Easy Fettuccini Alfredo

I’m so excited! I made Fettuccini Alfredo! Yep, you heard me right! Are you proud too?  You really should be. You have to remember, I wasn’t always a good cook. This is all still fairly new to me so I get really excited when I make something yummy. Forgive me while I brag. What’s even more exciting is that this is such a quick and easy recipe. I had no idea Alfredo sauce could be so easy. My husband loves Fettuccini Alfredo but doesn’t order it often because it’s a pretty decadent dish. What’s so great about this recipe is that it’s a lower calorie version but no flavor is lost here. The sauce was creamy and bursting with flavor. I chopped up a grilled chicken breast and added it to the sauce to make a full meal. It would be great with shrimp too. Give it a try and let me know what you think. Here’s what you need to get started:

Ingredients:

·         1 tablespoon butter

·         2 garlic cloves, minced

·         1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

·         1⅓ cups 1 percent low-fat milk

·         1¼ cups (5 ounces) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

·         2 tablespoons ⅓-less-fat cream cheese (easy measure is about 1 inch of cube)

·         ½ teaspoon salt

·         4 cups hot cooked fettuccine (8 ounces uncooked pasta). I used whole wheat pasta.

·         2 teaspoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

·         cracked black pepper 

Directions:
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in flour. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk. Cook 6 minutes or until mixture thickens, stirring constantly.

Add 1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, cream cheese, and salt, stirring with a whisk until cheeses melt.

Toss sauce with hot pasta. This is when I also added my chopped grilled chicken.


Sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and chopped parsley. As you can see, I was running low on fresh parsley. The plant is dying away for the winter, but  I had a little to garnish with. Add fresh black pepper, if desired. Serve immediately.

Roasted Chicken w/Garlic & Tomatoes

O-M-G! This is officially my new favorite chicken dish! I REALLY mean it this time. It was so delicious! I love dishes cooked with fresh tomatoes and thyme. It gives all of the other veggies such great flavor. One of my new girlfriends, Jess Seinfeld, taught me this recipe. I follow her on Twitter and Instagram so we’re friends, right? Shhhhh.....don’t tell me any differently. In my head we are friends and she tweets recipes to me. I did tweet her to tell her I made this dish. I’m sure she and Jerry will be coming over for dinner soon. I’ll blog about it when it happens. Until then.....back to this recipe.....I came home from worked, chopped up the veggies, threw the chicken on and popped it in the oven all in one pan. I love meals like that. It’s quick for a week night and it has all the food groups covered. No side dish needed. Check and check!!

 

Here’s what you need to get started.

Ingredients:

 

1 1/2 pounds red potatoes or Yukon gold – peeled or not, however you prefer

4-6 carrots

1 medium yellow onion

6 cloves garlic

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes or 3 tomatoes diced

10 sprigs fresh thyme

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt

3/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

6-8 pieces cut up chicken. I only had 4 chicken thighs so that’s what I used. You can really use any combination you like.

 

Directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees

Dice potatoes and carrots into 2 inch cubes. Throw in a baking dish, pan that can go in the oven or rimmed pan. Love the flexibility!

Chop onion into large chunks and add to pan. Smash garlic, peel and throw in with potatoes and carrots.  If you are using whole tomatoes, dice about same size as potatoes and add to pan. If using cherry tomatoes, just rinse and add to pan.

 

Come on, how beautiful is that??

Drizzle all veggies with olive oil. Add springs of thyme, half of the salt and pepper and red pepper flakes and toss the veggies to coat. Spread out into a single layer.

 

Once chicken is washed, season both sides with remaining salt and pepper and nestle in with all the veggies. Give the chicken and veggies a final drizzle of olive oil.

 

Place pan on middle rack in oven and cook for 50-60 minutes or until veggies are soft and chicken is fully cooked.

 

While is was cooking our house smelled divine!! This was so beautiful going in the oven I couldn’t wait to see it come out.....voila! It was just as pretty coming out! And let me tell you, this is just as good as I thought it was going to be. It was easy, one pan, veggies included, it met all my requirements. Oh, and delicious! Seriously, trust me on this one, give it a try. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did, and my girlfriend Jess.  Enjoy...we did!

Shrimp and Grits

 

My friends that dine with me often know how much I love shrimp and grits and how often I order it when we’re out. You would think since I’ve developed my love of cooking that I would have tried out this recipe, but I hadn’t…..until now! I have another confession to make. This is a tough one to admit since I’m a southern girl. Hi, my name is Dawn and I’ve never cooked grits. I know! I’m ashamed. I’ve only made instant grits. You know, the kind where you open a single serving package, add hot water and eat? Yeah, embarrassing, right? My father would be embarrassed. He always made us real grits. Well, now I’ve made grits on the stovetop and I must admit, they were pretty tasty. Must have been that cream cheese I added in at the end!

 

I wanted my first venture into the shrimp and grit world to be simple and quick. Luckily I was home during lunch one day and caught one of my friends, Sandra Lee, making this recipe on the Food Network. I altered her recipe a bit to make it more yummy, in my opinion. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind my enhancements. I’m  happy to share my recipe with you so let’s get started!

 

Ingredients:

 

Salt & pepper

1 cup quick grits

¼ cube cream cheese

3 strips bacon, coarsely chopped

½ Vidalia onion

1 small red bell pepper

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (or frozen)

1 clove minced garlic

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons hot sauce

¼ cup white wine

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

 

Directions:

 

Cook grits according to package. Once grits are ready, remove from heat and stir in cream cheese until melted. The cream cheese makes the creamy, really bright white, and delicious!

 

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the bacon until crispy, about 5 minutes. 

Turn the heat to med-high, add the onions and pepper and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Then stir in garlic. 

Deglaze pan with the white wine…..which means, pour the wine in the pan and scrape all the yummy bits off the bottom of the pan. You don’t want all that flavor to go to waste.  Cook for a couple of minutes, until the wine reduces. Add the shrimp, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until shrimp turns pink, about 3-4 minutes. Or you can use frozen shrimp like I did. I thawed it out first, then added to pan just to heat.

Stir in butter, lemon juice and hot sauce. Toss around in the pan to coat the shrimp. Remove from heat, stir in parsley. Divide the grits among 4 bowls and spoon shrimp mixture on top of each. Now that is quick, easy and delicious!

 Now all you have to do is enjoy the fact that you made shrimp and grits….I did this by saying over and over “this is really good”, “I made shrimp and grits”. I will say that my husband was pretty pleased and went back to scrape any remnants out of the pan. I like a happy customer!

Grilled Flank Steak

Excuse the greasy cutting board but I was so excited I started snapping pics!

Flank steak is a delicious yet underrated cut of meat. It's pretty inexpensive too, and when cooked right, it is full of flavor! You really can't beat the flavor of grilled meat anytime, but grilled flank is really delicious! I also like to keep it simple and not get crazy with my marinade. I start with a simple marinade of Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and minced garlic.  I'll give you the details, it's so simple.


Marinade:


About 3 Tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
2 cloves minced garlic

Place flank steak in an air tight container. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle with Worcestershire sauce and add minced garlic. If you have time to leave in the refrigerator overnight, that is great, if not, try leaving it for at least an hour. I put mine in the fridge before I headed to work and the husband was in charge of lighting the grill when I got home.

Already starting to drool....

Once you are ready to get this party started, place steak on grill and cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Yes,  I know that sounds fast, but this is a really thin steak and you do NOT want it overcooked! Set your timer! Don't mess around with this.


Remove from grill and immediately cover in foil and let it rest for 5-10 minutes.

Now we are ready to carve! Doesn't it already look delicious? David was in charge of carving. Don't worry about his grubby hands touching the meat, we weren't having anyone for dinner. Just us two little piggy's ate all this meat!

The key to slicing flank is to carve against the grain and at an angle. Doesn't it look pretty? Finish carving up and you are ready to chow down. It's as simple as that!

This was one of the best steak dinners we have had in a long time. I served it with some rosemary potatoes and creamed spinach. Now that's a good meal!

Easy & Delicious Berry Cobbler

Who in their right mind doesn't love a cobbler?? Cobbler is one of the best desserts ever created. And you know what's so great about it? You can make any kind of cobbler you want. You can make peach cobbler, apple cobbler, blueberry cobbler.....okay, I think you get my Bubba Gump reference. Just use the basic batter recipe and throw in whatever fruit you'd like. We decided to go with a fruit medley.  This is the best "go to" dessert ever!


I was hanging at my beach house last weekend......okay fine, we don't really have a beach house, but we know people who do. That's all that matters right? So my girlfriend and I decided we wanted to make a cobbler with some left over fruit she had frozen. I immediately went to the Google machine and found a recipe that we altered and made our own. We are happy to share it with you below. We'll call this, Maureen and Dawn's Best Ever Berry Cobbler! I'll share our secrets with you, but don't tell anyone....

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoons butter

3/4 cup All Purpose Flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

2 cups fresh or frozen fruit of your choosing. I used mixed berries with a few peaches thrown in for good measure.

1 Tablespoon sugar

 

I have to apologize in advance, I forgot to take pictures along the way, but I have some lovely shots of the finished product. This recipe is so easy, you won't need step by step photo instructions.

Directions:

First, adjust the oven rack to an  upper middle position. We want to make sure the cobbler gets crispy and delicious. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Place the butter in an 8 inch square or 9 inch round pan, place in oven to melt in the pan. Once butter has melted, remove pan from oven.

Meanwhile, whisk dry ingredients (minus the 1 T sugar) in a bowl. Add milk and stir until batter is smooth. The batter will be pretty thin.  

Pour batter into dish with melted butter. Then scatter fruit on top of batter, pressing fruit down in the batter. Once finished, sprinkle the 1 T of sugar on the top. 

Bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until top is nicely browned and bubbly.

Some people might say it’s best served warm with a scoop of ice cream on top, but I’m a more of “on the side” kind of girl!  Enjoy this delicious cobbler however you’d like! Below is my preferred method. Yummy!

Roasted Squash

Boy have I enjoyed having all the fresh veggies from my Daddy’s garden. I’ve been trying to cook them a few new ways for us so we don’t get bored with them. But seriously, who can get bored of fresh deliciousness?? Squash is one of my favorite vegetables, I love it cooked anyway you can possibly think of. I’ve been roasting a lot of veggies lately, but haven’t ever tried it with squash. Well guess what.....it’s time to roast some squash. Tonight was my lucky night because I found a new favorite way to eat squash. I think roasting is my new favorite way to eat every veggie. I headed to Pinterest to find the perfect recipe. I ended on one of Martha Stewart’s recipes, appropriate right? Of course, I changed it up, but it was a nice start. Thanks Martha, but my version is just a touch better.  Ha! I’m sure she’s never heard that before. Don’t tell her I dissed her on my blog. Let me tell you the best way to eat squash....but first, take a moment to admire my Daddy's garden. A beautiful site!

Now that you've admired let’s get those ingredients together:

 

2 pounds squash – mix yellow with zucchini if you have it

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon sea salt

fresh ground pepper

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

crushed red pepper flakes, just a sprinkle

 

Directions:

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Slice squash, about an inch thick. Throw the squash in a large bowl. Add 1/4 cup olive oil, salt, pepper, toss to combine. Once thoroughly coated, add parmesan cheese and mix until evenly coated.

 

Spread squash evenly on baking sheet that has already been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Place on middle rack in oven and roast until caramelized, about 12 minutes. Half way through, stir squash and rotate pan. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Transfer squash to platter, drizzle with 2 T olive oil, season with sea salt and red pepper flakes. Serve immediately.

This was such a great way to prepare squash! I don’t know why I’ve never tried this before, but it certainly won’t be the last! Try it and let me know if you liked it. Enjoy!

Fried Okra

We went down to see my parents last week and everything in Daddy’s garden was in season! I was in hog heaven!  I love fresh vegetables. It’s very ironic because growing up I was a very picky eater…..allegedly.   Corn and tomatoes and squash…oh my! I love going down to their house in the country. So beautiful and peaceful there. Here’s just a little shot of the few things we brought home.

 

Look at all that goodness! Beautiful!

I have experimented with fried okra and fried green tomatoes with this batch of freshness and was very pleased with the outcome of each. I am most excited about the fried okra though. I always order fried okra if I’m at a restaurant that serves it,  but I’ve never made it at home. Well, I’ve bought it frozen, already battered and fried it, but never from fresh okra, picked from the garden the day before! That’s just crazy talk……well not anymore my friend! Also, when I order and it comes out sliced lengthwise, that’s just another special treat for me. So I had to cut my okra that way in my first attempt at frying okra. Let’s see how I made this picture of beauty come to be…..

 

Ingredients:

 

1 cup Buttermilk

Desired about of fresh okra, sliced

1 cup corn meal

2 tablespoons self-rising flour

Vegetable oil

 

Directions:

 

First of all wash and slice the okra and prepare it for frying. I get so excited by the concept of frying. I rarely fry foods, but I will make an exception any day for okra! I’m so excited! Doesn’t it look pretty sliced this way? Of course you can slice it in rings as well. My Daddy prefers it sliced in rings. You get a better batter to okra ratio that way. I'm not against that idea at all!

 

Turn on pan to medium high to heat oil. I used an iron skillet because they just make everything better. Pour about 1 inch of oil in the pan to make sure you have it deep enough to fry, but not too deep. Now, prepare two shallow bowls. One with the buttermilk and one with the corn meal mixed with the self-rising flour. Add a touch of salt and pepper as well.

 

Dredge the okra in the buttermilk, then coat in the corn meal mixture and place in the hot oil.

 

Let the okra brown on one side, then flip it and get the other side brown. It does not take long. Then  take  out and place on paper towels to soak up some of the excess oil. Keep on going until it is all fried up and looks good enough to eat. While you are busy cooking, be sure to keep an eye on your okra because some people (David) might sneak up and keep sampling.

 

Look at that bubbling pan of heaven!

I was very pleased with my first stab at fresh fried okra! It was delicious. Crispy and full of flavor. Be sure to give this method a try!

Next up......squash blossoms and fried green tomatoes! Stay tuned!

Oven Fried Parmesan Chicken

I know, I know, you don’t have to even say it! I’m the worst blogger ever!!! We’ve just been so busy. Does it help that I think about it all the time and really want to blog?? Well, I’m here now with a delicious recipe so maybe that will make everything better! Who doesn’t like fried chicken?? Everyone loves fried chicken, but we know it’s not the healthiest meal in the world so we don’t eat it all the time. How about some oven fried chicken though?? I’ve made oven fried chicken before, but this version is probably the best I’ve ever made. Wanna know how to make it?? I thought you did. Here’s what you need to get started.

Ingredients:

1 clove crushed garlic

1 stick butter or margarine, melted

1 cup dried bread crumbs (I used whole wheat....even healthier!)

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or course you can used dried if you don’t have fresh)

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 chicken, cut into pieces. Or really whatever parts you like. I used all legs this time.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a shallow glass dish combine crushed garlic with the melted butter or margarine. In another shallow dish combine together the bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.

Dip the chicken pieces into the garlic butter, then into the bread crumb mixture to coat.

It's like Where's Waldo....Where's the chicken??

Place coated chicken pieces on a greased baking sheet. Drizzle tops of chicken with any remaining butter mixture. You don’t want to waste that garlicky buttery goodness!

Bake for 1 – 1 1/4 hours or until chicken is cooked through and juices are clear. I turned mine over half way through cooking to make sure it got nice and crispy on both sides. Not sure if that’s necessary though. The skin was so yummy and crunchy. Don’t discard that yumminess because you are trying to be healthy and not each the skin. That’s just silly. Just pick another recipe....or save it for me! I hope you enjoy this one!

Key Lime Cake - Let's remember the good times.....

Okay, I know I know I have been the worst blogger you have ever followed lately! But as I continue to promise to get better (and I really mean it this time!), let's think back to the good times we had.....back when I was posting multiple recipes a week and they were so delicious. Can you remember back that far?

How about we take this moment to look back on the super yummy key lime cake I made last summer. How beautiful is that??!!

Come on, you have to give me props for this one! I don't usually venture far away from the chocolate cake, but this is one of the best cakes you will EVER taste! I promise. If you can still trust me, click on the link below to visit the original post and the recipe. I just might have to make this one this weekend!!

http://dawnsblogalicious.blogspot.com/2013/05/key-lime-cake.html

Again, I promise to be back to blogging soon. It's been a crazy busy year!!

Crumb Cake

I’m sorry I’ve been such a blogging slacker! I promised to get better and then I didn’t. Okay, I’m really going to try because I want you to keep coming back. I’m sure you miss me when I’m away, right? We had a busy weekend around here. My parents came up for a visit and spent the night. They were our first overnight guests. So exciting! I had to do something special so I decided to make this crumb cake that I made for my Christmas brunch a couple of years ago. This cake is so delicious! It is the best crumb cake you will ever taste, I promise. It’s probably one of the best things you will ever taste period! Yes, it is that good. If you are looking for a great brunch recipe, this is it. I think I’ll make this for my in-laws too. You can go wrong with this recipe. Just look at how delicious it looks in that photo. My stomach is growling and I’m drooling a little on the keyboard so let’s keep going. Here’s what you need to get started:

For the crumb topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 cup butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 1/2 cups flour

For the cake:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 12 tablespoons butter (1 1/2 sticks), at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream or Greek-style yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch x 13-inch pan.
For the crumb topping: In a medium size bowl, stir both the sugars, salt and cinnamon. Add the melted butter and stir until well combined. Fold in the flour until absorbed and set aside. I wouldn’t recommend a whisk though, most of the crumb topping is all stuck in the middle. I had to work it all out with a knife. Next time I’ll use a spoon!

For the cake:  Whisk  (it's safe to use here) together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium size bowl. With an electric mixer, cream the butter until completely smooth. Add the sugar and beat until the mixture is fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until well incorporated. Scrape down the bowl and beat again for 30 seconds. Add the sour cream (or yogurt) and vanilla and mix until just incorporated. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, scraping down the bowl after each addition, beating until just incorporated. Look how beautiful the batter looks!

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. It’s going to be thick so you’ll need to spread it out.  Man, that looks so delicious!

For the topping, use your hand to grab handfuls of the topping and make a fist. Break off chunks and drop them over cake (you want big chunks, not crumbs). The topping layer will look just about as thick as the cake layer – that is correct and beautiful! The crumb topping is making me drool.

Bake the cake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Store tightly covered at room temperature, up to 3 days.....if it lasts that long!  Of course, you'll need to sample a piece right away like I did. Caution...you WILL burn the roof of your mouth if you are as impatient as I am! Enjoy!