A Few Random Things

This is kind of a miscellaneous post since none of these things are enough for their own post, but I do want to start blogging more regularly.

Since this kind of post isn’t complete without a random cat picture, here’s one of Caroline.  This was one of the times she “helped” me while I was working from home. 

Speaking of working from home, after doing it for so long I seem to have lost all faith in my ability to dress appropriately for being at work.  I seem to text my sister about once a week asking if something matches.  This was the latest.  We decided that it does match. 

It was HOT here yesterday.  It rained a lot earlier in the week, then got really hot, which is perfect weather for the yard to turn into a jungle if we’re not careful.  So, we agreed to make sure we cut the grass after work yesterday.  I mowed, Nick used the weed-eater for all of the places the mower doesn’t fit, and in some of the places where the grass was so long that the mower needed a little help.  It had only been six days since we cut the grass the time before!  I’m not kidding when I say it can turn into a jungle.  Quickly!

Did I mention that it was hot?!?  Nick doesn’t normally sweat, but he was sweaty yesterday.  I always get sweaty, but yesterday I could actually wring sweat out of my clothes, which is really gross.  We’ve definitely reached the part of the summer when we are completely over cutting the grass. 

Apparently, Duke found it exhausting to hang out in the air-conditioned house and watch us mow his yard.  He has a hard life.

After we finished with the yard and got showers, we were starving, but it was still too hot to want anything heavy.  So we opted for a snacky dinner of fruit, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, and crackers.  

The cheese was a Wensleydale, which I’d never had before.  I bought it at Aldi.  And I’m honest enough to admit that I bought it because of Wallace and Gromit.  I’ll also admit that we discussed our Wensleydale in very, very bad British accents.  No disrespect to those of you with British accents.  We both love the accent but are both terrible at doing most accents. 

Our Wensleydale (Are you reading that in Wallace’s accent?) was honey lemon flavored.  After Googling it, we learned that the texture is somewhat dry and crumbly.  We both liked it.  I think it might have been a little better served with something that wasn’t also dry like the crackers were.  We still have some Wensleydale left, and I’m thinking about getting some strawberries or melon to serve with it.   I’m definitely open to suggestions on how best to serve Wensleydale. 

So what about you?  Are you a fan of Wallace and Gromit and/or Wensleydale?  Do you doubt your ability to dress appropriately after spending so much time at home?  Is it HOT where you are?

Kumato Tomato Quiche

I first saw Kumato tomatoes in Aldi a couple of years ago, and decided to give them a try since I had never heard of them.  They’re now my favorite tomato.  They’re not the easiest tomato to find.  I can’t usually find them anywhere other than Aldi, and Aldi doesn’t always have them.  I make sure I buy them whenever they’re available.

You can read a little more about them here if you’re not familiar, and prefer to learn about them before you try them. 

















Kumato tomatoes are delicious!  I love them in salads, on tuna sandwiches, on bagels with garlic and herb cream cheese, and in this quiche.  Really, I haven’t found a way I don’t like them.  Don’t worry, if you don’t have Kumato tomatoes you can substitute Roma tomatoes in this recipe. 

Kumato Tomato Quiche

1 prepared pie crust

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 tsp olive oil

9 eggs

½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup cottage cheese

1/4 cup half and half

1 tsp basil, plus a little more for sprinkling

½ tsp oregano, plus a little more for sprinkling

Salt & pepper to taste

2 - 3 Kumato tomatoes, thinly sliced, OR Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

Heat the olive oil in a small frying pan, over medium heat, and saute the onion, with the garlic, and a little salt, just until the onions begin to brown.  Remove from heat, and allow to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs, and stir in the cheeses, half & half, basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste.

Spread the pie crust into a pie dish, and lightly sprinkle with some basil and oregano.

Once the onions have cooled completely, stir them into the egg mixture.  If you add hot onions to the egg mixture you will end up with a really gross partially scrambled egg concoction, so make sure they’re cool before you add them.

Pour the egg/onion mixture into the pie crust.

Top with the tomato slices.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 50 - 60 minutes, until set through.  Test the middle with a small knife or toothpick to make sure it comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Have you tried Kumato tomatoes?  What is your favorite kind of tomato?

Mini Naan Pizzas

We found these mini garlic naan at Sam’s Club last week.  We seem to always find something not on our list that we just have to try whenever we shop there.  This time it worked out really well.

We’ve been making more of an effort to eat at home rather than going out to eat, especially when it’s just because we’re in a hurry, tired, or haven’t planned something.  We’re trying to treat going out to eat as more of an event, and less of a necessary thing.  That means sometimes we need something really fast and easy at home.  Because sometimes it’s just one of those days; it’s late, we’re tired, the kitchen is already a mess, we have a million other things to do, etc.  Fast and easy wins the day.

These mini naan pizzas are fast, easy, and delicious.  They’re about the fastest option I’ve found for pizza since the naan is already cooked and you’re really only melting cheese.  They’re pretty similar to the Summer Vegetable Pizza I’ve shared before, but don’t involve the refrigerated crust.  We have also made our own crust using the bread machine, but that process takes about an hour, so isn’t the best option when we need something in a hurry. 

Using the mini naan is great not only because it’s fast, but it’s also super easy to customize them to individual tastes.  I hate mushrooms, but Nick loves them.  I love onions, but Nick prefers not having them on his pizza.  I made two mini pizzas for each of us, and it was perfect for dinner. 

I just used the ingredients we had on hand, and didn’t measure anything, so I don’t have an exact recipe.  I think it would be pretty hard to mess these up, though, and the possibilities are almost endless, depending on the vegetables you enjoy and have on hand.

For these I used a lone squash that was lingering from last week’s produce box, a tomato, some kale from the produce box, a handful of mushrooms, part of a red onion that was left over from another meal, shredded mozzarella cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, olive oil, two garlic cloves, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Combine the garlic cloves, pressed, in about a tablespoon of olive oil (I just estimated the amount, and it was perfect for four mini pizzas) with a sprinkle of Italian seasoning, and brush over the naan. 

Sprinkle a little cheese over that.

Top with thinly sliced vegetables.  If you’re using kale I recommend putting it on first to keep it from getting too crispy on top.  Sprinkle the vegetables with a little salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

Sprinkle some more cheese on top.

Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes, basically until your cheese is nice and melted and your vegetables are starting to get tender.

Enjoy, while congratulating yourself on having pizza that was faster, cheaper, and healthier than delivery would have been. 

Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken

Some recipes are born of desperation; this is what’s in the house, we need dinner, how can I make it work?  Some are born of creativity; hey I bet this would be really good!  Still others come from trying to use up certain ingredients; why did I buy SO MUCH cheese?!?   This is one of those recipes.

Recently most of the local grocery stores have been putting pasta and pasta sauce on sale; really, really good sales.   I’m a sale and coupon shopper, so I’ve stocked up on the pasta and sauce.  It’s quick and easy, it has a long shelf life, it was a really great deal, and we like it.  That being said, I thought it might be a good idea to try something a little different with it before we get tired of it.

Boneless, skinless chicken breast has also been on sale, so there’s quite a bit of that in the freezer right now.  We also have A LOT of cheese right now because I shouldn’t be allowed in the cheese section at Sam’s Club without adult supervision.  I really like cheese, and I like buying in bulk.  I went to buy cheese for lasagna when my in-laws were coming for dinner and somehow I ended up leaving with enough cheese to make lasagna for about 147 people.  I don’t have that many in-laws, so we had a lot of cheese left over, hence the need for a recipe involving cheese, chicken, pasta, and sauce.  So here it is (it’s quite delicious, if I may say so myself):


Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken:


4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 thick slices fresh Mozzarella Cheese

1 onion, thinly sliced (I used half a red onion, and half a yellow onion, because that’s what was in the refrigerator needing to be used up)

½ orange or red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Garlic Powder

Italian Seasoning

¼ cup butter, melted

1/3 cup dry white wine (I imagine you can use chicken broth instead, but it’s really good with the wine)

1 box of pasta 

2 small jars pasta sauce


Trim fat from chicken breasts and pound them out flat.  Roll one slice of the Mozzarella cheese, ¼ of the onion and pepper, and a sprinkle of garlic powder and Italian Seasoning in each chicken breast.  Place them in a baking dish, open side up.  Pour the wine and melted butter over them, then sprinkle with garlic powder and Italian Seasoning.  Cover, and bake at 350° for about an hour and 15 minutes, or until chicken is done.

Serve over pasta cooked according to package directions, with warm sauce.

Enjoy!

Creamy Slow Cooker Macaroni & Cheese

Everyone seems to love this recipe.  I like it a lot, but I don't quite understand most people's obsession with it.  It seems to be the only thing I'm ever asked to bring to any sort of function involving food, so consider yourself forewarned about taking it anywhere.  Also, this is a fairly large recipe, but I usually still double it for things like Thanksgiving dinner.  A double batch does NOT fit in one large slow cooker; you have to use two smaller ones, unless you enjoy having a bubbling river of cheese on your counter.  That was my lesson learned this past  Thanksgiving.  It still comes out tasting fine; you just have a really big, cheesy mess to clean up.

2 ¼ cups uncooked macaroni noodles

1/3 (heaping) cup very finely chopped green bell pepper

1/3 (heaping) cup + 2 Tbsp very finely chopped onion

3 cups Evaporated Milk

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

5 cups cubed Velveeta Cheese

Cook and drain macaroni noodles; combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cover and cook on High for 1 -1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally.

For easier clean-up, remove macaroni from slow cooker before it cools.