Spaghetti Squash

  • January 3, 2006 8:45 PM

Spaghetti Squash without sauceI discovered a new food yesterday – Spaghetti Squash. It looks like a really large yellow squash, and when it’s raw, it looks like pumpkin. It has the thick skin and gooey inside with seeds. But, if you bake it, the flesh can be pulled apart into spaghetti-like strands. It’s a little crunchier than pasta, but with marinara sauce, it’s a great, healthy, carb-free substitute. Very tasty!
Here’s the recipe I used:

  • 1 (4 lb.) spaghetti squash (serves 4 to 6) or 1 (2 lb.) spaghetti squash (serves 2 to 3)
  • butter and favorite seasoning (or favorite spaghetti sauce and Parmesan cheese, grated.)

Cut squash in half, remove seeds. Bake cut side down in baking pan containing small amount of water. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. After cooking, pull strands free with a fork. Toss with small amount of butter and season to taste. Or serve with your favorite spaghetti sauce and grated Parmesan cheese.

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Holiday Wrap-up

  • January 2, 2006 11:12 AM

Dallas and Thomas on NYEWell, the holiday season came rushing on this year, and then just slid by. I was busy beforehand, and I didn’t get to do my Christmas cards – maybe I’ll do Happy Spring cards instead. Thomas and I both got back from our own family’s holidays, and had a small Christmas together. We decided to stay in town for the New Year weekend, which has been productive, fun, and relaxing.

Friday night, Jane, Bill, Thomas and I went over to Alison and Kevin’s house for boardgames. Alison’s brother-in-law tried to teach us to play Senator, but after several attempts, we gave up and played Apples to Apples. As usual, the game was a lot of fun, and we had a great time getting to know everyone better.

For New Year’s Eve, Thomas and I joined our local friends again at Nancie and Tory’s house for Turducken – deboned chicken, stuffed in a duck, stuffed in a turkey. It was quite a different taste, but it was good. I tried a new recipe for a walnut, cranberry salad and I was very pleased with it. Here’s the recipe if you want to try it:

Walnut Cranberry Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1 package (10 oz.) mixed salad greens
  • 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
  • 1 package (4 oz.) Athenos Crumbled Feta Cheese
  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted California walnuts
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
Layer salad greens, cranberries, cheese and walnuts in shallow salad bowl or on large serving platter. Whisk vinegar, honey, mustard and pepper in small bowl. Slowly add oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly until well blended. Pour over salad. Toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

After the turducken, we brought out Apples to Apples again. Sparklers at midnight, and home shortly after – Thomas took photos.

My family crashed for the night at my house on their way back to NC, so we were able to join them for breakfast at J. Christophers in the morning. The rest of the weekend was spent working on my website, cleaning and organizing, and relaxing. Not a bad way to welcome in the new year…

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Jane and Bill’s Halloween-Engagement Party

  • October 30, 2005 9:55 PM

Thomas and Dallas (Wash and Kaylee from Serenity)Last night, Thomas and I went to Jane and Bill’s Halloween-Engagement party. We dressed up as characters from the Serenity/Firefly series. He was Wash and I was Kaylee. I think only one person recognized our costumes, but we had fun.

There were some tasty treats there – candied apples, wormy cupcakes, and ladyfinger cookies that looked like real fingers. I took pumpkin dip (recipe below) and made strawberry shots (core a strawberry, fill with vodka, top with whip cream). There were some really creative costumes too – photos are linked.

Last night was also Daylight Savings night, and for the first time in two years, we got to set our clocks back. Phew, no more funky Indiana switching time zones.

Pumpkin Dip Recipe

Ingredients:
* 2 cups Pumpkin Puree- canned or fresh
* 1 cup Brown Sugar
* 1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon
* 1/2 Tsp. Ginger
* 1/2 Tsp. Nutmeg
* 1 Package Cream Cheese, softened

Preparation Directions:

1. Place pumpkin puree and cream cheese into a large bowl and mix together.
2. Add all other ingredients.
3. Mix ingredients together until smooth and creamy.
4. Refrigerate at least four hours or overnight.
5. Serve with gingerbread or graham crackers.

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Chicken Zucchini Parmigiana – Yummy

  • March 28, 2005 9:04 PM

I tried this recipe tonight and Thomas and I both agreed it was worth trying again. Just thought I’d share…

Ingredients:
* 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
* 2 tablespoons oil
* 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
* seasoning salt to taste
* 1 large or 2 medium zucchini, sliced
* 4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
* 1/2 cup tomato sauce
* 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/4 teaspoon dried basil

Directions:
In a large, heavy skillet, saute chicken breast and garlic in oil about 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Sprinkle with seasoning salt to taste. Remove from skillet; set aside.

Add zucchini to skillet, sprinkle with seasoning salt to taste and cook and stir 5 minutes or until zucchini is crisp-tender. Push to sides of skillet. Arrange chicken in middle of skillet. Top chicken with cheese, tomato sauce and herbs. Cover, cook 3 minutes or until cheese melts and sauce is hot.

Recipe from here.

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Asian Lettuce Wraps and Peanut Butter Cups

  • January 30, 2005 7:02 PM

peanut.jpgIt’s been a quiet, relaxing weekend. There was a little snow. Thomas has been spending his free time gaming and I’ve been working on my blue quilt. All I’ve got left is the binding edge.

I tried two new recipes this weekend that I really enjoyed and wanted to share.

Peanut Butter Cups

I got this one at the Weight Watcher’s meeting and the girl next to me said she preferred it drizzled with chocolate. I tried plain and Thomas tried chocolate, and both were good, though they don’t look like Reese’s Cups, as you can see from the photo.

For 12 servings:
* 6 Tbs of peanut butter
* 8oz of fat free cool whip

Mix peanut butter and cool whip. Spoon evenly into 12 muffin tins, lined with cupcake wrappers. Drizzle with chocolate if desired. Freeze.

I used crunchy peanut butter and the dollops were about the size of a Hershey Kiss. They froze for about an hour, until we tried them. For Weight Watchers, these come out to 2 pts a piece, but that doesn’t include the chocolate. They were tasty and sweet, but no one is going to confuse them for the real Reese’s Cup.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

I came up with this one on the inspiration of Korean Bulgogis. We had it for dinner tonight, and though it was very messy, it tasted great.

For 2 servings:
* 1/2 lb ground beef or turkey
* olive or sesame oil
* minced garlic
* 1 can of chow mein vegetables or sliced/ diced carrots, red peppers, celery, bean sprouts and water chesnuts
* several big pieces of lettuce (we used romaine)
* 1 cup white rice
* soy sauce

First we cooked the ground beef in garlic and oil. When it was done, we threw in the veggies and started cooking the rice. Once it was all done, we sat down to eat and loaded up our wraps by filling a piece of lettuce with the meat/veggie mixture, rice, and soy sauce.

As I said before, it tasted great, but it is a very messy, hands-on meal. For Weight Watchers, I calculated it to be 9 points, from the beef, oil and rice, but I think it could be less with some minor alterations.

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