School Snack- Fruite & Cheese Kabobs

I've got to be honest.  Being responsible for snack at preschool once a month is so stressful to me.

It's not as easy as going to the store and buying a box of animal crackers and a carton of milk.  If only.

The stress comes from the restrictive diet that all of the little preschoolers are on.  Snacks are supposed to be nutritious (read: no cookies) and not contain the following ingredients:

eggs

peanuts

peanut butter

tree nuts

red dye number 4... or is it 12?

Mangoes

So that leaves me with what, carrot sticks?

This is the snack we went for today.  I was kind of proud of the mini skewers, even though I resorted to toothpicks when I realized late last night that we didn't have any kabob skewers after all.

So here you have it:

Cheese
Strawberries
Grapes

You could also use blueberries, cantaloupe, pineapple... or whatever else will not fall apart when you stick it with a tooth pick.

If I were a kid in preschool I'd be happier with frosted animal crackers, but that's just me :)

Blog Clean-up

My apologies for the numerous posts that follow with lists and lists of previous posts.  I'm attempting to clean-up the right side of the page without losing the links that took so long to set-up.  I'll be back in a few days with a new recipe!

2009 Recipes

Week 1
Asian Chicken Noodle Soup

Week 2
Spiced Game Hens

Week 3
Angel Hair Piementese
Week 4
Pecan Crusted Tilapia

Week 5
Citrus Pork

Week 6
Sweet and Sour Chicken

Week 7
Pretzel Chicken with Cous Cous

Week 8
Fiery Orange Beef Stir-Fry

Week 9
Tomato Seafood Soup

Week 10
Herbed Steak with Basalmic Sauce

Week 11
Chicken Tequilla Fettuccine

Week 12
Tomato Balsamic Soup
Week 13
Minestrone Soup

Week 14
Cheesy Stuffed Shells

Week 15
Shrimp Teriyaki Rice Bowl

Week 16
Baked Scallops

Week 17
Marinated Cod with Mango-Pineapple Salsa
Week 18
Banana Cherry Bread

Week 19
Spinach Cheese Rolls

Week 20
Buffalo-style boneless wings

Week 21
Linguine with Creamy Seafood Sauce

Week 22
Cranberry Pork Chops

Week 23
Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Week 24
Tilapia Florentine

Week 25
Ginger Soy Flank Steaks

Week 26
Lasagna Roll-ups

2010 Recipes

Cranberry Apple Pork Chops

Crumb-Coated Ranch Chicken

Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken

Scallops and Tomatoes over Angel Hair

Peachy Mustard Pork Chops

Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry

Tilapia in Cous Cous (I hate Rachel Ray)

Grilled Pizza

Crockpot French Onion Soup

Fiery Asian Beef Kabobs

Dirty Shrimp in Beer Butter Sauce

Fancy Looking Asparagus

Glazed Shrimp and Asparagus

Compost Cookies

Cabo Chicken

Pork Chops with Bing Cherry Salsa

Two Easy Appetizers

Swashbuckler's Scallops

Southwestern Tomato Soup

Bowties Florentine

Honey Ginger Coated Chicken

Herb-stuffed Chicken Breasts

Famous Pork Chops

Creamy Basil and Red Pepper Pasta

Tomato Garlic Soup with Parmesan Toasts

Spinach and Goat Cheese Pizza

Slowcooker Lasagna

Brushetta with Goat Cheese, Roasted Red Pepper and Basil

2011 Recipes

Peanut Ginger Pasta

Fuscilli with Creamy Spinach and Chicken

Spinach Pizza
Baked Chicken with Red Pepper Sauce

Savory Cheese Soup

Asparagus Steak Oscar

Bruschetta Chicken

Ginger Pork Stir-Fry

Cheesy Stuffed Shells

Spaghetti with Zucchini and Yellow Squash

Chili-Rubbed Steaks with Pan Salsa

Summer Squash Tart

Pineapple Grilled Pork Chops

What is this??? (I don't know, but it looks tasty)

Eggplant Fries

Bangin' Good Shrimp

Cauli-Crust Pizza

Golden Oriental Chicken Skewers

Sweet-and-Sour Chicken Packets
Honey Tilapia

Beer Grilled Chicken
Mango Salsa

Baked Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries

Spaghetti Squash Pomodoro

Butternut Squash and Pear Soup

Healthy Spinach Artichoke Dip

Cranberry Bars

Green Smoothies

Spicy Tilapia with Pineapple Pepper Relish

Pumpkin Spiced Pecan Cookies

Chicken Scallopini

Penne alla Norma

Jerk Chicken (in a crock pot)

Tilapia in Lemon and Caper Sauce

Sesame Chicken Fingers

Crockpot Mac & Cheese

Pineapple Pepper Chicken Stir-Fry

Cookie Tree Ornaments

Herb Bubble Bread

2012 Recipe List

1. Brown Sugar Chicken Crock pot

2. Mickey-themed desserts

3. Crock Pot Chex Mix

4. Cheese & Pesto Naan Pizza

5. Cheesy Chicken Rotini

6. Slow & Spicy Middle Eastern Stew

7. Vegetable Lo Mein

8. Easy Fried Rice

9. Herb Crusted Pork

10. Stuffed Chicken Breasts

11. Spicy Island Shrimp

12. Jamaican Chicken Stew

13. Herbed Canneloni with Tomato Sauce

14. Lighter Penne with Vodka Sauce

15. Cheesecake Factory's Romano Chicken

16. Asian Chicken Noodle Soup

17. Baked Tilapia with Lots of Spice

18. Balsamic Chicken

19. Genoese Minestrone Soup

20. Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

21. Crispy Oven Fries

22. Fluffy Cheese Puffs

23. Orange Sesame Shrimp

24. Eclaire Cake

25. Black Forrest Stuffed Cupcakes

26. Teriyaki Chicken Thighs

27. Hoisin Shrimp Rice Packets

28. Triple Mango Chicken

29. Beer Can Chicken

30. Brined Shrimp with Mango Salsa

31. Mojito Grilled Chicken

32. Grilled Zucchini Eggplant Parmesan

33. Swiss Chard Fritata

34. Chimicurri Chicken

35. Scampi-Style Scallops

36. Grilled Asparagus with Rosemary & Goat Cheese

37. Pork Tenderloin Marinade

38. Sweet Potato Fries with Spicy Sriracha Sauce

39. Frogmore Stew Clambake

40. Mango Chipotle BBQ Chicken Salad

41. Zuchini Sticks with Bloomin' Onion Sauce

42. Ginger and Garlic Tilapia over Orzo

43. Thai Chicken Skewers with Spicy Peanut Sauce

44. Frozen Banana Popsicles

45. TGI Friday's Dragonfire Chicken

46. Tilapia with Red Potatoes

47. Soy Marinated Chicken Thighs

48. Pizza Bites

49. Pumpkin Seed Crusted Tilapia

50. Brined Pork Tenderloin with Plum Jicama Salsa

51. Halibut... or Not

52. Artichoke Spinach Pasta Bake

53. Chinese Pork Noodles

54. Roasted Chicken with Kale & Potatoes

55. Pork and Sweet Potato Kabobs

56. Chicken Enchiliada Pasta

57. Orzo Broccoli

58. Slowcooker Honey Sesame Chicken

59. Homemade Pretzels- Attempt #2

60. Roasted Cauliflower

61. Squashed Crab Soup

62. Fettuccine with Creamy Seafood Sauce

63. Almond-Crusted Pork Loin

64. Crock Pot Tilapia with Mandarin Oranges

65. Chocolate Covered Everything

66. Crock pot Chicken La Criola

67. Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

68. Queso Blanco Dip

Creamy Tomato Pasta

I've never been interested in even trying the Atkins diet.  No pasta and bread?  Forget it.  Besides, your brain needs carbs to properly function.  Really!  So load up on this delicious creamy, tomatoey, cheesy pasta and feed your brain!

INGREDIENTS

for the tomato sauce -
1 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (about 9 medium) (or a 15-oz can of tomatoes, for those of us who live in Upstate NY and don't have access to fresh tomatoes at this time of year!)
1 small onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves minced
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
olive oil

for the alfredo sauce -
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons flour
3/4 cup whole milk (or skim, if you're me and don't feel like buying whole milk for one recipe letting the rest go to waste)
1/4 cup half & half
2 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

12 oz bowtie or other small pasta

DIRECTIONS

Start the pasta water boiling and throw the pasta in to cook when it's ready.  In the meantime...

Start on the tomato sauce.  If you're using fresh tomatoes you're going to have to boil them in a large pot of water to get the skins off.  If you're lazy using the tomatoes you canned last fall/bought from the store, you're ready to go.  Chop them up a bit.

In a saucepan sweat the onion and garlic in a TBS of olive oil until soft (about 5 minutes).  Add the tomatoes, cook for about 15 minutes until thickened.

While that's going on (and by this time your pasta is probably cooking too), add to the confusion by putting a third pot on the stove to start the alfredo sauce.  Melt the butter in the pan over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour until smooth, and let it cook until brown.  Add in the milk, half & half, and garlic if you choose (I added enough to the tomato sauce so I skipped it here.  Plus, you're going to have to fish it out again so what's the point?)

Cook the alfredo sauce for about 2 minutes until thickened.  Fish the garlic back out again if you put it in to begin with.

The sauce will be super thick, so add 1/3 to 1/2 a cup of pasta water to the pot to thin it out.  Add in the parmesan cheese and mix well.  Remove from heat.

At this point hopefully your pasta is done and the tomato sauce is as well.  Toss in fresh basil into the tomato sauce and then blend in the alfredo.  Throw all of that over the pasta. 

VERDICT

Would this recipe be easier with a can of tomato sauce and a can of alfredo sauce?  Probably.

But it is delicious and completely home made if you make the alfredo yourself.  And speaking of that alfredo... who knew it was that easy to make alfredo sauce?

Cream of Broccoli Soup

I know what you're thinking... Broccoli Cheddar Soup Again?

I know I've pretty much beaten this soup to death with a variety of recipes.

Like this one here.

Or this one from February here. 

But I'm still trying to get it just right.

Here's the latest attempt.

INGREDIENTS


1/2 head fresh broccoli (approximately 2 cups)
1 cup matchstick carrots
1/4 medium onion, chopped
2 TBS minced garlic
3 tablespoons butter
2 cups fat free half-and-half cream
2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS


1. In a medium saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic in butter.  Remove from heat and set aside.
2. Add additional 2 tablespoons of butter to the saucepan. Cook until butter melts.  Whisk in flour.  Continue to stir for about 1 minute.  Add the half & half, while continuing to stir.
3. Add the chicken stock and cheese. Heat on medium-low heat for 20 minutes or until mixture becomes thick and bubbly.
4. Add the broccoli, carrots and onions. Cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

VERDICT

I admit to being completely puzzled by this recipe.  In all of the other recipes the veggies have gone in first to really soften them up.  Then the cheese last.  By putting the cheese in first in this recipe (as well as the cream) you really can't get this soup boiling.  Cheese + milk + super hot temperatures = gritty, curdled soup.

So I think I'd do a lot of these steps in reverse next time.

The veggies were definitely not done after 20 minutes and were still really crispy. Not that it's a bad thing... it's just not what you expect in soup.  But the base was really, really good.  I think this recipe can work... it just needs some help in the order it's all put together.

Tilapia & Shrimp Hoisin Packets

My husband was working late one night so I decided to make a meal he doesn't really care for.  And in spite of it being Friday night I was actually in the mood to eat healthy.  I based this loosely on Hosin Shrimp Packets but decided it was too cold outside to light up the grill.  If it can be done on the grill it can be done in the oven, right?  Read on...

INGREDIENTS

Random vegetables from the refrigerator (I used zucchini, asparagus & carrots) cut into bite-sized pieces.
1/2 cup instant brown or white rice
1/2 cup white wine (um... a good white wine.  See verdict)
1/4 cup Hosin Sauce
1 tilapia fillet
1/4 - 1/2 lb. uncooked shrimp

DIRECTIONS

Pour the rice onto a piece of tinfoil.  Next add the seafood, then the vegetables.  Pour hoisin sauce on top. 

Make a packet with the tinfoil, pinching in the sides to prevent leaking.  Carefully add the wine before sealing up.  Poke the top a few times with a fork to vent.

Grill for 20 minutes, or bake for 45, or until fish is flaky and shrimp are pink. 


VERDICT

I'm assuming this would have been better with a good white wine.  Or at least a white wine that didn't taste like cat piss.  But I used this bottle.

And then it took forever in the oven.  Forever!  White I waited for dinner I moved on to this bottle of wine.  Much better.  After three glasses of red wine dinner was finally cooked through.  And it tasted like it had been cooked in cheap wine.

Sigh.  I tried.  I really tried to eat healthy.  And the recipe was healthy.  Three glasses of red wine, alas, is not.

Spicy Kale Lasagna

This recipe was supposed to be pesto lasagna.  Only I bought the ingredients for the wrong recipe.  Or at least half of the ingredients.  So we're going off script here.  Not exactly kale, but definitely not pesto.

INGREDIENTS

1¼ lbs. kale (or spinach), stems removed
3 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes, (preferably with herbs)
2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1 tsp. lemon juice
4 cups cottage cheese (or ricotta)
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided (or a whole mozzarella ball)
¾ tsp. pepper
16 no-boil lasagna noodles (or noodles cooked according to package directions)  

DIRECTIONS

To prepare the kale, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the kale to the pot and boil for 2 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool enough to handle. Wrap the kale inside a clean kitchen towel and wring out as much excess liquid as possible. Chop roughly, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.

Or, if you failed to buy kale, simply take the raw spinach you have in your fridge and use that.  No need to boil.  Use it raw.  Really.

To make the tomato sauce, combine the oil, garlic, red pepper flakes and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt in a cold saucepan. Heat over medium-high, stirring frequently. Once bubbling, cook for about 30 seconds. Mix in the crushed tomatoes, reduce heat and let simmer 5-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice.

To make the cheese mixture, strain all of the liquid out of the cottage cheese. Or, use ricotta.  I can't stand cottage cheese!  Mix in ½ cup of the Parmesan, 1½ cups of the mozzarella (torn into pieces, if you're using the ball), 1 teaspoon salt and the pepper.

Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. To assemble the lasagna, add a thin layer of the sauce to the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Cover with a layer of noodles, then half of the cheese mixture, half of the kale, and half of the remaining sauce. Add another layer of noodles, the remaining cheese mixture, and the remaining kale. Top with the remaining noodles, then the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup mozzarella cheese (or chunks of the mozzarella ball) and ¼ cup Parmesan. Bake for 45 minutes, until bubbly and browned. Let stand at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

 

VERDICT

Clearly my direction following skills are lacking.  That should be obvious to anyone who reads this blog with any regularity!

But although this recipe was destined to fail.... it was delicious!  It had enough cheesy, spinachy goodness to please my meaty-lasagna-loving husband.  So it's a keeper.  Who would have thought?