Cheesy Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Hello friends! Tis the season for goodies and appetizers! I figured since I have been posting a lot of my goodies that I have been making this year that I would post about a fabulous appetizer.
Its cheesy and gooey, pretty much everything you want to eat around the holidays. Yes it may not be the most nutritious recipe out there, but hey the holidays are for eating food that taste good and aren't good for you so that you gain weight and make a new years resolution to exercise...which inevitably ends within the first month. Sigh.
BUT this recipe will get great reviews from friends and family. I personally had this recipe over Thanksgiving break as an appetizer before our big Thanksgiving day meal at my sisters house. She always manages to find such fantastic recipes although I don't know how I haven't tried this one before because it is from a very popular site that I have used quite a few times. The recipe comes from Our Best Bites! It is one of their earlier recipes. They really do have some fantastic recipes in their collection so if your looking for another blog to look through (besides my own of course) then hop on over to them and check it out.

French Chocolate

If you have ever been to my parents house around the holidays you know my mothers love for this recipe. She makes it every year to go along with Christmas breakfast.
What is french chocolate? It is a really thick creme mixture that you mix into hot milk for a rich, deep, hot chocolate. So if you are a lover of hot chocolate during this cold season this is a recipe you should try.

Honey Mustard Sesame Chicken

I have been on a recipe slump lately and haven't really been trying anything new, which isn't always a bad thing.
Anywho, here is a recent recipe that we tried out and really liked. I know, its chicken. Everything I post about is chicken. I can't help it if we like chicken a lot :)
This recipe is pretty simple and has great flavor. I always like when recipes have a dipping sauce because it allows me to control how much extra "zing" I want to go in each bite. I also really like the combination of almonds and sesame seeds in the coating of the chicken. They go REALLY well together!

Spaghetti Meat Sauce

On my way to church yesterday for some reason I started thinking about spaghetti. Kinda strange since it was 9:00 AM, but I couldn't get spaghetti out of my head all day. I just happened to have some ground turkey sitting in my fridge that I WAS going to make some stuffed peppers with but instead decided to whip up a homemade meat sauce instead. It turned out great! It involved ingredients that I had in my pantry and fridge, throw it all on the stove and let it simmer together to make a fantastic flavorful sauce!
Enjoy!

Autumn Salad

If your in need of something light and fabulous tasting then this recipe is one that you have to try. It uses a lot of ingredients that a lot of people have on hand and is full of flavor. Leave off the chicken for a nice side salad or throw it on and make it a nice light meal. I love how there is so much crunch and flavor in this salad. I will definitely be having one of these for lunch again today!

Halloween Ideas

Happy Halloween everybody! Halloween is my favorite holiday next to Christmas of course. Growing up I loved loved loved dressing up and running around the neighborhood for hours trying to collect as much candy as possible in my big pillowcase. Even as a teenager I really enjoyed going to the haunted houses and watching scary movies and still of course dressing up. Well here I am in my late 20's and still thoroughly enjoy getting candy, dressing up, decorating, and eating fun food.
I thought today I would share with you some fun ideas to jazz up your Halloween, whether you are celebrating at home or with friends or going out!
Some of these ideas my sister and I came up with a few years ago at a really fun family get together and some I have seen online and thought looked so fun and cute for a day of spooky eating! Enjoy!!

Kofta Kebabs

I am about the happiest person on earth right now. Since moving to Arizona we vowed to try out different types of food to eat. We decided we wanted to stay really close to our house and found that there was a Greek/Mediterranean place called Good Fellas Grill a couple blocks down the road. I had never had Greek food so I was a little hesitant but I must say...Oh....my....goodness! Their food is amazing. Anyway, one of the things that I really like to get when we eat there (yes we have been back at least once a month since then) is the Kafta. I love it. Finally I decided to try my hand at it last night to see if I could get a recipe that was similar to theirs...well this one tastes pretty freaking fantastic. I whipped up a quick garlic dressing to go with it and bam...Good Fellas at home!
Here is the even better part....ITS DIET FRIENDLY!! Wahoo, a recipe that isn't chicken lol. Enjoy my friends!

Hard Boiled Eggs

You know, I've been asked many times in my years of being alive how do you boil the perfect hard boiled egg and my response was always, "You have to boil them?"
I grew up with an egg cooker where you just poke a little hole in the egg throw it in the cooker with some water turn it on and wait till the timer goes off. Then when I got married my mom gave me an egg cooker which was awesome. It came with this little measuring cup for the liquid to say how much liquid you needed for how you like your eggs. It was great, although I found myself never using it for some reason. Since I never used it I decided to just give it to old DI. Well long story short, after we moved here I found myself wanting to eat a lot of hard boiled eggs so I had to learn pretty fast how to make a good hard boiled egg the old fashioned way.
For those of you like me, or just don't usually do it, here is a great method on how to get a perfect hard boiled egg. I know there are about a billion methods out there...but here is the one we use in our household.

Chicken Fried Chicken

Who doesn't like crunchy coated chicken, fried in oil and smothered in ooey gooey creamy deliciousness?
I order chicken fried chicken just about every place we go that has it. There is just something about it that makes my belly happy :)
Making it at home can save you quite a bit of money, plus you can control just how greasy you have it!

Carmelitas

I woke up this morning craving something sweet and gooey and of course am not going to allow myself to make such a thing because I have two ginormous bags of Halloween candy sitting open in my closet. Im usually not a HUGE eater of sugar, I crave the savory over the sweet, but there is just something about this time of year that gets me into sugar mode.
So long story short...instead of coming downstairs and whipping up a pan of these amazing beauties I thought I would share them with you guys so that you can make them and tell me all about how fantastic they are :)
I love these things because they combine all the best things of a good dessert...chocolate...gooey caramel...oats so you think your eating healthier....

Hawaiian Haystacks

You know. I hadn't had these in forever! And you know what....I don't know why!!!
This is one of the easiest and fastest meals to throw together with a bunch of leftovers!
Something I love about these is that you combine everything on the fork to make one perfect bite! Plate licking is always acceptable with this type of meal. Enjoy!

French Bread Pizza

So your craving homemade pizza but don't have the time to make some dough or want to mess with any store bought dough....well here is your answer. French, Bread, Pizza. I love these things. Just go grab a loaf of french bread, it in half, and load it up with whatever toppings your little heart desires. Its crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, which to me makes the perfect bite.

Classic Tinfoil Dinner

You know, tinfoil dinners are one of my favorites. There are a few reasons why I absolutely love them
1- EASY
2- No dishes to clean up
3- scrumptious!
These are my favorite thing to make when we are camping but they are also one of my favorite things to just have at home. You don't have to have a big fire or a tent pitched to eat these babies. I love that these dinners are so versatile. Not only can you throw whatever sounds good in a packet and it will almost always come out amazing, but you can cook it so many different ways as well.
Here is how I did my basic basic classic tinfoil dinner last night!
(Oh and I apologize for the REALLY bad photo. I forgot to snap a couple pictures last night since I wasn't here to eat it when it came out of the oven so I took a photo of what the leftovers looked like lol...sorry!)

Broccoli Cheese and Potato Soup

Today I woke up with what seems to be the beginning of a wonderful cold. So I found it fitting to post about this wonderful creamy soup.
This soup comes together in under 30 minutes and is full of so much flavor you won't even miss the fact that there isn't any meat. This to me is pure comfort food.
Im usually not much of a soup maker, for some reason, but I have decided that this year I am going to branch out a little more and dive more into soups. Why? Because they don't create many dishes to clean up afterwards and they can usually come together pretty quick!
Later this week I was planning to make some baked potatoes with broccoli cheesy sauce so I saw it fitting to post this today, to show another way you could use the exact same ingredients!

Mashed Cauliflower

I have seen mashed cauliflower pop up all over pinterest lately and have been putting it off to try because it sounded a little bit to weird to me. How can cauliflower taste like a mashed potato....yep that is the question ladies and gents but I will tell you what...for some strange reason it really does taste extremely close! I was shocked at how much it really did taste like a heap of mashed potatoes. Mashing cauliflower is lower in carbs and makes for a great alternative if you struggle with potatoes. In fact I know some people will even mix half and half (potatoes and cauliflower) and then you really can't tell a difference at all!

Overnight Apple Pie Oatmeal

Growing up I used to eat a packet of oatmeal or cream of wheat almost every morning with my dad. In fact my breakfast consisted of a bowl of processed oatmeal, 2 pieces of white toast loaded with butter, and a nice tall glass of milk. Now, Im not saying that eating that way is bad but you do get a lot of processed sugar and miscellaneous ingredients thrown into the pack so I have opted to start making it from scratch.
Ive never really been a huge fan of homemade oatmeal. To me it just never had very good flavor compared to the premade ones. BUT this recipe is fantastic. It tastes like an apple pie in your bowl. The great thing about it is that you put it in your crockpot before you go to bed and its ready for you in the morning when you get up. Can't get much better then that. And since it cooks low and slow the flavors get into the oatmeal a little bit better! I like that you use steel cut oats in this recipe because for the most part you can find them to be gluten free! (although always make sure you double check)

Russian Tea

I used to drink this stuff all the time growing up. It is amazing on a cold winters day.  I have been enjoying the fact that it is cooling down a bit at night so when we go to open the windows in the morning it feels nice and cold. Its mornings like this that I wish I had some of this made already sitting in my pantry.
I like the fact that you can make a nice big batch of this and leave it sitting in your pantry all winter long and have it whenever you feel like.

Cranberry Almond Bread

For some reason I can't seem to get Christmas goodie cooking out of my head. Maybe it's because the weather is finally starting to cool down (90's).
I was putting up my Halloween decorations a couple days ago and the whole time I couldn't stop thinking about this bread. I make this bread every Christmas to pass out as neighbor gifts. I have been asked for this recipe quite a few times so here it is finally.
I originally had this bread at a Christmas get together with all my aunts and uncles on my dad's side of the family. I have this aunt who is the most creative and fantastic sweets maker ever. In fact most of my holiday sweets ideas have come from her. Anyway, its been a family tradition ever since to make this at Christmas time. And its a great way to use up those leftover bags of cranberries you bought to make cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving.
I think my favorite part about this bread is the icing that goes on top. The almond flavoring pairs so perfectly with the orange and cranberry flavors. MMM MMM MMM I can't wait till the Christmas season so I can make some!

Olive Garden Breadsticks

Anybody who knows me knows that I love bread. If there is any kind of bread being served as an appetizer at a restaurant then I will usually eat a couple of baskets by myself.
Olive Garden's breadsticks are so heavenly to me. So when I had my Olive Garden themed dinner a while ago I couldn't resist trying out a recipe that I have had sitting in my binder for years.
This recipe is great. Fairly simple to follow and the flavor really does taste a lot like the Olive Garden ones.

Chicken & Gnocchi Soup

The other night I was really wanting some comfort food and since I have been kind of on a soup kick lately why not have another soup. I couldn't stop getting Olive Garden out of my head.
This is my 2nd favorite soup from the Olive Garden. But alas, my husband and I knew that we were already going to be eating out this week on another night so I had to improvise and have the restaurant come to me. So I made a whole evening out of it.
Not only did I make this soup but I made a copycat version of their bread sticks as well and served it with yet another version of their salad. Topped the evening off with some Andes mints and hey we had a wonderful date night at home (AND IT COSTS A LOT LESS TO)
This soup was wonderful. It tasted very similar to the one at Olive Garden. Its also incredibly easy to prepare and doesn't take long at all. Perfect for a fall weeknight.

Crock Pot Turkey Chili

Oh chili. I have a love/hate relationship with chili. I always hated chili when I was growing up. And even now, if I have another choice I will usually pick something else.
THIS CHILI THOUGH---wow. I really enjoyed this and will definitely be making it again as soon as the weather cools down (dips below 100). I like this chili because the flavor is great and a little different then your average chili. This recipe didn't call for any beans....which is why I think I liked it so much. Usually, for me, chili's have way to many different kinds of beans in them that all I get is one massive bite full of beans...beans...beans.
I did adapt this recipe just a smidge and yes I did add a can of beans haha. I know I know...call the police because Im such a hypocrite!
This is a kid friendly chili as well because it isn't spicy but yet still has so much flavor jam packed into it. Adding the ground turkey instead of ground beef also helps cut out some unnecessary calories!
I served mine up with a huge side of Corn Bread.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwich

For the past couple of years I have been an addict to the Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches at Subway. My husband got me to try something new one day, which doesn't happen very often, and I have been addicted ever since. In fact, while I was pregnant I quite fondly remember eating more then my fair share of their yummy sandwiches. Mmm, just thinking about them gets me hungry.
So aside from my love for Subway, I decided that I could have the same thing at home. Why not?! So what did I do? I jumped on my faithful Pinterest account and started looking at every Buffalo Chicken Sandwich recipe I could find and piled them all together to come up with this beauty.
The chicken comes out so tender and juicy because you cook it in the crockpot, and then you can make it as spicy or not as you like according to how much sauce you put on!
I personally am a bigger fan of Ranch with my buffalo wings rather then Blue Cheese, but you could do whatever you like!

Hummus-Crusted Chicken

Good morning friends! I woke up extremely sore this morning. Yesterday my husband and I decided to start a 90 Fitness Challenge and give ourselves a nice reward at the end of it if we complete it. Yesterday was the fit test that kicked both of our behinds and thus the extreme soreness today!
BUT- aside from that I couldn't wait to share this recipe from last night. It helped top the night off in a very healthy and satisfying way, who doesn't want that!?
My husband does not like hummus, but he gobbled this stuff right down AND took it for lunch today so it really is just as good as I say it is. You literally do crust the chicken in hummus and bake it. The hummus keeps the chicken nice and juicy while making the hummus a little crunchy just on the top. It is great. At first I was a little skeptical because some of the ingredients are ones that I'm not totally fond of, but I tried them anyway and really liked how the flavors worked together! Give it a try!

Carne Asada

I realize this picture isn't the best of quality but my camera on my phone was all I had around when I made these the other night.
I could eat beef tacos every day of the week. While living in Southern California and working at the mall I grew accustomed to being able to have fantastic carne asada tacos whenever my little heart desired.
Since we are still fairly new to Arizona I haven't found a place yet that sells fantastic tacos for a good price so I had to resort to making my own. This recipe is fantastic. Its nice and zingy from all the citrus you put in the marinade but has all the wonderful classic flavors of a true Mexican taco. I served mine up on a white corn tortilla with some fresh made Pico De Gallo and avocado.

Lemon-Honey Water

Wow. I feel like I have been gone for far to long. We took a week long family vacation back home to Idaho this week. It was fabulous to get away from the craziness of our lives lately. Being at our parents houses is so relaxing. I love the laid back vibe. The best part, running around in our bare feet outside on the softest grass ever!
One problem that we all experienced while we were up there though, the dry air. My husband and I were waking up every morning with sore throats and my little girl had a stuffy nose every morning. Who would have thought that Idaho would be more dry then Arizona?! To make a long story short, to help our throats we would whip up a batch of this drink every morning and night. It worked wonders and tasted really good! Who knew something so simple could help so much. Honey actually has great healing benefits to the body. My husband was telling me that in some areas they have even started using honey under bandages to help heal open sores. (I have not personally tried this and would definitely need to do a little more research before doing it!)

Glazed Cinnamon Scones

I am one of those people who is not a baker. I don't have the patience to let yeast rise to make bread or rolls or any other gluten filled goodness. Me and my husband both LOVE cinnamon rolls but I personally just don't have the patience to make them so when I saw this recipe pop up on my Pinterest I knew that we would be in love. Why had I never thought of making a cinnamon scone?!
These seriously tasted just like a cinnamon roll...well a cinnamon roll biscuit?! I don't know. Obviously it isn't going to taste exactly like a cinnamon roll because it isn't a cinnamon roll, but it has all of the best components of a cinnamon roll and thats what I like to see. These hardly took any time to make and I had all the ingredients on hand, so we had a wonderful breakfast dinner (my favorite)

Chinese Fried Rice

I love fried rice. I love it because it can be a side dish or a main dish. It can have a lot of ingredients, or just a little. This is such a versatile recipe.
Lately I have been making a lot of Asian inspired recipes so why not have a side dish to go with them? Fried rice is always my go to, because I always have a little bit of this and that in my fridge that can be turned into this!
Next time you are unsure what to have with your Asian inspired main dish, try this as a side.

Whole Roasted Chicken

Yesterday I decided that I was going to make a roasted chicken. IT WAS FANTASTIC!! My husband could not resist making mm mm mm sounds during dinner. It made me think to that part in that movie "What About Bob" when Bob is eating dinner with the family and he keeps moaning and groaning over how wonderful everything tastes and the rest of the family is giggling, yep that's about how my dinner was last night and it was great.
Roasting whole chickens isn't an art. It just takes the right temperatures and right times. Seriously. You could probably rub tar all over one and if it is cooked properly it won't matter (okay please don't actually rub tar on a chicken).
Roasting whole chickens is not only budget friendly but if cooked right can be much more flavorful and moist then chicken pieces.
I know I have said this a lot but man, THIS is my all time favorite comfort food. Give me a plate of roast chicken mashed potatoes and gravy, and corn and I am one happy girl.

Stuffing

I know it isn't Thanksgiving yet, but for some reason I can't stop thinking about eating a giant turkey and stuffing right now. Maybe it's because we have been trying to figure out who's house we will go to for Thanksgiving this year.
I get asked for this recipe A LOT. I also get asked to make it for every Thanksgiving, or to go along with any turkey dinner. Its a recipe that I believe has been passed down through my mom's family. It is a good old fashioned stuffing. No crazy ingredients. Just basic, amazing stuffing.
I personally like to let mine get all crunchy on top, some would call it burned, but I call it crunchy goodness!

German Cabbage Skillet

This is my all time favorite and most used "go to" recipe. We eat this dish all the time. Not only because it is so completely simple to make, and not only because it only has a couple of ingredients, and not only because it is super affordable, and not only because it is really fast to get on the table....BUT...because it tastes so yummy. Who knew that by combining only a couple of ingredients you could have a one skillet wonder. And when I say a couple of ingredients, I mean... A COUPLE!
I like to say that it takes me back to my German roots, but to be honest I don't know if any of my ancestors are from Germany.
So if you are on a budget and short on time, I highly suggest you give this simple dish a try!

Peach-Mango Smoothie

As I was looking through my fridge and freezer this morning trying to find something to make a smoothie out of, I found a peach and a mango that really needed to be used. I should call this "left-overs" smoothie because I just started throwing in whatever I had left of a few things in my fridge and you know what...it came out great! I love the combination of peaches and mangos. Fruit smoothies are my favorite way to start the morning off. Give this one a try to get your morning going in a healthy way.

Greek Marinated Chicken

What a great morning! I love Mondays. You may think that I am being sarcastic, but really, I do LOVE Mondays! Its the start of a fresh new week with no procrastinating, no tantrums, no missed chores, nothing! Mondays are usually the days that I end up getting the most done. So here is your motivation for the day! GET UP! Okay, read and print this recipe first, comment, and then get up!
I have been wanting to make this recipe for a long time. I have come across it on Pinterest quite a few times and finally I had all the ingredients on hand so I made it. Boy am I glad I did. Man, that marinade is so bright. Its lemony and herby...mmmm. Not to mention that its super easy. I know I have had a bunch of good chicken recipes on here as of late, and it doesn't seem like I post much else, but honestly I can't help it that all the great sounding recipes are chicken. One reason that I use chicken a lot is because it is so easy to live on a $45-$50 a week food budget. Anyway, give this recipe a try. I served mine up with some yummy quinoa and roasted broccoli.

Grilled Asian Chicken Salad

When I saw this recipe on Pinterest I knew that I had to give it a try. I don't know if it was because it looked so good or if it was because the person who had pinned it said that this recipe alone had like 20,000 views or something to that effect. Either way my interests were peeked.
Im glad that I did try it. This salad is so light and refreshing but the dressing is packed with so much flavor that you really don't need anything to go along with it. Even if you don't like salads, I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND you at least give the dressing a try because it is FANTASTIC!
This is a typical Asian salad, where it doesn't have lettuce but is full of cabbage and carrots instead. (Yes in case you were wondering my nails have been orange for a day now after shredding them on the cheese grater!)
This salad makes a great main dish and can stand all on its own just fine or if you are really hungry and a go getter for meals, then it would make a great appetizer. Oh and I am totally making this for the next Asian Inspired Potluck we have!

Blueberry Mango Smoothie

In honor of Jamba Juice having their smoothies on sale for only $2 this week in the mornings I decided to post a smoothie recipe since my car is out of commission and I am unable to go to Jamba Juice.
I think having a nice healthy smoothie first thing in the morning really helps jump start your day in the right way. Not only are you getting in quite a bit of your daily fruit needs, but, they are so refreshing that I swear it lifts your spirits. I especially like to make them right before me and my little one head outside since its nice and hot out there.

Honey Mustard Drumsticks

I have really been on a chicken kick lately. But honestly I don't really ever get sick of chicken. Its so versatile. Not only do you have a few different choices on what kind of chicken you want but you choose how it gets cooked. Grill it? Maybe. Roast it? Maybe. Fry it? Maybe. Not only is cooking it super versatile but so is whatever you pair it with. You can marinade a billion different ways, or mix with a billion different ingredients and it can come out different every time!
This week I have been on a grilling kick so most of my chicken and veggies have been grilled. I love how the grill adds that extra bit of mmm mmm to the outside of the chicken (yes Im talking about that burned chard part) while leaving the inside super moist! This recipe was fantastic. Its a honey mustard marinade and sticks to the skin and flavors the chicken so much! Give it a try!

Garlic Chicken Pizza

Mmm. I love pizza. I think we had pizza everyday this weekend, which was awesome. I love all kinds of pizza, except for some reason I can't quite get into the Hawaiian Pizza. There is just something about the canadian bacon and pineapple that I just don't like. I know, weird right?! But it works out for me because my husband hates that kind of pizza so win win for us!
One thing I like about making your own pizza's at home is that you control what goes on it. You decide how healthy or unhealthy you would like it to be. This is one of my favorite pizza's to make. If you like garlic and the classic flavors of an alfredo pasta then you will like this pizza!

Orange Chicken Thighs

I love a good chicken recipe, especially a good thigh or drumstick recipe because they are cheaper. When you are on a budget thighs and drumsticks are the way to go. Personally I am a dark meat lover because it is almost always the most moist piece when you compare all the parts of a chicken. Usually I am more of a lemon chicken fan, but I came across this recipe and thought, hmm, I haven't had a good orange chicken in a while. WAM BAM SLAM....dinner. I absolutely LOVED the glaze that you make to put on the chicken. At first when I was combining the ingredients I was a little skeptical, because to me it smelled awful, but it actually came out tasting FANTASTIC! Leaving the skin on makes the top all crispy and flavorful while keeping the inside super moist and flavorful.

Amazing Dutch Oven Chicken

This recipe is one that was given to my mother. She had begged and begged for years to get this recipe from a lady in her ward. It has been passed down to all of us children and I'll tell you what...it is definitely a recipe worth passing down! My favorite pairings with this is dutch oven potatoes and dutch oven cheesy veggies and then a chocolate raspberry cobbler for dessert....ohhhhhhhh how I miss big family get togethers. I may have to request us doing all of these recipes when I go for a visit!
If you haven't ever given dutch oven cooking a shot you absolutely should! It is simple and the flavor that develops in the food is absolutely amazing. When I say its simple I mean it. Every year when I was at Girls Camp growing up I was always in charge of putting together the big dinner for when the Bishopric would come up. The meal I made was always dutch oven chicken and potatoes! So if I could do it as a young 12 year old, then Im sure just about anybody can!

Jap Chicken

Can you ever have to many ways of cooking chicken? I think not.
I love Asian food. This is a recipe that my mom used to make when we would have a big group of people over. She usually would just do it as chicken wings for appetizers but it also work just as good for a main entree. You soak the chicken overnight to really develop that Asian goodness flavor into the chicken. Cook it low and slow and it comes out so unbelievably juicy!

Thai Peanut Dressing

Over the weekend we had a big get together with a bunch of friends from the ward. We decided to have a Thai themed potluck. I'll tell you what...I have some amazing cooks as friends. I could learn a lot from them!
We realized that we were going to end up with a lot of main course items so I hurried and bought some lettuce to throw a quick salad together and realized I had no idea what kind of dressing to serve on top of it. I searched high and low and came across a whole bunch of different peanut dressings and this is the one I chose to make because I trust the site it came from. This dressing had rave reviews from all my friends, so here I am sharing it with all of you! Enjoy!

Colombian Chicken Sancocho

Okay all. I broke way out of my comfort zone the other night and made a Colombian dish in honor of one of my best friends down here. She has inspired me to branch out and try some new ingredients while at her home so I figured I should give some of them a try on my own. Guess what?! IT WAS A SUCCESS! My husband had two big bowls full of this soup, and that says something as he is not usually a huge eater. The chicken turns out super tender and moist and the broth is full of flavor. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed. I served mine up with a side of quinoa and would have had some sliced avocado as well but when I went to pull one out, they were all mushy and bad.

Tomatillo Dressing

This dressing is out of this world. It is somewhat similar to the El Pollo Loco Dressing recipe I have on here but wow. I do believe this will be my go to dressing from now on. This was absolutely amazing on top of the Shredded Beef Tacos that I made yesterday! Give them both a try, and honestly I think the tacos were so good because this sauce is so amazing!

Shredded Beef Tacos

Oh....my.....goodness!!!!!
Between the amazing beef in this recipe and the tomatillo dressing recipe (recipe to come tomorrow) that goes with it I think I died and went to heaven! This I must say has got to be one of the best recipe finds I have ever found. The beef is slow cooked all day in a fantastic combination of flavors and then shredded to put in tacos! Then there is a tomatillo dressing recipe that is OUT OF THIS WORLD!
If you have ever been to Cafe Rio, this is a copycat version of their Shredded Beef Tacos and their Tomatillo dressing. So if you like it there then you will love this recipe!

Homemade Granola

This recipe brings up so many fantastic memories for me. My dad took over the job of making fresh granola, and even now makes a new batch every couple of weeks. The thing I love about granola is that you only need a little amount to make you feel full! This is one thing I definitely miss about living at home. For some reason it just tastes better knowing that my dad made it, not that it doesn't taste exactly the same it just had that extra bit of love in it I guess.
I love having homemade granola around. Number one because you can really throw anything you like in it and it will usually taste pretty good and two because it makes a great addition to plain old yogurt  in the morning.

Baked Asian Chicken Wings

This recipe was a great find. The sauce in this recipe is absolutely divine! I even got my husband to like the sauce and that is a big deal because the sauce has blackberry jam in it...my husband does not eat any form of cooked fruit so it really surprised me when he talked about how good the sauce was. *Secrets in the sauce right?! ;) *
This recipe was ridiculously easy and took no prep at all which is my kind of recipe.

Pickled Red Onions

Yep. You read it right. Pickled, Red, Onions. I got this recipe from my sister who said I have to give it a try on our Gage Dogs, which I did and wow...these are fantastic! Where have they been all my life. I usually slather up my dogs in just the raw red onion or sauerkraut, but these take them to a whole other level. I really can't even describe them other then to say, JUST TRY THEM! They would be great on any hot dog, hamburger, whatever.

The Gage Dog

Ohhhhh the hot dog. Everybody's favorite thing they hate to love. I personally am not a huge fan of the cheap (I don't know whats really in them) dogs from the grocery store, but, this recipe I will eat...everytime! The GAGE dog.
We were having a bbq at my sisters house a few years ago and my brother in law said that we had to try this version of a hot dog. It was fantastic. How can a hot dog with bacon not be good. Anyway, I believe it was his creation, or maybe it was something that he had seen before, BUT my husband loved it (as I recall he may have snarfed down one or two extra hot dogs that day.) Since they are brothers and they both love them, it is now called the GAGE dog in our household.

*I forgot to snap a picture of our dogs this time, so I tried to find the closest

thing on the web I could to what it looks like. I will update a new picture

when we make them again! But this is a great picture for if you forget to wrap the bacon around the dog, like I sometimes do :)*

Tropical Fruit Smoothie

I have really been enjoying creating new smoothie mixtures every day. Today I found myself feeling in the mood for an Island getaway so I broke out the mangos!
The fusion of mango, pineapple, and banana create a great blend of a tropical paradise in your mouth! I like to whip these up for a quick boost to a breakfast, or I even use them as a great dessert alternative. You could even throw the mixture into popsicle molds and freeze them for a hot summer day.
The thing I like best about making smoothies is that you can create something different every day. So really how can you get bored of drinking them? Oh and...they are incredibly healthy. I never add any additional sugar or sweetener to mine. This is great because it helps you get in quite a bit of your daily fruit intake needs, which I don't know about you, but I struggle with! So I say, throw it all in the blender and drink it up!
Okay that sounded like an infomercial! I apologize for that! I wrote it at like 6 in the morning a couple of days ago when I had a bunch of time to kill before my little one woke up.

Fruit Bruschetta

This is by far my favorite appetizer to make whenever I am asked to bring one. The fresh fruit on top of cinnamon bread with this amazingly fantastic orange-honey creamy sauce on top....makes my mouth water! I love this recipe because it is a great fresh and healthier appetizer.
Not only does it taste fantastic but it is very appealing to the eye, so they will disappear within minutes! The sauce is what makes this recipe different then just a regular old fruit salsa with cinnamon chips recipe (although also a great appetizer).
Whether its a classy party or just a small get together with close friends and family, this appetizer will be a hit.

Dad's Texas BBQ

Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm. I love BBQ season! And now that I live in the great state of Arizona, its ALWAYS BBQ season! This makes my tummy very happy :)
This BBQ sauce recipe is one that I grew up on. It's one that my dad always used whenever he would do up some ribs. In my opinion I think it would be good on any kind of meat, but you can never go wrong with it when its on some fantastic ribs...
(Yes I did just have to wipe a little drool off my chin...)
If you don't use all of the sauce it can save in the fridge for at least a week, depending on how you store it.
For me, this recipe just brings back fond memories of dad at the grill, mom making some macaroni salad, and me bringing the dishes outside to eat with the family on the deck!