Knead to Cook

Food & fitness obsessed girl.

Strawberry Basil Margaritas.

by Filed Under: Beverages, No bake/cooking required!, Vegetarian 17 Comments

 

I adore hosting summer parties outside on our patio.  Small groups or large groups… Love having people over.  We fire up our firepit (that I built) and enjoy cocktails while the kids toast marshmallows and make s’mores.  One of my favorite things about summer, hands down!

This weekend we had a wonderful party to celebrate my daughter’s 11th birthday.  I wanted to prepare some drinks for my beverage containers ahead of time.  I adapted this recipe from theKitchn website.

This was to fill a 3 gallon beverage dispenser.

Ingredients:

4 (12 ounces) frozen limeade concentrate cans
12 c of fresh, water
15 strawberries, hulled and cut in half
18 basil leaves
1 bottle of 750 ml – Golden Tequilla

Into your beverage dispenser, empty all of the limeade cans into your dispenser followed by 12 cups of water  Then add the tequila.  Stir to blend.  Then add the strawberries and basil.  Refrigerate for 2-4 hours.  We had ice on the side, not to water the margaritas down throughout the night.  These were such a hit!  Both the men and women loved it.  I’ll be making this cocktail throughout the summer.

— Knead to Cook

Marinated aspargus.

by Filed Under: Appetizers, No bake/cooking required! 2 Comments

I rarely take shortcuts but this is one I always do for a party and it is a time saver & a great appetizer.  How can you go wrong, right?

Ingredients:

1-2 lbs of fresh asparagus, washed and trimmed (bottoms)
1 container of a good quality Italian dressing

Directions:

Place the asparagus in a ziploc and pour the entire bottle of dressing over top.  Seal and refrigerate for 4-6 hours.  Remove and plate.  So good, unbelievably easy.  I always plate with other things, olives, tomatoes – I also served my marinated mozzarella skewers with this on the side.

— Knead to Cook

Drunken lemonade.

by Filed Under: Beverages, No bake/cooking required!, Vegetarian 2 Comments

Another wonderful cocktail to prepare ahead of time in your beverage dispenser is this yummy concoction.  I used a 4 gallon dispenser for this recipe.  Refreshing and perfect for an evening party or barbecue.

Ingredients:

4 containers of frozen lemonade
10 c water
4 c of vodka
2 lemons, sliced for garnish

Directions:

In your beverage dispenser, add all 4 frozen lemonade containers.  Add the water & vodka and stir until combined.  Then add the lemon slices to the top (they will float).  We served ice on the side so the cocktails wouldn’t get watered down.

Feel free to use more or less vodka in this recipe, depending on your preference.  You can also garnish with fresh berries, mint, basil, rosemary etc.

— Knead to Cook

Raspberry Balsamic Coulis.

by Filed Under: Desserts, No bake/cooking required!, Sauces, Vegetarian Leave a Comment

Today I purchased a large container of fresh raspberries and I instantly thought of making this to top pancakes, yogurt or ice cream.  I adore the bright, vibrant red color with the complexity of the spices that I added.  This makes eating the rainbow even more fun for kids & adults alike.  So easy to make, stores beautifully in the refrigerator.  Definitely a recipe to try.

Ingredients:

3.5 c of fresh raspberries
2.5 tbl of raw honey but you can use regular honey as well
1 tbl of a good quality, aged balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp of nutmeg

Directions:

Add all of the ingredients to your food processor and combine.  This should take about 1 minute.  Then with a fine mesh strainer over top of a mixing bowl, pour the mixture into the strainer.  Take the back of a spoon and start pressing the mixture through the strainer.  You will need to keep stirring the seeds to allow the liquid to pass through.  What remains is a gorgeous ruby-colored sauce that you can top anything from your favorite pancakes/waffles, chicken, pork, yogurt to pretty much any dessert.  Very versatile sauce 🙂  I hope you enjoy this as much as we do.

— Knead to Cook

Lemon whipped cream.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Dips, No bake/cooking required! 1 Comment

Perfectly light and wonderful on my fruit shish kabobs tonight.  Would also be a lovely pairing with a lemon or fruit pie.  So many options…

Ingredients:

1 c of whipping cream
2 tbl of confectioners’ sugar
1 tsp of lemon extract
Zest from one lemon

Directions:

In your stand mixer, with the whisk attached, pour in the whipping cream and beat.  I typically beat this for about 1 minutes then add the sugar and lemon zest and extract.  Beat on medium to high until it takes on a whipped cream consistency.  Serve immediately.

 

— Knead to Cook

5 Ingredient Chocolate Energy Bars.

by Filed Under: Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Nuts, Snacks 11 Comments

The 3 ingredient energy bars have been such an overwhelming success in my house that I needed to start making more for everyone.  Being a self-proclaimed chocoholic – this version was inevitable!  🙂

Ingredients:

1 c almonds, toasted
16 pitted Medjool dates, pitted
3 tbl of good quality cocoa
3 tbl of dark chocolate chips (optional)
1/8th tsp of salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place the almonds on a cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes.  Add the almonds to your processor and blend until you have fine chunks of almond.  Then add the remaining ingredients to your food processor and blend until a large mass forms.  Break it up and process again until it it is well blended.

In a lined (parchment) 8×8 or 9×9 glass pan, add the mixture.  I then add a piece of plastic wrap over the top and roll a small glass over top to smooth it out and make it even.  Refrigerate for 45 minutes. Then remove and slice into bite sized squares or bars.  Enjoy!

— Knead to Cook

Chobani Guacamole.

by Filed Under: Dips, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Salsas & Guacamole, Snacks, Vegetarian 2 Comments

 

We love taco night in our house.  Plus, it’s my go-to quick dinner that I know everyone will gobble up.  Tonight my kids had swim practice & my father & I have been tirelessly working on our backyard construction project/re-do.  Finally today, it’s taking shape!  Can’t wait for it to be done & for our parties to start!

This recipe is super easy, adjustable to your taste and protein-packed.  Plus with the crazy price of avocados, it extends them a bit by adding the Chobani.

Ingredients:

3 cloves of garlic
1 jalapeño, seeded (if you don’t like it spicy, leave the seeds in if you do)
3 avocados, pitted and the inside scooped out
2 tbl of lime juice
1/4 c of Chobani non fat plain yogurt
1 handful of cilantro leaves, washed
1 tbl ground cumin
1/2 – 1 tsp of cayenne pepper depending on how spicy you like it.  (omit if you don’t like it spicy)
1 tsp of salt (adjust this per taste)

Directions:  In your food processor blend the garlic and jalapeño until finely minced.  Then add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.  Adjust the spices to your liking.  Serve immediately.

— Knead to Cook

Veggie & black bean salad. Vegetarian.

by Filed Under: Appetizers, Mexican, No bake/cooking required!, Side dish, Vegetarian 27 Comments

 

My vegetarian friend Brooke, made me a salad similar to this years ago and over the years I’ve revamped it and made it my own.  I can honestly down this entire, very large, container in one sitting if I needed to.  I did help myself to 3, yes 3, helpings at dinner.  Consider I only ate watermelon for lunch, that would explain my voracious appetite 🙂

Ingredients:

1 – 15 oz can of organic black or adzuki beans
2 c of fresh corn or frozen
2 c of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 red pepper, chopped
1 orange pepper, chopped (color of the pepper may vary)
1/2 c of a red onion, diced
2 jalapeño, chopped finely
1/3 c of fresh lime juice
1/4 c of olive oil
1/4 c cilantro leaves, chopped
1 tsp of salt
3/4 tsp of ground cumin (if you don’t like cumin as much as I do, use 1/4 or 1/2 tsp)
1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp of ground black pepper

Directions:

Combine in a bowl and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours to let the flavors mingle.  You can serve this as a side dish, with tortilla chips at a party or just with a big spoon!  YUM!

The aftermath.

 

— Knead to Cook

Sun tea.

by Filed Under: Beverages, No bake/cooking required!, Vegetarian Leave a Comment

Today was an undeniable taste of summer… 89 degrees and very sunny.  This to me meant brewing some yummy sun tea on my patio table.  This recipe is very versatile and works well with whatever tea (in bags) that you prefer.

Ingredients:

1 gallon of fresh purified water
8 -10 tea bags (I used Tazo Refresh – which is a mint tea that is caffeine-free.)
12 mint leaves (fresh from my garden)
1/4 c of sugar
1/4 c of water

Directions:

Fill your glass vessel with the water, tea bags and mint leaves, if using them.  Place it in a sunny spot for 6+ hours.

On the stove top, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil.  Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved into the water and remove from the heat.  Let cool.

Once you bring the tea in, remove the tea bags.  Then add the simple syrup (sugar/water mixture) it. Give it a good stir and serve it in a tall glass with ice.  Refrigerate afterwards.

— Knead to Cook

Strawberry Shortcake Shish Kabobs with fresh vanilla whipped cream.

by Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit, Gluten Free, No bake/cooking required!, Snacks, Valentine's Day 1 Comment

Farmer’s Market today yielded a wonderful bounty of strawberries.  They caught my eye immediately and I couldn’t resist.  Once my daughter saw them… her wheels were spinning and she made some wonderful strawberry shortcake shish kabobs, her favorite!  I got to make the whipped cream 🙂  Such a wonderful, fun dessert idea.

Ingredients:
2 pints of strawberries, wash and cut the stems off
1 angel food cake, cut up into cubes
Skewers

Directions:

Start with a strawberry and then alternate angel food cake cubes.  Add as many as you like.  You can certainly add other fruit like berries, pineapple, mangoes etc.

Whipped Cream:

Ingredients:
1 c of whipping cream
2 tbl of confectioners’ sugar
1 vanilla bean (seeds on the inside only) or 1 tsp of vanilla extract

Directions:

In your stand mixer, with the whisk attached, pour in the whipping cream and beat.  I typically beat this for about 1 minutes then add the sugar and vanilla.  Beat on medium to high until it takes on a whipped cream consistency.  Serve immediately .

Served on the side as a dip for the shish kabobs.

— Knead to Cook