Lovin' From the Oven

Basil Pesto

by 9 Comments

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Pesto. It’s a staple in my kitchen at all times. I put it on everything: sandwiches, tortillas, pasta, and bread. I don’t know how people ever live without it. It’s one of the few things that are green, but my DB will still eat.

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I got a great deal on this KitchenAid food chopper a while ago. I posted the deal on my FB fan page, so hopefully you got to snatch it when the deal was live. I’ve never owned a food chopper in my life, so this little gadget really blew my mind when I first used it. It makes mashing and pulverizing ingredients so. dang. easy. Make your own pesto? Done. Make your own hummus? Without a sweat.

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It even has a spot on the bottom where you can wrap your cord and tuck it away. No messes in my cabinets!

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Making your own pesto is all about personal preference. Some like it really cheesy, others like it really garlic-y. Toss more of what you want and taste as you go. When you’ve hit that sweet spot, stop!

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Slowly grinding it down…

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Ah, much better. Look how smooth it is! I need to try making my own peanut butter now.

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Print
Basil Pesto

Ingredients

  • 2 cups basil
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon pine nuts

Directions

  1. Pulse all of your ingredients in a food chopper until smooth. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
https://lovintheoven.com/basil-pesto/

Skinny Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

by 11 Comments

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Are there a lot of football fans out there? Over the past couple of years, I’ve tried (and I mean really tried) to understand the sport of football. I sat down and watched games with multiple people, all of whom have tried to explain the sport to me. I just don’t get all the first down, second down, gibberish. How many plays can you really run?

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Don’t even get me started on the scoring system. You’re telling me that if you can kick the ball into the the fork thing at the end, you can get three points no matter what? Why not just get a really good kicker and kick that thing from far away? Rack up those three points. It’s not like football games are high scoring.

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As you can tell, I’m not very into football verbiage.  I don’t know what anything means. You’d think that since I played volleyball for ten years, I’d be less inept when it comes to learning other sports. Why is football so hard for me to understand?

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I have a point to this topic. I promise.

You see, yesterday, I actually sat through two whole games of football. Not just one… two! That’s really hard for me to do since all I see is people run two feet, stop, and then take a time out. Repeat that whole process numerous times and that’s what I’m envisioning in my head during a game.

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Boring, right? But yesterday, the games were amazing! Here you are, thinking one team was going to blow another out of the water and then the complete opposite happens. There were eventful things happening at every minute: people getting physically aggressive, amazing plays, and points were actually being scored.

I even got a little emotionally attached to Ray Lewis. Just a smidgen. He’s one heck of an athlete to watch play.

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Who are you rooting for in the Superbowl? I’m rooting for Ray Lewis. Not the Ravens.. just Ray Lewis. I can do that, right?

This recipe is a lighter version of alfredo and uses greek yogurt and skim milk in place of the usual heavy cream. As in every “lighter” plate, you can definitely taste the difference. There’s no heart stopping ingredients. I’m a lover for the full fat dish, but I guess since we’re starting out the new year, we should probably cut back on the fat. Here’s a good way to do it.

Recipe from Celebrations.

Print
Skinny Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Ingredients

  • 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled and cut into chunks (about 2 cups)
  • 2 cups roasted broccoli florets
  • 8 ounces fettuccine
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup fat-free, low sodium chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup plain FAGE Total 0% greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup skim milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

  1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
  2. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Once that is warm, add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, until golden.
  3. Whisk in the flour until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the chicken broth, greek yogurt, milk, and pepper.
  4. Bring the mixture to a low boil, stirring constantly. Turn the heat down to low and gently stir until thick, about 3 minutes.
  5. Add in 3/4 cup parmesan, cooked chicken and broccoli to sauce mixture, followed by the cooked pasta. Toss until evenly coated.
https://lovintheoven.com/skinny-chicken-broccoli-alfredo/

Mom’s Zucchini Bread

by 1 Comment

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Orange is the New Black Season 2 is up on Netflix and I can’t get enough of that show. If it wasn’t for work for me and bar studying for my DF, we would have finished the entire season in a day. Seriously, that show is brilliant.

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Zucchini bread’s a weird thing. That’s a whole lot of greens going into baked goods, but it works. The moisture from the zucchini keeps the bread nice and soft.

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The batter even looks a bit strange. It slightly resembles tempura batter that has broccoli flakes and carrot trimmings that got stuck to the dough and left behind.

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Once you bake it, though, it turns into pure delightfulness.

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It’s so eye appealing that kids might even eat their greens. It’s a shame that it didn’t work for my DF, though. I’m still working on that.

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Let’s see what it looks like on the inside, shall we?

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Side note, I feel overwhelmed with my to-do list recently. Pay a million bills, get a shirt and tie for my DF for the wedding, get a visa, apply for a marriage certificate, grocery lists, blog posts, empty all of our moving boxes… The list goes on and on.

At least I did one thing; The wedding invitations have been sent out! That’s a huge weight off of my shoulders.

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Recipe is adapted from AllRecipes

Print
Mom’s Zucchini Bread

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup applesauce
  • 1 3/4 cups white sugar
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups grated zucchini
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

  1. Grease two 8 x 4 inch pans.
  2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  3. Beat together the eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar. Add in the flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon.
  4. Stir in zucchini and nuts.
  5. Evenly pour batter into prepared pans and bake for 40 to 60 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.
https://lovintheoven.com/moms-zucchini-bread/

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