It's fall and that meals football season and lazy Sundays! This past Sunday in particular was spent with my Packers-loving boyfriend yelling at the TV but so it goes sometimes. To help subdue the yelling I whipped up this epic Beef & Bean Skillet Enchilada Dip!

My most recent delivery from New England Country Mart contained a pound of Maine Grains Pinto Beans and a pound of Kinnealy Ground Beef which happen to be the star ingredients of this simple recipe. Both are also a great foundation for meal planning since you can make a large batch of refried beans, taco meat, and enchilada sauce to use for dinner later in the week. If meal planning isn't your thing you can quickly cut corners with canned refried beans and canned enchilada sauce but there's nothing like homemade! 

Beef & Bean Enchilada Dip 

NECM Shopping List

Maine Grains Pinto Beans 

Kinnealy Ground Beef
Cilantro
Jalapenos (optional)
Cotija Cheese
Cabot Sharp Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Montecito Roadhouse Tortilla Chips

From the pantry...

16 oz. Refried Beans (canned or homemade)
10 oz. Enchilada Sauce (canned or homemade)

Directions: Prep oven to 350°F. Dice the jalapeños, crumble desired amount of Cotija cheese, and rough chop cilantro. Set aside. In a medium skillet prepare 1lb. ground beef (for spicier, more flavorful dip add 1/2 package of taco seasoning) mix in enchilada sauce, let simmer for a few minutes and remove from heat. Prep a large cast iron skillet or square glass baking dish and cover bottom 1/3 of the pan with refried beans. Pour taco meat mixture over beans and bake until bubbly. Finish with Cotija, Cabot shredded cheddar cheese, diced jalapeños and cilantro. Serve immediately with tortilla chips. 

I absolutely loved making this recipe! No one makes refried beans like my 92 year old grand mother so I took the opportunity to call her and ask how she makes her refried beans from scratch. The smell of them simmering on the stove immediately took me back to my childhood in her kitchen, it was absolutely magical. My enchilada sauce is also homemade, it's a tex-mex version that has all the flavors of my childhood and is from The Amazing Afterlife of Zimmerman Fees: A Metaphysical Story & Cookbook. I haven't found anything like it and the flavor is absolutely spot on! 

This post was created in collaboration with New England Country Mart. I was provided a complimentary grocery delivery in exchange for review and content creation purposes. All content created and opinions expressed are my own. Thanks for supporting those that support Style-Wire.com!

This week I'm back in the kitchen with New England Country Mart! I've been thoroughly loving the Maine Grains Farro that came in our delivery. It's filling, easy to make, and best of all, a blank canvas for whatever you may be craving. 

In contrast to my Moroccan Spiced Salmon with Yogurt and Cucumber Salad recipe, this hearty, earthy bowl is bursting with umami flavor thanks to fresh mushrooms. We used a seasonal chef's sampler pack that was available on NECM, but their current selection of maitake mushrooms will work beautifully. By far one of the perks of shopping at New England Country Mart is the rotating selection of seasonal produce. Top this bowl with your protein of choice, or add sliced avocado for a meatless alternative. 

Mushroom Steak & Grain Bowl with Miso Vinaigrette

NECM Shopping List

Farro

1 pack Mushrooms

1 Jalapeno

1/2 English Cucumber 

Prime Rib Eye

1/2 cup O-Med Olive Oil

Butter

From the pantry...

1 tablespoon White Miso

1/2 tablespoon Dijon Mustard

3 tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar

2 tablespoons Sesame Oil 

Directions: Prep farro according to package directions or your preferred ratio, set aside. For the vinaigrette whisk together miso, dijon and rice wine vinegar and set aside. While whisking, slowly add olive oil and emulsify. Finish with sesame oil. 

Heat 1 T olive oil over medium-high heat in a nonstick skillet. Sear mushrooms on each side until golden and crispy, about 3 minutes. Add a tablespoon or two of butter to the pan and baste mushrooms until they are tender and fully cooked, another 1-2 minutes. In another pan, sear steak on high heat, about 5 minutes per side or until it reaches your desired temp. 

Thinly slice jalapeños and mushrooms and arrange over farro. Drizzle with Miso Vinaigrette. Feel free to double or triple the Miso Vinaigrette-- we use the leftovers on greens and salads throughout the week! 

This post was created in collaboration with New England Country Mart. I was provided a complimentary grocery delivery in exchange for review and content creation purposes. All content created and opinions expressed are my own. Thanks for supporting those that support Style-Wire.com!

From salads to toppings for burgers and tacos, we can't get enough Little Leaf Farms! I crafted up a few fresh summer recipes using Little Leaf's Baby Spring Mix and Baby Crispy Green Leaf lettuce; a Stacked apple salad and a grilled stone fruit and burrata salad thats perfect for both grilling season and these hot summer days. Make sure to let me know how you like them if you try them! 


Ingredients:
1 Green Apple
1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola (or your preferred cheese)
Little Leaf Farms Baby Spring Mix
Hot Honey

Directions:
Wash and dry all produce. Use a mandolin to thinly slice the apple, crumble or slice your cheese. Assemble your salad stacking apple slices, Little Leaf Farms Baby Spring Mix, and cheese, and repeat 2-4 times to your preference. Finish with a drizzle of hot honey.

I love this recipe because it's so simple, looks really impressive on the plate, and can easily be converted to a flavorful bite-sized app for parties and cookouts. Swap the gorgonzola for Brie, or your cheese of choice, and if spice isn't your thing, clover honey adds a sweet but floral flavor to the dish. Adding walnuts and dried cranberries also makes for a deconstructed twist on the classic Waldorf salad.




Ingredients: 
For the Pesto: 
2-3 handfuls Arugula
1-3 tablespoons Pine Nuts
1/4-1/2 cup Olive Oil
Shredded Parmesan Cheese


For the Salad: 
Fresh Burrata
Apricots
Cherries
Little Leaf Baby Crispy Green Leaf Lettuce
oil and vinegar
salt and peeper to taste

This post sponsored by Proximo Spirits and is intended for audiences over the age of 21+. Please drink responsibly. All content and opinions expressed are my own. Thanks for supporting those who support Style-Wire.com.

Do you feel that slight chill in the air? Fall is slowly creeping up on us here in New England and I'm desperately hanging on to summer. I booked a weekend getaway to Camden, ME this past weekend to do just that and while gorging myself on sunshine, sea air, and fresh Maine lobster, created this tequila cocktail that I think perfectly captures the essence of these soon-to-be-distant days.


The key ingredient in this drink is a solid orange liqueur; I used Agavero Orange made with silver tequila and agave nectar alongside Gran Centario Plata Tequila. This drink sips smoothly on a temperate evening on the patio. We enjoyed it fireside at Whitehall Inn with a slight chill in the air and it was refreshingly bitter, just like the end of summer... Details about my trip, including the world's best lobster and my stay at this adorable Lark Hotel are coming soon to the blog but in the meantime, I encourage you to whip up this margarita inspired cocktail before the leaves finally hit the ground.



Ingredients:
Ice
Juice from half a lime
.5 Ounce Gran Centario Silver Tequila
1.5 Ounces Agavero Orange Tequila Liqueur
4 Ounces Grapefruit Seltzer (I used Spindrift Grapefruit)
Fresh grapefruit, orange, or lime to garnish

To Prepare: Shake lime juice, tequila, and Agavero Orange vigorously in a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour over fresh ice, add grapefruit seltzer, garnish with grapefruit, lime, or orange slices or peel and enjoy. Best served outdoors.

This simple meal can be easily customized to your tastes, and even works well when served as nachos on corn chips as an easy appetizer. You can even use other variations of Willow Tree Chicken Salad; I used their classic variety but their Sriracha and Avocado Cranberry chicken salads both work nicely with this recipe. While you’re shopping you might notice that Willow Tree products have a new look. That’s right, after 60 years the iconic New England brand has redesigned and streamlined their look with redesigned packaging, a refreshed logo, and an all new website, but inside you’ll find the same chicken salad and poultry pies you’ve come to know and love. Available at major grocery stores throughout New England, you can easily find Willow Tree products at a store near you.


I whipped these Summer Totadas up for a Thursday night date night at home; some decorations on the balcony, a pitcher of iced tea, and some tequila shots to spice up the night. I saved the rinds from the limes to serve the tequila in but you can use them to hold individual servings of the Jalapeño Basil Sauce as well. Hope you love this easy to assemble meal as much as I do! And a special thanks to my parents for graciously taste testing my creation while they were in Boston! 



Ingredients:
Tostadas (or corn tortillas and oil to fry your own, 1-2 per person)
1 can refried beans
1 package Willow Tree Chicken Salad (find it here)
Fresh corn (1 ear will serve 2)
1 package Queso Fresco

Jalapeño Basil Sauce:
3/4 Jalapeno
1 heaping tablespoon salad dressing or mayonnaise
3-5 fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
Olive oil to desired consistency

Optional toppings:
Jalapeños
Pepitas
Lettuce
Avocado
Salsa

Sauce Directions:
(Remove the seeds from the jalapeño for a more mild but still flavorful sauce)
Slice and blend ingredients in blender or food processor adding olive oil to taste/desired consistency 

Tostada Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F degrees
Line baking sheet with tostadas
Bake until crisp, approximately 3-5 minutes
Once your tostadas are crisp, prepare the corn
Remove the husks and silk from your ears of corn
Remove the corn from the cob (helpful hints here)
Grill, Pan-roast, or roast your fresh corn in the oven under the broiler on low until browned
Assemble your tostadas; top with refried beans, chilled Willow Tree Chicken Salad, roasted corn, crumbled Queso Fresco, and desired toppings

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Lemony Linguini with Broccoli and Mushrooms

As I was browsing Yahoo! Beauty's digital magazine on the bus to work last week I came across an article touting the benefits of matcha powder. It took me back to my Starbucks days as a Barista back in 2007 when I first encountered matcha powder. I remember thinking it was a toxic looking shade of green and the fine powder would easily explode into a large cloud of matcha when you opened or poured a new bag. So what is this strange green powder? Matcha powder is a super fine powder of ground green tea leaves with a rich, earthy flavor. 


While drinking brewed green tea has always been praised, ingesting and drinking matcha allows you to reap the maximum benefits of this superfood. In addition to providing you with a natural caffeine boost, matcha powder can boost your metabolism and burn calories, detoxify the body, improve concentration and mood, fortify the immune system, and improve cholesterol. Matcha is loaded with antioxidants, rich in fiber, and provides the body with Vitamin C, selenium, chromium, zinc, and magnesium. 

Reading that Yahoo! Beauty article reminded me that I had a jar of matcha powder in my fridge and it inspired me to use it! You can bake matcha cookies, cakes, and breads, sprinkle it onto chocolate nibs, or stir it into a warm glass of milk, but my favorite way to enjoy matcha is blended into my smoothies. I quickly whipped up a basic matcha smoothie to nurture my mean, green craving and wanted to share it with my readers. The great thing about this recipe is that it's really more of a formula and you can experiment with different juices, fruits and veggies. Go on, try it! 

Basic Matcha Smoothie

1 cup juice and/or milk (I used 2/3 cup milk, 1/3 cup Bolthouse Stone Fruit Smoothie)1 banana (fresh or frozen)1 teaspoon matcha powder1 cup frozen fruit or ice (I used frozen mango)
Combine all ingredients and blend!(Makes 1 Serving)

Last week I headed to Workbar in Cambridge for a friendly cooking competition with Kitchen Surfing, Popchips, and Blog & Tweet Boston. Kitchen Surfing is an online service which will send a chef to your home and cook, or teach you to cook a specialty meal from one of their amazing chefs. Four of their chefs Jen Rogers, Mark O'Leary, Justin Hackett, and Jitti Chaithiraphant created some amazing recipes for us to test and all of them included Popchips! 


First up Mark O'Leary and Justin Hackett of Aprons Off Catering served up a delicious Vietnamese Bahn Mi Sandwich with Popchips cured pork, salt & vinegar Popchip mayo, Katy Perry's Popchip pate, and a Vietnamese style baguette made with pulverized Popchips! Who knew Popchips were so versatile? Props to Mark and Justin for incorporating so many different flavors of Popchips into their ingredients so creatively!


Next up Jitti Chaithiraphant of Food Is Love created a corn and cheddar Popchips soup. It was absolutely delicious with a rich cheddar flavor and crunchy Popchips garnish. I was surprised to learn Popchips were used as the base for this soup!


And finally, Chef Jen Rogers of Perfect Bite created a Popchips Chicken and Waffle app using Katy's Kettle Corn Popchips for the "waffle" and Popchips breaded chicken, with a delicious Honey-Hot BBQ sauce. She also served up the most delicious Bloody Mary I've ever had the pleasure of enjoying!


All of them were delicious but like I said, this was a cooking competition and we only have one vote... Well, my vote goes to Mark & Justin of Aprons Off Catering for their ultra-creative use of Popchips to create a yummy sandwich with so many complex flavors. 



You'll need: 2 oz. BBQ PopChips, small batch of mashed potatoes, cheddar cheese to garnish, and BBQ seasoning.

To assemble: Spoon small amounts of mashed potatoes onto the Popchips, garnish with cheese, and sprinkle with BBQ seasoning. Serve immediately. Note: If left to sit too long your Popchips will get soggy. These didn't last long in my house, though!

When I set out to live a healthier lifestyle in 2014 I didn't make a fuss about it, I didn't make a post about it, and I didn't really have any confidence that it would actually happen. I've never been the type of person who could stay motivated to hit the gym or choose carrot sticks over chips & queso, but somewhere over the last year something changed because I'm suddenly really into staying active and making healthier choices. 


Finding time to move! Right now my goal is twice a week. I'm usually at Athleta Newbury for their free classes at least once a week, and then attending another class around Boston or running. This has worked well with my busy schedule and is an economical way of keeping in line with my goals. 


Fruits & Veggies! I love fruit so it's working in the veggies that has been a challenge for me. Pairing veggies with yummy sides like Laughing Cow cheese or tossing a handful of spinach into my smoothies has been the easiest way for me to snack smarter. I've also been hitting Pinterest for yummy dinner ideas. Last night I made these Zucchini Fritters for the second time (so yummy!).

Little Changes! Taking the stairs instead of the elevator, doing a plank during TV commercials, and drinking more water are all small changes that stack up to make a big difference in our lifestyles. I really believe it's the small changes that make difference and I am already feeling healthier, am generally more upbeat, and can actually walk up the escalators at Porter Square (the biggest series of escalators ever, seriously) without feeling like my legs are going to give out from under me. 



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It's been almost a full month since I've set out to make better choices and I couldn't be more proud. I really thought I would fall off the wagon after a week and go running to Wendy's but I find myself craving sushi, greens, and Laughing Cow cheese more than anything. How are you doing at achieving your healthy goals? What are you doing to stay healthy and fit in 2014?