Recipe: Crockpot Macaroni and Cheese

It's been a while since I've posted - life can keep us busy at times.

With the Fall season fast approaching, I am posting one of my favorite recipes of all time. I am a sucker for macaroni and cheese - who isn't? I love it baked, but there is the fact that I simply do not have the time to prepare homemade baked macaroni and cheese. This crockpot macaroni and cheese recipe is a delicious substitute - and who can resist that you only have to throw the ingredients into the crockpot and forget about it???

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

Recipe: Crispy Roast Chicken

A good crispy roast chicken recipe is hard to come by. Thankfully, due to all the cooking with chicken in school, I've mastered the art of a delicious crispy roast chicken.

This recipe is finger-licking good, so don't be surprised if you find yourself devouring the carcass!!

IF there is any chicken left, you can always make chicken tacos, chicken salad, or simple chicken sandwiches.

It's National Tequila Day!!!

Really? Tequila has it's own national holiday? Nice!

I love tequila - I cook with it and I drink it (more often drink it than cook with it). So today, I'm going to salute tequila with yummy-licious Corona-Ritas. It combines my two favorite alcohol - Corona beer and tequila.

Happy National Tequila Day to me! Try my Corona-Rita recipe and you'll be saluting tequila too :)

Corona-Rita Recipe
Ingredients:

• 12 oz of your favorite tequila
• 1 12oz bottle of Corona beer
• 1 12oz can of lemon-lime soda (Sprite, 7-Up, etc.)
• 1 12 oz can frozen lime concentrate

Directions:

• Blend the frozen lime concentrate in the blender, pour it in a bowl then mix in the remaining ingredients.        
• Rim the glass w/ Kosher salt
• Serve on the rocks, chilled, or frozen. 

Abundance of Avocado? Freeze Them!

I was lucky, and happily surprised, to find avocados on sale at a whopping $0.33 each! This is a great sale since they usually go for over $1.00 in my area. I took advantage and stocked up on this yummy-licious "superfood".

Despite my best efforts to use them quickly, they were ripening before I was ready. So, in my normal fashion, and I did some research on freezing avocados. Now, I'm rather picky on the food I freeze because I don't like the texture of my food to change when it's put in the freezer. But I figured I give freezing an avocado a whirl since they are mushy when ripe anyway! LOL

Recipe: Boardwalk French Fries

Everyone LOVES boardwalk French fries. Now, you don't need to go to the beach for your fill of French fries, although going to the beach would be fun!!

This recipe will turn your average potato into a feast for everyone. You can also freeze these and have a supply available whenever you need a boardwalk French fry fix.

Yes, Virginia, Container Planting IS Possible...

Container vegetables -
tomatoes and peppers.

Over the last few weeks, I've had people literally laugh at me when I tell them that I have some tomato plants in containers. Why they find that funny, I'm not exactly sure - but they said something like, "yeah, right, you can't grow tomato plants in a container." I think the joke is on them, because I've been VERY successful with my container garden (see picture).

Why do I container garden, you ask? For me, the reason is simple - some people collect stray animals, I collect stray vegetable plants. I hate walking into a nursery and seeing a half-dead plant, so I buy them at half the cost and bring them home. I nurture them, talk to them, and give them a reason to live - supplying me with vegetables!!

Grilled Chicken with Tomato, Red Onion, & Basil

Grilled Chicken w/ Tomato,
Red Onion & Basil

This grilled chicken medley is a must-have in your recipe box!! It's packed with nutrition, tastes great, and is very easy to make in advance. I have been fortunate to have an abundant supply of tomatoes and basil from my garden so I make this meal regularly in the summer.

Since this is a rather light dish, I like to pair it with a salad or rice pilaf (made with brown rice, of course).

Enjoy! I look forward to hearing from you!

A Good Cook....

"A good cook is like a sorceress who dispenses happiness." 

–Elsa Schiaparelli

Culinary Quote

From one of my favorite chefs, Marco Pierre White --

Mother Nature is the true artist,
and the chef is merely the technician.

His book, Devil in the Kitchen, is a must-have and a staple reading when things get rough!

Spiral Lasagna

Spiral Lasagna

Spiral Lasagna is amazing!

It serves many purposes in our house - no cutting required (which equals less mess), easy portion control, it freezes beautifully, and BEST of all since Cody doesn't eat "meat", I drop some meatballs in between the spirals for the meat eaters in the family :) No separate pans of lasagna.

It's a win-win dinner meal!

How to: A REAL Baked Potato

Do you put your potatoes in the microwave to "bake" or put foil on them and pop in the oven? Awww, say it isn't so! That's not baking, that's steaming and you are missing out on the delicious flavor of a real baked potato!

Don't forget to eat the skins -- they are packed with iron and other nutrients. Healthy and YUMMY!!!

It's easy to make your own delicious...ahem, authentic...baked potato. Here's how:

Do-It-Yourself Tortilla Shells

Anyone see the commercial for the Baked Tortilla Shells gadget? I have and I'll admit, I almost bought it. However, thanks to Pinterest, I found out that I could do the exact same thing with a cupcake pan that I already have!!!

The photo pretty much explains the directions. Enjoy!

Baked Tortilla Shells

Southwestern Tilapia

Southwestern Tilapia

The original recipe called for turkey cutlets, but I figured (correctly) that this would work on Tilapia as well.

This recipe fits the bill for weeknight cooking — quick, easy, flavorful and packed with healthful antioxidants. Cumin is full of antioxidants, Tilapia is a high in protein and low in fat, and black beans are an excellent source of fiber.

Healthy eating never tasted so good!!!