Recipe of the Week - Grilled Veggies

This week I am sharing a recipe I found from Lynn's Kitchen Adventurers. She always has lots of good recipe ideas and so I decided to try an idea that she posted. I have made grilled veggies before but never with balsamic vinegar. I have recently been using and liking balsamic on fruit and so when I saw Lynn's idea for grilled veggies using it I knew I had to try it. 

Grilled Vegetables with Balsamic Vinegar
Original recipe: Lynn's Kitchen Adventures Adapted by: Heather G. @ Golden Reflections


1 zucchini
1 head of broccoli
1 yellow pepper, red pepper and/or orange pepper
1 pkg. of portabella mushrooms
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Cut all of the vegetables into bite size pieces and place on tin foil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, enough to coat each piece of vegetable. Mix together and let it marinade for 1 hour. Place on a grill until vegetables are cooked through.

You can also use any other vegetables of your choice like onions or yellow squash. This is a great side dish when grilling out with the family and a great way to get your vegetables! Enjoy!

PRINTABLE VERSION

Be sure to link up your recipes below! Please link back to Recipe of the Week blog hop in your post or grab the blog hop button on the right side of this blog! Looking forward to seeing everyone's recipes this week!

This post is linked to the following blog hops: Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesdays, Made From Scratch Tuesday,

Recipe of the Week - Mexican Pizza

This week I am sharing a recipe I tried from a fellow blogger, Kristi over at Veggie Converter. It is a twist on a home made pizza, making it mexican style! I really enjoyed it! My hubby didn't really care for it though. But he is not a big mexican style food person and he thought it was little spicy because of the salsa I used. Oh well, can't please all the time I suppose! :) I brought the left overs over to my in-laws the next day and my mother in-law really liked it! So that is 2-1. :)

Mexican Pizza 

All of my ingredients ready to go! This is vegetarian, but if you eat meat you could use beef instead of the Vegetarian griller crumbles. I am also using my Pampered Chef Large Stoneware Bar Pan. I love using the stoneware, especially for pizza. Once you oil the surface a few times before using it, it becomes naturally stick free. It also makes the crust nice and crispy by evening distributing the heat. 

I used a pre-made pizza dough, but you could definitely make a home made crust. I didn't put any oil on my stoneware since I have used it a few times and so it is naturally stick free already. 

I baked it in the oven per the directions on the pizza dough container. I believe it was 400 for about 15 minutes. While it was in the oven, I chopped my green onions. 

I used my trusty 5" Utility Knife  and the Flexible Cutting Mats. The Pampered Chef cutting mats are a lot sturdier than ones I have found in the store but are still flexible enough to transfer items and pour them into your pots or pans. 

I also starting browning the veggie griller crumbles. I am using my 10" TPC Saute Pan and a Bamboo Spatula. The saute pan is nonstick, you don't have to even put oil or butter in it! The bamboo is great because it doesn't stain or take on the flavors of whatever you are using it in! 

The original recipe didn't call for this, but I decided to add some taco seasoning to the griller crumbles. 

I used my 2 cup prep bowl, which also comes with a lid so you can store small amount of items if you need to. I also used our stainless whisk to make sure it was nice and smooth. 

After the crust come out of the oven I started layering! 

I used  a generic brand of white corn and black bean salsa as the "tomato sauce." 

Then I added the griller crumbles and green onion. You could also add olives or any other type of mexican style veggies that you want. 

And of course, cheese on the top! I used a Mexican style 3-cheese blend. 

Bake it at 400 for another 15 minutes. 

And the results..... 

Yum!! Doesn't that look delicious?! I used TPC's Pizza Cutter to cut it up! 

Mexican Style Pizza 

1 pizza crust (either home-made or store bought) 

1 cup salsa 

1 cup of ground beef or griller crumbles (I use Morningstar, found in the breakfast freezer section). 

1 pkg. of taco seasoning (not in original recipe) 

2 cups of Mexican cheese 

1 bunch of green onions (not in original recipe)

Optional: Black Bean Salsa, refried beans, black olives. 

Partially bake your crust. Since I used a store bought crust I baked it at 400 for 15 minutes. Top with a layer of salsa, ground beef or griller crumbles, green onions and/or black olives, and cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. 

PRINTABLE VERSION 

Also, if you are interested in any of The Pampered Chef products that I mentioned, send me an e-mail and let me know! 

Be sure to link up your recipes below! Please link back to Recipe of the Week in your post to spread the word about this recipe blog hop! You can also grab the button on the right side of my blog to add to your blog list if you like! 

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - The Mighty Mac Patties + Gravy

Today I am going to share a recipe that my mom made a lot while I was growing up. I grew up vegetarian and mostly vegan, and this recipe is completely that. I am also using this recipe to show case some of the items I sell through The Pampered Chef. I started being an independent consultant last fall. I love all of their products. They make cooking enjoyable and fast! If you would like to know more and possibly purchase one or more of our wonderful products, please send me an e-mail.

Now on to the recipe for this week!

The Mighty Mac Patties 

All my ingredients out and ready to go: walnuts, onion, oats, chick peas, soy sauce, salt, and broth packets. 

First drain the chick peas and then measure 1 cup worth. 1 can is just a little over 1 cup worth, so I went ahead and added the whole can. I used The Pampered Chef medium size mesh colander and the 2 cup Easy Ready Measuring Cups. I love the measuring cups because it shows the measurements on the inside of the container so you don't have to guess and look at the sides to see how much you are adding (as you can see by the picture above). 

Add the chick peas and 1 1/2 cup of water to a blender and blend until smooth. Add to a bowl and set aside. 

Add 2 cups of rolled oats to the chick pea mixture. You can see my trusty Small Mix and Scraper. It acts like a spoon and spatula all in one. I love it! 

Next, I used my 5" Utility Knife to quarter a medium onion and then used my food chopper to mince the onion! The food chopper comes completely apart when you are done and is dishwasher safe! With only 5-10 quick pushes on the top, the onions and walnuts were minced nicely! Only a food chopper can get items chopped that thinly and nice!! I love it! I am also using The Pampered Chef Cutting Board. 

Next I added about 1/4 cup of oat flour since it was little too moist. Then I added the salt, The Pampered Chef Italian Seasoning mix and soy sauce. I used my Adjustable Measuring spoons. I absolutely love these! The small size goes from 1/8 tsp to 1 tsp and the large goes from 1 tsp. to 1 Tb. size. They take up less space in your storage area which makes to a neater and cleaner drawer! 

I used a scoop to put 6 balls of the patties into a greased glass dish. Then I just flattened the tops of the burgers with the bottom of the scoop. This recipe will make 9 large patties. I put them in a 400 degree oven and cooked for 15 minutes before adding the gravy so that the tops get crispy. I also flipped them after 15 minutes before adding the broth. 

Next I made the broth using George Washington Rich Brown Seasoning and Broth. You can find this at specialty stores or any health food store. Or you can use any broth gravy mixture you like. 

I used the Measure-All cup to measure 12 oz. of water for 2 packets of broth/seasoning. I also added 2 tsp. of corn starch to make the broth a little thicker while it baked. 

I used the Mini Whisk to mix everything together so it was nice and smooth. 

After the patties baked for 15 minutes, I added the broth and cooked them for another 1/2 hour at 400 degrees. 

And the result.... 

These were definitely delicious! I served them with grilled veggies, a recipe I will share next week! :) 

To make recipes even easier for you to get off my site, I am now offering a free printable of this recipe. Just click here to get it! 

The Might Mac 

Recipe from: Hartland Heartsavers Adapted by Heather G. @ Golden Reflections 

1 cup chick peas (either soaked garbanzo beans or 1 can of chick peas). 

1 1/2 cups water 

2 cups rolled oats 

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped 

1 medium onion, minced 

1 tsp. salt 

1 tsp Italian Seasoning (original recipe calls for sage). 

2 Tb. soy sauce 

Whiz first two ingredients in blender. Remove and add to a bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix with a spoon. Drop from 1/3 cup measurer to form patties on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. You can serve as a burger as use as a casserole with gravy. 

If making a casserole, place all patties into a greased glass dish. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Then add gravy recipe below and bake for another 30 minutes. 

Gravy Option 

2 packets of George Washington Brown Broth/Seasoning 

12 oz. of water 

2 tsp. corn starch 

Wisk all ingredients together. 

Be sure to link your recipe below! Please link back to Recipe of the Week or grab my blog hop button on the right side of the page!

For more great recipe ideas visit the following blog hops: Delectable Tuesday, Tuesday at the Table, Take a Look Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Tempt my Tummy Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesdays, Delicious Dishes, My Meatless Mondays, Midnight Maniac Meatless Monday, Recipe Roundtable. 

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - Breakfast Smoothie

I have been wanting to try "green smoothies" since I started hearing about them. My friend Sarah over at Sarah's Heart's Home posted one of her blog and so I decided it was time to try it! If you want to see her recipe, you can visit her blog here.

So here is my rendition of a "green" breakfast smoothie.

Breakfast Smoothie
1 banana
3/4 to 1 cup of mixed berries (I used thawed strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and black berries).
1 cup of spinach
1/2 cup of apple juice 

Add banana and berries into a blender and begin to blend. Add spinach while blending and then add apple juice. Blend until smooth.

It didn't really turn out green since it had the berries in it, but it still has the same nutrition! I can't taste the spinach at all. Tastes very delish and healthy for breakfast! I ever got my husband to try it! He doesn't know what is in it yet though, haha! :)

Now it's your turn to share those yummy recipes you have! Link up below! Be sure to grab the button or link back to this blog hop! The blog hop closes Friday at 11:59pm.

Need recipe ideas? Check out my recipe section on this blog to see all previous recipes that I have shared.

 

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This post is linked to: Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt my Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesday,

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - BBQ Baked Beans

This is a recipe that my mother in-law makes and now me! I have made it for grill outs, church pot-lucks and bon fire parties. Always a good hit. And it's super super easy!

BBQ Baked Beans 

Ingredients
2 cans of Busch's Baked Bean or any other brand you like

BBQ Sauce Ingredients

1 cup Ketchup

2 T. Worceshire Sauce

3 T. brown sugar

½ t. Cinnamon

1/8 t. red pepper

¼ t. nutmeg

¼ t. cloves

¼ t. ginger

½ t. garlic salt

Chopped Onion (optional). 

Directions


Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Add baked beans into 9x12 glass baking dish. Add all BBQ sauce ingredients and mix together. Bake for 30-45 minutes.

Please link up your recipes below! Don't forget to link back and grab the blog hop button!

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Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - Strawberry Amaretto Pastries

This is a recipe that I make during Pampered Chef parties. It is extremely easy and tastes great!!

Strawberry Amaretto Pastries 

1/2 pkg (17.3 oz) frozen puff pastry sheets

(1 sheet), thawed

1/2 cup sliced almonds, divided

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1 container (8 oz) sour cream

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 tsp almond extract

1 1/2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping

12 large strawberries, sliced

1 orange

 1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Unfold pastry dough onto large cookie sheet or baking stone . Finely chop half of the almonds using a food chopper. Combine chopped almonds and granulated sugar in a bowl; sprinkle evenly over surface of dough. Lightly press almond mixture into dough.

2. Using a pizza cutter , cut dough lengthwise into three strips; cut strips crosswise into four squares for a total of 12 squares. Using a spatula , separate squares evenly over surface of bar pan. Bake 16-18 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Remove from bar pan to cooling rack ; cool completely.

3. Meanwhile, place remaining almonds in sauté pan . Cook over medium-high heat 2-3 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring occasionally; remove from heat and cool completely. Coarsely chop using food chopper and set aside.

4. Whisk sour cream, powdered sugar and almond extract in a bowl using. Fold in

whipped topping. Slice strawberries. Split open each pastry square; arrange half of the strawberries into bottom of each shell. Top each with about 2 heaping tablespoons of the filling and sprinkle with chopped almonds. Top with remaining sliced strawberries. Zest orange over strawberries. Place tops of pastry shells over filling. Serve immediately.

Now it's your turn to share a recipe! Please be sure to link back to Recipe of the Week and get the word out about this recipe blog hop! The linky will be open until Friday evening at 11:59pm! 

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - Pasta Salad

This week I am sharing an original Heather creation recipe! It's the easiest pasta salad in the world to make, extremely healthy for you and tastes great! 

Heather's Easy Pasta Salad 

1 yellow bell pepper

1 cucumber 

2 medium size carrots 

1 pkg. sun dried tomatoes

1 lb. rainbow color pasta 

1 container of Italian Dressing 

First bring a pot of salted water to boil and cook the noodles as directed on the box. While the noodles cook, cut up your vegetables. I used my handy dandy Pampered Chef julienne peeler for the carrots. 

Photo Credit: The Pampered Chef

Place all the vegetables in a bowl. 

Drain the noodles and let them cool slightly. Add the noodles and Italian Dressing to your vegetable mixture. Chill and serve!

Be sure to link back when you submit your recipe below! The link up will be open until Friday night at 11:59pm. Please spread the word so we can get more entries going! 

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This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday's @ Dr. Laura's, Tuesdays at the Table

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop

Just wanted to let you all know that my Recipe of the Week blog hop will be returning next week. I am on a cleaning spree this week, so I have not had a chance to try any new recipes or time to post much this week. Looking forward to seeing you all back here next Tuesday for the blog hop!

Thanks for understanding!

Recipe of the Week Blog Hop - Risotto

This past week I tried making homemade risotto! I have never made it before, and neither had my mom who was visiting for the day. So it was an interesting experience, but one that I wouldn't mind trying again. Here is the recipe I used. I also added a few things and made a couple substitutions so I will include those.

Risotto with tomato and fresh basil 
Via: Simply Delicious Vegetarian - Carla Bardi

Serves 4
Preparation 15 min
Cooking 40 min

1/3 c. butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cups peeled and chopped tomatoes (I used canned)
1 3/4 cups risotto rice (I used basmati, which is an italian rice for risotto)
1/3 c. dry white wine (I left this out, and added extra water)
3 cups boiling vegetable stock
20 basil leaves, torn
1/4 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until transparent, 3-4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and mix well. Cook until the tomatoes have broken down and the mixture is slightly thickened, about 20 minutes.

Melt 2 tablespoons of the remaining butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the rice and saute for 2 minutes. Pour in the wine (I used water) and cook until it evaporates. Stir in the tomato sauce and basil. Begin adding the stock, 1/2 cup at a time, cooking and stirring until each addition has been absorbed and the rice is tender, 15-18 minutes.

Stir in the remaining butter and the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove from the heat and let rest for 1 minute. Garnish with the extra basil and serve hot.

I also added a little bit of cooking cream to make it a little creamer.

Now it's time for you to share your recipes! The linky will be open until Friday evening at 11:59pm. Be sure to link back to Recipe of the Week in your post!

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Recipe of the Week - Almond Berry Banana Yogurt Smoothie

This week I am sharing a recipe that I found through Peak313 Try It Challenge. It it great for the spring season, lots of yummy fruit and delicious greek yogurt. I made it for breakfast two mornings in a row. It definitely filled me up till lunch time, the protein from the almonds and yogurt help!

Almond Berry Banana Yogurt Smoothie

Via: Fit Sugar 

Ingredients: 

6 large strawberries 

1 sliced banana

1 cup blueberries 

6 ounces of plain greek yogurt 

1 cup skim milk 

1/4 cup almonds 

Directions: 

Cut off the tops of the strawberries. Add all ingredients to the blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Garnish with strawberries. 

Photo Credit: FitSugar

Link up your recipes below! The linky will be open until Friday night at 11:59pm. Be sure to grab the Recipe of the Week button below!

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This post is linked to the following: Tuesday at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday @ Dr. Laura's, Made from Scratch Tuesday, Delectable Tuesday, Delicious Dishes, Hearth and Soul.