Month: May 2021

Sweet Treats

Recipe—Lemon Italian Ice

Diva di Cucina

If you think a cold glass of lemonade is refreshing on a hot summer day, wait until you try this frozen treat, Lemon Italian Ice! There is no comparison. This is better, hands down. Your kiddos will think so too.

My son and I make this during the summer and it is the most refreshing thing I have probably ever had. The lemon mixture with fresh zest is just the perfect amount of tart and sweet and it is crazy how light and fluffy it is! Absolute heaven! 

I absolutely love how easy this recipe is to make. So easy that my 11-year-old does most of the work. I pretty much just zest the lemons and he does the rest. Plus, it is basically 4 ingredients. Fresh lemons, sugar, salt, and water. So simple and relatively healthy compared to other frozen treats.

So as the weather warms up and you are looking for creative ways to cool off, give this a try. It is sure to do the trick!

Notes: 

  • The trick to making this is to work quickly when you are processing the frozen cubes and keep the fluffy ice from melting. We had a container ready to go in the freezer and as soon as I emptied each batch from the blender to the container, it went back into the freezer. This really kept it light and fluffy and it never froze together. 
  • To get 1 1/2 cups of fresh lemon juice, you will probably need between 8–10 lemons.
  • This makes a pretty decent sized batch so you can easily get 6–8 servings out of it. 

INGREDIENTS
grated zest from 2 lemons
1 1/2 c fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 c sugar
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 c water

GARNISHES (optional)
fresh raspberries
fresh mint leaves

STEPS

  • In a medium saucepan, combine the lemon zest, juice, sugar, salt, and water.
  • Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until the sugar is dissolved. 
  • Allow the mixture to cool for about 30 minutes.
  • Pour the liquid into ice cube trays and freeze overnight.
  • Put 6–8 ice cubes at a time into a food processor or blender and pulse until all the cubes are broken up and you have a fluffy mixture.
  • Immediately transfer the “fluffy ice” to serving dishes OR a freezer safe container to be enjoyed later.
  • Repeat this process with the remaining cubes.
  • Garnish your Italian ice with some fresh raspberries and mint sprigs.
  • Store the leftover Italian ice in the freezer in a tightly covered container. 
  • To serve later, remove the Italian ice from the freezer and allow it to sit for 5–10 minutes to help soften it up for scooping. 
Dinners, Soups

Recipe—Keto White Chicken Chili

Diva di Cucina

Okay, you may be thinking, “Why is this Diva posting a chili recipe as the weather is warming up? Isn’t chili a cool weather dish?” Here is my response, this is probably one of the best keto meals I have ever had, and the flavors are so good that I absolutely eat this any time. Plus, it is just so easy to make, and in my opinion, an easy one pot recipe is welcome year-round.

I have been “doing keto” since June 2020 and am down 33 lbs. Yay me! Now don’t worry, this blog is not suddenly turning keto. I am just all about offering variety to my followers and I could not keep this recipe to myself, it is just too good! If you are a long time follower, you know my blog is anything but a keto or diet blog.

Now even if you aren’t on a ketogenic diet, you can absolutely enjoy this recipe as is, or what I do for my husband and son who are full on carbivores (I just made that up), is split the cooked chili into two batches after it is all cooked. One keto batch for me, and one carb loaded version for them. I have integrated carbs two different ways for them. One time I added a can of white cannellini beans to their chili and another time I served this over a bowl of cooked rice. Both of those options were very well received.

Hope you love this recipe as much as I do because it is definitely one of my new favorite “go tos”.

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb ground chicken (or turkey)
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
4 tbsp butter
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 a yellow onion, diced
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 jalapeño, deseeded and chopped
1 1/2 c chicken broth
4 oz cream cheese
1/2 c heavy cream
4.5-ounce can diced green chiles, drained

GARNISHES
avocado
cilantro
cotija cheese, crumbled

STEPS

  • Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat and add the ground chicken breaking it apart as it cooks.
  • Season the meat with cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper and continue cooking until it is almost cooked through.
  • Add the butter, bell pepper, onion, garlic, and jalapeño to the pot.
  • SautĂ© until all the veggies are cooked through and tender, about 5–10 minutes.
  • Add the broth to the pot and bring to a simmer.
  • Simmer for 10 minutes and then add the cream cheese, heavy cream, and green chiles.
  • Continue simmering for another 15 minutes stirring every once in a while, making sure that the cream cheese melts and is nicely integrated.
  • Garnish with avocado, cilantro, and crumbled cotija cheese.
Salads, Side Dishes

Recipe—Cauliflower Tabbouleh

Diva di Cucina

To me, spring means transitioning those hearty comfort foods to lighter more refreshing dishes. Gotta start getting this body bikini ready! Just kidding, this mom bod hasn’t rocked a bikini in over 11 years. A good ol’ tankini is more my style. LOL In reality, I just crave lighter foods as the weather warms up, and the produce section of the grocery store transitions with the season. Everything just seems more vibrant and robust.

This cauliflower tabbouleh is perfect for warmer weather as it requires no cooking, so you can leave that hot stove off. The flavors in this dish are so refreshing as it is PACKED with herbs! You have lemon zest, mint, garlic, and red pepper. Freaking delish!

This dish is one of those that actually gets better as it sits. I like to make it the day before I plan on eating it so the cauliflower bits really take on all those yummy flavors. It is one of those perfect dishes to make on Sunday to have for lunches throughout the week. You know I am all about that meal prep! (Just beware, you may have some garlic breath so pack some gum too.)

While traditional tabbouleh is made from bulgar wheat, I actually use a bag of riced cauliflower in this recipe making it keto friendly and low calorie. It goes fantastic with some grilled Greek chicken and tzatziki!

INGREDIENTS
10 oz bag frozen riced cauliflower, thawed
cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 cup small tomatoes, cut in half
1 c fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 c mint leaves, chopped 
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp lemon zest
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt

STEPS

  • Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine. (Yes, it really is that easy.)
Snacks

Recipe—Baseball Munchie Mix

Diva di Cucina

My son has been playing little league baseball for the last six years and that means I have six years of experience being the team mom, six years of experience coordinating snack sign ups, and six years of watching moms try to outdo each other with their creativity with their snacks. Myself included.

I made up this baseball munchie mix at the peak of my team mom career (that was two years in) and it was all down hill after that. However, I will never forget the faces of our little farm ball players after their game when I passed these out. They thought the plastic hats were the absolute coolest, especially because it had their team logo on them.

I had found these adorable plastic ball caps on Amazon and knew I had to plan a snack around them. I took all of my son’s favorite salty and sweet snacks, mixed them up in a big bowl, and combined them into one epic snack mix served in the cutest hats. Now, if you don’t want to spend the money on plastic hats, you can absolutely make this mix and just put it in some plastic bags. Trust me, the kids will still be super stoked. I mean after all, there is candy involved.

Now, do you need a recipe for this? Probably not. But my blog is about all things in the kitchen and inspiring people to have fun. And that may even be to help all my fellow baseball moms out with a creative and fun snack idea for your little sluggers. I know Folsom moms aren’t the only baseball moms trying to outdo each other with their creative snack ideas. Plus, this is a fantastic recipe for a baseball or World Series watching party too!

INGREDIENTS
7 oz bag Boom Chicka Pop Kettle Corn
10 oz box Honey Teddy Grahams
8 oz Rold Gold Pretzels (I used the big ones and broke them up)
2 cups M&Ms (I found their team colors available)
6 full size Hershey bars broken up

STEPS

  • Mix all the ingredients together in a big bowl and portion into individual snack bags or plastic ball caps.