Who doesn’t love bacon! My husband always says that bacon makes everything taste better lol – it is so true!

This quick little appetizer is so easy to make and is a real crowd pleaser. I always get requests for this appetizer when we have my husbands hockey buddies over to watch the game.

Here is what you will need:

• 1 package of cocktail wieners (smokies)
• 1 package of bacon
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
• 1 cup cup brown sugar

Here is how to make it:

• Pre heat the oven to 400°
• Cut Bacon into thirds. Wrap 1 piece of bacon around each wiener and place seam side down in a 9×13 rectangle baking dish to secure it.
• In a sauce pan over low heat melt butter. Add the brown sugar and stir until the brown sugar and butter has combined. Remove from…

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey
1/2 cup crushed Doritos
3/4 cup shredded jalapeño cheese
2 TBSP diced tomatoes
1/3 cup freshly minced cilantro
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Toppings & Spreads:
Roma Tomato slices
Red onion slices
Romaine lettuce
Pepperjack, Jalapeño, or American cheese slices
Chipotle Mayonnaise

Bread Choices:
4-6 brioche or pretzel hamburger buns

Directions:
1. Mix all of the ingredients for the burgers together. Form the mixture into uniform-sized patties. This mixture can make anywhere between 4-6 burgers depending on how thick you make them. I was able to make 5 burgers with my mixture.
2. Once the patties are formed place them on a baking sheet and cover with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Put it in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes so the patties can become…

Y’all, I have never made these before and I was missing out! These are so yummy, easy and totally crave worthy! Three ingredients (plus spices) and you can get dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes!! You have got to try these! Don’t forget to check out the brown gravy recipe (here). You MUST make these two together!!

Ingredients
– 4 thin cut bone-in pork chops
– 1/2 cup flour
– 2-3 tbsp canola oil
– 1 tsp garlic powder
– 1 tsp paprika
– 2 dashes cayenne
– a big pinch of salt
– 1/2 tsp pepper

Directions
1. In a shallow dish mix together flour and spices. Lightly coat each pork chop in the flour mixture and set aside.
2. In a large saute pan, heat 2-3 tbsp of canola oil to med-high heat. Once oil is rippling place 2 pork chops in at…

I must admit I don’t particularly enjoy cooking for one. I think it’s because I put my energy into cooking for others. I enjoy that whole process; planning a menu, cooking it, presenting it and sharing it with loved ones. So when it’s just me I prefer something quick and simple. But something that tastes better than a ready meal!

These tortilla pizzas actually fit that bill perfectly. Because when you buy a store-bought pizza, I always think it’s a bit dull. The dough is dry, the toppings lacking a bit in flavour and so on.

Using a tortilla as the pizza base makes it less bread-y and heavy, and therefore perfect for a weeknight treat with a salad. To make sure I can always whip this up I keep homemade tomato sauce (so useful for other dishes as well) in portion packs in my freezer at all times, as…

Even with playing this game of making a different dish every weeknight for my family, for almost two years now, I try to save money on my grocery bills. Drumsticks this week were $.49 a pound. Drumsticks are not my favorite choice in meat but the kids love them and they can be made in several different forms so no one gets sick of them.  I bought 16 pounds of them to freeze and use over the next several weeks.

In planning my meals I try to use simple ingredients that I have on hand. I may plan a meal with something I know will be on sale like a beef roast on the weekend and then use the leftovers in a casserole, soup or sandwich. Remember sales run every 6-8 weeks so I can pretty much predict when items I may like are on sale.  I only do one…

Not a great picture but this was a yummy pizza. This pizza was created because we had chicken to use up and I am always trying to find new ways to make the dishes we love in new ways. One of my favorite things is to take a meal we love and turn it into something new such as sandwiches into soups, casseroles into pizzas, or soups into sandwiches. We had the makings of a Caesar Salad but wanted something different. What is different? Making it into a pizza with caramelized onions!

Verdict:

This was so good. It was having bread and salad at the same time! This is great way to use up leftover chicken breasts. Caramelized onions are one of my most favorite foods and I love adding them to anything I can. Remember they take time to make but are so easy. The hardest part is let…

We headed out to see Zootopia this weekend. What a great movie! All four of us laughed and thought it was a perfectly timed movie to address many of the “Us vs. Them” ideas that seem so prevalent in society today.  I actually teared up in the end when Judy Hopps (the bunny main character) said, “Life’s a little bit messy. We all make mistakes. No matter what type of animal you are, change starts with you.” My kids are older so they definitely got the message of the movie. My son asked if Disney knew that this would be the right time for this movie because of the election. If anyone could plan something like that I would think it would be Disney! 🙂

But, we spent the better part of the weekend watching the snow fall (yes, ALL day Saturday), playing together and starting our Spring cleaning.  This…

Slowly, slowly, slowly, the weather is turning. It has been almost Spring like the last couple days so my mind is turning to picnics, parties, and fun days at the beach. As we were driving home yesterday I remembered the chicken I had taken out for dinner and I really didn’t want to make what I had planned. It just didn’t fit with my mood or what I wanted.

I knew I wanted a hearty salad type dish that would travel well and feed quite a few people. I was thinking eating outdoors on the patio with friends.

Verdict:

This got a good solid thumbs up for being filling and tasty. The kids liked that it had chicken in it and I liked that there was enough for lunch leftovers the next day. This is a great use for leftover chicken or even rotisserie chicken. I used leftover chicken breasts…

We have been snowbound lately and I have been dreaming of warmer temperatures. So, my mind is turning to summer picnics and salads. To battle the winter doldrums we had an Indoor picnic (click for link to blog post) and pretending it is getting warmer rather than colder.

This salad is a blend of a BLT sandwich and pasta salad. Remember I told you take those flavors you love and turn them into something new! Sandwiches into salads, soups into casseroles, or main dishes into sandwiches. This one of those dishes!

Verdict:

The best part of this is that my kids were convinced they were going to not like it. They kept asking me pasta AND salad? Yes. Barbecue sauce AND ranch dressing? Yes. Both were very shocked at how much they love it! They both had seconds and there wasn’t a bite left at the end of dinner.

Yesterday was the start of “The Storm.” It really wasn’t too bad and I was shocked that they cancelled school last night for today. I thought for sure they would wait until morning to see what the weather was like. I love snow days and so happy we have one today. I am thinking lots more cooking and baking again today! Any suggestions for baking? I am not a big baker but that just seems like the thing to do on a snowy day!

My family loves potatoes but I get tired of mashed potatoes and roasted potatoes. We needed an easy dinner and I remembered that we recently went to a restaurant when we were visiting Rochester that had all kinds of stuffed potatoes. A whole new list of options has opened up to me for making easy dinners for my family.

Our first one to try was Taco…

Potato Scramble Bowl

I hope you can all be a bit patient with me the next few weeks. I knocked my computer off my desk the other day and broke the point where it connects to the charger. So, until I can see if they can fix it I am learning to post on my phone and try to edit photographs on my phone. This is my first attempt. Too light but I am learning.

In trying to make our meals a bit more efficient I am going back to meal planning and preparing ahead for a few days of meals when I can. The other day I made Lemon Garlic Swordfish with baked potatoes. It is simple to add more potatoes to the oven to bake and have on hand for another meal. Dicing hearty vegetables ahead of time or shredding cheese are some other things that are easy…

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

I did my spice rotation today. Which isn’t a huge task I just bring stuff like dried chili powders, turmeric, cumin, I also bring my baking items down because this is the time that I bake most. While I was cleaning the cabinet and rotating I got a huge whiff of cumin. It brought back so many memories and I knew I had to make one of my absolutely favorite dishes. Now cumin used to be my least favorite spice until I learned to use it properly.

My first restaurant gig was actually behind the counter serving in a Lebanese restaurant. Of all the places I’ve worked, heck even some places I’ve been Head Chef at, this place had some of the best, most memorable, influential and inspiring food I’ve ever had. I still to this day can remember all the specials I had to write on the black board…

• 

• 

• 

There is this place we go in San Antonio called Lulu’s Bakery and café. It’s a great small diner and I mean small. It’s a must hit place whenever we go. I’ve been to this place more than I could count throughout my childhood. It’s home to their 3lb cinnamon roll, diner burgers and their famous chicken fried steak. You can actually get it half queso and half gravy. It’s really a treat.

So I had a craving for some chicken fried steak, although they are open 24 hours. That 4 hour drive seemed rather unappealing at the time. So I just decided to make it here, at home. With random craving generally some improvisation needs to be handled because I knew for a fact I didn’t have cube steak. But I had some lovely thin ribeye’s. Now, these ribeye’s were perfect for the task. Once I got them out…

Meat on a stick……

I love smoked turkey legs- they are cheap to buy, easy to smoke, and taste great. They are a great choice for outdoor bbq parties, as you can walk around with no plate needed.

Ingredients:

Useful Equipment:

• Brine Bucket
• Boning Knife

Directions:

1. Place Turkey legs in a brining bucket and then fill bucket with brine till legs are completely submerged. Brine in fridge for at least 6 hours, and up to over night.
2. Remove turkey legs from brine, rinse off under cold water, and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Place Turkey legs on a plate or cookie sheet and place in fridge uncovered for at least 4 hours, preferably 8+ hours. This will dry out the skin a bit and make it crispier when done smoking. (Optional)
4. Using…

I did the thing I normally do when I go to a farmer’s market. I bought way too much random stuff because I thought it looked good. I got it home and then had to think what I was going to do with it.

This is a scrummy mix of colours and textures. Delicious Autumn vegetables in a creamy sauce, with a little bit of heat from smoked paprika, topped with crunchy, cheesy garlic bread.

Who doesn’t like garlic bread (weirdos, that’s who). You can use any combination of vegetables you like, pumpkin, butternut squash, or green beans also work well.

I tried this recipe on one of my oldest friends. I was nervous because she owns a steak restaurant and is a confirmed carnivore and got two enthusiastic thumbs up (still sorry I forgot to…

I hate food waste. So when I see stuff has been hanging about the fridge for a couple days I try to find a way to use it up.

I had some lardons left from another dish I had made. I also had some feta cheese and vegetables. I decided to make a fritatta, which is great to slice up and use from breakfast or brunch, and makes a great lunch box filler.

Ingredients

8 Eggs

100 Grams Feta cheese

100 Grams Lardons (cut up streaky bacon would also work)

1 Onion (finely chopped)

100 Grams Kale (cooked)

100 Grams Frozen peas (thawed)

1 Tbsp Chopped parsley (optional)

Salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat a large pan, and add the lardons
2. Fry until crispy, and then remove from the pan
3. Add the onion…

So, a while ago I came across a recipe for a Wild Boar Ragu that I’ve been wanting to try…and I ALMOST did…but I chickened out! I looked online for wild boar meat and after reading up on it decided that although I would probably love it, I don’t think my boys would be willing to try it as it’s very gamey…so as an alternative I decided to use boneless pork shoulder in this ragu. After simmering for a few hours it became very tender and was delicious served over fettuccine…next time I visit Eataly in NYC I’m going to pick up some pappardelle and save it for when I make it again…This ragu deserves a nice thick noodle that can soak up all that scrumptious sauce…I told ya before – WE LOVE PASTA!  

This Tuscan Ragù is so delicious! Slow cooked in a red wine reduction and served over Campanelle pasta…the aroma fills the kitchen and brings everyone to the table…

On busy days I love to use my Slow-Cooker to get dinner done with ease…This hearty Chicken Ragù cooks all day, making the whole house smell wonderful…then by suppertime it’s served over a bowl of penne or your favorite pasta and sprinkled with freshly shaved Parmesan… So easy and so delicious…perfect meal to serve for tomorrow’s Halloween!

This delicious chicken dish is wonderful to serve on one of these cold nights! Creamy and a little bit decadent…