Monthly Archives: December 2012
Top 12 Recipes of 2012
| December 30, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Reviews |
2012 was an amazing year for Healthy. Delicious. and I have a feeling that 2013 is going to be even better. Earlier this month I attended a new blogging conference, Mixed, and I came home with pages and pages of notes filled with ideas and inspiration that I’m excited to put into action. I also spent the last few weeks cooking up a storm, and I have some really great recipes (and photos!) that I can’t wait to share. My posting schedule slowed down a little in 2012, but I’m really going to try to get back into a 3 posts a week schedule starting on the 1st so that this site is alway a place you can come for fresh recipes and new ideas.
Before that though, let’s take one last look at the recipes that 2012 brought. This is always one of my favorite posts to do, since it reminds me great recipes that I’ve forgotten about! First, lets start with your favorite recipes. These are the five recipes from 2012 with the most views (there are a few older ones that have more, but I limited this list to recipes that were originally posted this year.)
1. Baked Chicken and Spinach Flautas - By far my most popular recipe, these flautas have been viewed over a half million times since I posted them back in March. Um, what?!?
2. Buffalo Chicken Taquitos - Not quite as popular as the original flautas, these were also a huge hit. Personally, I liked them even better than the originals.
3. Turkey, Mushroom, & Spinach Lasagna - A healthy twist on a classic, with turkey that’s seasoned to taste just like sausage. It doesn’t surprise me at all that this recipe was a huge hit!
4. Doritos Locos Taco Bake - Taco Bake has been one of my most popular posts since 2010. This updated version (yes, inspired by Taco Bell) is really fun. It also takes great and is a total man pleaser.
5. Clementine-Soy Chicken Thighs - I’m honestly surprised to see this recipe in my top 5, but it’s place there isn’t unwarranted. The bright burst of citrus is welcome in the dreary winter months, and it’s a great way to use up the last of that crate of clementines that I bet you have on the counter.
For the next five recipes, I wanted to share a few of my personal favorites. Some of these were pretty popular (although not in the top 5 above) but for some reason or another others might not have been. That make me a little sad, because I think they should all be right on top. If you’re looking for something new to try, I’d definitely recommend any of these, which show up on my table frequently.
6. Asian Pulled Chicken Sliders - These sliders, made in a crock pot, have a sweet-spicy thing going on that I can’t get enough of. I also really love the photos that I took for this post – I was in the middle of a food photography course when I made them and I feel like they represent a turning point in my photography.
7. Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Maple Vinaigrette - Bacon, Maple, and Hazelnuts – what’s not to love? I’ve made this salad a few times in the past few months, including for Thanksgiving, and it’s always a huge hit.
8.Perfect Roast Chicken and Lemon and Za’atar - Simple and delicious, plus it makes the whole house smell amazing! Don’t forget to use the bones to make stock for the freezer!
9.Baked Risotto with Sausage & Kale - The hearty flavors in this risotto are so comforting. Bonus – the new cooking technique means you don’t have to stand over the pot all night!
10.Fettuccini with Cauliflower, Prosciutto & Peas - This recipe was inspired by a meal I had at Mario Batali’s Otto Enoteca, and it took me a few tried to get right. I refused to give up until I did, and it was worth it. Pureed cauliflower makes a thick sauce that clings to the fettuccini. This is one sexy pasta!
One of the biggest reasons that I didn’t post as many recipes here in 2012 as I did in 2011 is because I spent a ton of time developing recipes for other companies and web sites. One of my biggest projects this year was working with General Mills, primarily for Live Better America (which focuses on healthy recipes) and Betty Crocker.
Back in May, I even had the opportunity to fly out to their headquarters in Minneapolis and spend a few days touring their kitchens and learning from some of the very best recipe developers and food photographers around. It was an incredible experience, and a huge part of my year. Any recipe roundup simply wouldn’t b complete without at least a small mention of some of the recipes I developed for them. I’m proud of everything I sent over to them, but these are two of my very favorites – easy, delicious and healthy recipes that I’ve made again and again.
11. Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza Poppers - These are a heathy take on pizza rolls, with shredded chicken, turkey bacon, and cheese all tucked inside a fluffy, ranch-flavored pastry.
12. Grilled Peaches with Honeyed Ricotta - Summertime perfection. These grilled peaches are an easy and elegant dessert. The honeyed ricotta was inspired by cannoli filling!
Lemon Chicken Soup with Tortellini
| December 27, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Chicken and Poultry, One Pan, Quick Weeknight Meals, Soups and Stews |
I hope everyone had a great Christmas and that Santa brought you everything you wanted! I got a gorgeous new camera bag and an induction burner (so I can boil water at lightening speed just like Kelly Ripa!) and I couldn’t be happier.
Anyway, I don’t know about you but I definitely are more than my fair share of cookies this month. I feel pretty gross and I could definitely use a few vegetables and a meal or two with actual nutritional value in my life. I had grand plans to do a post-holiday juice fast – I even bought all of the fruits and vegetables I’d need to make that happen – but we got hit with a blizzard and cold juice just didn’t sound very appetizing at all. This light, brothy soup ended up being just what I needed. Filled with random ingredients from the fridge and freezer, and finished with fresh lemon juice to give it some brightness, it was just about perfect.
As with most soups, this one is delicious the first night and even better left over. Make a double batch and have it for lunch all week!
Lemon Chicken Soup with Tortellini
I usually like my soups to be rich and tomato-y, but I kept this one light for a nice change of pace. Since the flavor of the broth is so prominent be sure to start with a flavorful one. I used homemade chicken stock from the freezer, and recommend that you do to. If you don’t have any made, I like Swanson or Emeril’s All-Natural stock, both of which have a rich chicken flavor. The amount of salt and pepper you need will vary based on what stock you use.
Fresh pasta is great in soup, since it doesn’t absorb as much liquid as dry pasta does. If you want to use dry or frozen tortellini instead of fresh, I recommend cooking it separately and adding it to the broth at the end.
Serves 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
- 1 Leek, white and light green parts only, cut into half-moons
- 1 Carrot, chopped
- 6 cups good quality Chicken Stock, preferably homemade
- 2 1-inch cubes Parmesan Cheese
- Salt and Pepper
- 1 package (9 ounces) Fresh Cheese Tortellini
- 1/2 cup Frozen Peas
- 2 cups Baby Spinach
- 1 Lemon, juiced
Preparation
- Heat oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add the leeks and the carrots; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the broth and cheese; bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the tortellini; boil for 7-9 minutes or until cooked through. Reduce heat and stir in the peas and spinach; simmer until spinach is wilted. Stir in the lemon juice.
Merry Christmas!
| December 24, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Misc. |
I hope that you all have the very best Christmas ever, filled with lots of laughter and delicious food. I’ll be back later this week with a few new recipes, so be sure to check back after the holiday!
We never got around to putting our tree up this year, so I’m sharing a photo that I took at the home of Franklin Roosevelt. They decorate it for the holidays every December – isn’t it just gorgeous?
“Fried” Pickles with Southwest Ranch Dipping Sauce
| December 21, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Shawn's Favorites, Sides, special projects, Vegetarian or Vegan |
At our office holiday party earlier this week, the conversation somehow turned to “weird” food – it might have had something to do with the fact that we were sitting there eating pizza topped with apple butter and bacon, I don’t know. Anyway, we ended up on the topic of fried pickles and how they’re basically life-changing.
I’ve been wanting to try a baked version for a while so I figured I’d give it a go. These came out great! They’re super crispy, with a zesty cornmeal breading that thickly coats the thick, vinegary pickles. The only indication they give that they’re baked instead of fried was that they’re not the least bit greasy. For dipping, I made a great, low-fat southwestern ranch sauce.
These pickles easy to make, and didn’t require any ingredients that I didn’t already have in the kitchen. If you’re still looking for a crowd-pleasing appetizer to bring to a Christmas or New Year’s party, there would be a great choice.
Let’s talk a little more about the sauce though. As it happens, my sudden desire to make frie pickles was pretty well-timed. If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen my tweet the other day about how I was working on a recipe for a client and accidentally used the wrong product.
That client was T. Marzetti Company – you might remember that I worked to develop some recipes with their Marzetti Simply Dressed salad dressing last year, and I’m happy to be working with them again. Anyway, I made a GREAT recipe using my all-time favorite dressing, their Ginger Sesame and was getting ready to post it when I pulled up my contract and realized it wasn’t on the list that I was supposed to use! Apparently that dressing isn’t distributed nationally, so they prefer not to focus on it. I had to come up with another idea for them, but was having a really difficult time with it. This ended up working out perfectly.
Over the past year, Marzetti has added some new dressings to their Simply Dressed line, including a few lighter options. I used the Simply Dressed & Light Ranch to form the base of my dipping sauce, which was inspired by the southwest dipping sauce served at Buffalo Wild Wings. While it’s not an exact match and definitely isn’t as spicy as theirs, it’s pretty darn good, and I loved that it was low fat!
Oven “Fried” Pickles with Southwest Ranch Dipping Sauce
While any variety of pickle can be used in this recipe, I like the flavor of dill pickles best – it goes really well with the cornmeal and also with the ranch dipping sauce. Pickles from the refrigerator case tend to be crisper and will hold up better in the oven.
Yields about 40 pickles (5 pickles per serving)
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Marzetti Simply Dressed & Light Ranch
- 2 Tablespoons Fat Free Plain Greek Yogurt
- 2 teaspoons Hot Sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon Cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 cup Yellow Cornmeal
- 1/2 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon Southwest Seasoning
- 1 Egg
- 2 Tablespoons Milk
- 2 cups Dill Pickle Slices
Preparation
- In a small bowl, mix together the dressing, yogurt, hot sauce, cumin, and cayenne. Cover and refridgerate at least 30 minutes.
- Heat oven to 450F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, combine the cornmeal, breadcrumbs, and southwest seasoning. In a second bowl, whisk together the egg and milk. Dip the pickle slices into the egg wash, then coat with breading. Place on prepared baking sheet. Lightly spritz the tops of the pickles with olive oil spray. Bake 10 minutes; flip and bake another 10 minutes. Serve with dipping sauce.
This post was brought to you in partnership with Marzetti Simply Dressed Refrigerated Salad Dressings. I was compensated for my time commitment to the program as well as my writing about my experience. I have also been provided products for review. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.
Easy Grissini Two Ways: Bacon Wrapped + Rosemary Parmesan
| December 19, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Breads, Italian, special projects |
Grissini – thin, crispy Italian breadsticks – make a great holiday appetizer. They’re cheap and easy to make and are always a crowd please – especially when they’re wrapped with candied bacon! They have a great crunch and are a nice contrast to other appetizers, which tend to be heavier and more filling. You can season them all sorts of ways, from sesame to black pepper to smoked salt or nori flakes. This time around, I chose to make half of mine “fancy” by wrapping them with bacon and kept the other half simple with a sprinkle of rosemary and parmesan cheese.
I used Pillsbury artisan pizza crust with whole grains to make the breadsticks, and I adored the slightly sweet-slightly nutty flavor and bumpy, rustic texture it gave them. Starting with the prepared dough means that these are really simple to make – just unroll it, slice it, and roll them (giving them a single fold first to help provide a little structure). Go crazy with your toppings and they’re ready for the oven! Just note that for the bacon wrapped grissini, you’ll need a cooling rack or some other type of contraption that will raise them up out of the rendered fat – otherwise, they wont crisp up and you’ll be left with floppy breadsticks.
Easy Grissini Two Ways: Bacon Wrapped + Rosemary Parmesan
Baking these grissini on a cooling rack will keep them out of the rendered bacon grease and help them crisp up – just be sure to use a rimmed pan below to catch the drips! Thinly sliced, lean bacon works best for this recipe – avoid thick-cut bacon. If your bacon is very fatty, you might find that you only want to use the meatier half of each slice.
Want more appetizers? Try Scallops with Minted Pea Sauce, Oven Toasted Ravioli, or Roasted Figs with Roquefort.
Yields 32 breadsticks
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 8-10 hours
Ingredients
- 1 can (13.8 ounces) Pillsbury Refrigerated Artisan Pizza Crust with Whole Grain
For Bacon-Wrapped Grissini: - 1/4 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1/16 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 16 slices Bacon
For Rosemary-Parmesan Grissini: - 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1 teaspoon Crushed Rosemary (dried)
Preparation
- Heat oven to 400F. Spray cooling rack with cooking spray and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Unroll dough. Cut n half lengthwise and widthwise; cut each dough section lengthwise into 8 strips. Fold each strip in half; roll to form an 8-inch rope. Repeat with remaining dough.
- For bacon wrapped grissini: Cut bacon in half lengthwise; combine the brown sugar and cayenne in a small bowl. Starting at one end, carefully wrap each dough rope with bacon, covering the top third of the dough. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. For Rosemary-Parmesan Grissini: Sprinkle each dough rope with finely grated cheese and crushed rosemary.
- Transfer to prepared cooling rack. Bake 30 minutes, or until breadsticks are crisp. Remove from oven and let cool. Serve at room temperature.
Bacon Grissini: Rosemary-Parmesan Grissini:
This post was brought to you in partnership with Pillsbury. I was compensated for my time creating this recipe. All opinions are my own.
Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Meatball Subs
| December 18, 2012 | Posted by Lauren Keating under Chicken and Poultry, Sandwiches, slow cooker, Winter |
How would you like to come home from a long day at work and be greeted to a crock pot filled with warm, spicy buffalo chicken meatballs?
Yeah… that’s what I thought.
I can’t even begin to describe to you how ridiculously good my house smelled after these cooked all day. I took about two steps into the front hall and stopped short in my tracks, pausing to take in the scent.
Plopped onto soft buns spread thick with a tangy mixture of blue cheese and yogurt, these meatballs made one of the best subs I’ve had in a long while.
If you’ve been reading here for a while, you’ll know that I’m always looking for ways to transform Buffalo wings into a legitimate, healthy dinner (Buffalo Chicken Chili or Buffalo Chicken Taquitos, anyone?), but this one might just take the title. I started with ground chicken breast, which can be a little bit of a pain to find but is totally worth the hunt (or, you can just ask your butcher to grind some boneless, skinless chicken breasts for you, or mince them yourself in a food processor.) I added some bufalo sauce, mince celery, and minced carrot for flavor and some bread crumbs and an egg to help bind everything together.
Then, the annoying part – bake them for 20 minutes. I know, I hate crock pot recipes that require precooking too, but step fulfills two important purposes: 1) it browns the meatballs and helps keep them from falling apart during the second stage of cooking, and 2) it cooks them through. You always want to cook ground meat at least almost all of the way though before putting it into a crock pot, ok?
Then I transferred them to my new Bills Crock Pot and gave them a nice hot sauce bath for 10 hours. The sauce will soak into the meatballs, making them super flavorful, and will cook down and concentrate until it looks almost like marinara. Yum!
(The Buffalo Bills slow cooker is part of Crock Pot’s new NFL line – they have every team, which I was pretty excited about. These crocks are perfect for tailgating, since they have little clips that keep the lid in place. This also makes sure it stays on nice and tight while you food is cooking. I’ve had some problems with losing too much moisture with other slow cookers, but didn’t have that problem with this one at all. At only $60, these are definitely a steal, and totally fun. Obviously I had to make Buffalo chicken in mine first. Next up, Beef on Weck!)
Buffalo Chicken Meatball Subs with Blue Cheese Spread
The hot sauce that these meatballs cook in will condense at it simmer all day, ending up pretty spicy! Balanced out with some blue cheese spread, I thought they were just about perfect – but I’m also the kind of girl who eats hot sauce on potato chips (don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it!) If you prefer less heat, stir some butter into the sauce before serving them; if you’re crazy and want them even hotter, you can add in some cayenne pepper.
Looking for more slow cooker recipes? Try Honey-Bourbon Pulled Chicken, Split Pea Soup, or cochinita pibil tortas.
Serves 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 8-10 hours
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 pound Ground Chicken Breast
- 3/4 cups Bread Crumbs
- 1 Carrot, minced
- 1 Celery Stalk, minced
- 1 Egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cups plus 2 tablespoons Buffalo Sauce (such as Franks Red Hot)
- 1/4 cup Blue Cheese Crumbles
- 2 tablespoons nonfat Plain Yogurt
- 4 Small Sub Rolls or large hot dog rolls
Preparation
- Heat oven to 450. Coat bottom of a baking dish with oil.
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, bread crumbs, carrot, celery, egg, and 2 tablespoons buffalo sauce; mix until just incorporated. Firmly roll the mixture into 12 balls, about 2 inches each; place in prepared dish. Bake 15 minutes, or until lightly browned and cooked through.
- Transfer meatballs to crock pot. Pour remaining 1 cup buffalo sauce on top. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Keep warm until ready to eat.
- Combine the blue cheese and yogurt in a small dish. Use the back of a spoon to mash it into a smooth paste. To serve, spread cut rolls with blue cheese spread. Top with meatballs. Spoon on additional sauce from bottom of crock pot, as desired.
This post was brought to you in partnership with Crock Pot. I was compensated for my time creating this recipe. All opinions are my own.
Buffalo Chicken Meatball Subs with Blue Cheese Spread
The hot sauce that these meatballs cook in will condense at it simmer all day, ending up pretty spicy! Balanced out with some blue cheese spread, I thought they were just about perfect – but I’m also the kind of girl who eats hot sauce on potato chips (don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it!) If you prefer less heat, stir some butter into the sauce before serving them; if you’re crazy and want them even hotter, you can add in some cayenne pepper.
Looking for more slow cooker recipes? Try Honey-Bourbon Pulled Chicken, Split Pea Soup, or cochinita pibil tortas.
Serves 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 8-10 hours
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 pound Ground Chicken Breast
- 3/4 cups Bread Crumbs
- 1 Carrot, minced
- 1 Celery Stalk, minced
- 1 Egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cups plus 2 tablespoons Buffalo Sauce (such as Franks Red Hot)
- 1/4 cup Blue Cheese Crumbles
- 2 tablespoons nonfat Plain Yogurt
- 4 Small Sub Rolls or large hot dog rolls
Preparation
- Heat oven to 450. Coat bottom of a baking dish with oil.
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, bread crumbs, carrot, celery, egg, and 2 tablespoons buffalo sauce; mix until just incorporated. Firmly roll the mixture into 12 balls, about 2 inches each; place in prepared dish. Bake 15 minutes, or until lightly browned and cooked through.
- Transfer meatballs to crock pot. Pour remaining 1 cup buffalo sauce on top. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Keep warm until ready to eat.
- Combine the blue cheese and yogurt in a small dish. Use the back of a spoon to mash it into a smooth paste. To serve, spread cut rolls with blue cheese spread. Top with meatballs. Spoon on additional sauce from bottom of crock pot, as desired.
This post was brought to you in partnership with Crock Pot. I was compensated for my time creating this recipe. All opinions are my own.
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