Max and Cheese

I tried to do a play on words there - I may be the only one who thinks it's cute. I'll take that risk, it is my blog. As mentioned in my before post, Max Man took it upon himself to cook us dinner Sunday night. This recipe slightly compromises the posts I try for because it is just in no way, shape or form what any person would consider "healthy". Unless they are from the land of dairy - oh wait, Max is - so this is just perfect.

If you are looking for a really good mac and cheese, without caring where it will all end up (potentially as an additional dimple on your thigh), Max and Cheese is your version! Just kidding... kinda. I was in and out of sleep on the couch as he cooked dinner, but when I was awake, I tried to snap pictures. I couldn't help but laugh as I noticed the difference between his cooking style and mine; Max Man measures out everything, he is so precise, the "baker-style" cook, total left brain driven. It made me smile, and I'd fall asleep again. 

Grocery List:

• Salt
• 8 oz. elbow macaroni
• 2 medium cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium shallots, minced
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup freshly shredded Gruyere cheese
• 4 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

Start by pre-heating oven to 400 degrees then lightly grease a casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large pot, fill with water and salt well, then bring to a boil. Add the macaroni noodles and cook until al dente. Drain and reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.

The recipe called for use of a double boiler to heat and melt the cheeses. We did not have a double boiler so Max Man improvised and used a metal bowl that fit perfectly into a pot, leaving plenty of room to boil about 2 inches of water in. Heat this over medium-high heat. Combine the cheddar, 1 cup of Parmesan, Gruyere and cream cheese in the mixing bowl sitting atop the sauce pan. Once the cheeses start to melt, add the cream and stir gently; about 10 minutes total. Once all melted and blended, remove from the heat but keep warm.

Pour the heated water out of the saucepan, then add the butter and melt that over medium heat. Add the garlic and the shallots, cooking for 2 minutes until softened. Add the reserved pasta cooking water over the macaroni noodles in the colander, to help loosen it. Let drain again, then add the noodles to the sauce pan, stirring to coat with butter. Add the cheese sauce and stir well to incorporate it. Look, so creamy!

Season with salt and pepper - then I also added my favorite, Tony's Creole. Transfer to the casserole dish. In a small bowl, add the remaining 1/2 cup Parm and the breadcrumbs, using fingers to mix together.

Sprinkle mixture over the pasta and bake uncovered for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

This was a delicious dish, I'm very thankful to have a Mr. Max to step in when I'm feeling down. He did a great job, I should start letting him take over a little more! Served with a simple beef tenderloin fillet, marinated with Whole Food's Theo's Steakhouse Marinade, and a mixed greens salad.

A somber state...

Well, foodie family, it's been a difficult couple of days. What was set to be a weekend of fun and celebration with wedding festivities and visits with close friends was a bit compromised with a devastation. Late Thursday evening my family learned that a family member lost her life as a result of the Alabama tornadoes. The home and surrounding neighborhood was completely flattened and my second cousin, Jennifer, was a victim of the storm. She was only 25, a newlywed, an unsuspecting individual who tried to take cover and did not make it through. It is so hard to wrap my head around these things: the pictures, the growing number of people who lost their lives, the people that have made it through but lost everything they have. Then it really hits home to have a relative I grew up with and so close to in age... a family losing their daughter, sister, niece, cousin, a young man losing his new bride, it really breaks my heart.

I did have uplifting events take place as I mentioned above with a friend's wedding, which brought great friends to town lending the ability to enjoy time with them. I had the chance to spend an entire day with my parents, just being with them, talking with them. I witnessed two sweet friends say their "I do's" and begin a beautiful life together, now as their own family. I spent a lazy Sunday with my best friend, Paige and my Max Man. With all of these ups and downs, I haven't been feeling 100% - the brunt of it I felt on Sunday with sore scratchy throat and that bone-tired feeling where you lack any and all energy. It's like an emotional hangover, a hangover of the heart's sentiments.

I wanted to use this as a way to grieve for my family in Alabama and for all those effected in the south. We learned about Jennifer late Thursday, more details Friday, even more details Saturday - with each day, more to learn and I feel naive, that I take everything in my own life for granted. I have treasured my time with loved ones the last few days, I wanted to soak that time in. Time is precious - time is ticking - time runs out.

Really not feeling up to par Sunday, Mr. Max decided it was his turn in the kitchen and made us dinner. He decided to make my favorite comfort food from scratch with a recipe used in our Central Market cooking school, paired with a salad and a simple pan-seared fillet of beef tenderloin marinated in a steakhouse sauce from Whole Foods. That boy is taking care of me with our mutual love - food.

This macaroni and cheese is awesome, honestly restaurant quality, but here's the catch: it is not healthy. This uses cream cheese and heavy cream (eek! those two being the worst parts), Parmesan, Gruyere and sharp yellow cheddar. Every now and then, in the name of comfort food, our healthy attempts are broken.... but every now and then, I think I'm okay with that.

For some reason, my camera will not download the pictures so the recipe is coming! Stay tuned for Max's Mac and Cheese, along with my Monday night dinner, a cilantro-lime chicken with avocado salsa, saffron rice and spicy black beans.

I do ask that you please lift up the people effected by this tragic series of storms, say a quick prayer as you sit at the stoplight, wash your hair in the shower or as you fall asleep tonight. Pray for their understanding and strength to move on and rebuild. Pray that our nation will focus on the people who need help right now.

Chicken Scampi

Finally, friends - Easter has come, and has now gone. I made it through the temptation of pizza (ok, twice I caved, both were weekends and I claim that I had "no other choice"... which is for the most part accurate) and completely stayed away from pasta! You guys - this the best I have done since I was 5 years old and gave up sucking my thumb!!! I would like to take a moment and reflect on this personal feat... done. Moving on, we had a delicious Easter lunch with the family. Dad's side of the family came over and we spent a great afternoon together. As mom prepared the house and table settings, I prepared the food. I'll be honest, cooking for 13 almost made me dislike cooking in general - that's a lie, but it did try my patience this time around.  Sunday was a lot of different foods to make, a lot of prep, a lot of chopping, a lot of "move please," a lot of "I said MOVE," a lot of "ok, I promise, only 5 minutes left," a lot of "ughhh I need a drink"  :-)

Due to the need to get all of the food served in a timely manner, I just didn't bother to stop and take my pictures. At the end of it all, I didn't even think to get a finished product picture of the spread, my brain was shot. Everything turned out really well, so that was the test run, stay tuned for some great sides coming in the future including a "healthy" creamed corn, honey-glazed carrots, and an Au-gratin potato recipe that worked for me this time.

Tonight, I decided to have some pasta in honor of my successful Lenten season. I came across a post from one of the blogs I follow, Muncher Cruncher and adapted her recipe. This Chicken Scampi paired with simple greens was a healthy, tasty and easy Monday night meal.

Grocery List:

• 2 tbsp. butter
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic (I thought I had fresh garlic and I didn't so I just used a tsp. of garlic powder)
• 1/4 cup green onions, chopped
• Juice from one lemon
• 2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite size bits (I simply bought two prepared chicken breasts from Whole Foods pre-made food section and just cut them up)
• 1/4 cup parsley, minced
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• Whole wheat penne pasta
• Salt and pepper to taste

Start by boiling your pasta in water until soft - about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt your butter then add the olive oil, garlic and green onion. Cook for about 10 minutes and add the tomatoes, chicken, parsley, then season with salt and pepper.

 

Once sauce is done, pour pasta in a bowl, then top with sauce. Toss with pasta and serve!

  

Served with mixed greens, avocado, cucumber, feta and light red wine vinaigrette.

Goat Cheese Omelet

Due to a storm this evening with hail and heavy winds, my mani/pedi date with friend Sarah (check out her blog!) was pushed back a little later in the evening to let the tornado threats pass. Welcome to spring in Texas! However, weather has been really erratic all over the south and even Midwest - thoughts and prayers go out to those it has effected whether slightly or devastatingly.

Not getting home until after 8:00 gave me a switch up - the pork hadn't fully defrosted and it was time to eat. With Mr. Max on his way over, I switched gears into breakfast for dinner intended for Wednesday night instead (another benefit to meal planning and shopping for the week ahead of time!)

I love cheese and eggs, so many combinations! I made some quick sauteed "stoplight" veggies on the side but doing it over again, would have thrown them in the omelet, they were a fabulous complement. 

This little meal, including the veggies, contains 233 calories, 17g fat, 16g carbs, 1g fiber, 2.5 mg iron and 84mg calcium per serving.

Grocery List:

• 4 large eggs
• 1 tbsp. water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Tony's Creole (my addition)
• 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
• 1 tsp. parsley
• 1/2 tsp. tarragon 
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/2 cup julienned red/yellow bell pepper (I added yellow because I enjoy it more)
• 1 tsp. fresh chives, minced

Combine the eggs, water, salt, pepper and creole seasoning in a bowl, whisking well.

Combine the cheese, parsley and tarragon in a bowl and set aside.

Heat oil in a skillet and add the zucchini and bell peppers; cook until tender. I also sprinkled a little creole seasoning over them as well as they cooked. Cook over low-medium heat and cover, stirring occasionally.

Heat up another skillet and coat with cooking spray. Pour in the egg mixture and let it set slightly, do not stir. Carefully loosen the edges with a rubber tip spatula, tipping the pan to try to help the uncooked egg cook and settle.

Sprinkle the cheese mixture over the omelet - my crumbles became a solid when I mixed with a spoon to blend the herbs, so I plopped several globs across the omelet surface.

Using the spatula, flip one side of the omelet over on the other. (as you can see, I still have some runny egg)

Now, using your spatula, cut the omelet in half so there are now 2 parts and flip over to let the other side cook.

 My omelets are not perfect, nor are the pretty, but they sure do taste good!

After about 2 minutes, remove to a plate and sprinkle with chives. By this point, the veggies should be soft and lightly browned, ready to eat. Spoon out and serve with whole wheat toast!

version 2 of picture from the top of page

Tomato-Feta Couscous

I usually gravitate toward from-the-box risottos, rices, couscouses (spelling??) but this one looked so easy, I figured I could try it without it becoming too labor intensive. I had some tri-colored pearl couscous but you can use any kind, I personally prefer the pearled. I can't really give a reason why, it's just one those "because I just do" things!

This simple little side contains 150 calories, 31g fat and 197mg sodium per serving (serving size is 1/2 cup).

Grocery List:

• 1 tbsp. Olive oil
• 1/4 cup shallot, minced
• 3/4 cup couscous
• 1 cup fat free, low sodium vegetable broth
• 3/4 cup halved grape tomatoes
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 tsp. basil
• 1 tsp. parsley
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. thyme

Easy peasy, here we go. First - here is the couscous I use for a visual reference. Why tri-color? This organic little treat says it contains paprika and spinach powder to enhance nutrients. I just trust the tub.

Heat the olive oil in a high sided, large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute for about 2 minutes.

Stir in the couscous and saute for about 1 minute.Add the broth and bring to a boil. After boiling for about 2 minutes, remove from heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

 

Fluff the couscous with a fork then add in the tomatoes, feta, lemon juice and herbs.

Stir well and serve it up! Pictured above with the delicious maple-lemon glazed salmon.

Maple-Lemon Glazed Salmon

This may just be my new favorite salmon! Tonight's dinner was the perfect week night meal: easy, under 30 minutes to prepare, few ingredients, delicious AND nutritious. Recipe and meal pairing credit goes to Cooking Light's Quick and Easy Low Calorie Recipes, an all new recipe-only edition on stands now, people - I am looking forward to several of the little gems I've uncovered in there. So I'm going to pretend I know what you are thinking now (ok, I'm going to insert the thought I know that I was thinking)... maple and lemon? That's not exactly a combination that I would assemble taste-wise. This is the type of thing that has come to intrigue me about trying several different recipes. I'm telling you, it pairs beautifully, err, deliciously!

This salmon dish contains 287 calories, 14g fat, 31g protein, 7.5g carbs, 80mg cholesterol, and 23mg calcium per serving.

Grocery List:

• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp. canola oil
• 2 skinless salmon fillets
• Salt and pepper to taste

Let's start by pre-heating your boiler. Next, combine the lemon juice, maple syrup, cider vinegar, and canola oil in a bowl and mix well.

Next, take a ziploc bag and place your fish inside followed by the marinade. Refrigerate for 5 minutes, flip the bag and refrigerate for another 5 minutes.

Remove the salmon from the bag, reserving the marinade in a bowl. Place the marinade in the microwave for 1 minute on high to thicken. Meanwhile, heat a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle your salmon with salt and pepper. Coat your skillet with cooking spray and add the fish; cook for 3 minutes, then flip carefully to keep from breaking apart. Before you flip, coat well with marinade.

After cooking the other side of the fillet, coat again and put your oven-safe skillet in the oven to broil for about 3 minutes or until desired degree of "done-ness". Remove carefully and you are ready to serve! Pictured above with a delicious tomato-feta couscous.

Meal Planning

What a weekend! Mr. Max and I went down to Florida to experience an Indian wedding for one of his friend's from home. The food was definitely interesting, but what a kind and hospitable culture - very helpful as we tried to understand the customs and rituals of the weekend.

Here are just a few pictures to share...

 Mr. Max and myself with the groom riding in on the ceremonial horse behind us

 A sampling of the food....

Inside the wedding ceremony

After the last few days, I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of cooking and consuming more familiar foods! Last week at the store, I picked up the new Cooking Light all recipe magazine edition. This week the lineup will consist of three meals from this new recipe source.

Monday: Salmon with Maple-Lemon Glaze and a Tomato-Feta Couscous

Tuesday: Teriyaki Pork and Pineapple skewers with stir fry rice

Wednesday: Breakfast for Dinner! A goat cheese omelet with sauteed vegetables, think bell peppers and zucchini

Thursday: Undecided, most likely a dinner out because it is an event night

Friday: We will have another cooking school date night at Central Market for an American Steakhouse theme where we will cook a menu of a classic chop salad, beef fillet, lobster mac n' cheese (which I will be morally obligated to pass on because I will be shy just 30ish hours from the end of Lenten season, yet foodie-faithfully tempted to at least try), onion rings, roasted broccoli and mushrooms, and finally Kentucky Almond-Bourbon cheesecake.

Saturday I'm going to help my mom prepare for Easter brunch with the family on Sunday! I know a ginger-cider brisket is in the works but I'll be working on the rest of the menu this week.