Category: Dips, Dressings, and Spreads

Egg Salad

 

As I was scouring the fridge to make dinner, I found about half a dozen boiled eggs that I forgot I made hiding in the back of the fridge. I couldn’t remember when I even made them, so I was a little nervous to open them up and see if they were still good. After opening a few, it became apparent that they were in fact still good, but not taking any chances I decided to go ahead and make one of my favorite things in the world; The simple egg salad.

I make this all the time, especially in the summer when I get perfect farm fresh eggs. That golden yolk is so rich and flavorful, I can never go back to making it with store bought eggs again. I know, I am kinda an egg snob. The girls love boiled eggs, but will sometimes turn up their nose at the yolks. Crazy, but I always keep them to add them to my sandwiches.

I make egg salad many different ways all the time, but oddly enough, I have never shared any of my favorites on the blog. I left this egg salad on the chunky side, because my favorite thing is dipping wheat thins in it for a snack, or just my fork 😉 I need to remember to add more of my egg salad recipes.

Egg Salad

8 eggs chopped
3 tablespoons mayo
2 tablespoons honey mustard
1 tablespoon relish
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Mix it up with a fork and enjoy!

 

Summer Poppy Seed Salad 

Hey guys! I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! We decided to change it up and make something besides burgers and hot dogs this year. Instead I made two big pans of lasagna. I have made many different kinds of lasagna before on the blog, but these were pretty basic like this. I made one with ricotta and mozzarella and one with just mozzarella. They both turned out really great!

This afternoon, I was scouring out the scene in my fridge and pantry to see what I could make for dinner. Plenty of leftover lasagna, so that is the main course! But I did spy a bunch of veggies that looked like they were on their last leg, so I decided to make this beautiful summer salad. I found this poppy seed dressing a while back at Fresh Market, and it is my new favorite. img_8456

So I took half a head of ice burg lettuce, 1 small head of purple cabbage, one cucumber (peeled and chopped), 1 small tomato, 1 yellow squash (thinly cut on a mandolin), and a handful of sliced black olives

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I mixed it with about half the bottle of dressing until all the veggies were coated. I also added a touch of salt and pepper.  It tastes super yummy and fresh, and the squash also gives it a nice crunch! I am going to let it hang out in the fridge for a bit, and add some fresh avocado on top! These are my favorite kind of recipes; ones that you make up on the fly and use up leftovers before they go bad!

*****I spy some bananas that turn in to bread soon. I also found some blueberries, so I might come up with a new concoction! See ya real soon!

Italian Pesto Frittata

Cleaning out my fridge for another yummy frittata! Super easy!!!

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine 2 tablespoons of Pesto with 2 tablespoons of cream cheese.

Add mixture to 8 beaten eggs.  Pour in a buttered non stick oven safe pan and top with a generous helping of shredded blended Italian cheese.

Cook a few minutes on med high heat, moving your spatula along the edge every few seconds. When the edges start to firm up, pop in the oven and cook until cheese turns golden brown, about 6-8 minutes.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Muffin Hack

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I had a container of blueberries that needed some loving, so I tried this blueberry hack for copycat Otis Spunckmier muffins. SO AMAZING!!!!!!

Ingredients

1 package whole blueberries
1 Package White Cake Mix
1 Package of Instant Vanilla Pudding 4 serving size
4 Eggs (beaten)
1/2 C. Vegetable Oil
3/4 C. Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla

Directions

Rinse blueberries lightly and drain well. In mixing bowl beat eggs until light. To the eggs add cake mix, pudding, vegetable oil, vanilla, and milk. Beat until smooth but do not over beat. About two to two and half minutes. Batter will be thick.

Carefully fold blueberries in batter with a spoon or spatula. try not to break the berries, they can be very tender.

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 20 – 30 minutes depending on the size of you muffin cups. Test with a tooth pick and taking care not to over bake. Will make about 9 large muffins or 12 – 15 small muffins.

Chicken Carbonara

Evening guys! Catching up on the blog this week. My girls have discovered Netflix and You Tube, so they have been dominating my computer. It really sucks to blog on my phone! Last night I made this yummy pasta. Looking at adding the leftover pasta to my pork dish tomorrow night!

Chicken Carbonara

INGREDIENTS

2 chicken breasts, cut in to bite sized pieces
4 ounces pancetta or bacon, cut into small dice
2 egg yolks (or 3, to make it extra creamy)
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more as needed
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
3/4-1 pound pasta- The girls picked corkscrews, but any thick short or long pasta will do (think Buccatini or Rigatoni)

Directions

Bring a large of salted water to a boil over high heat. In a medium sized sauté pan, cook the pancetta over medium heat until crispy, 5 to 7 minutes.

Combine the egg yolks, whole egg, Parmesan, and pepper in a large bowl.

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the hot pasta cooking water (the temperature is important because you are going to use it to cook the egg).

While your pasta is cooking, cook your diced chicken in the same pan as you cooked your panchetta. Add a touch of olive oil with salt and pepper.

Next, drain the pasta and add it to the bowl with the cheese and eggs, tossing immediately to mix everything together.

Add the pancetta, chicken, and any rendered fat from the pan to the bowl, toss to coat, and add the pasta water 1 tablespoon at a time until the sauce reaches a creamy consistency. Be patient and really mix slowly.

Taste and add any more cheese, pepper, or salt that you may need to add! Enjoy!

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