Grilled Cauliflower

I know grilled cauliflower doesn't sound that exciting, but it is! I was pleasantly surprised how much the flavor changed after being grilled. It went from being kind of flavorless and spongy to having a softer texture with a smoky almost nutty flavor! This has become one of my new favorite things to grill!

All you need is:

• 1 head of CAULIFLOWER
• OLIVE OIL
• SALT
• PEPPER

Preheat your grill or oven and cut up the cauliflower. (If you use an oven preheat it to 450 degrees F.) We cut the cauliflower into "steaks" but you could also just cut it into little florets. 

Drizzle the cauliflower with olive oil and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once the grill or oven is hot, put the cauliflower on to cook for about 20 minutes or until it is tender. 

Look at the color on that cauliflower! That's where the flavor comes from!

Next time you grill, definitely give cauliflower a shot!

---

Grilled Cauliflower

Ingredients:

• 1 head of CAULIFLOWER
• OLIVE OIL
• SALT
• PEPPER

Directions:

1. Preheat your grill or oven and cut up the cauliflower. (If you use an oven preheat it to 450 degrees F.) We cut the cauliflower into "steaks" but you could also just cut it into little florets. 
2. Drizzle the cauliflower with olive oil and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. 
3. Once the grill or oven is hot, put the cauliflower on to cook for about 20 minutes or until it is tender. 

---

Salsa

I love eating chips and salsa at restaurants but somehow the salsa you buy in stores never seems to taste as good, am I right? Maybe it's just me... Anyway, I have found a recipe for salsa that I think is just as good as the salsa you get from restaurants! It is also incredibly easy to adapt it to your tastes. If you like spicy food, add more jalapeno! If you don't like chunky salsa, chop the heck out of it with a food processor!

If you use the quantities of ingredients I have listed below, it should make about 2 cups of salsa that I would consider to have mild to medium heat. Remember, if you want it hotter (or less hot) just vary the amount of jalapenos!

To make this delicious, restaurant style salsa you will need:

• 1 (14 oz.) can of WHOLE PEELED TOMATOES, separate the juice from the tomatoes, but save the juice!
• 1 (10 oz.) can ROTEL 
• 1/4 cup RED ONION, chopped  
• 1/2 medium sized JALAPENO (de-seeded and de-veined), finely chopped 
• 1/4 cup FRESH CILANTRO
• 1-2 Tbs LIME JUICE
• 1/4 tsp SALT
• 1/4 tsp CUMIN

Start off by roughly chopping the onion and finely chopping the jalapeno. Then throw all of the ingredients (except for the juice from the whole tomatoes) into a food processor...

NOTE: If you don't have a food processor you can still make this salsa, you will just have to chop everything by hand!

...and pulse it until you like the size of the chunks! Then add some some of the juice from the whole tomatoes until you get a consistency you like. (I used about half of the juice.)

Now the best part, taste the salsa! Add more spices, jalapeno, or lime juice until you like it!

Once you are happy with the flavors, serve the salsa with chips and dig in!

---

Salsa

Ingredients:

• 1 (14 oz.) can of WHOLE PEELED TOMATOES, separate the juice from the tomatoes, but save the juice!
• 1 (10 oz.) can ROTEL 
• 1/4 cup RED ONION, chopped  
• 1/2 medium sized JALAPENO (de-seeded and de-veined), finely chopped 
• 1/4 cup FRESH CILANTRO
• 1-2 Tbs LIME JUICE
• 1/4 tsp SALT
• 1/4 tsp CUMIN

Directions:

1. Roughly chop the onion and finely chop the jalapeno. 
2. Next, throw all of the ingredients (except for the juice from the whole tomatoes) into a food processor and pulse it until you like the size of the chunks.
• NOTE: If you don't have a food processor you can still make this salsa, you will just have to chop everything by hand!
3. Add some some of the juice from the whole tomatoes until you get a consistency you like. (I used about half of the juice.)
4. Now the best part, taste the salsa! Add more spices, jalapeno, or lime juice until you like it!
5. Once you are happy with the flavors, serve the salsa with chips and dig in!

---

I based my recipe on the Pioneer Woman's salsa recipe: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/appetizers-and-snacks/restaurant-style-salsa/

Kale Chips

I know I'm a little behind on the kale bandwagon, but better late than never, right? Until last week when I made these kale chips, I don't know that I have ever actually eaten kale before...crazy right? 

I'll tell yo right now, when I first saw this recipe and the chips were described as 'crispy' I didn't believe it, but it's totally true! After baking, they really got crispy!! And they don't really taste like vegetables either! I won't go as far as saying that they taste 'just like potato chips', because they definitely have a different flavor, but they would be a great potato chip alternative!

The only ingredients needed to make this healthy snack are:

• 1 bunch of KALE
• 2 Tbs OLIVE OIL
• SALT, to taste
• PEPPER, to taste

These kale chips are extremely easy to make! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Then, start off by cutting or tearing the leaves off of the hard stem. If there are any large pieces tear them in half. The leaves will shrink quite a bit in the oven, but you want them to be roughly bite sized.

Rinse the kale with water and then dry well. A salad spinner would be helpful if you have one.

Next, drizzle the olive oil over the kale and sprinkle on a little bit of salt and pepper. Toss the kale to make sure it all has a good coating.

Lay the kale out on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes it should look something like this!

Then dig in!

One more picture...

---

Kale Chips

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of KALE
• 2 Tbs OLIVE OIL
• SALT, to taste
• PEPPER, to taste

Directions:

1. These kale chips are extremely easy to make! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Then, start off by cutting or tearing the leaves off of the hard stem. If there are any large pieces tear them in half. The leaves will shrink quite a bit in the oven, but you want them to be roughly bite sized.
2. Rinse the kale with water and then dry well. A salad spinner would be helpful if you have one.
3. Next, drizzle the olive oil over the kale and sprinkle on a little bit of salt and pepper. Toss the kale to make sure it all has a good coating.
4. Lay the kale out on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

---

I found this recipe of the following website: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/crispy-roasted-kale.html

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

I love sweet potato fries! I would choose sweet potato fries over regular fries almost any day! This recipe is very easy and tastes delicious!

To make these fries you will need:

• SWEET POTATO
• CORNSTARCH
• OLIVE OIL

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Peel the sweet potato and then cut it into strips the size that you want your fries to be. 

Soak the strips in water for 30 minutes. 

Take the strips out of the water and lightly toss the strips in cornstarch. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray and then place the sweet potato strips onto the sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes and then flip the fries. Bake another 10 to 15 minutes until the fries get crispy. Let them cool and then eat them!

---

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

• SWEET POTATO
• CORNSTARCH
• OLIVE OIL

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Peel the sweet potato and then cut it into strips the size that you want your fries to be. 
2. Soak the strips in water for 30 minutes. 
3. Take the strips out of the water and lightly toss the strips in cornstarch. 
4. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray and then place the sweet potato strips onto the sheet. Drizzle with olive oil.
5. Bake for 15 minutes and then flip the fries. Bake another 10 to 15 minutes until the fries get crispy. Let them cool and then eat them!

---

Thanksgiving 2013

I had such a wonderful Thanksgiving this year! My husband and I recently moved away from where our families live, but we were lucky enough to have our siblings and one of my closest friends come visit us for the holiday!

We ended up having a total of 8 people over for Thanksgiving dinner this year so I took full advantage having so many people to cook for and made all kinds of things!

I started off Thanksgiving week by making some kolaches, which are traditional Czechoslovakian pastries. They are made of a sweet dough and generally have a fruity filling. I made my brother and my favorite flavor, cherry!

Look how gooey and yummy they were! I will post the recipe for these soon!

Then, my brother helped me make my favorite spinach artichoke dip to snack on during Thanksgiving day!

We even made the bread! I used the crusty bread recipe, but rather than shaping it into a ball I shaped it into a loaf. 

My husband made his favorite Thanksgiving food, dressing!

My husband and I decided that rather than making turkey for Thanksgiving, we wanted to make a ham. Some of our guests on the other hand, decided that they could not have Thanksgiving without a turkey. So one of them volunteered to make a turkey....and then another one volunteered to make a turkey... and then there was a little bit of a miscommunication and we ended up with 2 turkeys!!!

Here is a picture of turkey #1, your classic turkey:

And here is turkey #2, the 'burkey':

And here is the ham that we made:

And here are the sides! We had mashed potatoes, sauteed Brussels sprouts, sweet potato casserole, potato salad, dressing, green bean casserole, and rolls! Whew! That was a lot of food! And it was all so good!

Here is a picture of the guys trying to figure out how to carve their birds!

And here is my plate! Look at all of that delicious food!

We weren't done yet! Now time for the desserts! My friend and I started off by making Oreo balls! They are super easy to make and so good! They are the perfect dessert for a chocoholic!

And then we made a mini carrot cake using my mother-in-law's recipe! It was so delicious!

Look at that yummy cake!

Welp, that's all! I will be posting some of the recipes for things that we made over the next few weeks. If you have any questions or recipe requests just let me know! Happy Thanksgiving!

Baked Parmesan Asparagus

This is super easy and super delicious! All you need is:

• 1 bunch of ASPARAGUS
• 1/4 cup PARMESAN CHEESE
• 2-3 Tbs OLIVE OIL
• SALT
• PEPPER

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Rinse the asparagus and chop off the hard ends of each stalk. Arrange the asparagus on a baking tray and then drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil over the top. Then sprinkle on some salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese! Now all you have to do is pop them in the oven and bake them for 8-10 minutes or until they are tender, but still have a bit of a crunch when you bit into them. 

---

Baked Parmesan Asparagus

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of ASPARAGUS
• 1/4 cup PARMESAN CHEESE
• 2-3 Tbs OLIVE OIL
• SALT
• PEPPER

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. 
2. Rinse the asparagus and chop off the hard ends of each stalk. 
3. Arrange the asparagus on a baking tray and then drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil over the top. 
4. Sprinkle on some salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese! 
5. Bake them for 8-10 minutes or until they are tender, but still have a bit of a crunch when you bit into them. 

---

Spaghetti Squash with Garlic and Butter

Nothing says fall to me quite like squash, except for maybe cool air and crunchy, colorful leaves. Spaghetti squash has a sort of sweet, rich, almost nutty flavor and the texture of, you guessed it, spaghetti! I have heard lot of people say they actually use this squash as a spaghetti substitute even though the flavor is quite different. This recipe is a simple and delicious way to prepare spaghetti squash.

To make this dish you will need:

• 1 SPAGHETTI SQUASH (3-4 pounds)
• 2 Tbs BUTTER
• 2 cloves GARLIC, minced
• 1/4 cup FRESH PARSLEY or about 1 & 1/2 Tbs DRIED PARSLEY
• 1/2 tsp SALT
• 1/4 cup PARMESAN CHEESE, shredded

First off you need to cook the squash. To do this you can bake it or microwave it. Either way you need to pierce the skin of the squash several times with a sharp knife in order to allow the steam to escape (Basically stab it a few times, but be careful! The skin is very tough!). If you choose to bake it, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and then bake it on a cookie sheet for 1 hour. Or you could take the quicker route and put it on a plate and microwave it for 10-12 minutes making sure to rotate the squash half-way through. Your choice! The squash is done cooking when you can pierce the squash with your knife fairly easily.

After cooking your squash, cut it open lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. 

Then take a fork and scrape the stringy, spaghetti-like squash out.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat and then add the garlic. Once the garlic is tender, add the squash, parsley, and salt. 

Toss all of the ingredients together and then add the shredded cheese. Cook for a few minutes to allow the cheese to melt. Ideally the squash should still have a little bit of a crunch when you take it off of the heat. 

Transfer the squash to a bowl and garnish it with a little bit of fresh parsley and parmesan cheese. Then sit back and enjoy the flavors of fall!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spaghetti Squash with Garlic & Butter

Ingredients:

• 1 SPAGHETTI SQUASH
• 2 Tbs BUTTER
• 2 cloves GARLIC, minced
• 1/4 cup FRESH PARSLEY or about 1.5 Tbs DRIED PARSLEY
• 1/2 tsp SALT
• 1/4 cup PARMESAN CHEESE, shredded

Directions:

1. Pierce the skin of the squash several times with a sharp knife in order to allow the steam to escape while cooking (Basically stab it a few times, but be careful! The skin is very tough!). The squash is done cooking when you can pierce the squash with your knife fairly easily.
• If you choose to bake it, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and then bake it on a cookie sheet for 1 hour. 
• If you choose to microwave it, put it on a plate and heat it for 10-12 minutes making sure to rotate the squash half-way through.
2. After cooking your squash, cut it open lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. 
3. Then take a fork and scrape the stringy, spaghetti-like squash out.
4. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat and then add the garlic. 
5. Once the garlic is tender, add the squash, parsley, and salt. 
6. Toss all of the ingredients together and then add the shredded cheese. Cook for a few minutes to allow the cheese to melt. Ideally the squash should still have a little bit of a crunch when you take it off of the heat. 
7. Transfer the squash to a bowl and garnish it with a little bit of fresh parsley and parmesan cheese. Then sit back and enjoy the flavors of fall!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I found this delicious fall side dish on this website: http://www.steamykitchen.com/11285-baked-spaghetti-squash-with-garlic-and-butter.html

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

These are a great if you are looking for something new to try with potatoes! The following recipe will make enough of the oil & spice mixture to cover a 3 lb. bag of potatoes.

What you will need is:

• 3 lb. bag BABY YUKON GOLD POTATOES (3 lb. bag will yield about 8 servings, so adjust the number of potatoes by how many people you are actually serving)
• 1/3 cup OLIVE OIL
• 4 tsp SALT
• 2 tsp PEPPER
• 2 Tbs finely chopped ROSEMARY (if you don't like rosemary or don't have any on hand, try a different spice!)

Start preheating your oven to 425 degrees F. While the oven is preheating, cut the bottom off each potato to allow it to sit on the counter rather than roll around. Next, cut slices in the potato about 1/8 inches apart. Be careful not to cut all the way through the potato, but allow about 1/4 inch at the bottom to hold the potato together.

Tip: Place the potato in a shallow spoon to hold it in place, but also to make it easier to cut the slices without cutting all the way through the potato.

Once all of the potatoes have been sliced, mix the oil, salt, pepper, and 1 Tbs rosemary in a bowl and then toss the potatoes in with the oil and spices. Make sure to get a good coating of oil and spices over all of the potatoes and into the slits.

Next, place the potatoes on a cookie sheet cut side up. Bake the potatoes for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through and the slices are crisp on top!

After taking the potatoes out of the oven sprinkle the remaining 1 Tbs of rosemary on top and serve!

The website where I found this recipe is: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rosemary-roasted-potatoes-recipe2/index.html