Garlicky Pasta with Tomatoes & Basil

My grandpa was an Italian cook.  I'm not sure how much of his cooking skills I inherited, but one thing I have heard is that he was a big fan of garlic.  According to him, you can never have too much of it.  This recipe calls for 3 cloves per recipe, and since I doubled it, that would mean 6.  But, I listened to my inner-Italian and decided to add a few more cloves- just for good measure!  The result was not disappointing; my whole family loved this.  My mom said that it was good enough to be served at a restaurant.  It is a light and healthy dish that calls for a lot of tomatoes but it has an intense, explosive flavor! Yum yum yum!!

Garlicky Pasta with Tomatoes and Basil
from MyRecipes.com
Yield: 6 (1 1/3 c.) servings 

3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced (can add a couple more if you like a good garlic flavor)
5 cups chopped plum (Roma) tomatoes (about 2 pounds)
6 cups hot cooked bowtie pasta (about 12 ounces uncooked pasta)
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil or 2 Tbsp. dried basil
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper 

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add chopped tomatoes; cook for 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally. Add pasta, basil, cheese, salt, and pepper, tossing gently to combine.

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

The CREEPIEST thing happened when I was making this salad. The salad, oh it was divine, it is a recipe from the magazine Cooking Light on MyRecipes.com but let's just say that I have lost all faith in bagged grocery products.  As I was measuring out the 8 cups of romaine lettuce (I doubled the recipe),  I noticed a little critter in my bowl of greens.  A live WASP!  Needless to say I freaked out a little bit, but my mom came to the rescue and squished the little demon right there in the bowl.  The bowl that would contain our dinner.

Not even a WEEK ago, we were doing the same exact thing- measuring out cups of lettuce from a bag- and found a live MOTH that had been hibernating in there.  are you serious, people?!  These bags were two different brands, mind you, because after last week's episode we didn't trust the "Marketside" by Walmart brand.  Well I guess we can't trust any brands anymore.

We definitely threw the bug-infested lettuce away and luckily happened to have a fresh head of lettuce in the fridge, which is what we chopped up to use for this salad.

No more bagged lettuce for me, thank you very much.

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 1/2 cups)
DRESSING:
1/3  cup  chopped fresh cilantro
2/3  cup  light sour cream
1  tablespoon  minced chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
1  teaspoon  ground cumin
1  teaspoon  chili powder
4  teaspoons  fresh lime juice
1/4  teaspoon  salt

SALAD:
4  cups  shredded romaine lettuce
2  cups  chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts)
1  cup  cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2  cup  diced peeled avocado
1/3  cup  thinly vertically sliced red onion
1  (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1  (8 3/4-ounce) can no-salt-added whole-kernel corn, rinsed and drained

To prepare dressing, combine first 7 ingredients, stirring well. To prepare salad, combine lettuce and remaining ingredients in a large bowl.  Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat.  Serve immediately.
Tip: Add a spoonful of adobo sauce for a spicier salad.  Kidney or pinto beans also taste great in this dish.

Oatmeal Carmelitas

Oh hey.  Carmelita... hmm am I in Mexico? Sure not,  but these bars deserve some serious attention because they are dang good..  For father's day yesterday, my dad wanted me to make a dessert with chocolate and nuts.  Well this has the works- chocolate, nuts, oats, and lots and lots of CARAMEL.  

 I found this recipe at Let's Dish and knew I had to try it. This is definitely a guilty-pleasure recipe, let me tell you.  There is more butter in this than a doubled cookie recipe!  GUILTY but SO worth it!  Well these hit the spot, and my dad sure thought so too.  So here's to fathers, and a little carmel-ita lovin!

Oatmeal Carmelitas

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, very soft
2 cups flour
2 cups quick cooking oats
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts or pecans
1/4 cup flour
1(14 ounce) bag Kraft carmels
1/4 cup milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine butter, 2 cups flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt until crumbly.  Press 1/2 of the crumb mixture into a lightly greased, 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes; remove from oven.  Meanwhile, in another bowl, stir together chocolate chips, nuts and 1/4 cup flour; set aside.  In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the caramels and milk, stirring frequently until the caramel is melted and the mixture is smooth.  Sprinkle the chocolate chip and nut mixture over the warm crust.  Pour melted carmel over chocolate chip/nut mixture. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the carmel.  Return to oven and bake an additional 15 minutes.  Store completely cooled bars in the refrigerator.


*cheat sheet: you can melt the caramels in the microwave to save time!

English Muffin Pizza

Do you ever feel so busy and stressed for time that eating just seems at the back of your mind? But you know you need and want to eat something, and whatever it is, it's got to be halfway decent? Yes, I do too. I was craving pizza the other day.  But, #1: I had no time or desire to make it, and #2: I wasn't about to go buy one.

Well we had some english muffins in the freezer, so with a little defrosting, I concocted a little pizza experiment in my kitchen- one that I was pleasantly surprised with!

SUPER easy, and SUPER fast. And definitely kicks any pizza craving to the curb!


English Muffin Pizza


1 whole English Muffin, split in halves
1/4 c. part-skim, shredded mozzarella cheese
6 turkey pepperonis 
dash of oregano


Toast the English Muffin in the toaster until slightly crispy.  Sprinkle half of the cheese on each muffin half.  Top with three pepperonis on each half, followed by the rest of the cheese.  Microwave muffins for about 20 seconds, or until the cheese is melted.  Sprinkle oregano on top!


*You can also add Tomato sauce with Italian seasonings as the first ingredient underneath the cheese if desired, however this would take more time as you would probably want to broil the pizza instead of microwaving it.

"Healthified" Tres Leches Cake

I'm no good at Spanish, therefore you should not ask me to attempt to pronounce the name of this cake.  But it doesn't matter, because this cake was delicious and I could eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Seriously. Betty Crocker rocks.

Traditional "Tres Leches" cake is soaked in three milks to produce a moist, rich, and VERY sweet cake laden with fat and sugar.  This cake is also made with three milks, only healthier milks.

I suggest you make this for a family gathering or potluck or something of the sort; you don't want this to sit in your fridge for too long, or else you might just end up eating it all yourself!

Healthified Tres Leches Cake
from Betty Crocker

1 box yellow cake mix
1 1/4 cups water
1 tablespoon canola or coconut oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
3 egg whites
1 can (14 oz) fat-free sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
1 can (12 oz) evaporated fat free milk
1/2 cup fat-free (skim) milk or fat-free half-and-half
1 (8 oz) container frozen reduced-fat or fat-free whipped topping (like Cool Whip)
sliced fresh strawberries for topping, optional

Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.

In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil, vanilla, whole eggs and egg whites with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.

Bake 29 to 35 minutes or until edges are golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes. Poke top of hot cake all over with fork or wooden skewer, wiping fork occasionally to reduce sticking.

In medium bowl, stir condensed milk, evaporated milk and skim milk until blended. Slowly pour evenly over top of cake. Cover; refrigerate about 1 hour or until mixture is absorbed into cake.

Spread whipped topping over cake. Refrigerate until serving time. Garnish with strawberries. Store in refrigerator.

	1 Serving: Calories 280 (Calories from Fat 50); Total Fat 6g (Saturated Fat 3g, Trans Fat 1g); Cholesterol30mg; Sodium 300mg; Total Carbohydrate 49g (Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 35g); Protein 6g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 2%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 20%; Iron 4% Exchanges: 1 Starch; 2 Other Carbohydrate;

Eat This, Not That!

So about a year ago, I picked up a handy little book called "Eat This, Not That" by David Zinczenko at Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  I know, random place to buy a book on nutrition, yes?

Well.  Let me just say that I have greatly underestimated its nutritional guru-potential until recently.  It is pretty cool and extremely handy.

SO, I have decided that I will start by regularly sharing some of the tips that Mr. Zinczenko has given, because they are very helpful.  Hopefully these tips will inspire you, as well as inspire ME!! to adopt long-lasting healthy eating habits.  In this particular book, he talks about the supermarket do's and don'ts (I have another one that talks about restaurant foods- it will get blog attention too) and cuts straight to the chase about what you should and shouldn't buy.

To start, I'll list some tips that the book starts with:
 Secrets the Food Industry Doesn't Want You to Know.


1.  Numbers can be deceiving.
On the front of a box of  Reduced Fat Club Crackers-in large yellow letters- you'll find the claim, "33% Less Fat Than Original Club Crackers."  Their math is accurate- the original product contains 3 grams of fat per serving (4 crackers) while the reduced-fat version has 2 grams.  So, yeah its a 33% difference, but is it meaningful?  And, apparently the reduced-fat version has 33 percent MORE carbs than the original- perhaps because when they took out 1 gram of fat, they replaced it with 3 grams of refined flour & sugar.


2.  Food can legally contain maggots.
Unfortunately, the FDA limit on rodent droppings and other appetite killers in your food isn't zero.  They won't hurt you, but still.... that's gross.


3.  Long lines will make you buy more.
According to a study at UofA, you're 25% more likely to buy the sodas and candy around you when stuck in a long checkout line.  Also, those sneaky supermarkets design their stores so that the staple foods (milk, bread, eggs) are usually at the back of the store...


4.  Calorie Counts May be Wrong
This is because the FDA is more likely to punish food manufacturers for overstating net weight of a product than understating it.  So, often, your favorite snack, like an Oreo, will have a few more calories than you think you're eating.




Now isn't the government just great?!  I find that the biggest thing for me when I go to the store is that I end up buying a WHOLE lot more if I'm hungry.  Don't do it.  You'll end up buying cheap, fatty snacks that you otherwise would have skipped over.

Check out David Zinczenko's book and his other articles on his website, as well as stay tuned for additional advice...

and stay healthy this summer! :)

The BEST Lemon Bars

So here's the thing.  I have not always been a fan of citrus fruits.  Go figure, we had about 20 orange trees in our backyard during my entire childhood.

However.... in the past year or so I have grown a fond liking to this particular species of fruit; so much so that I have to devote this post to my love.

I don't know about you, but even if you have a teensy bit of favor towards citrus, you should really give these lemon bars a try.  They are a must.  I adapted the recipe from a  blog called "Let's Dish."  It's really amazing, check it out.  They were originally "key lime bars," but we ran out of lime juice, and so the recipe turned into lemon/lime bars.  Next time, I will just completely leave the limes out to mourn by themselves in their outcast state because I love lemons too much.

Okay, these were REALLY good.  It was Fast Sunday last week and I wanted to make a yummy treat for our delicious dinner we had planned..  Low and behold these bars were perfect...  seriously.  My family could not stop eating them!  The whole 9x13 pan was gone within hours.  Hence, the reason you should make these RIGHT NOW.

The BEST Lemon Bars

Ingredients
1 (18.25 ounce) package vanilla cake mix
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 egg yolk
4 eggs
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1/2 c. or so of powdered sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Reserve 1 tablespoon cake mix.  Pour remaining cake mix, melted butter and egg yolk into a large bowl.  Blend for 1-2 minutes with an electric mixer until well mixed and crumbly.  Press mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.  Bake for 10 minutes.  While crust bakes, whisk together 4 eggs, condensed milk, lime juice and reserved tablespoon of cake mix until smooth.  Stir in lemon zest.  Spread the lemon mixture over the warm crust.  Return to oven and bake an additional 20 minutes or until topping is set.  Cool completely and refrigerate until cold before serving.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and devour.