Smoked Mozzarella and Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms

Busy Mama Recipes





I made this yummy "snack" today for a little family get-together and it ended up being gobbled so fast I wish I would have made more. If you like stuffed mushrooms, this is a must-try!

Photo from www.wildtree.com, where this recipe is featured. 

One package white mushrooms (about 30)
8 ounces cream cheese
2 tbs Wildtree Smoked Mozzarella and Tomato blend
2 green onions, sliced very thin
1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F and coat a 9x13 baking dish with pan spray. Wash and de-stem all mushrooms. Arrange the mushroom caps, hollow-side up, in the baking dish. Chop half of the stems and discard the rest. In a medium mixing bowl, add one tablespoon of warm water to the Wildtree Smoked Mozzerella and Tomato Blend and mix until the water is absorbed. Add the cream cheese, chopped mushroom stems, and green onions.  Mix until thouroughly combined. Place cream cheese mixture into a zip-top bag and cut about half of an inch off of its corner. Squeeze the cream cheese mixture into mushroom caps until filled and top with shredded mozzarella. Bake for 30 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and cheese is browned.

Wildtree's Smoked Mozzarella and Tomato Blend.  Buy it here.

Serve with lemon wedges and easy marinara sauce:
Combine 14 ounces crushed tomatoes with a 1/2 tablespoon of Wildtree Hearty Spaghetti Blend. Warm on the stove or in the microwave.

Readers: This recipe is featured on the Wildtree Website now!  Check out their recipes, which you can sort by Wildtree Product.  

Creamy Chicken Artichoke White Lasagna

Sometimes I feel like I need to learn to cook worse so I won't eat so much. Then I change my mind because I love food almost as much as I love making it.

Busy Mama Recipes

I roasted a chicken earlier this week and needed to use the leftover meat for something. I am really red-sauced out right now, so I was trying to think of something without the Bolognese type sauce. Oh, and it needed to have artichoke in it.

Ta-da. I'm a genius:-) Chicken lasagna with artichokes; something my kids would hopefully eat if I told them it was chicken and cheese. And it sounded easy enough.

Ingredients

Shredded chicken, approx 2-3 cups (I just pulled the meat off the carcass and chopped it. I used closer to 2 cups since my three year old son ate a bunch of this chicken during the prep:-) But any amount would work, really).
2 cups full fat Greek Yogurt (none of that nonfat crap- that isn't yogurt)
2 cups cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 can (14 ounces) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 small white onion, chopped
1 cup spinach, chard, or kale, chopped
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced in circles
Juice and zest of one lemon
1 box of lasagna noodles (prepared like the box says) *** You can also use zucchini noodles and make a grain free/ gluten free lasagna
Bechemel Sauce: Melt 2 tbs of butter in a saucepan.  Add 2 tbs of flour and whick together, cooking on medium for about five minutes.  Add 2 cups of milk and whisk together.  Add 2 cloves of minced garlic.  Add 1/2 tsp of nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of paprika, and salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer, whisking often, until hot.  Be careful not to burn. It should thicken as it cools. 

Directions

Preheat oven to 365.

In a large mixing bowl (I used my KitchenAid mixer) I combined the yogurt, chicken, artichokes, 1 garlic clove, onion, and 1/2 cup of mozz cheese.

In my food processor, I combined two cloves of garlic, parsley, lemon zest and juice, and cottage cheese. I pulsed it until it was smooth and looked like green cream cheese. I added some black pepper for flavor. 

*** The cottage cheese is a great alternative to ricotta because of the protein and the lower calorie and fat content. You could use ricotta instead and it would still taste great. 

This is what the cottage cheese mixture looks like when it's done.  Slightly green with no lumps.

In a large casserole dish (mine is 9x13), I layered like this:

Noodles
Chicken mixture
Spinach
Noodles
Cottage cheese mixture
Layer of tomato slices
1/2 cup mozz cheese
Noodles
Bechemel Sauce
The rest of the mozz cheese
Layer of tomato slices
Parmesan cheese (I garnished with ground pepper and oregano flakes)

Bake, covered for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for another thirty minutes.

And I was right, my kids scarfed this down!

Orange Rosemary Shrimp

I can't take complete credit for this recipe.  My mom actually made it a long time ago, and it's been a favorite in the family ever since.

My kids, for some reason (because they're awesome) LOVE shrimp.  Stewart called it "fish" when he was little, and Knox thinks it's "chicken", but regardless, they would eat a pound each if I let them.  No contest, it's Stewart's favorite food (maybe toss up between this and my homemade truffled mac and cheese, but he usually opts for this).

Photo credit: unknown

The original recipe was supposed to be "lemon rosemary shrimp" but my mom has a disease where she can't tell the difference between lemons and oranges (lol sorry Mom! Love you).  So, this dish was made from oranges instead.  As I very well know, accidents make the best things sometimes!

I'm having this for dinner tonight! I will post the picture directions later.  For now, here's the recipe:

In a bowl or gallon size ziploc bag, add all of the ingredients:

Zest and juice of one large orange*
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1-2 sprigs fresh rosemary, the needles only, chopped
3-4 tbs olive oil or grapeseed oil
salt and pepper
1 pound of shrimp (raw, peeled and deveined)

*Learn how to properly zest an orange here.

 Let the shrimp sit in the marinade for at least 30 minutes before you cook it.  Whenever my dad makes shrimp of any kind, he soaks it in some milk before preparing it because he says it takes the "fishy" taste out.  I have no idea if this is true, but I do it out of habit, because that's what we did growing up.

I have also let the shrimp sit in the orange marinade overnight in the fridge.  The longer it sits, the less fishy it tastes.  Also, adding more orange will cut the fish flavor out.

Saute the shrimp in a large skillet.  You may add more oil if you need, and can add more of any of the other ingredients if you feel the need to.  The amounts aren't rules, just guidelines.  I like to add a little dry white wine towards the end, only about 1/4 cup or so... then drink the rest;-)

Saute until the shrimp is pink and curled, but not too long because it will become rubbery in texture.

I always serve this with either a pasta dish or potatoes and steamed vegetables.  I also like to pair it with this recipe for Asparagus, which could also be broccoli or Brussels sprouts, too..  It's great because of the different flavors and textures.  Also, if you grill everything (grill basket is the best thing ever) instead of broiling or frying, it makes a great bbq dinner (something different from traditional burgers and chicken).  Be careful adding wine if you grill!

There is always an easy way to change this recipe.  Changing the acid is easy:  substitute a lemon or lime for the orange, or use balsamic vinegar instead.  If you are like one of my crazy friends that dislike rosemary, try fresh parsley, fresh cilantro, or dried oregano instead.  Marjoram and basil together are AMAZING too!

I have made this with scallops, too!  I love them mixed: half scallops half shrimp, but Kevin isn't a big scallop fan.  Boo.  I only make it with scallops when I'm mad at him.

If you love shrimp but aren't a big fan of this recipe, try my recipe for Shrimp Florentine.  It's seafood but without the acidic/ herby sauces.  Plus it has bacon:-)

Pair this with the wine you used in the recipe, like Chardonnay and for those who want to live outside the rules a little, Pinot Grigio will work too.

Shrimp and Bacon Florentine

Sorry I haven't been on here in forever... I know, how naughty of me:/  Oh well.  This will make up for it! Ha.

This is a recipe for some yummy shrimp I made a couple weeks ago.  I served it with a pasta primavera type dish and broccoli.

You'll need:

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced OR 3 green onions, finely chopped
4  strips bacon
1/2 cup heavy cream
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup Spinach cut into ribbons (or substitute basil leaves... but, then you can't call it "florentine" anymore)

Chop bacon and saute until it reaches your desired crunchy-ness.  Remove the bacon from grease to drain, but reserve the grease.

In the same pan, in 2 tbs of the bacon grease, saute the shrimp, shallots (if subbing green onions, don't add yet).

When the shrimp is done, add the cream.  Turn to medium low heat and stir often so it doesn't burn.  Add the remaining ingredients, including the bacon.  Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parmesan cheese.

For a Latin twist, you could sub lime for lemon, and add cilantro instead of basil or spinach.  Garnish with cotija cheese and serve with rice.

Minestrone- vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, and 0 Points on Weight Watchers!

Busy Mama Recipes




There is no "set" recipe for minestrone.  It originates in Italy, and is commonly made with vegetables, stock, and beans.  I was taught that authentic minestrone is made with bean stock, but also that the recipe varies widely in Italy depending on the region and the vegetables in season.


One of my friends told me that every time she makes minestrone it tastes so "blah".  The great thing about most soup is you can add almost anything to them without ruining them.  Hopefully you all will think this recipe is far from "blah".. ;-)


I think one of the things that really makes soups amazing is homemade stock.  If your stock tastes like water, even the most delicious recipes can be boring.  I will post a recipe later for stock... it is very simple and hands-off.  I made the following recipe, so it's vegetarian (although not vegan because I put parmesan in it, and there were eggshells in the stock).  If you want to add meat, just saute it in the same pan, and when it's done, add the remaining ingredients in the same order and follow the recipe as usual.


Another good tip is to use fresh herbs.  You can buy those little combo packs at the grocery store.  They are usually named "beef medley" or "poultry medley".  In this recipe I used parsley, basil, and oregano.  You can of course, use dried herbs or a different combination of herbs.  Use whatever you like best.


INGREDIENTS


2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1/2 small white onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bell pepper, diced
1 small zucchini, diced
2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbs fresh basil, finely chopped
1 tbs fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 cup fresh spinach cut into ribbons
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 large tomato, diced 
1 small potato, diced
8 cups stock, depending on how chunky/ thin you want your soup.  I used vegetable stock, but you can use any kind of stock you have.
1 small box pasta (I actually used tortellini the other day and it was delicious.  Usually I use shells or macaroni)
1/2 cup wine- red or white, make sure it's dry and not sweet
salt and pepper
1 tsp lemon juice


In a large, heavy bottom stock pot, saute the vegetables and garlic.  If using meat, saute the meat in the oil until it's done, then add the veggies. Deglaze the pot with the wine.  Add the tomatoes and beans.


When everything is hot, add the stock.  Bring to a boil, then turn down to low and let simmer, uncovered, for about 45 minutes.  Season with salt, pepper, and add the lemon juice.  Add the spinach at the end.


At this point you can either add the pasta to the soup or do what I do: boil it separately the serve the soup over the pasta.  I do this because usually we don't eat all the soup on one sitting, so we end up with leftovers.  If the pasts sits in the soup, it will get soggy.  If you are going to eat all the soup in one sitting, there's no use in dirtying another pot.


I garnished this soup with shaved Parmesan cheese and served it with garlic bread.  

*** This soup is a clean-out-your-fridge soup.  You can add whatever veggies you want- fresh, frozen, or canned.  Corn, pees, green beans, etc would all be great additions.

By the way, use more veggies and omit the pasta, potatoes, and beans, and this recipe is: 

 ZERO POINTS ON WEIGHT WATCHERS!!! 

Tomato Basil Soup - with Variations for Tomato Roasted Red Pepper or Tomato Florentine Soup

Tomato soup is one of my favorites because you can do so much with it.  You can add almost anything to it, and it wouldn't taste bad.  You could make it any style- Mexican, Italian, Greek, vegan, whatever- and it would make a great main dish, or a yummy side.  Plus, it's very inexpensive to make and goes a long way.  When I make it I usually make a double batch and freeze some for later.


The recipe below is for a creamy tomato basil soup, and below are a list of variations of the recipe and how to make them.  

Busy Mama Recipes


Creamy Tomato Basil Soup


2 quarts canned, peeled tomatoes, whole or diced (You could substitute fresh tomatoes if they're in season)
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1 large white onion, diced
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbs oil (I ove Wildtree's Basil Pesto Grapeseed Oil, but olive oil or any other oil will work)
1-2 quarts stock (I like to use vegetable stock, but chicken stock works too.  The amount of stock you use depends on how thick or thin you want your soup)
1 bunch basil, leaves only,  cut into chiffonade ribbons
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tbs dried parsley
2 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup dry red wine (optional)
3/4 cup heavy cream (optional)
salt and pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 400.  

OPTIONAL: On one baking sheet, spread out the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic evenly.  On another baking sheet, spread out all of the tomatoes (save the juice in a container for use later).  Roast in the oven for about thirty minutes, or until vegetables are slightly browned.  This will enhance the flavor of whichever vegetables you roast.

In a large, heavy bottom stock pot, add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic and sautee in olive oil until tender, stirring often.  Deglaze the pot with the red wine.  Add tomatoes, simmer until hot and tomatoes are tender- about 15 minutes.


Add the stock and bring to a boil.  Boil for about 10 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning and sticking (the thinner the soup, the less likely to burn). Turn down heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, uncovered.  Take the soup off of the heat and let cool for a few minutes before pureeing with an immersion blender.  Be careful not to splatter.  Puree until you get the desired consistency.  Add the heavy cream.  If the soup is too thick, you can add some tomato juice left over from the jars or more stock.

I can my own tomatoes from the garden, so they tend to be very robust in flavor and acidic.  The heavy cream helps mellow that flavor.  If you want vegan or dairy free soup, leaving out the cream will not hurt.  


Add basil, spices, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. 

• For Tomato Florentine, substitute spinach leaves for the basil.
• Add cilantro and a roasted poblano pepper for a Mexican style soup.  Serve with creme fraiche, lime wedges, and cotija cheese.
• For a Mediterranean style soup, add chopped fennel bulb and eggplant to the veggies, and garnish with feta cheese.
• For a vegan soup, use vegetable stock and omit the cream.

Crockpot Variation:  Add all ingredients except cream to a crockpot and cook on high for 3-4 hours (or low for 7 hours).  Blend with an immersion blender and add the cream at the end. 

Tomato Basil Pasta- Salad or Main Course

Stewie loves to help me cook.  I love when he helps me cook<3 He loves noodles and tomatoes, so this recipe is perfect.  Simple, healthy, easy, fast, and cheap, + it will go with anything depending on which type of dressing you use.  We had it last night with grilled salmon.

This dish can be served hot or cold, left over or fresh.  It can be the main course (We like it with tuna or warmed up chicken) or a side dish.

Ingredients:
1 pkg whole wheat pasta (We use spaghetti because Stewart thinks it's fun to twirl the noodles)
Red, yellow, and orange cherry tomatoes
Fresh basil
Fresh marjoram
EVOO
Balsamic vinegar (You could also use lemon juice or any other vinegar, balsamic is our favorite though)
Salt and pepper
Parmesan, feta, or blue cheese crumbles

In a large bowl, have your child squish, with his hands, all of the tomatoes so the juice comes out.  Don't smash completely, just "pop" them.  Then, he can tear apart the basil and marjoram leaves.

Boil the noodles al dente.  Drain and add to the bowl.  Drizzle olive oil and vinegar, add salt and pepper and toss.  Serve with cheese crumbled on top.

To make this dish more "grown up", half the cherry tomatoes instead of squishing.  Instead of tearing the herbs, do chiffonade ribbons. Add sliced scallions or shallots, and drizzle with a garlic-y vinaigrette.

Stuffed Tomatoes, Peppers, and Squash Flowers - Authentic Recipe from Agia Triada, Greece

Wow.  I can't believe I'm actually writing my own recipe blog.  I've talked about it forever, but for some reason I have never done it.  The other day I was hanging out with my sister, and we planned our Thanksgiving dinner for this year.  I actually had dreams about recipes that I wanted to use (I know...), so I figured this blog was about due.  Plus, crazy runs in my family, so before my mind goes, I want to get this written down.

I love to cook ANYTHING.  I don't have a favorite food, or a favorite food to cook.  I will cook all types of food, in all ways, with all ingredients.

Busy Mama Recipes

I rarely follow a recipe.  As in, I only follow a recipe when I am making my mother's chocolate chip cookies:-)  The rest of the time, I usually make things up as a go along.  In fact, last Thanksgiving, my little sister and I made the whole dinner by ourselves, for about 18 guests.  We bought ingredients, and I literally made up recipes and improvised as we went along.  Everything was delicious and turned out perfectly.  That's how I roll.  I will do my best to measure so I can get these recipes down as accurately as possible, promise!

I get my cooking skills from my family.  My mother, who is an amazing cook, makes new recipes all the time. She is the "health nut" of the family, so she always taught me how to make a meal a little bit better for you.  My dad is from Texas.  He is the King of BBQ, and can make anything taste great with some Creole style seasoning!  His mother is Mexican and his dad was Cajun, so my dad has mastered the art of those types of cooking. My grandma and grandpa are Greek (literally, my grandpa came over when he was 16 years old), so they taught me how to make not only Greek style food, but recipes that my grandfather had in his village as a child.  My Dad's mom is very traditional in a sense, and taught me how to bake (she was also the one to teach me to make home made tortillas).  I owe most of my artistic ability to my family... without them I would be eating ramen noodles every day.  So, thanks, family!

I love cooking all types of meals- from "simple, throw together two-ingredient" meals to "get up early and spend hours making something you can't pronounce" meals.  I love putting my own spin on traditional meals.  I often make something, and a day or so later I think about what could have made it better or different, and I start thinking about how I'll make it next time.

By no means am I a gourmet chef (although that would be so fun!).  I am a working mama with two kids and a household to run, so every night isn't all glam meals.  Most of my recipes on here may be one thing one night, with an idea of how you can make the leftovers into something different the next time.  I'm also thrifty, so be prepared to use EVERYTHING.  I hate wasting food.

I used to help manage a cafe/ catering company/ cooking school/ I don't even know what to call it.  The owner, Allyson, taught me a lot during my time there.  I helped teach cooking classes, so all of my "technical" and "formal" stuff, that's all thanks her.

So, since I have rambled... I will give you the recipes that kind of started this all:

My grandpa invited me to dinner the other night for a "surprise dinner".  He made stuff tomatoes, bell peppers, and squash flowers- something that I came to LOVE while I was in Greece in 2000.  My Great Aunt Rosa made it for me in the small Greek village, Agia Triada, where my family lived.  I don't know if it was because I was fascinated every time I watched her make it, or if it was because it was so yummy, but it is one of my most favorite things to make and eat.

Of course, since they don't measure, and my Aunt cannot speak English, this recipe may not be so accurate.  But, it comes pretty damn close.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
4 whole, big tomatoes
3 small tomatoes or 2 small cans of diced tomatoes
4 whole bell peppers - Any color
9 squash flowers (The big yellow flowers that grow on all squash plants.  You can get it from yellow squash, zucchini, pumpkins, anything. I got some at the farmer's market the other day).
2-3 cups uncooked white rice
1 white onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
Fresh green beans, tipped
3 Tbs dried oregano
1 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped
Salt and pepper

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

In a deep pot, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil until tender.  Add the rice, stir well, and turn down to medium.  Add the small tomatoes (or canned tomatoes).  Cook until the rice browns, stirring often so it doesn't stick or burn.  Add water, according to the package directions on the rice, and bring back to a simmer. Add the spices and parsley and stir together. Cover and set aside.

Meanwhile, cut the tops off the large tomatoes and peppers, but save them.  Hollow out the tomatoes with a spoon, but keep the "guts".  Pull the middle out of the flowers, but keep the flower intact.

Arrange the tomatoes and peppers in a deep 14x10 baking dish, with enough space in between for the flowers.  Scoop the rice filling into the veggies and cover with the tops.  Scoop the rice into the flowers, fold the petals over, and place upside down in the pan in between the tomatoes and peppers.

Add the tomato "guts" that were saved from scooping out the middle of the tomatoes to the remaining rice.  Mix the green beans, if you choose to use them, into the rice.  Place the rice mixture in between all of the tomatoes and peppers.

Bake for about 1 hour, covered, and check the rice.  You may need to bake longer and/or add more liquid to cook the rice, depending on how juicy the vegetables you used are.

You can serve with feta cheese (my favorite) or Parmesan, but it's good plain.  Sometimes my grandpa puts meat in it- just saute some beef or ground turkey and add it to the rice mixture before baking. We have had it as a meal or as a side dish.  My favorite is having it with no meat, but served with feta cheese and Greek salad.  Yum!