I have good news today. See, some of you know I’ve been having some troubles with my joints; typing, while still slow and has to be done just a little at a time is easier and I’m trying to use the voice options on my computer. And cooking has been challenging, but I’m really trying to focus on fun & easy (and lightweight) food. And the best news? I made Old English Potted Cheese and it’s a super easy cheese spread and just to die for.
Old English Potted Cheese
If you follow me (and if you don’t, I’d love it if you do, see the right sidebar) you know I made Boston Sausage & Pepper Grinders right before Superbowl 2019. See the New England Patriots were playing the Los Angeles Rams (and the Patriots won) and I thought those “grinders” (that’s just the local name for sandwiches) would be perfect for the Superbowl or any game day, or really anytime! What’s not perfect? Leftovers. Leftover link sausages? They’re kinda sad. So I’ve refashioned them into Orzo with Sausage & Peppers.
Orzo with Sausage & Peppers
We are having “Arctic Chill.” It got ccccold last night and right now it’s minus 11. And I have no right to complain because I live in Minnesota, but we’ve been so spoiled this year it’s a shock. We Minnesotans know that a real Arctic Chill can be 34 to 35 below, so there’s that. Maybe we’re actually lucky. But today I feel particularly lucky because I don’t have to go anywhere and I have a piece of Simon Pearce Quechee Quiche I’m going to have for breakfast!
Simon Pearce Quechee Quiche – it’s a little puffy out of the oven but it settles a bit
I typically don’t make a lot of breakfast casseroles. I don’t really know why. Maybe it’s because I had a small family, I’m not a morning person (I should hashtag that!) and for years, although I have a few breakfast casseroles on my site, I love this Potato Cheese Strata. It’s kind of like my “signature” dish when I have overnight company, but it’s huge and more complicated. But now I have a “new” breakfast casserole, Overnight Breakfast Sausage Casserole. I’m kinda psyched about it.
Overnight Breakfast Sausage Casserole
When the holidays roll around and you’re asked to a party, do you usually say, “What can I bring?” And what if you don’t usually cook, or can’t cook. And maybe your budget is overextended as it is. That’s when you might think Party Tray. And if you know how to assemble a Cheap Holiday Party Tray, all your problems are solved. At least the what to bring option is. I apologize that this tray isn’t decked out in Christmas trappings. Between my bad shoulder and hand, I’m a bit limited and obviously made this Cheap Holiday Party Tray right around Thanksgiving. If you follow me, you might even recognize a few of these items. I’ll link to them, too.
Cheap Holiday Party Tray
I used to be kinda opposed to Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip, just on principle…and here’s the deal: Back in the ’80s, it was all about the creamy Spinach Dip and it was served warm or cold in a bread bowl. I loved that stuff! And I remember how fancy we all thought it was, too. Then in the ’90s it was all about the Hot Artichoke Dip. It seemed that just about every restaurant had a version. It was everywhere! And I loved that stuff, too! Of course, I’ve always had a thing for artichokes, and guess who else in the house does? Homer, my cat. She goes nuts over them. She can smell even the canned artichokes in the grocery bag and immediately comes running!
Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip
If you follow me, you might know I’m all about leftovers and transforming them into marvelous new dishes, so I wasn’t daunted at all by the five pounds of mashed potatoes I had when I made my Slow Cooker or Oven Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes. I had a few ideas, but after seeing Gail’s post for her Duchess Mashed Potatoes on her site, Snap Shots in Cursive, I couldn’t get them out of my mind. Out the window flew any thoughts of gnocchi and pierogies, and inspired, I decided to make this Duchess Potatoes Casserole (From Leftover Mashed Potatoes).
Duchess Potatoes Casserole (From Leftover Mashed Potatoes)
Are you a fan of Boursin Cheese? If you’re not familiar, Boursin Cheese is a rich, creamy, herby blend of Gournay Cheese developed in Normandy, France. And while I’m a fan of Boursin Cheese, what I’m not a fan of is the price…so for the upcoming Holidays, I thought I’d make a knock-off. So here’s an Easy Homemade Boursin Cheese that’s going to be perfect for snacking with crackers, as an appetizer or maybe an addition to your cheese board.
Easy Homemade Boursin Cheese
Gosh, do I love me some Brussels Sprouts. They’ve always been a fave, and especially my Bacon Brussels Sprouts. I mean c’mon! But man or woman cannot live on just Bacon Brussels Sprouts, sometimes you need to shake things up a bit, and so here’s a sweet little recipe for Restaurant Style Brussels with Lemon Caper Butter Sauce.
Restaurant Style Brussels with Lemon Caper Butter Sauce
I don’t know about you, but eating at steakhouses isn’t my wheelhouse. So when I go to one, I read every inch of the menu and agonize over just the right choice of steak and sides to maximize my experience! (And then I hate it if someone else orders something that looks better than what I have, lol!) And while I enjoy the steak, what makes it for me is the au gratin potatoes. My daughter takes after me because she was out for a special dinner with her sweetie, and what Jess raved about the next day wasn’t the steak, it was Ruth’s Chris Potatoes au Gratin.
Ruth’s Chris Potatoes au Gratin Copycat make individual or one large casserole.
I really have been in fun food mode, especially with Halloween coming up and fall here. See, in the summer most of us Minnesotans are out doing whatever we can to take advantage of the weather, but when fall comes we like to tuck in and party at home. Or at least I do! And especially if I have Juicy Lucyfer Sliders.
Juicy Lucyfer Sliders – this is just so you can see the inside but never ever cut your juicy lucy!
Goodness knows I’m not a huge sports fan. I just don’t have the attention span to sit and follow most things on TV. Unless maybe it’s food related, lol! But yanno what I can get behind on game day? The food! There’s just something about the fun party food that shows up around every football party, and these Chicken Cordon Bleu Sliders are the perfect example of fun food.
Chicken Cordon Bleu Sliders
Yanno, I made pot roast the other day. That Old Lipton Onion Soup Pot Roast from the ’60’s. And I saved a bit for my Bourbon Barbecue Pot Roast Sandwich. It wasn’t easy, and it took a heroic effort to squirrel a little away for this sandwich, but when a sandwich so epic can be made from a few leftovers? So worth it.
Bourbon Barbecue Pot Roast Sandwich
I have finally found a burger that I just want to eat all the time. And I’m not normally a big burger person! These French Onion Soup Burgers are everything a burger should be!
French Onion Soup Burgers
They’re juicy and super flavorful and can I just say Caramelized Onions and melty Provolone or Gruyure and an Onion Bun just to drive those flavors home? Do I even need to say anything else?
You might remember not too long ago, I was going through some of my “old-school” recipes and came up with my Corn Patch Corn Casserole? Well, not too far from that recipe was my recipe Green Chile Egg Bake. This is another recipe that was popular at any work food day when I lived in Denver, although it screams breakfast and/or brunch to me.
Green Chile Egg Bake
Do you love broccoli? It’s always been a fave at our house and 90 percent of the time, I make Simply Steamed Broccoli or sometimes I make what I call Almost Alton’s Oven Roasted Broccoli. Both are super simple, super fresh. But sometimes you just gotta go the extra mile and make something really special. That, for me, is Easy Cheesy Broccoli Skillet.
Easy Cheesy Broccoli Skillet
I’ve been on a bit of a Meditteranean kick. I’m trying to health up the rest of the summer, at least until Labor Day comes. Besides it’s August and it’s hot and it’s humid (whine whine whine) and I want to eat (and cook) cool and light. And so I made Greek Brown Rice Salad to go with my soon to be posted Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers.
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers with Greek Brown Rice Salad (made with Instant Pot Brown Rice)
I just did a post for Horiatiki Greek Salad not too long ago. Gosh, that was good. And I wanted to carry some of those flavors forward with a little twist. Funny how I listed so many variations of our American Style Greek Salads, but I didn’t mention or think about combining it with rice, let alone brown rice.
A bit of cooked Barley was the “by-product” of my Healthy Lemon Ginger Barley Water recipe awhile back. Well, if you know me, you know I try to waste nothing, and sure didn’t want to waste a morsel of wonderful, chewy, nutty Barley. (I love it, and so should you, btw! It’s really good for you!) And so I went on a quest and that quest ended in this Salad with Smoky Sheet Tray Roasted Vegetables & Barley. It’s a lot to use a cup of Barley, huh?!
Salad with Smoky Sheet Tray Roasted Vegetables & Barley
I’m betting you’ve had Horiatiki Greek Salad before even if you don’t know what the heck Horiatiki is! It’s just the Greek name for that cucumber tomato salad that’s so ubiquitous (look at me with all the big words, today!) all over the United States. And in Greece, too, from what I understand, where it originated.
Horiatiki Greek Salad
I have a new favorite “Salsa”, Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa. This salsa is like everything good in the world all combined into one beautiful, corny, creamy, cheesy, spicy dip.
Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa
It seems I’m all about the summer party recipes, lately, not my typical everyday fare! (See the explanation marks? That proves it!) And this Loaded Baked Potato Salad is definitely one. Heck, it’s a party in a bowl.
Loaded Baked Potato Salad
Hi ya’all. I hope everyone had a happy and safe 4th of July. And I hope you ate your fill of everything summer has to offer, including Sweet Corn. If you have any Sweet Corn leftover (if you don’t, make some) you’ve gotta try Thai Street Corn. It’s a revelation.
Thai-Street-Corn
By now we’ve all heard of Beer Can Chicken, haven’t we? Now we have Beer Can Burgers! Yes, yes, yes, please! Yes to a burger wrapped in bacon and filled with awesome deliciousness. Including cheese. Ya gotta have cheese in these! These are going to be perfect for Fourth of July or Father’s Day or anytime you want a burger extravaganza!
Beer Can Burgers- this one is Jalapeno and Pepperjack Cheese
Earlier this week, I made my Simple Tomato Soup and peeking out, here and there in the pics is my Parmesan Crusted Crostini. I promised I’d post the recipe, so here it is, and when I served that soup, the Parmesan Crusted Crostini pretty much stole the show.
Parmesan Crusted Crostini
Cheese Tortellini & Asparagus in Brown Butter Sauce is super simple, super fast and super delish! It also has just a bit of a sophisticated air about it, which means it’s perfect fast meal for a family dinner or great if a friend or two drops by. “Would you like to stay for dinner?” “Umm, yes!”
Cheese Tortellini & Asparagus in Brown Butter Sauce
So over the long weekend, temps way up in the 90’s (oh why is the weather so craaaazy this year?) I somehow got the idea that I wanted some of that Old Fashioned Tuna Macaroni Salad. You know the one I mean, all cool, creamy deliciousness with a few crunchy veggies and that tuna that somehow melds in and makes everything so rich.
Old Fashioned Tuna Macaroni Salad
Sometimes, even if you are frugal, you need an indulgence and this Creamy Mushroom Brie Bisque is one of those. When I had this for dinner the other night I was literally transported to cozy little Bistro.
Creamy Mushroom Brie Bisque
It took me awhile to “crack” the code on sheet pan eggs, but here they are: The Best Creamy Sheet Pan Eggs. They are perfect for a no-fuss morning, great for make-ahead meal prep and marvelous in a breakfast sandwich.
Best Creamy Sheet Pan Eggs