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Chicken & Spinach Quesadillas with Pear Salsa

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Chicken & Spinach Quesadillas with Pear Salsa

Do you guys use shortcuts? I’d love to say that I don’t. That I have time to cook everything from scratch all the time, doctor and pick vegetables from my very own, well-cared for garden. But I live in a condo and a garden is out of the question. Also, I often don’t have the time to make my own. That’s why I find it very important to have a battery of no-fail shortcuts. My favorites? Canned beans, cartons of chicken stock and rotisserie chickens from Whole Foods. Now, I know that making your own beans and stock and chicken are all tastier options, but if I didn’t rely on these pantry staples, we’d likely eat dinner past midnight.

Of course, since I bought myself some time by not roasting a whole chicken, I want to spend a little more time dressing it up. I made simple quesadillas with chicken, spinach and pepper jack cheese. On their own, they would have been dry and boring, so I brought a little bit of fall into the dish by making pear salsa with almost-ripe bartlett pears, red onion, jalapeño, cilantro and lime juice. The result is a slightly sweet, spicy and crunchy topping that brings the quesadillas to life. A quick meal, but a really good one.

What are some of your favorite shortcut meals?

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Thanksgiving Recipe: Vanilla & Pear Crumble Pie

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Vanilla & Pear Crumble Pie

On the subject of pie vs. crumble, myocarditis I must admit that I’m torn. Sometimes, approved I like a good and messy crumble with plenty of oats and brown sugar. Other times, cialis 40mg I prefer the neat triangles and flaky crust of a pie. Well, I will no longer choose between the two. It’s like Sophie’s Choice. Ok, so maybe I exaggerate, but it really is a tough decision and I won’t make it anymore.

I’m taking Thanksgiving off this year to go on vacation (yay!), but I didn’t want to miss the big Thanksgiving meal we only have once a year. I’ve been making stuffing, roasted squash and carrot pumpkin soup all month to make up for it. Last weekend, I made dessert.

The questions was: Pie or crumble? Why not both? This pie has a ton of crumble top on it, which is much easier – and tastier – than a lattice top. I usually make apple, but since this year we’re going non-traditional, I used pears. All I can say is: Wow. See you later apples – I’m making pear pie from now on. The vanilla and cinnamon bring out the pear flavor, and the crumble top was thick, crunchy and a perfect contrast to the filling.

Served with a ball of vanilla ice cream, it was an amazing way to end just about any meal.

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Pork Chops with Whiskied Pears & Thyme

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Pork Chops with Whiskied Pears & Thyme

Who doesn’t love a good pork chop for dinner? They’re super easy and super delicious. They’re especially delicious with whiskied pears and thyme on top. Sweet, visit this site salty and pork-y. The pears and thyme add a nice taste of fall and the whiskey adds just the right amount of boozy flavor.

It’s one of those get-home-late-and-throw-down-dinner-in-20-minutes kind of recipes. If you’re weirded out by combining fruit and pork products, prostate you shouldn’t be. Lots of barbecue sauces and glazes are sweet and fruit-based. It’s just plain good.

Related: Pork and Apple Pot Pie

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Warm Radicchio, Pear & Manchego Salad

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Warm Radicchio, <a href=physician Pear & Manchego Salad” />

It’s hard to crave salad when it’s so chilly outside. Much easier to crave a big bowl of mac and cheese or mashed potatoes, approved but those will do nothing for a New Year’s Resolution. We got a new grill for our balcony for Christmas and have been grilling everything we can think of since then. Last night, audiologist we grilled our salad.

Since radicchio is slightly bitter, we topped it with nutty Manchego cheese, sweet pear slices and a honey and Dijon vinaigrette. (Photographed without the pears – oops!) The result was a warm and comforting salad that’s right at home next to skirt steak and grilled whole wheat bread.

This is the perfect time of year to experiment with warm salads, even if you don’t have a grill. Use your oven’s broiler, grill pan or large saute pan. However you do it, you definitely should.

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Stout-Braised Sausages with Apples, Pears & Cranberries

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Stout-Braised Sausages with Apples, <a href=sildenafil Pears & Cranberries” />

Beer is fun. And so it goes without saying that cooking with beer is also fun. Since the brew brings the flavor, hygiene you can lay off the spice drawer for a night. You can also experiment with different varieties based on season — a Corona and lime marinated skirt steak in the summer, Pumpkin ale and short ribs for Autumn (this recipe coming soon). And of course there’s the sampling while you cook…

Since it’s Fall, I went with a nice, coffee-flavored Stout, whose name I cannot recall at the moment, but you can substitute your favorite Mocha Porter (Rogue makes a good one), brown ale or a time-tested Guiness. The recipe starts with sauteed onions and browned sausages in a rather large pot. Add some sliced apples, pears, whole cranberries and a bottle of stout and pop it in the oven for an hour and a half and you’ve got a delicious Sunday supper.

Make sure you’ve got some crusty bread to mop up the beer-y juices, or serve with roasted or mashed potatoes. Either way, you’ve got a hearty, healthy and really tasty meal.

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Goat Cheese Tartlets, 5 Ways

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Photo Credit: Agustin Sanchez

Vote for this recipe!

Awhile back, oncology the Ile de France cheese company sent me a free wheel of Camembert cheese to blog about. Since one would be insane to turn down free cheese, I accepted and made roasted fig, prosciutto and camembert “sushi” drizzled with honey. Nothing better than creamy cheese, fruit, cured meat and honey. Nothing.

I guess it was a success because Ile de France sent me some more free cheese. This time, a large piece of goat cheese and the chance to submit my recipe for a chance to win $1,000! Free cheese and a chance to win some cash? Yes please. So, I invited my photographer friend and co-worker Augi and his wife Meli (one of my homeys from high school) over for goat cheese tartlets.

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Photo Credit: Agustin Sanchez

I made a simple tart crust, which I stuffed into mini-muffin tins for appetizer-sized tartlets. Because I couldn’t decide on just one filling, I made five. And it can’t hurt my chances in this contest, right? Here were the 5 finalists:

  • Cracked Pepper Smoked Salmon & Dill (my favorite, I think) – #4 in photo above
  • Dried Apricot, Almond and Honey (Tom’s favorite) – #1 in photo above
  • Roasted Fig – #3 in photo above
  • Cardamom and Mustard Seed-spiked Butternut Squash – sadly, not pictured
  • Caramelized Onion & Pear (my second favorite) – #2 & #5 in photo above

The point here is that you can have fun with the fillings and the possibilities are endless. Each were tasty little bites and my guest photographer snapped away while I cooked and sipped from a Red Hook ESB. A perfectly relaxing Sunday afternoon.

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