Good Morning Arizona: Easy Easter Egg Leftovers

If you're like me you LOVE dyeing and hiding Easter eggs with your kiddo, but you're TIRED of the same old leftover hard-boiled egg recipes.  Egg salad sandwiches and deviled eggs are fine, but what about some REALLY delicious, over-the-top, quick and easy brunch or dinner ideas ?!  Now, THAT sounds like something I'd be excited to cook AND eat!

Leftover Easter Egg Brunch Enchiladas

Prep Time: 30 minutes / Cook Time: 30 minutes / Servings: 16 Enchiladas

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Del Real Foods Carnitas
• 16 corn tortillas
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 6 leftover, hard-boiled Easter eggs, peeled and chopped
• 15 oz. can Ranch Style beans with jalapenos
• 1 tbsp. McCormick taco seasoning
• 28 oz. can red enchilada sauce (I use Las Palmas)
• 4 cups shredded Mexican Cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 ripe avocados, sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped, fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper
• non-stick cooking spray

Steps:  

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large saucepan, combine the carnitas, beans and taco seasoning.   Cook on medium heat until all ingredients are combined most of the liquid has evaporated.  Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Spray a separate saucepan with non-stick cooking spray.  Heat on medium heat and add the beaten eggs.  Season with salt and pepper, scramble and cook until 3/4 done. Stir in the leftover hard-boiled eggs and cook until combined and eggs are completely cooked.  Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Warm the tortillas briefly in the microwave for about 1 minute.
5. Spoon some of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a large baking dish.  Arrange the tortillas in the dish like tacos, and fill them individually with some of the meat mixture and some of the egg mixture.  Sprinkle the insides with 1/2 of the cheese and then another spoonful of the enchilada sauce.  Roll them up, placing the open edges down in the baking dish.
6. Cover the enchiladas with the remaining enchilada sauce, then top them with the rest of the cheese.
7. Cover the dish with foil and bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.  Top with sour cream, avocado slices and fresh cilantro.

Leftover Easter Ham & Egg Mac N Cheese

Prep Time: 15 minutes / Cook Time: 75 minutes / Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

• 40 oz. tray frozen macaroni and cheese
• 1 cup diced (leftover)ham
• 3 leftover hard-boiled Easter Eggs
• 1 cup Italian Seasoned bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 stick melted butter

Steps: 

1. Cook macaroni and cheese according to package directions.
2. About 15 minutes before the mac n cheese is done, mix all topping ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
3. Transfer the cooked macaroni and cheese to a deeper glass baking dish and sprinkle the topping on top of the mac and cheese. Continue to cook for 5-10 minutes, until the topping is melted, browned  and crunchy.  
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Good Morning Arizona: Light Spring Dishes

Baked Margherita Spaghetti Squash

OK, it's crunch time.  Bikini season is right around the corner.  We made it through Easter and St. Patty's Day. If we can keep it light until cinco de Mayo, I think we'll be ready for summer!  Here are  a couple of light and easy dishes for spring that will still impress your guests and family!

Baked Margherita Spaghetti Squash

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 45 minutes / Servings: 2

Ingredients:

Baked Margherita
Spaghetti Squash

• 1 large spaghetti squash
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large Roma tomato, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 tsp. each salt & pepper
• 1 tsp. garlic powder

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
2. Using a large knife or a cleaver, slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise down the middle. Use a spoon to remove the seeds and center strings.
3. Drizzle the two halves with olive oil and then sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
4. Place the squash, open side down on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, check to see if the squash is soft and easily comes up with a fork into a spaghetti like texture. If it's too hard to remove, cook for another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, scrape and fluff the stringy squash with a fork. Leave the squash in the skin.
5. Turn the oven up to broil. Add the tomatoes and fresh basil into the squash, stir and top with the mozzarella cheese. Place in the broiler for 3-4 minutes, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving the squash.

Baked Wontons with Lemon Shrimp & Champagne Pesto

Prep Time: 25 minutes / Cook Time: 15 minutes / Servings 12 wontons

Pesto:
Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh basil
• 1 cup Italian parsley 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tbsp. brut champagne
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1/4 tsp. each salt/pepper

Steps:

1. In a food processor, combine all ingredients except for the olive oil. 
2. Pulse until combined, scrape down sides with a spatula, and mix again on high speed for about 10 seconds. Drizzle in olive oil and mix for about 1 minute until smooth.

Lemon Shrimp:
Ingredients:

• 1 lb. shrimp, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• juice of 1/2 lemon (score the peel and save for garnish)
• 2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves (plus 12 small sprigs for garnish)
• 1/4 tsp. each salt/pepper

Steps:

1. Heat the olive oil on high heat in a large skillet. Add the thyme and chives and stir until combined. Add the shrimp, season with salt and pepper and cook on high heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
2.  Turn off heat, add the lemon juice and allow it to steam to finish cooking for about 3 minutes

Wontons:
Ingredients:

• 12 wonton sheets
• 1/2 cup olive oil or non-stick cooking spray

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place the wontons on a cookie sheet and brush the wontons with olive oil or spray with cooking spray on both sides.
3. Bake in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown.

To build:

1. Place a wonton sheet onto an individual appetizer dish. Spoon about 1 tbsp. of the pesto into the center. 
2.  Place 3-4 pieces of the shrimp on top of the pesto. 
3.  Garnish with a few pieces of scored lemon peel and a small sprig of thyme. 

Good Morning Arizona: Iced Easter Sugar Cookies!

LOTS of moms out there are dealing with egg allergies these days, or even kiddos that just don't want to eat the leftover hard-boiled eggs!

This is a great way to carry on the tradition of dyeing and decorating eggs without the leftovers and allergies!

Iced Easter Sugar Cookies

Prep Time: 60 minutes (plus one hour chill time) / Cook Time: 60 minutes / Servings: 24 cookies

Cookies:

Ingredients:

• 1.5 sticks of butter, softened

  

  Iced Easter Sugar Cookies

• 1 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoons baking powder
• .5 teaspoon salt

Steps:

1. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.
2. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light in color and fluffy.  
3. Add the eggs one at a time, and slowly mix in the vanilla.
4. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt, until all ingredients are combined and a loose dough is formed.  Wrap the mixture tightly in plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6. Roll out dough out onto a floured silicone baking mat or parchment paper until the dough is 1/4 inch thick. Use Easter themed cookie cutters to make shapes and transfer the silicone mat or parchment paper to a cookie sheet.
7. Bake for 6-7 minutes at 400 degrees until edges are golden brown.  Cool Completely before frosting with royal icing (recipe follows).

Royal Icing

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 5 minutes / Servings: Ices 24 cookies

Ingredients:

• 5 egg whites
• 1.5 cups granulated sugar
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. clear vanilla extract
• 4-6 tbsp. water (to adjust thickness)
• various food coloring

Steps:

1. In a small saucepan, combine the egg whites and granulated sugar.  Stir constantly on medium heat until the sugar is completely melted and the mixture reaches 160 degrees (this will pasteurize the eggs and kill any bacteria).  Place the mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Whip on high speed for 5-7 minutes until stiff peaks form into a meringue.
2. Reduce the speed to low and add the vanilla extract and the powdered sugar one cup at a time, slowly increasing the speed to incorporate each cup before adding the next.
3. Separate the icing into smaller bowls, adding water, 1 tbsp. at a time to achieve the desired icing thickness (I like to use a thinner, "flood" consistency).
4. Drop food coloring into each bowl as desired, using a toothpick to stream the dye into patterns and shapes on the surface of the icing.
5. Dip the cookies briefly on the top of the icing, face down.  Lift up slowly and allow the excess icing to drip back into the bowl before placing the cookies on a wire cooling rack to set.  Add more food coloring to the icing as needed, or to change the colors/patterns.
6. Allow the cookies to set for 1-2 hours before serving.