Spaghetti Squash Quinoa Veggie Bake

So I've been trying to eat healthier lately and as a result have been checking out some veggies I hadn't really tried before.

Spaghetti Squash... sounded interesting... Tawny said it was good... why not?

So I picked one up.

But what the heck am I supposed to do with it?

I started browsing recipes and found one on Artsy-Foodie.

Spaghetti Squash PLUS quinoa?! Wow! This totally fills the bill! So that was the base for this recipe.

As you can tell, I haven't really been blogging lately, so I didn't take the step by step pics I usually have. But this recipe is just way too good not to share!

Spaghetti Squash Quinoa Veggie Bake (printable recipe)

4 C cooked spaghetti squash (1 squash)
2 C cooked quinoa (cooked in veggie stock)
16 oz lowfat cottage cheese (I used Fiber One)
1/4 C chopped bell pepper
1/2 C chopped onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 C chopped mushrooms
1 can Rotel, drained
4 eggs, lightly beaten
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
8 oz shredded pepper jack cheese
1 TBLS herbs (I used Penzeys Fox Point)
drizzle of olive oil

Preheat oven to 375F.

Pour a drizzle of olive oil into a medium skillet and cook peppers, onions, garlic and mushrooms until tender. In a large bowl mix cooked veggies with all remaining ingredients. Pour into a greased lasagna pan. Bake 1 hour 15 minutes or until it's set and golden.

This smelled amazing while it was cooking. I really didn't know what to expect for the flavor. I figured it would be kinda frittata-like... and it was. But it was also hearty and light all at the same time. The mushrooms were savory. It had a bit of mild spice to it from the pepper jack and the Rotel. It was moist and creamy and satisfying.

Add a nice crisp salad and this is a perfect meal. And crazy healthy! When I was looking for cottage cheese, I found some by Fiber One. More fiber? Yes please!

This makes 8 hearty servings.
311 Calories
14.3g Fat
1.3g Saturated Fat
28.2g Carbs
5.8g Fiber
8.3g Sugar
20.1g Protein
8 WWPlus points

This would also make 16 or more delicious appetizer servings.

Wicked Good! Wicked Healthy! It was so good, that I sat down to post this right after dinner!

Why don't I eat like this more often??

Cheese Sticks Two Ways

I had been seeing people making cheese sticks by wrapping string cheese in wonton wrappers for quite awhile. It took some time, but I finally got around to trying it. I'm so glad I did!!

I've seen them both ways, fried and baked. So I tried both!



Cheese Sticks
String Cheese
Wonton Wrappers
oil for frying (if you're frying!)
Dipping Sauces

Cut each string cheese into thirds.
Roll into wonton wrappers.

Now either fry in oil heated to 350F until golden.

Or...

Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, spritz with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and bake at 400F for 15 minutes or until golden.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauces.

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First you need these...


Cut the string cheese sticks into thirds


Place a wonton wrapper on plate or cutting board in front of you as shown below.

Moisten the tip of your finger with water and trace around the edge of the wonton wrapper.

Place a piece of cheese near the bottom of the wonton wrapper.


Fold up the bottom of the wrapper over the cheese.


Fold in the sides.


Roll it up tight.


Repeat until you run out of cheese or wrappers or until you have as many as you'd like.



Now for baking, lay them out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Spray them with oil olive. Then sprinkle with kosher salt. Or whatever salt you like!


Into the oven, preheated to 400F for 15 minutes. Turn them half way through.

But pay attention to them, they might leak a little.


Enjoy with your favorite dipping sauces!


Now if you're frying... heat your oil to 350F and fry a few at a time.

Be sure to not overcrowd the pan.


Drain on a paper towel



And serve with your favorite dipping sauces!


At first I was thinking that the baked ones would be really lame.

But both were really good!!

Fried of course is amazing, because everything is really good fried. They're crispy and melty and gooey. Totally delicious!

But the baked one were also wicked good. They're chewy and salty and creamy. So good!

The kids swarmed on these and devoured both kinds in a matter of minutes.

Try them both ways and see which way your family prefers!

Bacon (no) Pimento Mac & Cheese

So last semester, my daughter had a job out by her school. That meant she rarely came home for the weekend. But one weekend, she ended up with rare time off and was in Pittsburgh.

I wanted to make something to ensure she'd eat at least one meal with us and not be off gallivanting around Pittsburgh the whole time. I was kind of thinking that out loud and Jon said, "Just make Fried Chicken. She'll definitely come home."

He's so right! (Jon, bookmark this page... I put it in writing for the whole world to see!)

One meal sure to get Tawny to the table is Fried Chicken with all the trimmings... mashed potatoes & gravy, greens, corn, mac & cheese, biscuits and sweet tea.

I had just watched an episode of Paula's Best Dishes, where she made Bacon Pimento Mac & Cheese and decided to give it try.



Bacon Pimento Mac & Cheese
6 bacon slices
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups half-and-half
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
One 4-ounce jar diced pimientos, drained (I didn't use these)
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cracked black pepper
1 pound small penne pasta or macaroni, cooked, drained and kept warm
3 cups shredded smoked Cheddar
3 cups shredded Parmesan

Preheat the broiler. Spray five 1-cup ramekins with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove from the Dutch oven and drain on paper towels. Reserve 1/4 cup bacon drippings in the Dutch oven, and discard any remaining drippings. Crumble the bacon set aside.

Add the butter to the drippings, and heat over medium-high heat until the butter melts. Whisk in the flour, whisking until smooth. Whisk in the half-and-half, and cook until the mixture is thickened and smooth, whisking constantly.

Add the ground red pepper. Stir in the cream cheese and let melt. Add the pimentos and bacon. Season with the salt and pepper. Add 2 cups smoked Cheddar and 2 cups Parmesan.

Spoon the pasta mixture evenly into the prepared ramekins. Top with the remaining 1 cup Cheddar and 1 cup Parmesan. Broil until cheese is lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

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First, I shredded all of my cheeses.


Fry the bacon.


Set bacon aside.

Add butter to 1/4 C of bacon drippings.


Whisk in flour. Whisk until smooth.


Whisk in half & half.


When that's thickened, add cream cheese & red pepper and stir until melted.


Stir in bacon.


And 2 Cups of the Cheddar and 2 Cups of the Parmesan.


When that's all melted together. Stir it into the cooked pasta.


Spoon it evenly into ramekins and top with remaining shredded cheese.


Then under the broiler until golden & melty. (someday I'll have a stove that I don't have to lay on the floor to use the broiler!!!)




Time to enjoy!


Now first let me say this recipe makes WAY more than indicated. It calls for 5 1-cup ramekins. I used 6 2-cup ramekins and still had lots left! So this totally feeds an army.

Second... I made it to go 'with' a fried chicken dinner. This mac & cheese IS dinner. Add a salad to this and you're done!

It's very rich. But it was really tasty.

It would be great on a cold night. Not that there's a cold night likely in our near future, unless you're reading this in Australia. And I don't know for sure how cold their winters get!

If you get a cold snap, this would be a nice dinner. Or just file it away until those crisp fall nights are upon us!

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwiches!

As soon as I saw them I knew I had to make them! And I saw them a lot!! They were all over the interwebs!

Anyway... these are amazing... but if you're watching what you eat, save this one for a day when you have a little wiggle room... ok, a lot of wiggle room, because this is definitely an indulgence!



Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich

sourdough bread
softened cream cheese (about 2 TBLS per sammie)
shredded cheddar cheese
shredded jack cheese
sliced jalapeno peppers, sliced lengthwise
tortilla chips, roughly crushed
butter

First for the jalapenos. You can use either canned jalapenos (not the little pickled slices) or fresh. If you use fresh, char the peppers on the outside using your broiler or grill. Turn until all side are blackened (about 10 minutes more or less) Immediately place them into a sealed container. Let them rest for 10 to 20 minutes. Now the skins should slip off easily.

Butter one side of each piece of bread.

Place one slice of bread, buttered side down in skillet over medium lowish heat.

Top with shredded cheddar and jack cheeses.

Add crushed tortilla chips.

Top tortilla chips with jalapeno slices.

Spread cream cheese on plain side of remaining slice of bread and place it on top of sandwich with buttered side up.

Cook on medium lowish heat until golden brown. Then carefully flip sandwich.

Continue cooking until cheese is melty and bread is golden brown.

Enjoy!

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Ok... here's what you need...


Buttered side down, topped with cheddar cheese...


Then jack cheese... mmmm... so creamy and melty!!


Next you really should put on the tortilla chips... however I put on the jalapenos.


Ah... now there's nothing for the chips to kinda stick to... so I put the cream cheese on the other slice of bread and kinda stuck them on there...


Then I had to flip that onto the rest of the sandwich without losing my chips! But I totally got lucky have mad skillz... so it totally worked out...


Carefully flip it and continue cooking until the cheese is melty and the bread is golden.



These are wicked good! Gooey, cheesy, melty, spicy... YUM!!

You'll want to control the heat in your sandwich to your liking. Some of family thought they were a little too spicy... some thought they were just fine. Instead of the slices... you might even want to dice the jalapenos. Then you can really control just how much you have in there. I couldn't really pick out the flavor of the tortilla chips, as the crunchy coating on a jalapeno popper. Maybe I needed more? I'm not sure. But it definitely didn't ruin overall jalapeno popperness of the sammie.

I loved these... and I have no idea why I haven't made them again, because these pictures are pretty old!

If you love grilled cheese sandwiches and jalapeno poppers, you must put these on your short list of things to make!

Caramelized Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

The first time I saw these on Closet Cooking, I knew I had to make them! Kevin is a culinary genius, and if you don't frequent his blog already, I can't recommend it enough. You won't be disappointed!



Caramelized Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
bread
butter
cheese, grated

Heat a pan over medium heat.

Butter one side of each slice of bread. Just like a regular grilled cheese...

Place one slice in the pan, buttered side down, cover with half of the cheese and any other fillings you might want to add, and top with the remaining slice of bread, buttered side up... ya know, like a grilled cheese...

Turn down the heat a little and cook until golden brown.

Carefully, flip the sandwich and cook the other side until golden brown.

Sprinkle half of the remaining cheese on the empty side of the pan, place the grilled cheese on top and cook until the cheese is melted and caramelized.

Sprinkle the remaining cheese on the empty side of the pan and flip the grilled cheese on top of the cheese and cook until the cheese is melted and caramelized.

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So here's my extra-sharp New York cheddar with green onions on rye.



Top with 2nd slice of bread... buttered side up.


Flip when golden (I like mine dark)


Add a lovely pile of sheddy cheese next to your sammie.


When that gets a bit melty, place sandwich on top of the shredded cheese in the pan.


More shreddy cheese...


And flip the sandwich onto the remaining melty cheese.


When that's melty & caramelized, it's time to eat!!



This is so amazing, I know you'll want to immediately bite into it. But you have to try to restrain yourself! Cheesy mouth burns are no fun!

But this sandwich is great!! You MUST try it!!