Hummus and Homemade Pita Chips

Monday is my 30th birthday. Yep. 30. That being said, I wanted to put a little extra effort into celebrating this year. So I decided to have a small 30th birthday party for myself (with the help of my fiance Rich) at my house. And since I absolutely love Greek food that was my catering of choice. Only problem is that throwing a small party on a budget when you decide to cater the meal is quite difficult - especially in NY. What I ended up doing was ordering the large staple items from the caterer and made the rest myself (i.e. Hummus and Pita chips).

An order of hummus at the particular greek restaurant I chose was $22 and who knows if that even included pita! Two (2) cans of garbanzo beans at $0.75 each cost me only $1.50, 2 packs of whole wheat pita bread at $0.99 each, and a container of Tahini ($5) brings my total to $8.50 for this delicious appetizer. That's a savings of $13.50! Of course I had the rest of the ingredients in my pantry.

Making hummus and pita chips is super easy. If you don't have a food processor you can always use a blender. And you can totally get creative with the seasoning you put on your chips. I like to keep it simple with a sprinkle of salt, pepper and garlic powder. For sure these will be a big hit tomorrow at my party.

Homemade Hummus

makes 8 servings - prep time: 15 minutes - cook time: none

Ingredients:

• 2 (15 oz) cans of Garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• 1/4 liquid from can of chickpeas
• 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons of Tahini (sesame seed paste)
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic (2 cloves)
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• dash of paprika and olive oil

Instructions:

1. Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid for later use.
2. Combine ingredients in a blender of food processor. Add 1/4 cup of liquid from chickpeas and blend until smooth and thoroughly mixed.
3. Place in a serving bowl. Garnish with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on top and a dash of paprika.
4. Serve with homemade pita chips.
5. Store in refrigerator covered for up to 2 weeks.

Baked Whole Grain Pita Chips

makes 4-6 servings - prep time: 10 minutes - cook time: 14 min.

Ingredients: 

• 4 pitas, whole wheat or white
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• dash of pepper
• dash of salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. Stack pitas and cut in half. Cut in half again and then in half again so that you get small chips.
3. Place pita slices on baking sheet so they are not overlapping. Pour olive oil over the top. Then mix the pita slices around with your hands making sure each chip is coated with oil.
4. Sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder on top and mix again with your hands to make sure each chip is seasoned.
5. Bake for 7 minutes. Remove pan and flip each chip. Bake for another 7 minutes. Let cool on tray for 10 minutes before serving.
6. Store in airtight container.

Peanutty Squares, Chewy Almond Sugar Cookies and a Happy New Year

Happy New Year! Well, it's 2013 and I'm feeling great! This year we were invited to our friend Diana and Vin's house for dinner and to celebrate ringing in the new year. I had never been to a dinner party before and I didn't want to go empty handed. So I spent the day preparing food and desserts to bring along. I made Smoked London Broil in the slow cooker, Chex Peanutty Squares, and Chewy Almond Sugar Cookies.

My girlfriend Diana asked if we liked Penne a la Vodka so I assumed that is what she was cooking. Rich and I are meat people so I opted for slow cooking a big piece of beef using my Smoked Flank Steak recipe, although instead I used a large slab of London Broil. Because the London Broil was quite a bit thicker than the flank steaks I generally use, I cooked it for longer, a total of 8.5 hours. It was just as good as the flank, if not better. Moist and tender, falling apart to the touch.

I also brought a salad because I knew that Rich and I would want some kind of vegetable for dinner and the rest of the Italians attending probably would not eat it (or bring one). I was right.

For dessert I wanted to bake something from scratch but I also wanted to use items I had in my kitchen pantry. My family was visiting for the holidays and eat Corn Chex cereal for breakfast, so I had this huge box of Corn Chex. I went with this recipe by General Mills for Peanutty Squares. The only thing I changed was that I used Brown Rice Syrup instead of Corn Syrup (because that's what I had in my pantry), and I used Smart Balance Peanut Butter instead of a sugar-filled peanut butter because again, that's what I had in my pantry. They turned out amazing and were a hit at the party. Rich particularly loved them as well as Diana's husband Vin.

I also wanted to make some cookies - particularly a sugar cookie. I'm not one for hard cookies so I searched the internets for a chewy sugar cookie recipe. I came across this recipe from a blog called Confections from the Cody Kitchen and decided to give it a go. Let me just say that all the hard work paid off for these cookies. Chewy Almond Sugar Cookies are the best cookies I have ever made from scratch in my entire life. I could not stop eating them.

p.s. I made no substitutions and followed the recipe as is.

The recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of dough per cookie. I used 1 tablespoon of dough which made for a much larger cookie. Because of this I had to increase the time baked. If I were to make these again I would go with smaller cookies. I think they would have been easier to manage out of the oven. However, it takes much longer to portion out smaller cookies.

I also decided to roll mine in colored sugar instead of raw sugar that the recipe called for. Not for any reason other than to provide a more festive look to the cookie.

The first batch was slightly overcooked with a total of 19 minutes in the oven. The second batch turned out perfect at 15-16 minutes for the larger cookies.

These cookies are crunchy on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside with the perfect hint of almond. Warning: addictive behavior may follow suit.

What I learned from this year's celebration? Other people besides Rich actually like my cooking and baking, and that I can multitask for a dinner party successfully. Last night's dinner was a great start to a brand new year. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes up next.

Here's to a happy and healthy new year! I hope that you join me for 2013 and beyond!

What's your favorite recipe to bring to a dinner party?

Crock Pot Beer Chicken

Merry Christmas Everyone! Today is an exciting day. I'm going to be celebrating the holiday with my fiance's family at his mother's home not far from here. It's only my second Christmas with Richie and his family and I think it's going to be a lot of fun. Then again, why wouldn't it be fun?! There's lots of presents...and who doesn't like presents. Not this girl. Thought I'd start today off with a recipe for Beer Chicken in the Crock Pot. I'm not a huge fan of beer, personally I'd prefer hard apple cider, but I decided to give this a go. Surprisingly, the chicken did taste like beer, though the house smelled amazing and NOT particularly like beer. Now that I think of it, next time I'll try using hard apple cider instead of beer. Don't get me wrong, beer chicken is delicious and when you cook it in the slow cooker, it's super tender and moist. If it were cooked on the bone it would fall right off, that's how tender it was.

The best thing about a Crock Pot is how simple it is to make a large yummy meal. Set it and forget it! Remember that infomercial? Ugh, I'm getting old (more on that later). So here it is, Crock Pot Beer Chicken using whatever kind of beer you'd like. I used Red Hook's Nut Brown beer which is part of their seasonal series to which I no longer see on their website - it's all we had in the house. It's a great beer nonetheless if you are the beer drinking type. But by all means, try whichever type of beer you have, or better yet, use something else entirely other than beer. Anywho, here's the recipe:

Crockpot Beer Chicken

makes 4-6 servings - prep time: 5 minutes - cook time: 6.5 hrs

Ingredients:

• 4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 bottle (or can) of beer
• 1 teaspoon powdered garlic
• 1 teaspoon basil
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon kosher sea salt
• 1 teaspoon onion powder

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients in Crock Pot
2. Add chicken in one layer, nestle in to liquid
3. Set on low and cook for 6-8 hours or until tender

Crock Pot Smoked Flank Steak

The only thing I regret about this recipe is the fact that I completely failed at taking attractive photos of it. Steak is a favorite in my house and when this sucker came out of the crock pot, Rich and I couldn't wait to get our hands on it. So much so that we ate most of it before I realized I hadn't yet taken any photos for my blog! I ended up taking photos of what was left on the cutting board. I think it demonstrates how tender the meat was. (wishful thinking?)

Attractive photo or not, this recipe is a fail-proof crowd pleaser that melts in your mouth. It's smoking without the smoker! All you need is a crock pot, a few simple ingredients and time to let it cook. Low and slow is the way to go! lol

Crockpot Smoked Flank Steak

makes 4-6 servings - prep time: 10 minutes - cook time: 6.5 hrs

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/4 cup liquid smoke
• 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 lbs grass fed Flank Steak (or smaller if you have a smaller crock pot)
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil

Instructions:

1. Pour olive oil into heated pan on stove top. Sear meat for 2-3 minutes on each side.
2. Place all ingredients (excluding meat) in Crock Pot and stir well.
3. Settle seared meat into the mixture in the Crock Pot making sure your steak is well immersed in the sauce.
4. Set Crock Pot on low heat and cook for 6-8 hours.
5. Remove and slice against the grain.

Crock Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken

After surfing the web for barbeque chicken recipes for the slow cooker and not finding anything that didn't call for bottled barbeque sauce, I decided to create my own. This recipe is super simple. Mix all ingredients in the crock pot itself. Add your chicken breasts and try to keep them as one layer. Cook for 6-8 hours or until your chicken falls apart easily. Shred with 2 forks and drizzle with leftover sauce.

For my first attempt at chicken in the crock pot I give myself an A+! Crock Pot Pulled BBQ Chicken was juicy and tender and definitely tasted like barbeque. I left out the cayenne pepper because my fiance is not a fan of spicy food, but next time I think I'll throw it in for a bit of a kick.  Enjoy!

Crockpot Pulled BBQ Chicken

makes 6-8 servings - prep time: 5 minutes - cook time: 6.5 hrs

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon ground mustard
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Truvia/Sugar blend
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon ground cayenne pepper (optional)
• 4-6 chicken breasts

Instructions:

1. Add all ingredients to the crock pot. Stir well.
2. Place chicken breasts in the bottom of the pan aligning them in one layer. Cover the crock pot and set on low heat for 6-8 hours.
3. After 4 hours have passed, flip the chicken over but be sure they remain as one single layer.
4. The chicken is done cooking if it pulls apart easily with a fork.
5. Put all cooked chicken in to a bowl. With two forks pull apart the chicken. Top with sauce that it was cooked in.

Clean Apple Pie with Gluten Free Crust by Oxygen Magazine

One of my favorite fitness magazines of all time is Robert Kennedy Publishing's Oxygen Magazine. It's always loaded with great workouts, useful tips and delicious recipes. When the December 2012 issue showed up in my mailbox, I was excited to see what was inside. This month I found a recipe for Apple Pie developed by Tosca Reno. Since I was planning to make a big dinner for Hanukkah, I thought an apple pie would be the perfect dessert. The last time I made an apple pie from scratch was when I was in college. There was a food prep class I had to take and one of our projects was to make something for the class that was cultural. My partner and I chose apple pie with vanilla ice cream to represent American culture. It was a big hit! However, it was also double or triple the calories of Tosca's apple pie.

It took me about 30 minutes to prep the pie between peeling, coring and slicing all of the apples, making the pie crust and pressing it in to the pan. I ended up doubling the pie crust because it seemed to be not enough dough for my pan and I wanted the crusty edge that was shown in the magazine photo. I also decided to add a crumble to the top of my pie using Cinnamon Oat Clusters with Flaxseeds KIND Granola. For the apples, I used McIntosh apples because that was the best baking apple I could find in the store on that day. Since I used McIntosh apples I decided to cut the apple slices a bit thicker to keep them from turning to mush.

The pie was amazing to say the least. It tasted just like apple pie and the crust, surprisingly tasted just like a pie crust even though it was made with absolutely no grains (only Almond flour). It was warm and satisfying, perfect for a holiday celebration on a cool winter night.

Clean Eating Apple Pie

makes 8 servings - prep time: 30 minutes - cook time: 45 min.

Ingredients:

• Pie Crust
• 2 cups almond four
• 1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
• 1 whole egg
• Zest of 1 lemon
   
• Pie Filling
• 3 lb tart, crisp baking apples
• 3 tablespoons almond flour
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon each ground cloves, nutmeg, allspice
• 2 tablespoons light, unsalted butter, chilled and diced
• 1/2 cup honey

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place almond flour and sea salt in a food processor, pulse to combine (can also use a hand mixer or blender), then add wet ingredients and zest, and blend until a ball of dough is formed.
2. Press into a 9" pie plate, cover with a damp cloth and set aside.
3. Fill a large bowl with cold water and add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
4. Peel, core and slice apples one at a time, and drop them into the lemon water. This will keep them from turning brown.
5. Once apples are soaking, drain water from the bowl and pat dry with a clean cloth.
6. Add remaining ingredients, including remaining tablespoons of lemon juice, to apples and toss well to combine.
7. Pour mixture into pie crust and bake 45 to 55 minutes, until the crust is golden and the mixture is bubbling on top.
8. Remove and let cool for 1 hour before serving.
9. Optional: top with granola 35 to 40 minutes into the baking process.

Sweet Potato Latkes

sweet-potato-latkes

This year is my second year celebrating Hanukkah with Rich. Last year we didn't live together so I didn't get to share some of the traditions that my family has brought me up with. One of those traditions is that for at least one night of Hanukkah my mom will cook a big dinner, and special on the menu is Latkes.

Latkes are potato pancakes fried in oil to recognize the ancient oil (only enough for one day) that burned for 8 days. Thus the reason there are 8 days of Hanukkah.

Now that we're living together, now is the perfect time to start making our own traditions. So tonight I'm making a big dinner consisting of Beef Brisket (in the slow cooker that I got last night for Hanukkah), Sweet Potato Latkes, and steamed green beans. For dessert I'm making a low(er) calorie Apple Pie straight from the December 2012 issue of Oxygen Magazine. I'll let you know how that one goes too.

I'm making my latkes with sweet potatoes to up the nutrition factor and will fry them in Coconut Oil instead of Shortening.

Sweet Potato Latkes are great for any dinner and would be delicious for breakfast with a fried egg on top and some turkey bacon on the side.

Sweet Potato Latkes, Beef Brisket and Steamed Green Beans

Update: dinner was delish! And the Sweet Potato Latkes were a big hit. They were soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside with a mildly sweet center and a hint of coconut. I served them with apple sauce but they were perfect by themselves. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Latkes

Sweet Potato Latkes

Prep time: 90 minutes - Cook time: 10-20 minutes - makes 12 Latkes

Ingredients: - 2 medium sweet potatoes, grated - 1 medium onion, diced - 2 eggs, beaten - 1 tablespoon whole wheat flour - 1 teaspoon sea salt - pinch of pepper - spoonful of coconut oil

Directions:

Peel potatoes and onion; soak for 1 hour in a bowl of water in the refrigerator.

Remove potatoes and onion from water. Grate potatoes and drain excess juice. Dice the onion and add to sweet potatoes. Add eggs, flour, salt and pepper to the mixture; mix well.

In a large skillet, melt a spoonful of coconut oil on medium heat. Form pancakes using a spoonful of batter, fry on both sides for 3-5 minutes until golden brown and crispy. Serve with applesauce or cinnamon butter.

What's your favorite way to remake family tradition favorites?

Pumpkin Pie Dump Cake

Pumpkin Pie Cake is a hybrid cake-pie. Don't be afraid of the fact that you don't actually use the cake mix as directed on the box, but instead sprinkle the powdered cake mix on top of the pumpkin pie filling. I can't take credit for this incredible recipe - my little sister brought it home from her early childhood development class when she was in high school. What I learned from this recipe is - don't judge a dessert by it's recipe! This is one of the best pumpkin desserts of I've tasted and I it has been too long since I've had it last.

Warning: this recipe is not healthy what-so-ever...but it is so delicious! In fact, I'm not going to even attempt to calculate the nutritional profile. Desserts like this one I'd just rather not know.

Have you ever tried an odd dessert recipe like Pumpkin Pie cake?

Pumpkin Pie Dump Cake

Prep time: 20 min. - bake time: 70 minutes - makes 12 servings

Wet Ingredients: 4 eggs 1 - 15 ounce can of Pumpkin 3 cups evaporated milk 16 ounces of margarine (2 sticks)

Dry Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup sugar 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon ginger 1 teaspoon cloves 1 package of yellow cake mix 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional - I left these out because my Dad doesn't like nuts)

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9" x 13" cake pan. Beat eggs by hand or with a mixer. Add pumpkin, sugar, spices, and evaporated milk. Put the mixture in to the cake pan. Sprinkle the cake mix on top. Melt margarine in saucepan or microwave. Drizzle the melted margarine over the entire pie cake. Sprinkle with nuts if desired. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Let cool and enjoy. Can serve at room temperature or cold.

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