Jolene's Recipe Journal

Still working on your menu for the big game?  I've been taste testing recipes over the last few weeks, and I'll definitely be making these Bell Pepper Nachos again.   My guys will be scarfing down crispy cheesy treats, and I didn't want to be left out just because I'm eating healthier.    I made some slight changes, the first was to not use any green peppers, I prefer the red, yellow, and orange.   I used a brown rice and quinoa mix.  I'm not a fan of cilantro, so I used dried parsley. I love that you can pre-prep them and pop them under the broiler at a later time. Thank you so much to Aneta K for sharing the recipe! Bell Pepper Nachos Print With Image Without Image ingredients: 2 medium green peppers (used orange) 2 medium sweet red pepper 2 medium sweet yellow pepper 2 medium plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped 1/3 cup onion, finely chopped 1 teaspoon chili powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1 1/2 cups cooked rice (...

I celebrated my birthday earlier this month, and it unfortunately fell at the same time as a big snowstorm.  My husband was working, the driveway had to get cleared out, my son was being a grouch.  Even though I've been focusing on eating healthier, I was not skipping birthday cake, I deserved it! I searched the Taste of Home site, and this cake made with ricotta cheese caught my eye.  The sour cream frosting made it even more interesting. I started mixing ingredients and my son came down and distracted me.  After I'd poured the batter into the prepared pans, I realized that I'd forgotten to add the oil.  I quickly pulled them out of the oven, dumped everything back into the bowl, added the oil and put it back into the pans.  Back into the oven, crossed my fingers and waited.  The cakes turned out perfectly, though one layer was a little larger than the other.  I left them to cool, and then headed out to snow blow. When I came back in, I wen...

It's #NationalPeanutButter Day! Up until 2013, we were a peanut and tree nut free household.  My husband and son both are allergic to tree nuts, and my son was allergic to peanuts.  It was easier to eliminate all nuts from the house than it was to avoid cross contamination.  I was never a huge fan of peanut butter, so I didn't really miss it. Then my son outgrew his allergy, and it was encouraged that he ingest small amounts of peanut butter periodically.  Here's the irony: after all those years of thinking he was missing out, being left out of school snacks, and sighing every time a new product came out, he doesn't even like peanut butter!  But since I started my new eating plan, I've been incorporating peanut butter into my meals and snacks, and I'm really enjoying it. I knew I wanted to do a main dish and not dessert, and this pasta caught my eye.   Loaded with veggies, plus whole grain spaghetti and the peanut sauce, it was a perfect meal for m...

Brussels sprouts are a relatively new to me vegetable.  I tried them roasted a few weeks ago, and really enjoyed them. I grabbed another bag last time I shopped, then went searching the Taste of Home site for recipes.   This recipe caught my eye, I loved how easy it was to put together and the use of the ginger. I used Bermuda Onion, it was what I had on hand, and my ginger was frozen, so I microplaned it. This was perfect alongside some chicken, and it's definitely going into the regular rotation. Thank you James S. For sharing your recipe!   Do you have an amazing recipe you'd like to submit to Taste of Home? Follow this link and learn how! Want to apply to be a Community Cook?  Check out the requirements and apply here !  Shredded Gingered Brussels Sprouts Print With Image Without Image ingredients: 1 pound fresh Brussels sprouts (about 5 1/2c) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 small onion, finely chopped, I used Bermuda 1 tablespoon minc...

Winter marches on here in New England, and more and more, I find myself craving soup.  Some days I have lots of time to put something together.  For the days that I don't, this Basil Turkey Soup is perfect.   It's easy to keep all the ingredients on hand, and you could definitely use either chicken or turkey.  This time around, I used reduced sodium chicken broth. You can use whatever veggie combination you like, I went with a peas, carrots, corn, green bean mix. It would also be great with fire roasted tomatoes. Thanks so much to Kate for hosting #SoupSwap and to all the #FestiveFoodies for sharing recipes! Print With Image Without Image Basil Turkey Soup ingredients: 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth 2 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables 14 1/2 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained 3/4 cup uncooked small shell pasta 3/4 teaspoon dried basil 3/4 teaspoon pepper 2 1/2 cups cubed cooked turkey 2 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley instruct...

A few weeks into January, and I'm guessing more than a few of you made resolutions to eat better, lose weight, and so on. I started back in October, and one of my bigger challenges has been game day snacking.   It's very hard to stick to your guns when the people around you are inhaling plates of nachos, and other delicious things.  My solution was to find delicious things of my own, like these Mini Zucchini Pizzas. Now, I have to say, it's a pet peeve of mine calling things pizza that aren't.  Pizza is my favorite food in the world.  Zucchini will never be pizza, cauliflower will never be pizza.   But this has the saucy, cheesy, pepperoni goodness of pizza, along with a nice healthy platform of zucchini.   I briefly considered swapping out the pepperoni for turkey pepperoni, but in the end I didn't.  These would also be fantastic with eggplant, and for an extra splurge, you could always egg white wash, breadcrumb and bake the zucchi...

It has been one long, cold winter already here in New England.  Though my switch to eating healthier has been pretty easy overall, I've been struggling with finding warm, comforting foods for the season, so this event came at the perfect time.   I don't make tons of soups, but when I was searching for recipes, this Italian Sausage Minestrone really stood out to me. I used hot turkey sausage, and there was very little fat to drain.  You can't get much better than the smell of carrots, celery, onions and garlic softening in oil. Some people think soup takes a long time, but this comes together pretty quickly.  If you are serving the entire batch right away, it's easy to add the pasta, bring everything back up to a boil and cook it through.  For single servings, watch that the pasta doesn't stick to the bottom of the vessel and burn. Thank you Elizabeth R for the wonderful recipe! Need more #ComfortFood ideas?  Check out the links at the bottom of t...

At the end of October, I made the decision to start eating healthier.  Everyone warned me that it was a terrible time to get started, but my goal was to enjoy things in moderation, but try to make better choices too.  Overall, I'm very happy with where I am starting this new year. I've got quite a few nights where the guys are eating something that isn't covered under my plan, so I make myself an alternative.  These Bruschetta Chicken Wraps are one of my favorites.   The tomato spinach topping is so good, I could eat a bowl of it by itself.   I use dried basil, because I never remember to buy fresh, and I use a Flat Out Multigrain Wrap instead of the tortillas. Thank you so much to Gina R. for sharing her recipe! Do you have an amazing recipe you'd like to submit to Taste of Home? Follow this link and learn how! Want to apply to be a Volunteer Field Editor?  Check out the requirements and apply here ! Print With Image Without Im...