Creamy Quinoa Mac & Cheese

My kids LOVE macaroni & cheese. and even though I buy the more natural/organic boxes, I still feel guilty making something that is so processed all the time. so I keep trying new homemade mac & cheese recipes. I've been buying the Quinoa pasta lately because it's supposed to be good for you - it actually tastes quite delicious! I can't really taste the difference compared to regular semolina pasta. It just cooks faster than the regular stuff, but even tricked the hubs who is naturally resistant to all my "trying to be healthier" food changes.

  

Here's what we are eating tonight at my house. It's in the oven now!

...uh, a bit of 'processed cheese food' is better for you than full-on mac from a box, right? 

Preheat oven to 400˚ F.

• 2 cups dry quinoa macaroni elbows

• 3 TB butter
• 2 TB flour
• 2 C milk (I used "so delicious" coconut milk beverage - plain)
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• fresh cracked black pepper
• a few dashes turmeric (gives it a nice yellow color)
• 6 oz shredded cheddar cheese (or any combo of shredded cheeses)
• 2 oz neufatchel cheese
• 4 oz smoked gouda (cut up nice & small)

Cook the macaroni for 6-9mins, drain.
Meanwhile, make the sauce. melt butter, whisk in flour until smooth. slowly add in milk while wisking to avoid LUMPS. cook over medium heat for a couple minutes, add mustard powder, black pepper & cheeses; stir while the cheeses melt into deliciousness.
Drain pasta & pour into baking dish. Pour cheese sauce over macaroni & mix until coated. Bake in 1.5qt-2qt dish for 20mins.

(adapted from this recipe at allrecipes)

Green Bean Casserole by Paula Deen

Let's start by saying this: I am not a casserole fan.
Unless all casserole = this recipe. Then, I guess I am casserole's biggest fan.
This is amazing! Not mushy. Not scary. Not crazy-salty!
I think maybe the secret is using FRESH beans. So here you go. Give this a try. It's slightly changed from paula deen's recipe found here. Thank you, Paula, you made our Christmas Dinner complete! I might have to make this again today... because there were no leftovers!

Ingredients

• 1/3 stick butter
• dried onions (you could use fresh, of course)
  
• rinsed fresh green beans (about 2 Cups.... I used 1 bag from sams club)
  
• 3 C. chicken broth
• 1 (10 3/4-oz) can cream of mushroom soup (you could even use less)
• French-fried onions (a bunch! I use the huge bag from Sams & just throw some in)
  
• salt & pepper to taste
• shredded mexican cheese (the prepackaged shredded blend)
  

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Saute the onions in the butter. Meanwhile, boil green beans in chicken broth for 10 minutes and drain. Add the green beans, mushroom soup, onion rings, to the onion mixture. Stir well. Add s&p to taste.

Pour into a baking dish (8x8") & bake for 20 minutes, then top with the cheese & add some additional fried onions and bake for 10 minutes longer, or until hot and cheese is melty-delicious.

Serves 4-6

creamy potato carrot soup

this is the soup I made for Briste's baby shower. that's it there in that bowl in the picture - though you can't see the soup...
this soup is easy & flexible: you can throw in whatever veggies you have, omit the carrots if you want, heck even the bacon is optional & I dont use it when I am being a good vegetarian. but I am a bad vegetarian & sorta on a bacon-in-soups kick right now & I think it makes soups taste especially good. and I know velveeta is spooky... what is it anyway?... but it makes potato soup yummy. you can also use sharp cheddar too/instead. you see? a very flexible soup!!!
here's is what I made... as best I can remember:

Creamy Potato & Carrot Soup - by kristen

2 slices uncured bacon (uncured=nitrite free! nitrites are bad for you)
1/2 white onion, chopped (1 cup)
6 large potatoes, peeled & chopped (I used russet)
3-4 handfuls baby carrots
veggie broth (just enough to cover veggies)
8 oz cream cheese (organic so christy doesn't die!)
velveeta to taste (I used 1/3 of a big pkg)
salt & fresh cracked pepper to taste

cook bacon in a large heavy pot over med-high until crisp. remove bacon, crumble & set aside. sautee onion in bacon drippings for about 10 minutes, until nice & cooked. (VEGETARIAN VERSION: omit bacon & sautee onion in 1-2Tb olive oil.) add potatoes & carrots to pot, add just enough broth to cover. (the broth stays in the soup, so the more you add, the runnier your soup will be. I like it thick, so I just barely cover the veggies enough that they can cook.) bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer until the veggies are cooked (tip: the smaller you chop your carrots/potatoes the faster this will cook.).
for chunkier soup, mash by hand with a potato masher to desired consistency. for smoother soup (or if your carrots aren't quite soft enough) puree spoonfuls of potatoes/carrots in blender & replace in pot. add cream cheese & velveeta, stir in to melt. salt & pepper to taste (the more velveeta you use, the less salt you need). add bacon back in or crumble on individual bowls. enjoy!


(above: briste enjoying opening gifts after eating the soup)

Birthday Dinner

on sunday, we celebrated haven's birthday with some of her favorite foods. haven (and most of our family) love this butternut squash risotto. it's from cooking light, but i have altered it a bit. go from the recipe, and then follow these instructions:

*increase onion to a full 1 cup
*do not salt the squash, use plenty of pepper.
*after mixing in the squash and water, cover pan and simmer for about 15 minutes, until squash is very tender.
*omit the butter and the parsley.

this is sooo good, we eat it all the time during the chilly season. and it's pretty easy to prepare. risotto's are to be stirred constantly once adding the broth mixture, but i have periodically had to stop for moments to aid a small child or halt a disaster, and it is still delicious!


haven LOVES oranges! wegman's sells more than just your garden variety kind, and they are more spendy, but perfect for a dinnertime treat. the orange closest to the bottom is the cara cara. very sweet with hints of raspberry and a very pretty salmon color. the other orange, was nicknamed "sunset" by my ciela last year when we first tried them, but they are a type of italian orange, and the name has been different nearly each time i purchase them. currently at wegman's i believe the sticker says "italia vitta", but the sign said something to the effect of: italian orange. these are more tart, but incredibly striking served up.

Mushroom Risotto

for sunday dinner we had sarah, erica/ella & stephanie/crew over.
we had pork tenderloin, mushroom risotto, fruit salad with honey-yogurt sauce, rolls, broccoli (sarah), cucumber/tomato salad (steph), peach kuchen (sarah) & cookies (erica). thanks for the company & the great food, girls (though I think aaron missed the guys)! why does the food always taste better when there are more people to enjoy it?

MUSHROOM RISOTTO (from this website...) ...this is how I made it tonight:
4 Tbsp smart balance butter
1 8oz package sliced baby bella mushrooms
1/3 cup cooking sherry
3/4 cup heavy cream
7 cups chicken broth (I cheat & use bullion)
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 large shallots, peeled and finely minced
1 3/4 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

*Note on the cleaning of mushrooms. If you are using any type of choice mushroom, try not to rinse them if you can avoid it. Brush off any remaining dirt lightly. Many mushrooms (including chanterelles) absorb water like sponges and washing them will make it much more difficult to cook properly.

1 Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté about 5 minutes. Add sherry, bring to a boil, and reduce liquid by half, about 3-4 minutes. Lower heat to medium, add cream, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and set aside.

2 Bring broth to a simmer in a saucepan.

3 In a a deep, heavy, medium sized saucepan (I used my "pasta pot"), heat oil and remaining butter. Add shallots or onions and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add rice and stir to coat with butter and oil. Add simmering stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring enough to keep the rice from sticking to the edges of the pan. Wait until the stock is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. This process will take about 20+ minutes. The rice should be just cooked and slightly chewy.

4 Stir in the mushroom mixture, parsley & Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper if needed.

Serves 4-6.

Quick Crustless Quiche

here's the quiche I made for rachel's baby shower. I have made this several times and have altered the ingredients based on what I have/feel like etc. you can use cream instead of milk, or more or less butter if you want! or throw in different veggies or meats, or even just do it with eggs and cheese. (this also works with either 3 or 4 whole eggs. or 1/2 C bisquick instead of flour/salt.) listed below is how I made it for the shower. I made DOUBLE this & put one tomato in one and left one without. you know, since tomatoes are one of those foods some people despise!

CRUSTLESS QUICHE

• 3 eggs & 2 egg whites (or 4 eggs...)
  
• 1 1/2 C milk
• 1/2 C flour
• 1 tsp salt
• pinch baking powder
  
• 1/4 C melted butter (I used smart-balance)
• minced onion (just threw some in - 1/2 - 1TB?)
• fresh crushed black pepper
• 1 C shredded cheese (I never measure it -just cover bottom of pan)

optional add-ins... use what you like/what you have!

• 1 roma tomato, seeded & chopped
• salsa - just dump it into the batter!
• chopped veggies
  
• 6 strips cooked, crumbled bacon

spray 9in pie pan (or 9in square pan). spread bacon & tomato on bottom of pan, cover in cheese. add egg mixture (first 8 ingredients - whisked well). bake 350 for 35+ minutes, until quiche is set & top is golden.