Fancy Tuna Salad

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Andrea

We didn’t go out to eat a lot when I was growing up. Occasionally we would get hoagies or pizza out. Sometimes hitting up the golden arches but that was rare and my mom really really really didn’t feel like cooking on those instances.

On the off chance that I was out at a restaurant some place, I noticed that the chicken salad and tuna salad sandwichs were always on croissants.

Being at a restaurant and seeing a croissant instantly equaled fancy in my mind. Dining out was a privilege and meant for special occasions. Croissants were exotic and Parisian, automatically labeling them as decadent.

I never ordered those sandwiches though, always admiring them but not connecting.

On a recent grocery trip, Scott noticed that the croissants were on sale and suggested picking some up. The thing to know about Scott is that he doesn’t often suggest getting food. The only requests are that he will on occasion ask me to prepare a specific dish but otherwise not a peep out of him.

Johnny Marzetti With A Twist

Posted on September 21, 2011 by Andrea

Recently, my friend John, contacted me and a few other local food bloggers about doing a blog post on the Johnny Marzetti dish. We each would create our version of the dish and then all post about it on the same day.

I immediately said I was in! Then I asked what the Johnny Marzetti dish was. Not being a Columbus, or even an Ohio native, this was completely new to me.

John directed me to this link explaining the dish. I knew exactly what it was once I read the description. Where I grew up, it was called Goulash. Some folks, mostly those from the New England area, refer to it as Chop Suey.

It’s elbow pasta with ground beef in a tomato sauce. We had this all the time growing up and it was one of the few ways I would be willing to eat ground beef. I made it for Scott when we started dating and he fell in love with it.

Sausage Gravy

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Andrea

While I might not have grown up eating traditional biscuits, we did eat traditional sausage gravy. If you are serving up sausage gravy in country gravy, I will be the first one at the table.

In fact, you might have to stop me from eating it before it even hits the table! I love it!

Country gravy where I’m from, is a white gravy loaded down with ground black pepper. It’s super easy to make and most times is paired with sausage or dried beef, and poured over biscuits or toast.

Using local ingredients takes this dish up to a whole other level. Once you start using local sausage, there’s no turning back.

Andrea’s Sausage Gravy

1lb Ground Bulk Pork Breakfast Sausage (or meat of your choice)

3TBSP (Heaping) of Unbleached All Purpose Flour (can also use white whole wheat flour)

2C Unsweetened Coconut Milk

1tsp Ground Sage

1tsp Poultry Seasoning

Olive Oil for sauteeing (about 2 tsp)

In a sautee pan add olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add in the sausage and cook until done. If the pan seems to have a bunch of oil in it, remove the sausage and drain. Leave some oil, add the sausage back in, add in the seasonings and stir. Then add in the flour. Combine and allow to cook for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. If it seems dry, you’ll have to add in some more oil, just a touch!

Spaghetti and Eggs

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Andrea

When one arrives back home from a trip away, I fully believe that a warm and comforting meal is a must. Whatever food is your favorite, whatever dinner makes you content, that’s what you should be eating.

When Scott got back home from being gone for a week, he said he was ready to eat some good food. He said he missed my cooking and couldn’t wait to sit down to a lovely dinner.

Is he fab or what?

And because of my belief mentioned above, I knew he needed something comforting. Scott has a lot of comfort foods and two of them happen to be pasta and fried eggs. I was going back and forth about what to make him.

Breakfast? Or a pasta dish?

Then it occured to me, why not combine them?

The measurements aren’t exact because this is a recipe that can easily be adjusted to serve one or 20.

Andrea’s Spaghetti and Eggs

Loaded Baked Sweet Potato

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Andrea

This is my newest obsession, the loaded baked sweet potato. A little while back I wanted to try creating a loaded baked sweet potato.

I love sweet potato and pumpkin as savory items more than I do sweet. Hence why I put pumpkin in just about every chili I make now and why I think sweet potato fries should contain chili powder.

Previous meals, I had a little bit of cheese mixed in with my baked sweet potato and it was glorious. I decided at some point I was going to jump in with both feet and make a savory baked sweet potato.

Last week I tried it out and will never go back to butter and cinnamon on a sweet potato again.

Andrea’s Loaded Baked Sweet Potato

Sweet Potato

Pepperjack Cheese

Sour Cream (I use Greek Yogurt)

Hot Sauce of Choice

Chopped Green Onions

Bake sweet potato in oven at 400 for about 1.5 hours. How long will depend on how big your potato is. Baking a sweet potato is similar to baking a regular potato. Poke holes in it first. I do not put anything on the skin of the sweet potato. I line a baking sheet with foil, spray with oil and bake the sweet potato as is.

Read more on Loaded Baked Sweet Potato…

Fajita Burgers

Posted on August 12, 2011 by Andrea

It’s mid August and this is the first burger I’ve had this summer. And it wasn’t even grilled because the day we had them, it was pouring rain.

This is unacceptable and I aim to change this situation soon.

I’m not much of a straight up burger girl. I like things in my burgers, on top of my burgers, and all around my burgers. I like burgers with flavor and little surprises along the way.

I don’t really care for just a generic patty because that’s no fun and I like to play with my food!

I had some bison that needed used up and decided to see if I could make a fajita style burger. That is, I wanted a burger that reflected some of the flavors you would find in a fajita.

This burger turned out really great tasting for a first experiment. I have a few tweaks I’d like to make to it, but it’s a lovely burger perfect for a relaxing weekend BBQ.

Kale Hash

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Andrea

Friends, what I’m about to share with you is one of my favorite meals. It came into my life not all that long ago and will be with me forever and ever, amen.

We all know that I love potatoes, right? So this dish is full of my favorite things.

Potatoes
Kale
Eggs

And it’s eaten out of a bowl

It’s heaven. And so easy! I was flipping through a Ray Ray magazine a few months back and saw the title, Kale Hash. I didn’t even read the recipe because I created my own right on the spot. I think I even made it that same night.

Kale hash is pure genius. It’s also purely delicious and completely perfect.

Life will never be the same again.

Andrea’s Kale Hash

2 Idaho Potatoes, scrubbed, and cut into bite sized cubes

1 Large bunch of kale, stemmed and chopped

1/2 Onion, chopped

1/2 Green pepper, chopped

4 eggs, beaten

Stuffed Zucchini

Posted on August 2, 2011 by Andrea

We are in full swing with the summer season around here and one thing that is abundant at the farmer’s markets is zucchini.

Not just any zucchini, but HUGE ones, longer than the length of my forearm.

Those kinds of zucchini demand the need for stuffing. A lot of people stuff zucchini with ground meat, and this was highly typical where I grew up. Ground beef was usually the meat of choice stuffed into the zucchini along with maybe some tomato sauce.

I like the flavor of cooked tomato along with zucchini but I wanted to do a meatless version of stuffed zucchini. Instead of meat, I used my favorite grain, millet.

Andrea’s Stuffed Zucchini

1 HUGE zucchini, (literally like a foot in length, or as big as you can find)

1/2C Uncooked Millet

1 1/2C Chicken Stock (or veggie broth)

2-3 Green onions, chopped (both white and green parts)

1/2C Shredded Carrot

1C Cherry Tomatoes, quartered

Leftover Idea: Fish Po’ Boys

Posted on July 29, 2011 by Andrea

Crispy breaded fish is something that I really enjoy having on occasion. By making my own breadcrumbs, using local eggs, along with sauteeing the fish in olive oil and a smidge of butter, I can feel good about serving this to my family.

Even though I love it, sometimes leftovers need a little dolling up and superstar treatment.

Enter in the Fish Po’ Boy!

The Po’ Boy is a sandwich popular in New Orleans and consists of a toasty roll with a fried fish fillet and a sauce on top. That’s the basics of the dish anyway. So to create a fish po’ boy at home, you just need a few simple things on hand.

Andrea’s Fish Po’ Boy:

Leftover crispy fish

Crusty Bread of your Choice

Lettuce

Tomato

Red Onion

Dressing (Below)

Put together sandwich by layering the lettuce, tomato, onion, and then the fish on top of that.

Andrea’s Fish Dipping Sauce:

2TBSP Greek Yogurt (We like Fage)

Roasted Veggie and Wheatberry Salad

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Andrea

Roasting veggies and adding it to a grain is one of the simplest ways to make a salad. This could be a side dish or a main dish. It can be made ahead of time for a quick meal or for party prep.

Using veggies that have a lot of moisture in them, like tomatoes and squash will provide you with automatic dressing. No need to make extra sauce or dressing, it’s already built right in!

I love making dishes like this in the summer because they are so versatile. You can use whatever veggies are in season or what you happen to have on hand. You can make a huge portion or a small amount. The dish can be served hot or cold.

As you prep the veggies, you can’t help but be amazed by their gorgeous color. Something that looks that good and also smells good, before you even do anything to it, you know will turn out super tasty.