 slices bacon, diced
1 cup grated parmesan(NOT the shelf stuff, we are talking fresh parm)
1/2 box thin spaghetti
1 egg
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
salt


Fill medium pot half way with water and bring to a boil. Add a heavy pinch of salt and pasta. Reduce heat to medium and cook according to package directions. (DON'T OVERCOOK, PEOPLE!)

In separate bowl whisk egg with parmesan cheese. Set aside.

Preheat large skillet to medium heat. Cook bacon until crispy, add garlic while bacon is cooking. Remove bacon from pan.

• Okay here is the semi tricky part, but it will save your egg from scrambled. Ain't nobody want scrambled carbonara! 
• Slowly add some of your hot pasta water to your egg/parm mixture. You are tempering your egg, or bringing it to the pasta's temperature so that you won't get scrambled eggs. 

Directly from pasta pot(DO NOT DRAIN YOUR PASTA) move cooked pasta to skillet with bacon grease. Toss together to coat. Remove pan from heat. Add tempered egg mixture to pasta and toss to combine. (I highly recommend tongs for carbonara. Makes your life oh so much easier. If you don't have tongs. Shame on you. Haha)
Serve carbonara topped with crispy bacon and extra parm.

(not my carbonara....)

Tips:

• use tongs
• temper your egg
• toss in a green veggie to add some color. I recommend peas or spinach
• salt your pasta water. This will add much needed flavor to the entire dish
• Tend to cook with bacon? Keep it in the freezer. When it is time to cook, cut bacon vertically while frozen and toss into heated pan. Makes for easy dicing! 

Reese's Peanut Butter Pie

Oh yes, you read that right, I created a pie today using Reese's peanut butter cups AND peanut butter cookies. You. Are. Welcome. 

This pie uses the same basic steps of my Snickers pie, just subbing different cookies and candy. Oh the possibilities with this base recipe are endless. 

Ingredients: 

1 bag mini Reese's cups

1 box peanut butter sandwich cookies

1/4 cup butter, melted

3 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbs peanut butter

1 pie plate

Place cookies in food processor and blend until fine. Combine cookies with melted butter and press firmly in pie plate. Put pie crust in refrigerator while you prep the rest of the pie.

In a microwave safe bowl, place unwrapped Reese's cups and peanut butter. Microwave on high at 40 second increments until melted. (I actually didn't completely melt the cups, I like the idea of little bites of Reese's cups in the pie)

In separate bowl combine 2 cups heavy cream and 1/4 cup sugar. Mix on medium speed until semi firm peaks. (do NOT over mix your cream) 

Slowly fold melted chocolate mixture into heavy cream. Pour mixture into pie crust and return to fridge. Refrigerate 3-4 hours until serving. 

Serve topped with more whipped cream and maybe a little chocolate syrup? If you want to guild the lily, top with chopped Reese's cups too! :) 

Finish product picture to come tonight after I serve at family dinner.....are you salivating yet???

Roasted Cauliflower Soup

While this next recipe doesn't look the most appealing, it it extremely tasty and actually quite healthy. Also vegetarian friendly!

Ingredients:

2 cups cauliflower, cut into similar pieces
4 red potatoes, cut into similar pieces
1 small onion, diced
2 slices thick cut bacon, diced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp curry
3 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 cup water
1 cup chicken stock
salt/pepper to taste
crumbled goat cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In bowl, combine cauliflower, potatoes, cumin, curry and olive oil. Place on foil lined baking sheet and bake 15-20 minutes or until potatoes and cauliflower are golden brown.
Preheat dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot to medium heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy. Remove bacon, leave bacon grease. To the same pot, add onion and cook until translucent. Add cauliflower and potatoes then coat with water and chicken stock. Bring to a boil then reduce to medium low heat for 10-15 minutes.
Puree soup by either using an immersion blender or placing soup mix
ture in blender and blending.
Add corn and cook another 5-10 minutes or until heated through.
Serve soup topped with dollop of goat cheese and cooked bacon.

Serves 2.

Almond Crusted Tilapia with Garlic Wine Sauce

Sorry I have been incognito for a while! I have made a bad habit of creating meals and forgetting to either write them down or blog. So often I forget about fish for weeknight dinners and quickly realize what a great go-to meal it can be. I served this dish with a baked sweet potato and sautéed green beans.

Note: this meal serves ONE!

Ingredients: 

1 tilapia filet (Publix sells them frozen and individually packaged)

1/4 cup almond meal/flour

1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs

1 egg

2 cloves garlic, diced

1/4 cup white wine

2 Tbs butter

salt/pepper to taste

olive oil

In small dish combine almond flour and bread crumbs. In another dish whisk egg. Salt fish on both sides. 

Preheat small sauce pan to medium heat and add garlic and wine. Cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add butter, salt and pepper. Reduce to low heat and allow to simmer while you prepare fish. 

Preheat small skillet to medium heat and add 2 Tbs olive oil. Coat fish on both sides in flour, egg, then flour again. Sear in skillet about 2-3 minutes on both sides. (fish doesn't take long to cook at all!)

Serve tilapia with delicious wine sauce. :) 

Serving Size: 1

Em's Mini Meals(and sweet treats!): Em's Gumbo

Em's Mini Meals(and sweet treats!): Em's Gumbo: For those of you that know me, gumbo has become one of my all time favorite comfort foods. It is by far the perfect meal for a cold winter ...

Em's Gumbo

For those of you that know me, gumbo has become one of my all time favorite comfort foods. It is by far the perfect meal for a cold winter Sunday. 

 I actually make this much at one time and then freeze individual portions for later. That way I can get a yummy dinner, lunch and then 2 surprise meals at a later time! 

As always, I got so excited about eating that I forgot to take a finished product pic. Much just take a deep breath and imagine the smell of New Orleans cuisine filling your kitchen. Ahhhhhhh

Ingredients:

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs- cut into similar bite sized pieces

1 lb andouille sausage(I buy Aidells Cajun Andouille)cut into similar bite sized pieces

1 smoked ham hock(I highly recommend Whole Foods-super affordable, but Publix carries them too)

1 onion, diced

2-3 cloves garlic, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

¼ cup flour

¼ cup olive oil plus 2-3 Tbs

32 oz box chicken stock
salt/pepper to taste

1 cup frozen okra

Jasmine rice- cooked according to package directions

Pre heat 2-3 Tbs olive oil in dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot to medium heat. Add all meat to pan, including ham hock. Allow to sear for 10-12 minutes on all sides.

Remove meat and set aside. Reduce heat to medium low and in same pot add ¼ cup olive oil and flour.  Whisk flour and oil constantly for 10-20 minutes or until a dark golden brown color. Once the proper color, add onion and pepper to pot. Cook veggies for 5-10 minutes or until tender. Add meat back to pan(including ham hock). Cover with entire box of chicken stock and stir to combine.

Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce back to medium low heat. Cook for 3-4 hours.

At about 3.5 hours, remove ham hock from pot. Pull all meat from hock and place back in the gumbo. Add okra. Cook another 30 minutes or until okra is cooked through.

Serve over jasmine rice!

Serves 4 people.

Em's Mini Meals(and sweet treats!): Chicken Pot Pie for 2

Em's Mini Meals(and sweet treats!): Chicken Pot Pie for 2: Happy Holidays fellow foodies!  I have finally taught myself how to make pot pie for 2. Or pot pie for one with leftovers for lunch or anot...

Chicken Pot Pie for 2

Happy Holidays fellow foodies! 
I have finally taught myself how to make pot pie for 2. Or pot pie for one with leftovers for lunch or another dinner! 
This is a hands on meal and not one for the early learner. 
I can tell you that I made this start to finish on a week night and ate by 7pm. Not bad! 


Ingredients: 

1 pre made pie crust(I recommend Pillsbury and not store brand, whoa what a difference)
1/4 cup frozen butter beans
1/4 cup frozen corn
1/4 cup frozen green beans
1/4 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup fresh diced carrots
1 chicken breast
1/4 cup white wine
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs olive oil
3 Tbs flour
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 small onion, diced
1 1/2 cups milk OR chicken stock
salt/pepper to taste
1 small casserole dish(mine is 6x9)

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 350. 
Place chicken in small pot and cover with water. Bring to boil, reduce to medium. Cook chicken until fork tender. 
While chicken cooks, proceed with rest of recipe. :)
Spray casserole dish with cooking spray. Roll out pie crust as thinly as possible and cut in half. Place one half in bottom of casserole dish. 
Combine peas, beans, carrots, and corn in microwave safe bowl. Add about 1/4 cup water. Microwave for 5 minutes. Put aside. 
Preheat medium saucepan to medium heat. Add olive oil and onion. Cook onion for about 1-2 minutes then add garlic. Continue to cook for about 2-3 more minutes. Add white wine and cook another 2-3 minutes or until wine reduces. 
Add butter to pan and once melted add flour. Cook for about 3-4 minutes. Its important to allow flour to cook to get rid of flour taste, otherwise your sauce will taste like flour. Add stock or milk. You may want to add more stock or milk depending on how thick you want your sauce. Salt and pepper to taste. 
Once chicken is cooked, take out of water and dice/shred into bite sized pieces. 
Combine veggies, sauce and chicken in bowl. Taste again for seasoning. Add salt/pepper if needed. Pour into pie crust lined dish and top with other half of crust. 
Seal edges together and cut about 4 small slits into top of crust. 
Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until top is golden brown and bubbly. 

Tips! 

• store your frozen veggies in freezer ziploc bags for longer life span
• when you bring your chicken home from the grocery, store in individual freezer bags 
• stock up of frozen veggies when on sale, these guys make great go-tos for casseroles or any meal!
• Save your time dicing garlic and just smash the clove, pick the cloves out of the sauce before mixing with other ingredients. 
• freeze your butter for longer shelf life, still able to cut off whatever you need when cooking
• buy Publix snack size bags of carrots. these make GREAT servings for any meal, AND they keep longer in their individual packages. I used one full bag for this recipe

Lentil, Kale and Sweet Potato Stew

Tis the season to make soul warming food! As the cold air rushes in, I am inspired to make soups and stews to warm up! This stew would serve 4 hearty portions or 2 with leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day!


There are many benefits to this stew recipe!

1. It is loaded with super foods like kale and sweet potatoes. 
2. It is healthier than most as it calls for water and not sodium filled stocks. 
3. It freezes beautifully! 
4. I like to freeze in individual sized portions so that I have a quick go to for lunch or dinner!

Ingredients: 

· Olive Oil
· salt and pepper to taste
· 1 red onion (finely chopped)
· 7 carrots (thinly sliced coins)
· 3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
· 1 cup lentils (rinsed)
· 2 teaspoons cumin
· 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
· 6 cups water
· 1 sweet potato (peeled and finely diced; about 1 cup)
· 1 bunch kale ( rinsed and finely shredded)

 Directions: 

In a heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat, add about 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Once the oil is shimmering and hot, add the onion. Season with salt and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, or until soft.


Add the carrots and cook for 3 more minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 more minute. Add in the rinsed lentils and cook for about 2 minutes, toasting in the oil. Add the cumin and chili flakes, and continue to toast for another minute, or until fragrant. Add the water and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce to a very low heat and gently simmer for about 10 minutes.


Then, carefully stir in the sweet potato and kale. Cook for another 10-15 minutes, or until the lentils are cooked through but not mushy. ( you may need to add a little more water, add until you get the consistency you wish for!)
Once cooked, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.


Tips for the working girl(or guy!) 

1. Wash and shred your kale the day/night before 
2. Peel and dice sweet potato. Store in fridge in a bowl of water. 
3. Rinse your lentils. 
4. Dice your carrots, garlic and onion the day/night before. 
5. With the previous tips, you can make this soup in 30 minutes on a work night!
6. Great News! You can now buy frozen kale! It comes ready to go straight from the freezer! Huge time saver AND allows you to have kale on hand. 

Butternut Squash and Goat Cheese Risotto

So I am going to keep this quite simple.

First, risotto is made with Arborio rice. If you shop at Publix, they carry this rice and it comes in a red/green/clear bag.

Follow the risotto instructions on the bag. Easy peasy.

(most risottos tell you to use “warm” chicken stock. I never do that. I just use room temp stock from a box. I have listed the ingredients below for both risotto and add ins, look at bag of rice for quantities. :)

Ingredients: 

1 bag arborio rice

1 onion

fresh garlic

white wine of your choice

32 oz box, chicken stock

unsalted butter

fresh Parmesan cheese

olive oil

1 butternut squash

1 4oz log goat cheese

1 handful fresh basil leaves, confettied

First, risotto is made with Arborio rice. If you shop at Publix, they carry this rice and it comes in a red/green/clear bag.

Follow the risotto instructions on the bag. Easy peasy.

(most risottos tell you to use “warm” chicken stock. I never do that. I just use room temp stock from a box. I have listed the ingredients below for both risotto and add ins, look at bag of rice for quantities. :)

If you want to make it butternut squash/goat cheese/basil……before starting risotto, start cooking squash. Squash and risotto take same time to cook. You can EVEN roast your squash ahead of time and let it chill in fridge.

·         Cut butternut squash in half lengthwise, remove seeds and sprinkle with olive oil, salt/pepper.

·         Place on foil lined cookie sheet and bake @400 for about 30 minutes or until fork tender.

·         Allow it to cool, then cut out in small bite sizes.

·         (a lot of people like to peel/dice their squash before baking, but I find it to be quite difficult. Totally your call)

·         Once risotto is finished cooking, stir in squash and one small log of goat cheese broken into small pieces.

·         Top with fresh basil when serving! J

Snickers Pie

This recipe is dedicated to my a-mazing brother in law. Snickers pie is a personal favorite of his and he orders it every time he goes to a local restaurant on Tybee. I decided for this weeks family dinner to make my own version and well, I must say, I nailed it. Not only is this recipe divine, but it was super simple to make. 
The presentation was equally spectacular, but I forgot to take a picture!


Ingredients: 

1 package Oreo cookies(use about 1.5 rows)
1 stick unsalted butter: melted
1 bag Snickers minis
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
chocolate syrup (optional)

Directions: 

In a food processor, add the Oreo cookies and blend until the texture of cookie crumbs. Add the melted butter and blend until well combine.

Place the ground crumb mixture into a 9- or 10-inch deep-dish pie pan and press onto the bottom and up the sides evenly. 

Refrigerate the crust for at least 30 minutes before you add the filling. (I just stuck mine in the fridge while I worked on the filling)

Place Snickers and peanut butter in microwavable bowl. Microwave on high for 30 second increments until melted/combined. (takes about 2 minutes) Allow mixture to cool. 

Combine 2 cups of heavy cream and 1/4 cup granulated sugar in separate bowl. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Don't over whip! 

Slowly fold Snickers mixture into whipped cream. Pour into prepared pie dish. Refrigerate 3-4 hours. 

Before serving, combine other cup of heavy cream and 1/4 cup sugar in bowl. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Top pie with whipped cream. 

For fun, I chopped up some Goobers candy and sprinkled over top the whipped cream. 

As I plated each piece, I drizzled chocolate syrup over top. 

This pie turns out to look like a restaurant quality dessert. Next time I promise to take a picture! 

(this isn't my pie....but gives you an idea! Mine was topped with whipped cream!)