Stovetop Popcorn

You may wonder why I have popcorn listed on my recipe list. Well frankly I was shocked when I found out that many people have never made popcorn on the stove. Their only experience with popcorn has been microwave crap or several day old movie theatre popcorn (yes it's true, I used to work at one). Anyways season this as you like but make sure to make the kernels crunchy. You can add melted butter and salt for the traditional flavor or caramel/chocolate for a dessert twist.

Ingredients:

• popcorn kernels
• vegetable oil
• salt
• butter

Directions:

• Place a thin layer of oil on the bottom of a pot
• Fill pot with a single layer of kernels
• Cover pot and turn on stove
• Once you hear popping, gently shake kernels around pot several times
• Leave on heat until you hear 2 seconds between pops
• Remove from heat
• Salt and flavor accordingly

Enjoy!

Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce

Spaghetti squash is a great pasta alternative or as a light dinner served with a meat or spicy marinara sauce. The squash has a crunchy texture and a sweet flavor. Combining the sweet flavor with a spicy tomato sauce is a perfect combination. For those that want additional protein/texture, use a ground beef or turkey in the sauce. The squash is easily prepared in the microwave or the oven while the sauce can be made on the stove or crock pot. Or, if you are feeling lazy, just buy a canned sauce.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb spaghetti squash
• 1 15 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 15 oz can whole tomatoes
• Crushed Garlic
• Minced Onion
• Green bell pepper
• Sweet Red peppers
• Red pepper flakes
• Fresh basil
• Sugar
• Ground beef/turkey/Boca crumbles

Directions:

Sauce:

• Sautee peppers and onions on stove, add meat if desired
• Cook until meat is browned and onions carmelized
• Combine tomatoes, spices, sugar, vegetables and meat together
• Cook until sauce starts to darken and thicken

Squash:

• Pierce squash with fork, keep whole and bake or microwave until soft
• Cut squash in half and remove seeds/center
• Flake squash into "strands"

Spoon sauce over top of squash and serve hot.

Enjoy!

Mussels

Mussels are a seafood I am always apprehensive about cooking. They are really easy to cook, just make sure they are cleaned and debearded. Most grocery store mussels have been farm raised so there isn't much to do with debearding, but in the event there is, just give a pull on the stringy fibers that are found in the mussel. Also, I'm not sure how well this works but on the first soak of the mussels I have been told to add flour or cornflower to water and soak for 1 hours to help remove more of the sand. I used red wine because that is all I had, but chicken broth, water, or white wine are great choices as well.

Ingredients:

• 1lb mussels
• 1 cup red or white wine
• cilantro
• dill
• green onion
• garlic
• salt
• pepper

Directions:

• Rinse mussels several times in cool water
• Soak mussels in water/corn flour for 1 hour
• Scrub any other debris off mussels
• Put all ingredients in pot
• Put mussels in pot and steam for 3-5 minutes
• Turn off heat when mussels open
• Discard any closed mussels

Serve over pasta.

Enjoy!

Slow Cooked Pork Ribs

Pork ribs are sooo good. And believe it or not really easy to prepare. The most important step is browning the ribs on both sides first, which gives the ribs a better taste and keeps them cooking at a hotter temperature to begin with. Experiment with whatever sweet and tangy sauces you have in your refrigerator. And...any left overs can be shredded and used for spicy pork tamales!

Ingredients:

• 1.5-2lb pork ribs
• Catalina dressing
• BBQ sauce
• Honey
• Hot Sauce
• Worcestershire sauce
• Garlic
• Onion Powder
• Water

Directions:

• Brown ribs in a cast iron pan
• Heat sauces and water in crock pot
• Coat ribs in sauce
• Cook ribs on high for 2-3 hours
• Bones should easily be removed from meat

Serve and Enjoy!

Sticky Smoked Tofu

This is good for left over tofu and can be eaten alone as a snack, over rice, over salad, in soup or in a wrap. Tofu should be semi drained to start.

Ingredients:

• cornstarch
• firm tofu
• oil
• soy sauce
• worcestershire sauce
• liquid smoke
  
• honey

Directions:

• coat tofu in cornstarch
• fry in oil in a cast iron pan
• flip tofu to brown both sides
• cover with sauces and drizzle with honey
• bake in oven at 375 until sticky and chewy

Enjoy!

Bacon Potato Panzella Frittata

This, just like many of my other recipes, incorporates ingredients I have already at the house. Cooking can be a hassle if you don't have the necessary ingredients. Having to leave your house when you are inspired to cook something to buy several dozen different ingredients can be extremely off putting and ultimately lead you to abandon your cooking efforts. So, like usual, I used what I had and combined several of my "go to" recipes. This is a cross between a quiche, frittata and panzella salad. It't not really considered a strata because nothing is layered in this. The bread gives it a chewy texture while the eggs, tofu and bacon give it a tasty portion of protein.

Ingredients:

• 2 pieces thick cut bacon
• 3 pieces cubed italian bread
• 2 large eggs
• 1 medium red onion
• 1 roma tomato
• 1 cup thinly diced potatoes (I used left over scalloped potatoes)
• 1/2 cup crumbled medium to firm tofu
• Garlic
• Dried Vegetable flakes
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cilantro
• Basil

Directions:

• Brown bacon in frying pan
• Remove bacon and chop into small squares
  
• Save bacon fat and brown chopped onion and potatoes
• Beat eggs and combine with crumbled tofu
• Cube bread and add to onion and potato mixture
• When onions have started to brown mix all ingredients
  
• Add spices
• Grease a spring form pan
• Add ingredients to spring form pan
• Bake at 375 until done

Enjoy!

Jambalya

I love okra but perfer it in a caserole instead of a side dish. Jambayla is perfect because it's spicy, sweet, and the okra adds a nice thick consistency to the sauce. I used frozen okra and corn, diced tomatoes, and some chunky salsa which cuts down on most of the prep time. I boiled the sausage before I fried it and assembled everything in the crockpot.

Ingredients:

• Sausage
• Whole Okra
• Corn
• Scallons
• Diced Tomatoes
• Salsa or Chopped Peppers
• Chicken boullion
• Onion
• Garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Red Pepper Flakes
• Bay Leaf

Directions:

• Boil sausage


• Slice and Fry Sausage


• Put all ingredients in crockpot


• Cook on high for 3-4 hours
  
• Serve over white rice
  

Enjoy!

Portabella Mushrooms

These are great when you don't feel like cooking meat or if you are in a mushroom mood. I started with sauteeing some garlic and adding oil and vinegar along with some herbs. This should be served over rice or pasta.

Ingredients:

• 2 portabella mushrooms or a bunch of baby bellas
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 green onion
• 1 handful of cilantro
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar
• salt

Directions:

• Heat oil in pan
• Peel and chop garlic
• Sautee
• Add diced onion
• Slice mushrooms into strips
• Add additional oil and vinegar
• Add cilantro
• Steam rice while mushrooms are cooking

Serve and enjoy!

Tea Noodles

One of my favorite ways to prepare noodles or rotini is by cooking it in a small amount of liquid and letting the noodles absorb the flavor they are cooked in. The pasta turns out much chewier and starchy because you do not drain the pasta water, because there is none! This recipe uses tea, soy sauce, and liquid smoke, but it works very well with chicken broth or beef broth. The trick is to be constantly stirring the pasta and adding water as necessary.

Ingredients:

• Egg noodles
• Boiling water
• Tea bags
• Soy sauce
• Liquid smoke
• Salt
• Garlic
• Pepper

Directions:
Boil water and tea bags

• Remove tea bags
• Add remaining liquid ingredients
• Add pasta
• Add spices
• Stir constantly making sure pasta does not stick to bottom of pan
• Add additional water if necessary
• Pasta should be taken off heat before completely cooked as it will continue to steam in pan since you do not drain or rinse hot pasta

Enjoy!