Sweet Potato Souffle

I think this one would be filed in my "Less College, More Grown-Up" pinterest board, but it is the holiday season, and it is definitely one of my absolute favorites around this time of year.  My mom makes it for all of our Christmas parties and holiday meals--I look forward to it all year long.  Honestly, it tastes more like a dessert than a main dish. Soooo goooddddd!

Sweet Potato Souffle
Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• Dash of Salt

Topping:

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

To cook the sweet potatoes, wrap in tinfoil and bake at 500° for about an hour or until soft.

Combine potatoes, sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk, 1/4 cup butter and salt.  Beat at medium speed with mixer until smooth.  Spoon into a greased 2 quart casserole dish.

Combine brown sugar, flour, 1/4 cup butter, and pecans.  Sprinkle over top of potatoes.

Bake at 350° for 40 minutes

Tuscan Vegetable Soup

After a regrettably long absence from posting, I'm finally going to have some time to get back into it over the next few months. I guess technically I'm not a "College Girl" after graduating on saturday, but hopefully I'll be going to grad school in the fall, so I'm holding onto the dream.

I'm not a huge soup person, but my mom loves it.  She found this recipe in the sunday paper last year and apparently makes it all the time.  Now that I'm back for a few months, she asked for some help making it, and I thought I would share for those of you who enjoy something warm in these cold months.  According to the rest of my family it is really good.  According to the article accompanying the recipe it is only 150 calories per serving, and it is jam packed with veggies, beans, and tons of good things for you.  It is also easy to make, so if you like soup you should definitely give this one a try.

Tuscan Vegetable Soup
Recipe by Ellie Krieger (CookSmart, USA Weekend)

Yields 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15.5 oz.) Cannellini or other small white beans (preferably low sodium), drained and rinsed
• 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1/2 Large Onion, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 Medium Carrot, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 Stalks Celery, diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 Small Zucchini, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp)
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried)
• 2 tsp. chopped fresh sage (or 1/2 tsp dried)
• 1/2 tsp. salt (or more to taste)
• 1/4 tsp. pepper (or more to taste)
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 can (14.5 oz.) no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices
• 2 cups, lightly packed chopped baby spinach leaves
• Freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

In a small bowl, mash half of the beans completely with a masher or the back of a spoon.  I used a small whisk. Then set them aside.

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, thyme, sage, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender.  About 5 minutes.

Add the broth and tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Add the mashed and whole beans and the spinach leaves.  Cook until the spinach is wilted (about 3 more minutes).

Serve topped with Parmesan if desired

5 Freezer Essentials

Living on my own, without too much time to spend preparing meals all day, I have found that it is imperative to stock my kitchen with things that can be whipped together at a moments notice.  After a long day of classes, practice, homework, whatever it is, when I get home late I usually just want to eat something and then relax.  Standing over the stove is the last thing on my list of things I want to do.  Keeping these five items stocked in my freezer makes life a million times easier, and the adjustability of the portion sizes is also great for when friends decide to visit last minute.

1. Chicken
I buy chicken breasts from the grocery store, but before I freeze them I cut off the extra fat and use a meat mallet to pound them out a little thinner.  Depending on the size, I usually cut them in half, then wrap them individually in plastic wrap and zip them up in a larger freezer bag.  Wrapping them individually makes it a lot easier to control portion sizes, and pounding them beforehand makes them easier to cook. Spoonful has a great post about different things to do with boneless chicken breast, and there are some really tasty recipes in my Recipe Book (shameless plug?), so you should definitely check those out.

2. Meatballs
I always like to keep a bag of meatballs in my freezer.  They make for a great addition to pasta dishes, but they can also be a great quick meal after a long day.  Sometimes I will get home after a long day, throw a handful into a bowl in the microwave with some sauce (pasta, barbecue, buffalo--whatever I feel like) and cook them up.  I usually add some cheese and boom... Instant meal :)

Other similar options: Chicken Nuggets, Perogies, or a Frozen Pizza

3. Edamame
Alexa introduced me to this bag at Sam's Club.  This bag of individual, microwavable portions of edamame soy beans (we call them Edamoms) is great for a snack for 2-3 people in less than five minutes.  I made a package for myself one time and couldn't finish them, but we usually split a bag when we hang out and the portions are perfect (and healthy!).  They even come with individual bags of sea salt to pour on top.

4.  Frozen Fruit
I make a lot of protein shakes after workouts, well... at least I try to.  I have found that it is great to have a bag of frozen fruit available.  Not only does it add to the nutrient density of the shake, but it saves fruit from rotting in the fridge (I have found that chopping fruit that I wont have time to use and freezing it before it goes bad is a good way to prevent the second, but buying pre-frozen bags is a bit of a time saver).

5. Dark chocolate with Sea Salt
Ok, so this might not be a meal essential, but my teammates have gotten me hooked on keeping a bar of dark chocolate in the freezer. A square of dark chocolate after a meal is a great "healthier" guilty pleasure (or a good pick-me-up after a long day).  You work hard, you deserve a treat :)

Leave a comment! :) What are your freezer essentials?

Kitchen Tip: Dicing Onions

I love onions.  I was never really a big vegetable person as a kid (as in anything vegetable related was an absolute no-go), but growing up has significantly expanded my once-extremely-picky palette and now, almost anything with onions and bell peppers is an immediate Yes, Please.

Unfortunately, dicing onions can be a real hassle, especially if your eyes tear up as much as mine do (Did you know that they reason we cry cutting onions is because they chemicals they release creates sulfuric acid in our eyeballs?? Umm ouch.).  Luckily, my mom showed me this little trick that really helps.

First, I try to keep at least one onion in the fridge.  They can obviously be stored at room temperature, but it seems to minimize the crying response when they are being cut when they are cold.

Second, instead of cutting rings and trying to line them up to dice them, slice off one stem (is that what they are?)

Third, carefully cut the onion (almost) all the way in vertical lines.

Wow... that was probably the worst way to describe that process possible... Check out this photo for a (hopefully) more understandable, visual representation of what I mean.

Third, cut horizontally to dice.

As you should be when cutting anything in the kitchen, be very careful.  The structure of the onion will be compromised and may slide.  It may also help to cut off one edge so there is a flat surface to place on the counter.

Nutella Banana Bread Swirl Muffins

Yes you did read that correctly... this is a recipe for Nutella Banana Swirl Muffins...

Also known as Heaven in a Muffin Cup.

The other day was Felix's birthday, so I asked him what I could make him to celebrate. I was already planning on making banana bread for a team potluck the next day, so I asked if he wanted banana bread muffins.  He got really excited and started talking about how I should put Nutella in them.....

Now, I have a secret banana bread recipe that is amazing and I have thought about posting every time I make it, but I haven't been able to get myself to do it.  This particular recipe does not say anything about Nutella additions, so I hit the Pinterest boards.

I found this incredible, amazing, mouth-watering recipe.  Felix couldn't find the words to describe how much he like them (he also thought he could get them to last for two weeks despite the fact that he was eating like 5 at a time).  I also learned I could probably just try adding Nutella swirls to my banana bread recipe..... Next time. :)

Nutella Banana Bread Swirl Muffins
Recipe from The Novice Chef

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose Flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 medium over-ripe bananas, mashed (I only had 3 large ones left after making banana bread, but they still turned out pretty delicious)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used olive oil... technically it is a vegetable?)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Nutella

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare muffin pan with liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until well combined and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together bananas, sugar, and brown sugar.  Beat in the egg, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract.  Slowly whisk in the dry ingredients until their are no lumps (mixture will be thick, be sure not to over mix). 

Fill muffin tins 3/4 full.  Top each muffin with about 1 tsp Nutella and use a toothpick to swirl it into the batter.

Bake muffins 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

The original recipe said this yields 18 muffins, I stretched it to two dozen because I was worried I was filling more than 3/4 full and they were going to overflow (and also, it made them last longer... yumm)

Quick and Easy Scones

So I have a couple food obsessions:

• Onions and Bell Peppers (could pretty much eat them in anything)
• Chai Lattes (I am trying to start liking coffee because I am getting old and it seems like something I should do--and Alexa is pressuring me--but I am in LOVE with Chai)
• Croissants (soft, buttery flaky ones... like the ones from Sam's Club that Lex wouldn't split with me today)
• Mozzarella sticks (pretty much anything with melted cheese if I'm being honest)
• Scones (The dining hall at my school makes the most incredible, mouth-watering scones... I think I could sustain myself eating them exclusively for the rest of my life)

I mean, in order to have a blog about food, I feel like you have to love eating... but there are a few things that I just cannot turn down, and these are some of them.

So now that I've whet your appetite (gotcha), I have another little story to tell.  This is my last semester in undergrad, so I am trying not to buy extra odds and ends for my apartment.  Unfortunately this does not apply to Alexa, who just started her Masters here (jeez I am talking about her a lot today... I hang out with her way too much apparently).  Anyways, she has been decorating her new apartment for the past month or so, so we have made a couple trips to the local thrift store.  

Now... I am a sucker for thrift stores.  Maybe it is because of my obsession with Pinterest, but I go into a thrift store and think, "Oh ya.. I can totally make something cool out of this broken chair."

Unfortunately, I have essentially ZERO creative talent.... so really I just walk around whimsically looking at junk I want but have no use for.

Not that THAT stops me.

On one particular excursion, I found a cookbook for like a dollar entitled "Microwaving for 1 or 2."  Considering the fact that I do usually cook for myself I thought it would be a good buy.  Flipping through I found some interesting ideas.  I might try them out and see how they go, but there was one I HAD to try.

Scones.

They didn't turn out quite how I was expecting (Realistically.... my expectations were probably a little high... I don't think the dining hall bakes their scones in a microwave), but with jam on top they were actually a great snack. 

Microwave Scones

Recipe from: Microwaving for 1 or 2 by Susan Brown Draudt

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 1/2 sugar
• 1 Tbsp butter or margarine 
• 3 Tbsp dried currants or raisins (I left this part out)
• 3 Tbsp milk
• 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

In a medium-sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and 2 teaspoon sugar.  Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut in butter or margarine until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  

Mix in currants or raisins, milk, vanilla, and egg.  When dough is smooth, kneed 4-6 times.  Shape in a 5-inch circle.

Place on a flat microwave-safe plate.  Cut into 6 wedges.  In a small dish, mix together remaining sugar and cinnamon.  Sprinkle mixture on top of scones.

Microwave on 70% (Medium-high) 1-2 minutes, or just until dry.  Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Serve with Strawberry Jam (and whipped cream)

Bloomin' Onion Bread

Fair warning... This is not one of my "healthier" posts.....

*****(Coaches... If you read this, I swear I made it over the summer)****

It is freaking phenomenal though.... So there's that.

I made it as an appetizer for my last night BBQ with my friends at home. Despite the fact that I was also filling myself up on chips and bruschetta, and I knew how (not) good it was for me, I couldn't help from eating half of the loaf by myself... The mass of melty cheesy goodness was too good to resist and everyone there echoed my sentiment... It did not last too long once it was set out.  Just thinking about it is making my mouth water.


Bloomin’ Onion Bread
Recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients:

• 1 unsliced loaf sourdough bread
• 12-16 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup finely diced green onion
• 2 teaspoons poppy seeds (Ya.. I didn't do this part.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

The original recipe suggested cutting the bread both lengthwise and widthwise (without cutting through the bottom crust) first, but as I was making it I thought perhaps it would be easier to cut it one way first, slip in the cheese slices, and then cut the other way. I thought of it too late to try, but if you do it, let me know how it goes.

Place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Insert cheese slices between cuts. Combine butter, onion, and poppy seeds. Drizzle over bread. Wrap in foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Unwrap the bread and bake 10 more minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Zucchini Mania

So you know how I mentioned that my friend Alexa has a neighbor with an awesome garden? Well I went over for a visit today, and we decided we needed to do a little something-something with her zucchini surplus.

Conveniently, she had just found an excellent Healthy Zucchini Muffin recipe on Pinterest.  I almost messed it up by just reading down the ingredients list instead of following the directions... luckily caught myself before things got too out of hand (I re-ordered the ingredients for you in this edition, but make sure you still follow the directions).

I was always a really picky eater growing up, and never would have tried zucchini anything, but college has really expanded my palate. Good thing, cause these muffins were the BOMB. Even after stuffing my face with Olive Garden it was hard to limit myself to just one... and even though we used oil instead of applesauce, they aren't THAT bad for you.

......At least that's what I keep telling myself. ;)

Healthy Zucchini Muffins
Recipe from Julie's Eats and Treats

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 c. grated zucchini
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 c. applesauce, unsweetened (We used Canola Oil)
• Cinnamon and sugar for topping (optional) 

 Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside. In a different bowl, combine grated zucchini, eggs, vanilla and applesauce (or oil... applesauce is healthier, we just didn't have any). Stir well to combine the wet ingredients. 

Gently stir wet ingredients into flour mixture until just combined. The original recipe warned, "Be careful not to overwork this - it will lead to dense muffins and no one wants those!" (That means all the little bumps do not need to be mixed in Alexa).

Fill lined or greased muffins tins about 3/4 full. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on for topping. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown.

S'mores Puppy Chow

Puppy Chow... Muddy Buddies... Whatever you want to call them, they are delicious.

Made it through my final preseason of college volleyball... I know it is only the first week of the season but I feel accomplished after sitting out for two years for ACL reconstructions.  Every year during preseason we go on a retreat (every other year it is a trip, but this year it was a one-night stay at a camp about an hour from campus). On the retreat, we get teamed up into meal groups and have a little friendly competition making the different meals for everyone. It was actually during last year's competition that I kind of conceptualized the idea for this blog (My group made this awesome lemon garlic-roasted chicken with green beans that I have been meaning to post for a while... Promise I'll get to it). This is my fifth preseason (man, I'm getting old), and it has pretty much always ended up that I've been placed in the dinner group (usually for dessert my group would make fruit pizza--another recipe I should definitely post--which got interesting on our trip to Puerto Rico when our oven wasn't working). This year, I got breakfast. We made The Incredibly Easy Breakfast Bake, which I thought would be good to make the night before, cover, and then just have to heat up in the morning. Unfortunately, our epic game of capture the flag went late, so we just had to get up earlier to throw it all together.

We also had to make a snack for around the campfire following said Capture the Flag game. We considered S'mores--I mean we were around a campfire, what else would you snack on? But then Courtney (the genius behind the Pizza Crescents and reigning Superbowl Cook-Off Champion) found this little gem on pinterest. A whole slew of Puppy Chow recipes including.... dun dun dun... S'mores! It was so so so good (It was hard to take a picture because the girls in our group couldn't help themselves from snacking on it while we made it). It was great because we made it before,  portioned it out into baggies, and then passed the bags out around the campfire.

Special thanks of course to my amazing group: Courtney, Jordan, Anjali, and Kate

I wish I had gotten a photo of Adam, one of our assistant coaches, roasting the mini marshmallows over the fire and stacking them between golden grahams.

S'mores Puppy Chow
Recipe from Your Cup of Cake

Ingredients:

• 6 cups rice Chex cereal
• 1 cup milk chocolate melts or chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup brownie mix (from the box--or a combination of powdered sugar and cocoa powder)
• 3 cups Golden Grahams
• 3 cups mini marshmallows

Directions:

Measure out Chex cereal into a large bowl and set aside.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate, peanut butter, and vanilla extract, stirring occasionally, until smooth.

Pour over cereal and fold until covered. Dump into a large plastic bag, pour brownie mix over cereal and shake until coated (Note: we didn't have a big bowl, so we threw everything into the bag a step early, shaking and kneading it until covered with chocolate and then adding the brownie mix).

Pour onto a cookie sheet and let cool (not sure how long we actually did this... the kitchen we were in was a MILLION degrees so I think we just kept cookin' along).

Dump into a large bowl and add the golden grahams and marshmallows. Mix everything together and viola! Perfection :D

The original recipe also suggested some variations, including substituting 1 cup crushed graham crackers/golden grahams for the brownie mix (I personally don't know why you would do that.. the brownie mix was the best part)... you could also coat the marshmallows in melted chocolate.

Anjali, one of our freshmen,
 shaking things up

Sautéed Zucchini

Maybe this is a sign of maturity... Or maybe just of getting older (and poorer)... But instead of meeting friends out for dinner at a restaurant, I've been really into meeting at someone's house, everyone bringing a part of the meal, and cooking together.  Not only is it a great way to hang out and make a healthy meal, it's also an awesome excuse to pick their minds on different recipes and try new things (without the risk of not liking something but still having to fork over the cash when the check comes).  Going into my final preseason, I've really been trying to find nutritious food options.   Unfortunately, when it comes to veggies, I've always been extremely picky (you may have noticed my main choices in vegetable related recipes are usually onions and bell peppers).  

Meet Alexa

My best friend Alexa just moved into a new apartment and one of her neighbors has a massive garden.  She lucked out because he puts out a bucket every day with the extra fresh veggies that are overflowing his plot for the neighbors to take their pick of.  I wish I had taken a picture of the GIANT zucchini she cut up today, but I was distracted by the sheer size of it-it was like twice the size of my head.  Anyways, we felt like a blast from the past so we heated up a bag of frozen chicken nuggets, but we added some grown up touches.  A microwave bag of edamame, a can of corn, and this awesome zucchini.

Sautéed Zucchini
Ingredients:

• Zucchini (Sliced and Quartered)
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Seasoning Salt
• Garlic Powder 

Directions:

According to Alexa, this is a recipe where you really have to "channel your inner Italian and just do what you feel"

Pour some olive oil into a sauté pan (about a tablespoon, enough to lightly coat the bottom of the pan) and place over medium heat (or high, depending on how quickly you want it to cook).

Toss in the zucchini and sprinkle on the seasonings (feel free to experiment and change things up based on your personal taste).  Let cook, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini starts becoming translucent.  Timing varies based on heat and  "Done" is based on personal preference, but I prefer overcooked to undercooked when it comes to stuff like this.

Side Note:

Sorry this isn't one of my more measurement-accurate recipes, but it is a great thing to try to experiment with as a new side dish. Super easy and tasty. It is also idea to add some yellow squash or other vegetables for a delicious and nutritious side dish. 

Snickerdoodle Bars

This is a new family favorite. My mom has me making it for bunko parties and dinner parties, I even made it one night just to bring into work and surprise everyone because it was so easy.

My sister calls this "Cookie Crack" and after a few bites you will probably agree... It is so good and super easy, even though it looks (and tastes) gourmet.

I actually have a mixer while I'm here at home, but whisking quickly can be substituted for beating on high speed. ;)

The original recipe can be found at Jasey's Crazy Daisy.


Snickerdoodle Bars

Ingredients
2 1/3 cups flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cinnamon Filling
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray or grease the bottom only of a 9x13-inch pan with cooking spray. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

Beat butter on high speed until creamy. Beat in sugars. Gradually beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until combined.

Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with Cinnamon Filling evenly over batter. Dollop teaspoons of remaining batter evenly over Cinnamon Filling. Gaps are okay, they let the filling peek through leaving a fun marbled look.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

In a small bowl, stir glaze ingredients until smooth and thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle over bars. Cut and enjoy!

Incredibly Easy Breakfast Bake

We had a surprise birthday party for my beautiful Mama this weekend, it was a lot of fun (congrats to my incredible Dad for pulling it off!). My mom has six sisters and only two weren't able to make it... Even my Aunt Kathy and Uncle Tim were able to make it out from Michigan which was awesome, and my Nana and Papa came up from the desert.

Anyways, the party was Saturday night so everyone decided to come over for breakfast the next morning, buttt because it was a surprise we had absolutely nothing to feed 20 people with.. Pinterest saved the day with this awesome breakfast bake.

I'm going to geek out for a minute because this was probably one of the best recipes I've tried yet... Not only was it delicious, but the preparation and everything was so so sooo perfect for such a big group of people. The original recipe served 12, so we doubled it and pretty much everything was gone by the time we finished eating (the following recipe includes the original proportions). The timing worked out perfectly as well. My mom and Nana went grocery shopping while I did some prep work, we threw everything together, cleaned up all the dishes while it was cooking, put out some plates and cinnamon rolls, and by the time everyone got there it was hot and ready, fresh out of the oven. It was soo much easier than trying to make eggs and bacon or pancakes or whatever, trying to keep stuff warm and coordinate cooking times. Everyone was able to eat at the same time, it got rave reviews, and clean-up was cake.

Incredibly Easy Breakfast Bake
Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients

• 2 packages (12 oz each) bulk pork sausage
• 1 medium bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
• 1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
• 3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
• 1 cup Original Bisquick® mix
• 2 cups milk
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 4 eggs

Directions

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Grease a rectangular 13x9x2 inch baking dish.

Cook sausage, bell pepper and onion in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink. Drain.

Stir together sausage mixture, potatoes and 1.5 cups of the cheese in baking dish.

Stir Bisquick mix, milk, pepper and eggs until blended. Pour into baking dish.

Bake uncovered 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 1 to 2 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Cool 5 minutes.


The Betty Crocker Recipe suggested that this recipe served about 12 people, so it recommended (if you'd rather make a smaller recipe using a 9-inch pie plate), cut all ingredient amounts in half and bake 30 to 35 minutes.

Happy Birthday Mama!

Almost Lasagna

Soooo it was a pretty crazy semester.. But things are finally getting settled back here at home for the summer so hopefully I will be able to post some more recipes in the next few weeks. Last week my mom had a bunko party and asked me to make something for dinner. I'd actually made this Almost Lasagna for the Super Bowl party (back then I cooked half and froze half for later). I also used vodka sauce back then, but I think I preferred the marinara sauce that I used this time.

Super easy, totally delicious, and actually pretty darn healthy.

Everyone loved it, and it was super easy preparation day-of because we made the "almost lasagna" the night before, then just popped it in the oven, made a salad, and heated up some garlic bread. Presto magic :)
Almost Lasagna
Adapted from family.go.com

Ingredients

• 1 pound elbow macaroni, cooked, (or other similarly shaped pasta-like small shells)
• 1 pound Ground turkey, (or beef, chicken, sausage or tofu crumbles)
• 1 jar Pasta Sauce, (26 ounces)
• freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1 pound Ricotta cheese
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 cups Veggies , (I used onions and bell peppers, but you could use diced zucchini, matchstick carrots, etc.)
• salt and pepper
• italian seasoning
• garlic powder
• a sprinkle of cayenne pepper and crushed red pepper

Directions

Brown meat and drain well, if necessary. I seasoned the ground turkey with a sprinkle of Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder.


While meat is cooking, stir together eggs, ricotta, a sprinkle of grated Parmesan and salt and pepper.

Mix cooked meat, macaroni, sauce and veggies. Add ricotta mixture and blend well.

Coat a 9-by-13 baking pan with cooking spray or olive oil and spread half of macaroni mixture evenly over the bottom. Top with a cup of mozzarella and a sprinkle of grated Parmesan. Add the remaining macaroni mixture and top with another cup of mozzarella and another sprinkle of Parmesan. Cover with foil. (When in doubt... Add more mozzarella)

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and bake the casserole for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 to 20 minutes until the cheese on top is lightly browned and bubbly.

Protein Pancake

My sister is three things: an amazing chef, an incredible athlete, and the most social person I have ever known. I call her "The Mayor" because no matter where we go, she always knows someone... And if she doesn't know anyone, she meets them. Apparently on her last flight, she met a guy and somehow learned this recipe for a quick protein fix. She made it for breakfast, my first try was as a post-workout snack.

This is a super easy recipe, and super healthy, and it even tastes good!


Protein Pancake

Ingredients:

• 4 egg whites
• 1 scoop protein powder (I don't like the flavor of the whey protein I am using right now, but they still turned out pretty good with it... Personally my favorite so far--flavor wise--is Pure Protein. You can get a big blue tub at Sam's Club for about $20)

Directions:

Spray a griddle or frying pan with cooking spray and heat on medium. Whisk together the egg whites and protein powder in a small bowl. Add batter to heated pan and cook like a pancake!

I added peanut butter and honey for some flavor, but I bet it would be really good topped with fresh fruits or berries or something like that.

Note: I made this again and added some cinnamon to the batter (cinnamon is a metabolic booster).

Kitchen Trick #3: Orange Peel Candle

This is a pretty cool little craft. I love having candles burning in my apartment. I think they just make everything more cheery... something I really need in this never-ending New York winter. I stumbled upon this on Pinterest and decided to try it out. It took a couple oranges to get a usable half, but it ended up burning for a pretty decent amount of time and, to be honest, it looked awesome.


The hardest part is peeling the orange (or you could use a clementine). I used a knife to cut a line around the equator. I tried to just cut through the rind. I'm not sure if that makes things easier, but I figured it might help to not having juice spraying everywhere.

Now the difficulty comes in removing the rind without tearing it AND pulling out enough "wick" in one piece to make a burn able candle. I used my finger to slowly work the rind away from the flesh of the orange.
When you get a workable half without any holes, fill the bowl with olive oil. I poured it directly onto the wick and let it sit for a few minutes. Light the wick. It took a few times of relighting before it began burning consistently.

I would recommend putting it on a plate or something considering the fact that you are essentially burning an orange peel, but it didn't pose a major fire hazard, and when the olive oil burnt out the flame went out on its own. Just use your head you little pyro you ;)

Spaghetti Squash

I've been wanting to try making Spaghetti Squash for a while now, but couldn't get the courage to try it out. Thankfully, my Super Bowl cook off champion Courtney had some experience with it and helped me out. We were on the phone with her family a couple times while making this, they grow squash so they make it a lot. We were also checking out this page about how to cook spaghetti squash either pre-cut or whole.

I was expecting it to be a little more "spaghetti-ish" but it is a little crunchy... I still really enjoyed it, it just took some getting use to. I think it is really all about the sauce. We made the Roasted Red Pepper Sauce I posted a few weeks ago, sautéed some peppers and onions, and made Turkey Meatballs to go along with it... We even made some of Courtney's Pizza Crescents as an appetizer. It. Was. Awesome. Probably one of the best meals I've ever made. AND it was super healthy, which felt even better after the rough workout we'd had earlier that day.

I would definitely recommend giving this a try.

Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

• Spaghetti Squash (which is actually a thing! I thought this was the name of the recipe because it was like pasta, but it is actually a type of squash... learn something new every day!)
• Oregano
• Garlic Powder
• Salt
• Pepper
• (Pretty much anything you think would taste good)

Directions:

We chose to cut it first and cleaned out the seeds and gunk. We then sprayed each half with olive oil, then sprinkled it with salt, pepper, oregano, and garlic powder, and then put a tablespoon of butter into the area we had hollowed out.

Cook at 375 degrees for 30 minutes to an hour until tender. We cooked ours for about an hour, which softened it up enough to separate the strands by running a fork lengthwise. To soften it up just a little bit more we popped it into the microwave for two minutes.

Microwave Mug Sugar Cookie

I was cramming all week to prepare for taking the GRE, but I found some time to take a study break and check out Pinterest for a little bit (ok maybe a lot bit... whatever).  Little did I know I would find the ultimate study break snack. I love sugar cookies, but I would gain a hundred pounds if I made a whole batch... because I would eat them all.... or more likely all the cookie dough before I even baked them.

This single-serving mug cookie was the perfect sweet treat to keep me going with my studies, and it was way tastier (and easier) than any of the other mug recipes I have tried in the past.  I wish these pictures did as much justice as the original recipe at Number 2 Pencil, but you get the idea.


Sugar Cookie in a Cup
created by Melissa at No. 2 Pencil

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp Butter
• 2 Tbsp of Granulated White Sugar
• 1/4 Tsp of Pure Vanilla Extract
• Small pinch of Kosher Salt
• One egg yolk
• 3 Tablespoons of All-Purpose Flour
• Colored Sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

Melt the Tbsp butter in microwave (about 15-30 seconds). Then add sugar, vanilla and salt and stir together. Add one egg yolk (just the yolk, separate out the whites!) and stir again. Add flour and stir a final time.  

Sprinkle cookie dough with colored sugar (I recommend adding a TON of colored sugar sprinkles. It definitely makes it a million times better), and heat in microwave for about 45 seconds to a minute. Start checking for doneness at 40 seconds.

Light Cajun Chicken Pasta

So I spent the past week with a house full of college boys. Haha I'm trying to think of something to follow that with, but I really can't. I was visiting my best friend at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical Institute, so I got to hear all about flying and being a pilot all week (yes, that is every bit as nerdy as it sounds). Anyways, I wanted to make them dinner one night as a thanks for letting me crash with them, so obviously I had to find something really impressive (but still easy and fast and cheap).  I've made this twice before, and I think it might be my favorite recipe yet.

This entire meal cost about $20, served five people with leftovers, it's tasty, its light, and it's relatively healthy. Plus it impressed the boys, so that was a win.  I found the recipe at Skinny Taste, which is an awesome resource for healthy, delicious recipes (and wayy better pictures than mine).

Skinny Cajun Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces uncooked linguine (I used angel hair)
• 1 pound chicken breast strips
• 1-2 tsp Cajun seasoning (or to taste)
• Garlic powder
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced (I don't like mushrooms or tomatoes, so I left them out)
• 1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1 tbsp flour
• 3 tbsp light cream cheese
• fresh cracked pepper
• 2 scallions, chopped
• salt to taste
• Cooking Spray

Directions:

Prep the vegetables. Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt. Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions. (I started cooking the pasta about halfway through sautéing the veggies so everything was done around the same time)

In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside.

Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add half of the chicken. Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.

Add olive oil to the skillet and reduce to medium; add bell peppers, onions, and garlic to skillet, sauté 3-4 minutes.

Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper to taste.

Reduce heat to medium-low; add chicken broth and pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes.

Return chicken to skillet; add salt and Cajun seasoning to taste, cook another minute or two until hot, then add pasta; toss well to coat. Top with chopped scallions and enjoy!

Fresh Homemade Guacamole

This guacamole is a summertime staple in my house. It is probably one of the more time consuming recipes I make regularly, but only because of all the chopping, but it is definitely worth it. My family eats a TON of it, and make ourselves feel better by telling ourselves how healthy it is for us, but really it just tastes amazing so we can't help ourselves.

A lot of the recipes I find are through Pinterest or Google, but this is a family specialty. The measurements are going to be guesses because we pretty much eyeball it--this recipe is all about personal preference. Depending on who I'm with I might make it more spicy or more sweet... My advice would be to keep some chips handy and take a few taste tests along the way to see what you should add.

This picture so does not do this dish justice.

Famous Phillips Guacamole

Ingredients:

• 6 avocados
• Lemon and/or Lime juice (I usually squeeze the juice from about half of each. You don't want it to be too watery, but the acidity keeps the avocados fresher longer)
• 3/4 to a full Red onion, diced
• Tomato, diced (usually we have cherry tomatoes and we quarter 6-10, probably adds up to maybe one medium tomato... Maybe a little less)
• 1 Bell pepper (orange or yellow)
• 1 fresh Jalapeño (depending on how spicy you want it, and make sure you chop it up very small)
• 1 Tbsp Cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 1 Tbsp Crushed red pepper (or to taste)
• 1-2 cloves minced garlic or a sprinkle of garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Mash up the avocados, chop all the vegetables (smaller = more flavors in each bite, bigger = chunky... both are equally delicious, just depends on your time and level of skill), mix everything together in a large mixing bowl, grab some chips and stuff yo' face ;)

Sorry for such complicated instructions.....