Raspberry Cosmopolitan

I decided to mix up a girly cocktail today! I had cranberry raspberry juice in the refrigerator and vodka in the freezer and I got to thinking.... I keep seeing this brilliant idea online - freezing fruit and using it to keep your cocktails cold! Makes perfect sense! Keeps your beverage nice and cool and ADDS flavor instead of taking it away like ice cubes. I froze a few raspberries and added them to the cosmo. Quite a nice alcoholic beverage ;)

Raspberry Cosmopolitan

3 oz cranberry raspberry juice

2 oz vodka

1 oz triple sec

1 oz limeade

a few frozen raspberries and a slice of lime

Mix cranberry raspberry juice, vodka, triple sec, and limeade (in a shaker if you have one, with ice). Serve in a martini glass with frozen raspberries and a slice of lime. Enjoy!

Greek Chicken Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is a nod to my Greek heritage. I never had a salad with lettuce in it growing up. It was always just the ingredients below, minus the pasta and the chicken (see Chunky Greek Salad). Chunky and tangy and light! I added the chicken and pasta one day when I felt like making a meal out of my normal Greek salad. You might be asking yourself – Where are the kalamata olives?! Well, it probably makes me the worst Greek ever… but I don’t really like them. For those of you who do, I’m sure they would work very well in this dish! The quantity this recipe makes is definitely entertaining-size (15 cups). Try this recipe when you’re looking for a fun alternative to normal pasta salad for a backyard bbq or cut the recipe in half if you just want a few lunches out of it!

Check out my guest blog post for Events Uncorked!

Greek Chicken Pasta Salad

Makes 15 cups

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients (( Healthier Ingredient Substitutions ))

2 chicken breasts, cooked

1 lb rotini pasta, cooked (( 1 lb whole wheat rotini pasta, cooked ))

6 oz feta cheese

2 tomatoes

1 cucumber

1 lemon

2 cloves garlic

1/2 red onion

2/3 cup fresh oregano

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 tsp pepper

1. Chop chicken, cucumber, tomatoes, onion, and oregano.  Mix in a large bowl with cooked pasta.

2. Crush or mince garlic. Mix olive oil, red wine vinegar, juice from lemon, garlic, and pepper.

3. Pour dressing over pasta mixture. Crumble feta over pasta mixture and stir to combine. Serve cold and enjoy!

Ah! Fresh ingredients! The fresh oregano makes a big difference in this recipe. Don't use the dried stuff here!

Chop everything into chunky pieces.

Mix extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, crushed garlic, and pepper in a separate bowl so it mixes in the salad evenly.

Crumble the feta if it is in block form. I prefer the block form because it tends to stay more moist. The block form in liquid is the best, but it is a little hard to find!

Mix everything together!

Get your easy Greek food fix! I'm taking requests for other Greek recipes! I don't know how to cook enough Greek food and it will give me an excuse to experiment :)

Italian Meatballs

I FINALLY got the recipe for Aunt Annette's famous meatballs! My boyfriend's family is part Italian and when we went to visit them in Michigan recently I couldn't leave without learning the tricks of the meatball trade. I've never thought the meatballs I used to make were anything special and thankfully I never served them to a large number of people, because after having these, I realized the meatballs I used to cook were not acceptable! I didn't know any better but my meatballs were sub-par, and these are OUTSTANDING, and I'm thankful that I will only cook and eat delicious and moist meatballs from now on! The key things that make these meatballs great (I think) are the fresh parsley and more water than you think you need. You'll "feeeeeeel the meatballs" like Aunt Annette says, and if it feels like there's slightly too much liquid, it's perfect. You almost think that they're so moist that they will fall apart when they cook, but they don't. And the parsley, cheese, and garlic... Mmmmm. Tasty Italian comfort food. 

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Italian Meatballs

by Saucy Jocey's Kitchen June-18-2012

Aunt Annette's classic Italian meatballs that are incredibly juicy and flavorful.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup Romano Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 clove garlic

Instructions

1. Chop parsley and mince or crush clove of garlic.2. Mix all ingredients together. Form into balls about 2 inches in diameter if simmering in step 3, 1.5 inches in diameter if roasting in step 3.3. Gently place in sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Alternatively, roast in a 400 degrees F oven on a greased cookie sheet for 7 minutes. Flip and roast for another 7 minutes or until the interior is completely brown and cooked.4. Serve with spaghetti and sauce! Enjoy!

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 1 hour 30 mins Total time: 1 hour 40 mins Yield: 14 meatballs

**** DISCLAIMER: These pictures are from a batch made to feed a ton of people... We used 4 lbs of meat. The proportions in the recipe above are adjusted to use ONE POUND of ground beef and it makes about 14 (pretty large) meatballs.****

 The ingredients! Nothing surprising, but I'm telling you, everything is fresh and the proportions are just right so these meatballs turn out perfectly. 

Flavorful Italian bread crumbs. I suppose if you haaaaad to you could use the store-bought kind, but I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND the homemade Italian Bread Crumbs version.

Garlic crusher. My new favorite kitchen tool!

Add the Romano Parmesan cheese, an egg, parsley, Italian bread crumbs, water, salt, and pepper.

Now the fun part... don't be afraid to get messy!

Form the mixture into balls. 

Gently place in the sauce and bring everything to a boil.

Reduce the heat to low and cook for an hour and a half. Stir the sauce occasionally but be very gentle with the meatballs!

If you don't have the time and/or sauce quantities to simmer the meatballs, roast them in a 400 degree F oven on a greased cookie sheet for 14 - 15 minutes flipping once halfway through the roasting time. This cooking method makes the recipe very weeknight friendly!

Aunt Annette and her outstanding meatballs! Sauce recipe also coming soon! Thank you for sharing your recipe with me Aunt Annette :)

 Moist and flavorful meatballs and spaghetti. These will have you doing your happy-food dance.

Italian Bread Crumbs

You might think - how special can bread crumbs get? Just take one whiff of these Italian bread crumbs and you'll never use the store-bought kind again! The fresh garlic and parsley and cheese... Oh man. I would imagine it is what heaven smells like. Obviously these are perfect in Italian Meatballs. It's all you need for breading chicken cutlets, eggplant, or zucchini too because there's PLENTY of flavor in the bread crumbs. You won't even need more seasoning. I would imagine it works beautifully for baked casserole dishes that need a crunchy topping as well. Make a big batch, store in the refrigerator, and you'll find plenty of uses for it!

Thank you Aunt Annette for sharing the recipe :)


Italian Bread Crumbs
Makes 5 1/2 cups of bread crumbs
Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients
15 oz plain bread crumbs
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley
3 cloves garlic
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper

1. Wash and chop parsley. Crush or mince garlic.
2. Mix all ingredients. Store in the refrigerator.

You really can't beat the fresh garlic and parsley and cheese. I would HIGHLY recommend everyone invest in a garlic crusher! Easily becoming my favorite kitchen gadget.

Chop, crush, or mince the parsley and garlic and mix everything together! Store in the fridge.

Never using store-bought Italian bread crumbs again!

Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip

I'm really excited to share the beauty that is Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip with everyone. This dip is a CROWD PLEASER  if there ever was one. It is probably my friends' favorite thing I cook for them! I wish I could make a meal out of it... but that would probably be a bad idea. The spiciness and cheesiness and the chicken! Ugh! You can't beat it. I'm telling you... This is one of my favorite things to cook and eat. If you're having a party with more than 4 or 5 people make 2 batches or else you will be out of dip FAST.

To be included in the upcoming LPF Mag editorial :)

Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip

Makes 4 cups of dip
Total time: 15 minutes.

Ingredients
1 chicken breast, cooked and chopped
1 (8oz) block of cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup hot sauce
1/2 cup blue cheese salad dressing
tortilla chips, celery, and carrots for serving

1. Mix blue cheese dressing, cream cheese, and hot sauce until evenly combined.
2. Mix in chicken and shredded cheese.
3. Bake in a 350 degree F oven until the cheeses melt, about 10 minutes.
4.  Stir and serve with tortilla chips, celery and carrots. Enjoy!

Chop up the chicken.

It seems like a lot of hot sauce but trust me, it will be fine if you eat medium or hotter buffalo wings.

Mix together the blue cheese dressing, the softened cream cheese, and the hot sauce so all of the flavors come together evenly. You might need to take a fork to the cream cheese if it's still a little firm. No worries though. All of the cheeses will melt in the oven and it will be easy to give it a good mix in the end.

Stir the chicken and shredded cheese into the buffalo mixture. It's hard not to eat half of it at this stage because it's REALLY GOOD cold too.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes just to melt the cheeses. And then give it one last stir!

This is a single batch. If more than 4 or 5 people will be eating it I would HIGHLY recommend making a double batch! The first few times I made it for parties the single batch was gone in about 10 minutes. I'm telling you - Crowd. Pleaser.  Serve with tortilla chips, celery, and carrots!

Quesadillas

Who doesn't love quesadillas? Warm, cheesy, finger food... a lot of my favorite things. You can get creative with quesadillas too! I happened to have sweet peppers, onions, and chicken but you could also use bell peppers, jalapeños, or beef! Or other things! The chili powder and cumin seasonings give it a distinct Mexican flavor and the cream cheese makes the filling extra gooey and wonderful. Have fun with the fillings and serve with chips and salsa, guacamole, and sour cream and you've got an easy and delicious dinner!

Quesadillas
Makes 2 quesadillas
Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients (( Healthier Ingredient Substitutions ))
2 large tortillas (( 2 large whole wheat tortillas ))
1 chicken breast, cooked and chopped
3 sweet peppers
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (( 1 cup low fat shredded cheddar cheese ))
1/4 cup onions
1/4 cup cream cheese, softened (( skip this ))
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt (( salt to taste ))


1. Dice peppers and onions.
2. Saute in 1 tsp olive oil until the onions are translucent, about 3-4 minutes.
3. Mix chicken, peppers, onions, and seasonings to coat the ingredients evenly.
4. Mix in softened cream cheese and shredded cheddar cheese. (( Skip cream cheese for healthier version ))
5. Spread chicken mixture on half a tortilla and fold the tortilla over the chicken mixture.
6. Warm over medium heat until the tortilla is golden brown and the cheese melts, about 2 minutes on each side.
7. Cut into thirds and serve with chips, salsa, guacamole, and sour cream. Enjoy!

Little sweet peppers! They are my new favorite vegetable. A nice alternative to bell peppers!

Chop the peppers and onions.

Saute the peppers and onions with some olive oil until the onions become translucent.

Mix everything but the cheeses together. All of the seasonings will distribute evenly!

Aaaaah the cream cheese. It makes the texture of the cheesy inside extra gooey!

Add the cheeses and mix.

Spread the mixture of half of the tortilla and hold the tortilla over.

Warm over medium heat for a minute or two on each side to brown the outside and melt the inside.

 Flip over! Almost ready!

You'll definitely want something to dip these in. Sour cream, guacamole, or salsa... Yum!