Throwback!

This is the first cookbook I actually used! And let me tell you, these recipes are GOOD! Lots of memories in here guys. The pages are crusty from flour and butter lol, I love it!

Ricotta Meatballs

I thought I would share my most recent kitchen adventure. I was watching my favorite show, Unique Eats, on The Cooking Channel, and was completely intrigued by the mention of these Veal and Ricotta Meatballs. I mean, I was drooling immediately. Ricotta cheese is one of my absolute favorite things, hands down. It makes a delectable filling in pastas and desserts, it creates creamy and airy pancakes and is scrumptious when dolloped on just about anything: pizza, pasta, grits, etc. So, when I heard that it could be blended with meat, to create a moist, light yet rich meatball, I HAD TO TRY. Now, I didn’t have any veal on hand, and funds were a bit tight… so I decided to go with a pound of Trader Joe’s Sweet Italian Sausage. Before proceeding, I did a quick Google Search to see if pork and ricotta meatballs, or even italian sausage meatballs existed. They did. After finding a recipe that matched the amount of meat that I had, I dove right into creation mode. I didn’t follow the recipe precisely, but I wanted to make sure my proportions of egg, ricotta, and breadcrumbs were about right. I added dried Italian seasonings, granulated garlic and granulated onion, and mixed it up by hand. Formed these beautiful balls, and popped them in the oven!

Yes, they are bathing in olive oil. Why not? Olive oil is good for you. Silly.

I then boiled some spaghetti, tore some fresh basil and grated some Parmigiana Reggiano.

Man, oh man. This was FIYE. (fiye = delicious beyond comprehension)

I polished off five meatballs as my daughter looked up at me in envy. I feel so sorry for her, she has MONTHS before she can taste such wonderful things.

I realize now, while writing this post that I probably should have taken pics of the actual process of making this… and I probably should have written down the amounts of each ingredient I was using, so as to share a recipe with you all. This is my first attempt at food-blogging. I promise I will get better! And the food pics will need to improve as well, I do realize. This hardly qualifies as food porn… but I did want you to get the general idea of the ecstasy I was experiencing. 🙂

Courtney

Musings on Being a Healthier Me…

I love food. I love snacks. I love munching. And, I absolutely LOVE drinking. Not drinking alcohol, per se, (though I do adore that as well), but I just love drinking liquids period. Juice, Soda, Spritzers, Coffee, Espresso Drinks, Smoothies, Shakes. My father has been telling me for years that I drink all my calories. Which is pretty depressing… because if I’m drinking ALL of my daily calories… and then snacking and munching and eating full meals on top of those beverages… well, you can only imagine…

So, during my days spent watching The Cooking Channel and The Food Network, and browsing through my blogroll, I’ve come across two companies that have really caught my attention, and I’m thinking about giving them a try. Now, I’m not making any grand promises to completely make over my diet or lose fifty pounds… but these seem like awesome companies with products that appeal to my impulses, but in a healthier fashion.

The first of these companies is Emmy’s Organics. I first discovered this company while reading one of my daily reads, Ms. Vashtie Kola’s personal blog, and then it seemed like I just kept seeing the name. So, I decided to check out the web site, and I must say, I am intrigued.

The company is based out of Ithaca, NY and is ran by two friends. All of the ingredients are raw, vegan, non-GMO, and high-quality. Featuring Himalayan Sea Salt, Buckwheat, Macadamia Nuts, Coconut, Figs, Goji Berries and more. They make sprouted seed mixes, granolas, trail mixes, fudge, a chocolate sauce, and most popularly, macaroons… which are there version of the delightful cookie-ish treat. There macaroon flavors feature Lemon Ginger, Coconut Vanilla, Choco Orange and more. Yummy!! And they ship all of these items!! Now, if you happen to actually live in Ithaca, NY, they will actually make you fresh Almond Mylk, available in half gallon or gallon sizes. This is so major to me, as I absolutely love almond milk and can only imagine how grand it would taste freshly prepared.

Im going to be ordering a goodie box from Emmy’s this week and will be doing a honest review of each of the items, and I can’t wait! I will definitely be honest, and since my palette is hardly vegan or raw biased, this should be an interesting experience! I’m actually hoping that I love them, because I can see this being a refreshing break for my body, which is currently suffering from a chocolate chip bread pudding overload.

Check out more from Emmy’s Organics HERE.

OK. The next company that I’m anxious to try is pretty huge and corporate, and you all will probably assume I’ve been hiding under a rock or something… but…it’s Vita Coco. Yes, the coconut water people that gave Rihanna that ridiculously huge endorsement. This company has actually been around for awhile. A worked for Whole Foods Market for about 7 years, up through 2008, and I remember selling quite a bit of this stuff, yet I never tried it. And now, due to the trend (I am embarrassed to admit) my interest has peaked.

Apparently, Coconut Water is supposed to be awesome for you. It’s all natural, fat-free, cholesterol-free, packed with nutrients, super duper hydrating, with tons of electrolytes and potassium. Compared to all my drinks that are jam-packed with sugar, corn syrup, caffeine, fat AND cholesterol, I need to jump on this bandwagon ASAP. I’m definitely going to give it a try. I was very pleased to discover that consumers can order this water directly from the web site! This is very rare, for a corporate company to offer this service and I greatly appreciate it. In quantities as small as a 12-pack case! And its definitely not uber expensive. I think for my first order, I will get the 100% Pure as well as the Tropical Fruit flavor, as Rihanna supposedly helped to create that flavor, and, well, the pop culture groupie in me is dying to try it! (LAME… I know….)

Get more info on Vita Coco, HERE.

That’s all for now! I will have reviews up as soon as I try these items 🙂

Courtney