What for dinner?

Tilapia Baja Tacos Cookling Light Magazine, March 2011

1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 Tablespoons chopped fres cilantro
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 jalapeno pepper, seed and chopped
1 Cup thinly sliced white onion
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
4 (6 oz.) Tilapia fillets
1 Tablespoon canola oil
8 (6 inch) corn tortillas
1/2 ripe peeled avocado, thinly sliced
4 lime wedges

Combine first 4 ingredients in a food processer, process until smooth. combine jalapeno sauce and onion in a small bowl.
Combine paprika and next 6 ingredients (through ground red pepper); sprinkle evenly over fish. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add fish to pan and cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired doneness.
Warm tortillas according to package directions. Serve with avocado and lime wedges.
Serving: 2 tacos Cal. 362 Fat: 13.6  (less fat without the avocados! :)


Now for the Pretty!

Just the Pretty Today!

The Pretty!!

Sweets! I love them!!

Crazy Chocolate Cake from Penzeys Spice Catalog

3 cups all purpose flour (298.1 g)
1/4 cup Cocoa Powder (27.8 g)
1 teaspoon salt (5.082 g)
2 teaspoons vinegar
2 cups water
2 cups Sugar (383.3 g)
2 teaspoons baking soda (8.576 g)
3/4 cup vegetable oil (canola oil) (157.9 g)
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla  extract

Preheat oven 350 F. (177 C) Mix all ingredients together until smooth and bake in a greased 9x13 pan or 2 greased round cake pans. Bake the 9x13 inch pan for 30 minutes and the round pans 22-25 minutes. Cool on wire rack. If using round pans, remove cake from pans after about 30 minutes. Frost when completely cool. Any frosting is good, but I like Chocolate Frosting or Cream Cheese Frosting!

Frosting:
5 cups Powdered Sugar(650.6 g)
1/3 cup Cocoa Powder (43.37 g)
1/3 cup Butter, softened (76.42 g)
2-4 Tablespoons black coffee
Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa together into large bowl. Add butter and mix on low speed with mixer, add coffee to desired consistency.


Now for the Pretty!

What's for dinner?

Broiled Herb Marinated Shrimp Skewers from Cooking Light magazine, March 2011

3/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
3/4 cup fresh parsley
1/2 cup fresh basil
3 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
3 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1.2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 gloves garlic
24 jumbo shrimp (peeled and deveined)

Combine all the first 10 ingredients in a food processor. Place in a bowl and add the shrimp and let marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat broiler on High.
Remove shrimp from marinade;thread onto skewers put 6 on each. Place skewers on broiler pan coated with cooking spray top with any marinade. Broil 5 inches from heat 2 minutes on each side or until shrimp are done. 4 servings 285 Calories 13.3g Fat
I usually serve with wild rice or rice pilaf.

Now the Pretty!

Ok, not going to lie, seeing him hold a guitar, SWOON!

Something Sweet!

Blueberry Crisp from The Best of Cooking Light Cookbook

6 cups blueberries
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup regular oats
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 1/2 Tablespoons chilled butter cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Combine the first 4 ingredients in medium bowl, and spoon into an 11x7 inch baking dish. Lighly spoon 2/3 cup flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with knife. Combine 2/3 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, oats and cinnamon;cut in butter with pastry blender or fork until it looks like course meal.  Sprinkle over the blueberry mixture. Bake @ 375 for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Enjoy with frozen vanilla yogurt!
288Cal  8.3 g Fat

Now for the Pretty!

Something Sweet!

Chocolate Chip Scones recipe by allrecipes.com

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
6-7 Tablespoons of Orange Juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F or 200 C. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
In large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With a pastry blender or a large fork, cut in the cutter until the mixture looks like crumbs. Stir in chocolate chips. Mix in Orange Juice to form dough.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Pat or roll into a circle. Cut with a biscuit cutter. Keep putting dough together to make more. Transfer to sprayed baking sheet.
Bake until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Put on wire rack to cool. Yields about 12 scones.


Now for the Pretty!!

What's for dinner?

Low-Cal Fettuccine Alfredo-from Food Network Magazine, March 2011

1Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons all purpose flour
1 cup low fat milk (the recipe calls for 2% but I am using skim)
Kosher salt
2 Tablespoons low fat cream chees
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
12 oz Fettuccine (cook to package directions)

Sauce:
Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and lemon zest and cook until garlic is slightly soft, about 1 minute. Add in the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon for 1 minute.  Whisk in the milk and 3/4 teaspoon salt and cook, whisking constantly, until just thickened, about 3 minutes. Add the cream cheese and parmesan cheese, whisk until melted, about 1 minute. Stir in the chopped parsley.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the fettuccine and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Drain the pasta and return to the pot.

Add the sauce and 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water to the pasta gently toss to combine, add more cooking water as needed to loosen. Season with fresh cracked black pepper.
Servings 4 Cals: 490 Fat: 15 g (a little less on cals and fat if you use skim milk)

Now for the Pretty!

What's for dinner!

Spaghetti Carbonara from Cooking Light, The essential dinner tonight cookbook!

8oz of uncooked Spaghetti
1 cup ham or bacon (precooked bacon)
1/2 cup or 1.5 oz. of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 cup Sour cream-reduced fat
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 clove of garlic minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt. Take out 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add ham or bacon and cook for 2 minutes or until heated through.  Add pasta, and stir well.  Combine cheese and next 4 ingredients; stir with a whisk.  Add reserved pasta water to egg mixture and stir with whisk.  Pour egg mixture over pasta mixture;stir well. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes or until sauce thickens, stirring constantly. Sprinkle with pepper. Yield 4 servings 1 cup each. 352 calories 9.6 g fat.

I usually double this recipe, my boys are runners and need the pasta! I try to just eat my 1 cup!!

Now Rob!!

JUST ROB TODAY!

Just pictures of the "boy" today!!

What's for Dinner- Crab Cakes

Crab Cakes from Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave

1 large Egg
2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
1 teaspoon Worcesterhire sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Dash of hot sauce
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1/2 cup finely chopped Red Pepper
1 scallion (green onion) finely chopped both wihite and green parts
1 pound lump crabmeat, make sure there is no shell :)
3/4 plain dry bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 F. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, mix together the egg, mustard, Worchestershire, lemon juice, hot sauce, and Old Bay.
Stir in the bell pepper and scallion.  Gently fold in the crab, 1/4 cup of bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Put remaining 1/2 cup of bread crumbs in a shallow dish.
Divide crab mixture into 8 mounds. Shape each monund into a round and coat with the bread crumbs in the bowl. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and flatten the crab cake to form a patty.  Spray each patty with a little cooking spray.
Bake until golden on the bottom about 10 minutes. Gently flip the cakes and cook until the second side is golden 5-10 minutes longer. 
Calories: 255 for 2 cakes Total Fat: 8g


Ok now for the good stuff!

Pictures of Rob! (sorry if I do not credit you for the pictures.....did not intend on doing a blog! They were for my own personal use!)

What's for dinner? Chicken Cacciatore & ROB

Chicken Cacciatore-reciepe from Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2.5 lbs)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons Olive Oil
1 med. onion cut in half then thinly sliced in half moons
1 med. red pepper seeded and cut into thin strips
8 oz white mushrooms thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 14.5 oz can of no salt added diced tomatoes with juice
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Rinse chicken and pat dry then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and brown chicken on both sides, about 8 min total. Transfer chicken to plate and set aside.
Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and bell pepper, cover and cook stirring a few times until soft about 5 min.  Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms brown about 10 min. Add garlic and cook, stirring for 30 seconds.  Add wine and cook until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and the juice, the oregano, and the red pepper flakes and simmer covered for 10 min.
Return the chicken breasts to th pan and simmer,  coveredd until they are cooked through about 20 min.


Now some Rob (Sorry I don't know where these pics came from, sorry I can't credit you!)

My Rob Pictures

Pictures of Rob