Sausage and Peppers in an appetizer

I made these for an appetizer at our holiday party (a little delayed in posting this) and they were a hit!  

Ingredients:

• A bag of those cute peppers, the tops and inner seeds removed
• 1/2 pound of italian chicken sausage
• 1/2 large or 1 small  yellow onion, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped
• 1-2 cups of shredded Mozzarella cheese 

Directions:

1. Saute the sausage, onion and garlic together until the sausage is cooked.  Add the cooked mixture to a bowl and stir in the cheese.  You can add other cheeses as well, parm and fontina would be great.
2. Stuff the mixture into each pepper and set them inside of a mini cupcake sheet.  This is will help the filling stay inside the pepper and not ooze out.
3. Bake at 350F for 20-30 minutes, until the pepper is soft.

Mango Salsa

We've had this on top of eggs and with shrimp tacos.  It's so bright in color and flavor that it's a fun way to welcome the spring season.  I add avocado to it but the recipe below is the basic salsa. 

Ingredients:

• 3 Mangoes, skin cut off and flesh cut off of core
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 jalopeno pepper
• 1/2 of a lime, juiced
• 1/4 cup of red onion, diced

Chop everything the size you choose and mix it together, add the lime juice and stir.  I only added the green parts of the jalopeno to avoid too much spice, but add as much as you like for heat.  Allow it to sit in the fridge for a day before serving!

Garlic Crostini topped with gorgonzola and honeyed arugala

A dish at a local restaurant inspired this appetizer.  It's simple to whip up for a delicious and light small bite!

Ingredients:

• A couple handfuls of arugala
• Gorgonzola Dolce (a creamy and slightly sweet mild blue cheese I get from Whole Foods)
• 16 thinly sliced baguette 
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp (or a little more) of a tasty olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled with the end cut off
• salt and pepper to sprinkle

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350F and brown the baguette pieces, when they come out of the oven, smear the top with the raw garlic
2. Spread on some gorgonzola cheese
3. Mix the honey, olive oil, arugala and salt and pepper to taste and place a small bunch of top of each crostini.
4. Enjoy!

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are a delicious nutrient dense food and great choice for a side dish or snack.  My favorite way to eat them is below.  The sweet potato alone is only 100 calories/cup so it packs a lot of vital nutrients in a small package, making a really healthy snack or side dish.

I promise that that taste is better than the photo!

Stab the sweet potato with a knife, wrap in parchment and put it in the microwave for about 3 minutes.  Then finish cooking it in the oven heated to 375F for 40-50 minutes.  When it comes out, cut it in half, mash it up with a fork inside the skin and smear a couple small scoops of coconut oil on top.  Then sprinkle with sea salt, pepper and lots of cinnamon!

Roasted Asparagus and Gruyere Frittata

We have been eating so much asparagus lately that we are now close to being sick of it!   It's great roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper, in a frittata or mixed into a spring risotto.  Recipe for the frittata is below!

Ingredients:

• A bunch of asparagus, roasted in the oven at 400F for 20 minutes with salt and pepper.
• 1 cup of gruyere cheese
• 8 eggs, whisked
• 1/2 cup of yellow onion, diced and sautéed
• 1 clove of garlic minced and sautéed with the onion
• 2 tsp of organic, salted butter

Directions:

1. In the pan that the onions and garlic are sautéed in, heat to medium heat and add the butter,  eggs, all but a handful of the gruyere and salt and pepper.
2. Mix it with a spatula while it cooks, once it is half cooked and there is still a lot of runny eggs, arrange the asparagus on top and push it down a bit.  Cook it on the stove top for about 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle the top with remaining gruyere cheese and put under the broiler for about 2 minutes, until the top is cooked and browned.