Recipe to Reality: Three Cheese Chicken Sausage and Orzo

I'm so glad that Candee has had some time to post and so sorry that I have been neglecting the blogosphere world! Between trying to close on a house and Hurricane Sandy, things have been less than normal here. I've still been cooking, but have all my pictures saved on a card until now when I can finally post :)

I have been really into cooking fast meals lately since our day-to-day life has been a little hectic!

I had a coupon for Johnsonville Fully Cooked Dinner Sausages, and went through some recipes on their website to see if anything struck my fancy.

I found a recipe for Three Cheese Italian Sausage with Orzo and Vegetables and went from there.

Here's What You'll Need!

• 1 small onion, chipped
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 tbs. olive oil
• 3/4 of a cup of orzo (pasta)
• 2 cups of chicken broth
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1 package of Johnsonville Fully Cooked Chicken Sausage

Put it All Together! 

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic to the pan and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

2. Slice sausage into pieces about 1/2 of an inch thick.

3. Add orzo to the pan with the onion and garlic, for about 4 minutes or until the orzo turns slightly brown.

4. Then add the chicken broth, chicken sausage and Italian seasoning. Mix ingredients until combined and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

5. Stir and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.  

This was a quick and easy weeknight dinner that was packed full of flavor! Enjoy it! 

Recipe to Reality: Chocolate Chip Muffins for Sandy

Happy Saturday sweethearts! Today I'm here to share some delicious chocolate chip muffins from mybakingaddiction.com that I made this morning!

If you have been watching the news lately, you will know that the storm of the century is on it's way.....and some of it's most powerful winds and rains will be hitting in our area. I decided to make these muffins as a peace offering for Sandy, hehe.  I don't think that these will disappoint-they are light, sweet, chocolatey, and the perfect golden color.

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick of butter, melted and COOLED (preferably unsalted, but I used salted and there wasn't an overpowering salty taste)
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, and either line or grease a 12-muffin pan.
2) Whisk together the flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt.
3) Whisk the butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. 
4) Create a well, or hole in the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into it. Stir just to combine.
5) Fold in your chocolate chips.
6) Transfer the batter into the muffin liners, and bake for 17-20 minutes. 
7) Take your muffins out of the oven and let cool for at least 5 minutes before serving. 

Notice how "cooled" is in all caps in the ingredients list above-at first, I didn't let the melted butter cool off enough before mixing it with the eggs, milk, and vanilla, and ended up with a lumpy, curdled mess. ): Even the second time I put the wet ingredients together, I ended up with some lumps in the mixture, and I let my butter cool off for at least 7 minutes! 2 of those in the fridge! So, I have no idea what that was all about. However, the muffins ended up coming out great after 18 minutes baking in the oven. All bumps in the road aside, the muffins were easy and definitely a recipe I'd create again!

Stay Sweet and safe,


                                                                Candee

Recipe to Reality: Andean Quinoa Salad

Quinoa is one of my new favorite grains.

This fresh, light, healthy salad could double as a main dish or a side!

This recipe is adapted from Food & Wine Fast Magazine and is a great choice for a light dinner on a warm day.





Here's What You'll Need!

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tbs. lime juice
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
• 1 handful cilantro, chopped
• 1 minced chile pepper
• 1 scallion, minced

Put It All Together!

1) Rinse quinoa in running water and drain. Transfer to a medium saucepan and add 1 and a 1/2 cups of water and 1/2 tsp. of salt. Bring quinoa to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cover until all the water has been absorbed and quinoa is tender but not mushy (about 17 minutes).

2) In a medium-large bowl, mix the oil with the lime juice. Add the bell peppers, cucumber, cilantro, chile, scallion, and quinoa. Toss and season with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

My husband was pleasantly surprised by the amount of flavor this salad packs. He was expecting it to taste like health food, but instead he really enjoyed the fresh flavors of the veggies with the nutty quinoa.

It was also much easier to go to the gym after eating this...as opposed to chili...lol!

Stay Savory,

Recipe to Reality: Pork Tacos with Guacamole

I will admit that this was my first time cooking pork, but I'm positive that it was the most delicious and simplest recipe I have ever made!

I adapted this one from Food & Wine Fast magazine, and the flavor of the pork was simply incredible.

I'm telling you, spice up Taco Tuesday with this one! (nudge nudge Joe)

Serves 4
Time: 15 mins

Here's What You'll Need!

• 2 tbs. olive oil
• 1 1/2 tbs. chili powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. Italian seasonings
• 1/4 tsp. cumin
• 1/8 tsp. pepper
• Pinch of cinnamon
• Pinch of allspice
• 1 1/2 lbs. pork tenderloin cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 medium white onion, chopped
• 2 tbs. white vinegar
• A handful of minced cilantro
• Fixings! You could use salsa, sour cream, shredded lettuce, etc. I used Mexican cheese blend and guac.

Put it All Together! 

1) In a large bowl, mix the chili powder, salt, Italian seasonings, cumin, pepper, cinnamon, and allspice.

2) Add the pork, onion, vinegar, and cilantro.

3) Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Add the pork and stir fry over medium high heat until browned outside and just cooked through.

(For my guac, I mashed 2 Hass Avocados, some onion, lime juice, cilantro, salt, pepper, and called it a day. Delish! If you haven't yet, check out my post on Frontera's Guacamole Mix which is also delicious)

4) Assemble and DIG IN!

Like I said before, these tacos were incredible. I may have to make them once a week.

Also, here is my adorable cat, Ollie, who also loves tacos.

No, I do not feed him tacos!

Stay Savory,

Recipe to Reality: Nutter Butter Balls

Hey Sweethearts!

Long time no blog! Sorry that I have been neglecting my posts, I have had a few busy weekends! Nonetheless, today I am here to post about a super easy recipe I recreated this week-Bakerella's Nutter Butter Balls! I found these delicious treats through Pinterest (follow us here) and when a window of opportunity presented itself on Wednesday, I jumped at the chance to make them! The best part is that they are no bake! This is my first experience with a "no bake" recipe, and I was a little hesitant at first, especially working with an ingredient like cream cheese, which can be pretty iffy when left out at room temperature for too long. However, I was surprised at how easy the process was, and grateful for not having to wash so many dishes and utensils!

The overall process was super easy-

1) Start by using a food processor or the back of a spoon to finely crush all but 5 Nutter Butter cookies from the package.

2) Combine the 8 oz. of cream cheese with the cookie pieces. I found that it was easiest to use my hands, even though it got a little messy. Simply use a kneading motion to combine the crumbs and the cream cheese. It should take a little elbow grease, but I think that this is the best way. It's almost like creaming butter with sugar, except doing it without the help of a standing mixer.

3) Using your hands, form the mixture into little balls about 1 inch in width and place on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper. I ran into a little trouble as I reached the bottom of my bowl because I hadn't incorporated all of my crumbs with the cream cheese. So, some of the balls ended up falling apart a little, but it didn't bother me so much.

4) Melt your chocolate in a small bowl. I really don't like semisweet chocolate, and was unable to find any milk chocolate baker's squares, so I used about 3/4 of a bag of milk chocolate chips.
5) Coat the balls in the melted chocolate. I used my hands and looking back realize that it was probably not the best idea. Try your luck placing the ball on a spoon and into the chocolate, rotating it to coat the bottom and top.
6) Place the newly coated balls back onto the wax paper, and leave them to set in the refrigerator.

Once your desserts have been left in the fridge for about 2 hours or so, they are ready to eat! Just make sure that you store them in the refrigerator to prevent running into any problems with spoiled cream cheese or melty chocolate.

I thought that these treats were great, easy for anyone to make (like many of my recipe to reality posts) and would satisfy any peanut butter-chocolate craving! Plus, it only took me 15 minutes tops to create them, so they would be perfect for anyone scrambling for something to bring to a last minute party. Since they are small, they are a great after school treat as well!

Stay Sweet,

Recipe to Reality: Tortellini with Pancetta & Peas

My husband lovingly refers to me as a "Pastatute".

Now, I know what you're thinking! Put it out of your mind!

The nickname refers to the fact that I love pasta more than any other dish out there!

Whenever I am asked the question: "If you had to eat only one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?" My answer is always: pasta.

It is incredibly versatile and can be the foundation for a myriad of flavors.

Also, my mom's pasta with meat sauce is unbelievable! Even though it's slightly morbid, every time I have her pasta I can't help think that it is the meal I'd want to eat before I die.

So, that sums up my feelings about pasta.

You may be thinking, "Well, I don't see that many pasta recipes on her blog!" That's because I try not to make it that often, because of course, it's full of carbs!

But this tortellini recipe was too good to not share ^_^

I found the recipe from the Food Network Magazine.

Here's What You'll Need!

• Salt
• 1 lb. cheese tortellini
• 2 tbs. olive oil
• 4 oz. chopped pancetta (Basically Italian bacon. Sometimes you can find at butcher counter. Boar's Head also sells pre-cut pancetta cubes which is what I used)
• 3 cloves of garlic, grated
• 1 tbs. tomato paste
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 tbs. fresh chopped parsley
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Put it all Together!

1) Boil a pot of salted water, big enough to hold the pound of tortellini and cook according to directions.

2) While you are waiting for water to boil, start making the sauce. Add olive oil and pancetta to a medium-sized pan over medium heat. Allow pancetta to crisp up, about 3-4 minutes.

3) Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and let the flavors meld together, for about a minute or two.

4) Take a cup of the pasta water and add that to the pancetta, garlic, and tomato paste and allow to reduce by half (about 3-4 minutes)

5) Add the heavy cream and frozen peas and reduce heat to simmer. Allow sauce to thicken, about 2-3 minutes.

6) Drain your tortellini when they are done cooking, and combine with the sauce. Stir to coat, season with fresh parsley and Parm! 

This recipe is quick, easy, and most importantly, delicious! A perfect weeknight meal!

Stay Savory,

Recipe to Reality: Zesty Shrimp with Quinoa

I'm constantly on a mission to improve my husband's opinion on seafood.

While he still won't go near a filet of fish (of any kind) I'm working on the shrimp front!

I found this shrimp recipe from Greatist.com. Since my first experience with quinoa went so swimmingly, I decided to make it again with this Asian-inspired dish.

Serves: 3

Here's What You'll Need! (Adapted from Greatist.com)

• 1 1/2 cups of raw, frozen shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cups quinoa, rinsed
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 balsamic vinegar
• 4-5 dashes of hot sauce (optional)

Put it All Together!

1) Start by making the sauce. Combine the the soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, pepper, garlic, and hot sauce in a medium sized bowl.

2) Make the quinoa according to directions on package. Or view my instructions from my Monster Taco Salad with Chimichurri Quinoa.

3) While quinoa is cooking, heat 1 tbs. of oil (I used sesame) in a skillet and add shrimp and onions.

4) When the shrimp starts to turn pink, add the sauce and continue cooking until the shrimp are completely cooked through (completely pink and opaque). 

5) To serve, make a bed of quinoa and add the shrimp on top! Enjoy!

I would make a few changes the next time I prepare this, one being to use less soy sauce. I followed the recipe and used 1/2 cup of soy and it was way too salty for me and my husband.

Also, the recipe says to add the quinoa straight into the shrimp/sauce mixture (which I did) and the quinoa totally soaked up all that salty sauce... I would prefer to serve them separately next time.

The great thing about this meal was that I had all the ingredients in my house already!

I think this dish could be really successful with a few changes that I included in my recipe! It was quick, easy, and full of protein! 

Stay Savory,

Recipe To Reality: Mallow Brownie Bars

Happy End of Summer Sweethearts!

Last Friday Jasmine and I got together and baked up a STORM! Her recipe of choice was some delicious oatmeal cookies.  I chose to whip up some Mallow Brownie bars for a Labor Day BBQ I was attending!

I found these decadent treats on Nichi's blog, The Mandatory Mooch. They are extremely easy to make despite their intricate appearance. They are so delicious and definitely will not fail to impress anyone's taste buds.

One of my favorite quick desserts has to be box brownies. I know, I know, probably not worthy of a "food blog" discussion, but just having access to a delicious treat that only takes a few ingredients you are bound to have around your home is a relief when you finish the last box of Oreos. Thus, when I saw that brownies were included in this recipe, I was extremely excited to make it! Another incentive was that I had all of the ingredients for the rest of recipe, and I'm sure many of you will be in the same boat!

The actual process was a piece of cake, no pun intended. When the brownies were almost done, I took them out of the oven and dumped a bag of mini marshmallows on top. I allowed it to bake for another 3 minutes (I let the brownies bake prior for about 25 minutes) so that the sugary topping had developed a sort of hard shell, but had not completely melted.

While the bottom layers of the dessert were cooling, I started on the top chocolate layer, which involved  chocolate, peanut butter, butter, and crispy rice cereal.  Although I ended up having only half a bag of chocolate chips (the recipe called for 1 full bag) everything actually ended up coming together fairly nice. I also used Simply Jif peanut butter, which has about a 1/3 less fat than the regular kind included in a popular lunch box staple.

Once I finished melting everything together, I poured the chocolate mixture on top of the brownies and spread evenly with a spatula. Once everything was visually appealing, the brownies went into the fridge for 1-2 hours to set.

A little while later, the treat was ready to eat! They cut evenly, and there was no problem with any liquidy chocolate left on top. Everyone at the party I brought them to loved them, and they were gone within 10 minutes! They actually remind me of chocolate Rice Krispie Treats.  All in all, I though these brownie bars were a hit and I will totally be making them again! If anyone is going back to school, these are a perfect cure for the end of summer blues that everyone is sure to face in the coming weeks. (:

Stay Sweet,

Sweet and Savory Originals: Strawberry Lemonade Pops

Good morning sweethearts! Today I'm introducing our new series Sweet and Savory Originals! Unlike Recipe to Reality, in this series we will be sharing delectable treats as well as meals that have came straight out of our heads and onto your plate! Today's sweet and tangy creations are strawberry lemonade pops! Inspired by McCafe's citrusy Frozen Strawberry Lemonade, these shivery delights are sure become a staple at family BBQ's. Plus, they take only TWO ingredients to make and some simple materials you can find just about anywhere for pennies!

You will need:

Strawberries (the amount depends on the size of the ice pop mold you have on hand)

Lemonade (as much as will fill the mold)

Ice pop mold

Knife

Cutting Board

Ready to go!

I purchased my mold at Christmas Tree Shops

1: After the strawberries have been washed, start cutting into circles. The amount that you will cut depends on the size of your molds, but for my rectangular one it took about a strawberry per pop, or about four medium slices.
2: Place half of desired amount of strawberries into the molds.
3: Pour lemonade into the molds. This tangy citrus drink can be freshly squeezed or from a 'just add water' packet, depending on your personal preference.
4: Place the remaining strawberries into the ice pops. Note: when you poured in the lemonade you may have notices your first strawberries floated
to the top. Now is the time to place all strawberries how you would like them as they probably will not float all over the place- this is because of the volume of strawberries in the mold.

 5: Place molds in freezer overnight or for about 12 hours.For an explanation on taking them out of their molds to be enjoyed please watch the video below.

And wa-la! These delectable frozen treats were super simple and easy to make- and they're versatile too! Enjoy them for breakfast, an after workout snack, or as a healthy dessert! The flavor of the lemonade is definitely there as well as a hint of strawberry. These ice pops are no doubt visually appealing as well-because the lemonade is translucent, it is easy to see the strawberry slices throughout. This tasty snack looks like it could have came out of Food Network Magazine! It is also perfect for any girly girl as well. The fruits emitted a red juice, turning the lemonade pink!

Stay sweet, Candee