Herb Dip

Yesterday was Easter.  For the past 7 years, we've spent Easter with the inlaw family in Iowa.  They are just 4 hours away, so it's easy to spend holidays with them.  Even when Jeff was deployed, JP and I traveled to Iowa for Easter.  We've enjoyed visiting with family and Jacob has enjoyed the small town Easter Egg hunt that's held on Saturday morning before Easter.  This year was a little different. JP had his league bowling awards and a bowling tournament on Saturday morning.  On Saturday afternoon, JP and I drove to Kansas City to pick up Jeff.  He's been in Seattle for the past 3 weeks.  On the way home, we met up with some geocaching friends in Topeka.  It was a normal busy Saturday before Easter!  So needless to say, we stayed in Kansas instead of traveling to Iowa.  No family this time, just friends.  A lot of military families depend on friends during the holidays...and this year we had a great Easter with friends!

We had Easter supper (remember, dinner is at noon!) at our friend Amy's house.  The menu was not the typical Easter meal...no ham, no leg of lamb.  Instead, we had turkey.  Amy's son went hunting on Saturday morning and brought home fresh turkey!  Fresh, wild turkey tastes very different than the turkey you usually eat on Thanksgiving.  We had a great time with some great friends.

One of the things that I brought for our Easter meal was Herb Dip and veggies.  Everyone liked the dip and gobbled (haha) up the veggies.  You can substitute dried herbs, but the fresh herbs really make the dip shine.  You can also change up the herbs you use...I think some fresh tarragon would be great!

http://www.ifood.tv

Herb Dip
1/2 c. fat free Greek yogurt (or fat free plain yogurt)
1/2 c. sour cream (I used reduced fat)
1/2 c. mayo
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. red wine vinegar
1/2 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. onion powder

2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped (or 2 T. dried parsley)
Fresh dill (I used about 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill)  (or 1-1/2 T. dried dill)
4 green onions, sliced...use the white and green part (or 1 T. dried chives)

Mix the yogurt, sour cream and mayo together.  Add the Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, sugar, salt and onion powder.  Chop the herbs and add to the dip base.  Mix well. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours and serve with veggies.

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole is a big hit in my household.  Everyone loves it and wants seconds when I make this!  It's a hearty casserole that hits the spot.  And it's pretty easy to make.  It tastes like you've been cooking all day!  This recipe makes enough for our family of 3 to have seconds and even leftovers for lunch the next day.

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole
1/2 lb ground turkey (or beef)
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, diced
1 jar Spaghetti sauce (I like Prego, but use whatever you like!)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste

1 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. sugar
1 package frozen cheese tortellini
5 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced or shredded, divided

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, divided


Brown the ground turkey (or beef) with the diced onion and garlic over medium heat.  After the meat is no longer pink, drain.  Add the jar of Spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and sugar. 

While the ground turkey (or beef) is cooking, cook tortellini according to the package directions, but cook them 2 minutes less than the package says.  Drain tortellini.

Place 1/3 of the prepared sauce in a greased 9x9 inch pan.  Spread the tortellini over the sauce.  Sprinkle most of the shredded mozzarella and most of the Parmesan  cheese on top of the tortellini.  Save 1/4 c. of mozzarella and 1 T. of Parmesan for the top of the casserole.  Pour the rest of the prepared sauce on the cheese.  Top the casserole with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.


Bake in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes.  The casserole should be bubbly and the cheese on top should be melted.  Serve with a green salad.  Enjoy~

Rogan Josh

 

The last time I was at Penzeys Spices in Omaha, I picked up a bottle of Rogan Josh Seasoning.  If you've never been to a Penzeys Store, each spice or seasoning is displayed in a little jar.  You can remove the lid and smell each seasoning.  JP loves to do this!  Anyways, the Rogan Josh smelled soooo good.  A little spicy, a little curry-like and a little exotic.  According to Penzeys, Rogan Josh is...

• "Just a little spicy. A very popular dish from Northern India and Pakistan. This version of the red lamb stew comes from the state of Rajasthan, known for its hilly deserts and fierce, yet chivalrous warriors. Rogan Josh can be made with beef, but this blend is a great example of how a crafty seasoning can change the somewhat objectionable, "gamey" flavor of lamb into something far more delicious. Some blends are interesting-this blend is good." 

• Hand-mixed from: paprika, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper, Korintje cassia cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and saffron.

The jar of Rogan Josh has been sitting in my cubboard for a few months.  Jeff doesn't care for spicy food, so I've been waiting to make this dish when he wasn't at home.  Wednesday night was the perfect night to make Rogan Josh!

 

I didn't have any lamb, beef or pork on hand, but I did have chicken...I'm not sure how traditional my version of Rogan Josh is, but JP and I enjoyed it!  I served the Chicken Rogan Josh over rice and veggies with a dollap of yogurt and a sprinkling of cilantro. 

Chicken Rogan Josh adapted from Penzeys

2 chicken breasts, chopped into small pieces

1 large onion, diced

2 T. olive oil

3 T. Rogan Josh seasoning

1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. plain, fat-free yogurt

1 c. water

dollap of plain, fat-free yogurt

cilantro leaves

In a dutch oven, brown the chicken in the oil.  Remove the chicken and add the onion to the hot pan.  Add the Rogan Josh seasoning and salt and stir 1 minute.  Add the cooked meat back to the pan.  Mix the water and yogurt together.  Slowly add the water/yogurt mix.  Stir well.  Cook 1-2 hours over low heat.  Severve over rice and steamed veggies with a dollap of yogurt and a sprinkling of cilantro on the top!

Enjoy~ 

April Fool's Day

Ok, I know I'm late with this post.  Here it is the 5th of April and I'm writing about what happened on the 1st.  But hey, better late than ever, right??

So every April Fool's Day, I try to pull one over on JP.  It usually involves food, and I usually trick him.  hee hee hee   I think it's great fun, and so does JP.  He's come to expect a trick and now that he's getting older, it's getting harder and harder.

This year, I had two tricks to play on him.  The first was in the morning.  The night before, I mixed up some Knox gelatin with juice and stuck it in the fridge.  April Fool's morning, JP went to take a sip of juice.  And guess what??  It was stuck in the bottom of his glass!  Bahhhahhhahhh.  This was a trick in itself.  The juice in the bottom of the glass was done so that he would think he was safe for the rest of the day.  Oh nooooo.  I had more trickery up my sleeve!


All week long, I told JP we were having chicken pot pie for supper on Friday night.  He loves chicken pot pie, so he was excited because I never buy or make it.  However, it wasn't really chicken pot pie!  Instead, I make peas, carrots and corn out of Starburst candies and mixed it with vanilla pudding.  I mixed in some chopped dried apples for the chicken stuck it in an individual pie plate and popped a precooked crust on the top!  It looked like chicken pot pie and I totally tricked JP!

Other years, I've made "Strawberry Pie" (meatloaf and pink mashed potatoes in a pie plate,) "Grilled Cheese" (toasted pound cake with cheese colored frosting,) and "Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes & Gravy" (chocolate rice krispie treats in a loaf pan and cool whip "potatoes" with butterscotch sauce as the gravy!)

Strawberry Pie 2010

Is this really a grilled cheese?

Grilled Cheese 2009

 

What did we have for supper on April Fool's Day?? Leftovers.  I know...so exciting!

Where do I get my ideas??  Family Fun.

Rouladen

Rouladen, red cabbage, fried potatoes, salad and Hefe-Weizen

We love German food.  It's wholesome, hearty and reminds us of good times in Germany.  Jeff and I lived in Germany for 5 years.  We lived in Wiesbaden for 2 years and Ansbach for 3 years.  I also lived in Nurnberg for 3 years with my parents when I was a little girl.

Wiesbaden, Germany

Ansbach, Germany

Nurnberg, Germany

So a few days ago, I made Rouladen, which is a braised beef roll with gravy.  Rouladen is one of our favorite dishes.  It take a little time to make it...it's a little labor intensive... but it is well worth it!

Rouladen

9 slices of bacon
1 onion, finely chopped
1 lb sirloin, thinly sliced length-wise.  (My grocery store sells it already sliced, but you can ask your butcher to slice it for you.)
1 T. olive oil
1/4 c. mustard (you may use more/less depending on the size of the sirloin)
1 dill pickle, sliced length-wise into quarters
salt
pepper
1 t. parsley
1/2 c. white wine
3 c. beef broth
1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. water or milk


Finely chop the onion and 1 piece of bacon.  Place the chopped bacon, 3/4's of the onion and the olive oil in a Dutch oven, or a large, deep frying pan.  Cook the onion mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes.


To prepare the beef, I use a large cutting board and lay the pieces of sirloin on it.  Spread the mustard on each piece of beef.  Place 2 pieces of bacon on top of the mustard.  Sprinkle the bacon with salt, pepper, the remaining chopped onion, and parsley (about 1/4 t. for each piece of beef.)  Place the pickle slice along one of the short ends of the beef.  Starting with the pickle side, roll the beef up.  Secure each roll with 2 toothpicks (or you can use string if you'd like!) 

Push the cooked onion and bacon to one side of the pan.  Turn the heat up to med/high.  You may need to add another Tablespoon of olive oil.  Place the beef rolls into the hot pan and brown on all sides.  Once the sides are browned, move the rouladen to one side of the pan.  Pour the wine into the pan and stir up the brown bits that are on the bottom.  Add the beef broth.  Place the rouladen in the middle of the pan and stir in the onion/bacon mixture that was pushed to the side.  Turn the heat down to low.    Cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours.  Occasionally turn the rouladen over and stir the broth.

Mix the flour and water (or milk) together.  Remove the rouladen and increase the heat to high.  Once the liquid is boiling, slowly pour the flour mixture into the pan and whisk.  The gravy should thicken quickly.  Turn the heat to low and add the rouladen.  Coat the rouladen with the gravy.  Serve with potatoes (pan fried or mashed are great!)  Enjoy~

Homemade Granola Bars

We are on Spring Break here in our part of the world.  The local school districts schedule their spring break at the same time Kansas State has theirs, so it's a win-win situation in our house!  Add block leave for Jeff, and you've got a family that's ready for a week off!  To celebrate our time off, we planned a 5 star, luxury Bahama get away 3 day geocaching trip across Kansas.  Read about our GeoTrip at my other blog, JJJ Geocaching Jaunts!  Planning a 3 day trip takes a lot of work and time...Jeff did most of the cache and route planning.  I was in charge of planning for the food:  three lunches on the go and snacks. I knew I wanted to bring granola bars, but I hate all of the added "stuff" in prepackaged granola bars.  So I scoured the Internet (allrecipes mostly) and found a recipe that I liked.  I did make a few changes, and will make a few more when I make them again!

http://whatscookingwithkids.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/GranolaBars-2.jpg

  

 Homemade Granola Bars (adapted from Chewy Granola Bar recipe)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup sunflower kernels
1/4 cup dried cherries
3 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
1 tablespoon ground flax seed
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used chocolate chunks)

In a small mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, peanut butter, corn syrup, butter and vanilla. Stir in the oats, sunflower kernels, cherries, wheat germ and flax seed. Fold in chocolate chips.

Press into an 8-in. square baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until set and edges are browned. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars. 

What did we think?  We LOVED them!  They were gobbled up!

What did I change?  I used dried cherries instead of raisins (I didn't have any raisins on hand) and used chunky peanut butter instead of smooth.  I also used ground flax seed instead of sesame seeds and chocolate chunks instead of chocolate chips.  I wrapped each bar in a small piece of plastic wrap and kept them in the cooler.

What would I do next time?  I have a few changes!  Next time, I'd double the recipe!  I'd also use honey rather than the corn syrup and use 1/3 c. of brown sugar instead of 1/2 c.  I can't believe I'm saying this, but the granola bars were a little too chocolaty!  Next time, I'd use 1/3 c. mini chocolate chips instead of 1/2 c. of the chocolate chunks.  

Stromboli

This year for Christmas, I received a couple of cookbooks.  Jeff gave me How We Became One, which is by Bill Penzey and the Penzeys One Staff.  If you are in the market for a new cookbook, this ONE (heehee) is for you!  It has great recipes and stories that give the history and background about the families where these recipes came from. 

So anyways, on Sunday I was planning my weekly menu and was thumbing through the One cookbook.  I found "Chris and Aunt Mary's Stromboli" on page 267 and thought it sounded good. 

It was fairly easy to make and took about 15 minutes to bake.  If  you used premade pizza dough, it would take no time at all to whip up.  If you make your own pizza dough, it takes about 40 minutes to whip up.  I got 2 thumbs up from both of the boys in the house, so it's a definite make-again. 

On a sidenote, did you know that there is an Italian volcano named Stromboli?

And a movie named Stromboli?

Adapted from Chris and Aunt Mary's Stromboli

Pizza Dough
1 t. yeast
1/2 t. sugar
1 c. lukewarm water
1 t. olive oil
1/2 t. salt
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
2 c. flour

In a mixing bowl, stir the yeast, water and sugar together.  Let sit for about 5 minutes, until it's foamy.  Add the oil, salt, and flours.  Mix well.  I use my Kitchen Aid mixer for this with the dough hook.  Mix for 7-8 minutes or until the dough is elastic and smooth.  Add more flour if needed.  If you don't have a Kitchen Aid, you can mix the ingredients and then knead the dough for about 10 minutes.  Place the dough into a clean bowl and cover with a clean dish towel.  Set the bowl in a warm, draft free area for about 45 minutes.  I usually put my dough in the oven and just leave the light on.  The oven light creates enough heat to keep the dough toasty.  Don't turn on the oven!

Dressing
1/4 c. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. dried oregano
1 t. sugar

Filling
1/4 lb. Italian (Genoa) salami
1/4 lb. sliced pepperoni (you can get this at your local deli)
1/4 lb. sliced provolone cheese
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 c. grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

After removing the dough from the oven, preheat to 450*.  Roll the pizza dough into a rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick.  I rolled the dough onto a 9x13 inch baking stone.  Layer the meats in the center of the dough, leaving 1/2 inch space on each edge, followed by the provolone, mozzarella and Romano or Parmesan cheese. Mix up the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.  Fold one edge of the dough over the meat and cheese layers.  Brush the dough with the dressing mixture and fold the other edge of the dough over.  Pinch to seal.  Fold the ends in and pinch to seal.  Brush with dressing mixture.  Turn the Stromboli over on the baking pan so the seals are against the pan.  Brush the top of the Stromboli with the rest of the dressing mixture.  Bake at 450* for about 15 minutes.  The dough will be nicely browned and the cheeses will have melted together.  Slice it and serve with pizza sauce on the side.

While we were eating, we talked about different combinations we could use to make different Stromboli's.  Ham and cheese, beef and cheddar, turkey and cheese...  the list can go on and on.  Veggies would also be a great addition...green peppers, mushrooms, onions...anything you like!

The only downfall with this recipe was that it was greasy.  Pepperoni and Genoa salami are not low fat options when it comes to Italian meats!  Next time, I might use just the pepperoni and leave out the salami and throw in some veggies.