Author Archives: Tracy Briggs

The Great Indoors: Grilled Romaine with Roasted Garlic Caesar Dressing

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I was excited when I heard I would get to cook with a man who once called Mickey Mouse “Boss.” Tim Rosendahl’s culinary resume is longer than a shish kabob skewer. Rosendahl is a native of Fargo and a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. His prestigious career has included stints at Red Lobster as vice president of food and beverages and at Walt Disney World as executive chef instructor and administrator of culinary development. But now he’s back home in Fargo to share his cooking wisdom with all of us. He’s teaching classes at Square One Rental Kitchen and Event Center, a facility in North Fargo which is available to professional caterers and amateur chefs alike for food and party preparations. The day we met Rosendahl snow was still on the ground and the winds were brisk, but we were thinking warmth and a tasty spin on a crisp, refreshing summer salad. Rosendahl showed us how to make a Grilled Romaine Salad with Roasted Garlic Caesar Dressing. I had a hard time picturing that grilled lettuce could taste anything but wilty, but I was wrong. Slightly grilling the beautiful leaves brought out flavors in the romaine that otherwise might be hidden. And his homemade Caesar dressing far exceeded the store-bought dressings I’ve had. It was crisp, flavorful, and delicious. Mickey would be proud.

Grilled Romaine with Roasted Garlic Caesar Dressing
Portions: 6
Ingredients:
1 head of Romaine, (cut into 1/6) leave stem attached
4- Egg Yolks
2- T Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded
3- T Roasted Garlic
1- t Anchovy, chopped fine or paste
12oz. – Olive Oil
1- Lemon Juice and Zest, chopped fine
1T- Worcestershire Sauce
Fresh ground Tri- Color Black Peppercorns, to taste

1. Put egg yolks, Dijon mustard, garlic, parmesan and anchovy’s in blender or food processor. Mix for 15 seconds.
2. Slowly drizzle olive oil into mixture on high speed.
3. While mixing add lemon juice, zest, Worcestershire sauce and black pepper.
4. Season to taste with more roasted garlic, pepper or lemon. Refrigerate immediately.
Keep refrigerated at all times.
5. Drizzle romaine wedges in olive oil and either grill or sear. Very hot.

Serve: Over freshly grilled romaine wedges

Garnishing ideas:
- grilled shrimp, chicken, or scallops
- seared anchovy fillets
- seared thin sliced lemons
- shredded parmesan cheese
- warm croutons
- grilled tomato wedges

For more information on Square One Rental Kitchens and Rosendahl’s classes go to: squareonekitchens.com.

The Great Indoors: Sorbet for the Sweet Tooth

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My name is Tracy and I have a sweet tooth. Always have. Probably always will. There’s nothing inherently wrong with those
of us who need a little something sweet everyday. (In fact, I like to think it makes us extra sweet people. Yeah, I know. Whatever, right?) But too much sugar
is definitely not a good thing. So how do you satisfy the sweet tooth without sabotaging the diet?

Tanya Friesen of Ette Nutrition, a website that promotes healthy family living, says it can be done.

The trick isn’t to avoid your favorite sugar-filled snacks altogether, but rather enjoy a lower calorie treat, yet similar
alternative.

This Strawberry Banana Sorbet is a great way to tame that sweet tooth while gaining vital
nutrients. Most importantly, you won’t feel like you’re depriving yourself of your favorite treats,
which can help you stick with your weight loss journey for the long run.

Strawberry Banana Sorbet

Ingredients

¾ cup Sobe Lifewater Strawberry Dragonfruit Flavor

1 (14 oz.) package Dole Ready-Cut Fruit Strawberries & Bananas (for best results allow to thaw for 15 minutes)

4 Pure Stevia packets

Directions:

1 Place all ingredients into a Vitamix container or use a blender. Secure lid.

2 Select Low speed. Turn machine on and then switch to High speed. Use a tamper to press the
ingredients into the blades.

3 Mix for 30 to 60 seconds. Stop machine. Do not over mix or melting will occur. Divide recipe evenly
into 4 serving dishes and serve immediately .

Nutritional Information: Serving Size: ¼ of recipe, Serving Per Recipe 4, Total Fat 0g, Total Carbohydrates
18g, Protein 1g

The Great Indoors: Fantastic Cauliflower Crust Pizza – Seriously, I’m not kidding.

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I have to admit I haven’t always been on board when someone suggests I substitute a favorite ingredient for something more healthful. Don’t get me wrong sometimes it’s a giant hit (non-fat Greek yogurt can be a nice substitute for sour cream or mayonnaise), but other times it falls far short (I have a hard time using applesauce instead of butter or sugar when I bake.) But in the case of today’s recipe, I’m happy to say this healthful substitution is a home run.

It’s called Cauliflower Crust Pizza and it’s from my friend Tanya Friesen, the owner of Ette Lifestyle, a business which helps families lead healthier lives.

It sounds a little odd, but using cauliflower in your pizza crust is a great idea and it saves on calories and carbohydrates while increasing your fiber intake.

BBQ Chicken Cauliflower Pizza

CRUST:
1/2 LARGE head cauliflower (or 2+ cups shredded cauliflower)
1 large egg
1/4 cup Mozzarella 2% Shredded Cheese (or try another kind!)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion salt

TOPPINGS:
¼ cup Kraft Honey Barbecue Sauce
¼ cup Onion
4 oz. Deli-fresh Grilled Chicken Breast, diced (or use fresh)
1/2 cup 2% Mexican Style Shredded Cheese

Directions:

1. Rice cauliflower into small crumbles. You can use the food processor if you’d like, but you
just want crumbles, not puree. You’ll need a total of about 2 cups or so of cauliflower crumbles
(which is about half a large head of cauliflower). Place the cauliflower crumbles in a large bowl
and microwave for 8 minutes.

2. Prepare the crust: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spray a cookie sheet or pizza pan
with nonstick spray or place a piece of parchment paper on pan. In a medium bowl, mix the
cauliflower crumbles with the remaining crust ingredients. Pat the “crust” into a 9 to 12-inch
round on the prepared pan. Bake cauliflower crust for 15 minutes (or until golden). Remove the
crust from the oven and turn the heat up to broil.

3. Prepare the pizza: Spread the BBQ sauce on top of the baked crust, leaving a 1/2-inch border
around the edge. Sprinkle chicken, onion and cheese on top. Broil the pizza 3 to 4 minutes,
or until the toppings are hot and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Cut into 4 slices and serve
immediately.

Nutritional Information: Serving Size ¼ of pizza, Serving Per Recipe: 4, Total Fat 6g, Total Carbohydrates
14g, Protein 16g.

Find this recipe and many more at facebook.com/ettelifestyle or learn more about losing weight without
losing the lifestyle by visiting www.ettelifestyle.com. Tanya will also be starting a new blog on Areavoices in the coming weeks.

The Great Indoors: Peanut Butter Oat Bars

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Is there anything good about this winter not wanting to end? An outdoor Easter egg hunt next week doesn’t look like a good idea, it’s hard to imagine we’ll be playing any rounds of golf anytime soon, and lazy days at the lake seem as far away as ever. Now that I’ve depressed all of us, let’s try and look on the bright side. There are no mosquitoes and there’s still time to enjoy warm, gooey comfort desserts that seem tastiest on blustery days.

Hannah Johnson is the host of Concordia College’s Cooking show and also a reporter at KVRR-TV. We wanted to get her off campus to share some of her favorite recipes.This one just happens to be one of those sweet concoctions that seem best suited for cold days. Johnson says her grandmother makes these Peanut Butter Oat Bars. She says she and her family enjoy them every year and they’re really easy to make. If we must endure winter in March at least we can make it a little sweeter.

Peanut Butter Oat Bars:

2/3 cup butter melted
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp vanilla
4 cups quick-cooking oatmeal

Topping:
1 cup milk chocolate chips (Hannah prefers milk chocolate. Tracy votes semi-sweet).
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1/3 cup peanut butter

In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and vanilla: gradually add the oatmeal. Press into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake 400 degrees for 12 – 14 min or until edges are golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, for topping, melt chips and peanut butter in micro or saucepan. Stir until blended. Spread over warm bars. Cool completely; refrigerate for 2-3 hours before cutting.

The Great Indoors: Irish “Potato” Candies

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When you’re talking about St. Patrick’s Day cuisine most likely the staples come to mind: corned beef and cabbage, Irish stew, Irish soda bread, and of course green beer. But how often do you hear about dessert? We know the Irish are a fun-loving people so why wouldn’t they enjoy something sweet after dinner? One of my favorite Irish people certainly does. Kathleen Boyle Wrigley is North Dakota’s 2nd lady (husband Drew Wrigley is the lieutenant governor). She says growing up in Philadelphia, St. Patrick’s Day was always a big deal for her very Irish family and Irish Potato Candies were a must for dessert.
This recipe doesn’t actually use any potatoes. The sweet candied balls rolled in cinnamon simply look like potatoes. Consider it a sweet nod to Irish culinary culture. For your St. Patrick’s Day party plate them surrounding a loaf of Irish soda bread or serve them along with a glass of Bailey’s Irish Crème. I think they’re also good served with graham crackers or vanilla wafers. They’re super easy to make, so you’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the party – green beer and all!

Irish Potato Candies

Ingredients:
¼ cup butter, softened
1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
4 -5 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 1/2 cups flaked coconut
1-2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
In a medium bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the vanilla and confectioners’ sugar; beat until smooth. Mix in the coconut. Roll into balls or potato shapes, and roll in the cinnamon. Place onto a cookie sheet and chill to set. If desired, roll potatoes in cinnamon again for darker color.

The Great Indoors: Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

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When I heard that Forum reporter Anna Larson was doing a story on desserts that you make that contain alcohol, I was intrigued. I love a nice dessert and a nice after dinner cocktail. But why not be efficient and combine the two?

She was nice enough to show me how to make one of her favorite desserts: Chocolate Stout Cupcakes. She took the recipe from Dave Lieberman of The Food Network. But she made a few changes, most notably to the frosting, which is, and I’m not exaggerating,THE BEST FROSTING I’VE EVER HAD.

Here is Lieberman’s recipe with a few changes from Anna.

Ingredients
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups sugar
2 cups all-purposeflour
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch fine salt
1 12 oz bottle stout beer (recommended: Guinness)
1 stick butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or vanilla paste
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened at room temperature
3/4 to 1 cup heavy cream
1 (1-pound) box confectioners’ sugar
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt.

In another medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at time. Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.

Lightly grease 24 muffin tins or use paper liners. Divide the batter equally between muffin tins, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for about 12 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake another 12 to 13 minutes until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender.

Icing:

Two 8-oz. packages of reduced-fat cream cheese (Don’t use fat-free cream cheese! It won’t taste the same.)
2 to 3 cups of powdered sugar, sifted to remove lumps if you wish
1 stick of butter
1 tsp of vanilla extract or 1/4 tsp of vanilla bean paste
splash of heavy cream

Allow the cream cheese and butter to come to room temperature. Beat the cream cheese to soften it; add the butter. Beat to combine.

Slowly add the powdered sugar until you have a consistency that holds some shape. Add the vanilla and splash of heavy cream. You may need more powdered sugar after this step if you plan to pipe the frosting.

The Great Indoors: How to make Bacon Roses

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I’m not sure when I first started to notice that people on Facebook had gone a little nuts. Well, let’s qualify that. Some people on Facebook have always been a little nuts. But about a year ago, I began to see a really weird obsession: people posting their love of bacon.

We’re not talking about, “yeah, it tastes pretty good with scrambled eggs.” We’re talking mind-numbing hero worship. An all out Baconpalooza. Here are just a few examples you’ll find when you type “Bacon Mania” into Google. There are recipes for bacon milkshakes, bacon brittle, bacon popcorn, bacon chocolate chip cookies. Stores are selling bacon air freshener and bacon soda. Even Burger King was selling a bacon sundae.

So in honor of National Pig Day tomorrow we wanted to get into the act and make for you the most romantic of bacon creations: bacon roses.

Basically, it’s bacon strips rolled to look like tiny roses. A great option for your bacon loving loved ones. Unlike real flowers they won’t die, but they might raise your cholesterol.

My co-worker Josh Thomas scanned recipes all over the internet for the easiest way to make these little delicacies. Some require you to drill holes in your favorite muffin pan. But because I care deeply for my Pampered Chef ware, I will not do that. Josh found an easier and just as delicious way to achieve the perfect bacon roses.

What you’ll need:

One package bacon – any kind
toothpicks
fake flowers with flowers pulled off
mini muffin pan or regular muffin pan
cooling rack
parchment paper
cookie sheet

Start by tightly rolling bacon strips. Try to make the straightest edge of the strip the bottom of the rose. With the curviest edge of the strip, it will give a more authentic look to your bacon “petals.” After rolling the bacon, secure in place with a toothpick and place in mini muffin tin. If you only have a regular muffin pan, you can place two “roses” in each cup. One all roses are rolled place in preheated 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven and carefully place “roses” on a cooling rack on a parchment lined cookie sheet. If you don’t take the “roses” out of the muffin cups at this point, bacon grease might overflow from the cups. Place the cookie sheet back in oven for another 10-20 minutes depending on how crispy you like your bacon. Once the bacon has cooled for a few minutes. Secure them onto the fake flower stems. Place in a vase and watch your loved ones smile and probably need a glass of water.

The Great Indoors – Woody’s Spaghetti Sauce

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Who doesn’t love a good spaghetti sauce especially when it’s packed with healthful, filling ingredients?

That’s what Concordia College Cooking Show Host and KVRR Reporter Hannah Johnson showed me on this weeks’ Great Indoors.

“Woody’s Spaghetti Sauce” is named for Hannah’s grandfather who made the sauce as long as she can remember. Not only is it easy to make, it’s delicious, and it’s a good way to sneak your veggies into your diet. Power packed with flavor and nutrition.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1 cup sliced celery
1/2 cup sliced zucchini
1/2 cup green peppers
black pepper
Optional: asparagus, broccoli and other kind of vegetable you like
28 oz can tomato sauce
6 slices of bacon – cooked
Spaghetti noodles

Heat olive oil in sauce pan at medium high heat. Add onions and garlic until onion sweats. Add vegetables and saute until crisp tender. Add 28 oz can of tomato sauce. Add crumbled slices of bacon to the sauce. Sprinkle with black pepper and serve over cooked spaghetti noodles.

The Two Biggest Mistakes in Chocolate Dipped Strawberries and A Strawberry Margarita for Chocolate Lovers

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Valentine’s Day is here and for those of you in a panic that you haven’t done anything special for your amour there’s still time and it comes courtesy a popular Valentine’s Day culinary pairing.

Chocolate and Strawberries go together like Romeo and Juliet, Cleopatra and Mark Antony, or Taylor Swift and boyfriend du jour.

What’s better is the two of them together (strawberries and chocolate not Taylor Swift and whomever) are not only romantic but part of a fuss-free holiday.

We have two recipes that you can whip up tonight and still score points with your sweetie.

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

You might ask, why do I need a recipe for this? Seems pretty straight forward. However, believe it or not this is one of those recipes that is easy to screw up. But not if you avoid the two biggest mistakes in chocolate dipped strawberries.

Ingredients:

Strawberries
Toothpicks
12 oz package chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate)
waxed paper

Wash your strawberries the night before you dip them. Spread them out on a cookie sheet and make sure they’re as dry as possible. That is mistake #1. If the strawberries are wet the chocolate won’t stick. Put toothpicks through top of strawberries for easier handling.

Pour chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Set microwave for 1:30 at high power. Stop every 15 seconds or so to check chips and stir. Don’t over melt them. This is mistake #2. Whether you use a double boiler or microwave – SLOWLY MELT your chips. If the chips get too hot, the chocolate will seize up and there is no saving it. In fact, let some of the chips remain unmelted. They’ll melt as soon as you stir them together with the melted chips.

Once chocolate is melted, dip strawberries.(If you prefer, after dipping the chocolates in strawberries dip them in coconut, peanuts or sprinkles.) Rest on waxed paper lined cookie sheet and let sit for a few minutes in a cool spot.

Chocolate Lovers Strawberry Margarita

Who doesn’t love a margarita? But there’s a way to improve the traditional strawberry margarita for your favorite chocoholic.

Ingredients:

Chocolate Milk
Strawberry Margarita or Daiquiri Mix
Tequila
Crushed Ice

Mix 3 parts chocolate milk to 2 parts strawberry mix to 1 part tequila. Pour over crushed ice and garnish with chocolate covered strawberry. How easy is that?

What to do with all of those old T-shirts

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It seems like everytime you turn around someone is giving you a t-shirt. You run a race, you join a club, you give money to a fundraiser. You get a shirt, you get a shirt, you get a shirt.

The thought is nice, but after awhile that shirt drawer is stuffed. Some inventive crafty types make them into adorable t-shirt quilts (We’ll save that one for another day).

But if you have a little less time, LaurelLee Loftsgard has a really fun way to repurpose those old t-shirts.

T-shirt Scarves add a little color to an otherwise drab outfit and because they’re cotton they’re washable and comfy too.

In this week’s “The Great Indoors with Tracy Briggs” LaurelLee walks you through how to make one.

Find a t-shirt (extra large work best, but any size will do)

Cut off the sleeves.

From the cut-off sleeves cut three small strips of fabric. They should be about 6 inches long. These will be used to tie the scarf.

Then cut 9 strips of fabric (about an inch thick) out of the main body of the t-shirt. (Make sure you cut off the seam of the shirt first)

You’ll have 9 circles of fabric. Cut them so they become 9 long strips.

Grab the strips in a bunch and tie them together at the top with one strip of fabric from the t-shirt sleeve.

Divide the 9 fabric strips into 3 bunches and start braiding. When you have the amount of braid you like, tie it off with the second piece of fabric from the sleeve.

Put it around your neck. Tie the final sleeve strip to the two ends to secure in place.

And best of all, you can use the room you’ve saved in your T-shirt drawer for something else!