Spaghetti Squash Boats

Last year I was a "Guest for Dinner" over on Mara's blog What's for Dinner? I just realized I totally forgot to share that recipe with you guys here, too! I found this recipe via Taste of Home, either in their magazine, e-mails, or web site, I cannot remember!

Ingredients:
1 medium spaghetti squash (2 – 2 1/2 pounds)
1/4 pound ground beef (I used 95/5)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I substituted zuchinni)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 can (14 1/2 oz) diced tomatoes, drained (I used a 28 oz can of crushed)
1/3 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Cook the squash in the method that you prefer. Either bake in 1/2 in. of water until tender, or microwave about 5 minutes per pound. I usually bake, but it takes almost an hour, so I microwaved to cut down on both time and energy.

When cool enough to handle, scoop out squash and set aside. In a skillet, cook beef, onion, and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the mushrooms (zuchinni), garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in squash.

Cook, uncovered, until liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Fill shells; place in baking dish. Bake, uncovered in a 350° oven for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until cheese is melted. I popped mine under the broiler for nice brown cheese!

If you cook these using lean ground beef and part-skim mozzarella (as I did), each 1 cup serving is 102 calories, 3g fat, 13g carbohydrates, 3g fiber, and 7g of protein! We actually were able to get 4 servings out of this, each eating only half and re-heating the other half another night.

Ally over at Sweet & Savory tagged me to answer 5 foodie fun facts about myself!

When did you discover your love for cooking/baking? Growing up we were always involved in cooking. It was just kind of the way it was to be on a stool next to my parents and a "taste tester." I would say during high school, after I got my license it grew. I took a cooking class and also had a lot more responsibility as far as grocery shopping and helping with dinner a few nights.

Favorite food to make? My favorite foods to make are really healthy things. I love coaxing delicious flavors out of simple things like roasted vegetables. It's really satisfying to sit and eat dinner and think "ha! some people think vegetables taste bad!"

Top eat of all time? JK's ribs back home on the Outer Banks of N.C. I've loved them since we moved there in 1989 and to date nothing has topped them!

Most disliked food? Raw tomatoes and mushrooms.

Food you still haven't tried to make but want to? I would have to say seafood dishes. The fact that it's so expensive and so easy to screw up makes me really anxious to try them.

I tag all of you because I think it'd be interesting to know your answers too!

Blueberries and Sour Cream

Johnny grew up eating this dish as a sweet snack. A little while after I moved in he offered to make it for me. I said yes and expected a small pile of blueberries with a little sour cream to dip in.

What he brought me was a massive bowl of blueberries completely smothered in sour cream. Uhhhhh...? I remember looking up at him as he handed it to me, thinking this had to be a joke?! He just smiled back and told me to try it.

I shrugged and went in for the first bite. Wow! It was some seriously good stuff and I've been addicted ever since. If we have blueberries on hand, we better have a tub of sour cream, too!

Now, I know what you're thinking - "sour cream!?" But this isn't sour cream in its natural form, it's sweetened and trust me, it completely changes the taste and the texture.

1/4 cup sour cream (we favor Breakstone's because it is whey-free and very thick)
1-2 tsp sugar, to taste
1/2 cup blueberries

In a small bowl mix the sour cream and sugar together until it is well incorporated. Johnny prefers his a little more tart, while I add a bit more sugar. Stir well and the sour cream will become silky smooth, changing consistency. Taste for desired sweetness and you won't believe that it's still sour cream! Fold in the fresh blueberries and enjoy!!

Revisit: Taco Pie

Happy Birthday, Mom!


Source

Yes, that is actually a cake! My mom's been a piano teacher for over 30 years so I thought this was fitting!

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In July I shared my taco aka firework pie with you. It's still at the top of Johnny's list!

When we cooked the queso fundido I thought it was going to be a lighter meal, an appetizer of sorts, and this pie would be the main course.

Wrong! The queso fundido filled us both up, but luckily I hadn't thrown this pie in the oven yet. I assembled it up to the point of baking, threw plastic wrap on it and left it in the fridge for the next night's dinner.

What a great feeling to have dinner already made the next day. From that point all I needed to do was turn the oven on and pop this pre-made dish in for 30 minutes.

Delicious as ever, served with sliced avacado and sour cream on top. There are enough leftovers for Mexican dinner #3 of the week!

In other exciting news I was a runner up for Pioneer Woman's Vocabulary Quiz #1!

Johnny and I raced through the answers and managed to be lucky comment #166 to win a $75 Amazon gift certificate! We've entered about a dozen of her Smartypants quizzes, only getting all the answers correct for maybe 4 or 5. It was really cool to finally win a prize in one! Now if only I could be so lucky when she's giving away Le Crueset sets or Kitchenaid Mixers!!

Queso Fundido con Rajas y Chorizo

Translation: Melted cheese with roasted peppers and chorizo. Verdict: Yum.

If any of you have watched Top Chef or Top Chef: Masters you know who Rick Bayless is. He's been a favorite celebrity chef of Johnny's and mine because he's local so his restaurants and Frontera products are accessible and he's mastered one of our favorite cuisines: Mexican. The attention to detail and love that Rick pours into learning Mexican food is really impressive, as is his sharing of the craft. Rick and his wife lived in Mexico and studied every little in and out of local cuisine.

Since 2003 Rick has hosted Mexico: One Plate at a Time on PBS, which Johnny and I have a few seasons of on DVD and it's better than anything currently on Food Network. He's written five award-winning cookbooks, one of which we own a signed copy of. (No, we weren't lucky enough to witness the signing, Johnny's SIL won it in a gift basket and generously gave Authentic Mexican Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico to us!)

He's also really respectful and responsible in his ingredient usage. He was a founding member of Chefs Collaborative for environmentally friendly practices, and he uses only sustainable seafood. Him and his staff started the Frontera Farmer's Association, his charity of choice on Top Chef: Masters, which provides grants to local family farms.

As you can tell, I really like and respect Rick, so imagine my delight when I tweeted him for chorizo suggestions from our cookbook and he tweeted me back with two recipes and their page numbers! I love that I got a personal recommendation from the cookbook author and chef himself! He's such a cool guy, he tweets often and makes himself accessible to his fans, answering questions left and right.

This recipe made enough to fill 6 tortillas and was a little deceiving in the fact that so little can be so filling! Johnny had three, I had two, and it was plenty!

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
1 fresh chile poblano, roasted, peeled, seeded, thinly sliced
4 oz (1/2 cup) chorizo sausage
8 oz (2 cups) melting cheese *see note

Roast the poblano over the open flame of a gas burner until the skin is blistered and black. If you do not have a gas stove you can cook these under the broiler of your oven.


Carefully rinse the skin off under water and remove the seeds and membrane. Slice into strips.

Turn the oven to 375° and set a pie pan or ramekin inside to heat while the oven comes up to temperature.

In a medium skillet heat half the oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and cook about 8 minutes until the onion is slightly browned. Add the pepper strips and cook until they're softened, then remove everything to a bowl.

In the meantime slice the cheese into small 1/2 inch cubes and place in an even layer in the warmed pan. Bake for about 10 minutes so the cheese can evenly melt. *Note: Rick has taken great consideration in identifying everything in the back of this book, down to which ingredients and sometimes specific brands, he recommends. I used an authentic Chihuahua cheese a local company makes, but otherwise he suggests Monteray Jack or mozzarella.

Add the second tablespoon of oil to the skillet and add the chorizo, frying until done, about 10 minutes. Drain off excess fat. This was the first time both Johnny and I tried chorizo and it was delicious!

Remove the hot cheese pan from the oven and drain excess fat if necessary. Spread the chile and onion mixture along with the chorizo over top. Place back in the oven for another couple minutes to heat everything.

Scoop onto warmed tortillas (again I bought from a local company that makes them fresh and delivers to stores) of your choice. Johnny opted for corn and I went for flour. The sausage is surprisingly subtle, with complexity and a hint of heat. The poblanos, once roasted and their seeds removed, are not hot, but full of chile flavor. Since being slowly sauteed the onions have a sweetness that lends itself to the other bolder ingredients.

Random Updates

I have some yummy Mexican treats coming your way in the next couple posts, but in the meantime here are some updates.

About two weeks ago I won Mara's giveaway and received my package yesterday! Two cans of Progresso soup, a big soup mug/bowl, and an electronic counting jump rope! Thanks again, Mara!

Remember my Musselmann's basket I got last week? A few of you expressed interests in hearing my feedback. So far Johnny and I polished off the natural, no sugar added apple sauce tub (the pink one on the left) in one sitting. It was really delicious and fresh, like taking bites out of an apple. I have to admit I was nervous about the no sugar added aspect because a few summers ago my cousins were eating an all natural apple sauce that was disgusting. But it was a granny apple one, so it was really tart and bitter, this was not!

I only have one container left of the Healthy picks blueberry and pomegranate, no sugar added apple sauce. It's also very good, tastes more blueberry than pomegranate and has a thicker texture than normal applesauce. I saw a tip on Musselmann's facebook page to freeze these little guys for a slushy summertime treat and I'm definitely going to give that a try, it'd be perfect.

I've had the Totally Fruit peach one, which is naturally flavored with peach juice. This was good, but not my favorite. The texture was very smooth, almost like baby food's consistency.

Last, I used the cherry pie filling to make a dessert Friday night while we had company for dinner. The next night Johnny split the remains into two servings and reheated slightly in the microwave.


Heart n Soul Cooking gave me the Happy 101 blog award! I have to list 10 things that make me happy and then 10 bloggers that brighten my day!

1) Johnny! Not to be overly gushy, but he really is the best. Just like Biz and Tony, we met online! He is a web developer and in February 2006 I joined a web site that he ran and we met on the message boards. We emailed back and forth immediately, finding a lot in common and eventually started talking on the phone. In August I dumped my then boyfriend because I'd realized I liked Johnny more than him and in September Johnny flew out to meet me (I was living in Prince Edward Island, Canada at the time). He stayed a week and him leaving was one of the worst days I've ever lived. We didn't last one month apart! In October he flew back to help me pack up Corky, Poe, and my stuff into the back of my Jeep and we drove 26 hours here to Chicagoland where I've lived with him since!

2) My family! It took me awhile to appreciate them because we all have really strong personalities and are stubborn and butt heads. Both sides of my family are very large - my mom has 4 siblings and my dad has 5. This equals a LOT of cousins and extended family, which I was lucky enough to grow up really close to. Sunday dinners usually included at least 20 people. We're spread around the country now, but a lot of them I still do get to see at least once a year.

3) Corky and Poe. Seriously, I have the best pets in the world.

4) YOU! I love being a food blogger and I love our little community. You guys are some great friends.

5) Cooking. When I started this blog I thought I was a pretty good home cook because I'd been cooking for years and had a lot of recipes down pat. Since then I've become a lot more adventurous and you have inspired me with your recipes, making it much more of a creative outlet for me!

6) Books! I love reading and when I am in the mood - watch out because I will read a 300 page novel in 4 or 5 hours.

7) Board games. I love board games and thankfully so does Johnny and his family. My favorites include Balderdash, Scattergories, Monopoly, Hoopla, Stratego, and old-fashioned favorites like Connect 4 and checkers. (We also love card games too, specifically Rummy!)

8) Photos. Thank God Johnny is a web developer and has server room to spare. I love photographs and surround myself by framed pictures of loved ones.

9) Summer! A Chicago summer is nothing like a summer growing up on the coast of North Carolina, but it's still a great time of year. I'll always be biased towards summer because of where I grew up, nothing can compare!

10) TV/Movies/Music. My favorites of all of these always make me happy. Favorite TV show of all time is Firefly, favorite movie of all time is Breakfast at Tiffany's, and favorite band is Green Day!

And finally, the 10 bloggers that light up my day are:

Biz at Biggest Diabetic Loser
Sophia of Burp & Slurp~
Laura at Hey What's for Dinner, Mom?
Allie at Live Laugh Eat
Michelle of Lucky Taste Buds
Sarah at No Whey, Mama
Alisa at One Frugal Foodie
Amy of Please Don't Eat Me!
Cyndi of So Much More Than a Mom
Mara of What's for Dinner?

Make-your-own Pizza Night!

Growing up we always had make-your-own pizza nights! My mom would get the little pre-made pizza crusts and we'd use up leftover sauce. The toppings changed based on our cravings and what leftovers we had on hand to use up.

Ever since Biz posted her easy pizza dough recipe, when Johnny and I now have make-your-own pizza nights, we use that instead of the pre-made crusts. If you haven't tried it yet, you should! It's really easy and once you buy the yeast it's stuff always on hand and readily available. You can also easily turn it into calzones!

Tonight I just whipped the dough up in a bowl because I didn't want to wash my Cuisinart! I also made a slight adjustment to the recipe with the addition of garlic powder, which I think made it really delicious and special!

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 1/4 tsp yeast (or1 pkg)
1 cup warm water
1 Tbsp olive oil

Measure the flour, salt, and garlic powder into a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Mix the yeast with the warm water and allow to sit for 5 minutes to activate. The water will become a creamy tan color and the top will foam a bit. Stir the olive oil into the yeast mixture and then pour slowly into the dry ingredients. Stir to mix everything and add up to 1/4 cup more flour if necessary to get the desired dough consistency. Knead for a few minutes and then leave in the bowl while you get the rest of the ingredients ready.

Tonight I was exceptionally lazy, did not have any jarred sauce on hand, and hadn't thought to thaw sauce from the freezer. I did the next best thing and popped this can open and using my stick blender pureed it right in the can! (These are another of my dad's Dollar Tree finds!) Viola!

For the toppings I cut up some onion, green pepper, garlic, and black olives. I thawed some frozen chopped spinach and also used up some leftover steamed broccoli. It helps to have all of this prepped and in little bowls ahead of time. We used a mixture of mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese for a little more flavor.

Roll out half of the dough to about 12" or a lopsided oval, like mine. Pre-bake this for about 5 minutes in a 425° oven. Remove and then layer the sauce, cheese, and toppings. Bake another 20 minutes or until the cheese is starting to brown. For a chewier crust bake on a pan, for a crispier crust bake directly on the oven rack.

My pizza had onions, green peppers, garlic, black olives, leftover broccoli, and a sprinkle of dried basil and oregano.

Johnny's had spinach, garlic, green peppers, and onions. He went with the Chicago route of putting the toppings on the sauce and the cheese on top.

Again, this is really easy to make! Just because it's dough and it uses yeast doesn't mean it's hard or scary. The first time we made it was last January and I've easily made this 10 times since! Once was this past summer with my three younger cousins - they loved rolling out the dough and personalizing their toppings. I've even been lucky enough to have Biz make it for me herself!

Cherry and Cream Cheese Shortbread

Ok, I'm not sure this is technically a shortbread, but the recipe the dough was inspired by was from a blueberry shortbread so I'm going with it.

It's kind of like an Entenmann's fruit danish, but with a lot more fruit. Plus I added cream cheese to make it a little more indulgent. (Please excuse the pics, the light over the stove was on and gives everything a yellow tint, plus we had a guest for dinner and I didn't want to spend forever shooting the food!)

For the "dough:"
2/3 cup sugar
6 Tbsp butter, softened
1 egg
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp lemon rind

For the filling:
1 21 oz. can of pie filling, your choice (I used cherry from my gift basket)
4 oz. (half box) cream cheese (1/3 less fat Philadelphia)

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and beat until light and fluffy. Add flour and lemon rind. Spread evenly in the bottom of a greased 8x8" baking dish.

Cut the 4 oz. of cream cheese into small cubes and dollop over the dough.

Spread the can of fruit pie filling overtop everything, evenly.

Bake in a 325° oven for approximately 45 minutes. Mine was moving a little slow so I raised the temperature to 350° for the last 10 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and spoon onto a plate and enjoy!