speed eating (and cooking)

This is a new favorite meal when time is not on my side - 5 ingredients - 10 minutes - tons of flavor.  Love that.  A friend recently made this for lunch and I've repeated it multiple times since.  If you want to add a bit more protein pick up a roasted chicken and just chop for an additional topping.

You'll just need the following:

Flatbread (naan, pita bread or a pre-made thin pizza crust like Boboli all work great)
Fresh baby spinach leaves
Tomato Basil crumbled feta
Cherry tomatoes, sliced in half and seasoned w/ s+p
Reduced fat shredded cheese (I like a combination of mozzarella and sharp cheddar)

To assemble, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spread a generous handful of spinach leaves across the flatbread. Sprinkle the crumbled feta and cherry tomatoes over the spinach, and then top with the shredded cheese - as much or as little as you like.  That's what I love about this recipe - you get away with minimal guilt calories by omitting oils and using a reduced fat shredded cheese.  The feta adds so much flavor and richness you just won't miss it.

Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the flatbread is crisp. 

enJOY!

Happy Friday!

Just a little birdwatching during lunch today...
She's quite obsessed with the "qua qua's" on the pond.

And equally obsessed with telling me "no" - excellent. ;)

one bite { avocado }

This next one bite is focused around one of my very favorite ingredients - avocado (thank you Julie from Julie's Jazz for the great suggestion)! 

I love this ingredient in so many different dishes, it was honestly kind of tricky to narrow down my options.  But after consulting The Flavor Bible, a few ingredients immediately jumped out and reminded me of my favorite sandwich - a BLTA.

To bring this down to a one bite standard I figured why not make a miniature crostini version?  So easy, fun and satisfies that bacon-lettuce-tomato-avocado craving in no time.  For the preparation, you'll just need the following:

Sourdough Baguette - sliced thin - toasted - rubbed with raw garlic clove
Avocado - mashed - seasoned w/ kosher salt
Bacon - crisped - broken in small pieces (I actually used prosciutto as prepared here) and it worked great
Tomatoes (cherry or roma) - sliced thin - seasoned w/ a touch of s+p
Lettuce - frisée is a great bitter green that tops the crostini well and pairs with avocado (just toss with a bit of lemon juice, s+p).  If you don't like frisée, try arugula or a micro green.

 

Just layer the ingredients as shown above and serve.  I love this for a fun brunch or shower - you could serve them along with a few other classics, like an egg salad, chicken salad or a mini club crostini.

enJOY! 

(and keep the suggestions coming if you have a one bite craving)!

what a difference...

I just went through my blackberry (ugh. counting the days / minutes / seconds until the iPhone upgrade) and transferred a ton of photos from the past few months to my computer.  It was the best little reminder of all the changes I've watched my girl go through recently.  This age is so SURREAL, I feel like she does something new every single day.

*a few favorites*
chitter chatter (mama, dada, banana, puppa, car, cracker (caca), grape (grruh), dino, no, yes, duck (cuck), outside (ahhhside), bye).
giving love. blowing kisses, giving kisses and hugs, cuddling on the couch.
winking. or the attempt to wink.
dancing. girlfriend can cut a rug. ;)
making the different animal noises or silly sounds along with me while reading books
watching her with lambeau. loves saying "shhhhh" and holding her finger up to her mouth when he is snoring.  (our attempt was to teach her to leave him alone when he sleeps, but now it just looks like she is telling him to quiet down).
watching her with her daddy, they're two little peas in a pod.
those little lips and chubby cheeks.  even though she's become quite the little girl those sweet features haven't gone anywhere.

*a few challenges*
whining / frustration at the tiniest things
MOLARS. can't wait for this teething business to pass.
shyness with other children / struggles with sharing
independent play. it comes and goes, so we'll keep working on it.
scaling back on the pacifier. I love sleep too much to go cold turkey, my goal is 18 months (yikes)
getting healthy. this winter has been a tough one.

*try not to be afraid of the night vision baby monitor photo. THAT is the stuff nightmares are made of.  

I needed these pics to put a little smile on my face.  We're on day 6 of "family flu" lockdown. I even got initiated into the "I just got projectile vomited on by my child in a public place" club.  That one is going to stay with me for a while...

Anyway, I'm hoping things will ease up for the weekend.  And while I'm trying to get over the fact that I was originally set to hit the road and join my girls in Indy for a little Super Bowl XLVI celebration, at this point I'll happily settle for a healthy baby and some time spent out of the house.

Hope this finds you all HEALTHY and happy, and ready to eat some delicious food on Sunday.  I've been digging around for some New York or New England themed apps for a party we're hoping to make.  So far, it's a toss up between a New England Lobster + Clam Chip Dip or Pretzel Bites and Apples dipped in New York Aged Cheddar.

Have a great weekend!

one bite { arugula }

Thanks so much to the anonymous comment suggesting arugula for a "one bite" post.  Arugula is hands down my favorite salad green out there, so this was a fun one.  Now Mr/Mrs/Miss Anonymous knows their stuff because this time of year can be difficult to track down good arugula.  I tend to have the best luck with Earthbound Farm or Trader Joes - just make sure the leaves look fresh (not wilted) and have a nice green color.

One of my favorite ways to eat arugula is lightly dressed with lemon and olive oil served over pizza, crostini or flatbread.  After turning to The Flavor Bible, a ton of Mediterranean flavored pairings jumped out (mint, garlic, parsley, cucumber, feta) so I decided flatbread was just the way to go for this one bite.

I loved how this turned out, and it even got the guinea pig (aka hubs) stamp of approval.  It's very bright and fresh from all the herbs and lemon, but totally satisfying with the crispy on the outside / chewy on the inside flatbread.  Another great finger food for entertaining, and the shaved feta makes for a nice presentation.  (Who knew you could "grate" feta?  I never have, but after buying a block I thought it was worth a try, and adds a perfect salty kick on top of the arugula ).

INGREDIENTS
2 cloves garlic

Fresh mint leaves (I don't like TOO much mint flavor, so I used about 6-8 leaves) Save the rest for a mojito ;)
1/4 C fresh parsley
1/2 cucumber, seeded and roughly chopped
2 T olive oil
zest of 1 lemon (juice reserved)
1 8 oz. package block feta (divided)
2 large pieces flatbread (pita or nan also work here)
1 package arugula (about 4 cups)


INSTRUCTIONS
In a food processor, pulse the garlic, mint and parsley until finely chopped.  Add the chopped / seeded cucumber, olive oil, lemon zest and pulse.  Finally, using about 3/4 of the feta (saving the remainder for garnish) break into pieces and pulse until combined.  I went with a smoother consistency vs. chunky, but you could honestly go either way.  The cucumber will give off some liquid, but if you need more add lemon juice or a bit more olive oil.  Season with s+p to taste and set aside.

Under a broiler, lightly toast the flatbread (I used two large pieces).  Once lightly browned, remove from the oven and immediately slather the feta spread over the top.  The heat of the bread will soften the feta and help all the ingredients come together.  Next, in a large bowl toss the arugula with just a drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.  It really doesn't take much to just lightly coat the leaves.  Sprinkle with a bit of s+p and toss - taste and adjust seasoning if needed. 

To serve, I found it easiest to slice the flatbread before topping with the arugula.  From two pieces of flatbread I cut about 16 slices and topped each with 1/4 C arugula.  Using a microplane or cheesegrater, shave a bit of feta over the top of each bite!


enJOY.

one bite { basil + garlic + lemon }

Thank you to Kim from Tempting My Palate for the fabulous "one bite" suggestion incorporating three of my favorite ingredients to cook with:

basil  -  garlic  -  lemon

Not a surprise, these three ingredients are perfectly suited for one another.  In fact, according to The Flavor Bible, basil and garlic are considered a "holy grail" of pairings, and lemon is right up there as well.  Since these three ingredients hardly need much enhancement, I wanted to create something VERY simple for this one bite.  By blending the three ingredients together you've got an incredible base that can be used in salad dressings, aiolis, marinades, pasta sauce, etc...

For this one bite, I decided to make a little shrimp salad canape (sounds fancy, right)? Well, it's not. Seriously, SO easy, and one of those perfect finger foods when entertaining a group .

To make the flavor base, just combine 1 C of fresh basil leaves, 2 large garlic cloves, and the zest of one lemon (save the actual lemon juice for later) in a food processor.  You'll end up with something that looks like this:

Next, bring 6 cups of water to a boil along with half of the reserved lemon (squeeze the juice in the water and then just toss in the actual lemon) along with 1 T salt.  Once the water has boiled, bring the temp down to medium low.  Drop in 1 lb of raw defrosted shrimp (I usually go with the 12-16 ct) and allow to simmer until the shrimp is pink, firm, and the tails have curled (about 5 minutes).  Drain and set aside to cool.

While the shrimp is cooling, whisk together 1/2 C mayo, 1/2 light sour cream, and the juice of the reserved half lemon.  Add one heaping tablespoon of the basil+garlic+lemon base, along with a pinch of salt and black pepper.  Taste, adding more s+p or base if necessary.  Next, roughly chop the shrimp and combine with mayo mixture.  Refrigerate for about an hour - it really helps the flavors to come together.  To serve, simply top a cracker of your choice with the shrimp salad - garnish with a little basil leaf or an extra zest of lemon.

Now you'll have LOTS of the basil+garlic+lemon base leftover, so here are a few of my favorite uses.

*Salad Dressing: whisk 2t base with the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1/4 C olive oil, 1 t dijon mustard, pinch s+p (a great dressing on spinach with grilled salmon)
*Aioli: mix 2t base with 1/2 C mayo, 2 T fresh lemon juice (SO good with a fresh artichoke)
*Marinade: whisk 2t base with the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 C olive oil, 1 t salt and 1/2 t pepper (my favorite shrimp marinade - only needs about 1/2 hour in the fridge, then grill 2-3 minutes on each side)!


Thank you again Kim for the comment - next up, arugula!