2 Sparrows (Chicago Restaurant)

• Veggie Burger
  potato roll, avocado, corn salsa, poblano aoli, fresh greens and homemade tater tots

My husband and I found this amazing restaurant while shopping in Chicago.  As we were walking by we looked in and saw how busy it was and on impulse (an empty stomachs) we walked in.  It was a 45 minute wait but we didn't mind as they took our cell number and said they would call when our table was ready.  So we left and did a little shopping.  Well, it was worth the wait.  They are open for breakfast and lunch.  Kevin ordered breakfast, the pork belly sandwich (biscuit, pork belly, sunny side egg, pickled onions) with their homemade tater tots.  I ordered the veggie burger (picture above).  It was delicious!  Lot of flavor with a little spice.  The homemade tots were deep fried potato goodness!  Here the link for more information...2 Sparrows

Favorite Margaritas

I have to repost this recipe as today is National Margarita Day! As you can see by the title these are my favorite Margaritas. The pineapple juice cuts the sour of the lime and sweetens the drink perfectly. If there is any extra just freeze it, it doesn't freeze solid because of the liquor and it's ready for you whenever you want a margarita.  Happy National Margarita Day!

Ingredients: tequila, triple sec, limeade, pineapple juice and ice

If you want salt, use a lime slice and go around glass rim to moisten and dip in salt (kosher).

Blend all the ingredients in blender and serve.

Ingredients:

12 ounces Frozen limeade concentrate, undiluted

3/4 cup Tequila (Jose Cuervo)

1/4 cup Triple Sec

6oz can Dole pineapple juice

Ice cubes

Lime slices

Directions:
Rub rim of cocktail glass with wedge of lime. Place salt (I like to mix salt and sugar) in saucer; spin rim of each glass in salt (Optional). Set prepared glasses aside. Combine limeade concentrate, tequila, and Triple Sec and pineapple juice in container of an electric blender. Add enough ice cubes to fill blender; blend well. Pour beverage into prepared glasses; garnish with a slice of lime, if desired. 

Sweet and Spicy Chicken Stir Fry

I had some small red, yellow and orange peppers in the fridge to use up so I made this stir fry.  It has a light sweet and spicy sauce that flavors the stir fry nicely.  This is one of those meals that comes together quickly.  I start cooking the rice, then start the stir fry and they both are done at the same time.

1 pound thinly sliced, boneless chicken breasts 

1-2 clove garlic, minced

2 cup broccoli florets

1 cup red, yellow or orange peppers (about 1 cup), thinly sliced

1/2 cup onion, thinly sliced

1 cup sugar snap peas 

3 Tablespoons olive oil

3 Tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 cup honey

1 Tablespoons oyster sauce

1 Tablespoons Siriacha hot sauce

Prepare and slice all veggies.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add  veggies and saute for about 5 minutes, until crisp tender  Remove from skillet and set aside in a bowl.

Heat the same skillet over medium-high heat and add remaining olive oil.  Saute Chicken and garlic about 5-7 minutes until chicken is no longer pink.   Once chicken is cooked, add veggies back in the skillet.  Add honey, soy sauce, oyster sauce and Siriacha.  Thoroughly mix to combine.  Serve with rice.  Enjoy!

Lasagne Rolls with Spinach and Italian Sausage

I'm making a meal for a friend that is recovering after surgery.  I decided to make my lasagne rolls because they freeze well so that she can bake them whenever she'll need a meal for her family.  I've made these for her family before and her son Daniel loves these so here's to you Daniel, enjoy!

 

 

In the picture of ingredients I left out one can of Hunts spaghetti sauce, I used two.  You can also make your own spaghetti sauce if that's how you roll : )

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients: 

12 lasagna noodles 

1 pound Johnsonville Italian sausage 

2 (26.5  ounce) cans Hunt Spaghetti Sauce (any flavor) 

2 cups  ricotta cheese or cottage cheese (I personally like cottage cheese)

1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (I use a clean kitchen towel, place spinach in towel and twist squeezing out all the liquid)

8 oz. (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese 

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

1 egg 

1/8 teaspoon pepper (you don't need salt as the Parmesan is salty enough)

Directions:

1.  Cook noodles according to package direction; drain.  Place noodles (lay flat) on a large sheet of wax paper or parchment paper. 
    

2.  Cook sausage (while the noodles are boiling), in large skillet until done; drain.  Stir in spaghetti sauce.   Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer while you make rolls.

3.  Combine ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese), spinach, Parmesan cheese, egg, and pepper.  Spread about 1/3 cup cheese mixture over each noodle then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese; roll up.

4.  Place seam side down in 13x9 inch baking dish. Pour sauce over rolls. If you have any remaining mozzarella sprinkle over top of sauce.  Cover with foil and bake in preheated 350 degree F oven, 35 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Note:  If you are going to split up portions just refrigerate or freeze in the pan size you will need.  I will often buy the small foil (disposable) pans and split up into two rolls per pan (cover with foil) and freeze.  My son loves to get these at college.  Thaw them from the freezer and bake 350 for an hour.

2012 New Years Resolution

Allrecipes.com has partnered with HealthyWomen.org to start the year with healthy recipes to keep our New Year's resolutions.  As an allrecipes allstar  we were asked to share a healthy change that we are making in 2012.  The change I'm making is I've created a list of healthy foods and I'm trying to add them to what I eat each month.  What I realized, now that January is coming to an end,  it's an effort to add all the right foods to my diet.  In red is all the food I was able to cross of my list.  Next month I'll try to add even more.  One other change I've made is that I've promised myself to exercise at least 30 minutes each day.  That's not hard for me as I'm an early riser and start my days on our treadmill watching the Ellen show (DVR).  It's a great way to start my day as Ellen makes me laugh and dance (that's not easy to do on a treadmill!)  My husband and I also got snowshoes which is a great workout on the weekends.  So far I've exercised everyday of January, only 336 days to go! Here is the list:

                                                                     

The  Healthiest Foods

Vegetables

    Asparagus

    Avocados

    Beets

    Bell peppers (red, yellow, orange & green)

    Broccoli

    Brussels sprouts

    Cabbage

    Carrots

    Cauliflower

    Celery

    Cucumbers

    Garlic

    Green beans

    Green peas

    Kale

    Leeks

    Mushrooms

    Olives

    Onions

    Potatoes

    Romaine lettuce

    Spinach

    Spring Greens

    Squash

    Sweet potatoes

    Tomatoes

    zucchini

Seafood

    Cod

    Halibut

    Shrimp

    Tuna

 Fruits

    Apples

    Apricots (dried)

    Bananas

    Blueberries

    Melon

    Cranberries

    Grapefruit

    Grapes

    Kiwifruit

    Lemon/Limes

    Oranges

    Pears

    Pineapple

    Prunes

    Raisins

    Raspberries

    Strawberries

 Eggs & Low-Fat Dairy

    Cheese
    Eggs

    Milk
    Yogurt

 Beans & Legumes

    Black beans

    Garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

    Kidney beans

    Lima beans

    Navy beans

    Pinto beans

 Poultry & Lean Meats

    Beef

    Chicken/Turkey

 Nuts, Seeds & Oils

    Almonds

    Cashews

    Olive oil, extra virgin

    Peanuts

    Sesame seeds

    Sunflower seeds

    Walnuts

 Grains

    Brown rice

    Oats

    Whole wheat

Other

    Water
     Chocolate : )

 Spices:

 turmeric

 cumin

 Cayenne pepper

 Garlic

 Cilantro

 Parsley

 Oregano

 Paprika

 Curry

 Basil

 Vanilla

 Cinnamon

 Nutmeg

Tuna Noodle Casserole

My family loves tuna noodle casserole and this is the recipe they like best.

1 8 oz pkg. wide egg noodles
1 Tablespoon butter
1 large celery stalk, chopped
1/3 cup onion, chopped
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup milk
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 - 6.4 oz pkg. of Sta-kist premium chunk light tuna in a no drain pkg. (I like to use Starkist Albacore White Tuna)
3 Tablespoons butter
4 slices white bread, crust removed (I put it in a food processor or just break up bread into pieces)

1. Prepare noodles as label directs.
2. Meanwhile, in large saucepan over medium heat, in butter sauté celery and onion until tender. (use a large enough saucepan to hold the whole casserole)
3. Preheat oven to 350. Into vegetables in saucepan, stir in soup, milk and mayo. Drain noodles; add with tuna to the saucepan and toss to coat. Spoon mixture into deep 2 qt casserole.
4. In saucepan over low heat, melt butter. Tear bread into small pieces and toss with melted butter. Sprinkle bread crumbs over noodle mixture. (can also melt butter in microwave and toss with bread) Bake casserole 30 minutes or until hot.

Hint You can use a 13 oz can of turn drained instead of pkg. tuna and instead of bread crumbs you can use potato chips crumbled on top. You can also add 1 cup shredded cheddar if you have it in the refrigerator. Serves 6

You can now check out my recipe for Caramelized Onion and Peppered Bacon Flatbread on  Pillsbury.com along with the other 99 finalist recipes.  The Flatbread would make a great appetizer for your super bowl party!

Fiesta Chowder

I haven't post a new recipe because I haven't made anything worth posting.  I made a chili that was way too hot, a fish dish that was just bland tasting and homemade pizza that only my husband would love (because he'll eat anything).  So, I'm going to re post this recipe because it's worth posting again.  After all, it's cold here in Wisconsin and you can never have enough soup recipes.  I really love this soup!  All the Mexican flavors I love in a bowl.  The recipe comes from the "Southern Living,  Our Readers Top Rated Recipes" cookbook.  The list of ingredients is long, but it comes together very quickly.

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 package (1.4 ounce) fajita seasoning mix, divided
3-4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cubed
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 can (15 1/4 ounce) whole kernel corn with red and green peppers, drained
1 can (15 ounce) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 ounce) Mexican-style diced tomatoes
1 can (4.5 ounce) chopped green chilies
3 cups water  (I used chicken broth for more flavor)
1 cup uncooked instant brown rice (I only use 1/2 cup)
1 (2 1/4 ounce) can sliced black olives (optional) (I added)
1 can (10 3/4 ounce) condensed nacho cheese soup
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (I used 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Directions:
Combine flour and 2 tablespoons fajita seasoning in a heavy-duty zip- top plastic bag; add chicken. Seal and shake to coat.

Cook chicken in hot oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat, stirring often, 4 minutes or until browned. Reduce heat to medium-high; add onion and garlic; saute 5 minutes. Stir in remaining fajita seasoning, corn, next 6 ingredients.

Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove lid, and stir in nacho cheese soup, chopped cilantro, and lime juice.  Use chicken broth or water if chowder becomes too thick.   Serves 8