Gobble Gobble on this post-Thanksgiving meal

Happy Thanksgiving friends! I considered doing the traditional post on, "my favorite dishes", celebrating this Turkey Day, but I decided to change things up a bit...going with something a little more practical, and figure-friendly (since that's what we are all thinking about now, our weight or staying in shape!) While I have no shame or guilt in pigging out on this beloved holiday (oh, and I so did!), I also feel like the day after Thanksgiving, also known as, Black Friday was titled it's ominous name, from regretful over indulgence, undoubtedly happening the day before... like really, I'm still hungry the day after Thanksgiving?! (surprise, surprise!) The first thing I did this morning was a eat a bowl of cereal, still no shame...

So the real question is, what can I eat, the days after Thanksgiving, without feeling like a hefer? the answer is, spaghetti squash my dear friends. Trick yourself into a fake carb overload by tossing your favorite sauce (think pesto, marinara, bolognese etc.) with spaghetti squash. I know your stomaches have already been stretched by Thanksgiving, so this dish is perfect for getting it back into shape, without compromising big flavors and skimping on fullness!

My recipe below includes instructions on preparing spaghetti squash, as well as a hearty, yet healthy Turkey Bolognese sauce. What I love about making my own bolognese is that I can control the amount of ingredients that go into it and it can be frozen and saved for a lazy, rainy day or, perhaps, the days after Thanksgiving part deux, also known as Christmas!

So go ahead and indulge in a delicious dinner that's under 350 calories. You'll fool everyone with how meaty this dish is and how full everyone will feel!

Spaghetti Squash with Homemade Turkey Bolognese

Perfect for a rainy day or post-holiday meal that feeds a crowd!

Adapted from Personal Chef Appraoch

Ingredients:

• 1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise, with the seeds and pulp removed
• 1 28 oz. can season diced tomatoes ( or unseasoned, whichever you prefer)
• 1 1/4 lbs. lean ground turkey
• 2 Tbl. olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 Tbl. red wine (optional)
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• pinch of cayenne pepper (for ground turkey)

Directions:

Instructions for roasting spaghetti squash:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Rinse Squash and cut, lengthwise. Remove seeds and stringy pulp. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 
3. In a baking dish, fill dish with 1/2 inch of water. Place squash in water bed and bake for 30-35 minutes. 
4. Remove from oven and water bed and let it stand for 5 minutes until cool enough to touch. 
5. With a fork, begin scraping the inside of the squash. The squash will peel into strings, looking like long pieces of spaghetti. One squash makes about 2 1/2 cups of "spaghetti". Store unused spaghetti in air tight container for up to several days.

Squash disguised as spaghetti!

Instructions for turkey bolognese: 

1. Heat 1 Tbl. of olive oil in a non-stick pan. Add ground turkey and break up into pieces with a wooden spoon. Season with pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder and Italian seasoning, to taste.  Cook turkey until no longer pink, for about 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
2. Remove turkey from heat and place on plate. To keep turkey warm, place plate in the microwave to insulate heat. 
3. In the same pan, add 1 Tbl. olive oil, chopped onions and carrots. Cook  on medium-high heat, until soft, about 6-8 minutes. Add chopped garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. 
4. Add can of crushed tomatoes, red wine and season with Italian seasoning, oregano, basil, salt and pepper to taste. Let this simmer for about 15 minutes. 
5. Remove from heat and add cooked ground turkey.
6. Plate spaghetti squash and top with bolognese. Garnish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and basil. 

Sometimes You've Got To Try S'more

Well Oreo and marshallow sounded like a dream pairing to me, heaven in a cupcake! I was eager to try baking these ooey, gooey, decadent, triple chocolate chip cupcakes, until I realized something terrible had gone wrong. And so I learned a quite a few things about baking with marshmallows (trust me, they are tricky buggers!):

1. Placing a marshmallow in the middle of a cupcake liner makes it pretty difficult to fill the rest of the cupcake with batter. If your batter is thin, consider yourself lucky; if it's on the thicker side, using your fingers is a must.

2. Leave these cupcakes (and perhaps other recipes containing marshmallow) in the over for a tad bit longer, and your marshmallow with evaporate completely! WOMP! (sorry for those few that won't be biting into a s'more surprise!) Luckily, there is a ton of chocolate so you'll get a nice sugar rush still.

3. Expect the marshmallow to overflow a bit, it's not you, it's the marshmallow. Better to undercook these guys than overcook them. Take a look at Batch #2, undercooking actually can lead to a caved in cupcake and some cracking.

Note to self: NEVER buy cupcake liners for Crate & Barrel! They are cheap, cake sticks to the them no matter what, so you must gnaw at your cupcake with your teeth like a barbarian!

I'd like to remake these cupcakes again someday, as they certainly did not turn out the way I expected them too, but the s'more you learn the s'more you know, right?! Yes, I took this s'more thing out of hand, apologies.

Moral of this mishap: Try making these again!

Below a recap, in photos, of the s'more catastrophe, recipe is linked above and here:

Evaporated marshmallow center

Batch #2, a little undercooked, but definitely on to something here!

Caving and cracking, baking is truly a science to be mastered!

Cheap cupcake liners do this.  

See the surprise...

And now you don't! Cupcakes should come out easily, like this one

I'll definitely need to try this recipe again, this time using different liners and adjusting the amount of time they bake in the over (perhaps, also the temperature?)

One day I'll find my baking sweet spot with this one...until then, I'll just have to keep trying!

Go Sassy or Go Home!

You may have noticed a few new changes to Kneading Sass. I'm finally getting around to using my logo, wherever I can, including as the header for this blog! I've also, kindly spammed many of you to like, share and follow my Facebook page found here. (See how I am shamelessly promoting it again!) An just in case you are curious, my Twitter handle is @KneadingSass.

Now that we've got business out of the way...it's time to talk about food... and chicken breast to be exact! Chicken is a very versatile meat and chicken breast can be made a million and one ways. And while that's all fine and dandy, I am notorious for overcooking my chicken. It's pretty awful and I am a bit ashamed to admit it but, frankly, I know many cooking enthusiasts  that are fearful of cooking, chicken (compared to other meats) simply because they are afraid of serving something a little too pink, a tad undercooked...  and well, chicken is one of few meats, that CANNOT be served raw! What a lose/lose, right? Except there is hope!

Breading your chicken is a tried and true way for locking in the natural moisture and juices that make chicken tender and delicious. Let's not forget it creates a wonderful texture and crunch that can really give a little umph to the everyday, boring piece of chicken breast. Now, I know people don't usually equate breading with healthy eating, but using Panko breadcrumbs is a more figure friendly way to bread a sub par piece of chicken.

Panko breadcrumbs are not only less fattening than regular breadcrumbs, but they are much larger than your normal breadcrumbs. You'll need a scant amount of Panko to cover the same amount of surface area as compared to the regular stuff (very scientific sounding I know!) You can also lightly toast your breadcrumbs in a skillet, to bring out its buttery flavor, sans using any butter, as well as add whatever spices to the Panko, to give your chicken even more flavor.

See how I turned that into a win/win?

Goat Cheese, Mozzarella, Olive Stuffed Panko Chicken Breast

So crispy, so delicious

Kneading Sass original 

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breasts partially halved
• 2 oz. favorite goat cheese, about half of a standard-sized log of goat cheese ( I used Cypress Lavender and Honey, it's my favorite herbed goat cheese)
• 2 pieces, sliced, then halved, mozzarella (or use 2 small, handfuls of shredded mozzarella) 
• 1 Tb. chopped olives
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs, seasoned with: dried oregano, dried basil, garlic powder, pepper, Italian seasoning and fresh, grated Parmesan, to taste

Directions: 

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with Pam, any other cooking spray, to prevent chicken from sticking to the sheet. 
2. Half chicken breasts, make a deeps slit, but not cutting in half all the way through. Layer sliced mozzarella, crumble desired amount of goat cheese and sliced olives. This order prevents any of the filling from falling out. 
3. In a shallow dish lightly beat eggs whites. In another shallow dish, mix Panko breadcrumbs and herbs. 
4. Carefully coat chicken in egg white mixture. Using a pastry brush to egg wash the top of the chicken breast would be easiest, instead of turning over stuffed chicken (and possibly losing all the good stuff inside!) 
5. Place chicken breast in the dish with breadcrumbs, using your hands or a spoon to evenly coat the top of the chicken as well. 
6. Place in the oven for about 40 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 170 degrees or no longer pink. 
7. This recipe serves 2, but can easily be scaled up to serve more people. I served this dish with a side of garlicky, cooked spinach. 

Speaking of Pumpkin Pie...

Don't you hate when you get five tins of fudge during the holidays?! Somehow I receive three dozen cookies, each year and I am certain that I can barely get through a dozen of any baked goods, on my own, let alone sharing gifted, baked goods with family and friends. I feel a bit guilty, because whoever took the time, effort and love to make those delicious morsels of holiday goodness, was probably overwhelmed by the number of friends, family and neighbors he or she was expecting to give gifts too...now their homemade fudge that took 2 days to make, is now in the trash. It really is a shame.

But the reality of the matter is that you are embarrassed at the fact that you've doubled up (again!) on generic pumpkin pie from Costco, knowing that probably only half of one pie will be eaten? We've all made this blunder, it's the gesture that counts.

So, now, what's an alternative solution to making baked goods that reflect the warmth and kindness of the holiday seasons, without spending too much time, money and (unintentionally) unrecognized effort? 

The answer is tassies and they are fabulous! At first, I thought tassie was a typo or some made up cutes-y name, but it's a real name to describe a miniature sized pie. It seems to have come from the word "taza", or cup, in Spanish, because that is exactly what it is...a mini pastry cup that holds all of the flavor and decadence of a pie, in one small bite. DEFYING SCIENCE (or so I'd like to think!)

Below is recipe for Pumpkin Almond Tassies; it's buttery, full of vibrant pumpkin spice, a touch of sweet maple and a nice crunch of almonds to finish; it aspires to quell the desire to overindulge, especially alongside other tempting desserts lingering around the Thanksgiving table. 

Behind, a whole slice of pie, in one bite! Pinch yourself, THIS IS REAL.

Pumpkin Almond Tassies

Feel like you can never have too much pumpkin pie!

Adapted from Lauren's Latest

Ingredients:

• 15 oz packaged rolled refrigerated pie crust (2 crusts) (or you can make your own pie crust as well!)
• 3/4 can of pumpkin
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/3 cup of sliced almonds (or any other nut you have on hand would work nicely with this dessert)
• 2 Tb brown sugar
• 1 Tb melted butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• pinch of salt
• maple syrup (optional, for drizzling over cooked tassies)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare mini cupcake tins by unrolling pie crust. Using 2 1/2 inch round cookie cutter.  I used a small leaf-shaped cookie cutter and used 4 leaves to fill the bottoms, ensuring that there were no gaps for the filling to seep through. 
2. To make the filling: combine pumpkin, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Add in egg and stir until combined. Gradually add in milk, until just combined. 
3. For almond topping: stir together almond slices, brown sugar and melted butter.
4. Spoon 1 teaspoon of filling into each pastry-lined cup. Top each with a sprinkling of almond topping.
5. Bake for about 35 minutes, until filling is set and crust has a golden brown coloring. Removing tassies might be difficult when the tin is hot out of the oven; try waiting about five minutes and use a spoon to aid in removing finicky tassies. If desired, when tassies are still warm, top with a drizzle of maple syrup, it should soak up quickly into the filling. 
6. Serve warm or at room temperature. These bad boys would go amazingly with a small dollop of whipped cream. Serving size for this recipe is 24 (or two dozen)

To store: Place tassies in a single layer in an airtight container; cover. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months; thaw about 1 hour at room temperature before serving.

Poppers perfect for any potluck party

See the alliteration going on here? Yes, I went there. So I am very excited to be ramping up Kneading Sass into a catering service, of sorts! It's all very new, exciting and a bit daunting, but I just have to take it with stride and LOTS of sass. 

So I've been cooking up a storm (ah! Sorry no pun intended, especially with Sandy going on), but I have been in the kitchen a good amount, trying new recipes, perfecting old ones and catering to parties more than 6. (Yikes! I can so do this!)

While I've been pinning to my Kneading Sass Pinterest, yes I am shamelessly plugging myself in my own blog, I stumbled upon this great recipe for jalepenos poppers. Now don't get me wrong, I love the deep fried version of these bad boys, but let's be realistic, with the holidays approaching and numerous parties to help us consume deliciously, decadent finger foods, we are in real danger. I wanted to keep the crisp and bite that makes jalepeno poppers so awesome, without compromising on flavor or texture, BUT skipping out on the grease and fat. 

The trick, wonton papers people! Anything wrapped in wonton paper is instantly presentable and gourmet. So let's take this sloppy popper and turn into delicate appetizer, with all the flavor, heat and gooey goodness of the real thing. 

Baked Wonton Jalepeno Poppers

Prior to baking, wrapped and ready to go!

Used my handy Silpat here, baked these bad boys. Next try, I want to try pan frying them!

Adapted from Heart Mind & Seoul

Ingredients:

• 1 can (4 oz.) diced jalepenos 
• 1 package (8 oz.) light cream cheese
• a few handfuls of Mexican blend shredded cheese
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• olive oil or cooking spray, such as Pam
• cookie sheet, lightly greased
• 1/2 package (about 28) wonton wrappers

Directions

1. Combine cream cheese, jalapeno peppers, and spices in a small bowl and mix well. 
2. Place a spoonful of the mixture in the center of wonton wrapper. Wet all edges of the wrapper using fingertips. (Wet your fingertips with water.) Roll gently and seal.
3. Spray the prepared wontons with cooking spray and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until the wrappers are golden brown.
4. Serve with sweet chili sauce. This recipe can be easily doubled, using all of the wonton wrappers. I plan on trying this recipe again, this time pan frying the second batch. 

Galette vs. Pie, it's like Skinny Jeans vs. Sweat Pants

We all know the obvious choice there, now don't we? 

Look, I'm not hater of pie, in fact, I love this time of year because it's totally OK to pig out on pumpkin pie whenever it's around! Since it's seasonal, I feel like you have an excuse, to gorge, but what about the other 9 months of the year? Should I just refrain from pie? But I love cooked fruit!?! (Believe me some people don't like it and I just don't understand those people). The answer is... eat a galette. 

Galette's are like a adult-version of a pie, often made out of pie crust, but without the heaviness of slicing into 3 inches of decadence! The best part is that it swoons with the seasons, so whatever fruits are in season, it will,  for sure, make for a tasty, buttery and sweet galette. Did I mention you can make them savory as well? Smitten Kitchen knows a thing or two about that.

Made this galette for a BYOP (bring your own pumpkin) carving party!

Another great thing about galette's: they are a fast and easy way to make an impressive dessert, without slaving away in the kitchen and using a long list of ingredients you may not have in your kitchen already.

Moral of the Story: If you DO NOT bake, this will make you look like Martha Stewart! I swear. It's even inspired by the French!

Rustic Apple Galette

Note: I used store bought pie crust, but here's a fantastic recipe for making your own pie crust in just 5 minutes. So go ahead, let your inner Martha out!

Adapted from Food and Wine

Ingredients:

• Pre-made, refrigerated pie crust (usually comes in a pack of two, so you can double this recipe and make two galettes if you'd like)
• 3 Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored and sliced in 1/4-inch thick slices
• 1 1/2 tbl. honey or agave
• 2 tbl. sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tbl. unsalted butter, broken into small pieces

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a nonstick baking sheet or cookie sheet lay out pie crust.
2. Lay sliced apples, leaving a 1-inch gap of pie crust. Arrange apples in concentric circles or slightly overlapping to give it a decorative look. 
3. Fold up edges of pie crust to create a 1-inch border. 
4. Drizzle honey or agave over apple slices. In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon, then sprinkle evenly, over apples. Top apples with pieces of butter. 
5. Place in oven for 50 minutes (check around 40 minutes to make sure galette is not burning). Let cool for a few minutes. Serves about 6 hungry ladies, or 12 ladies watching their wasteline. :) Goes great with a side of French Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. 

Redo Remix: This is the BEST Mac n Cheese, slightly amended version

So I felt like my attempt at the "best mac n cheese" was such a failure, the only thing I could do to make it right is to make it ALL over again! Guess what!?! I felt amazing about it after! In fact, I got several compliments on its, light yet creamy texture...all I gotta say is #winningwithgoatcheese.

I wrote a pretty, detailed, list of what I would do differently and I followed it to the tee, making sure to half the recipe (yes, I even used a calculator to make sure I know what half of 1/3 really was). 

A few changes I made included: omitting broccoli, using regular pasta instead of whole grain, leaving out the dried thyme, using less breadcrumb topping, sticking with just white cheddar, amongst other mishaps I redeemed myself from. It felt great, like I made the BEST mac n cheese....I think this could be a side dish winner for this year's Thanksgiving feasting.

Seriously, maybe it was my ego, but I sighed a, big, sigh of relief when this recipe gone wrong,  went right and turned out fabulously. 

Although I have the original recipe on this site, I wanted to add the amended version, in which I HIGHLY, recommend you try instead! 

Ingredients: 

• 6 oz package of center cut bacon ( 1/2 package)
• 1 box shell or elbow macaroni (cooking until just al-dente, or 2-3 suggested cooking time)
• 2 3/4 cups of whole milk, warmed until warm (VERY IMPORTANT STEP!)
• 1 1/2 tbs unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 6 oz shredded sharp white cheddar, divided
• 4 oz herb goat cheese of your choice ( I used a brand called Cypress Grove, its pretty mild, especially since I'm not using any thyme in this recipe)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup seasoned Italian Panko breadcrumbs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter or spray casserole dish and set aside.
2. Boil pasta to directions specifications, shaving 2-3 minutes off of suggested time. Drain pasta and set aside.
3. While pasta is boiling, in a shallow skillet (this is where we will be making our cheesy sauce) cook half package of bacon, until crispy. Set aside cooked bacon on a plate covered with paper towel and let oil drain, then cut into small pieces, when cooled.
4. Saved about 1 -  11/2 tbs of bacon fat, throw the rest away. In the same skillet, melt butter in medium heat. Slowly whisk in flour, about 1 minute, until thick and well-incorporated with the butter. 
5. Add warm milk and begin to whisk flour, butter and bacon fat on medium high heat until this mixture, or roux, thickens and begins to bubble (this takes about 3-4 minutes). 
6. Remove roux from heat and add dry mustard, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Add in 3/4 of white cheddar, reserving the rest of the cheese for pre-breadcrumb topping. Add in total amount of goat cheese and parmesan. Mix until cheeses are melted completely. The sauce should be soupy at this point. Add pieces of bacon. 
7. Stir in cooked pasta to the sauce and mix well. Transfer to greased casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining white cheddar and 1/4 cup of Panko breadcrumbs. 
8. Place in oven for 25 minutes. Make sure breadcrumbs are browning but not burning. Bake for an additional 5 minutes with foil cover if breadcrumbs are not browning. Serve immediately or eat leftovers for a week like me! :)