Spinach Arugula Salad

This has quickly become my favorite salad. Light and layered with flavor, it tastes great as an appetizer to a pasta dish or with Sausage and Bell Pepper Risotto.
Spinach Arugula Salad
Dressing
Extra virgin olive oil
Rice wine vinegar
Dijon mustard
Honey
1. In a small measuring cup, measure 1/4 c of olive oil, and add rice wine vinegar to the measuring cup until the dressing reaches 1/3c.
2. Add a small dab of mustard and a drizzle of honey to the dressing mixture and season with salt and pepper. Whisk to combine.
Salad
1 bag of arugula spinach mix
Croutons
8 cherry tomatoes, cut into chunks
Handful of craisins
2-3 oz goat cheese
Handful of pine nuts (optional; can be used in place of croutons)
1. Toss the arugula and spinach with croutons and enough dressing to gently cover the leaves (you will probably only need about half of the dressing).
2. Divide the dressed arugula and spinach and croutons into 4 salad bowls.
3. In each bowl, put 1/4 of the cherry tomatoes, crumbled goat cheese, craisins, and pine nuts.

Wake Up Smoothie

Wisconsin is the land of fried things, cheese and beer (or beer-battered cheese curds if you want all three). Every once in awhile, I really crave a vegetable, or in this case, a big boost of fruit. This smoothie is perfect after a workout, or for a light breakfast.
Wake Up Smoothie
1 banana
1 container of blueberry Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)
1 1/2 c frozen strawberries and pineapple
1 c fresh blueberries
1 c orange juice
1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

Bacon and Goat Cheese Oeuf Cocotte (Egg Cups)

I love breakfast. I love easy-but-looks-fancy breakfast even more. I adapted this recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Homemade by Yvette Van Boven, and it was a huge hit this morning.
Bacon and Goat Cheese Oeuf Cocotte
dab of butter
1 T goat cheese
1/2 a slice of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1-2 cherry tomatoes, cut into chunks
1 egg
a pinch of thyme
salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 350F and heat some water on the stove to boil.
2. Butter an oven safe ramekin or small bowl.
3. Crumble the goat cheese on the bottom of the cup and cover with the bacon and tomato.
4. Carefully break an egg over the top of the cheese mixture to avoid breaking the yolk (if it breaks, it's not a huge deal).
5. Season the egg with salt and pepper and the thyme.
6. Put the egg cup in a baking pan and pour the boiling water around the cup halfway up the sides.
7. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the white is completely set (mine took 15).
8. Serve warm with a piece of toast.
Makes 1 egg cup.

Easy Fried Rice

We ordered Chinese takeout last night, and had lots of extra white rice, so I thought fried rice would make a perfect Saturday lunch. Also, I hate throwing food away, so I'm always looking for methods to repurpose leftovers.
Easy Fried Rice
Sesame oil
1 egg
Olive oil
Half of a yellow onion, chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/3 c cooked white rice
1/2 T butter
1 c blanched vegetables (I used carrots and broccoli)
1 T Tamari (aged soy sauce)
Red pepper flakes
1. Heat about 1 tsp sesame oil on medium in a large wok.
2. In a small bowl, beat the egg until fluffy.
3. Pour the egg into the wok and swirl it around a bit.
4. Cook for about 1-2 minutes until set. Scramble the eggs in the wok and set aside.
5. Heat about 1 tsp olive oil in the wok.
6. Add the onion and garlic and saute for 3-5 minutes until tender.
7. Add the rice and butter to the wok and combine with the onions and garlic.
8. Fry the rice, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes, until slightly browned.
9. Add the Tamari soy sauce, vegetables, a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, and the cooked egg, and heat through.
Serves 2.

Super Bowl Snacks - Spinach Artichoke Dip and Jalapeno Poppers

I've always been a huge advocate for buying single purpose kitchen gadgets. For Christmas this year, I received a jalapeno corer and roasting rack, and couldn't wait to put it to use. These jalapeno poppers were not only super easy to make, but they taste fantastic!
Whole Roasted Jalapeno Poppers

12 jalapenos
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 c mexican shredded cheese
Cumin
Cayenne pepper
3-4 slices of bacon
Toothpicks or kebab skewers
1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Slice the tops off the jalapenos and use the corer to remove the seeds and insides.
3. In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese, mexican cheese, and a sprinkle of cumin and cayenne.
4. Place the jalapenos on the roasting rack, and stuff each pepper to the top with the cheese mixture.
5. Cover each jalapeno with 1/4 or a 1/3 of a slice of bacon, and secure with a toothpick (I used a kebab skewer to hold multiple peppers together at once).
6. Roast for 40 minutes, then turn the broiler on high.
7. Broil for 2 minutes to crisp up the bacon.
8. Let cool slightly, and serve.
Serves 3-4 people.
Since I hadn't had enough cheese that day, I also decided to make a favorite recipe of my mom's.
Baked Spinach and Artichoke Dip

1/2 cup (2 oz) grated Romano

3 large cloves garlic

10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach

2 large eggs

14.5 oz can artichokes, drained and patted dry

8 oz softened garlic chive cream cheese

1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.

2.  Put Romano in a food processor with the garlic and mince.

3. Add spinach, artichokes, cream cheese, eggs.

4. Process until thoroughly blended. Fold in mozzarella.

5. Transfer to 2-3 cup greased baking dish.

6. Bake until heated through, about 20-25 minutes.

7. Serve hot with tortilla chips, salsa and sour cream.

Sloppy Bombay Joes

I haven't cooked with ground turkey much, and wanted to let go of my fear of healthy substitutes for historically fattening recipes. When I came across this dish on Food Network's website, I knew I had to check it out since it sounded so unusual (and I thought 658 reviewers giving a 5 star rating couldn't be wrong). I followed the recipe almost exactly, subbing a jalapeno for the serrano and using craisins instead of raisins. I honestly was a bit freaked out by the idea of having nuts and berries in a sloppy joe, but I'm glad I just went with it. These sammies are multidimensional in flavor,  the texture is delicious, and the leftovers were still great a few days later. I bet this would be tasty over some rice or in a wrap, too.
Sloppy Bombay Joes