Easy Apple Crisp

Wish you could have some apple crisp that was delicious and full of flavor but also under 200 calories a serving? My apple crisp is served in the apple itself, which means you can eat the entire thing and not feel guilty with all the butter and sugar you normally find in a dessert of this type. Hallowed out apples are re-stuffed with apple pieces that have been coating in a touch of sugar and spices then topped with a topping that becomes crispy once baked. Of course you can't have apple crisp without a bit of ice cream right? Trying having it with some non-fat greek yogurt instead. You'll never miss the calorie laden icecream along side this warm treat.

One Year Ago: Mac and Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli 
Two Years Ago: PB&J Cookies

What You Need:

4 medium sized apples
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c rolled oats (not quick oats)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tbs butter, melted
salt

What To Do:

Core your apples, don't worry that there is a whole in the bottom, we'll take care of that in a bit. Using a melon baller, or grapefruit spoon, remove most of the inside of the apple, leaving a shell about a 1/4 inch thick on all sides to hold your filling. You could probably use a regular spoon, but it's easier cutting through the flesh of the apple using one of the tools I mentioned.
Once your apples are cleaned out, take the innards and cut them into small pieces. Toss those pieces with 2 tbs of the brown sugar, the cinnamon, nutmeg and pinch of salt.
Mix the remaining 2 tbs of brown sugar with the rolled oat and the butter until it's fully incorporated. Everything should be moist and the stick together fairly well. Place a tiny bit of the oat mixture in the bottom of the apple. This will help to keep the juices inside. Fill each apple with 1/4 of your apple filling and then top each with 1/4 of the reaming oat mixture.
Bake in a preheated 350 oven for about 30 minutes or until the apples look a bit slumped, a knife easily pierces them and the topping is golden brown.

Each apple is 214 calories with 7 grams of fat, based on My Fitness Pal's calculator.
According to the same website, a normal serving (1 cup) of apple crisp is 412 calories and 15 grams of fat. My recipe is half that and just as good, if not better!

Classic Egg’s Benedict

I don’t do a lot of breakfast dishes on GOC and I’m not sure why. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I don’t cook breakfast that often? My kids love they’re cereal or scrambled eggs and I only make pancakes on the weekends so perhaps that has something to do with it. Lately however, I’ve been on this egg’s benedict kick. I’ve eaten them almost every morning for past week or so and I even purchased some Canadian bacon to do it the right way.  One of the main components of the dish, Hollandaise sauce, can be scary to make for some. You’ll see recipes out there telling you to use clarified butter or how you need to carefully and quickly whisk the sauce over a water bath. I’m here to tell you that this is not the case. You can do those things of course and make a perfect hollandaise the way that fancy chefs do it, or you can do the easy, only have a few minutes, mom way. With a blender. I have three different versions of Egg’s Benedict this week for you. This recipe is for the classic and will be the basic recipe that the other two are based off of.

What You Need:

Hollandaise:

2 egg yolks
1 tbs lemon juice
1 stick butter
salt and pepper

For Each Person:

1 English muffin, toasted
2 pieces of Canadian bacon, heated through
2 poached eggs (I cheat and use a store bought egg poaching pan)
2 tbs Hollandaise sauce
chopped parsley (optional)

What To Do:

To make the sauce, heat the butter over medium heat in a small sauce pan until it’s completely melted and bubbly. In a blender, add the egg yolks, lemon juice and some salt and pepper. With the lid on the blender, turn it to high to start blending the yolks. If you have a pour spout on your blenders lid, then use that. Otherwise remove the lid to the blender and in a very slow steady stream, add in the melted butter. The trick is to keep most of the white frothy stuff in your pan. Don’t worry if you get it some or all of it in your sauce. It really won’t have much affect on the taste. The important part is to make sure you’re adding the butter in slow and steady. Turn the blender off and marvel at your beautiful, thick, golden hollandaise sauce.  Here’s two quick tips: If you sauce thickens up while your making the rest of the breakfast, just blend in a tablespoon or two of very hot tap water. This will help to remelt the butter.  If you have leftover sauce, keep it in the fridge, in an airtight container. To reheat it, pop it in the microwave for 5 seconds. Give it a stir and pop it back in for another 5 seconds. Continue doing this until the butter has melted and becomes a sauce again. It’s important to only use 5 second intervals. If you put it in the microwave and just let it go, you’ll actually end up with scrambled eggs. You can also reheat the sauce by setting it over hot water and stirring it while it warms. The point is to do the re-warming gently.

To assemble your eggs benedict place your English muffin halves on a plate. Top them with the Canadian bacon, then the poached eggs and finally top each egg with 1 tbs of the sauce. Sprinkle some parsley over the top. Not only does it make it look pretty, but I really like the flavor it gives to the entire dish. Eggs benedict can be heavy and the parsley gives it a freshness to cut through all that.

Classic: Ice Box Cake

I remember by very first job was working as an office girl for a campground and canoe rental place that my uncle owned. I was all of 14 and so excited to be working and making money for things that my parents wouldn’t buy. Even then I loved to cook and I remember my uncle asking me if I knew how to make an ice box cake. Of course, I had never heard of this before so I asked my mom. Basically, it’s an old fashion favorite made with whipped cream and very thin, very crisp, chocolate cookies. Those cookies are pretty hard to find anymore. They’re usually on the top shelf, hidden in between other cookies that have lost their way.  You can find them, you just have to look really really well. They come in a rectangular yellow box, that is wrapped in plastic. Honestly, I’m not sure who even makes them. Guess I should have paid attention when I found them. You know you have the right box when you flip it over and there is a recipe on the back for “Old Fashion Ice Box Cake.”

What You Need:

1 package very thin chocolate cookies
1 tub cool whip
1 tsp vanilla (optional)
Hot Fudge for garnish you like

What To Do:

Mix the vanilla into the cool whip if using. I don’t ever use it, but it helps give a bit more flavor to the cake. Then all you do is place a dollop of cool whip onto each cookie and sort of sandwich them all together. They stand up on their edge to form a “cake” shape. Then cover the entire thing with the remaining cool whip and place into the fridge for at least 4 hours. The cookies become soft to form a cake like texture. Cut into diagonal slices and serve!

Sausage and Peppers

And onions, and beer! Sounds like a good thing to me! Sausage and peppers are a favorite where I grew up. Not many get together went by without my mom making a big batch and throwing them into the crock pot to stay hot. There are a few ways to make them though. With tomato sauce, without. With beer, without. With onions, without. Cooked on the grill or in a cast iron pan? Like I said, tons of ways to make them.  I choose beer. Of course I choose beer! Who wouldn’t use beer! The sausages are cooked in beer first to not only impart flavor but to keep them juicy too. Then, depending on the time of year, I’ll either crisp them up on the grill or a cast iron pan. Both ways are particullary good, but it’s up to use to decide which you like best.

What You Need:

4 sausage links
4 good quality rolls
2 large onions, sliced
2 large bell pepper, sliced
2 clove garlic, minced
1 (12oz) bottle of your favorite beer
salt and pepper
veg oil


What To Do:

Prick your sausages two or three times with a sharp knife. This creates a couple holes in the casings which lets the fat out and beer in while cooking. Place the sausage in a large pot and cover them with the beer. Bring it to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and let cook for 30 minutes. Don’t worry about your sausages being cooked all the way through. Chances are, after 3o minutes they will be anyway but even if they’re not, you’re going to continue cooking them later.
While the sausage cooking, heat a large cast iron pan over medium heat and give it a drizzle of oil. Once it’s hot add in the your onions, peppers and garlic. Cook them, stirring occasionally until slightly browned and soft. Season with salt and pepper and then push them off to the side if finishing the sausage in the pan. Remove the sausages from the beer and place in the hot cast iron pan (or on a preheated grill) and cooked just a minute or two per side or until the casings are browned. Served in the rolls with a good quality mustard.

Classics: Stuffed Mushrooms

Yes, here is another old school classic. It’s one of my dad’s favorites that I can remember a lot as a kid. Just like the deviled eggs, the stuffed mushrooms has undergone transformations over the years. In most restaurants you’ll see mushrooms stuffed with crab meat. Let’s face it, the real stuff can be quite expensive, that is why, in my family, we’ve always used breakfast sausage. I never liked mushrooms as a child. I would always eat the stuffing out of the mushroom, and then give it to my dad. These are also not very figure friendly, but they are an appetizer so you’re not eating a ton of them.

What You Need:

Large white button mushrooms (they come in large packs that are about 12-16oz and contain 6-9 mushrooms)

1/2 lb breakfast sausage (not the heat and serve links or patties but the fresh stuff you find in the meat dept.)

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 stick butter

2 tbs olive oil

1/2 c – 2/3 c bread crumbs

2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried sage

1/3 c grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

salt and pepper

a few sprigs of flat leaf parsley for garnish

What To Do

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a damp cloth or kitchen towel, white the outside of the mushrooms, removing any dirt they may have. Pull out the stems, dice them and set aside. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, cook the sausage, breaking it up as you go until fully cooked. Remove for the pan, leaving any fat behind. Place into a food processor, and pulse a few times until you have coarse crumbs instead of big chunks. Set aside. Return the sauté pan to medium heat and  melt the butter together with the oil. While it’s melting, diced the mushroom stems. Add the onions, garlic and diced stems into the sauté pan. Cook for about 3 minutes or until the onions have softened and started to become translucent. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, the oregano and the sage. Add in the sausage back into the pan, stirring everything to combine well. Stir in the parmesan cheese and 1/2 c bread crumbs. Turn the heat to low and cook for about a minute, giving the bread crumbs time to absorb the moisture. If the mixture still looks really wet, stir in a bit more bread crumbs. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly. Using a spoon and your hands, fill each mushroom, mounding some of it on top. Place into a shallow baking dish and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the mushrooms have slump and the filling is golden brown. Remove the mushrooms to a plate and garnish with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and a piece of parsley.

Classics: Deviled Eggs

Yes I know, deviled eggs are old school right? They’ve stuck around though. Not a summer, or family get together goes by, where these white and golden beauties don’t make an appearance. Everyone has their own way of making deviled eggs and nowadays, it seems anything goes. People are always taking such a simple classic and updating it with things like bacon, shrimp or other ingredients. I say, keep it simple, and keep it a classic! I have to say that my mom boils her eggs for what seems like forever, meaning I always did the same because I didn’t know better. I thought that green ring around the yolk was supposed to be there. Turns out, I was wrong! The green ring is a sign of over cooked eggs. Follow the directions in the recipe and you’ll have perfect golden yolk only eggs. Another problem is that the shells can be a pain to get off. This happens because the eggs are really fresh, so try and buy them about a week a head of time and this will help that problem.
What You Need:
6 eggs
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbs mayo
2 tbs greek yogurt (or 2 more tbs mayo)
dash of Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
paprika for garnish
What To Do:
Place your eggs in a pan large enough so that they fit in a single layer on the bottom without much empty space. Cover the eggs with enough water to come up about an inch or two above the top of the eggs. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once the water is at a full rolling boil, set your timer for 5 minutes. When the time goes off, drain the eggs and fill the pot up with cold water. Drain the eggs again and give them a shake in the pot. Yes this will crack them and that’s what you want. Fill the pot once more with cold water and let sit for another 5 or 10 minutes. This not only stops the cooking and cools the eggs down, but by cracking them you let some water get in and this will help later in removing the shells.
Once the eggs are completely cool, remove the shells and slice each egg in half. Remove the yolks to a bowl, and the empty whites to a platter. With a fork, mash the yolks. You could probably use a ricer here too but I’ve never tried it that way. It’s a good thought for next time! Once the yolks are mashed, stir in the mustard, mayo, yogurt, a tiny dash of Worcestershire and some salt and pepper.  Stir really well to combine. You can either use a spoon to fill the whites or for a fancier look, fill a pastry bag with a large star tip and pipe the yolk mixture back into the white. Sprinkle with a bit of paprika and enjoy! Makes 12