It's A Wrap!

Jenn from No Lemon Juice made Caesar Club Sandwiches several weeks ago. I craved them the moment I saw them, except I'm not a fan of ciabatta bread sandwiches. I think it's too much bread to sandwich filling ratio. Does that make sense?

So I decided to make the dressing and make Chicken Caesar wraps instead. And they were yummy. The hubby liked them so much he even asked to have them for leftovers the next day, which he rarely does.

Caesar Dressing from Ina Garten

• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste*
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade (or in a blender) and process until minced. Add the anchovy paste, mustard, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and process again to make a smooth dressing.

Refrigerate the Caesar dressing if not using it immediately.

NOTE: *I couldn't find anchovy paste at my supermarket, so I got a small can of anchovy fillets and used that instead. I used about 4-5 fillets in place of the 1 1/2 tsp. of paste.

Chicken Caesar Wraps

• 2 Tortilla wraps
• Romaine lettuce, chopped
• 1 Chicken breast, sliced
• Caesar dressing
• Parmesan Cheese, grated
• Fresh ground pepper

Place the wraps on a plate. In the center of the wrap, pile the romaine lettuce in the center. Top with sliced chicken breast. Spoon the desired amount of dressing over chicken and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and fresh ground pepper. Wrap up and enjoy!

A New Twist

This is another dish my MIL turned me onto. She has made it for years and we love it, but I haven't always. When my husband and I first started dating, my MIL served this when I came over for dinner. I ate all the apples separately and pushed aside all the celery- just like a typical teenager.

She makes hers just the same but uses Miracle whip instead of the mayo and uses sweet relish. I am not a fan of bread and butter pickles, so I use dill relish. You can uses either combination depending on what you have or what you like. Enjoy!

Apple Chunk Tuna Salad

• 2 12 oz. cans tuna in water, drained
• 1/4 c. dry bread crumbs
• 1/3 c. mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp. pickle relish, sweet or dill
• 2 medium Red Delicious apples, cored and chopped
• 4 celery ribs, trimmed and diced
• 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped

Drain the tuna really well and and place in a large bowl. Break up the tuna with a fork and sprinkle the bread crumbs over it. Let sit for 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, core and chop apples into one inch chucks, leaving the skin on. Trim off leaves, and the thick white root of the celery and dice into small pieces. Set aside.

Once tuna has absorbed the bread crumbs, stir and in the mayo until creamy. Add relish then stir again. Add the apples and celery and mix til well combined and everything is fully coated. Lastly, fold in the chopped eggs, being careful not to break up the eggs. Serve with Triscuits or your favorite cracker.

NOTE: Don't skip the bread crumb. You need them to absorb the extra moisture in the tuna so it's not wet. And buy the tuna in water, not oil.

Stinky Girl - Stinky Cookies

Autumn's 4th birthday was in September. I made her some stinky dog treats and she loved them! Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

I made her cheesy bacon doggie treats last year when she turned 3, so this year I wanted to make something a little different. Not that she cares...I'm sure she'd eat the the same bacon and cheese bones everyday and not ever complain, but I like for her to have a diverse palette- ha!

I have a doggie treat book I found on clearance a couple years ago. A lot of the recipes have funky stuff in them like- desiccated bone meal, raw chicken and pork livers, kelp powder, processed cheese spread, and many more odd things that I do not keep in my house nor would I buy just to make dog treats. So I found a recipe for carrot and cheese dog treats and subbed the ground beef for canned tuna. They were so stinky but of course it smelled great to her!

Carrot & Cheese Dog Treats from Tasty Treats for Demanding Dogs

• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
• 2-3 tbsp. grated dried cheese (Parmesan)
• 1/2 lb. lean ground beef, cooked and finely minced (or one small can of tuna in water-do not drain)
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely grated
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder*
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 c. beef or chicken broth (if you use tuna, you don't need the broth)

1. Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Lightly grease or use parchment paper to line 2 baking sheets. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl combine both flours, cheese, cooked beef or tuna, carrots and garlic powder.

3. In a small bowl, using a wire whisk or electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs until foamy before beating in the broth.

4. Using a large spoon, a spatula or your hands, combine the two mixes, blending until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a soft dough. If the mixture seems a little dry add a little more broth a tablespoon at a time. If it is too wet add a little more flour.

5. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured flat surface, and using a rolling pin, roll out to 1/4-inch thick. Use a 1 1/2- inch round cookie cutter to cut out as many cookies as you can, reworking the scraps as you go. The dough will become stiff as it is reworked.

6. Place the cookies side by side on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the cookies appear very dry and the edges are lightly golden. Remove the trays from the oven and cool to room temperature. Turn off the oven.

7. When the cookies have cooled completely, put all the cookies on one cookie sheet and return them to the cooling oven. Leave them undisturbed (read: do not open the oven during this time) for 8-16 hours.

NOTE: I used the full amount (3 cups) of all-purpose flour. And I substituted the ground beef for a can of tuna in water. If you use the tuna, do not drain it. It is enough liquid that you don't need to add the broth.

These are fairly easy to make, you just have to make sure you allot the time to make them. I made them in the evening and left them in the oven (per the directions) over night. You really must not skip this step because the cookies need to dry out. Leaving them in the dry warm oven depletes their moisture so you can keep them longer at room temp. Doing this will also make them really hard, so don't be alarmed if they feel like hockey pucks. If they still have moisture in them, they will spoil- you don't want that and neither do your dogs.

Also, I used a 3x1 inch (bone shaped) cookie cutter and they baked for 45 minutes before they turned golden. This recipe made about 36 3-inch cookies. Depending on how thick you roll the dough and the size of the cutter, your results may vary. I then used a smaller 1-inch pumpkin shaped cookie cutter for the scraps.

*Some dogs may be allergic to garlic, so leave this out if it's a concern.

I promise your pooch will LOVE these! They're so much better for them than the store bought chemical laden variety and they're cheaper- win win!

**Don't forget to vote tomorrow!**

Say Cheese!

Cheddar Cheese Risotto from Nigella Lawson

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 baby leeks or 2 fat scallions, finely sliced*
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped (optional)
• 1 ½ cups risotto rice
• ½ cup white wine
• ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 4 cups hot vegetable stock or chicken broth
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, cubed or shredded**
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives (optional)

Melt the butter and oil in a medium stock pot and cook the sliced leeks, scallions, and garlic until softened.

Add the risotto and keep stirring for a minute or so, then turn up the heat, add the wine and mustard, stirring until the wine is absorbed.

Ladle in the hot stock, while still stirring, allowing it to completely absorb before adding the next one. Stir and keep adding stock until the rice is al dente and all the stock is absorbed, about 18-20 minutes.

Then add the cheese, stirring it into the rice until it melts. Take the pan straight off the heat, still stirring as you do, and then spoon into warm bowls. Sprinkle with chopped chives.

NOTE: You don't want to add all the stock at once. Slowly adding it to the rice and allowing it to absorb in between ladlefuls allows it to become creamy.

If you don't like Dijon mustard, leave it out, but you can't really taste it in the final product.

*I don't usually have baby leeks or scallions on hand, so I used half of an onion, finely chopped. And I don't sprinkle food with chopped chives or parsley just for the sake of garnish, so I skipped that step.

**Freshly cube or grate your cheese. The pre-shredded variety has stuff added to it to keep it from sticking together. This can sometimes make the final product grainy, and not creamy, which would ruin all your hard work. So buy a block of cheddar and cut it up yourself- it's usually cheaper in block form anyway.

This makes 4 generous servings. We ate this twice, once with sausage (ie: lil' smokies- slightly white trash, but good) and broccoli. And with pan seared shrimp and asparagus spears. I do have to say the leftovers were even better the second time around.

Farmer's Market Finds

We went to the Farmer's Market over the weekend and got lots of local goodies. One of our finds was colossal shrimp. They really were huge. There were 13 shrimp to a pound, so to say the least, they were sizable and filling. I ocassionally like to eat fried foods, but I don't make them at home because it uses so much oil, and it's messy. I found this recipe for baked coconut shrimp and it's really simple, quick and yummy.

Baked Coconut Shrimp from Better Homes & Gardens

• 24 fresh or frozen medium-large shrimp in shells
• 1 1/2 c. shredded unsweetened coconut, toasted
• 1/4 c. cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3 lightly beaten egg whites

Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Peel and devein shrimp leaving the tails intact. Rinse shrimp, pat dry with paper towels and set aside.

Spray non-stick cooking spray on the bottom of a 15x10x1- inch baking sheet, set aside. In a large shallow dish, combine toasted coconut, cornstarch, sugar and salt. In another small shallow dish place the beaten egg whites. Dip shrimp into the egg whites then coat with coconut being sure to press the coconut mixture onto the shrimp. Arrange shrimp in prepared pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until shrimp are opaque and coconut is golden. Serve with mango chutney or plum sauce.

NOTE: I have made this more than once, and I thought I would try it with pre-separated egg whites in the carton. It doesn't quite work the same. The egg whites in the carton tend to be watery and "real" egg whites are thicker which helps the coconut adhere to the shrimp.

I have served this with all kinds of sauces (apricot, plum, tartar and cocktail sauces) and they're all good. I served it with spicy mango chutney that we got from the farmer's market and it was a really nice balance to the sweetness of the shrimp.

Use your best judgement when choosing shrimp. I used 1 lb. of colossal shrimp (13 pieces) if you buy smaller shrimp you will need more, obviously, but don't buy 24 huge shrimp or you won't have enough coconut to go around.