Bell Pepper Quesadillas

Meatless Mondays anyone?  I had bought 3 bell peppers last week and I was thinking of what to do with them tonight.  I could only use 2 of them though, the orange one didn't look so great after a few days apparently.  Quesadillas are easy to make and you could basically put anything you want in it and add some cheese.   I actually used my toaster to oven to make them tonight since I was only making 2 of them.  If you are making more, you can use your regular oven.  I decided to make bell pepper quesadillas, and they came out surprisingly tasty!  Next time I might try to add some caramelized onions too...so feel free to do that if you have it at home.

Ingredients

4 flour tortillas

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup shredded cheese (I used a Mexican blend of cheddar, montery jack, colby and mozzarella cheeses.)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Optional Toppings

diced avocado

diced tomatoes

sour cream

salsa

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 

Slice the bell peppers into thin strips.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. 

Add in sliced peppers with cumin, salt, and pepper.  Cook peppers until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Place tortilla flat on a baking sheet.  Spoon a layer of peppers on the tortilla.  Top with ¼ cup cheese.  Cover with another tortilla.

Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes or until cheese has melted.   Slice into quarters, it is easy if you have a pizza cutter to do this.  Top with your preferred topping(s) or serve on its own, it’s just as delicious!

Also, I wanted to have some leftovers for lunch this week, and was able to fit 3 slices into each Tupperware container.

Serves 2 or 1 with leftovers.

Sweet Potato Dog Chews

What can you do on a Sunday night after you had to leave your dogs alone all day and its been pouring rain so the dogs can't go outside anyway?  Make them homemade sweet potato chews!  These are an excellent, healthy alternative to rawhides.  I used to buy my dogs "veggie rawhides" made out of sweet potatoes and they cost about $10 for a 1 pound package.  I did some price checking and I couldn't believe that a 2 pound bag of sweet potatoes only cost $1.69 at the local grocery store.  Clearly, I am saving a lot by making Buddy and Ellie homemade sweet potato chews.  As you can see below, they loved them and I feel good when I know Buddy and Ellie can enjoy a healthy treat!

Ingredients

2 sweet potatoes

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

Wash sweet potatoes.

Slice sweet potatoes lengthwise about ¼ inch thick.  Place on a baking sheet. 

Bake for 3 hours.  Turn slices about halfway through baking.

Cool on wire racks after baking.

Store in refrigerator for up to 3 weeks or freeze for up to 4 months.

Please let me know if you make these too and if your dogs enjoyed it as much as mine did!

Pesto and Artichoke Pasta

Here is an easy recipe for a lazy lunch on Saturday.  I had both pesto and marinated artichoke hearts in the refrigerator and I thought it would go great together as a simple pasta dish.  If you have 15 minutes, you can put this pasta dish together.  This could also be a great main dish if you want to add in sliced, cooked chicken breast.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

½ pound dry penne pasta (I used a whole grain pasta.)

¼ cup pesto sauce (I used Kirkland’s signature basil pesto from Costco.)

½ cup marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, in the same pot used to cook pasta, add 2 tablespoon of pesto sauce on medium-low heat.  Add the chopped artichokes. Add the cooked pasta.   Stir until heated through.  Add the parmesan cheese and stir to combine.  Serve immediately.  Top with additional parmesan cheese if desired.

(This is also delicious served cold.)

Serves 2-4.  

Key Lime Pie

I am going to my friend's house for dinner tonight and I was asked to bring something sweet.  I decided to make key lime pie, and its perfect since this is a light and refreshing dessert.  Since there were going to be several others at dinner, I used a 10-inch pie crust instead of the regular 9-inch.  I also doubled the recipe below, so the recipe below is for a 9-inch pie crust.  My favorite topping for key lime pie is freshly whipped cream.  You could make a meringue topping if you prefer or eat it plain, but why would you not want whipped cream on top????

 

Ingredients

1 (9-inch) premade graham cracker pie crust (You can make your own too!)

3 egg yolks

1  (14 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup key lime juice (I always use Nellie & Joe’s Key West Lime Juice.)

Optional – zest of one lime (if you like extra tartness)

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lime juice.  Mix well using a wire whisk.  You can probably use a hand mixer, but its so easy whisking everything by hand.

Pour mixture into pie crust.  (I like to put the pie pan on a baking sheet to make it easier to take in/out of the oven.)  Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes.  Allow to cool.  Once completely cooled, cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. 

I also like to top my key lime pies with freshly whipped cream, click here for the whipped cream topping recipe. 

Whipped Cream Topping

Who doesn't love freshly whipped cream?  It dresses up most desserts and is such a versatile topping for so many foods and drinks.  I love it on top of pies, fruit, ice cream, hot cocoa, and coffee drinks!  I just made whipped cream topping for a key lime pie, doesn't it look delicious?  I wish I could eat a slice right now but I am taking it to a dinner party tonight and it probably wouldn't be a good idea if there was a slice missing...right?

 

Ingredients

2 cups heavy whipping cream (keep cold)

¼ cup granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the whipping cream until stiff peaks form.  Slowly add in sugar and vanilla.  This could take about 10 minutes.  Be sure not to overbeat, or it will start getting lumpy like butter and not creamy.  

You can also make the whipped cream by hand with a wire whisk; it’ll just take some arm strength and may take you a little longer!

To make the whipped cream topping on the pie decorative, I used Wilton’s disposable decorating bag with a star tip.  Wilton’s website tells you how to do the star technique here - http://www.wilton.com/technique/Star.

(Hint:  I put my large glass mixing bowl and beater attachments (or whisk) in the refrigerator for about 10-15 minutes to keep the whipping cream extra cold.)

Mushroom Risotto

I have finally made risotto!  I have been wanting to make risotto ever since I got back from Italy last fall.  This is my first attempt and it turned out pretty well.  I researched several recipes online and I came up with this one based on the ingredients I had already.  I wanted to keep it simple so it won't be too hard to mess up.  The main thing you need to remember to do is stir constantly!  Also, slowly adding the warm stock to the rice and letting it absorb is what will make the risotto creamy.  I guarantee that if you follow those few tips, you will make a very delicious risotto!

Ingredients

1 cup arborio rice

3 cups chicken stock

2 cups mushrooms, chopped (I used button mushrooms.)

1/2 onion, minced

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

½ cup parmesan cheese, grated

salt

ground black pepper

Directions

In a saucepan, over medium heat, bring chicken stock to a simmer and keep warm.

In a separate pan, over medium high heat, add butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Sauté onions until they get soft and translucent, about 2-3 minutes.  Next, add in garlic and mushrooms, sauté for 2-3 minutes.  Add in 1 tablespoon olive oil and the rice.  Stir to combine.  Cook for about 1-2 minutes. 

Add simmering stock, ½ cup at a time.  Continue stirring often.  When the stock is almost absorbed, add in the next ½ cup stock.   This will take about 20-25 minutes.  The rice should be cooked and still slightly chewy, so the rice is soft but still has a bite to it. 

 

Stir in the parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serves 4.  This could be a great side dish or a main dish with a salad (which is what I did!)

Here is an update on Buddy since he had sutures last week on his neck from a surgical removal of a growth.  He kept scratching at his sutures so I tried the “cone of shame” and he HATED it.   Doesn’t he look sad with it on?   So next I tried tying a bandana around his neck and it worked!   Hopefully this will last for another week until he gets his sutures removed.