Scrambled Eggs with Goat Cheese

I saw the Barefoot Contessa make this on her show the other day and I was drooling!

I scaled her recipe waaaaay back b/c I was just making enough for me and my lil' foodie:) Also, I just cooked the eggs on low heat on my stove top.
Scrambled eggs with goat cheese - Ina Garten
16 extra-large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk or half-and-half
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, divided
6 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives

Heat a charcoal grill with coals. Spread them out in one dense layer.
Whisk the eggs in a bowl with the milk, salt, and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large saute or omelet pan over the hot grill. Add the eggs and cook them until the desired doneness, stirring constantly. Off the grill, add the goat cheese, chives, and the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Stir and allow the eggs to sit for 30 seconds, until the cheese begins to melt. Check for seasonings. Serve hot.

Chili's Santa Fe Wrap

This is my version of this recipe. It's yum!
Chili's Santa Fe Wrap

Corn (I had grilled corn left over from last night)

Diced Tomatoes

Diced Red Onion

Diced Grilled chicken

Tortilla Strips

Lettuce

Diced Avocado

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Ancho-Chili Ranch Dressing*

Tortilla

Combine all ingredients except tortilla. Spoon mixture onto the middle of your tortilla. Wrap the tortilla like you would a burrito (envelope style so that everything is packed nice and tight inside).

Put a little butter** in your frying pan and slap that delicious wrap on it. Cook over medium heat for a minute or two on each side - and there you have it! Delish!!

*I diced up an ancho chili, added it to my ranch dressing and then used my immersion blender to dice the chili even finer and combine the two.

**If you don't want to use butter - you can just 'dry fry' it. Follow the directions - just eliminate the butter!

Bobby Flay's LA Burger

I was feeling like a burger - so I went to Bobby Flay of course!
DE-LISH!
Bobby Flay’s L.A. Burger
Bobby's Perfect Patty
One slice of tomato
Watercress (peppery lettuce)
Monterey Jack
Avocado Relish:
2 chopped Hass avocados
1/2 diced small onion
1 minced jalapeno
juice of 1 lime
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
One slice of tomato
Top with watercress (peppery lettuce)
Monterey Jack

Bobby's Perfect Patty
Shape 6 ounces of 80 percent lean ground beef chuck into a uniform patty, no more than 3/4 inch thick (don't overwork the meat). Make a depression in the center with your thumb so the burger won't bulge; the indent will rise as the patty cooks. Preheat a grill or cast-iron grill pan to high. Brush the burger with canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown and slightly charred, turning once (7 minutes for medium-rare). Avoid pressing with a spatula! Add cheese for the last minute of cooking.

Spinach Lasagna

I made this for tonights dinner. It was super easy to make! I tripled the recipe (one for tonight, one for a friend and one to freeze) and it took me all of 20 minutes. My 4 year old made the one we are going to eat for dinner tonight - that is how easy it is! You don't have to pre-cook anything - its just about the assembly line.
Spinach Lasagna
1 jar(s) tomato, Alfredo, marinara, or vodka pasta sauce
9 no-boil lasagna noodles
15 ounce(s) part-skim ricotta cheese (I use cottage cheese)
6 ounce(s) baby spinach
8 ounce(s) part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 teaspoon(s) pepper
6 tablespoon(s) Romano or Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 375° F. Coat the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread 1/2 cup sauce over bottom of dish. Top with 3 noodles. Spread with half of the ricotta. Top with half of the spinach, pressing it down into the cheese. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/4 tsp of the pepper. Drizzle with another 1/2 cup sauce. Repeat with a second layer of 3 noodles, remaining ricotta cheese and spinach, 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese, remaining 1/4 tsp of the pepper, and 1/2 cup sauce. Top with remaining 3 noodles; spread remaining sauce over noodles to cover completely. Scatter remaining mozzarella and Romano cheeses over sauce.

Cover dish tightly with foil. Bake 45 minutes, or until noodles are tender. Let lasagna stand 10 minutes before serving.

We just finished dinner - and woah baby - that was even better than I expected it to be! My 2 year old had 4 servings!! My husband was out of town all week and she very proudly told him that she made tonight's dinner all by herself - just for him. During dinner she must've said "I totally love this" about 25 times.

Spinach Salad with Candied Almonds

This salad is so freakin' delish.

Spinach Salad with Candied Almonds
¼ c vegetable oil (I used EVOO b/c I like the flavor better)
2 T vinegar
2 T sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bag baby spinach
1 c sliced celery
½ c chopped green onion
1 can Mandarin oranges
½ c Candied Almonds

Mix first 4 ingredients together (dressing) and set aside. Put spinach in large bowl, add celery and green onions – mix together. Drain juice from oranges and then pour oranges over salad. Add dressing and candied almonds – mix well.

Candied Almonds

Candied Almonds
3 to 4 T sugar
½ c slivered almonds

Stir over low heat until well coated. Grease foil or parchment paper and pour over it. Pat the nuts down so they aren’t so bunched up. Allow to cool and then separate.

Fruit Pizza

I posted this recipe last July - but I'm posting it again b/c it's just that good - the perfect summer dessert!
Fruit Pizza
18 oz package refrigerated sugar cookie dough
8 oz package cream cheese
8 oz frozen Cool Whip, thawed
2 c sliced fresh strawberries
2 cups blueberries
½ c sugar
1 pinch salt
1 T cornstarch
½ c orange juice
2 T lemon juice
¼ c water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice cookie dough and arrange on a greased pizza pan, overlapping edges. Press dough flat into pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow to cool.

In a large bowl, soften cream cheese, then fold in the whipped topping. Spread over cooled crust. You can chill for a while at this point, or continue by arranging the fruit.

For the 4th, I use strawberries and blueberries – but any fruit is good on this! I do alternating ‘rings’ of strawberries and blueberries starting on the outside rim. Spoon sauce over the top. To make sauce, combine sugar, salt, corn starch, orange juice, lemon juice and water. Cook and stir over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat, and add grated orange rind. Allow to cool, but not set up. spoon over fruit. Chill for about 2 hours, then cut into wedges and serve.

Grilled Asparagus

Another recipe I've never posted b/c it's so simple - and it's not really a recipe. We had this for dinner on Saturday night (by request from my 7 & 5 year olds) and then were thrilled to find it on the menu at our friends BBQ for the 4th (first thing gone on both nights).

I didn't take a picture initially, and when I went in for 2nds, my 7 yr old was right on my heels. There were these 2 spears left. For 1/2 a second I thought about splitting these with him, but how can I possibly take good veg away from him - no matter how much I love asparagus!! If you've never tried asparagus on your grill - you've got to do it!
1 lb asparagus spears (washed and trimmed)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked black pepper
EVOO

Put trimmed* asparagus on a plate or cooking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO then sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place on the grill directly or in a grill basket. Grill until just tender and lightly charred, about 5 minutes.

*If you've never made asparagus before 'trimming' is easy. Hold the spear in front of you with your hands on each end of the spear. Bend the spear (move your hands like you are making a horseshoe shape) and the area that needs trimming should snap right off.

Watermelon Salsa

I got this great recipe from my friend Haley - it's a nice change of pace as far as salsa goes - and the kids really dig it:)

Watermelon Salsa
lime juice from 2 limes
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 cups chopped and seeded watermelon
1 jalapeno seeded and chopped
1/2 red onion diced
3 Tablespoons basil (fresh)-if using dried use 1/2 as much
1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

Mix together, cover and chill at least 30 min before serving.

*Make sure you taste again before serving - my hubs was my taster and he said 'it's missing something' that 'something' is usually salt - it adds the right complement to most dishes. After another big pinch of salt it was perfect!

Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Dip

I can't believe I haven't posted this 'recipe' before - maybe b/c it's so easy?

Anyway... my friend Valerie asked for an easy app idea and this is what I gave her - she reported back that it was the hit of the party (which is always the case with this one!)

This combo is to die for! You get the saltiness and crunch of the chip, the sweet and the spice of the Chipotle and the creaminess of the cream cheese...mmmmmm
8 oz. brick plain cream cheese
Fischer & Wieser's Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce

Lay the brick o' cream cheese on a plate and smother with the Chipotle sauce. Serve with Chips or crackers.