Category: Eats

Good afternoon friends!

Thank you all so much for coming out to see our food demos at the Expo on Saturday.  It meant a lot to have you there and I am so glad that both Lily and I made lots of samples to hand out–you guys were hungry!

So here is the recipe I promised you all.   Remember, if you and your family are not fans of a particular ingredient, feel free to substitute or opt not to add whatever it is.  Just as long as you like pasta, cheese and some spices and some type of veggies you will be ok!

Please feel free to email me with any questions and I will happily help you!  And if you make either of these, please let us know what you think.

Kid Friendly Southwestern Mac & Cheese4 tablespoon canola or olive oil, divided
1 cup diced red, green, yellow bell peppers (use whatever you like)
1 cup diced sweet onion
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon sweet chili powder
1 tablespoon granulated garlic (or garlic powder)
1 cup corn kernels (canned or frozen defrosted is fine)
1 cup drained rinsed canned black beans
2-14.5 oz boxes Pasta Plus (yellow, purple or green box) Pasta
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 1/2 cups 1% milk
3 cups shredded reduced fat Mexican blend cheese
2 cups shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
3 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
1 cup crushed reduced fat tortilla chips
Salt & pepper to taste 

In a medium skillet over medium, heat one tablespoon of canola oil until shimmering.  Add peppers and onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add spices and toss or stir to coat, cooking for a few more minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in corn and black beans.  Set aside.

In a large pot, cook pasta in well salted water.  Drain, toss with a bit of oil to prevent sticking and set aside.

In a large sauce pan, combine remaining 3 tablespoons of oil with flour and whisk over medium heat until lightly browned.  Slowly whisk in milk and bring to a low boil, whisking constantly.  Reduce heat to low and slow incorporate all of the shredded cheese.  Stir until smooth and creamy.  Add white pepper and check seasoning of sauce–add salt and pepper to taste.

Add cooked pasta and vegetables to the cheese sauce and stir to combine.  Stir in chopped cilantro and top with crushed tortilla chip crumbs (if ready to serve).   Serve immediately or transfer to an oven safe dish, wrap tightly and freeze.  Enjoy!

And now for Lily’s fabulous:

Chocolate Strawberry Goodness Pie

One package chocolate graham crackers (about 10 crackers), crushed to yield about 1 1/2 cups
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
l-large box instant chocolate fudge pudding (uses 2 1/2 cups milk to make the whole box)
2 1/2 cups 1% milk
8 oz (one cup) semisweet chocolate
5 whole strawberries plus 2 cups chopped
Whipped creamCombine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter in the food processor or in a large bowl and mix well until combined.   Press into 9” pie plate.  Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.  Cool completely.
Combine pudding mix and milk and whisk until combined.  Refrigerate until ready to use. 

Melt chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave and stir until smooth and creamy.  Paint the cooled crust with the melted chocolate and dip the whole strawberries in the chocolate to coat.  Set berries aside on parchment paper to harden and cool.

When ready to assemble pie, spread sliced strawberries over chocolate coating on pie crust.  Spoon prepared pudding over strawberries and smooth.

Decorate pie as desired and garnish with chocolate covered strawberries and whipped cream.