Veggie Lasagna

This is such a rich and delicious lasagna, I think I actually like it better than meat lasagna with red sauce. It is a really pretty meal as well, all the vibrant colored veggies and the rich cheeses and cream sauce. So yummy.

Chunky Vegetable Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 box gluten-free lasagna noodles
3 cups chopped veggies (broccoli, red pepper, green pepper, carrots, spinach, etc.)
15 oz. ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, pressed
3 Tbsp. rice flour
2 cups milk
1 egg
2 cups shredded mozzarella
3 Tbsp. butter

Directions:
Cook and drain noodles. In a large bowl, mix chopped veggies with salt and pepper. In another bowl, mix ricotta, Parmesan, parsley and egg. In a 2 qt. saucepan, melt butter, add garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in flour, stir continuously stir until smooth and bubbly. Remove from heat, stir in milk, boil stirring continuously for one minute.

Layer noodles in pan, spread 1/2 of cheese and egg mix on top, layer with noodles. Spread 1/2 of veggie mix, top with 1/2 the mozzarella cheese. Layer again with noodles, spread with remaining cheese and egg mix, layer again with noodles, spread remaining veggie mix.

 Pour milk sauce evenly over top and sprinkle the last cup of mozzarella on top.

Bake uncovered for 40 minutes until hot in center and veggies are soft. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Cinco de Mayo

I ususally don't celebrate Cinco de Mayo...but on this May 5th I was craving a margarita, so I decided to just go with it. When Jennie and I lived together we would make margaritas every Wednesday night, along with homemade pizza.....we would drink a whole pitcher of margaritas while watching Lost and wonder why we were even more confused than the average viewer. I have since cut down on margarita consumption....as the calorie count is way too high. But they are so good, and I make a mean one, I must say. So, on May 5th I made margaritas, guacamole and black bean burritos.  'Twas good.

For the burritos, I used one can of black beans, drained and rinsed and then I mashed them in a saucepan with a Tbsp. of EVOO. Once they were heated through, I added some salt and then spread them on a tortilla (gluten-free). I then added shredded jack cheese and rolled them up. I would recommend grilling them at this point on a grill pan or skillet....but I was impatient so I just microwaved them.....I had already had some of my margarita:)

My guacamole recipe is really quite simple. I mash 3 ripe avocados, dice one tomato (I use roma) and then juice half a lime, a splash of tabasco, 2 pressed cloves of garlic, a dash of cumin, a lot of salt and a dash of cayenne. Yummmmmm.

The Festival of Nations

Each year I attend the Twin Cities Festival of Nations at the St. Paul River Centre.  This year I went with Luke and my sister Lulu and our friends Courtney and Gus. We had a blast, as usual.  We go for the food, but enjoy walking through the shopping area as well. This year we sampled many delights, and posed for some photos as well.

My falafel sandwich from the Palestine booth:

Luke's American Indian fry bread taco:

Lulu's Egyptian hummus:

This is the "Viking in a blanket" from the Norwegian booth....it's a sausage wrapped in lefse, as much as I love both lefse and sausage....I don't recommend this:

Lulu's chicken adobo from the Philippines:

Luke's Polish sausage with kraut and mustard:

My cream horn from the Czech and Slovak booth:

Lulu's Swiss Frosty Kaffee:

Luke's French Eclair:

and Lulu's Dutch Cream Puff:

and here are the pics of us being awesome in front of stereotypical cultural cutouts.

Lulu:

Luke and I:

Courtney and Gus (whose food consumption was not documented on camera):

Luke and Lulu:

and my personal favorite:

Here is the website for the Festival of Nations, I highly recommend attending next year - I know I'll be there!
http://festivalofnations.com/

Mac n' Cheese

Well made mac n' cheese is probably one of my favorite things in the world.  I've never been a big fan of the boxed variety.....they don't taste good.  I know many college kids practically live on Kraft mac n' cheese, and it's a favorite of children all over......I don't get it. It's orange, it tastes funny.  Real, homemade mac n' cheese is the way to go....and it really doesn't take that much effort.  This recipe was built off of several other recipes and honed (I believe) to perfection.  Yummmm.

Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients:
8 oz. gluten-free elbow macaroni
1/4 cup of butter
3 Tbsp. rice flour
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
salt/pepper
2 cups milk
3 cups shredded cheese (I recommend 2 cups cheddar and one cup colby or jack)
3/4 cup crushed Cheez-It crackers (Cheez-Its are not GF....omit or substitute with a GF cheese cracker)

Directions:
Cook macaroni according to package, drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in flour, mustard, pepper and salt. Stir until smooth and bubbly. Slowly whisk in milk. Stir continuously and cook until boiling. Simmer for a minute. Stir in cheese, one cup at a time until melted.

Stir pasta in to cheese mixture. Pour into greased casserole dish.  Crumble crushed Cheez-Its on top.  Bake for about 30 minutes.

Lemon Chicken with Olives

Hmmm, the last recipe I posted also had lemons...maybe I have scurvy.  Or, now that it is summer I love using fresh, crisp flavors like lemons and limes.  This recipe comes from Real Simple and is delicious, I made it with cheese risotto and it was so yummy.  Olives are one of my most favorite foods....anyone that knows me, knows I love salt....LOVE it.  You'd think this meal would be really strong, with olives and lemon, but the flavors work really well together and are not at all overpowering.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. rice flour
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. lemon zest
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
s/p
1 1/2 pounds chicken (boneless skinless)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 shallots, sliced thin (I used a 1/4 of a white onion)
1 cup pitted green olives
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine (like Sauvignon Blanc)

Directions:
Mix the flour, cumin, zest, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper on a flat plate. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and dredge in the flour mixture.

Heat 1 Tbsp. of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken until golden brown and transfer to a plate.

Wipe out the skillet and return to medium heat. Heat the remaining oil. Add the shallots (or onion) and cook until soft, stir in the olives, parsley, lemon juice and wine and bring to a boil. Return the chicken to the pan, nestling it in the olives and shallots. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, until the chicken is cooked through.

Greek Lemon Chicken

Luke and I were lucky enough to travel to Greece for our honeymoon - it's the most beautiful place on earth, with the best food I've ever had. I love fresh Greek salads, lemons, herbs, vinegar - all of it.  My sister made this recipe a while back and posted pictures of it - it looked so good I had to try it. The recipe is from Pampered Chef and is fairly simple.  

 Greek Lemon Chicken

Ingredients:

2 tsp. lemon zest

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 Tbsp. olive oil

4 large cloves of garlic, pressed

2-3 tsp. dried oregano leaves

3/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

2 medium baking potatoes

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces

1 medium red onion, cut into wedges

8 oz. fresh whole mushrooms

4 split chicken breast halves (I used boneless, could use bone-in)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a 1 qt. bowl, combine lemon zest, lemon juice and olive oil. Press garlic into lemon mixture. Add oregano, salt, black pepper and set aside. Cut each potato lengthwise into 8 wedges; place in a 9 x 13 baker. Add bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, half of the lemon juice mix, toss to coat. Place chicken on top of vegetables; brush with the remaining lemon juice mixture. Bake 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through, basting chicken and vegetables with pan juices after 30 minutes.

Chicken & Broccoli Ring

This is one of Luke's favorites, it is so good. The flaky crescent crust and the warm, cheesy filling. This is really good reheated as well.


The recipe comes from Pampered Chef: All The Best
Chicken & Broccoli Ring

Use 2 (8 oz.) packages of refrigerated crescent rolls for the ring.


Filling:

2 cups coarsely chopped cooked chicken (or one large can of chicken)
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped broccoli
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup mayo
2 tsp. dill mix (I used Hidden Valley Ranch Dip mix)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 clove of garlic, pressed
1 egg white, beaten
1/2 cup of slivered almonds


Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all the filling ingredients together. Arrange crescent rolls into the desired shape, spoon filling onto the dough and roll up edges. Brush dough with egg white. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake 25-30 minutes until crust is golden brown.