Mac n' Cheese bites!

These are little bites of cheesey goodness! I stumbled upon this recipe when I was making a regular mac and cheese dish, and thought it would be so much easier if you could have bite size pieces of this and it hit me! So I got out my mini cupcake pan, and it worked! I've made this a couple of times and it's always been a hit! You can always make it to your taste too! I've made American, Italian and Mexican versions of this, and the best part it's so easy to make! Try these at your next dinner or party event and I promise they won't disappoint!

Ingredients
3/4 cup of milk
1 1/2 cup of cubed velveeta
1/2 box mini penne pasta (or your favorite mini pasta)
1/2 TSP salt
1/4 TSP black pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs or crushed crackers

Italian                                                                               Mexican
2 TBSP chopped basil                                                      3-4 TBSP chopped cilantro
3-4 TBSP finely chopped sun dried tomato                     1/2 can of rotel
1/3 cup mixed italian cheese                                            1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350
- Boil pasta in salty, boiling water til it is perfectly al dente. Drain. Rinse in cold water and set aside.
- In a small pan heat milk, when it's just about to come to a boil add velveeta cubes. Mix until smooth. Cheese mixture should have a queso consistency. (if cheese mixture is too thick add a little milk, if mixture is too thin add more velveeta).
- Add salt, pepper and ingredients from your favorite variation. Mix.
- Add cooked pasta to cheese mixture and mix until pasta is completed coated with cheese.
- In a mini cupcake pan, spray non stick oil and sprinkle some breadcrumbs into each cup.
- Spoon pasta mixture into the cups and top with breadcrumbs and cheese.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until cheese is golden and bubbly ontop.
- Let tray stand for a ten minutes before removing the mac n' cheese bites.
- Enjoy!

Serving size- yields about 24-30 mini mac n' cheese bites

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Mixed Daal (Mixed Lentil Soup)

Today's recipe is one of my favorite go to recipes because it's simple, fast, and easy to make.  After a long day of work, I typically try to cook something hearty, delicious, and doesn't require a lot of time (and of course, good for you).  A lot of times, on my drive home, I tend to call my mother and ask her for ideas on what to make for dinner.  This particular dish is her recipe that she was nice enough to share with me.  Thank you mom! :)

Ingredients:
1 cup Mixed Daal Lentils or equal parts chana daal (split bengal lentils), yellow moog daal (split yellow lentils), & masoor daal (split red lentils)*
1 TBSP EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1.5 tsp whole cumin
2.5 tsp green chili & ginger paste (I blended a serrano pepper & about 1.5 inches of ginger together)
1 tsp turmeric
2-3 small dried bay leaves
Handful of fresh spinach leaves
2.5 tsp lemon juice
1.5 tsp cumin & coriander powder mix
2 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
A little less than 1/2 tsp garam masala

Directions:
Wash lentils with warm water until the water turns clear.
Presoak lentils in hot water for 30 minutes.
In a pressure cooker, heat EVOO, and add cumin. 
After a minute or so (you will smell the cumin roasting), add curry leaves and the chili & ginger mixture.  
Add tomatoes, stir, and cook for about 2 minutes.
Add in the presoaked lentils and about a cup and a half of water (you should have equal parts water and lentils).
Stir in the turmeric, salt, & spinach.
Close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for about 10-15 minutes.
After the cooker has cooled down (you can speed up the cooling process but placing the cooking in the sink and running cold water on top), open the lid and mix in the remaining ingredients.
Simmer for another 10 minutes
Enjoy with wheat tortillas and/or rice!

*The local Indian grocery store I shop at sells a prepacked bag called "Mixed Daal" which contains all of these lentils; however, they can be purchased separately at Whole Foods.

   

Greek Salad & Vinaigrette

I am ALWAYS on the hunt for new flavorful foods! This greek salad is my new addiction! I made this a few weeks ago, and now I can’t stop! It's cool, crisp and bold, all, which are perfect for summer! It’s super versatile too, you can have it as a light lunch or snack, or build it up and have it as a meal. I usually make the dressing in bulk and keep it in the fridge for whenever I want some next. This is a really great dish to make if you're going to a pot-luck, hosting a dinner or even when you get home and just don’t feel like cooking! Have it with some soup or pita chips and enjoy! Bon apetit, or Kali Orexi as the Greeks would say!

Salad Ingredients
  -  2-3 cups chopped mixed greens (I like baby spinach and romaine lettuce)
  - 1/3 cup cucumbers- sliced and quartered
  - 4 kalamata olives pitted and sliced (regular olives are fine too)
  - 6-8 cherry tomatoes halved
  - 2 TBSP crumbled feta
  - 1/3 cup cooked whole wheat pasta
  - 3 mini sweet peppers diced into 1 inch cubes

Vinaigrette Ingredients 

   - 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil 

   - 1/4 cup of red wine or balsamic vinegar

   - 1/4 TSP of salt

   - 1/4TSP pepper 

   -  2 TSP honey 

   - 1 TSP fresh oregano 

   - 1/4 TSP red pepper flakes

Directions

- Combine all of the salad ingredients in a medium sized bowl and toss.

- In a small bowl combine vinegar, salt, honey, pepper, red pepper flakes, oregano and mix.

- slowly whisk in the olive oil until the vinaigrette is fully combined.

- Drizzle 2-3 TBSP of the vinaigrette on the salad and mix until well coated.

- Top with some fresh cracked black pepper.
- Store extra vinaigrette in the fridge.

     Seving Size 

     - This salad makes one large dinner salad or two side salads. 
     
Substitutions                                                                  Additions
 -  Sugar for honey                                                          - Add 1/3 cup chick peas for extra protein
 - Medium sized tomato for cherry tomatoes              - Crumble some pita chips for crunch
 - 1/3 cup diced red bell pepper for mini peppers
    

Chunky Jalapeno Hummus

Living in Texas, jalapenos & peppers might as well be a whole different food group because we add them to EVERYTHING!!!  In our house, we always have a stock of hummus so that we can eat it with fresh veggies or pita chips.  What you may not realize is that a lot of the store bought hummus is very fatty since it contains tahini.  However, with my recipe, the flavor of the tahini is replaced with the spicy flavor of jalapenos.  I also like my hummus to have more of a coarse texture as it holds better on the veggies.  Hope y'all enjoy it as much as we do in our home! =)

Ingredients:
1 can chick peas (you can also use fresh boiled)
1/3 cup EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
Juice of half a lemon
About 10 slices of pickled jalapenos
4 TBSP jalapeno juice (from the bottle of jalapenos)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste

Directions:
Wash the chick peas thoroughly
In a food processor (or blender), combine chick peas, lemon juice, salt, pepper, jalapenos, & jalapeno juice
Pulse/ Blend until all ingredients are mixed well
Stream in EVOO until you reach desired consistency
Enjoy with fresh bell peppers, baby carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes, and/ or pita chips!

Happy July 4th!

Let's salute all of the brave  souls that fought and served for the pride and peace of our nation!
Hope everybody has an amazing day with friends, family and loved ones! Be safe! Happy 4th of July y'all!

English Scones

With the Olympics around the corner, and the Queen celebrating the diamond Jubilee, I felt it was appropriate to post a recipe from my home town- London! So, usually when most people think of food and England the first thing that comes to mind is tea, crumpets, scones and delicate sandwiches. All of these items are yummy, but English scones is one of the things that I miss over here in the States. Now English scones are different from the scones you get here in the U.S. English scones are not very sweet, usually have some dried fruit and served traditionally with jam and clotted cream (As they're not very sweet, I recommend eating the scones with a sweet and tart jam/preserve and a little butter). I used fresh blueberries in this batch, and though it tastes good, the blueberries burst in the oven and start to bleed so I would definitely stick to dried fruit! So while you're watching the London Olympics whip up a batch of these, pair with some earl grey and enjoy! :)

Recipe
1-2/3 cup of all purpose flour
1/2 TSP salt
1/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 TSP baking powder
1/2 cup your favorite dried fruit
4 TBSP cold butter cubed.

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Sift all of the dry ingredients together.
- With two forks or a pastry cutter, cut butter into flour until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add dried fruit and mix.
- Add buttermilk and mix with a wooden spoon or spatula (it should come together easily)
- Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, pressing lightly with your hands form a disk and saran wrap the dough. Place in fridge for at least an hour.
- After you have chilled the dough, on a lightly floured surface - roll out dough so it's 1-1/2 inch thick.
- use a cookie cutter/biscuit cutter to mold your scones, and place on a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper.
- brush each scone lightly with milk
- Bake for about 12-14 minutes (oven times will vary) or until it is lightly browned on the top.
- Serve warm with your favorite jam!

Makes approximately 20 (2-1/2 inch) scones

Serving suggestion
- serve with your favorite jam
- Serve with butter or some sweetened fresh whipping cream.