Blistered Cherry Tomatoes

This year I planted 6 cherry tomato plants.  I'm not sure what I was thinking....Needless to say, I had to get pretty creative in order to use them up.  I found an awesome yellow tomato sauce recipe and a large portion of my yellow cherries went to that (will share the canning recipe later).  For a quick and easy yet delicious side, here is a recipe I used frequently.

• Ingredients:
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon white sugar (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Melt butter.

2.  Saute garlic in butter.

3.  Add basil and tomatoes.

4.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and sugar to taste.

5.  Cook over medium heat until tomatoes start to "blister."  I shake the pan back and forth to get them evenly cooked on all sides.  

These are great served over steak!  The garlic adds a tremendous flavor!  I sometimes use extra butter and garlic to make more sauce.  This is definitely one of my favorites!

Enjoy!

High 5 For Friday

This week's High 5 For Friday is brought to you courtesy of Lauren from My Grey Desk.

Let's get started!

1.  We had a sleepover birthday party for my daughter.  A great time was had by all!

2.  The PSSA results are in and my son scored in the advanced category.  So proud!!

3.  Tried quinoa for the first time this week.  It was delicious and healthy!  Definitely adding this one as one of our regulars!  The recipe can be found here...

4.  I got to spend some of my day yesterday with a friend....we went shopping and got some amazing deals!

5.  I got a lot of my sewing projects finished up this week.  Feels good to finally have them completed!

Hope you all had a great week!  Thanks for stopping by!

Quinoa with Black Beans and Corn

Quinoa is a relatively new discovery for me.  I made this recipe last night for dinner and it was a huge hit!  Even the kids loved it!  Definitely will be making this one again.  I just followed the directions on the quinoa box and added my own ingredients....Here's how I did it...

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons coconut oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1-1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Saute onions and garlic in coconut oil til slightly browned.

Meanwhile, rinse and drain quinoa well (will be bitter if this step is not completed properly)

Add quinoa, veggie broth and spices (except cilantro) to the onion and garlic mixture.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add corn, black beans and cilantro

Serve!  Even better the next day!

Next time I am going to try throwing in some tomatoes and maybe even some shredded zucchini.  

Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

I don't know about you, but I just LOVE sun-dried tomatoes.  I recently had a tomato and mozzarella sandwich at Panera Bread that had a sun-dried tomato spread.  It was amazing!  So, I came up with my own recipe to try to duplicate the spread.  This is what I came up with....not to brag....but I think mine might just be a smidge tastier!  :)

2 cups oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

1 c parmesan cheese

1/2 c olive oil

4 T chopped onion

3 cloves chopped garlic

1/4 c balsamic vinegar

1/4 c fresh basil

1/4 c fresh parsley

Place all ingredients in the food processer until a coarse paste consistency is reached.  This adds pizzaz to any sandwich.  

Enjoy!!

High 5 For Friday

This week's High 5 For Friday is brought to you courtesy of Lauren from My Grey Desk.

Let's get started!

1.  I changed my work schedule around a bit.  I am now able to take a break before the kids go to school, which has enabled me to get creative with styling my daughter's hair, instead of the normal quick ponytail.  We've had a lot of fun trying new things!  It's so nice to be able to spend some quality time with them both before heading off out into the world.  This has been a positive change!

2.  Soccer is in full swing.  I'm getting used to being a soccer mom.  

3.  We have had some amazing weather this week!  This is a photo of a particularly beautiful sunset taken out of the front door of our home.

4.  I splurged and bought a new pair of Merrell flipflops.  I LOVE them!

5.   We went canoeing.  Love being on the water!!

That wraps it up for this week!  Hope your week was great too!

How to Roast Tomatoes

This summer I have had quite an abundant supply of tomatoes from my garden.  I have canned, frozen, dried and consumed more tomatoes than I can count....in just about every way imaginable.  Made tomato soup, tomato sauce, salsa, pizza sauce, tomato juice.....One of my favorites this summer has been to roast them with any variety of seasonings and add them to sandwiches, pizza, pasta....pretty much endless possibilities.  Here's how I do it...

I line my baking pan with aluminum foil.

Into a ziplock bag, I placed halved and seeded tomatoes and toss with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, basil and minced fresh garlic.

I then spread onto the pan

and place in the oven at 400 degrees for 25-45 minutes..depending on the size of your fruit.  They will be slightly browned and shriveled but not burned.  

I never measure my spices.  You should experiment and adjust to your own tastes.  Fresh spices are always best!

Creamy Cucumber Spread

I was recently at a friend's house and she made these cute little finger sandwiches.  Not only were they cute, but they were quite tasty!  So, I managed to get the recipe out of her.  I was shocked to find that it was quite simple...yet the results are completely refreshing and satisfying!


First, take an 8-oz package of cream cheese softened and add a packet of Italian dressing mix.

Next add fresh dill to suit your taste.

Stir together...

Next, take your favorite bread (I just used the whole wheat that I had on hand) cut into quarters, spread with the creamy cucumber spread, a slice of cucumber and top with a few sprinkles of fresh dill.

There you have it!  Quick and easy yet so delicious and refreshing.

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