It's Fall...ish.

I really love this time of year even if it can still get up to 100 degrees outside! :( But I love Halloween and the months of October and November when it's cool enough in the evenings to open up the doors and windows and let in the breeze. I love the cute little sugar pumpkins, the butternut and acorn squash, and the many wonderfully comforting meals that Fall brings. I was especially feeling this way on Saturday and I wanted to make something warm and comforting. Around this time of year at Trader Joe's, you can get these chocolate chip pumpkin cookies that are SO good! I really didn't have the time to make cookies so I found a recipe for Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread! (No, I didn't make this recipe up. I know my weaknesses and realize that I'm not much of a baker...but I'm working on it!) This recipe made amazing bread! It was moist and full of pumpkin-y flavor! I only tweaked it a little by adding dark chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet and I also added walnuts because I like them. Anyway, here's the recipe (courtesy of mothermeetstheroad.com)...

-3 cups sugar
-1 15oz can of pumpkin puree

-1 cup vegetable oil

-2/3 cup water

-4 eggs

-3 ½ cups flour

-3 tsp ground cinnamon

-2 tsp ground nutmeg

-2 tsp baking soda

-1 ½ tsp salt

-1 cup dark chocolate chips
-1/2 to 3/4 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Spray 2 9x5 loaf pans with nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, water and eggs. Beat until smooth.
• Blend in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt.
• Fold in chocolate chips and nuts.
• Bake 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

This really hit the spot and I will definitely be making this a few more times before the season is over. I even thought that this would be a great treat to make and give to friends over the Thanksgiving holiday!

Cranberry Chicken Salad

Lately, I've been really bored with lunch...whether I'm packing one for work or just eating at home. It just seems like I've been having the same ol' thing...turkey sandwiches with provolone or ham and cheddar. Yawn! Last night, I was determined to come up with a fresh new sandwich. And what I came up with was certainly new and very flavorful. Here's what I did...

-1 large chicken breast

-1 large celery stalk, chopped 

-a large handful (about 1/4 cup or so) of dried cranberries

-a handful of roasted and salted sunflower seeds (about 2 TBS worth)

-about 1 TBS of fresh flat leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped

-1/2 cup of Greek yogurt

-1 rounded TBS of Miracle Whip or mayo (I know everyone has their preference, so use whatever you like.) 

-1 orange, zested

-a heavy pinch of parisien bonnes herbes (get it here:http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysparisienherb.html--for some reason, this didn't create a link, so just copy and paste this into your browser. ) You could also use a small amount of fresh tarragon, chopped.

-a generous sprinkle of the following: celery seed, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper

Now, this can be made from a rotisserie chicken or any leftover chicken, but if you don't have either of those then just take 1 large chicken breast and put it into a medium pot. Add enough cold water to cover the chicken by an inch or so. Add in the celery seed, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat and cook for about 10-12 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken. The internal temperature should read 160 degrees. Remove the chicken from the pot and let it cool. Once you can handle the chicken, cut it into small cubes and put it into a medium mixing bowl. Stir in the chopped celery, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds and parsley. In a small mixing bowl, add the yogurt, Miracle Whip or mayo, orange zest, parisien bonnes herbes, and salt and pepper to taste. Adding a little of the dressing at a time to the chicken mixture, stir until mixture is just moistened and everything is distributed evenly. Add more dressing to your specific tastes. Serve on a warm bun or toast and top with romaine lettuce or spinach or serve it on top of a bed of greens!

Typically, chicken salads have nuts in them, but I wanted to write this without nuts. My niece, Emmy, has a very serious nut allergy, as I know many kids do. She can eat sunflower seeds though, so I wrote this recipe for her. It's sweet and crunchy with a little bit of tang from the Greek yogurt and orange zest. The parisien bonnes herbes (I know I use this a lot, but it's so versatile and a delicious blend of herbs!) add a fresh depth of flavor. This was a great recipe to get me out of my boring sandwich rut! I hope you enjoy it too!

Lemon, Chicken and Orzo Soup

Ok, for all of you Paradise Bakery lovers out there, this may seem familiar to you. I first had this soup several weeks ago and immediately fell in love with it. It was so fragrant and delicious. I absolutely had to recreate it, but with my own spin on it. Here's what I did...

-1 large chicken breast, trimmed of fat and cubed
-1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of orzo (Orzo is rice-shaped pasta. If you like more pasta add more, if you like less, add less.)
-1 large carrot, chopped
-1/2 of a medium onion, chopped
-2 medium celery stalks with leaves, chopped (celery leaves are really flavorful, don't throw them out!)
-about 1 cup of frozen spinach
-1 can of white beans, drained and rinsed (cannellini or Great Northern beans)
-a small handful of flat leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped (for garnish)
-the zest of 1 large lemon (reserve the rest of the lemon for garnishing)
-2 bay leaves
-1 heaping TBS of parisien bonnes herbes (get it here: http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysparisienherb.html)
-about 1/2 cup of white wine
-48 oz of chicken stock
-shredded or shaved Parmesan cheese (for garnish)
-Salt and pepper
-Extra virgin olive oil

In a large stock pot or enamel dutch oven, heat a couple of TBS of olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, onions and celery, saute for about 5 minutes. Add salt, pepper, parisien bonnes herbes, and bay leaves and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and let it cook out for 2-3 minutes. Leaving the heat on medium, add the stock and bring it up to a gentle simmer. Stir in the lemon zest. Add the cubed chicken and let simmer for 10-12 minutes. (Add the orzo at this point if you're cooking it in the soup, otherwise see Cook's Note below.) Reduce heat to low, add white beans and frozen spinach and warm through, about 8-9 minutes or until pasta is tender. To serve, ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and a thinly sliced lemon wheel. If desired, squeeze some extra lemon juice into soup before serving. A hunk of crusty bread is a great accompaniment to this soup.

This soup is perfect for any time, but great if you're under the weather. It's quick and easy and just the smell of the lemon zest hitting the warm chicken stock is enough to start making you feel better whether you're sick or not! It's packed full of veggies and protein without skimping on flavor. This recipe will definitely be one of my go-to soups this winter season. Hope you give it a try!

***Cook's Note: If you plan on having this soup over several days or if your family happens to all eat at different times, then make the orzo in a separate pot and just add some to each bowl before serving. If you put the orzo into the soup and eat it over several days, you'll begin to notice that the orzo absorbs more and more of the liquid. It will bloat up and become mushy. You can make a large portion of orzo and once it's cooked stir in a small amount of olive oil to keep it from sticking together, cover it and put it in the fridge with the soup.

Balsamic Glazed Strawberries with Marscapone

It's been a pretty busy and crazy summer. So much has happened and I'm glad that the summer season is almost over. With that said, I have a great summertime dessert. I know I don't do many desserts, in fact, I think this may be first dessert post. See, I don't bake very often. I get caught up on having to measure everything and I don't do that when I cook. It doesn't seem like it, but it's actually quite liberating not to measure every little thing. That's what I like about this dessert...no baking and no measuring! :) Anyway, this dessert had everything that makes a great dessert. There were different and complimenting textures and tastes. Here's what I did...

-quartered strawberries, about 1/2 cup per serving
-thinly cut fresh basil, about 1 TBS per serving
-1 TBS Marscapone cheese at room temperature, shaped into a quenelle (a three-sided shape, see video below. Marscapone is an Italian style cream cheese, it's very rich with an heavy cream taste to it.)
-toasted pine nuts, slivered almonds can be substituted (toast nuts in a dry pan on medium low heat until golden brown, stirring frequently), for garnish
-1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar
-1 TBS honey


In a medium mixing bowl, combine quartered strawberries and fresh basil. Arrange in a neat pile onto each serving plate. Using 2 tablespoons scoop a heaping tablespoon of Marscapone and follow the video below to create the quenelle shape. Once shaped, place one quenelle on top of each pile of strawberries. In a small pot, combine balsamic vinegar and honey and simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes until slightly thickened, whisking occasionally. Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts or slivered almonds in a dry saute pan until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Garnish the strawberries and Marscapone cheese with the balsamic glaze and toasted nuts.

With the quenelle technique, you just need to keep scooping the cheese back and forth until it creates a smooth 3-sided shape.

This is a really classy dessert without a lot of work. Everything about this really works well together. The sweetness of the berries are balanced with the tartness of the balsamic glaze and the crunch of the nuts compliment the creaminess of the Marscapone. The basil adds a fresh burst of flavor. It may say odd to pair basil and fruit, but it really is delicious. I hope you give it a try! 

Pork Roll-ups with Tampenade and Parisien Smashed Potatoes

This idea came to me because I have made chicken roll-ups with various ingredients and I wanted to try the same thing using pork. I had just bought a jar of Carmelized Red Onion and Fig Tampenade from the Queen Creek Olive Mill (available here: http://queencreekolivemill.com/store/spreads-condiments/jarred-spreads/caramelized-red-onion-and-fig-tapenade-9-oz.html) and I've been wanting to try it. I paired it with pork because pork and figs go amazingly well together. Here's what I did...

-thinly sliced (or pounded) pork cutlets
-thinly sliced prosciutto (it's dry-cured ham)
-preferably aged provolone, but any provolone will work
-Carmelized Red Onion and Fig Tampenade (if you can't get this, you can just carmelize some sweet onions instead, but this adds such a sweet rich flavor to the meat)
-toothpicks

For a side, I made smashed potatoes. Here's what you'll need for those...

-Yukon gold potatoes, skins on (I know these are a little more expensive then the regular Russett potatoes, but they really are worth it. They are so silky smooth and have a completely different flavor.) Allow one potato per person and one additional potato for the pot.
-Parisien bonnes herbes (available here:  http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysparisienherb.html) or dried chives
-Chicken stock
-butter
-Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375. Lay the pork cutlets out on a cutting board (I recommend using plastic cutting boards anytime you're dealing with meat because they can go into the dishwasher to get sanitized unlike most wooden cutting boards) and layer 1 or 2 slices of prosciutto on top, followed by a slice of provolone cheese and about 1 TBS of the Carmelized Red Onion and Fig Tampenade. Gently, but tightly begin rolling the pork cutlet away from you, tucking in the prosciutto, cheese and onion mixture as needed. Secure the seam with the toothpicks. Salt and pepper the outside of the pork. Set aside to prep the potatoes. 

Leaving the skins on the potatoes (only if you're using the Yukon's), dice them into bite sized pieces. Place them into a pot then fill the pot with COLD water until it covers the potatoes by an inch or so. It's important to use cold water because warm/hot water can beginning "cooking" the potato and then they will come out mushy. With the cold water, the water and the potatoes come up to temperature together, which will result in evenly cooked potatoes. Cook the potatoes until the are fork tender (meaning, that when you pierce them with a fork, they slide off the fork easily) about 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Brown each side of the pork for about a minute or until it's golden brown. At this stage, you're not trying to cook it all the way through, you're just going to carmelize the outside. Once all the sides are browned, transfer the pork roll-up to a cookie sheet with a wire rack over it.

Place them in the oven and cook for about 15-18 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees. Allow the pork to rest for about 5 minutes before serving. While the meat is resting, drain the potatoes and add about 1-2 TBS of butter and a heavy splash of chicken stock and begin smashing them with a potato masher. Be careful not to over work the potatoes because they will get gummy. Once smashed, season them with salt, pepper, and about 1 TBS of the parisien blend or chives and stir to combine.

By now, you may have noticed that I'm somewhat of a spice snob...well, maybe snob isn't the right word, I should say I'm spice obsessed. As you know, I absolutely LOVE Penzey's Spice Market. They have such a great selection of unique spices, like the Parisien Bonnes Herbes mix that I used in the potatoes. It's a combination of dill weed, basil, tarragon, chives, chervil (it's an herb closely related to parsley) and white pepper. It completely infused the potatoes with a delicate fragrance and flavor. Matt and I both loved the pork roll-ups, too. The pork was a combination of all the great tastes: sweet and fruity, salty and savory and of course, cheesy. This is a simple recipe with big flavors and I really hope you try it!

**I apologize for the bad pictures. I had to resort to taking the pictures on my phone when I discovered that my camera battery had to be charged. 

Update

Wow, I can't believe how long it's been since I last blogged. So much has happened in the last few months with Matt graduating and moving back to Mesa, along with an unplanned trip to Kansas and a few other rough patches, but I know things will get back on track eventually. I've really missed blogging and trying new recipes, but I plan to try a few new ones this week. Tonight we are going to make calzones, which may or may not end up on here. We will see. I've also started something called Meat of the Month as a Facebook group. So, if you're on Facebook, you're welcome to join! Basically, we will be trying a new meat or a new style of cooking every month. Everyone is welcome! We will probably be having our first event next weekend. I'm pretty excited about it. I think it will be a fun way to try new things! I think I will also blog about it too and share the recipes and photos, so that if you can't come, you can still share the experience with us and try it at home! :) Some of the recipes to look for this week are a Jalapeno popper stuffed chicken breast and a Pork Roll-up (I haven't thought of a clever name for this one yet! :) Stay tuned!!

Biscuit Waffles

Biscuit waffles...biscuits made in a waffle maker! They couldn't be simpler to make and you can put anything in them! They are great for breakfast on the run or serve them on Saturday mornings with an egg on top. I'm going to share the recipe that I always make (Matt's favorite) and then at the end I will talk about other flavor combinations that you can try. Here's what I did...

-Bisquick mix
-1/2 cup of chopped ham 
-a large handful of extra sharp cheddar, grated
-2 scallions, chopped
-1 TBS of smoked paprika
-1/2 tsp of chipotle powder (or to taste)
-2 scallions, thinly sliced

*Makes 6 to 8 waffles

Preheat your waffle maker. Follow the directions on the side of the Bisquick box for biscuits, add the spices and double the amount of milk. Stir to combine. Then fold in the remaining ingredients. Spray your waffle maker with Pam and spoon a heaping 1/3 cup of the batter into the center of each waffle square. (Don't fill it too full or when you close it the batter will squish out the sides of the waffle maker and the center of the biscuit won't cook.) Let the biscuit cook for about 5 minutes. (Resist the temptation to lift the lid!) Repeat until all the batter is cooked making sure to spray the waffle maker between each batch. 



Now, I know this is going to sound strange, but I promise you that it's delicious...these biscuits are so good with raspberry jam. Seriously. The biscuits are smokey and spicy and the jam adds just the right amount of sweetness to compliment the spices, as well as the ham and cheese. Like I said, it may sound weird to you, but keep an open mind and give it a try. :) So, I also told you that I would give you additional ideas for different flavors. Here they are....

-Turkey, pepper jack (or swiss), chives (or scallions)
-Ground pork (cooked), green chilies, cilantro, ancho chili powder, smoked paprika
-Shredded veggies (carrots, zucchini, finely cut fresh spinach, etc). This one would be good if you need to sneak veggies into your kids. Top this one with cheesy scrambled eggs and they'll never know that there are veggies in the biscuit! 


I always make these biscuits on the weekend or in the evening to have for them ready for the week. They reheat up really well in a toaster or microwave and are easy to eat on the run. I hope you try this and enjoy them! I'd love to hear any flavor combinations that you came up with!