BBQ Mini Meatloaves

Ok, so I know that I just posted a recipe yesterday with the selling point of eating clean and lighter after the Super Bowl... but these were too good not to share. They're not clean, nor are they considered health food, but I have heard there is another snow storm making it's way to the East Coast, so I figured there needed to be another hearty, low maintenance meal out there that would be the perfect fuel for the post snow-shoveling marathons my friends are going through right now.

Meatless Monday : Warm Lentil Salad with a Poached Egg

How BORING was that Super Bowl? Not even the commercials were any good! I was expecting to bawl like a hungry baby at the Budweiser commercial with the puppies, but I just got this confused deja vu feeling that they had done a similar commercial a couple of years ago. Talk about stale. And I am so very sorry to any and all Denver fans out there- after the first half it was just mean what Seattle was doing to y'all.

Meatless Monday : Quinoa Cakes with Cream of Mushroom Soup

Oh my friends. Please forgive my absence. I literally had every intention of blogging through July and then as soon as I was settled back into life in the States... which I thought would be a couple weeks after our arrival. I completely underestimated (read: forgot) how difficult and stressful an overseas PCS can be. 

Light Minestrone with Chicken Meatballs

Yes, you're right my dear friends. It's the end of June. The temperatures are squelchingly hot. My windows literally sweat with condensation during the day because of the temperature differences between my cool, comfortable house inside in comparison with the sauna/steam room that is the Okinawa summer. Egads, it's freaking hot. So why on Earth would you want to make soup in the middle of summer? 

Thai Peanut Sauce Noodles with Veggies and Chicken

I don't know why I have waited so long to make this recipe. It is SO freaking good. I guess I thought that using spaghetti for anything other than Italian style recipes was kind of sacrilegious, but that was just crazy talk. I am hereby a complete convert in using semolina/durum flour pastas for everything... you know, because I really needed another excuse to eat more carbs. NOT. 

Miso Shrimp with Sautéed Vegetables (Clean and potentially Paleo)

Y'all, it has been a whirlwind of a past few weeks! Not really anything different has happened, other than I feel like I have been going non-stop from the moment I wake up at 5 am to the second I pass out from exhaustion at 10:30 pm with barely even a chance to check my email. It's pretty much a miracle my teeth get brushed and the dog gets fed and I haven't yet left my keys in the freezer. In the meantime, fast but fresh dinners like this one have been absolutely imperative during this recent craziness. 

Quinoa Burgers with Chipotle Mayo

How difficult do you think it would be to trick an Oklahoma born & raised, red-blooded American man into absolutely loving a veggie burger? Yeah, I thought it was going to be tough as well, until I made these.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

Raise your hand if you grew up on taco spice that came from a packet! Yeah… me too. Don’t get me wrong, I think it tastes pretty darned good, but that was before I started reading ingredient labels. Now I can’t bring myself to use it except in emergencies (aka I didn’t plan well) because of all of the salt and unpronounceable nonsense that’s engineered to stay tasty 1 million years post-apocalypse.

Chicken à la King (A Clean Recipe)

Are there any dishes that you enjoy nowadays that started out as a "what the heck is on my plate" type of thoughts? For me, Chicken à la King was one of those dishes, and I can distinctly remember that It was in the galley (Navy speak for cafeteria) on base in Pensacola, Florida when I first experienced the dish. I had gone through the line, not knowing what Chicken à la King was, but excited to try something new. Clearly, I was new to the Navy since the words "galley" and "excited to try something new" were in the same thought.

Back to Basics : Chicken Fried Rice

Happy Chinese New Year! Are you a snake? I don't mean that as an insult, I mean that as your birth year- 2013 is the year of the snake. I wasn't trying to imply that you're manipulative or sly... I assume that since you're here sharing in my kitchen adventures you're nothing less than marvelous!

Roasted Vegetable Soup

I am on a soup kick lately- the weather here has been absolutely perfect for it. It's "winter" here in Okinawa, which means temperatures in the 50's, overcast and rainy. It's not the winter I would prefer, but I'll take what I can get. Just like the 30 Minute Chicken Noodle Soup I posted the other day, this recipe is high flavor, low maintenance. 

Back to Basics : 30 Minute Chicken Noodle Soup

If you believe that delicious, healthy, and homemade soup requires tons of skill and hours upon hours of simmering time on the stove- listen up! You. Are. Wrong.

Slow-Cooker Texas Chili

Chili is a very personal dish. Have you ever noticed that? I don't think there is another dish, except maybe pizza, that evokes such strong opinions. Everyone and their brother has the "right" way to make chili- with beans, without beans. With tomatoes, or without. Ground beef or cubed chuck. Suet or bacon fat. People get pretty passionate about it too- especially Texans, which I know from experience since I am a Texan. We are definitely the most opinionated of them all in the chili debate, and I'm not ashamed to say it. 

Seafood en Papillote

As promised, y’all, here is a non-beef, perfect for the end of summer recipe! I don’t know what got into me last month… I posted way more beef recipes than I normally eat. Anyway, today is a fantastic dish. For you vegetarian (fish eating), dairy free and gluten free lovers out there, you’ll be extra happy! It’s fancy. It’s healthy (ish). It’s delicious. It’s Seafood en Papillote!

Super Sloppy Joes

I grew up on sloppy joes from a packet. Travis grew up on the ones from a can. Ho-hum and woah salty! In an effort to get away from overly processed foods, I decided to try to make my own. It was WAY easier than I thought it would be! I even ground my own beef for this recipe, which by the way is also incredibly easy if you have the attachment for your mixer!

Breaded Halibut with Chipotle Mayo

I was kind of lacking inspiration for dinner last night. I had cleaned the house from top to bottom all day and been in the kitchen messing up a chocolate cupcake recipe since I didn't have enough eggs. I needed something quick, something light, something not chicken or beef.

Pasta Primavera with a Light Mozzarella Garlic Sauce

"Hmm... what to have for lunch. No, don't want that, or that. Made that last week. That would be too heavy for lunch. What's in the fridge? Ugh, no not that. I do have those.... and those.... and that! And I need to use this before it goes bad... what about.... yes! Yes, that'd be perfect for today!"

Baked Chicken and Spinach Flautas

If you've read some of my blog posts, you know that if a dish has chicken and spinach in it, more than likely I will make, devour, love and rave about it. These baked chicken flautas are no exception. And they're baked, not fried! Bonus!

World's Best Lasagna

Here-ye, here-ye -- friends and fellow pasta lovers!

Behold, the last lasagna recipe you will ever need!

I have declared, for the official record of my household and, well, for the rest of my natural cooking life that this lasagna is by far the best one I've tried yet.

Juicy Grilled Turkey Burgers

I haven't posted in a month. I've been meaning to, I've been kind of disenchanted with the whole food blogging thing lately. Not really sure why, but I just haven't been able to dig up the motivation to write about my recent dishes. I have not had a lot of feedback about my blog from the vast reaches of the internet either, so I guess I'm feeling discouraged.