Roasted Corn and Goat Cheese Quesadillas

This past summer I got a subscription to Cooking Light. LOVE it. They always have great vegetarian ideas and a section on quick and easy dinners. As soon as I saw this recipe for roasted corn and goat cheese quesadillas in the March 2009 issue, I knew I had to make it. It was easy to make and tasty. The only thing I didn't like about it was that it did not hold together as well as a regular quesadilla, because goat cheese doesn't melt the same way as mozzarella or cheddar does. So, these were pretty messy. Next time I might add a little parmesan or pecorino to the mix.

Ingredients
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 1 large ear-- I used unsalted canned corn)
2/3 cup (5 ounces) goat cheese, softened
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1/4 cup chopped green onions (about 1 green onion-- I used 3)
10 tablespoon bottled salsa verde, divided (I used regular salsa
Cooking spray
Olive oil (optional)

Directions
1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn; sauté 2 minutes or until browned. (I also cooked the green onions with the corn.) Place corn in a small bowl. Add goat cheese to corn; stir until well blended. Divide corn mixture evenly among 4 tortillas; spread to within 1/4 inch of sides. Sprinkle each tortilla with 1 tablespoon green onions. Drizzle each with 1 1/2teaspoons salsa; top with remaining 4 tortillas.

2. Heat pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. (I used olive oil here instead of cooking spray.) Place 2 quesadillas in pan; cook 1 1/2 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove from pan; keep warm. Wipe pan clean with paper towels; recoat with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining quesadillas. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges. Serve with remaining 8 tablespoons salsa.

Flavors of Fall Dinner Party

Since summer is now officially behind us, it seemed like a good time to start experimenting with the flavors of fall. Once the weather starts to turn cold, it makes me think of comfort foods-- warm gooey pastas, casseroles, and hearty, savory dishes.

On the menu:

• Spinach, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Lasagna


• Mary's Hot Clam Dip


• Apple Butterscotch Bars


• Lebanese Chicken Pitas


• Easy Bake Chicken Casserole
  

Gary and I hosted this guinea pig dinner. I decided to try a recipe from the Hayday Country Market Cookbook that I got last Christmas from my in-laws. I love goat cheese, so this lasagna sounded perfect! The recipe in the book is a bit different, so I've written the recipe the way I did it.

Spinach, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Lasagna

This is your basic layered lasagna, with a twist. I used:

1 lb. whole wheat lasagna noodles, cooked

For the spinach layer:

20 oz. frozen cut spinach, thawed and drained
6 oz. of goat cheese (buy a 10 oz container of goat cheese; you will use the rest at the end)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tsp. nutmeg
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients; set aside.

For the mushroom layer:

About 2 lbs. mushrooms, cleaned and chopped (I used baby bellas and white)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup white wine (I used a riesling that I had on hand)
2 TB fresh chopped basil
1 TB fresh thyme
15 oz. ricotta cheese
1 cup Pecorino-Romano cheese, shredded
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Cook the onions and garlic until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and toss to coat with the oil. Cook until reduced by half; about 5 minutes. Add the white wine and simmer until the liquid is gone. Remove from heat and stir in the basil, thyme, cheeses, and salt and pepper.

Putting together the lasagna:

Grease an 11 x 7 pan. Start with a layer of the mushroom mixture, then pasta, then spinach. Repeat with pasta, mushroom, pasta, spinach, pasta... top with the last 4 oz. of goat cheese. Cover tightly with aluminum foil.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 40 minutes. Uncover and cook under the broiler for about 5 minutes.

The verdict: I liked this a lot... good flavor. However, it came out a little dry. It needs some kind of sauce... maybe some alfredo?


The next two recipes were from Shannon...

Mary’s Hot Clam Dip
From Mary Cooper in the Gooseberry Patch Autumn in the Country 2007 p.49

½ C butter
1 onion – chopped
½ green pepper – chopped
1 tsp garlic – minced
1 tsp hot pepper sauce
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried parsley
2 – 6 ½ oz cans minced clams
¼ tsp lemon juice
½ C bread crumbs
Grated Parmesan cheese
Assorted crackers

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté onions, green pepper, garlic, and seasonings (oregano, parsley, and hot sauce) until tender; set aside. Combine clams and clam liquid with lemon juice in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes; stir in bread crumbs. Add clam mixture to butter mixture and stir well. Pour into lightly greased 8"x8" baking pan. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve with crackers. Serves 6.

The verdict: Very tasty. Great appetizer for a party.


Apple Butterscotch Bars
From Karen Hughes in the Gooseberry Patch Autumn in the Country 2007 p.209

2 C sugar
1 C oil
3 eggs – beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 ½ C all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3 C apples – cored, peeled, and chopped
1 C chopped nuts
1 C butterscotch chips
Combine sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl. Mix in flower, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; mix well. Stir in apples, nuts, and butterscotch chips. Spread in lighted greased 13"x9" baking pang. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes.

The verdict: I am a sucker for any apple dessert-- this one was no exception. Great! Did not have a real strong butterscotch flavor though... I might add more to the recipe.

Here's one from Steph...
Lebanese Chicken Pitas

1 tbsp allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper
1 lb chicken (I used the thin sliced chicken)

Mix above ingredients together. Check taste before rubbing on chicken and adjust to your preference. Rub mixture on chicken and marinate chicken for 1-2 hours.
Cook chicken in skillet with olive oil, until cooked through. Allow to cool slightly, in order to cut. Cut chicken into small strips. Cut 1 onion and 1 green pepper into blunt strips. Sautee but keep crunchy the onion and green pepper. Mix together cooked chicken, onions and peppers. This can be made a day ahead and reheated.

SAUCE
4 tbsp greek yogurt
1 tbsp minced onion
1 heaping tbsp chopped mint
½ minced garlic clove
½ fresh squeezed lemon juice
Salt

Combine ingredients. Adjust taste to your preference. This can also be made a day ahead.
Serve chicken mixture on lavash bread (or pita-like bread) with lettuce, tomatoes, and sauce.

The verdict: Very nice! The flavors were unusual, but yummy.

Easy Bake Chicken Casserole

1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup Breakstone’s or Knudsen Sour Cream
1 bag (16 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained

Preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare stuffing mix as directed on package; set aside.
Mix chicken, soup, sour cream and vegetables in 13x9-inch baking dish; top with the stuffing.
Bake 30 min or until chicken is cooked through.

The verdict: I'm a vegetarian so didn't partake, but it was gone by the end of the night!

Monday Night Football Spinach - Artichoke Dip

It wasn't a "guinea pig dinners" night, but Gary was so psyched about Monday Night Football tonight that I had to make some good game-watching grub. I tried to cull together a bunch of recipes for spinach - artichoke dip that I found online using the stuff I had on hand, and it turned out quite tastily, if I do say so myself. I used many non-fat or reduced fat items to lighten it up a bit, and it still was really good.

Ingredients:

15 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
7 oz. marinated artichoke hearts
1 pkg. fat free cream cheese, softened
4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese (reduced fat)
4 oz. shredded Pecorino-Romano cheese, divided (could substitute parmesan here)
3 cloves garlic, minced (can be increased or lowered according to your taste)
8 oz. light sour cream
Salt, pepper, and red pepper to taste

Fresh oregano to taste

Directions
1) Drain and coarsely chop artichoke hearts.
2) Set aside 2 oz. (about 1/2 cup) of shredded Pecorino cheese.
3) Combine all the rest of the ingredients (excluding seasoning) and mix well.
4) Add salt, pepper, red pepper, and oregano to your taste.
5) Transfer to a baking dish-- I used an 8 x 8 glass dish.
6) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 20 minutes, until mixture is hot and bubbly.
7) Sprinkle the top with the last 2 oz. of Pecorino cheese and put under the broiler for about 5 minutes, or until cheese is brown and crispy on top-- watch it carefully!
8) I served it with tortilla chips.

Enjoy with a Dock Street, a fine Philadelphia beer.

A Mexican-Themed Guinea Pig Dinner

Welcome to our Guinea Pig Dinners blog!

For each dinner, we'll list each dish, the recipe (or link to the recipe), and the outcome: what was the verdict-- hit or miss? Would we make it again? If so, what might we do differently?

Steph and the Chef (aka Neil) hosted a Mexican themed fiesta with lots of yummy new recipes to try. On the menu:

• Raspberry margaritas
  
• Spinach and corn quesadillas
  
• Mango and cucumber salsa
  
• Mexican pizzas
  

Raspberry Margaritas

You have to have margaritas at a Mexican dinner, right? Gary and I (Liza) made these, following this recipe from allrecipes.com. Adult beverages are always a hit, and for the most part these were pretty tasty. If I were to make them again, I'd add some more sugar (they were a little sour) and strain it. The raspberries made these drinks very seedy.

Spinach and Corn Quesadillas

These were very tasty! The Chef made these. Definitely a keeper. I might add a little more cheese next time, so they stick together a little better.

Cucumber-Mango Salsa

I made this salsa from allrecipes (are you detecting a theme here? Allrecipes is my go-to recipe site). I added a green pepper and used red onion (the recipe doesn't specify). I also only used one jalepeno pepper and found it plenty spicy. This dish was well received... it was good with tortilla chips, and would also be nice with fish or scallops. We used regular old tortilla chips, but I think this salsa would be great with those Tostido multigrain chips, which I am totally in love with.

Grilled Mexican Potato and Chorizo Pizza on Tortillas

The whole idea of "Mexican"and "pizza" was weird to me. Salsa? Tortillas? That's a whole different food family than pizza! I must say, I am a convert. These little pizzas were SO good. An Emeril recipe comes through again... BAM!

These were great as a main dish, but they would also work well as a party snack or appetizer. They would be fantastic for Superbowl Sunday! They made one of the pizzas vegetarian by omitting the chorizo. Steph and the Chef describe how they made them here:

All in all, the Mexican dinner was a big success! We hope you got some good recipe ideas. We'll be back here after the next dinner-- same guinea pig time, same guinea pig channel.