#6: Recipe of the Week

This week’s recipe is for Crab Cakes with Red Pepper Mayonnaise.   They turned out delicious!  The panko instead of regular breadcrumbs provided a nice crunch, and even my husband who normally hates mayonnaise really liked the red pepper version.  The house also smelled delicious after roasting the red pepper.  We really enjoyed these, and it made enough for leftovers for lunch.  It’s wonderful when such a good meal lasts for more than one!

Click here for the recipe.

#6: Recipe of the Week

This week’s recipe is an Apricot-Onion Porkloin.  This turned out really delicious.  The recipe called for a one pound pork loin, but I bought a two pound, and split it in half.  This allowed me to make my own serving of the apricot-onion sauce, and my husband grossed his up with General Tso’s sauce (since he doesn’t enjoy apricots OR onions).  The pork turned out really tender.  I used a Hatfield pork loin, without any flavoring.  Click through for recipe!

#6: Recipe of the Week

I know I’ve been posting a lot of sweets lately, despite my resolution to not eat so many sweets…but I had leftover refrigerated pie crust that needed used (and heaven forbid we let a perfectly delicious pie crust go to waste!), so again we have sweets this week. I tried the Warm Apple-Buttermilk Custard Pie from this month’s issue of Cooking Light. It was really delicious, and had a moist custard filling that was an excellent alternative to the traditional gooey insides of an apple pie. I also really liked the struesel topping, rather than a plain 2-crust pie. Click through for recipe!

#6: Recipe of the Week

This week’s recipe is from the most recent issue of Cooking Light. It is a delicious Cinnamon Apple Cake. It was very moist and fluffy, and even my husband enjoyed it (he’s not a big cake person). I followed the recipe as-written, with the exception of the apples. The recipe calls for Rome apples, but I had some leftover Granny Smith’s from another recipe, so I used those instead. Granny Smith’s are always good baking apples, so this still turned out wonderful, and I would use the Granny Smith’s again.

So without further ado, here is the recipe!

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup stick margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened (about 3/4 cup)
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 cups chopped peeled Rome apple (about 2 large)
Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.Beat 1 1/2 cups sugar, margarine, vanilla, and cream cheese at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about 4 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture, beating at low speed until blended.Combine 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Combine 2 tablespoons cinnamon mixture and apple in a bowl, and stir apple mixture into batter. Pour batter into an 8-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray, and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon mixture.Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan. Cool the cake completely on a wire rack, and cut using a serrated knife.Note: You can also make this cake in a 9-inch square cake pan or a 9-inch springform pan; just reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings

#6: Recipe of the Week

This week’s new recipe was from the Follow Your Heart Cookbook - Bean Burritos in 20 Minutes. It turned out great, was a great quick weeknight recipe, was very healthy, and very hearty. We will definitely keep this in the rotation for the future.

2.5 cups white rice (Basmati if you have it)
3 cups water
1 Tbsp. butter
Pinch of sea salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 15 oz. cans of organic black beans
2 Tbsp. Tamari
2 Tbsp. cumin
2 tomatoes, diced
1 cucumber, diced
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
1/2 bunch of cilantro
Salsa
Cheddar cheese (optional)
Sour cream (optional)
12 white tortillas

1. Mix rice, water, butter, and salt. Heat in medium saucepan until boiling, then reduce heat and cover. Cook for 15-20 minutes more until rice is fluffy and water is absorbed.
2. While rice is cooking, heat olive oil in large skillet. Add beans (including liquids), Tamari, and cumin. Gently simmer until most of the liquid is gone. Turn of heat or turn down to low to keep beans warm.
3. Prepare all vegetables
4. Preheat oven to 300. Warm tortillas
5. Add rice, bean mixture, and vegetable choices to tortillas, wrap, and enjoy!

#6: Recipe of the Week

I made an AWESOME new recipe this week for my office Christmas party potluck.  I was in charge of dessert, and I chose to make a recipe from Emeril - Buttermilk Spice Cake with Fresh Apple Puree and and Roasted Walnut Cream Cheese.   This recipe is a little labor intensive, but I actually appreciated it this time as it gave me a break from finishing up my finals for class.  The cake was extremely moist and fluffy and the apple puree gave a good contrast from the spice as the filling.  It would also work to frost in between the layers if the apple puree is unwanted.  I love cream cheese icing, and this was a basic recipe that I will keep for other types of cakes as well.  One note on the frosting: I had to double the recipe to have enough, but I frosted the cake and also decorated the top, which added additional icing.  Overall, this recipe was excellent and I will keep it for the future.  I may even make it for a family Christmas party this Saturday, it was such a big hit with my office.

#14: Try 10 New Restaurants

Yesterday Joe and I went out for dinner after his office Christmas party was canceled. I requested a new restaurant we’ve never been to, and we ended up at Fiesta Mexico, a new Mexican (duh) place half-way between our house and where his Christmas party was supposed to be.

Verdict: It was ok. Although it was definitely more “authentic” than say…Chilis…the food was good, but not excellent. I had chicken burritos, and basically it tasted like the ones I make at home. On the plus side the atmosphere was really neat, with a lot of hanging star lights on the ceiling and an authentic feel. It was also reasonably priced - the total bill was only $20 for both of us. I would eat here again and not protest if I was with other people, but I’m not sure this is a place Joe and I will be frequenting very often in the future.

#85: Complete 50 Books from my Book List

Book #1 was completed this past week, on one of my days off.  I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  I won’t say much about it in case I’m not the last person in the world to finish it, other than I LOVED it.  I’m sad the series is over and there are no more books to look forward to, but I thought the ending was fitting and it provided the closure that makes me happy at the end of a series (I’m still not happy with you, Sopranos!).

I’ve decided to read Middlesex next, and I started that last night.  (I didn’t get very far, but I started!)  I decided to read it because I generally love Oprah’s selections, so I checked Middlesex out of the library.  Did anyone enjoy Middlesex?

#66: Hang up all the Art and Photos in the House - Complete!

…and let me tell you what a difference it makes!  My house felt like a home for the first time this weekend.  Joe and I went on a massive cleaning spree before everyone arrived for the party, and we hung up all the rock posters, as well as a lot of other photos we have had framed and sitting on the floor for a long time.  I’m glad I can now actually enjoy our collection!

#16: Learn How to Make 10 New Cocktails

In conjunction with the holiday party I hosted, I made a new cocktail to serve: Bananas Foster Punch.  This turned out really delicious.  I found the directions to be a little confusing, so I had to do a little interpreting on my own.  I was confused by how to actually blend the mixture, so I ended up just combining half the milk mixture with all the other ingredients, then blending, then adding the other half of the milk mixture.  If that’s not the correct interpretation of the directions, it’s ok because it still tasted great!  It did not make as much as I was expecting, so for a large party (more then 5), I would definitely double the recipe.  I ended up making two batches just because my family is a little lush!  Cooking Light does not disappoint, once again!