What I Made: June 14, 2012

Yesterday was another busy day that started off right... with breakfast!

© You Want Me to Cook?
Strawberry-Banana Smoothie

These Strawberry-Banana Smoothies from Food Network's April 2011 issue were fantastic.  The creamy Greek vanilla yogurt was healthy for us and tasted great!  

What I Made: June 13, 2012

Yesterday I decided to take it a little easy on the cooking/baking and make a nice dinner with a drink.  For as little as I made, I sure did make one heck-of-a mess in my kitchen.

I've heard much bally-hoo about kale.  Everyone has wanted me to try it, cook with it, make it into chips... blah blah blah.  So this evening I decided to make a Pasta with a Kale and Walnut Pesto.  I got the recipe from Real Simple's May 2012 issue. I partnered it with another recipe from that same issue of Real Simple - Spring Lettuces with Avocado Dressing and Pistachios.

© You Want Me to Cook?
Pasta with Kale & Walnut Pesto and
Spring Lettuces with Avocado Dressing & Pistachios

What I made: June 6, 2012

Today I was like a crazy cooking ninja.  And there was some alcohol involved.  

That may explain why my notes are a little difficult to read today.  Oh well, let's get to the food.

I had a crazy morning and afternoon so my breakfast and lunch dishes had to be rescheduled.  It was time to start dinner, but I was parched so I made myself a Pink Lemonade found in All You's July issue.

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Pink Lemonade

Lightened-Up Mac and Cheese

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – April 25, 2011

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Lightened-Up Mac and Cheese recipe originally published by Food Network Magazine – April 2012.

I make a mean macaroni and cheese.  Unfortunately, my mac and cheese has about a pound of cheese, milk and bacon in it.  I swear I could gain 30 pounds and/or have a heart attack just looking at it. 

When my husband got serious about fitness, we had to say a sad goodbye to our beloved mac and cheese recipe.  I tried once to make it hoping we could eat a spoonful here and a spoonful there keeping our daily diet in check.  Yet, every time I’d open the refrigerator door, the cheesy-deliciousness would be staring at me.  Then I thought I could cut the recipe in half, but what was the purpose of that?  Nope, I wasn’t going to take the chance of overindulging.

I’ve tried a couple of lightened versions.  They were tasty, but I always wanted something more.  Then I came upon this recipe in my latest issue and I decided to give it a try.

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Lightened-Up Mac and Cheese

Notice how creamy and cheesy it looks?  And yes, it tastes as rich as it looks without all of the fat.

Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo and Roasted Asparagus

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – August 25, 2011

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For a commentary-free and printer-friendly version of the Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo recipe, please click here.

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Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo recipe originally published in Cooking Light – September 2011.

Roasted Asparagus recipe originally published in Cooking Light – September 2011.

I love alfredo.  I REALLY love it.  Unfortunately, it has got to be one of the least healthy pasta dishes you can make.  Weighed down by cream and butter, it is one of those meals that we can only have once in a blue moon.  So imagine my excitement when I was presented with a healthier version of one of my favorite dishes.

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Shrimp Alfredo and Roasted Asparagus

Now I know what you’re thinking… it doesn’t look as good without alfredo sauce oozing all over the plate.  Trust me though.  It didn’t need it.  I didn’t get as pretty of a plating (or picture for that matter) but it still looked pretty close to that from the magazine.  I certainly wouldn’t push this away from me at the table.

Curry-Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Chickpeas

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – August 24, 2011

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Recipe originally published in Every Day with Rachael Ray – May 2011.

It had been a while since I had made (and eaten) a vegetarian meal and I had been staring at this recipe for a long time.  I’m not sure why I was hesitant to make it.  It had many of my favorite things (curry, pasta, tomatoes) and had some healthy elements (whole wheat pasta, chickpeas, vegetarian).  Still, I never seemed to have a taste for it.  In fact, I bought all the groceries and didn’t make it for almost three weeks.

Finally, I sucked it up one night and made it.  Ringing endorsement, right?

© You Want Me to Cook?
Curry-Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat Spaghetti and Chickpeas

Sure, it looks like a pasta you’d want to eat, but it wasn’t as chunky as the one pictured with the recipe.  I also didn’t realize what a difference the parsley made in presentation… not that I wasn’t going to eat it.  Their dish looks prettier, that’s all.

Cajun Shrimp Lasagna Roll-Ups

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – March 3, 2011

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Recipe originally published in Simple & Delicious, December/January 2011.

I love lasagna.  I love Cajun food.  I love shrimp & cheese.  This recipe could have quite possibly been written with me in mind.

That being said, I hate having to make rolls.  They never turn out as pretty as they are supposed to be.  Also, it usually is ridiculously messy.  Add to that, REGULAR lasagna is time consuming to make because you have to cook the noodles, make the sauce, make the filling and assemble.  However, the attraction to the cheesy, Cajun, shrimp with lasagna noodles blinded me to all of this and I excitedly started this recipe.

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Cajun Shrimp Lasagna Roll-Ups

Look at this picture and tell me you don’t think it looks delicious.  I’ve been flipping back and forth between my picture and the published picture and I gotta tell ya… it looks pretty close.

Shrimp and Tomato Linguine Toss with Parmesan-Pepper Biscuits

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – February 24, 2011

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Shrimp and Tomato Linguine Toss recipe originally published in Simple & Delicious – December/January 2011.

Parmesan-Pepper Biscuits recipe originally published in Gourmet – October 2008.

So the question has now been answered… no, I haven’t actually fallen off the face of the Earth.  I really hate it when people disappear and when you finally catch up with them they say, “I’ve been really busy.”  Like the rest of us aren’t busy.  All I can say is this… when I started this blog; I was pretty much a housewife occasionally seeing clients out of our home.  I was “busy” but it was busy on my own time and it was much easier to write, cook and photograph food.  It was also a little hard to buy said food since there wasn’t much money coming in.

Then I got a job where I was SUPPOSED to be working 18 hours a week.  It became slightly harder to post every day, but I was managing several posts a week at least.  Suddenly, the 18 hours became 30 hours and I had to drop down to one post a week.  About a month ago, I was promoted and I’ve been working 65+ hours a week for at least the last 3 weeks.

So comparatively speaking, I’ve gotten much busier and that’s why posting has been nonexistent for several weeks now.

Now that I’m working so much, it is pretty hard to cook meals with seafood.  Fish simply tastes better when it’s freshly cooked and I’ve found it makes terrible leftovers.  Therefore, to get my seafood quota, I’ve been making a lot of shrimp.  The Shrimp and Tomato Linguine Toss seemed to hit the spot.  Of course, I wanted to make some bread and the Parmesan-Pepper Biscuits sounded delicious.

My finished meal:

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Shrimp & Tomato Linguine Toss with Parmesan-Pepper Biscuits

I was really proud of the way the pasta turned out, although, I think the original picture looked yummier.  Still, it looked yummy enough that I couldn’t wait to eat it.  I was kind of disappointed in the “biscuits”.  I use parentheses because frankly, they weren’t biscuits at all.  They were more like crackers.  Still, expecting something else aside, they still looked and smelled great.





 

© Taste of Home

Obviously, I used different pasta – wheat.  Their picture just looks more fresh and light with a tad bit more color since they used the fresh basil on their dish.  There was no picture for the biscuits, which was a big reason why I didn’t realize they weren’t fluffy bread.  Of course, had I read the ingredient listing a little more closely, I still wouldn’t have made that mistake.

See, when I don’t follow my own rules, bad things happen.

Pepper Jack Mac

Recipe modified by You Want Me to Cook? – February 22, 2011

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Recipe originally published in Simple & Delicious, December/January 2011.

Mac ‘n’ Cheese is one of my favorite dishes.  Of course on the health-scale it is probably one of the worst to eat, so I don’t make it very often.  Actually, now that I’m thinking about it, I have this ridiculously delicious recipe that uses like a pound of cheese, and a whole stick of butter and like a ½ pound of bacon.  To. Die. For.  Mmmmmm… num num num… <wiping drool off chin> So where was I?

Oh yeah, how I can’t really it that often since it is not exactly good for the waistline or my cholesterol.

This recipe appealed to me because it had some vegetables included in it and I saw a lot of opportunity to help reduce the calories, fat and cholesterol.  Oh yeah, it has bacon in it too.  I also liked it because it was a dish for two.  It’s just me and the husband here, so many times I’ll make a dish and we’ll have to eat it for a week.  I usually l get sick of it after the second helping.

My final result:

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Pepper Jack Mac

It looked delicious.  I will admit that I was slightly terrified about how it was going to turn out.  Wheat pasta, while healthy, absorbs sauces very well.  That isn’t a bad thing, but in mac ‘n’ cheese, the ooey-gooey non-absorbed sauce is part of its charm.  As I spooned it out on the plate, I knew I need not worry about the texture or cheese sauce absorbing too much.

Italian Hot Dish

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – February 3, 2011

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Recipe originally published in Taste of Home’s daily e-zine on Thursday, August 7, 2008.

With my imminent return to the working world, I’m stockpiling up on casserole dishes.  I want things I can assemble and store in the fridge and then toss in the oven when I get home from work.  Even better, my husband can toss them in the oven.  I love lasagna, but it can be a lot of work, so I always look for similar casserole dishes that I can throw together easily.

My finished product: © You Want Me to Cook?

Picture published with recipe: © Taste of Home

It’s a pile of food, so it’s hard to say if it looks the same or not.  My casserole did brown nicely and looked fantastic on the plate.  This dish’s aroma filled the house and I couldn’t stop smiling, or for that matter digging into the casserole dish every time I passed it.

Cashew-Pesto Pasta

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – July 30, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Every Day with Rachael Ray, February 2011.

Pesto has quickly become one of my favorites.  You can put it on pasta, salad… heck you can even put it on a sandwich!  Traditionally, pesto is made with basil leaves, olive oil, garlic, and pine nuts/walnuts.  Of course, I’ve also tried alternative pesto, including one that used asparagus and I’ve enjoyed it every single time.

When I was flipping through my copy of Rachael Ray, I saw this recipe and thought it sounded delicious.  Bonus points to it being a meat-free dish as well.  Of course, as I was assembling the ingredients, I feared that it wouldn’t have a lot of flavor.  Cashews are my favorite nut, but they don’t have the most kick and parsley – eh, not one of my favorite herbs.  I decided to go ahead and make it though, although I did make it on the same day I cooked something else.

My finished product: © You Want Me to Cook?

Picture published with recipe: © Every Day with Rachael Ray

Since you know how I HATE it when they don’t use the same thing, let me tell you it was my choice to use a different type of pasta.  I stuck with the same kind, but used a tri-color (more on that later).  Also, my tomatoes are a little more roasted, but I also did that by choice.  Finally, both recipes used Parmesan, but I chose the shredded variety and I plated it with the extra on it as well.  Still, it looks pretty close and I was pleased with the presentation portion.

Tomato Soup with White Beans & Pasta

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – June 5, 2011

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Recipe originally published in All You, January 2011

I’m not really sure at what point in my life this happened, but I fell in love with tomato soup.  It’s odd since I don’t like sliced tomatoes, and never have.  However, when I’m feeling chilled and in need of comfort, nothing makes me happier than a bowl of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich.  This recipe was a tomato soup with pasta and beans to give it a carb- and protein-boost, not to mention the antioxidant benefits of lycopene in the tomatoes.  I was game.

My finished product: © You Want Me to Cook?

Picture published with recipe: © All You

Well my picture sucked.  But getting past that… my soup doesn’t appear to be as tomato chunky as theirs.  Ordinarily, I’d say that’s a good thing, but I was disappointed with that.  I also selected to use small shell pasta since I had it on hand.  Even so, it had a rich taste that warmed me up and put a smile on my face.

Peas & Cheese Tortellini

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – June 22, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Every Day with Rachel Ray, May 2008.

Cook’s Thesaurus describes tortellini as “circles of pasta that are stuffed with meat or cheese and then folded into little hats.”  That description aside, who doesn’t love tortellini?  Those little tiny pockets of dough filled with ooey-gooey cheese.  Mmmmmm… 

One of the best things about tortellini is that it doesn’t need a heavy sauce.  The sauce for this dish consists of a little skim milk, peas and a little Parmesan cheese.  I wanted to make it because it’s a vegetarian meal that allows one of my favorite pastas to really shine by not drowning it in sauce.

My finished product: © You Want Me to Cook?

Picture published with recipe: © Every Day with Rachel Ray

Clearly Rachel Ray’s recipe writers have no idea about the difference of grated and shredded Parmesan cheese.  I used shredded because it is what I had on hand, but the recipe clearly states grated.  No matter, the dish turned out delicious and I didn’t wonder if my selection of cheese was going to hurt the dish.

As a side note:  I’ve often thought about writing in to Rachel Ray, but if there is one thing I noticed in reading her magazine, when someone questions her or complains, she’s kind of nasty.  For example, someone once wrote in and asked why she didn’t include nutritional information with her recipe.  Her response (or the editor’s response – who really knows) was curt and rude with a “we believe you have to moderate your food intake.”  What she fails to understand is that with moderation, you have to understand what you are taking in.

Creamy Pasta with Pesto

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – January 20, 2009

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Recipe originally published by The Daily Recipe – Monday, February 10, 2003.

Are you wondering why I didn’t link to the original recipe?  Well there are many reasons which I’ll cover throughout today’s post.  This was one of the first recipe e-zines I ever subscribed to.  They were decent recipes for beginners, but honestly, a lot of it was buying box stuff and jazzing it up.  I progressed past that pretty quickly.  Then I realized they were running the same recipes over and over.  Maybe not every month, but when recipes look familiar and you get them 365 days a year, that’s pretty bad.  As they were less creative with their recipes, they started continually trying to sell me tchotchkes.  Now I have no problem with people selling stuff from their blogs.  I hope one day this blog can generate revenue (please pass the blog along!), but most of my recipe e-zines I get sell stuff like pots, pans, ingredients… you know, stuff I can use while cooking.  Not plastic fart machines – not that I have anything against fart machines – I just don’t want to be bombarded daily with it in my Inbox.  Oh yeah, and there was a little incident of every time I would access their website, I’d get a virus notice from my software.  It was time to say goodbye.

Cue Andrea Bocelli…

This was one of the recipes that I really enjoyed from their site.  It was simple, yet incredibly tasty.  Also, it exposed me to pesto – an ingredient/sauce that seems really scary when you are considering using it for the first time.  When you look at the ingredient listing it is basically pureed basil with a little olive oil and garlic.  That can absolutely terrify a novice chef as well as a picky eater.

My finished product: © You Want Me to Cook?

Picture published with recipe: None

Another issue I had with The Daily Recipe was that they never published pictures of their recipes.  Now, I am far from a professional blogger, but even I take pictures of the dishes I create.  How can you be a professional blogging company, write/publish recipes for said company, and not take pictures of what you make.  It doesn’t make sense!

Putting that aside, even though my photo is a little far away (another one of my first photos) it still manages to look delicious.  A delicate pasta with a light sauce that showcases the shrimp.

Creamy Baked Ziti

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – December 15, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Kraft Food & Family – Holiday 2010.

I love Italian food, but I’ve never had baked ziti.  Ever.  So this quickie-version of the dish intrigued me.  If you cringe at the thought of eating sauce from a jar, you can always make your own favorite marinara sauce and use that.  Of course, don’t discount all jarred pasta sauces.  My favorite is an organic sauce with no preservatives that has a great taste.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: © Kraft Foods

As you can see, I ended up with what Kraft intended when they created the recipe.  I even managed to get it to brown like they did.  Although they didn’t show a serving, I wanted to make sure you could see how nicely it scooped out of the dish and how the cheese melted all the way through.

Creamy Beef & Mushrooms with Noodles

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – December 13, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Kraft Food & Family – Holiday 2010.

Back when winter was hitting us smack in the face for the first time this year, I had a craving.  This craving was for all things stroganoff-like.  Without even realizing it, I made 3 or 4 dishes in a month that were very similar.  This dish read like a quickie-stroganoff with an Italian zing.  The writers seemed to really care about the nutritional information – they lightened up the ingredients and made sure the sodium levels were in check.  I also liked the seemingly short prep and cooking time.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: © Kraft Recipes

Admittedly, mine looks a little runnier.  I poured on the sauce when I plated it, and for some reason, I clustered my peas like I grabbed a handful and plopped them on there.  The sauce may be a little runny because I love olive oil, and can be heavy-handed at times.  (Oops!  I splashed a little over the teaspoon.  My bad.  Oops!  I did it again!)  Most of the time, it doesn’t make a difference, but clearly here it did – well at least in presentation.  It certainly didn’t mess with the taste.  Last, I didn’t spend the time I should have chopping the tomato to make them in pretty little pieces.  Instead I have big chunks.

Pasta Skillet with Tomatoes & Beans

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – August 25, 2010

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Recipe originally published by myRecipes daily e-zine “Dinner Tonight”.

I’m not going to lie.  Chickpeas freak me out.  I don’t know why.  Maybe it’s because I think of hummus, which I like, but find bland when not flavored correctly.  By the way, if you’ve never tried hummus, you’re missing something.  Pick up a small container of Sun-Dried Tomato hummus and a bag of pita chips – you won’t be sorry.  Anyway, this very simple recipe contains chickpeas and not many spices, so I was a little nervous about how well this was going to turn out.  I’ve really made an effort to try to make vegetarian dishes more often (and more than just mac ‘n’ cheese) so I decided to give it a go.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: ©myRecipes.com

I chose not to garnish with basil leaves, but my result is pretty close.  Again, my plating isn’t as pretty, and I SWEAR I’m trying to get better at that.  In this case, I shouldn’t have used a pasta bowl and found something a little more compact.  Other than that, the dishes look very similar.  One thing to note, the recipe calls for grated cheese.  They clearly used shredded, and so did I.

Linguine Pesto with Italian Chicken Strips

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – October 25, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Taste of Home’s weekly e-zine “Menu$aver Newsletter”.

On occasion, I’ll look for light recipes to make for lunch.  Unfortunately, there aren’t many of them out there.  This recipe wasn’t meant to be a lunch recipe.  It was meant to be a quick option for dinner; however, I think it would do much better as lunch fare.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: © Taste of Home

Put aside the fact that I don’t have the ability to plate a dish as beautifully as Taste of Home – I mean look at the perfect positioning of those noodles! – my end result came really close to that of Taste of Home.  I used wheat pasta, which gives the dish a darker appearance, but other than that, I seemed to have nailed it.

Chicken Milanese with Spring Greens & Parmesan-Browned Butter Orzo

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – June 15, 2010

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Recipe for the menu originally published in Cooking Light, May 2010:

Chicken Milanese with Spring Greens

Parmesan-Browned Butter Orzo

This is a total meal.  Other than possibly needing some crusty bread, you’re set with the evening’s dinner.   Of course, as much as I love Cooking Light creating a complete meal, they also chose to not publish all of the recipes together… or put both recipes in the step-by-step formatting… or even LINK to the Orzo dish from the Chicken Milanese.  THAT, lovely readers, is very annoying.  I had to search high-and-low for both since I forgot to print them out after I made it.

As is usual for me, I began to panic over attempting another breaded chicken dish.  I struggle with breading and frying – ALWAYS cooking the breading unevenly and USUALLY burning at least one of the pieces of chicken.  This was also my first attempt at cooking orzo, but that shows you how easy this recipe was… no problems with perfectly cooked chicken, a great salad and delicious orzo.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: © Cooking Light

Pretty close!  Of course, I used a different salad blend (see below) and my orzo looks a little creamier than Cooking Light.  I even think, and of course I’m biased here, that my chicken looks more evenly browned than theirs.  Succeess!!!

Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs

Recipe modified by Gretchen Wilson – June 9, 2010

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Recipe originally published in Real Simple, May 2010.

I love Italian food.  The sauces, pasta, cheese – I could go on forever.  What attracted me to this recipe was the fact that it slimmed down (at least a little) my favorite spaghetti and meatball recipe.  Of course, I didn’t jump into this without some apprehension and the calorie and fat content aren’t all that impressive for this dish.  Ground beef doesn’t need much seasoning to make a flavorful meatball (thank you fat), but turkey isn’t that easy.  I was surprised to see minimal seasoning going into the meatballs and crossed my fingers as they were cooking.

My finished product:

Picture published with recipe: © Real Simple

I don’t know if I could get much closer than this.  On top of that, it was FANTASTIC!  Each meatball was like a little turkey parmesan ball.  Absolutely delicious!