Baked Zucchini Bites

This is the last of the recipes I made for our Pinterest Challenge.  The Baked Zucchini Bites did turn out delicious, but I will need to make adjustments for future cooking.  It made a mess on the baking sheet, which was a pain to clean.

Baked Zucchini Bites
2 packed cups of shredded zucchini - try to get as much moisture out as you can!
2 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup of Italian blend cheeses
1/2 cup crushed Rice Chex cereal
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste

Mix all of the ingredients together.  Using a medium scoop, make the bites on parchment lined baking sheets.  I used my baking pan with sides, just in case there was any leakage, which was a good call because there was.  Bake at 400* for about 20-25 min.

The next time I make this recipe, I will either cut the eggs down to just one or add more of the crushed Rice Chex cereal.

Zucchini Bite is in the very bottom of the plate.

Black Bean Tacos

Next up for the Pinterest Challenge is Black Bean Tacos - this was my favorite of the night.  I made these according to the recipe, but have already decided I can modify it later for Ken's plant based diet.  The directions call for black beans, which the author has a special way of preparing, and she calls them the Best Ever Mexican Black Beans  In keeping with the challenge, I followed her directions.  Turns out these beans are so good, and I'll be using the recipe for future black beans dishes.

Black Beans
little drizzle of olive oil
2 cloves of minced garlic
2 tsp taco seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 (15.5 oz) cans of black beans
1/2 can of V8 juice (11.5 oz)
1/2 tps salt

Start with heating the oil and adding the garlic.  Add the remaining spices to get them all toasty.  Next add the beans and tomato juice.  Finally add the salt and simmer until liquid is cooked down.  The recipe suggests adding cilantro at the end if you're just serving the beans.  This would make a delish side dish for a Mexican meal.

Black Bean Tacos
14 corn tortillas
canola oil
black beans
1/2 cup grated cheese - I used a Mexican blend

Here's how I get tortillas soft and ready - get a small baker, mine is the small round stone baker from Pampered Chef.  Pour a small amount of oil in your palm (about the size of a nickle) and rub hands together.  then pick up a tortilla and rub both sides.  Place on the bottom of baking dish and continue coating each tortilla and stacking them up.  When finishes, microwave tortillas for about 30 sec. or until warmed through.  With the the warmed up tortillas, you're ready to assembly the tacos.  Take a tortilla and place beans on half, add some cheese, fold the other half, and give it a pat to flatten out.  Place all the filled tacos on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake at 375* for 15 min. on each side, for a grand total of about 30 min.  You want the tacos to be crunchy.

You can serve this with any kind of salsa or dip, but the recipe called for her Avocado Lime Sauce.  This dip is good, but probably not my favorite.  I had to add more avocado because the lime overtakes the flavoring.  If I make in the future, I will not use as much lime juice.

Avocado Lime Sauce
2 avocados
1/2 cup cilantro - I used more because I'm a huge fan of the flavor
juice of 3 limes
1/2 jalapeno, seeded
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp taco seasoning
pinch of salt
1 Tbsp sugar
water to loosen ingredients

I used my Ninja Blender, which made this really easy to make.  I put all the ingredients in, adding water to make sure everything was mixing.  I did the taste test and added another half of an avocado because all we were getting was strong lime flavor.  Like I said... it was okay, but not the greatest.

Black Bean Taco with Avocado Sauce is in the upper right corner and middle of plate.

Creamy Jalapeno Dip

This recipe was on my Pinterest Board, but I did make some modifications in order for it to be gluten free.  I think it turned out well, and we'll be making it again.  Yummy!

Creamy Jalapeno Dip
2 (8 oz) cream cheese blocks, softened
1 cup mayo
1 cup of cheese mix - I used a Mexican blend, plus a little extra to put on top
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1 (4 oz) can chopped jalapenos

Throw all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl.  I used a hand mixer to really blend together.  Pour into a greased baking pan.  Sprinkle the top with the extra cheese.  Bake at 375* for about 25-30 min, until it starts bubbling and golden.  We served with chips.  This dip has some heat.

Creamy Jalapeno Dip is in the lower left corner.

Pinterest Challenge!

I love Pinterest!  It's a great way to get some ideas and recipes.  Sometimes I'll get on there as a way to unwind, and then I discover I've been on it forever - where did the time go?!?

The downfall of Pinterest... you've got all these awesome ideas and recipes, but never do or make anything.  The remedy for this - Pinterest Challenge!

Karen and I came up with this last summer.  We plan an evening where Pinterest recipes must be made.  You pick a recipe you've never made and dive in.  At my house everyone participates.  Last year we had one fail - the s'more dip.  While all the ingredients were great, together it just made a huge mess that was way too rich.

Last night we had our friends over again for another Pinterest Challenge and Game Night.  I will happily let you know all the recipes were a hit.  Stay tuned for my next entries with the delicious choices we made.  I also highly encourage you to try a Pinterest Challenge and make some of those pins real.

Pantry Pasta

Tonight, I taught Kelsie how to make a simple staple dish to use leftover vegetables and cheeses with ingredients you'll already have on hand in the pantry.  She's already coming up with a combo that sound delicious!

Here's what we did tonight, and I'll include info on how easy it is to adapt to whatever ingredients you want to use.

Pantry Pasta
8 oz. of your favorite pasta - we used radiatori - the shape helps scoop up the sauce!
2-3 cups of veggies - you'll want to mix it up
   Tonight Kelsie used about 1/4 chopped onions, clove of minced up garlic, cup of sliced mushrooms, cup of grated zucchini, and 1/2 cup of spinach.
1 can of cream of something soup - we used Cream of Mushroom
about 1/2 cup of milk
salt & pepper to taste - you can also experiment with spice mixes
1 cup of grated cheeses - again variety is nice!  Kelsie had some yummy Creamy Toscan soaked in wine leftover from Trader Joe's run that needed to be used up.  We also added 2 nice scoops of some ricotta cheese, and topped it off with some Parmesan.

This dinner comes together pretty fast.  Start noodles cooking, and then in a large skillet saute the veggies.  Since we're in Kelsie's apartment, she used a pan that's oven safe.  First she cooked onion and garlic, then added mushrooms and zucchini.  Once veggies were cooked through, she added the soup and milk.  As that's coming together, you'll add some salt & pepper (or spices) and the cheese.  She added the spinach last - helps keep it's beautiful green color.  Noodles were done cooking, so I helped add them to the skillet as she stirred everything up.  It's okay to get some of the pasta water.  The starches from cooking noodles will help bring this pasta together.  Scrape down the pan and smooth out the pasta dish, sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese.  Bake in the oven for about 15-20 min.  Doesn't this look great to eat?!?

Spinach & Summer Fruit Salad

Kelsie Time!
Ken and Kailyn dropped me off in Dallas for me to spend some quality & relaxing time with Kelsie girl.  Yesterday, after Ken and Kailyn headed back to Tulsa,we went to lunch at Tacodeli - so good! Before I forget the delicious and unique tacos we tried, I'm going to do my best to describe them. Who knows... might be trying my own interpretations in the future.
     Taco #1 - Special of the Moment - Taco Pierre
          This one had grilled shrimp with serrano peppers, corn, green olives, and a lime & soy sauce.
     Taco #2 - Papadulce
          Sweet potatoes are the feature on this taco.  Also had corn, peppers and caramelized onions with toasted pepitas and spicy chipotle cream sauce.
     Taco #3 - our favorite one! - Space Cowboy
          Taco had portobello mushrooms, avocados, roasted peppers, and queso fresco.  Yummy!

After lunch we headed to find parking and then to the Perot Museum.  Museum wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either.  We both had fun, but wish directions/science explanations were a little better.  Also, they need to work on their flow!  Ended museum at the gift shop - of course!  Scored Kelsie an atom puzzle on the clearance shelf.

Walking back to the car, we decided to walk to Houston & Elm and check out the JFK Memorial and Texas Book Depository (famous 6th Floor).  Weather was nice and we got to see the perspective of The Zapruder Film.  There were several guys walking around with conspiracy papers, but we chose to move along.  Got some pictures of the Holocaust Museum, Old Red Museum, Reunion Tower, and Fountain Place.

Afterwards we headed back to Kelsie's apartment.  Made this quick and refreshing salad:

Spinach & Summer Fruit Salad
Spinach
Mandarin Oranges
Strawberries
You could add onion - our favorite is red - but we didn't
*Toasted Nuts with a secret!
Dressing - something light- we used Red Wine & Olive Oil from Trader Joe's

Lay out the ingredients and let people make their own salads.

*Here's the toasted nuts secret...  In a small skillet, add the nuts.  Cook on a low heat and watch nuts closely - they'll burn fast.  When the nuts start to get warm, add a little sugar. You can use brown or white sugar.  We used about 2 pinches. The sugar will start to melt.  As soon as this happens - work quickly! - and add some pepper.  The sugar will help the pepper stick to the nuts.  Now you'll get toasted nuts with a sweet and peppery kick.  You can even eat these as a snack!

Cajun Shrimp Soup

I've been getting things ready for Thanksgiving, so I needed something easy to throw in the crockpot for Sunday dinner. Turned out to be a breeze to make and delicious for fall evening!

Cajun Shrimp Soup

3 new potatoes - I picked the larger ones, washed and cubed into bite size pieces

1 can of corn, drained

1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning

4 cups chicken broth

8-12 oz raw shrimp - I also cut these up into bit size pieces

1/2 cup heavy cream

Put potatoes and corn in the crockpot.  Sprinkle with the flour and seasoning.  Mix well and then pour in the chicken broth.  Normally I would use vegetable stock, but thought I would change it up a bit.  Cook on low for 4-5 hrs.  Turn heat to high and add the shrimp.  Cook for about 30 min. and then add the cream for another 15 min.

I served this with my famous cornbread muffin.  I mix up a box of Jiffy cornbread mix and put a hunk of pepper jack cheese in the middle.  Cheese gets all melty in the middle - Mmmm!