Tag Archives: spinach

Pesto Paninis Two Ways

15 May

Mushroom-Pesto-Panini-1

These paninis were a play on the most unbelievable tomato mozzarella sandwich that I picked up from Whole Foods in Boulder. It had the most incredible pesto mayo. You could eat with a spoon, honestly. Being the healthy person that I am I decided to make my own without the mayo. I whipped up some of my pesto, pulled out the Griddler and voila, paninis! The paninis two ways is a result of Michael’s strong dislike of tomatoes. He had the panini with the portobello mushroom, spinach and onions, while I had the tomato, spinach and onion version. I kind of wish that I had added a mushroom to mine because it would have been out of this world.

Spinach-Tomato-Onion-Panini-2

Ingredients:
Makes 2 sandwiches
2 slices tomato
1 grilled portobello mushroom
1 cup fresh baby spinach
1/4 red onion, sliced thin
Fresh mozzarella, sliced
Choice of bread
pesto

Directions:

  1. Heat a grill pan, Griddler or panini press to medium heat.
  2. Spread the pesto on one half of the bread. Top with two slices of tomatoes (if using), mozzarella, 1/2 cup of spinach, mushroom (if using), and onion. Spread pesto on the other half of the bread.
  3. Place the sandwich on the Griddler or panini press and close. Cook until the cheese is melted. If using a grill pan, grill until there are grill marks on the bottom piece of bread and then flip the sandwich over. Grill the second side until the cheese melts

    4. Mushroom-Pesto-Panini-2

    As always, enjoy!

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Green Lentil & Yellow Beet Salad

7 May

Green-Lentil-Yellow-Beet-Salad-1

I’m still here! Blogging and cooking have taken a back seat since we came home from Colorado. A combination of life and illnesses left me with zero motivation to do much of anything. But that’s all changing now! I felt awful after eating comfort food and take-out, so I decided that we’re spring cleaning ourselves around here.

Feeling uninspired, I decided to try different recipes from the Green Kitchen app all week. Last night we had this Green Lentil & Yellow Beet Salad. It was OK. Definitely not the most delicious meal I’ve eaten but it was really healthy and I didn’t feel like there was a 50 pound weight in my stomach. Once my motivation returns I’ll figure out a way to make a much more delicious version.

Unfortunately I can’t post the ingredients and directions, but my plan is to give you my opinion on the app and whether of not I felt it was worth the money. See, there is a method to my madness!

Green-Lentil-Yellow-Beet-Salad-2

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Spanakopita

20 Mar

Spanakopita

While at the gym a while back the Barefoot Contessa was on one of the TVs and she was making individual spanakopitas. They looked delicious but I had completely forgotten about them by the time I got home. It dawned on me while planning my meals for the week, that I should make spanakopita. So, I powered up google, did a little research and came up with this amazing mess!

Ingredients:
11/2 lbs spinach
1 large onion, chopped
2 bunches green onions, chopped
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp nutmeg
8 oz crumbled feta cheese
24 sheets of phyllo dough (half for the top and half for the bottom)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375o.
  2. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Saute the onion until clear, about 5 minutes. Add the green onions and spinach and saute until the spinach is wilted.
  3. In a bowl, beat the eggs and add the spinach mixture, feta cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix well.
  4. Lay 1 of the phyllo sheets out on a flat surface and carefully brush olive oil across the top. Lay the sheet into the baking dish and repeat with the remaining 12 sheets.
  5. Pour the spinach mixture into the baking dish.
  6. Lay 1 sheet of the remaining phyllo dough on the flat surface and brush olive oil on the top of each sheet and layering them to form the top.
  7. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

As always, enjoy!

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Spinach, Mushroom and Onion Calzones

15 Mar

Calzone

I think of calzones as portable little pizzas. Minus the sauce of course, which is probably why I enjoy them so much. You see, I’m not a huge fan of tomato sauce. I did serve these with sauce from a jar on the side but Michael didn’t even use it. He said they were perfectly delicious without the sauce.

For the Dough
Ingredients:
2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
11/2 cup warm water (approx. 105o)

Directions:

  1. Combine the flour and yeast into the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook and stir
  2. Continue mixing as you slowly add the water and salt. Mix until the dough forms a ball on the hook.
  3. Transfer the dough into a bowl greased with olive oil and cover with a towel. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place (I put mine in the oven with the light turned on) for 1 hour.
  4. Uncover the dough and punch it down. Lightly flour a countertop and lightly knead the dough into a ball. Roll the dough into a log and divide in half for larger calzones or quarters if you want small ones.

Calzone-Vegetable-Mixture

For the Filling:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cups uncooked spinach
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400o
  2. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Saute the onions until they are clear, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and spinach and cook until the spinach is bright green, about 3 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and stir into the vegetable mixture. Remove from heat and cool.
  4. Mix the ricotta and mozzarella in a large bowl. Add the cooled vegetable mixture to the cheeses and mix well.
  5. Roll the divided dough into circles and fill half the dough with the filling, leaving about a 1/2 inch between the filling and the end of the dough.
  6. Fold the unfilled half of the dough over to cover the filling and press and fold the edges together.
  7. Transfer the calzones to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Calzones-Uncooked

As always, enjoy!

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