This has become one of our very favorite pasta dishes for summer. Why is it called “Picnic Pasta”? Because this dish is best served warm or at room temperature…which makes it perfect for taking on a picnic! (No refrigeration necessary). I hope you love it as much as we do!
Click here to get the full recipe and instruction.
Looking for something quick and delicious for breakfast, but don’t want to buy junk food from the store? Why not make some super easy and quick homemade poptarts?
1 package all-natural pre-made pie dough, enough for 2 pie crusts
Any flavors of jam you like, I used peach and strawberry. You could also use nutella, or nutbutters mixed with honey, feel free to get creative with your fillings.
1 egg to make an egg wash
sugar and cinnamon
Roll out the pie dough on a well floured surface till 1/8 inch thick, and try to make it as square as you can. Lightly brush the whole thing with egg wash. Mark into equal squares, rectangles or triangles, depending on the shape of your dough. Put 1 Tablespoon of jam in the center, making sure you have 1/2 inch all the way around. once you have little blobs of jam in each center, lay second rolled out pie dough on top and using a knife or pizza cutter and cut into shapes. Use a fork and cold along all the edges, pressing them together with the tines of the fork so that they are sealed. Poke some holes in the top with the fork to let out the steam as they bake. Brush tops lightly with egg wash, and sprinkle on some sugar and cinnamon. Put on parchment covered baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 22 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. Let cool on cooling rack, eat warm. Or, pop them in a toaster oven to reheat in the morning. Easy and tasty!
It’s Memorial Day weekend coming up, and that means picnics and grilling parties, right? Well, we have a great grilled beef salad to share today and it’s a favorite in my family. The beef has a wonderful flavor, and when topped on a salad, it’s a nice light summer meal. I hope you enjoy!
Ingredients
1 lb top-round London Broil or flank steak
3 T. lime juice, divided
3 T. low-sodium soy sauce
3 T. vegetable oil
2 T. brown sugar
1 t. minced garlic
1 1/2 t. minced ginger
1 t. chili garlic sauce (or red curry paste)
1/2 head red-leaf lettuce (or mixture of lettuce, I like an organic spinich mix)
3 green onions, thinly sliced for garnish
1 c. basil leaves, sliced into ribbons (optional)
Directions
Place the meat into a sealable plastic bag. In a medium bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of the lime juice, soy sauce, vegetable oil, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and red curry paste. Pour half the mixture into the bag with the meat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons lime juice to the bag. Seal tightly, and marinate meat in refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight, turning occasionally. Reserve the rest of the mixture in the refrigerator to dress the salad.
Spray grill or grill pan with cooking spray and preheat. Grill steak until medium-rare, about 5 minutes per side, depending on desired doneness. Let rest, then slice thinly against the grain.
Combine lettuce, green onions, basil and add the reserved salad dressing. Toss to coat. Divide salad among 4 places and top with sliced meat and additional green onions. Enjoy!
I love these scones. I learned to love to bake and cook from my grandma, and this post is especially for her. But wouldn’t these Vanilla Blueberry Scones also make a lovely mother’s day gift? {Mother’s Day is coming fast: it’s May 12, 2013}
Learn how to make these scones, and get the full recipe here.
Enjoy!
These Easter Surprise Rolls are simple to make and delicious! I made these growing up and I think since they are SO easy to make, we actually made them more often than just Easter time! They take only minutes to put together, and are so fun to make with kids (I know, I made them when I was one!) The surprise comes when you bite into one of the warm rolls and find they are EMPTY! What happened to the marshmallow?! Enjoy.
Easter Surprise Rolls
1/4 c. sugar
1 t. cinnamon
2 pkg. crescent rolls (refrigerated)
16 large marshmallows
1/4 c. melted butter
Dip large marshmallow into melted butter and roll in cinnamon and sugar mixture. Place in wide end of crescent roll, fold corners over and roll to point. Seal edges well. Dip point side into butter and place down in greased muffin tin. Place pan on cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Remove rolls from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Glaze while warm.
Variation: Place spoonful of canned apple pie filling in crescent roll and then put a large marshmallow on top of the pie filling. Fold, roll and bake.
Glaze:
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1-2 T. milk
1/2 t. vanilla
Whisk ingredients together. Spoon over warm rolls.
Note: If you try these rolls, let me know what you think! Do not forget to put a cookie sheet underneath your muffin tin. You will thank me for this later. Sometimes that marshmallowy goodness likes to seep out onto the botttom of the oven. I’d like to say this didn’t happen to me…{I’d really LIKE to say it…sheepish grin}
As a big fan of anything brunch, it’s hard to pick a favorite. But when it comes to Ebelskivers, they are definitely in my top 3 favorite breakfast foods! They are Danish pancakes – little, delicious pancake balls filled with apples, jam, nutella, or whatever tickles your fancy. They are very versatile, can be either sweet or savory, and takes only about 3 minutes to cook. (However, an ebelskiver pan is required, and you can get them at a number of retail stores, or online.)
This recipe I used apple filling to keep them more traditional.
Filling
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 Tsbp brown sugar, packed (I prefer dark brown to give in a richer taste, but you can use light brown if you prefer)
3 apples, peeled and grated
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
dash of ground cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger, and just a pinch of clove
Cook in over medium heat till a thick glaze has formed, about 20 minutes. Drain liquid and set aside.
Batter
1 3/4 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 egg yolks
1 1/3 c. milk
1/2 c. unsweetened greek yogurt (I prefer Fage brand 2%, it’s thick and works great in the batter)
1/2 tsp real vanilla extract
5 egg whites
6 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
1 Tbsp confectioners sugar
1/3 tsp cinnamon
In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients, in a medium bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks, then whisk in the milk yogurt and vanilla. Mix into the dry ingredients until well combined (lumps are normal). In a different bowl beat the egg whites on high with a hand mixer until stiff but not dry peaks for,2 or 3 minutes. gently fold in the egg white into batter in 2 parts. The batter should be very light and fluffy.
Heat the pan over medium heat and brush pan with melted butter, and make sure there is a little bit in the bottom of each cavity. drop 1 Tbsp of batter into each cavity and cook for 1 minute, then add 1/2 tsp of the apple filling and push it down with a wooden skewer so its covered in batter. Cook for 2 more minutes, then flip over. the bottom should be golden brown and slightly crispy. cook for about 3 minutes, till it’s all an even gold color, and repeat with remaining batter (should make between 30-40 ebelskiver). This step gets easier after the first batch or two, then you’ll get the feel for how to flip them with the wooden skewer or fork. Combine the confectioners sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and sprinkle on top of ebelskivers and serve with syrup. Delicious!
Quick Black Bean Tortilla Soup
When I am wanting a quick dinner that is healthy and delicious, this is my go to recipe. A little bit of chopping and just a few minutes of cooking and I have healthy meal that fills us up and is super tasty!
You need:
1 red onion, diced small (about the size of black beans)
2 red bell peppers, diced small
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, diced finely (and just a tough of the sauce if you like it really spicy)
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
3 c. vegetable stalk
2 cans black beans, rinsed well and drained
1 can corn, rinsed and drained
salt &Pepper
avocado, sliced
cilantro, washed and loosely chopped
corn tortillas
extra virgin olive oil
Put 2 Tbls olive oil in a pot and add diced garlic, onions, and red peppers. Cook for about 3 minutes on medium, till the onions soften and start to turn clear, and add the chipotle pepper and sauce. Cook for about 1 minute, add the cumin and stir well. after the peppers are soft and cooked, add the veggie stalk, beans and corn. cook on low heat till it’s heated through. Salt and pepper to taste.
While the soup is heating, cut corn tortillas in half, then into 1/2 inch strips. In a pan, heat enough olive oil to cover the bottom, and place strips in heated oil, and fry till they start to turn golden brown and remove from oil. place on paper towel to absorb extra oil and lightly salt.
place in bowls, garnish with slices of avocado, cilantro and chips. You can also add cheese, sour cream, or switch the avocado slices for guacamole for more decadence. Mm-mmm delicious!
Orange Bundt Cake – A Christmas Morning Tradition
1 yellow cake mix (Pillsbury)
1 small pkg. instant vanilla pudding
¾ c. oil
¾ c. orange juice
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla
cinnamon/sugar
Preheat oven to 350.
Mix all ingredients together, except the cinnamon/sugar. Beat 7 minutes. Grease the bundt pan well. Put half batter in pan and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Add the rest of the batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes. While this is baking, make the glaze.
Glaze:
3 T. butter
powdered sugar
canned milk
Mix this glaze together, adding a little powdered sugar and a little milk at a time. Make it not too thick and not too runny so you can spoon it on top of the cake and it will run (slowly) down the sides.
This time of year makes me want to eat everything pumpkin, whether sweet or savory. After trying many different recipes, this is one of my favorite recipes to make during the fall season. It’s delicious, decadent, and surprisingly simple to make. I found the recipe on abeautifulmess.com and have made some slight alterations of my own. I like mine a little more spicy and pumpkin-y, so if you want a lighter flavor, you can follow her recipe here. I also subbed half of the cream for a half and half, so cut out some of the fat and calories.
Ingredients
2 c. organic heavy whipping cream
2 c. organic half and half
1/2 c. pumpkin puree
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
small dash of ground clove
3/4 cup sugar, plus more sugar for the tops (I used a tablespoon for each ramekin)
6 egg yolks.
In a pot over medium/high heat, whisk together the cream, pumpkin, and all spices until well combined. Allow it to just begin to boil, stirring lightly constantly so milk doesn’t burn to bottom of the pot. After you remove that from the heat, separate the egg whites from the yolks, and either discard or save for later. Combine the sugar and egg yolks and mix with electric mixer until well combined and the yolks start to lighten in color. Pour 1/2 cup warm cream into the egg batter while the mixer is still running on low. Once that is mixed thoroughly, slowly add the remaining cream mixture, mixing as you go. Do not over mix. Pour custard batter into prepared ramekins. Have ramekins in a shallow baking sheet. Add water to the baking sheet until it reaches at least half way up the sides of the ramekins. This is a water bath. Bake at 325 F for 40 minutes. The centers should still have a slight jiggle, but the edges should not move. Take out of water bath and let cool thoroughly in fridge for a couple hours. Once cooled, add sugar to tops and if you don’t have a torch, broil in oven until the sugar is all melted let cool in fridge for 30 minutes before serving to let custard set up again. Mmmm, Delicious!
Peach Mango Salsa
4 peaches, pitted & diced
4 roma tomatoes, diced
1 mango, diced
1 green pepper, diced
½ red onion, finely diced
1 jalapeno, seeded & finely chopped
1 t. salt
1 T. sugar
Lemon juice from ½ lemon
Combine all together and allow to sit for 15 minutes for flavors to marry. Stir and serve as a dip, or as a compliment to tacos, salad, chicken or fish. Delicious!
