Sunday, March 24, 2013

New Leaders of Recipe Club

Hi All,
I'm super excited to be taking over the Recipe Club with my wonderful partner in crime, Ophy! We just couldn't let it come to an end. I look forward to meeting lots of new people, sharing and trying new recipes and of course EATING! My email address is alesyaflynn@gmail.com. Please email your recipes to me if you would like to see it appear on this blog.
Till the next meeting,
Alesya

Thursday, March 21, 2013

New Girls in the House!

Hello Ladies!  My name is Ophelia Dunk.  Alesya Flynn and I will be leading the AFIT Spouses Recipe Club this year.  We thank Amanda Carl for leading it in the past.  I just wanted to introduce myself.  My husband Adam and I moved to Ohio from Los Angeles, CA in August last year, and we are loving our new home so far.  A main reason for the smooth transition that I have had over these past few months has been the friends that I have made through Recipe Club, so I am extremely excited to be co-leading it now.  Please feel free to contact me or Alesya on Facebook if you have any questions regarding Recipe Club.  Also, don't forget keep checking the blog for new recipes as soon as we begin meeting again next month!
Alesya & me at 2012 AFIT Holiday Ball

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Baked Chicke Taquitos

By Katelyn Fischer

3 ox cream cheese, softened
1/4 c green salsa
juice from half a lime
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp chopped onion
2 c shredded, cooked chicken
1 c shredded mexican cheese
small flour or corn tortillas
salt
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. In large bowl, mix creamcheese, salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic. Once combined, stir in cilantro and onions. Add chicken and cheese, mix thoroughly. Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave beween two paper towels until soft enough to work with. Spoon 2-3 tbsp of chicken mixture onto lower third of a tortill and roll as tightly as you can. Place rolled tortillas seam side down on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until mixture is gone. Make sure taquitos are not touching. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Can be frozen- Before baking, freeze taquitos in single layer on baking sheet for about 20 minutes. Then place in freezer bag for up to 3 months. To bake frozen taquitos- no need to thaw, bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Black Bean Salsa

By Laura Hromsco

3 Tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, finely chopped
2 Tbs parsley
1/4 cup lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground coriander

Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Macaroni Salad

By Alesya Flynn

1 lb box of Ditalini or elbow macaroni, cooked, rinsed, and drained
6 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 tablespoon minced parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper

You can also add: celery, bell pepper, onion, carrot, tomatoes, any meat.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and stir well. Add more mayonnaise if necessary. Tast and adjust seasonings. Cover and chill for several hours before serving.

Serves 8

Roasted Veggies

By Katelyn Fischer

Potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Red bell pepper
Carrots
Zucchini
Canola Oil
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut up veggies (peel sweet potatoes and potatoes if desired) into bite sized pieces.

Put on sheet pan in single layer.

Drizzle with oil and salt and pepper then toss veggies to coat

Bake for 40 minutes, stirring half way through

**I also put a few cloves of garlic whole on the pan and removed them for serving.

Low Fat Chocolate Cupcakes

By Jessica Christensen

1 cup of water
1 6-8oz fat free plain or vanilla yogurt
1 package cake mix (like Devil's Food Cake)

Mix together and bake according to package.

Better than Sex Cake


Make a chocolate cake, mix according to box directions

Poke holes all over with a toothpick

Pour a can of sweetened condensed milk all over while warm

Pour half of a regular jar of caramel or fudge over

Chill

Before serving, top with cool whip and crushed Heath or Skor bars

Nacho Cheese Ball

By Jodie Ryan

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
3 tablespoons minced onions
1 teaspoon jalapeno, minced (without seeds, unless you want it spicy, then include the seeds)
2 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons prepared salsa (your favorite kind will do)
1 nice-looking stem of a bell pepper (reserve the pepper for another use)
12 Doritos, original flavor, crushed
Black bean chips, for serving


Put all ingredients into the bowl of a mixer, and blend thoroughly. Form into a pumpkin-like shape, and refrigerate until firm, about two hours. Before serving, roll the cheese ball in crushed Doritos. Arrange the cheese ball on a plate, and press the bell pepper stem into the top — it should like a mini pumpkin stem.

Shrimp Pasta Salad

By Ophelia Dunk



Ingredients:
  1 package small pasta
  20 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined
  1 package of grape/cherry tomatoes, halved
  3 bell peppers, diced
  ¼ red onion, diced
  5 celery stalks, diced
  2 cucumbers, diced
  Any other veggie that you like, diced
  Olive oil, to taste
  Vinegar, to taste
  Salt, to taste
  Pepper, to taste

Directions:
1.      Bring water to a boil; add shrimp and return to boil; reduce heat; simmer 3-5 min.
2.      Drain shrimp well and rinse with cold water.
3.      Cook pasta according to package directions; drain; rinse with cold water; drain again.
4.      Combine shrimp, pasta, and all diced vegetables.
5.      Combine olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper to taste.
6.      Pour over pasta mixture and toss until coated.
7.      Cover salad and chill before serving.

Mini Cheesecakes

By Katelyn Fischer

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 1/2 C. graham cracker crumbs
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3 tbsp sugar

Filling:
2 lbs. cream cheese, at room temp
1 1/2 c. sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temp

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liner. Combine graham craker crumbs, sugar, and butter. Stir together with fork until all ingredients moistened. Press 1 tbsp of mixture into bottom of each liner. Bake 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

To make cheesecake, beat cream cheese on medium-high speed in bowl of stand mixer until fluffy. Blend in sugar until smooth. Mix in salt and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time, mix well after each. Spoon 3 tbsp of cheesecake batter over crust in each liner. Bake until set, about 22 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Let cool at room temp then chill in fridge for at least four hours. Serve plain or with topping.

Jalapeno Poppers

By Christina Myers



Jalapeno Poppers

18 fresh jalapeno peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
·  1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
·  1 (12 ounce) package bacon strips

Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
  2. Fill each jalapeno half with cream cheese. Wrap 1/2-1 bacon strip around each jalapeno half. Arrange wrapped jalapenos on baking sheet.
  3. Bake 12 minutes in preheated oven, or until bacon strips are crisp. Serve warm.

Homemade Pizza

By Alesya Flynn



Homemade Pizza:

1/4 ounce dry yeast
1 cup water, lukewarm
1 teaspoon sugar
3 cups bread flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup tomato puree
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese
Directions:

Dough:
In a glass or plastic bowl, combine yeast, water, and sugar (the water can just be water from the tap, make sure it's below 100°F).

Stir to dissolve the yeast and let the yeast "bloom" for 15 minutes.

Stir in 1 cup flour, add salt, and then stir in another cup of flour (the remaining cup of flour will be your "bench" flour and added flour).

Dump mixture onto kneading board and work in last cup of flour, kneading until dough is soft and elastic, but not sticky. Form dough into a ball.

In another bowl, pour in the 1 tbsp olive oil and spread around.

Coat ball of dough with oil and cover bowl with a damp towel and let dough rise for 40 minutes.

Punch down dough and knead on board about 2 minutes. Dough is now ready to spread in the pan.

To avoid sticking of crust, lightly spray pizza pan with olive oil or vegetable oil spray and then work dough to pan (or use free form pan) - this dough is enough for 1 14-in pizza with a thin bottom crust and enough dough around the edge to munch.

Sauce:

Combine pureed tomatoes, tomato paste, minced garlic, and basil.

Spread onto prepared pizza dough.

Top with sliced mozzarella cheese and bake at 500°F for 11-13 minutes.

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

By Ophelia Dunk

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Ingredients
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (an 8-ounce box isn't quite 2 cups)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stuck) butter, cut into pieces
2 1/2 cups (about 10 ounces) grated sharp Cheddar cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper


Directions
Boil the macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. In a slow cooker, combine cheese/butter mixture and add the eggs, sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Apple Gorgonzola Salad with Spiced Pecans

Apple Gorgonzola Salad with Spiced Pecans

By Christina Myers



4-6 cups lettuce or greens
1-2 apples sliced into wedges
1/2 cup craisins
1/2 cup gorgonzola crumbles
1/2 cup spiced pecans*
Raspberry vinegarette to taste

Toss ingredients together and enjoy!

*Spiced Pecans:
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
3 cups pecan halves
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Directions
    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
    2. In a small bowl beat the egg white with the water.  Stir in the pecans, mixing until well moistened.
    3. In a small bowl, mix together sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.  Sprinkle over the moistened nuts.  Spread nuts on prepared pan.
    4. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, stirring once or twice.  Be careful not to overcook and burn the nuts.Makes 6 servings