Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 1/2 cups cilantro
• 1 1/2 cups parsley
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 tsp cayenne 
• salt and pepper

Recipe:

• Stir together cumin, coriander, and some salt and pepper in a bowl. Rub mixture on both sides of steak. 
• Place steak on hot grill. Grill for about 4-5 minutes on each side.
• Transfer steak to cutting board and let stand for 5 minutes. 
• Add garlic, cilantro, parsley, vinegar, cayenne, olive oil, and some salt to a food processor. Pulse and blend until sauce is made. 
• Thinly slice steak, against the grain, and serve with sauce. 

SERIOUSLY the BEST Mac and Cheese in the WORLD

I love mac and cheese more than anything and for YEARS I've been trying to find the perfect mac and cheese recipe. I like my mac and cheese creamy and cheesy (but who doesn't?!), and I will NOT settle by using velveeta. As I may have mentioned before, I hate the stuff. In order to find the perfect recipe, I am constantly trying different techniques, but nothing seems to do the trick. Usually, the mac and cheese turns out to not be creamy enough, or taste cheesy enough. Fear not though!! After continuous trial and error, I have FINALLY found the million dollar winner. THIS recipe is BY FAR the BEST mac and cheese I have ever had. As you can see, it is ridiculously rich and creamy, and it is SO flavorful. If you want to treat yourself, or impress someone special, make this recipe. If you follow the recipe perfectly, I can GUARANTEE you will love it!! This is the only mac and cheese recipe you will ever need.

Just a side note, this is a stove top recipe. If you like baked macaroni and cheese, follow these directions after making the mac and cheese: 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees; 2. Spray a baking dish with Pam; 3. Pour the mac and cheese in the baking dish; 4. Mix panko bread crumbs with melted butter or olive oil; 5. Top the mac and cheese with shredded cheddar; 6. Sprinkle the panko on top; and 5. Bake the mac and cheese for 25-35 minutes, or until the mac and cheese is golden brown.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound cellentani pasta
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 3 cups milk
• 1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 4 cups freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese

 Recipe:

• Cook pasta according to package directions
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat and whisk in flour. Whisk for 2 minutes then turn heat to low. Whisk in milk. 
• In a small bowl, whisk cornstarch into evaporated milk.
• Add the evaporated milk to skillet.
• Add the Dijon mustard and all remaining seasonings to the skillet.
• Bring mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, then reduce heat to medium and simmer until thickened (continue to whisk). 
• Whisk in sharp cheese until melted. 
• Add pasta and toss until evenly coated.

Crockpot Irish Beef Stew

The best thing about living around the corner from friends is getting free dinner. Okay, there are other benefits to living close to each other too...but really...that food though. My friends Ericka and Cornelius are THAT couple who you always want to hang out with because they are thoughtful, outgoing, positive people, and overall a fun time to be around. Not to mention, they love food as much as I do and feed me, so thats always a win win. (As you can see, I'm TOTALLY trying to butter them up so they make me more food lol. No, but really, love you guys.) Yesterday, Cornelius made this amazing Irish Beef Stew and I just had to share it on the blog. Gotta love a man that cooks. This was such a comfort food meal. I can't wait to save it for those cold fall and winter nights. Cornelius made it with irish soda bread, and it was the perfect pair. Can't wait to see whats for dinner tomorrow guys!! lol just kidding....but not really.

Ingredients:

• 2 lb chuck round, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 3 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped
• 8 oz mushrooms, halved
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 medium white potatoes, chopped
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp paprika
• rosemary, thyme, parsley (equal parts chopped to 1 tbsp)
• dash of Worcestershire sauce
• flour
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Recipe:

• Mix flour with salt and pepper and coat beef.
• In a skillet, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and brown beef on all sides. 
• Place beef in in slow cooker. 
• Add the rest of the ingredients into the slow cooker.
• Cook on low for 10 to 12 hours. 

Vegetarian Chili

 Today is a repeat recipe that I posted a while back. I made it again this week and I loved it so much that I decided to repost it. A vegetarian chili is perfect for those that want to eat a little lighter. This recipe is especially easy to make as I used the ingredients that I already had in my freezer and pantry. Not to mention, this is a one pot meal which means easy clean up!! A healthy and low maintenance meal is always a favorite with me!

Ingredients:

• Bag of frozen onions and peppers (bought in the frozen food aisle)
• Taco seasoning packet (have 2 of the packets on hand just in case you need some more flavor)
• Corn Starch
• Can of corn (15 oz)
• Can of black beans (15oz)
• Can of pinto beans (15oz)

 Recipe:

• Spray a deep pan with pam and place on medium to high heat
• Pour in about 3/4 of the frozen onions and peppers
• While the onions and peppers are cooking, rinse the black beans and pinto beans in a strainer
• Pour the beans into the pan with the onions and peppers
• Pour the entire can of corn into the pan including the liquid
• It should look liquidy at this point but that is good!
• Sprinkle in the taco seasoning and let the mixture boil for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
• In a small dish, mix a tablespoon of corn starch into water
• Pour corn starch mixture into the pan, stirring frequently
• If the corn starch does not thicken the chili to your liking then you can add some more!
• Serve with your favorite chili toppings

Arabic Saffron Rice

I absolutely love saffron rice. I have so many memories of my grandmother making this dish every holiday. I would eat plate fulls of it at a time. She was an incredible cook and estimated all her recipe measurements by hand. Unfortunately, her recipes are often difficult to recreate (at least for those of us who are amateur cooks) because she rarely wrote down her recipes. My dad was on a mission though to make saffron rice for thanksgiving, and it turned out pretty darn good. I liked it so much that I decided to share it with all of you. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Ingredients:

• 1 box of saffron (usually comes in 1 gram or .03 ounce boxes)
• Pinch of sugar
• 1 cup water
• Salt
• 4 cups basmati rice
• 5 cups chicken broth 
• Slivered almonds
• Raisins  
• Olive oil

Recipe:

• Place saffron in a pestle and mortar. Add a pinch of sugar. Grind until the saffron is in powder form (or grind it as fine as you can). 
• Pour saffron mixture into a mug, add 1 cup of hot water, cover, and let it sit for approximately 20 minutes until you see the dark rich saffaron color.
• Rinse the rice thoroughly with water to remove any excess starch.
• Soak the rice with plenty of water for about 30 minutes.
• Drain the water.
• Add the soaked rice to the pot.
• Add the liquid to the pot with the rice: 1 cup of the saffron water and 5 cups of chicken broth. 
• Bring to a boil under medium-high heat, uncovered.
• When it starts boiling, cover and lower the heat to low.
• Keep the top of the pot on at all times, but stir the rice occasionally to make sure you have enough liquid. If you don't, add more liquid as needed. 
• After fifteen minutes, take the lid off. If there is any excess water, allow it to boil off. Fluff with a fork.
• Place about two tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and add slivered almonds. Fry the slivered almond at low temperature. Once they start browning, take it off the stove top. Repeat with raisins. 
• Add salt as needed. 
• Serve the rice garnished with almonds and raisins. 

 

Creamy Baked Gnocchi

It's hard to believe that its been almost 2 months since I last posted. I have been so busy this summer and it is just flying by!! After a busy long weekend with ongoing activities the only thing I wanted to do on Sunday was to rent a couple movies, enjoy some comfort food, and relax. I came up with this amazing baked gnocchi recipe. It's the next best thing, if not better, than mac and cheese. This recipe is especially creamy, cheesy, and indulgent. I'm telling you, the best thing I ever learned to make is a good cheese sauce. This girl loves her cheese, and I use it as a base for so many things!! I usually take the general gist of the recipe and use whatever cheese I have on hand. You can also add so many things to it (like the ham and peas I used in this recipe!). Hope you like it (actually I know you will !!)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound gnocchi
• 1 bag frozen peas
• 1 ham steak, cubed
• 2 cups shredded cheese (i used pepper jack)
• 1 cup Gruyere cheese
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 yellow onions, chopped
• Olive oil
• Panko bread crumbs

Recipe:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a pan with nonstick spray.
• Place chopped onions, cubed ham, and half a bag of frozen peas into a skillet with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Sautee on medium heat until onions are sauteed and ham is browned.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook for about 2 minutes . Drain the gnocchi, toss with olive oil, then set aside. Return the pot to the stove.
• In the large pot, melt the butter then add the flour. Wisk until combined. Add milk and cream gradually, whisking to incorporate. Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook until it thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cheese gradually, whisking until the cheese is melted.
• Once cheese sauce is thickened to your liking, add the ham, onion, and pea mixture. Then, stir in gnocchi until everything is coated with the cheese sauce.
• Place gnocchi cheese mixture in the greased pan.
• Coat the top of the gnocchi with panko bread crumbs.
• Drizzle olive oil on the top of the panko bread crumbs.
• Bake in oven for 15 minutes, then place the dish under broiler for a couple minutes to brown the top.

Enchilada Quinoa Casserole

True or False...I should just make this a mexican food blog? Sorry for the similar recipes lately but I warned you that I L-O-V-E mexican food. Plus, I had leftover ingredients from the flautas I made on Thursday. Sometimes you just need to work with what you got!

I have to admit..I've never been a huge fan of quinoa. I've always found it kinda tasteless and boring. Its probably because I only make it when I'm on a diet and diet food just makes me sad. I've never had quinoa with enchilada sauce though, and now I'm kinda in love with it. The enchilada sauce, chiles, and everything else gave it so much flavor. Crazy goodness! Who would have thought quinoa could taste so good?!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce (I used green sauce because its my favorite)
• 1 (4.5 oz) can chopped green chiles, drained 
• 1/2 cup canned corn
• 1/2 cup pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 cups shredded taco cheese
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 tomato, diced

Recipe:

• Cook quinoa according to the package instructions; set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375 F degrees. Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, combine quinoa, enchilada sauce, green chiles, corn, pinto beans, cilantro, cumin and chili powder.  Stir in 1 cup of the cheese.
• Pour quinoa mixture into the prepared baking dish. 
• Bake for 20 minutes. Top with remaining cheese. Broil until cheese is bubbly and melted. 
• Garnish with diced tomato and avocado

Cheesy Baked Chicken Flautas with Greek Yogurt Guacamole Dip

I found this recipe on pinterest and made it not even knowing what chicken flautas were. In case you're wondering, its a mexican dish (duh!) usually served fried...oh and they are delicious. My eyes saw a creamy cheesy filling wrapped in a tortilla and guacamole and I was like DONE and DONE.  I decided to bake them instead of frying them to make them a little healthier. I also swapped out sour cream for greek yogurt like I normally do. Believe me, you can not tell the difference. Its just as creamy and tasty! I also used greek yogurt in the guacamole. My friend Lindsey made this guacamole last weekend and I became obsessed. I figured the guacamole would be perfect to have with the flautas and it was!!

Guacamole Ingredients:

• 4 avocados
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 jalapenos, diced with the seeds removed
• 2 big spoonfuls of plain greek yogurt (you're welcome for the exact measurement!)
• 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro
• salt, pepper
• 1 lime

Guacamole Recipe:

• Mix avocados and greek yogurt together until smooth. 
• Add tomatoes, onion, garlic, cilantro, and jalapenos. 
• Add lime juice from one lime -this will help prevent the avocados from browning. 
• Add salt and pepper as needed.

 Chicken Flautas Ingredients:

• 16 tortillas
• 3 chicken breasts, shredded 
• 2 cups salsa
• 1 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1 8 oz bag of taco shredded cheese
• 1 15 oz can of corn
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• olive oil

*Note..this is going to make enough for two 9x13 baking dishes. You can easily make one for dinner and freeze the other!

Chicken Flautas Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 400 F degrees
• Heat a skillet with olive oil. Add onion and garlic. Cook until softened. Add corn and cook for another 2 minutes. Then, add shredded chicken, salsa, sour cream, and cheese. Stir and cook until combined and cheese is melted. (This will only take a 3-4 minutes.)
• Spray two 9x13 baking dishes with nonstick cooking spray.
• Place some filling in each tortilla. Tightly roll the tortilla and place in the baking dish. 
• Bake for about 15 minutes.

Ground Turkey Enchiladas

 

I'm kinda obsessed with Mexican food. In fact, I love Mexican food so much that I swear I don't have taco seasoning running through my blood. That, and queso...but that's a whole other story. These enchiladas are a staple recipe for me. When my Mexican food craving hits, I whip up these bad boys. I've made this recipe so many times that I could probably make it in my sleep. I usually make variations of it depending on what ingredients I have in my fridge. These enchiladas are just as delicious with ground chicken or beef, or even shredded chicken.

 

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 taco seasoning packet
• enchilada sauce (I used canned)
• tortillas
• 8 oz can of diced green chiles
• 1 bag shredded cheddar cheese
• scallions, sour cream, and your other favorite toppings

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onions and garlic on low until soft and translucent. Add ground turkey and taco seasoning packet. Follow directions on seasoning packet. Once turkey is cooked, remove from heat.
• Spray a baking dish with non-stick spray. On the bottom of the baking dish pour a thin layer of enchilada sauce. In each tortilla, put ground turkey mixture, diced green chiles, and cheese. Roll up each tortilla and place in baking dish. 
• Once all tortillas are rolled up, pour the remaining enchilada sauce on top, then top with more cheese.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve with scallions and sour cream.  

 

Crockpot Buffalo Chicken

I'm back! I took the past few weeks off to enjoy my vacation. The good news is that I found some great new recipes to share with you all. I can easily see this chicken recipe becoming a new favorite of mine. You can use this chicken in so many different ways. I had it on my salad this afternoon for lunch with some blue cheese crumbles and a drizzle of blue cheese dressing. I also made wraps with the chicken last night. Buffalo chicken sliders topped with coleslaw, or baked buffalo chicken taquitos would be great ways to use the chicken too. Have fun with it!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound chicken breasts
• 5.3 oz plain nonfat greek yogurt
• 2/3 cup buffalo sauce
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp dried basil

Recipe:

Place chicken in the crockpot. In a bowl, mix together remaining ingredients. Pour 3/4 of the mixture over the chicken. Cook on low for 6 hours. Once the chicken is cooked, take it out of the crockpot and shred. Drain out the liquid in the crockpot. Place the chicken back into the crockpot and pour the rest of the liquid mixture into the chicken.

 

Greek Spinach Pie

I almost couldn't blog this recipe because we practically devoured the spinach pie! I had to hide this last piece in the fridge so I could get a picture of it. This was my first time making spinach pie and I was happily surprised at how easy it was. The phyllo dough was a little finicky to deal with, but overall not so bad!!! I hope you get a chance to try it.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds of spinach (1 pound=16 oz bag)
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 bunch of green onion, chopped (including the white parts)
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 8 oz feta cheese (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 2 eggs
• 18 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed at room temperature
• olive oil

Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• First, you are going to make the filling. Heat a pasta pan on medium-high heat. Add half of the spinach and cook, tossing occassionally. As the spinach starts to wilt, add the rest of the spinach handfuls at a time. Cook until all the spinach is wilted. Transfer the spinach to a colander. Once cool enough to touch, squeeze out as much of the water as you can.
• Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan. Add the scallion, onion, and garlic. Cook until soft. Stir in the spinach and turn off the heat. Let the spinach mixture cool. Stir in cheeses, eggs and parsley.
• In a baking dish, lightly coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil. Lightly oil about 12 phyllo sheets on one side and lay the sheets in the pan oiled side up one at a time. Leave some sheets hanging off the side of pan.
• Spread the spinach filling into the pan.
• Wrap the phyllo dough hanging over the sides around the filling. 
• Take the remaining phyllo sheets, and one at a time, oil the sheet and lay on top of the filling. Wrap the edges of the phyllo dough into the sides of the pan. 
• Oil the top of the pie. 
• Cut desired pieces now before you bake. Once you bake the pie, the phyllo dough will be crispy and it will be it difficult to cut into pieces.
• Bake the pie for about 45 minute.

One Pot Vegetarian Chili

This is quite possibly the easiest chili recipe EVER. Sometimes my best meals result from being too lazy to go to the grocery store and trying to cook something based on the things I already have in my kitchen. I haven't been to the grocery store in a few days so I was only working with canned food and things in my freezer. Thankfully, I came up with this chili and it was pretty yummy!

Ingredients:

• Bag of frozen onions and peppers (bought in the frozen food aisle)
• Taco seasoning packet (have 2 of the packets on hand just in case you need some more flavor)
• Corn Starch
• Can of corn (15 oz)
• Can of black beans (15oz)
• Can of pinto beans (15oz)

 Recipe:

• Spray a deep pan with pam and place on medium to high heat
• Pour in about 3/4 of the frozen onions and peppers
• While the onions and peppers are defrosting, rinse the black beans and pinto beans in a strainer
• Pour the beans into the pan with the onions and peppers
• Pour the entire can of corn into the pan including the liquid
• It should look liquidy at this point but thats good!
• Sprinkle in the taco seasoning and let the mixture boil for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
• In a small dish, mix a tablespoon of corn starch into water
• Pour corn starch mixture into the pan, stirring frequently
• If the corn starch does not thicken the chili to your liking then you can add some more!
• Serve with your favorite chili toppings

Clean Eating Taco Salad

Surprise, surprise! Here is another taco dish, but this time in the form of a salad. I've been on a kick lately and I can't help it!! This is a guilt free taco salad. It is perfect for lunch or for a light dinner! I don't really have any measurements for this recipe just because you can put on this salad whatever you would like. These were the ingredients that I already had in my fridge so I went for it!

Ingredients:

• ground turkey
• lettuce
• salsa
• cucumber
• avocado
• black beans
• corn
• tomato
• spices: cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper

Recipe: 

•  Brown ground turkey in a pan and drain fat.
• Add spices to your liking (i like to use a lot of cumin to give it some mexican flavor)
• Assemble salad with the ground turkey and your favorite toppings. Use salsa for dressing.

Healthy Tacos

I always love talking to new readers about my blog. Today's post is dedicated to my newest reader (Hi Ericka!). We had an entire convo this morning about pico de gallo. Thanks for inspiring me to put up this post today!

This post is especially important to me because I L-O-V-E tacos, and I take tacos VERY seriously. Taco Tuesday is by FAR my favorite day of the week. I would only post a recipe for tacos if it met my standards. These tacos are awesome because they are super healthy for you (Disclaimer: they are healthy to my standards hahah. I'm not a nutritionist by any means. See my post on bacon wrapped tater tots for a reference hahah). I made some great subsitutions to this recipe to make these tacos healthier but still taste amazeballs!! Instead of a taco shell, I used a fiber one wrap (which is only 80 calories) and cut the wrap into 4 taco shells. Then, I used ground turkey instead of ground beef and plain chobani instead of sour cream. Top it off with pico de gallo and some hot sauce and you've got some delish tacos!!

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey
• chopped onion 
• chopped pepper
• taco seasoning packet (Note: I used McCormick mild taco seasoning...try to find one that is low sodium)
• fiber one wraps
• your favorite toppings: pico de gallo, hot sauce, chobani, cheese, lettuce, jalapenos, olives

Recipe

• Spray a pan with nonstick cooking spray and saute peppers and onions.
• Once cooked, place the peppers and onions on a separate plate.
• Spray pan again with nonstick cooking spray, and brown the ground turkey.
• After draining the excess fat from the pan, add the peppers and onions to the cooked ground turkey meat.
• Stir in taco seasoning mix and water (follow the directions on your seasoning packet).
• Cup up the fiber one wrap into taco shells (I cut the wrap like a pizza, one wrap making 4 shells)
• Add taco meat and your favorite toppings to each shell.

The Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs

Sometimes taking a step back and perfecting the basics makes all the difference. This recipe will help you achieve the perfect yellow yoke for a hard boiled egg. It will help you avoid that grey/greenish ring that can appear around the outside.

Hard boiled eggs are yummy to eat on their own, perfect on a salad, or can be used for egg salad or deviled eggs!

I like to sprinkle some paprika on hard boiled eggs for some color.

Recipe:

• Place eggs in a sauce pan in a single layer.
• Add cold water to cover eggs by about an inch.
• Heat on high heat to boil.
• Remove from burner
• Cover pan.
• Let eggs sit in water for 12 minutes (for large eggs)
• Drain, and serve warm, or place in iced water (or in the fridge) to cool. 

Slow Cooker Sesame Chicken

Happy 2014! I hope you had a great holiday. I definitely did! It's crazy how sometimes vacation can get so busy, but I've been having a great time! Here is the perfect recipe for everyone who is heading back to work and school after a little vacation. This is a fast and easy weeknight meal. It's also a healthier version of the typical fried sesame chicken. You can serve this chicken on almost anything: a salad, rice, noodles, or on a hamburger bun. Edamame or green beans would make a great side.

Source: Family Fresh Meals

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup honey
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• Sesame seeds

Recipe:

• Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place chicken in slow cooker.
• Combine the honey, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a bowl. Pour over chicken. 
• Cook on low for 4 hours, or high for 2 hours. 
• Remove chicken from slow cooker, leaving the sauce behind. 
• Dissolve the cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of water, and pour into slow cooker. Cook the sauce for 10 minutes so it can thicken.
• As the sauce cooks, shred the chicken. 
• Return the chicken to the pot and coat with sauce. 
• Serve chicken over rice, noodles, or on a sandwich. 
• Sprinkle chicken with sesame seeds.

 

Slow Cooker Turkey Chili

Any yet again...another 2 weeks go by without a new post. So much for posting regularly. You can thank Sarah for this post who kindly mentioned that she was sick of signing into the blog and seeing brown sugar glazed kielbasa. In response to peer pressure, I decided to take a break from outlining and studying to get this new post up. 

This is a regular at our house especially since the cold weather has started. It's a super easy recipe. I can put all the ingredients in the slow cooker before class and come home to a ready meal. Another plus is that it usually lasts us two plus nights (making it a great recipe for those crazy busy weeks). I make this recipe with ground turkey to make it a healthy meal. It doesn't lack in flavor at all by doing so...even ask the boyfriend who is pro-beef.

Ingredients:

• McCormick Slow Cooker Chili Seasoning Mix (found in the spice aisle)
• 2 1bs of turkey
• 2 (14-1/2 oz) cans of diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 1 large pepper, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• your favorite toppings: shredded cheese, sour cream, chips

Recipe:

• Ground turkey in a large skillet, drain fat
• Place all ingredients in slow cooker. Stir until well mixed
• Cook 8 hours on low, or 4 hours on high.

Steak and Cheese Subs

Dan and I have very different eating habits to say the least. 

Dan is a meatatarian and I'm well...anything but that...

Since we've moved in, Dan's had to suffer through more than enough "Lauren Meals"..so I decided to make a "Dan Meal." I think it turned out to be a success!

Even though I don't eat much steak, I'm a huge lover of steak and cheese subs.

I mean it is smothered in melted cheese after all...

You can't hate that!

Makes about 4 small subs

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound shaved steak
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• olive oil
• 5 slices american cheese
• small sub rolls
• butter

Recipe:

• In a pan, saute onion and peppers in olive oil
• Add garlic to peppers and onion
• Cook until tender
• Remove veggies from pan
• Add shaved steak and cook until browned
• Drain excess grease from pan
• Add veggies
• Stir until combined
• Add american cheese
• Mix until well combined
• In a separate pan, melt butter
• Add sub rolls to pan and toast on each side until warm and buttery
• Add steak mixture to sub rolls