Peanut Butter Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

What the wha? Yeah, you heard me right, I said no bake cookies. If you need something that isn't going to take a lot of your time or you simply enjoy super soft peanut buttery goodness, this one is for you.

Cranberry Walnut Chocolate Chippers

This is a nice simple cookie. They are light and airy right out of the oven and if you can make them last long enough they become crisp outside and stay fairly soft inside. The flavors are understated so even though it sounds like there is a lot going on it this cookie, it works. This would be a fine addition to your holiday cookie collection.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

As I hurried through the grocery store in the early hours of Thanksgiving morning I accidentally grabbed a can of pumpkin pie mix instead of pumpkin puree. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with it, but I wanted to use it up before it got lost in the back of the cupboard. Obviously it was time for some wonderfully moist, tasty, muffins.

Perfect Bacon

What's that you say? Well, yes, bacon is perfect just because it's bacon, but let's not argue semantics. Cooking bacon is a pain, sometimes on the hands and arms, sometimes in the face. If you've got an alternative idea about proper kitchen attire the array of painful possibilities that could arise from cooking bacon are truly endless.  I'm here to help. I will admit that I stole this from my brilliant husband, but I'm owning it, and legally what's his is mine. So here you go. Perfect Bacon.

Turkey (or Chicken) Pot Pie

That's right. Throw on your cleanest wife-beater, hike up those Daisy Duke's and slip off your shoes, it's time to make a pot pie!

Coconut Pumpkin Tapioca

 

The pumpkin theme has been going strong around here lately and apparently it hasn't gone unnoticed. One of my super fun, food loving, coworkers sent me a request for this so of course I had to make it. Not being a big tapioca fan I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out, but it was actually quite good, I think the coconut milk really makes it. It can be served hot which gives it a delicious rice pudding feel or chilled for what I'm told is nearly perfect tapioca pudding.  I'll let you be the judge of that.

Pumpkin Bread

It's that time of year when everyone is dusting off their favorite sweaters and drinking their seasonal lattes to convince themselves they're really okay with the fact that summer is over. So what better way to use our freshly made pumpkin puree (or canned if you must)  than to make pumpkin bread?

Pumpkin Puree

Isn't Fall wonderful?  I love this time of year. The air is crisp and clean, the leaves are beautiful, and the stress of the holidays it at least a few weeks away. It also means it's time for one of my favorite rituals, the annual trip to the pumpkin patch where we will undoubtably buy more pumpkins than we have the energy to carve. This year we also picked up a few sugar pumpkins (aka pie pumpkins) so I could do a little bit of experimenting, which means I've also been doing a little bit of research. It turns out making your own pumpkin puree isn't difficult at all, it just requires a little bit of patience. I've done a lot of reading and a little bit of listening and I think I've found a process that solves the main complaints people seem to have about making their own puree.

Pumpkin Bran Muffins

Happy Halloween everybody!! With all the sugar floating around us this time of year I thought we could do with something that is healthy yet still delicious.  The pumpkin and spices give a nice seasonal flare to standard bran muffins so make a batch and enjoy!!

Crab Risotto

So what do you do when a super hot guy calls and says, "Hey, I'm coming over... and I've got crabs"? Well obviously you take the crab, clean it up, and take him out for a couple of beers to show your gratitude. If all goes well the risotto can be date number two. Or three. I'm just saying it's possible. It may have even happened to me.

End of Summer Salsa

 

Even though it means summer is coming to an end I do so love when everything has ripened and amazing fresh vegetables are everywhere. After overloading my basket at a local farm I had to figure out what to do with my loot. This is an easy to make salsa, it has great flavor and is good for everyone since it's not too spicy.

Killer Burgers

You can live believing that a burger is a burger, but it's only going to leave you sad and lonely. That's not a threat, it's a fact. But don't despair, I'm here to help. And as always, you'll be a hero with a minimal amount of work. Win.

White Bean Salad

Mmm.. beans.  I love beans, but I sometimes don't think to incorporate them into my meals like I should.  This is a simple marinated white bean salad.  When I say simple it's pretty much the understatement of the day, it practically makes itself. This salad is a summer standard, you've probably met before at a barbecue.  The beans are great as a stand alone side dish, but I love them even more on top of a green salad.  I wish there were leftovers right now....

Blueberry-Orange Freezer Jam

Ahhh summer.  I love any opportunity to go out to the U-Pick farms and load up on fruits and vegetables, and last week I did just that.  This was my first attempt at freezer jam and I can't believe how simple it is. I don't want to clog up my freezer with tons of jars of jam, but knowing how easy these are to make is going to be dangerous.

Raspberry Cobbler

This cobbler is so easy to make it almost feels like cheating.  I brought this to a dinner party and it was a hit!  I didn't get a great picture because I was simply too busy enjoying good friends and good food around an outdoor fire. I promise you, it's as beautiful as it is delicious!!

Hello Whiskers!!

Sorry I haven't had a post in a bit.  I've been out of town, but I'm back now and there will be a couple of great recipes up this week!

Lawnmower Cookies

Breaking your lawnmower at the end of June is not exactly good timing, everyone is busy, including the repair shop.  After a couple of no-shows by people I had hired on Craigslist the yard was starting to get a little bit overgrown, and on my street the look of  your lawn determines your neighborhood status.  Enter my awesome neighbor. For the month of July he mowed my lawn. (Insert awkward pause.) No, really, the grass looked great and I was able to maintain my "average" status without slipping into the "oh, they must be renters" category. Well, It's August now. The mower is fixed and has resumed it's job of hogging up about a quarter of my garage, and sadly, there is no more need for someone to do my lawn for me. 

It was time to come up with an appropriate thank you for the neighbor and what better for a married man with a couple of young boys than cookies.  These are really called Ultimate Chocolate Chippers and are from  The All-American Cookie Book, a great resource with an overly patriotic name.

Sweet Chili Chicken

I honestly don't really know where this one came from.  I remember seeing something like it sometime in the last year, but with the way my memory seems to work this is either an exact replica or it's a combination of about four things that I somehow merged together.  Anyway, It's good.  It's not spicy yet still has good flavor.  Put it over some rice and you've got yourself a meal.

Beef on Weck

 Unless you're from New York, or specifically western New York you've probably never heard of Kummelweck bread.  I know I hadn't.  One of my housemates is from Buffalo, and a little while back she was on a mission to find one of these sandwiches.  It never happened so I started doing my homework, and I'm so happy I did!  This is an amazing sandwich, so delicious!!

Roast Beef With Red Wine Au Jus

The Garlic Horseradish Crust is Amazing!

I've never made roast beef before.  Don't get my wrong I've had my share, and I always enjoy it, but it just never occurred to me to make it myself.  This is a lovely dish, it's full of flavor, and would be great with some steamed vegetables or potatoes.  My inspiration for making this was the Beef on Weck sandwich so if you're not making this for that reason I highly recommend making enough for leftovers so you can try that as well.  The Au Jus is mandatory if you're going to make the sandwich, otherwise it's just highly recommended.

Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

It was almost a week ago now that I was having a few beers with my friend Mikey when he said to me, "Oh hey, I have rhubarb in my garden for you.  You can make something for your blog."  Of course I was excited because, at least that I can remember, I've never made anything with rhubarb.  Then he tells me, "Oh, I also have this rhubarb recipe out of the New York Times, an upside-down cake, maybe you can make that?"  I'm a couple of beers in at this point so I give him a, "Hell yeah!" and we carry on.

Edamame Mango Salad

I think this might be the easiest thing I have ever made.

The flavors are well balanced. Light, fresh, healthy and delicious.  It's the perfect side dish for just about any summer meal, but I also like to put it over some fresh leafy greens and eat it as a stand alone dish.

If you're motivated and fairly efficient with a kitchen knife you can be done with this in 15 minutes start to finish.

Curried Chickpeas

I love Indian food.  Truly love it.  Though I wouldn't dare classify this as authentic Indian food it is quick and easy enough to make often.  It's good enough to eat alone, but I like to make it a complete meal by putting it over some jasmine rice.  I've also had it for breakfast with an egg on top.  Simply delicious.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken Sandwiches

This sandwich is great, in fact, the only person I've made it for gave it the, "It's awesome!" and wanted me to make it again the next day.  I have to agree.  It's so quick and easy to put together and is really a total meal, though some sort of salad would go along with it nicely.

I used a store bought Jamaican Jerk Sauce  to marinate the chicken.  I may or may not look into making my own sauce at some point, but for now it sounds like an awful lot of work unless I'm going to do some canning to preserve my efforts.  I recommend you check the ingredients and find a nice quality sauce (here is one that looks pretty good to me).  A lot of the sauces I've looked at have high fructose corn syrup as the first or second ingredient.  Nobody wants that.  In fact, I don't want to see it anywhere in the ingredients list.  I have no idea where the sauce I used came from because it was a gift, but I have a sneaking suspicion it was either Trader Joe's or Cost Plus World Market.

Use nice buns.  The importance of nice buns is too often overlooked.

Not Banana Bread

While reeling in the deliciousness of the Gold Medal Plantain snack I made yesterday I was racking my brain to come up with a way to use the 4 ripe plantains I had waiting for me in the kitchen.  Since the ripe plantain is new to me, and it's much like a banana, I decided to make bread.  I had no idea what I was doing and I wasn't sure it was going to turn out, but it did!  I think you're going to love it.

Gold Medal Plantains

Oh the Plantain.  No need for this little jewel to remain a mystery.  When they're green they're starchy, almost like a potato.  When they're yellow with brown spots they look like bananas, and are just starting to sweeten up a bit.  When they're black, really really black, they're ripe.  Yes, they look disgusting at this point and not at all like something you would want to put in your mouth, but it's all a disguise.  Inside is a lovely piece of fruit that's just waiting to be turned into some sort of treat.  Don't balk at this.. I completely understand what you're thinking.  I'm one of those people who likes bananas on the firm side, just barely yellow.  When my bananas get brown spots, I'm no longer interested.  But black?!  Unless I was making Banana Bread I would never consider a black banana, which is exactly what you will think you're looking at.  This is different.  You're going to have to trust me on this one.

I've never had a plantain make it to fully ripe status in my kitchen (see above phobia of black bananas) so I'm pretty excited that yesterday my lovely housemate (who works in a produce market!) brought me a bag of ripe plantains to play with!  I'm pretty busy with work right now so I haven't had a lot of time to figure out what I'm going to do with all of them, but I managed to bust out a sweet little treat with one this afternoon.

BRC Freezer Burritos

The Bean, Rice, and Cheese Burrito.  Mmmmmmmm.

If you are anything like me you're busy.  Very very busy.  Around my house this was translating into too many trips to our favorite neighborhood Taqueria for their delicious burritos.  They're cheap and quick, we like that.  The problem is, as delicious as they are, those burritos are simply not good for us.  Enter the alternative.  You can make as many or as few of these as you like so if (in the unlikely event) you have leftovers of the Mexican Rice you can make a few of these to throw in the freezer for later, or you can do what I'm doing here and make a bunch to keep on hand.

Mexican Rice

Many years ago one of my best friends taught me a few of the cooking tricks he picked up while living in southern California.  This is my absolute favorite.  Seriously, everyone loves it.  If you follow the recipe as it is it's pretty difficult to fail.

So a couple of things about this recipe...

I like spicy foods and to me this is not spicy at all, but I understand some people are a little bit more sensitive.  If you're a spice wimp I recommend mixing the finished product with some unseasoned beans in a tortilla, I have yet to meet anyone who can't handle this that way.  If that really doesn't work out you can cut the salsa amount down and replace the missing liquid with water.  I've never done this so I can't attest to the flavor, but it would still cook up the same.