Since I wasn’t blessed with that natural salad-craving, veggie-loving gene like my mom was (I think I got a double-dose of “sweet tooth” instead), I have to look for creative ways to sneak this all-important food group into the diet. If you - or maybe your kids - feel the same way, here’s a simple, yet delicious, vegetable side dish recipe that should work like a charm. (And it looks great too!)

Eggplant, Tomato, & Mozzarella Stacks
{recipe via College Cooking}

Ingredients: (Serves 12)
2 eggplants
Salt and pepper
4 tomatoes
1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Cut each eggplant into 12 slices and place on the baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and bake for 20 minutes or until the eggplant is soft.

Cut each tomato into 6 slices.

Top each of the eggplant slices with a slice of tomato and sprinkle with some of the mozzarella cheese. Place half of the eggplant stacks on top of the other half of the stacks so each one has six layers. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve.

Enjoy!

Jennifer Sbranti
www.hostesswiththemostess.com

Technorati Tags: vegetables, side dish, recipe, eggplant, healthy

Two healthy ingredients making their way from health food stores to supermarkets are agave and goji berries. Have you tried them yet?

Agave nectar or syrup comes from the agave plant of Mexico, it’s a natural sweetener that is sweeter than honey but thinner and less viscous. You can substitute 1/3 cup of agave nectar for every 1 cup of sugar in many recipes. Agave nectar has a very neutral flavor. It is gaining popularity because its glycemic index and glycemic load are lower than most other natural sweeteners which is helpful to those on low carb diets. There is even an agave cookbook called Baking with Agave Nectar.

Goji berries have been used in traditional Chinese medicine for a very long time. They are an excellent source of vitamin C and also a good source of vitamin A, vitamins B1, B2, B6, and E. They taste somewhat sweet and sour like cranberries and are the texture of raisins. You can buy bags of goji berries and snack on them or use them in recipes.

One way to try both these trendy ingredients is in the latest Bear Naked new “Native” granola series. Like their other granolas, they are loaded with hearty nuts, tasty fruits and whole grains.

First up is Mango Agave Almond. Featuring the flavors of mango and agave, found in Latin America. This granola also has coconut and cinnamon.

Next, Yumberry Goji Currant. Yumberry, goji berries and currants all hail from Asia. Never heard of yumberries? Similar in shape and size to raspberries, they are sweet-sour flavor and have a citrus-like flesh. Yumberries can’t be imported into the US but the juice is used to add flavor and nutrients to the granola.

In honor of September Better Breakfast Month Bear Naked is offering you the exclusive chance to win a Better Breakfast Starter Kit that includes a months worth of Bear Naked granola in a variety of flavors, Kashi TLC Cereal Bars, and insulated Kashi lunch bag and a Kashi cereal bowl!

Leave a comment and tell us about your all-time favorite breakfast and one winner will be picked at random. You must be located in the US to win. If you have won a prize in a giveaway on this site in the past 6 months, please allow others a turn. Thanks!

——-Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: bear naked, goji, agave, breakfast, contest, cereal, granola

If you haven’t had a chance to catch up with the girls in a while, each of these mixed drinks makes a great excuse for an impromptu girl’s night in. Expand your horizons, treat yourself to a bottle of something special and enjoy a signature cocktail for your evening. Whether you choose a swanky suite or just the living room, each of these drinks will add elegance and fruity Summery freshness.

Which bottle to choose?

• Chandon Extra-Dry is actually a little bit sweet and has aromas of peaches, apricots and white nectarines
• X-Rated Fusion Liqueur is a sensuous blend of ultra-premium French vodka and rich blood oranges, mingling with mangos and passion fruit
• SKYY Infusions Raspberry has fresh floral notes with a finish that is true-to-fruit seediness of raspberry puree.

Luscious Peach
2 oz Chandon Extra-Dry Riche
cup fresh peach slices
5-7 mint leaves
oz simple syrup

Directions: In a cocktail shaker, muddle peach with simple syrup and mint. Shake with ice and strain contents into a high ball glass filled with ice. Top with Chandon Extra-Dry Riche and stir. Garnish with a peach wedge or mint sprig.

Naughty
1 oz Pink Lemonade
1 oz X-Rated Fusion Liqueur
1 oz SKYY 90

Shake over ice and serve in a Martini glass

Berry Me in the Sand
2 oz SKYY Infusions Raspberry Vodka
3 muddled fresh raspberries
1 oz limoncello
2 oz prosecco

Muddle fresh raspberries in pint glass. Add ice, SKYY Infusions Raspberry and limoncello.
Shake and strain into a champagne flute and top with prosecco. Garnish with two raspberries on a pick and a large lemon zest.

——Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: cocktails, vodka, x-rated, chandon, sparkling, raspberry, lemonade, peach, mint

Surprise! There are more ways to serve beer than straight from the bottle or tap… This Labor Day weekend, venture outside the box and try serving up one of these beer-inspired cocktails from Everyday with Rachael Ray:

Guiness Float

Ingredients:
1 scoop vanilla bean ice cream
One 14.9-ounce can Guinness Draught beer
Whipped cream, for topping
Dash nutmeg

Directions:
Place the ice cream in a large soda-fountain glass. Fill the glass with the beer. Top with a swirl of whipped cream and the nutmeg.

***

Lager and Lemon-Limeade

Ingredients:
3/4 cup lager beer, chilled
3/4 cup lemonade, chilled
3 tablespoons sweetened lime juice
Lime wedge, for garnish

Directions:
In a tall glass, stir together the beer, lemonade and lime juice. Serve with the lime wedge.

***

Beer Margaritas

Ingredients:
Four 12-ounce bottles cold light-flavored beer, such as Corona
1 cup (8 ounces) tequila
One 12-ounce can frozen limeade concentrate
Lime wedges
Kosher salt, for rimming glasses

Directions:
In a large pitcher, combine the beer, tequila and limeade. Rub a lime wedge around the rim of each of glass and dip it in the salt. Pour the margaritas into the glasses and garnish with a lime wedge.

***

{Recipes & images via Everyday with Rachael Ray}

Jennifer Sbranti
www.hostesswiththemostess.com

Technorati Tags: cocktails, cocktail recipe, margarita, beer cocktails, Guinness

It’s a stereotype that men don’t cook at home. But some guys could still use a little friendly push. If you want to encourage your guy to cook, here are two very unpretentious books, written by guys who just happen to host cooking shows, that might do the trick, Two Dudes One Pan: Maximum Flavor from a Minimum Kitchen and Sam, The Cooking Guy Just A Bunch of Recipes. If not, perhaps the book A Man’s Place is Behind the Bar: Killer Cocktail Recipes is in order.

Two Dudes One Pan is the perfect book for the guy with one skillet or dutch oven to their name. Each chapter is based upon the recipes’ cooking vessel rather than ingredients. Choose from The Big Bowl, Nonstick Skillet, Frying Pan, Dutch Oven, Roasting Pan and Baking Dish. Dishes include Curried Chicken Nuggets with Honey Mustard and Red Onion Slaw, Sake-Soy Sea Bass with Baby Bok Choy, Spicy Roasted Cauliflower, Capers, and Parm, Sherried Salmon and Cipollini Onions, Five-Spice Cornish Hens, Pistachio Tiramis with Sweet Cherry Sauce, and Pumpkin Pie Bars.

From Two Dudes, One Pan:

Buttermilk-Sage Fried Chicken

Says Vinny, “This is one of our most requested dishes. People love it because there’s no bone to deal with. If you decide to make it using bone-in chicken, be sure to let it brine for three days. It will also need to cook a little longer in the pot.”

Makes 3-4 servings

2 cups buttermilk
6 boneless skin-on chicken breasts or thighs
1 cup all-purpose flour
10 fresh sage leaves
3 cups canola oil
1 Tbsp. kosher salt

In large resealable plastic bag, pour buttermilk over chicken. Refrigerate for at least 2 and up to 3 days. In large, shallow dish, mix flour and roughly chopped sage together. Remove each piece of chicken from buttermilk, allowing any excess liquid to drip off; then dredge through flour, tapping off any excess (it may take more than 1 cup flour to do this). Place coated chicken piece on plate; repeat with remaining pieces. In Dutch oven, heat canola oil over high heat until it reaches 375 degrees on digital thermometer. Add chicken pieces to pot (all of chicken should fit in single layer; if it doesn’t, fry chicken in 2 batches and cook until chicken is golden brown all over and cooked through, 8-10 minutes. Transfer to paper towel-lined plate to drain. Season with salt while still hot. Serve warm, room temperature or cold.

Sam, The Cooking Guy is by Sam Zien who thinks that people have “been wrecked by cooking shows with their millions of complicated steps and crazy ass ingredients.” His recipes are easy and rely on some prepared foods like prebaked pizza crust, pesto and even instant ramen noodles. Recipes include BBQ Chicken Pizza, Halloween Chicken Chili, Fridge Fried Rice, Sam’s Sticky Sweet BBQ Ribs, Stuffed Burgers, Pesto BBQ Shrimp, Chili Salmon, Motor Home Meatballs, Spicy-ish Sausage Pasta, The Great Potato Cake, Brussels Sprouts You’ll Actually Eat, (Fake) Creme Brulee

From Sam the Cooking Guy:

Adobo Chicken

Simple chicken cooked in soy sauce with garlic is the unofficial dish of the Philippines. But this..in a bowl…on a bed of steamed rice…is like…totally…wow. Poetic, huh?

Serves 4

1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup white vinegar
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
3 bay leaves

3 pounds chicken thighs, bone in
Combine soy, vinegar, pepper, brown sugar, garlic and bay leaves in the bottom of a large pot. Place chicken skin side down in pot and bring to a boil. Immediately turn down to a simmer and cover with lid. After 30 minutes, remove lid and turn chicken over and simmer for an additional 20 - 30 minutes then serve with steamed rice.

——–Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: guys, cooking, recipes, chicken, adobo, fried, cookbooks, sam the cooking guy, two dudes