Cuban Sandwich Quesadillas

I'm packing my bags.

Getting ready to go.

To see my sweet fam.

In Id-A-Ho!

I won't be around.

For a month or two.

But rest assured.

I'll be thinking of you!

So have a great summer.

Keep making great food.

Soak up that sunshine.

And I'll see you soon!

These quesadillas are made with a pork cooked in the crockpot. They are so easy and quick to make, and the pork is AMAZING. A great weeknight family pleaser for sure.

Cuban Sandwich Quesadillas
By Skinnytaste (LOVE HER!)

Ingredients

1 oz slow cooked Pernil

1 slice reduced fat swiss (I used Sargento)
1 oz ham (I uses Hillshire Farm 97% fat free)
1 slice kosher pickle
mustard
6 inch low carb whole wheat tortilla (La Tortilla Factory)

Directions

Heat a non-stick pan over low heat. Spray with cooking spray and place tortilla on pan (I used my panini press). On half of the tortilla, place a piece of cheese, pork, ham, pickle and mustard. When cheese is melted, fold the quesadilla in half and flip to heat other side. Remove from heat and cut into 3 pieces.

See you in a few months!

Navy Bean Soup

This is another tribute to the glorious pig. Gosh I love ham, LOVE it. But it's not exactly something that we get a lot. Usually Christmas and Easter, but in all honesty I would have no problem fitting ham into our usual meal planning, especially if it means getting this soup on a regular basis. I've never saved a ham bone before, but not one to waste food, it seemed like the right thing to do. I really think the ham bone was the key to this soup being so amazingly delicious, that great ham flavor is so infused in the broth. I never thought I'd ever be so excited about a bean soup, but let me tell you, this will knock your socks off.


Navy Bean Soup
Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups dried navy beans or 1 1/4 cups lima beans, rinsed and drained
4 ounces salt pork, 4 ounces fully cooked chopped ham, or ham bone with meat attached
2-3 carrots chopped
2-3 celery stalks chopped
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups nonfat milk
2 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Place navy beans in large saucepan, add enough water to cover beans.

2. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes.

3. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour (Or, cover beans with water and soak overnight).

4. Drain beans and return to saucepan.

5. Stir in 2 1/2 cups water, salt pork or ham bone, carrots, celery, onion, oregano, salt, ginger, sage and pepper.

6. Bring to a boil, reduce heat.

7. Cover and simmer 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until beans are tender.

8. Remove ham bone, scrape off any leftover meat and add to soup. (If necessary, add more water during cooking).

9. Add milk and butter, stirring until mixture is heated through and butter is melted.

10. Season with additional salt and pepper.

Dijon Croque Monsieur with Elderberry Jelly

Nothing beats having dirty, exhausted kids. That sounds like a strange statement, but when my kids are cranky, tired and filthy then it probably means that our day has been spent outside, digging in the dirt, climbing jungle gyms and soaking up as much of this beautiful weather as possible. I love it, and although it means having to double up on baths and showers, it's absolutely worth it. However, it also means that my time in the kitchen and at my computer will be significantly lessened, so my posts my be a bit more sporadic than normal. I'm going to do my best to keep up with you, but if you don't see me around for a while, it hopefully means it's because we're getting delightfully kissed by the sun! Ah, I love the spring!

I probably wouldn't have made these cheesy gooey sandwiches if it wasn't for a little trip I took to Kitchen Kettle in Lancaster, PA with one of my friends. I am in love with this place as it's full of fantastic foods made by the Amish, and they allow you to sample just about everything that they made. I went specifically for a jar of their pickled beets (most of you are probably grimacing at that, but don't knock 'em till you try 'em, they're awesome!), but along the way we discovered this elderberry jelly, which was delicious. It's hard to describe the taste except to say that it has that dark "three berry" sweetness in it and it's wonderful. My friend had mentioned that they had a jelly like this to accompany some Monte Cristo sandwiches and that it was to die for. Not being able to get the idea out of my head, I found this recipe in my Cooking Light mag (where else), and got to work. I can't tell you what the difference is between a Croque Monsieur, and a Monte Cristo (can you?) but I will tell you that the jelly is honestly what topped this sandwich off beautifully. Since the sandwich is very savory with it's buttery Gruyere cheese, salty ham and tangy Dijon, the elderberry jelly cuts right through it with it's sweetness. I warmed it just a bit before serving it to thin it out a bit and it was perfect! If you don't have elderberry jelly, you could probably try this with any sweet jelly you have on hand. Apricot or raspberry would be excellent!



Dijon Croque Monsieur with Elderberry Jelly
Cooking Light Jan/Feb 2010

Ingredients
1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon Mustard
1 tablespoon fat-free mayo
8 slices Italian Bread (I just used whole wheat)
6 ounces thinly sliced ham
1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup fat free milk
cooking spray
1/2 cup warmed elderberry jelly for dipping

Directions

1. Combine mustard and mayo in a small bowl. Spread 3/4 teaspoon of mustard mixture over each of 4 bread slices; evenly distribute ham and cheese on each slice of bread. Sprinkle evenly with pepper. Spread remaining mustard mixture on each remaining bread slice and assemble sandwiches.

2. Combine egg substitute and milk in a shallow dish. Dip both sides of each sandwich into the egg mixture.

3. Heat a large nonstick griddle or skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sandwiches to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned and cheese melts. Use jelly for dipping.

Serves 4

Per Serving (not including jelly): 350 cal, 11.7g fat, 25.1g prot, 34.6g carb, 1.7g fiber

Points per Serving: 8

Enjoy the Spring!!

Happy Easter!

I know I'm always apologizing for my photography, this is not the most visually appealing picture, but I devoured this thing once the camera clicked off!

If I could afford it, I would make this in advance so it was actually useful for Easter, but alas, we are but poor college students! I hope everyone had a great Easter Sunday. I know that we did, I really love Easter, it's Springtime, it's meaningful, and it's so much fun with young kids. But let us not forget the food.

I made my usual ham, potatoes, etc. this year, but I just wanted to give a tip. Most hams come with those little glaze packets to baste on while the ham is baking. I don't like to do it, mostly because there are just some people that don't like to add anything sweet to their meat. So, instead, I get it thickened up on the stove top, and then add about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of pineapple juice, with the pineapple rings or chunks. This dilutes the glaze, and thins it out, so that if anyone wants the glaze, they can just drizzle as much as they want, and it's SO delicious, especially with the pineapple. I've also added cinnamon, honey, cloves, a lot of how you flavor it depends a lot on the glaze itself, so far they've all been different. Anyway, maybe this will help next time you make a ham! Lots of great stuff coming up this week, stay tuned and enjoy the spring!

Pasta with Prosciutto and Mushroom Cream Sauce

Is there anything better in this world than a creamy pasta, honestly? This dish was a hit with the whole family. The mushrooms and prosciutto made a wonderful combination with the tender angel hair. The only downside to this recipe is that is calls for store-bought sauce (a light Alfredo sauce). Usually I prefer to make my own, but since i didn't have the time to research a lighter white sauce, this worked out just fine. I used Ragu's light Alfredo sauce and it was surprisingly delicious. This was also my first time using sun dried tomatoes in a recipe (I'm actually becoming increasingly surprised at how many things I HAVEN'T tried yet). They were so chewy, and added a really rich flavor to the sauce. Try this recipe out and be sure to get back to me!

Pasta with Prosciutto and Mushroom Cream Sauce

Found in Taste of Home, April/May 2009 Healthy edition

Ingredients

1 9 oz package angel hair pasta

1 8 oz pkge white mushrooms, quartered (I sliced them, no biggie)

1/4 cup julienne sun dried tomatoes (I got the dry pack, not the ones in oil)

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic (about 5 cloves)

2 ounces very thinly sliced prosciutto, sliced cross ways into 1/2 inch strips

1/2 cup dry white wine, or chicken broth (I used the broth, the very smell of white wine has me dry heaving and running for the door, don't ask)

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 cup baby frozen peas, thawed

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 10-oz container refrigerated light Alfredo sauce

1/4 cup preshredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and keep warm.

2. While pasta cooks, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add mushrooms, and saute 5 minutes, or until tender. Add sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, and prosciutto; saute 2 minutes. Add wine and broth; bring to a boil. Boil 3 minutes, or until liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup. Stir in peas, pepper, Alfredo sauce, and pasta; toss gently to coat.

3. Spoon pasta into individual bowls, and sprinkle with cheese. Serve immediately.

Serves 6: 1 serving is 1 cup pasta and 1 tablespoon cheese.

Per serving: 269cal, 7.9g fat, 15.4g prot, 34.1g carb, 2.5g carb, 2.5g fiber, 49mg chol, 621mg sod.

Points per Serving: 6

ALSO, a good Philly phriend of mine just started her own food blog. She's already got a totally mouthwatering recipe for a berry french toast that you must check out (and try, seriously, amazing french toast). Her blog is at Spunky Girl Eats, so stop by her blog and say hi!

Pasta with Prosciutto and Spinach

I know, another pasta dish! I don't even mean to do it, it just happens! This was a fun find after an impulse buy of what felt like ten pounds of tortellini from Costco! This dish is pretty similar to the Gnocchi recipe that I posted not too long ago, but just different enough that it was still worth posting. I love the delicious cheesy centers of the tortellini, and it's so filling! And for the record, the tortellini from Costco is fantastic! It was also fun to use prosciutto in this dish, I don't have it often, and it has such a wonderful strong and salty taste that adds the perfect accent to the pasta and spinach. The only thing I wish I'd done differently is slice the meat a lot smaller. Prosciutto is a very rich product, and getting a big mouthful of it can be a bit overwhelming! But my whole family loved this one, and my daughter even begged me for leftovers the next day...yeah, this one's a keeper!

Pasta with Prosciutto and Spinach
Found in Cooking Light October 2008 edition

Ingredients

1 (9 oz) package fresh cheese tortellini
1 tablespoon pine nuts (we omitted these due to allergies)
1 teaspoon olive oil
6 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 (6 oz) package fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
2 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain. Transfer pasta to large bowl.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add nuts to pan; cook 1 1/2 minutes or until toasted, stirring occasionally. Add nuts to bowl.

3. Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add garlic to pan; cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add spinach to pan; cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts, stirring constantly. Add spinach mixture, cheese, and remaining ingredients to bowl, toss well.

Serves 4: 1 serving is 1 cup

Per Serving: 292 cal, 9.2g fat, 14.6g prot, 38.8g carb, 3.8g fiber, 32mg chol, 1.8mg iron, 618mg sod.

Points per Serving: 6