Turkey Sausage Farfalle Makes Healthy Comfort Food Alternative

The Fall brings cool weather and a desire for comfort foods. When I think of comfort food, I immediately think of macaroni & cheese, hearty pasta, pumpkin pie, and soup. Since many of these tend to also be calorie loaded instant weight-gainers, tonight I whipped up a hearty, veggie packed meal with a healthy twist inspired by one of my top 3 favorite Food Network peeps, Giada DeLaurentis. Though in my opinion she overdoes it on the California/Italian citrus fruits, I'm willing to forgive since any non-lemon themed dish of hers I've tried has been fabulous. And I just love her.

Anyhow, tonight I put my own deliciously healthy twist on her Farfalle with Turkey Sausage, Peas & Mushrooms. And I highly recommend it. Ladies, your guys won't even know it's good for them. Since I tend to just throw a bunch of stuff in a pan without totally measuring, some of my measurements may not be completely exact. It's ok - this recipe is all about how it tastes and how you like it! So be sure to graze as you go!

Healthy Turkey Sausage Farfalle
Ingredients:
1 box Farfalle (bowtie pasta), whole wheat if you can find it
1 pkg turkey sausage (remove casings)
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced (I use the jarred kind)
5 oz frozen peas (about half of a box)
1/2 20oz can diced tomatoes (you can use the whole thing, but it makes a LOT)
1 pkg mushrooms, sliced (use any kind you want)
3/4 C white wine (any kind you would drink - I like Sauvignon Blanc)
1/2 C Parmesean cheese, or to taste
Salt & pepper, to taste
Extra Virgin olive oil

Prepare farfalle according to package directions and set aside. While pasta is cooking, in separate pan saute onion in olive oil until soft, then add garlic. Next, add sausage and brown, breaking up the pieces as it cooks and add salt and pepper. Once browned, remove from pan but keep warm. Add 1 tbsp olive oil to pan and saute mushrooms until soft, about 3 minutes. Then, add peas and cook a few minutes more. Lastly, add the tomatoes (you may want to drain these slightly, but not completely) and white wine (depending on how watery/saucy you like it will depend on how much you add...I probably added about 3/4 C). Add meat back in and let whole thing reduce for a few minutes. [Insert time to taste test here. If it's missing anything - seasoning, more white wine, etc...add it now!] Once finished, add to pasta and stir in Parmesean cheese to taste. Serve in pretty pasta bowl and enjoy!

Beware: This recipe makes A LOT of food. So be prepared to share with others, take some for lunch the day after, and/or enjoy for another night of dinner.

Key Lime in the Coconut Cupcakes Make for a Gluttonous Father's Day

In between eating delicious food all over the city and beyond as well as pop culturing to my heart's desire, I aspire to be a domestic goddess. I'll admit that sometimes I do curse myself after offering to bring a savory dip to a party or (in my weakest, wedding-dazed filled moment) volunteer to make 150 Magnolia cupcakes for my own engagement party (no, I'm so not exaggerating and I have the carpal tunnel syndrome to prove it...almost). But I do enjoy cooking and especially baking...and that's about as far as my domestic lasso will grasp.

With total disregard for terrible, rainy weather (in hopes that if I don't acknowledge it, it won't exist), I decided to whip up some Key Lime in the Coconut Cupcakes in honor of the usually summery Father's Day. Inspired by a recipe from Ultimate Recipe Showdown (where did that show go? I really do watch them ALL), I altered this one a bit to fit my schedule and my desire to bake. It was all made possible with a little help from my friends.

My favorite appliance...if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.

Chopped white chocolate adds some extra flavor to the icing

A doctored-up cake mix and no one will know the difference

Recipe for Coconut Cake
*Inspired by Food Network
1 box Classic White cake mix
1 tsp almond extract
1 C sweetened coconut
Zest of 1 lime
2+ tbsp Key Lime juice (from bottle if you can't find real Key limes)
Directions: Prepare cake mix as directed on box, adding in the almond extract. Fold in coconut, lime juice, and zest before baking. Bake as directed on box.

White Chocolate Frosting
*Ok, this I lifted directly from foodnetwork.com and you can see the full recipe here. Noted below are the elements I changed
5 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped into small chunks
1 cup (2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature (leave it out over night. seriously.)
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted (I did not sift, and it was just fine)
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon key lime juice (bottled or freshly squeezed)...(I used more like 2 tbsp because I wanted it to be limey)
1/4 cup sour cream
Finely grated key lime zest & sprinkles, for garnish
2 drops food coloring (I like green for lime)

Directions: In a small heat proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, carefully and slowly melt the white chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm. (*Note: I did this in the microwave. Heat at 30 second intervals, mixing in between. Do NOT overheat). Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar until well combined. Add the salt, vanilla extract, key lime juice, and sour cream and mix until very smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and mix just until incorporated.

Deliciously fluffy icing of the key lime variety

My biggest tip: Even if you are making a boxed cake mix cake, making your own frosting makes all the difference in the world. If you make your own frosting, instead of serving that canned garbage icing to your friends and family, they won't even notice the boxed cake mix. And my favorite aspect...The frosting is the easiest part to make.

Ta Da!

To cart these little babies around, I got a handy cupcake caddy from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. $25 with a never-fail coupon and worth every penny!

My super adorable cupcake caddy...makes the carting of fab cupcakes possible!

Any other cupcake recipes out there? I'm a sucker for beautiful, delicious cupcakes and always looking for new recipes. If so, write to us, include photos, and we'll share with our readers!

Monday's Simple "House of Tsang" Stir Fry

Another cloudy day and another rough Monday morning. This weekend I ordered Indian food, watched eps of True Blood Season 1 (now awaiting disc 3...Netflix better kick into high gear so I can get my Bill fill), barbequed, and stayed out way too late on Saturday celebrating my sister's birthday. Since I'm still sleepy and gluttonously full from my super fun weekend, tonight will be spent doing laundry, writing up a storm, and making a low key dinner for hubby and me. I'll be making one of my Monday night faves, Asian stir fry starring my new favorite sauce, House of Tsang Stir Fry Sauce. Packed with vegetables, this easy recipe is healthy, savory, and a sure fire crowd-pleaser. Please take note that this recipe has little measurements in it. I typically just eyeball everything and throw it into a wok or pan together.

Rachel's Spicy Stir Fry
Ingredients:
1 lb cubed chicken
1/2 onion, minced
Olive oil
Brown rice, cooked (about 1 C per person)
String beans, washed and tips cut off
Broccoli, washed and cut into florets
Carrots (I use bag of baby carrots, available from Fruit Guy at $1/bag)
Cauliflower, washed and cut into florets
Basically any other vegetable you want in your stir fry
House of Tsang Stir Fry Sauce
House of Tsang Spicy Stir Fry Sauce
Salt & pepper to taste

Saute cubed chicken with minced onion in a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle on salt and pepper to season. Once cooked through, remove from wok or saute pan. Add cut, washed veggies to pan over medium heat. Add stir fry sauce to taste (I use half regular, half spicy for a bit of a kick without lighting my mouth on fire). Mix well, cover, and cook vegetables in sauce until tender. Add chicken back into pan, mix well, and cook another few minutes. Serve over brown rice.

Note: Since I enjoy my food completely doused in sauce (after all, isn't the food just a vehicle for the sauce?), I'm not recommending amounts of the stir fry sauce, but instead suggest adding to your own taste.

*Special thanks to Alicia Durand for introducing me to the House of Tsang family of Asian-inspired sauces.
*House of Tsang sauces can be found in the International aisle of your grocery store