Stuffed Shells with Sausage and Spinach

Alright, I admit.  I got lazy.  I forgot Ricotta cheese and didn't want to go back out.  So I decided to try the recipe without it.  It was okay, but it definitely needs Ricotta.   Oh well.

Stuffed Shells with Sausage and Spinach

Still good.  Kinda fun and different.  Will definitely try it again, the right way this time.

Twice baked potatoes

I LOVE twice baked potatoes.  Seriously, twice baked potatoes are amazing.  As a kid we used to have them on holidays sometimes.  They do take a little while to make but are definitely worth it.

Thanks to Hurricane Sandy I've had some time on my hands recently, and thankfully my apartment still has power, so I could try out this new recipe I found.

Twice baked potatoes

This particular recipe came from Weight Watchers and is a healthier than others.  So even my guilt was (mostly) gone!  Love!

Mexican Sweet Potato Skins

One of my favorite recipes I've made in recent months.  The perfect combination of flavors, with a little spiciness.  It's filling and relatively healthy!

Mexican Sweet Potato Skins

There's a few moving pieces in this dish but definitely worth it in the end. I used 3 adobo peppers and a combination of mozzarella and cheddar.  Omitted cilantro since I didn't have any on hand.  Loved!

Butternut Squash Soup with Pumpkin Butter

Fall is definitely in the air (and Hurricane Sandy....).  It's the perfect time for a delicious warm soup.  This one was a hit.

Butternut Squash Soup with Pumpkin Butter

I made it a little bit on the thick side and included a generous helping of pumpkin butter I had made from scratch.  I'd never made pumpkin butter before so I decided to start with a nice easy simple recipe. This is the one I found and decided to use -- simple, easy, good.

Pumpkin butter

I didn't get as much butternut squash out of it as I should have.  Really only 2-3 servings of soup.  I think it could have used some more time in the oven to soften more and then be more usable.  Plus, I used only about 1 cup of chicken stock.  I used skim milk, and though I'm sure half and half would have been more delicious I decided to try to keep it a little healthier.  

Good recipe, will make more next time.  It'd be a great meal to have on hand for a lazy sunday or late weeknight!

Baked Chicken Stuffed with Pesto and Cheese

I found this recipe and was a little unsure.  Stuffed chicken can be so hard to cook...but these ingredients seemed delicious (I love pesto!) so I decided to give it a try.

Baked Chicken stuffed with pesto and cheese

These came out great.  I didn't have any almond flour so i left that out.  I was able to pound the chicken out relatively thin and it took about 35 minutes to cook in my oven.  Oakley loved them.  Very simple, we'll definitely be making it again!

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps

These were delicious!  I didn't have all the ingredients on hand so I left out the peppers and the cilantro.  However, they still had great flavor and it was relatively easy to make.  Lots of leftovers too!  I will make these all the time!

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wrap reciepe

Sauteed Kale

Looking for ways to cook new vegetables I stumbled across this recipe.

Sauteed Kale

I liked it. Personally I would probably use a little less red wine vinegar next time, since it was a strong taste.  But overall I think it's a great way to change up the vegetable side dishes.

Pumpkin Spice Protein Pancakes

We're big breakfast people.  But, weekdays I get up too early, and I love my sleep.  So cereal is the weekday go-to.

However, at least once a weekend, when we're in town, we'll do a nice breakfast.  Pancakes, french toast, breakfast burritos....they're all delicious.

Here's our newest try:
Pumpkin Spice Protein Pancakes

I liked these because they were a bit healthier than some of our normal options.  I used vanilla protein powder and instant oatmeal.  Both worked fine.  I left out the Stevia - the protein powder was already sweet enough for us.  Plus, I knew we would be adding syrup.

Our review:
I liked the taste.  But they didn't cook like I would have liked.  I knew they would end up thin but they also didn't seem to cook enough.  The egg is really the only ingredient to cook and that didn't lead to a fully cooked pancake.  Still good, just not great.

Frozen banana bites

Frozen Banana Bites
Love these!  I'm a sucker for anything with peanut butter and chocolate!

Super easy and delicious...
I made them without the coconut (basically because I didn't have any) and we loved them.  Used 3 bananas and had a bunch to keep in the freezer for the week.  We'd eat one (or two, or three....) for dessert.  They kept great.

A cooking note I've recently learned - when melting chocolate do not get any water in the bowl - it makes the chocolate clumpy, gross, mess.  Completely dry spoon every time you stir the chocolate.
An article I found helpful: melting chocolate

Sweet Potato Burger with garlic cream and avocado

In the last year or so I've tried to become a better cook.  Growing up I never did much work in the kitchen and my dinners for one generally consisted of pasta or something "easy".  I never had cooked much meat and was basically afraid of anything except for the very occasional chicken breast.

When I met my now-fiance Oakley I tried to fake the ability to cook for awhile.  He quickly realized it was all a scam, and now loves the story about how I was burning pans for the first few years of our relationship.

A year or so ago I found Pinterest and besides using it for wedding planning, I've found it an amazing source for recipes.  I've tried a bit of everything in the last year, and realized that I'm actually an okay cook.  I can follow a recipe pretty well and am starting to gain some confidence to even try a few things on my own.

I remarked to Oakley that since I'd made so many things I found on Pinterest I wanted to be able to chronicle what I made and what we thought of it.  And so began this blog.....

A long Saturday of studying led us to big plans for a relaxing evening in, complete with a delicious dinner.  Scouring my Pinterest page for what to make I landed on this:

Sweet potato burger with garlic cream and avocado.

I'd made burgers similar to this in the past - it's a relatively easy, meat-free, dinner.  The longest part of this was roasting the garlic.  But it's easy, and had I read it first and prepared a bit I could have just put it in earlier while I was finishing up other stuff.

Our review:
Good taste.  Perhaps add a bit extra bread crumbs.  Personally, I wish I could get them a little bit crispier....but I would make them again and that's what I would aim for next time.