Chicken Fettuccine with Pesto Cream Sauce

This dish was lacking so much flavor. I used store bought pesto, HUGE mistake, and it was bland and B-O-R-I-N-G! Need to have a take 2 on this dish.

http://www.marthastewart.com/344301/chicken-fettuccine-with-pesto-cream-sauc

Pork Chops With Apples and Garlic Smashed Potatoes

I jumped the gun on my fall menu already! But I saw granny apples at the farmers market and decided, why not?!  I love showing pictures like this one prior to cooking to show all fresh, farmers market ingredients. It's my preferred way of cooking! 

Here is the final result! I do not use buttermilk in my potatoes, just regular milk. The apples are so delicious. This dish has the perfect savory/sweet balance. 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/pork-chops-with-apples-and-garlic-smashed-potatoes-recipe/index.html

Crispy Ginger Lime Chicken Thighs

Oh baby!  This one was G-O-O-D! I've actually made it 2x already.  Super easy and so tasty!  I baked them at 450 degrees for about 30 minutes rather than broiling.  Very happy with the results.

http://www.marthastewart.com/336401/crispy-ginger-lime-chicken-thighs

Pan seared Pork with lemon

This was too bland and basic for me.  It needed a kick of something else.  I did the potatoes separately in the oven.

http://www.marthastewart.com/314549/pan-seared-pork-with-potatoes-and-lemon

Chicken roll-ups with Prosciutto, Spinach and Goat Cheese

How could you go wrong with prosciutto, spinach and goat cheese...that's right, you can't! The recipe called for arugula but Earl isn't a huge fan of it so I substituted spinach and added some prosciutto. It took me longer to prep this than to cook it. I put together an assembly line of just the amounts I needed to avoid contaminating everything with the raw chicken.  Once everything was prepped, cook time was minimal. I served it over garlic spinach with a boxed risotto.

http://www.marthastewart.com/318947/chicken-roll-ups-with-goat-cheese-and-ar

Chicken Cacciatore with Crispy Polenta

I was not a huge fan of this one.  I felt it was lacking something and I still can't put my finger on it. Maybe it needed some fresh herbs....not sure.  And my oven didn't properly brown the polenta like I had wanted. The edges started burning before it turned golden brown. Not sure if we'll be having this one again.

http://www.marthastewart.com/313309/chicken-cacciatore-with-crisp-polenta

Chicken and Thai Basil Stir-fry

The only thing this was missing is a fried egg on top and a little heat and I would have sworn I was eating Thai take-out! Prep was a bit time consuming having to cut up everything but the cook process was fairly quick. So happy I found Thai Basil at the farmers market.....it's what really made this dish fantastic. I found it needed a bit more soy sauce than called for so I added a couple of splashes at the end. Very excited to be able to bring new flavors to the dinner table!!

http://www.marthastewart.com/334306/chicken-and-basil-stir-fry

Roasted Potatoes with Spinach

I was looking for something to pair with my Pork Medallions with Orange Sauce and I had potatoes and spinach on hand. Anytime I can combine 2 side dishes into one pan, I'm in. Less dishes makes Earl happy!

I up'd the heat to 450 degrees and also tossed the potatoes with a little olive oil with the butter mixture before cooking. I also used a lot of spinach!!  I felt the amount it called for was too little. This will become a staple side dish in my house!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/roasted-potatoes-with-greens/

Pork Medallions with Orange Sauce

Oh Martha, you are rocking my world this week. Every recipe I've tried so far is going into permanent rotation, including this winner. Sophia kept asking for more pork and she's not a big meat eater! The pork was so tender, sauce had the perfect acidity....amazing. I did let the sauce reduce a bit longer than listed in the recipe. It was still too watery after the suggested 2-3 minutes.  I also loaded up on the capers because I love them!

http://www.marthastewart.com/341003/pork-medallions-with-orange-sauce

Balsamic Marinated Skirt Steak with Roasted Corn

Oh baby! Another Sunday BBQ meal that rocked my world.  I used fresh rosemary in place of the dry rosemary since I had it on hand. I marinated it for about 90 minutes on the counter bringing the meat to room temperature before grilling. It reminded me of something you'd order at Gyu-Kaku! Earl suggested we also BBQ the corn and made a butter, smoked paprika and red pepper rub. And now, he will always be in charge of grilling the corn! I cheated and bought store bought potato salad from Gelson's.

Everything cooked on the grill, no pots and pans to clean....now that's how a Sunday meal should be!

http://www.marthastewart.com/342211/balsamic-marinated-skirt-steak

Lime and Cilantro Roasted Salmon with Roasted Sesame Aspargus

This meal was so easy to cook and clean. Just prepped the asparagus and salmon and made the sauce while it was cooking. Next time I make this, I'm going to ease off the lime juice a bit. It was too limey for me. The asparagus was amazing!! I've been using the Trader Joe's frozen rice bags......so EASY!

Best part, it was on the table in 20 minutes. 

http://www.marthastewart.com/330176/roasted-salmon-with-lime-and-cilantro

http://www.marthastewart.com/315110/roasted-sesame-asparagus

Tuna Casserole

This was not a glamorous meal but a total home cooked comfort! And Sophia gobbled this one up....after one bite she was non-stop until her plate was empty! It did take a bit longer to get together than I was hoping but the end result was good.  Next time I might add some cheddar cheese to mix.

http://www.marthastewart.com/859566/tuna-casserole

Fruit Smoothie

Sophia requested smoothies for breakfast. So I whipped up a strawberry-peach one that we shared. So yummy! I cut up last weeks remaining farmers market fruit and froze it rather than letting it go to waste. 

5 oz vanilla Greek yogurt
1/2 cup milk
tsp farmers market local honey 
whole banana
1 cup frozen fruit of your choice
I blended everything in my magic bullet until smooth.  

Garlic Shrimp in Tomato Sauce

I love shrimp and am always looking for new ways to cook them. This one in a tomato sauce was right up my alley! It included some of my favorite ingredients; garlic, capers and olives. Super quick and easy!

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/garlic-shrimp-in-tomato-sauce

Grilled steak with green beans and tomatoes with chimichurri sauce

Since it's summer I've been looking for more grilling recipes since its' too hot to cook.  Since I'm no grill master, I did all the prep work and gave Earl his cooking instructions.  And he killed it! The BBQ brought out this amazing smokey flavor in the green beans and tomatoes. They were still crispy but slightly charred. You can see how perfectly the steak was cooked. Then add in the chimichurri sauce.....out of this world. I also oven roasted some rosemary-yukon potatoes.  The potatoes became the vehicle to devour more of the chimichurri sauce once the steak was gone!

I liked the idea of this one but wasn't sold on the chimichurri recipe included.  

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/grilled-steak-with-green-beans-tomatoes-and-chimichurri-sauce-recipe/index.html

Use this chimichurri recipe!  I did cut the crushed red peppers down to 1 tsp. 

And am REALLY happy I did!!!  It would have been way too spicy for me. 

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/traditional-chimichurri

I have the remaining chimichurri in the fridge and am looking for ways to use it this week! I want to put it on EVERYTHING!!!! 

Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

Each week I see rows and rows of beautiful beets at the Farmers Market.  I decided it was time for me to bring some home. I remember HATING beets growing up. Then I realized I hated all vegetables growing up because they were from a can or frozen. Now that I cook with all fresh vegetables, I see what I was missing!!!

After cleaning, trimming and rubbing the beets with olive oil, I wrapped them individually in foil and baked them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 1 hour. Very similar to how you would do a baked potato. Once they felt soft I pulled them out, unwrapped them and let them cool. Once they were cool enough to handle, I pealed the skin off of each one just by rubbing them gently with a fork. I placed them in the fridge to chill for about an hour before slicing them.

I topped the salad with the beets, goat cheese, candied walnuts and a store bought strawberry vinaigrette. I could eat this salad, all day, everyday! Enjoy!!

Salted Caramel Butter Bars

A co-worker brought these in to work one day and I made him send me the recipe.  I will only be making these on a RARE occasion after seeing what goes into them. My heart stopped just looking at the recipe! But that didn't stop me from eating them. HA!

My bottom layer of dough was a bit overcooked and I'm not sure how to avoid that. I really cut back on the salt since I was using salted butter but I think I cut back too much to call them "salted". Overall, delicious and pretty simple to make!

http://cookiesandcups.com/dont-hate-me-because-im-butter-ful/

Spicy Sicilian Chicken

When I first started cooking, this was one of my favorite go to's. I decided to pull it back out and see if it was a good as I remembered. I think my skills have gotten so much better that this one came across as too bland.  I'll be making some tweaks to this recipe.  Thinking maybe an orange slice under the skin and creating a rub. It's still a great meal, just needs to be tweaked.....stay tuned.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/spicy-sicilian-chicken-recipe/index.html

Broiled Halibut with Ricotta-Pea Puree

Want to impress your friends? Whip up this baby and watch everyone be amazed at what a rockstar you are in the kitchen.  Super quick and easy and VERY TASTY. Best part, on the table in less than 30.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/broiled-halibut-with-ricotta-pea-puree-recipe/index.html

Sicilian Meatballs with Fresh Basil Marinara

I love meatballs and this recipe is a winner. I substituted the ground beef for ground turkey. Amazing!  I served with spaghetti and sauteed spinach.

http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/sicilian/meatballs/with/fresh/basil/marinara.aspx

We get down on the 4th of July!

The 4th of July is probably my favorite holiday. Mainly because of the food and I like to call it my pre-birthday party. Normally we'd do some ribs but decided to try chicken, homemade coleslaw and semi-homemade baked beans.

Chicken:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/the-ultimate-barbecued-chicken-recipe/index.html

The brine really helped keep the chicken moist but I wasn't very impressed with the BBQ sauce.  We also didn't move these to the oven. Earl moved them to the cooler side of the grill and kept a close eye on them until they were done. Over all, good flavor but I'd prefer some KC Masterpiece sauce on them next time! 

Coleslaw:

http://www.food.com/recipe/kfc-coleslaw-copycat-coleslaw-156331

When I think of what coleslaw should taste like, I think KFC. This recipe will not disappoint you! 

Baked Beans:

http://recipes.bushbeans.com/recipe/150637/better-baked-beans.aspx

Earl asked me to find a way to make the Bush's Baked beans better and what would you know, they had a recipe on their site! They were much better and even had my FIL, who hates onions, go back for 2nd's knowing there were onions in them. Yup, they were good and not much extra work.

We finished off this amazing meal with a fresh peach cobbler. It was my first time making one and it turned out GREAT! I ran to the farmers market and bought some fresh peaches for this beauty. 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html

(Yes, I know we are all mad at Paula Deen but this recipe is on point.)

Had to serve it warm with some natural vanilla ice cream!! 

Spinkle Shower

Ok, this is only semi-food related but I'm so happy with how everything turned out, I had to share! I organized my first ever, Sprinkle Shower for a co-worker expecting baby #2. I made rice crispy treat pops, dipped in pink chocolate and topped with sprinkles. They turned about AMAZING and so did the whole party. Love when you have a vision of how it will look and you make it happen. And it could only happen with amazing co-workers helping! Mark was in charge of signage and the "Ready to Pop" sucker tags. Daos brought in the BEST cupcakes from Yummy cupcakes and to die for popcorn from Chicago. Nan brought in sugar sprinkled sugar cookies. Yes, it was a SUGAR fest.  We also had super cute heart shaped jelly beans from another Stephanie that I'm actually eating right now. Guess I didn't have enough sugar yesterday!
The table was decorated with bottles filled with sprinkles and flowers. I used Snapple bottles, labels removed and a ribbon covering the mouth of the bottle!
We did "Late Night Diapers" as our activity/game. Nadia brought in diapers and everyone wrote a little message to Alanna for those middle of the night diaper changes. When you're up for the 4th time, you need something to make you laugh.
I LOVE doing this kind of stuff.....need to find a way to make money doing this. :)

Chicken Piccata

Best part about this blog, it's making me try new recipes I've been sitting on! Why have I been sitting on this so long??? To avoid having dry chicken breast cutlets, I pan seared them and then finished cooking them in the oven. I also had to reduce the sauce longer than it instructed in order to have the appropriate consistency.

Probably didn't need to serve it with an additional veggie but Sophia loves green beans and I had them in the fridge. 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/chicken-piccata-recipe/index.html

Lemon Chicken Thighs

Surprise, surprise, I substitute chicken thighs for breasts in this meal. Thighs just tend to have more flavor and are so much juicier! The best thing about this recipe is the braising of the chicken meat and the crispy skin. I usually have to cook mine at 425 for a bit longer to get the crispy skin. And don't be scared of all the garlic.....garlic is tasty and so good for you!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-chicken-breasts-recipe/index.html

Capellini With Spicy Zucchini-Tomato Sauce

I'm really liking these Meatless Monday recipes!  This is a great light and flavorful summer meal.  I eased up on the spices for Sophia. I'm sure a red pepper flake on a 2 year old's tongue would be a 5 alarm fire.  Even without the spicy factor, it was still delicious.  And did I mention how happy I am to have cheese back in my life?? Special thanks to the little boy in my belly for giving me back dairy, even if it is only for a short time.  (Fingers crossed that its permanent!)

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/capellini-with-spicy-zucchini-tomato-sauce-recipe/index.html

Pasta Primavera

After such a decadent Father's Day dinner of red meat and bacon, I had to take part in Meatless Monday's. This recipe was so delicious and perfect!  Prep took a little bit of time but every bite was worth it.  I purchased all of the veggies at the local farmers market like always. Try and find your local farmers market because it makes a WORLD of difference in your cooking. Even potatoes taste better! I'm really looking forward to making this one again!!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/pasta-primavera-recipe/index.html

Chocolate Brownie Cookies

I hadn't baked in years but decided to give these a try. OMG! These are amazing!!! A few lucky co-workers were able to get a taste today and word spread fast.  I might have to make these again. :)

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chocolate-brownie-cookies

Red Wine-Braised Shortribs

Last nights shortribs were the best I've EVER made. Even the leftovers I just had were AMAZING! If you are planning on making these, give yourself 4-5 hours from start to finish. For the recipe, I do make a few adjustments.  Instead of chopping the onion, carrot and celery, I purchase 2 containers of mirepoix from Trader Joe's.  Also, it says to use 1 tbls of tomato paste, I use more like 4oz.  But try it as is first and then decide if you want to add more next time.

Since it was Father's Day, I also made bacon-wrapped asparagus.
Coat asparagus in olive oil
Sprinkle with pepper
Take 5-6 stocks of asparagus and wrap with a slice of bacon
Place on foil lined baking sheet
Bake 15 minutes at 400.

Enjoy!!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Red-Wine-Braised-Shortribs-367736

Brunch - Egg & Ham Cups

Need a quick and easy brunch idea! This one will impress everyone and you can make a very large batch for bigger parties.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees
Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray
Make a cup with a thin slice of ham in each slot in the muffin tin
Crack an egg in each cup
Salt and pepper
Bake for 12-15 minutes depending on how runny you want your eggs
Top with scallions and grated Parmesan cheese
Serve HOT!

Roast Chicken Breast with Garbanzo Bean, Tomatoes and Paprika

This is one I've been cooking for a few years now but have made my own edits. I prefer to use chicken thighs, almost always! I pan sear the chicken thighs in an iron skillet with olive oil and butter until the skin is crisp. Then I follow the recipe minus the yogurt sauce. It's good but I was dairy free for so long, it didn't make sense to make it for one person. :)

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Roast-Chicken-Breasts-with-Garbanzo-Beans-Tomatoes-and-Paprika-242113

Soy-glazed Salmon with Cucumber-Avocado Salad

When I started making this one, I wasn't sure about it.  Even started questioning why I bothered printing it out. But after the first bite, I was pleasantly surprised and can't wait to make this again!!! It is a perfect summer meal. Refreshing, light and full of flavor.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/soy-glazed-salmon-with-cucumber-avocado-salad-recipe/index.html

Lemon Chicken with Artichoke Hearts

I was in search of quick week night dinners and this one looked like it had potential.  It was just OK and I'm not sure if I would make it again.  Can't really pinpoint what I didn't like, just wasn't a huge fan.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aida-mollenkamp/lemon-chicken-with-artichoke-hearts-recipe/index.html

Surf 'n Turf Paella

This was a PERFECT Sunday meal after a great weekend.  I won't lie, I was actually dreading spending this much time in the kitchen but after the 1st bite, I knew it was worth every minute.  Since Sophia eats what we eat, I did cut back on the saffron and in it's place I added cumin.

Since you cook the steak first, I pre-heat the over to 250 degrees and place it in there to rest and stay warm.  As you can see, it did not overcook it, keeping the perfect red center. I'm pretty excited to eat my leftovers today too!!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/surf-n-turf-paella-recipe/index.html

BBQ Chicken

Earl got the recipe from an old co-worker that I've taken and made my own.  Takes some time but it's so worth it!!!

4 boneless/skinless butter-flied chicken breasts
Salt & Pepper
3 tbls of EVOO
4 thick slices bacon, chopped
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 sprigs of rosemary, finely chopped
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tbls brown sugar
1 tbls worcestershire sauce
1 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup white all-purpose flour
1 tbls italian seasoning
4 eggs

Preheat oven 300 degrees

Heat 2 tbls of EVOO in a medium skillet and cook bacon until crisp.
Add onions, garlic and rosemary. Cook 5 minute or until well softened and then add the vinegar, sugar, worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce and chicken stock. Reduce heat to low and let sauce simmer 15 minutes or until thickened.

Take a laddle of sauce and pour it into a high sided backing dish making sure to coat the bottom of the dish.

Place flour, salt pepper, italian seasoning in a quart size plastic sealable bag. In a separate bowl, beat eggs until well blended.
Heat a non-stick skillet with some EVOO.
Put the chicken in the flour bag and shake until well coated, dust of excess flour and dip into eggs and gently place in hot oil.  Cook about 5 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Place the cooked chicken into the sauce lined baking dish in a single layer.  It's OK if the over lap a little if needed.  Once all chicken is cooked pour the remaining sauce over the top.

Bake chicken for 30 minutes.  Serve with your favorite sides!

Classic French Toast with Strawberries

After last nights dinner, I felt I really needed to redeem myself in the kitchen.  And did I ever!  How could you go wrong with a Martha Stewart recipe.....  The house smelled amazing and it tasted even better. Seriously, try this one.  I used country white sliced sourdough.  She suggested soaking it for 10 minutes but I only did about 5.

http://www.marthastewart.com/333918/classic-french-toast

5-minute Brown Butter Chicken and Crispy Sage

A co-worker mentioned making this recipe and really enjoying it so I gave it try on Friday night.  Maybe because I normally do more elaborate recipes that are saucy, I did not really enjoy this one.  It was decent but too plain for me.  Maybe if it was done with chicken thighs I would have liked it better. :)

http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/5-minute-brown-butter-chicken-and-crispy-sage.html

Pan-Roasted Chicken with Oranges and Rosemary

When I got pregnant I had a serious orange craving and stumbled on this recipe.  So glad I did because it's one of our favorites now.  My recipe edits: Marinade, I add fresh squeeze orange juice to the oil-rosemary mixture.  I also drizzle the remaining marinade on the chicken after pan searing so the juices really bake into the meat while cooking.  Serve with risotto and zucchini.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ask-aida/pan-roasted-chicken-with-oranges-and-rosemary-recipe/index.html

Ms. Sicily's Signature Pasta

My life was changed when I discovered Rao's! Expensive jarred sauce but worth every penny. Trust me.

Boil a pot of heavily salted water.
Brown the sausage and zucchini in a saute pan until cooked. Add in sliced roasted red pepper slices and the sauce. Bring to a light boil and simmer while your pasta cooks. Drain your pasta, pour your sauce over it and serve! Mangia-Mangia!

Pan Seared Chicken Breast with Herb Jus and Potato-Vegetable Hash

This one is a show stopper.  Takes a bit of time but great weekend meal! I prefer to make it with boneless, skinless chicken thighs.  I usually double the potato hash because we LOVE it.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robert-irvine/pan-seared-chicken-breast-with-herb-jus-and-potato-vegetable-hash-recipe/index.html

Cuban rubbed pork chops

This is one of my summer favorites.  Mainly because I get to pair it with corn, tomatoes and avocado!  In the recipe he says to remove the pork chops and reduce the sauce, I've found that they are not cooked enough.  So I leave them in the pan while it reduces.

I toss the tomatoes and avocado in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.  The cook the corn on the cob and cut it out.  But you could totally serve it on the cob if you prefer.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/cuban-pork-chops-with-mojo-recipe/index.html

Steak and Potatoes

This my version of steak and potatoes!  I've picked up these recipes from multiple sources and have made them my own.  We try not to eat a lot of red meat so we share just one steak between us.

Steak
Olive oil
Butter
Salt and Pepper
Pull the steak out immediately and let it sit out while you prep everything else.  A steak will not sear properly and cook evenly if it's cooked cold.  Also if you haven't invested in an iron skillet......get one now.

Small yukon gold potatoes
Red bell pepper
Sweet onion
carrots
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
Cut everything into pieces and toss with the olive oil, salt and pepper.  Spread out on a baking sheet covered in foil.  Bake at 425 for approximately 25-30 minutes or until they are as roasted as you prefer.
While the potatoes are in the oven, heat your iron skillet on high.  Add olive oil and a tsp of butter to the pan.  The olive oil prevents the butter from burning.  Salt and pepper your steak.  Sear it on one side (time depends on how you like your meat cooked) and then turn and sear on the other side.  Let the steak rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.

This is an easy way to know if your steak is cooked!

Mustard Roasted Salmon

This is another one of those need to cook in less than 30 meals.  It's quick, easy, painless and amazing.  I recently discovered the Trader Joe's rice in the frozen section!  Nice to have for quick meals.  Pair it with your favorite veggie and dinner is served.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/mustard-roasted-salmon-recipe/index.html