Bacon-Wrapped Sweet Potatoes

These are a lovely little treat.  Sweet potatoes have oodles of good stuff in them nutritionally.  Just a touch of bacon adds, well, bacon flavor!  Mix a little aioli (minced garlic, mayonnaise, olive oil, and lemon juice) for dipping if you like.  We just had them as a side with sliders.

Bacon-Wrapped Sweet Potatoes

1 Sweet potato

3-4 slices of bacon

Cut potato into pieces the size of steak fries.
Cut bacon pieces in half lengthwise.
Wrap the bacon around each potato slice.
Place on a baking sheet.
Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
Flip pieces over (I use tongs), and bake another 15 minutes.

Make it a meal:  Serve with sliders and Fancy Tomato & Cucumber Salad (see recipe)

Wine:  Chardonnay

Creamy Corn Salad

This is the perfect accompaniment to any Mexican dish.  I served it last night with my Creamy Burrito Casserole (see post).  Is that too much creamy for one dinner? This diva says impossible!  I adapted this from my latest Cooking Light magazine.  Theirs calls for Cotija cheese.  Say what? It's something close to Parmesan or Romano. 

Creamy Corn Salad

1 can of corn

2 pinches sugar

1 small scoop mayonnaise

3 squeezes lime juice

3 shakes chili powder

1 shake coriander

1 dash salt

3 pinches Parmesan cheese

Saute corn with a bit of olive oil and the sugar.
Add mayonnaise, lime juice, chili powder, coriander, and salt; stir.
Sprinkle cheese over corn.
Serve warm, room temperature, or cold!

Make it a meal:  Serve with above mentioned burrito casserole and skip a green vegetable tonight.  You can make it up with a big salad for lunch tomorrow.

Wine:  Chardonnay goes nice with creamy.  Another option is a Spanish red like Tempranillo. 

Mediterranean Couscous

Mediterranean Couscous is a lovely side dish. People think it is so difficult and divas encourage that thinking. This recipe originally called for lemon zest, but I use lemon juice after hearing reports of appalling things living on the skins of fruit. Besides, I think lemon zest tastes like Pledge.

1 10-oz. package couscous, cooked (Israeli is nice)


1/2 cup Italian dressing

1/3 cup Dijon mustard

a few squirts of lemon juice

a few handfuls of feta cheese

a bunch of roasted red bell peppers, chopped (Martha and Rachel roast their own. Mine come from a sanitized jar)

Whisk together Italian dressing, mustard, and lemon.
In another bowl, combine feta and peppers; add couscous.
Pour mustard mixture over couscous.
Refrigerate 1-24 hours.

Options: Add olives or sun-dried tomatoes

Make it a meal: Serve with Asparagus Lemon Chicken (see recipe)

Wine:  Sauvignon Blanc

Pasta with Peanut Sauce

Rich and creamy.  You can make this in a pinch.  No diva ever minded a little pinch...giving them, that is.

 Pasta with Peanut Sauce

8 oz. pasta

Some chopped vegetables such as red pepper, zucchini, broccoli, onion

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

2 Tbsp. Soy sauce

1 healthy sprinkling of ground ginger

1/2 cup chicken broth, heated


Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water until al dente.
Sauté vegetables until tender-crispy and set aside.
Mix peanut butter, soy sauce, and ginger in pretty bowl. 
Add chicken broth. 
Add pasta and vegetables. 
Toss to coat all ingredients.   
Serve immediately.

Make it a meal:  Serve with bread.

Wine:  Cabernet or Reisling 

Perfect Quiche

My quiche always came out rubbery until I came across this recipe.  The diva that gave me this ran her own restaurant.  I was adding too many eggs and not enough cream.  This quiche is wonderful. 

4 eggs

2 cups half and half

1 cup shredded cheese ( cheddar, Swiss, or your favorite blend)

1- 1 1/2  cups of crumbled crispy bacon, cooked sausage, ham, broccoli (par cooked or frozen defrosted and drained) or whatever you like for filling ( mix them together)

¾ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

9” unbaked pie crust (Use a frozen deep dish and let it defrost while assembling ingredients).

Sprinkle meat or vegetable filling in bottom of pie crust. 

Sprinkle cheese on top of filling.

In a pretty bowl slightly beat eggs, add in the half and half, salt and pepper 

Add other seasonings if you like.

Pour mixture into  pie crust.

Place in oven at 425 for 15 minutes. 

Reduce heat to 300 degrees and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until knife inserted ½ way to center comes out clean.  

Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Corn Salsa

Health, health, health!  Summer's bounty works great here.  There is nothing bad in this!  It's all sweet, spicy goodness.  Divas can be sweet and are always spicy.  Goodness?  Hardly ever, darlin'.  Serve this with chips as an appetizer or as a spicy side dish.

Corn Salsa

Corn--fresh, roasted, canned, frozen, whatever

Jalapeños, diced

Red peppers, diced

Red onion, diced

Red pepper flakes

Avocado, cubed

Lime juice

Honey

Apple cider vinegar

Olive oil

Just toss it all together and refrigerate a bit.

Make it a meal:   Serve ahead of Mini-Greek Meatloaf with Feta Sauce (see recipe)


Wine:  Tough one with the vinegar taste.  Champagne works!  Make it pink and dry!

Muah! Minestrone

This recipe is so delicious, you'll want to kiss me.  Muah!  I can't think of one bad thing in here.  It is a dieter's delight, not that I ever put much thought into dieting.  Well, that's not entirely true.  I have THOUGHT about it. 

I warn you, this is a few more ingredients than I usually post.  It does take a bit of chopping.  But you'll have this for days to come.  Give some to your mother-in-law.  She'll love you for it.  Muah, darlings!

 Muah! Minestrone 

Olive oil for sauteing 

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

3/4 cup red wine

1 cup water

1 jar tomato sauce

1 cans tomato paste

1 can white beans

1 can green beans

3 cups fresh spinach, chopped

1 large zucchini, sliced and quartered

basil & oregano & pepper

pepper

1/2 cup whole wheat pasta, cooked

In a large stock pot, saute garlic for 2 to 3 minutes. 

Add onion and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, then add celery and carrots for a few more minutes. 

Add chicken broth, water and tomato sauce, tomato paste, bring to boil, and stir a bit. 

Add red wine; have a sip for yourself.

Reduce heat to low and add white beans, green beans, spinach , zucchini, oregano, basil,  and pepper. 

Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, the longer the better.  

Add pasta. 

 Options:  Add chicken sausage or browned ground beef for your fella.  Or serve it with some lovely Parmesan cheese on top.

Make it a meal:  Serve with some nice sourdough bread or have a nice lunch of soup and salad.

Wine:  Chianti

Chicken with Goat Cheese

This is a pretty great dish with minimal effort.  Goat cheese always adds a touch of elegance to any entree.  That and a bottle of wine that costs more than $10.  And since I'm an Irish diva whose man is a potato head, orzo is a welcome respite from the spud!

Chicken with Goat Cheese

1/3 cup olive oil

3 pinches parsley

2 pinches crushed red pepper

3 heaping spoonfuls goat cheese

4 boneless chicken breasts, split horizontally or smashed flat

orzo, cooked

Mix the olive oil, parsley, pepper, and goat cheese in a pretty bowl; set aside.
Season chicken with salt and pepper.
Cook chicken in olive oil until cooked through, 2-3 minutes per side.
Serve with orzo topped with goat cheese mix.

Make it a meal:  Serve with steamed broccoli unless you consider parsley a green vegetable.  Depending on how much time I want to put into dinner, sometimes I do.

Wine:  Chardonnay at any price

Peanut Noodles

These are so delicious!  I ate two small-ish bowls for lunch.  And easy!  I made them in the time it took to cook the noodles.  And versatile!  Eat hot, eat cold, add broccoli, don't.  And sort of not bad for you!  Use whole wheat pasta, low sodium soy sauce, and no sugar added peanut butter. 

Peanut Noodles

8 oz. spaghetti, linguini, or some sort of long pasta

2 Tbsp. peanut butter

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. rice vinegar

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

Cook noodles.
In a pretty bowl mix the remaining ingredients until smooth.
Stir the mixture into the cooked noodles.
That's it!

Make it a meal:  Add broccoli or shrimp or serve as a side dish.

Wine:  Malbec

Bacon Beer Beans

The first two words caught my man's eyes.  The aroma of the rosemary as the beans are cooking caught mine.  Well, my nose anyway.  Maybe you could cut back on the bacon to make this a tad healthier, but I wouldn't do that to my guy.  He's worth a little bacon.

Bacon Beer Beans

6-7 slices of bacon cut up into bits

1/2 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, chopped

2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp. honey

2 cans white beans (Great Northern or Cannellini)

1 bottle good beer

salt & pepper

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

Use a Dutch oven to cook bacon.  Mine is a pretty green apple colored one.

Transfer bacon to a paper towel.

Throw in onions and garlic to cook about 5 minutes.

Add mustard and honey and cook about 1 minute.

Add rosemary, beans, and beer.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let beer cook down.

Season with salt, pepper, and vinegar.

Make it a meal:  Serve with Slow Cooked Lemon Chicken

Wine:  Chardonnay or some more of that nice beer in the recipe.

Thanksgiving Day Menu 2011

Many of these recipes can be found here (*).  I hope everyone is enjoying my favorite holiday!

Appetizers

Brie Wheel in Puff Pastry

Pumpkin Soup with Cheese Ravioli *

Dee's Bacon Dip

Wine:  Champagne Cocktail

Entree

Apple Cider Brined Turkey*

Wine:  Pinot Noir and/or Chardonnay

Side Dishes

Elegant Stuffing with Rum-Soaked Cranraisins, Sausage, Mushrooms, & Apple*

Tim's Famous Mashed Potatoes

Turnip

Squash

Cranberry & Orange Marmalade

Garlic Green Beans with Cashews

Sweet Potatoes with Wine-Poached Pears*

Wine:  More Chardonnay

Dessert

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Apple Pie

Chocolate Silk Pie

Wine:  Port and/or Coffee with Irish Cream

Breakfast Pizza

This smells so good cooking. It is all the food groups in the right amounts. If you don't overload with cheese (I do) and meats (I don't) this is a perfectly healthy breakfast. Divas love pizza for breakfast. It is almost as good as cake for breakfast. Almost.

Breakfast Pizza

1/2 green pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

1 tomato, diced

1 large prepared pizza crust or 2 individuals

1/2 low fat cream cheese brick

1 egg

1 cup diced ham or crumbled bacon

1 cup shredded cheese (cheddar is nice, Fontina is better)

Sauté the vegetables until tender.
In a pretty bowl, mix cream cheese and egg until smooth.
Spread cream cheese mixture onto pizza crust; add vegetables and meat.
Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes until cream cheese layer sets.
Add cheddar cheese and bake another 3 minutes until cheese has melted.

Options: Play with vegetables! Spinach and feta would be great! Try goat cheese or add some hot peppers for zip.

Make it a meal: Serve with coffee or mimosas. I, of course, prefer the latter.

Wine: See above.

Roasted Potato Salad

I adore a potato salad without the mayonnaise once in a while. Especially this time of year with all the fresh produce selections, mayo can be heavy. The fresh basil that I pick out of my herb garden is amazing right now. In this dish, the flavor popped. Believe me, divas like popping whether it's basil, champagne, or something else! This is perfect for nights dining al fresco among the mid-summer gardens.

Roasted Potato Salad

4-5 potatoes, cubed

1/2 onion, sliced (red looks pretty in the salad)

2 glugs olive oil for roasting potatoes

Salt & Pepper

3 handfuls corn

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 cup olive oil for dressing

3 glugs apple cider vinegar

fresh basil, chopped

Coat the potatoes and onions in oil and bake on a baking sheet at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
Meanwhile mix olive oil and vinegar for dressing.
Mix corn, celery, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a bowl; add cooled potatoes and toss.
Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
Serve at room temperature.

Make it a meal: Serve with Summertime Stuffed Zucchini for Two (see recipe)

Wine: Sauvignon Blanc

Faux Fried Pickles

I love fried pickles, but here in Northern New England, few restaurants offer them. I never made them at home, because I don’t like deep frying things—too messy and smelly. These come out delicious. One thing I do to make things easier is to divide the breadcrumb mixture into two baggies. The pickles get coated more evenly and my fingers don't get so sticky.

This recipe is healthy, even: fiber, whole wheat, vegetables. Pickles are vegetables, right? So then I serve them with full-fat ranch dressing. That’s okay. I'll diet until tomorrow.

Faux-Fried Pickles

1/4 cup Fiber One Original bran cereal
3 tbsp. whole wheat breadcrumbs
2 dashes garlic powder
2 dashes of Cajun or Creole seasoning
1 dash black pepper
1 dash cayenne pepper
40 hamburger dill pickle chips, drained
1 egg beaten with a bit of milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with nonstick spray and set aside.
Place cereal, breadcrumbs, and spices in a sealable plastic bag; remove air, and seal.
Using a meat mallet (or empty wine bottle), crush mixture through the bag to a breadcrumb-like consistency.
Place pickle chips in a bowl, and pat dry with paper towels.
Cover with egg mixture and toss to coat.
Transfer the egg-coated pickles to the bag of crumbs.
Seal and shake to evenly coat pickle chips with crumbs.
Place pickle chips on the baking sheet in an even layer.
Bake in the oven until coating is crispy, about 25 minutes.
Dip them in Ranch or garlic aioli.

Make it a meal: Serve ahead of Spicy Beef (see recipe).

Wine: I'm afraid no wine goes well with pickles. Better to have an amber beer.

Chicken Sausage Pasta with Pesto and Spinach

This simple meal made my man happy. Divas love a happy man. Happy men buy diamonds, emeralds, and Marmot ski jackets for their beloved.

Chicken Sausage Pasta with Pesto and Spinach

2/3 box whole wheat penne

1 package of chicken sausage (4)

1 handful of grape tomatoes, halved

fresh spinach

2 spoonfuls store-bought pesto

1 handful Parmesan cheese

Cook penne and drain.
Meanwhile, saute sausage and tomatoes.
Set aside.
Add spinach to saute pan and heat with a bit of olive oil.
Combine spinach, cooked penne, sausage, and tomatoes.
Mix in pesto.
Mix in Parmesan.

Make it a meal: Serve with bread.

Wine: Chardonnay or Pinot Noir

Pickled Carrot Salad

So easy! This recipe is so good, I actually eat my carrots. I feel so healty!

Pickled Carrot Salad

1 10 oz. bag julienned carrots

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1/3 cup water

1 tablespoon sugar

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground mustard

In a saucepan, cook carrots in a small amount of water for about 10 minutes.
Drain and transfer to a serving dish.
Combine remaining ingredients in the saucepan.
Heat for a few minutes until the sugar dissolves.
Pour over carrots; cover and refrigerate for overnight.

Make it a meal: Serve alongside Cod with Lemon and White Pepper (see recipe)

Wine: Sauvignon Blanc

Antipasto

This was such a hit at a family get-together, I will absolutely make this again for company. It requires little work and a patient deli counter service person. There's a little something for everyone in there.

Just be careful with how much dressing you put on and when you are serving. You don't want the lettuce to get soggy.

Antipasto

1 bag Romaine lettuce

a few sprinkles garlic powder

1/4 lb. of deli meat sliced thin--Choose 3: Capicola, salami, ham, roast beef, prosciutto (I used the first 3 for mine)

1/4 lb. Provolone cheese

1/2 can artichoke hearts, quartered

1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 cup marinated mushrooms

1/4 cup pepperoncini

1/4 cup mozzarella balls

Light Caesar salad dressing to taste

Spread the lettuce around the edges of a pretty serving dish.
Sprinkle the lettuce with garlic powder.
Drizzle the lettuce with Light Caesar dressing.
Roll up the deli meats and stack in the middle.
Roll the Provolone and put in the lettuce like the spokes of a wheel.
Make piles of the artichoke hearts, tomatoes, mushrooms, pepperoncini, and mozzarella balls in sections atop the lettuce.
Refrigerate for a bit or serve right away.

Options: Add black and green olives.

Make it a meal: Serve aside pasta with marinara sauce and warm bread.

Wine: Cabernet Sauvignon or Chianti

Creamed Corn & Asparagus Soup

I accidentally opened a can of creamed corn that I keep around for making Shepard's Pie. I don't like creamed corn much as a side dish, so I made it into this easy, nice soup. It is uber creamy without the cream. I purred like a kitten when I ate it.

Creamed Corn & Asparagus Soup

1 can creamed corn

1 can cream of asparagus soup

1 cup of milk (or more for thinner soup)

pepper

Pour all the ingredients into a pot and heat.

Make it a meal: Serve with Crab Delights (See recipe)

Wine: Chardonnay

BBQ Bacon and Bean Salad

Beans are so good for you. Here is another way to get that lean protein in a delicious way. Bring this to your next garden party and you'll be a hit.

BBQ Bacon and Bean Salad

4-5 strips of bacon, cut into 1-inch strips

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1/2 cup BBQ sauce (I like mine spicy)

1 can corn, drained

2 cans white beans, drained (I use Great Northern)

2 Tbsp. red wine or cider vinegar

salt & pepper

chives for garnish

Sauté bacon for a few minutes, then add the onions.
Sauté it all a bit more.
Remove the pan from the heat and drain a bit of the fat.
Stir in the paprika.
Empty the cans of beans and corn into a pretty bowl.
Add the bacon and onion mixture.
Add the BBQ sauce and vinegar and mix well.
Top with chives for color.

Make it a meal: Serve with whatever you're barbecuing tonight.

Wine: Rosé

Summertime Stuffed Zucchini for Two

This dish makes a gorgeous light meal, but is also an easy, elegant side dish.
Use anything in your garden to stuff this zucchini. I used my ripening cherry tomatoes (which are yellow ones this year) and chives. Which cheese to use is simply personal taste. I had cheddar on hand, but Gruyere, goat, or blue would also be nice. Adding chick peas would certainly bump us the nutritional value of this dish. Other ideas are to add some sautéed mushrooms, crab, or tiny shrimps.

Summertime Stuffed Zucchini for Two

1 medium zucchini cut lengthwise

A bit of onion, chopped

4 cherry tomatoes, halved

3 splashes white wine

3 Tbsp. bread crumbs

A few pinches of cheese

A bit of chives

A bit of Parmesan cheese

Scoop out the zucchini seeds into a bowl and chop it up.
Salt and pepper the scooped out skins and set aside.
Sauté the onion for a bit, then add the tomatoes.
Add the chopped zucchini.
Add the wine and sauté the mixture until liquid is absorbed.
Transfer it all to a bowl and mix in breadcrumbs, cheese, and chives.
Stuff zucchini skins with entire mixture and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.
Pinch a bit of Parmesan on top and serve.

Make it a meal: Serve by itself with crusty French bread or serve it as a side dish with Potato & Garlic Soup (see recipe).

Wine: Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay