Saucy

I’m so sick of the typical red sauce in pasta dishes. Legit I get acidity these days from eating too many tomato based sauces so I figured I would try and mix it up in case anyone else out there is just as over it as me. I wanted to do an alfredo like sauce but hopefully keep it figure friendly as well. Luckily there are so many skinny variations out there in the world wide web and I found this yummy cauliflower based one! I legit roast cauliflower on the reg and even make the Indian sabzi version of it all the time so now thatI can utilize it in one more way is #winning in itself. Anyway, next carb craving try this sauce over marinara and don’t tell me if your pasta doesn’t sing!

  • 1 medium head of cauliflower (approx. 450g)
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic (ok I did 3 obvi)
  • 1 tbsp. of butter
  • 5 cups or 1.2 L of broth (chicken is what I did but vegetable is fine)
  • 3/4 cup of milk (or almond milk)
  • 1/2 tsp of salt (I added a pinch of black pep too).

Cut the onion & garlic into thin slices and sauté in butter for about 20 minutes or until caramelized. Boil the cut up cauliflower florets until tender in the broth (Save a 1/2 to 3/4 cup for the sauce) . Combine milk, broth, cauliflower, and veggies and blend until smooth. I added a tbsp. of grated pecorino romano because sauce should have cheese IMO.

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FYI makes about 3 cups of sauce.

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Tip: If sauce is too thick, loosen with broth when reheating.

Happy Eating, XO

The 5 minute cake

OK So, it obviously still has to bake, butttttt it only takes 5 minutes to prepare or make (no lie). It’s yummy and if you’re in a pinch it’s a lovely dessert. PS our birthdays were last week so we are still in a sugary coma of cake cake cake [ahh the Rihanna song will NEVER get old, just like us by the way, never aging :)]

Anyway, take all of the ingredients below, mix well and bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees, it’s literally THAT easy. My foodie tip would be to serve with cherry preserves, compote, jam whatever you can find. I just think cherries and almonds should be married so it’s like the most yum pairing ever! Having said that, the cake on its own is pretty divine

  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup of melted butter
  • 1 cup flour
  • 2 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 cup sugar
  • sliced almonds (just to sprinkle on top pre-baking, to let people know its an almond cake).
  • powdered sugar (just to sprinkle on top post-baking, it makes it look not so easy & more fancy)

5 minute cake_damndelish

Happy Eating, XO.

Enchiladas

Listen, bikini season is over and there is a chill in the air…I say we have an ooey gooey decadent dinner! Some good old stick to your ribs (And maybe love handles) comfort food. These chicken and cheese enchiladas have even won over a non-Mexican food lover like myself! Hope you enjoy & remember to post pictures with the #damndelish tag!

  • 3 tbsp. butter (I know that’s a shit ton, I didn’t say this was diet friendly)
  • 8 oz. of sour cream (keeps getting better 😛)
  • 3 tbsp. flour
  • 2 cups of chicken broth
  • Hot sauce (I did a couple of splashes of the Chalula’s chili garlic)
  • Onion powder (optional, I’m just a seasoning whore)
  • Garlic powder (optional again, just going for robust flavor)
  • 1 bag of shredded Mexican cheese (think Colby jack, Monterey jack, etc.)
  • 1 shredded rotisserie chicken
  • 1/2 – 1 cup of salsa – eyeball the salsa, its not apart of the original recipe and I just added it to the chicken & cheese mixture. (Note on what kind to use: preferably one that is low in water content and packed with onions & green chilies. I don’t want to brand plug anyone, but I think Rotell’s tomatoes & chilies, again not name dropping #jussayin’.)
  • Chopped black olives (I left these out, but some people commented on the original recipe that they added them. I might try it next time.)

Mix the shredded chicken, half the cheese, and the salsa and set aside. In the mean time start the roux of the butter and flour. Stir in the chicken broth to loosen the sauce up. IMPORTANT, let this cool before folding in the sour cream. IF you don’t, it will curdle the sour cream, essentially: sauce is ruined. Anyway while the sauce is cooling pre sour cream, you can assemble the enchiladas in you oven safe pan. Fill the tortillas with the mixture evenly, roll, and lay seam side down in a line.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes and then broil for 3 minutes, be careful not to burn. Note: Let it cool before serving.

Happy Eating, XO.

Herbaceous Cod

I came across this recipe in search for a cheaper white fish for me to eat on weeknights. I love salmon, don’t get me wrong, but it’s literally the only fish I make. I don’t like tilapia, halibut, or catfish and Chilean sea bass is way too much for the wallet, so someone had suggested trying cod and swordfish. So that is when I took to finding a quick way to prep it and eat on a summer evening. This is real good because the fish stands up to the strength of the fresh herbs but isn’t too fishy/meaty either. I am going to work on some swordfish or mahi mahi next so stay tuned and start following the blog for updates!

  • 2 lbs. cod fillets
  • 1/3 cup real mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigianno Regianno cheese {no pre-grated cheese, please!}
  • 2 tablespoons each chopped fresh parsley and basil
  • 1 medium clove garlic, grated
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a small bowl, stir mayonnaise together with cheese, fresh herbs, garlic, salt and pepper until combined. Spread evenly over the top of the fillets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until fish starts looking opaque and will flake. Switch oven to broiler and brown the tops of the fish until lightly golden.

cod

Happy Eating, XO.

Cardamom Tea Cookies

Recently, our good friend Tara had a birthday, and you know how much we LOVE birthdays. She also happens to be fan of all things “spice”, particularly cardamom. So for a gift, I thought I’d be clever and make her something with cardamom in it! The problem? Other than our cardamom iced tea I had no idea how else to use it. Turns out, you can “spice” up just about any old cookie recipe to taste exotic. Enter in – cardamom! Not to mention, these little puppies make your house smell ah-mazing.

*Disclaimer, this recipe isn’t instant. You need time to chill the dough. (Just thought I’d point this out. I find it so annoying when I start making something and find out I have to wait! #impatientmuch?)

  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom (feel free to add more if you’re really in to the flavor)
  •  2 cups flour
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • Dash of salt

Whisk the butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Gradually add in the sugar until fully blended. Finally add in the egg yolk, cardamom, baking soda, and salt. Once combined, add in the flour. The whisking will get tough and eventually turn in to one big ball of dough. Chill the dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

When ready to shape the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough in to small 1 inch balls and bake for 15 – 20 minutes. Hot out of the oven, sprinkle the cookies with sugar. And remember – pinkies up!

 

Cardamom Tea Cookies

Happy Eating, XO.