Baked Apple Breakfast

The instructions are both in the body of the post and consolidated at the bottom for ease of reference when making. Good luck and enjoy!

These apples are glorious. 

They can be served with greek yogurt for breakfast or a "smart" dessert.

If you are feeling particularly decadent, then you should pair a warm apple with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. 

Preheat your oven to 350°F

Ingredients: 

9 Honeycrisp Apples - cored

1 1/2 cups Rolled Oats

1/2 cup Truvia (brown sugar)

1 tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract 

Juice of 1 Lemon 

1/4 tsp Almond Extract

Brewed Chai Tea

Butter at room temperature

Mix together the oats, Truvia, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and almond extract. Combine them until they become a crumbly mixture.

Core the apples. 

I decided to cut away parts of the tops with a pairing knife to better hold the filling.

Fill the apples with your dry oat mixture. 

Pour about 1/2 inch of chai tea into the bottom of the baking dish. 

Don't be bothered by any fallout from the apples. The oats in the chai will cook while in the oven to become a delicious oatmealish sauce. 

Top each apple with a pat of butter.

Use the rest of your oat mixture on top of the butter. 

Tent your baking dish with Aluminum Foil this will help to steam the apples.

Place your baking dish in the oven for 35 minutes. 

Remove the foil and allow them to cook for another 10 minutes uncovered. 

Take your apples out of the oven. While it may be tempting to dig into them right away, don't. 

A scalding apple cannot be enjoyed.  Let them sit for 5-10 minutes. 

Plate with some of the sauce from the bottom of the pan.

Ingredients: 

9 Honeycrisp Apples - cored

1 1/2 cups Rolled Oats

1/2 cup Truvia (brown sugar)

1 tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract 

Juice of 1 Lemon 

1/4 tsp Almond Extract

Brewed Chai Tea

Butter at room temperature

Instructions: 

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F
2. Mix together the oats, Truvia, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and almond extract. 
3. Core the apples. Optional, carve the tops into cups. 
4. Fill the apples with your dry oat mixture. 
5. Pour about 1/2 inch of chai tea into the bottom of the baking dish. 
6. Top each apple with a pat of butter.
7. Top the pat of butter with any remaining mixture.
8. Tent your baking dish with Aluminum Foil this will help to steam the apples.
9. Bake--covered--for 35 minutes. 
10. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes uncovered. 
11. Take your apples out of the oven.  Let them sit for 5-10 minutes. 
12. Enjoy!

Hulk Salad Transforms into a Satiating Veggie Burrito

One night I was sitting around trying to figure out what to do for dinner so I texted my fiance (aka fancy-boyfriend) and I asked him, "What do you wanna have for dinner?" 

"Edamame."

~Gulp air quickly, silently panic, and puzzle over the question that immediately popped into my head~ 

How do I make edamame into a meal?  

While they are one of my favorite things to snack on whenever I get the chance, it isn't something I often think about as the mainstay of a meal. 

I asked myself, 'How do I make those little beans into more?'  and I started thinking about it as a combination element in a vegetable-based salad. 

Which ended up as a challenge to myself, can I do this whole thing purely using plant-based ingredients? 

The answer: yes, and hell yes. 

After quickly raiding our freezer and fridge I cobbled together the following ingredients: 

1 steamer bag of broccoli and cauliflower

1 bag frozen edamame 

1 ripe avocado 

First thing I did was to pop the steamer bag of broccoli and cauliflower into the microwave. I wanted the veggies to have some time to cool down before I added them into the salad. 

Then I flash boiled the edamame, quickly putting them into an ice bath and salting them so I could snack as I pulled everything else together. 

I took the broccoli and cauliflower and using my new favorite tool, my mezzaluna salad chopper, made everything into bite-sized pieces.

I set that aside, took my avocado removed the flesh and mashed it thoroughly until its consistency was similar to that of mayo, I added a little squeeze of lime juice to keep the color vibrant (whoever wanted to eat a brown salad? No one that's who). 

Added a little salt and pepper to my 'avo-mayo' and mixed in the edamame and the broccoli and cauliflower. 

It was delicious on a couple of GG Fiber crackers and then I rolled some of it into a burrito for my fancy-boyfriend and added a little bit of cheddar cheese. 

If you would like more crunch, I recommend roasting the broccoli and cauliflower and I personally LOVE adding cilantro to the avocado for a little bit more flavor. 

Cast Iron Skillet Chicken "Pot" Pie with Buttermilk Biscuit Topper

One of the beautiful things about cast iron skillets is their ability to go straight from the stove top into the oven. Initially, I had been very intimidated by cast iron skillets because I didn't know how to care for them. It wasn't until I went to Cape Cod for Memorial Day a few years ago and was made one of the most delicious breakfasts I've ever had did I begin to reconsider.
Two of my best friends picked up on this, somehow read my mind, and gave me mine as a Christmas gift last year (xox thanks D&K).

I am now completely obsessed.

What you'll need: 

• Frozen buttermilk biscuits 
• 1 1/2 c. chicken stock 
• 1 c. whole milk 
• 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour 
• 1 1/2 tsp. adobo seasoning 
• 1 chopped large onion - I prefer the Spanish onions 
• 2 c. frozen veggies (corn, green beans, carrots, peas, whatever your pleasure) 
• 3 tbsp. butter 
• 2 c. shredded chicken (already cooked) You can use rotisserie or leftover roasted chicken 
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 
• Salt to taste

What you'll do: 

1. Shred your chicken, set aside 
2. Preheat your oven according to the directions on your packaged biscuits, for me, this meant 400 degrees. 
3. Place your burner on medium heat. 
4. Add the butter to your skillet and once it begins to bubble/froth, but before it browns, add your onions. 
5. Cook your onions until they begin to turn translucent and then add the rest of your frozen vegetables. I also added about 1/2 teaspoon of salt. 
6. Allow your vegetables to cook until the onions caramelize, and your vegetables soften, this should take about 2-4 minutes depending on the strength of your burner. 
7. While the veggies are on the stove top, whisk together your chicken stock, milk, flour, and adobo seasoning. 
8. Once your vegetables have softened slowly and gently stir in liquid mixture. 
9. You're going to want to bring your pan to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring often, until the mixture begins to thicken, which should take about 7 minutes. 
10. Once your pan begins to reduce, add your shredded chicken and fresh parsley, allow this to cook for about 5 minutes. 
11. Then add your uncooked biscuits to the top of your pan and pop your skillet into the oven on the middle rack. 
12. Cook the biscuits according to their package directions, mine took about 12 minutes watching them so that they won't brown too much. 

Remove from the oven and relish in this comfy, cozy, dinner that only takes a little over a half an hour to pull together.

[Serves about 4-5 people]

If you're terrified of owning a cast iron skillet because you also don't know how to care for it, I would check out this great article from Serious Eats that dispels a lot of the myths surrounding Cast Iron skillets: https://www.seriouseats.com/2014/11/the-truth-about-cast-iron.html

It's totally worth the little bit of extra effort it takes to upkeep it.

Caprese salad with kale pesto

Tomato.

Zucchini.

Eggplant.

Get ready for a whole host of recipes focused on these three delicious veggies. If you're like the majority of people with summer gardens, you'll tend to have more of these than you know what to do with.

While the stars of this dish are clearly the mozzarella and tomato, I wanted to try something a little different and I found this awesome Kale pesto recipe that was absolutely delicious! 

Kale pesto (originally from Epicurious):

2 cups torn kale leaves - remove the stems

1 cup basil leaves (pack them in there) 

1 tsp. salt 

1/4 Cup olive oil 

1/4 Cup toasted walnuts 

4 cloves of garlic 

1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese 

Directions: 

- add all the leaves and salt to a food processor and pulse until the leaves are chopped into small pieces 

- drizzle in the olive oil as the processor is running 

- add the walnuts, garlic, and process until it’s all incorporated  

- add the cheese and pulse until combined 

Use the pesto as you like! 

When I use it on pasta I also like to top it off with a tiny bit of lemon zest or hot pepper depending on my mood 

xoxox

Feeding the Frat: Noodle Bowls

So I decided to try my hand at a "Ramen" bowl. But, since I didn't have any ramen noodles on hand, I substituted with glass noodles. 

Bowl composition: 

Ground pork - pan fried with ginger and garlic 

Scallions 

Slivered Fresno Peppers

Soft boiled eggs 

Glass Noodles in a  Curry Coconut Sauce

(Optional) Cilantro 

Ground Pork: 

Pan fry the ground pork (2.5 lbs) with 1 teaspoon of garlic, and 1 teaspoon of ginger, in 1 tablespoon of grapeseed oil. 

Add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce.

Add 1 handful of cut scallions.

Add Salt and Pepper to taste. 

Glass Noodles: 

Boil salted water. 

When water reaches a boil, add your glass noodles. 

Cook for 5-6 minutes. 

Remove noodles and place in an ice bath immediately to stop them from continuing to cook. 

Curry Coconut Sauce: 

Take 1 1/2 tablespoons of grapeseed oil. 

Add 1 teaspoon of ginger, 1 teaspoon of garlic and 1 cut small onion, cook over low heat until the onions caramelize. 

1 1/2 teaspoons of salt

Add Beef Broth (2x 32 oz. boxes).

Add 3 teaspoons of curry powder.

Add one can of coconut milk.

Bring to a low boil and allow to cook at least 30 minutes or until you are ready to plate your noodle bowl. 

The boys liked the bowls and as with most successful sibling evenings, dinner ended with sports, relaxation and a lot of laughter.