Drop it like it's Squash

It sounds kinda fancy, it looks sorta hard, but let's get real, it was easy, yummy and satisfying! There's not a lot to say about it, you know I've become a squashaholic, Hi im emily, hi emily, yep you know the dril, so I shall just attach the photo and recipe and like magic this blog post will be over.

sometimes that's just all the time you have and really all you need. So here ya go:

Chicken Pesto Spaghetti Squash 

1 spaghetti squash, halved
evoo
2 cups cooked chicken
1/4-1/2 cup pesto depending on squash size
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375. drizzle squash in olive oil, placing the center down. bake for 45 minutes.
fork squash to pull out "noodles." In medium bowl, mix with chicken and pesto. Return to squash shells, top with parm cheese and broil on high for 5 minutes.
Enjoy!

Now see was that so hard??
Happy Cooking! :0)

Frittata? I get it from my mama...

If you know my mother, you know she loves a good frittata. When she first started making them we said a what huh huh? and called her a fancy pants. But really, it's not all that fancy, I mean it CAN be, just toss in a little pancetta instead of ham and BOOM. fancy. ;-)

As many of you may ALSO know, I don't give up my sleep for any regular old breakfast. I want to sleep forever and ever for every. last. second. Most days you can't even tell I chose sleep over showering. SO, if Im gonna get up to have breakfast I want BREaaaaaKfast (said in a fake strong southern twang as my boyfriend loves to say). I feel like for people with a gluten intolerance breakfast is the easiest time of the day to figure out. Egg bakes can be made without bread, or subbed with gf bread, A good amount of cereal is gf (let's hear it for the best Chocolate Chex!) There are options and LOTS of them. Last night I thought, I'm gonna get up early (don't remind me of the agony) and make breakfast for me, Trev and some lucky co-workers. So I braved the morning storm, got up at SIX THIRTY am and whipped up some utter deliciousness. Here it is:

 



Broccoli/Pancetta Frittata

1 1/2 cup broccoli
1 tsp thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
8 large eggs
1/4 cup parm cheese (I think next time I'll use gouda to kick it up a notch)
olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
1 1/2 ounces pancetta, chopped
olive oil, as needed

I bought the broccoli already cut up in a bag. To make it super quick steam the broccoli in the microwave for 2 minutes. If it needs to be diced finer, do so. drizzle olive oil in 10 inch oven safe pan. sweat out the onion until your desired texture. I detest onion but if it's cooked correctly, it's great, and in the recipe it really gave it that something extra. Add pancetta to the pan with the onion. Cook 4 minutes or until crisp. I covered the bottom of the pan evenly with the pancetta/onion mix. combine thyme, s&p, eggs and cheese in bowl, whisk. Pour over your pan of pancetta and onion. cook on medium heat for 3 minutes and transfer into the oven at 350 for 12 minutes or until the center is cooked. MAKE SURE: you have your oven mitt on before grabbing the pan handle out of the oven!!! I speak from personal (inexperience) several years ago. It hurts. Like way bad.

Enjoy!

*To give it a little something more next time I would add hot sauce or salsa. Everything's better with salsa.

Happy Cooking!! :-)

Ring em up! (Apples that is)

So after finding this recipe on Pinterest I decided it was a must make. As per usual, I need to switch recipes up a bit take make sure they're gluten free and as best I can to healthy them up a bit. THEIR picture looked like a yummy apple doughnut...mine...? 

So, clearly they didn't live up to the photo, or like I thought the consistency would be, but a big hit nonetheless! 
(Thank Goodness)

I wanted my youngest nanny girl to be able to help, so I made stations and pre cut the apples in rings to make it easier for a child to help. Here we have the apples, dry mix, egg/buttermilk dredge and cinnamon sugar coating.

 The 3rd step involved hot spraying oil so I didn't let her help with this part for safety reasons. Her big job was to flip the rings in the cinnamon sugar at the end. She loved it and loved the final result even more. Seriously,  I think I had to tell her "no" about 5 more times after her first few rings, I think she would've gladly eaten the whole bowl!

Here's the recipe made MY way:

 Cinnamon Apple Rings
 4 large apples (I used Pink Lady)
 1 cup gluten free flour
 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
 2 tablespoons sugar
 ¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
 1 large egg, beaten
 1 cup buttermilk
vegetable oil for frying

for the cinnamon sugar topping ⅓ cup sugar 2 teaspoons cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside.
 In a small bowl combine the egg and buttermilk.
In a third dish, make your cinnamon-sugar topping by combining the ⅓ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon.
Next, slice the apples into ¼-inch thick slices, I had to hand cut the centers out of each apple, I'm sure if you could find something small enough this would be much easier if you had a circle cookie cutter or something of that kind,
 Discard the center circles containing the apple core.
 Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat to 350°F. Combine the contents of the first and second dishes as the oil warms up. This will be your batter. Dip the apple rings in and out of the batter one at a time, removing any dripping excess by tapping the rings against the side of the bowl. Fry the rings in small batches, turning them to ensure browning on both sides. Once the rings are golden and crispy, transfer them to the cinnamon sugar mixture. coat both sides evenly. Place on paper towel lined serving platter to get extra grease off.
 Best served warm.


Cook's Tip:
It obviously wouldn't healthy them up and but I decided after eating them that the next time I'll make a very light caramel sauce to dip and just kick it up a notch!

4 large apples (I used gala) 1 cup flour ¼ teaspoon baking powder 2 tablespoons sugar ¼ teaspoon salt ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon 1 large egg, beaten 1 cup buttermilk vegetable oil for frying for the cinnamon sugar topping ⅓ cup sugar 2 teaspoons cinnamon - See more at: http://www.eatviews.com/2014/04/cinnamon-apple-rings.html#sthash.7Yc0WlW5.dpuf

Happy Cooking!! :-)

4 large apples (I used gala)
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup buttermilk
vegetable oil for frying
for the cinnamon sugar topping
⅓ cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside. In a small bowl combine the egg and buttermilk. In a third dish, make your cinnamon-sugar topping by combining the ⅓ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Set that aside too.
2. Next, slice the apples into ¼-inch thick slices, and use circle biscuit cutters in graduated sizes to make rings out of each slice. Discard the center circles containing the apple core.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat to 350°F.
4. Combine the contents of the first and second dishes as the oil warms up. This will be your batter.
5. Dip the apple rings in and out of the batter one at a time, removing any dripping excess by tapping the rings against the side of the bowl.
6. Fry the rings in small batches, turning them to ensure browning on both sides.
7. Once the rings are golden and crispy, transfer them to a plate lined with paper towel for a few seconds.
8. Quickly transfer the apple rings, one by one, into the cinnamon-sugar mixture and coat evenly.
9. Transfer to a wire rack and serve warm.

- See more at: http://www.eatviews.com/2014/04/cinnamon-apple-rings.html#sthash.lKhuU0Xe.dpuf

4 large apples (I used gala)
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup buttermilk
vegetable oil for frying
for the cinnamon sugar topping
⅓ cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and ⅛ teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside. In a small bowl combine the egg and buttermilk. In a third dish, make your cinnamon-sugar topping by combining the ⅓ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Set that aside too.
2. Next, slice the apples into ¼-inch thick slices, and use circle biscuit cutters in graduated sizes to make rings out of each slice. Discard the center circles containing the apple core.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat to 350°F.
4. Combine the contents of the first and second dishes as the oil warms up. This will be your batter.
5. Dip the apple rings in and out of the batter one at a time, removing any dripping excess by tapping the rings against the side of the bowl.
6. Fry the rings in small batches, turning them to ensure browning on both sides.
7. Once the rings are golden and crispy, transfer them to a plate lined with paper towel for a few seconds.
8. Quickly transfer the apple rings, one by one, into the cinnamon-sugar mixture and coat evenly.
9. Transfer to a wire rack and serve warm.

- See more at: http://www.eatviews.com/2014/04/cinnamon-apple-rings.html#sthash.lKhuU0Xe.dpuf

I'm not a player, I just Squash a lot...

Alright well, it's happened, I've become squash obsessed. First it was margarita, then it was lasagna style. Both I thought were amazing, until I made Buffalo Chicken and Chicken Sausage/Kale. 

In the words of my sweet Trevor Hamilton, "uhhhh, this is one of the best things I've ever eaten..."

If you don't like buffalo chicken there is seriously something wrong with you, seriously, you might wanna get checked out. This recipe is so ridiculously good and I thought it was even better warmed up! I'm hoping to someday trick my spicy food loving eldest nanny girl, whose a seriously picky eater, into eating this recipe. I'll just have to dish it up in a big bowl instead. So if you've eaten my buffalo chicken dip, and you are as obsessed as I am, this recipes for YOU:

Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti Squash 

1 lb. chicken breast, boiled and finely chopped (I used my Pampered Chef food chopper to get it the perfect size and consistency)
1/2 package nefcheutel cream cheese
1/2 cup Franks Hot Sauce
1/2 cup light ranch dressing
1 spaghetti squash

Start by preheating the oven to 375. cut squash in half, seed and drizzle with olive oil. Flip open side down to cook. Cook for 45 minutes. 

30 minutes into baking, place cream cheese in pan, melt. Stir in franks and ranch dressing. When it's all blended nicely, mix in cooked chicken pieces. 

Once cooled, grab a fork and rake the squash, so it starts to pull up just like spaghetti. Add "spaghetti" to pan of sauce and mix well. Fill Squash skin back up with the mixture, top with 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and parsley, broil on high for 5 minutes or until cheese is golden brown. 
Enjoy!

The next recipe I found a link to on one of my friend's facebook pages. I made a few adjustments to the recipe. Including my own tastebuds. I hate onion. Like A LOT. But since caramalelizing onions I've become more tolerant of them in my food. 

Cheese Lover Cook's Note: I went awww man no cheese when I was making it. But honestly, I sincerely think adding cheese would have wrecked it. Sounds weird, I KNOW, but really it doesn't need cheese.

Sausage/Kale Spaghetti Squash

1 medium spaghetti squash
1 1/2 lbs italian chicken sausage, casings removed
1 yellow onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch kale
3 tbsp evoo
salt and pepper
2 tbsp parsely
optional: 1 tbsp pine nuts, roasted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut squash in half and drizzle with olive oil, place the halves in the oven, cut side up. bake for 45-50 minutes. 

While that's in the oven, remove the center stems and tear the leaves. Brown chicken sausage, I like mine to be crumbled a little bit finer, that way you get it in every bite. Remove chicken sausage and set aside. I kept the fat from the chicken sausage and added a little evoo to the pan. Then, saute onions. Once onions are nicely soft and brown, add in garlic and lightly brown. Add the kale and stir. After 4-5 minutes add the sausage back to the pan, to help wilt the kale. 

Once the squash is out of the oven and cooled, fork squash to start the spaghettifying, yes, that's totes a word. Transfer "noodles" to the pan of sausage, kale and onions. Mix well. return to "shells" of squash and broil for 5 minutes. top with parsley and pine nuts if you so choose.

Happy Squashing!
:-)
 

Soup Weather

Tomatoes.
I was never a fan.
I always tried to be, but no way no how, no matter how much I tried, I hated them.
Until this happened.

Trev's turkey burgers. Filled with spinach, feta and garlic. how could you go wrong? Then the guy went and wrecked it by putting a big fat tomato on top. 
You KNOW I hate tomatoes.
JUST TRY IT, he said.

Unhappily, I agreed, and then magic happened. That stupid, slimy, red, fruit-vegetable thing MADE the whole burger. It was SOooo good! So I do have to give a huge shoutout to my guy for somehow getting me to love tomatoes....I even just eat them with avocado now, how gross is that, I tell my 3 year ago self...

I was thinking one day how even when I hated tomatoes, I still loved Bonfire's tomato basil soup, there were no chunky tomatoes, it was all basically pureed, so I decided to make my own.

But this time, chunky tomatoes allowed.

I've played around with the recipe every time but I've finally perfected it for all of you. I will also have you know that the first time I made it I was unaware that Trev HATES tomato soup. Imagine his delight when he came home to grilled cheese and tomato soup. He had ONE bite and told me he hates tomato soup, but that MINE was delicious!

*Let's pause for a brief clap session*

I was trying to think of a name, a combo of tomato, basil and my nickname, em dizzle of course. Thus became Tomazzil soup.

 So here it is:

 

 

Tomazzil Soup

2 large Hot House tomatoes, big slices
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 cans market pantry italian diced tomatoes (use juice from 1 of the cans, dump the other)
1 small can tomato paste
1/4 cup parm cheese
1/2 block nefchuetel cream cheese
4 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon basil
Olive Oil
4-6 cloves garlic

Coat bottom of stock pot with olive oil. Lightly brown garlic. Add all of the fresh tomato, simmer for 5 minutes. I mash them little by little as I make the soup. Mix in canned tomatoes and tomato paste to thicken. Pour in the chicken stock and basil. Let soup simmer 25-30 minutes. Add the parm and cream cheese. Mix together until cream cheese is fully "melted." Top with parm cheese and a sprinkle of basil before serving. 

And there you have it, the gloriousness that is Tomazzil soup.

Happy Cooking!! :-)

Themed food you say?

Most of my good friends know I love a good theme party

 holidays

playing dress up (especially when my mom wanted me to clean my room...)

...yes that's fake hair ;-)

But themed FOOD?! Never really been my thing. Not on purpose, there just hasn't been an occasion I suppose. But if I love theme parties and food, you'd think I'd find a food theme party quite lovely.

So I finally got the chance.
At work today we had a themed pot luck. Given it's Memorial Day, it was red, white and blue food. The idea made me gag. What in the world could I make with only those colors and that isn't a Bomb Pop, because I most definitely would've been willing to bring those! ;-)

My first thought was those cheesecake filled strawberries. Never made them, but they look delicious, and fit the theme. To make them different and to hit all the colors I topped them with a Blueberry. I was happy with the final result. They looked good, tasted yummy and maybe possibly had a FEW less calories then like a red velvet cake...I mean there WAS fruit. Filled with sugar. and cream cheese. But I used TWO fruits sooooo...healthy, yeah, healthy!

If you skip the graham cracker crumbs on top the recipe would be gluten free. I know that there IS a gluten free graham cracker, so you'd just take that extra step of crushing those and Gluten Free Golden! 

Red, White and Blueberry Cheesecake Bites

2 lbs. strawberries
1/2 pint blueberries
2 8oz blocks cream cheese
6 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla
graham cracker crumbs

The beginning part is a bit finicky for my liking, but you start by coring the strawberries and removing the stems. I cut the tip of the bottom of the strawberries in order for them to stand upright. Mix together cream cheese, vanilla and powdered sugar. I thought throwing in a little lemon juice would kick it up a notch, or lime even, for the next time! Scoop cream cheese mixture into a large ziploc baggie and cut the tip of one of the corners to pipe into the berrys. Or if you're one of those fancy people, take out your piping bags...elitists. 
Refrigerate before serving. I made them the night before and sprinkled the graham crumbs right before serving so they wouldn't get soggy.

After that I thought if it's a pot luck im going to need FOOD FOOD. But red white and blue? 

FINALLY the idea came, blue corn tortilla chips with salsa and white queso. But I wanted to present it in an impressive way. I wanted to make a flag like they do with those jello molds. So I came up with the idea using my words and recruited this super cute artsy guy to help me execute what I was thinking...

gosh he's cute.
let's just pause and enjoy this moment.
look at the cute guy.
IGNORE THE MESSY KITCHEN.
There's a cute guy there!

This food has no RECIPE because let's get real, I can't make awesome food AND display it this beautifully with so little time.
White Queso 
Mild Salsa
Blue Corn Chips

 TA-DAAAAAAA!

stunning right? I love. love. LOVE.

I even created my very first PIN on Pinterest so feel free to pin it to YOUR board and spread the blog love. 

I Hope everyone had a blessed Memorial Day and reflected on it's meaning. Thank you to those who have served (or do), risked their lives and even those who've given up there lives to protect or Freedom.

Happy Cooking! :-)
 

Wakey Wakey it's time for Egg Bake...ey!

Who doesn't love a killer egg bake? You typically can prep the night before, or throw it in the crock making your Sunday morning breakfast easy peasy. I've always had a hard time eating breakfast, I'm just not hungry right when I get up, plus sleep is just so much better. So egg bake is perfect for me, because egg bakes usually range from 45 minutes to an hour. The perfect amount of time to throw it in, sleep just a little longer, make coffee or get a quick walk in while it bakes and you work up an appetite. My favorite thing in egg bake is green chilies. Even when I was the pickiest eater ever, I always loved whatever those, slimy, mildly spicy green things were. So I have faith, that even if you have picky eaters, they might not even notice. Just don't show them the recipe ;-)

Last month I posted my first ever made-it-up-myself crock pot egg bake. Today was a new, didn't browse recipes to make one up. It was all my pretty little cooking mind! I'm very impressed with myself that for you, I kept track, took mental pictures and actually created a RECIPE! I'm so bad at actual recipes. I'm much more a little a this, a little of that, however much you want kinda girl!

So here it is!

Sunday Sunrise Egg Bake

10 eggs
1 1/2 cups spinach, chopped
1 small can green chilies
1/2 bag frozen shredded hashbrowns
4-5 thins slices deli ham
1/2 cup real bacon bits, split
1/4 cup milk
1 cup shredded gouda
1 cup colby jack cheese
1 1/2 tsp salt and pepper, each 

Preheat oven to 375. 
Grease 9X13 pan with cooking spray. Spread frozen hashbrowns evenly on bottom of pan. Sprinkle 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper over top of hashbrowns. THIS IS KEY. Even if you add salt and pepper to the top of the egg bake, the hashbrowns will still taste bland at the bottom. Layer 1/2 the chilies, sprinkle gouda. Cover with the slices of deli ham. Finish off with the rest of the chilies, 1/2 cup colby jack cheese and 1/4 cup bacon bits. Beat eggs, milk, spinach and remaining salt/pepper. Pour over the pan of ingredients. Bake for 35 minutes, uncovered. Remove from oven, top with remaining colby jack cheese and bacon bits. Bake for 10 more minutes, until the egg had settled completely and the cheese gets yummy brown.
Enjoy!

I'm scolding the man of the house as I type, I swear he ate HALF THE PAN...so I guess there's your confirmation that I made a good one!

Happy assembling, baking and eating! :-)