Name: Lisa but everyone calls me Lee

Family: DH of 4 ½ years- Damian, DS1- AJ just turned 4 and DS2- Carmine is 19 months

State: NY

Favorite Drink? Non-alcoholic- iced tea
alcoholic- Long Island Iced Tea!

Favorite Vegetable? Sweet potatoes

Favorite Dessert? I love a good chewy, fudgy brownie, with nuts

Favorite comfort meal? pasta (I’m half Italian!)

If I had to eat the same thing for the rest of my life it would be: again- pasta!

Weirdest thing you ever ate? Hmm… I guess it would have to be a fried pickle. I know it may be common for some of you, but not for me!

I didn't think I'd like, but I did!! Fried calamari- my parents weren’t big fish eaters, so when my DH ordered it for the first time, I didn’t even want to try it but I’m glad I did because I love it (but then again, I love anything fried!)

Baking or Cooking? I’d have to say baking because as a Mom, cooking has become a bit of a chore, even though I love it. Baking is something I only get to do once in a while and usually for a special occasion, so it’s more fun

I seem to always add this ingredient: when cooking, not baking, of course- onions

Kitchen Gadget/Utensil/Appliance I couldn’t live without: my Santoku knife

I enjoy being in the kitchen because: it’s my space. The kids have the run of the house, but there’s a gate in the kitchen doorway. They’re only allowed in there to eat!

If my kitchen could talk it would say “this” about me: she’s such a slob! I always make a huge mess in there!

I learned everything I know about cooking from: I really want to say my Mom, but the real answer is TV! When I was young and we didn’t have cable, I used to watch Julia, Jacques and Lidia on PBS, now I could watch food network 24 hours a day!

What I try to teach my kids about cooking: that it’s not just for women!


Funniest cooking story: 3 weeks ago, for AJ’s birthday, I made 2 pans of baked ziti the night before. Since there was sauce in it, I put plastic wrap between the pasta and the foil. We were having the party by my Aunt’s house, so my Uncle came over earlier in the day to pick up the food. I forgot to tell him about the plastic wrap, so when he brought it home, my Aunt put it straight into the oven. I completely forgot about the plastic wrap until we were taking it out of the oven an hour later! It stayed pretty much intact, so we were able to take it all off. We tried to pick off the top layer of pasta just to be safe. It was a good thing I had made a lot. Thankfully, none of the guests except for my Mom saw what had happened, but I made sure to tell my husband that if he came across any shiny pasta, not to eat it!

My family LOVES it when I cook this: well, the only thing all 4 of us agree on is my chocolate chip cookies


Family Favorite Recipe: I came across this when I was looking for healthy recipes when we decided to start a diet. It’s so good that you’d never know it’s good for you! I know this recipe has been on here before but this version rocks!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 tsp olive oil
1 c chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 boneless chicken breast, cut into chunks
1 c frozen whole-kernel corn
1/4 c dry white wine
1 Tbs chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp chili powder
2 (14 1/4-ounce) cans fat free chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with jalapenos
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can Campbell's Healthy Request condensed tomato soup
1 small can black beans, rinsed
3 tsp cornstarch
3 tsp cold water

Toppings:
crushed baked tortilla chips
light sour cream
Extra chopped jalpenos for those who like it spicier

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over med-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 2 min.Add chicken broth, bring to a boil. Add raw chicken, boil until cooked. Remove chicken with a slotted spoon, shred , and return to pot along with the remaining ingredients, except for the cornstarch, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes.
Mix cornstarch and water, stir into soup and bring again to a boil, simmer 15 more minutes.
Ladle soup into bowls, stir in sour cream, if desired and top with chips.

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and ,oh my goodness,check out the amazing birthday cake she made for her son...

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Lee,thank you so much for sharing so much of yourself with us...you are truly an amazingly cool girl-I am so happy to know you

My jaw dropped when I saw that cake....I~M~P~R~E~S~S~I~V~E

Thank you Trudy! It means a lot to me that I impressed YOU! LOL! I have to admit- you're a pretty cool chick yourself!

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Congrats. on DOTW, it was nice getting to know you better, LOVE that cake, my DS would flip for that!

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Great getting to know you better, your cake is awesome!

Congrats on Dish of the week Lisa! Your cake ROCKS (you'll need to scrap those pics )

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Glad to know more about your cookin' side! BTW you can use onions in baking...I made a loaf of Parmesan onion French Bread for 4-H one time and got a blue ribbon

Awesome!! Congrats!

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Alicia