Birthday Party Prep, in the kitchen

 Sweet Logan turned 5 yesterday.  I will post all the pics of her wonderful birthday celebration, but for now here are the goodies I whipped up for her party!  

 You can't spell P-A-R-T-Y without cookies, or something 

like that...am I right?  Semi-sweet chocolate chip cookies,

dusted with sea salt are ALWAYS on the menu!

Dark chocolate cupcakes (along with vanilla cupcakes that

didn't get their time to shine in front on the camera during prep)

alwaty please the crowds!

 

 No Fail Frosting! 

 It is a must for cupcakes, layered cakes, spoons and fingers!

Make this recipe, it is quick and easy and oh so tasty!

 Copious amounts of rice krispy treats!  I didn't make 

homemade marshmallows for these bad boys, as I have

in the past.  But the secret to stepping up your game with

a krispy bar made with a bag of marshmallows: a bit of sea salt!

 Peanut butter and homemade jam (via the MIL) is 

turned into party food, by removing crust, with a round 

biscuit cutter and dipping the cut edges into

tiny sprinkles!  So cute and festive!

It's a 5 year old birthday party, but I always plan

for the parents who are showing up as well. 

Beer and handmade wraps were on hand for them.

Store bought tortillas filled with havarti, oven roasted

turkey slices, candied bacon* and sun-dried tomato 

mayonnaise** were perfection!

*to candy bacon, line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and parchment (no stick, yay)

place bacon on the prepared baking sheet and generously sprinkle with brown

sugar and cracked black pepper.  Bake until crispy (directions on bacon package). 

Do not drain on paper towels as the sugars will just stick to the paper!  I place the cooked

candied baon on a cooling rack and allow to drip a bit (playing baking sheet under the 

rack to catch drips).  once cool, store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.  

Can be made a few days in advance.

**to make sun-dried tomato mayonnaise, grab your food processor and whip 2 small jars

of drained sun-dried tomatoes, 1/2 cup cream cheese (soft) and 1 cup real mayonnaise.

Store air tight in the refrigerator, can be made a week in advance.

PARTY PICS SOON !!!

(but, let's be real...what does 'soon' mean to me?  still haven't finished

Sundance Film Festival 2014 pics...opps!)

 

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Every time I order lettuce wraps at a restaurant, I am reminded how simple they are, 

and have recently been whipping them up at home.  Here's how I like to do it.

Oh, and all the steps, up to eating, were done a day in advance. 

YumFest, right! 

Grab a head (or 2 or 3...) of bib lettuce in the produce section

 1 lb. ground turkey (93% lean is preferred) and

in a small bowl mix: 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce,

1 tablespoon sriracha and 2 tablespoons light brown sugar)

 Use a fine grater (I get out my zester) to finely grate

carrots (yield ~1 cup grated carrot)

 Pulverized goodness

Cook the turkey thoroughly, then stir in the sauce and

carrot (add more heat, sweet or sodium to the sauce to 

meet your liking.  I do think the measurements I gave

you are a good base though)

It's hard to find that cup of grated carrot, huh! 

Sneaky, sneaky!!

 Chop the zucchini and drop into a pot of boiling water

for 1-2 minutes.

 Remove from the boiling water and submerge

in an bowl of ice water, to stop the cooking.

 Turn the heat off the boiling water and drop

the mai fun noodles in the pot.  They will

sit in the hot water (off heat now), covered,
 for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, drain the noodles.

 This step is for sure not compulsory, but I think it adds

 a wonderful crunch and is super simple.  If you want the

crunch, but aren't up for this step, use store bought 

crispy chow mein noodles.

I use my pizza wheel to make strips of wonton dough.

I find the packages of wonton wrappers in the 

produce section at the market.

 In a saucepan heat 2 inches of canola oil, test the temp

by dropping one strip in and watch it dance, if you will

 (I am not a seasoned deep fryer, but these are hard to screw up)

Use a metal tong (or spider skimmer) to remove from the oil 

when they are light golden brown in color. Place on a

plate with paper towels to drain.  

These can be made several days in advance, just store air tight.

 All the fixings for delicious Asian Lettuce Wraps:

Bib lettuce (cut off the base and cleaned very well and

wrapped in towel to dry), the ground-seasoned turkey, wonton

strips, jullienned sweet peppers, blanched zucchini, sliced

scallions, lightly salted cashews, cooked mai fun noodles.

Also, if you want whip up some more sauce, that was stirred into the

ground turkey, for topping the wraps.

Enjoy!!!  

xo.

Curried Turkey Salad

Thanksgiving dinner is my favorite meal of the year.  I have been menu planning that day, since about 3rd grade (my friends can confirm this), but if I had to load up one more plate of  leftovers I would  lose my mind (or cookies).  Yet, I don't want to waste that delicious bird I labored over.  So for lunch today, I put the turkey to new use and it is DELICIOUS (and wicked protein packed, for those of you who care about that).
 

 2 cups cooked turkey breast

1 cup full fat Greek yogurt

1 T curry powder

3 T agave nectar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup dried cranberries (or raisins)

3 T. finely chopped raw onion

Mix Greek yogurt  (it is already strained, but I set it in a few coffee filters to 

get a bit more moisture off.  For sure use the full fat and Greek yogurt, 

as the lighter versions will make this watery) with the curry powder, agave 

nectar and sea salt.  

Then stir in the turkey (or chicken breast...whatever you have on hand), 

dried cranberries and chopped onion. 

Garnish with sea salt roasted (or raw) cashews and serve on a 

bed of greens or pop it in a sandwich!

YUM!!!  Put those leftovers to work!!!

Lasagna Bread Bakers

All the goodness of lasagna, piled high on french bread...need I say more? 

In a large skillet heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat and add:

1 lb ground beef, bison or turkey

1/3 cup onion

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp cracked black pepper

 

After the meat-of-choice is browned add 3 cups of marinara, 

1 T. tomato paste and 2 T agave nectar. 

This creates an exceptional bolognese sauce.  Set aside. 

You can even make the night before and pop in the refrigerator.

 In a bowl mix 1 cup ricotta cheese, 1/3 c finely shredded parmesan.

(the stuff in the green can will work just fine...promise!)

To the cheese add 1 tsp dried basil, 1 tsp onion powder, 

1 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp sea salt.

Cut one loaf of french bread in half.  Be smarter than me and transfer

the cut bread to the baking sheet, at this point.

 Top with the cheese mixture.

Then top with the bolognese sauce.

Then top with a mix of equal parts shredded parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.

Bake in a 375 degree preheated oven.

Bake for 15-17 minutes, until the cheese on top is bubbly and starting to brown.

Use a pizza wheel to cut into chunks and serve with a green salad.  

This is sure to please everyone!

(and is a great way to use up bolognese leftovers, if you have them on hand!)