clean pesto + new pizza

traditional {clean} pesto

&

another pizza recipe

Makes about 2 cups
Ingredients:
1 cup fresh basil, packed down
7 garlic cloves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions:
1. combine oil, garlic, cheese, and pine nuts in blender or food processor and blend until smooth
2. add basil and blend until basil in combined but still slightly chunky

Thanks to THE GRACIOUS PANTRY, I now have a perfect pesto to add to pizza, panini's, pasta, and soup!

<<<<<<<< >>>>>>>>

pesto-chicken pizza

this is one of Spencer's favorite pizza that I've made so far

Ingredients for 2 pizzas:
2 tortillas
3 tablespoons pesto
1 large chicken breast, grilled and shredded
2-ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
fresh basil, sliced
avocado, sliced... typical Natalie
fresh tomato, sliced (I didn't have any tomatoes at the time, but they make it so good)
sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions:
1. heat oven to broil on high
2. pile tortillas evenly with pesto, chicken, mozzarella
3. place under broiler for 5-7 minutes
4. top with fresh basil, avo, tomatoes and S&P

fishy tacos

fish {tilapia} tacos

This is like the fastest way to make some of the best fish tacos I've ever had! They taste fresh, clean, easy, healthy, gourmet and DELICIOUS... fresh-mex never looked or tasted so good!

Makes 6 small tacos
INGREDIENTS:
Fish:
-2 (5-ounce) tilapia filets {I get mine frozen at Costco and defrost them overnight in the fridge}
-2 teaspoons Chili-lime spice {I use a pre-mixed spice blend from pampered chef or sprinkle with a combination of chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, sea salt, lime juice}
-1-2 teaspoons of coconut or olive oil
Cilantro-lime sauce:
-1/3 cup plain greek yogurt
-1 lime, juiced
-handful chopped cilantro
-1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
-sea salt and black pepper to taste
For serving:
-6 small corn tortillas 
-1 avocado, sliced
-1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
-handful cherry tomatoes, halved
-crumbled goat cheese or queso fresco
-chopped cabbage or spinach
-your favorite fresh salsa or pico de gallo
-lime wedges 

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. heat non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and rub chili-lime spices onto both sides of fish. 
2. add oil to pan and heat for 30 seconds, then add fish and cook about 3-4 minutes each side (fish should be white throughout, slightly blackened outside, and flake easily).
3. while fish is cooking combine yogurt, lime juice, cilantro, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper for sauce.
4. when fish is done, set aside and turn skillet down to medium heat and warm tortillas 1 minute on each side (pile warmed tortillas on plate under paper towel to keep soft and warm).
5. cut each fish filet into 6 slices (2 per taco) and build your taco with your favorite toppings! Don't be shy with the veggies:)

clean taquitos

...taquitos...

the clean way

Who doesn't love the simplicity of a taquito? But seriously... the thought of the processed ground meat and preservative-filled chicken rolls that are frozen in large quantities and shipped to your nearest Costco is not that simple or appetizing... so I came up with this homemade version :)

MAKING THE FILLING:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
8-10 oz bottle salsa (pick your favorite.. mild, med, or HOT)
1 tablespoon homemade taco seasoning mixture (you can use 1 package of store bought seasoning, but it usually contains MSG and other chemicals and preservatives)

Combine chicken, salsa, and taco seasoning in crock-pot. Cook on Low for 6 hours or High for 3 hours. Chicken will shred easily using two forks.

OTHER INGREDIENTS:
20-30 small corn tortillas
Olive oil spray (I use a Mister)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray baking sheet with olive oil.
2. Warm tortillas, wrapped in damp paper towel, in microwave until pliable enough to roll without tearing. They will be HOT so be careful.
3. Roll about 2 tablespoons of shredded chicken mixture into each tortilla and line them all up close together onto baking sheet. 
4. Spray tops of taquitos with olive oil spray (this will help them get crispy) and bake for about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on them, because the time will vary depending on your oven.
5. Let them cool, wrap individually in aluminum foil, and freeze!

REHEATING INSTRUCTIONS:
-Defrost overnight in fridge than reheat in oven (this will help them stay crispiest)
-Microwave straight from freezer (about 5-10 seconds per taquito)

Serve with melted cheese, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, or greek yogurt!

creamy {creamless} tomato basil soup

creamy tomato basil soup

<<creamless>>

I have had a nasty little cold this weekend and I don't know about you, but my taste buds get a bit shy (can't taste hardly anything) and picky when the sickness comes. Only a few things sounded good to me and one of them was a good creamy tomato basil soup. Now I can't actually have cream (upsets my tummy) so I improvised with some canned coconut milk. I doubt anyone would be able to tell a difference in the taste! Go ahead and try to enjoy the rest of winter with a good bowl of homemade soup... and a perfectly Grilled Avocado-Cheese...

Makes about 8 cups of soup
Ingredients:
1-2 teaspoons Olive Oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (28 oz) whole peeled tomatoes, with juices {I used a quart of my mother's home-bottled tomatoes}
1 can (14.5 oz) roasted tomatoes, with juices {my fave: Muir Glen's Organic Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes}
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon dried basil (or 1/3 cup fresh chopped)
1 can (13.5 oz) lite coconut milk {my fave: A Taste of Thai Lite Coconut Milk}
1 teaspoon sugar or 1 packet Stevia in the Raw
Salt and pepper, to taste
Grated parmesan cheese, for serving

Instructions:
1. Heat olive oil in large pot or dutch oven (I used my 5-quart Le Creuset dutch oven) over medium heat and saute until translucent, then add garlic and saute for a few more seconds.
2. Add tomatoes, bay leaf, and basil. Let simmer over low heat for 30-45 minutes.
3. When done simmering remove bay leaf, then stir in coconut milk, sugar (or stevia), 1 teaspoon salt, and a few turns from fresh pepper grinder.
4.. Blend in blender (I used my Vitamix) or use hand immersion blender to blend until smooth. *CAREFUL: IT IS HOT!
5. Add more salt and pepper if needed and serve with cheese or homemade croutons!

FYI- If you would like to go out and buy a the best bowl of tomato soup, the Roasted Tomato Basil Soup from Corner Bakery Cafe is my absolute FAVORITE and although I have attempted making a copycat recipe of this soup at home, I didn't have all the fresh tomatoes for it. Or the motivation to get in the car and drive to draper (the closest location to my house).

#1 Snickerdoodles

Fat & Fluffy Snickerdoodles

I made the most delicious Fat Fluffy Snickerdoodle cookies this week from How Sweet It Is Blog and they were a super easy happy valentine's gift for some of our friends and family. I love a good, soft cookie dipped in milk. These turned out EXACTLY like the recipe describes: FAT & FLUFFY! Straight from heaven.

Fat Fluffy Snickerdoodles

makes 16-20 cookies

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 tablespoons milk

1/4 cup sugar + 1 tablespoon cinnamon for dipping

Preheat oven to 375.

Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until smooth. Add egg and vanilla, mixing well until combine, about 2 minutes. Stir in flour, baking powder, salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix until dough comes together. Add in milk. If dough is still crumbly, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time until it comes together. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a bowl combine remaining sugar and cinnamon. Remove dough from fridge and roll into big 1 1/2 inch balls. Dip in cinnamon sugar mixture and place on baking sheet. Lightly press down on dough to flatten it. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

HAPPY HEART DAY

love, natalie and spencer

Honey almond pork chops

honey & almond crusted pork chops

I'm not a huge fan of pork and I've NEVER had a desire to eat bone-in pork chops. Meat still attached to a bone gives me the willies so I thought I would branch out and experiment a little with the boneless version.. and they were on sale at Winco:) 

Usually boneless pork chops turn out kind of dry and boring so I was determined to find a way to boost the flavor and moisture! The hubby and I both give this combination two thumbs up.

Serves 2
Ingredients:
2 (4-ounce) boneless pork loin chops
4 teaspoons honey
1/3 cup almond meal/flour 
salt and pepper

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, spray baking sheet or glass dish with non-stick spray.
2. Dump almond flour onto plate
3. Spread and rub honey all over pork chops, press both sides into almond flour, place into baking dish.
4. Bake for 45-50 minutes (depending on thickness of chops), switch oven to broil on HIGH, let chops brown under broiler for 5 minutes.

grilled avocado-cheese

grilled cheese

{for grown-ups}

for one sandwich:

2 slices whole wheat bread

stone-ground or dijon mustard

1/2 small avocado, sliced

handful fresh spinach leaves

1 slice swiss or havarti cheese

1 slice pepper-jack cheese

best way to stack your sandwich:

1 slice bread

-

mustard

-

1 slice cheese

-

avocado slices

-

spinach leaves

-

1 slice cheese

-

1 slice bread 

I used a grilled-cheese maker for this sandwich (it was kind of too big for this small appliance, but I love how it presses into two triangles). If you don't have a grilled-cheese maker: use a panini press, George Foreman grill, or stove-top grill pan.

cream party cake & butter-cream-cheese frosting

CREAM PARTY CAKE

&

butter-cream-cheese frosting

Whenever I make a cake that I plan on frosting and decorating, I ALWAYS make the cake {the day before} and put it in the freezer or refrigerator overnight or until I'm ready to frost it. This make it SO easy to frost because it doesn't get all crumbly and messy. 

**The letters and heart pictured on the cake are made from sticks of bubblegum. So easy!**

cream party cake

Cake Ingredients:
2 boxes cake mix, any flavor (I used strawberry)
2 cups water
2/3 cups canola or vegetable oil
6 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 package instant pudding, any flavor (I used cheesecake)

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, spray three 9-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray
2. Mix all ingredients until completely combined (a couple minutes in my kitchen-aid was enough. hand mixer will work just as good)
3. Pour mixture evenly divided into all three round cake pans
4. Bake for 29-33 minutes
5. Remove pans from oven and immediately drop onto counter top (about 4-6 inches away) a few times. This will help make the cake more dense (a little trick I learned from my sister-in-law)
6. Place hot cakes into fridge or freezer until next day.

perfect butter-cream-cheese frosting

Frosting Ingredients:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 stick butter, softened

1/4 cup canned milk **

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 bag (32-ounce) powdered sugar

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients, except powdered sugar, in mixer

2. Slowly add in powdered sugar (can add a little more milk if needed) until frosting gets to desired consistency.

STACK ALL THREE LAYERS OF CAKE

SPREAD FROSTING IN BETWEEN EACH LAYER

FROST CAKE COMPLETELY IN A SWIRLY DESIGN

STORE CAKE IN REFRIGERATOR UNTIL PARTY TIME!

how-to: roast eggplant & pick a good one

roasted eggplant 

&

goat cheese - basil - balsamic

Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant
olive oil spray (I use Misto) or for drizzling
salt and pepper
2 ounces crumbled goat cheese
4-6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
balsamic vinegar

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray baking sheet with non-stick spray
2. Slice eggplant into rounds 1/4 inch thick
3. Arrange slices on baking sheet, spray or drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, place in oven (middle rack) for 18-20 minutes.
4. Remove from oven, arrange onto place, serve with basil, goat cheese, and drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

How to pick a good eggplant:

The skin should be glossy, not dull, and the eggplant should be fairly firm. If you press it lightly with your thumb, if it gives a little and then springs right back, it's ripe. If the indentation stays, it is overripe. If there's no give at all, the eggplant was picked too early, but even that is better than overripe. Soft spots & brown spots are bad.

brick-oven PIZZA {roasted veggie & grilled chicken}

My loving husband is so good about eating whatever I come home and decide to throw in the oven that day, but I LOVE when he gives me a suggestion on what I should cook. It takes care of my incredible indecisiveness. Monday night he requested calzones... I was excited to attempt them, than the dough was giving me major attitude and I finally threw it all on the pizza stone and took the rolling pin to it. I must say the final product did not suffer from that hiccup.

brick-oven PIZZA

{roasted veggie & grilled chicken}

You will need:
Pizza stone
Rolling pin

Ingredients:
1 lb pizza dough (I haven't found our favorite recipe yet, so for now we use store-bought: Winco's wheat refrigerated dough)
1 cup pizza sauce (my fave: TJ's tomato basil marinara)
1 cup grilled chicken, shredded
2 cups roasted vegetables (instructions below; I do this a day or two before to make prep easier)
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Fresh basil
Balsamic vinegar
Parmesan cheese, grated
Fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Roll out dough onto stone, bake for 10 minutes, then carefully remove hot stone from oven
3. Spread sauce onto crust, pile on chicken and veggies, arrange slices of mozzarella evenly on top, and sprinkle with garlic powder.
4. Bake for 12 more minutes
5. Change oven to broil on High, broil for 2-3 minutes {WATCHING CLOSELY} to make sure the cheese gets brown and bubbly, but {DOES NOT} burn.
6. Sprinkle with sliced basil, fresh cracked pepper, grated parm, and my personal favorite: drizzle of balsamic vinegar!

Oven roasted veggies: (zucchini, red bell pepper, green bell pepper, red onion, mushrooms, eggplant etc.) 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Simply cut veggies into chunks, arrange onto baking sheet, drizzle about 1 teaspoon olive oil or spray with cooking spray, sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder and roast for 40 minutes. 

thai red curry {trader joe's style}

At one point in my life I had the luckiest opportunity to live less than one mile away from the most glorious, unique grocery to come into my life. TRADER JOE'S is home to some of my very favorite products. The most delicious items to enter my home. And I'm about to introduce you to my #1...

I have a Thai food obsession and this curry sauce is the easiest, yummiest, healthiest way to cure that crazy craving EVERYTIME. I don't know what I would do if they hadn't opened a TJ's in Salt Lake City... Now get in your car and go to Trader Joe's.

Thai Red Curry {chicken & veggies}

2 large servings // 4 small servings

Ingredients:

1 bottle TJ's Thai Red Curry Sauce
3 large or 4 small chicken breasts // cut into 2 inch cubes
1 large carrot
4-6 cups fresh spinach
1 cup peas
Plain Greek yogurt // for serving (calms down the heat and adds the perfect amount of creaminess)
Pita bread, naan bread, quinoa, brown rice, soba or rice noodles // for serving

Crock-pot method:
Combine chicken, carrots and curry said in small crock-pot. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or on High for 3 hours. Then stir in spinach and peas, cover and let cook for 10 more minutes. Serve with {carbohydrate} of your choice a dollop of Greek yogurt.

Stove-top method:
Heat large sauce pan over medium high, coat with non-stick spray or 1 tsp olive oil, add chicken and carrots, cook until chicken is fully cooked and carrots soften. Add curry sauce and let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Stir in spinach and peas, cover and simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve with {carbohydrate} of your choice and a dollop of Greek yogurt.

GET CREATIVE

Change up the ingredients with some of your favorites! 

Meat: sirloin or flank steak, boneless pork tenderloin, shrimp, tofu, etc.

Veggies: cauliflower, mushrooms, red peppers, sweet potatoes, kale, etc. 

I've done it all and it's delicious every time!