White chicken lasagna rolls

I lied. I told you my next post would be about something that went along with my unhealthy holiday trend. That didn't happen! It's next, though, I promise. In the meantime, I present to you a variation of one of my favorite lasagna recipes. This is a fun alternative to typical lasagna. Lasagna turned inside out, if you will!

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! My boys and I have had a lovely week so far. Lots of presents and love. Sassiness, too, but mostly love.  

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Cook 12 lasagna noodles 3 minutes short of the package instructions. Drain and rinse. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine:

2 chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded

13.75-oz. can artichokes, drained and chopped

3-oz. package cream cheese

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup ricotta cheese

1 egg

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

Mix well.

Set the cooked lasagna noodles on a flat surface and divide the cheese mixture among them, spreading evenly across the surace of the noodles.

Tightly roll up the noodles and place them seam side down onto the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with another 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese and chopped parsley.

Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the cheese mixture is heated through.

Enjoy, friends! Merry Christmas to you all!

Printable recipe: White chicken lasagna rolls

Mahi Mahi with vegetables

I'm not sure if I am hurting or helping you all by throwing in a few healthy recipes right smack in the middle of pig-out season. Typically, I do not concern myself at all with healthy eating during the month of December, but after making twelve consecutive days of holiday goodies I need a wee bit of healthy in my life.

Dan and I first made this fish recipe a couple years ago, and we still love it. The flavors in this dish are incredible, and it's funny (or weird maybe?) because when it is in my oven I find myself wanting to take bites of the air. Is that normal? My house smells more delicious than Willy Wonka's chocolate factory when this is cookin'.

By the way, I just want to tell you all that I am so very thankful for you. Thank you for reading. Thanks for leaving nice comments and for sending nice emails. Sincerely, thank you!

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a 9x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine:

16-oz. can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons capers

1/4 cup olive oil

1 yellow onion, sliced

2 stalks celery, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Drooling yet? Mix it all together.

Pour half of the mixture into the prepared pan.

Top with 4 Mahi Mahi fillets (about 1 1/2 pounds total) that are cut into 1-inch pieces. I have used a variety of different white fish in place of the Mahi Mahi for this recipe. Orange Roughy is also fantastic, or honestly, whatever is on sale. I do not love the price of good fish, and the cheaper stuff can be just as tasty in this dish.

Top with the remaining mixture.

Pop it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through.

Serve with rice and a green salad.

Next on my list to post? Something not healthy.

Printable recipe: Mahi Mahi with vegetables

12 days of Christmas treats 2012

 

Day 1: Homemade caramels

Day 2: Peanut butter kiss cookies

Day 3: Sugared crock pot pecans

Day 4: Peanut butter cup brownies

Day 5: Apple butter

Day 6: Spicy ginger sugar cookies

Day 7: Chocolate crinkle cookies with a Rolo surprise

Day 8: S'mores brownies

Day 9: Peppermint bark

Day 10: Snickers fudge

Day 11: Egg nog Nutella ice cream

Day 12: Baby Ruth caramel corn

Veggie juice #1

In case you happen to be tired of the copious amounts of calorie-laden goodies I have been sharing, I offer you a reprieve! Thanks to a very generous and kind friend, we are owners of a brand new juicer! And we have been using it like crazy. This week I have had a veggie juice for breakfast and lunch every day, followed by a sensible dinner. I had to "cheat" by eating something substantial before dinner the last three days because I get light-headed if I don't. I don't like feeling light-headed. The detox feels good, though. My body is happy!

Dan and I have a standard juice that we make, but when we are in short supply of ingredients we have to improvise. This juice was one of my improvisations that turned out delicious! If you have a juicer, you must give this a try.

Run the following through a juicer:

3 kale leaves

A handful of spinach

1 cucumber, quartered

3 carrots

2 tomatoes, quartered

Small handful of fresh parsley

2 green apples, quartered

1 lemon, quartered, deseeded and most of peel cut off

1 clove garlic

1 inch of peeled ginger

This made somewhere around 16 ounces of juice. I loved the tiny bit of zing that the garlic added, but omit that if you would like.

It is delicious and sooo healthy! More juice recipes to come, as well as naughty, delicious treats. :)

Baby Ruth caramel corn

We made it! It's Day #12 of Twelve Days of Christmas Treats! It went fast, didn't it? I still plan on sharing a few more goodies, but perhaps after a few days off. Any requests?

I have spent a good deal of time thinking about this particular recipe. I wanted to make caramel corn, but not just plain old caramel corn. And then one day I was in the grocery store and I spotted a Baby Ruth candy bar as I waited in the checkout line. I thought about how Baby Ruths are the most underrated candy bar in existence. Have you eaten one recently? They are good. The best! Well, one of the best. And that is how caramel corn and Baby Ruths became one.

I hope you enjoyed my string of treats! It has been a ton of fun posting and of course eating all of it (which is why I sit here at my computer sipping a mean green veggie juice).

Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F. Coat a large, rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.

Prepare 10-12 cups of popcorn in a large, heavy-duty saucepan. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter over medium heat.

Add:

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1 cup light brown sugar

Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth and amber in color, 4 to 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat and add:

1/2 cup marshmallow creme

1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir until the mixture is free of lumps.

Pour over the popcorn.

Carefully stir with a large spoon until the popcorn is well-coated.

Add:

12.5-oz. package of fun-size Baby Ruth candy bars, unwrapped and coarsely chopped

Carefully fold in the candy bar pieces.

Pour the popcorn onto the prepared baking sheet.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, occasionally reaching in to stir and flip the popcorn around.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the popcorn cool for a few minutes. At this point you can either let it harden on the sheet and then break pieces off, or you can form the popcorn into balls (or whatever shape you wish) and then let it harden.

Either way, you are going to love this stuff. 

See you in a few days, friends. 

Printable recipe: Baby Ruth caramel corn