White Bean Turkey Chili

Not only is there the momentum of the New Year, but I also have a serious desire to lose my remaining "baby weight." You know how there are those lucky b!$%*es women who seem to lose all of their baby weight without trying? Well, I am definitely not one of those women!

As a result, this mama is on a mission. I have been on the prowl for recipes that meet the following criteria: calorie conscious, WW-friendly, easily transportable and reheatable, and flavorful. This recipe for White Bean Turkey Chili is one of the healthy lunch recipes that I recently added to my repertoire.

I liked the list of ingredients and appreciated a chili that wasn't tomato-based. It also reheats nicely and tastes great with a spoonful of sour cream and a little fresh lime.

Almond Joy Bars

These sweet treats were the perfect end to a lovely lunch with my parents and in-laws. Not to mention, they were quick enough to whip up with a 1-month-old and overnight houseguests!

From bottom to top: First you have a rich, buttery almond shortbread; that's essentially topped with a macaroon-like coconut layer; and the cherry on top is a layer of bittersweet chocolate and toasted almonds.

They're called Almond Joy Bars, but they are even more delicious because of the rich shortbread layer. It's even just a little bit salty, and counters the sweetness of the other layers perfectly!

Chicken Tikka Masala

I absolutely love Indian food. I love fancy Indian restaurants. I love Philadelphia's self-serve Indian buffets. I loved when my college roommate used to come back from holiday breaks with homemade roti and curry from her Guyanese grandmother. I loved the Indian food from the hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Madras, India that our auto-rickshaw driver took us to for lunch.

I still love to look at my photos from that amazing trip — wish I blogged then so I would have thought to photograph the grub!

Back to the food! Indian food has such depth of flavor between all of the spices, chutneys, and sauces. And I also find the variety of vegetarian options quite appealing.

And naan. Oh, the naan!

Birthday Cake Rice Krispie Treats

It's pretty common these days to have sweets that are cake batter flavored. Ice cream, Italian ice, pancakes, fudge, etc. And because I like to be on the cutting edge of culinary trends...

...ahem...

...I recently whipped up some birthday cake rice krispie treats. And then whipped up another batch. And another. And then I made them for a birthday party to go alongside the cake.

It had been a while since I made these treats. Like maybe since high school? I forgot how easy, light, and pleasantly (but not overtly) sweet they are. And the addition of cake mix and sprinkles adds a variation on the flavor. I'm not claiming them to be anything gourmet. Just a nice switch from the typical sweet treats.

Baked French Toast Casserole

Happy New Year! It was a super busy end of 2012, and I intended to post this recipe pre-holidays because it's a great recipe for Christmas or New Year's Day. Oops. Holidays or not, if you're having company or just want something simple but tasty for breakfast, this is a delicious, easy option.

My aunt and uncle were coming to visit Katy, and I knew I wanted to make some sort of french toast casserole — that's because I wanted something that I could prep the evening before after Katy went to sleep. I found several recipes online, namely Ina Garten's and Paula Deen's. I took my favorite parts of both recipes and morphed them into the hybrid version posted below.

One modification included removing an entire stick of butter from Paula's recipe — I don't know what that woman is thinking sometimes!

Classic Beef Meatballs

The weekend before last, it finally felt fall-ish. It was chilly and gray, the NY Giants were winning, and I could smell fireplaces from other houses in our neighborhood. The kind of fall day that makes you want to cuddle up in a hoodie and watch a movie (if you want to be entertained, watch Game Change — Julianne Moore does a killer Sarah Palin!).

The thought of spaghetti and meatballs crept into my head. We never make pasta for dinner, but I found myself wanting some old-school Italian goodness. The husband was agreeable, although he says he eats "meatballs and spaghetti" rather than the other way around. Definitely a carnivore. Note that these are delicious (and very healthy!) with spaghetti squash too!

Anyway, this was the first time I made meatballs with just beef — I really wanted to go traditional. You can use a meat combo (e.g., pork, veal), but I wanted to stay simple. I started with a Martha Stewart recipe and adapted from there. Sadly I forgot to take a picture of our finished dishes, but here's a good "before" shot.

Panko-Crusted Salmon

If the idea of cooking salmon makes you nervous, wait! Don't touch that dial! Keep reading! You really should give this one a try. I love making salmon this way...it might actually be my favorite way to prepare it. It's fast, easy, and so tasty. And don't forget healthy — that's important too!

I even taught Brad how to make this dish. Typically, I'm the cook of the family (though Brad mans the grill), but he nailed this one! Here's a dimly lit cell phone shot of him in action!

Gooey Butter Cake

My blog seems to have turned into Dessert Central lately. While I didn't want to post yet another sweet treat, it just happens to be a special occasion — my husband and baby daddy's 33rd birthday.

And he's a special guy, so for his birthday I made one of his favorites — Gooey Butter Cake.

Brad is from Kansas and I'm from New Jersey, so we had to be very purposeful when deciding to pursue our relationship. And when he permanently moved to Philadelphia five years ago, I knew I was a lucky girl! We've since gotten married and had a beautiful baby girl. He's supported me in amazing ways over those years — most recently as my "labor and delivery support person" (at least that's what the hospital bracelet he had to wear called it). He was so great in the delivery room that the nurses and doctor asked him what birth classes we took (shhh, we didn't take any classes!). And I just love watching him with Katy — she lights up when she hears or sees her daddy!

Banana Bread with Cinnamon Swirl

We've had a lot of visitors over the past couple of months, as Baby Katy is a very popular gal! It's been nice to have an excuse to bake something have something sweet to snack on when they're here.

I came across the original recipe on Pinterest and was wooed by the sounds of a "cinnamon swirl." I made a few modifications to add some fiber and reduce the fat, but followed the basic premise of the original recipe. Feel free to ignore my modifications if you want full-on indulgence!

And you know how the best part of a muffin is the top? Where all of the flavorful, crunchy goodness lives? Well, thanks to the swirl of sweet cinnamon in the middle, you get a little bit of that "best bite" throughout the bread. That's in addition to the nice crust it creates on top, of course.

It's tasty from top to bottom!

Baby Girl Has Arrived!

Greetings, friends! It occurred to me that I have been absent from my blog for nearly the whole summer. You see, I was in the process of baby-making — and as it turns out, that's pretty taxing work!

While I had a mostly enjoyable pregnancy, I began having difficulties being on my feet in the kitchen for hours of cooking (sad!) and also using my laptop on my lap, which no longer existed starting sometime around mid-June. Thus, very little experimental cooking or blogging.

The end result of my hiatus? A beautiful baby girl named Kaitlyn Grace. She has been a true blessing, and we're so happy she's here! She was born August 4, 2012, just a day after my birthday.

Here she is in the hospital, one day old.