Meet Nikki

I am a professional voice over artist, radio personality and I write this food blog.  I am married, I live in NYC and if I was 5 years old drawing a picture of what I want to be when I grow up it would be a picture of me hosting a show on the Food Network. 

More about Nikki...

           

Food Network Star

Nikki Dinki is going to be on Food Network Star! Premiering June 2nd at 9pm on the Food Network. Click here for pics, clips and more from the show

Sign up for my mailing list!
This form does not yet contain any fields.
    Navigation
    Tuesday
    Mar192013

    Butter Free Garlic Bread

     

     

     

    RECIPE:

     

    3Tbs Low-Fat Mayo

    1 container Oikos Plain Greek Yogurt

    1/4tsp salt

    8 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped

    1/8-1/4tsp Cayenne Pepper

    1tsp Fresh Thyme, finely chopped

    ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

    1 loaf bread

     

    Combine mayo, greek yogurt, salt, garlic, cayenne pepper and thyme together. Cut loaf of bread in half and spread yogurt mixture over the cut side of the bread. Top with the parmesan cheese and cook under your broiler until top is brown and bread is crisp. Serve warm and ENJOY!

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Chickpea Crunchies
    • Basil + Mint Pesto
    • Mushroom Bread Baskets
    • Sweet Potato Souffle
    Friday
    Mar012013

    Spinach + Artichoke Bites

     

     

    NYC can be a strange place.

     

    Apartments are small, apartment kitchens are dicey, but bars and restaurants are plentiful.

    So you find yourself headed to your local watering hole to meet up with your fellow winos without even considering the idea of having people over to your home. 

     

     

     

     

    My apartments in NYC have slowly...very slowly...gotten bigger and bigger. In 13 years I have lived in 9 different places, all of varying sizes and with varying infestation problems...

     

     

     

     

    My latest apartment has two highly coveted features...space for a dining room table and a window in the kitchen!

     

     A WINDOW!!!!!

     

    Click to read more ...

    Thursday
    Feb282013

    Appetizer Cups

     

     

    It was a simple idea...make a cup...fill it with stuff... 

     

     

    But how? 

     

     

    Well this is how... 

     

    With a little help from the store and a mini muffin tin you can suddenly become an assembly line for one of a kind, irresistibly cute little appetizers.

     

     

     

    RECIPE:

    1 8oz can Crescent Roll Dough

    Rolling Pin

    Knife/Pizza Wheel

     

     

    DIRECTIONS:


     Unroll crecent roll dough onto a lightly floured surface...

     

     

     

     

     

    Pinch the seams with your fingers in order to create one seamless rectangle of dough.

    Dough should be tacky enough to stick together easily.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Roll out dough till it is about 1/3 bigger than the original size.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Cut the rectangle into 24 even squares. Place squares into a greased mini muffin tin and press the dough to the sides of the cup.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until cups are golden brown.

     

     

     

     

     

    Let cups cool and fill with things like cheese, salads or even mini meatballs. ENJOY!

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Mango + Honey Crostini
    • Irish Soda Bread
    • Cookie Dough Truffles
    • Buttery Biscoff Bites
    Thursday
    Feb282013

    Popovers

     

     

     

    RECIPE:


    2 cups milk, warmed
    4 eggs
    2 cups flour
    2 tsp salt
    1 cups grated Gruyere cheese

     

     

     

    Place a popover pan or muffin pan in the oven.  Heat the oven and pan to 350 degrees.  In the mean time gently warm the milk over low heat until warm to the touch and set aside.  Whisk the eggs until frothy and slowly whisk in the warmed milk.  Set the mixture aside.  Sift the flour with the salt.  Slowly add the flour and salt mixture to the milk and eggs until there are no lumps. Remove the pan from the oven and grease LIBERALLY — the top as well as inside the cups.  While the batter is still slightly warm or room temp (definitely not cool), fill each cup full.  Top each popover with approximately 2 Tbsp of the grated Gruyere.

     

    Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, rotating pan half a turn after 20 minutes of baking. Serve warm and ENJOY!

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Chickpea Crunchies
    • Basil + Mint Pesto
    • Mushroom Bread Baskets
    • Chicken Marsala
    Wednesday
    Feb132013

    Roasted Garlic

     

     

    "Obsession" is a word I don’t throw around too often. But there is one thing in my life that I will easily admit I am obsessed with. One thing that has found its way into my heart, and stomach…

     

    GARLIC

     

    I. LOVE.  GARLIC.

     

    And I when I say I love garlic, I love it in all its forms.  And that definitely includes it’s sweeter, softer cousin...roasted garlic. But before you can enjoy this garlicky goodness you need to make it, and here’s how...

     

     

     

     

    RECIPE:

     

    1 Head of Garlic

    1tsp Olive Oil

    Salt

    Pepper

     

    Set your oven to 450.  Cut off the top 1/3 of the head and drizzle it with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Put garlic head in a tin foil package cut side up making sure the cut side does not touch the tin foil and that the package is sealed completely. Roast in the oven for 45-1 hour until golden brown.

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Mango + Honey Crostini
    • Irish Soda Bread
    • Cookie Dough Truffles
    • Buttery Biscoff Bites
    Wednesday
    Dec052012

    Berry Keylime "Cheesecake"

     

    A cheesecake with no cheese?! 

     

    Now that's just silly talk...

     

    Or is it?

     

    While developing recipes for Dannon's Oikos Greek Yogurt I played around with the idea of making something sweet instead of savory out of the yogurt. But experimenting in the baking world usually means I end up frustrated, covered in flour, downing my 3rd glass of wine....

     

    Well not this time!! This time (and maybe only this time) I am a genius! Or at least I created something edible ;)

     

     

     

     

    RECIPE:


    Crust:

    9 Graham Crackers

    2Tbs Sugar

    4Tbs Butter, melted

     

    Filling:

    2 containers Oikos Key Lime Greek Yogurt

    2 containers Oikos Strawberry or Raspberry Greek Yogurt

    4 eggs

    1 can sweetened condensed milk

    4Tbs All Purpose Flour

     

    Pulse graham crackers, sugar and butter in a food processor. Pat mixture into the bottom of a 9inch spring form pan. Set aside. In a bowl combine 2 containers of Key Lime Greek Yogurt, 2 eggs, 2 Tbs flour and half of the sweetened condensed milk. In a separate bowl combine the Berry Greek Yogurt with the remaining eggs, flour and sweetened condensed milk.  Add red food coloring to the Berry mixture and green to the Key Lime mixture if desired.  Pour Berry mixture on top of the crust, then slowly pour the Key Lime mixture on top of that. Bake at 350 for 35-40 until the center is set and edges are fully cooked. Refrigerate for at least 3 hour or over-night. Serve and enjoy!!

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Oreo Sliders
    • Roasted Garlic + Basil Hummus
    • Irish Soda Bread
    • Cookie Dough Truffles
    • Challah Hangover Sandwich
    Wednesday
    Nov282012

    Cheese Ravioli

     

     

    RECIPE:

     

    Homemade Pasta Dough - Click here for fresh pasta recipe + how-to video

    1 cup Ricotta

    1.5 cups Parmesan

    2 cups Gruyere

    4 Garlic Cloves

    1/2tsp salt

    1 egg

     

    Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Spoon 1Tbs of filling into each ravioli. Cook ravioli and enojy!!

    Makes 45 raviloi

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Chickpea Crunchies
    • Basil + Mint Pesto
    • Mushroom Bread Baskets
    • Chicken Marsala
    Wednesday
    Nov282012

    Lobster Salad

      

     

    I just CAN'T do it

     

    I know, I know

     

    I’ve convinced you I am proficient in the kitchen and yet...I CANT DO IT!

     

    I know how to do it...

     

    I’ve seen it done...

     

    And I just can’t do it

     

     

     

     

    But then I found this spectacular spot. A place where lobsters are cooked fresh multiple times a day, sold to me cooked, cracked and accompanied by butter and lemon if my little heart so desires it.

     

    And suddenly me and my now pre-cooked lobster are getting along just fine.

     

    And if I have a moment of guilt I can take some comfort in the fact that I had nothing to do with the whole cooking thing, I am simply going to make this lobster the best it can be!

     

    Click to read more ...

    Wednesday
    Nov142012

    Sweet Potato Souffle

     

     

    "We're NUMBER ONE! We're NUMBER ONE!"

     

    This is the chant of sweet potatoes everywhere...

     

    What the heck does this mean? It means that the CSPI ranked all vegetables giving them points for things like Vitamin A and fiber and deducting points for saturated fats and refined sugars. And the sweet potato ranked NUMBER ONE with a score of 184!!

     

    It outscored the next highest vegetable by more than 100 points!!

     

    But when you smother this nutritional dense vegetable with butter and sugar it turns a once all-star food into something not quite so good for you. So...why not add just a touch of sugar, some super vibrant spices and some greek yogurt for creaminess?!

     

    Sounds pretty good doesn't it? ;)

     

     

     

     

     

    RECIPE:


    5 lbs sweet potatoes

    1 tsp cinnamon

    1/4tsp nutmeg

    1/8tsp cloves

    2tsp Salt

    1/4 cup honey

    2Tbs Dark brown sugar

    2 egg

    2 container Oiko Greek Yogurt - Plain

    Pecans and dried cranberries to top

     

    Cut sweet potatoes into 1/2inch to 1inch cubes. Steam until soft, about 15minutes and mash or puree potatoes. Add spices, salt, honey, sugar, eggs and greek yogurt, and stir to combine.  Pour mixture into a baking pan and bake for 40-50minutes at 350 until top is slightly brown. Top with pecans and cranberries and bake for another 5 minutes. Serve hot and ENJOY!

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Oreo Sliders
    • Roasted Garlic + Basil Hummus
    • Berry Keylime "Cheesecake"
    • Lobster Salad
    • Challah Hangover Sandwich
    Wednesday
    Nov072012

    How to Make Lean Cuisines

     

     

     

    RECIPE:   WATCH THE VIDEO!!!!  :)

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Pin It!

     

     

     

    You might also like these recipes:

    • Brocolli Tacos
    • Chickpea Crunchies
    • Basil + Mint Pesto
    • Mushroom Bread Baskets
    • Chicken Marsala