Tag Archives: dinner

Jan23

Mexican Sunday Dinner

Posted on by
Standard
Mexican Sunday Dinner

Hi everyone and happy Monday! I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend. So during the week at my household, we eat easy to prepare dinners – pasta, pizza, stir fry, and the likes. But over the weekends, my mom and I go hard when it comes to cooking an evening feast – soups, homemade pizzas, pasta salads, bread, frittatas, and oh so much more. This Sunday, I prepared a meal that I was particularly proud of that I just had to share on here. Seriously, it was that delicious.

My family loves Mexican food and as a primarily vegetarian household, it is always something that all of us can eat and enjoy. And enjoy, we did. For Sunday dinner I prepared homemade guacamole paired with vegetarian black bean enchiladas compliments of the fantastic website Cookie + Kate. Kate’s website specializes in vegetarian cuisine while her pup, Cookie, cheers from the sidelines. My mom actually found that website and was instantly drawn in by the delicious recipes but most importantly, that it was in some ways dog related (lol). Anyways, here’s the finished product:

dinnerdinner1

For the enchiladas, I followed the recipe pretty closely because I had never made it before but I did change a few things up to accommodate my cooking style:

  • I added a healthy amount of chili powder and cayenne pepper to the dish.
  • I added cilantro into the mixture as opposed to just using it to garnish.
  • I lessened the amount of broccoli in the recipe as a family preference.
  • I squirted fresh lime juice into the mixture and topped the finished product with it.
  • I used store bought enchilada sauce instead of making it myself because ain’t nobody got time for that.

* If you’re not hip to vegetarian eating, then I would recommend sauteing stripes of chicken, steak, or shrimp (or all three!) in a mixture of olive oil, cumin, cayenne pepper, and chili powder (you could also go crazy and add in some lime juice and a tablespoon or two of enchilada sauce). Then, you could add it into the enchiladas or just eat it on the side.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much my dish looked like the pictures that Kate posted on her website but most importantly, my entire family loved it. For an additional topping, I free-styled some guacamole and here’s what I used in my makeshift recipe:

  • 1 large avocado
  • 6 cloves of minced garlic
  • About 3 tbsp of super finely chopped red onion
  • Juice from 1/2 of a lime
  • Cilantro!!
  • A couple shakes of cayenne pepper
  • Black pepper
  • Morton Kosher salt
  • 3-4 tbsp of small tomato chunks that I wish I added but forgot to get from the grocery store!

I really really love guac and I thought that the above concoction turned out amazing. It was bold and flavorful and although it turned out chunkier than what I normally like, I think that it just added to the deliciousness considering you could eat it by the forkful – which we did!

My mom described my Mexican Sunday Dinner as “going out to eat in our own house” which I thought was super precious and we will definitely be making the above recipes again! What is your favorite meal for Sunday dinner? What kinds of food do you love to cook? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov24

The Advanced Guide To Christmas – Let’s Get It Right This Year!

Posted on by
Standard

For most people, Christmas is a magical and wonderful time, full of celebration, presents, and good will. Unless you are the one that has to organize and pay for it all! Then, it can be a bit of a nightmare. But with a little careful planning, you too can have a perfect Christmas with a minimum amount of stress. Just read on to find out how:

Parties: One of the great joys of Christmas is sharing a drink and holiday treats with your friends and neighbors – unless it is your house that they are coming to this time. In which case, it is very easy to reach panic stations pretty quickly. Avoid the hassle and stress of entertaining at Christmas, not by hiding behind the curtains with the lights out but by being as prepared as possible.

A week or two before the party, make a list of everything that needs doing. The last thing on your list should be the decorations that you need to finish putting up on the day. If possible, get in food that is ready prepared so you just have to warm it up. Or, if you are cooking for the party yourself, make things that can be baked well ahead of time and frozen or stored until they are needed.

xmas4.jpg

YUM!!!

Presents: One of the most essential parts of Christmas is the gift giving. But Christmas shopping is so time-consuming and expensive. To lighten the load why not buy a joint gift for the families or households that you know? Consider something like a Christmas hamper delivery as a gift for an entire family. Then you can add in items that you know that everyone will like. Or you could choose to do secret Santa? Then you only have to buy one gift so it can save you both time and money.

Food: What Christmas day is complete without the traditional Christmas lunch? If you are dreading waking up at 5.30 am to get the turkey stuffed and in the oven, then read on. It doesn’t have to be as difficult as all that! If you can get away with it, choose a turkey crown or a smaller bird like a duck or goose. These won’t take as long to cook, so you won’t have to get up at some ungodly hour to ensure that it is ready by 1 pm. You can also make your life a great deal easier by choosing ready prepared vegetables and trimmings. They taste delicious and who is to know that you didn’t wrap that pig in its blanket personally?

Entertainment: One of the most dire thing that can happen is that you put a lot of time and effort into making Christmas wonderful and then boredom kicks in. After the presents are open and the turkey has been eaten, everyone just sits around doing nothing and feeling blah as can be. Pop out for a walk, or dust off a board game or two to keep people interested and feeling festive well past lunch time.

How do you prepare for the holiday season? Who is done with their shopping already? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb23

Delicious Baked Ziti Recipe

Posted on by
Standard
Delicious Baked Ziti Recipe

Hiii everyone and happy Tuesday! So in yesterday’s Monday Update I mentioned that I made my boyfriend a baked ziti dish for our six month anniversary. It turned out amazing and my beau and family really enjoyed it. The recipe I found on allrecipes was way too good not to share so I thought that I would post it for your super cheesy pleasure today! You’re welcome! 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups ziti pasta, uncooked
  • 1 (26) oz jar marinara sauce (Instead of plain old Ragu, I used a specialty sauce with extra garlic and herb flavoring to kick things up a little)
  • 1 (14.5) oz can diced tomatoes, undrained (I used a can that had additional oregano and Italian herb seasoning)
  • 6 oz cream cheese, cubed (The blocked cream cheese usually comes in 8 oz packaging so I just used the whole thing)
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 8 oz package of shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Ingredients That I Added:

  • 8 cloves garlic
  • salt
  • pepper
  • basil
  • parsley
  • oregano
  • Italian seasoning

Ingredients I Will Use Next Time:

  • More seasoning
  • Onions
  • Green pepper
  • Zuchinni
  • Yellow squash

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Cook pasta, using the directions on the packaging. Once the pasta is done cooking, remove and drain.
  3. After you have removed the pasta, turn the burner down to medium heat. Add the rest of your ingredients in the pan and let it cook for about 5 min. or until the cheese is completely melted.
  4. Add the pasta into the sauce and mix thoroughly.
  5. Layer the pasta into a 13×9 in. baking pan and then top with extra mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
  6. Bake for 20 min. or until heated through.

*** A word to the wise: This recipe made a GIGANTIC amount of food so be prepared for left overs! Here is the link to the recipe that I used, if you would like to reference it for any reason! Special thanks to whomever posted it, it was delicious! 🙂

The baked ziti was a hit for my family and my boyfriend so I hope all of you enjoy it as much as we did! What is your favorite food to make? What is your favorite food to eat? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb22

Monday Update: Six Month Anniversary Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Monday Update: Six Month Anniversary Edition

Hey everyone and welcome to a new week here on lifewithlilred! On Saturday it was me and Kyle’s six month anniversary so we had a lovely day together to celebrate! We had the best time during our date day and I can’t wait to relive it as I type this out. But before I get started on how we spent our six month, here’s a friendly reminder of how cute we are:

kyle10

^^^ What a stud! The red head isn’t too bad either…

Kyle picked me up around two o’clock on Saturday afternoon to get our festivities started. We live about a half hour away from each other so during our drive back to his place we made a game plan for how we would like to spend the day. We decided on afternoon drinks while video gaming or watching Netflix, dinner, and then a night out at the movies to wrap it up!

 To start the afternoon drinks portion of our agenda, Kyle and I stopped at the Giant Eagle on the way home for some booze. I got Kyle a drink shaker as one of his Valentine’s Day gifts so we thought it would be fun to put it to use today. We had a bit of a hard time deciding on a drink that we could make because the only hard liquor that I really “do” is vodka, which Kyle isn’t a huge fan of. However, a bottle of sour berry and lemon vodka spoke to me and Kyle thought it sounded alright so we went for it. We then got some fruit punch and lemonade to mix with it as well as a back up pack of hard apple cider in case our concoction was sub par.

With our alcohol haul bagged up and ready to go, we headed back to Kyle’s house to have some quality time with the TV. But before we started our session of “Netflix and chill” we had a drink to make! Kyle broke out his new shaker (which he loved) and mixed up our berry beverage. It wasn’t bad except for the fact that the vodka was blue, the lemonade was a pale yellow, and the fruit punch was a raspberry red so when it was all mixed together it made the most disgusting dish water grey color. The drink tasted like a liquefied version of SweetTarts but it definitely tasted better if you avoided looking at the color of it. -_-

Once our drinks were made, we began our marathon of Wentworth, our latest TV obsession. When Kyle and I binge watch shows, we are SO serious about it. If we can’t knock out at least two episodes of it at once, we don’t even bother putting it on to begin with. This high focused level of Netflix watching calls for comfortable clothes so it was a must to change into our pajamas until our evening out at the movies. Kyle and I knocked out two episodes of Wentworth, at least ten games of Super Smash Bros., and a rousing tournament of Mario Kart Double Dash before we decided we were hungry.

Lucky for us, I prepared dinner for the occasion the previous day so all we had to do was let it heat in the oven. I love cooking for Kyle so I wanted to make a special dinner for him so that we didn’t have to bother dining out. I made a super cheesy dish of baked ziti, a pan of ficaccia bread, and cupcakes for dessert. At my house we have never really had ziti so I was a bit wary of how it would turn out. I also have never made ficaccia without my mom’s help so I was relived that they both turned out great! Kyle loved it and so did my family who I test drove the meal for when I prepared it at home. The ziti was rich, the bread was baked to a perfect crisp, and the cupcakes were so decadent so needless to say, we were stuffed silly!

After dinner we had an hour or so to kill before it was time for our movie so we knocked out another episode of Wentworth before we left. I told Kyle a few days ago that I wanted to see the latest horror flick that came out, The Witch. We rarely go to the movies so I thought it would be a good way to wrap up our anniversary day. There’s a theater that Kyle lives by called TinselTown and it’s the biggest movie theater I’ve ever seen so I was really excited when he picked out a movie time for that location!

Our show started at 7:40 and we made it in time to examine all of the movie posters that are hanging up in the hallways to promote upcoming films. I had a minor freak out when I saw that a new movie for The Little Prince (my favorite book) is coming out in March! After I calmed down, we got settled in the theater to wait for the movie to start. I had heard excellent reviews for The Witch and I love horror films so I was eager for the movie to begin.

But unfortunately…The Witch really missed the mark for basically everyone in the theater. I personally didn’t mind it too much because it was more of a period piece and very artistic but Kyle didn’t care for it at all. It was one of those movies that we were probably better off waiting for to come out on DVD but it was still fun to go! I felt bad that Kyle didn’t like it but I still enjoyed the flick well enough because I’m a big wierdo. 🙂

By the time we got home it was around ten o’clock and we were both exhausted so we popped in a movie and went to bed. Kyle and I had such a wonderful time celebrating our day together, despite the fact that he didn’t care too much for the movie! I’m so lucky to have had the best boyfriend on the planet for six whole months and I can’t wait for many more! I love you, Kyle Kyle! ❤

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Six Month Anniversary Edition! I hope all of you had just as great of a weekend as I did! What was your favorite part of your weekend? What did you think of The Witch if you saw it? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb10

Dinner Date Night

Posted on by
Standard
Dinner Date Night

Hi everyone and happy Hump Day! On Monday night, my boyfriend, Kyle, and I stayed in and made dinner together. We had so much fun cooking our meal and it was nice to have Kyle as my cheerleader/helper. We made zucchini enchiladas and guacamole and it turned out so fantastic! Take a look at our finished product and then I’ll provide you with the recipes so that you can make your own:

IMG_6991.jpg

^^^ YUM!

Zucchini Enchiladas:

This dish is a staple at my home so it was easy to wing the recipe. At my boyfriend’s house there wasn’t a lot of the spices that I needed to bring the heat to the enchiladas so I improvised for that. I also wasn’t cooking for a large amount of people so feel free to double the recipe if needed. My version made eight enchiladas.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large zucchini
  • 1 green pepper
  • 1 medium size red onion
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 1 package of sharp cheddar shredded cheese
  • salt
  • pepper
  • basil
  • oregano
  • cilantro
  • tortillas
  • salsa

Note that the original recipe calls for spices like cayenne pepper and cumin. The basil and oregano was what I was limited to – they are required in the recipe but are not the main herbs flavoring the dish.

Directions:

  1. Heat oil in a large pan and dice the vegetables. You will want them to cook until they’re golden.
  2. While the veggies are cooking, add in your herbs and spices. You’ll notice that I didn’t give an exact measurement for the seasonings and that’s because I rarely cook with the amount given on a recipe. I go a little crazy with my seasonings so feel free to add as much or as little as you wish.
  3. Now is a good time to preheat your oven to 350 while the veggies are almost done sauteing. Once the veggies are done, turn the stove top off and remove them from the heat. You will then pour the shredded cheese packet over your mixture and stir until the cheese is melted.
  4. While the oven is preheating, you will prepare the enchiladas for baking. Spray the bottom of a glass pan down with Pam and then put a layer of the salsa of your choosing on the bottom. Then you will fill your tortillas with three or so spoonfuls of the cheese and veggies, wrap them up, and place them in the pan.
  5. Once all of the enchiladas are rolled and ready, add a layer of salsa to the top of them and then sprinkle some cheese to top it off. Bake the enchiladas for 12-14 minutes and then remove from the oven.

Kyle and I also prepared a dish of guacamole together, as well. I was so happy that I had Kyle there to help me because he was such a pro at smashing all of the ingredients together! Here’s the recipe that I free styled for the guac:

Ingredients:

  • 1 avocado
  • 1 handful of extremely finely chopped red onion
  • cilantro
  • 1 tablespoon of water
  • juice of half a lemon

Directions:

  1. Cut the avocado in half and then peel away the skin from both halves. Then you will dice up the avocado and add it in to a medium mixing bowl. Be sure to remove the pit!
  2. Tear up your fresh cilantro and add that in to the bowl, as well.
  3. Chop up a small amount of red onion very finely and add it to the mix.
  4. Pour in your water and squeeze your half a lemon.
  5. Once all of your ingredients are in the bowl is when things get tricky. There wasn’t an adequate utensil at Kyle’s house for mashing our concoction so we settled for a spoon with holes in it. I was so bad at smashing our mixture so thank goodness for my muscle man to get the job done! The consistency of your guacamole is up to you. We settled for a medium consistency and it was the perfect mixture of smooth and chunky.

I love cooking for Kyle and it was so nice to have him hanging out with me in the kitchen while I prepared our meal. It was also great having him as my helper, too! Kyle kept the pit of “our first avocado together” to commemorate his helpfulness and our delicious meal – which I thought was the cutest thing ever! It’s our avocado baby. 🙂

So there you have it, Dinner Date Night with my beau! What is your favorite dish to cook for yourself or others? What dish is a staple in your household? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb8

Monday Update: Special Olympics Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Monday Update: Special Olympics Edition

Hi everyone and happy Monday! This past week, my Special Olympic ice skaters competed in the winter games and it was totally awesome. The events took place on Wednesday and Thursday and they were single handedly some of the best days of my life. On Wednesday my sister, Kristen, joined me at the competition and the banquet that followed later in the evening. It was so nice to have her keeping me company and all of my skaters and their families just loved her! The days of the competitions were long but they were so worth it, so let’s discuss:

Wednesday’s competitions were the races for the speed skaters and then the figure skaters would compete in their skills and compulsorary events. On Thursday, the figure skaters would perform their music routines. Wednesday started out much too early for my liking because I had to get up, get ready, pick Kristen up, and then make the twenty minute drive to the rink so I could prepare my skaters for the events an hour or so beforehand. I felt like a zombie but god knows I looked fabulous! 😉

Once we arrived at the rink, my tiredness was a thing of the past because seeing all of the athletes and their families was so energizing! Everyone was so excited and I couldn’t wait to soak up all of the positivity and happiness that everyone was exuding. It was so much fun to make my rounds to all of the athletes upon our arrival and introduce my sister to all of my friends. I was so touched by the warm greetings I got from all of my skaters and their families. I think the athletes were more excited about Kristen being there than me though because they got a brand new person to show off to!

The events started promptly at ten with the speed skaters on the hockey rink and the figure skaters on the practice rink. I had athletes competing on both rinks so I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. I had skaters to give pep talks to, athletes to cheer for, and competitors that I had to track down that were going to be competing next. I didn’t mind the fast pace though and thanks to my time management skills, I was able to watch almost all of the skaters that are in my group compete.

Saying that I was proud of all of the athletes was a severe understatement and before I knew it, the events were over for the day. After all of the events were complete, we made our way to the hockey rink for the award ceremony. It was so special to be able to watch the athletes and my students receiving their medals on the podium. I loved seeing the big smiles, surprised faces, and arms raised in victory of all of the competitors. One of my students, Rick, ran to his family after he received his medals and went in for a big hug from his aunt. During the hug he kept saying “I’m so happy, I’m so happy” and I started bawling my eyes out! I was so proud of everyone and being able to see them celebrate and know that they did a fantastic job was the cherry on top of a perfect morning.

After the award ceremony, Kristen and I stuck around for a little bit while everyone had lunch and then we rolled out. Kristen treated me to lunch and then we went back to her apartment to rest and watch Netflix until the banquet in the evening. The banquet for the Special Olympics winter games was held at the Clarion Hotel. There was going to be speeches, dinner, and some good old fashioned tom foolery.

Kristen and I got to the hotel around six and made it right in the nick of time because shortly after we got there it was time to eat. Dinner was served buffet style followed by a huge piece of chocolate cake. Once everyone finished eating, there was a bit of a lull so we could all chat and digest while the dance floor got cleared off. Before we knew it, the dance floor was cleared, a DJ was playing, and disco lights were flashing. That’s when the real fun began!

As soon as the music started playing, Kristen and I ran to the dance floor with our friends so we could get our groove on. We were all dancing and singing along to songs from Grease and the Top 40 hits. My sister and I had such a blast dancing the night away. We were on the dance floor for over an hour and by the time we left, everyone was still dancing and jumping around! Clearly, all of the athletes have far more energy than I! Take a look at some of my pictures from the banquet:

^^^ I love us!!!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it a million more times, I am so unbelievably proud of all of my students and the athletes who competed at the Special Olympics winter games. I’m so thankful for all of my new friends and I’m so happy that my sister got to share in the fun with us. It has been such a privilege to be able to coach such a talented group of athletes and I wouldn’t trade the experiences I’ve had for anything! Coach Sarah loves you guys! ❤

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Special Olympics Edition! The winter games were a great success and I’m so grateful that I could be a part of it. What is your favorite winter sport? What sports did you used to compete in or are competing in now? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov28

Thanksgiving Fun

Posted on by
Standard
Thanksgiving Fun

Helloooo everyone and happy Saturday! I hope all of you had a fantastic Thanksgiving and Black Friday if you participated in the madness! I had a great holiday in my neck of the woods. I got to spend it with my crazy family and handsome boyfriend and it was a blast!

I woke up bright and early to help my mom cook our Thanksgiving meal. I hate to brag but I made a pretty mean stuffing and green bean casserole! The morning went by quick and then by the time I knew it my sister, Kristen, was ready to get picked up to join in on the festivities. As you can see by this picture, I was having a ton of fun:

sis1

Kristen and I spent the afternoon finishing some cooking, snuggling, having girl talk, and watching season four of American Horror Story. I had the best time being able to spend the afternoon with her back at the home front because she moved into her own apartment recently and I miss her like crazy! Thankfully, we took enough sister pictures with each other to last a life time so I’ll have a lot of pics to look through and smile/laugh at.

My boyfriend, Kyle, spent the afternoon with his family and joined us for dinner at five. By four thirty the countdown began and we were all checking out the window and staring at the food we were about to devour for a solid half hour or so. Finally, my sweet Kyle came rolling in but rolling was more like hobbling because he sprained his ankle really badly last week and is on crutches. So once Kyle was safely inside my house and seated it. was. ON!

Our Thanksgiving feast at casa de la Mushenheim was delicious! There was stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, rolls, and green beans for days. There was also turkey for the non-vegetarians in the household, AKA Kyle, my dad, and my brother. I annihilated two extremely large plate fulls of side dishes and was about ready to burst at my seams afterwards…So worth it.

After dinner, we lazed around the house and enjoyed some coffee and pie for those who could handle eating another bite. We then decided on going to see Mockingjay Pt. 2 in theaters which was a lot of fun. Or as much fun as it can possibly be, considering I’ve never read the books or seen any of the movies. But Kyle, my mom, and Kristen are big fans of The Hunger Games series so it was nice to see all of them have a cute little holiday outing even if that meant just sitting along for the ride. The movie theater was pretty empty too so we got awesome seats and were able to put our feet up and comment on the film without annoying the other moviegoers too much!

Once we returned home from our movie excursion, Kyle and I headed back to his place and went right to bed. I ended up sleeping in until noon yesterday which seriously never happens anymore – it was great! I had such a nice time on Thanksgiving and I was so happy that my boyfriend was able to be there to join us. ❤

So there you have it, all of my Thanksgiving Fun from this past Thursday! How was everyone’s holiday? Who scored some amazing Black Friday deals? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov16

Monday Update: Really Good Recipe Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Monday Update: Really Good Recipe Edition

Helloooo everyone and happy Monday! As you guys know, I really enjoy cooking and once or twice a week I like to make dinner at home. This past weekend I made one of my all time favorite recipes that I just had to share – it’s that good. If you’re a fan of unique, bold, and slightly spicy dishes then you’re going to love my Peanut Noodles! This recipe is directly from the Quick Vegetarian Pleasures cookbook by Jeanne Lemlin and if you can get your hands on a copy then I urge you to do so! It’s an excellent cookbook for fast and healthy vegetarian eating. Here’s the step by step guide to making a Peanut Noodle dish of your own:

       Ingredients:

  • 1 pound spaghetti
  • 4 tablespoons oriental sesame oil
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (I use crunchy PB but creamy will do, too!)
  • 1/3 cup soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or sherry
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar or other vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced (I use 6)
  • 1 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced
  • Note: The sauce is a bit too bitter for my liking so I add about 3 teaspoons of white sugar to balance it out

Directions:

  • To make the sauce, combine 2 tablespoons of sesame oil with all of the other ingredients except the cucumber and scallions. Beat until well mixed and refrigerate.
  • Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain the noodles and toss with the remaining two tablespoons of sesame oil.
  • This dish can be served hot or cold so you could refrigerate the noodles if you choose or eat it hot after the spaghetti is cooked. I prefer it hot but it’s still very good cold as well!

My mom started making this recipe forever ago and it remains one of my favorites to this day. I made the Peanut Noodles this past Friday and was left with only a small dish of leftovers which I annihilated for lunch the next day. Almost everyone in my family is a big fan of this recipe and I hope you guys enjoy it too! It’s a quick and easy dish to whip together but it tastes like you spent hours cooking it. Peanut Noodles have been my go to dinner to make for a few boyfriends and many a night when there seems to be “nothing to eat” in the house. If you like trying out somewhat “different” recipes to change things up at home then this is the recipe for you!

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Really Good Recipe Edition. Once again, if you can snag a copy of Quick Vegetarian Pleasures – DO IT!! Who is going to give the Peanut Noodles recipe a try? What is one of your go to dishes to make at home? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct28

Frittata Favorite

Posted on by
Standard
Frittata Favorite

Hey everyone and happy Hump Day! Every Sunday I love making dinner for my family and I hate to brag but it turned out pretty darn good this past weekend! I made frittata with rosemary garlic home fries. I followed a tried and true recipe for the frittata but I freestyled the potatoes with lots of butter, herbs, fresh garlic, onions, and romano cheese and it turned out SO yummy. I posted a status on Facebook about my dinner and some of my friends expressed interest in getting their hands on the recipe for the frittata, so I thought I would post it for the world today! This recipe is from the Broccoli Forest cookbook and it’s excellent if you can find a copy of your own:

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbs olive oil (you might need additional oil or butter when sauteing the veggies)
  • 1 tbs melted butter
  • 1 small onion, minced
  • 1 small clove garlic, minced (I usually use 6 cloves in mine)
  • 1/2 tsp salt, basil, oregano
  • 1/4 tsp thyme, rosemary
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 5-6 mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 small zucchini, sliced
  • 1 small bunch or spinach, swiss chard, or kale chopped
  • 1 small green bell pepper
  • 5 large eggs, well beaten
  • grated mozzarella cheese
  • grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. In a large cast-iron skillet, cook the onion and garlic with salt and herbs in combined olive oil and butter for 5-8 minutes
  2. Add remaining vegetables and cook over medium high heat until the vegetables are tender for 8-10 minutes
  3. Turn the heat way up and pour in the beaten eggs. Cook on the stove-top for several minutes, lifting the edges, and letting the uncooked egg flow underneath the cooked egg (as you would for an omelet). Turn the heat back to medium as you do this.
  4. As soon as the egg appears set, sprinkle the mozzarella cheese on top and then top it off with the parmesan. Place it in the oven at 350 for 12-15 minutes (until it’s firm and the cheese is melted and slightly brown).

This recipe is one of my family’s favorites and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do! One again, it’s from the Broccoli Forest cookbook and it really is great, especially if there’s any vegetarians in your family. What is your favorite thing to cook for dinner? Do you have a primarily vegetarian cookbook that you would recommend? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: Sorry for the lack of pictures of the frittata – it was completely devoured before I got around to snapping some pics!

Mar18

Surprise! I Can Cook…Again!!

Posted on by
Standard
Surprise! I Can Cook…Again!!

Happy Hump Day, gang! I hope you guys are all ready for some food porn, because I made a super fabulous dinner the other day! Take a look and let the drooling commence:

dinnerrr

Viola! Noodles with an Asian peanut sauce, sauteed yellow peppers and garlic, scallions, and steamed broccoli. Or as I like to call it…delicious. Peanut noodles have been my all time favorite food for years now, thanks to my mom finding the recipe in our Moosewood cookbook. (AKA our go to guide for everything vegetarian!) My mom has been making the peanut sauce recipe for quite some time and I swear it never gets old. On Monday night I was craving my favorite dish something fierce honey, so I decided to make dinner for the family. I consulted the trusty cookbook, and began to create the spicy, orgasmic concoction that is peanut sauce. Within ten minutes the sauce was ready to go. The only minor difficulty I had was the fact that we were out of cider vinegar at home so I had to consult the Google machine to learn that red wine vinegar was a sufficient substitute. Usually this dish is served with scallions and cucumbers, but we didn’t have any cucumbers either, so I had to wing it a little. While inspecting the veggie drawer in the fridge, I found a sad looking yellow pepper and a bag of ready to be steamed broccoli…jackpot! While the spaghetti noodles were boiling away, I heated up a pan with some vegetable oil for the saute. I cut up the pepper in strips and added four cloves of garlic to the mix as well. I really was hoping that we had a red pepper, but you can’t always get what you want. -_- Anyways, with my veggies sauteing, my pasta boiling, and the sauce complete it was time for multitask mode. I cleared the kitchen table, set that bitch with the most mismatched dishes you could imagine, and tossed the steam bag broccoli into the microwave. All of this was completed in between stirring my pepper and garlic combo, taste testing my pasta, and cracking open a bottle of wine! BOOM. This fifteen minute free for all of finishing all of the final preparations resulted in an amazing meal. The spaghetti was cooked to perfection, the sauce was impeccable, and the veggies added a fresh take on an old favorite. Family dinner was a great success!

Peanut noodles are a perfect dish for the vegetarians in your life or for anyone who enjoys oriental cuisine. If you’re interested in the recipe, please let me know in the comments and I’ll be sure to post it for you! It’s easy as pie to make and so super delicious!

^^^ I’ve been on such a Maroon 5 kick lately, and I kind of hate myself for it but I just can’t help it! They’re so damn catchy, and “In Your Pocket” has been my latest funky time jam. Enjoy! 😉

I hope all of you have a fabulous rest of your Hump Day doing whatever it is that you do! Would you like the peanut noodle recipe? Do you have any vegetarian recipe suggestions for me to try out? I’d love to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah