Quinoa Kale Bites Appetizer

Tweet

One of our favorite things about the holidays is reconnecting with friends. Recently we had a couple of friends over for dinner where we served these appetizer bites. They were a huge hit and are so tasty!
We made them about 2-3 inches in diameter and got about 10-12 bites. We topped them with tzatziki sauce and a fresh tomato salsa on the others. They were the perfect vehicle for the toppings.

Both Quinoa and kale are superfoods and they are packed with nutrients. Our guest gobbled them up.

Buttery Smashed Tiny Potatoes

Don't these potatoes look delicious?

They are so simple to make and are so yummy! You should make them tonight. Go ahead, write in on your to do list, I'll wait....

Butternut Squash Caprese

Fall is right around the corner and the weather here in SC has just been so amazing this week! What I love most about this salad is that it's kind of a "farewell to summer, hello fall" salad. The avocados and tomatoes from the summer garden and the sweet-warmness of the butternut squash is just the perfect expression of this time of year.
 

For such a simple salad, it sure does not disappoint on taste. Everything goes so well together and small mozzarella balls are just the perfect size. There isn't a fancy dressing for this because, simply, it doesn't need one. Just some good olive oil, salt and pepper allows the veggies to shine bright.

As we say goodbye to another summer, I'm looking forward to welcoming my favorite season. This salad was a perfect way to celebrate this in between time of the year!

Haricot Verts & Edamame with Shallot-Soy Vinaigrette

This tasty little side dish really could not be any easier. A while back I blogged about some of our favorite homemade dressings. One of our favorites of the favorites was this Shallot-Soy Vinaigrette. For this dish we just took some frozen hericot verts (or green beans) and some frozen edamame, tossed them with the dressing and tah-dah!

The vinaigrette is delicious as a sauce over chicken or fish also. It's thick and creamy and coats very well. You could add a protein of your choice (like chicken or tofu) to this meal and call it lunch or dinner also. Give it a shot and let us know how it turned out!

Tangy Tomato Garlic Soup

We're fortunate in that our neighbors rock! The people who live on either side of us are just awesome people and we all help each other out. One couple has two very fun dogs and we get to dog sit them when our neighbors go out of town.

Normally our neighbors will bring us a gift home from their trip as a thank you for watching the dogs, like playing with two awesome puppies isn't thanks enough! Recently they went to Athens, GA for a weekend and ate at a really cool restaurant called The Grit Restaurant! Like most of our friends, the neighbors knew a food related gift is always a safe bet with us so they purchased the restaurants cookbook and raved about the food there.

What's special about the cookbook and the restaurant is that it's vegetarian! All the food served and recipes in the cookbook are created for vegetarians by cooks Jessica Greene & Ted Hafer.

We did this tomato soup from the book recently and it was amazing. The apple cider vinegar really gives it a zing! Top with cheese, sour cream, or a buttery crouton and this recipe is golden!

Give this a try and if you're ever in Athens (we'll be taking a trip soon!), stop by The Grit and try their delicious vegetarian cuisine.

Tortellini Skewers with Pesto Dipping Sauce

Here is a really delicious and fast appetizer that you can make way before your guests arrive! I found this idea online and put my own spin on it but you can throw whatever you have on hand on these skewers.

If you're using them for an appetizer before a main course I would stick to 2 skewers per person. You can also use these on a buffet table, in which case I would allow more than 2 per person. These would be great for a kid's birthday, holiday party, or pot luck.

The skewers were so good and the combination of the tortellini, tomato, and pesto made it like a fun pasta salad on a stick. The only thing I would add is a spoon to the dip. That way people can spoon the pesto over the skewers instead of double dipping.

Chili-Lime Shrimp Cups

We love entertaining guests here at the William's home. Just cooking something wonderful and making it special is right up our alley. We love our friends dearly and we get so much pleasure from making them feel welcomed and special in our home.

We also love entertaining because The Other Williams gets to cook for someone other than me for a change! It also gives me the opportunity to light candles, bring out the good napkins and fold them in special ways, and play with the visual appeal of whatever marvelous thing The Other Williams cooks up!

However, yours truly made these little darlings all by herself! That's right, it's that easy!

Recently we had friends over and served these cute cups for an appetizer. I love a good appetizer recipe! It gives our guests a moment to come in, sit down, and hang out before we move into the dining room. They are so casual and fun.

These would be great for a Cinco de Mayo party, tailgating, or picnicking. You could use them as appetizers or as a side dish to a main course. Regardless of how you plan to use them they will be a hit! Just two bites and your guests will be hooked!

Picnic Menu - Italian Compressed Sandwich

For The Other Williams' birthday she requested a trip to Atlanta to visit the High Museum of Art's current exhibit "Picaso to Warhol". The weather couldn't have been more lovely for a picnic so I decided to surprise her with one. We were traveling a bit to get there so I needed something pretty sturdy and this menu did the trick!

I love fun food on picnic's and anything on a stick is fun! I skewered organic grapes onto a bamboo skewer. I also did a caprese salad on a stick by layering small mozzarella balls, grape tomatoes, and basil leaves onto a skewer. I brought along a small container of balsamic vinegar for our dipping pleasure.

The Italian compressed sandwich was amazing and burst with flavor from the pesto, meats, and smoky cheese! This sandwich should be made a day a head but 6-8 hours ahead would be fine also.

The picnic was a hit and the weather was gorgeous as we relaxed in Centennial Park while people watching. We hit the art museum will tummies filled with love! The exhibit was awesome and we made plans to return before summer's heat turned Atlanta into Hotlanta!

Portabello Mushrooms with Creamy Spinach-Artichoke Filling

Do you like spinach artichoke dip? Well then you've GOT to try this delicious recipe. It's a great vegetarian option that makes you forget it's vegetarian!

You might be thinking that it's probably a 1000 calories too, right? Nope! Only 370 per 'shroom!

We served this beauty with a yummy side salad and the whole meal was delicious. We felt like we were getting a treat or being naughty but this is actually a very healthy meal.

The spinach is loaded with goodness and the artichokes are packed with vitamin C, folate and potassium! This is also a pretty quick meal.

We halved the recipe and baked it in our toaster oven. Try this healthier version of spinach and artichoke!

Broccoli, Apple, Fennel Slaw

Before I begin this post I will admit that I am a southerner who does not really like coleslaw. I know, I know, where did my parent's go wrong? However I LOVE this slaw! I think because it's not made with raw cabbage, it's really so much better and on a completely different level than most coleslaw's.

While on our cleanse in March we whipped up this little number to serve along with some fish. If you eat a lot of fish you know you're always looking for ways to add some flavor or change it up a little. This recipe does just that without missing a beat.

If you've never tried fennel, I highly recommend you try it. It's a root vegetable that a lot of people say tastes like licorice . I'm not a big licorice fan either and I still love fennel, especially raw! The textures in this slaw really adds the fun to any fish dish. You can top the fish with the slaw or just use it as a side.

This is definitely one of the cleanse recipes that we'll be using a lot!

Picnic in a Jar - Arugula & Cherry Tomato Salad with Balsamic Drizzle

While picnicking for our anniversary we also had a small jar salad. It was the perfect accompaniment for the Spring Veggie Orzo Salad we also made. This recipe is a take on the classic caprese salad. It's a spring version, if you will, and really delicious!

There isn't a fancy dressing for this one it's just a simple balsamic vinegar drizzled over it. I can't really emphasize enough how important good balsamic vinegar is for this application.

The salad travels beautifully in the jar but make sure you put the balsamic in a separate container and drizzle before serving. This simple salad is both beautiful and portable! Enjoy!

Picnic in a Jar - Spring Veggie Orzo Salad

Recently The Other Williams and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. We got all dressed up for a lovely dinner at our favorite restaurant but we spend the actual day of our anniversary picnicking.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you'll know how much we love combining our two favorite things (outdoors and food). Not to ruin the surprise for newbies but it's a lot! We tried out this new recipe and absolutely love it! We tinkered with the original recipe to make it more our own. We added lots more veggies and lowered the amount of orzo.

Orzo is such a fun little food. It looks like rice but it's really pasta. It's great in hot or cold salads. The Other Williams is a huge orzo fan so when I found this recipe for our picnic there was no doubt it was going to be made.

The lemon-y dressing on this salad is just outstanding. We might even keep this around just to throw on regular salads or other pasta salads. This salad is packed with veggies! You can also play around with what veggies you have on hand or change it up depending on what's in season at your market.

Chilled Cucumber Soup with Shrimp & Mini BLT

It's been getting just ridiculously hot recently and we found the perfect recipe to cool down with! Normally I'm not a big chilled soup person but this chilled cucumber soup  really hit the spot for me.

I love a good fresh summer cucumber. There is just something so clean and fresh about the favor in this little vegetable. Pair that with lemon and dill and wow!

We added a little agave to the recipe to balance out the tartness of the greek yogurt. And you want to use a good Greek yogurt. The shrimp on top was like icing on the cake and went beautifully with the soup.

We paired this lunchtime soup with a mini BLT. We used a potato roll (any dinner roll would be fine), thick cut bacon, fresh garden tomatoes, and arugula. I also prepared some dill mayo by using some of the dill and lemon juice leftover from the soup and mixing it into store bought mayo. It made the sammie a little extra special.

 

 I hope you'll try this one with your garden cucumbers. It's a delicious light, healthy, and filling lunch.

Marinated Tomato Salad with Sesame-Crusted Goat Cheese

Our new thing seems to be all things Asian. We recently purchased the book Simply Ming: Easy Techniques for East-Meets-West Meals. This was the first recipe we prepared from it and if this is any indication of how the rest of the book will turn out, I'm excited!

Again, we're following the same theme as the last post with fresh, local tomatoes being the stars of the dish. This makes a great side, light lunch, dinner or even an appetizer. If you can get your hands on heirloom tomatoes, all the better. We used Cherokee Purples and Brandy Wine yellows.

The fresh, local goat cheese is cut into rounds, coated in sesame seeds, and pan fried. It tops off this dish beautifully and the crunchy, nutty sesame crust melts into the creamy, smooth cheese inside.

The book recommends using a thin-bladed knife warmed under hot water then dried to cut the cheese log. We put the rounds in the freezer before frying so it kept it's shape better.


Give this easy but delicious recipe a try, then come back and tell me how delicious it was!

Lemon Asparagus, Peas & Basil

Spring is in the air here in the South! Our tulips are popping up and the azaleas are blooming. Whenever I think of Spring I think of sweet, fresh, crispy asparagus. The Other Williams likes to eat it raw but I prefer mine lightly steamed.

We spent the entire weekend in the yard planting, weeding, mowing, raking, and mulching. The yard looks amazing but after a day of working hard we decided a steak dinner was in order. Along with our grass-fed local sirloin we piled up a huge portion of this delicious, fresh side dish.

Not only is this dish healthy but it's beautiful! The textures really make this dish just delicious. The asparagus is crunchy and the peas pop when you bite into them. Try to stay away from canned peas and only grab fresh asparagus, preferably from a local farm. Our local asparagus farm has the best asparagus I've ever put in my mouth. If you're not a fan of asparagus, now is the season to give it another try.

This dish would make a great lunch or picnic salad and could be served warm or cold! You could also toss in some tuna or smoked chicken. Enjoy!

Italian Feast Part 2 - Souffléed Gnocchi

Welcome back for part two of our Italian-style feast. Last week we covered the first course, Escarole & Edamame Salad! This week we'll take a look at a souffléed gnocchi. We've always traditionally thought all gnocchi was made of potato. But this Roman-style recipe doesn't call for any potatoes. Instead we'll use semolina flour!

At first it was hard to see how this was going to work. We ended up chilling ours a little longer than the recipe called for and cut ours into squares instead of rounds. This was because transferring these was a little tricky. The trick is to make sure they are thick enough to set up.

I don't think either of us expected to taste what we got. It was truly unique and delicious. It tastes more like a souffle than it does gnocchi. The only thing I can begin to compare it to was the stuff in crock-pot mac & cheese without the macaroni. It's soft, delicate, smooth, and cheesy. It was truly a treat and totally worth the time.

Speaking of time, plan ahead for this one. The recipe called for 2 hours to prepare this dish start to finish but you can do a lot a head of time. Pretty much everything up until baking it in the oven can be done the day before. Enjoy!

Check out!
Part 1 - Escarole & Edamame Salad 
Part 3 - Anchovy & Rosemary Roasted Lamb with Salsa Verde

Vegetable Tian

This was an easy and delicious side dish and a great way to use fresh veggies from the garden or farmers market. We cooked this in the toaster oven and cut the recipe down to 1/3rd.

You could also use just about any veggie that will hold up to long cooking. Feel free to get creative with your favorite veggies. The potato really set this side apart so don't skip that one. Also be sure to salt and add Italian seasoning each layer as you go, it will give it a lot more flavor. Enjoy!

Prep Time:30 min
Cook Time:1 hr 15 min
Serves:4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
Good olive oil
2 large yellow onions, cut in half and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound medium round potatoes, unpeeled
3/4 pound zucchini
1 1/4 pounds medium tomatoes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus extra sprigs
2 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Brush a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with olive oil. In a medium saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook the onions over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Spread the onion mixture on the bottom of the baking dish.

Slice the potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes in 1/4-inch thick slices. Layer them alternately in the dish on top of the onions, fitting them tightly, making only 1 layer. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, thyme leaves, and thyme sprigs and drizzle with 1 more tablespoon of olive oil. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Uncover the dish, remove the thyme sprigs, sprinkle the cheese on top, and bake for another 30 minutes until browned. Serve warm.

Daddy's Cornbread

::Picture me in a beautiful southern bell flowing gown as I narrate this post::

Most southerns are very serious when it comes to grits and cornbread. We all have our own "right" way of making it. I am no exception. As a kid I watched my dad make cornbread at least once a week. I was always amazed that he never measured anything. Of course, you also never got a consistent cornbread, but that never mattered.

Many southerns also have strong strong ideas as to what goes in cornbread and what doesn't. Again, I am no exception. In my opinion, cornbread is simple, no sugar, corn kernels, flour, or other veggies are allowed in cornbread. Cornbread should not taste like cake, it should taste like cornbread. Or if you've never tasted cornbread, a dense, gritty, unsweetened bread. Cornmeal and grits are actually the same thing only cornmeal is ground down more.

I use a premix cornmeal (Martha White, to be exact) because that's what my dad used. I do measure my cornbread because I like getting a "good batch" every time. Here's my 4 ingredient simple recipe:

Daddy's Cornbread

1 egg, beaten
1 & 1/3 cup milk (or buttermilk)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cup's cornmeal mix

Throw it all in a bowl and mix.

Now let's talk hardware (as Alton Brown calls it):
I prefer cast iron for two reasons. One, it cooks the cornbread evenly. Two, it's just how it's always been done. I don't care for the corn muffins or the little trays that make cornbread into different shapes. You just don't mess with tradition. A round 8-10 in cast iron pan works mighty fine.

We use grease in our house to season the cast iron, keep it conditioned, and for no sticking. So screw the doc, grab the Crisco, and grease the damn pan - you won't regret it. It gives the cornbread a wonderful crispy edge.

Now pour your mixture into the pan and cook at 450 for 20-30 minutes, depending on how crispy and brown you like yours. We normally go the full 30 around here.

Service: The Other Williams (yes, I got my yankee to like my cornbread) likes her's sliced with butter. I enjoy it that way but my favorite is in milk (or half milk, half buttermilk). I was raised that it was the best way to eat cornbread, and I have to agree. Don't gross out until you try it. It's the best cereal you'll ever eat! Enjoy!

Bruschetta Topping

In the past, we've bought bruschetta topping from the store and it's always amazing. We fell in love with bruschetta at a local restaurant when some friends ordered it as an appetizer to share. After having some really good toppings we decided it was time to whip up some of our own and we were surprised with how yummy it turned out! It didn't really compare to the restaurant's but it gave the store bought a BIG run for it's money. Paired with an anti-pasta tray and this was one beautiful Italian-style meal!

Wine Suggestion:
Cabernet Franc





Our topping was made up of home-canned tomatoes, anchovy paste, artichoke hearts, Italian seasoning, fresh basil, and some garlic. We warmed everything up in a pot on med heat then topped our toast with the topping, cheese, and basil. Just delicious!

We also froze the leftover in small canning jars and it was great thawed from the freezer and made a quick, delicious weekend lunch/dinner.

Pork Chops with Quinoa Pilaf and Dried Fruit

This dish recently hit our table and it was delicious! The quinoa was definitely the highlight with a yummy dried fruit port sauce. Remember all that dried fruit from the trail mix? Well, it pulled double duty between that and this dish. We didn't add the wheat berries and substituted the dried fruit with what we had on hand- apple instead of pears, cranberries instead of cherries - and it didn't disappoint us.

The only thing we'll do different next time, because this is definitely a do-over, is to grill the pork chop. The chop was great but it didn't really get much flavor from the sauce. Maybe if we had poured it over the pork chop instead of the quinoa it would have been better but the sauce really does belong with the quinoa and it didn't seem to produce enough sauce for both.

ACTIVE: 20 MIN
TOTAL TIME: 35 MIN
SERVINGS: 4

Ingredients

1. 2 1/4 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
2. 1 small shallot, minced
3. 1 garlic clove, minced
4. 2/3 cup quinoa
5. 2 tablespoons wheat berries
6. 1 thyme sprig
7. 1 bay leaf
8. 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
9. Four 5-ounce boneless pork loin chops, trimmed of fat
10. Salt and freshly ground pepper
11. 2 dried pear halves, diced
12. 4 dried apricot halves, sliced
13. 1/4 cup dried sour cherries (1 ounce)
14. 2 tablespoons ruby port

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. In a small skillet, combine 1/4 cup of the stock with the shallot and garlic and cook over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Add the quinoa, wheat berries, thyme and bay leaf. Add 1 cup of the stock and bring to a simmer. Scrape the mixture into a 9-inch square baking dish, cover with foil and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the quinoa and wheat berries are tender. Remove the pilaf from the oven and keep covered.
   
   
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper and brown them in the skillet over moderately high heat, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Add the dried pears, apricots and cherries to the skillet and cook for 1 minute. Add the port and cook for 1 minute. Add the remaining 1 cup of stock and simmer over moderately high heat until reduced to 1/3 cup, about 5 minutes. Add the pork chops and any accumulated juices and cook over moderate heat, turning the pork a few times, until it is hot and just cooked, about 2 minutes
   
   
3. Uncover the pilaf and fluff it with a fork; season with salt and pepper. Mound the pilaf on plates. Set the pork chops on the pilaf, top with the fruit sauce and serve.
   

One Serving 454 cal, 15 gm fat, 3.3 gm saturated fat, 40 gm carb, 4 gm fiber.

Print Link