It’s fun to bake using Fillo Dough! If you’ve never tried it, now’s your chance. You can find it in the freezer section near puff pastry dough and frozen breads.

Fillo is paper thin pastry sheets, and when layered with butter (or olive oil) and baked, you end up with flaky, crispy deliciousness. The most important part of baking with fillo dough is keeping it moist while preparing your recipe, because it’s so thin, it can easily dry out and you end up with flakes. That’s why, in the recipe below, we place all the fillo dough into one stack while preparing the Spanakopita. You can even take a clean, lightly damp kitchen towel to place on the fillo sheets to keep them moist.

You can use fillo by filling the fillo with a mixture of apples, cinnamon and sugar! They also sell fillo pastry cups, which is great for party appetizers. Fill them with a little brie cheese, a few dried cranberries and a pecan, pop them in the oven to melt the cheese and you’ve got a great holiday crowd pleaser… and super easy!

I hope you’ll give my Spanakopita recipe a try. We enjoyed it as a main course, paired with a Greek salad, but you can make these half the size for a perfect party appetizer.

This recipe makes about 11 ~

INGREDIENTS
1/2 small Onion, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
1 Tbsp fresh Dill, chopped
10 oz frozen chopped Spinach
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese, room temperature
1 cup Feta Cheese, crumbled
8 oz Fillo dough
6 Tbsp Butter, melted

METHOD
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl mix together the onion, garlic, nutmeg, dill, spinach, ricotta and feta cheese – set aside.
Unroll half the package of a 16 oz box of fillo dough.
Cut the 9” x 14” rectangle in half, lengthwise, so you end up with fillo sheets 4 1/2” x 14”.
Place the cut sheets on top of each other making one stack of fillo dough.
Take 2 of the sheets of fill dough and brush lightly with the melted butter.
Lay another 2 sheets of fill dough on top and again brush lightly with butter.
Place about 2 tablespoons of the filling at one end of the fillo dough, and carefully fold the fillo over, into a triangular shape, you will fold a total of about 3 times, and then brush more butter to seal edges.
Place the triangular shaped fillo on a baking sheet (lined with foil or use a silpat).
Continue until you’ve used all the filling and all of the fillo.
Bake in preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
Enjoy while warm and crispy!
To take a recreational cooking class in Murfreesboro visit www.TheCuriousKitchen.net and also check out their holiday menu… you can order your complete Holiday Meal, all made from scratch, including your appetizers & pie! Call (615) 956-6077 to place your order.

I love making pizza at home. It’s really simple to make the dough yourself. The recipe below is my favorite for pizza crust & flatbread (rolled extra thin) and it turns out perfect every time. However, you always have the option to buy a ready made pizza crust, and there’s lots of great options in the grocery store. Anyway, I think the best part of making pizza at home is topping it with all your favorites… and lots of cheese!

The recipe I’m sharing today has become our new family favorite. The toppings are simple, but the flavor is anything but simple!!

Makes one 12” pizza

INGREDIENTS
For Dough:
1 cup warm water
2 ½ tsp dry active Yeast
1 Tbsp Honey
2 ½ to 3 cups all-purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
2 Tbsp Olive Oil

Pizza Sauce:
1/2 cup Cilantro
1/4 cup picked Jalapeños
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Cumin

Toppings:
2 to 3 cups of shredded Mexican Cheese Blend
2 Roma Tomatoes, diced
1 cup fresh Corn
½ red Onion, thinly sliced
½ cup Black Olives, halved
2 Tbsp Capers
More picked jalapeños, optional (but nice if you like it spicy)

METHOD
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix the honey and warm water together in a small bowl.
Add the yeast to the water and let it sit for 15 minutes until a nice foam forms from the yeast growing.
Place flour and salt in a mixing bowl with the dough hook attachment and slowly add the yeast mixture.
Mix on medium-high for about 5 minutes, until the dough becomes elastic and firm.
Remove dough from bowl and rub lightly with olive oil.
Place in a bowl and cover with a clean dry towel.
Let sit in a warm place to rise for 20 minutes (it should double in size).

While the dough is rising you can make the sauce for the pizza.
Blend the cilantro, pickled jalapeños, olive oil, lime juice and cumin together in the food processor until a smooth paste is formed.
Set aside until you have your pizza crust ready to top.

After the dough has risen, place it on a floured surface.
If you want to make smaller individual pizzas cut dough into portions, or use for one large pizza.
Roll out to desired thickness and size, or shape using your hands, gently stretching the dough into the shape you desire.
Place dough onto a lightly greased pizza baking pan.
Spoon the cilantro sauce onto the pizza crust and spread evenly.
Evenly distribute the cheese and toppings on the crust.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or so, depending on the thickness of the crust.
Remove, cut into slices and serve.

For a crispier crust, cook your pizza crust for about 7 minutes before topping it with anything! That’s always an option.

Oysters… I love them any which way. Usually we eat them raw, but sometimes I crave a cooked oyster, like Oysters Rockefeller or a really light Oyster Stew. I was in the mood to create something different with the oysters. I opened the fridge and saw that we had 3 pieces of leftover bacon from breakfast, and voila – this recipe was born!

It’s so delectable the way the ingredients all meld together with the oysters and oyster juice. Be sure to get a great loaf of crusty bread to fully enjoy this dish!

INGREDIENTS
1/2 stick unsalted Butter, softened
5 Tbsp Parmesan Reggiano, grated
3 pieces of Bacon, cooked and diced small
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 Shallot, minced
1 tsp fresh Parsley, minced
½ tsp Oregano
½ tsp Black Pepper, fresh grated
¼ tsp Paprika
1 dozen Oysters, shucked

Fresh Parsley, as garnish (optional)
Lemon Wedges, as garnish (optional)

METHOD
In a small bowl, mix the butter, parmesan, bacon, garlic, shallot, parsley, oregano, black pepper and paprika.
Set aside
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Shuck the oysters and place on a baking sheet.
Top each oyster with the butter mixture, dividing evenly among the oysters until it is all used.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, until bubbly.
Place the oysters on a serving plate and be sure to put all the leftover juice on the plate, as well (for bread dipping!)
Garnish with fresh parsley and lemon wedges, if desired.
Serve with hot crusty bread.
Enjoy immediately.

I got my inspiration for this dish from a roasted cauliflower appetizer at Etch Restaurant in Nashville. It was so amazingly delicious! I paid careful attention to every detail, texture and flavor as my daughter and I enjoyed the appetizer… because I knew that soon enough I’d be craving it and want to make it at home.

Here is my rendition of the roasted cauliflower appetizer. The one real difference is that I used a yellow bell pepper instead of a red bell pepper to make the coulis that I put the roasted cauliflower on. The only reason I used a yellow bell is that’s all I had at the time, but it was perfect.

This recipe has several components, but please don’t let that stop you from creating this dish. Each step is super easy and so worth it. That’s what makes this dish so remarkable, the way all these flavors come together and combine! I hope you’ll give it a try!!

INGREDIENTS
1 head of Cauliflower, washed and trimmed into nice size flowerettes
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
dash of Sea Salt

For Bell Pepper Coulis:
1 Yellow or Red Bell Pepper
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
dash of Sea Salt

For the Truffled Pea Dip:
1 cup frozen Peas, thawed and drained
2 drops Natural Liquid Smoke
1 to 2 Tbsp Truffle Oil (depending how strong of a Truffle flavor you like)
dash of Salt

For the Feta Cream:
1/2 cup Feta Cheese
2 Tbsp Sour Cream
1 to 2 Tbsp Heavy Cream
1/4 tsp Lemon Juice
Pinch of Salt

Garnish with Marcona Almonds

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place flowerettes in roasting pan and toss in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, coating the cauliflower with the oil.
Sprinkle with a little sea salt.
Roast the cauliflower in the hot oven for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tips begin to get a light golden color.

Meanwhile, you can roast the yellow bell pepper over the gas flame of your oven, on the grill, or you can roast the pepper in the oven on broil, turning it as it gets charred and blacked.
Once the pepper is completely charred, cover and allow it to steam for about 15 minutes.

Now let’s get started on the Truffled Pea Dip.
Place the peas, liquid smoke, truffle oil, and salt in the food processor and process until smooth.
Taste, adjust smoke, truffle oil and/or salt if desired.
Place mixture in the refrigerator until ready to plate.

At this point you’re pepper should be steamed enough, so remove the cover and allow it to cool while you make the Feta Cream.

Place the Feta cheese, sour cream, heavy cream, lemon juice and salt in a small bowl.
Mash together with a fork until it gets creamy, but still has some feta cheese chunks.
Place mixture in the refrigerator until ready to plate.

Back to that bell pepper… it should be cool enough to handle.
You can easily peel the charred skin off, and discard (I actually like the flavor the skin adds, to I always leave some in).
Carefully remove the stem and seeds.
Put the pepper into the food processor, along with any juice from the pepper.
Pulse until mostly smooth.
Place pepper in a small bowl and mix in the olive oil and salt.

To Assemble:
A nice long or oblong plate is best.
Place the bell pepper coulis in the center of the plate, this will serve as a bed for the roasted cauliflower.
Decoratively place the cauliflower on the bell pepper coulis.
Place an equal portion of the Truffled Pea Dip and the Feta Cream on each side of the cauliflower.
Garnish with Marcona Almonds.
Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
1 pkg Puffed Pastry
1/2 lb. Laura’s lean Ground Beef
3 cloves Garlic, minced
2 Eggs, hardboiled and diced
1/4 cup Green Olives, diced
1/4 cup canned Tomatoes, chopped and drained
1 tsp Parsley
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp fresh Ground Black Pepper
a few dashes of Cayenne Pepper

METHOD
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Allow puff pastry dough to thaw.
Meanwhile, brown the ground beef and drain off any excess grease.
Stir the rest of the ingredients into the ground beef.
Taste and adjust seasoning, if desired.

Set aside to cool.
Roll out your puffed pastry dough.
Cut rounds about 5 inches in diameter… I used a martini glass with a wide rim.  

Place a heaping tablespoon of the meat filling in the center of the round.
Lightly wet the outer rim of the pastry round and fold pastry dough over, using a fork to pinch ends together and seal.
Continue until you have used all the pastry dough and filling.

Now you have the option to bake them in the oven or fry them in vegetable oil.
Bake in a 350 oven until the pastry if lightly browned and puffed, about 20 minutes.

– – OR – –

Fry individually in hot oil for about 3 to 5 minutes, until brown and pastry dough is cooked through.
If the dough is not cooked through you can continue to cook them in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes.
I like to serve mine with Sriracha Sauce and sour cream.
Enjoy!

I bought some King Crab on sale. I was so excited about the reduced price ($10.00 off per pound) that I bought several pounds. I made crab cakes. I made crab soup. Hmmmm… what to do with the remaining crab? That’s when the thought of crab nachos popped into my head. Oh man, they exceeded my expectations. They were beyond delicious!

Here’s my recipe, no measuring required for the nachos.

INGREDIENTS
Corn Chips
Mexican Cheese Blend, shredded
Crab Meat
Scallions, sliced thin
Corn
Pickled Jalapenos (I used Uncle Gary’s Candied Jalapenos)
Bechamel Sauce, recipe below
Fresh Cilantro, chopped

METHOD
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place some tin foil on your baking sheet.
Start off with your favorite corn chips and place a generous layer on the baking sheet.
Top chips with a sprinkling of cheese (this will keep the chips from getting soggy).
Evenly distribute crab across the chips and cheese.
Generously cover crab with cheese.
Top with scallions, corn, and pickled jalapenos.
Place in oven for 20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly.
Remove from oven and pour the warm Bechamel Sauce over the nachos.
Top with fresh cilantro.
Enjoy!

Pepper Jack Bechamel Sauce

INGREDIENTS
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Flour
1 cup Milk
2 slices of Pepper Jack Cheese
1/4 tsp Salt

METHOD
Place olive oil and butter in a small saucepan over low heat.
Quickly whisk in the flour.
Whisk in the milk, a little at a time, until a smooth consistency is achieved.
Cook over medium low heat until it comes to a low simmer, stirring occasionally.
Place the pepper jack cheese into the hot mixture and stir until melted, combined and thickened.
Stir in the salt.
Remove from heat.
Use in the above recipe for Crab Nachos.
Enjoy!!

I love eggplant. I was craving an Asian eggplant dish I would sometimes get for lunch in Los Angeles. I was determined to duplicate it… and here it is. It tasted even better than I remembered! ☺

If you’re on the fence about eggplant, I hope you’ll try this dish or some of my others, like Baba Ganoush, Caponata, Meatless Moussaka or Eggplant Parmesan. It may just bring you to the “eggplant lovers” side!

Stir-Fried Asian Eggplant

INGREDIENTS
5 or 6 Asian Eggplants
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
2 Green Onions, sliced on the diagonal
3 cloves of Garlic, minced
2 Tbsp fresh Ginger, grated
½ cup Vegetable or Chicken Broth
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 tsp Cornstarch
1 Tbsp Sesame Seeds
Optional: Thai Basil and/or Cilantro

METHOD
In a large sauté pan or your Wok place the vegetable oil and sesame oil.
Heat on medium.
Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and then cut into 1-inch pieces.
Carefully put the eggplant into the hot oil and stir-fry for about 5 to 10 minutes, until the eggplant begins to soften.
Add in the green onions, garlic and ginger.
Continue to stir-fry for another minute or two.
Then add in the broth.
In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar and cornstarch until smooth.
Add mixture into eggplant and stir until thickened, another minute or so.
Stir in half of the sesame seeds, and save the other half for garnish.
Also garnish with basil and/or cilantro, if desired.
Serve over Jasmine Rice.
Enjoy!