Green Beans in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce

This is... perfect.

Ingenious.

Exactly what I needed for my Thanksgiving feast.

This is a perfect addition to my carefully calculated menu.  To explain this, I'll need to back up.

See, this Thanksgiving, I've been trying to design the most perfect menu.  To do so, I've been looking for recipes that incorporate all of my favorite Holiday foods, and display them in a new, innovative way.  My goal was for every meal to be unique and sensational.

When it comes to green bean casserole, there are not a lot of ways to revamp or improve the recipe.  At the same time, I feel like there's way too many casserole-type dishes on my table.  So, because of this, I looked for ways to fix green bean casserole so it was just as tasty, but still a touch on the unusual side.

I made this recipe while trying to do just that. 

I love green beans, and I love green bean casserole, but I hate that every side dish on thanksgiving features one healthy vegetable lobbed into a baking dish with not-so-healthy ingredients just to make it taste good.

I wanted to show my guests that green beans can look and taste delicious without all of those extra calories. 

The result is this slightly creamy, Mushroom-filled sauce over green beans and topped with those famous French fried onions we recognize all too well on top of traditional green bean casserole.  The taste is reminiscent of the Thanksgiving dish without the trademark heaviness that makes it hard to gobble up the rest of your Thanksgiving sides.

Get it?  "Gobble?"

So clever....






Green Beans in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce

2 tbsp. olive oil
1 8oz. container mushrooms
1 cup cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 tbsp dried parsley
2 tsp onion powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
2/3 cup French fried onions
1 - 1 1/2 lbs. fresh green beans




In a sauté pan, cook mushrooms in olive oil over medium heat for 8-10 minutes.

Stir in soup, broth, parsley and onion powder.  Season to taste.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes uncovered.

Cook green beans in a pot of boiling water.  Blanch in cold water to stop cooking.  Arrange green bens lengthwise on a serving tray.

Pour mushroom sauce over green beans.  Garnish with French fried onions.

Rakott Krumpli (Hungarian Potato & Egg Casserole)

I love trying new things.

Especially, when those things are food-related.  Even more especially when they are foods I've never heard of from countries I've never been to.  So, this casserole was right up my alley.

Now, I'm only, like, 50% certain that I can even pronounce this correctly, and that alone would have potentially scared me off.  But, after sifting through some similar recipes, I decided that this was literally TOO easy for me to pass up.  When you read the ingredients, you'll understand why.

Potatoes and Eggs?  Why, that's legitimately almost half the recipe right there! 

Is it sounding promising yet?

I do have to say, however, that I did make one minor change to my recipe that you probably won't appreciate.  So, I'll invite you to change it back if you wish, or make up your own version like I did.  The traditional version does not have onions in it, but after reading this review of the New York Times, I decided to try it since I'm kind of an onion freak. 

Also, I noticed in doing some of the research that this can be a meatless or meat-full dish, with some recipes calling for either bacon or sausage.  Naturally, me being me, I did not do this, so you're getting a full-on 100% vegetarian dish.

Nonetheless, I found this recipe to be savory and soul-satisfying like every good potato dish should be.  However you pronounce it, this Hungarian-style casserole will delight everyone at your dinner table.




Rakott Krumpli (Hungarian Potato & Egg Casserole)
(adapted from NY Times)

6 Idaho potatoes      
2 cups white onion, diced
2 tbsp olive oil
4 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
2 cups sour cream
2 tbsp paprika, divided in half
Salt & Pepper to taste

 

Boil and strain potatoes.  Cut into 1/2" cubes.  Potatoes can be peeled if desired.

 

Caramelize onions in olive oil in a saute pan over medium-low heat.  It should take about 20 minutes.

 

Preheat oven 350F.

 

Combine potatoes, onions and eggs in a large bowl.  Stir in sour cream, 1 tbsp of paprika and seasoning to taste. 

 

Transfer to a 8x8 baking dish.  Top mixture with remaining 1 tbsp paprika.

 

Bake 40 minutes.

 

Sea Salt Caramels

So glad my college degree is in healthcare.

Otherwise, I might not know what to do when boiling hot caramel spits into the air and lands on my skin.  I might have cried like an over-sized baby, but I did take care of the little round burns myself.

Of all the caramel concoctions I've made this weekend, it would seem fitting that I would wait to injure myself until the very last recipe.  You know, that point when you feel like you're pretty much a caramel expert and you've mastered the cream-pouring-into-hot-sugar situation...

Needless to say, despite the taste, these are officially my least favorite caramels to make.  Any caramels that cause me physical pain are my least favorite.

Despite this, I love the salt and caramel combo.  It brings the caramel flavor to a new level, and I'm not being pretentious in saying that.  It really does lift this caramel from a basic candy to something you might find in a gourmet shop.  

And, did I mention how pretty these caramels are?  With a little sea salt on the top, these literally beckon you to eat them.  

So what are you waiting for?

Sea Salt Caramels

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

11/2 tsp coarse sea salt

1½ cups sugar

¼ cup light corn syrup

¼ cup water

Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.

Combine cream, butter, vanilla extract and salt in a saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a low boil for one minute, then remove from heat.

In another saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup and water over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring gently.  When the sugar mixture turns a caramel color, stir in the cream mixture slowly.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. 

Using a candy thermometer, bring the temperature of the caramel mixture to approximately 248F.  Remove from heat and pour into the 8x8 pan.

Let cool completely before cutting.  Garnish with a pinch of coarse sea salt.

Salted Caramel Sauce

I know, I know...

Sometimes, I get stuck on something and I obsess.

I can't tell you why, exactly.  It might be because I make something that sparks a wave of creative cooking and I have to get it all out at once.  Or, maybe it's because I already had all the ingredients out to make caramel sauce, so I decided to go for it once more.

All I know is I now have two delicious jars of gourmet, home-made caramel sauce.  

And it's already got me thinking about what else I can do in the way of caramel sauces and candies.

Thoughts?




Salted Caramel Sauce
(adapted from David Lebovitz)

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt

 

In a large bowl, combine cream, vanilla and salt.

Pour sugar in saucepan over medium heat.  Stir slowly as the sugar begins to melt and brown.

 

Once the sugar dissolves and turns a dark caramel color, remove from heat.  Slowly incorporate the cream mixture with a whisk.  Increase speed in stirring when the bubbling begins to settle.  Whisk until the mixture is completely smooth.

 

Let cool completely.

Use over desserts or ice cream.  Garnish with a pinch of sea salt if desired.

Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce

So... here's a little secret. 

I really don't like vanilla ice cream.

It's okay, as far as ice creams go, but if I had the choice between chocolate and vanilla... well, I go cocoa.

In fact, making my vanilla bean caramels yesterday was the first time I truly indulged in anything really vanilly.

I know.  This rhyming this has got to go.  Just let me get this recipe out.

I made the caramels, then I decided that I needed to try and make some sauce for ice cream.  So, I did.

Then, I put it on vanilla ice cream that I had to go out and buy because, as stated above, I don't eat it regularly.  Truth be told, I bought the neopolitan stuff so I could eat the chocolate ice cream, too.  But the vanilla was specifically for eating with this sauce.  So, I did that, too.

The result? ...

Amazing, obviously.

This sauce is so packed full of vanilla goodness that it perfectly out-does the vanilla ice cream that I tend to find a little on the bland side.  (I'm sure if I bought a gourmet vanilla ice cream, I'd feel differently, but since that luxury isn't always an option around these parts, I stick to making ice cream toppings that outshine my cheapo tubs of ice cream.)

If you've made the vanilla bean caramels, you'll understand.  If you haven't, you now need to try both of these delicious vanilla bean recipes!





Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce
(adapted from David Lebovitz)

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp salt

 

Combine cream, vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste and salt in a bowl.

Pour sugar in saucepan over medium heat.  Stir slowly as the sugar begins to melt and brown.

 

Once the sugar dissolves and turns a dark caramel color, remove from heat.  Slowly incorporate the cream mixture with a whisk.  Increase speed in stirring when the bubbling begins to settle.  Whisk until the mixture is completely smooth.

 

Let cool completely.

 

Vanilla Bean Caramels

So... I'm not exactly the best caramel maker on the planet.

Making candies is really not my strongsuit.  I don't know what it is.  Maybe it's a concentration issue.  Or, a patience issue.  Or, maybe a combination of the two.

I guess it just boggles my mind how a recipe with so few ingredients can be so tricky.  It's so easy to ruin a pan of caramel, not to mention ruin the actual pan.

Not that it's happened to me before.  Twice.

It's a good thing these caramels taste so good because they are costing me a fortune in good cookware.

Anyway, I had to invest in a really good, really accurate candy thermometer to make what turned to be an edible form of caramels.  But it was worth it.  These candies kind of surprised me because I really didn't expect them to taste the way the did.  I mean, I know what caramel tastes like.  And, I know what vanilla flavor tastes like.  But vanilla caramel?  It's like a whole new animal.

The vanilla transforms the caramel into its own distinct flavor.  It is the perfect way to display vanilla on its own without adding other flavors.

Now that I've fully gorged myself on pure caramels, it's time to figure out what I can bake these caramels in.

Thoughts, anyone?





Vanilla Bean Caramels

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 stick unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp salt
1½ cups sugar
¼ cup light corn syrup
¼ cup water

 

 

 

Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.

 

Combine cream, butter, vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste and salt in a saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a low boil for one minute, then remove from heat.

 

In another saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup and water over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring gently.  When the sugar mixture turns a caramel color, stir in the cream mixture slowly.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. 

 

Using a candy thermometer, bring the temperature of the caramel mixture to approximately 248F.  Remove from heat and pour into the 8x8 pan.

Let cool completely before cutting.

 

 

Baked Taco Ziti

It's like food fusion.

You know, that thing where you mix foods to create a multicultural dish? 

It's sorta like that.

In truth, fusion cooking is not something I try often.  Mostly, it's a scared-y cat issue.  I hate the idea of wasting good ingredients because I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing.  The only time I really venture out of my comfort zone is when I'm making pizza.  That's because I know if I don't like it, I can just scrape off the toppings and salvage the cheese for my all-time favorite pizza: plain.

I'm not a simple kind of girl.

And, possibly a commitment-phobe.

That being said, I got this idea after seeing taco-stuffed shells on a restaurant menu recently.  I didn't get it because, like I said, I'm have a little commitment issue and hate the idea of shelling out fifteen bucks on a meal I don't like.

I guess I'm a little on the stingy side, too.  Boy, you're really learning a lot about me today, aren't you?

Anyway, a few days after that outing, I was struck with a craving for baked ziti.  Ground beef, cheese and pasta... a love even a non-Italian can appreciate.

I wanted to throw a little Mexican flare into the mix so I browned the meat in taco seasoning.  It was a good start, but I needed more.  So, I added a little taco sauce, a hint of pico de gallo, and substituted the traditional mozzarella with a shredded Mexican blend.

Bingo.

The results are my Mexican twist on traditional Italian ziti.

Enjoy!




Baked Taco Ziti

1 box Ziti
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 white onion, diced
1 packet taco seasoning
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup pico de gallo
4 oz. cream cheese
2 cups Mexican blend shredded cheese




Preheat oven 350F.

Cook ziti according to package directions.  Drain.

In a large pan, saute onions in olive oil until translucent.

Add ground beef and taco seasoning.  Cook thoroughly.  Remove meat from heat and drain excess grease. 

Stir in taco sauce, pico de gallo and cream cheese into the ground beef.

Combine meat mixture, ziti noodles and 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese in a 13x9 pan.  Top with the additional 1/2 cup of cheese.

Bake 30 minutes.





 

Honey Mustard Pretzel-Coated Swai

With the holidays approaching, I always punish myself by starting a diet during the absolute worst season to watch your calorie intake.  Usually, I go the high-protein, low-carb direction, also known as the anti-Thanksgiving, anti-Christmas dinner diet.

It's this time of the year that I start really experimenting with protein.  It's not easy to get through a diet like this if you don't change up the recipes and make them fresh and exciting.  White fish is a huge part of good low-carb dieting, so I try to reinvent meals so I don't feel like I'm constantly eating the same thing.

This recipe could be used with any white fish, but I used Swai because it was handy.  Fish, depending on the kind, can take on almost any flavor you give it.  Since I love honey mustard, I tried it with the Swai and it came out great.

The pretzel crumb coating is not really low-carb, but it's a delicious compromise and way healthier than coating and frying the fish.  And, it adds a nice crunch to round out all the other flavors and textures.

This is a good addition to any dinner menu and a delicious option for anyone who wants to add a little extra fish to their diet.





Honey Mustard Swai

1 lb. swai fish fillets
1 cup crushed salted pretzels
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp white wine vinegar



Preheat oven 450F.

Whisk together oil, mustard, honey and vinegar.

Coat the fish in the vinaigrette, then coat with pretzel crumbs.

Bake on a cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes.

Bleu Cheese-Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

By now, you know my obsessions.

My food obsessions, at least.

Trust me, I'm pretty extreme about everything else in my life too.

I'm pretty crazy about things like chicken wing sauce.  Despite my hatred for chicken wings, that is.

I know, it's weird.  Don't judge me.

I got this idea after having stuffed meatball appetizers at a party recently.  Those meatballs were of the beef variety, but it got me thinking about how I could do stuffed meatballs with ground chicken.  After some research, I found a recipe that appealed to both my love of stuffed meatballs and my ridiculous addiction to chicken wing sauce.

And these, are ridiculously appealing.

I didn't have any specific reason to make these meatballs, so when they were done, they pretty much just went to me.  I don't see any problem with that, though.  I mean, it's not like they're the worst or unhealthiest thing I've ever eaten completely on my own....

I said, don't judge me.  Remember?






Bleu Cheese-Stuffed Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
(adapted from Inspired By Charm)

1 lb. ground chicken
1/2 white onion, diced
2 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 egg
4 oz. blue cheese, cut into cubes
1 cup Buffalo sauce




Preheat oven 400F.

In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, onion, garlic, bread crumbs and egg.  Use an ice cream scoop to remove a scoop of meat.

Take a cube of bleu cheese and wrap the scooped meatball around the cube, covering it completely.

Repeat until all of the meat mixture is used up.  Place meatballs on a baking sheet.  I ended up with 18 meatballs.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes.

Place meatballs in a slow cooker on the lowest setting and cover with Buffalo sauce.  Keep meatballs warm for serving.

English Toffee Bites

This recipe has been blowing up my Pinterest lately.

I'm not sure if it's a newer recipe or simply out for the holidays.  I mean, I do think of toffee more around Christmas time.

I had previously never made toffee.  In fact, I didn't even know what toffee was made from.  The only thing I knew was that toffee is delicious.  I really didn't have any plans to make my own, even after seeing this recipe on-line.  After reading the comments, however, this sounded really easy.

You know how much I like easy.

The ingredients are minimal, they look amazing, and the flavor is ridiculous.  In a good way.

With Christmas coming, it's going to be that time when everybody starts baking cookies and making candies for others.  These toffee bites might just be the centerpiece on my holiday cookie plate this year!





English Toffee Bites
(adapted from Shugary Sweets)

1 cup salted butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
12 oz. milk chocolate, melted
1 cup finely chopped walnuts




Combine butter, sugar and vanilla in a large pot over medium heat.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Use a candy thermometer to bring the candy to 300F, stirring continuously.

Pour mixture into a foil-lined 8x8 baking dish.  Let cool.

Pour melted chocolate over the top of the toffee.  Top with walnuts before chocolate hardens.

Maple Sugar Pie

How did this recipe elude me for so long?

I live literally within walking distance to Canada, where this pie is most well-known.  And, my family has been making maple syrup every winter since I can remember.  Yet, we've never made this dessert.

So, naturally, I set to work.

This pie is ridiculously sweet.  I don't want to be callous, but this is, like, a diabetic nightmare.  Almost every single ingredient is loaded with sugar.  I mean, I love it, but you might not enjoy this if you're sweet tooth isn't packed with cavities.  I love sugar.  We are friends.  So, this fits right into my life perfectly.

It's a no-bake pie, and it takes all of maybe ten minutes to make.  The hardest part is letting it sit for an hour to set.

Unless you have willpower.  Then you're okay, I guess.  I don't have any of that stuff, so my minutes move ridiculously slow as this thing chills.

Totally worth it.

 



Maple Sugar Pie
(adapted from www.tastefullyjulie.com)

1 store-bought, pre-baked pie crust (dough)
1 1/2 cups maple syrup
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup cornstarch




Whisk cornstarch and 1/2 cup heavy cream together.  Set aside.

Combine maple syrup and cream in a pot over medium heat and bring to a low boil.  Stir in the cornstarch mixture and continue stirring until it thickens.

Pour into pie crust.

Refrigerate at least one hour prior to serving.

Haluski

I'm not from Pittsburgh.

But sometimes, I act like I am.  I love the Steelers.  And, the Penguins.  I'm not really a baseball fan, but if I was, I'm sure I'd be a Pirates fan, too.  I've visited the city, and I loved it.  It's not known for its local cuisine, but I think it should be.  Pittsburgh offers a number of special dishes that I've grown to love.

Haluski is a perfect example.

A flavorful blend of cabbage and onions intermixed into egg noodles, this dish is easy to assemble and makes a perfect side dish against something like steak or chicken.  Many recipes I've seen call for a healthy sprinkling of bacon, but you know how I feel about that...

Egg noodles are a cinch to cook and the veggies cook in only a few minutes.  It takes a short time to get this side dish on the plate.  The flavors are savory and down-homey... even though, 'down-homey' isn't a real phrase.  When you take a bite, you'll understand what I mean.

Pittsburgh on a plate.

Really, I promise.




Haluski

1 bag egg noodles
1 stick butter
1 white onion, diced
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 head green cabbage
Salt & Pepper to taste



Cook egg noodles in boiling water per package directions.

Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a large saute pan.  Add onions and saute until fragrant and translucent.

Add garlic and cook an additional minute.

Add cabbage with the rest of the butter and let cook an additional five minutes, letting it wilt.  Season to taste.

Stir into the egg noodles until well-combined.

Pumpkin Butter

I love the holidays.

There's family gatherings, which truthfully, isn't as meaningful to me as it is to others because we all live within a mile of each other and see each other daily.  There's vacation time from school and work, which might be one of my favorite parts.  Either that, or it's the massive surplus of delicious food and desserts.

My cupboards don't feel complete in the fall unless there's a couple cans of pumpkin puree available.  I used a little bit the other day to make my Pumpkin Pie Beer Bread, and I wanted to use the rest of the can.  I don't have the patience to wait and go grocery shopping for ingredients, so I decided to make pumpkin butter, as it's super easy and the ingredients are minimal.

Plus, there's something about fall that makes me want to break out the slow cooker.  I was excited to have a good reason to cook without really having to cook and, you know, exert energy.

Pumpkin butter is totally easy to prepare and cook.  The hardest part is stirring.  Or, maybe getting the can off of the pumpkin puree...




Pumpkin Butter

1 large can pumpkin puree
1 cup white sugar
2 tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice



Combine ingredients in a slow cooker.

Cook on low for 8 hours, stirring occasionally.

Pour into sterilized jars.

Pumpkin Pie Beer Bread

From my "Beer Bread" series....




Pumpkin Pie Beer Bread
(adapted from Shortstop Blog)

3 cups flour
1 cup pumpkin puree1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 12oz. pumpkin ale
2 tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice3 tbsp butter, melted


Preheat oven 350F.

In a large mixer, combine all of the ingredients except the butter, adding the beer last to the mixture.

Pour the mixture into a greased loaf pan.  Pour the melted butter over the top of the mixture.

Bake for 1 hour.