Baked Fries

     I have never been able to make good homemade fries in the oven until I read a post on Annie's Eats.  I love her website and have made several other things from there as well.  This are a great option when you are craving french fries, but would like something a bit healthier than McDonald's!  Although the fries themselves are easy to make, they require advanced preparation and not such a fun clean up!

3 potatoes, or about 1½ lbs.
5 tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. sea salt
¼ tsp. pepper

    Peel the potatoes.  Cut potatoes in half lengthwise.  Place cut side down, then cut into ¼" lengthwise pieces.  Put potato pieces into a large bowl and cover with hot water.  Allow the potatoes to soak for about 30 minutes.
     Remove from water and pat dry with paper towels.  Wipe out the bowl so it is dry, then put the potatoes back into the bowl.  Toss the potatoes with 1 tbsp. of oil.  Use the other 4 tbsp. to coat the bottom of a rimmed baking sheet.  Sprinkle the pan with salt and pepper.  Place the potatoes on the pan in a single layer. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 5 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue to bake 15-20 minutes, rotating the pan once.  Remove the pan and flip each potato using tongs.  Place back in the oven for the last 5-15 minutes, rotating once.
     When the fries are finished baking, remove from oven and place on paper towels.  Pat excess grease from potatoes.  Add more salt or pepper to taste and enjoy!  Makes 4 servings.

Nutritional information per serving; 230 calories, 11 grams of fat, 33 carbohydrates, 4 grams of protein, 4 grams of fiber.

Herb-Roasted Dijon Potatoes

     When I was a little kid, my mom used to allow me to help her meal plan and make dinner.  My brother, sister, and I each had one night a week that we got to decide what we would have for dinner and we had to help mom make it.  I remember looking through all of her cookbooks trying to decide what I would pick each week, but usually one of my kid cookbooks won out.  As a matter of fact, I remember one time choosing "kitty litter casserole" from my Gross Grub cookbook, which was made of rice and meatballs.  None the less, my mom worked very hard to get us to eat a variety of foods and to enjoy cooking and baking.  As you can tell, she did a great job...I love to eat and cook!  Before I moved down to Texas my mom had given me a file folder of all sorts of recipes she had been saving for my sister and I ever since we were younger.  They were clipped from magazines and duplicates of her recipe cards from Taste of Home.  It was like an antique version of pinterest!  While sorting through them the other day I came across this recipe and set it aside because I knew I would be making it soon!  It was different than the typical mashed or baked potatoes that I usually make, but every bit as delicious.

2 lbs. baby red potatoes
5 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp. Italian seasoning

     Preheat oven to 425°.  Cut potatoes into quarters.  Mix all ingredients except for potatoes in a medium bowl.  Add in the potatoes and stir until covered.  Place on a greased baking pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until fork tender.

Pretty Simple Pasta Salad

     There are just some things that you don't need a recipe to make, but I never used to realize that.  I always needed a recipe the first few times, no matter how simple the recipe.  So I remember diligently writing down the things that would go into pasta salad while my friend Ashley was making it for us one day.  Now I have made it enough that I don't need a recipe!  I add things or leave things out depending on what sounds good or what is in the fridge. Additional items that you may want to consider would be chucnks of salami or sugar snap peas.  But in case you are like me and need a recipe to get you started, here is a pretty simple pasta salad!  It is great for a light dinner, to pack in lunches, or as a side dish to a summer barbecue.  

1 box bow tie pasta

1 bottle Ken's Lite Northern Italian dressing (you can use another kind, but I think this is the best)

½-1 bag of Kraft Crumbles Cheese (again, shredded cheese works but the crumbles are more noticeable)

¾ cup of carrots, shredded or diced

1 cucumber, sliced and quartered (sometimes I cut off the skin, but sometimes I leave it on)

1 small broccoli head, cut into small florets

     Boil water in a big pot and cook pasta according to the directions on the box.  When the pasta is done cooking, strain from the hot water and immediately rinse with cold water.  Continue rinsing with cold water until all pasta is cool.  Add in all vegetables and cheese.  Pour the dressing over top, a small amount at a time.  Stir until well coated.  I usually only put about ½ the bottle in at first.  Refrigerate for several hours.  Before serving, add more dressing, to taste.  I usually only use about ¾ of the bottle total, but feel free to add more or less to your liking.

Roasted Root Vegetables

     I have recently become addicted to roasting vegetables in the oven.  It are such an easy way to add great flavor to some healthy vegetables without adding too much fat. This recipe is one I am sure to make again, so thank you to Jamie Cooks It Up!  You are more than welcome to change the amount of each vegetable, but this is what I made for the two of us, without much leftover.

2-3 medium carrots
2 medium red skin potatoes
1 small sweet potato
2 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
Montreal steak seasoning (McCormick Grill Mates)

     Preheat the oven to 350°.  Peel and chop all vegetables, making sure that the pieces are all about the same size.  Place all the vegetables in a large Ziploc bag and add the olive oil.  Shake bag until all pieces are coated with olive oil.  Place vegetables on a large bar pan.  (Note: You can pour olive oil over veggies on a pan, but using a bag will cut down on the amount of olive oil needed.)  Sprinkle vegetables with salt, pepper, and steak seasoning to taste.  Cook for about 30-40 minutes, turning vegetables about half way through cooking time.

Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms

     I found this recipe from Kayln's Kitchen, a pretty awesome healthy food blog!  I am really bad at making side dishes to go along with my main dish.  However, these looked so good when I was planning my weekly meals that I actually wanted to make this recipe and then just ended up throwing some barbecue chicken on the plate with it!  This is so simple and really delicious.

½ lb. of green beans
4 oz. mushrooms (I like baby bella crimini)
1 ½ tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. finely grated parmesan cheese

     First wash the mushrooms and green beans.  Remove the stems of the mushrooms by carefully twisting and pulling the stem out.  Slice into 1/2 inch pieces (I sliced mine thinner and they were cooked long before the green beans).  Make sure and dry the mushrooms well, either with a paper towel or a salad spinner.  Next trim the ends of the green beans and then cut then in half.  Place the beans and mushrooms in a gallon size Ziploc bag.

     In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil and balsamic vinegar together.  Pour over the green beans and mushrooms into the bag.  Toss gently until everything is well covered with the mixture.  Dump onto a baking sheet and spread into a thin layer so that the green beans cook evenly.  Place in the oven at 450º for 20-30 minutes, or until green beans are crisp.  Remove from heat and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  (And being the forgetful person I am, I forgot to sprinkle with parmesan cheese, as you can see in the picture below!  They were still delicious, so I am sure the parmesan cheese will only make them better next time!)

Makes about 2-3 servings.