Tasty Tuesday

Kale Chips
I have been hearing about these more and more lately.  I figure kale has probably been around forever, but it is kind of "in" right now. Who knew that vegetables could be a fad? I heard kale chips mentioned in two television shows last week alone. Thought I'd give them a whirl.


Well, they're awesome! Chad and I devoured them.  I will for sure have to buy more than one bunch the next trip to the grocery store. So this week here are some bite sized healthy treats to balance out those bite sized fun bars from Halloween!:)

Easy and entirely gone in less than five minutes!

Kale Chips
recipe from AllRecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 bunch kale
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a non insulated cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces. Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning salt.
3. Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, 10 to 15 minutes.

For more kale facts, click here.

Tasty Tuesday

Baked Turkey Egg Rolls
Tried these last week and fell in love. My first attempt at egg rolls and they were great! I loved that they were baked and not fried.  This is mainly because I have never really been a fan of fried foods, and it's just easier to stick them in the oven and be done with it!

Easy ground turkey mixture.

Not picture perfect, but my taste buds did not know the difference.
Really good recipe find!

Baked Turkey Egg Rolls
As found on the cool blog, Iowa Girl Eats.


Ingredients:
1 celery stalk

2 cups coleslaw mix

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic

1/2 inch peeled, fresh ginger

1/4 medium onion

1/2 lb. ground turkey

2-3 Tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes

8 egg roll wraps

Directions:
1. Chop celery into small chunks in food processor. Combine in a microwave safe bowl with coleslaw mix and microwave for 5 minutes.

2. Add garlic & ginger to food processor and chop until fine. Add onion and chop until small. Move mixture to skillet over medium heat and sauté in 2 teaspoons oil for 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to burn garlic.

3. Add ground turkey to skillet and cook until no longer pink. Drain turkey/onion/garlic mixture and return to skillet. Add cooked cabbage and celery, soy sauce and red chili pepper flakes. Stir until combined and allow to cool.

4. Heat the oven to 400 degrees, spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray and get out a small cup of water.

5. For best instructions on how to roll an egg roll, and an awesome side to go along with this, check out Iowa Girl Eat's picture tutorial here. Once rolled up, bake at 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Also, don't forget a little extra soy sauce for dunking! Hey, the baked part may be healthier, but I still have my weaknesses elsewhere! Can't wait to have these again soon!

Enjoy!!!!

Tasty Tuesday

Whoops!  It was all gone before I had a chance to take a pic!

Doesn't this spaghetti just look delish?!  Well, let me tell you...it was!  We devoured it in a jiffy!  I forgot the before pic, but the after pic should be worth 1,000 words. Almost everyone likes spaghetti, right?  However, you've had one spaghetti, you've had them all.  Not always the case!

I had this spaghetti several years ago at a friends house, and I remember thinking it was not your ordinary spaghetti.  It was the bomb-diggety of spaghettis.  I always meant to ask my friend Cheri what exactly she did differently.  So recently after commenting to one another through Facebook, I just went ahead and asked her. Remember that time I had spaghetti at your house like 6 years ago?.....

Well, I am so happy I did!  Chad and I feel the same on spaghetti.  It's good, but Cheri's spaghetti is GREAT! Here's what she told me:

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Spaghetti Bomb-Diggety  

(my personal name for it that I just made up 2 seconds ago)

1. Brown Italian ground turkey sausage with mushrooms and onions.
2. Cook your choice of spaghetti as directed.
3. Combine it all together with 1 jar of red sauce, and 1 jar of Alfredo sauce, and spices. Spices can include: basil, garlic, chili powder, and Cajun seasoning.

      3, 2, 1.....Eat your face off!:)

**************************************************

Thanks again Cheri!:)

Tasty Tuesday

While most all of the recipes I have come from all different sources, this one is different.  I did not get it from a cookbook, magazine, or the web. This one is a handwritten recipe on a note card from Chad's mom.  It's one of our favorite comfort food meals, and it's also comforting to read her handwriting when we make these.  She passed away in 2009, and we always think of her when we have this for dinner.  I'm sure that when she wrote this down, she wouldn't have known we would treasure it the way we do, or that it would end up on the Internet.  Ha! Funny that a handwritten note can be so unique these days.  Maybe someday I will write down a collection of our family's go-to meals.  Anyways, it's a recipe worth sharing.  Hope you like it too!

Stuffed Green Peppers

(I decided to write it in note card form, so I just underlined the ingredients)

Serving size: 6
Oven: 350 degrees.


Cut off tops of 6 medium green peppers; remove seeds + membrane. Precook green pepper cups in boiling salted water about 5 minutes (or until tender); drain (For crisp peppers, omit precooking).  Sprinkle inside of cups with salt. Cook 1 pound ground beef and 1/3 cup chopped onion till meat is lightly browned.  Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt + dash pepper.  Add one 1-pound can of tomatoes, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup uncooked long-grain rice, + 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.  Cover + simmer till rice is tender, about 15 minutes.  Stir in 4 ounces sharp process cheddar cheese, shredded (1 cup).  Stuff peppers; stand upright in 10 x 6 x 1 1/2 - inch baking dish.  Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. "ENJOY"


(We love these just the way they are.  Sometimes we will switch it up by adding more cheese on the top though.  We've also tried it with orzo or couscous instead of the long grain rice.  Every variation is great. The original is one of a kind though.  Thanks again Judi!)

Tasty Tuesday

Well, I think the spirit of Fall finally got into me! The weather here has not been Fall-ish, but with all these pumpkin and apple pictures everywhere in magazines and on the beloved Pinterest, I caved.  I don't ever wake up and make a breakfast of homemade pancakes.  The box version works for me. I usually don't even have pancakes mid-week. However, I did make these delicious pumpkin pancakes and believe me I will do it again!  Easy and oh-so-good!  

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
As found on Annies-Eats

Ingredients: 1¼ cups all-purpose flour 2 tbsp. brown sugar 2 tsp. baking powder ¼ tsp. salt ¾ tsp. ground cinnamon ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg Dash of ground ginger Dash of ground cloves 1 cup milk ½ cup pumpkin puree 1 large egg 2 tbsp. vegetable oil or melted butter Directions: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and spices and stir with a fork to combine.  Mix together the milk, pumpkin puree, egg and oil or butter in a liquid measuring cup.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk together just until combine.  (It's okay if the batter is still lumpy.) Preheat the oven to 200° F.  Have an oven safe plate or serving dish ready.  Heat a greased skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Once the skillet is hot, add a 1/3 cup scoop of batter to the pan.  Let cool until bubbles begin to form on the top surface.  Carefully flip with a spatula and cook the second side until golden brown, a couple minutes more.  Transfer the cooked pancake to the oven safe dish, and place in the oven to keep warm.  Repeat with the rest of the batter until it has all been cooked, greasing the pan again as needed.  Serve with cinnamon sugar, maple syrup, and/or whipped cream.

*I did the whole preheating the oven to keep the pancakes warm, but they just went straight to our plates.  Hope you enjoy them too!:)