No Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

This cookie dough, when prepared, is meant to be eaten raw.  It doesn't contain any eggs.  I love cookie dough, and I ran out of eggs this morning after using them all for breakfast.   Since cookie dough is so yummy, I decided to make something that didn't need to be cooked.  Cookie dough is delicious, and lets just say I was having a pregnancy craving.  Sure let's use that excuse.  I'm allowed to use that excuse, right? Of course I am, and you get to enjoy it with me too.  This recipe really did fill my craving.  You should try it.

Do you have a craving for cookie dough, but don't want to eat raw eggs?
This recipe will work for you.

Ingredients:

1 cup Multigrain Flour (Brown Rice, Barley, and Spelt) or Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup Turbinado Sugar (or Brown Sugar)
1/3 cup Cane Sugar (or White Sugar)
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/4 cup Softened Butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/3 cup Almond Butter
1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

 Blend the flour, baking soda, sugars, and salt together in a blender until fine.

Blend almond butter, butter, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl using a paddle
attachment until smooth.

 Add flour mixture and blend until smooth and combined.

 Add chocolate chips, mix gently with a wooden spoon.

 If the dough still seems crumbly, place in a gallon size bag and gently massage until combined.

Enjoy!

No Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients:

1 cup Multigrain Flour (Brown Rice, Barley, and Spelt) or Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup Turbinado Sugar (or Brown Sugar)
1/3 cup Cane Sugar (or White Sugar)
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/4 cup Softened Butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/3 cup Almond Butter
1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Process:

Blend the flour, baking soda, sugars, and salt together in a blender until fine.

Blend almond butter, butter, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl using a paddle
attachment until smooth.

Add flour mixture and blend until smooth and combined.

Add chocolate chips, mix gently with a wooden spoon.

If the dough still seems crumbly, place in a gallon size bag and gently massage until combined.

Enjoy!

Greek Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Portobello mushrooms seemed like a great challenge, and one I haven't tried yet.  I have read and heard so many times how portobello mushrooms are meaty and a healthy alternative for beef. My guiding cultural influence for this recipe was Greece.  I live in a very Greek neighborhood and can easily buy Greek ingredients.  Plus, I love using feta in recipes.  I made this recipe completely without any meat and with whole grains.  

 Full of flavor, fiber, and fabulous Greek ingredients.

Ingredients:

4 Portobello Mushrooms
1 Bunch of Green Onions
1/4 cup Artichoke Hearts without liquid
4 cloves of Garlic
4 Peeled San Marzano Tomatoes
1/4 cup Feta Cheese
1 cup Hulled Barley
3 cups Water
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
2 tablespoons Pine Nuts
Olive Oil

Pour barley, water, and salt into a medium size sauce pan with a lid.  Heat over high until it reaches

 a boil, reduce heat to low.  Cover with lid.  Cook the barley for 40 minutes.  Check for tenderness 

and turn off heat.  If some water still remains, cover with lid and let sit for 10 minutes.

After the ten minutes are over, check if any more water remains.  If you still have water, 

strain the barley over the sink and return to the pan.

Preheat Oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

 Rinse the mushrooms, remove stems, and spoon out the gills (the black inside of the mushroom).

 Rub olive oil on the outside of the mushrooms and place on small cookie sheet.

Cut the feta into small 1/2 inch cubes, slice green onions, cut artichoke hearts into small pieces, and press the garlic.  Gently squeeze the tomatoes to remove seeds and cut into small pieces.

Gently stir 1 cup of cooked barley, feta, green onions, tomatoes, garlic, and artichoke hearts
in a small bowl.

 Toast the pine nuts in a small non-stick pan over medium heat until lightly browned.

Scoop about 3/4 cup filling into each mushroom cap and sprinkle pine nuts on each of the
stuffed mushrooms.  Drizzle some olive oil on each stuffed mushroom.

 Place stuffed mushrooms into oven and bake until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Greek Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients:

4 Portobello Mushrooms
1 Bunch of Green Onions
1/4 cup Artichoke Hearts without liquid
4 cloves of Garlic
4 Peeled San Marzano Tomatoes
1/4 cup Feta Cheese
1 cup Hulled Barley
3 cups Water
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
2 tablespoons Pine Nuts
Olive Oil

Process:

Pour barley, water, and salt into a medium size sauce pan with a lid.  Heat over high until it reaches a boil, reduce heat to low.  Cover with lid.  Cook the barley for 40 minutes, check for tenderness and turn off heat.  If some water still remains, cover with lid and let sit for 10 minutes.

After the ten minutes are over, check if any more water remains.  If you still have water, strain the barley over the sink and return to the pan.

Preheat Oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

Rinse the mushrooms, remove stems, and spoon out the gills (the black inside of the mushroom).

Rub olive oil on the outside of the mushrooms and place on small cookie sheet.

Cut the feta into small 1/2 inch cubes, slice green onions, cut artichoke hearts into small pieces, and press the garlic.  Gently squeeze the tomatoes to remove seeds and cut into small pieces.

Gently stir 1 cup of cooked barley, feta, green onions, tomatoes, garlic, and artichoke hearts in a small bowl.

Toast the pine nuts in a small non-stick pan over medium heat until lightly browned.

Scoop about 3/4 cup filling into each mushroom cap and sprinkle pine nuts on each of the stuffed mushrooms.  Drizzle some olive oil on each stuffed mushroom.

Place stuffed mushrooms into oven and bake until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Cilantro Lime Sauce

We had fish tacos last night for dinner and with them I made guacamole and a new sauce.  That sauce is the sauce I'm about to show you.  This sauce will take your fish tacos, or fish sticks, or whatever fish you want to eat to all new levels.  Think about that tartar sauce you always serve and serve this instead. Really it is that good.  Don't believe me? Ask the dishes, I mean my friends Whitney and Erin who had some with our fish today for lunch.  This sauce is super simple and full of flavor. You could even change the full fat ingredients for low fat or fat free, but I can't promise that it will be as amazing.

 This sauce will be your new favorite fried fish condiment.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/2 cup Sour cream
Juice of 1 Lime
1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro
1/4 of a Red Thai Chili

 Cut the cilantro.

Slice the small piece of thai chili, seeds and all.

 Juice the lime into a bowl, add all the other ingredients.  Stir until smooth.

Enjoy!

Cilantro Lime Sauce

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/2 cup Sour cream
Juice of 1 Lime
1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro
1/4 of a Red Thai Chili

Process:

Cut the cilantro.

Slice the small piece of thai chili, seeds and all.

Juice the lime into a bowl, add all the other ingredients.  Stir until smooth.

Enjoy!

Teriyaki Beef Roll

My husband has been on call working from home this week.  His co-worker Fernando misses my food every time my husband works from home.  Today Fernando wanted sushi rolls for lunch, homemade and from a nearby restaurant.  My husband's lunch break isn't long enough for a visit to the office for lunch or a restaurant.  Instead of eating out I made some sushi rolls at home.  I had to get creative and create a roll based on food I already had.  The good news was, I had left-over steamed brown rice from last night's Indian dinner and steak in the freezer.  Teriyaki sauce is so yummy, so that was also part of my plan.  This is a throw it together roll, at least it is for me.

The sauce and flavor were out of this world yummy.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Skirt Steak
1 English Cucumber
4 cups Sushi Brown Rice (Recipe Found Here)
Nori Sheets
1/2 cup Brown Rice Wine Vinegar (Rice Wine Vinegar can be substituted)
1/2 cup Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Cane Sugar (white granulated sugar can be substituted)
Vegetable Oil

Mix 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 brown rice wine vinegar, 1/2 cup cane sugar.  Marinate the beef
in the mixture for 20 minutes.

Heat a 12 inch skillet over high heat.  Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil.  Quickly brown the
steak on all sides.  

Remove from heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Pour marinade into small sauce pan over medium heat and reduce by half.  When it boils,
 lower heat to low.

Slice steak across the grain.

Place a 12 inch non-stick skillet over a medium-high heat.  Add steak and enough of the teriyaki marinade to coat.  Cook steak very quickly, slightly crisping the edges and remove from the heat.

Wash and cut cucumber into 4 equal pieces and julienne the pieces (cut small sticks).

Place nori sheet on prepared sushi mat.  Put a softball size mound of sushi rice on nori sheet.

Flatten rice using your hand wrapped in plastic wrap. (My friend Bridget taught me this trick.)
Leave the far 1/2 inch edge free of rice.  Place 9 cucumber sticks and teriyaki steak in a long
 strip in the middle of the rice.

Carefully roll as tightly as possible.  I'm still working on rolling tightly, so I'll need more practice.
Darn I have to make more of these.

Using a very sharp knife and a sawing motion cut the roll in half.

Place roll halves together and again with a sawing motion carefully cut into your desired
roll thickness.  Spoon on extra teriyaki sauce.

Since these do not contain anything that can go bad, they are great as leftovers, if you don't
eat them all when they are made.

Enjoy!

Teriyaki Beef Roll

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Skirt Steak

1 English Cucumber

4 cups Sushi Brown Rice (Recipe Found Here)

Nori Sheets

1/2 cup Brown Rice Wine Vinegar (Rice Wine Vinegar can be substituted)

1/2 cup Dark Soy Sauce

1/2 cup Cane Sugar (white granulated sugar can be substituted)

Vegetable Oil 

Process:

Mix 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 brown rice wine vinegar, 1/2 cup cane sugar.  Marinate the beef in the mixture for 20 minutes.

Heat a 12 inch skillet over high heat.  Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil.  Quickly brown the steak on all sides.  

Remove from heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Pour marinade into small sauce pan over medium heat and reduce by half.  When it boils lower heat to low.

Slice steak across the grain.

Place a 12 inch non-stick skillet over a medium-high heat.  Add steak and enough of the teriyaki marinade to coat.  Cook steak very quickly, slightly crisping the edges and remove from the heat.

Wash and cut cucumber into 4 equal pieces and julienne this pieces (cut small sticks).

Place nori sheet on prepared sushi mat.  Put a softball size mound of sushi rice on nori sheet.  

Flatten rice using your hand wrapped in plastic wrap. (My friend Bridget taught me this trick.) Leave the far 1/2 inch edge free of rice.  Place 9 cucumber sticks and teriyaki steak in a long strip in the middle of the rice.

Carefully roll as tightly as possible.

Using a very sharp knife and a sawing motion cut the roll in half.

Place roll halves together and again with a sawing motion carefully cut into your desired roll thickness. Spoon on extra teriyaki sauce.

Since these do not contain anything that can go bad, they are great as leftovers, if you don't eat them all when they are made.

Enjoy!