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Recent Recipes

Showing posts with label americana. Show all posts
Showing posts with label americana. Show all posts

HBotW 9/29

Comments (0) | Sunday, October 5, 2014

Sliced bananas on a cinnamon raisin bagel thin with a little smear of peanut butter! Healthy Breakfast of the Week 9/29-10/3


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Southwestern Bacon Cheeseburgers and Tex-Mex Mashed Potatoes

Comments (0) | Sunday, August 21, 2011

Today I went grocery shopping!


Okay, that's not super out of the ordinary since I typically go every Sunday, but today I had a mission! I was in the mood to cook something new and yummy, and so I needed the appropriate supplies. Today's meal was Southwestern Bacon Cheeseburgers and Tex-Mex Mashed Potatoes. Sooooo original for me, right? Okay maybe I do a lot of potatoes, but THEY ARE DELICIOUS SO STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT.

Okay, anyway. The potatoes! They were really frikkin' good! They were a cool twist on a standard favorite. The burger was great too, juicy and flavorful.

Ease of Preparation: 1.5 Burgers / 1.5 Potatoes
Taste: 3 Burgers / 3.5 Potatoes
Feeds: 5 Burgers / 10 Potatoes

This meal is a cool way to incorporate southwestern/mexican food flavor into a typically very american dish. In order to turn the regular burgers from the linked recipe into super awesome southwestern burgers I topped them with Monteray Jack cheese, bacon and my delicious guacamole. I put some mayo with taco seasoning on The Parents' burgers but not mine since I have a strong distaste for mayo.

Overall very good. I think these burgers were about 500 calories total (which is pretty damn good for a bacon cheeseburger if I do say so myself).

The mashed potatoes were quite good as well. Just a little bit of crunch from the veggies in them, and very creamy and flavorful. 

Suggestions / Changes

Other than my southwestern additions to the burgers that I mentioned above, I did made several other changes - particularly to the potatoes. Instead of milk I used about 3/4 cup sour cream in the mixing of them. I find this yields a creamier mashed potato. Also, I mixed in about 1.5 teaspoons of Mexican seasoning (the kind you use to make taco meat). That gave them some really great Mexican food flavor and color. I didn't add any salt because the Mexican flavoring added enough on its own.

As for the burgers, the only change that I made to that recipe was that after 15 mins of cooking time I put the cheese on top of the burgers, then I let them cook for the last 5 mins. Nice and melty!

More pics of the yummy!
  


Awwwwwwwwww Yeaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!

Recipes property of: Food Network (http://www.foodnetwork.com) and Anonymous of cooks.com (http://www.cooks.com)


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Baked Broccoli Cheese Bites

Comments (1) | Saturday, July 30, 2011

It's been a very long time since I've been able to post anything on here.

I promise, I didn't forget about the site! I just started my new job, and Best Friend was in town for a few weeks,  so I haven't had time to experiment with any new recipes.

This weekend, though, I'm back and going strong! I'm trying THREE (four?) new recipes this weekend! Today I made Baked Broccoli Cheese Bites as an afternoon snack for the family. Then, I made my very own Pesto for the first time, since one of my awesome new coworkers brought me a big bag of fresh basil and I talked the Parentals into purchasing a small food processor. For dinner I used that Pesto to make Chicken Fettuccine with Pesto Cream Sauce. Recipes for both to come. Tomorrow I'm supposed to try a Curry Chicken dish that the Mother has picked out.

SO! Down to business. Baked Broccoli Cheese Bites! I know this is two broccoli cheese recipes in a row, but hey, it's been a month since I made the last one! Anyway, this was a great snack. Filling, moderately healthy, fun to make, and tasty!

Recipe: http://www.staceysnacksonline.com/2011/01/broccoli-bites-for-kids.html

Ease of preparation: 1.5
Taste: 1.5
Feeds: 3-5


The recipe yielded 20 patties, and my parents ate 16 between them. I would call this a success! But really, I will make these again. This is another kid friendly food because you mix it and make the patties with your hands. What can I say? I like getting my hands dirty when I cook. Plus, the bread and cheese mix ins and the fun of making them, might help get kids more interested in eating broccoli!


Suggestions / Changes


I used Panko bread crumbs instead of regular italian bread crumbs. I thought this worked out just fine, and they're better for you, too! Yum yum yum! I really didn't think that they needed anything else. One of the best things about this dish is its simplicity!


Recipe property of: Stacy Snacks
(http://www.staceysnacksonline.com)




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Creamy Crock Pot Chicken and Broccoli Over Rice

Comments (0) | Tuesday, June 28, 2011

This evening was the final incarnation of Blair Cooks for the Family of this week. I have to say, it was definitely a success! As the title of this post would indicate, I made cheesy broccoli chicken yummyness and served it over brown rice. Verra verra good, and pretty dang healthy too. Lots of yummy chicken and broccoli and brown rice nutrients! Food is the absolute best (in my most humble opinion) when it hits all three points on the awesome food triangle - it tastes good; it looks good; it's good for your body!

Another delectable Picky Palate recipe: http://picky-palate.com/2007/12/17/creamy-crockpot-chicken-and-broccoli/

Ease of preparation: 2
Taste: 3
Feeds: at least 8

As I said, this was quite tasty. I ended up having to transfer it to a pot on the stove instead of the crock pot when I mixed in the broccoli at the end (our crock pot was just too small!) but really the effect was the same. The recipe given makes LOTS, definitely at least 8 servings.

Suggestions / Changes

I found this to be a little bit salty. Unless you use reduced sodium chicken broth, I would suggest leaving out the extra added salt. Also it is important to know your crock pot. I opted for the three hours on high directions and after four hours my chicken was cooked through but not to the point that it shredded easily per the instructions. Next time I will also add a bit more cajun seasoning and garlic powder.

cook cook cook cook
 My broccolieeeees post steaming.
After mixing everything in together in a big pot!

Recipe property of: Jenny of Picky Palate
(http://picky-palate.com/)


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Twice Baked Potatoes (Original Recipe)

Comments (0) | Friday, June 24, 2011

Before my dad left the house today he was talking to me and said that if I was going to be home for dinner I should cook something, like a Tuna Noodle Casserole. Now, don’t get me wrong, Tuna Noodle is delicious and I love it, but I just wasn’t in the mood for it this evening. PLUS, I wanted to make up a new recipe using the potatoes we had in the house. SO tonight I made my yummy meatloaf (previously reviewed) and made up my own (probably not very original, but whatever they were slammin’) recipe for Twice Baked Potatoes!
Ummmmmmmm yeah. I wish I could be buried in a vat of potato filling so I could be forced to eat my way out. Hello Gorgeous…
Ease of preparation: 2
Taste: 2
Feeds: 2 per potato that you use, the recipe below will be for 3 potatoes
But yeah, these are pretty good. If we had bacon in the house I would have chopped some of that up and thrown it in, but as it were we just had “Bacon Bits” so I made due. Also I was kind-of just throwing things together in a big bowl so my recipe below is mostly just an estimate of what I did. Great additions in the future would be: different types of cheese, broccoli, real bacon, chives, etc.
Twice Baked Potatoes
Ingredients:
3 potatoes
4.5 tbsp butter (1.5 tbsp per potato)
3 heaping spoonfuls of sour cream
1/2 cup + 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup milk
1.5 tbsp parsley
2 tbsp bacon bits + 1 tbsp bacon bits
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
Directions:
1. Bake potatoes at 400 degrees for about 1 hour
2. While potatoes are baking, prep the rest of your meal
3. Let potatoes cool enough to be handled
4. Cut potatoes in half, hot dog style, spoon out the innards creating a “potato boat”
5. Mix in the rest of the ingredients (except that 1/2 cup cheese and 1 tbsp bacon bits) in to the potato guts using a fork or spoon to mash it all together
6. Spoon potato guts evenly back into the potato boats
7. Top potatoes with rest of cheese and bacon bits
8. Bake an additional 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees
More delicious pics of my dinnerrrr and the process:
 My taters pre-second baking!
DINNER Y U SO TASTY???


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Sausage Gravy

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This past weekend I hosted an Easter Egg Dying Party. True, I know that Easter is still several weeks away, but that was my last opportunity to have people over until Easter itself. So, I had folks over and we decorated eggs and I made Brinner! I really, really love brinner. It is just… so good. I could eat it 5x a week. I made scrambled eggs (from the insides of the eggs we were dying), bacon (how could I not?), hash browns, and biscuits and gravy.
I loooove sausage gravy! Sometimes I just get cravings for it. So, I decided that I wanted to learn how to make it myself. The biscuits were Pillsbury because I was short on time, but the gravy turned out great!
Ease of preparation: 2
Taste: 1.5
Feeds: About 6-8? Covers like 14 biscuits. 
This was quite good! Definitely hit my biscuits and gravy spot. It was surprisingly easy to throw together and was very tasty. I definitely recommend this when you’re in the mood for brinner or breakfast or just some good comfort food.
Suggestions / Changes
I used sausage with a lot of seasonings already in it, and I think that helped make it very flavorful. Other than that, I basically followed this recipe exactly. I was considering using some cream in place of some of the milk to make a creamier gravy, so I might try that next time, but really it’s not necessary.
Recipe and photo property of: Mama’s Southern Cooking
(http://www.mamas-southern-cooking.com) 


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Pan Fried Potato Pancakes (Original Recipe)

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I actually made these tonight! A few days ago I made potato skins for Family Dinner night and so I had some leftover potato guts. I’m leaving town tomorrow for about a week, so I’ve been trying to use up all of my perishables and the potato was the last of it. So I made some potato pancakes! This is a truly original recipe, I didn’t find inspiration anywhere else, I just made it up as I went along.
Look! I took my own picture! I know it’s crappy, but I am lazy so I just used my webcam for a snapshot.
image
Ease of preparation: 2
Taste: 0.5
Feeds: Depends on how much potato you use… Guts from 8 potatoes will feed 3-4.
Very quick to make if you already have the potato on hand. These are magical with a squirt of catchup or a smoosh of sour cream on top. I’ve tried them both ways, I know. Whoopee!
Fried Potato Pancakes
Ingredients:
8 potatoes worth of guts (obviously this can be adjusted to your need)
A few minced cloves of garlic
2 eggs
1/4-1/2 cup shredded cheese
1/2 tsp. of salt (may be adjusted for personal taste)
1/2 tsp. of pepper (may be adjusted for personal taste)
A few splashes of vegetable oil 
Directions:
1. Mix together mashed up potato guts (they can still be a little lumpy and they will be fine) with eggs, garlic, cheese, salt and pepper until well mixed
2. Shape about 2.5 tbsp. worth of potato mix into balls, then squish them flat (like in the picture)
3. Splash a little oil into a frying pan, just to help the process along
4.  Place the little potato pancakes in the pan, cook on medium heat until light brown (or however brown you like!)
5. Flip pancakes and repeat the process
6. Remove from heat and let cool slightly… eat! 


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Potato Wedges (Original Recipe)

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Because I am a reasonable human being, I obviously have a fondness for potatoes. As evidenced by my earlier post, it’s clear that I know my way around the potato-oven relationship. But there are only so many times that you want a plain old baked potato before you start feeling a bit adventurous. One afternoon I was feeling a bit peckish and discovered that I had a few potatoes leftover from my Baked Potato Soup adventure (coming later!) so I decided to experiment.
I decided I wanted… POTATO WEDGES (DUN DUN DUNNNNNN)
Ease of preparation: 1.5
Taste: 2.5
Feeds: 4-6
These were quite good, and really hit the spot. In the future I think I may sprinkle some grated parmesan cheese on top part-way through the baking process to really make these bangin’.
Potato Wedges
Ingredients:
5-6 potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 tablespoons pesto
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Wash and slice each potato into 8 wedges
3. Put wedges in a large bowl, top with oil, garlic and pesto
4. Toss until potatoes are coated evenly
5. Spread potatoes evenly in one layer on a greased (I love Pam) baking tray and season with salt and pepper
6. Bake for ~45 minutes, turning over potatoes once in the middle of cooking (this is when I might try sprinkling some parm over top of them
7. Go nuts! 


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Hashbrown Potato Casserole (Original Recipe)

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This is a recipe I have been using since before I saved my recipes on my laptop (gasp!). It is tried and true and a definite crowd pleaser. It is delicious, simple, and relatively inexpensive, which is is the holy trinity of food when it comes to we lowly college students. This is something that I often take to pot luck events, because I know I won’t be bringing home a half-eaten dish of food at the end!
Once again, thank you google image search for finding me a picture that looks just like my own. And apparently thanks to karmafreecooking:
Ease of preparation: 1
Taste: 4
Feeds: 10+ if used as a side
Legit this will absolutely hit the spot if you are looking for a carb fix, or a cheese fix, or a delicious fix. Would I lie to you?
Hashbrown Potato Casserole
Ingredients:
32 oz. cubed frozen potatoes, thawed (though this works fine unthawed, too)
1/2 cup melted butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
12 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz. sour cream
1 tsp. salt
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups corn flakes, crunched up

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix together all ingredients but cornflakes in a big bowl (I use a giant plastic salad bowl, myself)
3. Dump mixture into 9x13 inch baking dish, flatten/smooth it out
4. Top with crunched corn flakes
5. Bake for 45 mins.
6. Bask in the glory of the delicious and the praise you will receive for cooking this!


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Potato Skins (Original Recipe)

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Obligatory potato skins post. 
I made these for my Superbowl Party this year, and have several times since. They are the perfect mix of crisp outer skin and bacony cheesy soft potatoy insides. If it was socially acceptable for me to put on 300 lbs I might make these every day.
Random image of potato skins that look closest to mine courtesy of google:
Ease of preparation: 2
Taste: 4
Feeds: depends on how many potatoes you use. 1-1.5 potatoes per person, typically.
Potato Skins of Awesome
Ingredients:
~6-8 baking potatoes (basically 1-1.5 per person you’re feeding)
1 tbsp. butter per potato half
1 strip of cooked bacon per potato half, chopped up
~3 tbsp. shredded cheddar cheese per potato half (more or less depending on how cheesy you want them!)
sour cream and green onions as desired to garnish

Directions:
1. Wash and stab potatoes with a fork.
2. Bake potatoes at 400 degrees for about an hour, let them cool.
3. Slice potatoes in half and scrape out most, but not all of the insides. Put them aside to use later (for mashed potatoes, potato latkes, etc.).
4. Melt butter and rub it all over potatoes (inside and on the skin).
5. Broil potatoes on high for 10 mins.
6. Put cheese and bacon in the skins, broil for 2-4 more minutes (watch them for when they reach perfect cheesy meltyness!).
7. Top with sour cream and green onions and eeeaaattttt! 


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Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

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This was one of my Superbowl Party recipes this year. I did a big spread of finger foods and wanted something pizzaish to include in the bunch. These were pretty good, but not awesome. They are super cute, and don’t get me wrong, they’re tasty, but the dough is missing …something. Not quite sure what yet, that will take some experimentation, but something.
Recipe!
Ease of preparation: 1.5
Taste: 0.5
Feeds: 5-6 
Definitely a good snack item, and from what I hear they are very popular with the kiddies. They’re a fun twist on something that’s already delicious, so how could they be bad?
Changes / Suggestions
I heard about, found, and used some itty bitty mini-pepperonis. They didn’t need to be sliced up at all so that was really convenient, and they looked so cute! Also to make these healthier you could use turkey pepperoni. I always think that tastes the same.
Recipe and photo property of: Noble Pig (noblepig.com)


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Motherlode Layered Cookie Bars

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It may come as a surprise, since all of my posts so far have been about regular food, but my kitchen adventures initially started with baking sweets. In honor of that, I thought I would share what has, in a way, become one of my more signature dishes. I gave this one away as a Christmas present three times this past winter, each time to rave reviews.

Here is the recipe:
Ease of preparation: 5
Taste: 4
Feeds: ~12-16 servings, depends on how large you slice the bars
As the picture indicates, this bar is essentially 4 cookies plopped on top of each other and baked together into one sugar-coma inducing crazy bar of awesome. It’s quite complicated to put together, or at least it was for me. Be prepared to spend 2 hours or more actively working and making a big (but fun!) mess. These are well worth the hassle. Best Friend and I had a great time when we were making them (but then, we have a great time whatever we do)!
Changes / Suggestions
I never did the chocolate drizzle on top. I’m sure that it tastes great but by the time I got to that step I was too tired to care! Also, these are sugary enough without that, hah.

Recipe and photo property of The Picky Palate (http://picky-palate.com/)


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Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (Original Recipe)

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Lo! A recipe that I created myself! Yes, they do exist, but I am still a relative beginner in the kitchen so at this point I am still far more likely to trust other’s judgement than my own. Sometimes I get adventurous and try something of my own design, but it is true that I am usually just recreating the inventions of others.
Here it is! My very own Chicken Noodle Soup.
Ease of preparation: 1
Taste: 3.5
Feeds: 5-6 easily
So, the Boyfriend was sick. Sick enough to not be able to attend my weekly Family Dinner that I cook for a lucky few individuals (eyebrow waggle), so you know that was a BFD. Anyway, I felt bad so I figured I would whip up something and take it over to his place so he would feel better (and have something to eat other than cereal in his quarantine). This is the result!
Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients:
32 oz regular chicken broth/stock
32 oz reduced sodium chicken broth/stock
8 oz (1 cup) water
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup  chopped carrots (I used frozen, they worked just fine)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups egg noodles
1/2 Publix rotisserie chicken (basically just wait for it to cool down and pick the meat off. You can use more or less than 1/2 to suit your tastes.)
Magic (this is what helps the sick people) 
Directions:
1. Cook noodles according to package directions, drain and set aside.
2. In a large pot combine broth, water and chicken skin, bring to a boil. Boil for 5 mins.
3. Remove chicken skin. Throw away.
4. Add in vegetables, reduce heat, cover and simmer 15 mins.
5. Slowly add in cornstarch, stirring while adding.
6. Add in chicken and noodles, cook an additional 3 minutes on med-low heat.
7. Close your eyes really hard and concentrate on magicking the soup to make people healthy
8. OM NOM NOM NOM NOM! 


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White Castle Sliders

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So it came to pass that I was craving hamburgers. The problem was, I typically scoff at burgers that aren’t cooked on a grill, and I myself am not fortunate enough to yet possess one of those bad boys. That being said, when I stumbled upon this recipe (and yes I do mean stumbled… stumbleupon.com) it looked too good to be true and I knew I had to give it a try. Absolutely the best decision I made that week.
Recipe:
Ease of Preparation: 2
Taste: 3.5
Feeds: 5-6 
Ohmigosh. These are SO GOOD! I followed the recipe exactly on this one, down to the pickles on top, and they were delicious. I was eating the leftovers of these for the next day or two and L O V I N G  I T. Definitely hit the spot on my burger craving. 
Changes / Suggestions
Make sure you blot the grease off of these as the directions indicate… wouldn’t want to clog the arteries! Also, it’s important to use the 80/20 ground chuck so the meat stays solid and doesn’t break apart.
Recipe and photo property of: Big Red Kitchen (www.bigredkitchen.com)


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Meatloaf

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Everyone’s family has a meatloaf recipe, and unless you are a Crazy Person or a vegetarian (gasp!) you probably love it. I used to be this way. I was excited whenever I learned that my mom or dad was cooking meatloaf for dinner. Even better than that were leftover meatloaf sandwiches.
Then I found this recipe:
Suddenly Mom and Dad’s meatloaf wasn’t so glorious anymore.
Ease of preparation: 2.5
Taste: 4
Feeds: 5-6 
No lie, best meatloaf I have ever tried (and I have tried quite a few). Now, to be fair, I have never made this with the egg inside. I’m sure that is just as delicious, but as of yet I have not been quite that adventurous. The secret to a great meatloaf is adding in enough different flavors that it doesn’t just taste like straight, boring meat. This recipe certainly achieves that.
Changes / Suggestions
I don’t use the hard boiled eggs on the inside. I’m sure that’s tasty too, but this is perfect without them.
Sometimes I make this without the bacon. That is also quite good. I find that if I am cooking it with the bacon wrapped up inside I have to bake it maybe 15 minutes longer to get the inside completely cooked.
The broiler pan they create/use is unnecessary. I just use a standard baking dish.
As a side note, the recipe link also includes a recipe for mashed potatoes. Those are good too (but not the best that I’ve had, hehe)!
Recipe property of: Crepes of Wrath (www.crepesofwrath.net)
Meatloaf and my Twice Baked Potatoes


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Fancy Macaroni

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Fancy macaroni and cheese was one of the first internet recipes I tried.

My whole life I have been a devoted Kraft macaroni lover - but in an effort to expand my food and cooking horizons I tried this one out because it seemed like a tasty choice. Plus, I mean come on, it has bacon. How can one say no to bacon?

This is the recipe that I followed:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/12/fancy-macaroni/

Ease of preparation: 3.5
Taste: 4.5
Feeds: 4-8 (realistically about 6, depends on how hungry everyone is!)

It is divine.

I have made this recipe for a lot of people, and the general response is "This is fucking fantastic." Literally that, verbatim. And I must say I agree.

Changes / Suggestions

I find that generally the types of cheeses you use don't matter too much to the level of tastiness. I'm just an unfortunate poor college student so buying $10 blocks of fancy cheese can get a little bit out of my budget. Typically I just use shredded cheddar, Parmesan, fontina cheese and goat cheese.

Also, when I cook for my vegetarian friends I just leave off the bacons! :)

Recipe and photo property of: The Pioneer Woman (www.thepioneerwoman.com)


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