White Bean Feta Artichoke Dip

Everyone needs a good simple dip and this one has become my staple. I realized I needed something else besides cheese and crackers when having guests over and I turned to my shelves. I pulled a can of cannellini beans and a jar of artichokes.  By adding some simple ingredients from the farmers market and a few from in my fridge...voila! This dip is tangy, sweet, and salty all in one bite. Perfect with pita chips, crackers, or these great garlic crostini. Serves 8

Ingredients

Dip:

1 can cannellini beans, drained

1 small jar artichokes, drained

juice from 1/2 lemon

6 basil leaves, chopped

1/4 cup feta cheese

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp pepper

Crostini:

1/2 loaf of french bread, cut diagonally into thin pieces

1 clove garlic, peeled

Preheat Broiler

Place bread in the oven until crispy, 3-5 minutes

When you bring them out, rub with garlic

In a blender, combine all dip ingredients

Add extra oil if needed

Blend for about 2 minutes until smooth

Spread dip over crostini, enjoy!

Chicken Meatball Subs (Gluten-Free)

I'm starting to miss my favorite meatball subs from Charlottesville, so I decided to recreate them. A few tips for this recipe: Make the breadcrumbs with day old bread, don't buy pre-made breadcrumbs. If you want this to be gluten-free, use gluten-free french bread. When you get ready to use the ground chicken take it out of the refrigerator for about 20 minutes so it's not so cold on your hands. Dig out some of the inside of the bread after you slice it. This allows for a groove for the balls to fit in and makes it a bit less caloric. Lastly, choose whichever cheese you desire, I just personally love provolone with chicken meatballs. Serves 4

Ingredients

1 lb ground chicken

1 egg

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 tbsp spice mix

-equal parts paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, dried parsley, salt, and pepper

4 basil leaves, chopped

2 large loaves of gluten-free or regular french bread

4 slices of provolone cheese

1 15oz jar of your favorite marinara sauce (I use Rao's)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup breadcrumbs:

Take 1/4 of a loaf of bread and tear it into multiple pieces

Place it in a blender

On high, blend the bread until small crumbs form

This will take about 2 minutes

Cut up the remaining bread into 6 large pieces, then slice down the center

Preheat oven to 425 F

Line the bottom of a large glass dish with marinara (use about half of the bottle)

In a large bowl combine chicken, egg, spices, parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, and basil. 

Using your hands, make the chicken into 12 balls

Flatten the balls and place them in the glass dish

Cook for 15-25 minutes until they are semi-hard

Cut into one and see if it is cooked

Place the cheese in the scooped slices of bread

Broil for 3 minutes or until cheese has melted

Pour a bit of sauce on one half

Add meatballs and top with the other slice of bread

Smoosh and enjoy!

Chicken and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

The goal of this recipe was to create a stuffed pepper that both C and I would enjoy. We needed meat involved and needed something healthy to replace rice. We decided to use chicken and quinoa, which ended up being a great combination. These are very filling, flavorful, and messy!!! Serves 6

Ingredients
1 lb ground chicken
6 green bell peppers
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup shredded carrots (can get at a salad bar)
1 glove garlic, chopped
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups quinoa, washed
2 roma tomato, diced
2 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 F
Cook quinoa according the package
(using vegetable broth instead of water)
Meanwhile, in a large pan heat oil over medium low
Add carrots and onion
Cook for about 3 minutes then add garlic
Heat for two minutes then add meat
Stir meat with a wooden spoon
Add in paprika and pepper
Stir until meat is cooked fully, about 10 minutes
Add tomatoes and quinoa

Cut peppers tops off and slice out the center

Fill each pepper with the mixture
Sprinkle with cheese
Cover with foil and place in the oven for 15 minutes
Remove foil, turn on broiler for 5 minutes

Eat up with plenty of plate space and napkins!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies

Now that we're all moved into our new New York City apartment, I needed to cover the "new apartment" smell. What better scent is there to create than fresh cookies! These cookies are a combination of an old Martha Stewart recipe for oatmeal cookies with some ingredients added and some taken out. Makes 24 cookies

Ingredients
1 stick butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar mixture
-6 tbsp light brown sugar
-6 tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 tsp water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
3/4 cups all purpose whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp peanut butter
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup old fashioned oats (not quick)
a dash of cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325 F
In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt
In a mixer combine butter, water, and sugar on medium high until smooth
Bring speed down to low
Add eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon
Once combined, add peanut butter then flour mixture
Once it's smooth, add oats and chocolate chips

Plop teaspoon sized dough balls onto a non-stick cookie sheet
*if you make them bigger they don't bake well, I found that the center was undercooked and outside was overcooked when I tried to make them tablespoon sized

Bake for about 10-12 minutes when golden on the outside

Eat with a glass of milk!

Burrata and Tomato Salad

This salad is a fancy upgrade of the classic caprese salad. Burrata cheese is like mozzarella in taste and appears to look similar  until you cut into it. The center is soft and creamy and melts out onto the tomato salad. To make this salad look as good as it tastes, make sure to get multicolored tomatoes. Serves 6

Ingredients

3 large tomatoes, sliced (I get different colored tomatoes from the farmer's market)

1 ball Burrata* 

10 basil leaves, torn

5 heart of palms, chopped

1 tsp dijon mustard

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

*Burrata can be hard to find at local grocery stores

Trader Joe's has it consistently

Arrange cheese in the center of a large plate

Circle the cheese with tomatoes, making two layers if needed

Sprinkle with heart of palms and basil

Whisk together mustard, oil, salt, and pepper

Drizzle over salad

Enjoy! Feel free to mix up salad before serving

Serve with toasted garlic bread or as is

Gumbo- Gluten Free

Gumbo is a great summer hearty meal packed with protein, flavor, and texture. This recipe is adapted from one of my amazing soon to be mother-in-law's staples. She got the recipe from a friend and the origin is unknown, but there's no wonder why it has been passed around-it's amazing! By using gluten-free broth, sausage, worcestershire sauce, and flour, this recipe can be enjoyed by all (except vegetarians and people with shell fish allergies!) Serves 8

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, sliced into large chunks

3 large chicken sausages, chopped into 8ths

1/2 lb wild caught shrimp, deveined (ask fish market to do this for you)

2 cup frozen okra, chopped

2 shallots, chopped

1 small yellow onion, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, sliced (I got a large clump at a market's salad bar)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tbsp butter, plus a little for browning

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 large can or box of diced tomatoes

2 cups organic gluten free chicken broth

1 bunch parsley, rough chopped

1 bunch thyme, whole

1/2 tbsp smoked paprika 

1 tsp hot sauce

1 tbsp gluten free Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste 

In a large dutch oven or pot, heat butter on medium low

Add garlic, shallots, and onions

Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly

Add peppers and okra

Cook until soft, about 5 minutes

Add broth and stir until hot

Add paprika, hot sauce, parsley, thyme, and tomatoes 

Let simmer for about 30 minutes

Meanwhile, brown chicken and chicken sausage

Do this by adding to a pan with a little butter on medium heat

Turning meat after 2 minutes 

Add to the pot and cook for another 30 minutes on simmer

10 minutes before finishing cooking add shrimp

Add in Worcestershire sauce and serve

I like to serve this over rice or cous cous

Rainy Day Kid's Veggie Spaghetti and Meatball Casserole

In my opinion, the best rainy day activity to do with children is cooking. It's also the best way to get them to try new foods. I cook in my classroom constantly to have the students practice math skills through measuring and practice reading skills by learning how to follow instructions. This past week while babysitting I decided to cook up dinner with the kiddos that mixed one of their favorites (spaghetti) with a protein (meatballs) and something green (broccoli). By using low fat cheese, turkey or meatless meatballs, and whole wheat pasta, this dish wont make you feel guilty. Serves 8

Ingredients

2 cups of your favorite tomato sauce

12 turkey or meatless meatballs thawed 

1/2 cup broccoli florets, thawed if frozen 

1 cup low-fat skim mozzarella, shredded

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1 package of whole wheat spaghetti

Cook pasta as directed, minus two minutes so they aren't fully cooked

PreHeat oven to 350F

Mix the cheeses then separate them into two separate cups

Pour tomato sauce in a large baking dish

Mix in 1 cup of cheese

When pasta is drained, add in and mix 

Mix in meatballs and broccoli

Top with remaining cup of cheese

Bake for 20 minutes

Eat up!