Monday, January 23, 2012

Caprese Salad with Grape Tomatoes, Mozzarella and Basil

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4 - 5 cups grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in halves
1 lb fresh imported Italian mozzarella, cut into 1/4 - 1/2" cubes
1/4 cup extra virgin, first preseed Italian olive oil
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar (optional)
8 - 10 large fresh basil leaves
Italian sea salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
.Fresh Italian bread
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Toss together the tomatoes, mozzarella, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.
Tear the basil into large pieces and toss into the salad.
Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Serve immediately (can be refrigerated to serve a little bit later too).
Serve with fresh Italian bread.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Spiced Pork with Squash and Potatoes

This recipe is a labor of love just like typing all of this information onto this blog! It a wonderful sweet and savory dish and don't be afraid to give the spices a boost. I wish I had a little more heat and salty flavor.

I served this dish with a side of spinich, pine nutes and gorganzola cheese, yum!











1 pound butternut squash, halved, seeded, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 fresh poblano peppers, seeded and cut into bite-size strips
2 small onions, cut into thin wedges
1 2 to 2.5 pound pork shoulder roast, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
2/3 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon snipped fresh parsley

1. In large bowl combine squash and sweet potatoes. Drizzle oil over veggies, tossing to coat. In a small bowl combine brown sugar, salt, cumin, black pepper, cinnamon, and ginger. Add half of the spice mixture to squash mixture and set aside. Transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker. Add poblano peppers and onion to cooker.

2. In small bowl combine the meat and the remaining spice mixture, tossing to coat pieces. Add meat to cooker. Pour broth over meat.

3. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 to 3.5 hours.

4. To serve, transfer squash mixture and meat to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with parsley.

Makes 4 servings

Enjoy :-)

Monday, January 9, 2012

BBQ Ribs - CrockPot Style

Crock Pot Barbecued Ribs
Easy Barbecued Ribs

1.5 tbsp sweet paprika (3tbsp)
1 tbsp light brown sugar, lightly packed (2 tbsp)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (1/4 tsp)
S&P to taste (about 1 tsp each is what I used)
2 lbs pork (baby) back ribs (6 lbs) - leave the membrane on the ribs to help hold them together
1 cup barbecue sauce (3 cups)
Vegetable oil spray.

In a small bowl, mix together paprika, brown sugar, cayenne and S&P. Rub this mixture all over both sides of your ribs well. Arrange ribs in the slow cooker by standing them up against the wall of the stoneware pot, thicker side down and meaty side against the pot. Pour barbecue sauce over the ribs, cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low (I did 7 hours and they were perfect).Can'

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Spray Paint, the miracle worker






Sorry, Mom, but these vases had to go. I bought satin spray paint at Lowe's, along with a clear spray paint to finish it. I think they turned out nice!

Healthy Tostadas



Posted by: Barb

All portions may vary based on number of people eating dinner

Baked tostadas or tortillas
Laughing cow cheese
Fat free re-fried black beans
Shredded chicken (cooked in slow cooker with chicken broth and spices of your choice)
Toppings: Lettuce, tomatoes, onions, salsa, or anything else you can think of

I know this isn't original, but it's a great idea for a quick easy dinner! I chop and serve all of the toppings on one big cutting board. I obviously need to work on my food photography after seeing Jill's post!

Turkey Meatballs

Turkey Meatballs
Serves 4-6
1.5 lbs ground turkey
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1.5 tsp salt
1 large shallot, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
Combine the milk and breadcrumbs in a small bowl and let stand for five minutes.
In a large bowl, combine the turkey, a teaspoon of salt, red pepper flakes, minced shallot and the soaked breadcrumbs.
Mix well with your hands and form small balls.
Bake the meatballs at 375 for twenty minutes.
I also added in a little something of my own creation. I wanted to wrap a small mozzarella ball into each meatball. However, I could not find such a thing at my local Publix. So I improvised and used cut up cube sized pieces string cheese instead. Worked great!

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Ranch Dressing Pretzels



2 bags broken hard pretzels
1 lg. bottle Orville Redenbacher popcorn oil
1 pkg. Ranch dressing
1 tbsp. dill weed
1 tbsp. garlic salt

Put in oven 1 hour at 200 degrees

Cranberry Vodka Slush


1 (3 oz.) pkg. cherry Jello
1 c. hot water
12 oz. frozen orange juice
12 oz. frozen lemonade
2 c. cranberry juice
2 c. vodka
1 c. cold water

Dissolve Jello in hot water. Add other ingredients. Freeze. Serve with 7-Up or Mountain Dew.

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