Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

Salt
1 pound short cut wheat pasta, such as macaroni, ziti or penne rigate
1 bag frozen cauliflower
3 tablespoons butter
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 tablespoons flour
About 2 1/2 cups skim milk
Freshly ground black pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg
3-4 sprigs fresh sage leaves, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, divided
1 cup Gruyère cheese, divided
1 cup shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, divided

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Bring the water to a boil for the pasta. Salt the water and undercook the pasta by 2 minutes to allow for baking later.

While the water comes to a boil, heat the cauliflower in the microwave. If desired, cut the cauliflower into smaller pieces.

Over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the onion and garlic. Sauté for 3-4 minutes, until tender. Add in the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and season with salt, pepper, nutmeg and sage. When thickened, stir in the Dijon mustard and two-thirds of the combined cheeses.

Drain the pasta and add the cauliflower. Stir in the cheese sauce, transfer to baking dish and top with the remaining cheese.

Bake until brown on a baking sheet to catch the bubble-over. The casserole will take 40-45 minutes to heat through.

Adapted from rachaelray.com

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Ingredients:
1/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
5 teaspoons butter, melted
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 teaspoon paprika
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 thin slices ham
4 slices Swiss Cheese
Cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place broth in a small microwave-safe bowl; microwave at high 15 seconds or until warm. Stir in butter and garlic. Combine breadcrumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and paprika in a medium shallow bowl; set aside.

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap, and pound each to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with salt, oregano, and pepper. Top each breast half with 1 slice of ham and 1 slice of Swiss Cheese. Roll up each breast half jelly-roll fashion. Dip each roll in chicken broth mixture; dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Place rolls, seam side down, in an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Pour remaining broth mixture over chicken. Bake at 350° for 28 minutes or until juices run clear and tops are golden.

From http://www.cookinglight.com/

Fresh Eggnog

Ingredients:
4 egg yolks
1/3 C sugar plus 1 T
1 pint skim milk
1 C fat free half & half
1 pinch nutmeg
1/4 t vanilla
4 egg whites

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, half and half, nutmeg, and vanilla and stir to combine.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running, gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

For cooked eggnog follow the procedure below:

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine the milk, heavy cream and nutmeg and bring just to a boil stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, pour into a medium mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.

Using pasteurized egg whites, in a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. With the mixer running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture.

Recipe from foodnetwork.com

CrockPot Lingonberry Pork Roast

The original recipe uses cranberry sauce instead of lingonberries, but I happened to have a jar of lingonberry sauce in the cabinet, which I prefer to cranberries, so we used that instead with very good results.

This has become one of our favorites! How can you go wrong with pork tenderloin and Lingon? Plus it means we were probably at Ikea recently, which always makes me happy =)

Ingredients
1 (2.5-3 lb) pork loin roast or rib roast
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 jar of Lingonberry Preserves from Ikea
1/3 cup golden raisins
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/3 cup cranberry juice
1/2 small lemon, thinly sliced

Instructions
In a plastic zipper bag, put dry spices and cornstarch and add meat. Shake to coat. Put contents into your slow cooker. Add lingonberry sauce. Put in raisins and garlic. Pour in cranberry juice, and top with lemon slices. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for about 4. The longer you cook the meat, the more tender it will be.

Adapted from http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

Jalapeno Baked Fish with Potatoes

The first time I made this I used a can of Rotel and jalapenos, and it came out a bit too hot. I think next time we'll stick to either just Rotel or plain tomatoes and jalapenos. I did have to cook the potatoes a bit longer to get them cooked through, but that was no big deal. Just make sure your potatoes are done before you start putting the other ingredients in!

Jalapeno Baked Fish with Potatoes

4 medium (1 pound total) red-skin boiling or Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced ¼-inch thick
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
Salt
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
1 large garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
About ¼ cup sliced canned pickled jalapenos
1 tablespoon jalapeno pickling juice
Four 4- to 5-ounce (1 to 1¼ pounds total) skinless fish fillets, preferably ¾ to 1 inch thick

1. Turn on the oven to 400 degrees. Scoop the sliced potatoes into a microwaveable 8×8-inch baking dish. Drizzle on the oil and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Toss to coat, then spread the potatoes in an even layer. Cover with plastic wrap and poke a couple of holes in the top. Microwave on high until the potatoes are nearly tender, about 4 to 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, combine the tomatoes with their juice, garlic, jalapenos, and pickling juice. Process to a puree, leaving just a little texture.

3. Lay the fish fillets in a single layer over the potatoes. Pour the tomato mixture evenly over the fish and potatoes.

4. Slide the baking dish into the oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the fish flakes when pressed firmly.

5. Scoop a portion of the fish-potato-sauce onto each dinner plate and serve right away.

From http://www.crumblycookie.net/

Eggnog Marshmallows

These actually did not turn out so great. Next time I will stick with Alton Brown's recipe, which I made for Christmas last year. I would recommend his version over these.

Ingredients

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (4-1/4 tsp.)
• 3/4 cup cold water
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup light-colored corn syrup
• 1/3 cup refrigerated egg white product or 2 pasteurized egg whites*
• 1/4tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. rum extract
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 4 oz. white baking chocolate with cocoa butter or vanilla-flavored candy coating, chopped
• White nonpareils

Directions
Lightly coat an 8x8x2-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line pan with plastic wrap or line bottom of pan with waxed paper or parchment paper. Coat the plastic or paper with nonstick cooking spray; set pan aside.

In a large metal or heatproof bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup of the cold water; set aside.

In a 2-quart heavy saucepan stir together remaining 1/4 cup water, 1-3/4 cups of the sugar, and the corn syrup until combined. Bring to boiling over medium-high heat. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the saucepan (see Candy Thermometer, below). Cook, without stirring, over medium-high heat until thermometer registers 260 degrees F, (hard-ball stage) 12 to 15 minutes total. Remove from heat; pour over gelatin mixture in bowl and stir well to combine (mixture will foam up).

Meanwhile, in a clean large mixing bowl beat the egg whites and salt with an electric mixer on high speed until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight), 3 to 4 minutes. Beat in rum extract and nutmeg until combined. With the mixer running on high speed, gradually add gelatin mixture to egg white mixture, beating about 7 minutes or until thick (like the consistency of thick, pourable cake batter). Quickly pour marshmallow mixture into prepared pan, spreading to edges of pan. Lightly coat another piece of plastic wrap with nonstick cooking spray; place, coated side down, over marshmallow mixture. Let stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours until firm.

Remove plastic wrap from top of marshmallows. In a small bowl combine powdered sugar and cornstarch; sprinkle about a quarter of the mixture evenly onto a large cutting board. Loosen sides of marshmallows, if necessary, and carefully invert onto the cutting board. Remove plastic wrap or paper. Sprinkle top with some of the remaining powdered sugar mixture. Using a knife that has been dipped in warm water, cut square into 20 marshmallows. Place squares, a few at a time, in a large resealable plastic bag. Add remaining powdered sugar mixture; seal bag and toss to coat all sides of marshmallows with powdered sugar mixture.

In a small saucepan, cook and stir white chocolate just until melted. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes or until cooled but not set. Spread in a thin, even layer over the top of the marshmallows. Top with nonpareils. Store marshmallows between sheets of waxed paper or parchment paper in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Or freeze for up to 1 month. Bring to room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Makes 20 large marshmallows.

If you cannot find pasteurized egg whites, you can use regular egg whites that have been heated to a safe temperature: In a small saucepan stir together two egg whites, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon water, and 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar just until combined but not foamy. Heat and stir over low heat until mixture registers 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. There may be a few pieces of cooked egg white in the mixture. Remove from heat. Place saucepan in a large bowl half-filled with ice water. Stir for 2 minutes to cool mixture quickly. Place egg white mixture in the large mixer bowl. Continue as directed in step 4.

Cooking to the correct temperature is crucial when making most candies, ensuring toffees turn out crunchy and caramels stay chewy. Our Test Kitchen prefers a digital thermometer with a clip to attach it to the side of the pan. Before making candy, always calibrate the thermometer per manufacture's instructions.

From Better Homes and Gardens December 2010 Issue

Oreo Peppermint Bark

Ingredients

1 pound dark chocolate
1 pound white chocolate
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
10 Oreos, roughly chopped (I used the festive holiday ones!)
1/2 cup crushed peppermints

Directions

Melt the dark chocolate bark in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between. Pour out onto a large sheet of wax paper and smooth it out into one even (thin) layer with a spatula (an offset spatula works perfectly for this). Let sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, until hardened. Next, melt the white chocolate bark.

When the chocolate is hardened, stir the peppermint extract into the melted white chocolate bark. Pour over the dark chocolate layer and spread out evenly to the edges with a spatula.

Sprinkle the Oreos and crushed peppermints in an even layer over the top. Let sit until completely dried and hardened, about 20 or 30 minutes.

Break into pieces and serve. Enjoy!

Adapted from Sing for Your Supper, http://www.singforyoursupperblog.com/