gimme some oven

For one morning — one splendid morning — I felt like a pastry chef.  :-)

But I admit, thanks to the brilliance of puff pastry, this recipe was actually ridiculously simple.  The most time-consuming part was just cutting out the little frames of the pastry dough.  But other than that, easy peasy.  :)  Just whip up the ricotta mixture, an optional glaze if you’d like, warm up the berries…and voila.  A dozen absolutely charming, delicious, and I daresay professional looking little fruit danishes are yours to be had!

Feel absolutely free, as well, to use your favorite fruits with these!  I happened to have frozen berries and some mandarin oranges on hand (sigh…winter), but can’t wait to try these this summer with some fresh berries, plums, peaches…you name it!  :)  You could also toss on some toasted pecans, almonds, or walnuts on these as well.

Definitely a recipe too fun not to try at home!  Enjoy!!

see recipe for berry & ricotta danishes

I love the morning.  Love the light.  Love watching my puppy yawn and greet the day.  Love that sense of newness and hope that seems to come with the morning.  And of course, love breakfast.

But that said, I also love the snooze button on my alarm.  :)  More often than not, find myself in a race out the door, maybe grabbing a granola bar or banana on the way.  Boo.  This spring, I’m determined to reclaim my mornings.  And with that — healthy, intentional breakfasts!

So for the first (of hopefully many) breakfast posts this spring, I’m so excited to share this amazing couscous recipe.  That’s right — couscous for breakfast!  This recipe actually calls for Israeli (pearl) couscous which, after being toasted and soaked in coconut milk, is super rich, sweet and very filling!  Loved the almond/coconut/apricot combo as well — fresh and full of great protein for the day.

Definitely a delicious reason to wake up with some time to spare.  ;)

see recipe for breakfast israeli couscous (with apricots, almonds & coconut)

Wow!  I think I’ve officially found my new favorite pasta for 2010!

Happened to be, well, “gawking” around on FoodGawker this weekend when I came across this recipe for “toasted macaroni”.  Indeed. Did not know those two words went together!  So I decided to investigate…

Let’s just say, Quizno’s was right.  “Toasted tastes better”.  Much better.  :)

The pasta turned out fantastic!!  The extra flavor that came from the toasty-ness, enhanced by being cooked in the chicken broth, totally made my day!  Definitely a delicious (and gorgeous) kick up from normal pasta.  And the creamy mushroom and white wine sauce was heavenly — full of fresh, delicate flavor that served as a perfect compliment to the pasta.

Pretty sure this one disappeared in our house pronto.  But will definitely be making a second appearance…pronto.  :)

see recipe for toasted mushroom pasta

I tend to think that a meal’s not a meal without dessert.  :)

But often, after already spending time in the kitchen making dinner, the last thing I want to do is spend a ton more time on another course.  So I’m always stoked to find a new desserts that can be pulled together in a snap!

This delicious apple tart recipe happens to be just that.  :)  Created by The Pioneer Woman herself, these little tarts are simple, full of classic apple (and I added cinnamon!) flavor, and rounded out by the magic that is puff pastry.  Totally love them!  And best of all, of course, they are super-speedy to pull together.

Feel free to serve these with ice cream, whipped cream, powdered sugar….or all three.  :)

see recipe for easy apple tart

This post goes out to my friend, Andrew, who I have to thank for reuniting me this year with one of my blast-from-the-past childhood favorites — hello, red hot jello!!!

For those of you who’ve never heard of this fabulousness, the name perfectly describes it — a marriage between sweet red jello and cinnamon-y red hots.  Growing up, it always seemed to be the dish that was too good to be true — partly because this sweetness somehow “passed” as a side during dinner (and could thus take up the veggie real estate on my plate), and partly because it was made with my favorite of favorite candies.  Still love my red hots!  :)

So, when I happened to see a massive display of red hots last week on clearance in the Valentine’s section (the cute heart-shaped ones!), I decided it was time to feel like a kid again.  Thankfully, it did not disappoint. In fact, it was marvelous.  :)  I highly recommend it.

Bill Cosby would be so proud.

see recipe for red hot jello

I’m all for 30-minute meals.  But I’m an even bigger fan of 15-minute meals!!  :)

So yes, allow me to introduce you to a new favorite main dish that came about today somewhat randomly.  I have been trying to clean out the freezer this week, and wanted to use up some shrimp and frozen “ice cubes” of pesto that were calling my name.  And since I’d also picked up some beautiful asparagus at the store this week, did a quick google search to see if any creative recipes came up.  I was expecting pastas, or a stir-fry, but to my surprise, this yummy recipe popped up for gnocchi — fun!!  Already had a package in the pantry, so decided to give it a try.

I admit — calling for just 4 main ingredients had me a little skeptical.  But holy cow, I was wrong.  This turned out fantastic!!!  The combination of the starchy gnocchi with the fresh asparagus and pesto was fantastic, and it was totally packed with flavor (I used homemade pesto, but if you buy storebought, get a good brand!).  But the best part was that it literally took less than 15 minutes to prepare.  Fannnnnntastic.

Already looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow…  :)

see recipe for gnocchi with shrimp, asparagus and pesto

As much as I love meals, I love to snack.  It’s my weakness.  My joy.  My distraction from staring at a computer for hours on end in a cubicle.

I know…terrible.

But hey — moderation and nutrition are wonderful things.  :)  So to satisfy the “crunch” cravings, I’ve recently jumped on the roasted chickpeas (garbanzo beans) bandwagon.  These little guys are fantastic!  Not only are they packed with great crunch and flavor, but they’re filled with fiber and nutrients, AND cost less than $1 per batch to make.  I heart.  :)

Below I’ve included a recipe suggestion for smoked paprika roasted chickpeas (my fav), but you can absolutely experiment with whatever seasonings you like.

Cheers to healthy snacking on…um…beans!

see recipe for roasted chickpeas

To kick of a morning of meetings on Mardi Gras, I decided to bake up these delicious sticky buns for my coworkers!  YUM!

I have actually had a lovely surplus of puff pastry sitting in my freezer this month, after stocking up from a $0.99 sale at Aldi (wahoo!).  So was excited to put a box to use — especially on a Barefoot Contessa recipe!  I’m telling you — the woman is brilliant.  Still have yet to find a recipe of hers that I don’t immediately fall in love with.

Sure enough, they were a-ma-zing.  Thanks to the wonder of puff pastry, the total time from the pastry start to that ooey gooey finish was just 40 minutes.  Love it!  But the best part, of course, was that classic cinnamon, butter, pecan, (and now) soft, flaky puff pastry goodness.  Absolutely irresistible.  :)

Definitely a perfect (and appropriately extra-buttery) way to celebrate Mardi Gras!  But I’m pretty sure these will be gracing my kitchen many more times this year.  Thank you…..Ina!

see recipe for easy sticky buns

Somehow PF Changs came up in conversation yesterday when I was talking on the phone with my Mom.  And ever since, you can guess what two words have been on my mind….lettuce wraps.  :-)  YUM.  Ironically, I happen to live right by a PF Changs, but have probably eaten there more in other cities than here at home.  Go figure…  But whenever I do, their classic lettuce wraps are always at the top of my list.

I’ve experimented with a few recipes of my own over the years — some great, some not-so-much — but have settled upon this one as a favorite (with a few modifications!).  Great flavor, fresh and healthy ingredients, and best of all…the recipe makes a delicious “pouring” sauce to finish them off!  As noted in the recipe, you can experiment with adding the Chinese mustard and/or Sriracha to kick up the heat.  Or, feel free to keep it “mild and mellow” as well.  :)

While lettuce wraps are great to serve as an appetizer or main dish at home, I’ve also had a fun time turning these into bite-sized apps before for parties!  Just tear the lettuce into smaller pieces (mine were usually about 2″ x 3″), and then just spoon some of the filling and pouring sauce on top.  I guarantee they’ll disappear instantly!  ;)

So if you’ve never tried making these at home (or have tried a few less-than-successful recipes before, like me!), go for it!!!

see recipe for chicken lettuce wraps

Allow me to take a moment to brag on my friends.  They pretty much…rock.  :)

Last Sunday, we had brunch at my place.  And even though it was fairly last-minute for some, the spread was absolutely incredible!  Love them, and love that they enjoy food as much as I do.  :-)  For one of my two contributions, I decided to try out a recipe I’d had tacked to the fridge for months because it was so pretty — this yummy breakfast braid from Cooking Light.

While the filling looked simple to prepare, I was a little intimidated by the idea of trying to braid the dough.  But it turned out to be a piece of cake!!  As evidenced below, mine definitely wasn’t perfect.  But it only took a few minutes, and once baked up, it was pretty cute!  (Cheers to refrigerated pizza crusts!)

The filling was also delicious — classic breakfast ingredients, kicked up a notch with the jalapeno.  (But don’t worry — it wasn’t spicy at all.)  I think I may try this again soon with some other fillings — very fun!

So definitely bookmark this one if you’re looking for a fun breakfast alternative!

see recipe for easy breakfast braid