Category: Supper

Oven BBQ Chicken

Leave a comment

I love to make BBQ chicken out on the grill. There’s nothing better than those chargrilled BBQ bits of chicken. 

But I’m not allowed to have a grill on my porch. Dang, apartment building rules. 

So I improvised to fulfill my need to BBQ grilled chicken.   

What you need:

  • Chicken cutlets
  • BBQ sauce 
  • Salt and pepper 
  • Vegetable side items 

Heat up the oven to 350 degrees. Coat the chicken cutlets in BBQ sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bake for 20 minutes uncovered.

After 20 minutes are up, switch the oven to broil. Pour more BBQ sauce on the chicken and broil in five minute intervals, adding new coats of BBQ sauce as you go, until the edges get crispy. 

While the chicken bakes, fix up the side items. I chose sautéed okra and a baked sweet potato. 

Okra is my favorite summer vegetable, and you can never go wrong with a sweet potato in my book.  

So easy and quick and absolutely delicious. You won’t even miss the whole grill thing. 

Snacky Supper

Leave a comment

Some days you just don’t want to cook.

I get it. Totally. 

Today was one of those days for me. 

So when I’m feeling lazy, I make snacky suppers. A hodgepodge of things to satisfy my lazy bones. 

  
This is kind of a sad version of it. But it was still delicious and exactly what I wanted. 

  • Pepperoni 
  • Sesame crackers
  • White sharp cheddar cheese 
  • Herb goat cheese

There also was a side of red wine. A heart healthy addition. 😉

The Dinner of Denial

Leave a comment

I’ve been home from the beach for a week. And all last week I didn’t cook one night. Not one. 

Denial. 

So tonight to break my bad habit of piecing together weird combinations for supper, I made something simple and delicious. 

And it’s beach inspired. 

  
You don’t need much to make this. And I love that. The less effort the better. And it doesn’t lack in flavor. 

Old Bay Sautéed Shrimp and Roasted Asparagus

  • Shrimp
  • Kerrygold butter
  • Old Bay seasoning
  • Asparagus 
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Garlic powder

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. 

Prep the asparagus but chopping off the woody stem. Lightly coat in olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder. (I’d usually use fresh minced garlic, but I’m out right now.) Cook for 12-15 minutes, depending on size. 

While the oven’s heating, peel the shrimp and coat with salt, pepper and Old Bay seasoning. 

Heat a pan and melt a nice amount of butter. Toss in the shrimp. Add more Old Bay seasoning, if you like. I love it so I added more. Cook until pink. 

Plate it up and enjoy.

Vacation Detox

Leave a comment

My favorite vacations center around big bodies of water.   I love the beach. It’s my happiest place. I say that because I find happiness in lots of places. But the beach is a different level. 

In the days before I left for vacation, people made comments about me glowing with excitement. Hands down, one of the best compliments. 

Glowing. 

I was buzzing in my skin. Because I could wake up to this for seven days.  And my best friend got to go with me.  See, my happiest place. 

And it was full of donuts, seafood, crab-stuffed this and bernaise covered that. So much good food. 

And only one barefoot run in the sand before dawn, which was totally awesome and exactly what my soul craves.   So by the time I got home yesterday, I knew I had to detox my body from the richness of vacation. 

And so it began with breakfast.   A beach-inspired breakfast bowl. All you need is one sliced up banana, two or three heaping spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt, handful of raspberries, blueberries and strawberries.

I’ll admit the plain yogurt is a tough one to go with, but there is enough natural sweetness in the fruit to balance it nicely. Plus you nix the added sugar in the flavored yogurts. Win. 

Lunch was on the go today. So I ordered a chicken sandwich from the place downstairs from my office. The potatoes chips didn’t help the detox, but I made up for it at supper.   Behold, the ultimate detox salad. 

  • Romaine lettuce
  • Red bell pepper
  • Yellow cherry tomatoes
  • Cucumber 
  • Half an avocado
  • Two boiled eggs
  • Your favorite dressing

Simple and delicious. 

And it’s just an added bonus that it will cleanse my system from vacation food. I only wish I could have kept the beach a little longer. 

Because Salads Don’t Have to Be Boring

3 Comments

Lettuce is an underrated vegetable. It’s a vessel for so much delicious goodness. Yet people are like “salad….yuck.” It’s so sad. 

So let me change your mind about lettuce. 

  
Introducing the Taco Salad of your dreams. 

This baby sings its own sweet tune. 

What you need:

  • 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Orange bell pepper
  • Cherry tomatoes
  • One ear of sweet corn
  • Avocado
  • Shredded white cheddar cheese
  • Taco No. 4 taco seasoning
  • Your favorite salsa
  • Kerrygold butter
  • Smidge of water

First thing, brown the ground beef.  While that’s happening, cut the corn off the cob and put it in a hot pan with Kerrygold butter, salt and pepper. 
Prep your salad items. Chop up the lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and bell pepper. 

When the ground beef is cooked, stir in half a packets of Taco No. 4, a heaping spoonful of salsa and 1/4 – 1/2 cup water. This taco seasoning is my absolute favorite.  So try to find it. Simmer until the water thickens to create a nice sauce. 

Plate it up. 

  
Lettuce, bell pepper, taco meat, sweet corn, cheese, tomatoes, avocado and a extra dollop of salsa for good measure. 

You won’t miss the tortilla or the crunchy shell because you’ll be too busy stuffing your face and wondering why you didn’t add corn to your tacos before now. 

The only thing I lacked was an ice cold margarita.