I Love Greek Food!!!

I've always enjoyed Greek food. My #1 favourite restaurant is Opa! in Halifax. Since I can't get to Opa! I've recently started to cook some Greek food at home and am excited about how great it turns out!

A few nights ago we had Moussaka which is like a Greek lasagna.

Moussaka

serves 4

1 pounds eggplant, peeled (if desired) and cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1/2 pounds beef, lean ground

8 ounce(s) tomato sauce with basil, garlic, and oregano

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, ground

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoon flour, all-purpose

1/4 teaspoon salt

dash(es) pepper, black ground

1/2 cup milk, fat-free

1/2 cup yogurt, low-fat plain

1/2 cup cheese, ricotta, low-fat

1/3 cup refrigerated or frozen egg product, thawed

cheese, Parmesan, thinly sliced

- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a very large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add eggplant; cook about 6 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Set aside.

- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook ground meat until browned. Drain off fat. Stir in tomato sauce and 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, about 8 minutes or until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Divide meat mixture among 4 individual 12- to 14-ounce au gratin or baking dishes. Top with eggplant.

- In a small saucepan melt butter. Stir in the flour, salt, and pepper. Add milk and yogurt all at once. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly; remove from heat. Stir in ricotta cheese. Stir in egg product. Spoon atop eggplant. Sprinkle lightly with additional ground cinnamon.

- Bake, uncovered, about 25 minutes or until heated through. Top with Parmesan, if desired. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Tonight, we had Ancient Shrimp in a Honey Glaze and Spinach Balls. DELICIOUS! We will definitely be having this again sometime soon. The glaze on the shrimp is an excellent "syrup" for the spinach balls which are similar to pancakes.

Ancient Greek Shrimp in Honey Glaze

serves 2

50 - 60 shrimp (if frozen, defrost and strain them, remove tails)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp soya sauce

2 tbsp honey

fresh basil (2 leaves, cut up)

1 tsp flour

- Place the oil, soya sauce and honey in a frying pan and add the shrimp.

- Saute for 2-3 minutes until they soften.

- Remove the shrimp

- Transfer the honey mixture to a small pot and add the flour.

- Boil until it thickens (about 2 minutes)

- Pour the sauce over the shrimp

Spinach Balls

serves 3

2 cups fresh spinach (or 1 cup cooked)

1/4 cup diced onion

2 eggs

8 tbsp flour

4 tbsp parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Pepper

- Lightly boil spinach (put spinach in microwavable bowl with 1/2 cup water, cover with plastic wrap and cook in microwave for 1 minute)

- Strain the spinach well

- Chop the spinach finely

- Dice the onions

- Beat the eggs, flour and the cheese in a bowl.

- Add spinach and onions

- Season with salt and pepper.

- Mix well. (it should make a thick dough like cookie dough. If it needs to be thicker, add more flour)

- Use a spoon or scoop to place medium sized balls of mixture in a frying pan with 1/3 cup olive oil

- Fry on both sides until golden brown. (about 3 minutes per side)

The BEST Seafood Chowder!

I love both seafood and chowders. So, the combination is one of my favourites.
This seafood chowder was SO creamy and delicious but I also have a still yummy but much healthier version.


Slow Cooker Seafood Chowder
serves 6

1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced carrots
1/3 cup diced onion
1/4 cup bacon bits
1 cup scallops
1 cup shrimp
3 cups salmon
2 cups lobster (or crab)
seasoning (basil, garlic chives, sea salt, etc)
2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup cream cheese
2 cups milk
4 tbsp corn starch mixed with 4 tbsp broth

Add all ingrediants (except corn starch mix) to slow cooker and cook, uncovered, on low for 6 hours.

Add corn starch mixture and cook, uncovered, on low for 1 hour.

Serve with rolls.

* To make it much healthier, replace the whipping cream and milk with 2 cups skim milk and 2 cups water mixed with 1/2 cup dry seafood or clam chowder mix)

Banana Bread

I was craving Banana Bread the other day so I looked for the easiest recipe I could find. It called for mayonaise, so I was a bit skeptical but I tried it anyway. It was YUMMY!!


I made it in a mini loaf pan, so they turned out super cute!

Banana Bread
makes 8 mini loaves

2/3 cup Mayo
1/3 cup vanilla yogurt
(if you don't have yogurt, you can use a full cup mayo and 1 tsp vanilla flavour)
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Combine yogurt, mayo and bananas in large bowl.
Mix flour, sugar and baking soda.
Add to banana mixture; stir just until moistened. (Batter will be lumpy.)

Scoop into greased mini loaf pan, or a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

Bake on 350F until until wooden toothpick inserted in centre comes clean. (about 1 hour for the loaf pan or 25 minutes for the mini loaves)

Leftovers Lasagna

This is a super easy way to make Lasagna and a very yummy way to get rid of leftovers!



I submitted this recipe in a cooking contest.

Ingredients for 4 servings:
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 jar of your favourite pasta sauce
• 3 cups left over pasta (i used Catelli Healthy Harvest Spaghettini)
• 1 cup left over carrots (diced)
• 1 cup left over zucchini (diced and peeled)
• 1 cup left over onion (diced)
• 1 cup left over celery (diced)
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 cup Light Laughing Cow Cheese (about 6 wedges)
• 1 cup light sour cream
• 1 egg
• 1 cup grated cheese
• Parsley
Instructions:
This recipe can be made with almost any kind of leftovers you have.

Mix:
- left over meat (ie. chicken, ground beef, turkey, sausage etc)
- 1 jar of pasta sauce (any kind)
- all vegetables except spinach (any kind)

Mix:
- sour cream
- egg
- laughing cow cheese

Cover the bottom of a casserole dish with 1/3 of the meat sauce.
Add a layer of pasta (any kind; If you are using spaghetti as your pasta, it should be cut up.)
Cover the pasta with half of the cheese mixture.
Top with a layer of spinach.
Alternate meat sauce, pasta, cheese mixture, and spinach in that order ending with the meat sauce.
Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the final layer of meat sauce.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350F

Top with Parsley

Cheesy Bacon Pasta Salad

This is a recipe I made up for a contest.
The contest is for the best pasta salad recipe.

This one is really flavourful!



It makes about 6 servings

2 cups Catelli Healthy Harvest Rotini
1 cup cooked, diced chicken
1/3 cup jullienned or diced carrots
1/3 cup frozen or canned corn
1/4 cup real bacon bits
4 wedges Light Laughing Cow Cheese
1/4 cup light Caesar salad dressing
fresh parsley


1. Cook chicken in frying pan (or use leftover chicken); dice
2. Cook Corn, Carrots and Pasta (according to package directions) until tender
3. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water.
4. Mix together salad dressing and laughing cow cheese until well blended
5. Mix in a medium sized mixing bowl; pasta, chicken, bacon bits, dressing mixture until well coated.
6. Top with parsley and either serve warm, or refrigerate and serve cold.

Orchard Chicken Sandwich

K, I saw the ad for the Orchard Chicken Sub at Subway and thought it looked delicious so I had to buy it (I totally fall for commercials!)

It was delicious! So I looked up the recipe for the filling so we could make it at home.

(I stole this picture from the subway website because I forgot to take my own picture of the sandwiches we made.)



makes 6 large sandwiches

3 cups diced cooked chicken
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup diced celery
2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup diced apple
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional
4 to 6 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

toppings:
lettuce
pickles
honey mustard

Preparation:

- Combine the chicken, cranberries, celery, onion, apple, (and walnuts)
- In a small bowl combine 4 tablespoons of mayonnaise, the lemon juice, and salt and pepper.
- Stir into the chicken, adding more mayonnaise as needed and for taste. - Line bread or rolls with toppings and spread chicken salad on the bread or serve the chicken salad on lettuce-lined plates.

Pasta

This is a new recipe Steve and I discovered today. It was YUMMY!!! Ravioli is my favourite pasta and Steve loves all pasta but ravioli is his least favourite. He suggested trying to fry them. I looked up fried ravioli and found the recipe for T-Rav's (stands for toasted ravioli)



- Fresh ravioli (found in refrigerator section of grocery store) or frozen ravioli, cooked and slightly cooled

Combine in one bowl:
- 2 eggs
- Splash of milk

In another bowl, combine:
- Bread crumbs (Italian or regular)
- fresh, chopped basil
- Handful shredded or grated Parmesan cheese

Dip ravioli in egg mixture, then bread crumb mixture until evenly coated.
Fry in skillet filled with olive oil.
Let cook on each side a few minutes, until golden brown.
Serve with pasta sauce of your choice.

Shrimp Caesar Salad!

Steve and I both love Caesar salad. This version is a very easy meal!

Shrimp Caesar Salad



3/4 cup Caesar Dressing, divided
1 lb. cleaned large shrimp
1 bag butter lettuce
1/2 cup croutons

Fry shrimp in 1/4 cup of the dressing

TOSS salad with the remaining 1/2 cup dressing; divide evenly among 4 salad plates. Top with the shrimp; sprinkle with croutons.

Birthday Cake!

Ashley Campbell's birthday was May 5th so I made her my most favourite cake ever!

Creamy Easy Chocolate Torte



1 chocolate cake mix
4 skor bars (crushed)
2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa

Prepare cake mis in 2 9'' round cake pans according to package
Cool
Cut each layer in half

Combine whipping cream, sugar and cocoa.
Chill 15 minutes
Whip until stiff
Fold in 3 crushed skor bars
Spread cream mixture between layers and on top of cake.
Sprinkle remaining skor bar on top.
Chill until served.

Fruit Salsa!

It seems as though everything I make is either cheesy or creamy. Here is a healthier dessert.

Fruit Salsa
with cinnamon sugar chips


Cinnamon Tortillas
Spritz small tortillas with water
Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar
Cut into triangles
Bake at 400 degrees F until crispy (8 - 10 mins)

Fruit Salsa
makes enough for about 40 chips
2 Granny Smith apples
1 cup strawberries
1 kiwi
1 small orange
1 cup raspberries
2 tbsp fruit jam (any fruit)

Cut up the fruit into small pieces
Mix together with the jam.

Spinach!

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a large bag of spinach. I quickly realized that under normal usage, it would go bad before i could use it all. So, I made a whole bunch of spinach-based meals!
Luckily, I love spinach and Steve loves whatever I make :)

Hot Spinach Dip
this is one of our favourites
serves 14


3 cups chopped spinach
1 cup Miracle Whip Calorie-Wise Dressing
1/2 cup Parmesan Grated Cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. chopped roasted red peppers (I used bacon bits because we didn't have red peppers)

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Mix spinach, dressing, cheese and garlic until well blended.

SPOON into 9-inch pie plate or quiche dish.

BAKE 20 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with peppers. Serve with crackers or chips.

Cover and refrigerate any leftover dip. Stir into hot mashed potatoes for a delicious boost of flavour.



Crispy-topped Creamy Spinach
This is Steve's favourite way to eat spinach.
serves 12


6 cups chopped spinach
1 tub (250 g) Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Product
1/2 cup Ranch Dressing
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/2 cups Shredded Cheese, divided
1 cup crushed Ritz Crackers (or bread crumbs), divided

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Mix spinach, cream cheese spread, dressing, eggs and 3/4 cup of the shredded cheese in large bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup of the crushed crackers.

SPOON spinach mixture evenly into greased 2-L ovenproof casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup crushed crackers and remaining 3/4 cup shredded cheese.

BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until heated through and cheese on top is melted.


Shrimp & Spinach Pasta
This was very yummy!
makes 4 servings


Pasta (any kind)
Pasta Sauce (either make your own, or use your favourite store bought sauce)
1/4 cup Roasted Red Pepper with Parmesan Dressing (or any type of oily dressing)
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 lb. (340 g) cooked cleaned medium shrimp
1 pkg. (283 g) baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 Tbsp. Parmesan Light Grated Cheese

COOK pasta in large saucepan as directed on package.
Heat dressing in saucepan on medium-high heat. Add garlic; cook 1 min. Add shrimp; mix well. cook until the shrimp "close". Stir in pasta sauce and spinach; cover. Simmer 1 to 2 min. or until spinach is wilted, stirring occasionally.

SERVE on pasta topped with cheese.

Bruschetta

I love the movie Julie and Julia!!!! Every time I watch it I say to Steve "I have to bake something!"
There's one scene where Julie and her husband are eating Bruschetta. It looks SO good! Tonight I decided to make it. It turned out really well.



Bruschetta

2 tomatoes (diced)
1 red onion (diced)
2 tbsp chopped green onions
1/2 cup Italian salad dressing
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Mix it all together and refrigerate for a few hours.
Put spoonfuls of it on toasted french bread.

Soda Cracker Candy!

This is one of my very favourite recipes!
Mom used to make it for special events and she'd always make a pan for the event and a pan for us!
There are many variations to this recipe but none are as yummy as mom's!



Mom's Soda Cracker Candy

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
soda crackers
1 bag of chocolate chips

- Line a 9x13 cookie sheet with tin foil (fold it over the edges)
- Line the tin foiled cookie sheet with soda crackers so they are in straight lines with no gaps and no over lapping.
- Melt brown sugar and butter together on the stove over medium heat.
- Let the butter/sugar mixture boil for 3 minutes.
- Pour mixture over crackers and spread it so it covers all of the crackers
- Bake for 5 minutes in 325F
- Use a fork to gently straighten the crackers after the come out of the oven.
- Sprinkle with chocolate chips and wait 1 minute for them to melt before spreading the chocolate over the top of the crackers.
- Let it cool for about 2 hours.
- Break into pieces and enjoy!

Chicken!

On Monday I was grocery shopping and didn't get home until about 7pm so for supper we had an already cooked rotisserie chicken. It was yummy! We had with with Cesar salad, mashed potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and corn. I didn't get a picture.
There was enough left over chicken to make a few different chicken recipes this week.
Chicken Enchiladas, Creamy Chicken Stew and Chicken Pad Thai.

On Tuesday we had the BEST Chicken Enchiladas. It's my aunt's recipe. Everyone loves them!



Chicken Enchiladas (Brenda Earl)
Serves 12 (although everyone will want 2nds or 3rds or 4ths!)

2 cans Cream of Chicken soup (I use Cream of Mushroom)
2 c. sour cream (500 ml)
Mix well and cover bottom of 9x13 pan with a good layer of sauce.

2 cups Cooked and diced chicken
12 Soft tortilla wraps (7” or so)

toppings:
3/4 cup Salsa
2 cups Green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup Chives, chopped
2 cups Shredded cheese

Place chicken in a line down the center of the wrap. Add toppings. Roll tightly and place side by side (touching) in pan.
Cover with remainder of sauce and then shredded cheese
bake at 350F for 35 minutes.

This afternoon for lunch we had Creamy Chicken Stew with Garlic Parmesan bread sticks. The Stew is my own recipe. I love soups and stews but Steve isn't a fan unless they are very thick. So, this chicken stew is quite thick.
I got the bread stick recipe from my Aunt Brenda.



Creamy Chicken Stew (Slow Cooker)
Serves 4

about 12 small red potatoes, quartered and cooked (or a 3 cups of hash browns)
1 lb. (500 g) boneless skinless cooked chicken breasts, cut into bite-size chunks
1 can cream of mushroon soup (1/4 can water)
1/4 cup sour cream
2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup Herb & Garlic Cream Cheese Spread (or, Laughing Cow Cheese if you're trying to be careful about calories)
bacon bits
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
green onions
garlic salt to taste
1/2 cup sliced carrots

Add everything to the slow cooker and let it cook on high for 3 hours. When the carrots are soft enough for you, the stew is done!

Garlic Parmesan Bread Sticks
takes 1hr 15 minutes total

1tbsp yeast
1 1/2 cup warm water
2 tbsp white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups flour
1/4 cup butter (1 half of a block)
garlic salt
Parmesan cheese

Dissolve yeast in warm water for about 5 minutes
Mix in salt and flour
Raise for 20 minutes
Melt butter and pour half of it onto a cookie sheet
Roll dough to roughly the size of the cookie sheet
Cut into strips and place on sheet
Spread rest of butter on top of dough and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and garlic
salt
Raise for 20 minutes
Bake at 375F for 20 minutes

Salmon Parmesan and Vegetable Casserole

This was quite yummy. The vegetable casserole was particularly good. The fish could use a bit more flavour. Possible more taco seasoning, or maybe a spicier spice!



Salmon Parmesan
prep time 10 min
total time 25 min
makes 4 servings, 1 salmon fillet each

1/4 cup mayo
2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese
1/8 tsp. Taco seasoning
4 salmon fillets, skin removed
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 cup bread crumbs or shake'n bake
1/3 cup sour cream

HEAT oven to 400°F.
MIX mayo, cheese and taco seasoning, bread crumbs and sour cream until well blended.
PLACE fish in shallow foil-lined pan; drizzle with lemon juice. Top with mixture; spread to evenly cover fish.
BAKE 12 to 15 min. or until fish flakes easily with fork.


Vegetable Casserole
prep time 10 min
total time 40 min
makes 8 servings, 3/4 cup each

1 pkg. Stuffing Mix
1 pkg. frozen broccoli/cauliflower/corn etc (use just one type, or mix multiple vegetables)
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup shredded cheese

HEAT oven to 350°F.
PREPARE stuffing as directed on package.
COMBINE remaining ingredients in 2-L casserole; cover with stuffing.
BAKE 30 min. or until heated through.

Another food blog

Hello!

I am aware that there are about 10 billion food blogs out there and I am aware that I am not a professional or even a highly experienced chef, but I do love to cook and bake and my husband thinks I'm pretty talented!

My "thing" is to come up with new recipes based on old favourites. The easier the better! Although easy-but-fancy-looking is even better!

The purpose of this blog is to help figure out what to have for supper. Feel free to look at my ideas and then change them to make them your own! I hope you enjoy :)