Zucchini Breakfast Quesadillas

Ingredients

1 tsp vegetable oil
1 medium zucchini shredded
3 medium scallions, thinly sliced
½ tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp red pepper flakes, optional
3 eggs
1 tbsp water
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ tsp salt
4 (6 in) flour tortillas

Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil, then add zucchini, scallions, black pepper, oregano, and pepper flakes. Sauté until vegetables are tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 2 more minutes. Meanwhile, crack eggs into a bowl. Add water and whisk until well combined. Stir in Cheddar cheese and salt. Add egg mixture to the skillet and increase the heat to medium. Stir and scramble until eggs are soft-set, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove egg mixture to a plate and wipe the skillet clean with a paper towel. Spread ¼ of the egg mixture onto half of each tortilla. Fold tortillas in half. Place the clean skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas, two at a time, to the hot skillet and cook until crisp, about 1 minute per side. Serve with salsa, guacamole, or sour cream

Serves 4

Chicken Taco Salad

 

Ingredients

For the dressing:
¾ cup ranch dressing, bottled or homemade
¼ cup salsa
3 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

For the chicken:
2-½ cups cooked shredded chicken
2 tbsp taco seasoning
¼ c. vegetable oil
2 tbsp butter

For the salad:
1 large head green leaf lettuce, shredded thin
3 whole Roma tomatoes, diced
¾ cup grated pepper jack cheese
2 ears corn, shucked
2 whole avocados, diced
3 whole green onions, thinly sliced
½ cup cilantro leaves
3 cups tortilla chips of your choice (flavored or not), crushed slightly

First, make the dressing by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and stirring together. Cover and refrigerate.
Next, generously season the shredded chicken. Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the shredded chicken, quickly coating the seasoning, about 2 -3 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Place the ears of corn in the skillet you used to cook the chicken and roll it around so that the flavorful oil/butter mixture coats the corn and cook the corn until it has a nice sear. Slice off the kernels with a sharp knife and set aside. To assemble the salad, pile shredded lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, cheese, corn, avocado, green onion, cilantro, and crushed chips on a big platter. Drizzle the dressing all over the top, serving part on the side if you'd like. Serve the salad in individual bowls.

Serves 4-6

The Ultimate Berry Crumble

Ingredients

For the crumble:
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp salt
¾ tsp baking powder
¾ cup white sugar
¾ cup frozen unsalted butter
1½ tsp vanilla
2 large egg yolks
1 tsp apple cider vinegar, or as needed

For the fruit mixture:
1 cup blueberries
1 cup raspberries
1 cup blackberries
1 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
cup sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
1 pinch cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 375?. Combine flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar in a bowl. Whisk until thoroughly combined. Grate in the frozen butter, stopping occasionally to toss the butter into the flour mixture until coated. Drizzle in vanilla extract; add egg yolks. Stir with a fork until egg is mostly absorbed. Add vinegar; mix briefly. Use your hands to finish mixing, squeezing until it clumps, but mixture remains mostly dry. Add 1 teaspoon vinegar if needed.

Combine blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries in another bowl. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, and cornstarch. Sprinkle in cayenne pepper. Mix until sugar and cornstarch are mostly dissolved. Place about half of the crumble mixture into the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish. Press mixture down using a flat cup until well compacted. Spread the berries over the crust. Sprinkle the remaining crumble mixture on top, squeezing some of it into clumps. Bake in the preheated oven until top is beautifully browned and berry syrup bubbles on the surface, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.

Serves 6

Mediterranean Summer Salad

Ingredients

For the dressing:
½ cup olive oil
3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp oregano
½ tsp sea salt (plus more to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

For the salad:
1 19oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (white kidney beans)
1 19oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ cucumber, quartered and sliced
1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced
1 large yellow or orange bell pepper, diced 
¾ cup kalamata olives, sliced
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
½ cup small-dice red onion
2 tbsp roughly chopped fresh basil
¾ cup crumbled feta cheese

In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing. In a large bowl, gently mix together the beans, cucumber, zucchini, tomato, bell pepper, olives, parsley, red onion and basil. Pour the dressing onto the salad and toss until everything is evenly coated. Fold in the crumbled feta. For best flavor, cover the salad and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Store leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Serves 8

Oven-Baked S'mores

 

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
? cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1¼ cups graham cracker crumbs
whole graham crackers (about 32-48, depending on the brand)
2½ cups milk or semisweet (or mixed) chocolate chips or chunks
6 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8 or 9-inch square pan with parchment paper so that it comes up higher than the sides by an inch or so. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat and whisk in the brown sugar, milk and vanilla, heating for just a minute to take the chill off the milk. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the graham cracker crumbs, this will make a fluid paste. Lay a single layer of graham crackers to cover the bottom of the prepared pan. Spoon a third of the graham cracker paste over the cracker layer, spreading a little (it does not have to cover the crackers completely). Sprinkle a third of the marshmallows on top, followed by a third of the chocolate chips. Arrange a second layer of graham crackers over this and repeat with a third of the paste, marshmallows and chocolate chips. Repeat again with the remaining crackers, paste, marshmallows and chocolate chips. Bake for 16-20 minutes, until the marshmallows have browned on top. Spoon into serving bowls hot and gooey. If serving later, cool the pan on a rack and then chill completely. Portion the s'mores into squares, easiest to do when chilled, and serve or store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Makes 20 bars