Mushrooms Carmelized Onion Broccoli and Cannellini Beans over Gluten Free Pasta

In the not so distant past, the only way I truly enjoyed onions was in the breaded and deep fried form. Lately I've found myself completely digging onions. I'm enjoying them in sandwiches, salads, breads... I'm loving red, yellow, white. Hot, mild, sweet. Bring on the onion! I only wish my husband would join my little onion club because right now I have to cook my onions ahead of time and then add them back into my portion of the meal. Come on man, get on board my onion boat! ;D


This is a delicious way to enjoy your onions. Caramelized and tossed with mushrooms, broccoli, cannellini beans, garlic, thyme and a splash of Balsamic. Heavenly!

Mushrooms Caramelized Onion Broccoli and Cannellini Beans
over Gluten Free Pasta
by theUngourmet

Serves 4

Print recipe

1 lb Gluten-Free Pasta, cook as directed on box (I used a Quinoa Corn pasta)
2 tbsp Earth Balance
1 small onion, thinly sliced
8 oz sliced crimini mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cup Whole Foods 365 frozen broccoli florets, slightly thawed
1 15 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp dried thyme
kosher salt to taste
1 tsp dried thyme
Splash of Balsamic

In a large skillet, heat Earth Balance over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until it reaches a light caramel color, stirring occasionally. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the broccoli, beans, thyme and salt. Cook until beans and broccoli are heated through, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Add a splash or two of Balsamic vinegar. Toss. Serve over pasta. Dig in!!

I don't know about you but I like to add a bit of kosher salt throughout the cooking process. Just be careful not to over salt!

I recently had the opportunity to sample several frozen fruits and veggies from Whole Foods 365 line. The broccoli in this recipe is from 365 and it was so fantastic! It was vivid green and had a wonderful flavor and texture. The price was so reasonable too, which is great during these penny pinching times we are living in.

Stay tuned for my official 365 post. I'll be putting together a wonderful spring millet salad. Perfect for Easter!

Happy Friday!






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market finds

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of working again with Cathy at a local farmer's market. I always make sure to do a bit of shopping while I'm there. While meandering through rows of tomatoes, green beans, squash, peppers, potatoes, greens, broccoli, brussel sprouts, basil, artisan breads, beer, wine... I spotted of couple of goodies I hadn't seen before.


These cuties were labeled Asian eggplant. Aren't they the cutest?! I think I'll probably roast these with a little olive oil, kosher salt and cracked pepper.



I ran across a couple of little girls eating these lovely apples and just had to go on a hunt for them.

Isn't the color spectacular! These are called Pink Pearls. They're a tart apple so I think they'll be great for baking.


Did you hit your local market this weekend? What did you find that you couldn't live without?





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island soyaki turkey meatballs and veggie stir-fry

Do you ever find yourself just making things up as you go along? This is how it went for me yesterday. I had ground turkey to use up as well as some nice zucchini from farmers market. I also had some of that extremely addictive Island Soyaki from Trader Joe's sitting in my fridge, leftover from another recipe. I tell ya, Trader Joe's should really open an online store! The creative ideas just kept on flowing and this was the end result.


My husband declared this meal to be delicious...I thought it came out pretty dang good as well. Next time I'll use ground chicken though. I think the flavor of the chicken would be better for this recipe.


The following recipe is sort of a guesstimate. I wasn't exactly measuring everything as I went along. Sorry about that. Play with it a little and see if you need a bit more sauce or panko to get the desired consistency.

Island Soyaki Turkey Meatballs with Veggie Stir-Fry
by theUngourmet

1 lb ground turkey or ground chicken
1/4 cup Trader Joe's Island Soyaki or your favorite teriyaki sauce and marinade
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp salt
cracked pepper to taste
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
thinly sliced scallions, optional (I didn't throw these in but next time I will)

panko and toasted sesame seeds for coating meatballs

Combine all ingredients. Form into 10-12 evenly sized meatballs. Place the panko and toasted sesame seeds into a medium bowl. Toss each meatball in the panko and sesame seeds until lightly coated. Place meatballs on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until done.

Serve with Stir Fry veggies tossed with more of the Island Soyaki sauce and brown or white rice.

Be sure and pour yourself some extra dipping sauce for the meatballs.

Print recipe

I've been wondering how my meatballs would turn out if I used tofu instead of meat. What do you think of this idea?

Hope your week has been a great one so far.




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tomato love

I picked up some lovely heirloom tomatoes at farmers market today. Aren't they just so pretty?! Once you've tried a fresh, ripe heirloom tomato you'll never look at those blah, tasteless store bought tomatoes the same way ever again.



I put together a nice tomato salad when I got home from the market.

I sliced them up thick



stacked 'em up



tossed on a bit of crumbled blue cheese, fresh basil, cracked pepper and creamy balsamic dressing



grabbed a fork...and a knife



and got busy!

Ode To Tomatoes
by Pablo Neruda

The street
filled with tomatoes,
midday,
summer,
light is
halved
like
a
tomato,
its juice
runs
through the streets.
In December,
unabated,
the tomato
invades
the kitchen,
it enters at lunchtime,
takes
its ease
on countertops,
among glasses,
butter dishes,
blue saltcellars.
It sheds
its own light,
benign majesty.
Unfortunately, we must
murder it:
the knife
sinks
into living flesh,
red
viscera
a cool
sun,
profound,
inexhaustible,
populates the salads
of Chile,
happily, it is wed
to the clear onion,
and to celebrate the union
we
pour
oil,
essential
child of the olive,
onto its halved hemispheres,
pepper
adds
its fragrance,
salt, its magnetism;
it is the wedding
of the day,
parsley
hoists
its flag,
potatoes
bubble vigorously,
the aroma
of the roast
knocks
at the door,
it's time!
come on!
and, on
the table, at the midpoint
of summer,
the tomato,
star of earth, recurrent
and fertile
star,
displays
its convolutions,
its canals,
its remarkable amplitude
and abundance,
no pit,
no husk,
no leaves or thorns,
the tomato offers
its gift
of fiery color
and cool completeness.

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Radish Butter with Lemon and Chives

Have you ever tried Radish Butter? I hadn't ever heard of it until I reviewed this Lee Brothers cookbook. I have been a radish lover for as long as I can remember. I love the crunch, I love the little kick of heat, I love the fabulous hues of red and pink. So...I had a feeling I would love this radish butter...and ya know what?! I do!



You probably have your Easter menu set in stone at this point but...



if you can add this one to your menu, I guarantee you'll be so glad you did! ;)

I added a bit of lemon and chives to the original recipe. I really think this just screams spring!

Radish Butter with Lemon and Chives
by the Ungourmet -inspired by the Lee Bros. Simple, Fresh, Southern

1/2 pound radishes
1 stick of butter, softened
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp chopped chives
kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste

In a food processor, pulse radishes until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium sized bowl. Stir in the butter, lemon juice, zest, chives, salt and pepper.

Serve with a nice crusty bread or crackers.

This butter would be a wonderful addition to an Easter brunch!

Wishing everyone a blessed Easter!




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Orange you wild about these sweet potatoes?

I was waiting in line at the supermarket the other day, trying to resist the urge to buy a half dozen of the magazines sitting there. I decided it wouldn't hurt to take a quick peek while I had a few moments to spare. During my page flipping I spotted a photo for sweet potatoes in an orange peel and it reminded me of the cupcakes I made last summer. Remember those? If not, click HERE. I can't remember now which magazine it was. It might have been Taste of Home. I didn't have time to peek at the recipe so I just came up with my own.

Sweet potatoes in orange cups
serves 4

1 very large sweet potato
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp low fat buttermilk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 oranges cut in 1/2 and hollowed out
(You can squeeze the juice out and reserve it for another recipe.)
24 mini marshmallows
4 tsp brown sugar
nutmeg

Peel sweet potato, cut into chunks and cook in boiling water until tender. Drain. Whip potatoes with butter, buttermilk, ginger, salt, and pepper.

Scoop mashed potatoes evenly between the 4 orange rinds. Top each with 6 mini marshmallows, brown sugar and nutmeg.

Place into a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. Watch that the marshmallows don't get too brown.

I think these are so fun for Thanksgiving. You can easily adjust this for the amount of guests you are inviting.

Have a nice Sunday!

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Watch out! You're squashing my hashbrowns!

Recently, I spotted a couple of recipes for spaghetti squash that looked mighty tasty! Reeni posted a fabulous Spaghetti Squash with Lemon Garlic Sauce and Ricotta and Katy shared a delicious Spaghetti Squash-Coconut Pie recipe.

The last time I did my grocery shopping I spied spaghetti squash so I grabbed one and headed home to do some recipe surfing. I found an interesting recipe for Spaghetti Squash Hash Browns. Hmm. What an interesting idea!

I found this recipe at Healthy Recipes For Kids. I went ahead and followed the recipe. These were nice but lacking...something. Garlic? Herbs? Horseradish in the sour cream?

Ingredients

1 medium spaghetti squash, baked (I only used 1/2 of the squash for this recipe.)
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup grated parmesan
4 tbsp butter or olive oil
salt and pepper
sour cream for garnish

To bake squash simply cut in half, scoop out the seeds cover and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until tender.

Mix squash strands with flour and cheese. Heat butter or oil in skillet. Using a 1/4 cup of mix for each "hashbrown", pat and press to form into a thick patties. Place patties into skillet and cook until nicely browned and crisp on both sides.

Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

These were pretty good but I think they could be even better.

Any ideas on jazzing these up a bit??? Please share!

I also wanted to say a great big thank you to POM for sending me 3 varieties of their new Iced Coffee to try. There is Cafe au Lait, Vanilla, and Chocolate. All three are creamy, rich and delicious. Pick some up when you have a chance!

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stuffed shrooms

This was our first week of school and it was a bit of an adjustment. I had every intention of switching our bedtime way before the start of school so that it wasn't such a shock but you know how that goes. "The best laid plans, blah, blah, blah...". I had so much trouble getting to sleep at the earlier time. My mind would not shut up! That is how this recipe came to be. My mind was on my blog and what fun recipe I would come up with next.

I couldn't find a recipe online for this anywhere so this is an original of mine. It's quite tasty!

What you will need for this recipe :

6-8 large portabello mushrooms
4 medium yukon gold potatoes
3 cloves garlic, squashed a bit
1/3 cup light cream cheese
2 oz crumbled feta (blue cheese would be awesome too!)
5 slices of turkey bacon, chopped and cooked crisp
1/3 cup chopped mushrooms, sauteed in a little butter and olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper
1/4 cup chopped chives
cracked pepper
malt vinegar

Gently brush the mushrooms to clean up a bit. Use a spoon to scrape off the gills (I just learned what these were called.). Brush with olive oil and place top side up (flip from how they are in this photo) and place into a 425 oven for just 5 minutes. Remove from oven. Set aside.

Peel and cut potatoes into chunks. Cover potatoes and garlic with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender. Drain. In a large mixing bowl combine the butter, cream cheese and potatoes. Whip them into shape! Add the feta, bacon, mushrooms, and chives. Mix until well combined.



Place a generous amount of potatoes onto the inside of each mushroom. Drizzle with malt vinegar. Place back into the oven for 8-10 minutes or until potatoes are nicely browned. (I only left mine in for 5 minutes. I should have left them in a touch longer to brown.)

*You can actually cook the mushrooms while the potatoes are boiling to save time.*



The flavor in these was absolutely terrific!

Try them, try them
you will see;

you can eat them
in a tree.

In a boat
or on the shore;

they will leave you
wanting more!

To go vegetarian with this recipe just substitute a veg bacon. This could also go vegan I think by substituting the butter for margarine and using vegan cheese alternatives. There are such great ones out there now!

I have had requests for more vegan and vegetarian choices and I promise to post them soon. I have been scouring my veg cookbooks for ideas.

Print me!



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Friday's Try a Bloggy Friend's Recipe Day and a Couple of Awards

Today's recipe is from a super terrific blog called Eats Well with Others. The proud owner of this blog is Joanne. Joanne resides in the Big Apple and is studying to become a doctor. She is bright and ambitious, a devoted runner, a fabulous cook, and such a beauty. What a catch! ;0)

I saw this Summer Squash Casserole recipe over at Joanne's place and I knew I would LOVE it!

I only made a couple of changes to this fabulous recipes. I added some chopped garlic to my cheese sauce and I used Panko bread crumbs in my topping. Please click HERE for Joanne's recipe!

I could NOT stop eating this! I kept sneaking back into the kitchen and eating it right from the baking dish. It is so cheesy and delicious! You must try it!

Be sure to hop on over to Eats Well with Others!


I also wanted to send out a very big thank you to Stephanie for this sweet award. Stephanie is such a sweetheart. Her blog is called The Creative Side of Me and it is full of wonderful recipes and great giveaways. Please hop over and say hello to her as well!

This award is from a very Cool Cat that goes by the name of Doggy Bloggy! You will find him over at Chez What?, which is one of my new found favorite blogs. Me thinks he has missed his calling. He really should have his own restaurant. Go check out the wonderful Julia Child videos Doggy Bloggy has in his last couple of posts!

I am supposed to share 7 or so things about myself. I really prefer to toot other people's horns, but since I haven't really played along in a while I thought I would give it a shot.

1. I have a huge crush on Johnny Depp. (How lame is this?!)
2. I have only been to one big concert and that was Alan Jackson and Martina McBride.
3. I was a PK. (Preacher's Kid)
4. I have Raynaud's Syndrome so I really hate the cold.
5. I lived on a houseboat for a while in my twenties. I loved it.
6. When I was in high school I had a guinea pig named Benny.
7. I would love to get a cupcake tattoo.

I would like to pass these two awards on to all of you! Thank you so much for stopping over my way every day. It's such a pleasure getting to know all of you! :0)

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Auntie Pasti's Salad and a Wrap

So far the month of August has been busy, busy, busy! There is so much hustling and bustling going on you'd swear it was the Christmas Season, except for the 100 degree temperatures! My children have been accepted into a new school and the supply list is 3.25 miles long! There are also uniforms that need to be purchased. Normally I am a last minute shopper but I am making it a goal of mine to get everything done and out of the way ahead of time so that we can just kick back and enjoy the rest of the summer.

Since we have been so busy (and roasting in this heat wave) I haven't felt like getting too complicated with meals.

Today I whipped up some of my Auntie Pasti's Salad. I don't really have an Auntie Pasti, I just think it sounds a lot more fun than antipasti salad, don't you!

This is bright, zippy and fun!

Here is what you'll want to throw together:

1 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup sliced olives
1/2 cup sliced pickled banana peppers
2 oz of Jack Cheese, sliced
2 green onions, sliced
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
salt and cracked pepper

Place ingredients into a bowl and toss. Serve immediately or chill until ready to serve.

You can also do what I love to do and put a bit of this salad into a wrap with a little cream cheese and some grilled boneless pork chop leftovers. Mmm. Just like my Auntie used to do it. ;0)



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