Lentil Quinoa Salad

Summer is around the corner and everyone’s always looking for a good salad to bring to their next picnic. Or this is great to make on Sunday and eat for lunch the rest of the week. It’s filling, fresh, healthy and really good. You could adapt it a but by adding sauteed eggplant, chopped tomatoes or chickpeas – if you want to add even more protein! Enjoy!

Ingredients
Source: Food Network
1/2 cup quinoa
1 1/4 cups water, plus 2 cups
2 15-oz can lentils, rinsed and drained
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 T. red wine vinegar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lime, zested
salt and pepper
2 green onions, chopped
1 T. chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions
1. Cook quinoa according to packaging.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the mustard and vinegar together, and drizzle in the oil to make an emulsion. Add the garlic, lime zest, and salt, and pepper, to taste.
3. To assemble the salad: In a medium salad bowl, mix the quinoa, lentils, green onions, and chopped cilantro. Top the salad with the dressing, toss to coat and serve. Sprinkle with feta (optional).

Voila!

7 Layer Greek Dip

This is what you call addicting. I made this first for a bachelorette party and it was gone in a hot second. Then I made it again for James and I. Once again, gone. It’s fresh, refreshing and total crowd pleaser. It’s very versatile in terms of doubling the proportions, substituting or excluding an ingredient. This will be a perfect dish for those summer picnics coming up!

Ingredients
Source: Our Best Bites
1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. dill weed or Greek seasoning
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 cup hummus
1 cup seeded, diced cucumbers
1 cup seeded, diced tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped Kalamata olives
1/3 cup chopped green onions (optional)
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/8-1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

Directions
1. In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese, dill or greek seasoning, garlic and lemon juice.
2. Spread cream cheese in the bottom of a pie plate or shallow baking dish. Then spread a layer of hummus. Create layers by sprinkling the cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, onions, Feta cheese, and parsley. Serve with pita chips, fresh vegetables, and/or these great gluten-free crackers I recently discovered!

Voila!

Hamantaschen

It’s almost a month past Purim and I’m finally getting around to posting these cookies! Better late than never. Who needs Purim to make delicious jam filled cookies? Hamantaschen cookies can be dry with the only burst of moisture or flavor coming from the filling. This recipe adds brightness and moisture to the cookie itself – what a concept!

Ingredients
Source:Shiksa in the Kitchen
2 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 to 5 tsp water (if needed)

filling: your choice of jams, chocolate, poppy seeds

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Prepare your filling of choice.

Strawberry Muffins

It’s strawberry season! It’s strawberry season! This weekend it seemed that everyone I know went to their local farms and picked buckets of berries. I took a shortcut and went to my local farmer’s market. Note to self: always bring more than $8 to the farmer’s market. James and I had to make some tough decisions between strawberries, bread, carrots, tomatoes and beautiful spring flowers!

Back to the muffins: they’re delish! Fluffy, moist and not too sweet. If you want a sweeter muffin you could try experimenting with adding more sugar, sprinkling some on top or adding more berries. Otherwise, the sweetness of the berries goes a long way.

Ingredients
Source: Confections of a Foodie Bride
3 cups + 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
10 T. unsalted butter, cubed and softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt
Generous 1 1/2 cup chopped strawberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 400. Line muffin tin with liners
1. Mix 3 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition followed by the vanilla.
4. Beat in half of dry ingredients, followed by a third of the yogurt. Add remaining dry ingredients in two batches, alternating with the yogurt, until incorporated.
5. Toss strawberries with the remaining 1 T. flour and add to the bowl, mixing for just a few more seconds to distribute evenly (the batter will be very, very thick).
6. Divide the batter evenly among cups, using a large cookie scoop
7. Bake for 8 minutes and then decrease oven temperature to 375 and bake for 10-11 more minutes until golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Voila!

Congo Bars

These are the best blondies I’ve ever made (up to this point). They’re more than just blondies + coconut. They have a depth of flavor I haven’t tasted before. Maybe y’all have had congo bars before, so please excuse my gushing as I lavish praise upon these delights. There are 1,000,000,000+ recipes for blondies and all their variations. At the moment, I’m happy with this one recipe. I know I’ll experiment again in the future, but there’s something so satisfying about have one recipe, tried and true, that you know will work and be scrumptious everytime.

Ingredients
Source: Baking Illustrated
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
12 T. butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (or 1/2 semisweet, 1/2 white chocolate chips)
1 cup pecans, chopped and toasted

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Line 13×9 glass baking dish with parchment paper.
1. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt together in medium bowl, set aside
2. Whisk melted butter and brown sugar together in large bowl. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.
3. Fold dry ingredients into egg mixture until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips, toasted coconut and pecans. Pour batter into prepared pan.
4. Bake until top is shiny and cracked and feels firms to the touch, 20-24 minutes.

Voila!

Chocolate Chip Soda Bread

This isn’t bread so much as a giant scone. I’m not complaining because it’s rich and chocolatey and is best eaten when smeared with berry jam. I made it to eat for breakfast, but in the future I’ll reconsider it as a possible dessert item.

Ingredients
Source: Slightly adapted from Whole Foods
6 T. butter, chilled, cut into cubes
3 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. fine sea salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup nonfat greek yogurt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9″ nonstick round pan.
1. In the bowl of a food processor, add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Pulse 10 times in 1-second intervals to combine. Add butter cubes and pulse into mixture resembles course meal.
2. Pour mixture into large bowl. Add chocolate chips and combine. Stir in yogurt. Knead in bowl until dough forms. Mold into 6-7 inch loaf and transfer to pan.
3. Bake 45 minutes until golden brown and cooked all the way through.

Voila!

Israeli Cous Cous Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash and Cilantro Sauce

Since James pointed out that I use the word “awesome” too much in my food blog writing, I’ll try a new adjective: delicioso! This salad lasts the whole week and never gets old when I eat it for lunch day after day. I guess by the end of the week I’m done with it both literally and figuratively; but after a short break I can’t wait to make it and eat it again!

Ingredients
Source: Slightly adapted from 5 and Spice
1/2 large butternut squash (or a whole smallish one), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 small garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
4 cups of loosely packed cilantro leaves
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. salt
juice of 1/2 a lemon
3-4 T. olive oil
6 oz. plain Israeli couscous (also know as pearled couscous or fregola sarda)
2 1/2 cups boiling water
olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions
Heat oven to 425.
1. Toss the butternut squash cubes with a big drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Spread them on a rimmed baking pan and roast in the oven until tender and starting to brown, 25-30 minutes. Stir them once or twice during the roasting process. Remove from the oven and set aside.
2. In a small food processor, chop together the garlic, cilantro, cumin, coriander, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Add in the lemon juice and continue to process until finely chopped. Then, with the processor running, drizzle in 3-4 Tbs. of olive oil until it forms a loose sauce. Set aside.
3. Cook Israeli cous cous according to packaging
4. In a large serving bowl, toss together the couscous, cilantro sauce, roasted butternut squash pieces. Gently toss until everything is well coated with the sauce. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Voila!

Blueberry Muffins

As many of you may know, I love blueberries. In middle school a friend gave me a blueberry-themed birthday gift box full of blueberry flavored, scented, shaped, colored things. I loved it! I’m always seeking more ways to bake with these awesome spheres of flavor and this muffin recipe is awesome. Take these muffins, add scrambled eggs, fruit and juice or coffee and you’ve got yourself the perfect weekend brunch!

Ingredients
Source: Slightly Adapted from Baking Illustrated
2 cups flour
1 T. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 cup sugar
4 T. butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 1/2 cup nonfat greek yogurt
1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 and line muffin tin with liners
1. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl
2. Whisk egg vigorously for about 20 seconds in a separate medium bowl. Add sugar and whisk vigorously again for another 30 seconds, until light and fluffy. Add melted butter, two or three additions at a time, whisking after each addition. Add greek yogurt in two additions
3. Add blueberries to flour mixture and stir to combine. Fold in yogurt mixture and mix (but don’t overmix!). Batter will be thick. Spoon it in to muffin liners and bake for 25-28 minutes.

Voila!