Another recipe success!

The picture is crap. I forgot to take a picture before we dug into it, and then I put the small bit that was left into a snapware container... dumping the contents of my big pan right in there. The marinara left a lot of "juice" behind, so it looks like some sort of strange soup rather than a lasagna. But oh well! It was amazingly delicious.

Spaghetti squash lasagna!!

1 roasted spaghetti squash
Marinara
Mozzarella cheese
Ricotta cheese

And that's it! Super easy. To roast the spaghetti squash, cut it in half, scoop out the innards, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake (on a baking sheet) at 350* for about an hour. When you take it out, grab a fork and scrape the sides. It will produce some awesome stringy bits that resemble spaghetti noodles.

Take your casserole dish. Mine was 8x8 and could have been bigger. Put down a layer of marinara. Cover with a layer of spaghetti squash. Top that with more marinara, some ricotta, and mozzarella. Do it again. Spaghetti squash, marinara, mozzarella. (I didn't top it with ricotta because it doesn't look as pretty that way.)

Bake at 350* for about 30 minutes.

Delish! It's fairly healthy, and tastes amazing.


I also altered my usual marinara recipe when I was cooking yesterday. I like it more than what I was doing before, so here's the new recipe! (And photo #35.)

olive oil
1 large yellow onion
~4 cloves minced garlic
4 ribs celery, chopped
5 carrots, chopped
1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
3 bay leaves
oregano
parsley
fresh ground black pepper
~ 1/2 c. red wine

Saute all the veggies in olive oil. Dump in the canned tomatoes. Stir in the spices. Finish off with the red wine. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for about an hour. Success!

No, it's not the most beautiful sauce you've ever seen. You'll get over it.

I had a wonderful day at work today, and a wonderful night with some of my best friends. Looking forward to going for a run (or a mostly-walk) in the morning, as well as crossing off several things from my to-do list before I have to go in to work tomorrow evening.

A side note: FreeRice is one of my 101 goals - to donate 1 Million grains before my 1001 days are up. But more than that, it's something small that you can do that truly makes a difference. All you have to do is answer a few questions on the topic of your choice. For every question you answer correctly, rice is purchased to feed the hungry. If you are bored and fooling around the internet, searching for random crap to entertain you, consider doing something to help others. You can make a difference and help solve world hunger without ever getting off your butt, and without donating a dime. So why wouldn't you?

I have some things to finish up, and then I think I'm off to bed at a decent hour tonight. Ciao!

Hello, heartburn!

I have had ridiculous heartburn all day, so I decided this afternoon after my P-Chem test (which I ROCKED, by the way! More on that later), I needed to quash it with some dairy. Dairy neutralizes the acid in your stomach somewhat. Or something. I've never really had problems with heartburn before, so I could be spouting nonsense, but I could have sworn I heard that somewhere.

Anyway, quashing it with dairy turned into a trip to the store, since I am all out of everything but soy milk, which is too sweet for me to drink on its own. And a trip to the store had me walking out with graham crackers, another bag of nuts, and some sweetened, condensed milk. Curiously, those were the missing ingredients I needed for 7-layer bars.

The recipe I've used in the past is for a 9" x 13" pan, and I only had an 8" x 8" and a 11" x 15", so I used the bigger one and came up with something similar on my own. It's not totally perfected, but it wasn't bad.

Delicious Seven-Layer Bars!!


1 c. (+ 2.5 Tbsp, because I wanted to use up the last of the butter in the fridge) unsalted butter.
1 package low-fat honey grahams, crushed
1 package cinnamon grahams, crushed
12 oz. chocolate chips
11 oz. butterscotch chips
2 oz. walnut chips
2 oz. sliced almonds
~ 5.5 oz. sweetened coconut
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk.

They're a little sweet, even for my taste. I think next time I would opt for unsweetened coconut, if such a thing exists. Probably more nuts, to cut the sweetness a little bit. And maybe mix the condensed milk with some regular, unsweetened stuff.

Melt the butter. Make sure you butter the bottom and sides of your pan. Mix the rest of the butter with the crushed graham crackers. Spread that layer on the bottom of your pan and pat it down. Top with a layer of chocolate chips. Add some butterscotch ones. Then sprinkle with nuts. Add the coconut, and top everything off with a can of condensed milk. Pop in the oven at 350* for 25 minutes, or until the edges start to brown.

Yum!

Things I would change:

• not use so much butter next time. The crust is not quite crispy enough for me. 
• cut the sweetness somehow, without taking away any of my precious butterscotch chips. 

And that is all. Because they are super delicious. 

About that test that I totally rocked - Definitely finished it in under half an hour. I feel really good about it! Like, probably better than the last one I took, that I got a B on. Bonus!

I had an appointment with my awesome new adviser today. I could hypothetically be out and done in two semesters if need-be, but I think I'm going to wait and do it in three. Not super interested in overloading myself - especially this late in the game. My course load for next semester is totally reasonable (15 credits, though half of them are 400-level courses). Another programming class, Linear Algebra, Mathematical Structures, Applied Statistics, and my German course. I talked to her about petitioning for the financial aid nonsense ASU is trying to stiff me with, and she didn't really give a hint as to whether or not I would be successful, but did offer to help me with completing the paperwork which was pretty awesome. 

I invited Kris and Dave over for dinner this Saturday. I am in desperate need of a back massage, and hoping I can con him into bringing his table over here. <3 

I'll finish things off with the picture that made my morning. 

Ciao! 

Cheesy chicken enchiladas!

I will admit, these aren't the best-looking enchiladas ever. They also aren't the tastiest enchiladas ever, since I went the lazy route. But they're still tasty and super easy. Quasi-recipe, coming right up. :)


chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, trimmed)
canned enchilada sauce
canned green chiles (I used about 12 oz.)
canned black beans
canned corn! (see the pattern here?)

Put everything in the crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 7 - 8 hours. Then get out some tortillas and a 9x13 baking dish. Stuff your tortillas, roll 'em up, and line them in the greased dish. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake at 350* for 45 - 50 minutes.

Voila! Chicken enchiladas.

I had made them right before I left for Europe, and decided to make a ton of extras and freeze them so I would have food handy when I stepped off the plane. I ended up going grocery shopping the first day (and pretty much slept the entire day away), and Kyle brought over dinner the next day, so I wasn't hurting for them. Finally decided to get 'em out and cook them tonight. Even for being frozen for almost three months, they were pretty tasty.

I'm pretty sleepy, and I have to get up for hot yoga in the morning. I am going to try to be in bed before midnight tonight, so I should probably start getting on that. Ciao!

Beer chili!

I have had some ground beef in the fridge for a few days now and decided I needed to finally get around to making chili with it. So I headed to the grocery store just before 10 tonight, and grabbed some essentials.

Beer chili!

1 yellow pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
chili powder
hamburger
1 bottle beer

Cook the onion, garlic, and peppers in a little bit of EVOO. Add in the hamburger after the veggies are soft. Cook until meat is done. Dump in the beans, chili powder, and a bottle of beer. Let simmer as long as you feel like! (I cooked it for 15 - 20 minutes.)

I also usually put an orange pepper in there, but I didn't feel like cutting that one up tonight.

Here's tonight's dinner, topped with some shredded cheese!

I used an amber ale that Mark recommended. I have used something a little lighter in the past, but this was still tasty. I might have liked it a little more, actually.

I have 12 of my 50 weekly items crossed off the list. I'm glad I'm a tiny bit ahead - especially since I work both Thursday and Friday!

Went to Mellow Mushroom for a late lunch today, thanks to my Groupon that expired tonight. I wasn't totally impressed. It's definitely no Moose's Tooth. And really wasn't worth the $28 that my bill came to. I suppose I'll review it as one of my new restaurants visited... you'll probably see more about it later.

I have some homework to do before bed, so I'm outta here for the night. Ciao!!

I am a fat kid, photos, and a new job!

Sooooo. . . I made no-bake cookies. Again. For the second time in a week. I changed up the recipe because I was almost out of white sugar after the last batch, and holy cow. I love them even more now. 

They don't look much different than the others, but they're even tastier, in my humble opinion. 

1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. butter

scant 2 cups packed brown sugar

4 Tbsp. unsweetened Ghiradelli cocoa (the brand makes all the difference!)

vanilla

1/2 c. peanut butter

3 c. quick oats

Mix the first 4 ingredients together on the stove. Let boil for 90 seconds. Remove from heat and add in the last three ingredients. Spoon onto wax paper and let cool. 

Amazing!

And my day 9 photo: 

I had an interview today, and subsequently landed the job! (Please forgive the mess in the background and my dirty mirror. I'm still unpacking and that's my empty room which has been serving as a catch-all right now.) I start on Friday. 

I also had some modeling work this morning. 200 bucks for about an hour and a half worth of work. No complaints here! 

I stayed the night at Kris's last night since my modeling gig this morning was out in Litchfield Park, and I was already over there for the BBQ at her neighbor's house. (I'm going to the Chris Young concert with Lori, by the way! Super excited.) Came home this afternoon and took a two-hour nap. 

I sold another textbook on Amazon today for over 70 bucks. I have a bunch of 'em to mail tomorrow, which should be right around 100 dollars in my pocket soon. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner. 

I have well over half my to-do list crossed off right now. I'm trying to see how many more I can get accomplished by the end of the night. We'll see! I have a headache so most of the cleaning is probably out. I have 24 things left (out of 60). Most of them involve either cleaning or phone calls that have to be made during business hours. I'm aiming to cross off another 4 tonight, though. That would be 67 percent of my list down, and I'm more than happy with that number! 

I'm off to work on homework. Ciao!

My house smells amazing!

I had some spinach thawed tonight to make Chicken Piccata for Atia and me,  and then she got a ticket and wasn't able to make the drive up here. So here I sat, with five chicken breasts, not sure what to do with them. I thought about making chicken piccata still, especially since it's been a while, but it just didn't sound good anymore. So I went to the grocery store and ended up with a chicken shell casserole bake!

4 chicken breasts

evoo

approx. 10 cloves garlic (I have a bunch of minced garlic so I put in 4 heaping spoonfuls.)

18 oz. spinach (2 bags) 

1 lb. pasta shells 

approx. 4 oz. white wine

Heat the oven to 350*. Cook the pasta to al dente (and make sure you salt the water!). Dice the chicken breasts and cook them in the olive oil for 10ish minutes. Then add garlic and cook until brown. Add in the wine and spinach. Cook until wilted. Toss everything together in a casserole dish and cover with cheese! (I used a Mexican blend because it's what I had on hand. It probably would be better with mozzarella.) Cook for 25 - 30 minutes. 

It could have used a little more wine, I think. Some of the chicken was a little dry. Overall, it was delicious! I have a ton of leftovers, and I know this is going to be something that I don't regret making a ton of. 

I think I'm going to start winding down so I can hit the hay around 11. I have my walking group at 5:45 in the morning again, so I'll be up at 5. I have a long day tomorrow! Ciao! 

I'm home! And cooked something new.

I tried a new slow-cooker recipe last night! I had about 6 lbs. of bone-in chicken breasts in the freezer that needed to be used up, and Kris and her family came over for dinner, so I thought it seemed like the perfect time!

I generally don't use bone-in chicken because to me, it's a pain. Grilled, it's okay. Otherwise, it's really hard to work with. This recipe, though, is with wine so I figured even if it is a pain to eat, it will be tender, so hopefully worth it!

Chicken with white wine sauce

5 bone-in chicken breasts, skin removed and trimmed

5 carrots, cut in 1/2-in pieces

3 ribs celery, cut in 1/2-in pieces

3 cloves garlic, minced

thyme

oregano

parsley

salt

ground black pepper

1 can reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 ½ c. Sauvignon Blanc (any other dry white wine would probably work as well)

red potatoes, quartered

1 yellow onion, sliced

Put the veggies in the bottom, and cover with the chicken. Dump the spices on top of the chicken, and pour the liquid over everything. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours!

Then I thickened the sauce so I could pour it over the chicken and wild rice for serving. 3 Tbsp butter + 3 Tbsp whole wheat flour. Mix it together, and pour in a few cups of the cooking liquid. Heat it until it bubbles, and then continue to heat until it is the consistency you want.

It was SO good. The only complaint I had is that everything fell off the bone, so getting the veggies out was a pain without getting a big ladle full of bones as well.

The night before, I also tried to recreate the delicious veggie stuff that I had at the Prague Marriott. I cut up an eggplant, two zucchinis, two yellow squash, and a red pepper. Cooked it all up in ½ c. butter until everything was soft. Drizzled with balsamic vinegar and served. DELISH.

Unfortunately, again I didn't get photos, so this doesn't count as one of my 50. I'll remember eventually.

I do have another update that perhaps will go on the other blog. First update in a few months, so if you follow that one, check for something new shortly.

And with that, I'm off! I have another ballet fitness class this morning and should probably do some cleaning. I have a big to-do list today. :)

Ciao!

Booty beat and more food!

Yesterday, I noticed I've been slacking on the dishes lately and couldn't do much by way of a nice, hearty, homemade meal. So I reached into the freezer and pulled out a bag of chicken & parmesan ravioli that I bought from Fresh & Easy last month. Good stuff, and it was like $2.50/bag (1 lb), I think, so even cheaper than the usual spinach stuff we get at Costco.

Anyway, I boiled it all up and chopped up some marinated artichoke hearts (also from Costco) to mix in there. Dumped a little bit of the artichoke oil in, and voila! There was lunch, dinner, and lunch for today. I actually think it might have been more delicious today than yesterday. Cheap and easy! Doesn't get much better than that.

I also stopped by Express MiE last night for my first Booty Beat class, with Hannah! As a general rule, her classes are pretty low intensity, so I wasn't expecting a super hard workout. Holy cow, was I surprised! The cardio portion was about 25 minutes, and then we did arm/ab stuff for the last 15 or so. I had to scale back on some of the cardio because I just couldn't handle it, and less than five minutes into the arms, I was seriously considering going postal. Thankfully I'm not feeling it this morning.

This song has been stuck in my head for the last two days. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! I blame it on Heather from MSOS. She linked it Wednesday night in the "What are you listening to?" thread, and it's been stuck ever since.

Tonight, we're planning on making some homemade pasta. I'll let you know how it goes!

Delicious chicken piccata recipe!

I have always been a super huge Italian food fan, and chicken piccata has been near the top of my favorites list for as long as I can remember. Usually when I go out with Kyle, though, we try to find things that we can share. He has shied away from capers in the past (another thing on the list of stuff he hadn't tried before I came along), so chicken piccata was off the list... until last night!

A few months ago, I ordered a Giada deLaurentis cookbook (the Italian lady from The Food Network). I've never been a big recipe follower, but I do like to have recipes around to use for inspiration and general guidelines. I flipped through and saw the chicken piccata recipe, and knew it would be a winner. Kyle got the chicken, and I got capers, lemons, and parsley (which I didn't end up using!) from Sunflower on my way home from school yesterday.

Anyway, enough talk. I didn't take pictures, and I don't really measure anything, but here is the recipe, as I used it:



Delicious Chicken Piccata:


4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts, cut into cutlets
sea salt
fresh ground black pepper
flour (I used whole wheat)
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
evoo
reduced-sodium chicken broth or dry white wine (I used about 10 oz.)
juice from at least two lemons
capers, drained and rinsed


Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper if desired. (I did on some, but not others.) Dredge in flour. In a large saute pan, melt 2 Tbsp of butter and some evoo over med-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown (approx. 3 minutes on each side). Transfer chicken to a plate.

Add broth, lemon juice, and capers to the pan. Bring to a boil and make sure to scrape the crusty stuff from the bottom of the pan! Return the chicken to the pan and cook for approx. 5 minutes more. Transfer to plate again. Whisk the remaining 2 Tbsp. butter into sauce, pour over chicken, and garnish with parsley if desired.


Amazing. I will absolutely be using this recipe again. Kyle really liked it, and took some to work this morning. He made some rosemary potatoes to go along with it. Red potatoes, fresh rosemary, garlic, evoo, and I think some fresh ground pepper and some of that garlic & wine seasoning from TMP.

We're going to try our hand at some homemade pasta Friday night - maybe made with wine instead of water. It will be our first time using the pasta roller he got me for Christmas! Yum, yum, yum.