Broccoli Souffle and Sue's Lemony Salmon

I had a fun girls night this past weekend and enjoyed cooking with my fiance's grandmother. We made Broccoli Souffle - a recipe passed along to me from a Clemson friend and a delicious Lemony Salmon.

The Broccoli Souffle would be a great addition to your Easter menu. Hope you enjoy both recipes as much as we did!

xoxo,
Alison J.

Broccoli Souffle

Ingredients
2 pkgs. frozen, chopped broccoli (2 lbs.)
1 can cream of celery soup
1 c. real mayo
3 tablespoons grated or finely chopped onion
2 eggs, beaten
1 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 stack Ritz crackers
1 stick melted butter or margarine, 1/2 c.

Directions
Cook broccoli until tender; drain and cool. Mix soup, mayo, onion, egg and cheese; stir in the cooled broccoli. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 3 1/2 to 5 qt slow cooker. Mix 1 stack of crushed Ritz crackers with margarine or butter. Put on top. Cook on high for 2 to 3 hours. If you would like to bake it instead of using the crock pot, cook for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly.


Sue's Lemony Salmon

Ingredients
2 servings of salmon
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 c. melted margarine (1/2 stick)
Old Bay seasoning
McCormick Lemon Pepper Grill Mates

Directions
Place salmon on greased baking pan. Coat top with Old Bay and lemon pepper grill seasoning. Meanwhile, combine melted margarine with lemon juice in a small cup.

Broil filets for about 8 minutes, but cooking time really depends on the thickness of the salmon filets. Keep an eye on them while they're broiling and take them out of the oven when they reach the desired color. If you like salmon on the rare to medium-rare side, remove earlier.

Turkey Meatloaf with Feta

Since I was not motivated to start packing for my trip to Turkey just yet I decided to look in the fridge and see what ingredients I have to work with for dinner. I decided I wanted something light and easy to cook up. I went to one of my favorite websites, the trusty Food Network, to see what I was in the mood for. This meal took me about 10 minutes to prepare and get into the oven. If you have kids this is a great recipe to get them to help you out and start their love for cooking.

Turkey Meatloaf with Feta
Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients:
Vegetable cooking spray
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced, optional
2 eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons Jane’s Crazy Salt (found on the baking aisle)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound ground turkey, preferably dark meat

Directions
Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Spray a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, stir together the bread crumbs, parsley, garlic, if using, eggs, milk, feta, salt, and pepper. Add the turkey and gently stir to combine, being careful not to overwork the meat.
Carefully pack the meat mixture into the prepared pan and bake until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and slice. Put on a serving platter and serve.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Are you making steak, chicken, fish, or virtually any other meat for dinner tonight? Well, guess what?! This is a quick and easy recipe that your kids, significant other, and friends will love. I decided to cook up some steaks for dinner tonight and the ingredients in the recipe below are almost always in my cooking cabinet. You will be amazed at how often your family will ask you to make this recipe over and over again.

XOXO,
Esra

Twice Baked Potatoes
3 Gals and a Kitchen

2 baking potatoes
1 cup sour cream
2 chopped green onions
1 cup cheddar cheese
3 pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped (optional)
2 TBSP butter
Salt/pepper
(sprinkle feta on top - my personal fav, but optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Bake 4 potatoes in foil in preheated oven for about 50-60 minutes. Meanwhile, begin to cook bacon evenly until brown in a skillet. Drain on paper towels and chop. Once the potatoes have finished cooking, allow them to cool for 15 minutes or cool to a touch. Slice the potatoes in half lengthwise, use a spoon to scoop out the insides, forming a potato bowl. Place the potato insides into a large bowl, add sour cream, green onions, cheddar cheese, bacon, butter, and salt/pepper. Save some of the toppings to sprinkle on top of the finished product. After all presentation is everything. Mix well using a potato masher or a fork if you do not have one. Spoon the mixture into the potato bowls you created earlier. Place on a large baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes until heated through. Sprinkle extra toppings on the potatoes. Serve immediately.

Chicken Stuffed with Feta

Do you ever have chicken breast in your fridge or freezer and aren't sure what to do with it? Have you over played the standard BBQ chicken, Italian chicken, and chicken with pasta recipes? If you answered yes, then this recipe is for you. This is a bikini friendly recipe, and your significant other would be none the wiser.
Dinner is served!
XOXO,
Esra

Chicken Stuffed with Feta
3 Gals and a Kitchen

4 skinless chicken breasts
4 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 TB lemon juice
1 TB dried basil
1 small chopped tomato
2 TBSP softened cream cheese
½ c crumbled feta cheese
2 slices bacon
1 c spinach
¼ c chopped sweet onion
4 slices prosciutto
Salt/Pepper
Chopped black olives

Preheat oven to 350.
In a bowl mix together, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, basil, chopped tomato, salt, and pepper. In a small bowl mix together, feta and cream cheese. Meanwhile, cook bacon until cooked through, pat grease off with a paper towel. Use the same pan to sauté the sweet onion and spinach.
Lay chicken breast on a cutting board and make a 2 inch incision on the fatty portion of the chicken (you are trying to create a pocket for the stuffing). In the pocket of the chicken breast: Place a piece of bacon, add some of the onion/spinach mixture, and evenly distribute the cheese mixture between the two chicken breasts.
Wrap the chicken breasts with prosciutto and then pour the olive oil mixture on top of the chicken. Secure the chicken with toothpicks. Cook for 30-35 minutes. Before serving sprinkle chopped black olives on top.

Warm Brie wrapped in Puff Pastry

This is a great recipe to add to your arsenal! It's one that you can easily whip up to impress your party guests!








Ingredients
1 sheet frozen Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry
1 1/2 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 80z. wheel of brie (I like to trim off the white coating, as it has a slightly bitter taste. This is optional)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 beaten egg
flour for dusting counter tops when rolling out pastry
Crackers & or apples for serving

Directions
Preheat oven to 375.

Lay one folded sheet of frozen puff pastry on the counter and let thaw for about 15 minutes. Once it has defrosted, unfold it and use a rolling pin or drinking glass to roll out the puff pastry to a larger square. Be sure to pinch the two seams to make sure there are no holes in the pastry when you finish rolling it out. Place the brie in the center of the pastry square.

Over medium heat, melt your butter in a saucepan. Add pecans and cinnamon and saute until brown. Take off the heat and pour melted butter, cinnamon and pecans over the brie. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and drizzle with honey. Pull up the edges of pastry and pinch and twist to seal and create a "beggar's purse." Then pull down the four edges to create a flower-like shape on top of the pastry. A pastry brush works best, but you can use a spoon to coat your pastry all over with the beaten egg. This gives a nice, shiny finish to the pastry.

Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes, or until golden. Make sure that all of your seams are closed up, or your cheese and filling will ooze out!

xoxo,
Alison J.

Mexican Lasagna - Time to Get Ready for Cinco de Mayo

The time has come to start perfecting your recipes for Cinco de Mayo. I create a low-fat Mexican Lasagna recipe to help you keep up with your New Year's Resolution as well as help the kids eat their vegetables.
I must advise you to be extra careful when chopping all of the vegetables. I made the mistake of being in a rush and losing my technique when chopping which resulted in a nice slice of the finger. When you are cooking and don't have a bandage you can do like i did and grab a paper towel, wrap it around your wound, and tape that bad boy on.
XOXO,
Esra

Mexican Lasagna – Time to Get Ready for Cinco de Mayo

3 Gals and a Kitchen

8-10 tortilla shells (I used whole wheat, low carb)
4 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ lb ground beef (I used very lean ground beef)
½ large red onion, chopped
¼ c chopped green chilies
1 red pepper, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
Red pepper seasoning
Cumin
2 tomatoes
2 c sharp cheddar cheese
2 c Mexican cheese mix
1 c lettuce (shredded)
1 16oz can refried beans
1 avocado, peeled/sliced
4 scallions, diced
Sour cream
Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add 2 TBSP olive oil, spread. Add ground beef, red, yellow, and green peppers, red onion, green chilies, cumin, red pepper seasoning, and chili pepper. Let the ground beef brown and then add tomatoes.

Meanwhile, take a 9*13 shallow baking dish add remaining olive oil, spread. Place enough tortilla shells to cover the bottom without overlapping (you may cut the tortilla shells to make it fit snug and easy to layer). Now start building your lasagna: spread refried beans on the tortilla shells, sprinkle a layer of cheese, add shredded lettuce, meat mixture, sprinkle another layer of cheese. Repeat: tortilla, beans, lettuce, meat, cheese…do this until you have used all your meat mixture. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top and bake for 12-15 minutes until the cheese has melted and browned.

Top with avocado, sour cream, and scallions and serve.

**I did not use avocados because the grocery store did not have any ripe ones**

Sassy Tortilla Stew

There are variations to this recipe, but this was passed along from Louann. Allison has a recipe that includes a few more spices and it's delish! Feel free to switch up ingredients. If you prefer a particular type of bean or corn - replace what's listed below with your favorite. Any way you make it, you'll love it - guaranteed!

Ingredients
2 - 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (salt & pepper, cumin or Mexican seasoning)
1 can black beans
1 can white chipotle corn (or Mexicorn is a good choice too)
2 regular size cans of diced tomatoes
1 can Original Rotel
1 package taco seasoning

Optional toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, cilantro, diced avacado, & tortilla chips make great "dippers"

Directions
To cook the chicken, you can either pan fry it on medium to medium high heat in a little olive oil & seasoning for about 5-6 minutes per side. Cook 'til golden brown on either side. Cut into it and if they're close to being done, put them on a plate to cool and tent with aluminum foil. This extends the cooking time a little by allowing it to cook in it's own steam. It finishes off the chicken without drying it out.

Or...you can boil your chicken breasts with a liberal amount of salt. This takes about 10 minutes, depending on the size. You may have to cut into it to make sure it's done. Let cool and shred with your fingers or a fork.

Now for the easy part....

Drain beans and corn into the sink with a colander and rinse both with water. Dump the beans, corn, tomatoes and taco seasoning into a crock pot or large pot on the stove. Stir in shredded chicken and cook slow and low in the crockpot for up to 6 hours. Taste it for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper as desired. You can also cook on the stove top at medium low for a few hours. It doesn't take too long to heat through, but the longer you wait to serve it, the better the flavors will be.

*Notes*
If you want a heartier stew, serve over white or brown rice. Would also be great served as a salad - over a bed of lettuce with a spicy ranch. Or, make your own chicken wrap and fill a tortilla shell with chicken stew and rice.

xoxo,

Alison J.