Butternut Squash with Almond Honey Glaze

Butternut Squash with Almond Honey Glaze

My roommate recently, very recently, convinced me to try vegetarianism for a week to see how I liked it. So I went out and bought a bunch of veggies and whatnot. One of my purchases was a 2lb container of cubed butternut squash. This is my first attempt at preparing cubed squash and I must say it is fantastic!

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 35-40 minutes

Ingredients:

3/4 pound Cubed Butternut Squash (pre-cubed or you can cube yourself)

Butter (apprx. 2 tbsp)

Honey (I used raw honey)

Nutmeg

Cinnamon

Finely Chopped Almonds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place butternut squash in an oven-safe dish. Drizzle a little water into the dish and bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the squash is almost cooked through.

While the squash is baking; combine the remaining ingredients (to taste) in a microwave safe bowl and microwave until butter is melted. Stir.

Once squash is almost cooked through, remove from oven and drain any excess water. Pour butter mixture over squash. Stir to distribute evenly. Return dish to oven and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven and enjoy.

Pizza Pasta

Pizza Pasta

I was CRAVING pizza but didn't feel like making my own from scratch or paying way too much for way too little pizza. So I decided to get all the flavor of pizza without the effort or cost. Pizza pasta is quick and easy; plus you can adjust it for one person or twelve.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

Pasta (I used GF corn elbow pasta)

Mozzarella Cheese

Pizza Sauce

Pepperoni (I used turkey pepperoni)

Sliced Black Olives

Roasted Green Peppers (minced)

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Fresh Parsley or Parsley Flakes

Any other pizza toppings that you enjoy

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the pasta according to the directions. Just as it starts to become soft, turn off the heat and drain well.

Place the drained pasta into an oven safe dish. Spread evenly on the bottom.

Top the pasta with the pizza sauce, pepperoni, peppers, olives and cheese. I used lots of cheese because I'm addicted. Add any additional toppings of your choosing. If adding pineapple or other fruit, I suggest adding this after the cheese so it cooks better.

Sprinkle with garlic powder, onion powder and parsley. Do NOT stir.

Place in oven and bake until all ingredients are hot or cheese is melted. Enjoy the pizza-esque yumminess! 

Cheesy Spiced Asparagus Al Dente "Pasta"

Cheesy Spiced Asparagus al dente "pasta"

The joy of pasta without the carbs or gluten!

The idea for this pasta free "pasta" came from a desire to eat the remaining half of the asparagus I purchased (see other recipe for first use) and because I was craving flavorful cheesiness. The fact that it is low carb is just a bonus.

The asparagus in this recipe acts like pasta that has been cooked al dente. The cheese and spice overpower the flavor of the asparagus so much so that you really could believe you are eating carb-laden pasta.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 1 (but I was very full afterward)

You will need aluminum foil and an oven/toaster oven.

Ingredients:

1/2 bunch asparagus, rinsed and cut

big handful of shredded cheddar cheese

garlic powder

onion powder

black pepper

Cajun spice

hot sauce (optional)

cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut asparagus into pieces that are 1-2 inches long. Loosely pile asparagus on greased aluminum foil covered baking sheet. Pieces of asparagus can overlap but you want to be able to expose all pieces to cheese and spice.

Spray asparagus with cooking spray. Sprinkle desired spices (garlic, onion, pepper, Cajun) over asparagus. Place in oven for 20-25 minutes. In final 5 minutes of cooking, remove from oven and quickly sprinkle with hot sauce (optional) and cover with shredded cheese. Place back in oven and continue baking until cheese is melted. Be sure you don't allow cheese to start browning. You need it to be "melty" for the meal to seem like pasta.

Remove from oven and enjoy your low-carb, gluten free "pasta" dish. 

Oven Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Butter Sauce

Oven Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Butter Sauce

You will be licking your plate!

I never buy fresh asparagus. I love eating asparagus, but preparing it from scratch always seemed scary. In a bout of "must eat healthy" shopping, I picked up a bunch, put it in my fridge and put off figuring out how to prepare it. Feeling inspired one afternoon, I grabbed the asparagus and started to throw together a meal. 

I scoured my shelves for things that could go with the asparagus and found a forgotten bottle of balsamic vinegar. This sparked the idea for the sauce and suddenly I was looking forward to making the once-scary asparagus.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Serves: 1 

You will need aluminum foil, a microwave and an oven. As always, I used my toaster oven instead.

Ingredients:

1/2 bunch of fresh asparagus, rinsed 

garlic powder

onion powder

ground black pepper

Cajun seasoning (optional)

cooking spray

2 tbsp butter (give or take)

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar (give or take)

Directions:

Set oven to 400 degrees.

I cut about an inch off the blunt ends off of the asparagus because it just doesn't look appetizing. 

Lay aluminum foil on a baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray. Line asparagus on foil. All pieces should be equally exposed. Spray asparagus with cooking spray. Sprinkle with garlic, onion, pepper and Cajun seasoning. Sprinkle as much, or as little, as you like to suit your tastes. I used a good portion of garlic powder and only a little Cajun so the asparagus would "brown" on top.

Bake asparagus for 25-30 minutes. When the asparagus is almost finished, place butter in a microwave safe dish and heat until just melted. Mix in balsamic vinegar and adjust to taste.

When asparagus is tender remove from oven. Place on a plate or in a bowl. You may either pick up the asparagus like fries and dip in the butter sauce or drizzle the sauce over the asparagus. Either way, if you are like me, you will be licking the plate when all asparagus is gone.

Spinach, Strawberry and Muenster Toast

Spinach, Strawberry and Muenster Toast

The healthier alternative to my Triple Grilled Cheese

I was craving another strawberry infused grilled cheese sandwich but wanted a healthier version since it was only going to be a snack since dinner is 2 hours away. So I ditched the butter and cream cheese, only used one slice of Muenster on each piece of bread and doubled the strawberries.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

2 strawberries

2 slices of bread (I used Udi's GF white bread)

handful of baby spinach

2 slices Muenster cheese (can use any cheese really)

Directions:

Pre-toast the bread until hot but not crunchy at all. Place a slice of Muenster on each pre-toasted slice of bread. Top with sliced strawberries and pile on the spinach. Toast [open-face] until cheese is melted and spinach is wilted. Remove from toaster oven and make into a sandwich. For easier munching, cut sandwich in half.

Pizza Toasties

A makeshift pizza without any real pizza ingredients.

The trick to making this delicious little pizza-esque meal is to forget every rule about making pizza. I didn't want to go shopping but I was craving pizza. I grabbed what I could find in the pantry and fridge to make these "makeshift pizzas". Kind of like those "pizza-quickies" your mom used to make with English muffins.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients: 

Sliced Bread (I used two slices of Udi's GF bread)

Spaghetti Sauce

Shredded Cheese (any flavor works really)

Baby Spinach

Hot Sauce (optional)

You could use any toppings you wanted really. The main goal is to NOT go shopping for ingredients. Peppers, sliced meats, olives, etc. would all be good.

A toaster oven is the preferred method of baking these, but a regular oven would work.

Directions:

Pre-toast the bread to the point where it just about to become toast.

Top pre-toasted bread with spaghetti sauce, cheese and whichever toppings you chose/found.

Toast in toaster oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and toppings are hot.

Top with hot sauce or ranch dressing or whatever else you enjoy on your pizza.

Enjoy the simplicity of pizza with the convenience of your current kitchen.

Strawberry Spinach Triple Grilled Cheese

Fresh Strawberries and Spinach make this gooey treat a little healthier.

A simple American grilled cheese sandwich gets an upgrade with spinach, strawberries and three kinds of cheesy goodness. I decided to forgo my usual healthy version of grilled cheese (using the toaster oven) and opted for the greasier, gooey version pictured above.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15-20 minutes

You will need a small food processor or personal blender for this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 slices bread (I used Udi's Gluten Free white bread)

1 slice Swiss cheese

1 slice American cheese

2 tablespoons cream cheese

1 cup fresh baby spinach

1-2 strawberries, sliced

garlic powder

butter or margarine

Directions:

Lightly butter each side of the bread. Place in heated skillet. Pan fry the bread on one side while preparing the cream cheese and spinach mixture. 

For the spinach/cream cheese mixture combine cream cheese, spinach and garlic powder in food processor until all spinach is mixed in.

Once the underside of the bread is browned, flip the bread over. Spread cream cheese mixture on each slice of bread. Top one slice of bread with American and Swiss cheeses and finally with sliced strawberries. Place second slice of bread (which should only have cream cheese mixture on it) on top of first slice of bread, cream cheese side down. Continue pan frying sandwich until both sides are golden brown and cheese is melted. 

Note: Cooking this is a little messier than a regular grilled cheese sandwich but the result is well worth it.