Stuffed Pepper Casserole

A spin on the traditional Stuffed Peppers.  My kids have been begging me to make Stuffed Peppers for them all week.  I only had 2 green peppers in the house so I decided to tweak my recipe a bit and make this into a casserole!  It was a huge hit, no leftovers anywhere to be found.

Ingredients:

2 peppers (any color) chopped
1/2 lb  cooked brown rice
1 lb ground beef
1/2 chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of ground ginger
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1-6 oz can of tomato paste
1/2 can (6-8 oz) jellied cranberry sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese


Preparation:

In a large skillet brown ground beef until cooked through.  Drain oil and set meat aside.  Wipe out the skillet.  Heat oil in skillet and add onion, garlic, ginger sauté for one minute.  Add beef back in and combine with onion mixture.  Add tomato paste, water soy sauce and cranberry sauce and stir and cook for about 10 minutes until cranberry sauce is melted and evenly combined.  (If mixture is too thick, add a little more water).

Now to assemble the casserole:

Grease a 9x9 or similar size baking dish about 9x9 with non stick cooking spray.  Add raw chopped pepper at the bottom of the dish.

Next layer your brown rice.  I used the frozen brown rice from Trader Joes.  This makes it so easy.  Just open the frozen rice and dump in!

Now you can add your meat/sauce mixture on top of the rice.

Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and place in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes.

Remove from oven, uncover and sprinkle on parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.  Place back in the oven uncovered for 10-15 min until cheese is melted and browned.  (I took mine a little too far and my cheese is too dark, next time I won't get distracted LOL)

Mini Tomato & Mozzarella Bites

 

A super quick appetizer that is colorful and flavorful and will just take minutes to prepare before your guests arrive.  You only need a few ingredients to throw this together.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 quart grape tomatoes, halved

12 bocconcini (mini fresh mozzarella cheese balls), cut into 3rds

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

6 thinly sliced fresh basil leaves (roll them up and cut thinly)

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

 

Preparation:

 

Skewer 1 tomato half, 1 piece of cheese and another tomato half onto each toothpick.  Place all skewered tomoatoes and cheese into a shallow dish.  In a small bowl whisk together the balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and drizzle over skewers.  Lastly, sprinkle the tops with basil and salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediatately or refrigerate up to an hour (I don't like cold tomatoes so I like to serve this immediately after I make it).

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The Secret Recipe Club - Crispy Eggplant, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad

We are so excited because this is our first month joining the Secret Recipe Club.  This is how it works.  A large group of blogs are assigned another blog in which they need to make a recipe from.  It's a secret! We can't tell anyone whose blog we have been assigned.  Once we choose a recipe we re-create it and then all the blogs post their recipes on the same day. We then get to see who had our blog and see what recipe from our blog they decided to make.  It's a great way to get to know new foodie friends!  This month we were assigned to JBean Cuisine.  I loved all of her delicious recipes and her use of spices that most people don't use very often.  A South East Asian Cuisine theme runs throughout her blog which was exciting since I absolutely LOVE Indian and Thai spices and flavors.  Although funny enough I chose a recipe that was very simple and straight forward because I knew my husband would love it and also I thought it would take a really pretty picture.  There's nothing wrong with wanting a pretty picture to display is there?  Here is The Perfect Stack......Delicious cripsy eggplant, tomatoes, mozzarella and fresh basil. YUM!

The Perfect Stack:

Crispy Eggplant, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 small eggplant
1 clove of garlic, peeled and sliced in half
1/4 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
2 – 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium tomato, sliced into 1/4 inch slices (or however thick you like)
3 slices of mozzarella, about 1/4 of a ball, sliced into desired thickness
3 small leaves of basil
2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar reduction
1 teaspoon olive oil (optional)

TIP:  To make the balsamic reduction, simply heat 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Allow the vinegar to reduce by half, or until it coats the back of a spoon **

Preparation:

For the Eggplant:

Slice eggplant into 1/2 inch slices.  Rub both sides of the eggplant slices with garlic cloves (switch garlic halves about half-way through).

Sprinkle both sides of the eggplant with salt and pepper.

Place flour in a shallow bowl. One by one, place each piece of eggplant into the flour, press down lightly to coat the eggplant evenly.  Tap lightly to remove extra flour.

Heat a large frying pan (or sauté pan) over medium-high heat.  Add the oil and heat until glistening.

Add the eggplant slices and pan-fry for 2-3 minutes per side.  Keep careful watch as not to burn them.  If they brown too quickly, lower the heat.

Flip each slice over and cook the other side, until nice and crisp (and golden brown).

Remove from frying pan and place on paper towel to drain off excess oil.

To Assemble the Salad:

Place a piece of the fried eggplant on your plate, top with a slice of tomato, then 1 slice of mozzarella and top that with 1 leaf of basil.  Repeat the layers until all ingredients are used up.

Drizzle the salad with the balsamic vinegar and 1 TBSP of olive oil (if desired).

Enjoy!

Roasted Tilapia with Rosemary and Tomatoes

 We seem to alway have fresh herbs and heirloom tomatoes on hand in my house lately.  So here is another healthy fish recipe that is big on taste without feeling guilty.  My 8 year old daughter loved this so much that she requested that I make it 2 days in a row.  Of course I happily agreed, especially since I did not really love the pictures I took the first time.  Round 2, much better light!

Ingredients:

1 lb Tilapia filets (4 filets)
2 tablespoons of fresh rosemary, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh garlic, minced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved (I prefer heirloom)
Juice from half a lemon
salt and pepper

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  In a small bowl combine chopped rosemary and the chopped garlic with olive oil and stir to combine.  Place halved tomatoes in a baking dish and spoon half of the rosemary, garlic, oil mixture over tomatoes and toss to coat.  Lightly season tilapia filets on both sides with salt and pepper and then add to baking dish and spoon remaining rosemary, garlic, oil mixture over the fish and spread evenly.  Squeeze the juice from half a lemon over fish and tomatoes.  Roast in oven for 25-30 minutes. 

Chicken, Cheddar and Heirloom Tomato Calzone

A quick and easy hot lunch using ingredients that I typically have on hand. 

Ingredients:

Pizza dough

1/2 lb of sliced chicken breast

1 cup sliced heirloom tomatoes

1/4 lb of sliced cheddar cheese

olive oil

Italian seasoning

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Roll out pizza dough into a rectangle on a greased cookie sheet.  Brush a little olive oil on the dough.   Sprinkle the top of dough with about 1 teaspoon of italian seasoning.  Starting at the bottom of dough (closest to you) put a single layer of sliced chicken breast.  Then above that in the middle of the dough add a layer of tomatoes.  Lastly on the top portion of the dough add a single layer of sliced cheddar cheese.  Starting back at the bottom of the dough roll the dough upward folding in all the ingredients.  Once the dough is completely rolled up place is seam side down on the greased cookie sheet.  Brush the top of the dough roll up with olive oil and sprinkle the top with 1/2 teaspoon (give or take) of italian seasoning.  Bake at 375 for about 18-20 minutes until the dough is browned all over.  Remove from oven, let stand for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Pretty Tomatoes!

Heirloom Tomato and Avocado Salad

I really love tomoatoes but I especially love heirloom tomoatoes.  I think they are so pretty and I love how they all have a different level of acidity and flavor. This is a super light summer salad that is a perfect side dish for a quick dinner.  We served this along grilled hamburgers so dinner was ready in about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 - 2 cups heirloom cherry tomoatoes sliced in half

1 avocado cubed

1 tablespoon seasoned rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

6 basil leaves chiffonade 

Preparation:

Place tomoatoes and avocado in a bowl.  Mix vinegar, oil and soy sauce in a small bowl and pour over tomoatoes and avocado.  Sprinke with chiffonade of basil and toss to coat.

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Tomato Souflee Pie

This was a first time trial at this recipe and as Nanci and I discovered, it will be a staple in our recipe repertoire for the many years to come.  Wow this was good!  Not to mention how beautiful it looks with the bright red tomatoes, yellow custard filling and green specks of chives throughout the pie.  The texture comes out light and creamy, like a custard.  It was a nice departure from the everyday quiche we usually make.  Nanci and I taste tested this pie at our monthly scrap-booking get together with friends this past Sunday.  It was very well received.  We all went back for a second "taste". 

Ingredients:

1 frozen pie shell

4 eggs

1 cup of milk

3 ripe plum tomatoes

1/4 cup of chives, roughly chopped

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

salt and pepper

 Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Beat eggs and milk together in large bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add chives and cheese, mix.  Pour into a prepared pie shell.  Slice tomatoes and arrange in concentric circles around the pie to make a pretty design.  Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for 30 minutes longer until set.   Serve warm.

Tomato Tartlets

Ellen and I will be catering a baby shower in May so we have been testing recipes to see what will work best. I came up with this tomato tarlet appetizer that is so easy and so delicious.  This is going to make a perfect, light appetizer for the party.

 
Ingredients:

mini phyllo cups
cherry tomatoes
blue cheese crumbles
shredded mozzerella cheese
fresh cracked black pepper

Preparation:

Cut tomatoes in half and place 2 halves in each phyllo cup.  Sprinkle with black pepper.  Add a teaspoon of blue cheese crumbles over the tomatoes and then sprinkle shredded cheese over the top.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or until cheese is golden and bubbly.  Serve warm. 

Roasted Tomato Bread Soup

Perfect snowy day for hot tomato soup and sandwiches.  I had some brown heirloom tomatoes that I used along with canned crushed tomatoes and some crusty sourdough bread to make this soup.

Roasted heirloom tomatoes

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons  olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

5 medium heirloom tomatoes quartered

1-28 oz can of crushed tomatoes with juice

1 1/2  cups  low-sodium chicken broth
1/2  cup  milk, warmed
Salt and pepper
2 cups of crusty bread, cubed

Preparation:

Place quartered tomatoes on a sheet pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place in a 350 degree oven for  30-40 minutes.  When done, take out of oven remove skin from tomatoes and set aside.
Warm oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until slightly, about 1 minute. Stir in flour to blend, about 1 minute.  Add canned crushed canned tomatoes with juice, oven roasted tomatoes and broth to saucepan, increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Stir or whisk constantly until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Working in batches, carefully transfer soup to a blender and puree until smooth (or use an immersion blender and blend directly in pot until smooth)   Return soup to saucepan, stir in milk and cook over low heat for 3 to 5 minutes, until heated through. Do not boil. Season with salt and pepper. Add bread cubes to bowl and pour soup over bread and serve hot.