Light Bleu Cheese Dressing or Dip.....

You simply have to try this dressing/dip recipe.  It is absolutely delicious....no kidding, it's my favorite.  Compare this ingredient list to any bottled you've tried..made with real ingredients.  This will keep for up to two weeks in the refrigerator, although I doubt it will last that long!  Get your hands on some heirloom mini tomatoes, aren't they beautiful?  Try dipping spicy chicken wings in this dip, fantastic!!!

Bleu Cheese Dressing or Dip
1 cup plain low fat yogurt
2 tablespoons sour cream, use light if you wish
2 tablespoons olive oil mayonnaise, or any you may have
¼ cup bleu cheese crumbles
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate. Serve with crudités (fancy word for cut veggies) or use as a salad dressing. Great for dipping spicy chicken wings! Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. Makes about 1 1/4 cup.

*add a little milk if it's too thick for salad dressing

Essential Pantry List.....

I wanted to re-publish my pantry list.  I have these items on hand at all times.  For every item I use, I have a back up in my pantry.   Whenever I finish what's in the fridge or in my dry pantry, I put that item on my shopping list and retrieve my back up from my pantry.  I simply cannot stand completely running out of a staple.  I have a dry erase board on my refrigerator and I have a running list.   (I have kids you see, they suck any kind of memory you may have once had right out of you!)

Pantry Items

Starches
Whole wheat cappelini
Whole wheat elbow macaroni
Whole wheat soup noodles
Whole wheat penne
No boil lasagna noodles
Brown rice
Barley-quick cooking
Quick cooking oats
Unseasoned bread crumbs
Panko crumbs (Japanese bread crumbs)
Saltine crackers
Corn meal


Spices and seasonings
Granulated garlic
Granulated onion
Dried thyme
Dried oregano
Chili powder
Ground cumin
Smoked paprika (Penzey's)
Cayenne
Chipotle, ground (you can find the best at Penzey's)
Red pepper flakes
Dried parsley
Kosher salt
Sea salt-fine granules
Black pepper-ground
Black peppercorns
Cinnamon-ground
Cloves-ground
Nutmeg-ground
Lawry's seasoning salt
Sesame seeds


Miscellaneous
Peanut butter
Better than bouillon-small jar of concentrated chicken stock
Diced tomatoes-14 oz. cans (2)
Tomato paste- 6 oz. cans (2)
Black beans-15 oz. cans (2)
Re fried beans-14 oz. cans (2)
Red kidney beans-14 oz can (2)
Cannelli beans-15 oz. can  (2)
Olive oil
Canola oil
Cider vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
Liquid smoke
Red wine vinegar
Cooking spray
Canned pumpkin-15 oz. can (1-2)
Soy sauce-low sodium
Hoisin sauce
Worcestershire
Ketchup
Dijon mustard
Mayonnaise
Pecans (Refrigerate)
Walnuts (Refrigerate)
Honey
Raisins
Red Quinoa (Trader Joe's)
Canned salmon
Canned tuna


Baking items
Whole wheat flour
All purpose unbleached flour
Baking powder
Baking soda
Cream of tarter
Sugar
Brown sugar
Semi sweet chocolate chips
Vanilla
Cooking spray with flour
Wheat germ
Cupcake liners
Evaporated milk (1)
Sweetened condensed milk (1)
Coconut
Unflavored gelatin


Foils and wraps-
*keep an eye on the Sunday paper ads, often there are coupons for these items.

Parchment paper
Wax paper
Reynolds non stick foil-it’s fabulous!
Heavy duty foil, wide width
Freezer bags, large and small
Cling wrap-Saran is best


Frozen items
Petite peas
Broccoli crowns
Chopped spinach-loose, not in the block
Mixed vegetables

Dairy
Greek non fat yogurt
Parmesan cheese

*do not buy or use canned goods that are dented*

Roasted Garlic & Cannelli Bean Hummus....

This is the perfect appetizer.  So easy, elegant, and quick.  Make ahead and serve right when your guests arrive.   Keep several varieties of canned beans on hand, they are so versatile and you can whip up this excellent hummus in a snap.  I especially love the cannelli beans (aka white kidney beans) because they are so creamy when you process them, no need for tahini, they are great with the few true ingredients in this recipe. I made the toasted baguette myself,  it's much more economical than those bags of pita chips or bagel chips.   Hummus keeps for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator.  Also delicious on sandwiches or as a dip on a vegetable tray.  Good fiber and all healthy.  As always, real ingredients. 

Roasted Garlic Hummus with Cannelli Beans

½ cup olive oil (don’t worry; this isn’t all going into recipe! Use later for cooking or in salad dressing, sooooo good!)
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved
2 tablespoons lemon juice, bottled or fresh
2 cans cannelli beans, drained but reserve liquid
½ teaspoon smoked paprika + an extra pinch for garnish
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped

1) In a very small sauce pan, add olive oil and fresh garlic. Cook on lowest setting of stove top until garlic is just soft and slightly brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
2) Into food processor, add about 2 tablespoons of the reserved garlic olive oil, lemon juice, roasted garlic cloves, cannelli beans, half of the reserved liquid from the beans, paprika, salt and pepper. Process until smooth; add more of the reserved bean liquid if necessary. Taste, add more salt and pepper if necessary.
3) When ready to serve, pour into a pretty serving dish. Drizzle some of the reserved garlic olive oil over hummus. For garnish sprinkle a pinch of smoked paprika over the top and finally, the chopped parsley. Beautiful! Serve with pita chips, warm pita bread, or your own toasted baguette.

Easy Baguette Toasts....

Delicious, economical, easy, very short ingredient list.

Toasted baguette


Baguette, day old or more is best
Olive oil
Kosher salt

1) Preheat oven to 300’.
2) Slice stale bread into ¼” slices. Put into a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Add a couple of pinches of kosher salt. Spread out over a large cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

*always refrigerate leftover breads to use for later, they will keep much longer.

Need I say more?

I am so upset, saddened, aggravated, and just plain mad at what's happening to our beautiful Gulf!  Check out this site to get information on how you can help and get this t shirt!  I feel so completely helpless watching our wildlife suffer, I can hardly stand it.

I recently spent a few days in Ft. Myers Beach, FL.  I saw the most beautiful birds and sea life right from a condo balcony.  The thought of that perfectly balanced eco system being in danger is unfathomable.

Wearing this shirt makes me feel like I am at least voicing my opinion!

Have a safe weekend.

Angie

Cook Once, Eat Twice.....

This is absolutely delicious!  Don't expect a sweet and sticky type barbecue.  The grilling at the start of the recipe is to sear the meat and add flavor.   The small amount of barbecue sauce makes for a rich au jus.  Serve with Mickey Potatoes, Oh My!  Serve a salad with a nice vinaigrette, it works well with the very savory meat and rich potatoes.  Enjoy!!

Fall Apart BBQ Beef

3-4 lb. sirloin beef roast, fat trimmed away
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 teaspoon each: granulated garlic powder, granulated onion powder, dried oregano, salt, and pepper
½ cup Open Pit bbq sauce, original flavor
1 ½ cup water

1) Trim away any excess fat from roast. Rub roast with oil, coating evenly.
2) In small bowl mix all dry ingredients. Season roast with dry ingredients. Allow to sit for about 10 minutes.
3) Preheat grill for about 10 minutes. Grill roast on all sides so that you have some nice browning.
4) Place in dutch oven. Pour bbq sauce over roast and add water to pan. Place in 300’ oven for 3 ½ to 4 hours. Remove from oven and carefully place meat on cutting board. Allow to sit for about 10 minutes. Slice across grain using a sharp carving knife. Serve with au jus.  Shred leftover beef, label, date and freeze.

Beef Carnitas

2 teaspoons canola or olive oil
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 lb. leftover shredded beef
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 cup water
Juice of two limes
Chihuahua cheese
Corn tortillas

1)  Heat large skillet over medium heat, add onions; cook about 5 minutes.  Add garlic, cook one minute.  Add beef, cumin, paprika, and water.  Simmer until most of water is reduced.  Mix in juice of two limes.  Taste.  Adjust seasoning if necessary, you may need a little salt and pepper.  Serve over warm tortillas with cheese.  Serve with a fresh crisp salad with yogurt ranch dressing.

Mickey Potatoes.....

These are "Mickey Potatoes," named after my dear friend Mickey.  Being invited to her home for dinner is such a treat, she is an outstanding cook, baker, and friend.  Over the years, I have made these potatoes over and over again.  They are by far the most decadent and delicious potato I've ever had.  They are actually better the next day, so if you're planning a barbecue, make them a day ahead and simply warm in the oven uncovered at 350' for about 30 minutes.

Mickey and her husband Randy are avid travelers.  The photo above was taken in Turkey at Ephesus, an ancient Greek ruin.

Mickey Potatoes

2 teaspoons softened butter
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 ¼ lb. Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
12 oz. shredded Gruyere Swiss cheese
Salt and pepper
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream

1) Preheat oven to 375’. Generously butter a 2 quart baking dish. Crush garlic into dish and spread evenly around bottom.
2) Layer potatoes, salt and pepper, and Swiss cheese. Repeat, reserving plenty for the top.
3) Pour cream and milk over potatoes. Place in preheated oven for 50-60 minutes. Allow to sit for 15 minutes before serving.

Thank you Mickey!

True Homemade Cherry Crumb Pie.....

When was the last time you had an honest-to-goodness piece of homemade cherry crumb pie?  If you think you've had it at any chain restaurant,  think again.  My friend Kandace was kind enough to invite me to her back yard to pick from her beautiful sour cherry tree.  What a treat!  After arriving home from picking, I got busy.   After a thorough rinsing,  I tried using a "cherry pitter," but quickly learned that it was much quicker and easier to simply use my thumb nail to remove the pit.  Also, I decided to cook the fruit with the sugar and flour on the stove to cut baking time in half.  I absolutely adore crumb topping.  It is such a treat to have a little crunch on top of the deliciously sweet cherry filling.  Of course, you must top with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or my favorite, a healthy scoop of real vanilla ice cream.   I love Breyer's Natural Vanilla.   There are only 5 ingredients listed.    Enjoy this recipe made with real  ingredients.  Try comparing to a store bought pie ingredient list, you will be amazed!  You will find the recipe for real butter crust below.  Enjoy!!

Homemade Cherry Crumb Pie

For the filling:
4 cups pitted sour cherries
¼ cup flour
1 cup sugar

For the crumb topping:
½ cup flour
¾ cup sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons softened butter

One single pie crust, recipe below

1) In a large sauce pan, add cherries, sugar, and flour. Mix well. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a bubble, allow to bubble for a couple of minutes. Remove from heat.
2) Preheat oven to 375’. In small mixing bowl, add all crumb topping ingredients. Blend together with fingers until you have a crumbly mixture. Set aside.
3) Prepare pie crust and put into 9” pie plate. Flute edges. Pour in warm cooked cherry filling. Sprinkle crumb mixture over filling. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until crust is nicely brown.

**tip**I bake pies on a piece of foil to catch any potential drippings from messing up my oven.  Cut a large enough piece to fit under the pie and curl up the edges.

Best Butter Pie Crust....

Butter Pie Crust

(single)

1 ¼ cup flour
6 T. cold butter, cut into ½” pieces
½ t. salt
5-7 T. ice water

In a large bowl, mix flour and salt;  add cubed chilled butter. With a pastry blender, incorporate butter into flour. This will take a few minutes, it should resemble cornmeal. One tablespoon at a time, add the water. Mix using a fork. Once most of the flour seems to be moist, use your hands to bring together into a ball of dough, you may need to knead about 4-5 times. You do not want to over handle the dough as this will create too much gluten and warm the butter, it will yield a tough result.   You may refrigerate for up to an hour or immediately roll out on floured surface, trying not to "stretch" the dough.  Roll out from the center to make a large enough circle for the pie plate to sit in the middle with at least 1 1/2" past the outer edge of the plate.  Flute the edges with your fingers.

Cook Once, Eat Twice....

I put this together busy people who might want to cook once and save a bit for later.  What's not to love about tacos and burritos?  Enjoy tacos and rice for your first simple meal.  Freeze the extra meat and rice for burritos later.  As for "taco" seasoning, no need to buy those little salty packages anymore.  This seasoning combination is perfect and delicious!  Serve hot burritos over crisp romaine lettuce and tomatoes, top with salsa, guacamole and sour cream if you like.

Turkey or Beef Taco Meat

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 large cloves garlic
2 lbs. ground turkey, or half Trader Joe's meatless meatballs and turkey, it's an excellent combo!
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 cup water

1) Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat and add onion, cook for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook one minute. Add turkey and cook through.
2) Add chili powder, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper. Add water. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until most of the water has evaporated. Serve half of meat for tacos. Cool the rest of the taco meat and put into a heavy duty zip bag, label, date, and freeze.

Spanish Rice

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic
2 cup brown rice
4 tablespoons ketchup
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
4 1/4  cups water
1/2 cup fresh cilantro

1) In a medium sauce pan with a lid, add oil and heat over medium heat. Add onion, cook for about 4 minutes, add garlic, cook one minute. Add rice, cook a few minutes, stirring often. Add ketchup, chili powder, salt, and pepper, mix well. Add water. Bring to a bubble and cover with a lid. Adjust heat to low and cook for 35 minutes, remove from heat, leave covered for another 5 minutes. Stir in cilantro.  Serve half, allow to cool, put into a heavy duty zip bag, label, date, and freeze.

Turkey or beef burritos

1 lb. prepared taco meat, defrosted and heated
2 cups prepared Spanish rice, defrosted and heated
1 15 oz. can vegetarian refried beans
¼ cup low fat plain yogurt or sour cream
8 oz. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
8 large flour tortillas (12”)

1) In a small bowl, mix refried beans with yogurt.
2) Place large tortilla in front of you, smear a scoop of refried beans over lower half of tortilla, keeping 1”
away from edges. Add ½ cup rice, about 2 oz. taco meat, and about an ounce of cheese. Start from the bottom fold burrito up once, fold sides in and roll through the end of the tortilla. Cover and microwave 1 ½ to 2 minutes. Allow to stand for a couple of minutes before serving. Enjoy with salsa. These can be individually wrapped and frozen.  Makes 8 large burritos.

Me...a Runner.....

Ahhhh, yeah, right.  Those two words do not belong in Angie Montroy's vocabulary! 

Hold on for a second.  I'm so completely tired of having to "go" to the gym.  Such a process.  I need to do something that is less time consuming.  I've been walk/running.  Believe me, more walking than "running."  And saying running makes me laugh!!  When you think of running, don't you think of someone running at a pretty good clip?  Well.  Not me. 

Good effort, though, right?  In addition, I feel so good.  They say that just 30 minutes a day of walking is all you need.  So, Moms out there, you are extremely important!  Take a little time for yourself.

We all need to take care of ourselves.  Exercise is just as important as a good diet.  I'm not talking "dieting," I just mean simply eating well, at least 80% of the time.

The recipes I share are intended for just that.  I offer some very nice simple, delicous, and easy to follow recipes.   For that other 20% of the time, I have many delicious suggestions for that as well!  I only use REAL INGREDIENTS.  Enjoy peanut butter chocolate chip bars, or pumpkin squares with cream cheese frosting.

I hope you all are enjoying your summer.  Such a great time of the year to celebrate, get our hands in the dirt, and of course, cook and eat outside.

I have many more recipes to share to make entertaining and dinner time easy.  Some of the best things I make are the simplest!

Look forward to a wonderful pulled pork recipe and endless salad recipes that are out of the ordinary.  Last but not least, desserts and baking.

Have a blessed day.
Angie

Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting.....

Last fall, I took a cake decorating class.  They actually called frosting made with shortening "buttercream." Call me crazy, but don't you think if it's called buttercream it should contain butter?    Anyway, they used this fabulous Wilton Meringue Powder for stability.  It is especially needed in frosting where you are using actual "butter."  You can buy it at Michael's Craft Store.  I don't give an exact liquid amount in frosting recipes because humidity can affect how much you need.  I recommend adding some liquid initially and then adding more, small amounts at a time to get it to the right spreading consistency.  You will get really good at this with practice, I promise!

Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 ripe bananas, mashed
3 eggs, beaten
2/3 cup canola oil

1) Preheat oven to 350’. You will need pans for 18 cupcakes. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners and spray papers with cooking spray. In medium size mixing bowl, mix flour through salt.
2) In small bowl, mash bananas very well, add oil and eggs.
3) Make a well in dry ingredients and all at once dump wet into dry. Mix until just blended and fill each prepared cup 2/3 full. Bake 15-18 minutes. Toothpick should come out clean.
4) Cool completely.

Frosting

3 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons meringue powder
¼ cup Hershey’s cocoa, or your favorite cocoa powder
¼ cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons milk + more

1) In a medium size mixing bowl, beat softened butter with an electric mixer. Add the powdered sugar, meringue powder, cocoa, vanilla, and milk. Turn on mixer to the lowest speed and gently move around the bowl. If too thick add milk, a teaspoon at a time to get it to the best spreading consistency. Be careful not to add too much, it will run off your cupcakes. Stop between additions and test a bit with a knife. (good time to taste too)

2) Frost cupcakes. Store in airtight container if you have any left!