Risotto with Butternut Squash, Leeks, and Basil

This is a long over due recipe. I made it right after Thanksgiving and I didn't get a chance to post until now. I made turkey stock with my left over Thanksgiving turkey and also saved some of the turkey meat. I used the turkey stock in place of the vegetable broth and also added some of the turkey meat. We ordered the smoke turkey from Greenberg Smoked Turkey. I loved that the turkey stock and the meat give the risotto a smoky flavor.

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cups 1/2-inch cubes peeled butternut squash (from 2 1/4 pounds squash)
3 cups 1/2-inch-wide slices leeks (white and pale green parts only)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 cups arborio rice
4 14-ounce cans (or more) vegetable broth
1 cup chopped fresh basil
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus additional (for serving)

Direction: 
1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add squash and sauté until beginning to soften and brown around edges, about 5 minutes. Transfer squash to medium bowl.
2. Reduce heat to medium; add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, leeks, and thyme to same pot and stir until tender but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add rice and stir 1 minute. Add 1 cup broth and simmer until absorbed, stirring frequently, 3 to 4 minutes. Add remaining broth by 1/2 cupfuls, allowing each addition to be absorbed before adding next, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Return squash to pot. Continue to cook until rice is just tender but still very creamy, stirring gently and often, about 10 minutes longer (about 25 minutes total cooking time). Remove from heat. Stir in basil and 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to large bowl and serve with additional Parmesan cheese.

Quick Greek Couscous with Shrimp

This is a very simple weekday dinner recipe. To spice things up a little you can put some paprika on to the shrimp and grill it. I used whole wheat couscous for this recipe. You can find whole wheat couscous from most grocery stores.

Ingredients:
1 1/2  cups water
1 1/3  cups  uncooked couscous
3/8  teaspoon salt, divided
1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
3  tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2  pounds  peeled and deveined medium shrimp
1  cup  grape tomatoes, halved
1/2  cup  thinly sliced green onions
1/3  cup  pitted kalamata olives, halved
1/4  cup  2% reduced-fat Greek-style plain yogurt

Directions:
1. Bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add couscous, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to pan. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to pan; swirl to coat. Sprinkle shrimp with remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt. Add shrimp to pan, and sauté for 3 minutes or until done. Add shrimp to couscous mixture.
3. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons oil, tomatoes, onions, and olives in a large bowl; toss. Add tomato mixture to couscous mixture; toss to combine. Serve with yogurt.

Orange Aioli Chicken Sandwich

I had to try this recipe when I found it in cooking light. The whole wheat Oroweat Sandwich Thins seems like a great idea. These thin buns are light, somewhat pillowy but not a waste of space like Wonder Bread. They are whole grain, do not have any high fructose corn syrup, are very low fat, and best of all, each bun is just 100 calories (the typical calorie count for one slice of bread is 90, so you're getting a complete bun for the cost of one slice of bread)!

Ingredients:
Citrus Mayonnaise:
1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
4  tablespoons orange juice
1  teaspoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon hot sauce

Sandwiches:
4 chicken breasts
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
4  Oroweat Sandwich Thins
4  small romaine lettuce leaves
2  plum tomatoes, each cut lengthwise into 4 slices
1  peeled avocado, cut into 8 wedges
Cooking spray

Directions:
1. To prepare citrus mayonnaise, combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl.
2. To prepare the sandwiches, sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat; add chicken. Cook 5 minutes on each side. Reduce heat to low. Cover; cook 5 minutes or until done. Remove from heat. Cut chicken diagonally across 
grain into thin slices.
3. Spread 1 tablespoon citrus mayonnaise on each of 4 Oroweat Sandwich Thins halves. Top with 1 lettuce leaf, 1 chicken breast, 2 tomato slices, 2 avocado wedges, and close. 

Kale Chips

Why didn't I know about this recipe before! I would make this all the time! These are a low calorie nutritious snack. Like potato chips, you cannot stop at just eating one.

Ingredients:
1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon seasoned salt


Directions:
1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a non insulated cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces. 
3. Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning salt.
Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, 10 to 15 minutes.

Tortellini with Italian Sausage, Fennel, and Mushrooms

I can't wait to eat my left over for lunch tomorrow. I just tried this new tortellini recipe tonight and I love it. It's got so many things I like in it. If you don't like fennel you can substitute with an onion. Also here is quick tip, to crush the fennel seeds, enclose the seeds in a heavy-duty resealable plastic bag, then pound them with a meat mallet or a small heavy skillet. Here is how you make it...

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed, halved through core, thinly sliced lengthwise (about 3 cups), fronds chopped
1 pound spicy Italian sausages, casings removed, sausage coarsely crumbled
1 8-ounce package sliced fresh crimini (baby bella) mushrooms
4 large garlic cloves, pressed
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, coarsely crushed
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup (or more) low-salt chicken broth
1 16-ounce package dried tortellini with pesto filling or fresh tortellini with 3-cheese filling
1 5-ounce package fresh baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese plus additional (for serving)

Directions:
1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced fennel bulb, sausage, and mushrooms; sauté until sausage is brown and cooked through and fennel is almost tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Add garlic and fennel seeds; stir 1 minute. Stir in cream, then 1 cup broth; boil until liquid is reduced and very slightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cook tortellini in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain tortellini; return to same pot.
3. Add sausage mixture to tortellini in pot. Toss over medium heat until blended. Add spinach; toss gently until spinach wilts. Stir in 1/2 cup cheese; add more broth by 1/4 cupfuls to moisten if dry. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with chopped fennel fronds, and serve, passing additional cheese.

Mixed Lettuce, Pear, and Goat Cheese Salad with Citrus Dressing

This is my fist post in a while. I been trying out new recipes but I haven't post them on here. I going to try to post all of my back logged recipes this month.

I found a great salad recipe this month. I just love the light citrus dressing and the sweetness of the pear. I make it all the time for lunch. 

Ingredients:

Dressing:

1  tablespoon  finely chopped shallots

1  teaspoon  Dijon mustard

1/4  cup orange juice

4  teaspoons lemon juice

1/4  teaspoon  kosher salt

1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

4  teaspoons  extra-virgin olive oil

Salad:

2  tablespoons  fresh orange juice

2  firm ripe Bosc pears, cored and thinly sliced

6  cups  mixed baby lettuces

3/4  cup  (3 ounces) crumbled goat cheese

Directions:

1. To prepare dressing, combine shallots and mustard in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Stir in 1/4 cup orange juice and next 3 ingredients (through pepper). Gradually add oil, stirring constantly with a whisk.

2. To prepare salad, combine 2 tablespoons orange juice and pears, tossing to coat. Combine lettuces in a large bowl. Drizzle with dressing; toss gently to coat. Arrange about 1 cup lettuce mixture on each of 8 salad plates. Top each serving with about 1/4 cup pear and 1 1/2 tablespoons cheese. 

Multi Grain Pasta with Butternut Squash

This is my take on the Multi Grain Pasta with Butternut Squash recipe from Bon Appetit. The original recipe called for ground lamb and also Kasseri cheese. I was not able to find them from my local Safeway. The recipe still turned out very flavorful.

Ingredients:
1/4 butternut squash cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces ground beef
2 cups chopped onions
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes with added puree (from 28-ounce can)
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
8 ounces multi-grain penne pasta
1/2 cup grated cheese

Directions:
1. Cut whole squash into 4 pieces. Place the squash on a plate and microwave it on high for 6 minutes until the squash is tender. Cut 1/4 of the squash into small cubes.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and onions; saute until beef browns and onions soften, 7 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and next 3 ingredients; stir 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, then broth and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce heat; simmer until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Stir in squash. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Return pasta to pot. Add beef mixture and cheese; toss. Add reserved cooking liquid by 1/3 cupfuls to moisten. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer pasta to bowl and sprinkle with remaining cheese.