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!

Coconut Cookie Bars

    I found this recipe months ago after my visit to Massachusetts. My plan was to make it for my family while they were visiting for the wedding be cause my Uncle Phil loves coconut! Well, to my disappointment, he was unable to make the trip. That's ok, it didn't stop me from making it for him anyways! With a shortbread cookie bottom and a chewy coconut top, it's everything a coconut lover is searching for in a dessert! I bet it would be great with some melted chocolate drizzled on top!

 Coconut Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

  For the shortbread layer:

- 1 cup of butter, room temperature

- 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar

- 2 cups of flour

- 1/2 teaspoon of salt

  For the coconut layer:

- 2 cups of shredded coconut

- 1 (14 ounce) can of sweetened condensed milk

- 1 large egg

- 1 teaspoon of coconut extract

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. In a bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, flour, and salt until the mixture resembles wet sand. Press this mixture into the bottom of prepared baking dish and make in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. While it is baking, mix together the coconut, sweetened condensed milk, egg, and extract. Once the bottom layer comes out of the oven, pour the coconut mixture over the top and gently spread evenly. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Slice and enjoy!

Fresh Cucumber Salad

    Talk about a crazy weekend! My little brother was supposed to get married on Friday but Hurricane Matthew had other plans. Stephen was called away to serve in the National Guard. We were very fortunate that the storm stayed off of the coast Thursday night and we remained out of harms way. There are still thousands without power that need your prayers. On the slightly brighter side, we had a lot of family time while bunkered down for the storm. My dad smoked a couple of pork butts and a huge brisket in the smoker over night. Saturday we had a cookout and the weather was perfect. I made my famous corn casserole and it was a hit. I tried this new cucumber salad recipe too! It is the perfect side dish for a bbq on a hot day!

Fresh Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:

- 3 large cucumbers, cored and sliced

- 1 medium white onion, sliced

- 1/2 cup of sour cream

- 1/4 cup of mayo

- 3 tablespoons of white vinegar

- 2 large tablespoons of chopped fresh dill

- 1 teaspoon of sugar

- salt and pepper to taste

    In a large bowl, whisk together the sour cream, mayo, vinegar, dill, sugar, salt, and pepper. Once combined, toss the cucumbers and onions in the mixture. Chill until ready to serve.

Family Time!!!!!

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!