Shortbread Bars

I am a huge fan of shortbread treats. Cookies or bars, they are all delicious in my opinion. I got the idea for this recipe from the Magnolia cookbook I have. The recipe in the book is actually for Coconut Pecan Shortbread Squares. I'm not a big fan of coconut so I thought about what else goes well with pecans and decided I'd remove the coconut from the recipe and added dried cranberries, apricots, and chocolate chips. It turned out great! I also altered the dough ingredients a bit to make it a little sweeter. I'll definitely be making these again!

Crust
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into smaller pieces.
2 cups all purpose flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Topping
2 cups chopped and toasted pecans (see note)
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup dried apricots
One 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

Note: To toast the pecans, place on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the crust, in a large bowl, on the medium speed with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and flour until crumbly and well combined. Add in the sugar and vanilla, mix for about another minute. Transfer the mixture to an un-greased 13x9 pan. Using your hands, pat the crust firmly and evenly into the pan.

Sprinkle the pecans, chocolate chips, dried cranberries, and apricots over the crust. Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk on top to completely cover the toppings. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until lightly golden.

Coll to room temperature, cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to set overnight before cutting.

Delicious Ceviche

This sweet and savory meal was perfect for my lunches this past week. Mixed with some avocado, it was filling and satisfying. Definitely one I will be making again for myself. I think it would also be something good to bring or prepare for entertaining. It is simple and quick to make too which is another bonus. 

Shrimp & Pineapple Ceviche

altered from the Food Faith Fitness Blog

2 tbsp finely chopped shallot

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut

1/2 lb thawed cooked shrimp, largely chopped

1 8oz can pineapple tidbits, drained (I only used about 3/4th of the can)

1 avocado, pitted and chopped

Juice of 3 limes

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp finely minced garlic

Pepper to taste

1. In a large bowl, mix the shrimp and lime juice together. Let sit for about 20 minutes.

2. In a separate bowl, chop and combine the onion, tomato, and garlic.

3. Drain the remaining lime juice from the shrimp and add the chopped items to the shrimp.

4. Add the drained pineapple bits, salt and pepper. 

5. Wait to add the avocado just before serving so it doesn't brown. 

YUMM!!

And just like that...

And just like that, a year has passed.  A lot has happened since I submitted my last blog post. My husband and I bought our first home last winter. We have moved in and are learning what it is like to be homeowners. It is wonderful, but it is also a lot of work. Things pop up that I never even thought about before. But after being in the home for almost a year, making some of our own updates, and going through each season once, I feel like it is becoming ours.  Especially because this summer we will be welcoming our first child, our baby girl, to this home. So many images are already going through my mind of the years to come and the memories we will make in this home. I have many ideas of things I want to do with her, what I want to teach her and show her, and how I plan to spend my time with her and my husband. I might keep a running list on here just so I don’t forget any of my ideas.

Breakfast Egg Casserole

This morning I made a really good breakfast casserole for my husband and I. We had wanted to go out to eat, but we are trying to save money also. So I thought I'd put a little more effort into breakfast and make them a little more exciting. This turned out delicious and very simple. It'll definitely be something I make more often. Plus, it made a ton of food so I will bring some leftovers to work this week. I hope it tastes good reheated!!

 

Breakfast Egg Casserole

1 case of store bought, ready to bake crescent rolls

1 lb Bob Evans breakfast sausage

1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

1 cup shredded Colby Jack cheese

4 egg whites

4 eggs

1 cup milk

¼ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Start by cooking the breakfast sausage and once finished, drain any of the grease that is left over.

In the bottom of a casserole dish, place the crescent rolls so they line the bottom of the dish. Top the crescent rolls with the sausage and then the cheese. Beat together with a whisk, the egg whites, eggs, milk, Cayenne Pepper, salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the cheese in the casserole dish. Put the dish in the oven and let cook for 30-35 minutes. Enjoy!!

"Original" Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

This weekend I decided to make my own homemade Chicken Noodle Soup. I think it's probably hard to make this type of soup completely original since it's been made so many times. But, it seems like a good comfort food and a great meal for a cold winter day. So, I made some this weekend from scratch and without any assistance of another recipe. It was tasty!! 

"Original" Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

1 tablespoon of olive oil

2 tablespoons of onion, finely chopped (I prefer to use shallots)

1 teaspoon of garlic, minced

2 tablespoos of fresh rosemary, chopped

1-2 tablespoons of ginger, zested (alter amount based on preference)

4 cups chicken broth

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast (already cooked and shredded)

1 cup carrots, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 pound of egg noodles

Heat the oil on medium heat, add the onion and garlic. Stir and let cook for a minute. Add the rosemary and ginger. Stir and let cook for another minute or two. (By now, your kitchen should smell amazing)!  Add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil, add the chicken and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 7 minutes. Add the chopped vegetables, cover and let simmer for 15-20 minutes. While that is cooking, start boiling the water and cooking your egg noodles. Once the noodles are done, spoon some into a bowl. The soup should be ready to pour on top of the noodles. Enjoy!

Lunch: Radish & Cucumber Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Feta, and a Lemon-Dill Dressing

I love lunch time. During the week, I usually get one hour for lunch per day and I want to make it count. I try to make delicious meals; something that I can look forward to. It's fun for me to find new recipes, make up my own, and then prep on Sunday so that they are ready to grab and go each morning. I find this also helps prevent me from buying junk food in our cafeteria, or being tempted to go out for lunch, which lets face it gets super expensive!!! I often feel that my lunches are just as good, if not better, than what they serve and also is much healthier and not full of preservatives that are in those frozen microwave meals. 

I've been trying to find multiple ways to improve a salad. Each week I challenge myself to find some new way to make my salads for lunch delicious and not boring. So far so good. And this week, I believe, is no exception. Below is the recipe and ingredients I used this week. It could be altered in so many ways that I'm already excited to try it again in a few weeks. I borrowed some of the recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod. But was able to alter and use things that I already had in my pantry. I hope you enjoy it. 

Radish & Cucumber Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Feta, and a Lemon-Dill Dressing

Combine the following ingredients:

1/2 lb of shrimp

2 cups cooked noodles (I prefer something small: small shells, orzo, etc.)

1(15oz can) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 seedless cucumber, chopped

1/2 cup radish, sliced

1/2 cup of feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup, finely chopped onion (I prefer to use shallots)

1 tablespoon lemon zest (optional)

Dressing:

3 tablespoons of olive oil

Fresh lemon juice from 2 lemons

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

1 tablespoon of dill, finely chopped

Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Toss salad, serve as is or over a bed of lettuce or spinach. Yumm!

Homemade Crunchy Granola

Homemade Crunchy Granola

1/3 cup of Canola Oil

1/4 cup of honey

1/2 cup of granulated sugar

1/2 tablespoon of vanilla

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup crushed walnuts

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Spray one large cookie sheet with canola oil to avoid the granola from sticking to the pan. 

In a saucepan over medium-low heat, mix together the oil, honey, sugar, vanilla and salt. Stir frequently for about 4 or 5 minutes. In large bowl, combine the granola and nuts together. Once the sugar mixture is completed, pour it over and stir it in with the granola until all is coated with the sugar mixture. Finally, spread the granola mixture onto the cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes stirring occasionally. Once done cooking, remove from oven and let cool completely. 

I used chopped walnuts, but any nut (or none depending on preference) could be used. Could also incorporate dried fruits. I put mine in with some plain non fat greek yogurt that I stirred honey in with to make it sweeter. Also with the parfait, I added a layer of lemon curd. I'm excited to try this for breakfast tomorrow morning. I had a little parfait for a snack today and incorporated a little cinnamon and fresh cut pears and it was delicious!