pep it up

i have seen people make stuffed peppers before
and i've always wanted to try them...
so when i saw this healthy, meaty recipe for them
i knew i had to jump on it...

stuffed red peppers

1 lb ground turkey
1 garlic, minced
1/4 onion
1 tbsp cilantro or parsley (i used both..yum!)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin powder
salt
3 large red bell peppers
1 cup fat free chicken broth
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
olive oil spray
1/4 cup cheese

heat oven to 400 degrees.
start rice.
spray olive oil in pan.
add onion, garlic, and cilantro.
saute 2 minutes and add turkey.
season w/ salt, garlic powder, and cumin.
brown meat until cooked through.
add 1/4 cup tomato sauce and 1/2 cup broth
mix well and simmer for 5 minutes
combine cooked rice and meat.
cut bell peppers and remove seeds.
place in baking dish and spoon mixture into peppers.
pour remaining broth into dish.
cover with aluminum foil and cook for 35 minutes.
top with shredded cheese!

german is as german does...

every christmas eve we have a huge party for lph's mom.
it's her birthday so we invite over her friends, family, etc.
this year was her 60th so we wanted to do something really special.

i decided i would attempt to make black forest cake.
there is this wonderful german cafe called the heidelburg
in indianapolis and everytime we go
she always orders a piece of this cake...
it's quite an exquisite cake if i do say so myself
and when i found the recipe i felt extremely nervous.
luckily we told no one i was trying to do it
so if i failed we could go get a bakery cake!

luckily, it turned out WONDERFUL!!!
i'm not going to lie, i tooted my own horn all night.
it was moist, full of flavor, and looked beautiful....
and did i mention mouth-watering delicious????

so without further ado, here is the recipe i stole from cooks.com

black forest cake

2 cups + 2 tbsp of flour
3/4 cup of cocoa
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup milk
3 cups whipping cream
1 can cherry pie filling
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp powdered sugar

combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl. stir until mixed.
add shortening, eggs, milk, and vanilla.
beat 3 minutes at low speed.

grease two (2) nine (9) inch cake pans and add wax paper.
pour batter into pans.
bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.
let cool.
then split cakes horizontally.
crumble one of the top layers into a separate bowl.

beat whipping cream until foamy.
gradually add powdered sugar.
beat until it resembles whip cream.

place one bottom cake layer on a platter.
use some of the whip cream on the cake.
then use some of the pie filling.
place the other bottom cake layer on top and repeat.
then place the top layer on the cake.

frost sides of cake and top layer.
reserve some for dallops on top of cake for decoration.
pat cake crumbs generously along the sides of the cake.
put dallops on top of cake.
fill top with rest of the pie filling.
chill well (i chilled it overnight).

p.s. i had beautiful pictures of it, but our friend nick
didn't leave them for me....hmmm...

THE PARTHENON!!!

alright, ladies and gentlemen...
this is a recipe i'm holding near and dear to my heart.
when i was in college at the greatest university in the world,
my dear friends and i would order this massively delicious
pizza from avers with breadsticks and loganberry drink.
just thinking of it makes my mouth salivate.
so clearly i decided that i needed to try and make this pizza.
i needed to recreate it since they don't deliver to indy....why not???

so...here it is....homemade parthenon...

THE PARTHENON

for the sauce
3/4 cup olive oil
garlic
flour
Parmesan cheese
red pepper flakes
parsley
oregano
salt

for the pizza
a pizza crust
green pepper
tomato
black olives
feta
purple onion

how to make
i used store bought thin crust pizza crust, but if you're really
martha stewart-ish make your own!

in a food processor combine all of the ingredients for the sauce.
as for everything other than the olive oil, do it to taste.
how much oregano do you like?
are you a huge fan of Parmesan? i don't know!
i personally put in a lot of parm, a decent amount of red pepper,
about 2 tsp of flour (to thicken it up), 1 1/2 tsp of garlic,
and lots of shakes of everything else.
but those are my tastebuds.
after you've added all of the ingredients,
mix well in a food processor and let sit while you chop everything else.

chop 1 whole tomato.
dice 1 1/2 cups of black olives (or however much you want
to cover the pizza)
dice 1/2 a green pepper
dice a bit of onion.

spread all of the sauce over the crust.
spread all of the chopping ingredients over the crust.
spread lots of feta cheese over the pizza.
and bake!!

then, pop in some felicity, get your best friends together, and enjoy...
(i wish!)

too bad someone can't figure out how to recreate loganberry...

tennessee girl cooks louisana food? you betcha!

As you can see, the idea of this blog has kind of turned into a cooking blog. But it's more than that! It's a cooking blog run by all of my friends from home (and we all now live all over the states...) so this is a way since we can't eat dinner together, we can share our recipes that work and are delicious with each other!

so today's recipe comes to us from the deep south...from ms. pretty bride herself! enjoy!!

louisana chicken pasta

found here

When I first saw this recipe I knew I had to make it. After all, it had our favorite menu items (peppers, onions, and cayenne pepper) but was in a pasta dish. Normally these ingrediants are used in all of our mexican dishes, most casseroles, hell, we even put them in our burgers. Anyway, the only problem was that I am trying to make the commitment to being healthy, without going to extremes, because that would never work. I edited Annie's recipe a little to make it a little more healthy. Instead of using 1/2 cup whipping cream and 1 cup half and half. I used 1-1/2 cups fat free half and half. To thicken the consistency a little from the absence of whipping cream I used 1-1/2 Tbsp of cornstarch mixed with 1-1/2 Tbsp of water (instead of 1 tsp of each). I also only used olive oil (no butter). And of course whole wheat pasta. I prepared garlic bread by broiling whole grain bread sprayed with spray butter, garlic salt and parmeson cheese. So, while it still isn't the healthiest of meals, it was great to have a creamy pasta dish without all the fat. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
For the chicken:
1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
Salt and pepper
Cajun seasoning

For the pasta:
8 oz. bowtie pasta - whole wheat
Kosher salt

For the sauce:
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1-1/2 cups fat free half-and-half

1-1/2 tbsp. cornstarch
1-1/2 tbsp. water

Directions:
To cook the chicken, heat a small amount of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, and a generous sprinkle of Cajun seasoning. Add to the skillet and cook until lightly browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain the cooked pasta and set aside.

Meanwhile, return the skillet to medium heat and heat the olive oil until the butter has melted. Add the bell peppers and onion to the pan. Mix in the salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning and cayenne pepper. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 6-8 minutes. Add the fat free half-and-half the pan and bring to a simmer. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and water, and add to the skillet once the cream mixture has started to bubble. Allow to cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.

When the sauce has thickened, add the cooked pasta and chicken pieces to the pan. Stir well to combine and cook at medium-low heat just until the chicken is warmed through. Adjust the amount of Cajun seasoning if necessary to suit your tastes. Serve immediately and top with additional Cajun seasoning, if desired.

So we asked a genuine Louisana boy what he thought of it, Mr. Kyle Hornsby, and he said, "you give that girl a high five, wooooohooo!!!"

mac n cheese spice

i've had quite the domesticated day...
which means i still have 2 more posts for this week!
go me!
especially since i feel this week will be super busy
and i will rely on easy meals...
oh well. i fed bubs and me well today!

first up, my favorite...spicy mac n cheese!!
i am a big fan of any type of mac n cheese
but when i saw this zesty looking one, i knew i had to try it...

it's pretty easy cheesy to make...
AND SOOOOOO GOOOD!!
if you're not a fan of hot foods, you won't like this.
but anyone else...it has so much flavor
that i wanted seconds, thirds, and fourths...
i stopped myself and saved some to split for our lunches tomorrow
but this will be made again. and again....

ingredients
4 cups cooked macaroni noodles
1 tbsp olive oil
2 to 3 cloves garlic
1/2 red onion
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 tomato
1 small can green chiles
1 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese
salt
pepper

directions
boil pasta

in a large pan, heat olive oil and add garlic, onion, pepper, and tomato.
(yes, i 1/2 love this recipe cause i get to utilize the food processor so much)
stir in green chiles.
take off the heat and add to the pasta.
mix in the cheese.
s & p to taste.

DELICIOUS!!!!

modified from here.
i took out some of the fattening stuff
and it tastes delightful still.
however if you want butter and cream added,
pioneer woman says, "go for it!"
and i took out the jalapeno.
i once had a bad experience from cooking w/ jalapeno.
my face looked like angelina jolie
and my hands felt like they were stuck inside a bonfire.
i also took out corn...but i added tomato!

are you calling me a shrimp?

so mi amigas and i are going to start using this blog as a foodie blog
for us to share our recipes with each other across the united states
and, of course, share funny stories about making the food.

our first recipe is called shrimp paesano.
little background on the recipe.
spina's husband, matthew, used to live in san antonio.
there he found this wonderful dish.
one day he asked his lovely (then) fiance to make it for him.
she whipped it up and said, "oh this is yummy!"
she sent it to me, and i finally found enough time to try it out.

first, the preparation of this meal is so fun.
you get to be a tid bit (lots) messy!
while trying to prepare mine, my phone rang
and i tried to carry on a convo with flour all over me.
needless to say, i created more of a mess than usual...
once you get the shrimp covered in the flour, the rest goes super fast.
and then, before you know, voila!
a wonderful dinner ready for you to devour!

i must say LPH and i really enjoyed this meal.
i inhaled my dish.
so big thanks to matt for having such good taste!

ingredients
1 lb shrimp
1 pint light cream (half & half)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups (i used more...) flour
1 large egg yolk
1 stick of butter
1 clove of garlic
1/4 cup parsley leaves
chives
1/4 cup lemon juice

preparation
preheat oven to 400 degrees.

pour most of the cream over the shrimp and let marinate for 30 minutes or more.
save some of the cream for the sauce.

drain shrimp and roll the shrimp in flour.
saute in oil over medium heat for 5 minutes.
flip shrimp over.
remove shrimp and put in baking dish.
flip oven to broil and broil shrimp for 5 minutes.

sauce:
mix 1/2 stick of butter, egg yolk, and lemon juice.
heat over medium.
remove from heat.
mix in the other 1/2 stick of butter, garlic, and stir until sauce thickens
add some of the half and half.
add chives and parsley.

you can serve this with pasta or not. we went for the not and it was wonderful!

here fishy, fishy!

for dinner tonight, i made a light summer meal.
some fishy fishy mango salsa!

Ingredients

• 2 cups plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 1/2 cups diced peeled ripe mango
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 (6-ounce) halibut fillets
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparation

Prepare grill.

Combine first 7 ingredients. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and garlic.

Rub halibut with oil; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Place fish on grill rack; grill 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve with mango salsa.

greeking out

tonight's dinner was FANTASTIC!
i'm excited for my leftovers for lunch.
found here.

*baked shrimp with feta*

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Cooking spray
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup prechopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoons bottled clam juice
• 1 tablespoon white wine
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

  Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 450°.

  2. Combine lemon juice and shrimp in a large bowl; toss well. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add onion to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add clam juice, wine, oregano, pepper, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp mixture. Place mixture in an 11 x 7–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle cheese evenly over mixture. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until shrimp are done and cheese melts. Sprinkle with parsley; serve immediately.

zucchini bikini diet

i made this recipe last sunday. normally, i would post the picture on the website where i found it, but the picture doesn't do this justice. plus, mine looked tons better than the picture. anyways, this is a simple, light meal that is great for summer! found here!

seafood stuffed zucchini

• 4 zucchini, halved lengthwise
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 pound cooked crabmeat, diced
• 1/2 pound cooked salad shrimp
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

  directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• With a large spoon, scoop out the centers of each zucchini half, reserving the meat.
• In a large bowl, mix about 1/2 the reserved zucchini meat, the egg, crabmeat, shrimp, and garlic. Blend lime juice and lemon juice into the mixture, and stir in the Italian seasoned bread crumbs. Season with oregano, basil, and pepper.
• Arrange the zucchini halves in a medium baking dish. Generously stuff the halves with the crabmeat and shrimp mixture.
• Bake 35 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Remove from heat, cool slightly, and top with cheese. Return to the oven, and broil 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

talk derby to me.

this year, i brought the kentucky derby to indianapolis.
i had a little gathering of my nearest and dearest that live here
and we celebrated this kentucky tradition.

for the big day i cooked like a kentucky girl.
meaning i used 3 sticks of butter.
i kid you not...

first on the list was kentucky hot browns!
recipe found here.
not for the weak at heart.
or those close to heart attacks.
but delicious!

second, i made grits casserole!
i personally love grits but know tons of people don't.
however, this casserole got eaten up!
recipe found here.

and of course, what derby party would be complete without mint juleps.
these were soooo tasty.
and i had too many...
but so delicious!
recipe found here.

go, baby, go!

chili out

so amidst my sickness i wanted comfort food.
i wanted mac n cheese.
i wanted grilled cheese.
i wanted soup soup and more soup.
i wanted a mcdonalds cheeseburger (b/c nana prinz always got them for me when i was sick).
and then i found this recipe.

cheesy hash brown chili
CAN WE SAY COMFORT FOOD!!!

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 onion, chopped 2 tablespoons chili powder 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1/4 cup tomato paste	1 pound ground beef Salt and pepper One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed One 15-ounce can diced tomatoes One 1-pound bag frozen shredded hash brown potatoes 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, chili powder and cumin and cook, stirring, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the beef and cook, breaking up the meat, for 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Add the beans and the tomatoes with their juice and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, partially cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Transfer to an 8-by-11-inch baking dish.

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 400°. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes and cheese. Scatter the potato mixture over the chili. Place the baking dish on a baking sheet and bake until the potatoes are cooked through and the chili is bubbling, about 35 minutes.

and plop on the couch, throw on a movie, snuggle up with a warm blanket, and enjoy :)

i like 'em dirty

for our superbowl party, i decided to bring the dessert. since our oven is out (insert sad face here) i had to think of a non-baked good...here's what i made (and yes i think its funny to bring flowers to a super bowl party...)

Dirt recipe

1 package Oreo cookies
2 pkgs instant vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups of milk
(1) 8 oz. tub of cream cheese
1/4 cup of margarine
1 cup of sugar
12 oz of cool whip
flower pot
gummy worms
flowers

mix the cream cheese, sugar, and margarine together in a bowl.

in a separate bowl, mix the pudding and milk. let it sit til it thickens. then add the cool whip.

mix the cream cheese mixture and pudding mixture together.

put the oreos in food processor or place in a bag and beat with a mallet until in crumbs.

put a layer of oreo crumbs in the bottom of the flower pot. then a layer of the cream cheese/pudding mix. rinse, repeat. end with a layer of oreos.

*optional for fun* put gummy worms throughout!

**Note** the photo from above is not my dirt recipe. i could not find my camera so i grabbed one. but how cute is this?? nicely halloween-y decorated (the best holiday ever!!)

happy birthday to me :)

sorry i've been MIA lately. work has been insanely busy. and this weekend has been my BIRTHDAY weekend which has been absolutely delightful....even though i've gained back all the holiday weight that i had worked off the past 3 weeks...oh well...


so in honor of my birthday, i post these cupcakes that my friend prettybride found posted on annie's eats and i wish i had devoured :) i love cupcakes, i love twilight, i love edward.

and with that, i must head to work (on my day off...blech) for about 2 hours before heading to a movie w/ LPH and his momma.

call me dorky spice

so i made a new years resolution, against my better judgment that i am only setting myself up for failure.

this year (and hopefully a full-on morph) i am going to try to make dinner AT LEAST twice a week for LPH and me. i know, some of you out there are thinking, "at least twice? shouldn't you be shooting higher?" to which i say, refer to the first line. trying not to set myself up for failure.

additionally, between mine and LPH's schedules, we really are only here to eat dinner together about twice a week. he has late meetings, i try to hit my gym's group classes about twice a week that are late evening, and about 2 nights a week i make it home, grab my book, get in bed, and promptly fall asleep. so i think two nights a week is a lofty goal.

tonight i started the resolution off right. i would normally take pictures and try to be cutesy like that. however, i just made dinner and cleaned up...way too tired to be that ambitious. so here is what i made tonight...delicious, might i add.

Shrimp Curry
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 tsp onion
1 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp paprika (a party in your mouth)
7 oz of shrimp
1/4 cup of sour cream
green pepper
chopped tomatoes
3 cups cooked rice

start rice...

in another saucepan, combine mushroom soup, onion, green pepper, tomatoes, paprika, and curry powder. bring to boil. stir in shrimp, return to boil. reduce heat and simmer 5-10 minutes.

stir in sour cream. spoon mixture over hot rice.

Serves 2!

domestic goodness

when i was growing up i never thought i'd want to learn to cook. this partially stemmed from my huge tomboyness and disdain for all things "girl." yet, as i am sure happens with most girls, you start to get the domestic "itch."

last year, when i was having a particularly bad week, the best mom in the world (mine) surprised me with a subscription to rachel ray's magazine (love her). over the summer, the boy and i tried to cook meals from the magazine or other recipe books once a week. and at the gym, you can usually find me watching the food network on the treadmill (b/c that makes sense...).

i started to design my dream green kitchen in my head last semester while i was bored in admin law class. for graduation, my mom purchased me my own cute little green tea pot (which i will not drink green tea out of...yuck). it looks so cute in the little apartment.... now i just need someone to purchase me my green kitchen aid mixer...any takers?

p.s. if you look closely enough in my teapot picture, you will see my favorite gift from my alaskan "brother" mandy. it has a lumberjack on it to remind me of a very special breakfast which led mandy to coin the best word ever: "fantasty."