Fresh Cranberry Cake

What's on your Thanksgiving menu this year?  I may have to go buy more cranberries so this cranberry cake can be a late addition to mine.  For the most part, I'm sticking with classic recipes this year but adding in a few new items as well.

Cider Brined Turkey and Gravy

Mashed Potatoes

Sweet Potato Casserole - I'm doing a cross between this recipe and a copycat Ruth's Chris Steakhouse version

Dressing with apples and cranberries

Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa

Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

Cranberry Sauce

Harvest Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash

Crock Pot Apple Butter Yeast Rolls

Classic Pumpkin Pie

Salted Caramel Apple Pie

Pumpkin Roll

If you haven't nailed down your desserts yet, I've got a new one for you to try.  This takes about 20 minutes of prep time, but with a stand mixer about half of that time is just running the mixer.  It's so simple and likely the only thing you don't already have in the pantry are fresh cranberries.  Take advantage of the cheap fresh berries in every grocery store and make this cake while they are in season.  The tart cranberries are perfect with the sweetness of the cake and the light glaze.  Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this is a great finish to Thanksgiving dinner.

Fresh Cranberry Cake

Cake:
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 T orange zest
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 cups cranberries

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 10" springform pan or 9"x13" baking pan with baking spray and set aside.

Combine sugar and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl.  Mix 6-8 minutes on medium speed until pale yellow and doubled in volume.  Add in butter and extracts and zest and mix two more minutes.  Add flour and cinnamon and stir until combined.  Fold in cranberries.  Transfer batter to prepared pan.  If you are baking in a springform pan, put the pan on a cookie sheet and put in the oven.  Bake approximately one hour (about 45 minutes in a 9"x13" pan).  Cool completely and remove ring from pan.

Put powdered sugar in a small bowl, add milk one tablespoon at a time, whisking until smooth.  Add vanilla and drizzle over cake.

Berries and Cherries Fruit Salad

I have a hard time deciding which season is my favorite - summer or fall.  The abundant sunshine, time at the pool, beach vacations, and fresh fruit everywhere make me love summer.  But I love fall because I can wear jeans and boots, football season, the lack of humidity and 100 degree temperatures and anything with apples and cinnamon so it's a tie in my mind.  But while summer is here, I love to take advantage of all the fresh fruit that is in season.  The grocery store is full of cheap, fresh, local fruits that are delicious.  Why not use it to make a super simple, healthy side dish?  This fruit salad is the result of a Kroger sale on fresh berries last week and some gorgeous cherries that I had to buy.  It would also be good with the addition of fresh pineapple, kiwi, grapes, apples, etc.  Really anything goes, just add what you like.

This is perfect for a summer potluck or picnic too since it doesn't require refrigeration.  It's great for adults and kids, although remember that it is recommended that kids under one year of age shouldn't have honey.  My toddler absolutely loved this, but I did make sure I chopped the fruit a bit smaller than I normally would have if it was just being served to adults.

This also makes for a great dessert spooned over vanilla ice cream or with a dollop of whipped cream if you are going for a healthier option.

Berries and Cherries Fruit Salad

2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup blackberries
1 cup raspberries
1 cup pitted, sliced cherries
1 tsp lime zest
2 T lime juice
2 T honey

In the bottom of a medium size bowl, whisk together lime juice, zest, and honey.  Add sliced fruit and gently stir to coat with sauce.  Refrigerate for at least one hour to allow the flavors to combine.  The juices from the fruit will add to the sauce as well.  Stir gently just before serving.

Beer Cheese Macaroni

As I've mentioned a time or two in the past, macaroni and cheese is definitely up there on my list of favorite foods.  In my mind, it's pretty much the perfect comfort food.  While I definitely have a favorite traditional mac and cheese recipe, I also like to experiment with variations.  Check out these other macaroni recipes I've posted previously - Spicy Crab Macaroni and Cheese, Baked Mac and Cheese, Stovetop Mac and Cheese, and this chicken version - White Cheddar Chicken Pasta.

Well when I saw this beer cheese soup turned mac and cheese recipe on Pinterest, I couldn't pass it up.  I figured it would be perfect for our tailgating party for the upcoming game.  Let me tell you, don't wait to make this one.  This is some fantastic pasta.  The beer combines perfectly with the smoked and sharp cheddar cheeses and whole wheat pasta.  I used a Sam Adams Oktoberfest beer but any decent beer should work, I think I would avoid the light beers for this recipe, as you want something with a bit more flavor.

Feel free to adjust the cheeses but I think the blend of 1/3 smoked cheddar, 1/3 sharp white cheddar, and 1/3 mild cheddar, along with a little American cheese gives great flavor.  I added the American cheese slices because I like the creaminess that it adds.  I just used slices from the deli but you could shred it as well.  The recipe that I used baked the mac and cheese but I opted not too for this one since it was so creamy straight from the stovetop.  If you want to bake it, I recommend adding a bread crumb topping.

Beer Cheese Macaroni and Cheese
Adapted from HowSweetEats

12 oz uncooked whole wheat elbow or shell pasta
2 T unsalted butter
2 T flour
1 cup milk
1 cup beer
4 oz smoked cheddar cheese, grated
4 oz sharp white cheddar cheese, grated
4 oz mild cheddar cheese, grated
6 slices American cheese
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper, to taste
10 basil leaves

Heat a large pot of water to boiling, add a liberal amount of salt when boiling and add pasta.  Cook to just al dente, according to package directions.  Drain and return to pan or crock pot if you want to keep it hot for a while (you don't want to cook it in the crock pot but it can stay on low for a short while, if you plan to leave it in the crock pot for an extended time, you'll want to cook your pasta just shy of al dente so it doesn't turn mushy.)

Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk to make a roux.  Continue whisking until the roux start to turn golden and bubbles, about two minutes.  Add milk and beer, stirring constantly.  Cook for about five minutes until the mixture begins to thicken slightly.  Reduce heat to low and add cheeses by the handful, stirring to melt and incorporate.  The sauce will thicken slightly but will not be as thick as regular mac and cheese at this point.  Add paprika, mustard, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste.  Pour sauce over pasta and stir to distribute.  Chiffonade basil leaves by stacking and rolling tightly, then use a sharp knife to cut thin slices to form ribbons.  Stir basil into pasta and serve. 

Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Dressing

Wow... it has been a busy couple of weeks.  In the past 2 weeks we've travelled to my  parents for Thanksgiving weekend, had two baby showers, 2 prenatal classes, one of my college roommate's was in town to visit, a Christmas party, and our everyday jobs.  That didn't leave a lot of time for blogging.  So I have a stack of recipes to share with you and just need to find some time to post them.  Now if only I could find some time to get my holiday baking started and Christmas shopping done, I might actually catch up a little bit but the next couple of weeks are looking like they will be just as busy. 

Going back to my Thanksgiving recap, I want to share a recipe for wild rice dressing.  My mom isn't really a fan of bread so traditional stuffing recipes don't really appeal to her.  When I saw this recipe in Cooking Light for a wild rice dressing, I thought it would be a great addition to our normal Thanksgiving menu.  I made a few modifications for our own tastes to come up with the recipe below.  I think it turned out great and the leftovers were good as well.

Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Dressing
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, November 2010

1 cup uncooked wild rice
1 cup basmati rice
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 T olive oil
1 cup dried cranberries
5-6 green onions, chopped
2 T fresh sage, minced
2 T flat leaf parsley, minced
1 T fresh thyme, stripped from stems
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large saucepan, combine rice, stock, water and 1/4 tsp salt and bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer about 40 minutes until rice is tender.  Transfer cooked rice to a 9x13 or similar baking dish coated with cooking spray, do not drain. 

While the rice is cooking, toss butternut squash with olive oil and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 tsp salt, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Roast for approximately 20-25 minutes until tender.  Add to rice in baking dish.

Add cranberries, onions, herbs, and spices to mixture, adding additional salt and pepper as desired.  Stir everything together, cover with foil and bake about 15 minutes until everything is heated through.

Spicy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Here's another alternative to that traditional sweet potato pie I was talking about yesterday, but this recipe has a savory spin on it.  These are as simple as it gets, all you have to do is peel and chop the sweet potatoes.  Then it's as easy as tossing them on a baking sheet with a little olive oil and some spices.  Roasting them at a high temperature, results in a crispy outside and soft inside.  These would be great as a healthier alternative to fries as a side for burgers.  Make them as a side dish for Thanksgiving, they would be great with a spice-rubbed turkey like this turkey breast.  A turkey breast is a great idea for a smaller Thanksgiving meal. 

  

Spicy Roasted Sweet Potatoes

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 T olive oil
1 tsp Ancho chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Chop sweet potatoes into approximately 1/2 inch cubes.  Toss sweet potatoes with olive oil.  Combine spices in a small bowl and sprinkle liberally over potatoes.  Toss well and bake about 20-25 minutes.  Use a spatula to turn the potatoes about halfway through the cooking time.  The potatoes should be crispy on the outside and easily pierced with a fork.

Sweet Potato Bake -- A Healthier Way

Maybe you are used to the marshmallow covered sweet potato "pie" served so often served at Thanksgiving, maybe you like your sweet potatoes baked and topped with sweet cinnamon butter.  These sweet potatoes are usually whipped with cream or butter and then topped with sugar or marshmallows and baked.  The result, a dish that could pass for dessert disguised as a side dish. 

This dish is still sweet, but due to the sweet potatoes natural sweetness and apple cider, rather than a lot of extra sugar.  I love them combined with apples and cranberries.  I also prefer them in chunks rather than whipped.  These are really easy and can be made for ten people just as easily as for one person.  You can bake up each person's serving in individual ramekins or bake it all in one big dish, whichever is easier.  The below recipe serves two.  I like to use an apple like Gala or Honeycrisp for this dish.

Come back tomorrow for a savory sweet potato dish!

Sweet Potato Bake

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large apple, peeled, cored, and cubed
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup apple cider
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Chop sweet potatoes and apples into approximately 1/2" cubes.  Divide potatoes and apples evenly among to two ramekins, divide cranberries among baking dishes.  Add half of the cider to each ramekin.  Combine spices in a small dish and sprinkle over potato mixture.  Toss to combine. 

Bake approximately one hour, stirring every twenty minutes until cider has cooked down to a glaze and potatoes are easily pierced with a fork. 

Asian Coleslaw

My friend Michelle first made this recipe for us in college and it tends to make an appearance at most barbeques and cookouts that we have now.  Its a great light side dish that's a different alternative to pasta salad or potato salad.  The salad comes together really easy with just a few simple ingredients and its a great budget dish.

One note of caution on this salad, add the dressing just before you serve it so it doesnt get soggy.  It also doesnt keep super well because the cabbage tends to wilt after its dressed so don't plan on having a lot of leftovers.  You can garnish with sunflower seeds or toasted almonds or both, whichever you prefer.

Asian Coleslaw

1 head of cabbage, shredded or 1 package of coleslaw mix
1 package oriental-flavor ramen noodles
1 package chicken-flavor ramen noodles
3-4 green onions, chopped
4 oz slivered almonds
1 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar

Fill a large bowl with water, add ramen noodles and soak until soft, about 5-10 minutes, drain and pull apart with your hands.  In a clean, dry bowl, add noodles and cabbage mix.  Toast almonds in a small dry skillet.  Add green onions and almonds to cabbage mix. 

In a separate bowl or jar, mix oil, vinegar, sugar and spice packets from ramen noodles.  Just before serving, add dressing to the cabbage mix and toss together.

Strawberry Summer Salad

This is a great light side dish to accompany summer BBQs and dinners. Take advantage of the wonderful fresh strawberries on sale everywhere these days. I prefer the baby spinach in this salad but a mix of baby greens or a mix other lettuces work equally as well. Don't skip the candied pecans - they add a sweet crunch that really makes this salad special. I used chopped pecans because I had them on hand but pecan halves make for a prettier presentation in my opinion.

I like to use a honey mustard vinaigrette for this salad, I think it goes really well with the fruit. Some other good choices would be poppy seed dressing, raspberry vinaigrette or balsamic vinaigrette.


Strawberry Summer Salad

1 cup strawberries, thinly sliced
4 cups baby spinach or other mixed greens
1/4 - 1/2 cup pecans
1 T brown sugar
1 tsp olive oil
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 scallions, chopped

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add oil and sugar and stir to combine. Add nuts and toss to coat. Cook about five minutes and transfer to parchment paper, separate nuts with a fork and cool. Wash and dry greens and add to a large bowl and toss gently with remaining ingredients and add dressing.

Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
Recipe adapted from Leslie Sarna

1 clove garlic, grated
2 T whole grain Dijon mustard
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
3 tsp honey
Scant 1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine garlic, mustard, vinegar and honey and whisk to incorporate. While mixing, slowly stream in olive oil. Whisk vigorously until dressing is emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Chipotle Chili Grilled Corn

Corn on the cob is one of summer's best foods. Growing up in Iowa, fresh sweet corn was everywhere in the summer and super cheap. Luckily, even though I'm no longer surrounded by corn fields, I can still get good sweet corn in the grocery store. In June and July its often as cheap as 10 ears for $1.00. That means we make a lot of corn for dinner or barbecues. When we are grilling some chicken or burgers for dinner, I don't want to heat up the stove inside to boil corn, so I started making corn on the grill as well.


There are a couple of methods you can use. You can keep the corn in the husk, soak them in water for at least 15 minutes and grill in the husk for 20-30 minutes. Or you can husk the corn, wrap them in the foil, add seasoning and cook in foil for 15-20 minutes. Cooking in foil essentially steams the corn.

You can vary the flavors by making a compound butter to spread on the corn. My favorite is this smoky chipotle chili corn but I also like to use a little lime juice and cayenne pepper or garlic and fresh herbs depending on what I'm serving it with.

Chipotle Chili Grilled Corn

2 T unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 T chipotle in adobo sauce
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, diced
1/2 tsp ancho chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
4 ears of corn

Preheat grill to medium heat. (If you are cooking this as part of a meal, the corn is fine cooked over indirect heat but you may need to adjust the cooking time slightly.) In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except corn. Stir until well incorporated. Lay out four large squares of aluminum foil, about 12"x12" each. Place one ear of shucked, clean corn on each square. Use a pastry brush or your hands to add butter mixture to each ear. Wrap tightly in foil, making sure there are no leaks in the package. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Be careful when you unwrap as the escaping steam will be very hot.

Note: If you use salted butter, decrease the amount of additional salt to taste. I use unsalted butter because I always have it on hand for baking.

Edamame Succotash

This is a super easy side dish that you can make to go along with pretty much anything. Its healthy and colorful and ready in about 5 minutes - what more could you ask for?


If you haven't ever tried edamame, you should. You can pick up a bag in the freezer section of shelled edamame and you just pop them in the microwave to cook. They cook in just a couple of minutes and sprinkled with salt they make a great snack or add them to all kinds of things. I had a bag in my freezer for quite a while that I wasn't really sure what to do with until someone told me how good they were on their own. You can add them to stir-fry dinners, mix them with couscous or pasta salads, or even add them to hummus or guacamole, although I haven't tried that yet.


Edamame Succotash

1 cup shelled edamame
1 cup corn kernels
1 cup peas
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced (I used roasted red pepper but you could use raw too)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp olive oil
2 T balsamic vinaigrette
1 tsp salt

Add oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and cook about three minutes. Add remaining vegetables and vinaigrette dressing. Cook about five minutes until vegetables are hot and vinaigrette reduces slightly. Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with salt.

Note: If edamame, peas, and corn are frozen, microwave or thaw to room temperature first or increase cooking time.

Pesto Pasta Salad

For some reason, pasta salad always seems like the perfect side dish when I want to grill out. It just says summer to me. Because its served cold, its easy to prepare ahead of time so you can relax and enjoy the barbecue. This one is a nice change from typical mayo-based pasta salads. The pesto packs in tons of flavor.


Pesto Pasta Salad
Pesto recipe adapted from Food Network

1 cup packed basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 pound rotini
1/3 cup roasted red pepper strips, chopped
1/3 cup sliced black olives
1/3 cup red onion, chopped
2 oz fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed
1/4 - 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Boil a large pot of water over high heat. When the water reaches a boil, add salt and add pasta. Cook according to package directions to al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water. Transfer to a large bowl. Combine basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped, slowly stream in olive oil with processor running until uniform. Stir in cheese and pour over pasta. Toss to distribute and add red peppers, olives, onions, and mozzarella cheese. Mix in crushed red pepper flakes. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes prior to serving.

Fruit Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

Ummm... yes... you are in the right place - I made something besides cake for once and am actually blogging about it. Don't be alarmed - I still have another cake to post too.

But since spring is here in full force, I thought I would take advantage of the great red strawberries that were on sale everywhere this weekend. I wanted a light and easy side dish for my Easter dinner so I put together this fruit salad. This comes together with minimal effort and is so light and refreshing for a spring meal.

Fruit Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

1 package of strawberries, sliced
1 large bunch of grapes (about one cup), sliced in half if desired
1 package of blueberries
1 large can of pineapple chunks (in juice not heavy syrup, reserve the juice)
3 kiwis, peeled and sliced

Dressing:
1 tsp poppyseeds
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 T sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 T canola oil

Add pineapple juice, sugar and salt to a blender and blend until combined. Slowly stream in oil with blender running until emulsified. Add poppyseeds and pour over fruit. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Smoky Mountain Chili and Cornbread

We spent this past weekend with a lot of friends in the Smoky Mountains in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. While I'm definitely a beach person, the mountains were beautiful too.

We rented a huge cabin and had a great time! I volunteered to bring chili and decided some cornbread muffins would be a good accompaniment.

Of course, I forgot to take pictures of the chili when I made it or on Saturday so scenery and muffins will have to do this time. The chili turned out really well and for future reference if you ever have to transport a large amount of chili (I made about 12 quarts) or you just want to make it ahead of time and freeze it; transfer the cooked chili to gallon size freezer bags and freeze it flat. Then just reheat in a crockpot or on the stove. The recipe below is cut in half to make a "normal" amount of chili but this would still serve about 10 people and fill a 6 qt crock pot.

Smoky Mountain Chili

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 lb chorizo
1/2 lb Italian sausage
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz dark beer
1 green pepper, diced
3 jalapenos, finely diced
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup corn kernels (frozen)
1 T ancho chili powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp ground cumin

Brown meat in a large dutch oven or skillet over medium high heat, crumbling with a wooden spatula. Drain off grease and transfer meat to a bowl. Return pan to heat and add onions and garlic. Cook about 2 minutes and add beer to deglaze the pan, scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pan and let the majority of the beer cook off. Transfer to a crockpot if desired. Reduce heat to medium-low and add tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beans and stir to combine. Add corn, peppers and spices and cook for at least 60 minutes covered on the stove, stirring occasionally or 3-4 hours on low in the crockpot. Stir in tomato paste as necessary to thicken to desired consistency.

Top with shredded sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, Fritos, etc. as desired.


Cheesy Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins
Recipe slightly adapted from Elly Says Opa originally from Cooks Illustrated
Makes 18 muffins

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal (I used Martha White)
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese (Monterrey jack, colby, and cheddar)
1-2 jalapeno peppers, finely diced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray muffin tins with baking spray. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl and whisk together. Make a well in the center.

In a food processor, combine, corn, sugar and buttermilk and pulse several times. Add eggs and blend until well mixed, the batter will be lumpy from the corn. Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients and begin to gently combine. Add melted butter and continue mixing just until dry ingredients are all mixed in. Stir in cheese and jalapenos.

Spoon into muffin tins, filling each about 2/3 of the way full and bake about 20-25 minutes until the tops spring back when touched. Cool in pans for about 5 minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Serve warm with chili and butter or store in an airtight container.

Spicy Crab Macaroni and Cheese

Inspired by the leftovers from my crab cake recipe that I had in the refrigerator, I decided to make some slightly fancier macaroni and cheese. Turned out to be fantastic. Since I'm assuming you won't have leftover crab cake mixture, the recipe below is from the beginning. Enjoy!


Spicy Crab Macaroni and Cheese

8 oz lump crab meat (you can use canned if you want)
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 white onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 T butter
2 T flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 egg
1 T Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup pepper jack cheese
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
8 oz short cut pasta (I used a mix of whole wheat rotini and regular elbow pasta because that's what was in the pantry)
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat a large pot of water for pasta. When boiling, add a generous spoonful of salt and pasta. Cook to just al dente, strain and set aside.

Meanwhile, melt 1 T of butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add red pepper, onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cool slightly. Roughly chop crab meat and add to pepper mixture. Beat egg, add Worcestershire sauce and add to mixture. In the same pan, melt the remaining butter and add flour. Whisk until foamy. Slowly add milk, whisking frequently. Stir in mustard and cayenne pepper. Cook until the mixture thickens slightly. Reduce heat to low and add in cheeses a handful at a time, stirring until melted. Add crab mixture and pasta. Stir everything together to mix well. Add thyme and salt and pepper to taste.


Pour mixture into a 9x13 baking dish and top with bread crumbs. Bake for approximately 30 minutes until bubbly.

Smoked Mozzarella Risotto

Oh.My.God. Seriously, go make this risotto now. This was my favorite part of our Valentine's dinner. The crab cakes were good, the cake was good, but this risotto was fantastic. I have never made risotto, I'm not even sure I've ever ordered risotto... but I think its my new favorite side dish. This stuff is amazing. I'm already looking for other recipes and combinations to try so I can make more. I always thought this was a dish that was really finicky and took forever but it was actually extremely easy. Yes it takes a little while, but the wait is worth it. This probably took a little less than 30 minutes total.

This recipe is from Elly Says Opa and the only changes I made were using onion instead of shallot, slightly reducing the amount of sun-dried tomatoes and I left out the fresh basil since I didn't have any and used dried herbs. The recipe below reflects my changes. I also think that this serves 4 people as a side dish instead of 2 as we had leftovers for lunch the next day.



Smoked Mozzarella Risotto

1 T butter
1/2 small white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
2 oz smoked mozzarella cheese (chop into small pieces)
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste

In a sauce pan, heat the 3 cups of stock over medium heat.

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. When melted, add the onion and garlic and cook until onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir until well coated distributed. Toast the rice, stirring frequently for about 2 minutes. Add the wine and cook until reduced almost entirely.

Start adding broth, 1 ladle at a time, stirring the risotto frequently. Add another ladle of broth when the first addition is almost all absorbed. Continue this process until you've added all but the last of the broth. The rice should be creamy but still have a little bite to it. Add the sun-dried tomatoes with the last addition of broth and again cook until almost all absorbed.

Turn off the heat and add the cheese and all spices except the salt. Taste and add salt if necessary (I used low sodium chicken stock and between the stock and the cheese, didn't need anymore salt).

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apples

Butternut squash has become my new favorite vegetable. It is so sweet and delicious. With its tough skin, it can be somewhat intimidating but get yourself a good strong vegetable peeler and a sharp knife and you'll be set. It's a also a versatile vegetable, you can play up the sweetness or mix it with Parmesan cheese and savory spices (especially cumin or smoky chili powder) and it works great. I like it better with sweet spices like cinnamon and nutmeg and it pairs perfectly with apples.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apples

1 butternut squash
1 large or 2 small apples
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 T olive oil (I used a citrus infused olive oil but you could also use regular olive oil and add a little orange zest if desired)
1 T brown sugar

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Peel and chop squash. Start by cutting off the bulb part of the squash and slice off the end so it stands up easily. Peel both sections and then cut in half. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds (save them to be roasted later) and cut into large bite-size chunks. Peel and core apple and chop into large bite-size chunks.

Toss apple and squash chunks with olive oil on a large rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle on cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Toss and spread in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, use a spatula to turn after about 15 minutes. After 30 minutes, squash should be fork tender. Sprinkle with brown sugar and add raisins. Stir again and bake an additional 5 minutes until raisins are soft.

I served this with Parmesan Panko Crusted Chicken... you can find the recipe here.

Twice-Baked Potatoes

An easy, yet impressive looking side dish. For some reason, most people seem to think a twice-baked potato is a challenge, but in reality they can be prepared quickly and easily. You can also change up the filling to whatever flavors you want. This cheddar and chive filling works well with any classic meat and potato meal. For an extra special finish, I transferred most of the filling into the potatoes and then piped on the top with a large star tip.

Twice-Baked Potatoes

4 baking potatoes
1/2 cup whole milk
2 T butter
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
Chives

Bake potatoes in the oven (about 45 minutes) or microwave for about 10 minutes, stabbing multiple times with a fork. Cool for about 5 minutes and then cut off the top 1/4 of the potato. Using a clean kitchen towel, hollow out the potato with a spoon, leaving a 1/4" thick wall. Transfer potato filling into a mixing bowl.

Add milk, butter, cheddar cheese and garlic to bowl and combine. Snip about 1 T of chives and mix in. Spoon mixture back into potatoes. Reserve approximately 1/2 cup and transfer to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe onto top of potatoes. Bake approximately 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

Thanksgiving Recipes, Part 3

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Recipe adapted from Pioneer Woman

1 pound elbow macaroni (I use whole wheat)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all purpose flour

2 1/2 cups whole milk (you can use 2% but it won't be as rich and creamy, skip the skim milk)

2 1/2 tsp dry mustard

1 egg

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated

2 cups colby cheese, grated

1 tsp + 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp seasoning salt

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Heat a large stock pot of water over high heat until boiling. Add 1 tsp salt and add pasta. Cook to just al dente, do not overcook, it should be slightly underdone. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile in a large pan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour, cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add milk and whisk in mustard. Cook for about 5 minutes until mixture thickens. Reduce heat to low. Beat egg in a small bowl, add in approximately 1/4 cup of hot milk mixture. Stir constantly to avoid scrambling the egg. Add egg mixture to pan, whisking constantly until sauce is smooth. Add in cheddar and colby cheeses. Stir until melted. Add salts and spices. Pour in drained pasta and stir until evenly coated. You can refrigerate at this point over night if you want to prep in advance.

Pour macaroni mixture into prepared baking dish. Top with parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Bake for approximately 30 minutes until bread crumbs are golden brown and macaroni is bubbly. Sorry I forgot to take a picture of the finished product after baking since it was a little hectic at that point on Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Recipes, Part 2

These sweet potatos are, without question, the best sweet potatos I've ever had. The pecans, the apples, the cranberries, all combine with the sweet potatos to make a perfect Thanksgiving (or really any fall day) side dish.

Growing up I hated sweet potatos. The only time of year we ever had them was Thanksgiving. We had the canned yam topped with marshmallow variety and it was awful. I wouldnt even think about trying them.

Then one day I had sweet potato fries at a restaurant with a honey lime dipping sauce... and they were delicious.

So I got a little braver... and tried a baked sweet potato at another restaurant, sprinkled with brown sugar and butter. Also excellent. So then I tried making them at home and I discovered, that I really liked sweet potatos...

And now I think they are my new favorite side dish. So long as they aren't mashed. I still dont like mashed potatos, sweet or not.

Sweet Potato Bake with Cinnamon Crunch Topping

Recipe inspired by Cooking On The Side, originally from McCormick

4 large sweet potatos

2 apples

1 cup dried cranberries

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup orange juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 cup all purpose flour

4 T butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and butter or spray a 9x13 baking dish. Peel and chop the sweet potatos and apples into large chunks. Add cranberries and toss with brown sugar and 1/2 of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ginger, vanilla extract and orange juice. Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile mix together flour, remaining brown sugar, spices, and cut in butter using a pastry blender or forks until it forms a crumble. Add pecans and sprinkle over the top of potato mix. Continue baking uncovered for another 30 - 45 minutes until potatos are fork tender. Recover with foil if top begins to brown too much.