Honey glazed Bacon with Water Chestnuts and Gorgonzola

Every family has a special dish hiding in the family heirlooms and mine just happens to involve bacon. I've never been much of a bacon fan as just the thought of eating it made me think years had been taken off of my life but with all that aside, these little treats make wonderful appetizers at social gatherings.

Ingredients:
4-5 pieces of bacon
3 oz. can whole water chestnuts, drained
Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1 tsp honey

Directions:
Preheat the oven for 400 degrees. Line a flat baking pan with tinfoil and lightly butter the surface so as to prevent sticking.
Taking one piece of bacon, cut in half and wrap around a water chestnut. Pierce with a toothpick and lay on the baking pan. Repeat until all of the bacon has been used. Using a glazing brush (or your fingers), lightly coat the bacon with honey. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until crispy.

After the bacon is done cooking, add the gorgonzola to the toothpick in a kabob-like manner. If you can't get the gorgonzola to stay on the toothpick, simple sprinkle on top of the bacon chestnuts. Enjoy!

Beet and Pear Spinach Salad with Walnuts and Orange Vinaigrette Dressing

This is "a salad that doesn't taste like a salad," as my boyfriend puts it. Now that is what I call cunning cookery. This combines the fruity flavors of a fall afternoon with the rustic classic, Greek salad. Not too shabby for a healthily delicious entree.

It's difficult to have exact measurements for salad, so go with your hunch for the proportions.

Ingredients:
For the salad:
Spinach, rinsed
Roughly chopped walnuts
Crumbled feta cheese
1 whole beet, sliced thin
1 pear, sliced thin

For the Orange Vinaigrette dressing:
Juice of one orange (about 1/2 cup)
2 tbsp. regular olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
1/2 tbsp. honey

Assemble the spinach, walnuts and feta in a bowl. Whisk together all the ingredients for the orange vinaigrette dressing and toss with the salad. Add the sliced beet and pear to the salad and serve.

Spicy Crunchy Peanut Noodles

Many people, if told to combine peanut butter with noodles would tweak their head in bewilderment as the two foods are not normally found together. I'm sure we've all heard about peanut sauce found in Thai dishes but I think this version gives the classic dish a much needed spice kick. It's not too spicy, but if you prefer to leave out the chili sauce, this dish is still delicious all the same.

Ingredients:
1 lb thin or regular spaghetti noodles, cooked
4 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp chili sauce infused with garlic (if you can't find this specific kind then use about a teaspoon of minced garlic in the recipe)
1/2 tbsp minced ginger
1 tbsp honey
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

Topping:
Sliced water chestnuts 
Fresh thyme

Start cooking the noodles. In the meantime, in a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients and whisk thoroughly, making sure not to have any large clumps. After the noodles are done, drain and put into a medium bowl. Add the spicy peanut sauce to the noodles and mix well. Sprinkle on the water chestnuts and thyme and serve. 

Roasted Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza with Carmelized Onions

If I were Leonardo da Vinci this would be my Mona Lisa. I know the combination of pears and blue cheese may scare some away but you would be turning away the gates of paradise if you were to snub this pizza. There are a couple of preparatory stages but trust me, it is well worth the effort to put a little bit of hard work into this pear pie.

This recipe is intended to be made on an 18-inch pizza pan.

For the dough:
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp yeast
1 1/2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
Olive oil (regular or extra-virgin)

For the carmelized onions and pear topping:
2 tbsp olive oil (regular olive oil will do)
1 tbsp salt
1 large red onion, cut into half moons
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 bosc pears, de-seeded and sliced thin (If you can't find bosc pears, other pears will do)
Light sprinkle of cinnamon

For the cheese topping:
5 oz. crumbled blue cheese
2 cups shredded mozarella cheese
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:
For the dough, add the warm water in a medium bowl. Stir in one at at time the yeast, sugar, salt and finally, the flour. Knead the dough into a ball in the bowl, adding a few drops of olive oil as necessary to make it more adhesive. Cover dough with a cloth and set aside (not in the fridge) for 30-40 minutes.

Carmelized Onions and Roasted Pears:
In a pan on medium-high heat, add the olive oil, salt, and red onions. Saute until the onions turn into a medium-dark shade of purple. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook for another 3-5 minutes, until it turns into a dark purple color. Remove from pan and set aside.
In the same pan (or a new one if you prefer), add a bit of regular olive oil and add the sliced pears on low-medium heat. Turn over frequently so as to get all of the pears slightly seared but do not overcook as they will be cooked further with the pizza. Set aside.

Assembly:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Roll out the dough onto a buttered pizza pan, gently stretching the dough to cover the entire pan. Spread the olive oil over the dough and sprinkle the mozarella and blue cheese over the entire surface. Add the carmelized onions and then finally, the roasted pears. Bake for 16-18 minutes.

Spicy Crunchy Crab Cakes

I know not everyone enjoys spicy as I do but if you are seeking to be fiery-tongued, this classic dish with a hot spin will be sure to ignite your palate. Feel free to also use regular vegetable oil when frying the crab cakes as sesame oil can be expensive and tastes just as good.

Makes about 8-10 cakes

Ingredients:
8 oz. Crab meat (real or artificial will do)
2 eggs
1 tbsp Sriracha chili sauce (or other comparable brand)
1 small garlic clove, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
8 saltine crackers
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 cup sesame or vegetable oil

Directions:
Mix crab, eggs, chili sauce, garlic and salt in a food processor or blender until chunky, it doesn't have to be completely  pureed as it makes it easier to roll if it's a bit lumpy. Mix flour, saltine crackers, paprika, salt, and ground pepper in a flat dish such as a pie dish. Take a tablespoon of the crab mixture and roll it in the flour mixture, coating the crab thoroughly with the flour mixture. In a pan on medium-high heat, add the oil and spoon the crab batter into the pan, slightly pressing it down into 1/4 inch patties. Cook until golden brown on both sides. Serve hot and enjoy!

Sinless Avocado Brownies

The first time I heard about avocado brownies I thought to myself, why on earth would anyone want to mix vegetables with chocolate? Then I did some research and found that technically, avocados are fruit so it made more sense to me to mix chocolate with fruit and alas, here we are! You can try to substitute the sugar for honey or applesauce but I have not personally done this, so be careful about the consistency changes. You may have to add a bit more flour to make up for the increase of liquid. It's quite fun to make and if you accidentally make too much of the avocado mixture, get some chips and enjoy some fresh guacamole!

Ingredients:

4 eggs

1 cup sugar

8 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips

½ cup cocoa powder

½ cup flour (I used white but whole-wheat or coconut flour would work)

½ tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 ripe avocados, mashed smooth

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the eggs and sugar using an electric mixer until you've reached a foamy consistency. Melt the chocolate either in the microwave or using a glass bowl over a pan of semi-boiling water, making sure to stir frequently so as not to burn the chocolate. Slowly add the melted chocolate to the egg and sugar mixture. Stir in the cocoa, flour, salt and vanilla extract. Using either an electric mixer or food processor (heck, even a blender will work), puree the avocados until you have no chunky bits left. Pour into the chocolate mixture and mix thoroughly until you no longer see any green from the avocado. Bake in an 8 x 8 pan in the oven for 25-30 minutes and enjoy!

Potato Latkeys with Boiled Salmon

I recently had dinner with a friend at an Irish restaurant and discovered these comforting potato pancakes--or as they are more commonly called, Latkeys. It's a super easy and manageable recipe that not only takes practically no time at all to prepare, but is sure to fill any grumbling belly. Enjoy with some boiled or seared salmon (raw salmon if you dare!) and of course, sour cream!

Ingredients:

2 cups peeled and shredded potatoes (or mashed potatoes)

1 small finely chopped onion

3 eggs, beaten

2 tbsp all purpose flour

1 ½ tsp salt

½ cup peanut oil (or any other oil that doesn't have a particularly strong flavor)

Topping:

1/2 lb boiled salmon

Sour Cream

Directions:

If you are going to shred your potatoes, make sure you remove as much water as you can from them as any extra moisture will make these cakes less crispy. Add the potatoes, onion, eggs, flour and salt to a medium bowl and mix thoroughly. In a large frying pan on medium-high heat, add the oil. Drop large spoonfuls of the mixture into the hot oil, browning both sides until crispy.

For salmon: Cut salmon into long, thin strips. Place in a double boiling pan (one that holds water on the bottom with another pan that has holes so as to not get wet on top). Heat about 1 cup of water and place the salmon strips in the top compartment of the boiling pans. Let steam for about 5-8 minutes until a light pinky flesh color. Add on top of the potato latkeys with a dollop of sour cream, enjoy!