As much as I try, I don’t always leave the grocery store with everything on my list. There are things I forget, and there are things I add on. There are always things I add on. I have trouble walking through the produce section and not leaving with a good amount of extra produce that I have absolutely no official plans for, but couldn’t resist picking up and putting in my cart. Poblano peppers, I haven’t purchased them in forever and there was no way I was going home without them when I saw them the other day.

There were a few things I had in mind for these poblano peppers. I wanted to add them to this Summer White Chicken Chili. I also wanted to remake this Kicked Up Cucumber Salad from years ago.

Instead, the idea for stuffing them came into mind and I went with it. So glad, because these Stuffed Poblano Peppers turned out amazing and fed me some easy lunch for a couple days I made them for dinner. (more…)

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It’s been almost a month since Thanksgiving, does anyone have any leftover turkey in the freezer? If you do, well this is the perfect recipe for you to use it up! If not, then grab a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, it will work just fine.

Last month I got hit with back to back illnesses – a sinus infection one week, the next week I came down with the flu. Not fun!! I can’t tell you how horrible I felt, and how helpless I felt as a mom. I haven’t been that sick in a long time and I have to admit having a 1 year old at home all day with me was really hard. All I have to say is thank goodness for moms and good neighbors and friends! My mom came to help me for a few days (seriously – hallelujah!!), which was huge, and my friends helped me out by bringing my kids home from school and driving them to gymnastics, etc. My sweet neighbor brought me over some chicken soup one night and I literally ate it out of the tupperware container while it was still hot hunched over my counter. It was SO good and boy did it hit the spot.

What I loved the most about neighbor’s chicken soup was that it had lemon and orzo in it (my neighbor who cooked this soup and brought over to me is only 16 years old by the way – how thoughtful and awesome is she?). The lemon added such a bright flavor to the soup and I couldn’t wait to make it again. I decided to make it using leftover turkey from Thanksgiving but I would definitely use cooked rotisserie chicken next time.

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I am so excited to share today’s recipe for Spaghetti Squash (aka “Squashta”) with Turkey Bolognese with you. Not only is it one that includes spaghetti squash (my low carb / low calorie answer to my beloved pasta cravings), but it’s a recipe from The Skinnytaste Cookbook written by Gina Homolka. Gina has been writing the Skinnytaste blog for as long as I can remember looking up recipes online (I actually remember when it was called by another name way back in the day). Her blog, as well as her new cookbook, is filled with flavorful healthy recipes, easy enough to make any day of the week for your family. What I love most about Gina’s recipes is that they are filled with wholesome real ingredients, lots of fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and whole grains – definitely my kind of food…and the way healthy eating should be.

I have a pretty good feeling most of you probably already know who Skinnytaste is. 🙂

The Skinnytaste Cookbook: Light on Calories, Big on Flavoravailable for pre-order on Amazon or enter for a chance to win a copy – see giveaway details at the end of this post.

Let’s talk about spaghetti squash, have you tried it? Do you like it? I love it. I started eating spaghetti squash not long after I had my daughter several years ago, around the time I started to really pay attention to how I was eating, cutting back on carbs and calories and really focusing on losing weight. I have mostly made it “Italian style” like in this Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Vegetable Ragu or served with Turkey Spinach Meatballs. I’ve even gotten a little creative and kicked it up in this Thai Curry Spaghetti Squash recipe – so good. I think learning how to cook spaghetti squash is usually the first hurdle to get past, but once you get the hang of how to cook it the ideas are endless.

If you are wondering if spaghetti squash tastes like pasta, let me assure you that it does not. It most definitely tastes like a squash. It has a very mild flavor and light stringy texture so to me adding a hearty sauce to it like this turkey bolognese sauce along with a little Parmesan cheese really satisfies any craving for pasta when I don’t want to actually have pasta. Like I said, I love it.

This little guy loved it too. (He’s at such a fun age to introduce new foods.)

When I received The Skinnytaste Cookbook in the mail last week I knew right away I was going to make this recipe, especially since I had just picked up a spaghetti squash from the grocery store the day before. But I’ll be honest with you, it was hard to settle on one recipe because there are plenty of recipes that I can not wait to try.

Corny Banana Blueberry Pancakes, Chicken Marsala on the Lighter Side, Bangin’ Good Shrimp and Butternut Squash Lasagna Rolls are just a few recipes that I can’t wait to make for my family.

This recipe for Skinnytaste Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese is a keeper, that’s for sure, and one I will be making again.

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The post Skinnytaste Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese {Cookbook Giveaway} appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

(I have to thank a reader seeking out this recipe – that was originally posted on another site – for letting me know the link to that recipe was no longer active. I’m bringing an older post up to the surface today, with the full recipe included. Have a great week! PS…thank you to all who commented on my last post on blog burnout, I appreciate every single one of you!)

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Originally posted on January 11, 2012.

Note to self: make lettuce wraps more often at home.

Seriously people, don’t you just love lettuce wraps? Why do I always forget about them?? I’m obsessed with the ones at PF Changs (the vegetarian tofu ones are awesome for first-time tofu tasting!) and have had the copykat recipe bookmarked for them for years, but never got around to it.

Well, these probably aren’t as good as theirs, but they are still good. And they are low carb, and diet friendly. And you just feel good after eating them.

Here are the cast of characters that made these lettuce wraps possible…

I like to keep the Asian section of my pantry and fridge stocked up for meals like this. For this recipe I cooked with lean ground turkey breast, and if you’ve cooked with lean ground turkey breast then you know that it can be kinda…well, kinda plain.

Chinese five-spice powder is still new to me and I really like it (I’ve made it on this fish before and it was awesome). It’s interesting…and unique. I sprinkled it over the turkey breast while it was browning with some onions and carrots. Nakano rice vinegar is pretty much a staple whenever I’m cooking up Asian because it just adds so much flavor and brightens things up without any calories, fat, etc etc. I combined the rice vinegar, tamari, black bean sauce and agave into a sauce mixture and added it to the meat toward the end of cooking to develop and finish off the filling.

My entire family loved these turkey lettuce wraps. This is the only time my son eats lettuce, the excitement he has over lettuce wraps is mind boggling since he is so anti-salad. If that’s not a reason for making them more often I don’t know what is.

Hope you’re having a great week!

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I don’t make meatloaf – of any kind – very often, for no other reason other than it just doesn’t come to mind when I think of what to make for dinner. That’s probably because I didn’t really grow up eating meatloaf, so it doesn’t really fall into the everyday comfort food category for me. Does it for you?

There are two meatloaf recipes that I have made over the years when I have made meatloaf and they have become my go-to meatloaf recipes. They are both very different from each other and it just depends on whether or not I want a more traditional recipe like this copycat Boston Market Meatloaf recipe, or a lighter but oh so delicious one like Barefoot Contessa’s Turkey Meatloaf (I love this one!!).

Anytime I do make meatloaf, my meat loving husband is a happy man. And after making these Mini Cheddar-BBQ Turkey Meatloaf Muffins apparently now I know that my children are both fans as well. I guess I know whats going into the dinner rotation more frequently (along with this Mini Honey Mustard Meatloaf recipe we love).

I was inspired to make this mini versions of meatloaf from my friend Liz, who writes the blog The Lemon Bowl (I’ve been finding myself stalking her blog for dinner ideas quite frequently, along with Melanie’s blog, Nutritious Eats). It’s nice to get ideas from other busy moms that like to eat food you like to eat, and have to still feed young children food that they will like as well – I’m always inspired by both ladies!

These turkey meatloaf muffins came together super easily and quickly, using ingredients I always have on hand.

Side Dish Recipes For Mini Turkey Meatloaf Dinner

Oven roasted potatoes like these Roasted Red Potatoes with Smoked Paprika or Dill Potato Wedges are always great side dishes for this meatloaf recipe.

Other veggie side dishes for this dinner:

Corn, Tomato and Basil Saute

Roasted Green Beans with Almonds

Honey Roasted Parsnips and Carrots

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I love it when I make a recipe that my whole family can enjoy. You would think my kids would turn their noses up at the sound of stuffed cabbage rolls (they would) but when I gave them a dish of these for the first time, I didn’t say too much about it and made sure to cut it up real well so that cabbage just blended in with the meat and rice mixture. They didn’t ask any questions and I kept my mouth shut as they ate away. Recipes like this one get noted for regular rotation in my house.

Napa cabbage is starting to become a favorite veggie of mine. It’s so versatile. You can add it to soups, use it as filling for potstickers, make a slaw or salad like this Asian Chopped Salad or of course use it to make stuffed cabbage rolls like shown here today. It’s a mild and delicate cabbage, which is why I think my kids didn’t make too much of a fuss. I find myself purchasing it more often these days, and was happy when my friend Bev shared this recipe with me from Whole Living last year which I changed up slightly with what I had in my own kitchen to create these Asian Stuffed Napa Cabbage Rolls.

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Last week my friend Julie and I had a play date. We’ve been wanting to get together for a while, and even though she lives just a little over an hour from me, it seems like it’s always hard to find the time with both of our busy schedules.

We talked about cooking up some lunch, playing with our cameras and just hanging out but little did I know that our time together was going to stir up both of our creative juices in the kitchen. Personally, I’ve been in somewhat of a cooking slump since the holidays, really not in the mood to try anything new…basically it’s been survival mode around here with lots of easy pasta dishes and big pots of soup. That’s not a bad thing. But I’ve missed the excitement and energy I get when I start playing around in the kitchen, and of course I’ve been wanting to share new stuff with all of you!

Our plan that day was to learn how to make Chinese dumplings together. It’s one of my kids’ favorite things to order when we pick up take-out and something I’ve been wanting to get better at making at home. Well, it turns out, Julie was a natural at putting these dumplings together. They turned out delicious and my kids scarfed them down at dinner time. I’m seriously so excited about making them again and experimenting with different types of fillings.

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I try to listen to my body when it comes to cravings. I have heard often enough that when your body is craving certain foods, it could mean that maybe it needs or is lacking a certain nutrient that is found in the food you are craving.

Or that could all be baloney and you’re really just hungry, obsessed with food, stubborn or all of the above. I choose all of the above (most of the time).

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Is everyone enjoying their long holiday weekend?  We’ve really enjoyed ours so far…lots of family time at the house with the kids… playing games, enjoying the nice weather and watching lots of football and basketball.  Not kidding when I say LOTS of football and basketball…the Magic have played 3 times already since Wednesday and then of course yesterday our Gators had their BIG game in the Swamp!

Now, let’s talk about Thanksgiving…this year I hosted the big meal at our house.  I’ve hosted one time before, but the difference this time was that this time I did pretty much all of the cooking…and loved every minute of it!!  I started my prep early in the week and planned things out so that I wouldn’t be overwhelmed Thanksgiving morning.  I’m happy to report it was all a success…the food turned out great, we had lots of yummy leftovers and I was able to totally relax and enjoy the day with my family!

(Showing off the spread… 🙂 )

I tried something new at the last minute that I’m excited to share with you…brining.  This may not be new to some of you, but I’ll tell ya, it was new and a bit intimidating to me and I’m so glad I tried it, with the help of my food blogging friend Ninette from Big, Bold, Beautiful Food.  Ninette has taught me so many things in the short time that I’ve “known” her…we keep in touch on Facebook so I’m very often in the know of what she’s cooking for her family and friends.  This woman can cook.  I saw her post something on FB about brining her turkey so I asked her how she did it and here’s what she told me to do:

In two gallons of water dissolve 3/4 – 1 cup salt and 1/2-1/3 cup sugar.  To this I added several crushed cloves of garlic, a quartered onion, sprigs of thyme and rosemary, a few celery stalks and a small handful of whole peppercorns.  I put my turkey in a Ziplock turkey bag (the big one!) and poured the brine solution in it.  We have an extra refrigerator in the garage so that is where I stored the bagged turkey in a roasting pan placed in a baking sheet for extra stability.  If you have no room in your fridge to store the turkey, then place your bagged turkey in a cooler full of ice.  I brined my turkey overnight, for about 14 hours.  I read online somewhere that a good rule of thumb for how long to brine is 1 hour per pound….and not to “overbrine”.  My turkey was a 16lber so 14 hours was plenty.  When ready, rinse turkey very well and discard brine.  Prepare your turkey and cook as desired.

The purpose of brining, I’ve been told, is to keep the meat juicy and flavorful.  And that is exactly what it did.  I could see the juices running when my grandfather was carving the turkey…it was awesome.  Bye bye dry turkey…

Now, I’ve also been told that brining is good for everyday cooking of chicken and pork chops…I’ll be experimenting with that soon.

(My brother in law, Nonno and hubby getting ready for some turkey…)

(The kid table…)

Here’s  a little sampling of the rest of our Thanksgiving eats…I’ll be sharing recipes with you throughout the week so check back in!

(Cranberry Orange Quick Bread)

(Roasted Green Beans with Shallots and Almonds)

(Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Pecan Streusel)

(Nonna’s Stuffing)

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It’s the most wonderful time … of the year…

It was the start of football season in our house yesterday. It was the first Gator game and my husband woke up almost giddy. We love this time of year…it just screams fall, even though it’s still in the 90s with 80% humidity, just gross, I know. I tried to forget what was going on outside, opened up a Sam Adams Octoberfest and lit a few fall candles around the house. And started a pot of chili.

 

 

I get excited about planning our Game Day meals…for me, food is a big part of watching the game. I don’t always pay attention to every minute and detail of every play…and sometimes I fall asleep in the middle of 3rd quarter…but it’s all good, as long as the food was good and everyone was fed then I am happy. And of course if the Gators win too.

I love making chili…it’s one of those things that can be tweaked and changed every time it’s made. It’s really hard to follow a chili recipe in my opinion. I wanted to try something new this time so after perusing a bunch of recipes online I came up with a good idea of what I wanted to include in my pot of chili. I had picked up some nice looking dried New Mexico chilies at the grocery store the other day…that was a first for me. I have such a love for fresh chilies but admit I’m a bit intimidated by the dried ones…they just look hot to me! I love hot spicy food, but didn’t want to ruin a big pot of chili by making it too hot if you know what I mean. I added in one of the NM chilies whole and let it simmer in the chili…it softened naturally and kinda just fell apart. I picked out any big pieces of it that I found before serving. The chili had just the right amount of heat for us…it is on the spicy side, but could always be toned down with some sour cream or Greek yogurt if it’s too hot to handle.

 

 

This was honestly the best chili I have ever made. It had so many layers of flavor. I used a combination of chili powders that I had on hand to make it a little more interesting. And the two key ingredients in my opinion…beer and chocolate. Yes, beer and chocolate. You’ve got to try it! The chocolate gave it such a warm, almost creamy, balanced heat. It was absolutely wonderful.

PS…Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients!

Game Day Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 TB olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Spanish onion, chopped
• 1 lb mild turkey sausage, casings removed
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 jalapenos, chopped
• 1 cup of grilled corn kernels, about 2-3 ears of corn
• 1 can chili beans, drained but not rinsed
• 1 can kidney beans, drained but not rinsed
• 3 TB chili powder (I did a combination of regular chili powder, chipotle chili powder and New Mexico chili powder)
• 1 TB smoked paprika
• 1 TB cumin
• 1 TB garlic powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 good pinches of salt
• 1 dried New Mexico chili, whole
• 1/2 bottle Sam Adams Octoberfest (if you prefer not to use beer, sub 1 cup red wine, chicken broth or water)
• 1 28 can of diced tomatoes
• 4 squares dark chocolate (about 1 oz), rough chopped

Directions:

1. Heat Dutch oven with 1 TB olive oil. Add onions and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened, season with salt and pepper. Add turkey sausage and crumble. Cook through, then add chopped peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes until peppers begin to soften. Add chili powder, spices, salt and dried chili and stir. Once all the spices have combined with veggies and meat, pour in half a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest (or any other beer you are drinking) and deglaze bottom of pot. Cook for 1-2 minutes then add in tomatoes and stir. Bring chili up to a boil then simmer for about 20-30 minutes. Add chocolate to chili and stir. Continue to cook for another 10-15 minutes on low heat. Taste for salt.
2. Serve with your favorite toppings: shredded cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt, grilled corn kernels, chopped cilantro, green onions

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