My instapot is my favorite kitchen appliance when it starts getting cold out. I love being able to get big flavors in half the time. This soup is easy to make with minimal ingredients, but still delivers hearty bites!
I started by caramelizing two large yellow onions with butter and a spoonful of brown sugar.
This broth takes on the deep onion flavor. When the bread soaks the broth up it is so delicious!
Ingredients
1 pound chuck roast
3 large yellow onions chopped
2 cups of beef bone broth
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp of worcestershire
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp dried thyme or one bunch of fresh
1 tsp chopped garlic
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
French bread and smoked Gouda for topping
Directions
In the instapot heat a little oil on the sauté setting and sear each side of the beef
Switch to meat/stew setting
Add the onions, butter, brown sugar, herbs, garlic, and worcestershire
Cook for one hour then add the bone broth.
Stew for another hour until the beef is easy to pull apart
Season with salt and pepper
Top with toasted bread and cheese
I like to broil my cheese bread for a few seconds before topping
Do you ever shop the bargain cook book section at Barnes and Nobles? I get suckered in every time! I came home with two cook books the other day that are filled with inspiration. Since I’ve been doing Keto I feel like I was in a cooking rut.
These buns clearly are not low carb, but Patrick is not on the diet so I wanted to surprise him. These are inspired from a couple different recipes I found. Which is usually how the best creations come about!
I don’t have a smoker so I just used my charcoal grill. I tossed in some Jack Daniels wood chips to get the smoked taste. The trick here is to cook the meat for 275 degrees for at least 3 hours.
The charred meat on the sweet roll with sriracha mayo and pickles is spot on! I did pair the meat with a whole thirty bbq sauce, but Patrick hated the sauce haha! Not sweet enough for him.
If you are doing low carb this meat is perfect for you. Low sugar and so tasty! If you aren’t low carb it’s still wonderful!
Ingredients
3 lb pork shoulder/butt
Salt
1/2 cup or sriracha
2 tbsp of garlic powder
2 tbsp of smoked paprika
1 tbsp of cayenne pepper
1/4 cup of melted butter
1/2 cup of mayo
Pickles
Hawaiian rolls
Directions
Heat grill or oven to 400 degrees
Rub the sriracha (leaving 1 tbsp out) over the pork and salt liberally
Let sit in the fridge uncovered while the grill heats up
Wipe the pork down with paper towel to dry it
If using the grill use the top rack or put to the side of the coals
Rotate the meat for an even cook every 15 minutes or so
The grill will cool to 300-275 on its own
Lower the oven temp if roasting
Season with the garlic, paprika, pepper and salt liberally again
Turn every 30-45 minutes
Once the pork hits 160 degrees remove and let rest for 30 minutes
Once cooled shred and pour the melted butter over top
We always order Cajun shrimp. In our neighborhood there is always an amazing seafood boil a stone throw away. I wanted to branch out and try something a little different. The flavor of this sauce is unlike anything I’ve ever tried!
I made mountain bread in our cast iron skillet and could not wait to make something for dipping! The sauce is so rich and filled with garlic. I added sausage to add even more flavor.
The first time I made this sauce Patrick immediately came into the kitchen to figure out what I was making. The sautéed garlic and onion with the lemon butter is mouth watering.
Ingredients
1 pound of shrimp
Two links of bratwurst or sausage of your choice
1 tbsp of smoked paprika
1 tsp of garlic powder
3 cloves of chopped garlic
1 small chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup of butter
3 bay leaves
Zest from one lemon
Juice from two lemons
3 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp of olive oil
Directions
In a large sauté pan over medium heat warm the olive oil
Add the onion and chopped garlic
Sauté until onions are translucent
Add the sausage and butter
When the sausage is about half way cooked at the shrimp, paprika, garlic powder,worcestershire sauce, lemon zest and juice
You should have a good amount of sauce simmering at this point, if you need more feel free to add a little water or broth
Top with bay leaves and simmer until sausage is cooked
Shrimp will be pink and curled
Remove bay leaves and season with salt and lots of black pepper
Last weekend we were at the mall and the kids wanted to stop for pretzels. Something about the warm buttery dough sprinkled with salt makes me think of summer. Long pool days and mall shopping with lots of pretzel bites.
I wanted to take our favorite treat up a notch with garlic butter, fresh herbs, and Parmesan cheese.
Paired with spicy honey mustard and smoked sausage you can have a perfect appetizer board.
You can use any fresh herbs you have available. Parsley, basil, oregano and rosemary would all be great.
Ingredients
2 cups of AP flour
1/4 cup salted butter
2 tbsp of sugar
1/4 cup of butter milk
1 cup of warm water
1 packet of active yeast
1 egg mixed with a tsp of water
1 tsp of baking soda
For the topping
2 tbsp of melted butter
1 tsp of chopped garlic
1 tsp of chopped herbs
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan
For the mustard
1/4 cup of honey
2 tbsp of hot sauce
2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
Pepper
Directions
Heat water to luke warm and pour into a large mixing bowl with the sugar and yeast
Add in the buttermilk, butter and flour
Using a dough hook to mix until everything is combined
Let rise for at least two hours
I like using plastic wrap to cover the bowl to keep air out
In a large pot boil water and sprinkle in the baking soda
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Roll dough into long strips and tie into knots or pretzel shapes
Brush the egg and water mix onto each pretzel
Bake until they start to brown
Mix the melted butter garlic and herbs
Drizzle over all the pretzels and cover in the Parmesan
If you live anywhere near a Sprouts farmers market you definitely need to download their app. We discovered recently that you can do all your shopping on the app to make a list or have everything delivered! Since I am currently obsessed with fresh lemon and herbs we have been going to the store every few days. This recipe takes everything I love about summer and pulls it together in this awesome appetizer!
The dough takes about 30 minutes to rise. While that happens you can throw together your sauce! Top with whatever you have available and wow your guests (or family) with this super easy flat bread!
The lemon oil and herbs are what make this recipe stand out about the traditional flatbread. Everything is so fresh.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups of AP flour
1 packet of dry active yeast
3/4 cups of warm water
1 tsp of lemon zest
Juice from one lemon
1/2 cup of olive oil
2 tbsp of sugar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 cup of chopped herbs ( I used oregano and basil)
Pepperoni
Fresh mozzarella
2 tbsp of tomato paste
1 cup of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp of garlic
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Mix yeast, sugar and water and let sit for 5 minutes
Add in the flour, lemon zest and half of the herbs
Mix with a dough hook until smooth ( add more flour if needed)
Drizzle a little oil over the ball cover and let rise
Tip** place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit on top of the oven while it preheats
In a sauce pan heat chopped tomatoes, garlic, lemon juice, remaining herbs, crushed red pepper, over medium heat. Add water if you need to as it cooks down. Once it starts to thicken like a paste add 1 tsp of oil or butter.
Pat out the dough on parchment paper and drizzle liberally with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook for 5 minutes then slather the bread with your tomato mixture. Bake for another 5-10 minutes until the dough starts to look golden brown.
Add your cheese and pepperoni. Broil until cheese melts and pepperonis crisp.
It has officially been a month since we got married! Today is actually my birthday. Patrick took the day off so we could spent some time together. We have both been working crazy hours to catch up from our wedding time off.
The entire past month has honestly been a blur. We got back our amazing wedding pictures and have been working on framing/hanging them throughout the house. Today we finished putting together some furniture that we desperately needed for our bedroom. Hopefully now I can stop tossing the clean laundry on our folding table 😬.
One thing that has definitely changed is our eating! We were eating straight junk food the first two weeks after we got back. Now that the weather is perfect we have been grilling almost every day.
These adobo bowls are so fresh and delicious! If you are going lower carb like me just skip the rice and beans here.
I love these because if you have anything left over it is so easy to toss into a wrap with some egg and have the best breakfast burrito. PS did you know mission tortilla has mini low carb wraps now? They are the perfect serving size and only 4 net carbs!
Ingredients
Boneless skinless chicken thighs
Chipotle chilis in adobo sauce
Garlic powder
2 limes
1 cup of prepared basmati rice
1 cup chopped peppers and onions
1 handful of asparagus
1 cup of pico or 1 cup of chopped tomatoes, onions, and jalapeños
1 can of low fat refried beans
2 ears of sweet corn
Optional toppings: avocado, cheese, sour cream
Directions
Prepare a grill or grill pan
Marinade chicken thighs with 1 chopped chipotle chili and 2 tbsp of sauce, 1 tsp garlic powder, salt /pepper, half of a lime juiced, 1 tablespoon of olive oil
Grilled until cooked through
Cook off your peppers and onions until fork tender ( I cook mine on the grill with a grill pan)
Grill the asparagus with a little olive oil and salt
Grill the corn with a little olive oil and salt (smoked paprika is good here too!)
Slice off the cobb and set to the side
Heat refried beans through
Toss the rice with the rest of the limes juiced, one lime zested, lots of pepper, salt to taste
Assemble the bowls! I like to put my veggies down and top with chicken, Patrick likes the rice and beans down and top with everything else
These are especially good with the chipotle Tabasco sauce drizzled on top!
Enjoy!!!! These are one of our favorite meals! Super easy for meal prep!
When I think breakfast I think savory, fluffy, toasty buttered breads. One of our favorite breakfast sandwiches is an everything bagel with eggs and bacon. The garlic onion crunchy topping is perfect.
Sometimes I am in the mood for something quick and we usually don’t have bread in the house so I experimented with some of my favor flavors!
Grits are definitely a southern thing. I actually can’t believe most of the people I meet either don’t like grits or like them with sugar. Anytime I have a grits recipe I usually enlist Patrick’s son to be my official taster. He loves his grits really creamy with lots of hot sauce.
These are soooo easy, but have a lot of flavor. We love the Trader Joe’s everything but the bagel seasoning, but you can definitely make your own. All you need is dehydrated chopped onion, garlic powder, sea salt, and black sesame seeds.
Ingredients
1 cup of fast cooking grits cooked to package instructions
This past weekend was our wedding shower! Only 21 days until I am a Mrs!
I cannot wait! As much fun as the planning has been the past year, I am definitely ready to wrap it up!
So let’s talk about these sandwiches. One of my guilty pleasures is a sausage egg and cheese McMuffin. Obviously, that is not on my wedding approved food list. I decided to try and make a lightened up version.
These homemade English muffins are so airy and light. Once you toast them they are nearly identical to the popular fast food version. The sausage I made from scratch because I wanted to know exactly what was in them. Lots of fennel seeds and crushed red pepper make them soooo good.
Ingredients
1 pound of ground pork
1 tbsp of garlic
1 tsp of crushed red pepper
1 tsp of fennel
Salt and pepper
3 cups of bread flour
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp of sugar
1 packet of active yeast
1/2 tsp of salt
1 egg
2 tbsp butter
American cheese
Scrambled or steamed egg
Directions
In a mixer attach the dough hook
In the bowl add warm water, sugar and yeast until the yeast bubbles
Add in the butter and egg
Slowly add the flour and salt
Let rise for 1 hour
Roll into 6 even balls of dough
Heat a non stick skillet with oil or butter to medium low
Press down the dough balls
Cook each side for about 5 minutes
Mix the sausage with garlic, salt, pepper, crushed pepper, and fennel
Brown patty shapes in a skillet until cooked through
Toast the muffin and add the sausage, egg and cheese
This post is in collaboration with Rodelle. All opinions are my own. Thank you for letting me support my favorite brands!
Happy Valentines Day! Every year I usually do some kind of extra chocolate recipe. This year I branched out and experimented with Patrick’s favorite flavor profile- banana pudding.
These cupcakes are super easy to throw together. They are perfect for those last minute party desserts! We don’t like artificial banana flavors so everything starts with a rich vanilla custard. Then I added fresh chopped banana.
You guys know I love Rodelle. Their line of extracts are some of the best I’ve ever baked with to date. For the filling I used the bakers extract which is a super rich vanilla with a creamy caramel/chocolate undertone and I also used the vanilla paste. The combination leaves you with such an amazing custard base that pairs perfectly with banana.
The frosting is my go to vanilla buttercream. Not too sweet, but very airy and creamy.
The chocolate hearts are optional, but super easy. You just melt your favorite baking chocolate and pour into a ziplock bag. Snip the bottom corner and draw your hearts! I put them in the freezer for 15 minutes for the best texture.
Ingredients
For the cake use your favorite recipe or box mix. I used a classic vanilla recipe.
One of my all time favorite snacks is a crispy fried chicken bite with hot sauce. Hot sauce is basically my favorite food. I just try to find things to put it on since it is not social acceptable to drink it from the bottle.
Chicken thighs are big on the keto diet because they are fatter. I just think they have more flavor and can hold a marinade better. I took a pound of chicken thighs and sliced them up. Coated them with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and some hot sauce. Wrapped them in uncured bacon and baked them until crispy.
An extra drizzle of buttery hot sauce and they are ready to dip!
These are right on par with a traditional chicken bite with less calories believe it or not! If you use a low sodium uncured bacon they are even better.
Ingredients
One pound of chicken thighs
1 pound of uncured bacon
1/2 cup of hot sauce
2 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of butter
Salt and pepper
Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Slice chicken thighs into bite size pieces. You can get about 3 pieces per thigh.
Marinate chicken with salt, pepper, olive oil, and a drizzle of hot sauce. (15 minutes or so)
