Best Sloppy Joes

If you've never had a homemade Sloppy Joe, you've been missing out! This sloppy joe sauce has chunks of veggies and uses mustard, worcestershire and steak sauce for flavor that is so good it goes far beyond any sauce you will get from a can. This is my go-to recipe for sloppy joes, and soon it will be yours too!

- I always top my sloppy joes with mustard (honey mustard is my favorite). It adds a great flavor I can't get enough of.

On Top Of Spaghetti...

All FILLED with cheese.

Meatballs are good. Turkey meatballs are better. Cheese stuffed turkey meatballs are the best!

Normally we mix ground turkey in with the sauce, but this week (yes, we typically have spaghetti dinner once a week) I had a craving for meatballs. I was looking for a recipe and came upon this one on Picky Palate. Stuffing meatballs with mozzarella? Genius!

These meatballs are so delicious! I'm in love. I should mention this is the second stuffed recipe from Picky Palate that I have fallen for. Once again, Jenny is my hero.

I made 12 big meatballs, and am already out. I already plan on making these again for meatball subs next week. :)

Asparagus & Gruyere Tarts

Spring is finally starting to show itself. One sure sign of the season is the abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables. One of my favorite spring veggies is Asparagus. With Easter right around the corner, I thought this Asparagus Tart was perfect for a Spring/Easter dish.

I found this recipe on Closet Cooking, I LOVE Kevin's blog - he always makes the most delicious foods. What first caught my eye about this recipe wasn't the asparagus, it was the Gruyere cheese. Gruyere is by far my most favorite cheese, I would kill for it. Despite how expensive it is, I try to buy a small block any chance I can get. It's definitely not a cheap habit, but to me it's worth every penny.

This recipe also adds a spread of honey dijon mustard, I used honey mustard instead 'cause it was what I had on hand. I was pretty skeptical about the addition of mustard, seemed kind of odd to me, so I made a few tarts without mustard. Boy, was I wrong -I should have known better than to question Kevin's recipe. Shame on me. :/ The mustard tasted fantastic! The tarts without mustard weren't nearly as flavorful as the ones with mustard. Do NOT shy away from the mustard. Trust me :)

Easy Haystack Dinner

-This is by far my most popular recipe!

This little haystack doesn't look like much,

Don't be fooled. It is Delicious!-

This dinner is probably the one that my family ate the most when I was growing up. It's perfect for any family because it's quick, easy, filling, and affordable. And it tastes really good. These Haystacks are made by piling rice, meat, peas, and cheese on top of eachother forming a stack that resembles, well... a haystack!

This dinner is already fairly healthy, but to make it just a bit healthier I use ground turkey instead of beef. The meat is cooked and combined with cream of mushroom and cream of celery soup, which makes it super creamy and tastes fantastic. I also normally would have used brown rice, but all I had was white.

Really, you could put any kind of topping you'd like on this dish. I'd love to make it again using chicken and maybe toss a couple extra veggies in. Also, don't be afraid to try different soup flavors. Mix and match it up all you want!

Did I mention it tastes even better smothered in melted cheese? (what doesn't?) Oh Yeah! Peas + Cheese = One very tasty combination. :)

-Jess

Grilled Shrimp

It's that time of year again.. Grilling season! Grilling does amazing things to the flavor of many foods. I especially like what it does to shrimp. Grilling shrimp is very simple, and very fast. Just marinate, skewer, and grill! The actual grilling is the easiest part. I usually let the Man take over the grilling duties, but shrimp is so easy to grill that I was able to take over for once! Unlike some other grilled foods it's not hard at all to tell when the shrimp is done. Just a few minutes on each side until you get that lovely pink color and VOILA! Grilled shrimp that's fully cooked and ready to be enjoyed!

The shrimp does need to be peeled and deveined, it'll be less time-consuming if you get shrimp that has already had this done. If you do get shrimp that still has the vein and peel you can learn how to remove them here. It's very easy, but it will take some extra time to do. And, if you'd like, you can save the peels for later use to make fish stock! Also, if using wood skewers you MUST soak them, unless of course you want them to catch fire :). This can be done while the shrimp marinates.

I think with any shrimp dish it's best to be eaten the same day, preferably while it is still freshly cooked, as it just tastes better. Cooked shrimp does not stay fresh long in the fridge, if sealed and placed in the coldest part of the fridge it's good for about 2-3 days.

However, this grilled shrimp is so delicious that I can't imagine anyone even having any of it left over! 


-Jess

Incredible Salisbury Steak

Oh. My. God. I don't know what to say about this recipe other than I'm absolutely in LOVE with it! The 15th was the Man's birthday, and I wanted to make him happy and treat him to a really good dinner. Well, I definitely succeeded! This is the tastiest dish I've had in a loooong time. It was so tender, and so full of flavor... I'm drooling now thinking about it! When I first saw this recipe I knew I wanted to try it just for the Man. See, he loves something called greasy bread, it's buttered bread soaked in meat drippings. Sounds kinda weird, but it is oh-so-good. Well, this salisbury steak is prepared and served on top of toasted cheese bread and drenched with gravy. I saw it as a delicious new take on an old favorite of the Man's. And he sure did love it! We each had one serving and devoured a second one. It didn't take long to decide that this is a recipe that is sure to stay in our family for years to come! :)

Ham Fried Rice

One thing I love about Chinese food? Ham. Fried. Rice. I love this stuff. I could eat it by the bucket-ful. This is another really simple, delicious recipe that will be ready to eat in no time! Why not enjoy it with some yummy Orange Chicken?

Orange Chicken

Chinese is one of my favorite kinds of food, but it can be kinda pricey to eat out. I've never made or eaten homemade chinese food, but I didn't hesitate to try my hand at it when I came across this recipe. This orange chicken is very, very tasty. It was tangy, with a slight sweetness. I personally thought it had much better flavor than many Chinese restaurants I've been to. It was also REALLY simple, and easy to make. If you love Chinese cuisine, you MUST try this yummy orange chicken! Why not enjoy it with some tasty Ham Fried Rice?

Orange Chicken
Recipe from BlogChef
Printable Recipe

Ingredients-
Chicken-

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-1/2-inch cubes

1 ½ C flour

1 egg, beaten

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

Oil for frying

Orange Sauce-

1 ½ cup water

2 Tbsp orange juice

¼ cup lemon juice

1/3 cup rice vinegar

2 ½ Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp orange zest, grated

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ tsp ginger root, minced

½ tsp garlic, minced

3 Tbsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp water

2 Tbsp green onion, chopped

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Directions-
Heat oil in deep fryer to 375°F.

Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken in egg and shake in flour mixture to coat. Deep fry chicken at 375 degrees F in a deep fryer or wok until completely cooked and golden brown.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.

Combine cornstarch with water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken, add red pepper flakes and garnish with green onions.

Enjoy!