Sweet Corn and Red Pepper Fritter Burgers

A lot has changed since I last posted. We've sold our house, got a new job and moved to Texas and all the craziness that accompanies choices like that. We're loving being in the South again and realizing we probably should have done this along time ago. We left behind lots of good friends and memories but we're excited about everything ahead of us in this new adventure!

The move meant a few months of essentially no cooking as everything was packed up and then we had awhile in between houses with hotels and such so it feels good to be back in a nice kitchen again and cooking away.

Strawberry, Goat Cheese and Pickled Apple Avocado Toast

If you could see beyond the borders of any of these photos in this post you would see our house is getting pretty chaotic. We've just sold our house and we're in the process of making a move to San Antonio, Texas next month. We're definitely excited but I detest even the thought of moving and so I can't wait for all of this to be over.

Caramelized Onion and Smoked Paprika Hummus Wontons

Let's celebrate National Hummus Day! You know it's one of my favorite holidays and I'm not quite sure why we still have to work. I'm in favor of everything closing down each year and we just sit in our homes and eat hummus.

If you're in for celebrating with me, I've got two things for you today. First is a coupon for your hummus supply. Check out Sabra's homepage for the details and a coupon that's only available TODAY!

The Unofficial Meal with Sabra

Weekends around here usually mean game nights for us. We love to get together with friends and play cards, board games or now that it's finally nice outside, lawn games and grilling.

Salmon Croquettes

I'm all for the traditional Super Bowl snacks like chips and dip but sometimes you just gotta step it up a bit and go a little fancy. That definitely doesn't mean it has to be complicated though, and you can just add a fancy name like croquettes instead of patty and you're golden.

Idaho® Potato Pierogi with Bacon and Cheese

When I lived in Montreal, one of my favorite meals that people often made for us were Pierogi. I'm not sure why they were so popular there but I fell in love. I even found a really good frozen brand that were easy to fry up on my own for a quick meal.

Eggplant Caponata

It's so hard to come back from vacation. I hereby propose that we work for 4 weeks every year and vacation the rest of it! Wouldn't that be nice? I am excited for this summer though. The sun is finally shining, the grass is green and our garden is coming up. The last two years, our summers have been full of renovations and other projects but this year I am doing nothing! I'll do the garden and keep the yard nice but I have sworn off any major projects. I'm just going to enjoy the weekends and the trips we're planning over the next few months.

Greek Yogurt Marinated Smoked Chicken Lollipops

I'll be the first to admit that I don't spend a lot of my time watching football but that definitely doesn't mean I can't eat all the food that's associated with traditional tail-gating and game days. I'm the type of person that can make an entire meal from appetizers and be perfectly happy.

I'll also admit right off the bat that I love the look of these chicken "lollipops" but they definitely take some work and I'd only do them for special occasions where people can actually admire my hard work. Yeah, I'm that vain. I love making food for my family but they don't fully appreciate the intricacies of creating these things and ate them all in about 10 seconds flat without even a second glance.

Crispy Sweet Potato and Zucchini Pancake

 

If you've seen the recipes I typically post, you obviously know that I'm not Diabetic. But the Virtual Potluck group is celebrating World Diabetes Day and our challenge was to share a diabetic friendly recipe! We're also working with two great companies, Anolon and Microplane so that made the challenge even more interesting. Best part is, you'll be able have a chance at winning the tools that we used for this dish!

Hummus Stuffed Chicken Breast

I'll admit, before a week or so ago, I had only had hummus once in my life. It was almost embarrassing when Sabra contacted me to say that they've never seen me write about hummus before. I really even didn't know much about it. So they sent me some samples and I can now say that I am much more educated and we are definitely in love! My wife wouldn't even wait for me to get home on the day the box came. She had it opened and already had a favorite before I even walked in the door from work.

Pineapple Chipotle Mango Guacamole

It's the 14th of January and this is my first post of the year. Two weeks into the year and I feel like it's already been months.

We're launching a new business, completely un-food related, and it's made it a bit more difficult to be in the kitchen. We've been pulling many more of the "breakfast for dinner" or other quick classics to keep us moving along. I'm still planning to keep posting though so don't give up on  me quite yet. Spending time in the kitchen is still a great release, I just have to plan that time a little more strategically now.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Can anyone tell me how Pumpkin Pie sits at the dessert table while sweet potato casserole sits with the rest of the food at the table as a side dish? It's like someone thought it would be funny one year to slip a dessert onto the table among all the other dishes and the whole world caught on. I'm certainly not complaining, I just laugh every time I serve it with dinner.

Loaded Baked Potato Bites

I had the opportunity last week to sneak into the local Fox 9 station as John McLemore, the CEO of Masterbuilt and his wonderful wife Tonya were filming a segment promoting their new book "Dadgum That's Good, Too". As I walked into the main building early that morning, I could smell the turkey almost immediately. I asked the security guard where to go and he laughed as he said to just follow the smell. The smell led me to the studio kitchen where a prep crew and John were busily working around the kitchen and two of John's indoor turkey fryers were happily frying away on the counter top.

Bacon Wrapped, Sausage Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

The State Fair is over, school has started and it's already getting cooler. I'm going to reminisce though a bit with one of my favorite foods from the State Fair this year. I won't list everything I had this year, wait, sure I will: cheese curds, pina-colada, beef tongue taco, fried eggplant taco, chocolate chip cookies, puff pastry sausage, stuffed jalapenos, foot-long corn dog, mini donuts, poutine, red velvet funnel cake, fried green beans, strawberry smoothie and onion rings! Whew. Now, don't go thinking that was all in one visit. It was two. :)

Cheese Pretzel Bites with Jalapeño Honey Mustard

Just in time for the Superbowl, here's the perfect snack. Did you know, there are a few key criteria for determining the perfect Superbowl snack?

• Handheld
• Dippable
• Contains cheese and/or bacon

It took me a long time to develop that list and I think it's pretty conclusive.  I was pretty upset though when I typed this up and it put the little squiggly line under dippable, indicating that it was spelled wrong. How in the world is that not a word, especially since it was a key criteria? Anyway, I'm going with it.

Olive Oil and Whole Wheat Flatbread with Veggies

Starting today, our Virtual Potluck group is working with California Olive Ranch and Bob's Red Mill to bring you healthy options as we start this new year. We'll be sharing some fun and healthy ways to combine whole grains and fresh olive oils to create some fantastic new recipes. Find out more about the potluck and see who's participating here!

Butternut Squash Galette

This is the third in my series leading up to Thanksgiving, providing some fun and different recipes to make your holiday even more special. We've got our soup and dessert down, so how about an appetizer?

Appetizer's are key if you're throwing a big dinner. If you're cooking all day, you may be grabbing bites here and there but you need to make sure the family has some snacks to keep them from starving before the big meal. Throw out some bowls with nuts and then you can create a few hand held bites that you can put out on plates throughout the day.

Blue Cheese and Caramelized-Onion Squares

As Thanksgiving approaches, it's time to start thinking serious food! I know it's a little early but Electrolux Appliances has asked for submissions of appetizers and desserts for Thanksgiving and so it got me going down this track. This is my favorite food holiday and it's always fun to find new things to make for this great get together with family and friends.