Raspberry Balsamic Glazed Berries

Usually when you think of breakfast, you tend to think of a big stack of pancakes, french toast, eggs, hashbrowns, bacon, sausage, waffles etc. I could go on forever...I love breakfast.

 What about a nice simple bowl of fruit to start the day? 

I love having fruit for breakfast. Whether it is with yogurt, cereal, granola, oatmeal or by itself. Fruit is refreshing, sweet and good for you. Fruit is awesome. 

So when Star Fine Foods sent me their brand new line of Creamy Balsamic Glazes, I knew exactly how I was going to use it!

This recipe couldn't be any easier! Combine a whole bunch of berries in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of Raspberry Balsamic Glaze and 1-1/2 teaspoon of sugar. That's it! 

Not only is it good for breakfast, save some for later and make dessert with pound cake or angel food cake! 2-for-1 is the way to go! Just spoon some berries on top of cake with all of their fantastic balsamic juices and you have a delicious and simple dessert!

I'm in nursing school, doing clinical rotations and working at the hospital...I love simple! Simple is good. 

Simple makes my life a whole lot easier when time is not available.

Can we take a moment to talk about how awesome these Creamy Balsamic Glazes from Star Fine Foods are for cooking and baking? I can't wait to make a caprese salad so I can use the Modena flavor. Or how about a pork loin for the Apple and/or Raspberry flavor? I can't wait to also try the Modena flavor with my Balsamic Onion & Prosciutto pizza. YUM!

These glazes add a lovely gourmet touch to any dish and there are so many possibilities for how you can incorporate them into your recipes!

If you can't find them at your local grocery store, fear not! They are available to purchase online with Star Fine Foods. This tends to be an issue when you live in Montana. New products that are fun are most likely impossible to find. Thank goodness for the internet!

I can't wait for you to try these Balsamic Glazes and to make these Glazed Berries...they are absolutely delicious!

Raspberry Balsamic Glazed Berries
{Serves 4}

-1 pint Strawberries-hulled and cut in half
-1 pint Raspberries
-1 pint Blackberries
-1 tbsp Star Fine Foods Raspberry Creamy Balsamic Glaze
-1-1/2 tsp White Granulated Sugar

Rinse, wash and drain berries. In a large bowl, combine the berries with the Raspberry Balsamic Glaze and sugar. Stir gently. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate berries for 1 hour so the juices of the berries soak up and combine with the creamy balsamic glaze and sugar. Spoon the berries into a bowl and enjoy!

*Note: Star Fine Foods sent me a package full of their awesome products to test out and use to create recipes. All opinions and thoughts written about the products are my own. I seriously love these glazes! Thanks Star Fine Foods!!!

Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2012

The name of my blog says it all, I'm a "girly girl" and it's true. But what you might not know about me is that Dusty and I love going to the movies. Seriously love it. We love going to the movie theater, renting movies and watching Netflix. Being that I'm a "girly girl" and all, you would think I would only be a fan of the romantic dramas and/or chick-flicks, but that is soooo not the case.

My favorite movie genres are thriller, action, historical dramas and adult comedies. Basically, I have the movie preference of a man, but those movies are in my opinion the best and extremely entertaining! So when I created my top 10 list of movies I loved for 2012, it's no surprise that these following movies made the list...

10. The Dark Knight Rises

Synopsis: Eight years on, a new terrorist leader, Bane, overwhelms Gotham's finest, and the Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that has branded him an enemy.

Star Rating: 8.7

Why I Love It: The last in the 3 part trilogy, this movie goes out in with a bang! Anne Hathaway as the seductive Cat Woman and Tom Hardy as the super muscular and powerful Bane add to the fantastic character line-up in this Batman series. Pretty much I just loved the character Bane. His voice is indescribable and unique, plus those muscles...oh those gorgeous muscles. The story line has shocking twists and turns that have you on the edge of your seat, plus some surprises for you at the end!

9. Skyfall

Synopsis: Bond's loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her, bringing MI6 under attack.

Star Rating: 8.0

Why I love it: Sorry Sean Connery, but Daniel Craig is my favorite Bond of all time! I just love how he gives Bond a raw edge about him. Plus, did you know Daniel Craig does all of his own stunts? Impressive! I also enjoyed how the past of Bond is explored more so you can get deeper into the mind of 007. The train scene at the beginning gets you sucked into the action right away and Javier Bardem is the perfect super genius!

8. The Bourne Legacy

Synopsis: An expansion of the universe from Robert Ludlum's novels, centered on a new hero whose stakes have been triggered by the 
events of the previous three films.

Star Rating: 6.7

Why I love it: Having a B.S. in Microbiology makes me a super geek. So anything that has to do with gene alteration and genetics, I'm all over it! Jeremy Renner has become one of my favorite actors after watching him in The Hurt Locker and I find myself just loving to watch him as an actor in all his movies. Like Daniel Craig, he also has a raw edge about him that grabs your attention. I love how this chapter in the Bourne series actually runs parallel to the last Bourne movie. The action-packed events occurring to Aaron Cross coincide with Jason Bourne during The Bourne Ultimatum.   


7. The Cabin in the Woods

Synopsis: Five friends go for a break at a remote cabin in the woods, where they get more than they bargained for. Together, they must discover the truth behind the cabin in the woods.

Star Rating: 7.2

Why I love it: Sounds like your typical horror movie, right? WRONG! During the month of October, to celebrate Halloween Dusty and I only watch scary movies. It's a thing we started a couple of year ago. When we saw this movie had a 7.2 star rating, we had to investigate because most scary movies never rank this high. About 5 minutes into the movie we realized why. The Cabin in the Woods is a scary movie, but also a comical and witty tribute to all horror films. It's brilliant, scary and surprisingly hysterical (but not in a cheesy way). I absolutely loved this movie. 


6. The Raven

Synopsis: When a madman begins committing horrific murders inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's works, a young Baltimore detective joins forces with Poe to stop him from making his stories a reality

Star Rating: 6.3

Why I love it: According to history, Edgar Allan Poe's death is a total mystery. Due to the lack of technology and resources in the 1800's, the cause of his death with never be know. This movie tries to explain the cause of his death with a thrilling and mysterious story line.  


5. Ted

Synopsis: As the result of a childhood wish, John Bennett's teddy bear, Ted, came to life and has been by John's side ever since - a friendship that's tested when Lori, John's girlfriend of four years, wants more from their relationship.

Star Rating: 7.3

Why I love it: 3 words...Dirty. Raunchy. Hysterical. I laughed so hard throughout this movie. Typical Seth Macfarlane sense of humor and comedy, but even better. Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis are hysterical in this movie as well. I just enjoyed every second of this movie!


4. The Hunger Games

Synopsis: Katniss Everdeen voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games, a televised fight to the death in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to compete.

Star Rating: 7.3

Why I love it: At first the idea of children being put into an arena to kill one another kinda disturbed me. But then I decided to go watch the movie and I got sucked in. As an older sister, I related to Katniss by volunteering to protect her sister. I would totally do the same. I call it my "momma bear instincts" because I'm super protective over my little sis. As most girls do, I also loved the love-triangle between Katniss, Gale and Peeta. Are you team Gale or Peeta? I'm totally team Peeta. I love me some Peeta. The movie is action-packed, political, serious, sad and extremely entertaining. After watching the movie, I read the books and became obsessed. I read all 3 books in one week. So good!

3. Lincoln

Synopsis: As the Civil War continues to rage, America's president struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield and as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on the decision to emancipate the slaves.

Star Rating: 8.3 

Why I love it: Daniel Day-Lewis. Wow. Probably the greatest actor of all time. You forget you are watching Day-Lewis and actually think you are watching Lincoln before you. I could go on forever talking about the things I loved about his performance, but I'll  just say this....Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln is the most amazing performance by an actor of all time!


2. The Avengers

Synopsis: Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. brings together a team of super humans to form The Avengers to help save the Earth from Loki and his army.

Star Rating: 8.4

Why I love it: After years of making separate Marvel movies, finally all of them have come together to make the coolest action-comic hero movie of all time. Action-packed, witty, exciting, and hysterical. This movie has it all. The story-line of this movie is brilliant, smart and a fun time for all. I saw this movie multiple times in theater with Dusty. We loved this movie....and guess what! They are making a sequel! 


1. Argo

Synopsis: A dramatization of the 1980 joint CIA-Canadian secret operation to extract six fugitive American diplomatic personnel out of revolutionary Iran.

Star Rating: 8.2

Why I love it: I was so surprised that this was my favorite movie of 2012. Based on a real historical event that was use to be classified by the government, it seems too impossible to be true. The fear, raw emotion and tension throughout the movie from beginning to end was incredible. Ben Affleck directing was very impressive, smart and he was amazing at creating such an intense tension throughout the movie you could cut it with a knife. The entire movie you are sitting on the edge of your seat gripping for the characters. Will they make it? Will they get out? Dusty had to lean over and tell me to calm down a couple of times because I was so into the movie and freaking out with suspense...which is funny because you know how the movie is going to end the entire time. All I know is that this movie better win some Academy Awards and even Best Picture. Go see it! You will love it.


Well, there you have it....my top 10 list for 2012! There are still a few movies being released before the year is over and here are some movies I still need/want to see:
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
This is 40

Can't wait to see them! I'm sure they will be added to the list.

What was your favorite movie this year? Are there any that I missed?

*Star Ratings, Pictures & Synopsis source from IMDB.com*

Creamy Asparagus Soup with Roasted Garlic & Chive Chevre {Giveaway}

Growing up I was the weird cheese kid. My mom would buy those huge bulk blocks of feta cheese from Costco and I would take off chunks of the cheese and eat it like an apple. It would gross everyone out in my family, but I didn't care because I love my stinky cheese. The stinkier, the better. Feta didn't last long in our household because of me...the stinky cheese kid.

Once I got into college, my weird love for cheese only got more intense. I discovered different types of cheese such as blue cheese, Gouda, Gorgonzola, goat cheese and much much more. I even dragged Dusty to monthly cheese tastings in Missoula at the Good Food Store. Give me a hunk of stinky cheese and I'm in heaven. 

A while ago I was up late one night watching Food Network (like usual) and a show I hadn't seen before came on, Road Tasted with the Neelys, and they were in Montana! Imagine my surprise seeing foodie places from Montana on Food Network. The state of Montana usually gets ignored in the food world unless it involves steak. During the entire 30 minute episode I was so giddy and excited to see different businesses and bakeries from across the state being featured by the Neely couple. One of the places that was featured by the Neelys was only 2 hours away from me! Who knew I lived so close to an organic dairy that produced chevre, ricotta and feta? This place I'm speaking of is the Grade A Amaltheia Organic Dairy in Belgrade, Montana. 

The Amaltheia Dairy is a family run business owned by Melvyn and Sue Brown. On Thanksgiving Day of 2000 they started their dairy and in 2002 began making their own cheeses. The name Amaltheia for the dairy was derived from the greek mythology of the goat named Amaltheia that nursed Zeus growing up. According to greek mythology Zeus rewarded his trusty goat by putting her image in the sky as the Capricorn constellation and took the goats horn to create the cornucopia....and trust me, this cheese that they create would please the Gods! 

Each day at the Amaltheia Dairy tucked in the base of the beautiful Bridger Mountains in Belgrade, Montana, approximately 280 goats get milked and create 150 gallons of goats milk. The milk then gets carefully processed into the various types of cheese including chevre, ricotta and feta. 

Did you know that 1 pound of goat cheese takes 5 pounds of milk?
Crazy!

Besides the basic chevre, Amaltheia also has some really wonderful flavored chevre including: Roasted Garlic & Chive, Spiced Pepper, Sun-Dried Tomato and Perigold Black Truffle. Even the herbs used to flavor the cheese is grown locally. When they say organic, they mean it!

I seriously love the Roasted Garlic & Chive and I'm dying to get my hands on the Perigold Black Truffle! I can only imagine how amazing it would be on my Wild Mushroom & Goat Cheese Pizza. Dang. That really sounds good. 

Mmmm. Feta. My favorite!

The Amaltheia Organic Dairy is a true treasure to the state of Montana. Their cheeses are a very high quality product and you can taste the time, energy and love put into their beloved cheese products. 

Now here comes the best part....A GIVEAWAY!

Sue and Melvyn of the Amaltheia Dairy have generously donated a fantastic giveaway for The Girly Girl Cooks readers...

A fantastic bundle of their fabulous cheese!

Included in the giveaway:

• Whole Milk Ricotta
• Organic Goat Feta
• Plain Chevre
• Roasted Garlic & Chive Chevre
• Spiced Pepper Chevre
• Sun-Dried Tomato Chevre
• Perigold Black Truffle Chevre

That's a whole lot of cheese and such a fun giveaway!!!

To Enter (Mandatory Entry):

Leave a comment telling me your favorite type of cheese. 

For Additional Entries (leave a separate comment for each entry):

-Like Girly Girl Cooks on Facebook

-Like Amaltheia Organic Dairy on Facebook

-Share the giveaway on Facebook 

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Twitter

-Follow Amaltheia Organic Dairy on Twitter

-Share the giveaway  on Twitter

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Pinterest

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Instagram

That is 9 total entries for the giveaway! I'd say those are good odds! If you can't wait for the giveaway and want to have some goat cheese heaven, you can purchase their cheese online or find their products at numerous locations in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. 

**A random winner will be announced Friday, December 21st. The winner has 24 hours to contact me, otherwise a new winner will be chosen**

CONGRATS TO JANET O'BRIEN! YOU ARE THE WINNER OF THE AMALTHEIA CHEESE GIVEAWAY!

Email me at girlygirlcooks@aol.com with your address and I'll get the giveaway out to you ASAP!

Besides eating cheese as is, I love cooking with cheese. Last week I went out to dinner with Dusty and his Grandfather for a delightful and really entertaining evening at Walkers Grill to celebrate the end of the semester. We both got straight A's and survived the Fall semester, so a nice dinner was in order. The soup we were served to accompany the main course was a creamy asparagus soup with a paprika oil drizzle. I don't know what it is about Walkers, but every time I eat there I want to recreate their recipes at home so I can enjoy them all the time. Thus, I made my own Creamy Asparagus Soup with the Amaltheia Roasted Garlic & Chive Chevre.

The creaminess of the soup plus the garlicky-onion tang from the chevre is a savory and wonderful combination. The cheese melts into the soup and the bits that you scoop up with your spoon is a burst of delicious flavor. This could possibly be one of my new favorite soups!

Creamy Asparagus Soup with Roasted Garlic & Chive Chevre
{Serves 4}

-1 pound Asparagus
-1/2 Yellow Onion-finely minced
-1/4 cup Butter (1/2 stick)
-1 tbsp Flour
-2 cups Low-Sodium Fat Free Chicken Broth
-Salt & Pepper
-1 oz of Amaltheia Organic Roasted Garlic & Chive Chevre

Cut the flowered tops off of 8 asparagus spears, just about 1 inch long and set aside for garnish. Also, cut the bottom 2 inches of the woody base of asparagus and discard. Chop the remaining asparagus spears into 1/2 inch pieces.

In a large pot, melt the 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. Add the minced onion and chopped asparagus to the pot and cook until the onion and asparagus become softened. Sprinkle in the tablespoon of flour, stir to combine and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the chicken broth, bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes.

While the soup is simmering, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Blanch the 8 asparagus tips for 2 minutes in the boiling water and then submerge the tips into cold ice water to shock them. Set aside.

After 15 minutes of simmering, taste the soup and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Puree the soup in a blender until smooth and then pass through a strainer for a perfectly smooth texture. Add more salt and pepper to taste, if needed.

To Serve: Ladle the soup into each of the 4 bowls and place 2 asparagus tips into each bowel. Sprinkle equal amounts of the crumbled roasted garlic and chive chevre into each bowl. Enjoy with some bread and a green salad. Enjoy!

*Note: Amaltheia Organic Dairy generously donated and provided me a package full of their awesome products to giveaway to my readers. All opinions and thoughts written about the products are my own. I love this cheese! Thank you Amaltheia! 
*Source: Information and background about the Organic Dairy and the picture of the goats was sourced from the Amaltheia website.
Recipe Inspired & Adapted from Darren McGrady of Eating Royally

Lemon-Blueberry Yogurt Pancakes {Chobani Yogurt Giveaway}

Every other weekend, Dusty and I make pancakes for breakfast. Whether it be sour dough, buttermilk, or sour cream pancakes...we don't care! As long as we get to relax on Sunday morning with a plate full of warm pancakes soaked in butter and maple syrup, we are good to go.

One of my favorite pancake recipes is the Pioneer Woman's Sour Cream Pancakes from her first cookbook. They have a spongy texture that I absolutely love. So I thought I'd change up the original sour cream pancakes by incorporating these two ingredients...

Chobani's Lemon Greek Yogurt & Fresh Blueberries!

Instead of using sour cream, I used the Chobani Lemon Greek Yogurt, which provided the exact same spongy texture but provides some extra protein and flavor. These pancakes were a really fun twist on a pancake recipe I make regularly. 

Now for the fun part....THE GIVEAWAY!

For the first time in my life, I won a giveaway! I entered and won the Chobani Facebook Giveaway where you can enter to win a case of Chobani yogurt. Since it's the holiday season and I'm in the giving mood, I wanted to share the love that Chobani has shown me by giving away a case of Chobani Greek Yogurt!

Included: 6-16 ounce blended flavors of Chobani Yogurt!

Perfect for smoothies, dips, baking, cooking and snacking. 

To Enter (Mandatory Entry):

Leave a comment telling me your favorite flavor of Chobani Yogurt. 

For Additional Entries (leave a separate comment for each entry):

-Like Girly Girl Cooks on Facebook

-Share the giveaway on Facebook 

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Twitter

-Share the giveaway  on Twitter

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Pinterest

-Follow Girly Girl Cooks on Instagram

**A random winner will be announced Tuesday, December 18th. The winner has 24 hours to contact me, otherwise a new winner will be chosen**

CONGRATS TO KELSIE N! YOU ARE THE WINNER OF THE CHOBANI GIVEAWAY!

Email me at girlygirlcooks@aol.com with your address and I'll get the giveaway out to you ASAP!

Lemon-Blueberry Yogurt Pancakes

{Makes 12}

-6 oz Chobani Lemon Greek Yogurt

-1/4 cup Flour

-1 tbsp Sugar

-1 tsp Baking Soda

-1/2 tsp Salt

-2 Eggs-beaten

-1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

-Zest of 1/2 Lemon

-1/2 cup fresh Blueberries

-Cooking Spray

-Butter

-Maple Syrup

Place a skillet or large pan over medium-low heat. 

In a bowl, combine lemon greek yogurt, flour, sugar, salt and baking soda. Gently stir together until just combined. In a separate small bowl, combine the beaten eggs and vanilla extract. Pour the eggs into the yogurt/flour mixture. Gently stir to combine. Add in the zest and juice of half a lemon and 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries. Fold in to combine. 

Using either cooking spray or butter, grease up the skillet. Pour 1/8 cup of pancake batter onto the skillet for each pancake and spread batter out on griddle with measuring cup. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the bubbles on top of the pancake start to pop. Flip them over and cook for an additional minute. Repeat with the remaining batter. 

Stack the pancakes on a plate and serve them with butter and maple syrup. Enjoy!

*Note: Chobani provided me with the case of greek yogurt because I won the case of Chobani yogurt from the Chobani Facebook giveaway. Because it's the holiday season and I love ya, I decided to share the love by giving away the case to one of my fantastic readers! Thank you Chobani!

Recipe Inspired & Adapted by: The Pioneer Woman

Cranberry Pistachio Christmas Cookies - Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2012

For the first time this year I participated in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap hosted by Love & Olive Oil and The Little Kitchen with OXO. Each participant was matched up with 3 great food bloggers and got to send each blogger 1 dozen of their favorite cookie. All proceeds and donations from the cookie swap went toward OXO's Be A Good Cookie campaign for Cookies for Kids' Cancer foundation. It's such a great cause and so much fun to be apart of!

I was matched up with the lovely and very talented:

-Jamie of Green Beans & Grapefruit

-Gretchen of Hazelettes

-Ashley of Baker by Nature

Over the past week I have received my cookies in the mail! All of which have been fantastic! It was so much fun to get 3 packages in the mail containing 3 different dozens of cookies. The best part was not knowing who was going to send you cookies, so it was a total surprise when you opened them up! 

-Jocelyn of Inside BruCrew Life sent me Peppermint Mocha Fudge Cookies which tasted like a richer and more chocolatey adult version of a Thin-Mint cookie. To Die For!

-Sarah of The Life Album sent me Lemon Coconut Snowballs which you just pop in your mouth and let melt. I love anything and everything with coconut, so these cookies were fun to receive!

-Kimberly of Rhubarb & Honey sent me Holiday Monster Cookies that are filled with everything wonderful! 

The cookies I mailed Gretchen, Ashley and Jamie were Cranberry-Pistachio Christmas Cookies! I just love the colors of the nuts, berries and chocolate with how they look so festive for the holiday season. Plus, have you ever made a cookie using cake mix?

Oh my gosh! They make the fluffiest and softest cookies EVER!

These are my favorite holiday cookies of all time. Make them. You will love them too.

Cranberry-Pistachio Christmas Cookies
{Makes 3 Dozen}

-2 packages of Yellow Cake Mix
-4 Eggs, beaten
-1 cup Canola Oil
-1 cup chopped shelled Pistachio Nuts
-1/2 cup sweetened dried Cranberries
-1 cup White Chocolate Chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine the dry yellow cake mix, beaten eggs and oil. Mix until just combined. Fold in the pistachio nuts, cranberries and white chocolate chips.

Using a 1-1/2 tbsp sized cookie scoop, scoop out the cookie dough and place onto the cookie sheet. You should be able to fit 12 balls of cookie dough on a cookie sheet at a time.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until edges become lightly golden. Carefully transfer your cookies to a wire rack to cool. Repeat with the last 2 dozen of cookies.

Enjoy! Happy Holidays!

*Thank you OXO, Love & Olive Oil and The Little Kitchen for hosting such a wonderful cookie swap!
*Thank you Kimberly, Sarah & Jocelyn for the fantastic cookies!

Recipe from: The Gooseberry Patch

Artichoke & Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms

From now until Christmas day there are going to be tons of Christmas and holiday parties to attend. Need a savory, delicious and festive appetizer to serve or bring to your friends house?

I've got just the thing for you...Artichoke & Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms!

Mushroom caps baked and stuffed with a creamy filling that you can easily pop in your mouth is what makes this such a perfect appetizer. Have a drink in one hand while having a stuffed mushroom in the other. Perfect for parties! 

I love the use of the christmas colors too. It makes this appetizer really stand out and fun for this time of year.

To make the filling, I used some very special ingredients from Star Fine Foods. They have a special line of infused olive oils that are simply amazing. I used the Olive Oil with Roasted Garlic for my mushroom filling and oh-em-gee it was so fragrant! The aromatic smell of garlic filled my kitchen and the flavors of my filling were touched with a pleasant flavoring of garlic. I can't wait to start roasting everything with these olive oils!

I also used Cara Mia marinated artichoke hearts from Star Fine Foods which added the perfect seasonings to the mushroom filling. Mmmm, I love marinated artichoke hearts. They are my favorite on top of pizza, used in dips and now stuffed inside mushrooms!

Did I mention before that these stuffed mushrooms are perfect for parties? You can easily assemble them earlier in the day before your guests arrive and then just pop them in the oven for 20 minutes. As Ina Garten says, "How easy is that?"

Artichoke & Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms

{Makes 16}

-16 whole White Button Mushrooms - stems removed

-2 tbsp Star Fine Foods Olive Oil with Roasted Garlic

-5 oz frozen chopped Spinach-thawed and water squeezed out

-4 Sun-Dried Tomatoes-finely diced

-1/4 cup Cara Mia Marinated Artichoke Hearts-roughly chopped

-4 oz Goat Cheese

-4 oz Cream Cheese

-2 tbsp grated Parmesan Cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F) and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Wipe mushroom caps clean with a damp paper towel. 

Heat 2 tbsp of garlic olive oil in a medium pan over medium heat. Add spinach, sun-dried tomatoes and marinated artichoke hearts. Stir to combine and cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove the mixture from the pan and place it into a bowl. Add the goat cheese and cream cheese to the bowl and stir to combine. Mix well.

Fill the mushroom caps with the mixture and place them on the cookie sheet. Sprinkle mushrooms with grated parmesan cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. Serve warm. 

Enjoy!

*Note: Star Fine Foods sent me a package full of their awesome products to test out and use to create recipes. All opinions and thoughts written about the products are my own. I love this stuff! Thanks Star Fine Foods!!!

Huckleberry Souffle

So apparently I'm on a Huckleberry kick.

Earlier in the week I made Huckleberry Glazed Chicken Wings and they were amazing. I couldn't get enough of them. Now I give you this....Huckleberry Souffle!

I think I shall declare this week "HUCKLEBERRY WEEK". Can that be a thing?

This recipe is surprisingly easy and only requires 5 ingredients! It isn't your traditional souffle but it is incredibly rich and delicious like a traditional souffle. It is perfect for those who are terrified to attempt a souffle (like me!) because timing isn't an issue. It also doesn't deflate like regular souffles. Pretty much you can't mess this dessert up.

The great thing about this recipe is that it is so versatile. Since it only requires egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar, butter and jam, you can make it any flavor you want!

Strawberry, Raspberry, Blueberry, Orange Marmalade, etc....

The options are endless!

All you need is an electric mixer or a very strong arm and you are on your way to a very special dessert. Also, you can use a double boiler or simply place a 2 quart glass bowl on top of a large pot of simmering water (that's what I did) when it comes to cooking the souffle. Instead of buying a double boiler, I like to Macgyver my way through the kitchen. That's how I roll. 

Huckleberry Souffle
{Serves 2}

-3 Egg Whites
-3 tbsp Granulated White Sugar
-1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar
-3 tbsp Huckleberry Jam (or any other flavor jam)
-1 tbsp Butter
-Whipped Cream (optional)

Start by simmering 1 inch of water in a double boiler over medium to medium-low heat. Butter the top part of the double boiler.

With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites in large bowl until frothy, then add in the cream of tartar and sugar slowly. Continue beating until the egg white are stiff (think meringue-like). Gently fold in the jam.

Spoon the mixture into the buttered top of the double boiler. Cover and cook over the barely simmering water for 1 hour. After an hour, once the souffle is cooked, spoon the souffle into two serving dishes and top with whipped cream (optional).

Enjoy!

Recipe Inspired & Adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook