Loose Beef

1 pound 80/20 (I get angus) ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
1 large green bell pepper, diced

Saute ground beef over medium high heat until browned.  Add onion and stir till starting to brown.  Add pepper and saute for another few minutes.  Salt to taste

I use this as a base for my spaghetti, sloppy joes, and chili.  It is very versatile.

While I cook the beef I am boiling water and then cooking spaghetti.  I am in love with the Kroger Private Selection Arrabiatta Spicy Marinara Sauce.  And of course I top my bowl with a heaping of shredded Asiago.

Greek Orzo Pasta Salad

1-16 oz. package of dry orzo pasta, cooked according to directions

1 or 2 cucumbers, quartered and sliced
1 medium red onion, quartered and sliced
1-32 oz. can of diced tomatoes, drained and squeezed
2-6 oz. containers of crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup of chopped fresh parsley
1 small jar of pitted Kalamata Olives, drained and quartered
1/4 cup of Olive oil
Juice from 1 Lemon
1/4 cup of Red Wine Vinegar
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, pressed
Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients.  Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

Banana Spice Bread or Cupcakes

1/2 cup Butter, melted
150 grams Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 Eggs
3 medium Bananas mashed
150 ml of Buttermilk
90 grams flour, Buckwheat flour for Gluten free
90 grams Oat flour
1/2 teaspoon each of Baking Powder, Baking Soda, and Salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cloves
*100 grams of dried Cranberries
*100 grams of chopped Walnuts or Pumpkin Seeds
 

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt the butter in the microwave (or use room temperature butter), mix in sugar, salt, spices, and vanilla. Add Eggs and beat till thoroughly mixed. Blitz Bananas in a food processor with the buttermilk, stir into the mixture. Stir together flour, baking powder and baking soda before mixing into wet ingredients. Mix in the nuts and cranberries, if using. Secret tip:  I use an ice cream scoop to measure out batter for muffin cups, it is 1/4 cup of batter. Makes 16.

Muffins bake for 25 minutes, an 8 x 8 cake or loaf pan will take at least 40.  Use the toothpick test if you are unsure. Let the Muffins rest in the pan for 15 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool. Refrigerate leftovers to prevent spoiling.

*Alternative recipe: Leave out dried fruit and/or nuts.  It will not make as many without the nuts and fruit.

Perfect Roast Pork Loin with Spice Rub

Rub the entire Pork loin or Chicken with a high-heat Vegetable Oil, then rub the rub onto the loin or chicken (remember to get the cavity).  The amount below is good for a 3-5 lb pork roast.  It's not too spicy for a 6, 5, and 2 year old.

Here's the Rub:

1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Pork Loin:  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Cook for 6 minutes a pound, then turn off the heat and let cook for another 20-40 minutes.  Use a meat thermometer to remove as early as 145 internal temperature, but I've accidentally let it get to 185 and not had a problem.

The real secret to a juicy loin is to let it rest.  And only cut what you are going to eat!  Wait to cut it until it's cool and you will have juicy leftovers.  I also had better results using a pyrex glass baking dish vs. a metal cookie sheet.

This last roast was actually two pieces which I cooked side-by-side, and still went for 18 minutes at 500 for 3 lbs even though each piece was probably a pound and a half each.  Then it got to 185 after only 20 minutes with the heat off.  We weren't eating it right away, so I didn't cut it till it was cool.  The leftovers were juicy even after a couple of re-heats.

Goody-Goody, Peanut Butter, Honey, and Banana Mash

Still my favorite way to eat Bananas, this is something my Dad invented when my sister and I were little.  He called it Goody-Goody, and it sure is.  It is a great way to get my kiddo to eat her leftover Bananas, and get some protein.  I'm sure you could use any kind of nut butter, or soy nut butter if you don't do Peanuts.  It's such a treat I consider it a dessert alternative.

1 Banana, mashed
1 Tablespoon Peanut Butter
1 teaspoon Honey

Mix and eat.  Enjoy!

Crustless Quiche

My easy answer to "quiche cups."  I like to make one a week and eat off the leftovers for a quick breakfast.

8 Eggs, cracked and beaten
1 cup Buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon salt

16 oz. of any cheese, shredded, crumbled, etc.

1 cup of browned, crumbled, or cubed meat (optional, but meat makes it more filling)

2-4 cups of any vegetables

For greens, saute, cool, then squeeze to remove any excess liquid.  With raw veggies, I use my food processor to cut or shred finely, then I squeeze the liquid.  For eggplant, summer squash, zucchini, or mushrooms, I roast in the oven till dry.  I will often make ratatouille, then use the leftovers for a quiche.

Preheat oven to 375.  Combine ingredients, pour into a greased glass pie dish.  Set in middle of oven, reduce heat to 350, and bake for 40-50 minutes.  Let cool/rest for 15 before cutting and serving.

Roasted Green Beans

I hate "babysitting" food.  If I can get away with one pot, or one oven dish I will.  Hence why I love this recipe.

2 lbs fresh green beans
2 large cloves of garlic
2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

Snap the ends off of your beans.  Rinse.  Pat dry, or spin in a salad spinner.  Toss with the Olive oil and garlic.  Shake out onto a cookie sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes, stir, shake, bake for 5 more.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Done.

Buttermilk Dressing for Slaw

I've been making coleslaw nearly every week since our CSA, Community Supported Agriculture, began.  It's the greatest thing to take to a summer cookout.

Here's what I've been doing:

1 small head of cabbage, finely sliced, 

1 small onion, finely sliced

4-5 medium to large carrots, shredded1/4 cup of fresh parsley, chopped (I do hand chop)

Sometimes I put in a few shredded radishes

I yoinked this dressing recipe from the Smitten Kitchen Broccoli slaw recipe:

1/3 cup Mayo1/3 cup Buttermilk2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar1 Tablespoon Sugar1 teaspoon SaltBlack pepper to taste

Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes

2 Tbs. butter  melted
2 Tbs. of vegetable oil
1/3 cup of Buttermilk
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup of flour
3 Tbs. of Cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup of sugar

1 cup grated zucchini (I use my food processor), squeezed of excess liquid
1/3 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Melt butter in a microwave safe dish, mix in the rest of the wet ingredients.  Dump all the dry ingredients into the bowl and lightly mix dry ingredients before stirring in with wet.  Lastly add the zucchini and chocolate chips.  Drop into greased or lined muffin tins by the 1/4 cup, makes 8.   Bake for 30 minutes.  Let cool in the pan for another 10 before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.  Store in an air-tight container.  They are better the second day, and great as-is, no frosting necessary.

1 Muffin has 205 calories.

Smokey Black Bean Chili

4 cups Cooked Black Beans, drained
1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
2 T. Bacon Fat
1 large yellow onion
Green and Yellow Bell Peppers
1 T. cumin
1 T. oregano
2 chipotles in adobo sauce, blitzed
1 teaspoon Salt

Saute onions in bacon fat until translucent or browned, add tomatoes and remaining ingredients.  As it was I had to add a little water because my diced tomatoes weren't very juicy.  Bring to a simmer.  Let simmer about 30 minutes.  I thought the flavor was good.  It didn't taste too much like chipotles, it had a good heat, but it seemed thin.  I think this would be best served with sour cream to round out the flavor.

Fritata: Spinach, Red Onion, Feta

1-2 Tablespoons Butter

1 Red Onion, quartered and sliced
10 oz. package Frozen Spinach, thawed
8 Eggs
4 Tablespoons water
8 oz. Feta, crumbled
3 Tomatoes, sliced

Preheat oven to 350.  In a oven-safe skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat and gently cook the onions till they start to brown.  Turn off the heat, add in the spinach and stir.  In a bowl beat the eggs and water, crumble in the feta and mix.  Pour over the onions and spinach, gently lift the vegetables so the egg mixture pours under and around.  Layer the sliced tomatoes on top.  Pop the skillet into the oven until the top is set, about 35 minutes.  Let cool for 15, slice and enjoy.

This recipe was a little spinach heavy which sort of overwhelmed the feta.

Green Onion Schmear

I absolutely can't believe I left this recipe off my blog for so long.  I make this a lot.  I take it to parties.  I serve it at parties.  You won't believe how much you can eat in one sitting until you see it gone.

1 package of cream cheese, 8 oz.
2-3 green onions, washed and chopped, greens and whites
1/2 teaspoon salt
a few dashes of cayenne pepper
1/2 cup whole milk plain yogurt

Soften the cream cheese in the microwave, in a microwave safe dish (not plastic).  With an electric mixer, or in a food processer, mix in all ingredients till smooth.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but overnight preferably.  Serve with crudites, bagels or hash brown patties and lox, pretzels, or anything you think would be good.

Omelet: The Ms. Dash

So easy, I created this when I was following South Beach (back when you could eat tomatoes on phase 1), and had limited breakfast resources.  It was also summer and I was getting free tomatoes.

2 eggs
1 Tablespoon water
Butter
Ms. Dash, or any other seasoning blend, just a few shakes
Salt to taste if your seasoning blend does not have salt
Mozerella, shredded (I do it myself to avoid additives)
1 Tomato, halved and sliced, lightly salted

Heat your omelet pan to medium-high heat.  Rub the stick of butter across the pan.  Beat the eggs and water and pour evenly into pan.  Sprinkle the Ms. Dash, wait for it to set up a bit (use a lid if you need to), sprinkle the mozzerella.  Wait for it to set up completely, fold, and serve with the cut up tomato.

Curried Lentils

Absolutely easy recipe, and low in calories.  Serve it with brown rice, or eat it on it's own.  Add more of the vegetables you like:  Carrots, potatoes, cauliflower, swiss chard.  Use Chic peas instead of lentils, they just need to cook longer.   Smother the whole thing in cucumber yogurt dressing.

1 cup dried, sorted and rinsed, lentils
1/2 large onion, diced
4 large ribs of Celery, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons of fat (I would use butter, or chicken fat)
1 Tablespoon curry powder (cumin, coriander, turmeric)
Dash of Cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper
2 cups of stock, chicken or vegetable ***not tomato juice or based

Saute the onion in the fat for a couple of minutes over medium high heat, add the celery.  One minute, or less, before adding the stock, stir in the spices and garlic.  Bring the stock to a boil and add the lentils.  Stir, reduce heat to a simmer, and cover with the lid cocked.  Simmer for 30-40 minutes.

***Why not to use anything tomato when cooking lentils or legumes?  I'm not sure the science of it, but it will keep the legumes from absorbing liquid.

Red Cabbage and Blue Cheese Coleslaw

This really is as easy as it sounds.

2 lb head of red cabbage, outer leaves removed and rinsed well
1 cup good (like Marzetti's) Blue Cheese Dressing

Cut the head of cabbage lengthwise through the core.  Cut each half in two.  Remove the core.  Cut the Cabbage short ways into small, thin strips.

Toss with the dressing, cover, and refrigerate.  Let sit for at least four hours before serving.

UPDATE:  This recipe works best if you shred the cabbage.  Otherwise you'll need to add a bit of sugar to help break it down.  And personally I wanted it saltier.

Savory Zucchini Muffins

In an effort to try something new, and use up the Zucchini, I made these muffins.  These couldn't be any easier to make.  The Hubs loved them and when we have more Zucchini, I'll make more.

1 cup shredded Zucchini
1 egg
1/3 cup of cooking oil
6 Tablespoons (slightly more than 1/3 cup) Buttermilk
1 Tablespoon finely chopped Basil or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cups flour

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese.

Preheat oven to 425.  Mix all liquid ingredients together.  Blend dry ingredients and mix into wet, as little as possible.  Oil a muffin tin-fills 8 muffin cups.  Top each muffin with about 1 teaspoon of the Parmesan.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Let cool in the tin for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack or serve piping hot.

1 Muffin has 210 calories.

Zucchini Egg Fritters

Earlier today I declared I wanted something delicious for dinner.  But I had no idea what to do.  Deciding to use the Zucchini I had in the fridge I googled 'great zucchini recipes.' and I found this one on a website called Big Girls, Small Kitchen.  It was terrific.  I immediately mixed up another batch to fry after trying the first cake.  Nearly two years later, I altered the recipe, see below.
 

1 cup grated Zucchini (1 small)
1/4 cup minced Onion
1 Tablespoon Lemon juice
1 Egg
1 teaspoon Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 cup flour (gluten free or all purpose)

For Frying:
1 Tablespoon cooking oil
1 Tablespoon Butter


I don't fool around with a hand grater for vegetables, I use the shredding blade on my food processor.  Mix first 7 ingredients.  Heat the oil and butter in a Cast Iron skillet (if you have it, otherwise use your egg pan) to medium high heat.  Drop by the heaping Tablespoon full without crowding the pan.  Cook for about 1 minute each side, just long enough to puff and brown.  Makes about eight 3 inch cakes.  Serves 1-2.

Summer Garden Salad

One of the easiest things to prepare and keep in the fridge for quick healthy eating, bursting with garden freshness.

Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Green Bell Peppers
Red Onion
Red Wine Vinegar
Sugar
Salt
Black Pepper

Slice veggies and sprinkle last four ingredients to taste.  This will keep in the fridge for days.

Sarah's quick Pasta al Burro

1 lb of pasta, any variety, cooked according to package
4 (or more) Tbs. Butter
2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Garlic, about 1 Tbs. chopped, more or less as you like it
1-2 Tbs. dried Basil
Parmesan cheese
Salt

After you dump the pasta in the colander, set the pot back on the heat, but turn the heat off if it's not a gas stove. Use the residual heat to melt the butter and heat the oil, saute the garlic and then the basil. Dump the pasta back in and stir till saturated. Plate and grate as much Parmesan cheese as you like.

So incredibly easy and delicious. I invented this dish years ago one night after coming home from my neighborhood pub. My friends and I needed something to eat. It quickly became a late night staple. It makes a lot of food, fast, and vegetarian. But you could easily serve it with Shrimp.

My Favorite Tomato Sandwich

Few things make me miss gluten but this sandwich is one of them. It just isn't the same without the bread. When I could eat gluten, I'd eat this on crackers, but mostly in whole wheat pita pockets while hanging over the kitchen sink. Anyone who loves Tomato sandwiches knows what I'm talking about.

2 Whole Wheat Pita Pockets
2 medium-big juicy, flavorful, vine ripened, from your own backyard, summer tomatoes
Mayonnaise, not light-and nothing with junk, I'm talking about 5 ingredients or less
Ground Cayenne Pepper (You can make your own! Harvest your Cayennes when red and
string them by the stem, hang dry. When dry, blitz them to a
powder in a food processor or coffee grinder.)
Fresh Parsley, chopped, ideally also from your backyard
Salt

Start by toasting the pita. While hot, spread a dollop of Mayo inside the pocket and sprinkle liberally with Cayenne pepper. Add a small handful of chopped parsley. Slice the tomatoes and stuff as many as you can into the pita. Salt as you go.

I don't think you'll be able to eat more than two. And you really need to assemble and eat, over the sink. I can't really explain how this sandwich came into being but I'm sure it had something to do with my Hummus toppings. Long ago I began topping my Hummus with Olive oil, cayenne pepper, chopped parsley and Tomatoes (and sometimes cucumber), and eating with toasted whole wheat Pita. So, if you're not a Mayonnaise fan, try making Hummus sandwiches. See my previous recipe for Hummus. For me this sandwich is my favorite way to enjoy the summer crop of tomatoes. Also read my latest post, Midnight Salsa.