Jalapeno Lime Hummus

Published on April 17, 2014June 6, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Would you like some carrots with your hummus? That’s what you will be asking your guests after making this recipe!!!

Jalapeno Lime Hummus

Ingredients:
– 2 (15 oz) Can chickpeas, drained
– 4 Tablespoons Cilantro, chopped
– 4 Cloves of garlic, peeled
– 3 Tablespoon Jalapeno, chopped
– 1 Tablespoon Fresh lemon juice
– 2 Tablespoon Fresh lime juice
– Salt
– Pepper
– 2 Tablespoon Olive oil
– 2 Tablespoons Water
– Tapatio Hot Sauce (optional)

Directions:
1. Place chickpeas, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, lemon juice, lime juice, salt and pepper in a food processor and blend until smooth.
2. While the bender is on, slowly pour Olive oil and water and continue processing until super creamy and smooth. Add tapatio if you want the hummus to be spicier.
3. Use as a dip, spread on a sandwich or eat by itself.

Happy Cooking!

A T.W.O. Holiday

Published on April 16, 2014June 6, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

April 16th, 2014

In honor of our birthday, we are taking the day off and celebrating! We are looking forward to another year filled with family, friends, food, travels, shopping, projects, memories and fun!

Margherita Pizza with Homemade Sauce

Published on April 11, 2014June 6, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Friday Night Pizza Night with T.W.O. – yes its already that time again! This week, we are featuring a margherita pizza with home sauce. Don’t be intimidated – it’s a beginner’s recipe that tastes like a million dollars! Enjoy your pizza making!

Margherita Pizza with Homemade Sauce

Ingredients:

– 1 pizza dough
– 1 can San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes
– 2-3 cups fresh mozzarella, sliced
– 8 leaves basil
– 3 cloves garlic, diced
– 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
– 2 teaspoons garlic powder
– 2 teaspoons cornstarch
– Salt
– Pepper
– Flour
– Cornmeal

Directions:

Preheat oven to 415°.
Roll out pizza dough on a floured/cornmeal surface. Transfer to a greased cookie sheet.
Pour the tomatoes in a bowl. Chop up the whole tomatoes into quarters.
Add to a heated skillet lined with olive oil. Sprinkle in garlic powder, salt and pepper. Slowly add cornstarch after the sauce has reached a bowl. Reduce heat and stir consistently. The sauce should thicken. Remove from heat.
Add the sauce to the top of the pizza dough. Top with garlic cloves. Place the sliced mozzarella on top of the garlic along with the fresh basil.
Place in the oven and cook for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let the pizza sit for 2-4 minutes. Cut and serve.

Cheers to another great Friday Night Pizza Night!

Grilled Tri-tip Tacos with Sweet Potatoes and Peppers

Published on April 8, 2014June 6, 2014 by T.W.O.2 Comments

Taco Tuesday! Today, T.W.O. will be featuring a carne taco con batatas. Batatas? Yes – Batatas….Sweet Potatoes! Grab your apron and lets start grilling!!!

Grilled Tri-tip Tacos with Sweet Potatoes and Peppers

Ingredients:
– 1 tri-tip roast, seasoned*
– 3 bell peppers (yellow, red, orange)
– ½ sweet onion, chopped
– 2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed
– ¼ cup lemon juice
– 3 Tablespoons olive oil
– 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
– 1 teaspoon garlic powder
– Salt
– Pepper
– Corn tortillas
– Sour cream
– Fresh guacamole
* Season tri-tip roast with Montreal Steak seasoning prior to putting on the grill.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°. Place the cubed sweet potato on a cookie sheet. Season with 1 Tablespoon, olive oil, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Place in oven for about 25-30 minutes.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking, place the tri-tip on a heated barbeque. Cook for 30 minutes or until done.
In a sauté pan, add 2 Tablespoons olive oil and lemon juice. Add the vegetables. Sautee for 10-15 minutes or until done to your liking. Add salt and pepper to taste.
When all the ingredients are done cooking, place the tortillas on the barbeque to heat up.
Final steps – assembly! Create your masterpiece by combining all your ingredients into a freshly grilled tortilla!

Cheers to another T.W.O. Taco Night!

Orange Chicken

Published on February 6, 2014February 6, 2014 by T.W.O.1 Comment

Orange Chicken. Yes – the popular dish people order for take-out or pick up in the frozen section at the market. Well, now it’s time to learn how to cook it! T.W.O. whisks up this recipe, the healthy way. There is no deep-frying or added fat, but T.W.O. can assure you that after you try this easy recipe, you won’t want to eat the bad stuff. It’s an easy dish the whole family will love!

Ingredients

-1 tablespoon olive oil
-1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
– 2/3 cup orange juice
– 3 Tablespoons honey
– 3 Tablespoons soy sauce
– 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
– 1 teaspoon chili sauce (sriracha or sambal oele)
– 1 Tablespoon orange zest, grated
– 1 clove garlic, minced
– 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
– 1 Tablespoon water
– 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
– 1/4 cup green onion, diced

Cut the chicken into 1-inch cubes. In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil and 1/3 cup orange juice over medium heat. Add the chicken cubes and cook for about 6 minutes. Make sure to mix the chicken so it cooks on all sides.

While the chicken is cooking, begin mixing the wet ingredients together. In a bowl, add the remaining orange juice, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili sauce, garlic, orange zest, ginger, water and cornstarch. Mix well.

Add the wet ingredients to the chicken and cook for about 4 minutes on medium to low heat. The sauce will thicken. Make sure to coat the chicken in the sauce when cooking.

Remove from heat and put over a bed of quinoa, rice, and sautéed vegetables or even rice noodles. Top the dish off with green onions. T.W.O. put theirs over quinoa and added a side spinach salad.

See, we told you this was going to be an easy recipe for your weeknight or weekend dinner. Warning – make extras so people can go back for seconds!

Broccolini White Pizza

Published on January 31, 2014January 29, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

TGIF! It’s time for Friday Night Pizza Night!!! Today we are using a new ingredient on our pizza….broccolini. This vegetable looks like mini-broccoli and is often misidentified as young broccoli, but it is a hybrid of broccoli and kai-lan,

Ingredients:

– Pizza dough
– Cornmeal
– 2 Table spoons olive oil
– 2 Tablespoons dried basil
– 2 garlic cloves, chopped
– 4 stems broccolini
– ½ cup olives, diced
– 1 – 1 ½ cup marinated artichoke hearts, sliced
– 3 cups mozzarella

Preheat oven to 425ᴼF. Roll out the pizza dough on a floured/ cornmeal surface. Once the dough is evenly rolled out, transfer the dough to a greased cookie sheet.

Next take the olive oil and spread it on the dough, making sure you reach all the edges. Sprinkle the diced garlic and basil evenly on top of the olive oil.

Add your mozzarella cheese, followed by the broccolini, artichokes and olives. Spread the toppings evenly.

Let the pizza rise for about 15 minutes. Note – you don’t want to put the pizza in a cold oven, so make sure your oven reaches 425ᴼF. Once the oven is ready, place the pizza in the oven and watch closely. The pizza will take 15-20 minutes.

Once done the pizza is done, take it out of the oven and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Cut and serve. Once again, another successful Friday Night Pizza Night!!!

Cheers,

The Ultimate Cheeseball

Published on January 29, 2014January 28, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Everybody ready for some football? You will be after reading this…or not because you will be too consumed in the rich, creamy flavor of this fan-favorite appetizer that will clear the sidelines and take them straight to your kitchen. Here is the play-by-play game plan:

Ingredients:

2 – 8 ounce cream cheese
¼ cup sour cream
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 – 2 ½ ounce packed smoked sliced beef, chopped*
2 Tablespoons green onions, chopped
1 teaspoon Horseradish
2-3 Tablespoon parsley, chopped
Italian breadcrumbs

*You can find this in the pre-packaged deli section.

Combine cream cheese and sour cream in a bowl. Mix well until combined. Stir in Parmesan cheese, beef, onion and horseradish. Once mixed, shape the cheese into balls. Depending on your crowd you can make one big one or 2 small ones. Roll in Italian breadcrumbs. Wrap the balls in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple hours. For best results, refrigerate overnight.

When you are ready to serve, remove and place on a platter filled with your favorite crackers. It doesn’t matter who wins at this point…you are sure to score a touchdown with your guests with this recipe!

Let’s go for the t.w.o. point conversion….

French Onion Soup

Published on January 10, 2014January 9, 2014 by T.W.O.7 Comments

French Onion Soup

There are only a couple places that we like to go for French Onion Soup, but we can assure you that nothing beats T.W.O.’s French Onion Soup! It’s savory, light and healthier than most recipes! Every minute cooking it will be worth it in the end!

Ingredients:
– Beef broth*
– 5 sweet onions, sliced
– 1 bottle dark beer
– ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
– 3 cloves garlic, minced
– Salt
– Pepper
– Olive oil
– Baguette, sliced
– Mozzarella, sliced

*The secret to this recipe is the broth. T.W.O. used the broth from their seven-bone roast they cooked a couple nights before. The meat was seasoned with Montreal Steak seasoning and onion soup mix. Make sure to strain the broth before using it for your French Onion Soup!

Sautee the onions and garlic in olive oil for 8-10 minutes or until soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In a pot, bring the beef broth to a boil. Add the garlic and onions. Slowly stir in the beer, balsamic vinegar and fresh pepper. Cook on high heat for 1 minute.

Bring the temperature down to low and cover the soup. Cook for about 40 minutes to 1 hour.

Once the soup is ready, ladle some into an oven safe bowl. Turn the oven on broil or 500°F. Put the bread in the oven and broil until a little toasted. Once toasted, put the bread in the soup and top with a slice of mozzarella.

Place the soup in the oven and broil for about 3 minutes or until the cheese browns a bit. Remove from the oven and place on a plate so you don’t burn your hands!

Ready to serve! Happy cooking.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Published on November 19, 2013November 17, 2013 by T.W.O.4 Comments

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Pancakes, Pumpkin Greek Yogurt…why not add Pumpkin Coffee Cake to the mix? T.W.O. just did that. Check out this savory coffee cake recipe that tastes like the holiday season in every bite! It’s a moist cake that can be enjoyed for breakfast, a snack and even dessert!

Crumb Layer
– ½ cup sugar
– 2 teaspoon cinnamon
– ½ teaspoon nutmeg
– 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
– 1 ½ cups unbleached flour
– Confectioner’s sugar (optional, to sprinkle on top of the cake when done)

Cake Layer
– 1 ½ cups unbleached flour
– 2 teaspoons baking powder
– ½ teaspoon baking soda
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
– 1 teaspoon nutmeg
– 1 teaspoon cloves
– 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
-1 cup sugar
– 2 eggs
-1 Tablespoon vanilla
-½ cup sour cream
– ¾ cups Libby’s canned pumpkin

Preheat oven to 350ᴼF.

To Make the Crumb Topping:

Combine sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl. Slowly add the melted butter and flour into the mixture. Mix well and set aside.

To Make the Cake:

Cream the butter, sugar in a bowl. (T.W.O. uses a KitchenAid mixer!) Add the eggs, pumpkin, vanilla and sour cream. Make sure all the ingredients are mixed well before adding in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Once combined, get ready to assemble!

Pour the cake batter into a greased 9” round pan (or a spring-form pan, which makes for a better presentation of the cake!). Make sure the batter is evenly distributed. Add the crumble to the top of the batter and bake for 45 minutes or until a butter knife comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes before taking it out of the pan.