Donna's Southern Turkey Shepards Pie

Hello Fellow Cooks, what fun I had creating this recipe tonight - it is a take-off on the traditional Shepards Pie but with a delicious addition of sweet vermouth and sweet potatoes.  It may look like it is difficult to make but it came together quickly and was definitely worth the little effort it took to make!  I hope you give it a try!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Southern Turkey Shepards Pie

Ingredients:

Bottom Layer:

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 pound ground turkey

2 teaspoons thyme leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

½ cup milk

Middle Layer:

2 Tablespoons butter

1Tablespoon olive oil

1 sweet onion, thinly sliced

8 ounces mushrooms, chopped

½ cup sweet vermouth

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

Top Layer:

1 large sweet potato, microwaved on High for 6 – 8 minutes

2 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons milk

Ground cinnamon

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside to prepare layers.

Bottom Layer:  Heat large frying pan on High heat and add oil.  Add meat and cook until no longer pink.  Add seasonings and milk, place in another container and set aside. 

Middle Layer:  Using the same frying pan, heat the butter and oil.  Cook the onions until golden brown, about 10 minutes, and then add mushrooms.  Stir until cooked through, about 5 more minutes, and add vermouth that has been mixed with cornstarch to the pan.  Cook for about a minute more to thicken, season and remove from heat.

Top Layer:  Remove skin from cooked potato and mash with butter, milk and seasonings in medium sized bowl.

To assemble the casserole, spoon the bottom layer ingredients into the dish, then add the middle layer items, followed by the top layer mashed potatoes.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake for 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Serves 4.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Pantry Pizza

Dear Friends, if you have a few simple ingredients handy in your pantry and freezer, you can pull together a delightful and quick meal together anytime you are in a pinch for something to make.  This is another variation of my standard tortilla pizza that we just love because it is hearty and healthy.  Bon Appetit!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Pantry Pizza

Ingredients:

2 large gluten-free tortillas or pizza crusts

4 slices Provolone cheese

1½ cups mango chutney

1½ cups Beyond Meat’s Beyond Beef, Feisty or Beefy Crumbles flavor, meatless protein product or ground chuck or ground turkey, cooked

½ cup green peas

2 basil leaf tops

1 cup Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

Olive oil

Freshly ground pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a pizza pan or cookie sheet with cooking oil and top with crust.  Top each crust with 2 slices of cheese, then spoon on chutney and add rest of ingredients in order given ending with a drizzle of olive oil and pepper over each.  Bake for 15 – 20 minutes until cheese is golden brown and ingredients are heated through.  Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes before slicing.

Serves 2.

Copyright 2015. 

Donna's Perfect Butter-Sauteed Rainbow Trout

Dear Culinary Adventurers, although this recipe is as simple as it gets, it is just absolutely heavenly!  Served with a simple salad on the side, you can't go wrong with such a delicious and healthy meal.  Salud!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Perfect Butter-Sauteed Rainbow Trout

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoon olive oil

2 rainbow trout fillets

Salt and pepper to taste

Lemon wedges and grated rind

Method:

Melt butter in large frying pan over high heat and add oil.  Add fillets skin-side down, season with salt and pepper, and cook on High heat for 5 minutes.  Flip and cook for another few minutes just until fish is white and flakes easily.  Squeeze lemon juice on top of fish, sprinkle with lemon rind, and serve immediately.

Serves 2.

Copyright 2015. 

Donna's Tropical Chef Salad

Hello to All!  Living in a beautiful paradise inspires me to want to cook light and healthy fare that fills you up but not out.  This dish is an example of a recipe I pulled together to mimic a traditional chef salad but with a tropical flair.  I hope you enjoy this!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Tropical Chef Salad

Ingredients:

2 cups arugula

2 cups mixed sweet butter lettuce

4 mango slices

2 slices Prosciutto

½ red onion, chopped

2 Tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes

2 Tablespoons pecans, coarsely chopped

2 Tablespoons Gorgonzola crumbles

Pepper to taste

Salad dressing, preferably balsamic vinaigrette

Method:

Mix together lettuces and divide into 2 serving bowls or plates.  Top with remaining ingredients, arranging in spoke pattern, if desired.  Season with pepper and top with favorite salad dressing.

Serves 2.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Cedar Planked Grilled Salmon with Plum Sweet & Sour Sauce

Welcome to my blog!  I am always happy to share my recipes with anyone interested and hope you get as much joy out of quick, simple and healthy food as I do.  This recipe is great for a casual dinner with company and is quite stunning.  The plum sweet and sour sauce is just the right flavor to balance out the smoky cedar aroma.  Cheers!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Cedar Planked Grilled Salmon with Plum Sweet & Sour Sauce

Ingredients:

Three 7 ounce salmon fillets

Salt and pepper

Olive Oil

3 fresh rosemary sprigs

1 cup Donna’s Plum Sweet & Sour Sauce (see August 5, 2015 blog posting for recipe)

Method:

Soak a cedar plank in cold water for about 2 – 3 hours.  To prepare fish, place fillets on top of drained plank, sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.  Grill on high heat for 15 – 20 minutes or until fish is cooked through.  About 5 minutes before done, top with sauce and rosemary sprigs.  Serve immediately.

Serves 2 – 3.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Meatless Lasagna with Grilled Zucchini Noodles and Gary's Grilled Corn on Cob with Lemon Pepper-Basil Butter

Hello to All, here's another couple of recipes that I am catching up on from this summer. I used grilled zucchini noodles to substitute for pasta noodles and was very pleased with the [healthy] result! Gary's grilled corn on the cob was kicked up a notch with the addition of lemon pepper and basil.  Let me know what you think if you get a chance to try these out!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Meatless Lasagna with Grilled Zucchini Noodles

Ingredients:

One 28 ounce can Muir Glen chunky tomato sauce One 28 ounce can Muir Glen fire-roasted diced tomatoes

1 Tablespoon garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

One 11 ounce package Beyond Meat's Beyond Beef, Feisty Crumbles flavor, meatless protein product Doubled recipe of Donna's Grilled Parmesan Zucchini Slices (see November 16, 2014 blog post for recipe) - there should be about 12 long "noodles"

1 cup small curd cottage cheese or ricotta cheese

10 large fresh basil leaves

One 8 ounce package mozzarella/provolone cheese mixture, grated

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9 x 13" casserole dish with cooking oil.  Mix together first 4 ingredients (or you may substitute Donna's Spicy Italian Tomato Sauce from October 19, 2014 blog post).  Place a quarter of the sauce on the bottom the dish.  Top with 6 zucchini "noodles".  Spoon the "meat" on top of the zucchini, then top with more sauce.  Add the cottage or ricotta cheese and top with the basil leaves.  Add more sauce and top with the remaining zucchini slices, sauce and grated cheeses.  Bake for 45 minutes until bubbly and cheese is golden.

Serves 8.

Gary's Grilled Corn on Cob with Lemon Pepper-Basil Butter

Ingredients:

2 ears of fresh corn, unpeeled

¼ cup butter, softened

½ teaspoon lemon pepper

2 Tablespoons fresh basil leaves, chopped

Salt to taste

Method:

Grill corn over hot coals for 15 – 20 minutes until cooked through.  Mix together remaining ingredients except salt.  Remove leaves and top with lemon pepper-basil butter.  Add salt if desired.

Serves 2.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Meatless Sloppy Joses

Dear Friends, I am trying to catch up with recipes that I have made in the past month or so but have been unable to post and this menu falls into this category.  This meatless sloppy joe recipe is made with Beyond Meat, a meatless protein product, yet you will never know that it is not the real deal!  Give it a try - it is simple, delicious and healthy too - what more can you ask for?  Best, Donna:

 Donna's Meatless Sloppy Joses

Ingredients:

Two 11 ounce packages Beyond Meat’s Beyond Beef, Feisty Crumbles flavor, meatless protein product, thawed

One 16 ounce jar medium salsa

One 15 ounce can sloppy joe mix

1 medium sweet onion, chopped and sautéed in olive oil about 10 minutes until golden

Salt and pepper to taste

Taco shells

Method:

Mix all ingredients together and place in sprayed slow cooker on High for about 2 – 3 hours.  Serve in taco shells.

Serves 4 – 6.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Grilled Caesar Chicken and Roasted Cauliflower Medley with Maple-Mustard Glaze

Hello Everyone, I prefer to cook a hearty but healthy meal for Sunday dinner and purchased a Murray's Farms chicken before deciding to marinate it and grill it.  Using Caesar dressing, lots of cloves and seasoning, the grilled chicken was juicy and delicious.  Sided with the sweet and spicy roasted vegetables, the meal was ready in under an hour!  I hope your week is a good one.  Best, Donna:

Donna's Grilled Caesar Chicken

Ingredients:

One 3 pound chicken, butterflied (i.e., cut down center between breasts and flattened)

1 cup Caesar salad dressing

8 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

1 Tablespoon oregano leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Place chicken in marinating pan, season with salt and pepper, and add remaining ingredients coating meat well.  Marinate for 6 to 8 hours in refrigerator.  Preheat grill to 425° F.  Remove chicken from marinade and drain if needed.  Place on grill, cover and cook for about 45 minutes or more, turning once, until chicken reaches 165° F or higher.  Remove from grill and let rest for about 10 minutes before cutting into pieces and serving.

Serves 4.

Donna's Roasted Cauliflower Medley with Maple-Mustard Glaze

Ingredients:

1 cauliflower, cut into slices

1 sweet onion, halved and sliced

1 red or orange sweet bell pepper, sliced

12 garlic cloves, sliced

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

¼ cup whole grain Dijon mustard

2 Tablespoons ground Dijon mustard

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking oil.  Mix together first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.  In a 1 cup glass measuring cup, mix together the mustards and maple syrup.  Add mixture to vegetables and stir until all pieces are coated.  Spoon onto prepared baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.  Turn vegetables and cook for 20 more minutes.

Serves 4.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Grilled Asian Whole Red Snapper and Carrot-Sweet Pepper Salad with Lemon-Ginger Dressing

Dear Friends, I apologize that posts have not been as frequent lately due to a number of factors; however, I am determined to get back to a more regular schedule now that we are into the autumn months.  Tonight's menu features two easy-to-prepare dishes, a grilled whole stuffed red snapper and a fresh and tasty carrot-sweet pepper salad.  I adapted the fish recipe from a baked fish that I learned how to cook at a Michigan restaurant called Terry B's, and the salad is my own version of a standard carrot-raisin salad that we used to have as a child.  I hope you have fun making these dishes!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Grilled Asian Whole Red Snapper 

Ingredients:

One 2 pound whole red snapper, insides removed

½ sweet onion, sliced

3 lemon slices, quartered

3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

1 Tablespoon thyme leaves

Salt and pepper

Pickled ginger

Kimchi (Korean pickled cabbage)

Method:

Preheat grill to 400 degrees F.  Make a “pan” out of double thick heavy foil and spray with cooking oil.  Place the fish on the foil, spray top of fish with cooking oil, and season inside and out with salt and pepper.  Mix together the onion, lemon, garlic and thyme, and stuff fish with mixture.  Slice top of fish about 2 or 3 times diagonally to aid in cooking.  Place on grill, close lid and cook for 30 – 40 minutes or until fish is cooked through.  Remove from grill and let set for 10 minutes.  Pull down sliced skin and serve with additional lemon, pickled ginger and Kimchi, if desired.

Serves 2.

 

Donna's Carrot-Sweet Pepper Salad with Lemon-Ginger Dressing

Ingredients:

One 10 ounce package shredded carrots

1½ cups yellow and red sweet bell pepper, cut into matchsticks

½ cup basil leaves, chopped

1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

½ cup dried cherries

One 6 ounce container lemon yogurt

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 Tablespoon ginger root, grated

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

In a large bowl, mix together first 5 ingredients for salad.  In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, mayonnaise and ginger root to make the dressing.  Gently stir the dressing into the salad, and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Refrigerate 2 or more hours before serving.

Serves 6.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Gluten-Free Pizza with Cherry Salsa

Dear Friends, as those of you who follow my blog know, my "go-to" quick meal solution is to pull together whatever ingredients I happen to have on hand to make a fast and delicious meal in the forma of a gluten-free pizza.  This recipe happened to be a winner with the balance of sweet and spicy flavors.  Using gluten-free tortillas and the meatless protein product made it feel even more healthy!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Gluten-Free Pizza with Cherry Salsa

Ingredients:

2 large gluten-free tortillas or pizza crusts

4 slices Provolone cheese

1½ cups fresh cherry salsa, medium (or mix 1 cup salsa with ½ cup cherry preserves)

1½ cups Beyond Meat’s Beyond Beef, Feisty or Beefy Crumbles flavor, meatless protein product or ground chuck or ground turkey, cooked

½ sweet onion, chopped

2 basil leaf tops

1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

Olive oil

Freshly ground pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a pizza pan or cookie sheet with cooking oil and top with crust.  Top each crust with 2 slices of cheese, then spoon on salsa and add rest of ingredients in order given ending with a drizzle of olive oil and pepper over each.  Bake for 15 – 20 minutes until cheese is golden brown and ingredients are heated through.  Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes before slicing.

Serves 2.

Copyright 2015. 

Donna's Cream Cheese & Vegetable Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Hello Everyone, tonight's menu is a very simple and deliciously spicy (but not too hot!) stuffed peppers recipe using poblano peppers.  I decided to combine two traditional cream cheese stuffed poblanos dish and stuffed green peppers to create a hybrid that takes the best of both recipes.  What fun it was to pull it together and then taste the result!  I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Cream Cheese & Vegetable Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Ingredients:

3 poblano peppers, seeded and cut in half down one side only

One 8 ounce package Neufchatel cheese, softened

1 large egg

1 cup Beyond Meat’s Beyond Beef Beefy Crumbles flavor, meatless protein product, thawed (or ground beef or turkey, if desired)

1 corn cob, kernels removed

½ cup green pepper, chopped

1 Tablespoon garlic, minced

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup fresh salsa, medium

2/3 cup tomato juice or sauce

3 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Line a medium sized baking pan with foil and spray with cooking oil. 

Place peppers in boiling water to cover for about 10 – 15 minutes to soften.  Mix together the next 5 ingredients and season with salt and pepper to taste. 

In a separate bowl, mix together the salsa and tomato juice or sauce.  Place the tomato mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan and add the drained peppers. 

Spread out each pepper and fill with 1/3 of cream cheese mixture.  Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Remove foil, top each pepper with 1 Tablespoon of cheese and bake for 15 more minutes.

Serve immediately.

Serves 3 – 4.

Copyright 2015.

Donna's Quinoa-Crusted Chicken Fajita Pizza

Dear Friends, this new recipe creation is really a mish-mash of Mexican and Italian cuisines but is just delicious!  I would venture to add that it is also a healthy meal with the replacement of the typical bread-based crust with a lighter quinoa crust.  I hope you like this dish as much as I do!  Best, Donna:

Donna's Quinoa-Crusted Chicken Fajita Pizza

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

1½ cups water

2 Tablespoons butter

3 large eggs

1 cup fresh salsa, medium

1 medium onion, sliced

1 green pepper, sliced

One 9 ounce package Beyond Meat Chicken-Free Strips, thawed (or boneless, skinless chicken breast slices)

12 ounces red and yellow grape tomatoes, halved

2 cups mixed yellow and white cheeses, grated

Olive oil drizzle

Freshly ground pepper

Method:

Place the quinoa in a rice cooker sprayed with cooking oil.  Add water, butter and salt to taste and turn on cooker.  When done, remove the quinoa, place in medium bowl and allow to cool in refrigerator for about 1 hour.  Prepare pizza pan by spraying with cooking spray.  Add the eggs and salt and pepper to cooled quinoa and spread onto pizza pan.  Top with remaining ingredients in order given.  Bake for 25 minutes or until cheese is golden and remove from oven.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes before cutting.  Serve with additional salsa and sour cream or guacamole, if desired.

Serves 4.

Copyright 2015.