yum: spinach & asparagus lasagna

i've been MIA. it's been 3 days shy of a month since i last blogged. shame shame.
so what have i been doing!?! well ...

{l to r}

// celebrating old friends and new beginnings! congrats to tyler and his beautiful new wife melissa.

// work work work. i've had 4 photo shoots this month, which means 4 sets of photos to sift through and then have retouched. yeesh. and of course we aren't shooting photos w/o purpose. lots and lots of new projects coming down the pipeline.

// a visit from my parents! 4 people - 1 tiny apartment. w and i have recently started the house search so MAYBE next time we'll have a real guest room for our guests.

// we've been living by a strict schedule lately. sunday nights are spent w/ my high school girls. tuesdays are for small group. i've recently begun to spend weds w/ my adult literacy partner min again. and thursdays are for pottery class. there's so little in between for cleaning the house and running (2 weeks until savannah) and ... oh yah catching up w/ my husband! in this picture we're pumpkin carving w/ our small group. so blessed by this group.

// tyler, tx. everything is NOT bigger in tx. this airport literally had 4 gates. traveling for work! have i mentioned i've been working a ton!?!

// celebrating 10 years w/ our home church cross point. it was so much fun to celebrate w/ all 4 campuses and folks that drove in from our internet campus.

so yes - it's been busy! thanks to those of you that have checked in on us. we're keeping our heads above water - and i've missed you!!!

my parents always made dinner a priority even amidst a busy schedule. it was a way for mom to regulate what we were eating (it's not a meal w/o something green!) & it was time for us to catch up as a family. i'm working hard to continue that tradition. and i'm back on the meal planning train w/ a new weekly schedule complete w/ "soup sundays" and "fiesta fridays" - where we bring the party & try something new. it helps me plan when i have a bit of direction! and we tend to make healthier decisions when we plan ahead.

i'm excited to share this yummy meal from our inaugural "meatless monday":

spinach & asparagus lasagna

gluten free, vegetarian

prep time: 30 mins

cook time: 45 mins

servings: 4

one 28oz can of whole, peeled tomatoes, drained
1 Tbsp evoo
s/p
1/2 c shallots, diced
1/2 c ricotta
1/2 c low-fat cottage cheese
1 Tbsp dried oregano
2 tsp paprika
3 cloves garlic
1/4 c fresh basil, chopped
1 head spinach, trimmed of stems
14oz can artichoke hearts in water, drained and chopped
3/4 lb asparagus, trimmed
1 c grated mozzarella

1. preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. in a pot of boiling water, blanch the spinach and asparagus (separately) for 1 to 2 min. then shock in a bowl of ice water. drain and dry thoroughly. chop asparagus and set both spinach and asparagus aside.
3. season the tomatoes generously w/ s/p & 1/2 the evoo.
4. cook the shallots in a skillet w/ the remaining olive oil over medium heat. cool slightly.
5. in a food processor, combine ricotta, cottage cheese, oregano, paprika, garlic and fresh basil w/ the shallots. puree smooth. poor into a mixing bowl and stir in the artichokes. season w/ s/p and set aside.
6. spread half of the tomatoes on the bottom of an 8"x8" glass dish.
7. cover w/ a layer of spinach leaves and then half of the artichoke mixture.
8. cover w/ another layer of spinach.
9. cover w/ a layer of chopped asparagus and then top w/ half of the mozzarella.
10. cover w/ another layer of spinach and the remaining artichoke mixture.
11. end w/ a layer of spinach, then the remaining tomatoes and mozzarella.
12. bake 45 min.

gfree chicken parmesan ...

wade and i were supposed to have the first group run last night for our upcoming half marathon. thursday runs are going to be shorter pace runs followed by group dinners. but the teensiest bit of snowfall in tennessee and everything shuts down. so i rummaged through the refrigerator/pantry for something for dinner. fresh parsley, a half block of parmesan, some frozen chicken and ... glutinos pretzels.

we never eat italian anymore. but i decided to give chicken parmesan a try - it just sounded comforting on a cold snowy evening. and are you ready for this? wade went back for seconds AND thirds!!!

since he said it was "too good not to share" ...
here's my spin on chicken parmesan:

servings: 4-6                         prep time // 15m                           cook time // 15m
ingredients:

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 cup glutinos pretzels
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt
• heaping 1/8 tsp italian herb mix
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 lbs boneless/skinless chicken, cut into 2" pieces

1 // preheat oven to 450°F.

2 // in a small bowl, mix the minced garlic with the melted butter. in your chopper, combine the pretzels, shredded parmesan cheese, fresh parsley, salt, garlic salt, italian herb mix and pepper. transfer pretzel mix to a separate small bowl.

3 // dip each piece of chicken into thegarlic butter. then roll in the pretzel mix to coat.

4 // place breaded (pretzel-ed) chicken pieces on to a baking dish leaving a little separation between each piece. drizzle any remaining garlic butter over the chicken and bake for 15-20 minutes (until the chicken is cooked through).

that's it. 15 minutes to a yummy meal ...

did i mention that my parents are coming into town tonight? hooray. wade and i are going to go to the belcourt theatre to watch a french film, le havre. then we anxiously await their arrival. 4 people + 3 day weekend + 1 tiny apartment = quite the adventure!!!

have a fantastic weekend, too!

on the 1st day of g-free christmas ...

hi lovelies! yesterday i mentioned that wade and i went to our first class (besides yoga) @ our gym. we attend a rock climbing gym where the average attendee has to be a 25 year old dude (aka - not me!). the classes are super intimidating. after 2 weeks in hawaii w/ my sister who woke herself and her 2 little guys up @ 6.00am 2 days a week to attend a boot camp, we decided it was time. this particular class was a 15 station circuit complete w/ lunges, stair running, kettle bell swinging ... and SORE MUSCLES! (muscles that i didn't even know existed hurt, in fact!).


and the point ... it's christmas season, y'all. and that means there's an excuse to eat around every corner. best of all - christmas cookies! can i get a "woot woot"? this thanksgiving was my first g-free thanksgiving and i had to go w/o my ultimate favorite thanksgiving dish - old-fashioned egg noodles (purchased in IL over the summer, stored in nashville, and carried on the plane to hawaii)! sad day. w/ invites left + right to cookie swaps and christmas parties ... i'm determined to not go w/o @ christmas bc of a silly allergy. presenting ...

today we'll start off easy-peasy w/ dark chocolate peppermint bark:



ingredients:
1 12oz bag of dark chocolate chips
1 12oz bag of white chocolate chips
8 peppermint candy canes



triple check to make sure that your chocolate chips are g-free. though you might not see any wheat products on the label, gluten is often hidden in "natural or artificial flavors". i used kroger's private selection brand - verified as gfree here. here is a list of verified gluten-free chips from nestle: milk chocolate chips, semi sweet morsels, chocolate chunks, semi sweet mini morsels, milk chocolate morsels, premier white morsels, peanut butter & milk morsels, milk chocolate & peanut butter swirled morsels and semi sweet & premier white swirled morsels. and a list from hersheys: butterscotch chips, special dark chips, cinnamon chips, semi sweet chips and milk chocolate chips. for a gluten-free, dairy-free, peanut-free, tree-nut free, soy free, egg free and casein free option, check out enjoy life.

1 // prepare a cookie sheet w/ a piece of aluminum foil. 

2 // unwrap the candy canes. place them in your food processor and chop until crushed into small pieces.

3 // place the dark chocolate chips in a pot and melt over medium heat while stirring. be careful not to let the chocolate burn. pour the melted chocolate onto the prepared cookie sheet. using your spatula spread it to an even thickness (about an 1/8"). place the cookie sheet in the fridge to firm.

4 // place the white chocolate chips in a pot and melt over medium heat while stirring. again be careful not to let the chocolate burn. stir in about half of the crushed candy canes. remove the cookie sheet from the refrigerator, and pour the melted chocolate/peppermint mixture over the dark chocolate. spread it to an even thickness over the dark chocolate layer quickly so that the dark chocolate doesn't melt.

5 // while the white chocolate is still wet, sprinkle the remaining peppermint pieces over the white chocolate/peppermint layer. press down w/ your spatula to secure the pieces. then return to the refrigerator until firm (about 30 minutes).

6 // once the bark has cooled, the final step is to break into pieces. make sure to peel away the aluminum foil as you go ... enjoy!

{ oh yum } mini mason jar pies!

yesterday i shared this post on our anniversary celebration(s) and all the yummy food we ate - including these delicious french breakfast muffins. and today i'm back w/ another post on food. yikes - doesn't sound like someone that is planning a trip to hawaii in less than 2 months!?! but - it was after all our anniversary. a perfect excuse.

so today ... mini gfree mason jar pies:

(makes 10 4oz pies)

for the crust:
(modified to gfree from cook's illustrated foolproof all-butter pie pastry)
2 1/2 cups gfree oat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
2 sticks cold butter (cut into 1/2" chunks)
3 tbsp sour cream
1/3c ice water

1 // mix together the flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. add the butter little by little and mix until coarse crumbs.

2 // in a small bowl, mix together the sour cream & 1/3c ice water. add 1/2 of this mix to the dry mixture and mix a few times. repeat w/ the remaining sour cream mixture. pinch the dough w/ your fingers - if the dough is floury, dry or doesn't hold together, add 1-2 tbsp of water. mix until no dry flour remains.

3 // on a floured surface, gather the dough into 2 discs and wrap each tightly w/ plastic wrap. refrigerate 30 minutes before using.

there are lots of fantastic pie filling recipes all over the world wide web; however, i cheated & picked up a can of strawberry pie filling. next time i will work from scratch but i was working w/ 2 hours on saturday am before wade returned home.


let the fun begin:

preheat your oven to 400ºF.

1 // on a lightly floured surface, roll out your dough discs one at a time until each is approx 1/8" thick. cut the crust into approx 5" squares and then press each square into a separate mason jar. i found the easiest way to do this was to create a cone w/ the center of your square lowering it into the mason jar.

2 // fill each jar w/ pie filling until about 3/4ths an inch from the top of the jar. w/ the extra dough creature your little tops - this is the fun part! i made several lattice top pies and a few w/ little heart decorations.

3 // add the tops to each jar and press into place. crimp the little edges as best you can. and last but not least - sprinkle the tops w/ a little sugar.

4 // place the prepared pies onto a cookie sheet. bake at 400º for 20 minutes. turn the heat down to 250º & rotate the cookie sheet ... bake for an additional 10 minutes. the crust should be lightly golden & the filling should bubble.

hot & ready:

these yummy little pies will last 2-3 days in your pantry, an additional 2-3 days in your refrigerator and up to 5-6mo in the freezer. who am i kidding though - they would never last 5-6mo! :)

i baked 5 of my little pies and prepared 5 more to freeze for later. a little note: if you plan to freeze your pies before you bake them. make sure that the top of your pies is below the top of your mason jar. well duh, blair.
credits:
bebas - font squirrel 
learning curve - dafont 
blog bling - pugly pixel 
underwood champion - font squirrel