There will be more, I promise!

Well, it's been a crazy busy couple months, and YES, I have been cooking. I've even been taking pics....just to remind myself of what I've been cooking once I get back into blogging mode. That said, tonight is not the night. We moved from NC to CO (LOVE IT!), and I started working again last week. So...just a preview, I'm looking into some crock pot meals, so you'll have some of those coming up (I know, you can hardly wait). If anyone has any crock pot recipes they recommend, I'd love to have them.

Spinach Bacon Quiche

I've always loved quiche. Growing up my Mom always made Quiche Lorainne, which is great, but I usually make something a little bit jazzier. Tonight I found my recipe on allrecipes.com. I'll put my substitutions in parenthesis after the actual ingredients in the recipe:

Ingredients

• 4 eggs (I used 2/3 cup of All Whites)
  
• 2 cups milk (I used evaporated skim milk)
  
• 1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided (I used swiss)
  
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (I used 5- never too much bacon!)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, cooked and drained(I used fresh)
  
• 1 (9 inch) unbaked pastry shell

Directions

1. In a large bowl, beat eggs; whisk in milk, 1 cup cheese, onion, bacon, salt, mustard and paprika. Add spinach. Pour into pie shell. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake at 400 degrees F for 40 minutes or until a knife inserted halfway between the center and the edge comes out clean.

The next time I make this quiche I will definitely dry to squeeze as much liquid as I can out of the spinach, as the quiche was a little bit soggy. I might also decrease the milk b/c I couldn't fit all of the liquid in the pie shell. Otherwise, the flavor was great. Since it was just me and the kids, I served it with steamed rice and corn, to ensure they'd eat something. Both of them did try some of the quiche!

Soft Oatmeal Cookies

I definitely have my second son to thank for any interest I have in baking. I've never had much of a sweet tooth, but when I was pregnant with him, I LOVED to make cookies. Funny thing is, the kid didn't even touch his birthday cake, or these cookies. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com . I halfed the recipe, and added 1/2 cup chopped pecans and 1/2 cup and 1/2 cup white/milk chocolate chips. I also only didn't have quite enough oatmeal, so I added some ground flaxseed. They were YUM!

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups quick cooking oats

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in oats. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls, and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Flatten each cookie with a large fork dipped in sugar.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Not Eggstrodanary

My neighbor made this mac and cheese for me awhile ago, and gave me the recipe (it was SO good!). I must've missed in the recipe sharing that she'd never put the eggs in it b/c she thought it was weird that it called for them. I found out why. What started out as a creamy dreamy sauce turned curdly and weird...like scrambled cheese eggs and mac. That said, the stuff tasted FANTASTIC. The only substitution I made was that I used skim milk. This is Paula Dean's recipe:

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese


Ingredients

• 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (an 8-ounce box isn't quite 2 cups)
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stuck) butter, cut into pieces
• 2 1/2 cups (about 10 ounces) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
  
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
  
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
  
• 1 cup whole milk
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Feta Cheese Turkey Burgers

Oh, these were so insanely good, and even better reheated. I can't wait to make them again. The recipe is from allrecipes.com, with no alterations.

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the grill for medium high heat.
2. In a large bowl, combine turkey, feta cheese, olives, oregano, and pepper. Mix together, and form into patties.
3. Lightly oil the grate. Place patties on the grill. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, turning halfway through.

I served them over sauteed spinach and roasted red peppers. I will leave out the peppers next time, and sprinkle feta over the top

I served wild rice on the side. I received a 6 cup Aroma rice maker for Christmas, and I couldn't be happier with it! My rice is PERFECT everytime!!

YUMMY Chicken Veggie Soup

I often come across recipes the day I use them. I'm pretty good at keeping fresh veggies and meat stocked (I tend to go to the grocery store once a week). So, I saw that I had some zucchini that needed to be used, and allrecipes provided me with this recipe. I tweeked it a bit, and here's what I ended up with:

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into bite-size pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium onion, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 medium carrot, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (I used 10 baby carrots)
  
• 1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (I used 2 small zucchini)
  
• 1 medium red or green bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 4 medium red potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with juice
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups chicken broth
  
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in chicken and cook about 1 minute. Mix in garlic and onion; cook until tender. Stir in carrot, potatoes, zucchini, and red bell pepper. Pour in tomatoes with juice. Season with red pepper flakes, basil, broth and bay leaf, and continue cooking until vegetables are tender and chicken juices run clear. Season with salt and pepper just before serving.

I let this simmer on my stove on low for quite awhile, but I would guess it could be done in a 1/2 hour or so. It's definitely one that could be done in a crock pot. I'll definitely be making it again.

Slacker Foodee

That's me. Slacker. We're moving in a couple months, and I've officially become obsessed with finding our perfect house...a task that seems nearly impossible! As a result, my desire to blog when I have time to sit down has diminished. I didn't even blog about Christmas, and OH BOY did I cook!! So, maybe I'll start with a recipe from then, and add some more later...pace myself!

New Potatoes with Caper Sauce

Ingredients

• 12 small new potatoes, scrubbed (I used 6 medium red potatoes, cubed)
  
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons capers, chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced green onion
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Combine the softened butter, capers, green onion, Parmesan cheese, parsley and vinegar in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. If potatoes are large, cut into halves or quarters. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain.
3. Add the caper sauce to the pot of drained potatoes and toss gently to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

These potatoes are FANTASTIC! I served them for Christmas dinner with a standing rib roast, and hmmmm....what was the veggie?? Oh yes, fresh green beans!

More to come later, for all of you avid readers (HA!)