Purple Cow Frozen Yogurt

Happy Birthday to me! I decided to share this delicious treat in celebration of my birthday. It is one of the best things I have made in my ice cream maker. My KA mixer ice cream attachment was a gift from mom for my birthday last year. It has certainly been used this year! The bowl just lives in our freezer, ready to make ice cream whenever we need it to. I love Greek yogurt, so it is no surprise that I enjoy it in this fro yo. There are many flavor combinations in my head that I can make with this frozen yogurt base, and I hope to do some experimenting soon. This recipe was taken from Cook Like A Champion.

You will need:
*3 cups 2% Greek yogurt (the nonfat kind will not work well, trust me!)
*1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*2/3 cup, plus 1 tablespoon sugar
*2 cups blackberries
*semi sweet chocolate chips
*white chocolate chips

1. Combine yogurt, sugar and vanilla and stir until sugar is disolved. Cover and refrigerate for one hour.

2. Wash and dry blackberries and puree in a food processor. Strain the blackberries to separate the liquid from the seeds. Then stir in one tablespoon of sugar. Cover and refrigerate one hour.

3. After at least an hour, add blackberry puree to yogurt mixture and stir until combined.

4. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. The yogurt will be a soft serve consistency. Place into an airtight container and mix in the chocolate chips. Keep in freezer until yogurt is completely frozen.
*I needed to let the yogurt sit out a bit before serving because it was too hard right from the freezer.

RR's Pesto Chicken Grill Packets

It's the inevitable approaching end to August. The back to school excitement, anticipation, and stress is coming! I love the newness of a new class, new classroom setup, and unpacking all of the new supplies. I always say in January when people make resolutions that my new year officially starts in September just after labor day. At this point, the to-do list is ambitious, and I am trying to balance accomplishments for work with enjoying the last moments of a flexible schedule. I am using our grill as much as possible these next couple weeks. Before we know it, we will be getting home from work in the dark and craving fall foods. The first week of school is always so draining, and I think I will remake this simple Rachael Ray recipe one night. It is taken from the blog Everything Rachael Ray. If you like pesto, then I think you will like this recipe. I used full sized chicken breasts and increased the cooktime to 40 minutes. We enjoyed these with some grilled corn on the cob.

You will need:
*Olive oil
*4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 2 pounds)
*Salt and pepper
*1 cup pesto
*2 zucchini, thinly sliced
*3 plum tomatoes, chopped
*8 scallions, trimmed

1. Preheat a grill to medium.

2. Cut four sheets of heavy-duty foil, each about 1 foot long. Drizzle 1 teaspoon olive oil into the center of each sheet.

3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Lay 1 piece of chicken in the center of each sheet and spread 1 tablespoon pesto on top.

4. Mound one-quarter of the zucchini, tomatoes and scallions over each chicken breast. Add 3 tablespoons pesto over each mound of veggies. Fold the foil over the chicken and vegetables pinching the edges to seal.

5. Cover and grill the packets over indirect heat for 25 minutes. Remove from the grill and open carefully. (I did closer to 40 because I didn't half the chicken breast, and I am terrified of undercooked chicken!)

It's been a year peach cobbler

Wow, I cannot believe I started this little blog one year ago. This past year has been the fastest one I have ever experienced in my life. I look forward to to continuing documenting our tried recipes and sharing them here. It is impressive how much less Dave and I eat out, and we rarely ever get takeout. Weekly menu planning is not even a chore anymore, but it has become something I truly enjoy. Dave has even began offering ideas for dinner to try. We started with the goal to try one new recipe a week, and we have expanded to cooking new foods in new ways quite frequently. I find many different recipes through cooking magazines, websites, and other blogs. My Google Reader is one of my favorite things to look through each day. This year we also signed up for a CSA share through a local farm. This has provided us fresh summer produce, and forced us to try some new things. Our share will continue into October, and I hope to feature more recipes made with our fresh produce.
In honor of my 1-year-blogiversary, here is a sweet summer peach cobbler. I made this using peaches we received in last week's CSA. I scaled down the butter and sugar in this recipe, and it was still nice and sweet. A very summery dessert.

Peach Cobbler
Adapted from My Recipes

You will need:
*5 tbsp unsalted butter
*1 cup all-purpose flour
*1 1/2 cups of sugar, divided
*1 tbsp baking powder
*Pinch of salt
*1 cup milk
*4 cups fresh peach slices
*1 lemon juiced
*Ground cinnamon or nutmeg (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Melt butter in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish.

3. Combine flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt; add milk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter over butter (do not stir).

4. Bring remaining 1 cup sugar, peach slices, and lemon juice to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly; pour over batter (do not stir). Sprinkle with cinnamon, if desired.

5. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve cobbler warm or cool. (We prefer warm)

Buffalo Chicken Burger

We love most things buffalo, so it was no surprise we enjoyed these burgers. My goal this summer is using our grill as much as possible, and I think I am succeeding! I found this recipe on The Tiny Tyrant's Kitchen. As soon as I saw it, I knew it would be a simple, tasty meal. This was great served with some bleu cheese dressing and raw vegetables on the side.

You will need:
*1 pound ground chicken
*2 - 4 oz. bleu cheese crumbles (I just topped the burgers and didn't measure)
*1 egg
*1/2 cup bread crumbs
*1/4 cup - 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce (Frank's Red Hot is my favorite!)
*salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
1) Preheat the grill to medium-high.

2) Mix ground chicken, bread crumbs, egg, wing sauce, salt, and pepper in bowl until well mixed. Divide mixture into eight even patties.

3) Top four of the patties with the bleu cheese crumbles and top with another patty. Seal the sides.

4) Place burgers on on the grill over indirect heat. Cook them for about 8-12 minutes a side.

5) Serve on a bun with extra bleu cheese crumbles or dressing.

Baked Tortellini

It has been a busy, stressful couple of weeks around here. This has been changing our meal times, and some nights we have not even had dinner. (Luckily, things are starting to look up!) I was craving comfort food big time last week. Comfort food to me=cheesy. I made this for lunch one day, and then Dave was able to enjoy it for dinner. It definitely hit the spot.

You will need:
*cheese tortellini-13 oz.
*tomato sauce-1 1/2 cups
*cream cheese-about 4 oz.
*garlic powder-1 tsp
*shredded mozzerella-1/2 cup
(you can use the amount you need. I made this in my 8x8 pyrex)

1) Preheat oven to 350.Cook tortellini according to package instructions. While tortellini is cooking, heat the tomato sauce and cream cheese in a small sauce pan stirring occasionally.

2) Once the cream cheese melts, add the garlic powder.

3) Pour cooked tortellini into a baking pan and cover in the sauce mixture. Top with shredded mozzerella.

4) Bake for about 20 minutes.

Chicken Caprese Couscous

How is it August?! I just can't believe how fast this summer is going by.

I made this recipe for lunch last week. The tomato, basil, and mozzarella were all leftover after making caprese skewers for a friend's bridal shower. As always, I bought way more ingredients than I needed. When feeding a crowd, I always opt to have leftovers than to have too little.

You will need:
*cooked chicken cut into bite sized pieces (optional)
*couscous (I used one cup)
*grape tomatoes
*fresh mozzarella
*fresh basil
*balsamic vingear

1) Boil one cup of water; add salt and stir in couscous. Remove pan from the heat and keep covered for 5 minutes.

2) Fluff couscous with a fork. Mix in your desired amount of chicken, tomato, basil, and fresh mozzarella. I enjoyed this with a dash of balsamic vinegar.

This makes a great summery side dish.

Kielbasa Bites

We celebrated my Dad's June birthday at our new house. He loves kielbasa so I decided to try this easy appetizer. We found another winner! These require only two, maybe three, ingredients and cook for one hour. I found these on Lauren's Kitchen during football season, and I will surely make them for games this fall.

You will need:
* 1 package kielbasa (I used just over a pound)
*12oz ginger ale

1. Chop the kielbasa into slices about 1/2"-1" inch thick.

2. Place in a medium to large skillet and pour the ginger ale over the top.

3. Bring to a slow boil and then simmer, stirring occasionally, until brown and caramelized and all liquid is gone- about 45 minutes to an hour.

4. Serve with a mustard if you desire.

Basic Burgers

(The burger is photographed above with my favorite summer beverage-Sam Summer
and on my favorite new outdoor space-our deck)

I am posting this from my NEW laptop! I am so excited because everything is working smoothly again. I loved my old iBook that my parents gifted to me to start grad school. After 6 years, the machine still worked pretty well, but I filled the hard drive with pictures, music, and documents. I couldn't even upgrade my operating system for the past year. So overtime websites failed to load.

Also getting an update recently was my go-to burger recipe. I have been browsing the Home Goods store frequently now that I am a home owner, and on my last visit Everyday Food: Great Food Fast caught my eye. I love this cookbook! It is separated by seasons and each recipe has a wonderful picture. I just look cookbooks with pictures. The first recipe I made from this book was the "Best Beef Burgers." They are simple, cheap, and tasty. I grilled some onions to serve on ours, and I also topped them with pickles, cheese, and ketchup.

You will need:
*2 pounds ground chuck (I used 1.5 pounds of lean)
*1 tablespoon dijon mustard
*1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
*course salt and pepper

1) Heat grill to high.

2) In a medium bowl, use a fork to gently combine beef, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce; season with salt and pepper.

3) Gently form mixture into four 1-inch-thick patties. Place patties on hottest part of grill; sear until browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Move patties to cooler part of grill; continue grilling until desired doneness, 4 to 8 minutes per side.
(This method never works for me! I tried it again without much success, and I hope you have better luck. I prefer to set the grill to medium-high and cook the burgers about 7-9 minutes a side)

4) Serve with any toppings you desire.

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

Coarse salt and pepper

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Best Beef Burger and more delicious recipes, smart cooking tips, and video demonstrations on marthastewart.com

Basil Pork Chops with a side of Caesar Penne

This dinner was taken directly from Katie's Cucina. The flavor combo sounded interesting to me so we gave it a try and it worked really well! A big bonus was how easy it was to prepare on a week night. I overcooked the pork chops on the grill so next time I will be a bit more cautious.

You will need:
* 4 boneless pork chops
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
* 2 tsp dried basil (divide use)
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1/2 tsp mild chili powder
* 1 tbsp canola oil
* 1/2 cup Caesar dressing
(I love Ken's Caesar Vinaigrette-it is lighter and I only used about 1/4 cup)
* 1/4 cup sliced black olives, drained (I had to omit because Dave won't touch olives)
* 1/4 cup onions, diced
* 1/4 cup chicken broth
* 2 tbsp green onions, diced
* 1 tbsp minced garlic
* 2 cups penne pasta

Directions
1. Place pork chops in a zip lock bag and add brown sugar, 1-1/2 tsp dried basil, salt, chili powder, 1 tbsp canola oil. Seal bag and distribute ingredients evenly over pork chops.

2. Boil water for pasta and salt well. Cook pasta as directed. Drain pasta and return the empty sauce pan to the stove.

3. Add the diced onions, minced garlic, and chicken broth to the pasta pot for 2-3 minutes on medium-high heat. Add Caesar dressing, olives, and green onions. Cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add the penne pasta back to the pot, mix well, and cook on low until pork chops are done.

3. Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray and cook pork chops over medium heat 5-8 minutes on each side or until browned and internal temperature reads 160F.
*I grilled mine which clearly didn't turn out so well. Next time, I will try a lower heat and longer cook time. In the summer, I try to grill anything I can!

Serve chops with a side of the Caesar penne.

Zucchini Turkey Burger

I have never made a recipe from Gina's blog that I didn't like. I highly recommend checking all of her great ideas for lightened up recipes while still tasting delicious. These burgers were made on our Cuisinart Griddler, and I think next time I would try them on the grill. Turkey burgers are always a mess on the grill, but I don't usually mind because I love any excuse to use our new Webber! We enjoyed these with a side of kale chips.

You will need:
* 1.25 lbs lean ground turkey
* 1 zucchini, grated
* 1/4 cup seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs
* 1 clove garlic, grated
* 1 tbsp red onion, grated
* salt and fresh pepper
*cheese, optional
*garnish-tomato and red onion slices

1) Combine ground turkey, zucchini, breadcrumbs, garlic, onion, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Make 4-6 equal-sized patties.

2. Heat the grill to high. Add the burgers and reduce the heat. Cook one side until browned, then flip. You will need to flip a few times to prevent burning and to cook the burgers thoroughly. Add a cheese slice to each burger if desired.

3. Serve on buns with tomato and red onion.