Stuff It !

My grandmother’s birthday is next week, and there’s nothing she would love more than to sink her teeth into her favorite stuffed peppers. Unfortunately, since suffering a major stroke, she hasn’t been able to enjoy many of her favorite foods. However, in honor of my beloved grandma, who taught me so much about cooking and the importance of good nutrition, I’m sharing these simple and ethnic-inspired stuffed pepper recipes: GREEK STUFFED PEPPERS Ingredients: 1 pound lean ground beef 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 onion, diced 2 teaspoons garlic salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 2 cloves crushed garlic to taste 2 … Continue reading

Easy Meat and Cheese Meals

No, I’m not featuring my favorite cheeseburger recipes. Too boring. Rather, the following recipes illustrate how easy it is to come up with unique ways to combine meat and cheese in kid-friendly dishes. Not only are these recipes delicious, but they are a cinch to prepare, and won’t put a major dent in your wallet: MACARONI AND CHEESE PIZZA Ingredients: 2 cups uncooked corkscrew macaroni 3 eggs, beaten 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped 1 pound lean ground beef 1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce 1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed 1 teaspoon dried … Continue reading

Spice Up Boring Beef

Ground beef can be boring, but it’s affordable, which is why I often save a space for it in my shopping cart. Most cuts of beef are a bit blah on their own. However, if you look at a specific cut of meat as a blank canvas, and use spices and other ingredients as the paint that covers it, then you can serve edible masterpieces at every meal. Here are a few easy recipes to get you started: MEXICAN PIZZA Ingredients: 1 pound ground beef 3/4 cup chunky salsa 2 tablespoons finely chopped pickled jalapeno peppers 1 package thick or … Continue reading

Tis the Season to be Cooking with Cranberries

You may be sick of looking at cranberries right now, but don’t let your Thanksgiving hangover influence your taste for the tart fruit. I just got back from the grocery store where fresh cranberries are on sale $3 for 2 pounds. What a steal. I picked up two 1-pound bags and dug through my recipe book for ways to put them to good use. Here are the fresh cranberry goodies I plan to make this week: CRANBERRY CITRUS MUFFINS Ingredients: 1 cup sugar 1/4 cup butter or margarine 2 eggs 2 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Recipes: Soda Pop Turkey

Coke is it when it comes to sweetening your bird this Thanksgiving. Sprite will work too, if you follow the recipe below. A week from today most of us will be gorging ourselves on turkey and all the fixings, but before we gather around the dining room table someone has to cook the Thanksgiving bird. If you are reading this blog, that “someone” is probably you. Of course, not everyone will be creating a Thanksgiving feast for dozens of extended family members. Some clans celebrate the holiday with an intimate gathering of just a few very close loved ones. In … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Recipes: Cranberry Desserts

If your Thanksgiving Day feast is side dish heavy and you decide to pass on the traditional cranberry sauce, but you still want to get a healthy dose of Vitamin C, then consider the following recipes. Both feature fresh cranberries in mouthwatering desserts. The tartness of the plump cranberries perfectly complements the sweetness of these Thanksgiving-themed treats. If you decide to forgo these cranberry desserts on Turkey Day, save the recipes and make them on Christmas instead. The bright crimson berries bring a festive touch to any holiday buffet table. CHILLED CRANBERRY DESSSERT Ingredients: 3 cups fresh cranberries 1 1/2 … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Recipes: Kicked Up Cranberry Dishes

What do you get when you combine fresh cranberries with persimmons, pecans and oranges? Not your grandma’s old-fashioned cranberry sauce. If you are looking for jazzed up versions of this Thanksgiving classic, you’ve come to the right place. You can’t have a Turkey Day feast without cranberries, so why not try something new this year? The following recipes pay homage to fresh cranberries in ways that will win over your pickiest holiday eaters. FRESH CRANBERRY AND PERSIMMON SAUCE Ingredients: 1 cup chopped onion (1 medium) 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon olive oil or cooking oil 1 12-oz. bag fresh … Continue reading

Autumn Recipes from A to Z

Tis the season to retreat to the kitchen to prepare warm comfort foods. Think hearty stews, soups, pumpkins, squash, turkey and other fall favorites. In an effort to encourage you to make the most of this season’s spectacular harvest I’ve compiled a collection of autumn recipes from A to Z featuring some of fall’s most popular ingredients. Whether you are cooking for two or two-dozen, the following quick and easy recipes will help make the most of fall’s bounty from apples to zucchini. Autumn Recipes: A is for Apple— DOUBLE APPLE DESSERT SALAD and WILD RICE AND APPLE SALAD. Autumn … Continue reading

Crazy for Cranberries

Do you remember the last time you ate fresh cranberries? Most people only consume the plump tart fruit on Thanksgiving, and even then, the vast majority of diners are not eating the real deal. Folks, that gelatinous cranberry colored blob that you plop out of a can during the holidays doesn’t do justice to the real fruit. Believe it or not there are a myriad of recipes out there that feature fresh cranberries in their righteous glory. This year consider banning over processed store-bought cranberry-ish blobs from your table, and instead, consider making these delicious fresh cranberry dishes: CRANBERRY CHERRY … Continue reading

Autumn Recipes: Apple and Cranberry Meatloaf

Meatloaf is my friend. If you parent a picky eater then you can surely relate. Meatloaf can disguise a multitude of ingredients that less than adventurous eaters wouldn’t typically touch with a 10-foot pole. Personally, I look at meatloaf like a sponge. It happily absorbs just about any ingredient and dulls its flavors enough so that you know you are eating something other than meat, but you can’t always identify exactly what that “other” item might be. Which makes it the ideal vehicle to sneak in fruits and vegetables your kids might not normally eat without bribes of chocolate chip … Continue reading