Alas, the much sought after Cowboy Caviar recipe. It doesn't get much simpler than this one folks! Cowboy caviar, is probably the easiest dish that I make on a regular basis. T loves it, I love it, everyone who tries it usually also loves it. Most of the ingredients, lucky for you, are things that you can easily stock up on and have on hand for a last minute impromptu gathering. It's a great healthy chip dip for tailgates, backyard barbecues, and super quick to throw together for unexpected guests.

There are many things you can use cowboy caviar for. It's a good thing too. This recipe makes 10-12 servings, so if you only have a few people sharing, you'll probably have leftovers.

Some things I like to do with leftover cowboy caviar: 

OPTION ONE: NACHOS. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Brown some hamburger on the stove. Spread a layer of chips on the baking sheet, spoon cowboy caviar over the top, add a little salsa, and the browned hamburger and load up with cheese. Pop it in the oven until the cheese melts - approx. 10-15 minutes. 

OPTION TWO: SOUTHWEST OMELETS. Load up the inside of your omelet with leftover cowboy caviar and any other ingredients you like. Add a little Mexican or pepperjack cheese and serve with sour cream, cilantro, salsa and green onion if you have it.

OPTION THREE: LOADED POTATO SKINS. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake your desired amount of potatoes for 30-40 minutes, or until softened. Remove from oven and slice in half. Scoop out the middles and brush with butter or olive oil and a sprinkle of paprika. Transfer back to the oven for 6-8 minutes, remove and load up with cowboy caviar and cheese. Bake another 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

COWBOY CAVIAR | Yield: 10-12 servings | Total Time: 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

1 green pepper, chopped
1 red onion, diced
2-4 jalapenos, diced*
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 can shoepeg corn, drained
1 fresh lime, juiced OR 2-3 Tbsp lime juice
1/4 C red wine vinegar
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
kosher salt, to taste

Tortilla chips, to serve

*NOTE: Adjust jalapenos based on how much heat you can handle. Removing seeds will lessen the heat. Also, if you can't find fresh jalapenos, a small can of them will work just fine - check the Mexican section of your grocery. OR substitute Serrano peppers instead.

DIRECTIONS:

Chop or dice all of the fresh veggies. Drain and rinse the beans and corn. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. If it seems too dry, add a little more red wine vinegar.

Lady H's Bachelorette

As per request...a glimpse into Lady H's Bachelorette weekend in Okoboji.

A view of the spread. For those wondering...we had chili, cowboy caviar, roasted red pepper hummus, homemade chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes, twizzlers, cheese-crackers-grapes, and strawberry water out of the awesome water-dispenser I recieved as a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law. Thanks Mama S! Oh, and lets not forget the champagne and strawberries!

I don't often drink champagne, but when I do...it gets classy. Bra & undies garland and sign made by yours truly.

The Bride-To-Be and her Maid of Honor at our awesome painting class at Creative Spirits in Spirit Lake. I highly recommend taking a class with them. We all had a wonderful time!

All dressed up and ready to go out for dinner. Doesn't everyone look so nice?!

Lady H with her sister H and soon-to-be sister-in-law me! Now we just need a way to photoshop in her other sister-in-law D and we'll have all the ladies!

To see more pictures from the day CLICK HERE.

I may know a thing or two about throwing a party. I was a sorority girl after all...

Blueberry Quinoa Johnnycakes

Good morning lovers! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend. Mine was filled with lots and lots of fun happenings. Among them, taking a painting class, a dinner date with some lovely girls, and celebrating at a bachelorette party for my future sister-in-law. LOVE.

Another thing I LOVE, are these quinoa johnnycakes.  T, who I should mention has no appreciation for, and most definitely does NOT love pancakes or any breakfast food for that matter, even gave these a thumbs up. Take it from me. They are very yummy.

Step One: Gather the ingredients.

Step Two: Cook the quinoa. Allow time to cool before mixing with the rest of the ingredients. Quinoa can be cooked ahead of time to cut down on total cook time. While quinoa is cooking, mix together the wet and dry ingredients to make the base batter for the johnnycakes.

Step Three: Mix together cooled quinoa and johnnycake batter. Be careful not to over mix. Allow to rest for 1 hour before cooking.

Step Four: Using a 1/3 C measuring scoop, drop batter onto a lightly oiled skillet or griddle. Drop 8-10 blueberries onto each johnnycake. When batter begins to bubble, flip johnnycakes and cook the other side.

Step Five: Stack the johnnycakes on a plate, and serve with a dollop of vanilla Greek yogurt, fresh blueberries, and a drizzle of maple syrup.

Yum. Yum. Yum. These johnnycakes are not only filling, they are also delicious. Go ahead and freeze or refrigerate any leftovers you have for another time!

Recipe from True Food Cookbook

BLUEBERRY QUINOA JOHNNYCAKES | Yield: 20 pancakes (5-6 servings) | Total Time: 20 min. prep (plus approx. 20 min. to allow quinoa to cool) + 1 hr resting + 10-15 min. cooking = 2 hrs.

INGREDIENTS:

2 C red quinoa*
2 C all-purpose flour
1/4 C evaporated cane sugar
2 Tbsp plus 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 C whole milk
4 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp olive oil
1 C blueberries*
1 C nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt
Maple syrup, for serving

*NOTE: To cut down on total time, you can make the quinoa ahead of time so that you don't have to wait for it to cool. Any type of quinoa will work. Red just looks prettiest :) Also, if blueberries aren't in season, go ahead an try this recipe with bananas, strawberries, raspberries, or any fruit that prefer.

DIRECTIONS:

Bring a saucepan with 4 cups water and 1 tsp salt to a boil. Add the quinoa and stir, lowering heat to a simmer, cover and cook until the quinoa is dry and fluffy, about 20 minutes. Let cool.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add the milk, eggs, vanilla, and olive oil, whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and blend until just mixed together. Fold in the cooked quinoa. Let the batter rest for one hour.

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a large skillet or griddle. Using a 1/3 C measuring cup, scoop batter onto the hot pan. Drop 8-10 blueberries on top of each pancake. When bubbles form in the batter, flip and cook on the other side until lightly browned. Continue with the remaining batter and blueberries. Serve topped with a dollop of vanilla Greek yogurt and maple syrup.

Have you ever tried incorporating quinoa into your morning meal?

Baked Tostones

As promised, baked tostones to serve with the picadillo cubano recipe I blogged about this week. Tostones, are not as foreign as they sound. Essentially, they are cooked plantains. Plantains are a very common find on dinner menus throughout the caribbean, and if you ask me, very underestimated in the midwest, or anywhere I've ever traveled in the U.S. - territories aside. That being said, I have begun to see them on a much more regular basis in small quantities at most major grocery stores. You can usually find them close to the bananas. When choosing plantains, the ones that are brown are good to eat, so don't be fooled if they look a little like over-ripe bananas. That's just where you want them.

Plantains are similar in taste to a banana, although not as sweet, and have a texture closer to a potato. Green plantains tend to be more starchy, while ripe plantains will be slightly sweeter in flavor. Consider this your warning: they can be tricky to peel. Their skin is much tougher than a banana skin, and may require cutting off rather than peeling depending on your prowess in the kitchen. 

There are a few ways to make tostones, the typical way being to heat some oil in a skillet and pan-fry them into delicious chips. If you want to go that route, I won't stop you. I've done it, and they are pretty dang yummy. On the other hand, if you are trying to avoid fried food and want a healthy, but equally tasty alternative, these baked tostones may be just what the doctor ordered. Literally. T thought these were amazing, and has been asking me constantly to make them again for a snack.

Give a man a hammer. Any sort will do. This was T's favorite part of this recipe. Besides complaining about how I should have made more because there weren't enough for him to eat...

Bake the tostones for an additional 15 minutes after flattening.

Allow them to cool slightly and serve warm. They will be crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. Enjoy!

Recipe from Skinnytaste

BAKED TOSTONES | Yield: 4 servings | Total Time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

3 ripe plantains, sliced into 1/2 inch thick pieces (3 cups)
1 Tbsp olive oil
kosher salt

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Peel the plantains and slice them into 1/2 inch slices. Put the slices in a large bowl, drizzle with olive oil and salt, toss to coat. Arrange the slices on the baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, or until slightly brown on the bottom. Remove from the oven.

Using a meat mallet, heavy-bottomed glass or jar, or any other 'smashing' utensil you have in your kitchen, mash each piece to about a 1/4 inch thickness.

Flip the plantain medallions so that the browned side is up, and bake for another 15 minutes until golden brown and crispy.

Have you ever cooked with plantains?