Avocado Alfredo

A few weeks ago, I was feeling uber courageous with my Meatless Monday meal. I was craving Fettuccine Alfredo, but didn’t want to be laden with all that cheese and cream. I searched for alternatives and found a few pasta recipes that called for an avocado-cream sauce. They each sounded delicious, so I did a combination of them. After work I stopped by the grocery store to pick up some avocados and the Tofu linguini caught my eye. In the basket it went. 

Also about a week before I had bought one of those pods for avocados, to keep them fresh. I had to find out if it worked. So clearly, I was looking forward to this meal. Pasta. Cream. Avocado. Couldn’t get any better!

I couldn’t decide where to start, so I began with the linguini. The bag was full of water and noodles. When I cut it open, I noticed a funny smell (unknowingly, completely normal). Following the package instructions, I microwaved the noodles for two minutes and then patted dry. The stench was gone and the noodles steamed. I tossed it in a colander to sit while I put the sauce together. 

The sauce I used came from a few websites and so I did not follow one exactly. One site created a light guacamole type sauce, whereas another had an avocado creamy sauce made with milk. I do not normally have milk in my fridge, so adapted the two to fit my supplies. 

I started with the food processor, definitely one of my favorite kitchen appliances. In it, I put some garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil. I pureed the garlic with the liquid before adding diced avocado, salt, pepper, basil, and Parmesan cheese. I pulsed this mix together until the avocado was mashed. The sauce took a healthy green color. 

Next, I put half a block of cream cheese in a saucepan to melt with a scoop of mayonnaise. They melded together and I could see the cream base coming together. I mixed in the avocado mixture from the food processor over the heat and stirred them together. The sauce became a lighter color, so I added another half of a diced avocado. 

The additional avocado brought back the green that the food processor mixture had. The sauce smelt delicious and I couldn’t wait to try it. I dipped a cracker into it and my nose was right; it was creamy and light and delicious. 

Time to add the tofu linguini. I poured the noodles into the saucepan, which was still over a low-heat, and stirred the sauce to coat them. There was more sauce than noodles, and I was out of noodles. 

In my cupboard I found whole-wheat angel hair. I broke up some strands and threw them in another pot of boiling water. Once they were cooked I mixed them in with the tofu linguini and avocado sauce. 

The shortfall of pasta added another 20 minutes to my cooking time. By the end of the cooking process I was no longer hungry, but knew I had to at least try my sweat and tears. 

I made a small bowl and sat down on the couch. The sauce was still delicious and when I had it with the angel hair, I knew I’d be eating it again. Soon. However, when I snagged a piece of the tofu linguini in my fork, the bite was spongy and tasted like rubber. It was enough to turn me off to the bowl in front of me. Though the leftovers went into plastic containers in the fridge, a week later they were untouched and thrown out. 

Next time, I think I will half the sauce and only use real pasta. I have not tried another recipe since with the tofu ‘pasta’ and I’m not sure I will. It did make for a great sauce that I wish I could have enjoyed more.  

Stuffed Acorn Squash

Last weekend I picked up an acorn squash at the grocery store. They were on sale and I've been seeing many recipes for stuffing them.

Needing a well-deserved break from my NaNoWriMo yesterday, I began looking again for these recipes again. My challenge was to make sure it was meatless for Meatless Monday. 

A quick Google search revealed many rice/beef/sausage stuffing combinations. I found the basis for the recipe I ended up using on Allrecipes.com. Sometimes I feel like I should know better, and just start looking here. Last night was one of those times.

I read through it and the start of the reviews. I liked it for its seeming simplicity and few ingredients. Simple is good. 

The last squash I split was a butternut squash. So, I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this acorn. Would there be a 'nut' of sorts seeded inside, or would it be strung with little seeds? I tried to be delicate slicing it, unsure of the innards. But, when my knife when through the middle without stopping, I kept going. 

The inside of the acorn squash reminded much of that of a pumpkin. The seeds are all strung and melded together. I wish I had a grapefruit spoon. I tried first with a metal spoon to scoop them out. It worked alright, but I really had to scrape the edges. 

Then I remembered my avocado peeler. It worked beautifully on the second half of the squash. The beveled edge got under the seeds and around the bowl of the squash. In three quick strokes, the inside was cleaned out and ready to be stuffed. 

Speaking of stuffed, this was also my first experience making stuffing. One reviewer suggested Stove-Top. I boiled broth and butter together, and then stirred in the stuffing mix. Simple. Almost too simple I thought. 

Once the stuffing was fluffed, I stirred in some pepper, onion powder, and minced garlic. I used the herb-flavored stuffing which made the house smell fabulous. 

Next time, I think I will try making my own stuffing. About half of it is left over. 

While the stuffing was soaking up its juices, I preheated the oven to 400F and dropped a spoonful of brown sugar in each half of squash. I topped it with some slices of butter and popped in the oven covered in foil for a few minutes. 

Next, I mixed about 2 oz of crumbled feta into the stuffing mix while it cooled.. Everything is better with cheese! 

Now for the real easy part. I removed the squash from the oven. The sugar had just begun to caramelize and the butter didn't even melt yet. I don't know if this makes much of a difference in the overall squash.

Using a tablespoon, I filled the halves with the stuffing mixture, and then some. I wanted them to overflow a bit. I wrapped each in the foil, shiny side down, and returned the pan to the oven. 

I set the timer for 45 minutes. When it went off, I removed the foil wrappings and returned the pan for 15 more minutes. I was tempted to just remove them for good here because they looked and smelt so good. But a quick squeeze revealed the squash wasn't tender just yet. 

Plus, my small half leaked some sugar. 

So 15 minutes back in without the foil browned up the tops a bit, but didn't soften the squash to my liking. I recovered them with their foils and popped them back in for 10-12 more minutes. 

This did the trick. The squash halves were soft and tender. The tops were browned, and the feta slightly melted. I could hear them sizzling as I pulled them from the oven.

They popped off the pan (lined with foil, no spray) and I placed them on a cooling rack for a few minutes. Unsure how to eat stuffed squash, I opted for a bowl and fork. Good choice. 

The feta is a must. It definitely adds something to the stuffing. The stuffing is flavorful and textured enough to not realize there is no meat. The squash adds sweetness and a bit of crunch to this all-in-one meal. 

Can't wait for the leftover half!

Jalapeno Happenings

Some unplanned cooking hit my kitchen tonight. I had a bag of jalapenos left over from Nascar weekend in Loudon. We didn’t end up making the Jalapeno Firecrackers I planned.

A single female and a bag of jalapenos…oh the places the night could’ve taken me! I chose the road most traveled and skirted over to All Recipes website. A quick ‘ingredient’ search with just jalapenos revealed a slew of choices.

The first one that caught my eye was Easy Jalapeno Hot Sauce. The recipe called for 1 ¼ lbs of jalapenos. Great. I couldn’t remember how many pounds of peppers I purchased…and I’m sure the receipt is lost in New Hampshire somewhere. But then I noticed too it served 32. Yeah, not going to eat all that!

Thus, I took some liberties. I cut it down (I think) to 8 peppers. I didn’t have any canola oil, so I subbed vegetable oil. I don’t like to measure much. The water and oil measurements were just splashes in the blender.

Also, it was my first time cooking with jalapenos. I read enough about it to put my rubber gloves on. I seeded them with a spoon after cutting the stems off and slicing them lengthwise. While seeding one of the peppers, it fought back and squirted me directly in my right eye. I waited a second. No burn, just a little dryness. I survived my first jalapeno squirt.

One whole jalapeno dropped in the blender followed by the boiled and seeded ones. With the oil and water added, I set the blender on low - puree. Some green smudge happened on the bottom but not much more. I stepped the blender up to chop and I could see the peppers turning. When they were mostly chopped in the green liquid, I switched back to puree. It was pretty cool to see my blender steaming from the heat.

Meanwhile, I also found a recipe for Jalapeno Cocktail Squares. It called for 6 eggs, of which I had 4. Hello Google. A few sites recommended using a meal of flaxseed and water. I had flaxseed, but they were whole. Finally I found where I should be able to grind them with a food processor. Half hour later, I had ground flaxseed. It took a bit, but did the job.

For the meal, I did 1 tbsp ground flaxseed to 3 tbsp of water for each egg. I decided to do 3 eggs and 3 substitutes. I put the seed and water in the saucepan on low for about 10 minutes until it was the consistency of the beaten eggs .

I used 7 jalapenos for this recipe. I believe they called for 5. The food processor minced them up for me after I rinsed it from the flaxseeds and I layered the bottom of my 8” x 8” pan with them. Next came the cheese, which of course I teetered with too. I had a block of cheddar that I shredded over the peppers. Then I dabbled some of the cream cheese mixture (cream cheese, garlic, and cheddar cheese) from the Firecracker recipe in the pan too.

I beat 3 eggs with the flaxseed meal and poured it over the peppers and cheese. It didn’t quite cover it, nor seem like enough. I used the last egg I had and beat it with a splash of water. This did the trick. The peppers and cheese were covered.

The oven was preheated to 350°F as the recipe called for. See, I don’t change everything! And I popped the pan in.

The recipe called for 30 minutes in the oven, or until firm. An hour later mine was done…but my house smelt great!

While my cocktail squares were cooking, I had to sample my hot sauce. I put some over my nachos and used up the last of the cheddar block I had. It was good, but not great. The sauce was more mild than I expected and reminded me more of guacamole.
I will definitely use what I made up; however, next time I will probably keep seeds in and maybe add a few things. It is definitely a good base recipe.

I hoped for better luck with the squares - which I must say I had. The squares took a bit longer than expected to cook. I think it was because of the flaxseed meal made with water, and then the additional water added with the last egg. I kept resetting the timer with each dent made by my spatula when I tested the firmness.

The edges browned and became crispy. I pulled the custard out of the oven and placed the pan on a cooling rack. I kept telling myself that I’d wait until the morning to try it.

But the delicious smell got to me and I stole a corner of it. Yup. It’s also a keeper. But, not as a base, as a real recipe as I made it. I’d definitely add cream cheese and flaxseed again.

Someone in the reviews for the recipe compared it to a crustless quiche. I think with the flaxseed instead of some of the eggs, it’s lighter than a quiche. Also, someone else said it was just as good reheated. I will know tomorrow morning when I have some at work….if the pan doesn’t disappear before I sleep!

Tipsy Tapenade Chicken

Over the weekend I had a strong craving for chicken. I bought some but didn't get the chance to cook it up. So, though tonight is Meatless Monday, I threw it in the crock pot for a recipe I've been eyeing.

The recipe is simple and calls for things I have: cream of - soups, wine, salt, pepper, flour, chicken, olives. Now, I don't usually have olives on hand. I had a tapenade left over from the family picnic. The ingredients were all ready and waiting to get together.

I altered the recipe a bit. As I said above, I used a tapenade (olives, onions, garlic all minced together) instead of just olives. The wine was Pinot Grigio, not Chablis; and my chicken were tenderloins, rather than thighs. Also, in some of the reviews, folks cut the soups in half which worked out for me. I only had Cream of Mushroom in the cupboard.

Ingredients:
1lbs chicken tenderloins
1 1/2 cups tapenade
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Pinot Grigo (fill/rinse mushroom can)
sprinkle of flour

I piled all this into my slow-cooker. First the chicken, then each of the ingredients as listed above. The tapenade covered all my chicken; I worried that it might be too much. But, when I added the liquids it seemed to thin out.

The slow-cooker was already on 'low' - oops (didn't shut it off before I unplugged it last time). I bumped it up to 'high' as I didn't want to be up all night waiting for it to be done.

When I came home from a meeting tonight, the house was fragrant. At first I thought it was just the Chinese food my neighbors had just received. The waft was stronger as I entered my apartment, then I remembered the chicken. Mmmm!

After about 3 1/2 hours in the slow-cooker on high, I turned the pot off and let it cool down. In the meantime, I boiled a pot of brown rice to serve with the chicken.

Looks like I'm going to have a fabulous lunch tomorrow!

REVIEW: The cream sauce is just enough. It's not too creamy that it takes away from the chicken and the chicken absorbed the tapenade flavor. Pared with the brown rice, the sauce coats the meat and grain and releases the vegetables. I added 2 spoonfuls of sauce to my dish after adding the chicken. It's light enough for a summer's night.

Black Bean Burgers

Last week I came across a recipe in a Twitter #MeatlessMonday search for Spicy Black Bean Burgers. It was on my mind all week, and I was looking forward to making it for Monday. I made sure I had bought the ingredients I didn't have, and brought the recipe up in conversation whenever I could.

I did not bookmark the recipe when I found it and had quite the time rediscovering it. All I could remember was that it called for just 1 can of black beans, onions, peppers, cumin, and hot sauce among other ingredients. I searched my usual recipes sites - Allrecipes.com and Spark People Recipes - to no avail.

Somehow after a few Google searches I found it. Thank goodness too! By this time I'm pretty sure my stomach began feeding on my brain. I knew it was the right one because I remembered the layout and pictures on the page. However, I missed 'egg' on the ingredient list and probably could have found it much sooner than I did.

So, this recipe seemed pretty straight forward to me, and it was. I drained and rinsed the beans. While they were sitting, I pulled the aluminum salad bar container out. (I find it easier to go to the salad bar and pick the parts of the veggies I want, rather than wasting half an onion I don't need.) I picked out some slices of onion, green pepper, and banana peppers and tossed them in my food processor - with a fork of minced garlic, of course.

Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
3/4 to 1 cup of finely chopped onions and peppers
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon each: cumin, creole seasoning, onion powder
1 tablespoon hot sauce
regular breadcrumbs

Olive oil

I mashed up the beans in a glass bowl with a fork. I have hesitated investing in a masher because all I used to think I'd mash were potatoes. I want one now.

Next I 'processed' the veggies in the processor and mixed them into my mashed beans. They seemed to hold up well. I let that sit to the side while I beat one egg with some onion powder, cumin, hot sauce, and creole seasoning.

I poured the egg mixture into the bean and veggie bowl. The contents blended well, but were a bit watery. The original recipe said this could happen, but suggested draining through a fine colandar, or cheesecloth - neither of which I had.

My solution: add more breadcrumbs. The recipe added 1/2 a cup. I added 1/2 cup, mixed in, added a few more shakes, mixed in, shaked, mixed, etc. until the mixture was moist but pliable.

Patties rested in my palms while I sprinkled bread crumbs on each side, and then tossed them into my pan with some heated olive oil. I cooked each side for about 3 minutes before flipping it. It was enough time to form a crispy, burger-like crust around the bean mixtures.

My recipe yielded 5 patties.The original yields 4. I write this off to my smaller hands, thus smaller patties.

I tried one patty last night for dinner, wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla with a slice of swiss cheese. It was delicious. The spices were strong, but just enough. The texture made the burger melt in my mouth while the veggies prevented my nose from running or any of the other 'overly-spicy-reactions'

Today I had another one for lunch, also wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla and slice of swiss cheese. But this one had a little bit more flavor - my red pepper hummus was spread between the tortilla and the patty. It was phenomenal. I can't wait to have another one for lunch tomorrow!

All day today as I discussed my recipe more with people, I thought of those I know who I think would really enjoy the patties. I wanted to divide what I had left into little baggies and pass them out like Halloween candy to my friends and family.

Maybe next time...this batch is almost gone!

This is a great base-recipe. Changing up the spices and vegetables can give you a totally different flavor 'burger.' I am thinking some pineapple, red onion, and soy sauce for a tropical taste next time.

Hummus

Yesterday we had a family picnic at my aunt's house. The Evite instructed cousins over 30 to bring a side dish, and under 30 an appetizer or dessert.

I couldn't decide. Dessert or appetizer.

I ended up making both. In my quest for a Lemon Squares recipe, I came across Lemon - Garlic Hummus. As a big fan of hummus and its many uses, I knew I had to try the it.

I perused the ingredients list and had them all in my cupboard - my favorite type of recipes! I also halved the recipe, as making it 3 days before the party would just be a trial.

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
3 tablespoons minced garlic
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil

I added everything to my food processor and held the 'low' button. Instantly the chickpeas mushed and the flavors blended. Occasionally, I ran a spatula around the bowl to get the last few chickpeas mixed in. I pulsated the processor for about 5 minutes all together.

Once the mixture looked well-blended and the consistency I wanted for hummus, I dipped a cracker in for a taste test.

It took a minute for the flavors to come, but it was good. I scooped out the rest of the mixture into a glass bowl and covered it with plastic wrap. I let it sit in the fridge overnight.

By morning the lemon and garlic melded and the bowl was very aromatic when I removed the plastic wrap. Another taste test with a bagel and the flavor was much more immediate.

It turned out that I didn't need to taste test any further, and my meals were all set for the next few days. I let the bowl sit in the fridge 2 more days until the party.


I was wow-ed and inspired by my lemon garlic creation, that I needed to try again. This time I wanted to do Roasted Red Pepper Hummus (my favorite).

The ingredient list was similar - I like to add garlic to almost everything - except I replaced the lemon with roasted peppers.

I bought Sweet Red Roasted Peppers in a jar, instead of hot or spicy. I didn't notice right away, nor did I want to turn the oven on to roast a pepper.

I used about half the jar, maybe too much. The result was a bit runny. I hoped it would firm up in the fridge. It did a bit, but not as much as I wanted. I just went with it.

I made this one on Friday night and put into a plastic container with a cover right away. Similar to the Lemon-Garlic, the flavors were much better the next day.

Both hummus were well received at the picnic, but had to compete with my sister's salsa (she made the Pampered Chef Mango Salsa). I brought about half of each home.

Today I used my Red Pepper Hummus as a spread on my wrap. It add just enough sweetness to my ham salad. Both spreads should be gone in no time, as I enjoy them and will use them in every meal.