Garlic Knots

These little garlic knots are heavenly. You have to be a garlic lover though and I totally am. You can never have too much garlic! These knots are easy to make especially if you cheat and use Whole Foods pre made pizza dough. I love Whole Foods dough it is the perfect elasticity, chewy and full of flavor.

Ingredients

1 lb. of prepared pizza dough, thawed (Whole Foods) or you can use my dough recipe, pizza dough

8 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup, plus 2 Tbs. olive oil

1 tsp. dried parsley

Kosher salt to taste

A dash of garlic salt

1 Tbs. of freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 425˙. Lightly grease a muffin tin. I use olive oil or soft butter for this. Cut pizza dough into 12 pieces, roll gently with the palms of your hands to create a slight ball and place one ball in each muffin tin. Divide all but 3-4 cloves of garlic among the pieces of dough, pressing the garlic into the centers of the dough. Drizzle with 1/4 cup olive oil and bake in the oven until golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes. While the dough bakes, heat remaining oil, garlic, and parsley over low heat in a small pan. Do not simmer. Toss your baked garlic knots in prepared garlic oil, in large bowl. Season with kosher salt and a dash of garlic salt. Sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan. Serve hot!

Enjoy!

Grilled Rosemary Chicken Club

This is the time of year where I am getting Spring Fever! I know it's a little early, but Spring is one of my favorite seasons. I am itching to get my gardening under way, start grilling on the grill, and enjoy the warm sun and fresh clean air. This sandwich is satisfying, light, and bursting with flavor. It's one of my favorites for sure!

Ingredients

1 cup of Cindy's Kitchen Rosemary Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

1 pound of skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin

1 bottle of marinated roasted red peppers

Creamy goats cheese, 6oz

Romaine lettuce leaves, 4 to 5

Balsamic Vinaigrette

Olive Oil

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 large loaf of soft french bread

Directions

Place your chicken breasts in a large ziplock bag, gently pound your chicken until it is nice and thin. Double bag your chicken, just to be on the safe side, incase holes were made while pounding. Add your one cup Cindy's Vinaigrette to your chicken. ( This vinaigrette can be found at Whole Foods) Let this marinade for at least 3 hours.

Grill your chicken on an outside grill. Season your meat with salt and pepper, let cool. Cut your loaf of french bread length wise so it looks like you are making one giant sandwich. On the bottom half of the sandwich spread all of your creamy goats cheese. ( you can never have enough of this creamy goodness )

Next layer your drained roasted red peppers over the cheese. Once your chicken has cooled lay the grilled chicken over the peppers. Top the chicken with whole crisp, freshly washed romaine lettuce leaves.

Take the top of your french bread loaf and turn it over exposing the soft chewy bread, generously douse the bread with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Letting this combination soak into the bread for a couple of minutes. Put the top of the loaf on the rest of the sandwich. Carefully cut the sandwich into 4 or 5 individual sandwiches. Serve.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Buckle

I love using fresh in season produce in my cooking. The blueberries this season are huge and bursting with rich juicy flavor. Well, I went overboard and bought tons of berries and had to use them up, this buckle is perfect and no one will pass up this crumbly cake. Blueberry Buckle can be served for breakfast or dessert with vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients

Crust:

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 cups of flour

2 sticks (1 cup) of cold butter, cut into small pieces

1 egg, beaten

1/4 teaspoon salt

Lemon zest from one lemon

Berry Mix:

Juice from one lemon

4 cups of fresh blueberries

1/2 cup of sugar

4 teaspoons of cornstarch

Directions

Preheat oven to 375˙and grease a 9x13 inch pan. In a bowl stir together 1 cup of sugar, 3 cups of flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and lemon zest. Cut your cold butter into small pieces and add with one egg to flour mix. Gently mix with clean hands. Your crust will be crumbly. Pay half of the dough mixture into the bottom of your pan. In another bowl, stir together 1/2 cup of sugar, 4 teaspoons of cornstarch and lemon juice. Add your fresh blueberries to this mixture and coat them. Spread the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining dough over the berry layer. Bake your Blueberry Buckle for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely before cutting.

Enjoy!

Turkey Sloppy Joe's

Here is an easy, no hassle recipe for those busy weeknight. The Sloppy Joe is an American classic that is sure to please your family. I usually serve this warm yummy sandwich with a big fruit salad.

Ingredients:

1 pound of lean ground turkey

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 of a yellow onion

1 green bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

1 8oz can of tomato sauce

1 cup of barbecue sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

a dash of Cayenne Pepper

White hamburger buns

Directions:

In a large pot heat your olive oil and saute your chopped onion on medium heat until translucent. Add your garlic, green bell pepper, and turkey to the pot and crumble until your meat is cooked throughly. In a bowl mix together your tomato sauce, barbecue sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Pour sauce over meat mixture let the meat sauce simmer for 20 minutes. Serve hot over hamburger buns.

Enjoy!

Creamy Rigatoni with Goat Cheese

It's a new year and I am excited to get back in the kitchen and start food blogging again. I want to dedicate this year to yummy healthy eating. To start 2011 here is an easy rigatoni pasta dish that creamy, luscious, and bursting with all different wonderful flavors.

Ingredients

1 lb. of rigatoni pasta

1 jar of Bertolli Four Cheese Rosa sauce

4 sausage links of spicy chicken italian sausage

1 cup of frozen green peas

1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes

4 cloves of roasted garlic, chopped

1 bunch of fresh basil, julienned

5 fresh mushrooms, sliced

fresh creamy goats cheese

Directions

Bring a large pot of boiling water to a boil and cook your pasta. When you are about to drain your pasta add your frozen peas to the boiling water, for 2 min until cooked. Drain your pasta and peas and set aside in a large pasta bowl. In a medium sauce pan remove casings off of your sausage links. Crumble your links into to bite size pieces, cook all the way through. Add the sausage and Rosa sauce to the pasta. Mix in the chopped roasted garlic, fresh basil, sliced fresh mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Top with creamy goats cheese. Serves about 5.

Serve Hot & Enjoy!