Tilapia, Tomato, and Olive Pasta

Well it seems as though we have all been extremely busy or extremely lazy since the blog hasn't had a post since December! I had a baby, so that's my excuse.  To make up for it, I have 3 delicious recipes to post! This first one mom would make and I don't know where the original recipe came from or if she just made it up, but I have recreated it as best I can remember.  It is very quick and easy and super tasty!

3-4 Tilapia filets
olive oil
salt and pepper
dried basil
oregano
3-4 cloves garlic
1 onion chopped
1 can black olives, chopped
2-3 cups of fresh spinach
1 can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cups chicken stock
Gluten Free Penne Pasta
shredded parmesan cheese

I don't have real exact measurements for this recipe because I just kind of make it up as I go.
Preheat oven to whatever it says on the Tilapia bag (Mine was 425 ish).
Put foil on a cookie sheet and put the tilapia on it. Sprinkle some olive oil on each piece and liberally season each with S&P, basil, and oregano.  Bake according to directions on bag (15-17 minutes-ish).

Meanwhile, get water boiling for the pasta.

In a skillet, heat up olive oil on medium heat and saute onion until soft. Add garlic and stir for a minute or so. Add in the can of tomatoes, chicken stock, a teaspoon or so of basil and oregano and S&P to taste and let cook for about 8 minutes to get the flavors going.  Then add the spinach and olives.  Cover and simmer for 5 minutes or so or until the spinach is nice and wilty.  If it needs a little more liquid add some more stock or some of the pasta water.  When the pasta is done, toss it with the tomato saucey mixture.  Once the tilapia is finished, flake it up and toss with the pasta mixture.  Top with parmesan cheese!

Rumbi Island Grill Tortilla Soup

A lady in our ward brought this soup over to me right after I had Brigham.  It was so good I had to get the recipe from her.

3 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (I used the meat from a rotisserie chicken from Costco)
8 cups chicken broth
1 cup carrot, diced very thin
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic clove, minced

1 can black beans
1 cup chopped tomato (I used a can of diced)
1 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (tabasco?)
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Tortilla chips
2 limes, cut into wedges
salt

Directions:


1. Preheat an outdoor or indoor grill for medium heat. Grill chicken breasts for 6 to 8 minutes per side, or until browned and cooked through. Remove from the grill, and cut into chunks.

2. In a large pot, combine the chicken, stock, black beans, and carrot. Season with allspice, thyme, cinnamon, ginger and garlic. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Pour in the tomato, coconut milk and hot pepper sauce. Heat through, but do not boil.

3. Ladle into bowls, and top with shredded mozzarella cheese and tortilla strips. Squeeze juice onto soup from lime wedges.

I ended up just squeezing a whole lime worth of juice into the big pot of soup.  I don't know why it is served with mozzarella cheese because it because very gooey and clumpy and hard to mix in.  This soup is really tasty though and the fresh ginger makes all the difference! Oh and I through in some spinach because I had some and I thought the soup could use some green!

Sausage Soup

This recipe is based on this from allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS:

6 (4 ounce) links sweet Italian sausage ( I can only find a pack of 5 big sausages which I then use 3 of and have to pull the gross casing of off so I can break it up to cook it)
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 can diced tomatoes with liquid
1/2 tsp dried parsley
2 teaspoons dried basil
8 cups chicken broth
1/2 package gluten free orzo (I dont even know if that exists so I just broke up GF spaghetti into little pieces.  You could even omit the pasta altogether.)
1 (10 ounce) package chopped frozen  spinach, thawed and squeezed dry ( I used 3 cups fresh)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place the sausage in a large pot over medium heat, and cook until evenly brown. Add bell pepper, onion, garlic, and tomatoes with their liquid. Stir in parsley, basil, and chicken broth. Cover, place over medium heat, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Stir orzo pasta and spinach into the pot. Continue cooking soup 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Serve topped with Parmesan cheese.

Pumpkin Dip

I've been steadily plowing my way through pumpkin recipes; it seems my pumkin craving is even more pronounced this year.  Luckily, Pinterest has kept me well supplied with yummy things to try.  Original post of this recipe is here.  I've taken this dip to a couple different events and it's been a huge hit.  Start thinking Christmas parties now that Thanksgiving is over...

Dip:
8 oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 cup powedered sugar
15 oz can of pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Apple slices for dipping

Mix everything together in a bowl using a hand mixer/beaters.  Store in the fridge until ready to serve.  Top with candied pecans to make it extra yummy and serve with apple slices!

Candied Pecans:
1 cup pecan halves
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat.

Add maple syrup and brown sugar and stir to combine.

Add pecans and stir to coat.

Spread pecans on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake pecans for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown and fragrant.

Cool completely and then coarsely chop.

"Corn" dog bites

Who doesn't enjoy a good corn dog?  Jenna sure does - that's her little hand trying to reach the plate as I snapped the picture!  A corn dog is probably the one thing I missed having at the state fair this year.  Lucky pinterest had me covered!  Check out the original post here.  These were so quick to whip up and tasted super amazing!  Grab some ketchup or mustard and go to town!

1/4 cup melted butter
3 eggs
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup almond flour, firmly packed
2 tablespoons coconut flour, firmly packed
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3-4 hot dogs, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Whisk together melted butter, eggs, and honey.
Stir in the flours, baking soda, and salt.
Scoop into a greased mini muffin pan, about 1 tablespoon of batter in each cup.
Place 1 hot dog piece in each muffin.
Bake for 14-17 minutes, until golden brown.

Garlic Basil Squash

Little yellow summer squash have long been a problem for me.  I know they're healthy, but I don't love them.  I don't even know what to do with them.  I used to throw them in a pasta dish with some zucchini and tomatoes, but even then, they were the pieces that got picked around and left behind in the serving bowl...and not just by me!  Joey feels the same way.  You see the problem.  So when we got like 6 of these bad boys in our bountiful basket I knew I had to find something!  Can't just let them go to waste.  Some googling later and I found the only recipe I will ever make with summer squash (Thank you Everyday Paleo!).  It is soooo good.  There is so much flavor you don't even know you're eating squash - perfect!  However, you will know you're eating garlic, and so will everyone around you, so don't bring the leftovers to work the next day.

2 lbs summer squash, cut into bite size pieces
1 red onion, thinly sliced
8-10 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 cup coconut oil
sea salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup fresh basil, finely diced

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Toss everything except the basil together in a glass 9x13 baking pan, and bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through.  Once it comes out of the oven, toss the squash with the fresh basil and get ready to enjoy your new favorite summer squash dish!

Nutella Hot Cocoa

Thank you Pinterest for giving me yet another fabulous idea to try.  This hot cocoa is so yummy I've made it several times already!  It's not too sweet, which is just how I like it, and it seriously even better topped with homemade whipped cream.  Don't say I didn't warn you.

1 cup regular unsweetened almond milk
2 1/2 tablespoons of Nutella
1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa
pinch of salt

In a small saucepan heat all the ingredients over medium heat.  Whisk together until smooth and creamy.  Serve in a mug topped with whipped cream or marshmallows.  Enjoy!