Swordfish with a roasted red pepper sauce

I just received about a dozen new cookbooks. I have been going thru them trying to find some new yummy recipes. This was the first one I tried.

Things you will need:

Swordfish fillet
Garlic
Red Pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar

I started off by roasting a whole thing of garlic in the oven. While that was roasting I took my red pepper and held it over the flames of my stove and then put it in the oven to finish roasting it as well. Once they were complete I put about 2 cloves of garlic into my food processor and chopped as well as seeded the red pepper and put it into the food processor. I added 1/4 cup of olive oil and 1tbsp of balsamic vinegar into the processor as well. I blended until I got a sauce like consistency.  I then took my fish and sauteed it in a pan until it was browned and cooked. After that just add the sauce over the fish and serve. Really easy, and doesn't take to long to prepare. Once again the original recipe called for a few things different, but this turned out great either way!

"Stuffed" French Toast

I got this recipe out of one of my healthy cookbooks. But it doesn't taste that way!

Things you will need:
Bread
2 Eggs
Vanilla
Cinnamon
Ricotta Cheese
Berries (which ever ones you would like)
Maple Syrup

I took a few pieces of whole wheat bread, and cut the crust off. In a bowl add one egg one egg white 1/2 tsp vanilla and some cinnamon. ( I usually don't measure just add as much as I think will taste good). Dip the bread in  this mixture. I then stuffed the bread into muffin pans to form a bowl like shape with the bread. Once that is completed I put the bread into the oven at 350 degrees.  I cook about 10min, or until the bread is toast like. While it is cooking I whip 1/4 cup ricotta cheese so it is smooth. When bread is finished I add cheese in the center and top with berries and maple syrup.

Chicken Parm Burgers

I originally got this recipe out of an issue of Cooking Light magazine. After making it the first time I decided to change a few things about this. Everyone in my family LOVES this recipe!

Things you will need:

• 2  ciabatta rolls
• 1 garlic clove, halved
• 1/2 pound ground chicken
• 1/3 cup marinara sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste 
• 1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divide

Cut the rolls in half and put them into a broiler. I kept watching, make sure they didn't get to browned. Once toasted I  rubbed the garlic clove over the bun.

I then combined all above ingredients, but cheese, and formed a hamburger patty. I put the two patties in a frying pan until browned on both sides.

 I then put the patties in the oven, at 375 degrees, to cook. About 10 min, or until fully cooked. Once the patties were cooked put them on the bun and add 1 tbsp of marinara and some mozz. cheese to each burger. If you are a fan of basil, the original recipe calls for a few leaves of basil on the burger. My family didn't like the basil, so we did with out and it was still good!

Easter lamb with blackberry sauce

I was told that I was cooking a leg of lamb for Easter this year. I've never cooked lamb before, so I started searching for a few recipes. I ended up combining a couple recipes to make my lamb.  I started by marinating the lamb.

Ingredients:

Garlic
Lemon
Olive Oil
Fresh Rosemary

I started by cutting slits into the lamb and adding garlic all around it. I ended up using a lot of garlic, somewhere around 15/20 pieces, but use less if you are not a fan of garlic. In a bowl combine about 2 tbsp of lemon zest, and then squeeze lemon juice into the bowl. After that I combined 2 tbsp of olive oil and I added fresh rosemary, also about 2 tbsp. I mixed those all up and rubbed the mixture into the lamb.

I let this marinate about 4 hours.  Once I was ready to cookI put it into the oven. I had other things cooking so it took a bit longer than expected. I had it in there at 350 for an 1hr 45min. 

While this was cooling a bit before it was cut up I made my blackberry sauce.

Ingredients:

Blackberries

Green onions

olive oil

pure maple syrup



In a frying pan I added 1/4 cup of green onions chopped, and about 2 tbsp olive oil. Once it started to heat up I added about a cup of blackberries and 2 tbsp of pure maple syrup. Keep stiring until the blackberries start to break up and it becomes more sauce like.

I left a few chunks of berries in there for texture. I dont really measure what I added, so these are estimates, add more or less of somethign depending on your taste.

Add mixture on top of lamb and serve!

(Sorry my flash was on so it washed out the picture)

Mama Ladwigs Sugar Cookies

My mother-in-law makes THE BEST cookies! So for Easter I decided to make some of them. 

here is the recipe: 

                                                                                                                      

2 eggs

1 c sugar

4 Tablespoons milk

1 tsp vanilla

3 c flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 c shortening (crisco)

cream the crisco, egg, milk and sugar together and add vanilla  in a different bowl add the flour, baking powder, soda and salt and mix together.  Now you are going to SLOWLY mix the dry mixture into the wet mixture. This will take some time, just slowly sift a bit of the dry mixture in and blend , a bit more and blend. Once you are finished mixing the dry mixture ( yes you use it all) put it into the fridge and chill ( i usually stir up the cookies and put in fridge a few days before i bake them).  roll out with a rolling pin.  flour enough to roll.    you can roll them out thin for thin cookies or not so thin so they are thick when you bake them.  then just use your cookie cutters. Bake at 350 and take them out once the bottoms get lightly browned and the tops start to get soem color, you still want them soft (unless you like cookies with more crisp).

Now this was just for the cookies here is the frosting

frosting:

about 1/2 to 3/4 of a 2 pound package of powdered sugar.

1 stick of blue bonnet margarine (softened)

tsp of vanilla

alittle bit at a time of whole milk to get your frosting at spreading consistancy

you can add food coloring if you want the frosting different colors.  put some frosting in separate dishes and add the color you want to each.

These are SOOOO Good! But there is no way to make them healthy friendly and taste just as good, so don't even try!

Stuffed chicken with spinach and couscous

Things needed:
4 chicken breasts
4oz goat cheese (or motz. cheese if you have ppl who dont like goat cheese)
1 tbsp mint
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp tarragon
1 red pepper
box of couscous
spinach


I started cutting a pocket into the chicken.  I combined all the spices ( I used fresh) and cheese. I made 1/2 with the goat cheese and 1/2 with motzerella cheese. I then stuffed the chicken with the mixture and put it into the oven at 350 until fully cooked thru.  While the chicken was cooking I sauteed the red pepper with some garlic and cooked the couscous I tossed the red pepper and garlic into it. I just cooked the spinach with some olive oil in a pan and everything was ready to serve..


I saw this recipe in Cooking Light magazine. It looked SO good in the magazine, but when I tried it, it was just OK. If I ever decide to make this again I will spice up the outside of the chicken more, so it is more flavorful.

Pineapple Porkchops

I have made this dish for years. This last time I made coconut rice instead of normal plain rice. It went really well with this meal!

Things you will need:
Pork chops
Canned Pineapple with juices
Rice
Coconut milk
Vinegar
Corn Starch
Shredded coconut

I just cook the pork chop in a pan. Once finished I set it aside. I add my pineapple, more than one can if making a lot. I add a bit of vinegar, about a tsp and spices I may feel like adding at that time. I wait for it to start to simmer. In a seperate cup I add a spoonful of corn starch and an equal amount of water. I mix that up and add it to the pineapple mixture. Once it starts to thicken I re add the pork chops warm and serve.

The rice I made on the stovetop. I added a cup or water for every cup of rice, but I also added an extra cup of coconut milk to it. Cook it the same way you would any time you made rice, bring it to a boil and put a lid on it so the rice absorbs the liquids.  I also added some shredded coconut to it and mixed it in. Leave lid on til ready to serve.

Mini Meatloaves & roasted veggies

I love meatloaf so when I heard of the mini portion control meatloaves I thought it was a great idea.  This is a healthier version of the meatloaf my mom makes, but it was still very good!

Ingredients:
1 slice bread ( I used whole wheat)
1/2 cup milk ( I used skim)
Onion
Baby spinach
1 1/4 lbs ground meat ( I tried turkey)
1 large egg
Ketchup
Brown sugar
Worcestershire Sauce
3 large carrots
3 potatoes ( I used Yukon Gold)
asparagus
chives
olive oil


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Put the bread in a food processor and make your own bread crumbs. Afterwards add milk over the crumbs.

Heat oil up in a pan, the less you can use the better, add the onion. Was the onion is softened and golden add the spinach & stir until its wilted . Add this mixture to the bowl with the crumbs and milk mixture. Also add the meat and egg. Combine mixture until its well mixed.

Pack the mixture into a 1 cup measuring cup and put that onto the pan. Then form each into a meatloaf shape on the pan. Put the meatloaf into the oven for 40min.

While that is cooking chop up all of the veggies ( I left asparagus whole) and put them on a baking sheet. Drizzle some olive oil on them and put into the oven for 30 min. I also added some different spices to give them some flavor, or just a bit of salt and pepper will work as well.

While you have both things in the oven cooking mix together ketchup, brown sugar as well as worcestershire sauce. It all depends on how much sauce you would like as a topping. More ketchup in the bowl than the other two. Just mix until you have enough & spread the mixture ontop of the meatloaves and let cook remainder of the time.

Breakfast "Sandwhich"

Polenta
Eggs
Tomatos
Basil
Salt & Pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

I cut up the polenta loaf and fried them in a pan. I did the same with the eggs. I carmalized tomatos adding a few dashes of basil, salt and pepper to them. I stacked it all together, so it almost looked like a sandwich.
I saw this in a cookbook & it is supposed to be a lower calorie breakfast option, but either way its very good!

& yes, I was to lazy to put it on a plate, I didn't want dishes.

Moms Bday Carrot Cake

     




 CAKE

4 eggs

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil

2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 cups  carrots ( I bought carrot match sticks & put them into a food processor)

         FROSTING

1/2 cup butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

4 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup  pecans ( I only sprinkled them on half of the cake)

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl mix all of the cake ingredients. I start with wet ingredients then added dry slowly.

Bake about 30 min. depending on what kind of pan you use

After the cake is cooled mix frosting all together and spread it onto the cake. Make sure to keep mixing and slowly add confectioners sugar little by little.

I got the original recipe online, I didn't change to much this time.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Carrot-Cake-III/Detail.aspx

& yea I know the cake is uneven... I was in a rush to finish it..

Yummy Orange Broccoli

I decided to change up the way I cooked regular broccoli today. Try it if you're sick of regular steamed broccoli!

What you will need:

Broccoli
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tsp corn startch
olive oil
2 cloves of garlic (more or less on your tastes)



Add a thin layer of olive oil to a pan. Heat it up and add the garlic. After about 1 min add broccoli to this mixture and stir. While doing that, add OJ & corn startch into a seperate bowl. Mix together. After mixture is made add it to the broccoli in the pan and put a lid over it on low heat. Leave it that way for 3-4 min or until broccoli is cooked. Now it's ready to be served!

(Sorry forgot to take pictures, will next time)