Power Granola!

The other recipe 

from Relish is this Power Bar recipe. Well I felt I had baked it too long and it didn't so much cut as break apart. The out come Amazing! I have had nothing but raves! Mom took it to work with out my knowledge and I had an email waiting about how the girls love it and want the recipe! I took it too work and gave a sample to my Boss and then gave her the bag because she loved it! It takes a little bit of time but yields a huge amount and it is wonderful to snack on, seriously wonderful. My first sample I felt it was too strongly pistachio flavored for me. But as I snacked I fell for it. It was not long before I began thinking of different varieties. Winco has dried strawberries and I think with almonds that would be soo tasty! I am definitely digging Relish, and the website is even niftier with all the different recipes and tips available! Definitely give it a try. I have made 2 batches now. The first batch I forgot to turn down the oven right away and did so when I put it back in. It gave me a firmer granola with a crunch to it. When I remade it, I followed it exact and it was much much softer, to soft for my taste. I put it back in the next day to crisp up, but forgot! haha.. set the timer everyone no burnt granola ;). I have super crispy granola now hehe.. great to snack still and even better as a cereal!

Pistachio Power Bar Granola

2 c old fashioned oats

1 c shredded sweetened coconut

¼ c (1/2 stick) butter

2/3 c honey

¼ c packed brown sugar

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

¾ tsp coarse salt

2 c roughly chopped shelled pistachios

½ c shopped dried apricots

1 c chopped dried cranberries

½ c roasted sunflower seeds

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 15x12 rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment paper

Combine oats and coconut on baking sheet and toss to combine. (I add the sunflower seeds here as well so they all roast together since I bought shelled unroasted seeds). Bake 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven and reduce oven temp to 300.

Combine butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla and salt in a pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Add pistachios, apricots, cranberries and sunflower seeds (if not roasted with oats and coconut) to the oat mixture. Toss to combine. Pour hot honey mixture over all and stir to mix well. Press mixture into a pan using a large metal spoon to compact it (my silicone spatula’s worked just fine). 

Bake 25 minutes. Let cool completely and break into chunks to serve.  

Jorge and Stacey's Wedding Cake

Several months ago my cousin asked me to make her wedding cake. The family remembered my Grandparents 50th and were determined that I make the cake. Honestly wedding cakes stress me out! I have little space and no storage space, but how could I say no! It was obviously 3 layers, each a different flavor and filling with white butter cream. We used ribbon to match her wedding colors and then silk flowers. Why silk? They don't wilt! They don't change shape, they are easy to work with and if you are a freak like me you can keep them for memories :). I love the colors and simplicity of using silk flowers so when the brides go for it I definitely jump on the idea. Mom had the idea as I was setting it up to drape the flowers and in the end I am glad she had it. 90 the day was and I had to drive the layers an hour away! The icing was not happy and I definitely had spots to fix as best as I could in the heat. I am more critical and was not completely happy at the time, but everyone else loved it, and as I stood back I was happy as well. The first one in 5 years I think I did ok!

Fudgy Rocky Road Bars

Good ole Martha Stewart! I may not read the magazine any more or watch the show son TV, but I do love her Food everyday magazine. There are usually great tips and recipes in it and in the April 2011 I found this one. There are actually several bars recipes but this is soooo easy! Simple ingredients and quick to throw together. Rich but addictive!! Chill them well and just enjoy! Oh did I mention that I love Rocky Road Ice Cream and Rocky Road Brownies.. so how could I not make these!?

Fudgy Rocky Road Bars:


8 graham crackers
1 1/2 c natural almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 c marshmallow topping ( I uhm.. used the whole damn jar!)
1 bag (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 oz) condensed milk

Preheat oven to 375. Line bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish with graham crackers, breaking them to fit if necessary, breaking them to fit if necessary. Bake until crackers are lightly toasted and fragrant, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds and dollop with marshmallow topping.
In a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a pan of simmering water, combine chocolate chips and condensed milk. ( I so cheated here! I put the chocolate and milk in a bowl and slowly microwaved it until melted and combined!.. that is why we have microwaves right!!) Cook, stirring occasionally, until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Pour chocolate mixture over marshmallow topping, working quickly swirl together with a thin-bladed knife. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Cut into 18 squares.

Seriously sooo yummy! a definite fix for that chocolate craving! Oh and I through some almonds on top as well cause I truly feel you can never have enough nuts!

Crumb Topped Pecan Cherry Cereal Bars

Mom is always finding me recipes in the paper, in our we occasionally get an insert called Relish.
In this particular one there was a recipe for these bars that just sounded amazing, as well as a power bar that I checked out and will post about later! I was liked this one because it was cherry, I rarely get to play with cherry. After making my jam and pitting the amount I did it is unlikely I will do anything that requires fresh again haha.. I had a good week and did several different things in a 2 day span and this was the start of it, actually the brownies below was the start and this was next haha.. I had huge trouble finding puffed rice cereal! I looked all over the place, what I did not know is that it used to be called sugar smacks! and is now honey smacks?? or something like that, once I figured it out I picked up a generic brand and have enjoyed snacking on it since hehe. If I could have found a healthy version I would have definitely used it, but I was tired of looking and settled with what I found! I also accidentally bought all fruit preserves and not spread, it was a little thinner but sooo good and once baked I don't think it really mattered! They were very tasty and I could definitely see making them with different flavors of fruit spread.

Crumb-topped Pecan Cherry Cereal Bars: 

1 c all-purpose flour
1 c quick-cooking oats
1 c puffed rice cereal (preferably brown rice)
1 c chopped pecans
1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1/4 c vegetable oil
1/3 c packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 (10-oz) jar cherry all-fruit spread

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan
Combine flour, oats, puffed rice, pecans, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
Using an electric mixer, beat butter, oil, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until well-blended and creamy.
Add dry ingredients and mix until moistened and a crumbly dough forms. Reserve 1 1/2 c of the dough for the topping. Press remaining dough evenly into bottom of pan.
Spread fruit spread evenly over dough in pan. Sprinkle reserved dough

mixture over top, leaving some areas uncovered. Gently press down to adhere topping to fruit layer. Bake 30 minutes or until deep golden. Cool 15 minutes. Slice into 12 bars.


Super tasty and very simple to make, and you end up with a bag of sugar smacks to snack on! Yum!!

Upside Down Toffee Apple Brownies...

I found this recipe in my 1001 Cupcakes, cookies & Other Tempting Treats cookbook. I have stacks of books and magazines recipes that I want to make, will I ever get to them, doubtful but I try! This was one that I just couldn't pass up, how could toffee and apple go wrong? well go wrong it did not, this is more like an amazingly moist cake! So very extremely good!! I added a sprinkle of pecans with the apples on the bottom of the pan, and obviously once you get down to the recipe you will notice that it calls for hazelnuts and I simply love pecans and that is what I used instead. The good thing about recipes is the ability to change flavors for what you prefer and I prefer pecans! We ate it all, it is rich but so good. the moistness was great and it stayed moist the entire time we kept the brownie/cake or what ever you decide it is! Super easy to make on top of fantastic flavor!

Upside-down toffee apple brownies 

8 tbsp butter, plus extra for greasing ( I love Pan Spray!)
1 c light brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
scant 1 1/2 c all - purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp apple pie spice
2 apples, peeled and coarsely granted
1/2 c hazelnuts, chopped

Toffee Apple Topping:
scant 1/2 c light brown sugar
4 tbsp butter
1 apple, cored and thinly sliced (I had mine peeled due to left over apples from apple sauce hehe)

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a shallow 9-in square baking pan. To make the topping, place the sugar and butter in a small saucepan and heat gently, stirring, until melted. Pour into the pan and arrange the apple slices over the mixture. Sprinkle with nuts as well if desired.
To make the brownies, place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in the eggs. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and apple pie spice, and fold into the mixture. Stir in the apples and nuts, then pour into the pan.
Bake in the preheated over for 35-40 minutes, or until firm and golden, let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then cut into squares.  I ended up covering, or wrapping my pan in foil. it was a glass pan so the sides were darkening faster than it was completing the baking process. I watched it closely and decided it was needed. I did bake it at 40 minutes and I may
actually have even gone to almost 50 minutes to ensure to have it done. It was a fantastic brownie, amazing flavor! The book suggests doing pineapple or pear as well and I think both flavors sound fantastic! Just have to decide when I will do it hahaha..

My Rag Quilt!

My Sis in law showed me this link for a Rag Quilt on You-tube. I thought heck ya!! I want to do this!! How hard can it be and it says it can be done in a weekend sweet! The Material went on sale and I picked out 5 colors, very bring pink and orange colors which if people know me is odd!! Sadly I just went to find all of my pics and in the process I seem to have deleted pics!! But I have a few.. As for taking me a weekend?? uhm.. I am far from a professional sewer and this is the most sewing I have ever done! I am very proud of the awesomeness of it, despite my little mess ups!! The rag quilt takes snuggle flannel, and I suggest watching the adds and picking it up when on sale, this quilt cost me $20 on sale! I did 2 yards of 5 different colors. My Sis in law helped, ok did all the cutting which was awesome cause.. after a few squares my back was killing me! I am a tall girl and need a damn tall table to pull off no back pain in cutting. Ash whipped through all 140 squares! we cut 9 inch squares out of them all. I wanted this quilt done over 2 months ago, a month of being sick and then of procrastination has it done now haha. It took me two days to sew the squares, not full days a few hours each day, and well I am lazy so each square was sewn approximately 1 inch in. I am sure this laziness is why I has strips that were not quite as even ;).We laid the blanket out completely on the living room floor during the Country Girls Night Out performance hehe.. may as well listen to some music while I laid it

and pinned the thing! Took a little bit of time, but not too bad and was very cool to see it laid out! I started out early the next morning, well as early as 9:30am is for me ;) sewing it together. 10 squares across and 7 down... it ended up quite the long quilt! I would definitely say a bead spread for a twin bed :). I spent the entire Saturday actually sewing it, ok.. I started at 9:30 we took a shopping break about noon and I started back at it at 3 to finish up just before 6pm so we could go to dinner. I figured how hard could it be to sit in bed watch a flick and cut the fray? Uhm.. I spent from 730pm til 1am cutting those damn frays! Done?? oh hell no lol.. I started back up about 1pm Sunday and 3 hrs later I had me a groovy blanket! I did go ahead and washed it which was a great idea as it definitely helped give it that rag look.
Would I make it again? Now that it is done and I can see it.. oh hell yea. would I take my time and not plan it as something that is needed right this damn minute? hell yea lol this for me at least was not something I can just throw together in a weekend and poof be done, it would be a gradual project done when it happens. I definitely have thought about them for Christmas presents, but seeing as I doubt I would get anything done by Christmas that would likely not be the smartest idea for me! The picture at the top is the blanket draped over my Mom as it was still warm and she ganked it! So I may need to make her one, and Step Dad has said they could use a new one for the bed.. a king size Rag Quilt.. Does he think I am Mental?!?! Probably cause I think I would if I could!

Either way, it is simple, a bit of time will need to be involved, but if I can do it anyone can, so try a rag quilt and love the snuggle!!!

Garlic-Ginger Shrimp Stir Fry

Woohoo Cooking Light again! June 2010 issue.This is my it for the week, Am only cooking 2. I have to find work and man plotting cooking interrupts a bit despite my enjoyment of home cooking hehe. So for the next meal I chose a stir fry! I love Asian Cuisine remember! And I chose this one because it had no soy sauce, which my Step Dad swears he is allergic too! I added more veggies, snap peas and asparagus, since mom likes them why should I not increase veggie consumption??? So I did, to me a stir fry is versatile enough to tweak quite easily and I did :). It is oh so tasty! my regret.. thawed frozen asparagus... definitely fresh next time and I will add water chestnuts.. otherwise YUM!

Garlic-Ginger Shrimp Stir-Fry:

1 1/4 lbs large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp dark sesame oil ( uhm I just have sesame oil lol)
1 1/2 Tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped red bell pepper
3 Tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 c orange sections (about 2 lg)
3 c hot cooked short-grain rice
1 c cut green onions

1. Place shrimp in a bowl; sprinkle with salt, tossing well. Let stand 10 minutes.
Combine oil, ginger, and garlic in a wok or large nonstick skillet. Place over medium-high heat, cook 4 minutes or until ginger and garlic begin to brown. Add shrimp; stir-fry 2 minutes. Add bell pepper, stir fry 2 minutes. Add wine and vinegar; bring to a simmer. Cook 1 minute or until wine mixture is syrupy. Gently stir in orange sections. Serve over rice; sprinkle with onions.

Spiced Blueberry Applesauce

I have had this recipe for years printed off, sadly I have no idea where I got it!! and dang if it is not marked on the paper!! Either way, I have wanted to make it forever. Mainly because it is a recipe that is supposed to be canned! I am all about canning, if I have a use for what I am canning. Since I plan to just eat this, I cut the recipe in half and skipped canning it! I will put the full recipe down as well as canning directions because after my little tastes I believe I will be making this again in full full batch style and canning it. I also see different variations coming up! Blackberry? Strawberry?? too bad I don't like Raspberry but why not Cherry!? I am a huge fan of chunky applesauce, and I usually just like it plain right out of the jar! so good and has to have chunks! I blended mine so it was kind of chunky all the way through, I will have to work on the technique and possibly pick up an immersion blender ;) .. woohoo for a reason to shop?! the recipe also suggests a variety of apples for best flavor. I had Fuji on sale 5lbs for $4 and well that is what I bought lol. I also added cinnamon to the spices, I love cinnamon.

 Spiced Blueberry Applesauce:

2 lbs frozen or fresh blueberries
5 lbs sliced cored apples (weigh them after peeling, coring and slicing and use several variety for best flavor)
1 c sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground allspice
3 Tbsp bottled lemon juice

1. Place the apples and blueberries into a heavy bottomed pot large enough to hold all the ingredients and allow room for stirring. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the pot-about 1/2 inch of water on the bottom or so.
2. Put the pot onto high heat and stirring constantly, bring to a boil. turn heat down to medium, and stirring continually, cook until the apples are all soft and some are beginning to break down, thickening the released fruit juices. Stir in the sugar and spices and keep cooking until the sugar is well combined. Turn off the heat, but keep the pot on the stove in order to keep the applesauce hot.
3. Using an immersion blender, a food processor or food mill, grind the fruit up into a slightly chunky puree- or, if you prefer, grind it down to a perfectly smooth puree.

4. Stir in the lemon juice thoroughly, then pack into hot pint or quart jars. Try to get any visible air bubbles out with a spatula; this is very difficult with very thick foods like applesauce, but try anyway. Wipe off the rim of the jar with a damp cloth, then center a lid on top and screw on a band. Do not tighten the band- just screw it down until it is closed, but not at all difficult to unscrew.
5. Put into a hot water bath canner, making certain that water covers the jars completely. Bring to a boil, clap the lid on top of the canner and process the jars for 20 minutes - the processing time is the same for either pints or quarts.
6. When they have processed for 20 minutes, turn off the heat and open the lid to the canner. Allow the jars to sit in the hot water for 5 minutes, then carefully lift up each jar and set it on a folded dishtowel in order to keep the counter from possibly cooling the glass too rapidly, causing the jar to crack.
7.Check the seals on the lids - they should be concave and very tightly adhered to the jar rim. If after 24 hours the lids have not sealed, either use up the food that did not seal or re-pack using new jars and new lids.
Recipe makes 8 pints or 4 quarts.

As I said, I simply halved the recipe and put it in a container! I plan to have it eaten in a few days, breakfast and or snacks should take care of my little bowl! I sooo love it!!!

And again.. sigh I so wish I could take those pretty pictures and such.. but I guess it just makes it more my blog huh lol

Harvest Chicken

This recipe comes from Taste of Homes Healthy Cooking Magazine Nov. 2008. Ha-Ha old issue huh! yup I have a definite cook book and magazine fetish hehe.. I can't throw them away! So I was going through some of the older ones for new things and seeing as I had a ton of left over cubed butternut squash this seemed perfect to use it up for! I used bone-less skinless thighs instead of legs and I would say if you do not like a bit of soft squash, this may not be for you. I loved it, Step Dad thought tasty. Mom... hated it, texture issues. She doesn't like mushy veggies and the squash gets quite soft, actually reminds me of pumpkin! I loved it and will enjoy it for lunch tomorrow. The recipe also says that it cooks for 5 hours on low, mine cooked very very quick and I ended up keeping it on warm for almost 2 hours. Not sure if my cooker is hot or what so next time I would cook it for only 3 hours or so. Just keep an eye on it so that the chicken is cooked through and the squash is to your liking before moving on to the orzo step! I for one definitely loved it!

Harvest Chicken:

1 medium butternut squash ( about 3 lbs), peeled and cubed
1 can (14.25) diced tomatoes, drained
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 c reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp coarsely ground pepper, divided
1/4 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp seasoned salt
6 chicken drumsticks, skin removed ( I used boneless skinless thighs)
1 c uncooked orzo pasta

1. in a 5 qt slow cooker, combine the squash, tomatoes, onion, celery, broth, garlic, Italian seasoning and 1/8 tsp pepper.
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the flour, seasoned salt and remaining pepper. Add chicken, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. Place chicken on top of vegetables.  Cover and cook on low for 5 hours on low or until chicken juices fun clear. Remove chicken and keep warm.
Stir orzo into vegetable mixture; cover and cook 15-20 minutes longer or until orzo is tender.
Serve topped with Chicken.


Some day I will learn how to take the pleasing pics that everyone else has on their blog, color wise, the plate doesn't look all that, but it really is tasty. I enjoyed it greatly!

Weight Watchers Creamy Lemon Pie!!

Kudos to Mom showing me another weekly Weight Watchers recipe.. we made it the same day she got it! Super simple and holy smokes so very very good!! Intense lemon taste!! we added sliced strawberries just because and I would so have baked it with a few blueberries if I could have ;). Make again definitely. We loved it! The only complaint was the Step Dad saying it needed to be thicker.. We felt it was perfect because of the intense lemon flavor. I say leave it be!! But definitely try it! We did use honey not cinnamon graham crackers, I felt it would complement the flavor better!.

Creamy Lemon Pie:

6 Whole reduced fat cinnamon graham crackers
2 Tbsp butter
11 oz Fat-Free sweetened condensed milk
2 Lg eggs
1/2 c fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Grind graham crackers in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Place crumbs in a small bowl.
3. Melt butter on stove top or in microwave and pour over graham cracker crumbs, mixing with a fork until completely moistened. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom of a 9 inch pie pan or tart pan. Place crust in refrigerator while preparing lemon filling.
4. In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk and eggs; mix until smooth. Add lemon juice and zest; Stir until incorporated and pour into
prepared crust.
5. Bake pie for 15 minutes. Cool completely and for best flavor, serve chilled.

** This pie can be baked and frozen for up to two weeks. Defrost and serve chilled. (I can not wait to test that!!!) oh! and it is 4 pts per serving!

Hawaiia Chicken

Yup that is right, another Cooking Light Mag Recipe! Still on the Jan/Feb 2011 issue, really love this issue, so much I want to make from it!. I wanted this one as being a Hawaiian chicken I figure yay pineapple! though just a little juice is used, it let me throw fresh pineapple on the grill and add to the meal! The recipe calls for a grill pan, yea I just fired up my gas grill and grilled it! I also used Boneless chicken thighs since they were on hand and quick to grab!! We added A W.W. roasted potato recipe and roasted asparagus .. and wow was it a great meal!! Will so be making this again with no questions! Super Yummy!!
Hawaiian Chicken:

1/4 c pineapple juice
2 Tbsp ketchup
2 Tbsp lower-sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp minced peeled ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 (6oz) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
cooking spray
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

1. Combine first 5 ingredients. Reserve 1/4 c marinade; place remaining marinade in a zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken to bag; seal. Chill 4 hours
2. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade in bag. Sprinkle chicken with 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Add chicken to pan; baste with 2 Tbsp reserved marinade, cook 6 minutes. Turn chicken over, baste with 2 Tbsp reserved marinade, cook 6 minutes. Serve.
I grilled til the chicken was done. Pretty simple!6 pts per serving!

Dijon-Roasted New Potatoes:

1 spray cooking spray
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp olive oil
3/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 lbs uncooked red or white new potatoes, quartered or halved


** Now.. we only actually measured the Dijon mustard. The rest we seriously just sprinkled and drizzled lol. We also just cut Idaho potatoes into bite size pieces because well we had them hehe.. very easy recipe to adapt ;)!!

1. Preheat oven to 425, Coat a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together mustard, oil, paprika, salt, thyme, and pepper. Add potatoes and stir to coat.
3. Transfer potatoes to prepared baking dish and roast 15 min. Stir and roast until tender on the inside  about 15-20 minutes more.
 4 pts per serving!
** Now our issue, this is the second time we made this recipe and both times using the new red potatoes and the Idaho potatoes, it took over an hour to get them properly roasted and tender. Do not plan on that time frame. Not sure how they cooked them to get brown and awesome, but to yield the awesome roast we did it took almost 1.5 hours! we were playing rummy! Great way to kill the time!!

Beef Tagine with Butternut Squash

The other meal I made was very different. I have seen this recipe in the Cooking Light Jan/Feb 2011 issue several times and have been itching to try it! The thing is that my family is always up for new things, but will definitely say if it was just too different for them. The tagine is a bit North African in flavors and as soon as I saw that cinnamon was in it I knew not to tell them until after they ate it ha-ha. I quite enjoyed it and would make it again, for myself or others, but not the family. It was just too weird apparently haha. If you are game to try something different I suggest definitely trying it, I really liked the flavors involved and the butternut squash was so yummy!

Beef Tagine with Butternut Squash with Scallion Couscous 


2 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 (1 lb) beef shoulder roast or petite tender roast, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 Tbsp olive oil
4 shallots, quartered
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 c fat free, lower sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5 oz) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
3 c (1 inch) cubed peeled butternut squash, ( about 1 lb)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Scallion Couscous: 
3/4 c fat free, lower sodium chicken broth
1/2 c water
1 c uncooked couscous
1/3 c chopped green onions

1. Combine first 6 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add beef, toss well to coat.
2. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add beef and shallots; cook 4 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in broth and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes. Add squash; cover; reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes or until squash is tender. Sprinkle with Cilantro.
Yields: 4 servings (1 1/2c)

Scallion Couscous: 
Bring chicken broth and water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Gradually stir in couscous. Remove from heat, cover and let stand 5 minutes.
Fluff couscous with a fork, stir in chopped scallions. Yields 4 servings.

haha the only picture of the couscous is with the serving! I think it was a great meal and a wonderful choice for a night away from the typical meal!