recipe of the week: lora's (copycat) spinach sour cream dip

i discovered trader joe's spinach sour cream dip awhile back.  and while this version isn't *exactly* the same, it's pretty darn good.  and definitely keeps me from spending $3/week on a tiny tub of dip!  


it's embarrassingly easy, but i'll still share it :-)


spinach sour cream dip


1/2 a bunch of organic spinach
1 large handful of fresh parsley
1/2 cup organic sour cream (i use trader joe's)
1/2 cup mayo (i use olive oil mayo)
1/4 cup mozzarella (optional--i usually leave it out)
generous sprinkles of sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, red pepper flakes, nutmeg garlic powder and onion powder

begin by processing (with the shredding disk) the spinach and parsley.  once they are well chopped, switch to the dough blade.

  add the sour cream, mayonnaise and spices and process until well blended.  

refrigerate for at LEAST an hour to further blend the flavors. (i usually refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving) 

enjoy!  according to my recipe input program a 2 tbsp serving (without cheese) contains 80 calories, 6.5 g fat, 116.6 mg sodium, and 3.7 g carbs.


(i'm linked in to feed my family fridays again -- go visit this amazing blog and join in!)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 1.10

hey, it's ok


...to plot your next cooking adventures with a friend all morning
...to leave the baby in her pajamas until noon on a chilly dreary day.  i mean, it's not like we're doing anything.  i'd be in my pajamas if that were possible!
...to be hopeful that swagbucks earnings can pretty much fund at least half of christmas this coming year.  i have a plan, y'all. (and seriously, if you haven't signed up for swagbucks it's the easiest thing ever.  if you click the link above and sign up i get a referral! and i'll be glad to share my tips and tricks :-)
...to plan your meals out monthly.  it actually helps me budget wisely for groceries and eating out.  and so far we've come in under budget for groceries since we've been married so *something* is working.
...to be glad that my regularly watched shows are now spread out over several nights.  no boring evenings in the kitchen -- i can just turn on the dvr!
...to eat ramen and kimchee at any opportunity, which for me means when i'm at home for a meal and my husband is nowhere around.  he can't stand cabbage, much less the fermented spicy stuff!
...to not be able to resist creamy goodness.  my boss had ranch sour cream dip AND french onion dip in her fridge last week.  she had a bit less after i spotted them!
...to be planning to somehow re-create one of my favorite dips from trader joe's. i'm tired of spending the money on it AND running out quickly.  ha.  i'll share it if it's successful.
...to apparently be hungry as i write this since over half of my points have to do with food.  so i suppose i'll sign off and go make lunch!


(visit amber and share your own list)

recipe of the week: spanakopita

i made very little changes to this recipe.
are you in shock yet?
:-)

honestly, it's greek food
and i've never MADE greek food before,
so i figured i wouldn't mess with it this time around!
the original comes from food network


spanakopita

olive oil
2 pounds frozen spinach, thawed
1 bunch of scallions, chopped (white and green parts)
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper

a sprinkle of nutmeg (i lied.  i DID add this.  spinach always needs a nutmeg sprinkle.)

1/2 pound crumbled feta cheese (i used the kind with mediterranean herbs)

2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted (yep, the health factor kind of disappears when you read that, doesn't it!)
1 pound filo sheets, thawed

heat olive oil in pan and toss spinach in.  cook down for about 3 minutes.  remove spinach from the pan

in the same pan, pour in another tablespoon or so of oil and add the chopped scallions.  saute them for 2-3 minutes.  add spinach, parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper and cook together for 1-2 minutes.  remove from heat to cool.

when the mixture has cooled, add the beaten egg and the feta to the spinach mixture

mix well

preheat oven to 350

brush a baking sheet with a thin layer of the melted butter.  (nope, not kidding)

carefully unroll the filo dough.  cut into 3 long and even strips.  you can cover the dough that is not being used with wax paper and a damp towel, or just work quickly :-)

brush one thin sheet of dough with butter and lay a 2nd on top.  repeat, adding a third.  the butter should seep through enough that you won't need more.
(this is not necessarily a pretty process.  but the end result is fantastic enough that you should just let.it.go)

 place a small spoonful of the filling on the edge and begin rolling the dough into a triangle form. (this is way easier than it sounds!)

bake for 20-25 minutes (it was 23 for us) until the triangles are crisp and slightly golden.

hint: this recipe goes well with the tabouli salad i posted a bit ago...and both are relatively simple!

recipe of the week: taboulli salad

i love (LOVE) a good, fresh salad
and tabouli
(or taboule, tabbouleh, tabouleh, taboulli...whatever)
has always been a favorite of mine
(well, since i discovered trader joe's version of it...)


i had a hair and makeup trial run on tuesday this week
and 3 of my girls came to get their hair done too
so i decided to have a little spread of hummus and fresh veggies for them.
then i decided to make tabouli salad, serve pita as well and even throw in some frozen falafel for fun


it turned out fairly well*, even though i did have to substitute couscous for the bulghur most recipes i found called for.


here's my spin on it!

1 package fresh parsley
1 package fresh mint
1/2 cup uncooked couscous
juice of 2 limes
1 medium/large tomato
1 scallion
1 clove garlic

1/4 cup olive oil


cook couscous according to package directions


mince parsley and mint (this is easily the most labor-intensive part of cooking this.  it's ri-diculous.  thank goodness for kitchen tools like the herb roller i have!)

it will easily take you the entire couscous preparation time to mince the herbs.  so once they are done, add the lime juice to the couscous.

dice the tomato, chop the scallion

add the parsley, mint and tomato to the lime and couscous mixture.  grate a clove of garlic over the mix and pour the olive oil in as the finishing touch. 

  combine well.  refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

simple...yummy.  and money saving.  i made about 4 times as much tabbouli for the price i would have paid for it even at trader joe's.  i can deal with that!














*it actually turned out well enough that my friend Natasha said "it's better than trader joe's!"


which i'm pretty sure could be considered blasphemy in some circles.

EASY recipe of the week: stuffed mushrooms

ready for one of the easiest appetizers EVER?

1 pkg whole mushrooms
1 cup freshly grated mozzarella
4 ounces cream cheese (room temp)
4 ounces sour cream

(1) remove stems from mushrooms and place on baking sheet









(2) mix together mozzarella, cream cheese and sour cream.





(3) fill each mushroom with cheese mixture.









(4) bake at 350* for about 15 minutes

(5) enjoy!

(crappy iphone photo...sorry)

3 in 30: march

so i started this in february, and am continuing on because it was kinda fun...and pretty effective :)

so here are this month's goals

• drink at least 3 glasses of water per day (i know that's pathetic, but my water intake of the moment is pretty pathetic too...)
• try at least 4 new recipes
• carve out at least 30 minutes of time per day for me.  this cannot include wedding planning or doing laundry... ;)

by the way, here's how i did last month:

* exercise at least 4 times each week...and stop using that "busy" excuse!
(i managed this at least 3 out of the 4 weeks, so that's not bad :D)
* eat at least 1 fruit and 1 veggie each day
(well, that was a small goal, but i'm not convinced the fruits always happened.  i'm just not a fruit girl.  however, i'm pretty sure i got in at least 3-4 servings of vegetables every day.)
* sleep. 6 - 7 hours at LEAST per night. this means when i have to get up at 5:15
(this didn't always happen, but steps toward the right direction.  i think i got between 5.5 and 7 hours most nights, which is MUCH better that what i was doing before.  so this is an ongoing goal for sure)

what are your month's goals?

recipe of the week: creamy broccoli soup

this recipe has been in my "to try" file for awhile, but since the absolute main ingredient is broccoli (a favorite of mine...and one of anthony's worst enemies...) i had to wait for a night that we weren't going to be eating together.  and then came a snowstorm...and we were stranded in our homes on two opposite sides of town.

so i made soup.

creamy broccoli soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
1 bunch broccoli florets, roughly chopped and stems peeled and sliced (about 7 cups)
*you'll see 2 packages from trader joe's in the picture.  i underestimated joe apparently, and only needed one package.
1 large russet potato (about 8 ounces) peeled and cut into ½ inch pieces
kosher salt and black pepper
2 ounces sharp white cheddar grated (about ½ cup)
*i bought english cheddar with caramelized onion.  YUM*
bagel chips, for serving


heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. add the onion and red pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft (4-6 minutes).  *as you can see from the picture, i was quite liberal with my red pepper flakes.  the recipe calls for 1/8 a teaspoon.  there's at minimum a tablespoon in there...probably more.

add the broth, broccoli, potato, 2 cups water, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper to the saucepan and bring to a boil.

reduce heat and simmer, covered, until the vegetables are very tender (18-20 min)

in a blender, working in batches, puree the soup until smooth, adjusting the consistency with water if necessary (alternately use a handheld immersion blender in the saucepan.)

top with the cheddar and bagel chips if desired before serving

did i like this soup?  absolutely.  i liked the unexpected spiciness of the crushed red pepper flakes.  they added an element to the mix that i adored.  the cheese was just enough, and the bagel chips...they were a nice addition.

it's not my favorite.  but i'd make it again, in addition to an entree most likely.  it's not a stand-alone meal in my opinion like some other soups i make.  but it's a really yummy broccoli soup.  :)