Avocado Pesto with Zucchini Noodles

I've been trying out some new recipes over the past couple of weeks for my fellow anti-inflammatory dieters. This is one that we really enjoyed in our household. This is a great recipe because its so simple and tastes really good. I believe from start to finish this meal took me maybe 10 minutes. That's pretty awesome in my book.
Zucchini noodles have been kind of a fad lately. I see them popping up all over pinterest and to be honest I have always wanted to try them but just never have. When cooked up they do look just like spaghetti noodles so you don't even miss having the real noodles in there.

Kettle Corn Popcorn

One thing I love about going to the zoo down here is the heavy smell of Kettle corn in the air. It makes me salivate so much every time we go, but who wants to pay $8 for a bag of it when you know it costs less then $1 to make. Not me. So our new tradition when we visit is for me to whip up a batch and bring it in bags. I'll tell you what I don't know if it really does taste better or not but saving that much money sure does make it taste better to me :)

I never knew how simple making kettle corn was. The hardest part is making sure it doesn't burn. Which if you keep an eye and an ear on it you won't have any problems at all.

Roasted Parmesan Vegetables

Isn't this dish beautiful!?
A few weeks ago I went to this market where they take donations for semi unlimited fruits and vegetables. The catch is, is that they produce is on its way out so you need to use it really fast. When I got home I realized I had a lot of zucchini, summer squash, and tomatoes and I knew that I had seen a yummy looking recipe on pinterest. Thus came this recipe.
Now I'm not usually a huge fan of yellow squash but with the seasonings on it and the cheese it made those edible for me lol. I loved the pop you got from the tomatoes bursting open in your mouth and the zucchini was fabulous.
A perfect way to use up all those garden vegetables, instead of running around in your church parking lot looking for unlocked cars to put all your excess squash in ;)

Potstickers

You know, I love Asian foods. One of the reasons I like it so much is because for the most part it's pretty easy to make and honestly the flavors are always going to be pretty similar to anything you can get at a restaurant.
A few weeks ago I was in the mood to have a break from life and spend some time in the kitchen. Yes I know that may sound strange to some but my relaxing time is when I can just be alone in the kitchen without screaming children and just cook. I don't know, there is just something about hearing the knife slice through fresh vegetables that just makes my brain happy. So on a rare occasion I try to take a little break from life and prepare a meal that takes a little more then just a "quick throw it in a pan" type of prep.
Potstickers. Ohhhh I love them. Not only do they look so cute and fun but they taste awesome. This recipe is approved by my whole family, even my 4 year old which at this stage in life is pretty hard to get any approval on any food.
Once you get into the groove of making these they actually don't take that long to make, especially because you don't have to cook the filling first. AND...you can freeze your leftovers and save for another time!

Banana Nut Muffins

I absolutely love breakfast food. Once a week we like to cook breakfast for dinner, not only because we love breakfast food but also because it is quick, easy, and affordable as well.
Muffins are a great way to make a lot of food out of your over ripe bananas. I like this recipe better then some of the others I have tried because it has chunks of the banana in it rather then just all mushed up ones. It helps to keep the muffins extra moist I personally think that they have more of a banana flavor.
Throw out your old banana muffin recipes because this one is a keeper for sure!

Quick Pizza Dough

I love making homemade pizza. It allows everybody in our house to have exactly what they want and there is no arguing over so and so's topping getting on the others slice. Plus, it costs a lot less so there's a double win.
The only issue I USED to have was.... I always forgot to make the dough until about an hour before dinner needed to be ready.
I am so happy that I found this recipe. It doesn't take hours to prepare and it actually tastes great, which means more wins for me!
I've used this recipe to make pizza and breadsticks.

Pork Chops with Lemon Basil Cream Sauce

Okay who needs to go out when you can make stuff at home that looks this beautiful and elegant?! And as an added bonus it tastes as amazing as it looks.
Let's be honest, going out to restaurants is expensive. Especially if you were to order something like this. But making it at home costs half the price and you can stay in your pajamas. Don't get me wrong, I love going out, but, making this quality of food at home wow's everybody more then ordering it from a menu.
This recipe will not let you down as far as flavor goes. The pork chop alone being breaded and bakes is super juicy but then you add this amazing cream sauce and you get smacked in the face with flavor!

Raspberry Pretzel Dessert

I love raspberries. Seriously. As a kid we had a decent sized patch of raspberries growing in our yard and I remember going out and picking a bucket full and then coming in, pouring some cream and sugar over them and snarfing down a gigantic bowl. Heaven.
Now that I live in an area that I can't grow raspberries I don't get to eat them very often because they are so stinking expensive. But, this week they were on sale for only $.86 so I snatched me up a few packages and tried to relive my youth. Needless to say, store bought raspberries are nothing like a fresh picked one so I opted to make them into a dessert. This is a recipe that my husband had a lot growing up because he also had a big raspberry garden at his house.
By the way, I brought this to a potluck the other day and I got some good compliments on it so I figured it was a keeper and blog worthy. Enjoy.