Parmesan crusted pesto grilled cheese

After working in my garden all morning.  By all morning I mean about an hour.  I worked up quite the hunger.  I was feeling lazy and a sub sounded really delish but then I remembered it's grilled cheese month and I should really do something to celebrate.  So i did just that.  I looked at the jar of homemade pesto that was given to me by a friend and that's where this little ditty came from...

Not the most flattering photo but let's be honest... I really just wanted to eat it, not take it's picture

I grabbed two slices of bread and spread a thin layer of pesto on each of them.  Then I pre warmed my cheese in the microwave for like 15 seconds just to warm it up a little.  I sliced it rather thick and there is nothing worse than having the center of your grilled cheese not melted.  I warmed the pan and added a tiny bit of butter (yes I used butter.  We normally don't keep butter in the house because we eat far too much of it) then I threw in one of the slices of bread pesto side up, added the cheese(I used swiss because I love it.  I think mozzarella would be just as good if not better), put a thin layer of sliced tomatoes, and the other slice of bread pesto side down.  I cooked it like a normal grilled cheese until it was almost done and then sprinkled it on each side with a little shredded parmesan until it was brown and amazing looking.  This totally hit the spot and helped me forget about that sub I was longing for.

Buffalo shrimp wrap w/creamy ranch slaw

Okay... I am going to just go out there and say it.  I am extremely proud of myself for creating this meal, start to finish(that includes thinking of the idea and thawing the shrimp) in 15 minutes.  So delightful.  I am on a buffalo kick lately I just can't get enough buffalo sauce!  With next to nothing in my fridge and 20 minutes to cook dinner this idea just popped in my head.

I opened the fridge and saw the bag of broccoli slaw mix sitting there and I thought..."hmmm that would most likely be amazing if I added ranch to it"  So here is how it went down...

I grabbed a bag of shrimp out of the freezer (raw and unpeeled) then I dumped them in a bowl of cool water.  While those were hanging out I took about 3 tablespoons of mayo dusted it with ranch powder and added a touch of milk to thin it out and that was my dressing for the slaw.  I added a couple handfuls of the broc slaw (about a cup maybe) and mixed it up.  While that was getting all flavorful and delicious I peeled the shrimp.

this is the slaw getting all flavorful and delicious

  Then I melted a tablespoon of butter in a pan and added a generous amount of franks red hot sauce maybe about a quarter cup?  Once that was all bubbly and awesome looking I added the shrimp and cooked it about 5 minutes. This is what it looked like while cooking...

When the shrimp was done I heated a tortilla on a hot dry pan and then assembled the wrap.  First I sprinkled the tortilla with some shredded mozzarella(you could really use any cheese it was just what I had on hand), then put a little lettuce, a pile of shrimp, a little more cheese, and I topped it off with the slaw.  Then I folded it up and threw it in the pan a minute to warm the wrap and the rest is history!

Man it was good!!  Sometimes I am so easy to please.  This was so easy and tasted just right!

Black bean sweet potato burritos

Short and sweet today...
I used a few things I had left over from dinner last night to make some yummy healthy almost vegan burritos.
First I diced up a sweet potato and sauteed it in some olive oil.  When the sweet potato was tender I added some black beans just to warm them up.  Then I tossed the left over brown rice and chicken chunks in the microwave(which I don't normally do but I was lazy) just to warm it.  Then I threw it all in a whole wheat tortilla and browned it on a hot dry skillet!  Here is what it looked like.  I also served it with salsa.

They were good and super filling.  Dustin ate his with aged brick...I wouldn't recommend it, in fact I would recommend never eating aged brick if you don't have to.  It is so gross!  Happy day! :)

Rice Bowls on a plate

Well hello there.  Sorry it's been ages since I have written a blog but I have had the equivalent of writers block lately and have not been cooking.  I think it has left the building though, I am feeling motivated to create delicious things again :). 

Tonight I decided dinner had to be extremely healthy due to the extreme overload of food we consumed yesterday.  Seriously it was not necessary to eat enough to feed a small army but that didn't stop us!  So here is my weird healthy rendition of a rice bowl.

I started by poaching two chicken breasts in chicken broth with a little garlic seasoning and pepper.  Depending on what kind of rice you use and how long it takes to cook you may want to start the rice right away too.  I also cooked my rice in chicken broth.  I always cook rice in some sort of broth.  I like to insert flavor wherever I can. While the chicken was cooking I chopped up whatever random veggies I had in the fridge (pictured below).  It ended up being carrots, onion, red pepper, yellow pepper, and zucchini.  I also cut up a few cherry tomatoes and an avocado but kept those separate(didn't think they would taste very good stir fried).

Once the chicken was cooked, I diced it up and set it to the side.  Then I heated a pan rather hot and threw in a little olive oil.  I stir fryed the veggies for about 4 minutes.  Just until they were heated and starting to brown a little.  I still wanted them to be crunchy and delish.  Here is what they looked like.

Now for the assembly...
I stared with a bed of red leaf lettuce followed by brown rice, the stir fried veggie mixture, diced chicken, cherry tomatoes, and avocado to top it off.  Dustin ate his with western salad dressing but I just doused mine in lime juice.  I would have made cilantro lime rice but my cilantro is not quite big enough to use.  See...

Anyway back to dinner.  It was a perfect dinner to follow up a day of unnecessary eating!  This is what it looked like.  It wasn't pretty but it was so damn good!

mmm cookies

Today I am writing not to share my dinner but to share a cookie recipe.  I am sure you will laugh when you read this but man are these good.  I am also sure you have all made them but I don't care they are just soooo good!  My dinner by the way will be spaghetti.  Not fancy spaghetti, sauce from a jar and noodles from a box.  Speaking of boxes... these cookies also come from a box.  They are cake mix cookies! So easy and so yummy!  I  will put the link below if you would like to make them.  They seriously took me about 40 minutes from start to finish.  Fast, easy and, delicious!  Have a good weekend all! :)

http://www.vanessachristenson.com/2011/04/v-and-co-cooks-cake-cookies-with.html

Soy glazed salmon with sweets and beets

I am very excited to share this "recipe" today... It was sooo good.  I am totally not a salmon person but once in a blue moon it just tastes so good to me.  Today was that day. 
It is super easy, quick, and oh so good!

I started by peeling and chopping up some sweet potatoes and beets.  I kept them separate because the sweet potatoes cook a little quicker than the beets.  I tossed the beets with a little olive oil, balsamic, and some salt and pepper.  I put them on half of a foil lined sheet pan and baked them for 15 minutes in a pre heated 400 degree oven.  Then I added the sweet potatoes to the other side of the pan.  I just tossed the sweets in a little olive oil and salt before doing that.  Then cook the two of them together for another 40-50 minutes or until they are deliciously caramelized and yummy looking.  Here is what they look like while baking...

Next: the salmon...
 I just had some random salmon in the freezer so that's what I used but fresh would have been even better.  The glaze makes enough for 2lbs of salmon.
Glaze ingredients:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons white wine (i used water because I had no wine)
1 large clove garlic minced
i just mixed them all together until the sugar was dissolved
place the salmon on a foil lined sheet pan and pour glaze over the salmon.  Bake the salmon for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.  I basted the salmon a few times to keep glaze on the top.  I also briefly put it under the broiler at the last minute to brown it up.

the salmon halfway through cooking

My original plan was to make quinoa and mix it with the beets and sweets but I over cooked the sweet potatoes so I didn't end up mixing them together.  I just ate them together and it tasted amazing.  I just made a cup of quinoa and used beef stock instead of the water. 
Here is what I ended up with...

I will close with a quote from my lovely husband.  This is what he said when he was done eating.  "that meal was tasty, healthy, and left me feeling full"  I took that as a major compliment especially because he usually tells me that quinoa looks like maggots.  On that note I hope you try this recipe!

Lemon Pasta with Shrimp

Tonight I did something that I don't normally do.  I followed a recipe!  Well kind of... I only changed a few things. It turned out pretty darn good.  I must admit if you are not a lemon person it probably is not for you.  Here is the recipe...

Serves 4 to 6

Let the dish rest briefly before serving so the flavors develop and the sauce thickens.

Ingredients

• Table salt
• 1pound spaghetti
• 1/4cup extra virgin olive oil , plus more for serving
• 1medium shallot , minced (about 3 tablespoons)
• 1/4cup heavy cream
• 2teaspoons finely grated zest and 1/4 cup juice from 3 lemons
• 1ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup), plus more for serving
• Ground black pepper
• 2tablespoons shredded fresh basil leaves

Instructions

1. 1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta to boiling water; cook, stirring frequently, until al dente. Reserve 1¾ cups cooking water, drain pasta into colander, and set aside.
2. 2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in now-empty Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add shallot and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook until shallot is softened, about 2 minutes. Whisk 1 1/2 cups of reserved pasta cooking water and cream into pot; bring to simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat, return pasta, and stir until coated. Stir in remaining 3 tablespoons oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, cheese, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
3. 3. Cover and let pasta stand 2 minutes, tossing frequently and adjusting consistency with remaining 1/4 cup reserved pasta water if necessary. Stir in basil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, drizzling individual portions with oil and sprinkling with cheese.

The only things I did differently were... I used whole wheat bow tie pasta, onion instead of shallot (only because I didn't have a shallot on hand), and I also did not have any basil so I used spinach.  I strongly suggest using finely grated parm.  All I had was shredded and it was kind of a mess.  It turned into a big clump of cheese when added.  I made it work though.  It really doesn't thicken up if you let it stand too!
Thanks :)