Roasted Potatoes

A very easy, filling side dish when potatoes are in season. 

Ingredients

1 qt. small potatoes, sliced

dry onion soup mix or salt & pepper

olive oil or butter

Directions

Toss sliced potatoes in olive oil or melted butter, and soup mix. Roast in a 9x13-inch casserole dish for 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Turn once while cooking. Some of the potatoes should be crispy! 

Apple & Sweet Potato Kugel

I threw this together in about 25 minutes. It's appropriate for any meal of the day, and you can toss in whatever leftovers you have and change up the spices for a whole new dish.

Ingredients
1 lb. sweet potato or butternut squash, chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 onion, chopped into 1-inch pieces
2 apples, peeled and chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1-12 oz. bag of broad egg noodles
4 eggs
1 c. sour cream or Greek yogurt
1 c. whole milk (I used 2%, actually)
dash of thyme and black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. butter
Panko bread crumbs, sugar, and salt for sprinkling over the casserole before baking

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss vegetables with oil, salt, and pepper, then roast on a pan (in one layer) for about 20 minutes. Toss once during the roasting process. When the veggies are ready, they will have just started to brown. Once you've removed the veggies from the oven, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees.

While the veggies are roasting, cook your noodles until they are just cooked through. Beat the eggs and then whisk in the milk, sour cream or yogurt, and spices, and set aside.

Lightly grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish and create the kugel by layering noodles, veggies, noodles, veggies and so on. Then, pour the egg mixture over the casserole. Press the noodles into the egg mixture with the back of a big spoon. Sprinkle Panko, sugar and salt over the top and bake for 40 minutes, or until the top starts browning. Let sit for 20 minutes prior to serving.

Serves 6 to 8.

Grilled Avocado & Goat Cheese Tacos

From Naturally Ella, a VERY quick and easy weekday meal. 

Ingredients
1 tbsp. coriander seeds
½ tbsp. cumin seeds
pinch dried pepper flakes
½ c. black beans, with liquids
1 avocado
1 tsp. olive oil
juice and zest from ½ lime
2 tsp. honey
¼ c. goat cheese
4 corn or flour tortillas

Instructions
Preheat Grill. In a dry skillet over medium-low heat, toast the coriander and cumin seeds for 2-3 minutes. Seeds should be fragrant and beginning to brown. Place in a pestle with dried pepper flakes and crush until spices are ground.

Return spices to the skillet and add ½ cup of black beans and liquids. Heat over medium low and let cook until liquids have cooked out, anywhere from 5-10 minutes. Taste and adjust pepper if needed.

Take avocado and slice in half. Brush with the one teaspoon of olive oil and place cut side down on grill. Let cook until lightly charred. Remove and carefully slice avocado out of skin.

To assemble tacos, place ¼ of the black bean mixture in the center of the tortilla, layer avocado and goat cheese on top. Finally, whisk together juice and zest from half a lime along with honey. Lightly drizzle over taco filling.

Homemade Soft Scrub

Totally non-toxic with excellent scrubbing power; great for bathrooms! 

Ingredients

1 c. baking soda

1/2 c. liquid castile soap

1 tbsp. warm water

a few drops of Thieves 

(http://www.youngliving.com/natural-cleaner/Thieves-Cleaner) 

Directions

Mix together and store in an airtight container. 

Curried Broccoli Salad

This fresh broccoli salad recipe combines broccoli florets, raisins and crunchy sunflower kernels in a creamy curry flavored dressing. It literally takes 15 minutes to whip up.

Ingredients
1/2 c. Greek yogurt
3 tbsp. mustard (spicy, dijon, just not yellow)
2 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. curry powder
3 c. fresh broccoli florets, quartered
1/2 c. raisins
1/3 c. sunflower seeds, roasted & salted

Directions
Mix yogurt, mustard, honey and curry powder in large bowl until well blended. Add broccoli, raisins and sunflower kernels to mayonnaise mixture; toss lightly. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Thai Peanut Zucchini Noodles

Ingredients
2 medium zucchini
1 carrot
1 c. edamame, shelled
¼ c. chopped cashews
½ avocado, cubed
1 tbsp. black sesame seeds
½ c. assorted herbs (mint, basil, cilantro)
1 tbsp. salted peanut butter
1 tbsp. lime juice
½ tbsp. honey
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. garlic chili paste (sriracha)

Directions
In a small bowl, combine the peanut butter, lime juice, honey, sesame oil, garlic and chili paste. Whisk to combine, then set aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Peel the zucchini and carrot, then using a julienne peeler and cut the vegetables into long strands. In a medium bowl combine the zucchini, carrot, edamame and avocado, add a few tablespoons of the dressing and toss lightly to combine. Garnish with the herbs, sesame seeds and cashews and serve.

Spinach Enchiladas

The is an excellent white sauce for the traditional "Mexican Flag" enchilada dish you might find. 

Ingredients
For the enchiladas:
1 lb. fresh organic spinach (we used the Wegmans 11 oz. organic baby spinach)

2 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 large onion, chopped
1 lb. fresh mushrooms, halved
1 tbsp. butter
2 slices white bread, crusts removed
salt
2 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. chili powder
2 eggs, beaten
2 c. grated monterey jack and cheddar cheese blend, divided
6 to 8 flour tortillas

For the cilantro cream sauce:
1-1/2 c. half-and-half
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tbsp. cornstarch, plus 1 tsp. cornstarch, dissolved in a small amount of cold water
1-1/2 c. cilantro, chopped finely

Directions
Wilt spinach in large pot. Combine garlic, onion and mushrooms in food processor, and process until coarsely chopped. Melt butter in sauté pan, and sauté onion mixture until onion is translucent. Remove pan from heat, and set aside.

Make bread crumbs in food processor from sliced bread. Add spinach, salt, pepper, nutmeg, chili powder and eggs. Process until blended thoroughly. Transfer to mixing bowl, and stir in onion mixture and 6 tablespoons cheese.

Preheat broiler. Spoon a portion of filling onto each tortilla and roll it up. Place each enchilada in casserole dish, seam side down. Repeat until you've used up filling. 

For cream sauce, mix half-and-half, cayenne, salt and a little of the dissolved corn starch in medium saucepan, and heat until thickened. The sauce should be creamy, not runny; add more cornstarch mixture as necessary. Off the heat, stir in cilantro. Pour cilantro cream sauce over tortillas, and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Broil until cheese melts and turns a nice golden color.

Brown Butter Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
2 1/4 c. cake flour
1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1-1/4 tsp. baking soda
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1-1/4 c. (2-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, browned
1-1/2 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. granulated sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. bourbon
2 eggs, at room temperature
10 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions
First, brown the butter by melting it in a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly. The butter will begin to bubble and foam and then quickly after, turn a golden brown with amber specks in the butter. Immediately remove from heat and pour browned butter into a small bowl and place in the refrigerator until cool to the touch.

In a large bowl whisk together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

When butter is cooled, cream together with the brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth and creamy. Mix in the vanilla extract, then add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Finally, mix in the bourbon.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. (You may think you can skip this step. You cannot.)

When the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat baking sheet. Scoop dough into 1 1/2 tablespoon (golfball-sized) balls (I used an ice cream scoop). Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 24 large cookies.

Buffalo Chickpea Quinoa Burgers

Ingredients
1/4 c. uncooked quinoa
1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 c. rolled oats
1/4 c. minced shallot
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 c. buffalo sauce (see recipe for Buffalo Cauliflower)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. breadcrumbs
whole grain hamburger buns
crumbled blue cheese or blue cheese dressing
lettuce, tomato and/or avocado

Directions
Bring 1/2 cup water to a boil. Add quinoa, cover, reduce heat and let simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, add chickpeas to the bowl of a food processor or mini chopper and pulse until they are broken down into crumb-sized pieces. Transfer to a large bowl. Add oats to same food processor and pulse a few times to break them down into fine crumbs (but not a powder). Add to chickpeas in large bowl. Add to the bowl the shallots, garlic, buffalo sauce, egg, salt, and pepper. Add the cooked quinoa. Mix everything together with a large fork until well combined. If mixture is still too wet to form patties, add the 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs (or enough to hold the mixture together). Divide and shape into patties (made about 3).

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and cook patties for about 4-5 minutes per side.

Assemble burgers by placing patty on bun, topping with additional buffalo sauce, a bit of blue cheese, lettuce, and avocado or tomato if desired.