Reading Time: 11 minutesChristmas is here! Basically, right? I mean we’re counting down single digits, it might as well be knocking on our door right now. If you’re following my Instagram you’ll see we’ve been pretty crazy with things around here. It’s hard to keep up with posting …Read More….
Reading Time: 9 minutesI’ve been trying to not make a big deal about when I’m posting posts. You know, just acting casual like I’m a regular blogger with a regular posting schedule BUT OMG THIS IS MY FIRST FOOD POST IN A YEAR! Isn’t that nuts?! With this …Read More….
This post is sponsored by BabbleBoxx.com on behalf of Alexia
Alright, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. It’s something I don’t go blabbering to just anyone, either. So I hope you walk away from this with your newly found cosmic wisdom and have a better appreciation for the finer things in life….
The truth is…. I’m the biggest cheater of a food blogger you’ll ever meet. What do I mean? I mean, you’d probably expect me to do things like make mashed potatoes from scratch every time we have them. Or make a homemade vinaigrette for an impromptu salad before dinner. Or make pasta dough, roll it out, cut it, dry it, and cook it for family spaghetti nights.
Seriously, if you think I do any of those things, you’re straight kookie-dukes and haven’t been paying attention to anything I say! Yes, mashed potatoes are the easiest thing to whip up. And if you have the ingredients, a homemade vinaigrette is one of the simplest pleasures. And pasta! Homemade pasta is… well, it’s always a pain in the rear and you’d probably never catch me ever saying I made homemade pasta for anything. Like, my mom could ask me for her birthday (which is also Valentine’s Day, mind you) to make her homemade pasta for dinner and it would be hard for me to not laugh in her face.
Why? Why, if things are simple (except pasta), why not take the time to make dinner a little extra special for my family? Here’s the reason, flat out, cut n’ dry, nice and clear:
Time.
I’m a family man, and with that comes a packed daily schedule that revolves around the kids. Being a stay-at-home dad, I have a lot more responsibilities than you might think. On top of keeping the kids from going all Tom and Jerry on each other, and keeping the house semi-presentable, making sure dinner is ready is one of the bigger tasks of my day. And I’d be lying if I told you it wasn’t stressful sometimes. Maybe it’s my experience in the kitchen and always having that strict ticket time I had to adhere to, I dunno. But knowing the clock is ticking and the wife gets off work at a certain time, I can’t help but feel the pressure of making sure her night starts off right.
Queue Alexia Premium Side dishes.
When I’m cooking, a lot of things are being juggled around. It makes dinner worlds easier if I had something that was no fuss, and quick to make. Super ultra bonus points if I can just empty a bag into a dish to cook it. And that’s exactly what I got with Alexia’s sides! Usually, if I’m making a frozen side, I feel like I have to doll it up with extra spices and whatnot so it doesn’t feel so meh. But these seriously didn’t need anything! Matter of fact, it’s kind of weird referring to them as a frozen side. These are complete side dishes, where in less than 10 minutes for each bag, I was able to plate two awesome tasting premium vegetables. They not only showed me how great they were as starch alternatives, that I don’t need to bother with regular mashed potatoes or french fries anymore. They also gave me more time to focus on the main event of dinner.
Speaking of the main event! You can’t go wrong with a grilled steak. Or, however you choose to cook it. Personally, it’s been hard to not grill anything since we moved back to Florida. Heck, I can’t remember the last time I used the oven or stove to prepare a protein. I can’t help it, it’s too nice out to not grill.
Anyway, I made this sauce a few weeks ago because I had some extra mushrooms in the fridge. I used to work in a restaurant where we had a peppercorn sauce for the filet so it all sounded so right for this post. The sauce is insanely simple and can be easily prepared and finished by the time the sides are done cooking. There are a ton more things you can add to the sauce to make it have more depth, but we’re aiming for simple, quick, and delicious. And that’s what the mushroom peppercorn sauce will give you.
Now, I know what you’re probably thinking. This is a sponsored post, so sure these things are “great”. But seriously, I’m going to be buying these on the regular now. The wife and I were both thoroughly impressed with how it all came out.
We’re not the type to have butternut squash risotto or riced cauliflower as sides for dinner. But Alexia made it so incredibly easy to have such things on a regular basis. On top of the ease of preparing, the flavors were great as well. Fresh tasting, creamy, and I just wanted more when I was done. They use organic dairy ingredients (as you can see in the pictures above of the chunks of cream out of the bag), it’s Non-GMO Project verified, and it’s all gluten-free! Like, I’ll go as far as saying these are going to be my default sides from now on!
And the sauce should speak for itself. It takes roughly 15 minutes start to finish, so you have no excuse. If you’ve never had such a sauce touch your steak, then please, do yourself a favor and step outside your comfort zone, Sally. I’m a sucker for caramelized onions on my steak, but this is a nice change of pace and makes dinner feel a lot more fancy than it should. And like I said before, the peppercorns are not as intense as you might think. The slight bite you get from a peppercorn is perfect with the cream, so don’t be afraid, because trust me, I am ultra sensitive to big chunks of pepper and I should be terrified of this sauce. But it’s good!
Here’s to hoping you can give all of this a try! I’d love to hear about it if you do. Let me know what you think!
Reading Time: 4 minutesSo here’s a more recent recipe. Something that I had made a few times already and decided to take pics of because I thought to myself, “hey, self. This would make a good blog post whenever you decided to blog again.” And look! Here we …Read More….
Reading Time: 5 minutesWinter is coming… But first is fall, baby! Best season ever! Don’t sit there and start trying to think of reasons why it’s not, you’ll just be wasting your time. You could think about winter and the pretty snowfall and cozy nights by a fire, …Read More….
Here we go! The first food post in forever! I know it’s not so much for you, but for me it’s a big deal! Like, block-out-the-sun type huge! Seriously, It’s really hard to measure my excitement, it’s so astronomical. Marvel in its totality!
Ok, good eclipse puns are hard. But you know what’s not hard? Relaxing on the beach. Probably not a good day to do that, but that’s where I’ll be today. Usually I’m sensitive to the sun but I think I’ll just block it out.
Ok, I’m seriously done now, I promise. Happy Eclipse Day! Is that a thing? Probably. People will make a holiday out of anything these days. Heck, you probably know someone who is planning or going to an Eclipse party. How would you even prepare for an such a celestial celebration?! I guess you just have to planet.
OK, NOW I’M DONE, ARE YOU HAPPY?! I’m here trying to shine and you’re just getting in my way!
Can’t stop, won’t stop.
Ok, for real for real, I could be here all day, so I’m really stopping now. Getting down to business, I was sitting here for a long time, trying to figure out what would be the absolute best recipe I could come back with. A stunning pie, taller than it is wide? A cookie so moist and chocolatey it makes you feel like you need to drink a glass of milk just by looking at it?! No no no, none of these will do. I can’t just come back after years of not giving you a recipe and hit you with something like that! No, there’s only one thing I could think of that would be able to withstand the pressure of such a task… Meatloaf!!
Bu..wha…wai….. Where are you going?!? This isn’t just any meatloaf! It’s my wife’s meatloaf!!
HEY! Come back here and finish reading this, dammit! You know what, come to think of it, I don’t think you’re ready for my wife’s meatloaf. And that’s just fine, more for me.
Oh! Now you want to try, huh? Now the curiosity sensors are starting to go off. We all want what we can’t have, it’s ok, I don’t blame you.
Now seriously, I know the way this goes with meatloaf. It’s had a bad rap for a few decades now. Being the butt of jokes and whatnot, never taken seriously as a dinner. The ol’ stigmata of it being the one meal your friend’s mom cooks that you don’t accept the invitation to dinner for. Or my favorite, the “it’s just a big hamburger with no bread and tomato sauce.” Look, I get it, it’s not a mouthwatering dessert or anything, but it’s pretty damn good on a Sunday night, especially since Winter is Coming… And I understand if you don’t like it. I’m not going to sit here and give you the whole “Oh, you don’t like meatloaf because you’ve never had MY meatloaf” spiel. I’ll just tell you this:
Meatloaf is freaking weird. Not a compelling argument, I’m aware. No, I’m not dogging it, just understand, I’m Puerto Rican. I grew up in a house where rice and beans was as common as peanut butter & jelly. I think out of my entire time I lived with my parents, my mom made meatloaf like twice. So needless to say, I never had the glory that is southern cooking until I met my wife. And she thinks I’m joking when I say I enjoy her meatloaf, so here’s the proof that I love it as much as I say I do.
For the record: I’ve had these pictures for a long time. They were taken years ago in NC, back when I was still in the “I need to update my blog” frame of mind. I wish I could take pictures like this here in our current kitchen 🙁
Speaking of updating the blog, let’s get on with the show!
Like that?! So many years doing this blog and I’m just now getting with the whole recipe box thing. I fought it for a while, but like all old people, after kicking and screaming, I gave in and now I love it.
What do you think about it? Think you’ll miss me and my rambling between the instructions?
As far as the meatloaf goes, it’s all pretty straightforward. Mixing all the ingredients together and baking it off.. let’s be honest, it’s not exactly rocket science. I don’t even think it’s Jr. High science. But the simplicity is what makes it great. Good flavors, and a warm, fuzzy feeling after you finish. It’s what comfort food is all about.
In the future, if the recipe I’m talking about is more complicated, I’ll go ahead and talk about it more down here. But for now, I think we’re done! Sunday is right around the corner, so get out there and get this going! Let me know what you think and until next time,
Adios.
Oh yeah! The eclipse! Did you get out there and see it?? I don’t know if I’ll venture out there. We don’t have any glasses here so I’m terrified of going blind, as one would be. Hopefully I could track it to be able to get out and see something with the kids to say we saw it. I remember being young and my pop taking me to the roof of our apartment building at night to see Halley’s Comet pass by… Reading that article, it probably wasn’t Halley’s. If it WAS, then I have some good memories from when I was 3 years old, because that was back in 1986 the last time we saw Halley’s. Maybe it was Hale-Bopp? I dunno. Anyway! Holy crap, that whole blind thing gives me the willies. Can’t go blind looking at a comet!
If you want to nerd out with me, go check out NASA’s podcast, Houston We Have a Podcast (best name ever, right?!)! It’s a great show. They’re on episode 7 right now and it’s all about the eclipse. So if you’re looking for something to listen to today with all the eclipse hype going on, go ahead and give it a listen! Just click the image below and it’ll take you to the episode’s page.
Reading Time: 5 minutesAlright, it’s been a while, so why not give you guys a recipe?! Fall is coming. And if you haven’t checked your calendar recently, it’s coming ridiculously fast. It’s almost September! So I’m going to try and get the jump on some fall flavors here …Read More….
Reading Time: 8 minutesHappy Game of Thrones week! For those who don’t know what Game of Thrones is… Who the heck are you?! I have been trying to make a food series from the show and I think I’m doing alright. This Honeyed Chicken is going to fit …Read More….
So I’ve been trying to get this on the blog for a while now. It’s been a long time coming and here it is, just in time for it to watch winter hit itself with the doorknob on the way out. But not before I send it off properly with this creamy chicken noodle soup.
We still have a few days here and there forecasted that dip in the 50’s, but for the most part we’re enjoying some nice weather. I know as of this writing a bunch of you are still getting snow, so to that I say you better make amends with Elsa soon, it’s freaking spring already! While we had some bitter cold days and 2 or 3 good snow falls, it’s nothing compared to what others have gotten.
Still though, it was enough to get the wife down and depressed for weeks, wishing she never left Florida and its 2.5 seasons (that’s Mild, Hot, and Sweltering for those wondering).
But one great thing about the cold is that it’s soup making weather! Even now with the seasons changing it’s the absolute best time for chicken noodle soup. And if you’re anything like me, you’re nodding in agreement while blowing your nose, sneezing, and/or coughing onto your screen. The seasons transitioning never got to me until I moved up here, but I guess it’s a small price to pay for having a winter you actually need a jacket and long pants for.
This recipe, as I said, is one I’ve been making a while. You’re not really chained to the stove for hours. When it’s done it’s done, and the flavor is immense. It’s one of those feel good, hearty, let-me-sit-down-and-unbutton-my-pants-for-a-few-hours kinda soup. On top of it being easy and full of goodness, don’t get me started on the qualities chicken soup is known to have on people. Whether you’re feeling sick and icky or down and out, chicken soup is there to pick you right back up. Couple it with a nice, toasty piece of crunchy bread and you’re ready to take on the world! …Right after your nap.
If all went well you should have about 3 quarts of stock which smells mighty fine.
Now let’s get this soup going! This is all going to be non-stop from here so have everything ready to go.
There’s a lot going on in the pot right now so don’t be afraid to give it a good stir.
Odds are good you’re going to need to add some more salt and pepper. Don’t be afraid! Like I’ve said before: If you don’t use the salt you need to, whatever it is you’re making will come out bland and blah. It can make something extremely disappointing when it could’ve been extraordinary. So salt it up! Something to keep in mind though – you can always add, but you can never take away. So while it’s important to use salt, remember to add it slowly, stir, taste, and repeat. It’s better to take your time than mess up a whole pot of soup.
So after the seasoning is adjusted, you are done!
Put a nice crusty loaf of bread in a hot oven to warm it up while you set the table. Tear off some bread, dip it in the soup, and I promise it’ll be a highlight of your day.
When the soup is cooled I put it in a container with a lid and stick it in the fridge. There it could stay for a few days.
And if there’s only 2 of you eating it (our kids don’t like soup), it could last for about 3 nights! Ugh, just thinking about it makes me wish I had some right now.
If you’re up north and you’re still getting snow… my condolences. I know I can’t do much, but at least I’m trying to make you feel better! Here’s to hoping you make a nice big pot of this instant happiness and it warms you up. Worry not, spring is coming!
