Roasted Chicken

    I had a lot of fun researching this recipe. I started by watching a couple of episodes of The French Chef, because not only is Julia Child informative, she's also a hoot! Next I searched the Pinterest and I found a recipe from Ina Garten because who doesn't love the Barefoot Contessa? After poking around on the internet a little more, I was ready to tackle my challenge. Two things, you're going to want to get the raw chicken as dry as possible and you definitely want to invest in a baster if you don't have one. I really tried to use every scrap of my vegetables because I hate wasting good food.

Roasted Chicken

Ingredients:

- 1 whole 5-6 pound roasting chicken

- 3/8 cup (6 tablespoons) of butter (divided)

- 1 large bunch of fresh thyme 

- 1/2 of a large garlic bulb (5 or 6 whole cloves)

- 1 small onion

- 4 large carrots

- 1 celery stalk, leaves and all

- sea salt

- black pepper

- favorite poultry seasoning (I used GOYA)

    Start by preheating your oven to 425 degrees. Spray your cast iron skillet or roasting pan with cooking spray and set aside. Clean your chicken by removing the giblets, rinsing with water, cutting off excess skin and fat, trimming the neck, and checking for pin feathers. Make sure that the fat glands behind the tail are removed as well. Next, take paper towels and pat your chicken as dry as you can, inside and outside. Once dry, salt and pepper the inside and place it in your prepared pan. Peel your garlic cloves and place them inside of the chicken. Cut off the ends of your carrots and place them inside as well. Slice carrots into large chucks and set aside. Cut up the celery into large pieces and stuff inside, leaves and all. Cut the ends off of your onion and stuff inside, I used the skin on and all. Peel the rest of the onion and cut into large chunks and set aside. Use half of the fresh thyme to stuff and save the rest. Once stuffed, tuck the bird's wings behind where it's neck would be and tie the legs together with kitchen twine (or tin foil if you are out). Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and brush the entire chicken with it. Liberally season the entire bird with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Place the carrot pieces, onion chunks, and top them with the rest of the thyme in the bottom of the roasting pan. Place the chicken in the oven and let cook for 45 minutes. Melt remaining butter and baste it onto the chicken. Flip the carrots and continue to cook for another 45 minutes, basting with pan juices every 15 minutes. Once your meat thermometer registers 165 degrees throughout your bird, remove and baste again. Cover with tinfoil and let sit for 20 minutes before carving. 

Bridget's Turkey Meatloaf

    We are really excited about football season in our house! I made Frankie a Penn State wreath to hang over our television! They kicked some butt yesterday! In between delivering catering orders at work yesterday, I stopped in at Trader Joe's and picked up some ground turkey. I thought it would be cute to make a football out of my meatloaf since we were watching the game but you could put it in a loaf pan as well.

Bridget's Turkey Meatloaf 

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of lean ground turkey

- 1 cup of breadcrumbs (I make my own)

- 2 tablespoons of ketchup

- 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce 

- 1/4 cup of diced onion 

- 1 egg

- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic

- 1/8 teaspoon of white pepper

- salt and black pepper to taste

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix everything together until just combined, do not over mix. Mold mixture into desired shape on a greased cookie sheet or in a greased loaf pan. Brush the top with ketchup or bbq sauce and bake for about 45 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. 

My Penn State wreath!

Sweet Cornbread

     I got to hang out with my mom in Ocala for a few days this week!  I helped out with St. John's superhero VBS! Luckly we were blessed by the school board providing the kids with breakfast and lunch all three days!  Hallelujah! That made my job a lot easier, I made a little lunch for the adults. Wednesday I decided I was going to make chili and cornbread! In all of the excitement, I forgot to pick up jiffy corn muffin mix! Luckly, mom had some cornmeal on hand and I set out to make some sweet cornbread from scratch! This recipe is going to be my new go to! Pastor Christine said it was the best cornbread she's ever had!! That is some pretty high praise!

Sweet Cornbread 

Ingredients: 

- 1 cup of flour

- 1 cup of cornmeal

- 1/2 cup of sugar

- 3 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder 

- 1 teaspoon salt 

- 1 cup of milk or half & half 

- 1 egg 

- 1/3 cup of oil (I used olive oil)
- 1 (14 ounce) can of whole kernel corn, drained

   Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift together the flour, corn meal, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, and oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the corn and pour batter into a greased 8x8 baking dish. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

    Boy oh boy, we needed the rain that we got this week! It's going to be a hot and dry summer in Florida. I woke up early on Tuesday morning and cleaned the dust off the ole' crockpot! It was pouring rain as my chicken chili simmered away for a few hours. It has just enough kick! We really enjoyed this recipe!

Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast

- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of chili powder

- 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

- 1 teaspoon of cumin powder

- salt and pepper to taste

- 2 large bay leaves

- 3 cups of chicken broth

- 1 small onion, chopped

- 1 whole fresh jalapeño, diced
- 1 (4 ounce) can of diced green chilies
- 2 (15 ounce) cans of great northern white beans
- 1 (15 ounce) can of whole kernel corn
- small handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup of sour cream
- 4 ounces (half a brick) of cream cheese, softened
    Place the raw chicken into the bottom of your slow cooker. Top it with the chili powder, cayenne, cumin, salt, pepper, bay leaves, and chicken broth. Cook on low for 2 hours. Then, add in the onion, jalapeño, green chilies, and white beans. Let cook on low for 4 hours. By now, the chicken will be fall apart tender and ready to shred. Shred the chicken and add back to the pot. Next, add the corn, cilantro, sour cream, and cream cheese. Stir well, let cook for another 30 minutes, and then serve warm.

   

Mint Watermelon Salad

    Frankie and I were watching the Kid's Barbeque Championship on Food Network this weekend! One of the little boys grilled some watermelon slices and topped them with feta, mint, and balsamic, it blew me away. I said, what a good idea for a salad!! So, we picked up a seedless watermelon on or Sunday trip to Trader Joe's! We bought the balsamic glaze already made. If you can't find it, you can easily make it. This fresh watermelon salad just screams SUMMERTIME! I love it and it took me five minutes to make!

Mint Watermelon Salad

Ingredients:

- 1/2 of a medium sized seedless watermelon, cut into chunks

- 1 and 1/2 tablespoon of fresh mint, finely chopped

- 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese

- 1 tablespoon of balsamic glaze (balsamic reduction)

    Mix together the watermelon, mint, and feta. Top with a drizzle of balsamic reduction and serve cold. Top with an extra sprig of fresh mint for garnish.

Our fancy Sunday dinner! haha!

Bridget's Cabbage Soup

    I could go on and on about the benefits of adding cabbage to your diet! I did find this article that says it all! I can remember my mom making cabbage soup growing up. She'd call it her garbage soup! I love how much you could play with this recipe. I've added everything from rice and pasta, to chickpeas, green beans, and black beans. The best part for me is that it's filling. I can eat a lot of it and it's ok because it's not terrible for you. This is a base recipe, feel free to play around with it!

Bridget's Cabbage Soup

Ingredients:

- 2 tablespoons of olive oil

- 1 small onion, chopped

- 2 carrots, chopped

- 2 celery ribs, chopped

- 1 tablespoon of minced garlic (3-4 cloves)

- 4 cups of water

- 4 cups of chicken broth

- 3 large bay leaves

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper

- 1/2 of a small head of cabbage, chopped into bite sized pieces

- 1 (14 oz) can of petite diced tomatoes (do not drain)

- 1 (14 oz) can of garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed)

    Start by heating the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat. Once hot, add in the onions, carrots, and celery. Sauté for 2 or 3 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften and then add in the garlic. Once the garlic is very fragrant, add the water, chicken stock, bay leaves, salt, pepper, and white pepper. Bring to a boil and then add the cabbage, tomatoes, and garbanzo beans. Let simmer for about 30 minutes or until the cabbage is nice and tender. Don't be afraid of adding more salt, there's a lot of liquid and it needs to be seasoned.

Asparagus and Green Bean Dijon Potato Salad

    Happy St. Patrick's Day! In the spirit of the holiday, I thought it would be appropriate to blog something green! I am so in love with my whole grain Dijon mustard from Trader Joes. This recipe was perfect for it! Although it gives this recipe a little something extra, it's not a necessity. I have made this salad recipe with regular Dijon mustard and it still tasted good! These pictures are from my birthday two weeks ago, we had a ton of leftovers!

Asparagus and Green Bean Dijon Potato Salad

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of red potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces

- 1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

- 1/2 pound of fresh green beans, trimmed and cut in half

- 1/4 cup of olive oil

- 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

- 1/2 tablespoon of whole grain Dijon mustard

- 1 teaspoon of minced or crushed garlic

- salt and pepper

- 1/4 cup chopped onion (optional)

- 1/4 cup of chopped walnuts

    Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with water. Lightly salt the water and bring to a boil. Once the potatoes start to get tender take off the heat, drain, and set aside to cool. Watch these potatoes closely because you don't want to over cook them or they will become mushy. In another pot, cover the asparagus and green beans with water. Lightly salt the water and bring to a boil. Once, tender, remove from heat, drain, and place in a bowl with ice and water to cool. In a small bowl, make the dressing for the salad. Whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, garlic, a sprinkle of salt, and a few cracks of pepper. Toss the cooked potatoes, asparagus, green beans, onion, and walnuts in the dressing and chill before serving.

Bridget's Creamy Coleslaw

    Isn't it the most beautiful coleslaw you've ever seen? I've had this recipe written out on a page from my server book and stuck on our fridge since September. I made it for our hurricane party and for my birthday cookout last weekend! It's so funny because I hated anything with mayo in it growing up. Needless to say, I am now a big fan and I love my coleslaw recipe! I like my coleslaw dressing to be thick and creamy. If you'd like yours to be a little bit more liquid, milk may be whisked in before you toss it. I would stick to whole grain mustard too, it really gives it something extra. This will be perfect for your cookouts all summer long!

Bridget's Creamy Coleslaw

Ingredients:

- 1/4 cup of whole grain Dijon mustard

- 1/2 cup of sour cream

- 3/4 cup of mayonnaise

- 1 tablespoon of sugar

- 1/4 teaspoon of salt

- 1/4 teaspoon of pepper

- 2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar

- 2 tablespoons of milk (optional)

- 1/2 of a large head of cabbage, thinly sliced into bite sized pieces

- 2 large carrots julienned into small pieces  

    First, mix together the dressing. Wisk together the mustard, sour cream, mayo, sugar, salt, pepper, vinegar, and milk (if using). Once combined, toss the cabbage and carrots in the dressing. Let chill and serve cold.

Sweet Potato Turkey Shepherd's Pie

    I don't know about you, but I grew up eating shepherd's pie! My mom has been making it since the dawning of time and it fully encompasses everything that I associate with comfort food. I decided to mix it up a bit this week and try something a little different than my childhood favorite. I really liked the way this recipe came out! You can really play with it though! If you like your casserole to be a little bit more moist, you could swap the whole kernel corn for creamed corn. You could even swap the corn entirely for peas! I used mashed sweet potatoes in place of regular mashed potatoes and I replaced ground beef with ground turkey! This recipe is simple and easy, you'll love it!

Sweet Potato Turkey Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients:

- 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

- 2 tablespoons(or more) of butter

- 1/4 cup of milk

- 1 tablespoon of olive oil

- 1 pound of lean ground turkey

- 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1 (14 ounce) can of corn, drained

    In a large pot, cover the cubed sweet potatoes with water, salt the water and bring to a boil. Cook until tender. Mash the sweet potatoes with the butter, milk, salt, and pepper. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet, over medium high heat with the olive oil, brown the ground turkey with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spray an 8" casserole dish lightly with cooking spray. Layer the cooked turkey with the corn and top with the mashed potatoes. Bake it the oven for about 10 minutes and enjoy!

Bridget's Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

    As a former Olive Garden employee, I have definitely eaten my fair share of chicken and gnocchi soup! This recipe is superb and is probably the closest that I have come to the original OG version. Trust me, I've been trying for years! While it may not be the most healthy choice of soup, it is worth the extra calories for sure. The key is to make sure to cook the roux before you whisk in your liquids, that's what makes the soup so nice and thick.

Bridget's Chicken and Gnocchi Soup

Ingredients:

- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of salted butter

- 1/2 cup of chopped onion

- 2 teaspoons of minced garlic

- 1/4 cup of flour

- 2 cups of half and half

- 2 cups of chicken broth

- 1 cup of milk

- 2 large bay leaves

- salt and black pepper to taste

- 1 cup of diced cooked chicken breast

- 1 cup (2 large carrots) of shredded and chopped carrot

- 1 pound of potato gnocchi

- 1 and 1/2 cup of chopped fresh spinach

    In a large soup pot, heat the butter over medium high heat until it starts to bubble. Sweat the onion for a minute or two and then add the garlic and let it cook for another minute. Next, whisk in the flour. It will resemble dough, keep whisking it around and let it cook for a minute. Be careful to constantly whisk, do not leave this alone, it will burn. Once the bottom of the pot starts to brown, start to gently add the chicken broth, half&half, and milk. Whisk until the liquid starts to thicken and there are no lumps. Then, add the bay leaves and a liberal amount of salt and pepper. Also, throw in the chicken and carrot. Bring to a simmer and stir occasionally, I used a spatula to stir and made sure to scrape the bottom so it doesn't burn. Keep this up for about 15 minutes. Once the carrots are softened a little, add the gnocchi and let them cook for about 5 minutes until soft. Lastly, mix in the chopped spinach and let it wilt slightly before serving. If at any point your soup looks to thick, you can add more chicken broth to thin it out. Top with grated parmesan and enjoy!

Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash

    I am completely obsessed with this recipe! Acorn squash has to be my favorite of all squashes! I had an old friend from high school over for dinner last night and decided to try something new! The original recipe called for mushrooms, but Frankie is not a fan. I decided to use eggplant in my recipe instead! Ok, so I started drinking wine before I finished cooking and I forgot to add an egg to the stuffing but I loved it the way it was without it so I left it without the egg in the recipe hahahaha. You are going to absolutely love this recipe!

Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

- 2 large acorn squash

- 2 tablespoons of melted butter

- 2 teaspoons of minced garlic

- 1/2 teaspoon of ground sage, divided

- 3 large Italian sausage links, cases removed

- 1/2 of a large onion, chopped

- 1 cup of cubed eggplant

- 1/2 cup of celery, chopped

- 1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored, and chopped

- 1 cup of panko bread crumbs

- 1/ 2 cup of fresh grated parmesan

- salt and pepper to taste

    Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the very ends off of the squash, careful not to hit the seeds. Then, cut them in half and scoop out the seeds inside. Place them in a casserole dish or on a cookie sheet with the middle side up.  Mix together the melted butter, minced garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon of ground sage. Season the squash with salt and pepper. Then brush on the butter mixture evenly. Roast the squash in the oven for about an hour, or until it is fork tender. Meanwhile, brown the sausage in a skillet, once cooked, remove the meat but keep the rendered fat. Add the eggplant to the pan with a pinch of salt. Let cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally and then add the onion, celery, and the rest of the ground sage. Cook until the onions start to soften and then add the garlic, apple, and some salt and pepper. Cook for another 2 minutes until the apples start to soften. Add the panko bread crumbs and the parmesan. Stuff each baked squash half with the stuffing and top with a little bit more parmesan. Bake for another 20 minutes and then enjoy!

Bridget's Corn Chowder

    Nothing says end of summer like a good corn chowda! It's definitely one of my top ten favorite foods! I like to add ham to my recipe, it gives it a little something extra. This has been a great meal while camping! It makes a lot too. It could easily be frozen and defrosted later. You're going to love this decadent soup!

Bridget's Corn Chowder

 Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon of olive oil

- 1 medium onion, chopped

- 3 tablespoons of butter

- 3 tablespoons of flour

- 4 cups of chicken broth

- 1 cup water

- 2 bay leaves

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

- 1 heaping teaspoon of minced garlic

- 2 large potatoes, cut into cubes

- 2 (15 ounce) cans of whole kernel corn, drained

- 1 and 1/2 cup of diced fully cooked ham

- 2 cups of heavy whipping cream

    In a large heavy bottomed soup pot over medium heat, heat the olive oil and sauté the onions until translucent. Remove the onions from the pot and add the butter.  Once the butter has melted, whisk in the flour to create a roux. Whisk constantly for 3-4 minutes, letting it cook. Once it starts to smell nutty, slowly pour in the chicken broth and water while whisking. Next, add the cooked onions, bay leaves, salt, pepper, white pepper, garlic, and potatoes. Bring to a simmer and let the potatoes cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Once the potatoes are cooked, add the ham, corn, and whipping cream. Bring back to a simmer while stirring. Let cool for a few minutes, top with extra black pepper and serve.

I added oyster crackers!!

Honey Ginger Shrimp

    We totally loved these shrimp! It's late summer in Florida and fall is right around the corner! (I can't wait!!) It was just nice enough last week that we actually sat outside Tuesday evening and enjoyed dinner and the sunset. I've been on a ginger kick. I've been enjoying ginger chews by The Ginger People everyday, they are amazing. I steeped some fresh ginger with some lemon and fresh basil and I made homemade ginger tea! It's good for your digestion! The grated ginger in this shrimp recipe adds to the spicy sweet taste that I was going for, it was so yummy! I paired it with some easy coconut rice and sautéed Brussel sprouts!

Honey Ginger Shrimp

Ingredients:

- 1 pound of large raw deveined shrimp

- 1 tablespoon olive oil

- 1/3 cup of honey

- 1/4 cup of reduced sodium soy sauce

- 1 tablespoon of garlic

- 2 teaspoons of fresh grated ginger

- salt and pepper to taste

    Whisk together the honey, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. Marinate the raw shrimp in the honey mixture for 30 minutes (or up to 5 hours). In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, place the shrimp into the skillet, salt and pepper them, and spoon a couple tablespoons of the marinade on top of them. Cook for 2 minutes or until golden. Flip the shrimp and cook on the other side until golden. Serve immediately and enjoy.

Roasted Chicken Thighs with Figs

    These chicken thighs were fabulous! Figs are so delicious and so good for you. They're a good source of potassium and dietary fiber! This was the perfect recipe for me to try out my beautiful cast iron frying pan! I absolutely loved how crispy the skin was! You have to take a bite of the chicken with a bite of roasted fig, they are so sweet and perfectly compliment the dish.

Roasted Chicken Thighs with Figs

Ingredients:

- 4 large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

- 2 tablespoons of olive oil

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1/2 cup of chopped onion

- 2 teaspoons of minced garlic

- 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano

- 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

- 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of corn starch

- 1/4 cup of honey

- 8 large fresh figs, cut in half

    Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large oven safe frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Season the chicken thighs liberally with salt and pepper and then place the chicken thighs skin side down in the frying pan. Cook until skin is golden brown and crispy. Flip the thighs and cook for another few minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together the red wine vinegar, 1/4 cup water, honey, and cornstarch. Once it is mostly cooked, remove chicken from the pan, set aside, and drain all but 2 tablespoons of liquid from the pan. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Then, add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the honey mixture to the pan and whisk in oregano. Cook for another minute or two and add some salt and pepper. Once the sauce starts to thicken, add the figs and toss to coat. Place the chicken thighs skin side up back into the sauce. Place the whole pan into the oven for 15-20 minutes. Once chicken is cooked through, serve with figs and sauce!

Skinny Bang Bang Shrimp

    Still on my quest to make and eat healthy food, I whipped up some healthy shrimp for dinner last week with baked tostones and green beans! The secret to the sauce is plain Greek yogurt! Greek yogurt has a creaminess that I love when making sauce. You could pretty much substitute it in any recipe that calls for sour cream or mayo! I used Trader Joe's brand of chili sauce and sriracha, it was fabulous!

Skinny Bang Bang Shrimp

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon of olive oil

- 1 pound of deveined shrimp

- 1/4 cup of plain greek yogurt

- 1 and 1/2 tablespoon of sweet chili sauce

- 1 tablespoon of sriracha sauce

- salt and pepper to taste

    In a small bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sweet chili sauce, sriracha, and salt/ pepper.  Heat olive oil in a skillet and add shrimp. Cook for a few minutes until shrimp are cooked. Add the yogurt sauce to the shrimp and heat for another minute. Once hot, serve and enjoy!

Chicken Piccata

    I've been doing pretty good on my mission to eat healthier! I've taken little steps by eating at home instead of at work. Also, I've switched to using coconut sugar in place of regular sugar in my coffee, it's so good! I loved this chicken piccata recipe! Frankie and I had it for dinner this week with some fresh steamed corn on the cob and I whipped up some fresh coleslaw with greek yogurt and a little siracha. One thing I will say, you're going to want to use a non-stick or cast iron pan, I made the mistake of attempting it in a metal pan first and it didn't go so well, the parmesan stuck to the pan instead of the chicken. Round two in a non-stick pan went great. You're going to love this light lemony sauced chicken!

Chicken Piccata

Ingredients:

- 2 large chicken breasts, pounded flat

- 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan

- 3 tablespoons of olive oil

- 1/2 cup of onion or shallot, diced

- 1 tablespoon of minced garlic

- 1 cup of chicken broth

- 2 tablespoons of capers

- juice of 1 lemon

- salt and pepper to taste

    Take two large chicken breasts and pound them flat with a meat pounder (I carefully used a full bottle of wine). Lightly salt and pepper each breast and then toss them in the grated parmesan cheese. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet and cook the chicken until golden brown and the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and add another tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Next, add the garlic and cook for another minute. Once the garlic is fragrant, add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered for a few minutes, until the liquid has reduced to half. Toss in the capers, lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper. Add the chicken back to the pan heat for a minute, top with a little more parmesan, and enjoy.

Sweet Potato Turkey Meatballs

    It's been a rough couple weeks. I've been battling back problems and it looks like I'm going to have to clean up my diet a bit and loose some weight. So, here it goes! Who would have thought how good healthy meatballs could taste! You are going to want to cook and mash your sweet potato ahead of time. These would be great as an appetizer or served over pasta! You could even make a meatball sub with them! I made a batch and put half of them in the freezer for later.

Sweet Potato Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients:
- 1 cup of mashed sweet potato
- 1 pound of ground turkey
- 1 cup of seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon of ketchup
- 1/2 teaspoon of allspice
- 1 small onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
- salt and pepper to taste 
    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together all ingredients. Form into 2 inch meatballs and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake meatballs for about 35- 40 minutes or until cooked through and golden brown.

Buffalo Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

    I've finally moved to Orlando! I started at my new Carrabba's last week and so far, so good! I'm enjoying making money and not over exhausting myself working two jobs. The best part of being here though is seeing Frankie everyday! I still can't believe we are finally doing this together, I don't know if I've ever felt quite so blessed. This sandwich recipe is wonderful and we enjoyed them for dinner this week with some veggies and baked sweet potatoes.

Buffalo Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

Ingredients:
- 4 chicken sausages
- 2 tablespoons of melted butter
- 3 tablespoons of hot sauce
- 1 celery stalk, sliced into pieces
- blue cheese dressing, find my recipe here
- hamburger rolls
    Cook chicken sausage according to directions, slice, and set aside. To make the buffalo sauce, whisk together the melted butter and hot sauce. Layer the celery, blue cheese dressing, chicken, sausage, and buffalo sauce on the hamburger rolls. Serve and enjoy immediately!

Homemade Chicken Bryan

    Two words: goat cheese. I'm a Carrabba's girl all the way. I enjoy my job and I love the food! This is Getting Bridgie With It's twist on my fave, Chicken Bryan! What is chicken bryan you ask? Well, it's grilled chicken topped with creamy goat cheese, basil, tomatoes, and lemon butter. You really can't go wrong! I just love how the tang of the cheese meshes with the fresh basil and lemon butter! The possibilities are endless people! I've tried it over grilled pork chops and steak, I love it all. I bet that lemon butter sauce would be pretty great over some grilled fish too!

Homemade Chicken Bryan

Ingredients:

- 2 pounds of chicken breast (I used tenders)

- salt and pepper to taste

- 3/4 cup butter, divided (1 and 1/2 sticks)

- 1/4 cup of minced onion

- 1 heaping teaspoon of minced garlic

- 1/2 cup of diced tomato

- the juice of one lemon

- 1 small bunch of fresh basil (about 1 heaping tablespoon when chopped)

- 1 (4 ounce) package of plain goat cheese

    Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper. Grill the chicken until cooked throughout. Before or while the chicken is cooking, prepare the topping. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and sauté the onion for about 4 minutes or until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the diced tomato, cook for another minute or two, and then add the lemon juice and basil. Cut the rest of the butter into small pieces and add to the saucepan. Heat until the butter has mostly melted. Take the pan off of the heat and stir until all of the butter has melted. Do not over heat the butter. You want to barely melt the butter, not cook it. If you overheat the butter, it will separate. Top the cooked chicken with pieces of the goat cheese. Then, top the goat cheese chicken with the sauce and enjoy!

Pork Tacos with Pineapple Cucumber Salsa

    Happy Cinco de Mayo! I made the most fabulous pork tacos for lunch! I'm not usually one to cook with jalapeno peppers but they make this pork really pop.  The cucumber in the salsa was the perfect cool down for the sweet heat of the caramelized pork as well as the spicy sriracha mayo. For the pork, I butchered a pork loin into pieces but it would have been so much easier to slice up some pork chops! This is definitely going to be one of my favorite meals to make!

Pork Tacos with Pineapple Cucumber Salsa

Ingredients:

- 2 pounds of pork loin, cut into thin strips

- 1 tablespoon of olive oil

- 1/2 diced red onion (you'll used the other 1/2 in the salsa)

- 1 diced jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed

- 2 diced cloves of garlic or 1 heaping teaspoon of minced garlic

- 2 teaspoons of fish sauce

- 2 tablespoons of sugar

- 2 tablespoons of warm water

For the salsa:

- 1 cup of diced pineapple, I used fresh

- 1 cup of diced cucumber, seeds removed

- 1/2 diced red onion

- 1 diced roma tomato

- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

- the juice of one lime 

- dash of salt

For the sriracha mayo:

- 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise

- 1 tablespoon of sriracha hot sauce

Serve on warm flour tortillas

    Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the red onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Cook for a moment and let the onions sweat. Once they start to get translucent, add the fish sauce and mix well, Next, add the pork. In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and warm water until the sugar is dissolved. Once the pork is mostly cooked and you don't see any more pink, turn up the heat to high and add the sugar water mixture. Stir once really well. It will be quite bubbly at first, leave it to cook for a few minutes. Then, the juices will clear, stir, and your pork will start to caramelize. Once it is starting to get golden brown, it is finished. Remove from the heat and serve with salsa and mayo.

    When making the salsa, add all salsa ingredients together and toss until combined. I like to make the salsa before I cook the pork. 

    Whisk the mayo and sriracha together to make the sauce. You can add a little water to make it a little thinner if you prefer. 

    Assemble tacos, serve with lime wedges, and enjoy!!

Beautiful Pineapple Salsa!