Sunday, July 19, 2020 is National Ice Cream day, and what better way to celebrate than with some homemade ice cream! There really is no better time to enjoy ice cream than a hot summer day!  You can obviously eat ice cream year-round but it’s such a cool and refreshing treat during the warm months.  With so many flavors to choose from, you’ll be sure to find your favorite.  I wanted to do something different for National Ice Cream day so I’m celebrating by making homemade ice cream. I have 5 flavors to share with you today; 3 require an ice cream maker and 2 require a high-speed blender, so you don’t necessarily need all the fancy equipment to make homemade ice cream.  It can be super simple and require few ingredients or it can be a more complex recipe with a variety of ingredients.  Basically, you can put as … Continue reading

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Teriyaki Glazed Baked Salmon is the perfect dinner for any night of the week.  It’s flaky, juicy, and packed with flavor.  You will be completely satisfied after this meal!  It comes together fairly quick as well so you can even make this when short on time. The recipe can be found here. Start by making the glaze.  In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar, cornstarch, garlic, and black pepper.  Whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Place the salmon in a large Ziploc bag.  Pour ½ of the sauce mixture into the bag with the salmon, making sure to coat the salmon.  Make sure the Ziploc bag is sealed first! Refrigerate the salmon for at least 1 hour but up to 4 hours to let it marinate in the sauce.  You can make the sauce the night before and marinate the salmon in the morning … Continue reading

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Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip is the perfect recipe when you are looking for something quick and easy!  It’s cheesy, filled with tender chicken, has a bit of heat (hope you can handle it :)), and comes together in very little time.  It’s a great appetizer for game day or parties…or whenever you just need a little buffalo chicken kick! The recipe can be found here. Make sure the chicken is completely thawed and trim off any excess fat.  Place the chicken in the bottom of the Instant Pot.  Pour the hot sauce over the top.  I like to use Frank’s Xtra Red Hot Sauce for a little extra heat.  If you don’t want the added spice, use Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce. Close the lid and make sure the valve is in the “sealed” position.  Cook on high pressure for 15 minutes.  Let the pressure release naturally for about … Continue reading

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Hello Friends, Today we’re talking brisket!  One beautiful (and windy) weekend the family decided to throw a brisket into the roasting box and we made some White Mac and Cheese to go along with it. First, we made our Beef Brisket Rub.  The quantities listed were for our size roast, which was just under 10lbs, or about 1.5 Chihuahuas, for perspective. Recipe: Beef Brisket Rub: ½ cup kosher salt 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons garlic powder 1 tablespoon of onion powder t tablespoon of Lawry’s seasoned salt ¾ teaspoon Cumin ¾ teaspoon Chili powder   Brisket cooked to 180 degrees internal Can baste with equal parts of apple cider vinegar and water Meanwhile, we need to prep the roasting box.  You start off by just placing your charcoal in a pile across the top of the roasting box.  Amount of charcoal will vary.  Once ready we lit … Continue reading

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Can you believe the 4th of July is this weekend?  I looked at my calendar and thought, that can’t be right.  What happened to the month of June?  I barely feel prepared!  But…. come Saturday, I will be ready. I’m putting others in charge of the food and am going to focus on desserts.  I know we’ll be spending as much time outside as possible, soaking up the sun, and social distancing with family and friends.  I want to make a variety of sweets with something for everyone.  I also want something that’s refreshing because it’s going to be HOT! The first dessert I’m going to make is an Ice Cream Sandwich Cookie.  It’s yummy vanilla ice cream sandwiched between 2 homemade cookies with yes, red, white, and blue, M&M’s for a 4th of July theme.  These are going to be the perfect way too cool off! The recipe can … Continue reading

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Mini Pancake Muffins are my new favorite breakfast treat!  They are both a pancake and muffin, so you get the best of both worlds.  Plus, they are mini / bite-sized pieces so you can enjoy a variety or all of the same kind, and not feel bad about how much you eat 🙂 The first recipe is for Mini Pancake Muffins.  These are essentially plain pancakes in mini muffin form.  The recipe makes 24 mini muffins, so I kept 8 plain flavored, made 8 chocolate chip flavored, and made 8 blueberry flavored.  I do have a sweet tooth, so the chocolate chip were my favorite but all tasted amazing! The recipe can be found here. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a mini muffin pan (with 24 small wells) with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sugar.  This is the … Continue reading

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I had a craving recently for something spicy and cheesy…. something with big flavor that wouldn’t be a dish I’ve had in the past or one of our standard weeknight meals.  Jalapenos were the first thing to cross my mind, so I started getting creative and settled on Jalapeno Popper Dip and Cheesy Jalapeno Turkey Sliders. Jalapeno Popper Dip is very similar to Jalapeno Poppers but in dip form with the jalapenos mixed in.  If you love Jalapeno Poppers, you’re going to love this Jalapeno Popper Dip!  There is plenty of cheese and diced jalapenos in each bite, and the breadcrumbs on top adds a little crunch that brings the whole dip together.  It’s the perfect party appetizer! The recipe can be found here. Here’s how you make it!  Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees.  Then, dice the jalapenos.  I used 4 jalapenos but feel free to add … Continue reading

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Have you ever tried Vegan cheese?  It’s actually quite yummy!  I was hesitant at first….is it expensive?  Is it going to taste good?  What if I hate it?  Does it melt? And so many more questions crossed my mind, but I went for it and really enjoyed it. My go-to brand of choice is Vegan Chao Slices.  You can find the Creamy Original and Tomato Cayenne flavors at your local Festival Foods.  Both are sold in a 7oz package and the cheese is pre-sliced.  It’s delicious on its own if you want to enjoy a slice right out of the package but also tastes lovely in the few dishes I’m about to share with you. I admittedly started by trying each flavor on its own, so I knew what I was getting myself into.  The Creamy Original tastes like provolone cheese and the Tomato Cayenne tastes like a spiced cheddar … Continue reading

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Vegan Buffalo Mac & Cheese will make your dreams come true one bite at a time.  It’s the ultimate comfort food!  Each bite is creamy, loaded with buffalo spice, and has the slightest crunch from toasted breadcrumbs.  It’s the perfect recipe to take your dinner game to the next level.   The recipe can be found here. The first step is to bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to package instruction.  Drain and set aside.  I like to use chickpea noodles because they are packed with protein and fiber but use any noodle you prefer.  I think the texture of chickpea noodles is very similar to regular noodles, as well as the taste. Next, bring a small pot of water to a boil (you can also do this while the noodles are cooking).  Once the water is boiling, turn off the heat and … Continue reading

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Last night we tried our hand at Vegan Vegetable Enchiladas.  The difference between these enchiladas and “traditional” enchiladas is the lack of meat and dairy.  We substituted both with vegan alternatives.  I’ll admit, the end result doesn’t look very pretty but it tasted amazing! These are packed full of vegetables and have incredible flavor.  We replaced ground beef with chopped mushrooms, added additional vegetables, and used a vegan cheese that tastes very similar to provolone.  If you did a blind taste test, I don’t think you would be able to tell the difference! The recipe can be found here. Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.  Add about ½ cup of the enchilada sauce to the bottom of the pan and spread around.  I used canned enchilada sauce but feel free to use a homemade recipe if you have one. Next, … Continue reading

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