A Simple Dish Turns Sophisticated!

As a child I always hated grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup . I know.... so "un-American" of me right?! I don't know what it was about the sandwich but it totlly grossed me out I liked bread, cheese, and butter all seperate - but together it was just not appealing I guess. Years later I love tomato soup but grilled cheese is still out of the question. However I stumbled upon this recipe and thought this just might be my ticket to liking a grilled cheese sandwich and it definately was!!!! YUM! I would recommend this recipe for a quick and easy meal for the family!

Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese

Makes 2 sandwiches

What You Need :Fresh spinach – enough for about 3 cups chopped
Canned artichoke hearts – about 3 (around 6 ounces)
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese (we used a blend of mozzarella, Monterrey jack and provolone)
4 pieces bread
Kosher salt
Butter or more olive oil)

What To Do

1  Dice the 2 cloves garlic. Chop the artichokes. Wash and stem the spinach, then chop it coarsely.

2  Heat about 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Then add the spinach and a pinch of kosher salt, and saute for a few minutes until just limp. Add the artichokes and saute for another minute or so, until heated through. Drain off any liquid from the pan. Stir in 2 tablespoons sour cream and another pinch of kosher salt.

4  Spread butter (or olive oil) on one side of each of the 4 bread pieces. Heat a griddle pan to medium high heat. Place 2 pieces of bread on the griddle, buttered side down. On each piece, spread some shredded cheese, the spinach artichoke filling, some more cheese (1/2 cup cheese per sandwich), and the other piece of bread. When the bottom bread is browned, flip the sandwich and cook until the bread is toasted and the cheese is melted.

Nothing like a Delicious Side Dish and Dessert!

Tonight was our 3rd anniversary! I decided to surprise Chad with one of his favorite meats that we never have (at least only once in a blue moon) ----- STEAK! I decided steak on the grill would be just the ticket. However I had to make a fabulous side dish and fabulous dessert to go with it. I had fresh green beans and mushrooms from the store, as well as fresh peaches! The results were delicious and will be repeated!So here is what I found thanks to Pinterest!

Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms, Balsamic, and Parmesan(Makes 4-6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

Ingredients:
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced in 1/2 inch slices (I used brown crimini mushrooms, but any mushrooms will work)
1 lb. fresh green beans, preferably thin French style beans
1 1/2 T olive oil
1 T balsamic vinegar
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
2 T finely grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 450F/230C. Wash mushrooms and let drain (or spin dry in salad spinner, which is what I did.) While mushrooms are drying, trim ends of beans and cut beans in half so you have bite-sized pieces. (An easy way to trim them is to gather a small handful of beans, stand them up on cutting board, holding loosely so they will fall down and have ends ends aligned, then trim. Repeat with other end.) Cut mushrooms into slices 1/2 inch thick.

Put cut beans and mushrooms into a Ziploc bag or plastic bowl. Whisk together olive oil and balsamic vinegar and pour over, then squeeze bag or stir so all the beans and mushrooms are lightly coated with the mixture. Arrange on large cookie sheet, spreading them out well so beans and mushrooms are not crowded. Roast 20-30 minutes, starting to check for doneness after 20 minutes. Cook until beans are tender-crisp, mushrooms are cooked, and all liquid on the pan from mushrooms has evaporated. Season beans to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper, then sprinkle with finely grated Parmesan. Serve hot.

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Miss Jean’s Peach Cobbler

4 cups fresh peaches sliced* or 29 ounce can sliced peaches in heavy syrup
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour**
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter, melted
In a 9×13 inch dish pour melted butter. Mix flour, milk, and sugar to make a smooth batter. Pour batter over melted butter. Put fruit on top, syrup and all. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40-45 minutes. Let set 10 minutes before serving. Serves about 10.

* if using fresh fruit, add extra sugar to the fruit, about 1/2 cup
** if using plain flour, add: 2 tsp. baking powder and 1/4 tsp. salt to the flour.

Italiano tonight!!

This week Chad and I will celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary! It's been such a wonderful 3 years and I wanted to do something special for him but my budget is $0.00 now that I am a stay-at-home mom. So I thought why not cook him delicious new recipes all week so he has a hot meal to come home to. However I wanted to not just have a hot meal here... I want the meals to be AMAZING and have that WOW factor. I began the week with this wonderful dish of Summertime Spaghetti! This is definately a recipe that I will have to repeat - not only in the summer but all seasons as well. It takes a little prep time but it's definately worth the wait!

Spaghetti in Garlic Gravy with Herbs and Lemon Marinated Chicken and Cherry Tomatoes

Ingredients:
500 grams spaghetti pasta (cooked al dente)
1 pound chicken breast fillets (sliced into 1 inch chunks)

For the chicken marinade:
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped (if using dried, use half of the amount)
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of ½ a lemon
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon coarse salt (not table salt)
½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (to sauté the marinated chicken)
-  Add all the marinade ingredients into the chicken and marinade for 20 minutes (if making this dish in pronto) or over night (if making this dish the next day… much better).
-  Saute the marinated chicken in extra virgin olive oil until cooked (about 4-5 minutes) then set aside.

For the garlic gravy:
½ stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, finely minced
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 ½ cups chicken stock
1 Tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup parsley, chopped (to sprinkle/finish the pasta)
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 cups whole cherry tomatoes
-  Place sauté pan over medium heat and add butter and olive oil.
-  Saute garlic until fragrant and soft.
-  Add the flour and cook for a minute.
-  Add chicken stock and simmer gravy until thickened then add the chopped basil.
-  Season with salt and pepper.
-  Add the sauteed chicken in the gravy then toss the cooked spaghetti into this  sauce.
-  Add the cherry tomatoes and finish the dish with the chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese (serve extra on the side).
Makes 5-6 servings