When I made the Pesto with Toasted Almonds recently, I didn't have any whole almonds. So, instead, I toasted up some slivered almonds. It's really easy to burn these, so be careful and check on them often! Mine came out pretty well, though!
Ingredients:
Raw slivered almonds
Parchment paper
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spread the almonds in a single layer on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
3. Bake for five minutes.
4. Remove the cookie sheet and shake to mix the almonds. Return to the oven.
5. Check every couple of minutes to avoid overcooking. Remove almonds when they are barely darker than they were raw. Overall, the almonds should roast for 7-12 minutes.
These instructions are based on those found at http://vinegarlic.com/2011/06/27/how-to-toast-slivered-almonds-in-the-oven-temperature-how-long-time/. However, their instructions call for a cooking time that was far too long for my oven. Mine would have burned if I left them in for 10-15 minutes.
These cheesecake cupcakes were awesome. Very dense, just the way I think cheesecake is best. I brought these to a friend's house, and she already had some homemade strawberry sauce from earlier in the week, so we just put that on top. Next time, I will definitely do some sort of fruit sauce again, because these were so perfect! There's a recipe for strawberry sauce in the link to the original recipe, but I can't speak to how good it is. Might try it sometime, but I'd also be curious to try these with a raspberry sauce!
Ingredients:
1 cup finely crushed graham crackers (from ~8-9 sheets)
1 1/2 Tbsp granulated sugar
4 Tbsp salted butter, melted
2 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup heavy cream (or evaporated milk)
Strawberry Sauce
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl, mix crushed graham crackers with 1 1/2 Tbsp granulated sugar. Pour in melted butter and stir mixture until evenly mixed.
3. Divide this amongst 12 paper lined muffin cups. Press mixture with spoon to form an even layer.
4. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and cool while making the filling.
5. In a small mixing bowl, mix 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 1 1/2 Tbsp flour.
6. Put softened cream cheese in a separate mixing bowl and pour sugar/flour mixture over top. Blend mixture using an electric mixer on the lowest speed until smooth. You may need to knock down the beaters on your mixer a couple times.
7. Mix in eggs one at a time on low speed. Scrape sides down and mix until just combined after each addition.
8. Add vanilla, sour cream and heavy cream and mix just until just combined. Tap bowl against counter approximately 30 times; this will release some air bubbles.
9. Divide mixture into muffin cups, filling each until it is full. Bake in preheated oven 20 - 23 minutes. When they are done baking, their centers should still jiggle a little bit, but don't over-bake (they will crack if they’re almost over-baked).
10. Remove from oven and cool for 1 hour. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator or freezer.
11. Just before serving, add the strawberry sauce to the top of the cheesecake. You can put the sauce on in advance, but it’s better if you wait until serving.
This recipe was adapted from "Cheesecake Cupcakes" at Cooking Classy (http://www.cookingclassy.com/2013/04/cheesecake-cupcakes/).
This a truly amazing sandwich. Not too surprising though, since it's just bacon, mozzarella, pesto, and tomato grilled into one sandwich. Will definitely make this again when we have pesto on hand.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup pesto
4 slices sourdough bread
1 medium tomato, sliced thin
4 ounces mozzarella, sliced thin 8 slices (I used shredded, just because it was all I had on hand)
8 slices fried or baked bacon
2 Tbsp. butter
Directions:
1. Heat a large skillet over medium or medium-low heat (depending on how hot your stove is).
2. Spread pesto and butter over opposite sides of all 4 bread slices.
3. Top each sandwich with a portion of bacon, tomatoes, and cheese.
4. Carefully cap each sandwich and place on warm skillet.
5. Cook until bread is crisp and golden and cheese melts, about 5 minutes per side. Halve and serve.
This recipe was adapted from a similar recipe using ciabatta bread at Three Many Cooks (http://threemanycooks.com/recipes/meaty-mains/sisters-sandwich/).
We had a ton of basil from our garden recently, and I really wanted to make pesto. Unfortunately, we didn't have any pine nuts, but we did have slivered almonds. So, I toasted the almonds up and made this. Definitely different than pesto with pine nuts, but really awesome in its own way. I would definitely make this again!
Ingredients:
1/4 cup toasted almonds
3-4 cloves garlic
1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1 pinch ground nutmeg
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
1. Add toasted almonds, garlic, basil, olive oil, parmesan cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper to food processor and process until a desired consistency is achieved. You may want to scrape down the sides a few times.
This recipe was adapted from the recipe at Allrecipes (http://allrecipes.com/recipe/easy-pesto/detail.aspx).
Spinach dip is one of my favorites! I could eat this for a whole meal (and have on a few occasions). It's not particularly good for me, but it is so delicious. This recipe is particularly amazing, with a little bit of heat from hot canned jalapeños, and lots of creaminess to balance that.
Ingredients:
8oz cream cheese
16 oz light sour cream
1 stick unsalted butter
1½ – 2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese
14 oz quartered artichoke hearts, drained
4 oz can diced jalapeños, drained
10 oz frozen spinach (thawed and drained)
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
Directions:
1. In a pan over medium-low heat, melt to combine cream cheese, sour cream, butter and parmesan cheese.
2. Stir frequently until all ingredients are melted and consistently mixed.
3. Stir in quartered artichoke hearts, drained can of jalapeños, drained spinach, and minced garlic cloves.
4. Serve warm with chips or toasted bread.
Recipe adapted from "Spinach and Artichoke Dip" from Natasha's Kitchen (http://natashaskitchen.com/2012/09/30/spinach-and-artichoke-dip-recipe/).
There are probably tons of instructions for making roasted garlic out there on the internet. However, for anyone who is curious, this is how I made the roasted garlic I used in Roasted Garlic Mac & Cheese.
Ingredients:
1 head of garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt
1 stick unsalted butter (room temperature)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Slice about a third off the top end of the garlic head. Remove any loose paper from the head of garlic without breaking apart the cloves.
3. Place garlic on a large piece of aluminum foil and drizzle with the olive oil.
4. Bring the foil over the sides of the garlic and twist to seal it, but not too tight.
5. Place it in a oven-safe dish and roast in the oven for about 45 minutes, until garlic is very soft.
6. Wait until the garlic cools a bit, then squeeze the cloves out or use a fork.
Instructions for roasting garlic are based on There's always thyme to cook... (http://theresalwaysthyme.blogspot.com/2010/10/roasted-garlic.html). I raised the cooking temperature from 350 to 400 degrees F, though.
I'm always looking for creative ways to prepare vegetables that make them as delicious as possible. This recipe is great to use with fresh green beans, if you have them around. I don't know how well it would work with frozen or canned.
Ingredients:
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 lb. fresh green beans
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
1. Chop off ends of green beans.
2. In a medium to large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.
3. Add beans to skillet with a sprinkle of salt.
4. Cook beans until they start to have some color.
5. When the color starts to substantially change, add garlic.
6. Cook 1-2 minutes longer, until garlic is aromatic.
7. Remove from heat and season with pepper and salt.
This recipe was adapted from instructions at Broke and Healthy (http://www.brokeandhealthy.com/sauteed-green-beans-garlic-62). This recipe didn't have exact ratios in it, so I tried to list close to what I used.
