Baked Churros

Tonight I had a craving for something sweet - and of course my house has been perfectly purged of all foods unhealthy. Fortunately, I happened upon this recipe from Lovin' From the Oven. It's simple enough that I had all the ingredients on hand - and quick enough I had something tasty to eat in 15 minutes, with plenty to share with neighbors! And since the churros are baked, I like to think they're not quite so naughty...


Baked Churros
1 Sheet Puffed Pastry
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 T cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, melted

*I followed the original recipe except changed the quantities of butter and cinnamon sugar; there was so much leftover that I cut the amounts in half.

1. Preheat oven to 450. Unfold thawed puffed pastry sheet and cut in half, then into 1-inch sliced (about 18 total). 

2. Cover baking sheet with parchment paper. Evenly space pastry slices on baking sheet and bake for 8 - 10 minutes, until golden brown and puffy. While baking, mix sugar and cinnamon and place in a plate. Melt butter.

3. Upon removing pastry from oven, brush both sides with butter and roll in cinnamon sugar to coat.

Enjoy!

Kale Smoothie

Do not run away because you see the word kale! I've always been skeptical of 'green' smoothies; I associate smoothies with fruit, not lettuce (or any veggies, really). Yesterday on The Chew the hosts tried Dylan Ratigan's Kale Hero Smoothie, and commented that it's really the banana that you taste. Well, I decided to give it a try. Thank the Lord I did! The lime, ginger, papaya and banana are what you taste; it has a very light flavor, and definitely on the fruity side. I didn't even notice kale!

This could be because the recipe calls for "Dino Kale" which has a lighter flavor than other kale varieties. Dino kale is what you see in the picture to the right - it likely won't be called Dino Kale at your store, but it has the smooth edges, and is long and skinny (as opposed to wide and leafy). I made a half recipe, and it filled my blender about two-thirds full. They say one full recipe serves 8-10, but that's pretty small servings if you're using it as a meal replacement.

Dylan Radigan is part of a sustainable farm that is training and helping integrate our military hero's back into civilian life while teaching them sustainable farming. Check out a little of their conversation from the March 21 episode of The Chew here. The original posting of the recipe on thechew.com can be found here.

If you've never had a green smoothie, I dare you to try it - and let me know what you think!

Dylan Radigan's Kale Hero Smoothie
10 leaves of Dino Kale
2 limes, juiced
1 papaya, seeded and pealed (I used a small papaya, not the giant football-sized ones)
3 c apple juice
1 small piece raw ginger
1 banana

1. Rough chop the kale down to where the stem gets really skinny and the rib is large.

2. Dice the ginger - a microplane is best, but a small grater or small dice will work, too.

3. Chop the papaya and banana into large chunks

4. For the apple juice, I used an organic 100% apple juice that was not made from concentrate; it's kinda like a fresh cider!

5. Blend all ingredients together in a blender. Let the blender run for a little bit to make sure the kale and all ingredients are blended smooth and in as small of pieces as possible.

Drink up!

Savory Shrimp Crepes

I've recently gotten into making crepes. Years ago my friend Maria gave me a great recipe for crepes (after making them for me!) and it's taken me this long to actually make them. Happily, they are much more simple to make than I expected. Last night I had a crepe party - and these are the savory shrimp filled crepes that were fabulous! I got the original filling recipe off foodnetwork.com, but made some tweaks and additions (a sauce to top the crepe!) of my own.

Shrimp Filling
1 lb shrimp, chopped
1 T butter
1/4 -1/2 tsp lemon zest, finely grated
1 sprig fresh tarragon
squeeze lemon juice
pinch each salt & pepper to taste

1/4 c. white wine

1 tsp. corn starch

1 tsp. fresh parsley, chopped

1. Strip tarragon sprig of leaves, and chop leaves.

2. In a pan on medium-low heat, melt butter and add shrimp (small precooked, or larger raw works - if they're raw, be sure they cook until pink!). Add lemon zest and tarragon, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until shrimp are either cooked or heated through.

3. Squeeze 1/2 the lemon briefly over the pan, and add the wine. Once bubbly, add the corn starch and stir until well incorporated and no longer lumpy. Add a little more wine if it's too thick (you don't want it too runny though, or your crepes will be too messy and soggy!)

4. Remove from heat and stir in parsley. Now the filling is done!

(admittedly, not my best picture, but I almost forgot to take a picture so I had to snap one at the table!)

Sauce
1/2 c plain Greek yogurt (I used nonfat)
1 sprig fresh tarragon
1/4 tsp. lemon zest, finely grated

1. Strip tarragon stem of leaves, and finely chop the leaves. Mix all ingredients, taste, and add more lemon zest or tarragon as necessary.

Crepes
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
2 T sugar
2/3 c flour
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 c milk
1 T melted butter

1. In a blender, blend first 6 ingredients until well mixed. Add melted butter and blend again. (how simple is this?!)

2. Spray Pam cooking spray in a small (5"-8", preferably non-stick) pan, and place over medium heat. Pour about 1/4 cup of mix into pan, just enough to coat the bottom (swirl pan around to coat the whole bottom). When edges start to look brown, use a thin, long spatula/turner to flip the crepe. Cook a few second longer; check to see when it looks cooked underneath. Remove and either serve while hot, or fold in quarters to keep warm while cooking the rest of the crepes.

3. Wipe pan out with a paper towel, and repeat step 2. If the crepes are looking a little burned, adjust the heat down; you want them golden brown.

4. To assemble, fill the crepe with shrimp and roll to close (kinda like a burrito, but you can leave the ends open!) Spread the sauce on top (or you can put inside with the shrimp) and eat!

This recipe makes more crepe wrappers than the shrimp will fill, so either double/triple the shrimp recipe, or fill the leftover crepes with Nutella and some fresh fruit!

Enjoy!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Balls

In an attempt to satisfy my sweet tooth, and eat something healthy, I created a Delectable Cate original recipe! Remember those no-bake cookies made with chocolate, oatmeal and peanut butter? These taste just like them - but they're healthy. OK, they might not taste just like them, but if you haven't had them for awhile, you might be fooled! So go ahead, make a batch of these and have a guilt-free snack this afternoon!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Balls
1 ripe banana
1/4 c. pumpkin puree (you might try apple sauce if you don't have pumpkin)
1/2 c. peanut butter (I used creamy, but I'm sure crunchy would work, too)
1 T. cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. oatmeal
3/4 c. shredded coconut, plus extra for coating
1 T. brown sugar

1. On a stove over low heat, blend banana, pumpkin puree and peanut butter with a wooden spoon or a firm, heat-proof spatula.

2. Remove from heat and add cocoa powder and cinnamon. Mix until well combined. Add oatmeal, coconut and brown sugar. Blend all ingredients until well incorporated.

3. Using your hands, roll dough into balls the size of golf balls. Coat each ball with shredded coconut; you'll probably have to push the coconut into the surface of each dough ball. That's it! You have a healthy afternoon snack, ready to go. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Makes about 15 Oatmeal Peanut Butter Balls.

Enjoy!