Ice Cream, Ice Cream, We All Scream For...Cefiore?

It's serious delicious refreshment. Thanks to my sister I know what I've been missing. It's not ice cream it's non-fat frozen yogurt and it's sooo good! They have great flavors and everything is all natural so it's  good for. Cefiore started out in Southern California and now they have stores all over the world. They have a store here in Louisville located on the corner of Bardstown Road and Eastern Parkway right next to Qdoba.
They have great flavors: Raspberry Pomegranate, Pineapple Tart, Green Tea, and Acaiberry. Top with your favorite topping which can be anything from fresh cut fruit to shredded coconut and chocolate chips. They also serve waffles, smoothies, teas, and coffee. They offer samples if you can't decide which flavor to enjoy. The pineapple tart was really refreshing but I opted for the raspberry pomegranate frozen yogurt. I topped it with fresh strawberries, coconut and white chocolate chips. It was SO GOOD!

I wanted to get a good picture but couldn't wait to dig in. It was calling my name!

Check them out at: www.cefiore.com

Then go see them at their store and try it for yourself! I will definitely be going back for more. Maybe tomorrow?

Simply Scrumptious

 I love Giada de Laurentiis. I was shopping in Target the other day and saw her newest cookbook, "Giada At Home" and I just had to have it. It is full of amazing recipes and I've been DYING to try some! So since I love eggs and my boyfriend loves steak I decided to go with the Grilled Tuscan Steak with Fried Egg and Goat Cheese. It's a really simple recipe and it turned out sooo good.  I omitted the goat cheese because Anthony (my bf) doesn't think it's cheese unless it comes from a cow. I substituted shredded parmesan and it worked great. You can find the recipe in Giada's cookbook or online

Grilled Tuscan Steak w/ Fried Egg

Need a little more? I made fried tortellini to go with my steak! 

Get your favorite store bought ravioli or tortellini

Beat 2 eggs with 1/2 cup of milk

Mix together 1/2 cup of flour with 1/2 cup of italian seasoned bread crumbs

Sprinkle in a pinch of salt and pepper

Coat the pasta with egg then dredge in the flour

Heat about 3 cups of vegetable oil to about 300 degrees

Deep fry until golden and serve with your favorite marinara sauce. YUM!

Mang-o-licious Tacos

So, I wanted tacos for dinner. But I didn't want my plain old tacos with ground beef and taco sauce. My Love for mexican inspired dishes and my spontaneous creativity got me thinking about trying something a bit different and on a hot summer day nothing is more refreshing than my Grilled Chicken Tacos with Cucumber Mango Salsa. This is so easy to make and will definitely quench your appetite. I almost couldn't eat it because I was drooling over it so much. Which garnered me enough "you're so weird" stares from my boyfriend I just had to give in and taste it. IT WAS SOO GOOD! Sweet, savory and juicy with a bit of crunch and a lot of YUM-O. Just enough flavor and texture to make your taste buds tango to taco heaven!

My muses for this recipe are the Mango Chicken Salad from Qdoba and some mango salsa covered crab cakes I had once at a local eatery. They were sooo good! But I like being in control of what goes into my food and onto my plate. It's much healthier for you when you're in charge of what goes in and what stays out. So please do try! I guarantee it will be a crowd pleaser.

Mango Salsa

1 small cucumber - seeded

1 mango

1/2 red onion

1 jalapeno - If you like it spicy leave the seeds. If you don't scrape them out. Or just scrape out some of them for a medium heat.

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon of honey

about a teaspoon

or so of dry or fresh cilantro

pinch of salt and pepper

Dice the first 4 ingredients into small, evenly sized pieces. Toss with remaining ingredients then cover and let it hang out in the fridge while you prepare the chicken.

Pollo

1 pound - boneless, skinless chicken breast. (I like chicken tenders for this)

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon ancho chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Clean the chicken and pat dry. Lay aside in one even layer. Mix the dry ingredients together and sprinkle evenly over chicken. Flip the chicken over and repeat.

If cooking the chicken on the stove top: Pre-heat skillet to med-high and add a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Add the chicken and cook through. About 10-12 minutes flipping once.

If cooking the chicken on the grill: Pre-heat the grill on the lowest setting. Brush the grill with some of the olive oil so the chicken doesn't stick. Add the chicken. Brush the chicken with the olive oil. After half the cook time flip the chicken and brush with more olive oil. Chicken will be done in about 10-12 minutes.

Once the chicken has cooled slice it into strips for your tacos. Fill steamed flour taco shells with chicken and salsa. Top with your favorite toppings or nothing at all and ENJOY!!

Let's think outside the box on this one. This manga salsa isn't just for tacos. Use your imagination to put it on some of your favorite foods. It might be mango but it's still salsa!

I am not a girl scout...

But they make great cookies. If you like girl scout cookies you will LOVE my brownies. They're my better version of the samoa cookies.

Rich, sinful chocolate...

Gooey, melt in your mouth caramel...

Exotic, sweet, heavenly coconut...

Aaahhh....

Yes these brownies will make you feel like your flying on a puffy, succulent, chocolate cloud of happiness! They are sooooo good! I could eat the whole batch!

All you need:

1 box of your fave brownie mix. You can go triple chocolate fudge or original just try to stay away from nuts and other odds mixings.

10-15 melted caramel candies

1/4 cup of sweetened flaked coconut.

1 big sweet tooth!

Pre-heat your oven and bake brownies according to the directions on the box.

In a skillet evenly disperse the coconut and place over a medium heat. 

Lightly toast. 

WATCH the coconut. All you need is a few minutes. You do not want to burn it. It will become aromatic and turn slightly golden.

When the brownies come out of the oven place on a cooling rack. 

Drizzle with melted caramel. Be generous. 

Then sprinkle with toasted coconut. Let cool completely.

Mexican at your casa es muy fácil

I love mexican food! Or at least the americanized version. I've never been to Mexico so I can't say I know what authentic mexican taste like. But all the restaurants I've been to claim they are authentic so unless I'm told otherwise I'm going to go with it. I'm always trying to come up with something new to try at home and lets face it, when we think of mexican at home we think tacos. I mean after all, it's not called taco Tuesday because of fajitas! Well I do love my tacos but I needed something new to try out. Some different ingredients to mix together that help me make something delicious and save time. So after much consideration I thought I'd try my hand at an enchilada.

Now, according to Wikipedia an enchilada is "a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a chili pepper sauce." I'm not a big fan of corn tortillas so I use tortillas made from flour. So I guess you could call mine a burrito covered in enchilada sauce. Regardless, it was quite tasty. Comparable to what I'd find out at a restaurant and I don't have to tip! And it's sooo easy to make! So try it out and see for yourself! I bet you'll be replacing taco Tuesdays with... umm...enchilada Tuesdays?

You will need!

1 10oz can of Rotell Mexican lime and cilantro - do not drain

1 package of taco seasoning

1lb boneless/skinless chicken breast tenders

1 10oz can of red enchilada sauce

4 grande burrito tortillas ( I like flour but if you like corn go for it!)

8oz shredded mexican blend cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour the rotell in a medium sized skillet over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Add the chicken and cook until the chicken in halfway done. About 3-4 minutes. Turn the chicken to finish cooking through. About another 3-4 minutes. When you turn the chicken put a lid on the skillet. When the chicken is cooked through take it off the heat. Take only the chicken out and let it cool down for a few minutes. Then shred the chicken. Add the shredded chicken back into the pan. Add the taco seasoning, mix well and set aside. Meanwhile, put the tortillas between 2 moistened paper towels and pop them in the microwave for one minute. This is make them easier to work with during assembly. When the tortillas are done take one and sprinkle with a little cheese. About a tablespoon and a half should do. Spoon about a quarter of the chicken onto the tortilla and roll into a burrito. Fold in the sides and roll from the bottom up. Repeat for the other 3 tortillas. Place the burritos in an 8x11 glass casserole dish that's been sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover with the enchilada sauce and sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. The cheese should be melty and the sauce bubbly.

Serve with spanish rice and refried beans! Top it off with a little sour cream and you're good to go for restaurant cuisine right in your very own kitchen!

Stay tuned for more restaurant quality meals right from your kitchen! And I'm not talking Bertolli...

Feliz comiendo!

Chau!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchilada