Wednesday Recipes

We're half-way through the week; if we made it this far, we can hopefully make it to the weekend. Here are six recipes to help you through the day, including "Low-Rent" Tuna Poke Bowl and Easy Tuna Carbonara. Enjoy!

EASY RASPBERRY BROWNIES

This comes from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list, and begins, “Based on a fudgy brownie mix, these quick-to-fix brownies combine the best of sweet flavors and chewy textures. Mmm!”

Ingredients

1 package (1 pound 3.8 ounces) Betty Crocker® fudge brownie mix

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup raspberry preserves

1 ounce unsweetened baking chocolate

1 tablespoon butter or margarine

Directions

Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease bottom only of rectangular pan, 13x9x2 inches. Stir brownie mix, water, oil and eggs in medium bowl until well blended. Spread in pan.

Bake 28 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out clean or almost clean. Cool completely in pan on wire rack, about 1 hour.

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar and preserves in small bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Spread over brownies. Refrigerate 15 minutes.

Place chocolate and butter in small microwavable bowl. Microwave uncovered on Medium (50%) about 1 minute or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Drizzle over brownies. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until chocolate is firm. For 18 brownies, cut 6 rows by 3 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

APRICOT COBBLER SUPREME

This also comes from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list.

Ingredients

1 egg

1 cup sugar

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 tbs melted shortening

2 cups cooked apricots, sweetened

Directions

Beat egg and sugar until creamy. Sift flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk and vanilla to creamed mixture; add shortening. Put fruit in greased baking dish; pour in batter. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes or until batter is done. Serve warm with cream or ice cream.

Any type fruit, fresh or canned, may be substituted for apricots. If using fresh fruit, sprinkle with 1cup sugar and heat before pouring in batter. Enjoy!

EASY 30-MINUTE MEXICAN ENCHILADAS

This is from Chelsea Kenyon of The Spruce Eats. Chelsea wrote, “This easy Mexican enchiladas recipe takes only 30 minutes to prepare for a filling family meal. They can be prepared simply with just cheese, or be spruced up by adding a little bit of beef or chicken to appeal to the meat eaters in your household.

“Warning: The sauce can make things a bit messy, so wear an apron!

“For step-by-step instructions, we recommend checking out our photo tutorial on how to make Mexican enchiladas.”

Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Yield: 4 servings Mexican enchiladas.

Ingredients

1 cup cooking oil

16 corn tortillas

1 (28-ounce) can enchilada sauce (or 1 recipe homemade red enchilada sauce)

2 cups cheese (such as mozzarella or queso blanco, grated or shredded)

1/2 cup Cotija cheese

Optional: 1 1/2 cups cooked shredded beef, chicken, or pork

Directions

Heat oven to 400 F.

Pour oil into a medium-sized saucepan and heat until it's hot, but not sizzling. You want to warm the tortillas in the oil, not fry them.

Using tongs, dip each tortilla, one at a time, into the hot oil until it is warmed through and pliable. Remove tortilla from oil and drain it briefly on a paper towel.

Pour just enough sauce in the bottom of a 13x9-inch glass baking dish to cover it. Pour the rest of the sauce in a large bowl. Dip a warm tortilla into the sauce and then place it in the bottom of the baking dish.

Place a little less than 1/4 cup of cheese down the center of the tortilla. If you are adding meat, use a little less cheese. Fold half of the tortilla over the cheese, then the other half, so that the tortilla is rolled around the cheese. Turn it over so it is seam-side down and the weight of the cheese will help keep it in place.

Repeat each of those steps for each of the tortillas making two layers of enchiladas in the dish, if necessary. Pour any remaining sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Sprinkle the Cotija cheese over the enchiladas.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until enchiladas are hot throughout and cheese is melted.

Serve your enchiladas with a spatula, four to a plate.

Authentic vs. Modern Enchiladas

In their simplest form, authentic enchiladas are simply corn tortillas dipped in a chile sauce and eaten with a fork. They might or might not have a filling and are sometimes topped with a sprinkling of grated cheese or a drizzle of cream.

As enchiladas became popular across the Southwestern United States, they evolved into an oven-baked dish as that appliance is used more commonly in North America than South of the Border. Enchiladas are now associated with the casserole classic that we know today.

EASY TUNA CARBONARA

This comes from Linda Larsen on The Spruce Eats. Linda wrote, “This recipe for Tuna Carbonara is ready to eat in about 20 minutes, start to finish. It uses ingredients you most likely have on hand in your pantry, fridge, and freezer, so it's a great choice to make when you haven't been to the store for a while or if you're stranded due to weather or illness.

“You can substitute leftover cooked tuna, or salmon for that matter, for the canned tuna in this recipe or use canned salmon or canned chicken if you'd like. The whole point of a recipe like this is to use what you have in the house. If you don't have bell peppers, use sliced mushrooms or some sliced zucchini, grated carrots, or yellow summer squash. If you don't have pasta, linguine or fettuccine will do just fine. The only things you really need for this recipe are some kind of pasta, bacon, eggs, cream, tuna, and Parmesan or Romano cheese.”

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Yield: 4 servings.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1 8-ounce package spaghetti pasta

4 slices bacon

4 eggs (beaten)

3 tablespoons heavy cream

2 tablespoons butter (melted)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 red bell pepper (cut into strips)

3 cloves minced garlic

1 onion (chopped)

1 6-ounce can white tuna (drained)

1 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)

1/4 cup parsley (chopped)

Directions

Bring a large of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until just al dente, or "to the tooth." When the pasta is al dente, remove about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water and set aside.

Cook bacon until crisp in a large saucepan over medium heat; drain on paper towels, crumble, and set aside. Drain off all but 1 tablespoon fat from the pan.

Beat the eggs in a large bowl and add cream; beat again.

In the saucepan you used to cook the bacon, add butter and oil and melt together over medium heat. Sauté the bell pepper, garlic, and onion in the fat until tender.

Drain the pasta and add immediately to the pan with the peppers.

Add the tuna and cook, stirring, until heated through.

Add the egg mixture to pan. Cook and stir, lifting pasta with tongs to allow the sauce to coat the pasta thoroughly.

Stir in the cheese, reserved bacon, and parsley, and serve immediately.

VEGETABALE SPAGHETTI

This comes from Makinze Gore at Delish. It begins, “Vegetable spaghetti is the perfect way to use up leftover veggies. Use whatever you have on hand, don't feel married to these specific ones. They are just a good starting point.”

Yields: 6 servings; Prep Time: 10 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1 lb. spaghetti

1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 zucchini, sliced

1 carrot, chopped

1 red onion, thinly sliced

1 tbsp. tomato paste

1 (28-oz.) can diced tomatoes

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Sliced basil, for garnish

Freshly grated Parmesan, for garnish

Directions

In a large pot of boiling water, cook spaghetti according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water then drain spaghetti.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil then add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add zucchini, carrot, and red onion and cook until soft, 7 minutes. Stir in tomato paste then add diced tomatoes and season with Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper, simmer 10 minutes.

Add spaghetti to skillet and 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water and toss to combine. Add more pasta water as necessary to bring sauce together.

Garnish with basil and Parmesan to serve.

"LOW-RENT" TUNA POKE BOWL

This comes from TheKitchn.com, one of my all-time favorite email newsletters. If you haven't checked out this cool site – or its sibling site, Apartmenttherapy.com – I highly recommend checking them out. This recipe, which Serves 2, can be found online, along with photos and a description of the recipe, by clicking here.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce (or 1 teaspoon tamari, if gluten-free)

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 tablespoon orange juice

1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated or minced

2 5-ounce cans tuna in brine, drained

Small handful of cilantro, chopped

1 scallion, finely chopped

1 cup cooked rice or other grain, cooled

1/4 medium avocado, cubed

4 cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Directions

Place the soy sauce, sesame oil, orange juice and ginger in a jar. Secure the lid and shake well until the dressing is emulsified. (Or whisk together in a small bowl.)

Empty the drained tuna into a small bowl and pour the dressing over top. Add in the scallion and cilantro then toss to coat well. Divide the rice between two bowls and top with the dressed tuna, avocado, tomatoes and sesame seeds.

SWEET POTATO FRIES

This comes from Food.com, and starts off, “Great low-fat snack or side dish.” Makes 6 servings in 45 minutes (total).

To view this online, go to http://www.food.com/recipe/sweet-potato-fries-33993.

Ingredients

1 lb sweet potato

1 
egg white

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions

Peel and cut potatoes into 1/4 inch x 1/2 inch strips.

In a bowl, combine egg white and seasonings; beat well.

Add potatoes; toss to coat.

Spray two baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray.

Place potatoes in a single layer on the two baking sheets.

Bake, uncovered at 450 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.