Spicy Szechuan Noodles

Spicy Szechuan Noodles (adapted from Good Housekeeping, Servings: 6, Total Time: 20 minutes)

Ingredients

·         12 oz. egg noodles

·         1 ½ cups vegetable broth

·         6 Tbsp. lower-sodium soy sauce

·         6 Tbsp. lime juice

·         2 Tbsp. sugar

·         2 Tbsp. Sriracha

·         2 tsp. ground ginger

·         2 Tbsp. canola oil

·         4 Morningstar Farms Garden Patties, crumbled

·         5-6 oz. baby spinach

Directions

1.      Heat large covered saucepot salted water to boiling on high.

2.      Add egg noodles. Cook as label directs; drain and rinse under cold water.

3.      Purée, in food processor, broth, soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, Sriracha, and ginger.

4.      Heat canola oil in 12-inch skillet on high.

5.      Add burger crumbles; cook 5 minutes. Add broth mixture; simmer 5 minutes or until heated through.

6.      Stir in baby spinach; cook 1 minute.

7.      Divide noodles among plates; top with sauce.

I actually doubled part of the recipe above (the “sauce”) because it was not nearly enough to cover the noodles.  I use quotations around sauce because it wasn’t very saucy; it was more of a topping.  I actually double checked the ingredient amounts because it wasn’t what I expected.  It was still good, though.  The dish is spicy, no extra Sriracha required!  Reading the ingredient list again, I feel like there should be some sweetness or tartness to the flavor, but the Sriracha definitely overrides that (not a bad thing in my book!).

I used the Garden Patties and crumbled them instead of the Mealstarters because I have a huge package of the veggie burgers and wanted to use them before they got too frost-bitten.  I like the difference in the look and texture – part of the burger patties stayed firm and provided a nice contrast to the noodles – the Mealstarters would not have done the same.  Morningstar also makes an Asian veggie patty, so you may want to try that with this dish. 

Enjoy!

Candy Brownies

Candy Brownies (from All Recipes, Servings: 24, Total Time: 45 inutes)

Ingredients

·         1 cup all-purpose flour

·         2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

·         1 tsp. baking powder

·         ¼ tsp. salt

·         ¾ cup packed light brown sugar

·         1/3 cup margarine, softened

·         ½ tsp. vanilla extract

·         1 large egg

·         ½ cup candy-coated milk chocolate pieces (such as M&M's®)

·         ½ cup chopped peanut butter cups (such as Reese's®)

·         ½ cup chopped chocolate-covered crispy peanut butter candy (such as Butterfinger®)

·         ½ cup chopped milk chocolate candy bars (such as Hershey's®)

Directions

1.      Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a 9-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

2.      Whisk 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. Beat brown sugar, butter, and vanilla extract together in a separate large bowl using an electric mixer until creamy; beat in egg.

3.      Gradually beat flour mixture into butter mixture until batter is just combined; fold in candy-coated milk chocolate pieces, peanut butter cups, chocolate-covered crispy peanut butter candy, and milk chocolate bars. Press batter into prepared baking pan.

4.      Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack.

We had some Halloween candy leftover and I knew that it would take forever to eat it, then I found this recipe.  It is easy and delicious!  I used about 1/8 cup M&Ms, ¾ cup Reese’s, ½ cup Butterfingers, and ¾ cup Hershey’s.  I think that this is an easy recipe to make changes to, using the ingredients that you want to use.  Next time, I will use white chocolate chips, Hershey’s, Reese’s and maybe Kit Kats.

Each bit was soft, chewy, and chocolaty.  The peanut butter from the Reese’s was also slightly apparent in each piece.  One piece is very satisfying.  On another note, my husband loved the brownies and is excited for me to make them again.  This definitely going to be my go-to when I have any leftover holiday candy!

Sweet Potato and Rice Casserole

Sweet Potato and Rice Casserole (from Better Homes & Gardens, Servings: 6, Total Time: 1 hour)

Ingredients

·         2 cups water

·         1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped (1 ½ cups)

·         1 cup uncooked long grain brown rice

·         ½ tsp. salt

·         1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained

·         1 ½ cups frozen sweet soybeans (edamame), thawed

·         1 cup shredded taco cheese

·         1 8 oz. carton sour cream

·         1 4 oz. can diced green chile peppers, undrained

·         ¼ cup chopped green onions

·         2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

·         1 Tbsp. snipped fresh sage

·         2 cloves garlic, minced

·         ½ tsp. salt

Directions

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium saucepan, bring water to boiling. Stir in sweet potato, rice, and ½ tsp. salt. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

2.       Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine black beans, soybeans, ½ cup of the cheese, the sour cream, chile peppers, green onions, flour, sage, garlic, and ½ tsp. salt. Stir in rice mixture.

3.       Transfer mixture to an ungreased 2-quart casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 30 minutes or until heated through.

This dish was pretty simple to make and had a nice mix of textures, but it looked nothing like the picture on the website (mine was way creamier).  The edamame stayed crunchy and the black beans were firm against the creaminess of the sour cream, cheese, and rice.  Each bit was smooth and rich with the taste of sour cream and cheese, but not overly.  I also liked the varying chunks of sweet potato that I got and will probably add more the next time I make the dish.  The only changes that I made to the above were no green onions (we didn’t have any) and using dried sage (1 tsp.) instead of fresh.

Honey-Lime Quinoa Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Honey-Lime Quinoa Stuffed Sweet Potatoes (slightly adapted from Cooking Classy, Servings: 8, Total Time: 50 minutes)

Ingredients

·         4 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed then pierced several times with a fork

·         1 cup uncooked quinoa

·         1 3/4 cup vegetable broth

·         1 Tbsp. olive oil

·         1 cup chopped yellow onion

·         1 clove garlic

·         1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed

·         1 ½ cups frozen corn

·         ½ tsp. ground cumin

·         ½ tsp. ground paprika

·         ¼ tsp. ground coriander

·         1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

·         3 ½ Tbsp. lime juice

·         3 ½ Tbsp. honey

·         Salt and freshly ground black pepper

·         3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish

·         2 oz. shredded taco cheese (1/2 cup)

Directions

1.       Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven until tender, about 40 minutes.

2.       Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring quinoa and broth to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cover and simmer 15 minutes, or until fluffy.

3.       Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add onion and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes, adding in garlic during last 30 seconds of sautéing. Add onion mixture to cooked quinoa, along with black beans, corn, cumin, paprika, coriander, cayenne, lime juice, honey, and cilantro and toss mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4.       Cut cooked sweet potatoes in half and scoop out some of the sweet potato flesh to create a bowl shape, while leaving about 1/3 to 1/2-inch of sweet potato intact (reserve scooped out potato in refrigerator for another use). Fill sweet potatoes with quinoa mixture, then sprinkle tops evenly with cheese. Transfer to oven and broil until cheese has melted.

My  husband and I both liked this dish a lot – it was delicious!  I used a little less lime juice than was called for (maybe 2.5 Tbsp.) because I was concerned it would make the dish taste overly lime-y.  I also used dried cilantro (maybe 2 Tbsp.) because we are not huge fans of the spice, but I didn’t want to leave it out completely.  We were almost out of quinoa, so I actually used a mix of ½ quinoa and ½ Israeli couscous – it still worked.

I found that I had a of the bean/quinoa/corn mixture leftover, so I just added more to the top of the potatoes after serving them.  The beans and corn add a bit crisper texture to the quinoa and it all worked nicely with the soft sweet potatoes.  The dish was like a sweet Mexican bite with some creamy cheese.  I definitely plan to make this again and also shared the recipe with a girl at work.