Creamy Split Pea Soup

If there is a recipe I have searched high and low for, it is a good split pea soup recipe. I must have gone through a dozen recipes in search of a good one. I don't know why I just didn't give up. I must have known that someday I wound find THIS. And let me tell you: it was WELL worth the wait and the many failed attempts. Oh my goodness. This soup is truly for the soul. Even Joey likes it (that speaks volumes). Just thinking about this soup makes me get all warm and fuzzy inside.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound sliced bacon, diced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, sliced
• 1 pound dried green split peas
• 2 quarts water
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 cups diced fully cooked ham
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

1. In a Dutch oven or soup kettle, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon to paper towels; drain, reserving drippings. Add onion and celery to drippings. Saute until vegetables are tender; drain. Add the peas, water, potatoes, ham, salt, bay leaf and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until peas are very tender, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaf.
2. Cool slightly. Process in small batches in a blender until smooth. (I reserve about half of the soup to NOT be blended. This just makes it a little more hearty and chunky. Merely preference.) Return to Dutch oven; stir in cream. Heat through (do not boil). Garnish with reserved bacon.

Source: AllRecipes.com

Spaghetti Squash with Super-Thick Bolognese Sauce

My sister-in-law introduced me to this recipe and now it's one of my favorites. Such a clever idea to substitute spaghetti squash for pasta. I love it. And really, if you want to be boring, you can just use normal spaghetti sauce on the squash, but I'd highly recommend this recipe. Now, Rachel Ray, the creator of this recipe, uses a lot more fancy ingredients than fit into my budget, so I've adapted it to make it more realistic for my household. If you want to see her ingredients, just click here for the original.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large spaghetti squash, cut in half lengthwise, seeds removed
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping, if desired
• 1/4 pound bacon, chopped
• 1-1 1/2 pounds ground beef or turkey
• 1 carrot, peeled and cut into small dice or shredded
• 1 medium onion, cut into small dice
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1/2 cup grape juice
• 1/2 cup beef stock
• 1/2 cup fresh basil (about a handful), chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley (about a handful), chopped

PREPARATION

Pre-heat the oven to 400ºF.

Place the spaghetti squash halves, cut-side up, onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of EVOO, salt and pepper. Turn the squash over so they're cut-side down and roast until the flesh is tender, about 45 minutes to an hour. Once cooked, use a fork to loosen the squash strands up. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons EVOO, ground black pepper, and a sprinkle of cheese. Reserve squash in the shells.

While the squash is roasting, place a large skillet over medium-high heat with two turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the bacon to the pan and cook until crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the beef to the pan and cook until golden brown, 6-7 minutes. Add the carrots, onion and garlic to the pan and cook until the veggies are tender, about 5 minutes.

Season everything with salt and pepper, then add the tomato paste, cooking it until golden brown and aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the grape juice and beef stock, scraping the bottom for any bits that may be stuck, and cook the sauce until thickened and slightly reduced, about 5 minutes.

To serve, ladle the meat sauce on top of each squash half and garnish each with fresh basil, parsley and additional Pecorino Romano cheese.

Sweet, Sticky, and Spicy Chicken

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com a few years ago when looking for chicken dishes. This was quite the diamond in the rough! I remember finding 5 or 6 recipes that looked appealing and this is the only one that was worth talking at all about. I love it. When cooked right, it is exactly how its name describes: sweet, sticky, and spicy. If overcooked though, it's more like dry, rough, and crispy. Not so good. So be careful! 

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger root
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions

1. Mix together brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, ginger, garlic and hot sauce in a small bowl.
2. Lightly salt and pepper the chicken strips. (also-I'd dredge them in flour first. Helps with the sticky element)
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken strips and brown on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Simmer uncovered until the sauce thickens, 8 to 10 minutes.

Source: AllRecipes.com

Texas Trash

Don't be dissuaded by the name. You've got to try this. Best. Chex Mix. EVER. When I think of nostalgic, delicious foods of my childhood, I see Texas Trash. If you have even the smallest semblance of a salt tooth, you absolutely must try these. I promise. You will not regret it.

• 1/2 box corn chex
• 1/2 box rice or wheat chex
• 1 bag slim pretzels
• 1 can mixed nuts
• 1 cup pecans or cashews (or split and do a half cup of each)
• 1 stick of butter or margarine, melted
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 T. Tabasco sauce
• 2 T. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tsp. season salt
• 1 T. garlic salt

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Mix chex, pretzels, and nuts. 
3. Mix butter with olive oil, Tabasco, and Worcestershire. Pour over dry ingredients and stir. 
4. Sprinkle with season salt and garlic salt. 
5. Spread on baking sheets. 
6. Toast in oven for 1-1.5 hours while stirring every 15-20 minutes. 

Source: my momma

Triple Cheese Fruit Dip

Such a good summer memory. This is the best fruit dip ever. Not exactly best fruit dip FOR you ever, but what it lacks in nutrition, it makes up for in flavor. Tastes like heaven. 

• 8 oz. cream cheese 
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3 T. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped
• 1/2 cup grated chocolate

1. When cream cheese reaches room temperature blend with sour cream, sugar, and vanilla.
2. Whip heavy cream. Slowly fold into other cheese mixture. 
3. Stir in grated chocolate.
4. Chill.
5. Serve with fruit. Especially good with strawberries.

Source: my momma

Frozen Banana Bites

Again, another pinterest find. Simple. Simple. Simple. Great little treat to bring to a potluck or enjoy on a hot night. So refreshing. It makes me feel like I'm at a county fair. 

• 2 large bananas
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• coconut flakes

1. Set out a large plate or bowl with a piece of parchment or wax paper on it.
2. Cut up the bananas into good-sized chunks. Each banana should give you around 5 to 6 pieces.
3. Heat the peanut butter and chocolate chips in the microwave on high for about a minute (or on the stove until melted). Then stir until smooth.
4. Dip the banana pieces in the chocolate-peanut butter mixture. Lay them out leaving some space between them on the parchment/wax paper. Then when you've "covered" them all, use the remaining mixture to spoon over the tops.
5. Then sprinkle the unsweetened coconut flakes on top. Transfer to the freezer for about an hour until hardened.
6. You can enjoy them like this (but they really aren't frozen yet -- and when they're frozen, the banana tastes like vanilla ice cream) . . . I suggest then covering with some plastic wrap (or really you can do all of this in some kind of Rubbermaid container) and let freeze overnight.

Source: adapted from recipe by (never home)maker

Nutella Cookies

These cookies are surprisingly delicious despite the simplicity of the recipe. These are a pinterest find that I wasn't expecting much out of but because I had all the ingredients, I was willing to try them. SO glad I did. Great addition to our family collection of cookie recipes. 

• 1 cup nutella
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Blend all ingedients together well. Form into 1″ balls. Place on a cookie sheet. Press down firmly with the bottom of a glass. Bake 7-8 minutes or until set. Cool.

Source: Tasty Kitchen

Oatmeal Pancakes

Loving these tasty pancakes that I found on my friend Sarah's blog. We made them for Conference weekend and loved them. Very hearty and a little goes a long way. I love, too, how you make a huge mix all at once and then just add it to a few other ingredients whenever you're ready for pancakes and voila! Pancakes! Easy-schmeasy. And straight up yummy. 


Oatmeal Pancakes

Mix

4 c. old fashioned oats
2 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. instant nonfat dry milk
3 T. baking powder
2 T. cinnamon
5 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

Mix all ingredients together well. Store in a sealed gallon-size plastic storage bag or airtight container. Yield: 10 cups of pancake mix.

Pancakes:

2 eggs
1/3 c. vegetable oil
2 c. pancake mix
1 c. water

To make pancakes, beat eggs in a large bowl. Gradually beat in oil. Alternately add pancake mix and water to mixture. Blend well. Cook (make sure to maintain a low temperature because of the density of the pancakes). Yield: about 10-12 pancakes.


Source: Sarah's Fares

Cheesy Kale Chips

I came across these gems from one of my new friends here in Pittsburgh.She is extremely knowledgeable in the way of health foods and I have a feeling that I'll be posting many more recipes from her (as long as she keeps inviting me over to eat her food). Back to the kale chips: So tasty. From someone who absolutely loves salty, crunchy snack, this is definitely a great alternative to potato chips. 

Cheesy Kale Chips

Ingredients:
2 lbs kale (your average grocery store bunch of kale)
1 tablespoon lemon juice or lime juice
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cashews, ground (you are trying to make a crumbly powder, not cashew flour or paste.)
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (This is what gives the cheesy taste even though it has no cheese. You can find it at Whole Foods)

1. Preheat oven to a temperature somewhere between 175 and 200. The lower the temperature, the longer it takes. The higher the temperature, the more you have to rotate and turn the trays.

2. Remove the tough stalks from the kale and rip into pieces. Remember that they will shrink considerably. Wash and dry the kale, and set aside.

3. In a very large mixing bowl mix the olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Toss the kale with the dressing. Sprinkle the cashews and nutritional yeast over the kale, tossing to coat each piece. You want each piece lightly coated, but you still want to be able to see the kale underneath. If you have too much cashew on a piece it won't dry properly.

4. Spread the coated kale on two or three large baking sheets in a single layer. Make sure the pieces are laying relatively flat and aren't folded over too much.

5. Check on the kale chips about every 30 minutes. Each time you check on the chips, rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom or front to back so the chips can dry evenly. You can also encourage even drying by turning the kale chips over on the baking sheets once during the drying process after the first hour. I do this with pieces that are having a hard time drying.

When they are crunchy they are all done (it takes me about 2 hours). Enjoy!


Source: Erin Starks-Teeter