while away from the blog, i discovered another site (huge time consumer) called pinterest.  don’t get me wrong, i LOVE pinterest and all of the ideas that it gives me, but it is very addictive.  i’m getting better with it, but for a while, it was pin pin pin pin pin pin pin pin. fellow pinners, you can relate.  :)  if you’re reading this blog and are a fellow pinner, you can follow my pins here: http://pinterest.com/jshoe84/pins/.

any hootenanny, this recipe was inspired by a pin from pinterest.  it’s very rich, but has lots of flavors going on.  the original recipe called for marscapone cheese, but i had a coupon for philadelphia italian cheese and herb cooking creme.  it was very good in this recipe.  next time, i may stick with the plain ol original flavor, and let the flavors from the ingredients really come through.  also, make half as much and serve it with a light salad or veggie dish.  it’s still very flavorful and i highly recommend it!

source: italianfoodforever.com

• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 pkg philadelphia cooking creme, original flavor
• pepper, to taste
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins
• 1 1/2 tbsp evoo
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/3 c chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 9 oz. bag baby spinach
• 1/2 package pasta (i used rigatoni, but you can use shells or whatever you’ve got around)
• grated parmesan cheese, to top

i’m all for food that is cheesy and delicious.  this definitely fits in that category.  when we go to applebee’s, tom normally orders the appetizer sampler platter and shares his spinach artichoke dip with me, so i can pick out the artichokes for him.   it’s a win-win situation.  you can easily add artichokes to this recipe, just drain a can of them and chop them up into bite sized pieces.  we keep things artichoke free around here, though.

you could use the base and make a seafood dip substituting the spinach for crab meat, lobster pieces and shrimp.   i’ll have to try that next!

• 1/2 jar of roasted garlic alfredo sauce
• 1/3 c grated parmeggiano reggiano cheese
• 1 1/2 c grated mozzarella cheese
• 1 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 4 oz. cream cheese

1. preheat oven to 350°.
2. in a medium bowl, mix together all ingredients together well, reserving 1/2 c grated mozzarella cheese for the top.
3. spread in a 8″ pie dish, top with remaining mozzarella.
4. bake for 30 min. or until brown and bubbly.

enjoy!

when you first see the ingredients to this salad, you’ll think eww.  that sounds awful.  but it’s not.  it’s quite delicious.  in fact, it was the first ranch dressing free salad i ever liked!

• 2 pkg. fresh baby spinach, rinsed and dried
• 1 1/2 qt. fresh strawberries, sliced
• dried cherries
• slivered almonds

dressing:

• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 c apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/2 c vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp poppy seeds
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds

1. in a large serving bowl, toss together the spinach, strawberries, cherries and almonds.  refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. in a salad dressing shaker, combine all ingredients shaking well.  refrigerate until ready to serve.
3. when ready to serve, toss salad with dressing.*

*if you’re not planning on eating the salad in one sitting, i would not recommend tossing the dressing into the salad.  i’d serve the dressing on the side, that way your leftovers will be fresh.

enjoy!