I mentioned earlier this week how I tried out some new dinner recipes and they have been so scrumptious that I couldn’t wait to share them with you.  I have never been a huge baked potato fan.  When I used to think of russet potatoes, which are the most traditional baking potatoes, I thought of them being dry and blah and needing a lot of butter, sour cream and other toppings to make them worth eating.  However, I have to start singing a different tune, because I used russets for this recipe, and found the potato to be more flavorful and have better texture than I remember.

I suppose it helps too that the innards of the potatoes are scooped out and  mixed with flavorful mixture of mashed steamed cauliflower, garlic, buttermilk and a bit of cheese. I love these potatoes in particular because they give you the benefit of squeezing in some extra veggies where there might not otherwise be any.

I topped my potato with a little extra cheese, prosciutto, hot sauce and a small dollop of light sour cream.  I will be welcoming variations of this Twice-Baked Potato into my dinner repertoire in the future.

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I feel a sense of urgency to squeeze in as much summer produce as I can before all of the perfectly ripened tomatoes, peaches and corn are gone.  Sometimes I wish we had summer produce year round, but then I wonder if we would still appreciate how good and refreshing watermelon tastes during the few months we can get it, for example.

Corn on the cob is prime right now, and it is good in it’s own rite, but another one of my favorite ways to enjoy corn is in a thick and creamy soup.  I especially love when I can make a creamy and satisfying soup without actually using heavy cream and multiple sticks of butter.  This soup will give you just that.  I added dill because I love the way that dill can lighten the richness of a dish and add a whole other flavor profile.

Which summer produce do you wish you could enjoy year round?

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What will I do when the Olympics are over next week??  I’m beginning to panic.  There is officially a permanent imprint in my couch from where I sit waiting for the next gold medal to be awarded.  So I guess one thing I can do when the Olympics are over is rotate my couch cushions…..

And how is it almost the middle of August already??  Where does summer go?  The one good thing about summer coming to an end is that all of the produce that we have waited all summer for is finally ripe and ready to use!  I picked up some adorable zucchinis a couple of weeks ago and was excited to try a new recipe.  Last year I shared these zucchini recipes with you:

Cream Cheese-swirled Zucchini Bread

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Oatmeal Zucchini Sandwich Cookies

Zucchini Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting

This year, I am adding Zucchini Coconut Muffins to the mix.

Not only can you feel good about these muffins having a serving of vegetables inside, but they also use less sugar than most recipes and white whole wheat flour.

mix eggs, honey, oil and brown sugar

add ginger, flours, salt, baking powder and baking soda

add zucchini and coconut and mix well

divide into muffin pan and bake

cool completely before glazing

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Who doesn’t love pizza in any form?  Around Super Bowl time, I was seeing all kinds of pizza dips popping up as suggestions for game day fare.  Football is not a huge deal at our house and so I had to wait for another occasion to make a version of pizza dip.  Hosting book club last week happened to be the perfect reason to give it a try.

Many of the recipes that I have seen for pizza dips involve cream cheese, mayonnaise and sour cream as a base layer.  One of my favorite swaps for mayo and sour cream that makes dishes healthier is nonfat plain Greek yogurt.  It is tangy, thick and creamy without being heavily laden with calories and fat.  I also cut down on a few calories and grams of fat by using reduced-fat (part skim) mozzarella cheese.

This dip is plenty flavorful even with these healthier modifications.  Top the dip with a variety of vegetables and you’ll really have a popular dip that you can feel great about serving.

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Lightened up Pizza Dip

by Mercedes Porter

Keywords: bake appetizer cream cheese vegetables

6025001

 

Ingredients (1 8-inch serving dish)

• 1 8oz. package low-fat cream cheese
• 1 6oz. container of 0% (nonfat) plain greek yogurt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 cup prepared pizza sauce
• 1 cup reduced-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup chopped vegetables and/or cooked meats
• Sliced bread, pita chips or tortilla chips for serving

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, yogurt, garlic powder and Italian seasoning using an electric mixer.

Spread mixture into bottom of 8-inch glass pie plate or square glass baking dish.

Top the cream cheese mixture with pizza sauce and spread evenly to cover.

Sprinkle vegetables and/or meats over the shredded cheese.

Bake 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Serve with bread or chips.

Dip can be made one day ahead and stored (before baking) wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator.

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combine cream cheese, yogurt, garlic powder and Italian seasoning

spread cream cheese mixture into pan

top with pizza sauce

sprinkle cheese over the sauce

top with chopped veggies (and meat, if using)

bake until cheese is melted and serve

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When you think of spring, which ingredients are you excited to cook or bake with?  Leeks and lemons immediately pop into my mind for some reason.  I love the traditional vichychoisse.  Such a simple soup of potato and leeks yet it so so beautiful and fun to dress up with croutons or sour cream.

I am kind of a Food Network junkie and a couple of my favorites to watch are Ina Garten and Giada.  It seems like no matter what they make, I am printing out the recipes 5 minutes later and adding as many of the recipes as I can to my weekly menu.  Ina made this soup a couple of weeks ago and she really turned up the flavors on the traditional potato leek soup.

It’s amazing how roasting vegetables low and slow in the oven really brings out a depth of flavor you never even knew was possible.  The preparation for this soup begins by roasting yukon gold potatoes, lovely spring leeks and peppery arugula until they are tender and caramelized and I finished it with rich, tangy sour cream.  Serve the soup with a crusty baguette so you can sop up all of the goodness.

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Roasted Potato Leek Soup

by Mercedes Porter

Keywords: roast appetizer entree soup/stew vegetables spring

6021350

 

Ingredients (4 servings)

• 2 pounds yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 3 large leeks, rinsed and only white and light green parts chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 2 cups arugula
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 3/4 cup light sour cream, plus more for garnish
• 3/4 cup fat-free half and half
• Croutons, for garnish (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped chives, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Line a large baking sheet with foil. Place chopped potatoes and leeks onto lined sheet. Pour oil over vegetables and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Roast vegetables for about 45 minutes, tossing a couple of times until potatoes are tender and onions are caramelized.

Remove sheet from oven, sprinkle arugula over roasted vegetables and return to the oven for about 5 minutes or until arugula is wilted.

Remove roasted vegetables and place them into a medium-large stock pot. Pour chicken broth over vegetables.and puree using an immersion blender. (If you do not have an immersion blender, place half of roasted vegetables and half of chicken broth into food processor and blend until smooth, then repeat with remaining vegetables and broth and place pureed mixture into stock pot.)

Place pot over medium heat and whisk in wine and half and half. Finally mix in sour cream. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve soup with an additional dollop of sour cream, croutons and/or chives.

Recipe adapted from Ina Garten

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place chopped potatoes and leeks onto a baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 45 minutes, or until tender

place arugula on top of roasted vegetables and return to the oven for 5 minutes or until arugula is wilted

place roasted vegetables into stock pot

pour in chicken broth and use immersion blender to blend until smooth

stir in half and half

then sour cream and salt and pepper to taste

serve with warm, crusty bread

Which flavors or ingredients make you think of spring?

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