Tag: Recipes

Classic Sloppy Joes

Welcome to September! I know it’s not quite fall yet, but I’m eager for the fall temperatures! Summer is actually my least favorite season unless I’m on a beach or sitting by a pool and drinking a margarita! Anyways, fall and winter are perfect season for comfort food. That’s exactly what this recipe is! Pure and simple comfort food! This meal takes most people back to their childhood, kids love an excuse to get messy!! That’s the fun part!

I love this recipe because it’s quick, delicious and case easily be spiced up! If you like heat, add some cayenne pepper and hot sauce or even some jalapeños! This recipe is a perfect freezer meal, too! Make extra and put in a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months! Just thaw and add to a sauce pan and heat on low! Give this recipe a try and let me know how you like it!

Ingredients:
1.5 lb ground beef (I use 90% lean)
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 large green pepper, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbps olive oil
3 tbps tomato paste
1 tbps light brown sugar
2 tsp lite soy sauce
15 oz can tomato sauce (I use no salt added)
1 tbps Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup water, more if needed

Seasonings:
1 tbps chili powder
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic & herb seasoning, (optional)
1 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
1 tsp salt or to taste
2 tsp salt or to taste

Or: Sloppy Joe seasoning packet

Directions: Heat a large deep skillet on high heat. Add in the olive oil and let heat 2 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook till fragrant. Next add in the pepper and onion and cook till tender and the onion is translucent. Add the ground beef to the pan and brown, breaking up while it cooks. (See Amazon items below for the best tool for breaking up ground meat) Add the seasonings above or the seasoning packet and mix well. Stir in the brown sugar. Add in the water, tomato sauce, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce and mix well. Let simmer on medium low heat 10 minutes (this step is completely optional it just helps the flavors come through, but you can eat as soon as it’s completed.) If the sauce becomes to thick and you want a really sloppy Joe, add more water.

Spoon the Sloppy Joe mixture over a bun and either eat like a sandwich or eat it opened faced! Enjoy!

Hamburger Meat Chopper https://www.amazon.com/shop/garlic_and_oliveoil_veins

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Cheesy Mushroom Chicken

Hi all! I just got back from an amazing vacation and I’m trying to dedicate more time to my cooking as it is such a huge passion. My new job has been super busy still, but I’m getting a new partner soon so hopefully things will get to normal and I can be more active with this blog! Don’t worry I’m cooking, I’m just not able to get the recipes shared!!

Anyways….back to the food. I made this super basic chicken recipe tonight. I say basic as it’s really got only a few ingredients and it’s great for a weeknight meal. It’s relatively healthy and can easily be turned into a low carb/keto dish. I’ve been trying to keep things a little more simple during the week so that’s where this recipe came from. Give it a try!

Cheesy Mushroom Chicken

Ingredients:
4-6 thin chicken cutlets
1/2 cup flour
16 oz sliced mushrooms (any kind)
1 cup aged white cheddar, grated (I used a rustic bigger grater)
3-4 T olive oil
2 t garlic powder
2 t onion powder
1 t salt
1 t pepper

Directions: Heat a large sauté pan on high heat. In a medium bowl add in the flour and season with 1 t garlic powder, 1 t onion powder, half the salt and pepper. Mix well. Add the chicken and dredge in the flour and shake off excess flour and set aside. Complete with all chicken cutlets.

Once pan is heated add 1-2 T of olive oil to pan and let heat 2 minutes swirl the oil around in the pan. Add in the chicken and cook until golden brown on both sides and cooked through. About 3 minutes on each side on medium heat. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

Add in another tablespoon of oil and add in the sliced mushrooms. Season with the remainder of the spices, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper. Cook these mushrooms till as much of the water is cooked out as possible most. TRUST ME you will be happy you did. The mushrooms will get golden brown in color and the flavors will really come through. Remove mushrooms from the pan and add the chicken back in.

Top the chicken cutlets with the golden delicious mushrooms and sprinkle over the aged white cheddar. You can use as much and as little as you like. I was trying to be a little healthier and used less cheese but honestly I should have smothered it with cheese! Turn pan on low and cover until cheese is melted.

Remove from the pan, serve and enjoy!

Notes: Adjust the cooked time based on the thickness of the chicken you are using. The chicken should be cooked to 165°. The flour can easily be omitted for low carb lifestyles.

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Viral Baked Feta & Tomato Chicken Verison

Hello!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have you missed me?? I’m so sorry I’ve been so MIA. My focus is on my new job and I’ve been beyond busy haven’t really spent to much time cooking up new recipes, unfortunately. I have made a few but not as many as I’d like.

I decided to give this viral baked feta and tomatoes recipe a try! I mean it’a all over, I had to! I’m watching the carbs so decided to do a chicken version of this viral recipe. O.M.G. It came out delicious. Full of flavor. You can easily do this with chicken breast which I’ll probably use next time. I made with chicken thighs.

You need to make sure to try this dish! It’s so yummy and you don’t even miss the pasta… well maybe a little.

Baked Feta & Tomato Chicken

Ingredients:
8 chicken thighs, boneless & skinless
1 8oz block feta cheese
3 garlic cloves minced or grated
1-1 1/2 cup grape tomatoes
3 T extra virgin olive oil (Use the good stuff here)
1/2 T Italian seasoning
2 t pepper
2 T fresh basil

Directions: Preheat oven 400°. In a medium size baking dish add in the tomatoes. Make a whole in the middle and add in the block of feta cheese. Drizzle the extra virgin over the tomatoes and completely cover the top of the feta cheese. Season the tomatoes and feta with Italian seasoning and pepper and mix tomatoes to fully coat. Place in the oven for 20 minutes until the tomatoes are blistered.

Remove pan from the oven and smash the feta cheese and mix in with the tomatoes. Add in the garlic and mix well. Spoon the feta mixture over the chicken thighs and return to the oven at 375°and bake for 20-25 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked. Internal temperature needs to reach 165°.

Remove chicken from oven let rest for a few minutes and then top with basil and serve. This dish would be great served with a vegetable side, over rice or mashed potatoes.


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Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin

I just recently purchased an air fryer! So far, I’m loving it. I’m going to probably be expermenting with it often, so I will definately be sharing any tips and recipes with you.

This first one is going to be for a pork tenderloin. It came out PHENOMNAL. I loved the extra little char on the pork. The flavor was delicious and it cooked rather quickly. Check out the recipe below. I also added the air fryer oven that I have on my Amazon items I use at the top of this page.

Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin, 2-3lbs
1/2 T olive oil
2 t ranch seasoning
2 t garlic & herb seasoning
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Directions: Preheat your air fryer at 400° for 4 minutes. (Note: That’s my air fryer preheat, 400° for 4 minutes you can preheat however long your specific air fryer recommends) Next rub the pork with olive oil and season with the seasoning. Rub in to make sure pork is fully coated. You don’t want a lot of extra oil on the pork. Just enough to get the nice char.

Add to your air fryer rack or basket. Cook at 400 for 18-20 minutes. Flip half way through. Remove from oven and let rest. I like my pork completely cooked, meaning very little if no pink at all. You can reduce or add time depending on your preferred doneness. I recommend you use a instant read thermometer to check temperature.

Note: Every air fryer is different. You may have to adjust the recipe to your specific type and model of air fryer. The best thing to do is use an instant read thermometer to check your pork. My air fryer is listed in Items I use on top of this page as well as the garlic & herb seasoning

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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

This recipe for hasselback sweet potatoes is such a fun way to eat them! They are definately a show stopper! Make these for your next dinner party or holiday! It’s a cool take on sweet potatoe casserole! Give this recipe a try!


Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:
4 medium sweet potatoes
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
1 t salt
2 t olive oil

Directions: Preheat oven 375°. Slice the sweet potatoes but don’t fully cut through. You can use chop sticks or straws to put on the bottom of the potatoes to keep the knife from going all the way through. Cut as far down as you can without cutting all the way through. Using your fingers try and separate the slices slightly.

Add sweet potatoes to a foil covered baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender. (Note: the cooking time will vary depend on the size.)

In a small bowl add in melted butter, light brown sugar and salt. Mix well. Once potatoes are done, remove from the oven and brush with the brown sugar mixture. Trying to get in between each of the slices. Top with chopped pecans and place back into the oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and pour any left over butter over the top of the sweet potatoes. Serve & Enjoy!

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Cheesy Cauiflower Casserole

This cheesy cauliflower casserole is great for any side dish. Perfect for a holiday, party, or even just a regular week night! This recipe is actually made low carb. Really the only item that I used differently for a low carb option, was I used xanthan gum and almond vs white flour. You can easily omit that and use flour. Give this recipe a try! If you don’t love cauliflower, try making this…it will change your mind!

Cheesy Cauliflower Casserole

Ingredients:
2 lbs fresh cauliflower, cut in bite sizes pieces (or smaller, depending on preference)
1 stick butter, melted
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 slices cooked bacon or 4 slices prosciutto crispy
2 t almond flour, or 2 T white flour
1 t xanthan gum
3 T Romano cheese, finely grated
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup, heavy cream/milk/half and half
1 T garlic & herb seasoning, (See Amazon link below for what I use)
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1/4 cup bacon or prosciutto (crispy), optional (for the topping)

Directions: Preheat oven 375°. Steam or blanch the cauliflower till fork tender. (Note: do not overcook the cauliflower or it will be mushy.) Once cauliflower is fork tender, drain it and add to a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, add in melted butter, onion, garlic, almond flour, xanthan gum and garlic and herb seasoning. Whisk together.

Add the butter mixture with the cauliflower and mix well, slowly pour in heavy cream. Fold in the Romano cheese and shredded cheddar cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Add to an oven safe casserole dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until bubbling and edges are starting to brown. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Top with crispy bacon or prosciutto. Enjoy!

Note: If you don’t have garlic and herb seasoning you can substitute with 1 t garlic powder, 2 t parsley, 1 t dill. This recipe can easily be made ahead of time. You can make and refrigerate for a few hours or even over night. Just add an extra 15-20 minutes to the cook time.

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