Mozzarella Sticks

My sister's (The Vegetarian Hausfrau) husband planned a trip away to this small town near Ocean Shores called Seabrook for the family this last weekend. I couldn't stop saying that I felt like I was in a parallel universe the entire time. If you've ever seen the movie Pleasantville, this is likely where it was filmed, no joke. We made smores, went walking along the beach, played H.O.R.S.E., ping pong, and rested. It was really nice after the past few weekends I've had away partying it up to "California Gurls" and "Teenage Dream." Everyone was assigned a meal to make and of course I was in charge of Saturday's dinner (the night we had planned to celebrate Laurie's bday) - pressure! Laurie requested Mozzarella Sticks and forwarded me this recipe from one of our favorite blogs, The Pioneer Woman. My only regret, not making more. These were delicious and will easily be on my list of appetizers to make during the upcoming football season! Enjoy:)

Mozzarella Sticks
from the Pioneer Woman's blog
2 cups Panko bread crumbs (I used a different brand from PCC, but Panko is the most common brand)
15 Mozzarella sticks (otherwise known as string cheese - cut in half)
1 cup of flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup of milk
2 tbsp. dried parsley
4-5 tbsp. vegetable oil (about 1/2 inch deep in the pan)

1. In 3 separate bowls set-up;
a. 1 cup of flour
b. 2 eggs and milk whisked together
c. bread crumbs and parsley mixed

2. Take each halved string cheese and dip in the flour first, then the egg mixture, and lastly the bread crumbs. Then set aside onto a baking sheet.

3. Put the baking sheet of prepared Cheese Sticks into the freezer for 20-30 minutes. This step is very important!! It'll help the Mozzarella not get too hot when you fry them and help the bread crumbs stay together when you drop them in the oil.

4. After 30 minutes, begin heating about 4-5 tbsp. of oil in a pan on medium heat. Trick**When the oil is sitting in the pan, you won't know if it's hot enough to fry in, but once you think it's ready place a wooden spoon into the oil. If small bubbles (boiling) around the spoon occur, it's ready to fry!

5. Place each Mozzarella stick into the oil and flip when it begins to brown. They'll each be in the oil for about 2 1/2 minutes. Pull each and place on a plate with a paper towel.

6. Pull the paper towel and arrange, pour a bowl of Marinara for dipping and serve! Delicious!

Bruschetta with Shrimp, Tarragon, and Arugula

It's almost dinner time and I can't stop thinking about these delicious Bruschettas my sister Beth made for a family dinner a couple weeks ago. Delicious! She isn't a huge fan of the smell/taste of Tarragon (black licorice), so she substituted that with basil which worked out well! For people that like shrimp, it would be a huge hit. It's pretty shrimp meaty though, so a small bruschetta round goes a long way when serving this as appetizers. It is the perfect bruschetta to really "wow" dinner guests OR just eat on your own for dinner with a friend or significant other. Enjoy!

Bruschetta with Shrimp, Tarragon, and Arugula
from Beth's kitchen via Food Network

• 1 (1-pound) loaf ciabatta bread, trimmed and cut into 14 (1/2-inch thick) slices
• Olive oil, for drizzling
• 1 garlic clove, halved

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large or 2 small shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 pound extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 Roma tomatoes, chopped
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken stock
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves
• 1 packed cup arugula, chopped
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Arrange the bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until light golden, about 10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes. Rub the warm toasts with the cut side of the garlic. Set aside.

3. For the topping: In a medium skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 2 minutes. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste, and add them to the skillet. Cook until the shrimp are pink and cooked through about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the shrimp and chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Set aside.

4. In the same skillet, add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook over medium-high heat until the tomatoes start to soften, about 4 minutes. Turn the heat to high. Add the wine and scrape up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the stock and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the tarragon, arugula, mascarpone cheese, and chopped shrimp. Stir until the mixture is creamy. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Arrange the toasts on serving plates and drizzle with the sauce. Sprinkle with salt and pepper before serving.

Yum Yum Yum!

Baked Spring Rolls

These Spring Rolls were a treat! They only have 2 grams of fat in them whereas the normal spring roll has 9 grams. The article I pulled the recipe from was on lightening up your cooking, and by doing so, not missing out on the things you love to eat. For me, spring rolls! I always shy away from eating spring rolls as most of them are deep fried, but these had a nice twist of being baked. We've missed a few weeks of girl's nights (summer wedding madness for most), but I'm looking forward to making this for the group. yum yum....enjoy!

Baked Spring Rolls
from The Food Network Magazine

For the Spring Rolls:

1 2oz piece deli ham, finely diced
4 tsp. vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
1 tbsp. chopped, peeled ginger
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1 1/2 cups finely shredded green cabbage
1 medium carrot, shredded
1 lb. lump crabmeat, picked over
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp. Asian chili-garlic paste
1 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
14 square spring roll wrappers
1 large egg white

1. Preheat oven to 425*. Make the spring rolls: Cook the ham in 2 tsp. veggie oil in a skillet over medium heat (2 - 4 minutes). Add the ginger, garlic, scallions; cook until fragrant, about 1 more minute.

2. Toss the cabbage and carrot with the hot ham mixture in a large bowl. Add the crab, cilantro, chili-garlic paste, 1 tsp. sesame oil, the soy sauce and vinegar; toss.
3. Wrap the spring rolls (see below).
4. Place a rack in a baking dish and brush with veggie oil. Mix the remaining teaspoons of veggie oil and 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil; lightly brush on rolls. Place th rolls on the rack; bake untiil golden on top, about 15 minutes. Turn the rolls; bake again until golden brown, 8 to 10 more minutes.

5. It came with a sauce you can make, but I just bought the delicious sweet/sour sauce from the grocery store - much easier!

Eggplant and Sunchoke Dip

We decided to have a traveling girl's night this week and go have a picnic at Kerry Park on Queen Anne; it's not every day you have 70+ degree weather in Seattle! This dip is what I decided to take to our outdoor girl's night as it was quick to make and easy to transport. I had never heard of Sunchokes before until my girlfriend, who is one of the chefs at Chaco Canyon Cafe, made a dip similar for an event I attended. Their dip seemed more chunky (which I prefer in dips), but this was good! Light, refreshing and not too filling. I served it with a sliced baguette which rounded out the "artichoke" flavor. A great dip for a summer picnic! 

Eggplant and Sunchoke Dip

from Spud

4 to 5 cloves of garlic

1/2 an eggplant

5 sunchokes (you may know them as Jerusalem Artichokes), washed well

juice from 1/2 fresh lemon

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

salt, pepper, and oregano to taste

1 to 2 green chiles to spice it up (I used a jalapeno)

5 to 8 leaves fresh basil

1. Boil 2 quarts of water. Add sunchokes whole and eggplant, chopped in 4 to 5 pieces and boil for 20 minutes, or until sunchokes are tender. Add garlic for last 5 minutes.

2. Drain the veggies and blend with lemon juice, olive oil, and spices.

3. Chill for 10 - 20 minutes in the freezer or for a couple hours in the fridge. 

Smoked Salmon Dip

Last week for girl's night I wanted to make an appetizer (since I hadn't made one in a while) and thought it would be nice to use a smoked salmon my mom had given me a couple weeks ago. I love putting smoked salmon on a nice plate with crackers for a simple appetizer, but thought it might be nice to try to put together a dip that was FAT FREE! I found this smoked salmon dip and saw that it was sour cream based (most dips I find are cream cheese based and I am not a huge fan of non-fat cream cheese because of the change in texture, but usually I can not tell the difference between regular and fat-free sour cream when mixed with other ingredients). Anyhow, this dip was a hit and really simple to make! Enjoy:)

Smoked Salmon Dip
from Food Network

1 pint (2 cups) fat free sour cream
1 tbsp double concentrate tomatoe paste
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. drained capers
1/2 medium red onion (chopped)
1/4 lb. smoked salmon (I ended up using 3/4 lb! I love dips that have a little bit more consistency, so adding more made it more hearty and delcious)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1. In a medium bowl mix the first 3 ingredients

2. After combined, stir in the capers and conions

3. Fold in the salmon, season with salt and pepper and serve!