Spinach Recipe No. 2: Enchiladas

As you may have just read in the blog post titled "Spinach Recipe No. 1: Strata," I recently had an abundance of spinach from our CSA box. The first recipe I made from about half the spinach and arugula was a strata. Here is the second.

Spinach, Pork and Swiss Cheese Enchiladas

Like with the strata recipe, I just made up this recipe as I went, so please forgive the lack of true measurements!

• 1 lb. ground pork
• 1/2-1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 2 cups spinach and arugula, chopped
• 1 cup or so shredded Swiss cheese
• 1 can enchilada sauce, any time (I used a mild red sauce)
• 8 small corn tortillas 
• Spices: salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, coriander

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray.

In a skillet, saute pork, onion, jalapeno and a shakes of each of the spices (to taste) until pork is cooked through. In another skillet, saute spinach and arugula in a skillet with a bit of water (you could probably cook the spinach withe pork, but for some reason I didn't). Mix the spinach in with pork.

Lay out all tortillas and scoop a hefty amount of pork mixture onto each tortilla. Top with cheese. Roll each one tightly (easier said than done) and lay in pan with seam side down. After all tortillas are rolled, pour can of sauce on top and top with additional cheese, if there is any left.

  

Bake for about 30 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Broil on high for about 5 minutes. Enjoy with some black beans on the side!

Quinoa Cups

You all know how much I love the food blog Iowa Girl Eats. I always enjoy her take on making not-so-healthy food healthier and using ingredients in ways I never thought possible.

Take her recipe for mini ham and cheese quinoa cups as an example. Using quinoa as a crunchy and nutty-tasting alternative to a quiche crust? Genius! And healthy! 

I've always enjoyed quinoa, but sometimes I don't know what to do with it, other than a simple side dish. This recipe is a perfect way to incorporate quinoa, a great source of fiber and protein.  

I followed Iowa Girl's recipe closely, except that I omitted the parsley just because I knew I wouldn't be able to use up an entire bunch. My cups didn't turn out nearly as nice looking as hers did, but they were still delicious and even tasted great heated up for lunch the following day.

We had way more mini cups than would fit in our mini muffin tins, so I put the rest in a shallow baking dish and baked it alongside the mini cups.

The nice thing about this recipe, too, is that it provides a good base and then you can do anything you want with it -- you make Mexican or Greek-inspired quinoa cups, vegetarian ones or super meaty ones. The possibilities are endless!

The New Love of My Life

Sorry, Nate, but there's someone new in my life.

My pearl metallic KitchenAid Professional 600 series 6-quart stand mixer. I've wanted one for years (and I've always kicked myself for not registering for one as a wedding present), but have more recently become somewhat obsessed with the idea of getting one. I mean, I cook and bake quite a bit, so it only makes sense, right? Luckily, my birthday is coming up and this particular mixer -- the one I was considering anyway -- came up on sale at Amazon for a really good price, so I just had to get myself an early birthday present. And my mother-in-law -- who is an avid baker and cook herself, and undestands the importance of having a stand mixer -- sent along some "mixer money" (thanks, Julie!).

The thing is really pretty big, and it took quite a bit of kitchen rearranging to figure out where to keep it after we learned it wouldn't fit underneath the cabinets. But I think we figured it out, and it has a prominent spot in the kitchen.

Because Nate was the recipient of a random text from me mid-day last week saying "I bought a KitchenAid mixer. Hope that's OK!" I told him the first thing I would make would be for him. After settling on cookies rather than beer bread, I turned to the Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe in the instruction and recipe booklet that came with the mixer. I followed the recipe very closely (see p. 43) because I wanted to be sure I used the mixer just as the recipe intended. But I subbed in 1 of the cups of flour with whole wheat flour, added some mixed chopped nuts (walnuts, almonds and pecans, probably 1/4 cup) and didn't measure the chips I threw in, but rather used up the three partial bags (milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate and butterscotch) I had in the pantry.

Rather than using a teaspoonful of dough, I used closely to a tablespoon, so I ended up baking my cookies for closer to 15 minutes. The cookies were fantastic -- they had a bit of a crunch on the outside, but were still soft on the inside. The butterscotch offered a nice burst of flavor.

It was a great first experience using the mixer, and I can't wait to use it again ... and again ... and again!

Mini Corn Dogs

When we got invited to a Super Bowl party, I knew I wanted to make some fun. Luckily, one of my favorite food blogs, Iowa Girl Eats, had some great party-ready finger food recipes. I was instantly drawn to the mini corn dogs, as I love corn dogs, but don't get to enjoy them that often.

If you like corn dogs, these are a great way to satisfy the craving. They're super easy and make a perfect meal with the leftovers you're bound to have because the recipe makes a ton!

I followed Kristin's recipe exactly, and I opted for her applesauce substitute for butter to make them a teeny bit more healthy.

I also used Lou's Garrett Valley Naturals all-beef franks from Outpost.

To serve them, I put out small bowls of honey mustard and ketchup spiced up with Sriracha.

They were a hit at the party, and Nate and I enjoyed them for additional meals later in the week.

The Soup Cookbook Everyone Should Own

I bought a copy of the Milwaukee Empty Bowls Cookbook from a friend at the December #MKEfoodies Cookies for Kids event. And I'm so glad I did.

First, proceeds from the $20 cookbook go to Milwaukee Empty Bowls, a nonprofit that "uses art to heighten hunger awareness and raise funds to help food pantries and meal programs in the Milwaukee area." The beautiful bowls are created by local potters, students and artists and are donated to the organization. Each year, on the second Saturday in October, the bowls are available for purchase and are meant to be filled with the wonderful soups available at the event.

Second, the cookbook is filled with wonderful recipes all from local chefs, restaurants and stores. And lucky for me, the book includes one of my favorite soups, which I always make sure I order when I'm at the restaurant.

I chose the chicken tortilla soup from Water Buffalo as my first recipe from the book. When ordered at the restaurant, this soup is always creamy without being rich, with the right amount of tender chunks of chicken and a hint of spice. 

The soup was souper (Sorry, had to!) easy to make and tasted pretty close to the real thing. I can't wait to make more from the cookbook!

Water Buffalo's Chicken Tortilla Soup 4-6 servings (We got closer to 4)

• 6 Tbs (3/4 stick) of butter
• 1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut in 1-inch pieces (we used a cooked rotisserie chicken)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/2 teas. ground cumin
• 1 teas. salt
• 1/2 teas. pepper
• 1/4 teas. dried oregano
• 1/2 teas. cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 3/4 cup heaving whipping cream (I used 2% milk)
• tortilla chips for garnish (we also used avocado and hot sauce for garnish)

In soup pot, melt butter, Add chicken and onion and cook over medium heat until chicken is no longer pink inside, about 5 or 6 minutes.

Add spices, then flour, and mix well. Cook, stirring for about 30 seconds. Stir in stock and bring to a full boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in cream.

Cheesy Meatball Sliders

Do you like beef? Lots of ooey, gooey cheese? Marinara sauce? Cute slider buns (OK, I might be alone on that one)? If so, then you'll want to make this recipe!

This is another one from Iowa Girl Eats. When I saw it, I knew Nate would love it, and I can't help but love anything stuffed with string cheese. Mmm ...

These sliders were really, really, really (you get the picture!) good. I probably said that a few times as we ate dinner. Nate loved them, too (beef and cheese? I knew it was a winner!).

I followed Kristin's recipe pretty much exactly, except that we halved the recipe so we had 8 meatballs rather than 16 (although, thinking about it now, we should have made more!), and we made up our own Italian seasoning mix -- dried parsley, basil and oregano.

We will definitely be making these again, and we're already brainstorming different varieties. One that we will likely make soon is Greek meatball sliders -- meatballs stuffed with feta and topped with tzatziki, tomatoes and red onions. Yum!

Chicken with Beer BBQ Sauce

This recipe comes from the Cooking With Beer recipe booklet my parents gave Nate a while ago. The recipe -- Pork Chops With Lager-Infused BBQ Sauce -- obviously calls for pork chops, but we had some boneless, skinless chicken thighs we used instead.

The recipe calls for a marinade and then a BBQ sauce to have on the side. Everything was tasty, and I'd definitely make it again. We (well, really, Nate ...) added a little too much beer to the sauce, it was a little more liquidy than it probably should have been. So stick to the measurements!

The recipe also calls for you to grill the chicken, which we did, but you could bake it in the oven just as easily.

For the chicken marinade:

• 1 cup lager (we used Lakefront Riverwest Stein) 
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 Tbs. molasses
• 1 teas. chili powder
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 3/4 teas. salt
• 1/4 teas. black pepper

Combine all ingredients besides salt and pepper in a resealable storage bag. Refrigerate 2 hours, turning occasionally.

Prepare grill for direct cooking. Remove chicken from marinade and discard marinade. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Grill over medium-high heat about 7 minutes per side or until cooked through. Serve with BBQ sauce.

For the BBQ sauce:

• 1/2 cup lager
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 3 Tbs. maple syrup
• 2 Tbs. finely chopped onion
• 1 Tbs. molasses
• 1 Tbs. cider vinegar
• 1/2 teas. chili powder

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer 10-12 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.

Italian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I've wanted to make lettuce wraps for a long time. I always enjoy them when I order them as an appetizer, and they seem easy and healthy. When I saw a recipe for Chicken Lettuce Wraps in the September 2011 Cooking Light -- even though they're Italian-flavored, rather than the typical Asian-flavored -- I thought I'd give it a try.

I made a few adjustments, based on what we had and what I could find:

• I ended up cooking the onions a bit with the chicken. I thought the raw onion flavor might be too overpowering.
• Instead of green olives (which I love but Nate does not like), I used capers, which we already had.
• I couldn't find Bibb lettuce, so I just big leaves of green lettuce.

Unfortunately, this dish didn't turn out well at all (which, if I would have read the comments on the recipe, I would have discovered others didn't care for it either). It really didn't have much flavor, and surprisingly, the lettuce flavor was really overpowering. I think some of it had to do with the fact that the chicken I used -- while it was safe in the freezer -- was fairly old and dry.

I'd love to try making lettuce wraps again, but I think I'll go for the more traditional Asian-flavored ones. Anyone have a good recipe?

Beer-Baked French Fries

As many of you know, Nate is a home brewer. He often tweets (@NathanAlesBrew, if you're interested) about beer trends, new beers and meals involving beer. It was one of these posts that caught my eye.

He posted this recipe for Garlic and Salted Beer-Baked French Fries, and I thought they would pair nicely with some buffalo burgers. The fries were really easy to make. The recipe suggests using New Belgium's Somersault beer, but anything is fine. We used a random bottle we had in the fridge: Scrimshaw, a pilsner, from North Coast Brewing.

The only thing I might do different next time is use garlic powder and/or garlic salt, rather than minced garlic. Many of the bits of garlic fell off the potatoes and burned.

If I remember correctly, we baked our fries for about 40 minutes. Unless they're really thick-cut, I don't think you'd want to bake them for an hour.

Salmon & Peach-Tomato Salsa

I picked up some wild salmon at Trader Joe's the last time I was there and had been keeping it in the freezer for future use. I remembered this Cooking Light cover recipe for Grilled King Salmon with Tomato-Peach Salsa from the July 2011 issue, and thought it would be a good one to make.

And it turns out it was. Super tasty, easy and healthy. I didn't use mint because I didn't want to buy too much and have it go to waste. Also, we only had two pieces of salmon, which were about 8 oz. each. We made the entire batch of salsa, though, and had it with other leftovers later in the week. Lastly, I didn't use grape tomatoes, but rather just regular, big tomatoes because we already had some. I think they worked fine, they just made the salsa a little more liquidy.

The only thing that didn't work so well with this recipe is that we overcooked the salmon, something we do too often. The grill was too hot, so the salmon was rather dry. But, with a lot of salsa on top, it was hard to tell it was overcooked.

I'd definitely make this recipe again, and I'd use the salsa for just about anything--including to just have with chips!

Tater Tot Casserole

A few weeks ago, my friend (and neighbor and former coworker) Jessie gave birth to her adorable baby boy. I thought I'd whip up a casserole for them to keep in the freezer for a night when they were looking for a quick-and-easy home-cooked meal.

I found a recipe for Tater Tot Hot Dish in my Hot Dish Heaven cookbook that I thought Jessie, her husband and two-year-old would enjoy. Upon hearing what I was making, Nate exclaimed, "Aw, you make all the good stuff for everyone else!" (Whatever that means--although it probably means I'll be making it for us sometime in the near future.)

The casserole came together really easily. Jessie and family ate it a few weeks later, and she said it was good. She baked it from frozen for an extra hour, and said the only thing she'd do differently next time is broil it for a few minutes at the end.

Tater Tot Hot Dish

Makes 4 servings

• 1 lb. regular or lean ground beef or ground turkey


• 1 onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)


• 2 cups (8 oz.) frozen vegetables, such as peas and carrots or mixed veggies


• 10-oz. can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup (I used mushroom)


• 1/2 cup milk


• 16 oz. frozen package of tater tots (so ... rereading the recipe, I notice it says "1/2 package." I most definitely used the entire package! So use anywhere from half the package to the whole package.)

Heat oven to 350*.

In a large skillet, brown meat and onion lightly. Spread in shallow 10x10 or 9x13 baking dish. Spread veggies over meat, making an even layer. Stir together soup and milk until smooth. Drizzle soup mixture over veggies. Arrange tater tots in a single layer over soup.

Bake 1 hour or until tots are browned.