Guest Post from Amanda Carr!

I’m busy right now…really, really busy so when Amanda told me she had a recipe and pictures I jumped at the chance to have her do a guest post for me.

Most of you know that my oldest races BMX right?  Well Amanda races BMX too.  Only really, really well and travels all over the world doing it.  She is currently racing for Thailand but is still based out of her home town of Punta Gorda, FL.

This girl is a true athlete and follows an athletes diet to keep in the incredible shape she is in.  To learn more and to get updates from this amazing girl be sure to follow her on her social media accounts and look for her Tuesday evening Vlog that she puts out!

facebook.com/AmandaCarrBMX
instagram.com/AmandaCarrBMX
youtube.com/AmandaCarrBMX
twitter.com/AmandaCarrBMX

Workout Day Omelet!

Days when heavy lifting is on the menu for training, I usually begin with a medium/light meal. Omelets are usually a go to cause after about 30min-1 hour after I eat I don't have that woozy heavy stomach feeling (I hope you know what I'm talking about).

Anyways, the saying of "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" I kindaaaa follow it (when I have time) I mean let's be real I don't have the time EVERY DAY to make an omelet in the morning. So when I do have time I try to do it right, other days I'm in a rush and it's usually a couple pieces of raisin bread and I'm out the door! So for my omelet, nothing that requires anything that you shouldn't already have in the kitchen:

(I break this up into half before training and half after)

Ingredients:

 3 eggs
tiny bit of butter so nothing sticks
1/4 cup of green pepper (you can use any color you like obviously)
1/4 cup onions
1/4 cup tomatoes
1/4 cup celery
1/2 cup of lunch meat ham
1/4 cup shredded cheese, just to give it a little glue
sprinkle salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Crack the eggs into a glass mixing bowl and beat them until they turn a pale yellow color.
2. Heat a heavy-bottomed nonstick sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the butter and let it melt.
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Then, grab your whisk and whisk like crazy. You're going to want to work up a sweat here. If you're not up for that, you can use an electric beater or stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Whatever device you use, you're trying to beat as much air as possible into the eggs.
4. When the butter in the pan is hot enough to make a drop of water hiss, pour in the eggs. Don't stir! Let the eggs cook for up to a minute or until the bottom starts to set.
5. With a heat-resistant rubber spatula, gently push one edge of the egg into the center of the pan, while tilting the pan to allow the still liquid egg to flow in underneath. Repeat with the other edges, until there's no liquid left.
6. Your eggs should now resemble a bright yellow pancake, which should easily slide around on the nonstick surface. If it sticks at all, loosen it with your spatula.
7. Now gently flip the egg pancake over, using your spatula to ease it over if necessary. Cook for another few seconds, or until there is no uncooked egg left.
8. Now is the time add the vegetables and meat. Spoon your filling across the center of the egg in straight line.
9. With your spatula, lift one edge of the egg and fold it across and over, so that the edges line up. Cook for another minute or so, but don't overcook. If necessary, you can flip the entire omelet over to cook the top for 30 seconds or so.

Thanks so much Amanda!!!

Pecan Pie Muffins

And trust me on this.  They taste just like pecan pie.  Maybe not as ooey and gooey as pecan pie but the flavor is still there…And these are good.  Very, very, very good!

I had been looking for a simple recipe to make.  Something with minimal time invested, few ingredients and no mixer required.  I stumbled across these somehow and baked them up that day.  With only 5 ingredients how could I resist right?  Sadly they were gone that night…might have to double the next time!

Pecan Pie Muffins (Tastykitchen.com)
Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• ⅔ cups melted and cooled butter
• 2 whole eggs, beaten

Directions:
Preheat oven 350 F.
Grease your muffin pan (whatever size) really, really well, or use the silicone cups. I grease my muffin cups with Crisco or lard. and it still wasn’t enough.  I had some stickage trouble.  Next time I will grease them with lard but also spray them with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour and pecans. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and eggs together until smooth. Stir into the dry ingredients just until combined. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
Cups should be about 2/3 full. I was able to fill 8 muffin cups.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on wire racks when done.
Option: when you take them out of the oven, place a slice of butter on top and eat warm. You may also use walnuts instead of pecans.

Toasted Pecan Pancakes

Anyone who follows me on Facebook or Twitter know that we travel quite a bit due to Kyra’s BMX races.  Those who don’t follow me now know. 
A couple of weeks ago we left the house Wednesday evening after Tony finished work and drove north towards Morristown, TN.  Not much happening in Morristown, TN other than a BMX race but we still managed to have a great time.  Other than the races the fun for us is the drive there…the drive home sucks.  Trust me on that!
So what does all of this have to do with pancakes? 
On our drive north the GPS took us through our old vacation destination of SC and NC mountains.  Just as the sun was coming up we passed a sign that said Cherokee, NC. 

This is where Tony and I started trout fishing about 20 years ago…

Funny thing is we had been talking about NC and our great vacations there just a week or so ago and were asking the kids if they even remembered being there.  Sadly hardly any memories at all.  One thing they do remember is the crazy Bear Park where you buy food and feed the bears (horrible for the bears but fun for the kids).  This is where we decided to go.  Unfortunately the bears seemed to be sleeping so we looked for a spot to have breakfast.  Luckily we found a place that was open (off season!).  Thanks Peter’s Pancakes and Waffles!!!  This where we had the toasted pecan pancakes.  Absolutely delicious.  I decided to try and recreate them. 
They were a hit…Kyra had 5 before she waved the white flag!!!

Toasted Pecan Pancakes
Ingredients
2 cup all pupose flour
1 Tbs sugar
6 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 egg
2 cup milk
4 Tbs vegetable or canola oil
1 cup toasted pecans, chopped (toasted in a skillet until fragrant and the oils have begun to be released)
Directions

• Whisk all dry ingredients together in a large bowl (except pecans)
• Whisk all wet ingredients together
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well. You may have to add additional milk to make the mixture thinner.
• Lightly oil a pre-heated griddle or pan.
• Pour using a 1/4 cup measuring cup.
• Sprinkle with pecans.
• Cook on first side until you see bubbles on the surface. Flip and cook until the other side is browned.

Bacon and Egg Breakfast Cups

I am ALWAYS on the lookout for a quick, healthy and easy breakfast to feed the girls.  Our mornings are sometimes a little (lol!) hectic and having some thing made ahead or that is fast makes it oh so much better.  Usually they get these really tasty breakfast sandwiches but when I saw these on Kristen’s blog (Dine and Dish) I knew I would have to try them.

They were a real hit.  I ended up changing it and using bacon that I cooked up the night before because I didn’t have any ham.  The kiddo’s loved them.  Lauren will eat 2 of these at a sitting.  Easy to make a dozen and heat them up over the next couple of days…

Bacon and Egg Breakfast Cups (Dine and Dish)
Ingredients:

• 12 eggs
• 1 cup chopped cooked bacon
• 2 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Spray a muffin pan generously with Pam cooking spray
3. Crack one egg into each hole of the muffin pan, using a fork to gently break the yolk.
4. Sprinkle each egg with bacon, salt, cracked black pepper and cheese.
5. Bake for 20 minutes.
6. Pop out of muffin tins and serve.

Homemade Caesar Salad

I am a huge fan of Caesar Salads.  When hubby had a restaurant I think that I lived on the Caesar salad that was topped with blackened shrimp.  Since the restaurant has gone I have desperately been in search of a Caesar Salad fix.  This has been going on for about 8 years…:(

Then the other night we were watching TV and there seemed to be nothing on.  Turned on the Food Network and started watching “The Best Thing I Ever Ate” and Alex was talking about her favorite Caesar Salad from a Steakhouse somewhere.  Can’t really remember all the details because I was totally and one hundred percent lost once I saw the tableside Caesar being made.  At that moment I just knew it had been way too long since I had had a perfect Caesar.

 

Homemade Caesar Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 head of chopped romaine lettuce
1 egg yolk (the egg is raw, I like to use cage free, hormone free and antibiotic free eggs when I am eating them raw)
ground pepper to taste
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
2 tsp chopped anchovy
2 tsp garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
1-1/2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

Directions:

1. Clean lettuce thoroughly and dry in a salad spinner or in towels. Refrigerate until crisp, at least 1 hour or more.
2. In a jar combine egg yolk, pepper, mustard, anchovy, garlic, olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and 2 Tbsp of the Parmesan cheese. Whisk until well blended.
3. To assemble, place torn lettuce leaves in a large bowl. Pour dressing over the top and toss until well coated. Add the remaining Parmesan cheese.  Serve immediately!

This Caesar Salad was perfect.  Lots of garlic and lemon.  Just the way I like it!  Hubby loves his with some bacon added in.  Tailor this to your taste but definitely try it!

And here is the real kicker…this is only 5 WW Points!!!!

Breakfast Sandwich that’s better than that other place…

My girls are pretty self sufficient in the morning when it comes to making their own breakfast but usually it is just a bowl of cereal with some fruit, toast or some oatmeal.  This works out great for me because I work every morning and when it’s busy I just don’t always want to stop to make them something to eat! 

On special days or days when I know they have worked their little bodies pretty hard the night before (BMX or Ice Skating) I will get up early and make them their favorite breakfast…

It’s really nice and simple and they truly love it…

Breakfast Sandwich (makes 2)

     Ingredients:

4 slices of bacon, cut in half so they fit on the Sandwich Thin
2 eggs
2 slices of American cheese
2 Arnold’s Select Multigrain Sandwich Thins

 

Directions:

Place the bacon slices in your cast iron skillet (works best but you can use any skillet), cook until nice and crispy.

Toast your sandwich thins once the bacon has cooked.

Cook your eggs in the same skillet with the hot bacon grease.  Salt and pepper the egg and gently break the yolk.  Turn the egg to make it over easy and have the yolk mostly hard.  Top with the slice of cheese and allow to melt slightly.

Top one half of one of the toasted Sandwich Thins with 4 slices of the bacon (cut in half so they fit right?), then top with the cooked egg and melted cheese and the other Sandwich thin half.

Repeat for second one.

**They really like this with a cut up banana and some OJ.

***We have been known to have this for dinner as well…We love “Breakfast for Dinner Nights”!

Look at my breakfast!

I am trying to eat healthier in the New Year. Christmas and New Year's did me in this year and my energy was not where it needed to be. By eating healthier and lighter meals I am rapidly correcting this! Having my wonderful CSA box right now helps a whole bunch but you can do this with food from your grocery store too!

Today it was an egg scrambled with Asian spinach and tomato. Yesterday it was the same egg scrambled with leftover pizza sauce and cremini mushrooms.

All I do is reach in the fridge and find something fresh and cook it up. When it's just about cooked I add the beaten egg and there you have it. Breakfast in less than 5 minutes!!!

Weight Watchers - 1 egg is 2 points. Most veggies are 0

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Swiss Chard And Summer Squash Frittata

This was suppose to be with tomatoes instead of the summer squash but I have a tomato hater and an old summer squash...

Yesterday morning I was in a real bind about what to make for dinner. Once again it needed to be something that I could make ahead of time and reheat when it was time for all of us to eat. We had Karate after school and it makes it much easier when we get home at 6:45 to have something that can be reheated and set on the table immediately. So what did I do? I tweeted it!!! I had several responses but @nandita from Always Order Dessert won this round. She suggested my exact dinner!!! If you are not familiar with twitter maybe you should be. And if you are really interested you can follow me there on Twitter @nofearentertain

I did call on T's help with the side dish to the frittata. I had him throw butternut squash fries into the oven for me when he got home. All I did was take 2 baby butternut squash and peel them and clean out the inside and cut them into French fry shapes. These were sprayed with some olive oil spray and tossed in a preheated oven of 450 degrees for 20 minutes. Removed from the oven and sprinkled with kosher salt and flipped and placed back in there until nice and crispy. About 20 minutes more. These were so good. They are so much better than sweet potato fries and I will be making these again and again!

Anyway onto the main player here...



Swiss Chard and Summer Squash Frittata (adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites, the Moosewood Collective)

1 lb. Swiss chard
1 summer squash, sliced thin
4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 cup chopped onions
2 tsp. Olive oil
6 egg whites
2 whole eggs
3 Tbs. Chopped fresh basil
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Ground black pepper
grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Wash the Swiss chard, remove and discard the large stems, and finely chop the leaves. In a 10 inch cast iron skillet, saute the garlic, summer squash and onions in 1 teaspoon of the oil for 3 minutes on medium heat. Add the Swiss chard, stir, cover, lower the heat, and cook for a bout 10 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and drain the Swiss chard if juicy.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites, eggs, basil, salt, and pepper until blended. Stir in the sauteed Swiss chard. Coat the bottom of the skillet with the remaining tsp. of oil and return it to medium heat. When the skillet is hot, pour in the Swiss chard-egg mixture. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until the edges are firm and the bottom is golden and beginning to brown. Place in a preheated 400 degree oven and cook for about 5 minutes, until the eggs are fully cooked. Serve immediately or at room temperature, topped with grated Parmesan if you wish.

This was such an incredible meal that was a hit with both of the girls. It will be made again and again in our house!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Quiche my way...

Quiche with sausage, mushrooms, onion, zucchini, and green peppers! Yummmmmm!

Okay so I haven't really been posting much in the food way but I have been cooking. It's just that T. has been out of town and it really makes my life all the more hectic. Yes, I am one of the lucky ones who's husband helps out, a lot!!!

Anyway the other night I couldn't figure out what to make so I hunted through the freezer and found a couple of Italian sausage links (leftover from another recipe), some zucchini, and some green peppers. I thought quiche and good thing I did. This turned out so good. For some reason the cheese escaped to the top and made it look more like a cheese pie and I would have spiced it up a bit but this was dinner for the girls and I.

Yes, I confess to using store bought pastry but I was all alone with the girls and this was still better than going out!!!

My Quiche

Ingredient:

! ready made pie dough (I know, I was just really lazy that day!!!)
2 sausage link, sausage squeezed out of casing
1/2 cup baby bella mushrooms, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 cup milk
pinch nutmeg
fresh ground pepper

Directions:

• Place pie dough in a tart pan and press in. Cook at 450 for about 15 minutes or until almost cooked. Remove from oven and rest.
  
• Meanwhile cook sausage over med. heat until cooked through. Remove and store in a separate bowl.
• Cook onions and mushrooms until cooked through. Add zucchini and green peppers, garlic powder, onion powder and salt.
• In a seperate bowl beat 4 eggs with milk, nutmeg and pepper.
• Place sausage in the bottom of the pie shell top with the cooked veggies, then cheese. Top this the egg mixture.
• Bake at 350 for about 35 minutes or until the center is set and a knife comes out clean.
• Allow to rest for about 10 minutes. Slice and serve.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Has anyone ever heard of this before???

I kinda feel like this is a cheater post but in my defense I spent the whole morning in a Dr's appt and then ran errands right up until now. I get to pick the girls up in about an hour so my day is pretty much done!

Anyway, my Mother-in-law sent me an email last week asking me to try out something that she was sent. I have to say I was skeptical at first. Like come on who would make and omelet in a Ziploc bag??? We gave this a test run the day that we left to go to the Keys...

just making sure you remembered...anyway they worked. And really, really well. We all had our omelets ready at the same time and exactly the way we each wanted them. T. even had jalapeños in his! This is great for a weekday morning or a rushed weekend one as well!

Breakfast Ziploc Omelets

Good for when you're alone or when all or when all of your family is together. The best feature is that no one has to wait for their special omelet. Have the guests write their name on a quart size Ziploc freezer bag with a permanent marker. (These are not my pictures. They came with the email. I am sorry to have "borrowed" someone else's pics but that morning was very rushed and I took no pictures!)

• Crack 2 eggs into the quart size bag (not more than 2) and shake well.
• Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, salsa etc. Pretty much anything that you would put in a regular omelet.
• Everybody adds the prepared ingredients of choice to their bag and shakes the bag to mix them well.
• Make sure to get the air out of the bag and zip it up.
• Place the bags into rolling boiling water for EXACTLY 13 MINUTES. You can cook 6 - 8 omelets in a large pot. If you have more omelets, make another pot of boiling water.
• Cut the bags and the omelet will roll out easily (yep - it really does!!!)

• 
• This is nice to serve with fresh fruit and coffee cake. Everyone gets involved in the process.

• You can even get these ready the night before andjust plop the bags in boiling water while you get ready!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Yummy Frittata!

Pretty huh? Delicious too!

Frittata is just a fun thing to say and I had found that this word had been bouncing around in my head lately as I have been coming across some really great recipes for frittata's using spring veggies. I am not really getting spring veggies so I was really looking for something different. I grabbed my "Homegrown Pure and Simple: Great Healthy Food from Garden to Table)" by Michel Nischan and started searching.

I came up with the recipe for a Garden Vegetable Frittata and as luck would have it I had a couple of eggplants sitting on my counter just begging to be used (um-starting to rot) so this would work out perfect.

Now the only problem was that I would be at the skating rink from 5 PM until 7:30 PM. How the h*** was I going to get this made. Not too much of it could be done ahead which is what I usually do. T. to the rescue. I left him the recipe and instructions and he followed through wonderfully. You see he is not really one to ever cook from a recipe and I personally think that they tend to stress him out a little but he did this for me and I was so glad he did. This meal was great. I had made a salad earlier in the day and some dressing so we had that while the frittata was resting. My youngest one ate a PB & J and went to bed (skating nights tucker her out!) but my oldest one loved it. She is the one who doesn't like tomatoes hence the frittata with only one half with tomatoes!

See how nice and fluffy this was?

Garden Vegetable Frittata (adapted from Homegrown Pure and Simple: Great Healthy Food from Garden to Table)

3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
2 small potatoes, thinly sliced
1 eggplant (about 1 pound), cubed
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 onion, chopped
12 eggs
1/2 cup low fat milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs (we used oregano, basil, chives)
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
2 large tomatoes, sliced

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
• Heat a well-seasoned 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the oil and the butter and heat until the butter sizzles. Add the potatoes in a single layer and cook on one side until browned. Turn them over and move them to the side of the pan.
• Meanwhile season the eggplant with salt and pepper. Add the eggplant to the skillet and cook for about 3 or 4 minutes or until the eggplant cubes are browned at least on 2 sides. Add more oil if you need to.
• Add the onion and cook until soft. Add the spinach and cook until wilted. Move the vegetables around in the pan until they are evenly distributed.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, herbs and half of the cheddar cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
• Slowly pour the eggs into the skillet so as not to dislodge the vegetables. Reduce the heat to low and cook for about 6 to 8 minutes without stirring until the frittata is partially set.
• Sprinkle the goat cheese over the top and transfer to the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nearly set but not yet brown. Sprinkle with the remaining cheddar cheese. and return to the oven until just melted. Remove and top with tomatoes and some fresh herbs and cook for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is fully melted and browned.
• Serve directly form the skillet, cut into wedges.

T. says that he would add some more seasoning (garlic, more salt, onion powder) the next time but all in all it was good.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com