Toasted Corn, Cherry Tomato and Edamame Salad

Finding tasty, refreshing vegetable side dishes can be difficult.  I am all for a nice salad, but sometimes that just doesn’t cut it.  Steamed or roasted veggies are delicious, but when the weather is warm I want something cool.  This salad is the perfect solution to all these problems!  Using seasonal ingredients like fresh corn [...]

Asian Vegetable Slaw

To go with Pioneer Woman’s flank steak, I was in search of a side dish.  Rice would have been fine, and then maybe a salad or some steamed asparagus.  But that just seemed kinda boring and not the perfect summer side. Thankfully, I came across a perfect summer side dish recipe from Erin at vittles for [...]

Basil Guacamole

Glorious guacamole.  It is one of my favorite foods not just because of its deliciousness, but because it is so very versatile.  You can enjoy it as a dip for chips, as a spread for a sandwich, in a wrap, on a taco, on fajitas and on top of a salad.  Guacamole is also good [...]

Mexican Layered Salad

This salad was a big hit at the Superbowl party I brought it to last weekend.  It is technically a salad, but a lot of us ate it like a dip with tortilla chips instead.  I ate mine over a little mound of crushed chips.  The chips add a nice crunch and saltiness.  The flavors in this [...]

Artichoke and Mushroom Lasagna

There are so many reasons to love lasagna. It can be simple or fancy. It can be a meat lovers delight, a vegetarians dream, or you can combine your meat and veggies and create an omnivores dilemma!  Get it?  Anyway…I know Sarah does. It can be made with a red pasta sauce, a creamy white [...]

Green Chile Mac and Cheese

There is something wonderful about the unnatural orange color and flavor of Kraft mac and cheese, but I have become quite a fan of mac and cheese from scratch.  Simple is terrific.  Cute elbow macaroni surrounded by smooth and creamy cheddar cheese sauce.  However, dressing it up can be so much fun!  Roasted tomatoes are a nice addition [...]

Monster Zucchini Part II: Zucchini Fritters

With the mound of shredded zucchini I could have made 3 batches (6 loaves) of zucchini bread.  I could have done this and frozen loves, or given them to friends.  But lets face it, I just don’t have that many friends and my freezer just couldn’t take the load! If I would have been thinking [...]

Dinner Rush: Shrimp with Mango Sauce and Quinoa Salad

The school year is about to begin!  My first day of teacher prep began today, so my casual lifestyle with tons of free time is about to come to an abrupt and unpleasant end.  Taking 8 months off from work to take a couple of part time jobs was pretty great.  It enabled me to [...]

Summer Vegetable Rolls with Spicy Peanut Sauce

This is time consuming, frustrating, quite prep intensive, and not easy.  The resulting dish is delicious and worth every drop of sweat and shed tear. Summer rolls are one of those things that seems so daunting that most people, or maybe just me, do not even want to attempt to make them at home.  Why [...]