Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

It's a new year, which means we are trying to be more healthy in our cooking. My goal this year is to find recipes that we can add into to our normal cooking routine. I don't want to just have healthy recipes that I use for the next two months and then never use them again.

Through my research I have discovered that cauliflower needs to a part of my weekly shopping list. There are quite a few recipes where you can utilize cauliflower in place of other carbs.

Ingredients
1 medium head cauliflower
3 Tablespoons Plain Greek Yogurt (or you can use cream cheese)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon straight chicken base or bullion
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions
Set a stockpot of water to boil over high heat.

Clean and cut cauliflower into small pieces. Cook in boiling water for about 6 minutes, or until well done. Drain well; do not let cool and pat cooked cauliflower very dry between several layers of paper towels.

In a bowl with an immersion blender, or in a food processor, puree the hot cauliflower with the yogurt, Parmesan, garlic, chicken base, and pepper until almost smooth.

The texture will be creamier than mashed potatoes. If it is too creamy, you can add a few teaspoons of corn starch or flour.

Thanskgiving Roast Turkey

I am not a huge fan of turkey, but as Ian and started researching how to make the best turkey four years ago we watched countless food network episodes and browsed the 100+ recipes on epicurious we felt overwhelmed. By chance an Alton Brown, Good Eats, episode came on that explained the scientific process on utilizing a brine for a turkey. It caught our attention and we decided to try it.

We are never going back. Every year we buy a new home depot 5 gallon bucket, and brine our bird.

Ingredients
1 (14 to 16 pound) young turkey - thawed
For the brine:
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 gallon heavily iced water

For the aromatics:
1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves sage
Canola oil

At least 24 hours before you want to cook the bird:

Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar and peppercorns, in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.

Combine the brine, water and ice in the 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area for 8 to 24 hours, turning the bird once half way through brining.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.

Place the bird on roasting rack inside a half sheet pan and pat dry with paper towels.

Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add steeped aromatics to the turkey's cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with canola oil.

Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes. After the first 30 minutes is complete, cover the breast of the bird with aluminum foil. Insert a probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Set the thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil for 15 minutes before carving.

Carolyn’s Southwestern Chicken Stew

In preparation for my new job, I made a few batches of soup to have for lunches and dinner. One of my all-time favorite stews that my mom use to make for me is below. As kids, we use to always think it was called South Carolina Western Stew... no matter what the name is, it is comfort soup great for cold fall and winter days.

3 lbs chicken pieces, skinned boned, fat removed
All – purpose flour
¼ cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons minced garlic
3 14 ½ ounce cans chicken broth
1 14 ½ ounce cans Whole Tomatoes, undrained
1 (6 ounce) Can Tomatoes Paste
16 pearl onions
1 ¼ teaspoon cumin
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
8-ounce kielbasa or smoked sausage, sliced
2 cups new potatoes, chopped
2 cups carrots, chopped
2 cups zucchini, chopped
2 cups yellow squash, chopped
1 (8 ¾ ounce) can corn
Chopped Cilantro

In a bag, coat chicken with ¼ cup flour. Brown chicken in Dutch oven in hot oil; remove and set aside. Drain drippings, except 1 teaspoon from pot. Sauté 1 Tablespoon flour and 2 Tablespoons minced garlic in drippings 30 seconds. Stir in next 10 ingredients starting with chicken broth and ending with red pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered, 20 minutes. Add chicken and Kielbasa, cover and simmer 20 minutes longer. Skim excess fat. Add vegetables, simmer, covered 30 minutes longer. Sprinkle with cilantro before serving. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Notes: Great to freeze and eat later.

Fettucine Alfredo

I am trying to get back into a cooking kick and my co-worker brought in a new healthy cookbook. I tried the Alfredo sauce recipe last night and thought it was pretty good. A little more bitter than regular Alfredo, so I added a small bit of sugar to balance it out. I also added more cornstarch and chicken broth to make a larger batch of sauce.

Ingredients
8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
pinch of ground nutmeg
1 (14.5ox) can low fat, low sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
3/4 cup Greek yogurt
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettuccine and cook according to the package directions, 9-11 minutes; drain
2. While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter and oil in a large nonstick saute pan over medium head. Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, about 2 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, combine the cornstarch and nutmeg in a small bowl. Whisk in the chicken broth until smooth. Pour the mixture into the saute pan, raise the heat and bring sauce to a simmer. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the cheese until it has melted. Remove the saute pan from the heat and whisk in the yogurt until the sauce is smooth. (add sugar and cayenne to taste)
4. In a large bowl, toss the cooked fettuccine with the Alfredo sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top the pasta with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese and serve.

I just sauted some chicken in wine and tomatoes to top the pasta. Overall the recipe is a keeper and since it doesn't use any cream, I may be able to serve it for Heather and not cause issues for her allergies.

Quick Pigs in a Blanket Casserole

My mother-in-law made this for Alison and Doug's wedding weekend. It was a big hit, and gives all the flavor in a traditional "pigs in a blanket" but is much easier. I made a big batch for dinner last night, and since it was just Ian and I, we have lots of leftovers.

Ingredients
3 cups chopped cabbage
1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons uncooked rice
1 can tomato soup
1 can water
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

Brown ground beef and onion with salt and pepper. Add tomato soup, rice, Worcestershire Sauce, sugar and water. Simmer 10 minutes. Pour over cabbage in a 2-quart casserole. Don't stir. Cover; bake covered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Super Salsa

My Super Salsa kit from Good Apples was still packaged in the fridge. It was the perfect snack to make for the game. The kit had all the ingredients to make fresh salsa as well as an easy to follow recipe.

Ingredients:
1 Lime, juiced
4 Roma Tomatoes, chopped
1 seeded and minced Jalapeno Pepper
1 Red Onion, fine chopped
1 Bunch Cilantro (1 oz), fine chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste


Prepare all ingredients and combine in bowl. Enjoy with chips!

The fresh jalapeno pepper and garlic made this a very flavorful and spicy dip. I made a lighter version for the game by draining the water from non-fat yogurt, adding a few tablespoons of this salsa and some italian seasonings. Both dips were a big hit with Ian.

Fresh Produce = Wedge Salad

Our company just launched the Good Apples Program: a virtual farmers market that delivers grocery to our company on a weekly basis. My first order was only $30 for a ton of produce.

Baby Bella Mushrooms $1.99

Sweet Corn (8) $3.49

Boston Lettuce $1.27

Green Beans $1.69

Local Toamtoes $2.39

Hot Banana Peppers $2.99

Iceberg Lettuce $1.69

Red Beets $2.59

Blue Cheese $5.00

Shallots $1.69

Super Salsa Kit $5.99

4 big bags contained all these ingredients and everything looked incredibly fresh. I knew when I order the blue cheese I would be making a wedge salad. It is something that I rarely make but always love. Ian hates the blue cheese, but I just give him an extra spoonful of bacon.

Ingredients
1 head iceberg lettuce, cut into quarters
Low-Fat Ranch dressing
1 tomato, minced
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1 cup cooked bacon, crumbled

Directions
On each salad plate, place 1 wedge of lettuce turned on its side. Pour ranch dressing on wedge. Sprinkle with tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese, and crumbled bacon.

I used two quarters of the lettuce for each portion, since this was all we had for dinner. It was wonderful and I'm already excited for next week to see what additional local produce I can get through Good Apples for my cooking inspirations!