Recipe Box: Bow Tie Pasta with Asparagus, Sun-dried tomatoes and Boursin

December 18, 2013 by Meridith

Back when Jay and I got married, we got a recipe book as a gift. Now, back when Jay and I got married, my cooking skills were… well, how to put this?

Nonexistent.

I could make a mean grilled cheese and boxed macaroni and cheese with the best of them. But my skills were fairly limited and the main chef in the house was Jay.

Ten plus years later, I’m the head honcho in the kitchen. This recipe was one of the first ones that I was really able to master and still remains one of our favorites.

Bow Tie Pasta with Asparagus, Sun-dried tomatoes, and Boursin

1/3 c pine nuts
Kosher salt
8 oz bow tie pasta (they sell 12 oz packages so I usually leave about 1/4 in the box)
14 medium spears of asparagus, cut into 1.5″ pieces
1TBSP olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1/3 c grated Parmesan cheese
2 oz (1/3 c) Garlic and Fine Herb Boursin Cheese
1/4 c of diced sun-dried tomatoes (optional)
1 TBSP chopped fresh dill (which I skip because I’m not a huge fan of dill)
3/4 Tsp lemon pepper

1. Put the pine nuts in a dry small skillet over medium heat. Shake constantly until evenly toasted on all sides, about 4 minutes. Set aside.

2. Fill a large saucepan 3/4 full of water. Bring to a boil over high heat and add kosher salt. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until barely tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the asparagus to the pan and cook until tender-crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain the pasta and asparagus, reserving 3/4c of the cooking water.

3. Set the same saucepan over medium heat and heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Return the pasta and asparagus to the pan then add the reserved cooking water. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, Boursin cheese, dill, and the 3/4tsp of lemon pepper and toss to combine. Stir in the pine nuts. Season with kosher salt and lemon pepper, to taste.

4. Divide the pasta between bowls and serve! Makes 3-4 servings which equals leftovers. Sweet!

From Bride and Groom: First and Forever

Enjoy!

Recipe Box: Gingery Butternut Squash Soup

October 7, 2013 by vfreile

Autumn is my favorite season.

I love the cooler, crisp weather, the vibrant hue of fall leaves, my birthday and pumpkin everything.

But it also means some of my favorite fresh veggies are in season. It’s time to pick apples fresh off the tree at your local apple orchard. And to rejoice the return of the butternut squash.

Here’s my favorite fall soup recipe, adapted from my favorite cookbook Simply in Season. It’s beyond simple and absolutely delicious.

What you will need:

2 medium onions (chopped)

2 Tbsp. fresh ginger (peeled and minced)

2-3 apples (peeled, seeded and chopped)

1 butternut squash (peeled, seeded and cut into cubes)

4 cups vegetable broth

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

parsley

Chopping the onions

Sauté onions in a large pot with in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil. Sprinkle in a little salt and pepper. (cook until onion is translucent.)

All of the butternut and apple!

Add apple, butternut squash and veggie broth to pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until squash and apples are tender. (It takes about 25 minutes on my stove.)

Mash, mash, mash!

If you like chunky soup, use a potato masher to mash the apples and squash (like me!) OR you can purée in blender until smooth.

Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley. Enjoy!

Mmm, dinner!

What’s your favorite harvest meal? Are you a butternut squash fan like the chicks? Tell us about your fave fall recipes in the comments!

Recipe Box: Lemon Buttermilk Loaf Cake

September 20, 2013 by bec2point0

When we first started talking about coordinating posts for the Alex’s Lemonade Stand Million Mile Run (check out the Scoot a Doot page, if you’d like) and there was mention of recipes with lemon, I knew exactly what my contribution would be. Maybe it should have been harder to choose, since I love lemon, and cook with it often, but this was a no-brainer for me.

Cake. (See. Total no-brainer). Cake is almost always the answer. And sometimes the question. (Cake? Cake. CAKE!) So, without further waxing poetic about my love of cake, let’s get cooking!

This is adapted from an old Weight Watchers recipe, from the Takeout Tonight cookbook. Long before Points Plus, so I don’t know those values. And I played with it a little. Because I’ve never met a recipe I didn’t think I could make better. I love baking, love the way it makes the house smell, and clearly, love the finished, baked product. But baking is like science. All the measuring and precision. I’m a ‘throw some in there’ kind of girl. But for the purposes of this recipe, I kept that in check. Mostly.

Lemon Buttermilk Loaf Cake

Ingredients:

1-2/3 cup all purpose flour (mod: the recipe calls for 1-1/3 cups all purpose and 1/3 cup whole wheat flour. If you do this, you’ll want to use whole wheat pastry flour. I skipped the wheat because I just had regular and I don’t like eating bricks).
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
5 TBSP butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 TBSP lemon zest (basically, the zest of one good sized lemon).
1 tsp vanilla (mod: I just threw some in. It’s vanilla. I was feeling whacky.)
3/4 cup buttermilk (mod: I hate buying buttermilk for recipes because it only comes in quarts. I use a buttermilk powder that gets reconstituted, or you can make your own buttermilk).
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice (I just juice the whole lemon I just zested and use that)

Preheat oven to 350 and spray an 8×4″ loaf pan with cooking spray. I like the cooking spray with flour built in to avoid sticking. The actual recipe calls for cutting out wax paper and putting it in the loaf pan, but I’ve never bothered and I’ve always had perfect cake. Plus, I’m super lazy.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.

With an electric mixer on medium, beat the butter, granulated sugar ,egg/egg whites, lemon zest and vanilla in a large bowl until well blended.

With mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until just combined.

Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes or until done. Place pan on wire rack.

Before

And after!

Mix powdered sugar and lemon juice ( you may have to add additional juice). Spread over hot bread. Let cool for 20 minutes. Carefully remove bread from pan to a serving plate.

Let cool completely.

EAT.

Now, I forgot that the glazing gets done when the bread is hot, so I went to bed. And now it’s morning and I’m debating whether I should glaze or not. Probably no. The glaze is delicious and makes the cake more lemon-y, but I promise, it’s good without it.

If you’re thinking you can skip your trip to Starbucks for a slice of lemon cake…well, you can, but this cake isn’t the same. It’s not overly sweet and it’s not light or fluffy. This is a dense cake, but delicious, and not terribly bad for you, so all in all, it’s a winner in my book!

Hope you guys enjoy!

Recipe Box: Tortellini Soup

September 10, 2013 by beewhobabbles

This meal is almost as easy to prepare as a PB&J. It’s definitely simpler than grilled cheese; a meal which I have my husband fix, because I always burn the sandwich. And I always feel a little smug when I make a soup that doesn’t come from a can.

This isn’t the best soup you will ever eat. (That would be my mama’s potato soup.) But it’s a cinch to cook, nutritious, and adaptable. I always have these ingredients on hand, and I end up eating this soup at least once per week. Sometimes I add sausage or chicken that we’ve grilled the night before, sometimes I add beans for extra protein. Sometimes- okay, most of the time, I skip the onion.(It isn’t easy to chop while babywearing, folks.) But it’s definitely better with onion. And crushed red pepper. And shallot pepper from Penzey’s. In my opinion. You can- and should- customize this soup to your liking. And soon it’ll be like we’re eating together once a week. Fun times!

photo(37)

Tortellini Soup
Serves 3-4 (or 2 plus lunch the next day!)

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp. olive oil
½ cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp. dried oregano
1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes, with juices
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
9 oz. tortellini, any variety (fresh or frozen)
3 cups fresh baby spinach, loosely packed
Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions to the pan and cook until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for about 1 minute. Stir in the oregano and diced tomatoes. Add the broth and bring the soup to a boil. Add the tortellini to the pot and cook according to the package directions. One minute before the tortellini is fully cooked, stir in the spinach. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Source: The Well-Fed Newlyweds via Annie’s Eats

Tomorrow, I’ll be volunteering (while wearing yellow, of course) for the local chapter of Queen For A Day, an organization that provides a special pick-me-up for pediatric cancer patients. By now, you all know that the Scoot chicks (and some awesome friends) are running with intention this month; to raise awareness for children’s cancer. Please sport some yellow, join our team and donate if you feel so moved. Thanks.

Best Lemonade Ever… No, Seriously!

September 9, 2013 by Meridith

As you probably know by now from our blog posts, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts we are participating in Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation’s Million Mile Run. ALSF raises funds and awareness for pediatric cancer research. If you’re wondering why, exactly, we need Childhood Cancer Awareness month, please check out the infographic from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia at the end of this post. I learned a lot that I didn’t know and think that you might be surprised too!

But first, my family and I have hosted two Alex’s Lemonade Stands at our home for the past two years. I thought that I’d share our lemonade recipe. You might be thinking… lemonade from a mix is easy and convenient, why don’t they do that? You would be correct. But if you’ve met me, you know that I roll with the Type A crowd; why do something easy when something hard can be done? Fortunately, this lemonade isn’t too hard and it’s also deemed as the “best lemonade ever”. No, really, it’s first the first recipe that shows up when you Google that phrase!

Of course, we can’t just make one serving of the best lemonade when we are hosting a lemonade stand. That’s crazy talk! Especially when we need to fill our ridiculously large glass carafe.

The “small” version calls for 1 3/4 cups of sugar, 1 1/2 cups of lemon juice and 8 cups of water. However, when we MEGA-SIZE it, everything jumps up. If you ever want to hold a lemonade stand of your own and make a large amount of lemonade… this is how we do it (cue Montell Jordan).

Ingredients:

7 cups of sugar
32 cups of water
6 cups of lemon juice (we use a combination of freshly squeezed and bottled. The squeezing of lemons is a favorite activity for my boys!)

Directions:

In a large pot, combine sugar and 4 cups water. Bring to boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.
Remove seeds from lemon juice, but leave pulp. In the carafe, stir together chilled syrup, lemon juice and remaining 28 cups water. (If you have a carafe like ours, make sure the nozzle is CLOSED before you do this. Yeah. Yeahhhhh. That’s all I’ll say about that little blunder.)
Ice and slice! We usually buy bags of ice for both the carafe and each cup of lemonade. Add slices of lemon to the carafe to make it extra delicious.

My husband and I decided to try to make an adult lemon beverage for this post. We settled on a Gin Fizz.

But, um, the finished product tasted like lemon flavored cleaner. Or ~~maybe~~ it was a “guy” drink that I just didn’t enjoy at all because he drank his. And mine. So I can’t in good conscious share the recipe. You just let me know if you want it. (You don’t.) (Or maybe you do. If you like drinking lemon flavored cleaner. Not that I have anything against lemon flavored cleaner as cleaner… just as a drink.)

And hey, if you’re looking for a delicious sounding foot scrub for after those long runs or if you just need a little pampering, check out Sara’s post at The Classy Crafter.

Now for the most important bit of this post…

Childhood Cancer Infographic

Recipe Box: Vic’s summer salad

August 19, 2013 by vfreile

I’m obsessed with avocado. And black beans. And salad. In the summer months, I often throw together a salad a-la-random-things-in-my-fridge.

But I often come back to one recipe, which started as a recommendation of salad ingredients from a friend and has been tweaked over recent years.

Nom Nom Nom

Here’s what you need:

Ingredients
Romaine lettuce – half a head, washed and chopped
Cherry tomatoes – halved
Red onion – chopped, maybe a 1/4 cup. A little goes a long way
Corn – one ear, cut off cob (frozen will work as well)
Peas – half package of frozen peas, cooked then rinsed
Avocado – chopped

Topped with lemon juice, salt and freshly-ground pepper to taste.

Hand mix it all. That’s right, get your hands in there and dirty.

My above list is really a basic starting point – delete an item you don’t like or don’t have on hand. Try a different kind of beans or add a cucumber. Last week I made this same salad minus the onion and beans and instead added chicken.

The idea is to keep it light and tasty with an avocado base.

Enjoy!

Are you a salad muncher? What ingredient must be included in your go-to summer salad? Tell us in the comments!

Recipe Box: Thai Peanut Chicken Salad

August 14, 2013 by beewhobabbles

Well friends, it’s been fun, but now it’s time to say goodbye. To summer, that is. My two girls went back to school this week and with that comes afternoons and evenings filled with activities, homework, and lunchbox prep. My days will be quieter (the little dude is napping next to me as I type), and lunch for me will be one big question mark, since I don’t have my girls eating with me (Which really means no more Chick-Fil-a, if we’re being honest). PB&J? Cereal? Leftovers? Soup? If I waited to decide at lunchtime, I’d probably end up eating something random and unsatisfying.

A few weeks ago, one of my friends posted some beautiful jarred salads on Instagram (Are you following us?) and I knew it was something I wanted to try once school began. I bookmarked some tips and recipes, and then another friend gave me a recipe for a Thai peanut chicken salad in a jar. Peanuts, spinach, edamame? Definitely my kind of salad!

photo(33)

Last Sunday, my husband grilled some extra chicken with dinner so I could prepare these. I know jarred salads aren’t a new thing, but they’re new to me, and planning something healthy-and delicious- ahead of time is the perfect solution for this mama.

photo(34)

Thai Peanut Chicken Salad
Serves 3

INGREDIENTS

6 Tbsp. sesame-ginger dressing*
1 ½ cups cooked whole wheat spaghetti
3/4 cup shelled edamame beans
thawed from frozen
1 cup julienned carrots
6 Tbsp. chopped red onions
1 ½ tsp. chopped cilantro
1 ½ tsp. diced jalapeno
1 ½ tsp. chopped basil
1 cup chopped chicken breast,
pre-cooked
3 cups chopped fresh spinach
3 Tbsp. peanuts

DIRECTIONS

To prepare, divide ingredients among three 2-cup capacity glass canning jars in this order: 1/ 2 cup spaghetti, ¼ cup edamame beans, 1/3 cup carrots, 2 tablespoons onion, 1/2 teaspoon cilantro, 1/2 teaspoon jalapeno, 1/2 teaspoon basil, 1/3 cup chicken, 1 cup spinach and 1 tablespoon peanuts.
To serve, remove lid, invert jar and dump onto plate or eat straight from the jar. May be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 3 days.

*The original recipe called for Lifehouse Thai Peanut dressing, but my grocery store didn’t carry it. I used Newman’s Own Sesame Ginger dressing instead, and it was delicious (though I wish I could find the peanut dressing, because peanuts! Yum.)

Recipe from Living Lighthouse Blog

What make-ahead salads have you tried? Any tips? Please let me know in the comments.

Recipe Box: Roast Chicken and Veggies

August 8, 2013 by Meridith

For a long time, I was not the “cook” in our house. Originally when we first bought our house, the cooking responsibilities fell on to Jay because he knew how. I didn’t. We were both fine with this.

However, when I became a stay at home mom, and he started working longer hours the responsibility shifted more to me. It was terrifying and awesome simultaneously. When we got married a dear friend gave us the Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook, which is where I originally got this recipe. I’ve tried my hand at all sorts of recipes and this one has stuck around for quite some time!

It is more time intensive than labor intensive. You can prep the veggies before preheating the oven and there’s no rushing around with this recipe (unlike others, in which you have five things going on at the same time and need to get them all done in a particular order. You know the type!). What I particularly like about this recipe is that I usually have most of the ingredients in my house – I only need to pick up the chicken on shopping day.

Ingredients

3 carrots, cut into thirds
6 small red new potatoes, quartered if large
1 medium yellow onion, cut into 6 wedges (we love the veggies so I usually up this to 2 onions – if you have the room in your pan, do it up!)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 chicken (3 to 4 pounds)
1 lemon, quartered
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Put the carrots, potatoes, and onion in a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. Toss the vegetables with 1 tablespoon of melted butter or olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the vegetables to the edges of the baking dish so the chicken may rest in the middle.

Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the chicken and discard. Rinse the bird under cold running water and pat dry. Put the chicken, breast-side up, in the center of the baking dish. Brush the chicken with the remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter or oil. Season generously salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity with the lemon quarters and rosemary sprigs. Put the garlic cloves under the chicken to prevent them from burning.

Roast for 45 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven. Using tongs, tilt the chicken, pouring the juices from the cavity onto the vegetables, and shake to coat. Your house will be smelling absolutely amazing at this point.

Baste the chicken with the pan juices. If the bird is browning too quickly, cover with aluminum foil. Continue roasting until the chicken is a deep golden brown and the juices run clear when the tip of a knife is inserted into the thigh joint, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh, away from the bone, registers 170 to 175 degrees F, 30-45 minutes more, depending on your oven.

Transfer the chicken to a platter and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes before carving. Using the back of a spoon, mash the garlic and squeeze some lemon into the pan juices. Toss the juices with the vegetables. Carve the chicken (okay, I’m not at this point in my life yet. Jay still carves the bird) and serve the vegetables alongside.

The recipe says that it serves two but if you’re liberal with the veggies, the chicken meat can easily feed at least four. Bon appetit!

Recipe Box: Oriental Cold Noodles

July 23, 2013 by bec2point0

It’s been the summer of cold salads in my house. The heat has been unbearable, and the only thing I like less than cooking hot food is eating hot food. Because yuck.

I’ve been all about Pasta Salad and Potato Salad and Quinoa Salad and Fruit Salad and Garden Salad and Mexican Veggie and Bean Salad (future recipe post to follow) and… I think you get the picture. I get up super early on Sundays, before the heat hits, cook and prep large batches of a couple of salads and then eat them all week for lunch or with dinner. This has been working out great in terms of time management and having healthy food at the ready, but flavor-wise, things had gotten a bit boring.

Until this Sunday.

In search of some flavor in my salads, I turned to the internet, and after a couple of searches for ‘cold dinner ideas’, I found the following recipe on LaaLoosh (an invaluable resource for healthy, and specifically Weight Watchers friendly, recipes).

Oriental Cold Noodles (adapted from LaaLoosh)

Ingredients

1 12 oz. package Whole Wheat Spaghetti
1 large cucumber, diced
1 cup carrots, diced
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup cilantro, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 ½ tsp sesame seeds
Juice from 1 lime
Instructions
Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain, and rinse with cold water. Place in a large bowl. Toss in cilantro, cucumbers and carrots, and set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, garlic, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, and sesame oil.
Pour dressing over noodles and toss to combine. Top with sesame seeds.

Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 1.5 hours.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s), Cooking time: 15 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 6
PER SERVING: 231 calories; 3.5g fat; 41g carbohydrates; 6g protein; 2.5g fiber

Recipe Source: LaaLoosh

Now, I’ve never met a recipe I didn’t want to tweak, but I stayed very close to the original on this. The only changes I made were to add some scallions and to usage Whole Wheat Spaghetti instead of Soba Noodles (because I had it on hand). Also, I measure nothing. Ever.

The result?

Ooooooodles of Noodles

BOOM. FLAVOR EXPLOSION IN MY MOUTH.

You guys, this was SO good. Aside from cutting veggies, the prep work was very minimal. And aside from the 20 minutes of boiling water and cooking pasta, I didn’t have to turn on the stove. WHICH MAKES ME VERY HAPPY.

This and some diced chicken breast were my lunch on Monday, and the rest will be a side dish for the Turkey Teriyaki Meatballs I’ll be making for dinner one night this week. You know, if it lasts that long.

If you’re a Weight Watcher’s member, I calculated this differently than the website did. Mine came up to 4 Points Plus for 6 servings or 7 Points Plus for 4 servings (I went with four servings because I was HUNGRY!)

So, whip yourself up a batch and set them aside for the next hot night. Which is surely imminent. SIGH.

When it’s hot out, what’s your go to cold dinner? Help Bec out. Her family is ready to mutiny if she serves sandwiches one more time.

Recipe Box: Aunt Martha’s Strawberry Pie

July 7, 2013 by vfreile

I love strawberries. They are my favorite summer treat. Strawberry jam, strawberry scones, strawberries with cream, homemade strawberry ice cream, … the possibilities are endless!

My dear Aunt Martha makes an incredible summer berry pie. Heck, her desserts are amazing. PERIOD.

After I shared homemade pie pics earlier this summer, Aunt Martha encouraged me to also share her simple recipe, which we both regularly tweak. I should note, while it’s lighter than most pies, it’s definitely not considered low-fat. It’s a treat.

To make the graham cracker crust, combine one packet of crushed graham crackers with 3 Tbsp. sugar and 3 Tbsp. of melted butter. Firmly press mixture into 9-inch pie pan and BAKE at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Set aside to allow crust to cool.

Dice 1 quart of strawberries. Cut them small. For real. It takes longer, but it’s worth it.

Boil 1 cup of water, 2 Tbsp. cornstarch, 1 cup of sugar. Mix well. Once it’s clear, add one small box of strawberry jello mix. Let boil a few minutes. Move entire pot to the fridge.

While jello mixture cools in fridge for 10-15 minutes, place diced strawberries in the graham cracker shell.

Pour the jello mixture over the berries and spread it evenly without overflowing the sides of the crust. Move the pie back into the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours. I usually let it chill for 3-4 hours before I dig in.

The pie falls apart on me if I dig in too early. Doesn’t bother me since it all goes down the same. But if that’s something you care about, note that it will likely crumble if you don’t let it properly chill.

Serve with whipped topping. I use light cool whip, but any whipped topping will do.

Dig in and enjoy! Hope you all like this pie as much as we do!

What’s your favorite homemade summer treat?

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