Truth be told I did not know how to cook nor did I like to cook prior to getting married. I would easily drop two-hundo at the grocery store and literally have nothing to "make" - just a hodge podge of stuff that looked enticing but nothing that worked together. I never looked at recipes and tried to wing it with just about everything I made. Chris later told me that he married me knowing that this would be the one (only one? haha!) flaw in our relationship: He would have to do the cooking. Apparently my "winging it" didn't work out so well.
Had I known that he was willing to do the cooking, I may be singing a different tune, but the domesticated truth was, I wanted to make dinner for him. So dinner I made. Slowly but surely, I started tearing out recipes and figuring out what spices made Asian (ginger), Mexican (cumin) and Italian (basil) flavors, what I always needed on hand (diced tomatoes, onions, garlic) and terms like simmer, baste, blanch and sear.
Fast forward five years and I can now look at recipes without getting intimidated; I can figure out how to substitute ingredients and have a love affair with my crock pot. I have even been labeled as a pretty damn good cook according to Chris.
So, by popular-ish demand, here are the recipes for a few of my favorite dishes (also some of the easiest -. I am certainly no culinary genius).
Crock Pot Lasagna
Refer to this post. I recently used ground turkey for a healthier version and think I will be doing that from here on out. It was delicious.
BBQ Chicken Pizza
1 Bobolli Thin Pizza Crust
1 1lb. cooked and shredded chicken
1 bottle of BBQ sauce (you can choose your favorite flavor. I like the spicy ones)
1/4 cup sliced green onions
Provolone cheese
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Crushed Red Pepper
Spread BBQ sauce over entire pizza crust. Layer shredded chicken, green onions, crushed red pepper, provolone and mozzarella. Bake at 425 until crust is crisp and cheese is bubbling.
Easiest Homemade Mac and Cheese Bake
Elbow macaroni noodles
16 oz. shredded sharp cheddar (you can get creative with any type of cheese you prefer)
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and Pepper
Panko Crumbs
Cook pasta according to package and drain. Return to pan and add cheese, cream, salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a baking dish and cover lightly with Panko crumbs. Spray crumbs with cooking spray and bake at 350 until crumbs turn light brown. This dish is served best right away.
Mini Sliders - (Party go-to. Makes 24 sliders)
2 lbs Ground Beef
1 packet onion soup mix
1/3 cup light mayo
16 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 packs Kings Hawaiian rolls
Sliced Pickles
Cook beef with onion packet in pan until browned. Drain fat and transfer to bowl. Add mayo, cheese, salt and pepper. Place heaping spoonful of mixture onto Hawaiian Rolls that are on a baking sheet. Place rolls in oven at 350 for 5 minutes until warm. Serve with sliced pickles.
Breakfast Casserole
1 lb hot Italian Sausage, ground
8 eggs
1 loaf french bread
2 cups milk
16 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
Can of green chillies
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heat sausage in pan until browned, drain. Meanwhile, spray a baking dish and line the bottom of the pan in a single layer with slices of french bread (no need to be perfect - I usually rip mine off into pieces. Sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Scramble eggs in bowl and add milk, cheese and green chillies. Layer browned sausage over bread followed by the egg mixture. Bake at 350 until cheese is bubbling. Let set 5 minutes and serve.
Refer to this post. I recently used ground turkey for a healthier version and think I will be doing that from here on out. It was delicious.
BBQ Chicken Pizza
1 Bobolli Thin Pizza Crust
1 1lb. cooked and shredded chicken
1 bottle of BBQ sauce (you can choose your favorite flavor. I like the spicy ones)
1/4 cup sliced green onions
Provolone cheese
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Crushed Red Pepper
Spread BBQ sauce over entire pizza crust. Layer shredded chicken, green onions, crushed red pepper, provolone and mozzarella. Bake at 425 until crust is crisp and cheese is bubbling.
Easiest Homemade Mac and Cheese Bake
Elbow macaroni noodles
16 oz. shredded sharp cheddar (you can get creative with any type of cheese you prefer)
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and Pepper
Panko Crumbs
Cook pasta according to package and drain. Return to pan and add cheese, cream, salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a baking dish and cover lightly with Panko crumbs. Spray crumbs with cooking spray and bake at 350 until crumbs turn light brown. This dish is served best right away.
Mini Sliders - (Party go-to. Makes 24 sliders)
2 lbs Ground Beef
1 packet onion soup mix
1/3 cup light mayo
16 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 packs Kings Hawaiian rolls
Sliced Pickles
Cook beef with onion packet in pan until browned. Drain fat and transfer to bowl. Add mayo, cheese, salt and pepper. Place heaping spoonful of mixture onto Hawaiian Rolls that are on a baking sheet. Place rolls in oven at 350 for 5 minutes until warm. Serve with sliced pickles.
Breakfast Casserole
1 lb hot Italian Sausage, ground
8 eggs
1 loaf french bread
2 cups milk
16 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
Can of green chillies
Salt and Pepper to taste
Heat sausage in pan until browned, drain. Meanwhile, spray a baking dish and line the bottom of the pan in a single layer with slices of french bread (no need to be perfect - I usually rip mine off into pieces. Sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Scramble eggs in bowl and add milk, cheese and green chillies. Layer browned sausage over bread followed by the egg mixture. Bake at 350 until cheese is bubbling. Let set 5 minutes and serve.
Eat up!
1 comment:
Yummy! I can't wait to try these!!!
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