Month: June 2012

Pasta, Recipes, Sides

BBQ Ranch Pasta Salad

Sarah

So… high school lunch. While most people I know have horror stories of inedible cafeteria food or exciting tales of sneaking off school property to go out for lunch during their high school years, I was fortunate enough to have an open campus… and an entire hour for lunch. It was pretty sweet, I do admit. My lunch hour as a high school student typically were spent one of three ways: 1) going out to lunch with friends, 2) eating a packed lunch at school to attend one of my many extracurricular activity meetings, or 3) going home. Even though I had great friends and thoroughly enjoyed being an involved high school student, as soon as I got my driver’s license and a car, I absolutely adored going home for lunch. It was bit of relaxing bliss during a busy school day. By graduation day [9 years ago…yikes!] I had my routine perfected down to the minute how I would rush through the hallways to get to the parking lot and beat the underclassmen [walking] crowd to my car, quickly making the sometimes tricksy left turn in order to have smooth sailing home… and subsequently, maximum time to heat up leftovers or make a tasty hot lunch at home.

There were many quick meals I made during those high school days–scrambled eggs, grilled cheese, Ramen noodles… you know, the good stuff. These meals had to be quick so I could get back to school on time, but also so I could watch as much of my Mad About You reruns as possible. Oh, and if it was a rerun I’d seen a zillion times, I’d turn on TLC [A Wedding Story=LOVE]. Or some dating game that I now forget the name of. Quality TV at lunch makes for a great day, folks.

But you know what makes for an even better day? A quality lunch, made while watching said reruns on the small kitchen TV, instead of on the comfy family room couch. And as a 17 year old, my idea of the most high quality at-home lunch was…. BBQ Ranch Pasta Salad! And not the version you’re seeing here. That version is almost embarrassing to admit to, because it was pasta + alot of ranch dressing + a little BBQ sauce + some zesty Southwest Mrs. Dash-esque spice blend. That’s it. No veggies, no cheese, no meat, no nothing. It was darn tasty though! In a moment of high school reminiscing last week, I set out to recreate that lunch… in adult style, of course.

This version of BBQ Ranch Pasta Salad brings the old school up to date. Rotini noodles, cooked to al dente perfection are still bathed in a luscious ranch/BBQ sauce blend… but the noodles are whole wheat, and the sauce isn’t quite as thick or overwhelming. A thinner sauce means more room for veggies… and this pasta salad is hearty enough for plenty of raw tomatoes, peppers, corn, and onions. Adding some black beans makes the salad truly hearty enough for a meal, unlike the old pasta salad of days gone by. And my good friend Mrs. Dash? Sorry to say but she has been replaced with not one, not two, not three, but NINE herbs and spices, including three types of pepper. It definitely has a kick to it, but the ranch and lime juice cool it down considerably, so don’t worry about the spice factor.

Absolutely glorious, no?

This isn’t a lunch I would have made during my high school days, but it’s so quick to throw together that I sure could have. And you can too… it’s great hot when first made, but it’s also fabulous chilled. I’ve been enjoying it for lunch over the past week, but I’m sure it’d be the perfect addition to your 4th of July BBQ, so I hope you enjoy!

What were your high school lunches like?

BBQ Ranch Pasta Salad [a TPC original]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces whole wheat rotini
  • 3/4 cup black beans
  • 1 ear corn, kernels sliced off
  • 1 roma tomato, diced
  • 1 stalk celery, diced
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1/3 cup ranch
  • 1/4 cup barbecue sauce [I ❤ Sweet Baby Ray’s]
  • 1/2 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped [or 1 teaspoon dried]
  • 1 tablespoon fresh pineapple sage, chopped [can use regular sage; 1 teaspoon dried]
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
  • pinch cayenne pepper
  • pinch crushed red pepper

Directions:

Prepare pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, combine corn, tomato, celery, and red bell pepper in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together ranch, barbecue sauce, lime juice, basil, sage, garlic, oregano chili powder, parsley, and peppers. After pasta is ready, add to bowl with vegetables, pour on dressing, and toss to combine.

Enjoy warm, or cover and refrigerate for two hours before serving. Refrigerate for up to one week.

Time: 20 minutes.

Yield: 8 servings.

Linked up on Life as Mom’s Ultimate Recipe Swap: Summer Salads.
Appetizers, Recipes

Cilantro Lime Hummus

Sarah

So, over the weekend, I hosted a baby shower for my friend Susan. Susan and I actually met through blogging–last summer, she saw a post I wrote on Today’s Housewife and emailed me to say that she was moving to Bloomington for her husband to attend graduate school. We emailed back and forth a bit, until finally Susan moved to town and we met for the first time. Ben and I had Susan, her husband Mike, and their baby boy, Jacob over for dinner and as we were getting everything ready, we started to worry…

Why did we invite strangers that we met on the internet over to our house?

What were we thinking?

Let’s hope this isn’t the most awkward evening ever.

Turns out it wasn’t, and we all enjoy hanging out together… So when a mutual friend suggested we cook up a baby shower for Susan [she’s expecting a baby girl in August!], I was super excited. The shower was on Saturday, and sadly, pretty much the only pictures I took were of these  gorgeous flowers from the local Famer’s Market.

I’m not sure what I was thinking, not taking pictures… but thankfully there were some food pictures I took before the party got started so I can share some of the awesome things we had to eat! My favorite new recipe of the night had to be this Cilantro Lime Hummus. It was absolutely perfect, so I couldn’t wait to blog about it. And I promised the recipe to the soon-to-be-mom-of-two so I had to follow through, huh? This hummus is a creamy, dreamy spicy, fresh dip that was perfect with salty blue corn chips, crackers, or fresh veggies.

I’ll admit, putting a green dip in a yellow bowl does not make for a super amazing photograph, but I hope you’ll look past looks and concentrate on the most important thing… how this dip tastes! If I do say so myself, it’s pretty incredible. Cilantro-lime is a pretty classic flavor combo, popularized by a certain Mexican burrito joint, and though it may sound a little strange in hummus…. it works. Just like peanut butter and chocolate work in Cookie Dough Dip… except this is savory. Do you follow? Umm, alright, well maybe they aren’t really the same at all, except for that common ingredient, chickpeas. I’ll admit that I’m usually a storebought hummus girl, but these unique flavors may have converted me! In fact, I think I’m going to go enjoy some leftovers right… about… now! Enjoy!

What’s your favorite flavor of hummus?

Cilantro Lime Hummus [adapted from How Sweet Eats]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 large bunch cilantro, rinsed and roughly chopped [remove most of the stems but don’t worry about perfection]
  • 3 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 3 tablespoons tahini
  • 6 cloves garlic, crushed
  • zest and juice of 3 limes
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Combine cilantro and chickpeas in a food processor, then add tahini, garlic, lime juice, and zest. Process until well combined, then stream in oil and pulse until mixed. Add red pepper and salt, then adjust seasonings if needed. Serve with blue corn chips, pita chips, or veggies.

Time: 10 minutes.

Yield: about 4 cups.

Menu Plans

Menu Plan

Sarah

Week of June 25

Monday: Black Bean Burgers [made them last week… need them again!]
Tuesday: African Pineapple Peanut Stew
Wednesday: Stuffed Zucchini Parmesan
Thursday: Kheema [Indian Ground Beef with Peas]
Friday: leftovers
Saturday: Spaghetti and Meatballs
Sunday: appetizers and desserts at church

Appetizers, Recipes

Cookie Dough Dip

Sarah

Umm, so you know how I like to engage in a bit of tomfoolery, or trickery, if you will with Ben in regards to food? Like the “meat” balls incident? Well, I’ve done it again. This time with cookie dough dip. Whaaaaat?

About a year ago when I first spotted this recipe for healthy cookie dough dip, made with chickpeas in a pseudo-sweet-hummus fashion. I giggled to myself in the kitchen one Saturday afternoon while making it, triumphing in my kitchen successes. Ben was in the living room, playing video games and I asked him to take a snack break.

“What have you made, my dear?” he asked.

“Cookie dough dip.”

“Mmmm, I’ll take some!”

No one I know can resist cookie dough. Especially chocolate chip cookie dough. It’s like, a law of being American or something like that. Ben certainly can’t. And I knew that. And played it to my advantages. I mean, wouldn’t you?

Wouldn’t you like to see your loved ones chowing down on a [semi] healthy bowl of cookie dough without a care in the world? I mean, fielding complements of “this dip is just like a bowl of cookie dough… velvety, vanillay, caramely…” is no hardship, now is it? Especially not when those compliments are laced with praise like “you’re the best wife in the world” and “this is the most amazing dip I’ve ever had the pleasure to taste and enjoy and savor and delight in!” Okay, so maybe I exaggerated a wee little bit. But you get the essence of it.

Slowly, surely, steadily guilt [and a little curiosity] got the better of me. I couldn’t let him go on eating this delicious treat thinking it’s full of fatty ingredients while it’s really full of chickpeas and natural peanut butter. So I dropped the bomb. The chickpea bomb, if you will. And his experience went from this to this in two seconds flat:

I am happy to report that he fully recovered and was chowing down on this healthy cookie dough dip a few minutes later, without any ill effects. In fact, he loved the dip so much that he recently suggested I make it for our small group party, which I did. It was devoured, and no one seemed all that concerned about the weird ingredient. So maybe it sounds weirder than it is, or my husband is a drama king. [Just kidding! Love you, JT]. Or maybe a little of both. Whatever it is doesn’t really matter. What really matters is that you try this cookie dough dip because it’s pretty much the best stuff around!

What secret ingredients do you like to surprise people with in your favorite recipes?

Cookie Dough Dip [from Chocolate-Covered Katie]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • generous 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • generous 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 tablespoons oats
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter [or other nut butter]
  • 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
  • 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Add chickpeas, milk, and vanilla to a good food processor and blend until very smooth. Then add salt, baking soda, oats, and peanut butter and pulse until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips. Serve with animal crackers, graham crackers, apple slices, etc.

Time: 10 minutes.

Yield: 2 1/2-3 cups.

Breakfast, Oatmeal, Recipes

Strawberry Coconut Baked Oatmeal

Sarah

So, I realize that hot breakfasts seem like a thing of winter and cooler weather, not days of 90 degree heat and 80% humidity. Not to me! I spent two summers in college working as a camp counselor at Camp Tecumseh, so I woke up to a hot breakfast six days a week, enjoyed in the freezingly cold air conditioned dining hall. It was glorious. Well, some breakfasts anyways. French toast, bacon, hashbrowns, coffee cake, fruit salad. Rubbery eggs… not so much. You can bet that the onlyonlyONLY reason us counselors looked forward to sleep-out nights was getting to sleep in a little later while enjoying breakfast in bed, aka sugary cold cereal, powdered doughnuts, and apples.

By far, the breakfast that Camp Tecumseh is known for is their baked oatmeal. I’ve shared the basic recipe before, but this time I’ve jazzed it up… made it a little more flashy, a little more flared.

This version combines juicy, sweet strawberries with the tropical coconut to make a phenomenal baked oatmeal that will really wake up your morning [and wish you were at the beach… sigh.]. I used coconut milk and coconut flakes to double the nutty fun of my new favorite flavor. If I had had coconut extract, you can bet that some of that would have been included too!

I mixed up the fruit and oat mixture the night before, then baked it in the morning while I was getting ready for the day. After I finished doing my hair, breakfast was ready with time to spare. If your mornings are a little more rushed, this Strawberry Coconut Baked Oatmeal can always be baked ahead of time and heated up in individual servings in the microwave. Since no additional toppings are needed, this is a great breakfast to take to the office instead of the usual yogurt and granola… and if you’re in the air conditioning, as most of us are this time of year, hot breakfasts don’t have to be avoided in the summertime.

What have you been eating for breakfast lately?  I need some new ideas, cause I can’t eat this oatmeal everyday!

Strawberry Coconut Baked Oatmeal [adapted from Camp Tecumseh Baked Oatmeal]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups sliced strawberries, divided [fresh or frozen, I used frozen]
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 cups old-fashioned oats
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 3 tablespoons chia seeds
  • 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons coconut flakes, divided [sweetened or unsweetened, your choice]
  • 1 1/4 cups coconut milk [I used lite]

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 inch pie pan with cooking spray. Place 1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries in an even layer on the bottom of the pan.

In a large bowl, beat together oil, sugar, and egg. In a small bowl, stir together oats, baking powder, chia seeds, and 1/3 cup coconut flakes. Fold dry ingredients into the wet, then pour in coconut milk and stir until just combined. Mixture should be the consistency of thick cake batter. Pour over strawberries in pan, then top with remaining 1/2 cup strawberries and 2 tablespoons coconut flakes.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until firm and golden brown.

Time: 40 minutes [10 minutes active].

Yield: 6-8 servings.

Note: Can be made ahead and refrigerated overnight.