Is this really Fettuccine Alfredo?

I have a love/hate relationship with fettuccine alfredo. I love it, but I will never order it or make it for myself. I’m not one of those people that can allow myself a few bites of something decadent and then be done. No, I would polish off my entire plate of fettuccine and then be ready for some dessert. As you can see, I don’t have too much willpower, so I just avoid the problem altogether. So when I saw this recipe for “Healthy” Fettuccine Alfredo in the Runner’s World magazine, I was very doubtful… and even more so doubtful when I saw the ingredients… corn starch and Greek yogurt? Eh, but what the heck, I tore the recipe out of the magazine (yes, I am one of those annoying people that will tear out recipes in magazines at the doctor’s office). I invited my friend Julia over for dinner, who is a fettuccine alfredo aficionado. Luckily for me, Julia is my best guinea pig and will try anything I make for her. What a great friend. As it turns out, the fettuccine was dang delicious. As a matter of fact, I really couldn’t tell a difference between this and the real thing? And this had barely a tap of butter and no cream!

For this recipe, I used the wrong kind of cheese (oops) I used the shredded parmesan that is found in the refrigerated cheese section found among the gourmet cheeses (I don’t know if I would recommend using the parmesan that everyone sprinkles on top of spaghetti in those green containers…) Altogether this recipe took me no more than 15 minutes to make, I made the alfredo sauce while I was waiting for pasta water to boil. So simple and so good.

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-303-504-13456-0,00.html

And apology for the photo, it was taken by a cell phone camera, so it's not the best lookin image in the world.. so don't judge by the picture please!

Tassajara Warm Red Cabbage Salad

I made this on Sunday night, the day I ran my half-marathon. Before the race, I had a big bowl of oatmeal, and during the race, I ate those fruit flavored gel things and afterwards I had a fruit smoothie. By the time 4:00 rolled around, I was craving something hearty and meaty after having straight carbs and fruity things all day. I chose to make lamb pitas; I had never cooked with lamb before, so I thought it'd be fun to try. Of course, I needed a side, and the sides always come to me at the last minute. I found this cabbage salad recipe that has been in my "recipes to try" pile for about a year now... I thought the lamb pitas would be the showstopper of the night and that's why the pitas dominate the picture! To my surprise the cabbage salad was definately the show stopper and something I would want everyone to have in their recipe box. This recipe is from my favorite cooking blog 101cookbooks.com

The link for the recipe: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/tassajara-warm-red-cabbage-salad-recipe.html

This cabbage salad is very beautiful with its bright purple red color and has a slightly sweet flavor from the raisins and a touch of balsamic vinegar. I did use the sunflower seeds... (if you want to substitute a different nut, I would just chop coursely and resume with the recipe). The whole salad came together for me in about 10 minutes, so its super simple, super quick, and super healthy. What's to hate?! Oh and I forgot to mention, the leftovers are even better!

Homemade Larabars

I love when I look at an ingredient list and know exactly what everything is. Sometimes, if I am in a rush and have no time to stop at home to cook, I’ll buy a Larabar. Larabars always have dates, some sort of nuts or other dried fruits, and that’s it for their ingredients. Larabars are small bars that come in many cool flavors, but they are about $2 a bar. They are not cheap…so I was excited when my friend, Julia, told me that she made homemade Larabars! It only took me two days to follow suit, and I loved the results! I got my inspiration from:
http://enlightenedcooking.blogspot.com/2008/02/home-made-lara-bars-energy-bars-part-3.html

Out of all the choices, I chose to make the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. If someone can make something that tastes like chocolate chip cookie dough AND is healthy then I’m all in! For those of you that insist that you are not cooks, this does not take much cooking skills at all.

First, I threw a cup of cashews in a food processor and ground up pretty fine. Then I took 10 dates (take the pits out!) and processed that until it resembled a paste…. then I processed about 2 tablespoons dark chocolate chips. I mixed all three processed things plus a splash of vanilla and smushed everything together with my hands and pushed into a loaf pan and flattened it so it’s about ½ inch thick. Put in the fridge for a bit (30 min) and then cut them up into bars. I wrapped each bar in plastic wrap and keep them stored in the fridge.

It’s SO easy, and the results taste just like chocolate chip cookie dough I swear! I’m so happy about this, because I can stash a healthy snack in my purse that tastes like it should be baked into chocolate chip cookies.

Time for Asparagus!

Soo I bought a bag of asparagus from Costco and it needed to be used up pronto (story of almost everything I make...) I was tired of plain ol' roasted asparagus, so I searched for a cool recipe that seemed fun. I found

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Mixed-Greens-with-Roasted-Asparagus-and-Apple-103490

It is a green salad topped with roasted asparagus, apples, and cheese. Totally sounded like my kind of dish, so I gave it a try. First of all, I had to go to my grocery store to buy the Gruyere cheese... and damn the cheese was expensive! I compared all the Gruyeres and tried to figure out the cheapest brand... the cheapest was about $7 for a little block of cheese (a bit bigger than a bar of soap!) I debated back and forth whether I should use or not use the cheese and shopped around and of course in the end I bought the expensive cheese because I didn't want to take chances on missing out on an amazing recipe. I guess Quality Ingredients equal better food. Right.

I had never bought Gruyere cheese, or cooked with it as a matter of fact. But I'm very glad I did, a bit on the asparagus salad tasted amazing and went very well with the fruit and asparagus.

This is a beautiful salad with a nice crunch and sweetness from the apples, the creaminess of the cheese, and the nice vinegary bite from the salad dressing.

Spring has sprung, so go on and buy some asparagus (and Gruyere while you are at it)!

Double Chocolate Espresso Brownies

Yum! I've made a number of espresso brownies, but these definately are my favorite! I made these as a thank-you gift for a friend who helped me with my financial homework (it's a fair trade I would say...) There is no way one can go wrong with chocolate and coffee in my opinion, but I jazzed these up a bit by adding a sugary glaze for a bit of a crunch and color and some chocolate covered espresso beans!

I got the brownie recipe from epicurious.com- http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Double-Chocolate-Mocha-Brownies-107431

Sometimes, I tend to do extra with recipes,and in this case, I topped the brownies with an espresso glaze, which is so easy and worth the extra step.
The Glaze:
-Dissolve 2 teaspoons instant espresso in 2 TB warm water
-Soften (melt almost) a TB of butter in microwave
-Mix espresso water, butter, and 1 cup of powdered sugar up with a whisk

I waited until the brownies cooled, and poured the glaze on top and pushed in some espresso beans into the glaze. After all is done, just put in frige and wait till glaze sets...and then Happy Eatin!

First time blogger

Hi!

This is my first blog... ever! Every one has a blog at the moment it seems like, and I enjoy reading about people's lives and various hobbies. Cooking is my favorite hobby, and I invest so much of my time into it, so I thought of course why not invest even more time with it and share my own recipes and thoughts! I am always looking at cooking blogs looking for fun new recipes to try out for my dinners; and they all make me drool and the photography is often stunning. There are so many blogs out there that I enjoy featuring only vegetarian recipes, desserts, and very gourmet dishes that even I would be intimidated to try. I am going to try different cusines and all sorts of fun new things! First recipe coming up soon!