Green Beans with Pesto

Don't you love how sometimes the simplest dishes can be so tasty? Our youngest turned three yesterday so I made some of her favorites for dinner last night.  Slow cooker mac & cheese (more on that another day), honey drizzled carrot fries (another big hit) , and these pesto green beans were on the menu and she was so happy - that kid will eat anything with pesto on it! But it's got to be the good stuff - homemade or store bought fresh.  She's a definite foodie in the making already. ;)

1 lb. fresh green beans, trimmed

1 tsp. olive oil or butter

1 - 2 TBSP your favorite pesto, or to taste

Parmesan cheese, grated - optional

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add green beans.  Allow to cook 3-4 minutes.

Remove from heat, drain beans, and immediately rinse with cold water.  Pat dry.

In a large skillet, heat 1 tsp. olive oil over medium high heat.  Add the green beans and toss to coat a minute or so, until heated through.

Remove from heat and toss with as little or as much pesto as you like.  Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve warm.

Or refrigerate and serve cold.  It's good either way.

Spinach Stuffed Mushrooms

Because I had three full bags of baby spinach in the fridge that I needed to use or lose, spinach was the theme of last night's dinner.  We had a delicious spinach and tortellini soup, more on that another day, and these little mushroom bites.  They were such an easy and elegant addition to the meal and, since they're made with cottage cheese, not super heavy in calories like the cream cheese-based stuffed mushrooms I usually go for.

1 TBSP olive oil

12 baby bella mushrooms

12 mushroom stems, chopped

2 TBSP yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2c baby spinach leaves

1/2c cottage cheese

1 egg

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp. black pepper

1/8 tsp. cayenne powder

1 TBSP fresh basil, chopped

2 TBSP Parmesan cheese, grated

1.  Preheat oven to 350°

2.  In a large skillet, over medium heat, heat olive oil.

3.  Add onion and mushroom stems.  Saute 1-2 minutes.

4.  Add spinach and allow it to cook down; 1-2 minutes.

5.  Add garlic and continue sautéing another minute.  Remove from heat and set aside.

6.  To a food processor or blender, add the cottage cheese, egg, nutmeg, black pepper, and cayenne.  Pulse a few times to combine mixture but still retain some texture.

7.  Add spinach mixture and basil.  Pulse another 3-4 times; just enough to blend.

8.  Spoon everything into the mushroom caps.  Bake 25-30 minutes.

9.  During the last 5 minutes of baking, top each mushroom with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Tip: Make the filling ahead of time and store in the refrigerator until you're ready to bake.

Goat Cheese Quinoa with Spinach and Pine Nuts

It was one of those days when very little went according to plan and I was *this* close to letting the pizza man handle dinner...

but then I remembered the gorgeous okra and corn on the cob just bought two days ago at the farmers market.  I needed a dinner that incorporated both these purchases.

Oh, and there's that partial bag of spinach I need to use or lose... and that goat cheese I bought with no real plan for its use (I love the stuff and can't help myself sometimes) ... this meal was clearly meant to come together.

Paired with oven-roasted okra and corn on the cob with Old Bay seasoned butter, this was an easy, and delicious, dinner:

1c quinoa, cooked according to pkg. directions

1 TBSP olive oil

3 TBSP pine nuts, divided

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2c spinach leaves, rough chopped

2 TBSP goat cheese, crumbled

1.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

2.  Add pine nuts and garlic, cooking 1 - 2 minutes, until lightly toasted.

3.  Add cooked quinoa and spinach, cooking and stirring occasionally until quinoa is heated through and spinach is wilted.

4.  Remove from heat and fold in cheese.

5.  Garnish with additional 1 TBSP pine nuts and serve warm.

Yields 2 generous portions.

Classic Coleslaw

To me, coleslaw is a perfect addition to any summertime cookout and was delicious paired with our BBQ Baked Beans last week.  What I like about this one is that the cabbage retains just the right amount of crunch and flavor because it's not drenched in dressing.   I can't stand a soggy coleslaw!

I usually opt for coleslaw mix in a bag because I like the blend of colors.  It's important for my food to be pretty.  :)  Sometimes I also stir in chilled apple chunks for a little something extra just before serving - yum!

3/4c mayonnaise

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. celery seed

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

2 TBSP apple cider vinegar

14oz. pkg. coleslaw mix

1.  In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except coleslaw mix.  Stir until well blended.

2.  Add coleslaw mix and toss to coat.

3.  Refrigerate until chilled.

                      

BBQ Baked Beans

I have used this recipe for baked beans every summer for the last several years.  Okay, not this *exact* recipe; the previous one included meat.  We've now had this vegetarian version twice and, as always, it's delicious!

2 (15 oz.) cans baked beans

1/2c brown sugar, packed

1/4c yellow onion, chopped

1/2c ketchup

1 TBSP yellow mustard

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. red wine vinegar

1.  Preheat oven to 350*

2.  In a medium bowl, stir all ingredients until well blended.  Pour into an 8x8 baking dish.

3.  Bake 1 hr, uncovered, until sauce is thickened.

               

Easy Bleu Cheese Dressing

Last night's dinner was served with a salad of mixed greens, pepper jack cheese, red grapes, and Bleu cheese dressing.  The salad may sound like an odd combination but it was delicious and really paired well with our steak seasoned couscous wraps.

1/8c milk

1c mayonnaise

6oz. cup plain yogurt

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/2c Bleu cheese, crumbled

1.  Put everything in a medium size bowl and stir until well blended.  Chill until ready to use.  Easy!

                    

                         

Use the extra dressing as a dip with fresh vegetables!

Roasted Garlic and Leek Soup

The annual spring cold that has been going around lately finally made an appearance at our house.  I had a little touch of it but my husband is absolutely miserable!  So, in addition to a homemade juice involving lots of ginger, garlic, kale, and other cold-fighting foods, we enjoyed this soup along with a simple baguette and butter for dinner last night.  The house smelled amazing from all the garlic in the air  and the soup was a big hit with everyone.  Our two-year old even went back for seconds!

Notes:

* Used Earth Balance for the butter and Better Than Bouillon's No-Chicken for the broth

4 bulbs garlic, large

olive oil

6 TBSP butter

4 leeks, chopped

1/2c yellow onion, chopped

6 TBSP all-purpose flour

4c chicken broth

1/3c dry sherry

1/4 tsp. white pepper

fresh chives, for garnish

1.  Preheat oven to 350*  Cut off tops of garlic heads, exposing the cloves.  Drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven approximately 1 hour.  Allow to cool and squeeze to remove the cloves.

2.  In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.  Add garlic, leeks, and onion.  Break up the garlic with your spoon and stir frequently until leeks and onion are soft.

3.  Add the flour and stir quickly to thicken.  Pour in the broth, sherry, and white pepper.

4.  Reduce heat to low and allow soup to simmer approximately 20 min.  Adjust the seasoning, to taste, top with chives, and serve hot.

Savory Stuffed Red Potatoes

I recently found myself with half a bag of baby red potatoes and no real plans for them.  A few more days and they would go out with the trash.  That seemed wasteful though and I'm trying to make more of an effort to actually use all the produce I buy.

Roasted corn and poblano soup was already on the menu so I decided to try these little potato bites on the side.  The two dishes paired really well, which was a relief because the potatoes can take awhile to prepare.  It's a simple recipe but the scooping out of the potatoes (without tearing the skins!) is what is most time consuming.  Worth it though.

Note:
* I used vegan substitutes for the sour cream and butter.

8 red potatoes, bite size

1 TBSP sour cream

2 TBSP butter, melted

1/4 tsp. seasoned salt

1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. green onion

2 TBSP cheddar cheese, grated
olive oil and sea salt

1.  In a saucepan, cover the potatoes with water and boil until tender.  The amount of time needed here will depend on the size of your potatoes.  Mine were on the small side and I let them boil about 15 minutes.  Drain potatoes and set aside to cool.

2.  Cut potatoes in half and carefully scoop out the inside, leaving a little edge all around.  Spray a little olive oil on the skin side of each potato and sprinkle with sea salt, to taste.

3.  In a medium size bowl, combine the scooped out potato, sour cream, butter, seasoned salt, pepper, garlic powder, green onions, and cheese.

4.  Spoon the mixture evenly back into each potato skin and top with a little extra cheese.

5.  Bake approximately 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with green onions and serve.

Spinach and Orzo Salad

 I like to serve this with grilled white fish:

8oz. uncooked orzo pasta

5oz. pkg. baby spinach leaves, chopped

1/2c Feta cheese, crumbled

1/4c pine nuts

1/2 tsp. dried basil

1/8 tsp. white pepper

1/4c olive oil

1/4c balsamic vinegar

1.  In a medium size pot, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2.  Add orzo and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and rinse with cold water.

3.  Transfer to a large bowl and stir in spinach, feta, pine nuts, basil and white pepper.

4.  Toss with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

5.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.               

I usually serve this cold but my husband heated up leftovers the

 other day and thought it was pretty good warm, too.

Garlic Parmesan Orzo

We love orzo and this ridiculously easy recipe is one of our favorites:

2c orzo pasta

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2c butter, cubed

1/2c Parmesan cheese

1/4c mil, grated

2TBSP fresh parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1.  Cook orzo according to package directions; drain.

2.  In a large skillet, saute garlic in butter until tender.

3.  Add the orzo, Parmesan cheese milk, parsley salt and pepper.

Cook and stir until heated through.

This paired really well with our salmon dinner.