Posts

Throughout my years of blogging, I’ve made it a point to create new and exciting healthy butternut squash recipes. Butternut squash makes an ideal side dish for family dinners and potlucks, a substantial addition to a main dish, and the most creamy and flavorful soups. While the list below is full of delicious butternut squash recipes, I’m always looking for new ways to incorporate this tasty veggie (maybe I’ll create some mashed butternut squash recipes or a healthy butternut squash mac and cheese!...

Twelve months ago today, I baked an enormous pan of chicken enchiladas, washed them down with a lime margarita, and for some weird reason thought that The Universe might want to hear about it. Before you assume I’m a narcissist, do keep in mind that “The Universe” at this time consisted of my mother, my grandmother, and Ben’s aunt, all of whom are a) highly sympathetic and b) stuck with me....

I might not have an ugly sweater to show my spirit, but my food is ready for a holiday soiree. From Winter Salad, White Spiced Wine, and Feta Dip, as of late, my recipes all seem to be tinged with red and green and PLENTY of holiday spirit. Today’s cute little Christmas appetizer bites were made using one of my favorite easy appetizer hacks: mini phyllo shells Flakey, fully-baked phyllo dough that’s shaped for popping right into your mouth, these mini shells are an ideal vehicle for all sorts of sweet and savory ingredients....

I think I’ve always wanted to use the word “chuck wagon” in a post. I can’t imagine a better recipe! Cowboy chicken is seasoned, seared chicken breasts smothered in a tasty mixture of black beans, Mexican-style corn, diced tomatoes, and cheese, all baked together until the cheese is melty, the chicken is juicy, and your kitchen smells amazing. Serve cowboy chicken with Instant Pot Brown Rice (or cauliflower rice) for an all-in-one healthy alternative meal....

The holidays are a time for family, friends, traditions, and…getting away with eating dessert for breakfast. For whatever reason (not that I’m complaining), coffee cake always seems to get a pass at the breakfast table. A slice of streusel-topped Apple Coffee Cake at 8 a.m. is socially acceptable. Meanwhile, try eating a slice of Caramel Apple Cake in front of your mother for breakfast and a lecture might ensure. To avoid confrontation this holiday season, bake up a cranberry coffee cake bundt for Christmas brunch....

One of the unpleasant truths of adulthood is that, when you come down with a cold or the flu, the person who most often stays home to feed you your favorite soup (like this comforting Chicken Tortilla Soup), rub your back, and make sure you take your medicine on time is….you. Gone are the good ol’ days when you could curl up on the couch, watch Nickelodeon, and your mom would serve you endless bowls of Campbell’s tomato soup (or, if you were lucky, homemade Crockpot Tomato Soup)....

Ever since I was a little girl making hot chocolate with Swiss Miss hot cocoa packets after dinner (while splashing the requisite amount all over the counter—sorry, mom), hot chocolate has been one of my great comforts. In Paris, I tasted hot chocolate so thick and rich, it was akin to a melted hot chocolate bar. My copycat recipe French Hot Chocolate tastes just like it and is an absolute treat for special occasions....

A warming, hearty soup made in the slow cooker, this easy and healthy crockpot recipe (and this similarly satisfying Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup) is allowing me not to be less busy but to be a different busy. I’ve realized that what I really want right now isn’t for my time to be less full. Instead, I want it to be full of the activities that I enjoy: trying bucket list recipes, spending time with loved ones (virtually, if needed), baking, reading, helping my community however I can, watching movies....

Before we delve in, let’s first address the issue at hand: Why do leftover muffins become soggy? It is an odd phenomenon. Intuitively, you would think that, as muffins stale, the outsides would become dry. In reality, this just isn’t how muffin science (a delicious field I aspire to master) operates. As muffins age, their moisture migrates to the surface. That moisture will try to evaporate and, if the muffins are wrapped in plastic or stored in an empty airtight bag or container, that moisture sinks right back onto the muffins’ surface....

This easy side dish recipe has all the best parts of our friend the butternut—the subtle, earthy sweetness, the stellar health benefits, and the bang-for-your-buck grocery budget prowess—and none of its most salient negative feature: peeling it. As much as I adore butternut squash—when it’s in season, I all but turn orange from overconsumption—every time I go to cook it, I have a moment of pause. Do I really need/want to peel this butternut squash right now?...

Caramelized at the edges and tender within, this sweet and savory side is kid friendly, healthy, and can pair with whatever you are cooking for dinner tonight. Most nights, I default to Roasted Brussels Sprouts (for a green veggie) or Roasted Sweet Potatoes (for something starchy and sweeter). However, there’s another nutritious orange vegetable that’s been stealing the show around here lately: carrots! Carrots are packed with vitamins, especially vitamin A....

Stuffed mushrooms are that kind of appetizer. However many you make, that’s how many people will eat (as Crab Stuffed Mushrooms can attest)! Today’s creamy sausage stuffed mushrooms recipe is my rendition of my Grandma Dorothy’s famous original. Stuffed mushrooms with sausage feature ground Italian turkey sausage (of course, you can use regular sausage like Grandma did if you prefer), plenty of grated Parmesan, and the key ingredient to any good holiday spread, cream cheese....

Tender and caramelized with obsessively tasty brown bits, you’ll be twirling this cabbage on your fork, nibbling it right out of the pan, and wondering when it was that you became the sort of person who is this enthusiastic about a vegetable. Prior to making Sautéed Cabbage, I would describe my overall attitude towards cabbage at large as, “hmmm…is that the thing that’s in coleslaw?” When I did consider cabbage, it was in the context of other recipes; a necessary step towards a greater end (Winter Slaw; Cabbage and Sausage Skillet)....

Easy, ultra chocolaty and clean-eating approved, these thick and chewy sweet potato brownies are in the running for the most scrumptious fall-flavored dessert. They are dense and fudgy and fully satisfy my chocolate craving, but since they are whole wheat and refined-sugar free, I can eat them without having that nagging “hmmmmm I maybe shouldn’t have done that” feeling afterwards. As with the hidden veggies in my Avocado Brownies and Zucchini Brownies, these sweet potato brownies DO NOT TASTE LIKE SWEET POTATOES....

I’d seen vegan white queso dip recipes floating around the web through the years, but I couldn’t reconcile them with a certain illustrious two-ingredient cheese dip recipe of my youth. If you grew up in the Midwest, you know the one. If you need a hint, the primary ingredient in this starts with a “Velv” and ends with an “eeta.” I decided to see if I could come up with a recipe for a queso dip that would be:...

Yes, you can eat a taco for breakfast. Cue the applause! In case you have a skewed perception of what breakfast tacos are, real-deal Texas breakfast tacos are sooooo much more than a tortilla with eggs. Yes, breakfast tacos are a Texas thing. I’ve Tex-Mex breakfast tacos in Austin, Houston, and Dallas. You can find brisket tacos, migas tacos, crispy bacon tacos, and more on the menu. My absolute favorite are the chorizo breakfast tacos....

Steamed and pureed butternut squash is the foundation for this velvety cheese sauce. Need butternut squash mac and cheese for toddlers (or those with toddler palates?). Because butternut squash is mild and sweet, picky eaters will never suspect it’s loaded with veggies (mwahaha!). Like my Pumpkin Mac and Cheese and Instant Pot Cauliflower Mac and Cheese, this easy butternut squash mac and cheese tastes much more indulgent than it is, thanks to healthy swaps like Greek yogurt and whole wheat pasta in place of white....

If you’ve been suspicious of cabbage up until this point, I hear you. And now, I’m going to change your mind. Eaten raw, cabbage is bland and can even be bitter. Perhaps that’s why we so often douse it with mayo, rename it coleslaw, and shove it next to a pile of baked beans. (This healthy Asian Cabbage Salad is a mayo-free exception.) It doesn’t (and shouldn’t!) be this way....

Are you a get dressed up or a stay in your pajamas all day type of person for Christmas day? While I will typically never say no to getting dressed up and going out, Christmas mornings, in my opinion, are MADE for fleece-lined leggings, a fluffy robe, and cozy socks (and a mug of Crockpot Hot Chocolate or Mulled Wine). I’ll leave the dressing up to the pan of cinnamon rolls I’m serving for Christmas brunch because they’re not your average cinnamon rolls, they’re gingerbread cinnamon rolls with the BEST cinnamon-spiced cream cheese frosting....

Even if you are intimidated to cook fish (I was for years!) or intimidated to use the grill (yep, I was scared of that too), this grilled salmon recipe is foolproof. I’ve included all the best tips for how to grill salmon, ways to flavor salmon, what to serve with salmon, and more! This post is your grilled salmon toolkit. This recipe is based on my go-to Baked Salmon In Foil....