Italian Stuffed Portabella Caps

So, let's talk comfort zones. 

It's the start of the new year and getting out of your comfort zone 

seems to be all of the rage for 2015. 

Make a change, make a difference, etc. 

Well, for me…

that involved making Italian Stuffed Portabellas.

Jerry has been talking about Portabella mushrooms for months now

and I have been politely, half-heartedly listening. 

Finally, we were grocery shopping together and I couldn't put it off any longer. 

He was pushing for two packages of mushrooms but 

I convinced him that we were good starting with just one.  

I decided to make them for dinner last week and

you would think that there was some life changing decision at hand

the way that I hemmed and hawed around the kitchen,

procrastination at it's finest.

That is when I know I am out of my comfort zone…

I procrastinate!

What characteristics do you demonstrate when you are out of  your comfort zone?

Eventually, the count down to dinner was dwindling and I had to get a move on. 

So, I opened the package of Portabella mushrooms and 

turned them over to see what awaited me on the flip side. 

A stem and lots of dark gills. 

Doesn't leave much room for stuffing. 

I probably should have mentioned that I've never been much of a mushroom fan…

which was a big part of why it was out of my comfort zone. 

I removed the stem and attempted to scrape out the gills with a spoon. 

Probably would have been better if I hadn't broken off part of the mushroom cap…

but thankfully we live and learn

and it didn't seem to interfere with the tastiness of the dish. 

In order for me to branch into stuffed mushrooms, 

I wanted to stick with something familiarly delicious as the stuffing. 

Spinach and Tomatoes.

Started with a tablespoon of olive oil, 2 cups of spinach and some coarse Kosher salt

to cook the spinach. 

Once the spinach was wilted, 1 can of diced tomatoes was added. 

And simmered to remove some of the moisture

and concentrate the flavors! 

Since the stuffing was pre-cooked, 

the mushrooms needed to be as well. 

They were put in under the broiler for 3-5 minutes, 

until they were showing signs of warming. 

The tomatoes and spinach were scooped into the caps

and baked at 375 F for about 10 minutes. 

Then, generously topped with shredded mozzarella

and baked for another 3 minutes. 

Until the cheese was just starting to brown. 

Much to my surprise,

these Italian Stuffed Portabella Caps

were fabulous…

and thankfully, 

not too mushroom-y.  

They were enjoyed by all and I am thankful for being pushed out of my comfort zone,

I now have a new avenue of flavors and dishes to explore. 

RECIPE:

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Bake Time: 15 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

2 Portabella Mushrooms

1 tablespoon of olive oil

2 cups of spinach

Coarse Kosher salt

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 cup of shredded mozzarella

Directions:

• To prep the mushroom, remove the stem and gills, brush off excess dirt with a damp paper towel. 
• Cook spinach in a pan with olive oil and salt over medium heat. 
• Add tomatoes and simmer until thickened. 
• Broil mushrooms for 3-5 minutes. 
• Remove mushrooms, reduce oven temp to 375 F. 
• Fill caps with stuffing. 
• Bake at 375 F for 10 minutes, top with cheese and bake another 3-5 minutes until cheese is browned.  

Cranberry and Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash

Let's talk about squash. 

Does that word rub you the wrong way the same way it does me?

When I was a kid, I wouldn't have been caught dead eating squash, 

I probably would have rather had brussel sprouts (which I'm STILL not a fan of)

 than squash! 

Thankfully there is zucchini,

the gateway squash, 

as I've always enjoyed zucchini and while I've hated the idea of squash,

I figured that if I liked zucchini, 

then maybe the other squashes couldn't be too bad!  

Now that I have matured 

(insert another thankfully here)

I am so grateful for all of the varieties of squash

AND

all of the awesome recipes to make with them. 

Today I want to share with you 

Cranberry and Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash.

The combination tangy cranberries, chewy rice, creamy squash

and the fabulous flavors of Italian sausage,

this is one heck of fall festival in your mouth!  

This party started by browning 1# of bulk Italian sausage 

while the oven was preheating to 450 F. 

Then, the acorn squash was cut in half

and the seeds were scooped out. 

The baking started with 15-20 minutes at 450 F, 

cut side down,
until started to soften.  

Once the sausage was done, it was drained on a paper towel.

The paper towel helps to separate and collect the grease 

which prevents it from moving on to the next steps in the process. 

One cup of brown minute rice was added to 1 cup of boiling or broth

for a quick 5-minute cooking session. 

When the rice was nearly done, the sausage was added to the rice pan

along with 1/2 cup of dried cranberries.

And, viola, the gluten free stuffing is ready!  

And, looks delicious!  

After the first pre-cooking session, 

the squash was flipped over and coated with some butter. 

Piled high with the stuffing mix. 

Sprinkled with Parmesan and 

back to the oven for the next 20-30 minutes at 350 F until nice and soft!

These came out of the oven ready to be devoured. 

Perfect for these brisk, fall evenings. 

RECIPE:

Prep Time : 20 minutes

Bake Time : 35-50 minutes

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1# bulk Italian Sausage

1 cup of minute rice - uncooked

1 cup water or broth

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 acorn squash

4 tbsp Butter

Grated Parmesan cheese - to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 F. 

Brown sausage and drain well. 

Cut Acorn Squash in half and remove seeds. 

Bake cut side down for 15-20 minutes. 

Make 1 cup of Minute rice according to instructions. 

Combine cooked rice, sausage and cranberries. 

After the first 15-20 minutes of baking, flip squash over and butter. 
Reduce oven to 350 F.

Fill with cranberry, rice and sausage stuffing. 

Top with Parmesan cheese. 

Bake for 20-30 minutes. 

Grilled Stuffed Zucchini

Labor Day weekend?  Already?  I know, right, can hardly believe it.

Luckily, just because the proverbial summer months are nearly behind us, doesn't mean grilling season is!

And, there hasn't been a zucchini recipe lately, so I didn't want to leave you hanging any longer.

These Grilled Stuffed Zucchini were at least as good as leftovers, so don't be afraid to make extra!

Started by browning a family pack of 2.25 # of ground beef...

Is it just me or has ground beef gotten a bit pricely lately? 

I always remind myself that you often get what you pay for...so I ante up!

Upon draining, where I often use a paper towel to help soak up some of the extra grease, 

season with 1-2 tsp of Italian seasoning. 

Back in the pan, add a 24 oz jar of pasta sauce.

As always, don't be afraid to use up any extras in the fridge.

They can go right in too!

While the filling is simmering a bit, the zucchini can be prepared by slicing in half

and coring out the seeds with a spoon, making room for the filling.

Three zucchini were required to use up all of the filling.  

Stuff those zucchini and throw them on the grill. 

Since these were made, I have read that the zucchini could be pre-grilled 

to eliminate some of the abundant moisture in these squash.  

Next time, I might just do that.

After about 20 minutes for these large zucchini, (less for smaller zucchini)

they were sprinkled with shredded mozzarella as the finishing touch. 

Now, don't delay, make these today! 

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

2.25 # of ground beef

1-2 tsp of Italian seasoning

24 oz jar of pasta sauce

3 zucchini 

1 cup shredded mozzarella

Parmesan - optional

Directions:

Brown meat, drain and sprinkle with seasoning. 

Add sauce and simmer while coring out the zucchini. 

Fill zucchini and grill over medium high heat for 20 minutes or until zucchini get soft. 

Top with shredded mozzarella, grill until melted. 

Prosciutto and Mozzarella Stuffed Pork Chops

Tuesday night, we had an unexpected empty nest for dinner, all of the kids had other places to go, so it was just Jerry and I...and I'm pretty sure that Jerry wasn't disappointed, as that meant there were more Prosciutto and Mozzarella Stuffed Pork Chops for us!

This meal was incredibly quick and easy and one of the best dinners I've made in a long time, if I do say so myself.

Just started with 4 center cut pork chops and on Prosciutto Mozzarella roll. 

The pork chops were seasoned with coarsely ground garlic, sea salt and black pepper. 

Added to a skillet with oil over medium heat to brown the chops. 

Do yourself a favor and slice a pocket for stuffing into them before browning…

(Aren't you glad I make these crazy mistakes first!?!?)

After about 3 minutes on each side, 

they had some nice color and texture and were ready for the next steps.  

Cut up the prosciutto and mozzarella roll into thin slices. 

Fill the pockets with the sliced cheese and meat, arranging on a foil-lined pan for ease of clean up. 

Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes or until the chops are fully cooked. 

No need to worry about a little cheese melting out, 

we just scooped it up and put it right back on top! 

Served it up on a bed of spinach, 

because that surely negates anything remotely unhealthy about the rest of the meal!  

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:

Center Cut Pork Chops

Prosciutto

Mozzarella

Coarsely ground Garlic

Coarsely ground Sea Salt

Coarsely ground Black Pepper

Cooking oil

DIRECTIONS:

Slice a nice deep pocket into the pork chops, much easier to do earlier rather than later. 

Season pork chops with garlic, salt and pepper to prepare for some initial browning in a skillet over medium heat. 

Brown the chops on each side for 2-3 minutes. 

Stuff the pork chops with the Prosciutto and Mozzarella. 

Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes, or until the pork chops are fully cooked. 

Feel free to spoon any melted cheese back over the pork chops.  

We are sure glad we did!  

Red, White and Blue - Stuffed Strawberries

Our week has flown by…perhaps this is just the speed of summer, with soccer, baseball and swim nearly everyday of the week, not to mention summer school, piano and guitar lessons and trying to sneak in a trip to the library.

Regardless of what we are doing, I always love to have healthy, fresh, summery treats around and thought I'd share this quick one with you, Red, White and Blue - Stuffed Strawberries.

Just start with some rinsed strawberries.  

I probably picked out some of the larger ones, more room for cool whip!  

Cored them and took a small slice off of the bottom so that they would stand up nicely.  

Just used a sandwich bag for piping after filling with cool whip and cutting off a small corner.  

I'm not much of a baker, but this piping stuff was fun!  

Then, Alayna and her friend did the honors of topping with the blueberries. 

I was kindly informed that they were NOT photo ready, so I had to just get their hands.  

And, just like that, the treats were ready! 

Luckily it didn't take much longer to make them than it took for them to be gobbled down!  

But, I'm not complaining, way better than lots of other things they could be eating.  

RECIPE:

Strawberries - rinsed, cored and flat on the bottom

Whip cream 

Blueberries

Arrange the berries on a plate or platter, pipe in the whip cream and top with blue berries.

So easy, so fun!  

Perfect for the upcoming summer holidays!