Italian Wedding Soup with Chicken Meatballs.

My first taste of Italian wedding soup came in high school when I worked in a Cafe after school and sampled all the soups constantly. I was fascinated by eating tiny meatballs in a soup. I always order Italian wedding when out, but never thought to make my own until last week when I was hit with a horrible sore throat. I made several changes to this recipe, including substituting spinach with kale, pasta with white navy beans, adding 2 small chopped potatoes, generous sprinkles of cayenne pepper and replacing 1/2 the chicken stock with water. I've been eating leftovers all week and it's officially my new "feel better" meal.

Homemade Minestrone

When you are feeling under the weather and your city is covered in ice, hot soup is the only way to go.

I honestly never knew that I liked minestrone, until I had it at my aunt's house a couple weeks ago; and when I heard how simple it was to make, I stocked up on the ingredients and made a batch that could feed a small army.

I used this recipe, and used dried lentils instead of the mixed beans.

Chocolate Almond Cranberry Bark

Chocolate bark is one of those treats that usually turn up at Holiday parties, and I'm always reminded of how much I love it. Whether it's filled with assorted nuts, dried fruit or chopped pretzels, the result is always festive and fun to eat. The cranberries in these add a pretty touch of color and the almonds offset the sweetness of the chocolate perfectly. They turned out so delicious, I decided to bag them up to accompany Christmas gifts for my family.







A fabulous and easy recipe for any holiday get together!



Recipe:
12 oz dark chocolate
5 oz chopped almonds
5 oz chopped dried cranberries
1/2 cup heavy cream

Melt chocolate over double boiler, stirring constantly (5 minutes)
Add heavy cream as you stir.
Mix in chopped almonds and cranberries.
Pour into foil lined container and refrigerate overnight.
Remove from foil, chop and serve.
Yields approx 15 pieces.

four cheese lasagna.

Lately, this is my meal of choice when going out for italian, and making it at home is easier than I thought. I made this dish for my family's visit last weekend and it went so fast, I hardly got to snap any pics! I would definitely recommend trying the unusual combo of cheeses and substituting with turkey sausage. It's a really fun and delicious take on my favorite italian staple.

{Pre-oven pic}

Carrot Pineapple Cake.

For my dinner party Tuesday night, mentioned here, I wanted to make a birthday cake for my friend that was sure to be unexpected.

You all know my love for cream cheese frosting, so if the recipe includes it, I'm making it. I decided on this two layer Carrot Pineapple cake, that did not disappointment. My only regret was feeding my guests so much for dinner that we could barely fit dessert!

Happy Birthday to Monique and I hope you ALL have a great weekend!!!

Spiced Apple Cake {With cream cheese frosting}

My husband has a friend in town this week, and so I'm on my best hostess behavior, making sure they have plenty of treats to snack on throughout their day.
When I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen, I kept it open and made it that same night. My house flooded with smells of cinnamon and apple and sweet cream cheese icing.
They both loved it and needless to say, the cake was gone by breakfast.





Hope you all have a fantastic Halloween weekend! We will be making our way to the parade in greenwich village with spiked cider in tow :)

Artichoke Pasta

I should start by saying that I make some form of this stir-fry, pretty much every week. My best friend and fellow blogger, Annie, shared this recipe with me when we were in high school and used to cook it with her Mom. It's just as delicious today as it was back then.
I can never get tired of the artichoke-pepper combo tossed with pasta and garlic. I usually add grilled chicken, broccoli and this time, capers. Delish!






Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! xx

ENTER MY ANTHROPOLOGIE BIB NECKLACE GIVEAWAY HERE!

Hot Chicken Chili

My reasons for loving cool weather go on and on and on, but I must admit that food is high on the list.
This meal came in handy last week when it was cold and rainy in New York and we desperately needed something to warm us up without going out.
I adapted this recipe, substituting beef with chicken, beef broth with beer and added 2 jalepenos. The best part? You'll have leftovers for days.







Have a Wonderful Monday!

Blondie

This weekend was the kind of weekend I've been longing for. New York was perfectly crisp, allowing me to wear my new leather jacket out for drinks on Friday night and cozy enough for me to stay in the kitchen for the better part of Sunday. Aside from preparing bruschetta, (our Sunday ritual) I needed a treat to enjoy while watching my Sunday night shows.

I whipped up these deliciously moist and decadent blondies in no time and they were the sweetest end to a perfect weekend.

Peach+Banana Muffins

For my husband, it's a huge treat to have baked goods in the house. We are no strangers to going out for sweets, but as far as what we keep stocked in the house, it's pretty healthy stuff.

Since I often have to trick him to eat healthier, I packed these muffins full of fruit and reduced the sugar, hoping he would never know the difference.
I was right :)

Recipe here.

Note: I used 4 bananas and added one large chopped peach to the wet mixture. I reduced sugar by half, since the peach was bursting with sweetness.

HAPPY FRIDAY AND HAVE A LOVELY WEEKEND !!

Vegetable Pesto Salad

Last night's dinner started out as a recipe by mom made for us over the weekend, and turned into something much simpler but just as delicious. My plan was to make her stir fry that included shrimp, broccoli, red and yellow peppers and mushrooms tossed in homemade pesto and served over spaghetti.
As I started cooking, I decided to swap the shrimp for grilled chicken and eliminate the pasta.
If you're looking for a very quick and healthy meal.. this is it!













Recipe:
2 bunches broccoli
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 green pepper
1 box portobello mushrooms
1/2 lb chicken, seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil and grilled.

Pesto:
2 cups fresh basil
2 gloves garlic
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
blend in food processor and serve.

Banana Bread

Banana Bread is a simple recipe that I almost always have the ingredients for, on hand. I whipped this up the other day when we realized we had forgotten to eat lunch and a simple sandwich wasn't going to cut it. Served warm with a cup of coffee, it's the perfect answer to a hungry belly.
















Note: Mine did not need the full hour to cook, it was perfectly finished at 30-35 minutes.

Cold Pasta Salad

High on my Go-To summer recipe list is a pasta salad that is a staple in my parent's house. My mom makes this for every bbq and it always tastes fresh and compliments the other dishes.
I've made it a few times this summer because my husband decided he loves it (even though it containes veggies).
It's easy to prepare and tastes best chilled.












Recipe:
1 lb fusilli pasta
3 large zucchini, chopped small.
2 onion, chopped small.
3 cloves garlic, chopped small.
1 package grape tomatoes, halved.
8 oz feta cheese.
1 can pitted black olives.
salt, pepper to taste.
Fresh basil leaves to garnish.
Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

Toss pasta in olive oil and mix in raw vegetables and feta.
Sprinkle with salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese.
Serve at room temperature or chilled.