Three White Roses- Paintings by: Robin

I have had an Etsy shop for a little over a year now.  I've had a lot of interest in my Hand-Painted Vintage Chairs.  I recently started posting my paintings and had a person interested in a custom order.  She requested three white roses, with cream, french blue, and white.  To view my Etsy shop or to request a custom order, go here: Robin's Wonderland

Grilled Cantaloupe Salad

This is an easy and delicious salad! I made it w/ ingredients I had on hand, but I know it'd be so good with some grilled chicken, pecans, Parmesan or feta cheese, and craisins....just imagine that is all there too!

Ingredients

Mixed lettuce blend

Cantaloupe slices

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

S&P

**Pecans, Craisins, Chicken, Cheese.

1. Season the cantaloupe with salt and pepper on both sides.

2. Heat a grill pan on med-high and drizzle with olive oil. Once the pan is hot, put the cantaloupe on it and let it cook for 2-3 minutes (I put a little balsamic on the cantaloupe). Flip over and grill for another 2 minutes.

3. Put the salad in a bowl and drizzle w/ olive oil and balsamic on top, with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

4. Cut up the grilled cantaloupe and place on top of the salad and enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is my favorite tortilla soup! The trick is the blended tortillas. It adds a little thickness to the soup and also makes it taste more authentic.

1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 Rotisserie Chicken, shredded into decent chunks (mix w/ 1 tbs. chili powder and 1 tbs. cumin) Or you could use 2 chicken breasts

6 Cups of chicken broth

3 tbs. tomato paste

1 can of Rotel, do not drain

1 small can of corn, drained

1/2 onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 jalapeno (keep the seeds if you like spicy)

4 corn tortillas, broken/torn into pieces

Dump everything into your crockpot, but remember to reserve the tortillas and 1 cup of chicken broth. Blend the torn up tortillas with the chicken broth and add into the soup. This will add that authentic masa taste. Cook on low as long as you can!

Top with Avocado, fried tortilla strips, lime, red onion, cilantro, cheese (hand grated and Tillamook), sour cream!

Panera's Cream Cheese Potato Soup

I love this soup. It only has 4 ingredients and is the easiest and most comforting thing, in the world!!!

2 organic potatoes, diced (they don't need to be, but might as well)

1/4 onion, diced

1/2 cup whipped cream cheese, light cream cheese, or regular (at room temp)

4 cups organic chicken broth (doesn't need to be, but it's only a little bit more pricey)

1/2 tsp. salt

Pinch of pepper

1/8 tsp. cayenne (if you like it spicy)

Pinch of Basil

**Optional- Tillamook sharp cheddar & bacon

Put the onion, potatoes, and broth in a large pot and start boiling. When they're all tender, start mashing. (I use an immersion blender to make it more velvety. You could also blend in small batches).

Put the soup back in the pot (if you blended) and put the heat on med-low. Slowly whisk in the cream cheese until it's all incorporated, and repeat until you've added it all. I like to serve these in sourdough bread bowls and top with grated cheese and chopped bacon.

Here's the fatty way:

Cook 4 slices of bacon in your large cooking pot until crispy. Save the drippings and cook with the potatoes and onions. Saute for a few minutes and add the broth and other seasonings. Follow the above instructions for the remainder of the recipe. Enjoy!

Baked Spicy Chicken Nuggets

I love chicken nuggets, but refuse to eat them from any fast food or restaurant because it's not real meat! Here's a great solution for your chicken nugget cravings.

1 lb chicken tenders (you can cut them into chunks to make nuggets or leave them whole)

1 cup flour (seasoned with 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, and garlic powder)

1-2 egg(s), beaten

1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs

Vegetable oil

**Honey Mustard- gotta have it!

1/4 cup mayo (real, no miracle whip)!

1 tbs. mustard

1 tbs. honey

**Whisk altogether and put in fridge until ready to use.

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees, and lightly oil a large baking sheet.

In 3 shallow bowls, put the flour in one, egg in the other, and panko in the last one. (I also like to shake the chicken with the flour in a large bag and then do the egg and panko, I think it's a little faster).

Pat dry the chicken with paper towels and start dipping.

With one hand, dredge the chicken in the flour first, followed by the egg, and then coat well with the panko. Put it on the pan, and repeat, repeat, repeat.

When all your yummy tenders are on the pan, brush each piece of chicken with a dab of oil. Bake for 10-12 minutes, flip them over, and continue baking until crispy (about 10 more min). Side note: if you made little nuggets, you will not need to bake them as long. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

My favorite peanut butter chocolate chip cookie is from Whole Foods.  I recently checked out their website to see if they happened to post their recipes...they do! I was so excited and have made these a few times since, they taste just like them!

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Roasted peanuts, bittersweet chocolate and just a touch of salt, what's not to love? These cookies are downright irresistible.

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
Fleur de sel, to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and baking powder and add to peanut butter mixture, stirring to combine well. Stir in chopped peanuts and chocolate chips.

Drop generous spoonfuls of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Press each mound of dough with a fork to flatten slightly.

Bake until bottom of cookies are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle immediately with fleur de sel to taste. Let cookies cool on sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Stuffed Portabella Pizza in a Cashew Basil Cheese Sauce (vegan)

These were pretty good! I found this recipe on: Oh She Glows

Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 10-12 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 8 Portabella mushrooms

• 2 cups pizza sauce

• Vegan Cashew Basil Cheese Sauce (see recipe below)

• 1/3 cup of each: red, green, orange pepper, diced

• 1/3 cup sweet onion, diced

• 2-3 large basil leaves, finely diced

• 1 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions: Preheat oven by setting the broiler on low. Take a baking sheet and cover with a silicone non-stick baking mat or parchment paper for easy clean up. Make your Vegan Cashew Basil cheese sauce by using the recipe below. Set aside. Remove stems of Portabellas and gently rub Portabellas with a wet cloth to clean. Place Portabellas ‘belly’ side up on the baking sheet. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of pizza sauce into each Portabella. Now spoon about 2 teaspoons of Vegan Cashew basil Cheese Sauce on top of the pizza sauce (see recipe below). Grab a cutting board and knife and chop the onion and pepper and then sprinkle onto Portabellas. Finally, shake on some red pepper flakes and sprinkle finely diced basil on top. Broil in the oven on the lowest temperature setting on the middle rack for about 10-12 minutes, watching closely as broiler temperatures vary. Serve immediately and enjoy! Serves 3-4.

Vegan Cashew Basil Cheese Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw cashews

• 1/3-1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt, to taste

• 1/2 tsp cold-pressed sunflower oil

• 1 fresh basil leaf

• 1 small clove garlic

• 1.5 tbsp nutritional yeast(found in the bins at whole foods)

• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Directions: Place 1 cup of raw cashews in a bowl of water, cover, and soak overnight in the fridge. When cashews are ready, drain and place all ingredients (cashews, Himalayan sea salt, cold-pressed sunflower oil, basil, garlic, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice) into a food processor and process until smooth, stopping to scrape sides of processor as necessary. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Place any leftover cheese in a container in the fridge and enjoy with chopped vegetables, crackers, bread, and chips!