Roasted Asparagus

I roast asparagus on a foil-covered pan in the oven most of the time. It's a tasty, quick, and simple addition to pretty much any meal. Let's get to it!

Asparagus should be washed and can be cut depending on what you prefer. I always cut or snap off the bottom (about an inch) - it should snap easily if you do it with your hands.

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Sprinkle asparagus with olive oil and sea salt (you can also add pepper or garlic powder).
3. Roast in preheated oven until fork easily punctures thickest part of stem, about 12-15 minutes.

Blackened Tilapia

I found this gem on Naive Cook Cooks. I made a few modifications, but I've already decided that it's a new favorite - mostly because of how delicious and simple it is! This is a great recipe that can make 1 serving to probably 6-8 (the recipe says 4, but there is a lot of the seasoning mix there, so I think it will stretch).

In order to make 1 serving, I used a frozen tilapia fillet and about a teaspoon of the seasoning sprinkled on the fillet (about 1/2 teas. on each side was plenty). I think that fish is always better freshly made and not as good left over, so I like to make only as many as I'll eat, and throw a new one in when I'm ready for more fish - this recipe makes that so easy!

Also, in case you're planning to use some of the mix now, and would like to use some later - I mixed the seasonings in a small plastic bag. It was easy to mix, and will be sealed until I need it again.

Blackened Spice Mix:
3 tsp paprika
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp thyme
2 - 3 tsp black pepper
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp oregano

Other ingredients:
4 Tilapia fillet, washed and cleaned
2 tbsp butter, melted OR olive oil / cooking spray
Salt & pepper to taste*

Instructions:

1. Pre heat oven to 400F.
2. Add all the spices in a bowl and mix. Taste and adjust anything if needed as per taste and keep aside.
3. On a parchment paper or foil lined baking sheet / sheet pan, lay all 4 pieces of tilapia (or as many as you plan to use), Brush them with butter or olive oil on both sides OR spray them with cooking spray. 
4. Rub or sprinkle the seasoning on both the sides of the fish.
5. Bake in oven for 7 mins.
6. Flip tilapia after 7 minutes and bake for another 7 minutes. (additional time as needed)

*The spice mix has plenty of flavor, so it is likely that you'll need to add any salt and pepper - but I won't judge if you do! 

**I paired this with asparagus - it cooks for about the same amount of time as the fish, depending on the size of the stalks. 

Oven Baked S'mores

These tasty treats are favorites of my best friend. And they're very simple and easy to make!

Ingredients:
*crescent rolls
*mini marshmallows
*chocolate chips

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
 
Open the crescents and stuff with marshmallows and chocolate chips.

Pinch the crescent closed.

Place in cupcake tins and bake for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

Let them cool just a little bit before you devour them... it would be a shame to burn your tongue on this YUM!

 

Fruit Loop Crack

This is one of the tastiest, simplest treats I've come across in a while. It has two ingredients and takes about 5 minutes to make... I discovered this about 6 years ago (I can't believe it's been that long!) when I was working my first job and got this treat for Christmas from one of our amazing teacher-moms. From first taste, I couldn't stop myself. It is incredibly addicting. Here's the simple, yet WONDERFUL fruit loop CRACK.

Ingredients:
fruit loops
almond bark

Instructions:
Melt the almond bark. Mix it in with as many fruit loops as it will cover (probably not quite the whole box). Lay it out on wax paper to cool, then break it up when it's hardened.

That's it!

Summer Salads

I love salads in the summertime. This summer I made several salads over the summer, but this was one of my favorites - and one that I plan to repeat... and repeat.

 

 

My salad contained: lettuce, chick peas, bell peppers, shrimp, peas, and probably other things that I love... It's been a few weeks, so I've forgotten some of my ingredients. Get that fresh stuff out and and make a salad!

{I may have said this before, but the easiest way to put together a delicious salad - or stir-fry - is to stop by the salad bar at the store and pick up the pre-cut veggies to save lots of time}

[Taco] Stuffed Bell Peppers

The other night my friend came over and we made dinner... she had ingredients in her head, but not exact measurements - but how can you mess up stuffed peppers? So, we went for it. This is our recipe, whether it was correct or not, it was rather tasty...

Serves: 4 (or 2 with leftovers)
[disclaimer :: could easily be made for one by reducing the recipe]

Ingredients:
 
2 cans of corn (drained)
1 block of cream cheese
1/2 jar of salsa

2 bags of instant spanish rice
1 can of black beans

4 green bell peppers, tops off and gutted


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place the peppers upright in a pan. Mix together the first set of ingredients in another pan. Place both in the oven, stirring the mixture occasionally as cream cheese softens. (I think we stirred 3-4 times)

Cook the rice. Drain the beans. Mix the two together.

When everything is finished cooking (about 20 - 30 minutes -- let's be honest, I was more interested in our conversation than the cook time... but you can gauge it by the corn mixture - it should be warm,  easily stirred, and completely mixed), stuff your peppers. Or, you can do it in more of a deconstructed way (which we did because they're easier to eat this way).

If you want to actually stuff the peppers, I believe she said to put the corn mixture in first, then the rice mixture.

We topped with a little bit of shredded cheese.

This was delicious! I am not always a fan of green bell peppers... but this was really good. It would also be very tasty with a red pepper (and probably the other colors as well -- if I try it, I'll let you know). Great flavor, filling recipe.
















*Sometimes this happens when you try to get picture with a good angle... oops!



**Update**

I have made this recipe again, and decided to meal prep with some of it. I ended up with 9 smaller, but filling servings. I decided to freeze three of the servings, and will roast some more peppers when I thaw them.

I also mixed all of the corn and rice mixture before adding them to the peppers.

For the meal prepping, I added the peppers, first, then put the mixture on top.

French Bread Pizza

I decided to put the Jalapeno Chicken on hold, hoping that a certain friend (you know who you are) will come make and eat it with me... but I do have a couple of other recipes for you! I'll do one today and one tomorrow.

I had the brilliant idea this evening to make french bread pizza, which I've made several times and was sure I'd blogged. When I looked back and found that I had neglected it, I decided that it was finally the time!

This is a quick and simple recipe that can be easily tailored to different tastes. This makes it fantastic (and fun) to make with friends, but also good for just one or two because you only have to make as much as you'll eat. I'll keep the rest of the bread around for a couple of days, and then freeze it for later use. I've found that bread freezes and recovers pretty well - especially when toasted (or baked).

Start to finish (including clean up), this took me about 20 minutes.

First, I should admit that I love the salad bar at my local grocery store... not so much for the salads (they're good too), but for the already chopped, fresh veggies. I use them for stir-fry meals and pretty much any recipe that does not involve using a whole vegetable (bell pepper, broccoli, etc). Today, I even found a few pepperoni in there - which I was wanting, but not wanting to buy an entire package of 100 (or whatever a package of pepperoni contains). This in inexpensive and cuts down on prep time and waste of unused veggies (today's container cost me a whopping $0.75).

Cut your bread into manageable pieces, and then in half lengthwise. I like to cut mine into four pieces, and then make a total of 8.

I wasn't going to put a shot of this until I had it all together and ready (next picture), but in case you are under the false impression that things are neat and clean when I cook/bake, I wanted to set your mind at rest. This was today's oops!

Once all pieces are cut, you'll want to prepare each piece with as much sauce, cheese, and additional toppings as you like - this is where it's fun to let other people prepare their own. Also, I prepped these on the cutting board and then moved them to the pan for less mess. I also like to put foil down most of the time to help with cleanup... it's so much easier to throw away foil than to scrape off baked on cheese and sauce and toppings...

Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 20-25 minutes (I got that from somewhere on the internet... I actually baked mine for about 18 minutes, and it was fine. If you're making the whole loaf, you'd probably need the full time).

Plate and enjoy! I like to top mine with a little Parmesan Cheese and Red Pepper Flakes. And, I just like this picture. It turned out so much nicer than the others!

The Quick List

Hello Friends,

Just a quick note about the Quick List. I've been a bit busy this month and haven't added much lately, or updated the Quick List as I'd planned to. However, I started a page {tab at the top} which will eventually contain my full quick list, with links to some of the things I've blogged, which are referenced on the list. Use it as you'd like.

French Toast

Last night, I decided to make french toast for dinner (I was feeling the breakfast theme), so I thought I'd throw that out there here - even though I'm sure that most people are very clear on how to make french toast. Once upon a time, I was not so clear on how simple it can be, so I'll share for those out there who forgot about or don't know quite how to make french toast. Beware that this is something I do not actually make with a recipe...

Basic Ingredients
bread {the fatter and drier the better... mine was neither fat nor dry, so I let it sit out for a few minutes before I started}
eggs {I usually do about 2 eggs for every 3 pieces of bread}

Optional Ingredients
cinnamon {I add it to the eggs}
toppings {peanut butter or butter, syrup, powdered sugar, fruit, etc}

Instructions
*Heat a skillet or pancake griddle.
*Scramble the eggs in a bowl.
*Add cinnamon {if you like it - I did a few dashes}.
*Cover both sides of bread pieces in egg.

*Cook on a hot griddle {just like you would pancakes}

*Flip, cook, serve, add toppings, enjoy!

The Quick List {part 1}

Ok, blog friends. I think I'm back. I hope that I haven't lost you forever! But I totally get how it's hard to keep up with a blog that doesn't keep moving. I'm hoping to post a couple of new recipes this week, but to get started, I thought it might be nice to introduce you to my "quick list."

Said list is the way I survive most of the time as a single lady. I can't possibly keep up with cooking a 20-ingredient meal every day. I like to spend a little more time on those when someone else is going to help me eat it! Shortly after beginning to live on my own, I realized that I was not eating healthfully, and my body was rebelling against me for it. I was eating frozen dinners and pizzas and eat out, and.. yeah. It wasn't pretty. But I also couldn't seem to get myself to cook using my cookbooks every night. And besides the fact that I am in one of the most exhausting fields of work, most cookbooks I owned left me with way too much left over (and you can only eat left over lemon chicken so many days in a row...).

So, I came up with a "quick list" of foods that I could make and eat in almost the same amount of time and energy I was using before, but in a much more healthful way. So, for today, here are some of my most-used stand-by meals. They should be fairly quick and painless to get ready and clean up (I have also found that no matter how tired I am, it's always to clean up right away - not the next day... or the next).

Spaghetti (I always keep boxed spaghetti, "canned" spaghetti sauce (jars, really), and yummy frozen meatballs around)

Prep Time: as long as it takes the water to boil and the noodles to cook.

{I heat the sauce up in a small pan while the noodles are cooking, and throw the meatballs (precooked) in the microwave for a couple of minutes and then just add them to the sauce.} 
Best Part: you can have as much left over as you want. None? One? Two? 
Worst Part: spaghetti sauce on your shirt.

Tacos (I always keep a can of refried beans, frozen ground turkey, taco seasoning, shredded cheese, and chips/taco shells around)

Prep Time: about 20 minutes

{I heat the refried beans in a small pan on low while the meat cooks. Once the meat is done, you can fix it up any way you want, with whatever you want or have in the house. I always make small containers of left overs, one in the fridge and then one or two in the freezer - the meat and beans freeze and reheat very well.} 
Best Part: this is something that is good in a minimalist sort of way (if you don't happen to have everything you usually want), but can be embellished with whatever you do happen to have - avocado, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, etc.)
Worst Part: you have to remember to thaw the meat - this is not the best for a last-minute option just because a frozen thing of turkey (or beef) is as solid as a rock and takes about a day to defrost in the fridge - you can defrost it with water or the microwave, but it takes a while and doesn't seem to turn out as well to me.

Stir Fry (I always keep quick-cooking rice around)

Prep Time: about 15-20 minutes

{The easiest way to make a quick and tasty stir fry is to hit up the salad bar at a grocery store. They always have fresh, pre-cut produce, of which you can choose what you like in your stir fry and how much you'd like. It is also not as expensive (time or money wise) as buying a whole pepper or two, broccoli, etc., cutting it up and wasting half of it. Start the rice, steam the veggies (I use water, but you could use a little oil), add meat if you want (frozen, precooked shrimp does pretty well), and by the time your veggies are ready, your rice is ready as well. I like to use a stir fry sauce at the end to add a little extra flavor} 
Best Part: it's asian food. I love asian food. Does anything else need to be said?
Worst Part: no left overs - it doesn't reheat well (I don't like reheated stir fry... the meat always seems dry and the veggies soggy - but you can decide that for yourself)

This became much longer than I had anticipated, so I'm going to stop now. I'll write more later. Today, you got a VERY short "quick list" ... maybe next time I'll just actually give you a list! ;)
Happy cooking!