Easy Spinach Omelets with a kick!

As most of you know, I like things spicy. The hotter the better. So please use the crushed chili to your taste. Today I had planned to make scrambled eggs. But I thought, how boring. I scrambled around in the fridge and found small sweet bell peppers, of red, yellow, and green along with some spinach. Great start!

Spinach Omelet for Two. 1/4 Sweet yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/4 Sweet green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 Sweet red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup spinach leaves
1 cup enchilada sauce (Homemade preferably, but canned works also)
2 tsp Olive oil (If you can find it Tuscan Herb)
1 tsp Hot sauce --Whatever your favorite is
1 tsp crushed chili
Salt and pepper to taste
5 - 6 eggs beat with a bit of enchilada sauce

Add 1 tsp of olive oil to small sauce pan along with the veggies--not spinach, add salt and pepper to taste, crushed chili, and your favorite hot sauce. Cook until tender. Add about 1/8 cup enchilada sauce. Let simmer on low.

Add 1 tsp of olive oil to large fry pan or two small omelet pans, warm to medium heat. Add beaten eggs evenly over the pan. Salt and pepper to taste. Let cook until it is beginning to look firm. Spread spinach leaves all over. Let cook until firm, scoop almost all veggies onto one side. Continue to cook, turn to low.

Add Enchilada sauce to the rest of the veggies and bring to beginning to bubble, then turn to low.

Once the eggs look firm all the way through, use a spatula on one side and edge over so that the omelet is folded. If you used one large fry pan, as I did, you'll have to cut in half, then slip each onto the plate. Cover with the enchilada sauce and serve with tortilla's or toast.

Cheesy spicy baked potatoes

I know today is St. Patty's day, so I probably should have posted something like corn beef and cabbage. However, potatoes are big in Ireland, so I think it will do!

Cheesy spicy baked potatoes Two servings
2 med. russet potatoes thinly sliced
1/4 jalapeno chopped
1 lg clove shallot chopped
2 lg cloves garlic chopped
1/4 lb grated white cheese of your choice (gouda, etc)
1 tbsp butter
2 tsp virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 Degrees. If you have them use 18 oz ovenware dishes. One potato for each. Chop everything and mix in a bowl. Add 1 tsp oil to the bottom of each dish. Takes about three layers. Put first layer of potato slices, then a thin slice of butter spoon/sprinkle the chopped veggies, then grated cheese. Then repeat. Salt and pepper and then add the last of the cheese on top. Bake for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Bison Sheppard's Pie

I love Sheppard's Pie, but usually it's very high in calories. But this one, though probably still higher in calories, it's on the lean side because of the Bison.

Bison Sheppard's Pie
1 lb. Bison ground
6 medium potatoes boiled and mashed, I left the peel on.
4 medium carrots thinly sliced
1 cup frozen peas
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves garlic diced
1 cup red wine
1 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp. flour
4-6 slices provolone
1/4 cup shredded parmesan
1 egg
1 tsp Black pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground thyme (or fresh is even better)
1 tsp crushed chili (or more to taste)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Using a large frying pan or sauce pan, add olive oil, warm, then saute the carrots until tender. Add onions and garlic, stir and simmer for a few moments. Add bison stir and cook until browned and almost done. Add spices, broth, wine, flour, and peas. Simmer until thickened. Spoon into oven bake ware. Lay the provolone cheese on top. Then spoon and spread mashed potatoes over the top. Whip the egg and brush over the potatoes. Sprinkle the parmasan cheese on the top. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until potatoes is golden brown.

Lobster Penne with five cheese sauce

I've made a similar recipe before, but I added a bit more cheese, and other things. The trick to this recipe is to make sure you add the lobster and penne to the sauce at the right time. Before the cheeses clump up. It's a little bit of trial and error. Well worth the practice, because it taste good even with the clumps.

Lobster Penne with Five cheese sauce (for two)
2 Lobster tails boiled until pink and tender, shelled and crumbled
2 serving size Penne pasta (some eat more than others, so judge this part on your own)
1/2 Carrot thinly sliced
1/4 Stalk Celery thinly sliced
1/8 Red bell pepper diced
1/8 Onion chopped
3 lg clove Garlic minced
3 lg leaves Fresh basil chopped
1/4 cup butter
3 oz. shredded cheese blend (Parmesan, Romano, and Asiago)
1/4 lb Provolone shredded
3 oz Hot pepper cheese shredded
1 tsp crushed chili pepper (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
2/3 cup Fat Free Half n Half
Garnish with shaved provolone strips and Prosciutto

Notice, just enough veggies for a bit
of added flavor

Melt butter in sauce pan. Add vegetables and cook until tender. Mix all the shredded cheese together in a bowl. Had a little of the half n half to sauce pan and 1/3 of the cheese. Stir until smooth. Alternating the half n half and cheese stir until it's all blended. Bring to boil. Make sure the pasta and lobster is ready when the cheese has bubbled a two maybe three minutes. Then add the lobster and pasta and stir until generously coated. The Lobster should be crumbled and still warm when putting in the cheese.

I suggest you have everything chopped and ready to go in the sauce pan, and have the water boiling for the pasta and another pot for the Lobster so it can all be done at the same time. Tricky but so worth the effort.

Also, as an added bonus, I'm sharing a recipe I found on Grandmother's Kitchen. (The site invites people to share on their own blog.) I've actually been looking for a recipe for pasta because I have an idea for homemade ravioli.

Ingredients

3 cups all purpose flour
4 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon olive oil

Directions

1. Stir together flour and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Make a hollow in the center, and pour in the olive oil. Break eggs into it one at a time, while mixing quickly with a fork until the dough is wet enough to come together.
3. Knead on a lightly floured surface until the dough is stiff and elastic.
4. For pasta, you want a very dry dough (not sticky at all).
5. Knead the dough by hand for a minute or two, then cut into eight pieces. 
6. Cover the pieces with plastic wrap so they don’t dry out while you cut the others. Let relax for 30 minutes.
7. Flatten one piece with the palm of your hand.
8. Attach the rollers to the mixer and set it on the widest setting (1). 
9. Feed the dough through to flatten, and dont worry of the edges crack a bit.
10. Fold the edges in towards the middle, and feed it through the same setting again. 
11. Switch to the next smallest setting and feed it through.
12. Switch from the roller to the cutter. 
13. Carefully feed the pasta through.
14. Cook immediately in boiling water or dry it.
15. To dry the pasta, either hang it over a drying rack or lay flat on a towel. 
16. Let them dry for an hour, then the put in air tight bags and freeze for later use.
17. Allow the pasta to airdry 15 mins.
18. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.It will float to the surface when fully cooked. Drain, and use as desired.

Original Homemade Italian Pasta Recipe found at Grandmothers Kitchen Recipes.

Sausage and potato casserole

Sausage and potato casserole

3               Cajun sausage links sliced and browned
3               Chopped tomatoes
¼ Cp        Chopped shallot
¼ Cp        Chopped green bell pepper
¼ Cp        Chopped red bell pepper
¼ Cp        Chopped yellow bell pepper
3 to 4 Clove  Chopped garlic
3 to 4 Leaves Chopped fresh basil
½ Tsp       Oregano
¼ Tsp       Thyme
¼ Tsp       Rosemary
¼ Tsp       Ground pepper
¼ Tsp       Sea salt
½ Tbsp    Crushed chili
¼ Tsp      Vanilla
8 Fingerling potatoes cut in half

Fingerling potatoes

Brown sausage and when done, do not drain. Add chopped tomatoes to left over broth. Mash until it’s like a pulp.  Use the pestle to grind spices then add to tomatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer for an hour and a half. While that is cooking, in a bowl add the sausage and all the chopped veggies and mix thoroughly. Then add to tomato mixture in pan and mix again thoroughly, pour into loaf pan and back at 400
degrees for one hour or until potatoes are tender. Serves 4.

Ready to pour into loaf pan

Nutrition: Per serving, calories 373, total fat 14.3 g, saturated fat 4.5g, cholesterol 41.2mg, sodium 634.5mg, total carbohydrate 44.6g, dietary fiber 4.2g, sugars 4.1g, protein 16.7g.

Stuffed Mexican Squash

Welcome to The After Work Cook!

Pre-baked

July 15, 2013 is here! Yeah. Let me introduce myself. I'm Mary Martinez, you probably know me from Mary's Garden. Like most of us out there I'm a working stiff. Yes, I dream of someday making the NY Times Best Seller list and then I can quit, stay home, cook to my hearts content and write. My two favorite things. Well that is other than my grandkids (and all the family too), eating fabulous food, traveling, and wine. Not in any particular order.

That day is a long way off, so meanwhile I cook when I can. Most the time I have to save time. Oh, and a bit of backstory here, I started doing my own recipes so I could control my calories and still have great food. You see, I have all those strikes against me. I'm a woman, plus I'm over 40 (50 but don't tell anyone), I've had the hysterectomy, and to top that off I have had my thyroid removed. When you have no thyroid you have to cut back drastically on the calories. And that is why I compiled a cookbook, I had so many fun recipes and most are low calorie. Now, I do have some guilty pleasure for those special occasions.

I knew I needed to lose weight, most my life actually I've struggled trying to keep those pounds off my butt. So on top of being a woman all the other things came up to strike against me. Until one day I just thought, oh I'll just do the best I can. I have too many things going against me. Then I went to NYC and had a blast. Ordered the 1000 pictures I took (not exaggerating) and that's when it hit me. I wasn't a bit heavy, or even pleasantly plump I was LARGE! I needed to lose 78 lbs. I couldn't believe I'd let myself gain so much weight. I called my doctor and cried. So she agreed to give my blood tests every six weeks to monitor my thyroid and I agreed to eat 1200 calories a day. But I refused to eat what I felt was diet food. So I had my wine and my good food. I just had to adapt my recipes. Soon The After Work Cook will be out with a lot of my recipes. Some are very simple, maybe you've tried something very simple. And maybe you've even seen something similar in a cook book. But what I have placed in the book are ones that I've hand written and cooked on my own. Do I use ones that I've heard about? Yes, but I make them my own.

P.S. it took me almost a year but I lost all of the pounds needed. I reached my goal in 2010. I have kept it off since. Yes there have been some up and downs.

I'm going to share today a recipe that I've made up on the fly. As I do so often I look in my kitchen and go with what I have. We went to the farmer's market yesterday and picked up some Mexican squash and a little round zucchini looking thing. I had never encountered these before but we bought a couple and today I decided to stuff them.

Dinner is served!

Stuffed Mexican Squash 4 servings
2 medium squash split down the middle. Hollow out the middle as you scoop all the seads out.
2 German Brats Grilled to almost done (can substitute ground sausage) slice in thin slices.
1- 14 oz. can diced spicy tomotoes
1/4 small onion chopped
1/2 Jalapeno chopped (seeded if you don't like it too spicy)
2 cups cooked rice.
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Sautee onion and pepper for a few minutes, add 1 cup (some of it can be juice from the tomatoes) bring to boil add 1 cup dry rice. Stir in tomatoes and sliced brats. Salt and pepper. Scoop into the squash. Place on baking pan and cook at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes until squash is tender.

4 Servings
1 Serving: 270 Calories, Total Fat 11 grams, Saturated Fat 4 grams, Cholestoral 38 mg, Sodium 813 mg, Total Carbohydrates 28 grams, Dietary Fiber 3grams, Sugars 5 grams, Protein 14 grams. Vit. A 43%, Vit C 32%, Calcium 3%, and Iron 14%.
Best served with a white crisp wine.