Day #271 - Weekend Getaway, Part 1

I am in Kansas City this weekend for a scrapbooking meetup with some of my friends from Scrap Girls.   So my next few food posts will reflect several dining out and fast food experiences...

Starting with lunch.   

Shortly after arriving in Kansas City, I met up with some of my friends at the Cracker Barrel near our hotel.   At the recommendation of my friend Sandi, I ordered their featured seasonal salad - the Roasted Turkey N' Cranberry Salad. Oven-roasted turkey with fresh diced apples, sliced bacon, and cranberries served over a bed of fresh greens and spring mix. Topped with our cinnamon-spiced croutons and blue cheese crumbles. Served with country pepper vinaigrette on the side.
In fact, all five ladies at the table ordered this same salad.  It was delicious!!   I've had salads with similar ingredients before, but this one had a pleasant surprise - the cinnamon-spiced croutons.  Yum! 


We spent the rest of the afternoon & evening hanging out in the hotel meeting room, playing with our laptops, working on digital scrapbooking projects, and chatting.   Rather than shut everything down and pack up, we decided to order in pizza for dinner.    I made a health-conscious decision to walk next door to Wendy's and purchase a salad, so I would fill up on that instead of over-indulging in pizza.    I bought their Chicken Cobb salad - lettuce, tomatoes, diced egg, bacon, blue cheese, grilled chicken, and fat-free French dressing.

We ordered the pizza from Minsky's - a gourmet pizza chain found in Kansas City and surrounding cities.  As a group, we decided on two varieties: the Jumbo Combo (Pepperoni, American and Italian sausage, hamburger, black olives, green peppers, mushrooms and onions) and the Nature's Choice (Artichoke hearts, zucchini, green peppers, mushrooms and onions. Topped with mozzarella cheese, sliced tomatoes and slivered almonds).

The salad was pretty filling, but I still treated myself to one slice of the Jumbo Combo pizza for dinner.   

 

 

Day #270 - BBQ Cheddar Burger

Tonight I took the leftover Spinach & Mushroom Hamburger patty and reheated it in the microwave.  I then served it on a whole grain sandwich round with baby spinach leaves, a little BBQ sauce, and a slice of cheddar cheese.

Day #269 - Autumn Harvest Pork Roll-Ups

 

Tonight I made these small Autumn Harvest Pork Roll-Ups, with steamed broccoli on the side.   Here is how I made them, complete with photos of each step:

I started with a package of thin "Breakfast" pork chops, but you could also take boneless pork chops and pound them thin:

I seasoned the chops with a little salt, pepper, and Jamaican Jerk rub (from Pampered Chef).

Next, I used a Food Chopper to finely dice 1/2 small red apple (I used a Gala apple) and 5-6 baby portabella mushrooms.  I mixed these together in a bowl with 1 tbsp dried herbs (basil, parsley, chive):

I took a seasoned pork chop, added a large spoonful of the mushroom-apple mixture to the middle, rolled the pork around the filling, and used a toothpick to hold the rolls together.  I repeated with each pork roll, and placed them in a 9x9 inch baking dish.  Any leftover filling I sprinkled over and around the pork rolls:

 

I baked the pork rolls in a 400-degree oven for 20 minutes, then lowered the heat to 365 and continued baking for an additional 20 minutes, until the pork was fully cooked.


The mushroom-apple filling was a nice autumnal complement to the pork, and the presentation of the dish wasn't too terrible either!

Day #268 - Chicken & Ricotta Bowties

Tonight is one of my "Leftovers Makeover" dishes.

I took half of the leftover Baked Chicken Breast Stuffed with Ricotta, Spinach & Tomato from Friday, chopped the chicken into small pieces, and put the chicken chunks & ricotta-spinach-tomato filling into a microwavable bowl.  I reheated this in the microwave for a couple minutes while a serving of whole grain bowtie pasta was cooking away on the stove.  

After the pasta was cooked and drained, I stirred in the chicken, filling, and a couple tablespoons of grated Parmesean cheese, until the cheeses covered the pasta.

There was enough ricotta cheese in the chicken filling to serve as a nice sauce on the pasta, and the chicken, tomatoes, and spinach completed the dish.   A really nice pasta dinner, considering the majority of it started as leftovers!

Day #267 - Spinach & Mushroom Hamburger Patties

Tonight I made some gourmet hamburger patties.

I took a small package of lean ground beef and mixed in a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, diced baby portabella mushrooms, thinly sliced fresh baby spinach, plus a light seasoning of salt & crushed black pepper.   I formed the beef mixture into two large patties, pressing them thinly so they would cook faster.

Once my large skillet was well-heated, I seared the burgers until browned on both sides.  I then lowered the heat, covered the skillet, and let the burgers steam-cook for a few additional minutes until the inside of the burger was just slightly pink.

I topped my burger with a handful of shredded cheese, and served alongside some cherry tomatoes and dill pickle slices (which I ate before taking the photo).

The Worcestershire sauce and mushrooms added a nice steakhouse flavor to the ground beef, while the spinach added little flecks of color and hidden vitamins.

Day #266 - OF Roast Beef Sandwich

In case it isn't obvious from the photo, the "OF" in my title refers to my Open-Faced sandwich. 

I took a piece of whole grain bread, topped it with layers of baby spinach, deli roast beef, and swiss cheese, and then cooked it in my toaster oven for about a minute (or two), until the cheese was melted.  

My side salad was chopped cucumbers, green bell peppers, and halved grape tomatoes tossed in balsamic vinaigrette.

Day #265 - Malones

Tonight I went out to dinner with my mom and dad.   We went to Malone's, which you might remember I blogged about back on Labor Day.   Tonight I again ordered the sirloin steak, with sides of steamed broccoli and rice pilaf.  The sirloin steak was as juicy and flavorful as I remembered.  Delicious!!



P.S.   Can you believe we're on Day #265 already??  Only 100 days left to this year-long project....