Crowd-Pleasing Baked Artichoke-Spinach Dip

Here's an oldie but goodie: Baked Artichoke-Spinach Dip straight from the pages of the red-and-white-checkered Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.

Every year I do a cookbook purge. But the BHG always makes the cut. Sometimes those classic recipes from yesteryear are just what we need.

This is a great dip for holiday parties, birthday parties, family get togethers and sports gathering. My crowd always loves it!

Be sure to drain your artichoke in the colander pressing into them gently with a spoon. This makes the dip less watery.

You can totally make this the day before and bake the day of your event. Just be sure to go with the longer baking time of 25 minutes.

Serve this dip with pita chips, crackers, crusty bread or tortilla chips.

Baked Artichoke-Spinach Dip
Makes about 3 cups dip
From "The Better Homes and Garden Cookbook"

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup dairy sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 to 2 tsp. Dijon-style mustard
Dash white pepper (The Jersey Girl uses regular black pepper)
1 14-ounce can artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped
1 cup loosely packed, coarsely chopped baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion (1 medium)

1. In a large bowl, combine mozzarella cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, mustard and pepper. Stir in artichoke hearts, spinach and onion. Spread mixture evenly into a 9-inch pie plate. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

2. Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or until heated through. Serve with pita wedges, French bread, and/or crackers.

Make-ahead directions: Prepare as above through step 1. Cover and chill for up to 24 hours. Uncover and bake about 25 minutes or until heated through.

Thankful for the Memories

Thanksgiving is all about tradition. Especially with the food.

That's why my Mommom Sacco's amazing string beans are always on my Thanksgiving table. This dish requires very few ingredients. Beans, a small potato, garlic and oil and voila - magic happens.

That's really how it was with everything my Mommom cooked and baked. And that's one of the reasons I love her recipes so much.

Hope you love this one, too. It's wayyyyy better than the whole string bean casserole nonsense.

I'm so thankful for all the amazing recipes my grandmother taught me. They bring her back to life each time I make them. We love you, Mommom!

Mommom Sacco and me at her last Thanksgiving in 2015. 

Mommom Sacco's String Beans
Makes 10-14 servings

1 1/2 to 2 lbs. string beans, washed, trimmed and cut in half
1 small baking potato, peeled and quartered
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper.

In a large pot filled with cold water, add prepared string beans and quartered potato. Place on stove top. Bring to a boil. Partially cover pot with lid, and boil for 20 minutes or until the potato is tender and falling apart.

Carefully drain the beans and potato in a colander over the sink.

Return pot to stovetop. Add oil and garlic. Cook garlic over low heat. Do not burn!

Add drained string beans and potato to the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Toss the beans and potato in the garlic oil. Using a fork carefully mash up the potato. Toss again. Taste for seasonings.

Dish may be made the day before and reheated before serving.

Refresh Your Palate

Thanksgiving din is decadent.  And heavy.

So, it's nice to have bright and refreshing cranberry relish to lighten things up.

Back in the day, my mom rocked out a cranberry Jell-O mold totally reminiscent of the days of Betty Draper. It remained largely untouched. Sorry, Mom.

I recently read that cranberry sauce is the least fav side of Thanksgiving. To which I say, "Obviously!" Who want to eat a congealed jiggly concoction from a can?

No one, that's who.

So grab a bag of fresh cranberries and a clementine and get to business. The color and fragrance is total fall. And your guests will love this little kick of cranberry, trust.

Refreshing Cranberry Relish
Makes 2 cups

1 12-ounce bag of cranberries, rinsed and picked through
1 clementine, unpeeled, cut in quarters.
1/2 cup granulated sugar.

In a food processor, add cranberries and clementine segments. Pulse about 10 times to finely chop the fruit. You may need to scrape the sides once during this process. Be sure to not over-pulse. You want the mixture to have texture.

Spoon cranberry clementine mixture into bowl.  Gently stir in sugar. Cover and refrigerate for at least a day.

Trisha Yearwood Pork Tenderloin

Who doesn't need a good crockpot recipe up her sleeve?

This Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin comes from Trisha Yearwood. While I don't avidly watch her show on the Food Network, I've heard of her cooking skills and thought this dish looked interesting. 

This is a crockpot recipe, but it starts on the stove with searing the meat and ends on the stove with making the gravy.

I served it with mashed potatoes and broccoli rabe.

I followed her recipe closely, but I do use low sodium soy sauce and low sodium chicken broth. I also skipped the very first step of seasoning the pork tenderloin with salt. I try to cook with minimal salt always, and I thought the soy sauce provided ample salt. I seared the meat in olive oil rather than vegetable oil. The seasonings seem sparse in the recipe list, but it all worked well together. 

My pork tenderloin was just under 3 pounds and it came in two pieces. You may use a pork loin or a pork tenderloin for this recipe. 

Slow Cooker Pork Loin

By Trisha Yearwood

Makes 8 to 10 servings

2 1/2 to 3 lb. pork loin, trimmed of all visible fat

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil (The Jersey Girl used olive oil)

2 cups chicken broth

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

salt and pepper, to taste

Season the pork loin lightly with salt. In a small bowl combine the garlic powder, ginger, dried thyme, and black pepper. Rub the seasoning over the surface of the pork loin.

In a skillet heat the oil and brown the pork loin on all sides. Transfer the pork to the crock pot. Combine the chicken broth, lemon juice, and soy sauce; pour over the pork loin.

Cover and cook on low heat for 8 to 10 hours, or on high for 4 to 5.

After cooking, transfer the roast to a platter and keep warm.

To make the gravy, pour the liquid from the crock pot into a measuring cup. Skim off the fat. Measure two cups of the liquid, adding water if needed. Transfer to a sauce pan reserving 1/2 cup of the liquid.

Stir the cornstarch into the reserved liquid, then stir into the liquid in the sauce pan. Heat, stirring frequently, until the gravy is thick. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the roast with the gravy.

Green Goddess Crudite

Holiday and party season is just around the corner, and we always need a good dip and crudité situation for happy hour, no?

Well, that's what I tell myself. Bright, colorful veggies liven up any get together, in my opinion.

So I'm giving you this Basil Green Goddess Dressing recipe. Whenever I make I, the young and old rave about its loveliness. So, get on it! I like this because it truly is a salad dressing recipe so it doesn't feel overtly heavy  as a dip. It's a thinner consistency, which I love.

It's a Barefoot Contessa recipe, so you know it's amazing. Serve with whatever veggies you like. My fam usually grooves on peppers, carrots, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, scallions and celery.

Basil Green Goddess Dressing
From "Barefoot Contessa at Home"
By Ina Garten 

1 cup good mayonnaise
1 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts (6 to 7 scallions)
1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
2 tsp. chopped garlic (2 cloves)
2 tsp. anchovy paste
1 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the mayonnaise, scallions, basil, lemon juice, garlic, anchovy paste, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the sour cream and process just until blended. (If not using immediately, refrigerate the dressing until ready to serve.)

Serve with your favorite cut-up veggies such as carrots, celery, cucumbers, bell peppers, radishes, broccoli, scallions, etc.

Cauliflower Soup: Trickery at Its Finest

I'm not one for disguises. Especially regarding food.

I know it's like totally a thing for moms to hide veggies inside of baked goods and burgers and smoothies and what not. That's not really how I roll.

But this Cauliflower Soup is a charade I totally support. It has the look and feel of decadent Potato Soup, but surprise, surprise, it's just 100 percent cauliflower. And celery and onion - two other lowly workhorses in the kitchen. Just a touch of butter and no cream, this recipe is beyond simple and truly delish. Who knew the humble cauliflower could be so luscious?

Top a bowl of this deliciousness with cheddar cheese and chives, and you could completely pass this off to your fam as potato soup. The thing is, the cauliflower soup has way less calories, fat and carbs than your potato variety. Here are the health stats, in case you care: One cup of pureed potato has 214 calories, 7 grams of fat, 3.1. grams of fiber and 35 grams of carbohydrates. One cup of pureed cauliflower has 142 calories, 0 grams of fat, 7 grams of fiber and 10 grams of carbohydrates. If you are on a health kick, this soup is totally for you!

Cauliflower Soup
Makes 6 servings

1 medium head of cauliflower, florets cut into 1-inch pieces (about 4-5 cups)
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups water
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 Tbsp. flour
2 cups chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste

To serve: Shredded cheddar cheese and chopped chives

In a large soup pan, add cauliflower, celery, onion and water. Bring to a boil. Cover partially and lower heat to a simmer. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until vegetables are tender.

Using a ladle or a spoon, transfer cauliflower mixture to a blender. Puree in blender until smooth.

Return the same soup pan to the stove. Add butter and heat over medium high. Once butter is melted and bubbling, add flour. Whisk to make a roux, about 2 minutes. Add cauliflower mixture and broth. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve with cheddar cheese and chopped chives.

Greek Salad with Roasted Salmon

Salad for dinner is a hit in my house.

Greek Salad with Roasted Salmon is easy to prepare and a beautiful meal that has something for everyone. You can change your veggies to suit the tastes of the players in your family. An arranged salad platter makes it easy for each person dining to select the salad items that suit his or her fancy. I like to serve the dressing on the side. Be sure to serve your salad with feta. It's such a nice touch. 

I use the same dressing for the salmon marinade as well as the salad dressing. Just make sure to carefully spoon the dressing onto the salmon and don't cross contaminate by touching the salmon with your spoon. You could also divide your dressing into two portions just to be safe. You just need about 1 Tablespoon of dressing per serving of salmon. The rest can be used at the table for the salad.

I round out this dinner with homemade hummus, crudité and warmed pita. Be sure to serve your salad with feta.

This is such a fun dish to make. Your kids can help, and it's a pleasant deviation from the same ole' rotation we get into during the week!

Greek Salad with Roasted Salmon
Makes 3 to 4 servings

Greek dressing
1/2 tsp. oregano
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl combine all ingredients. Whisk vigorously. Set aside.

Salad:
Romaine lettuce, cleaned and dried, sliced into bite size pieces about 2-3 cups
1/2 English cucumber, sliced into bite size pieces
1/2 medium red bell pepper, sliced into bite size pieces
1/2 medium green bell pepper, sliced into bite size pieces
1/2 cup grape tomatoes
1/4 red onion, sliced
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, halved

To serve: Greek dressing (See above recipe) and crumbled feta cheese

On a large platter, arrange each salad ingredient side by side in a circular formation. Serve with crumbled feta cheese and remaining dressing that was not used to marinate the salmon

Salmon:
3 to 4 salmon filets with skin or without (The skin peels right off once the salmon is cooked)
2 tsp. olive oil
3-4 Tablespoons of Greek dressing (See above recipe)

Preheat oven 500 degrees Fahrenheit

Cover sheet pan with aluminum. Lightly brush with olive oil. Place salmon filets on prepared pan. Spoon a Tablespoon of dressing over each salmon filet. Using a pastry brush, brush dressing over the salmon so that the entire filet is covered. Let salmon sit for 15 minutes at room temperature. Place in oven.

Roast for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Remove skin from the bottom of salmon if necessary.

To serve: Place salad on a dinner plate. Top with dressing and feta cheese. Top with warm salmon.