Is your kitchen in need of sprucing up? Maybe the refrigerator is looking a little bare... if that's the case, feel free to download, and print this link to add a little bit of cheer and inspiration to your kitchen.
This is a sauce that you're going to want to put on everything; from pasta, to chicken, pork, or even mashed potatoes. It's very versatile, and so good you're not going to want to put down the tasting spoon. Although this sauce is a fairly basic cream sauce, it really takes on a lot of delicious flavor from the wine, and mushrooms. It's worth a taste.
Josh and I just recently drove up to Chicago to celebrate my aunt and uncle's Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary. A three course meal was included, and of course, the delicious dinner was very inspiring. I've got to say, I think food might be the language of love for some couples. My Ciocia (aunt) made an entire table of sweets to feed the guests; it's no wonder they've had 50 years of happiness together.
I love food, and I like to express my love for others with food. I'm very lucky that Josh and I have this mutual adoration for all things tasty - he's the best collaborator I could ever ask for.
What You'll Need:
-2 Cups Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced
-1 Large Clove Garlic, minced
-1/4 Cup White Onion, diced
-3 Tbsp Butter (split)
-A Pinch of Salt and Pepper
-1 Cup Heavy Cream
-1 Cup Chardonnay (or your favorite white wine)
-2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour
-1 tsp Fresh Parsley, minced
-1 tsp Fresh Basil, chiffonade for garnish
1. Heat 1 Tbsp butter in a medium sized frying pan over medium high heat, add garlic stirring constantly until it is fragrant. Add the onion, stir occasionally for about 3 minutes, and add mushroom, and 1/2 Cup wine and season with salt and pepper. Allow to simmer.
2. While simmering, grab a sauce pan and melt 2 Tbsp Butter, adding Flour and whisking consistently until a paste forms. Add in the heavy cream, the rest of the wine, parsley, salt and pepper, and the mushroom mixture along with all the liquids. Stir everything together and bring to boil, continuing to stir until it sets at the desired consistency.
3. Use sauce on your favorite dishes, top with fresh basil for an additional delicious flavor. :)
Very basic ingredients treated properly will create beautiful, tasty flavors. :)
Enjoy!
A little bit crunchy, nice and saucy, and absolutely delicious. This tangy vinegary sauce will leave you wanting more than just one sandwich. Pulled chicken smothered in an Asian BBQ sauce, with a vinegar based slaw on top is the right way to eat this BBQ sandwich.
The other night, I was scrambling trying to figure out what to make for dinner. I had the last bit of a ketchup bottle sitting in my fridge and realized that a barbecue sauce was the perfect way to use the rest of it up. Luckily it was pretty quick and easy to whip up before Josh got off work so he came home to a tasty treat.
What You'll Need:
For the Slaw:
- 1 Cup Coleslaw mix
-1 tsp Rice Vinegar
-1/4 tsp Fresh Ginger, grated
-1/4 tsp Sesame Seeds
-Pinch Garlic Powder
-1 tsp Soy Sauce
-Splash of Chili Sesame Oil
-Pinch of Salt and Pepper
For Chicken:
-1 Large Boneless Chicken Breast
-Salt and Pepper, to taste
-1 tsp Chili Sesame Oil
Barbecue Sauce:
-1 Large Clove Garlic, minced
-2 tsp Cilantro, minced
-1/2 tsp Fresh Ginger, grated
-1 tsp Chili Sesame Oil
-1/4 Cup Rice Vinegar
-1/2 tsp Sambal Oelek
-2 tsp Hoisin Sauce
-1 tsp Soy Sauce
-1 Tbsp Honey
-1/2 Cup Ketchup
-1/2 Lime, juiced
-1 Green Onion, sliced
-1/4 tsp Pepper
Recipe makes 2 or 3 sandwiches
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350º F. Mix together the vinegar, oil, soy sauce, and all the spices for the slaw. Add the mix to the cole slaw, and stir together until everything is coated. Cover the bowl with saran wrap, and put in the fridge for use later.
2. Heat 1 tsp of sesame oil in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Add in the garlic, stirring until fragrant.
3. Add the ketchup, vinegar, honey, lime juice, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, Sambal Oelek, as well as the cilantro, ginger, and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to simmer for 5 minutes. Add in the green onion, and stir in. Allow to simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
4. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tsp sesame oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, cook till charred, about 5 minutes on each side.
5. Transfer the chicken into a small high walled baking dish. Slice into the chicken three times, about a 1/2 inch into the meat, and cover the chicken with the barbecue sauce. Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes.
6. Make sure the chicken is fully cooked, at least 165º F. Pull the chicken and mix it with the barbecue sauce, ensuring that it is totally coated.
7. Using a bun of your choice, we used a ciabatta roll, assemble the sandwich with chicken, and a heaping amount of coleslaw. Enjoy!
Okay, is it just me or are chips probably the best snack in the world...? You can dip them... you can make nachos... I even put chips on my sandwiches sometimes when I'm looking for some extra crunch. Unfortunately, chips aren't exactly 'good for you.'
Luckily, there are so many alternatives to making chips healthier, and even better for you! For one thing, baking potato chips is already much better than frying! But using a root vegetable... that's actually good for you! So here's our version of beet chips! We soaked the sliced beets in orange juice, and ginger to really infuse the flavor before baking. The result was a chip that was just as addicting as a regular potato chip!
These beet chips make a great side to a sandwich, or even a random snack. I'd bet they're also great for dipping.
What You'll Need:
-2 Large Beets, peeled
-1/2 tsp Orange Zest
-Half Orange, juiced
-1/2 tsp Fresh Grated Ginger
-1/2 tsp Olive Oil
-Salt and Pepper, to taste
1. Peel and slice the beets using a mandolin slicer to ensure thin even slices. Make sure the beets are sliced very thinly so that they get nice and crispy in the oven.
2. Place the sliced beets in a bowl with orange juice, orange zest, grated ginger, and olive oil. Mix with your hands ensuring that each beet is totally coated. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and let sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. In the meantime, pre-heat the oven to 350º F.
3. Bake the beets in the oven for about 15 minutes, flipping once half way through. Check to see that the beets take on a slight color change, and crinkle. Let sit out on a drying rack for a few minutes, season with salt, and pepper, and enjoy.
Be very careful when using the mandolin slicer! I've heard so many horror stories of people slicing off their finger tips! Lucky for me, even with my bad track record with knives, I have never experienced a mandolin incident! :)
After allowing the beets to soak for a bit, arrange them on a baking sheet and bake at 350º F for about 15 minutes.
Pair the beet chips with your favorite sandwich, and enjoy a tasty meal, or eat them by themselves as a snack or appetizer!
Some days aren't perfect; everyone gets bummed out every once in a while. It might be work, or the weather, or maybe your apartment gets little to no natural light. Whatever the reason, sometimes life gets you down, and all you want is a little comfort... food. Luckily for me, searching through my cabinets, I stumbled upon a can of cream of broccoli. Instantly, I felt inspiration.
Broccoli Cheddar Soup, to me, is the most comforting meal I can think of. As good as broccoli cheddar soup is, this recipe is not that... this recipe is more comforting, and hearty than that!
Josh and I always start with prep. That way, everything is ready, and you don't have to stress midway through the meal.
Arrange the potatoes in the casserole dish, and create each layer. Laying out each of the ingredients as evenly as possible.
Broccoli Cheddar Soup, to me, is the most comforting meal I can think of. As good as broccoli cheddar soup is, this recipe is not that... this recipe is more comforting, and hearty than that!
What You'll Need:
-3 Cloves Garlic, minced
-1 Large Head of Broccoli, cut into florets
-6 Large Red Potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4" rounds
-10 1/2 oz Can Cream of Broccoli
-1/4 Cup Milk
-1/4 tsp Salt
-Pinch Black Pepper
-1.5 Cups Sharp Cheddar
-Paprika, for garnish (optional)
1. After the veggies are prepped, pre-heat the oven to 375º F. In a bowl, mix together the minced garlic, salt, pepper, milk and cream of broccoli.
2. In a 2.2 QT casserole dish, arrange the potatoes in a single layer, overlapping ever so slightly. Use half of the cream of broccoli mixture, and spread it evenly over the potatoes. Add half of the cheddar cheese, and half of the broccoli.
3. Add one more layer of potatoes, cream of broccoli, broccoli, and the cheddar cheese. Make sure that the broccoli is even with the layer of potatoes and the cheese covers the top layer almost completely.
4. Bake in the oven for about 40-50 minutes. Rotating the dish at least once to ensure that it cooks evenly. Garnish with paprika for a pretty red tint. :)
Arrange the potatoes in the casserole dish, and create each layer. Laying out each of the ingredients as evenly as possible.
Bake the au gratin for about 45 minutes, until the cheese is melted, the potatoes are soft, and the top of the casserole is slightly browned!
Serve, and enjoy!
Before starting the blog, Josh and I were 'celebrating' what we called "Burrito Tuesday" for quite a while. Every Tuesday we'd come up with our own wacky filling for a burrito, conventional and unconventional. There's no hiding that we really freaking love Mexican food. Southwestern Fusions are the best, and most likely if it's wrapped in a tortilla I'll love it. This recipe is not for one of our crazy burritos, although I'm sure we'll post a few fun fusions in the future. Today we've done a Southwestern Black Bean burger.
Personally, I want to make a more conscious effort to shop local, organic, and include less meat in my diet. This was a delicious way to start. This burger is totally vegetarian, however, we used egg as a binder. The burger itself is topped with homemade loaded guac, and pepper jack cheese.
We paired our veggie burger with Josh's baked sweet potato fries. We'll definitely be including the recipe at some point soon because I fell in love with his fries. :)
What You'll Need:
Veggie Burger:
-3 Cloves Garlic
-1 Jalapeño, seeded for less heat
-1/2 Bell Pepper
-1 large Carrot, peeled
-1/2 small Red Onion
-4 Sprigs of Fresh Cilantro
-15 oz can Black Beans, drained and mashed
-1/4 tsp Cumin
-1/4 tsp Coriander
-Pinch Chili Powder
-1 Large Egg
-1/4 Cup Cotija
-1/4 tsp Black Pepper
-Large Pinch of Salt
-Several Slices Pepper Jack Cheese
-Favorite Hamburger buns
Loaded Guacamole:
-1 Avocado
-1 tsp Cilantro
-Half Lime, juiced
-1/2 Tomato, diced
-1/4 Red Onion, diced
-Pinch Cumin
-1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
-Pinch Chili Powder
-Pinch Red Pepper Flakes
-Salt and Pepper, to taste
1. Prep the vegetables for the burger. Add the garlic, jalapeño, carrot, cilantro, bell pepper, and onion and pulverize until the veggies are chopped into small chunks. Be sure to keep an eye on this, make sure that the veggies don't become liquified. Squeeze the excess juices from the veggies so that the burger doesn't become too moist.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 400º F. In a medium sized bowl, mash the black beans, then add the vegetables, spices, and egg. Mix everything together and shape 8 patties. Grease a baking sheet, and lay out the patties. Bake for about 10 to 15 minutes on each side, or until the outsides brown a little.
3. While the burgers bake, make the guacamole. Cut up the veggies, and mash the avocado. Add in veggies, spices, lime and stir everything together.
4. While the burgers are finishing up, top with a slice of pepper jack cheese, and wait till melted. Then add burger to the bun, top with guacamole, and enjoy!
Alright, you gotta love all the fresh veggies that go into this burger. When you can pronounce every ingredient, you know it's good!
It's very important that you drain the veggies of excess water! Too much moister will make it hard to shape patties for your veggie burgers.
These are our homemade buns! Baking is not necessarily my thing, but bread is a different story.
This past summer, my mom and I went to North Carolina. Our original vacation, a trip around the Northwest Coast fell through, and even though at the time it was extremely stressful, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise. We road tripped to North Carolina, visiting several cities from the western end of the state all the way to the coastline, because we wanted to see the ocean, of course! We stopped in Asheville, and both fell in love with that little mountain town. A few months later, Josh and I went to Asheville to attend the Brewgrass festival. (Josh and I love beer and bluegrass. Did I mention that I'm an amateur banjo player? Ha) Well anyways, during our time there we grabbed dinner at this pizza place, the Mellow Mushroom, and had this amazing Greek salad before our pizza. In this post, I do my best to replicate it, and I'm honestly super happy with the results.
Light enough to be a side salad but hearty enough to be a meal in a larger portion!
What You'll Need:
For the Chicken:
-1 Large Chicken Breast
-1 tsp Olive Oil
-1/2 tsp Lemon Juice
-1 tsp Marjoram
-1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika
-1/4 tsp Coriander
-1/4 tsp Cayenne
-Pinch Cardamom
-Pinch Cumin
-1 Clove Garlic, minced
-Pinch of Salt & Pepper
For the Salad:
-1/2 Large Cucumber, diced
-1/2 Red Onion, thinly sliced & halved
-1/2 Bell Pepper, thinly sliced
-1 Tomato, diced
-1 Tbsp Leaves Fresh Cilantro
-Handful Kalamata Olives, halved
-Handful Chopped Pepperoncini's
-1/2 Head of Lettuced, chopped
-Feta Cheese, to taste
1. Prepare the chicken breast, then rub with olive oil, and lemon juice. Add all the spices included for the chicken, and make sure to cover the chicken. Cover and let sit in the fridge in the time that it takes to prep the vegetables.
2. Cut all the veggies according to recipe. Set the veggies and lettuce aside in a bowl, and put in the fridge.
3. Heat 1/4 tsp of Olive Oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Sear both sides of the chicken, turning only once (about 2.5 to 3 minutes on each side.) Then cover the chicken and lower the temp to low, cook covered for about 7-10 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.
4. Slice the chicken and set aside. Add the feta cheese to the salad. Dress salad with dressing of choice. We used Kraft Greek Dressing. Squeeze a small portion of fresh lemon juice over the top. Lastly add the chicken, serve, and enjoy!
This recipe makes about 6 individual bowls.
Add the items to the salad, dress, and serve!
Light enough to be a side salad but hearty enough to be a meal in a larger portion!
