Green is Good.

What I'm talking about here? Is the avocado. Full of the "good fat", avocados are a tasty addition to any diet.

Especially when they've got gorgeous toppings and are served right out of the oven. 

Whoa. That’s really the only word that sufficiently describes my first bite of this recipe. Savoury, creamy, with just enough tangy sweetness as well. Talk about a satisfying mouthful! And these were ready in less than ten minutes! (This is minus the time your oven takes to preheat, of course.) 

Here’s the recipe for salsa-topped avocados. I will say "you're welcome" right now because you will make these again and again. Betcha $5. (I would say more than $5, but I need that money for more groceries, to try more recipes, so you can keep eating well too. It's all about you, really.) 

Preheat your oven to 450.

Ingredients: 

1 avocado, sliced in half lengthwise and stone removed 

¼ cup panko bread crumbs 

¼ salsa. *I used the ‘mild’ spice level (because I’m a bit of a wuss). 

1 tablespoon basil

3 teaspoons lemon juice 

1 tablespoon crumbled feta

1 large strawberry, cut into 6 little wedges 

Salt and pepper (to taste)

Combine all ingredients except the avocado and strawberry, in a small bowl. Split contents evenly and spread on each avocado half, then top each half with three apiece of the strawberry. Place on baking sheet, throw in the oven for 5 minutes, and they're ready! 

I ate mine with rice crackers; take a fork to the goods and spread on each. I can't stop making these. Healthy fast supper. 

Get cooking,

Stace

NOTE: Sorry my cooking photos aren't on here! I don't know why my computer hates me lately. It would NOT upload photos to this site, no matter how many times I tried. Check out the pics on my recipe source; it honestly looked just like theirs: www.melecotte.com/recipes

Beef: Bring it.

Burgers.
Meatballs.
Spaghetti sauce.
But most of all? Steak. Ooooooh, how I love thee. And it's not something I treat myself to that often at home because really, I haven't a bloody clue how to grill. Plus I don't own a BBQ, which is rather essential and I've never tried using my George Foreman for anything other than ground beef. Although there is a BBQ here where I am housesitting all summer...yet I fear turning it on, lest I singe off my face and I have no one around to call 911 as I live alone. *Uh...that took a rather overdramatic turn...*

So this was the compromise! I broiled some lovely thin flank steaks, stuffed with goodness. Check it:

HUZZAH!

Steak rollies.

Now it's your turn! Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
Saute' 3/4 of a large box of organic fresh spinach, until wilted down.

In a medium bowl, combine:
1 wee jar of sundried tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
1 egg yolk
Garlic salt and pepper
Your saute'ed spinach

~ Season your meat with additional sprinkling of the S&P. Then spread an even amount of the filling on each of your steaks; leave a bit of room around the edges. I also mixed in some feta (shocker, I know) as the original recipe called for blue cheese but I'm not a fan of that stuff. Do as you see fit; that's the fun in cooking, modifying it to whatever you want to do! No rules!

OK, OK. There's some rules. Like, don't serve this raw. Time to roll them up and put them in the oven. I secured each of mine with dental floss as I didn't have cooking twine and it worked like a hot damn.

(Yeah they look a bit creepy here, I agree. But after about 35 minutes of roasting, plus a quick 5-minute broil (sadly mine had a 10-minute broil and as you see below from the color, it was too much.) I did say I would admit my wins and losses on here, sigh.

Alas, it was still damn tasty! Enjoy your fancy pants creation with some fresh veg and a lovely starch.

Thanks for tuning in to another entry. Now get cooking,

Stace.

 
Source: http://www.familycircle.com/recipes/comfortfood/stuffed-flank-steak/?page=4

You little tart, you.

What do you get when you combine pastry, cheese, and the good earth's snobbiest vegetable? Why, an asparagus tart, of course! My variation on the original recipe I found is that I also added fresh mushrooms, and used a bag of pre-shredded cheese. Hey, I'm not going out for a brick of gruyere when this might not even work out. Next time, however, now that I know this recipe is FABULOUS. And painfully easy.

Ingredients:

~ Asparagus! Enough to cover your pastry
~ 3 medium white mushrooms, sliced
~ 1 sheet of puff pastry *buy frozen, and thaw it the day you're gonna use it.
~ olive oil
~ a handful of shredded cheese
~ Salt and Pepper, if desired

I know you are loving how accurate my measurements are, yet again. Oops.

Preheat your oven to 400.

Now! Let's get rolling! Literally. Step one: Flatten the pastry.

Spread some baking flour on your work surface then roll your dough into a rectangle, about 10" x 16" and place on your foil-lined baking sheet. Martha wants you to "trim the edges". WTF? It's pastry. You trim NOTHING! No waste here! Just smoosh it into shape if it's not pretty enough for your pan.

Then with the tip of a sharp knife, score (this means make an almost-cut) through the dough, 1" from the edges to mark a rectangle.

DON'T cut right through! Careful. Slow and steady wins...uh...the biggest piece when it's done. Yeah.

Then take a a fork and pierce the interior of your rectangle, about 1/2" apart. Bake until golden, about 8-10 minutes. Keep an eye on it! Some are faster or slower and you don't want to crisp it up before you've even gotten to the toppings.

Remove pastry shell from oven, and sprinkle with some of the cheese, then layer your asparagus in an alternating head-to-toe style along the length of the tart. Throw down your mushrooms and some more cheese, brush your pastry with a bit of oil, and season with salt and pepper if so inclined.

Bake about 10 more minutes. Cut into squares with a very sharp knife (as the pastry is uber-flaky and will crumble everywhere if you don't), and eat it pizza-style.

Easy, right? Right.

SIDENOTE: Fancypants Martha used fresh asparagus, so adjust your cooking times accordingly. And if you do go fresh, definitely plan to use all of it up within 2 days. Finicky, grouchy veg. It doesn't wait around for nobody.

Get cooking,

Stace.