Sunday PIcnic

Last week I was looking so forward to my Sunday picnic and enjoying the beautiful weather we have been blessed with, but sure enough, Sunday rolled around and it was cloudy and kinda cold. Well, cold for me...in the 60s. Not really the ideal picnic weather! I was pretty upset inside, but after all my planning and preparing I was determined to make it work, so we conducted our picnic indoors. Thanks to my sister and Matt

I have the cutest plaid dishes to complete my indoor picnic theme.

Menu

Panzanella Salad

Curried Chicken Wraps

Strawberry Cake Jars

All the beautiful vegetables that went into the panzanella salad

Curried Chicken Salad

Even though my picnic didn't work out exactly how I planned, it was still an enjoyable, relaxing day with my husband with great food! I will make my outdoor picnic happen sometime soon! What is your favorite Sunday activity?

Spring in a Jar

The weather has been so nice here in Orange County lately that I have been contemplating having a nice picnic outside for a while now. I have been envisioning a nice Sunday afternoon spent outside enjoying nature, away from Television, Computers, iPhone....just relaxing outside. Hearing the birds chirp and stuff like that.

I saw a recipe for Strawberry Layer Cake and it just seemed like the perfect inspiration for my Spring picnic. I am not an advanced picnic planner or anything, but I do know that a cake is not that portable. Stubbornness took over and I came up with the idea of making mini layered desserts with the cake in jars. Seemed like the perfect answer because there is no way Brian and I alone could eat a whole cake. I ended up with enough little jars to give to people and freeze a few for a rainy day!

Ingredients for Dessert in a Jar:

Small Wide Mouth Jars

Large Plastic Ziplock Bag or Piping Bag

Round Cookie Cutters

1 pint Strawberries, cleaned and sliced, stems removed

1. Make the cake as directed. Let cool completely. Find the appropriate size round cookie cutter to fit the bottom of the jar and cut out the cake to fit. You will only need one of this size per jar. Then find a slightly bigger size cookie cutter to fit higher up in the jar and cut out one of this size for each jar.

2. Once you have cut out all your cake pieces, place a small one in the bottom

of each of your jars.

3. Pour all your frosting into your plastic bag (or piping bag) and push it all to one corner in the bottom of the bag. Do not zip the top closed there will be too much air inside.

Twist the top of the bag gently and pipe a little frosting on top of each cake round.

4. Arrange a layer of sliced strawberries over the first layer of frosting.

Top with the second (larger) cake round.

5. Pipe another layer of frosting.

6. Top with sliced strawberries.

You are done! Aren't they cute?! Stay tuned for a Pie version!

Take me to Italy

I was pretty impressed when I tried this gelato at Bristol Farms the other day. I am not a fan of ice cream, but who doesn't like gelato? It is heavenly. Never have I tried a gelato out of a container at the store that tastes right though. I was in shock when I tasted this and had to bring some home so Brian could try it also. I was thrilled to find out they had our favorite flavor from our honeymoon which this company calls, "Carmel Cookie Crunch"!

They also make a line of sorbetto which is really wonderful also. I have tried the Roman Raspberry and the Blood Orange which are both really good. I have yet to find the Peach Champagne and I am starting to get discouraged. You can find these products at a ton of retailers though, I checked their website! Try this out...you will love it!

Flavor Explosion!

I was pretty thrilled the other day to find this somewhat hidden section of healthy recipes on the food network website the other day! In this little treasure trove was this a recipe for a Chicken Scallion Rice Bowl. I think the title is horrible really. It is so much more than Chicken, Scallions and Rice in a bowl. It is a flavor explosion!

The flavor of the broth comes from Fresh Ginger, Mushrooms, Scallions and Basil and it is delicious. I would say this soup tastes most like Pho and you could easily substitute the brown rice for thin rice noodles. It is fresh and light, but still plenty filling and like

the Vietnamese say, "It will stick to your ribs"!

Chicken Scallion Rice Bowl

Ingredients:

6 Cups Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth

2 Cups Water

2 Tablespoons Mirin

1 Tablespoon Fish Sauce

1 Bunch Scallions, about 6

4 ounces Shitake Mushrooms, caps sliced, stems removed and reserved

1 two-inch piece fresh Ginger, peeled and sliced

6 Garlic Cloves, sliced

1 small bunch Basil, plus some leaves for serving

1 large Chicken Breast, 12 ounces

1 Red Jalapeno, thinly sliced (ribs and seeds removed for less heat)

1 Cup Shelled Edamame

1 Cup Julienned Jicama

Kosher Salt

2 Cups Hot Cooked Brown Rice

Lime Wedges

Directions:

Combine the broth, water, mirin, and the fish sauce in a large saucepan. Cut all but one scallion into 1-inch pieces and add to the broth with the mushroom stems, ginger, garlic and bunch of basil. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to simmer until reduced by half, about 45 minutes. Remove all the solids from the broth using a

strainer or slotted spoon and discard.

Add the chicken, sliced mushroom caps, and jalapeno to the broth; adjust the heat to keep the broth at a gentle simmer and cook 12-14 minutes (mine took about 16 minutes) or until the chicken is just cooked through.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and slice into 1-inch pieces.

Remove the broth from the heat; Stir in edamame, jicama, and sliced chicken. Season with salt. Scoop 1/2 cup of the cooked rice into each bowl and ladle some of the soup over it. Slice the reserved scallion on an angle and sprinkle over each bowl along with basil leaves. Serve with lime wedges, if desired. I also served this with some sriracha.

Beautiful Broth

Ta da! This was a very relaxing meal to make. I was able to sit on the couch and watch my DVR while the broth simmered and made for a very nice evening!

Biggest Loser Night

In honor of the Biggest Loser, one of my favs, I thought it only appropriate that I make my favorite recipe courtesy of my favorite contestant I have seen on The Biggest Loser.

Wow! That is a lot of favorites...

The Biggest Loser is inspiring. It is motivating. It is heart-felt. It is about real people trying to change their lives. Most of all, whenever I feel like sleeping in instead of going to the gym, I think to myself if those people are working out, so can I. Say what you want about Biggest Loser, but if you would rather pollute your brain with the likes of people named Snooki or

The Situation, then let's just agree to disagree!

Back to Tara, my fav contestant. She was on a couple seasons ago and kicked everyone's butts in every competition. I am fiercely competitive and thought she had so much drive and heart behind her weight loss. It was great to watch! I am still bitter she didn't win, but I still love her and she made this recipe for Turkey Mini-Meat loafs. They are tasty, flavorful and low-calorie. You can make them, eat them, freeze them, make sandwiches out of them, chop them up to put in omelets. They are just a great all around basic to make!

On top of it, they are cute!

Disclaimer: I hate meatloaf. I have never tasted a meatloaf I have liked besides this...

so try it. You will not be sorry.

Tara's Turkey Mini Meat loafs

Ingredients:

1 small yellow onion, coarsely chopped

1 medium carrot, coarsely chopped

1 stalk of celery, coarsely chopped

2 canned chiptotle peppers in adobo sauce

1, 20 oz, package lean ground turkey breast

1/2 cup quick cooking oats

2 egg whites

Topping:

1/4 cup fat free & sugar free ketchup

1 Tablespoon chipotle pepper in adobo sauce

1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar Substitute

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the work bowl of a food processor, combine onion, carrots, and celery. Pulse until finely chopped. Add chipotle peppers and pulse until just combined. In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey with the pepper and vegetable mixture. Add egg whites and oats; gently mix until combined. Place about 1/3 cup of the prepared mixture into wells of a standard size muffin pan that has been lightly sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all of the topping ingredients in a small bowl; set aside. Remove meat loaves from the oven and spoon the topping over each one. Return meat loaf to the oven and continue to bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until meat loaf is firm and the internal temperature registers at 170 degrees. Let meat loaf stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 9-12 mini meat loafs. Calories per serving 110. Protein 16 grams. Fat 1 gram.

I used my Cuisinart Mini Prep Food Processor to chop the Mirepoix. It is one of the best kitchen tools I have. A lot of people have emailed to ask me how I manage to use my food processor, clean it, and not complain about it....I don't use my big one. I would much rather use this little guy! It is the best investment!

This is what the Turkey mixture should look like when you are done mixing

Aren't they cute!? Did you watch Biggest Loser this week?

Makes me want to go to New Zealand immediately...

Pineapple Express

It has been SO hot down in the desert lately that I only want things for dinner that are light and refreshing. I don't even know where spring went, it seems like it was winter and then summer. No transition at all. This Pan-Seared Salmon with Pineapple Jalapeno-Relish seemed like it would be filling enough for dinner and light enough that I would actually want to eat it.

I was able to find a really nice ripe pineapple at the store and after making the relish I had enough left over for snacks during the week. I love when I can use ingredients more than once! I also brushed some of the spice rub on the corn with some "I can't believe it's not butter" spray and roasted them. Try out this recipe for fresh, flavorful summer dinner!

True Food Reinvention

I have been wanting to try this restaurant called True Food in Fashion Island for some time now and I was so excited to go there with Brian's dad and Linda the other day to celebrate Brian's birthday! The food was excellent and healthy which is the best combination

don't you think??

When we left all I could think about was going back, but we were headed down to the desert that week. What was I to do? Recreate what I had for lunch! I also have been throwing some ideas around in my head for a while for a flat bread. I thought my new flat bread and the salad I had at True Food would make an excellent pair!

I even had to recreate my drink I had also! It was really refreshing and didn't seem to complicated to duplicate. I highly recommend this place and if you aren't near one of their two locations, try my recipes below.

Date Gorgonzola Flat Bread

Ingredients:

1 piece whole wheat flat bread

2 dates, chopped

2 tablespoons apricot jam

1/2 onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons Gorgonzola cheese

Olive oil

Directions:

Preheat Broiler.

Drizzle a olive oil in a small pan and heat over medium heat. Combine onion and garlic in pan and saute over medium heat until onions are caramelized and lightly browned.

Put piece of flat bread on a piece of foil sprayed with cooking spray. Put in oven for 3-5 minutes depending on your oven, just till slightly crispy. Remove from oven.

Spread the jam evenly over the flat bread, with the back of a spoon is easiest. Spread onion mixture over the top. Sprinkle dates and cheese evenly.

Put back in oven for 3-5 minutes until cheese is melted and bread is golden brown.

Slice and serve...enjoy!

Spring Chopped Salad

Ingredients:

4 cups Spring Mix Greens

4 Strawberries, sliced

1/4 cup Goat Cheese, crumbled

1 cup Sugar Snap Peas, ribs removed and roughly chopped

1 Roasted Chicken Breast, skin removed and shredded

(I just used a rotisserie chicken that I bought at the grocery store)

2 Tablespoons Almonds, sliced...optional

Balsamic Vinaigrette (I used a fat free one from Trader Joe's)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients but dressing in a large bowl. Toss gently. Drizzle with dressing and toss and serve amongst several plates. Enjoy.

Hangover Rx

Combine 1 can Coconut water, 1/3 cup pineapple juice, and 1/3 cup orange juice and stir. Serve!

This drink is really refreshing and healthy and makes a perfect compliment to everything on this menu. I hope you try out some of these recipes and leave me your comments!

Have a wonderful evening!

On the Search

I had fully planned on making these Pesto Halibut Kebabs, but of course when I got home the only necessary item I needed was something to skewer the fish on and I had zero. I don't know where my brain was at when I was getting all the ingredients for this dish, but I found myself searching high and low for something to make this happen. Believe me...I considered all the options and tried to use all my skills I learned from Macgyver, but alas I found nothing.

What is a girl to do? Rethink the whole thing. I opted for simple and effective because at this point I was more exhausted and hungry. I decided to slice up some vegetables I had on hand including the peppers I was going to use for the kebabs and just pan saute the whole thing. I just brushed some of the pesto on the fish front and back and threw it in the pan with the rest. A couple minutes on each side later it was finished and delicious!

So easy, regardless of the skewer conquest.

Everything in the pan sauteing

I also boiled some garlic pasta I found while searching for the kebab materials and tossed it with a tablespoon of the pesto and some Parmesan. It was very tasty and went along with my on-the-fly meal preparation theme that seemed to be taking place!

Sometimes no matter how hard I try to have all the right ingredients, make perfect dinners and relax after a long day it usually doesn't happen the way I want it to! I will keep trying though!

Friends

We were so lucky last week to have our friends Russ and Paula in the desert! Brian and Russ are long lost brothers and from the moment they set eyes on each other it was kismet. I knew as soon as I saw them sharing food there was no stopping his obsession with "Russ Dog". Not to mention that Paula is the sweetest, most fun person on the planet and we couldn't stop talking all night either. We went to Okura, our favorite Sushi place down here and as usual it was wonderful and has a fun atmosphere. AND Saki Bombs. =)

I can't explain how thankful I am to be seeing so many of my friends lately. After college when I first started working it was difficult to find a balance between work, family and friends, but now five years later I am so happy I have found a way to do everything! Between Bikram Yoga, Strolling around Balboa, a Cooking Class or Shopping...
I am lucky enough to have a buddy for everything!

Oh, look at the lovely couple! If Brian ever leaves me, I know he will be with Russ...

Tickled Pink

Kate Spade recently opened near my work in Palm Desert and I am so excited about this! At this very moment I am drooling over this new green bag that just came in last week. I can't stop thinking about it because it is the world's cutest shape and my very favorite color.
It will be mine with my card for 20% off by the time the weekend is over!

Last week I was in there with my mom and I found these most adorable cards. I am a sucker for stationary and had to have them! They are made by Crane for Kate Spade and they are so cute. I love the color and the little saying on them. The saying sums things up better than a regular ol' "Thank you". Only downside is that they only have 10 cards inside and I am sad I will run out so quickly. I guess that means I can go get the other ones I liked that said,
"Small Card. Big Thank you".

hmmmm....

What do you think? Don't they just make you smile!?!

And You Thought You Hated Tofu...

I have met very few people who are raving about tofu, but prepared the proper way can be very delicious! Tofu has many nutritional benefits as well because it is high in protein, low in calories and fat, high iron and a great source of calcium.

Poor Brian doesn't digest cheese or milk products very well, but he loves Alfredo sauce. To his body that is like the devil, so I developed this recipe to give him that rich creamy texture he likes with pasta, but with a fraction of the cheese, fat and calories. I have made this to bring to friends before and no one ever can believe it is tofu and not cream sauce.

Creamy Baked Penne Casserole
Ingredients
1/8 cup Olive Oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 pinch dried oregano
28 oz can crushed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
2 1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 package, about 14 oz) Firm Tofu, drained
10 oz package frozen spinach, defrosted and drained
2 cups chopped fresh broccoli
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 large egg
1 pinch grated nutmeg
1 lb box penne, ziti, rigatoni (whatever you feel like)
2 cups freshly grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 pinches crushed red pepper depending on your taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large pot boil water and cook pasta till al dente, do not over boil!

While pasta water is heating, in a very large saute pan heat oil and add onion. Saute for 2-3 minutes, add garlic, and broccoli and saute till the onion is translucent.

Add crushed tomatoes, mushrooms, oregano and crushed red pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, using a blender or food processor combine the tofu, egg, nutmeg, salt, pepper and process till smooth.

In a large bowl fold the spinach into the tofu mixture. Once well combined, add the penne pasta and the tomato mixture. Fold in half the mozzarella and Parmesan.

Spray two 13 x 9 inch baking pans with cooking spray liberally. Transfer pasta mixture evenly between both pans. Pour the tomato sauce evenly over the two pans. Sprinkle the cheeses evenly between the two pans.

Bake until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Let cool before serving for about 10 minutes.


Tomato Mixture Sauteing


Boiling the Pasta


About to pulse my tofu sauce
(Just noticed my wine glass is in the back of this... can you tell it was a long day?)


How creamy and delicious does this look?? Tofu is gross...I do not think so!


Freeze one of the casseroles for a rainy day! Skip the baking and Freezes well! When you are ready to use it, defrost and then bake as directed. Or bring to a friend...everyone loves a home cooked meal that they don't have to prepare!


Finished dish! Look how beautiful!

I dare you to try this...you will be surprised how great it is!!

My Kind of Slam Dunk

I am always looking for recipes that either require a large percentage of items I have at home or that require very few items that I have to go buy. Why?

-I live 5 floors up from my car and want to carry the least amount possible

(Yes, I have a cart, but I am too stubborn to use it)

-It is less expensive

-If I buy some weirdo ingredient, I like to use it as much as possible

This Beef Noodle Stir Fry not only captures a lot of my favorite flavors, but also contains a lot of things I have in my pantry! It was flavorful, extremely fast to make and delicious. Actually, it was so fast to make, it was done before I had my Miso soup ready to go. Whoops! Dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes? I think that is a slam dunk!

Miso Soup

Ingredients:

4 cups Water

3 Tablespoons Miso Paste

6-8 oz Silken Tofu, diced

2 teaspoons dashi granules (or 4 teaspoons fish stock)

3 Scallions Sliced

Directions:

Using a medium saucepan, combine water and dashi and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and stir in miso. Add tofu and scallions. Simmer for 3 more minutes. Serve.

I ended up using the thin rice noodles because I forgot that is what kind I have at home, but it worked fine. Next time I plan on buying the wider ones because I like them best!

You could only find a big package of tofu and don't know what to do with the rest?

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post! Happy Stir frying!

Sweet Endings

I love dessert. There is nothing like a bite of something sweet after dinner, but if I ate dessert every night after dinner I would have to spend at least another hour working out every day to keep off the extra 50 pounds I would most likely gain. Brian on the other hand does not feel the same way as me and complains every night about our dessert selection, which mostly consists of a variety of beautiful fruit.

Fruit is wonderful, naturally sweet and juicy and healthy!

Brian is less than thrilled. I don't really get it, but I have been trying to come up with some ways to give him the dessert he wants without adding another 400-800 calories to our daily intake. That is why this really easy Strawberry Sauce I concocted is perfect! I picked up some Angel Food Cake at the store on my way home and put this whole thing together in 15 minutes. The sauce is beautiful and tastes like you spent a lot more time on it than you did!

Super Simple Strawberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1 Pint Strawberries

2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

1/3 cup Sugar

Directions:

Wash Strawberries, cut off stems and quarter.

Combine all ingredients in a medium size saucepan and simmer over medium heat for about 5 or 6 minutes. Basically until the sugar has turned a ruby red color and the strawberries are soft. I recommend stirring them often and mushing (I know, really technical) with your spoon while they are cooking to let the sugar absorb some of the juices.

Let the sauce cool down a bit and then pour into a blender or food processor. Pulse a couple times or until the sauce has become the consistency you want. I prefer mine different textures depending on the final usage.

Strawberries Simmering Away

About to be pulsed into the final product

Final sauce! Consistency is smooth with bits of fresh strawberries throughout

How beautiful is that for 15 minutes of effortless work? Not bad, not bad at all! I think you could use this sauce in so many ways and with Summer coming up, I always have a ton of strawberries I never know what to do with! Try some of these suggestions:

-Drizzled over waffles or pancakes in the morning

-Served with your favorite ice cream or frozen yogurt

-Use this instead of Chocolate Sauce or Creme Anglais on your Souffle

-Stir into your Lemonade to make Strawberry Lemonade

-Drizzle on top of Cheesecake

-Freezes well to have strawberry sauce anytime you like

Enjoy and have a sweet day!

Spring Sunset

What a beautiful day we had on Sunday out on Mission Bay. It has been so long since we went down there and it was nice to be back. Sunday turned out to be a little warmer than forecasted, I was worried it was going to be too cold for a sailboat ride, but the sun came out just in time!

We set out at 5:30 so as to ride for a while and come in as the sun was setting, and it turned out to be great timing because as the sun was going down it got so cold. Brian said he was completely numb from the temperature and from me sitting on him. I told him to stop complaining and look at our beautiful surroundings!

How gorgeous is that?

We all just need to take a little time to stop and smell the roses...

Restaurant Review: Amaya

This weekend was my husbo's birthday and I was so excited to celebrate his birthday with him in San Diego for the weekend. I tried my hardest to plan something relaxing and fun for his birthday because we have both been so stressed lately. We had the perfect weekend, thanks to my SIL Paige and the wonderful staff at the Grand del Mar; the hotel and service is exquisite and we always have the best time there. If you are looking for a place to go that is close, but seems like you are in another country...look no further, the Grand del Mar is your spot.

When you are at the hotel you could swear you are in Italy with your own private villa because even though the hotel was at full capacity, you wouldn't know anyone else was there. I can't say enough great things about it and not because Paige works there. It is genuinely one of the top 10 places in the world I have stayed and by far the nicest hotel in California by miles.

On Saturday night we ate at Amaya and it is always wonderful. We ate there 2 years ago on Valentine's Day and I think if they can maintain great service and food on Valentine's Day it is a safe bet they are going to have excellent food all year round! They have a very extensive wine menu and a wide variety of choices on the menu. The only caveat is the desert menu; my bread pudding was very cold. For you dessert people out there: Don't let that stop you because our server told us they are changing their dessert menu next week!

Butter Lettuce Salad

Branzini

Strawberry Shortcake Bread Pudding

So, next time you are in the mood for a weekend away and you don't know where to go,

try the Grand del Mar!

Fast Fiesta

I would like to start off by saying that I am sorry my blog entries have been few and far between lately, I just have had so much going on it is hard to get myself together right now. I am planning on organizing things better from this point forward!

Sometimes I get myself into a rut on auto-pilot making the same types of things and going through the same sources to find recipes. Lately, all that has sounded appealing to me is beef, mostly steak. I think I am on red meat overload and so I spent some time the other day searching for some recipes for some different proteins that were fast and seemed appetizing. When you don't have a ton of time to make dinner, but you want it to be flavorful,

this is the recipe to make.

I found this treasure amongst some of my Bobby Flay recipes and was so excited to go home and make it. I love Bobby Flay; his personality, his restaurants, his recipes, even his wife who used to by on my favorite show Law and Order: SVU. The only caveat is that his sauces and preparations usually take hours...hours that I never have. That is the great thing about these Shredded Chicken and Tomatillo Tacos with Queso Fresco, they take hardly any time at all and taste like you have been cooking all day!

A few months ago I got a free subscription to Bon Appetit for being such a great customer at Sur la Table and finally I have started getting my issues. Of course, I didn't pick up my January issue till this week, but I did find some things I am excited to try. Unfortunately, some of the ingredients that star in the recipes are now out of season (like Pomegranates). With a few creative substitutions I made this great Rainbow Chopped Salad.

Rainbow Chopped Salad

Recipe Courtesy of Bon Appetit

Dressing

1/4 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

1 1/2 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Shallot

1/2 Tablespoon Honey

1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salad

6 Cups Chopped Romaine Hearts

4 cups Sliced Red Cabbage

1 Large Fuji Apple, diced

1 Asian Pear, diced

1 Mango, diced

3/4 cup Hazelnuts, chopped and toasted (I used Walnuts)

1/2 Cup Pomegranate Seeds (I used dried Cherries chopped)

1/2 crumbled Blue Cheese

Dressing and Salad Instructions:

Whisk vinegar, shallot and Honey in a small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing with salt and ground pepper.

Combing Romaine and next 6 ingredients in a very large bowl; toss to blend. Add dressing and toss to coat. Divide salad amongst plates and sprinkle with Blue Cheese. Serve.

After toasting my tortillas, I served the tacos with some Fat Free Greek Yogurt instead of Sour Cream or cheese...they were delish! Enjoy this weeknight dish that is so fast and easy to make!