A quick and easy dessert that will wow your friends and treat your taste-buds without the 5,302,107 calories of a traditional slice of cheesecake!
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4 years ago Brian and I went on our first date.

I didn’t know it then, but he would turn out to be my best friend, the person to kiss me goodnight, hold my hand when I’m worried and hold me tight when I’m scared. 

I didn’t know it then, but he would turn out to be my shoulder to cry on, my ear to confide to, and my voice of reassurance.  Continue reading →

Chorizo is one of those things I never really had on my radar until just recently. Chorizo is a dried and cured sausage in a casing. It can be usually found with other ready-to-eat cured meat products like salami. But chorizo can also be fresh! I prefer the fresh kind- especially when I can make it myself and prepare it a bit more on the healthy side.  Continue reading →

There was a time in my life when I hated broccoli and cauliflower.
They looked a bit too much like “trees” and the texture turned my stomach. Big time.

As an adult I’ve grown to LOVE both of these cruciferous veggies (but continue to semi-hate their close cousin the Brussels Sprout), and eat them almost daily.

Getting the picky eaters in your life to eat these super nutritious veggies can be quite the challenge. My favorite way to sneak the broccoli in is to roast it with salt and pepper until it is super duper crisp. Those crispy broccoli florets become addictive (I swear!) and there are times I’ll end up eating a whole head in one sitting (it’s THAT good). I dare those picky eaters to say these aren’t delicious!

Tonight I whipped up an equally scrumptious recipe as a side for dinner. These cauliflower florets have the same satisfaction you’ll get from the crispy broccoli, and have a kick that would be delicious as a taco filling for all of my veggie friends out there!

Spicy Crispy Cauliflower
serves 2-3 (or 1 lol)
Ingredients
1 head of cauliflower (or 1 frozen steam-in-bag)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1  tsp. cumin
1 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
fresh herbs for garnish

Directions
1. Steam cauliflower using this recipe, or instructions on the bag (if using frozen). Pat dry.
2. In a small bowl, combine cumin, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, salt and red pepper flakes together. Set aside.
3. In a medium sized frying pan, heat olive oil on medium-high heat (closer to medium than high). Place seasoning mix into the hot oil and use a wooden spoon or spatula to move around the pan and incorporate with the oil. Add cauliflower to the pan “floret side down” into the hot oil making sure not to crowd the florets.
NOW DON’T MESS WITH THE FLORETS! DON’T TURN THEM! DON’T SHAKE THEM! DON’T ROTATE THEM! DON’T MESS WITH THEM! I’m watching you………
5. Let them sit floret side down in the pan for 5-6 minutes. Pick one floret to flip and check. You’ll be looking for a caramelized, brown, beautifully crispy floret!
6. At this point, turn all of the florets and continue to brown on their sides for another minute or 2.
7. Remove from the pan and serve warm with some chopped fresh herbs over the top.

Enjoy! 🙂

I watch a LOT of Food Network.
So much so that I feel as though I’m BFF’s with Bobby, Ree, Scotty (so hottie) and Ina.

One of my favorite shows is Chopped, but I’ve always been confused about one thing the judges seem to point out anytime seafood makes a basket appearance:

Seafood and cheese don’t go.

Where did this ridiculous notion first start?
I can think of 500 different delicious dishes that combine 2 of my all time favorite ingredients!

Hello lobster mac and cheese?
Shrimp scampi?
Crab rangoon?
Crab stuffed mushrooms?
Shrimp alfredo?

Food Network stars- ya’ll crazy.
But I still <3 you.

Well, I’m breaking all of the rules here with this recipe for lobster and shrimp stuffed acorn squash. And you know what? I don’t care. Because this concoction is sooooo delicious.

Don’t have lobster? Just use shrimp. Don’t like shrimp? Just use the lobster. Or lump crab meat! Or scallops!

The best thing about this recipe is it’s a sneaky way to get your pickiest eater to each squash! Acorn squash is the perfect vessel for this recipe because it’s naturally buttery and tender.

Droool.

Lobster and Shrimp stuffed acorn squash serves 2
Ingredients
1 whole acorn squash (health benefits)
1 steamed lobster tail (if using frozen, defrost and remove meat from the tail)
6-8 medium sized raw shrimp (shelled, deveined, tail off, defrosted)
1/2 lemon
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 clove roasted garlic (I pre-roast ahead of time to have this on hand)
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/8 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. nonpareil capers
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
1 tsp. sea salt

Directions
1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.Carefully split the acorn squash in half. Use a melon baller to remove the seeds (like a pumpkin). Place flesh side down onto a lightly greased baking sheet and bake for 1 hr or until flesh is soft.
2. While the squash is roasting, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shrimp and saute just until shrimp start to become pink. Remove shrimp and garlic from the skillet. Set aside.
3. Remove squash from the oven and let it cool until it can be handled. Using a melon baller or spoon, remove the roasted flesh and place into a bowl. *Tip: leave a bit of the flesh still inside the squash as the skin is very delicate and thin and this will provide extra support.
4. Add cream cheese, lemon juice, roasted garlic clove, capers, salt and pepper into the squash flesh. Mix to combine. Dice shrimp and lobster and fold into the squash mixture.
5. Divide the mixture evenly into the acorn squash shells. Top with Parmesean cheese and bake at 400 for 20 minutes, raising the temperature to a high broil for the last 5 minutes.

This hot sauce can be easily used as a marinade or a sauce!  The mango and honey give it just enough sweetness to balance out the spice, and the cilantro gives it a bit of freshness to really liven up the flavor of the sauce!

You can kick up the heat by leaving some of the seeds/ribs of the habanero peppers in, or milder by removing all of them.  Continue reading →