Super Duper Easy Apple "Tart"

                                           

Adapted from: The Pioneer Woman

I made this dessert the same day I made the Chicken BLT salad. My boyfriend came to for the day, and I wanted to make lunch for him because I'm pretty sure he missed my cooking. ( lol) Me being me, I couldn't complete the meal without a dessert. I wanted to make something simple that tasted great. During my blog search I came upon this wonderful and simple tart recipe. This is awesome because you only need a few ingredients! Unfortunately, I thawed my pastry a little too much so my portions were not as big as I wanted. If you do this 100% accurate you will get 3 nice sized "tarts". This dessert is quite inexpensive too.

 Ingredients:

1 sheet puff pastry, store bought is fine. (it tastes great to me)

3-4 baking apples, sliced thin,skin on

 1 cup light brown sugar - to sprinkle on tarts

 * vanilla frosting to drizzle on top, optional

Steps: Have apples sliced and puff pastry thawed. MICE EN PLACE

1.  Preheat oven to 415 degrees.

2. Separate puff pastry into 3 equal rectangles.

3. Mix apple slices with enough brown sugar to coat them nicely. 

4. Squirt lemon juice on apples, so they don't turn brown.

5. Arrange apple slices in a straight line on each puff pastry rectangle.

6. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Watch the pastry so it does not burn.

7. Let cool, and drizzle with vanilla frosting.

Serving size: 3 tarts

Long Time NO Blog! :( : CHICKEN BLT SALAD

                  Hello all! Wow it seems like its been a long time since I've actually blogged about a new recipe. Like I've said, I have a job now, so sometimes its hard to get up and cook again. NO FEAR, here is a new recipe. I originally wanted to make a pasta salad or hot pasta dish, but either one would not be best because it would be boring or too hot to eat in this weather. A light bulb went off in my head and I found an idea. BLT SALAD!! I was sure my boyfriend and parents would enjoy this. I was right too. My man asked for seconds and my parents enjoyed it.YAY! Plus, I had left over pasta and breaded chicken cutlets to add in. Also, I spent less money on this because I had those ingredients in my house. All I needed was mayo, bacon, tomatoes , and lettuce. I suggest adding a splash of lemon or lime on top to give this salad an extra yummy kick. :) This is my own recipe, so if you wish to copy it on your blog, please give me creds.
                                                                You will need:
                                              1 bag of lettuce ( I chose American romaine)
                                              1/2- 3/4 cup light mayonnaise
                                              1 medium chicken cutlet, cut into cubes
                                              Enough pasta to fill the bowl you are using
                                              1-2 squirts, fresh lime/lemon juice
                                              5 slices cooked bacon
                                              3-4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
                                      Steps: Have lettuce washed, tomatoes and chix cut, bacon cooked, AND A  BIG BOWL READY! MICE EN PLACE!
                                        1. Combine lettuce, chicken, chopped bacon, mayo, pasta , and tomatoes in a bowl.
                                        2. Stir until thoroughly combined.
                                     
                                        3. Squirt a bit of fresh lemon or lime juice on top.
                                       
                                        4. DEVOUR!
                               
                                         Serving Size:  2-3 large servings

Product Review #1: Healthy Choice Steamers- Portabella Marsala Pasta

       
                Hello everyone, long time no blog, I know! Don't worry I still love cooking and posting my new culinary adventures with you. Recently, I have gotten a internship at a local italian deli/restaurant and have been working two days a week 9-3. I love my new job there, I am learning alot and improving my skills. That, plus having to deal with the death of my grandmother have taken up a few weeks. Another thing, there was an incident with my car, so I was not able to drive it to the supermarket to get what I need to cook for y'all. Anyway, I finally got to the store yesterday with my mother and picked this up for a quick lunch the next day. These new meals just caught my eye.
    I used to be a HUGE fan of frozen entree's when I was a child, I would have a package at least once a week if I remember correctly. I mean they were so much fun to choose at the store and eat. I have had the kiddie meals, Stouffer's, Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and Smart One's entrees. All of them have a unique aspect to their food. For example Kids Cuisine is marketed towards children because they have kid approved food and bright colors to go with the packaging. Lean Cuisine, on the other hand is marketed towards women because the array of entree's usually have no more than 300 calories a box.
                                                                     - Review-
 First impressions:  I have had Healthy Choice entree's before, but this is a whole new deal.. MICROWAVE STEAMERS! Sounds healthy, right. And they are healthy.
Calories: 250
Fat: 6
Lets face it we need this amount of calories to have a decent lunch. Let me tell you, I was full after eating this with some skinless turkey and a 0 cal drink. The package is heavier than most frozen entree's. That is a good thing because you're getting more food for less calories, salt , and fat.  It takes 5 minutes in the microwave. Upon taking it out, I smelled a WONDERFUL mushroom aroma coming from downstairs where the microwave is.

 Appearance * The box and the actual presentation match pretty well.Both seem tasty looking!!

Appearance is important when you're dealing with frozen entrees. Some frozen entree packaging are known to be misleading in cooked appearance. In the end, we end up eating that frozen egg patty slathered in microwave bacon , right? Our stomachs control our minds sometimes. In this entree, I was surprised by the amount of food I got. Kudos, Healthy Choice, kudos.

Taste: For a microwave pasta meal, the pasta was tender and delicious. Frozen entree companies have improved on their pasta formula over the years, thats for sure. The amount of mushrooms was just right for me, I'm a mushroom lover! The portabella mushroom sauce was a bit bland for me, it actually needed salt. There could have been more fontina cheese on top, it was delicious, and would have taken care of the salt issue, but we are trying to be healthy.

Overall: I would buy this entree, and various Healthy Choice Steamers again.
                                                 Rating    3 1/2 stars

    Rating System: 1 star = never eating this again
                             2 stars= I wasted my money on this meal, but I will eat it because I'm hungry.
                             3 stars= I am satisfied
                             4 stars= Omg this is so good!
                             5 stars= foodgasm. get me more.