Monday, December 9, 2024

Recipe: Cottage Cheese Brownies


I have been seeing lots of healthy recipes on Instagram featuring cottage cheese. I don't really like cottage cheese on its own, but I figured it can't taste too bad if it's main into a dessert, right? I couldn't find the exact video I saw online, but I googled "cottage cheese brownies" and found this recipe from Matt's Fit Chef. With only four main ingredients, I figured it had to be pretty easy!

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup cottage cheese
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 scant cup cocoa powder
  • 1/3 cup and 1 tbsp granular sweetener (I just used regular white sugar)

Optional Ingredients

  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp coffee powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • Chocolate chips 

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and fold a 7-inch x 7-inch brownie pan with parchment paper.
  2. Add to a blender cottage cheese, egg, cocoa powder and granular sweetener. Optionally, add baking powder, coffee powder, and a pinch of salt. Blend until all ingredients are combined into a smooth brownie batter.
  3. Transfer cottage cheese brownie batter to the prepared pan, and optionally sprinkle with chocolate chips on top. Bake in hot oven for 22 to 30 minutes – mine took 25 minutes. Let cool completely at room temperature before slicing.
  4. Once cooled, seal and store in the fridge for a maximum of 4 days.

I think I did include all of the optional ingredients except the coffee powder (What is coffee powder? Ground-up coffee?), and I don't think the chocolate chips are optional. While they make the brownies less healthy, they taste MUCH better with the chocolate chips (and look cuter, too). And they last WAY longer than just four days in the fridge; I made mine weeks ago and only just recently finished the last one (and it tasted fine!).

Are these the yummiest brownies you've ever had? Absolutely not. They are not fudgy or fluffy; they actually are kind of grainy. BUT the fact that each normal-sized brownie is only about 100 calories is really nice. I never felt guilty about eating one, and they still satisfied my sweet tooth. I don't think I'd make these for a party or share them with others to show off my baking skills, but I might make them for myself again. 

Thursday, December 5, 2024

Recipe: Turkey Pot Pie

The first turkey I've ever cooked myself! I tore through the skin to put rosemary under there (not as neatly as planned).

While I did not officially cook for Thanksgiving, I did get a free Butterball turkey from BJ's, so I had to do something with it! So the morning of Black Friday, I put my 17-pound bird into the oven to cook for FOUR hours. After I let it cool, I began thinking about how to use all that meat. We were already getting a little tired of turkey after hosting my family for early Thanksgiving the week early and then having more of it on the actual day of Thanksgiving. But I couldn't let this bird go to waste! I immediately started looking up recipes, and I found one recipe for turkey pot pie from AllRecipes.com that sounded delicious. I had to try it!

Ingredients

  • 2 cups frozen peas and carrots
  • 2 cups frozen green beans
  • 1 cup sliced celery
  • ⅔ cup butter
  • ⅔ cup diced onion
  • ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon celery seed
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 ¾ cups chicken broth
  • 1 ⅓ cups milk
  • 4 cups cubed leftover cooked turkey
  • 2 (14.1 ounce) packages pastry for a 9-inch double-crust pie

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 425˚F.
  2. Place frozen peas, carrots, and beans in a saucepan with celery; add enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until celery is tender, about 8 minutes. Drain.
  3. While vegetables are simmering, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add flour, salt, pepper, celery seed, onion powder, and Italian seasoning and whisk until a paste forms, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in chicken broth and then milk until incorporated; bring to a simmer and cook, whisking constantly, until sauce thickens, 3-5 minutes.
  4. Remove thickened sauce from the heat; add cooked, drained vegetables and cubed turkey and stir until filling is well combined.
  5. Set out two 9-inch pie dishes. Fit one pie pastry into the bottom of each dish. Spoon 1/2 of the pot pie filling into each dish, then lay remaining pie pastries over top. Pinch and roll the top and bottom pastries together at the edges to seal. Use a sharp knife to cut several small slits in each top pastry to allow steam to release while cooking. Place pies on baking sheets.
  6. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Check the top crusts for browning; if they are browning too quickly, cover with aluminum foil. Continue to bake until the crusts are golden brown and the filling is bubbly, 15-20 more minutes.
  7. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

I simplified the recipe (as usual). I thought I had seen other recipes that used cream of chicken soup in pot pie, and I realized that's what step #3 is here. So I grabbed a can of cream of mushroom soup (I figured my husband would never be able to taste the mushroom in a pot pie!), along with frozen veggies that you can microwave in the bag for four minutes, and saved myself more than ten minutes! 

One thing that is confusing about this recipe is the use of plurals in steps #5 and #6. Yes, there are two pie crusts, but there is only one dish, and you only lay one over top (not two "pastries"). And it's only one top crust that could potentially brown, so I don't know why the recipe reads "crusts." So I had to read this a few times to be sure I wasn't completely confused on what I was supposed to do. 

I did not end up eating the pie the night I made it, but the next day (after microwaving a piece, of course), it was DELICOUS! I already love pot pie anyway, and now that I've made it myself, I will definitely make this recipe again, either with turkey or chicken!

Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Recipe: Irish inspired Potato Nachos

We were invited to not one but TWO Thanksgivings last Thursday, so we decided to watch the first football game at the one house and then see the second game (and have real dinner) at the second house. The second hostess insisted we didn't need to bring anything, so I just brought some mini pies from Crumbl (which are so cute and yummy!). But for the first house, I wanted to bring some good football-watching food. I found this recipe on the Clean Food Crush blog, and I had never heard of healthy nachos before. I thought this was a cool alternative, and it didn't seem too difficult.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds russet or Yukon gold potatoes
  • 2 Tbsps avocado oil, or olive oil
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • sea salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 4 slices nitrate-free bacon, cooked and crumbled
  • 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 vine tomato, chopped
  • 1/4 red onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 Tbsp chopped cilantro, scallions, or parsley leaves

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 400˚ F. Rinse and scrub potatoes thoroughly to remove any dirt. Pat excess moisture with a paper towel or allow to air dry.
  2. Slice potatoes into 1/4-inch thick, even, rounds and place them in a large bowl (may want to use a mandoline for even slicing.)
  3. Season your potatoes with oregano, thyme, sea salt and black pepper, drizzle oil on top.
  4. Gently rub and toss to get them coated evenly.
  5. Place the potatoes onto a large baking sheet (or 2) in a SINGLE layer and roast for 20 minutes until golden and crispy, flipping once during roasting.
  6. Once the potatoes are done, carefully remove from the oven and transfer to a skillet or oven-safe dish. I covered mine with parchment for easy clean up!
  7. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for additional 6-8 minutes until cheese is nice and melty. To assemble your nachos, add a generous dollop of yogurt in the middle.
  8. Crumble crispy bacon on top, then sprinkle with tomatoes and onions as shown.
  9. Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro, scallions, and/or parsley and serve immediately.

I didn't follow the recipe to a T, and I didn't use all the ingredients. I don't eat bacon, and I used sour cream instead of yogurt. I also just topped my "nachos" with cheese, sauteed yellow onion and bell pepper, and sprinkled in a little green onion. I did season the potatoes with LOTS of cumin so that they would taste more like real nachos. And even though it was a little tedious flipping the little potato slices one by one, they turned out to be really good (although they got cold very quickly, so microwaving was necessary later). This could be good for a Superbowl party, I think!

Monday, December 2, 2024

Recipe: Dump-and-Bake Chicken Alfredo Casserole

Image found here

Get ready because I'm going to be posting LOTS of recipes this week! It's that time of year when you're hunkered down at home because the nights are chilly, it's the holiday season, and you've got LOTS of leftovers (and lots of football to watch, too!).

I made this casserole recipe from the Seasoned Mom blog, less to do with the reasons listed above and more because I think casseroles are great for meal prep. I have to go into the office five days a week with my new job, which means I eat the majority of my lunches (and actually my breakfasts as well) at work. So I have to prepare ten meals a week just for that! And casseroles make it easy. And this recipe is easy, too, with only three steps!

Ingredients

  • 1 (16 ounce) package uncooked rotini pasta
  • 22 oz jar Alfredo sauce (about 1 very large 22-ounce jar or 1 ½ 15-ounce jars) (~ 2 ½ cups total)
  • 3 cups chicken stock (or substitute with chicken broth)
  • 2 cups diced or shredded rotisserie chicken (or other diced cooked chicken)
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 2 large cloves)
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (or Italian blend cheese)
  • Optional garnish: Parmesan cheese and chopped fresh herbs, such as basil, oregano, or parsley

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F. In a large baking dish, stir together uncooked pasta, Alfredo sauce, chicken stock, chicken and garlic. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
  2. Uncover; give the pasta a good stir. At this point you should check the pasta to make sure that it is al dente (firm but with a tender bite). I have had good luck with the 30-minute cook time; however, some readers have noted that it required about 10 or 15 minutes longer. If it’s still too hard after 30 minutes, just cover the dish and return to the oven until pasta is al dente. Then move on to the next step. Sprinkle mozzarella over the top.
  3. Bake, uncovered, for 8-10 more minutes, or until the cheese melts. Garnish with freshly grated Parmesan or fresh chopped herbs if desired.

I love that not only could I just throw everything together, but I didn't even have to cook the pasta first! I did not bother with the herbs, but I did realize later that this recipe has ZERO vegetables in it. It's already not healthy because of the alfredo sauce, but no veggies?! So when I've been eating a portion, I top it with a third of a bell pepper (diced) before microwaving it. I guess you could also make a side salad, but that's too much work (the opposite of this recipe!).