Teriyaki Meatballs and Rice

Last night I posted this picture on Instagram:

And a few of y'all asked for the recipe so of course I will oblige.  I got the recipe from the blog Budget Bytes and followed it exactly (except I used brown rice in lieu of jasmine).  It was super easy and tastes amazing!  I think next time I'm going to use ground turkey to make it a bit healthier.  I've actually used a few of the recipes from Budget Bytes and they have all been wonderful!

I served it with some sugar snap peas on the side, which was the perfect compliment to the dish.  You could also do some roasted green beans, which would be uh-mazing.  Have y'all tried any good recipes lately?  What is your go-to quick weeknight meal?

Recipe: Sausage Stars

Not only are these sausage stars easy, they are insanely addicting! I had blogged about them before (a long, long time ago), but thought they were worth another blog post.  Yes, they are that good.  Yes, you will gain 5 lbs. from eating an entire pan of them.  And yes, you can thank me (or yell at me) later  :)

Sausage Stars

Ingredients:

1 pound sausage, cooked and crumbled
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese (do not use pre-shredded)
1 1/2 cups grated Monterrey jack cheese (do not use pre-shredded)
1 cup prepared ranch dressing mix (make sure to use the dry ranch packet)
1 can (2.25 oz) sliced olives
1/2 cup chopped red pepper
1 package fresh or frozen won ton wrappers
Vegetable oil

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

After cooking the sausage, blot it dry with a paper towel.  In a large bowl, combine sausage with cheeses, prepared ranch dressing, olives and red peppers.  Set aside.

Lightly grease a mini or regular muffin tin and press one won ton wrapper in each cup.  Brush won ton wrappers lightly with vegetable oil.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Remove from oven.

Fill won ton wrappers with sausage mixture.  Bake 5 minutes or until bubbly.  Makes 4 to 5 dozen.

Bon appetit!

Apple Brie Panini Recipe

I'm just going to go ahead and let you in on a little secret.  This sandwich is life changing.  Really.  This sandwich will make you a better person.  More in tune with God.  With yourself.  With others.  So, I don't think it comes as any shock that I'm going to need you to make this sandwich.  Amen.

Really, though, this sandwich was so simple.  Just 5 ingredients (6 if you count sea salt, but let's not get all technical here).  I found the initial recipe here and just adapted it to my own taste a bit.  So, on with the recipe....

Apple Brie Panini

Baguette or Hoagie roll (sourdough would taste great!)

Brie (enough to cover one layer on the sandwich, 2 - 3 oz.), cut in slices

1 granny smith apple, cut in slices

handful of arugula

2 tablespoons of honey (I suggest clover or orange blossom honey)

sprinkle of coarse sea salt

Take your baguette or hoagie and slice it in half (long ways).  Spread the inside of both sides of the bread with honey.  On the bottom bread slice, place the sliced brie and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.  Then, add a layer of the sliced apples, top with arugula and add more honey to your taste. Place the top bread slice on top.  Grill on a panini press or George Forman grill, making sure to grease it first.  Grill 3 - 6 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bread is crispy.  Bon appetit!

Note: You can also try it without grilling.  It's delicious, too!  But that melty brie cheese just seems to warm the soul :)

Vegetable Gratin Recipe

Last week I had a ton of vegetables leftover from meals earlier in the week.  Instead of doing my normal 'saute them in a pan with olive oil', I decided to make a vegetable gratin.  They're pretty simple and would use the rest of my veggies - win, win!  Also, you can use just about any veggies you have on hand - potatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, zucchini, squash, onion, sweet onion, tomatoes...the list goes on and on.

So, let's get down to business!

Vegetable Gratin

1 medium to large size onion, sliced thin
2 - 3 tomatoes, sliced thin
4 - 5 zucchini, sliced thin
4 - 5 yellow squash, sliced thin
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper
handful of fresh thyme


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Grease a 9x13 baking dish and set aside.  After slicing all of your vegetables, take your onion and saute it in a pan with olive oil until they just begin to caramelize.  Place the onion in the greased baking dish - this will be your first layer.

Next, take your squash and layer it on top of the onion making sure to overlap each piece of squash just a bit.  Do the same thing with the zucchini next, and then the tomato.  Add half of the mozzarella cheese, half of the parmesan, dash of salt, dash of pepper and some thyme on top of the tomato.  Drizzle with olive oil.

Continue layering until you have either used up all of your veggies or run out of room.  Top the last layer with the rest of the mozzarella and parmesan, add a dash of salt, dash of pepper and some thyme and drizzle with a bit of olive oil.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until cheese on top is golden.

Enjoy!

*Note: You may need to add an additional few minutes if you decide to add potato as one of the layers.

Summer Corn Salad Recipe

A little over a week ago, a few friends from work and I went to see a local theater put on the musical "Legally Blonde."  Since I've dreamed of my life actually being a musical for as long as I can remember, I figured this would probably be the closest it would come to being a reality.  Before we headed to the show our sweet hostess made a dinner that included an herb crusted salmon, tomato garlic galette, corn salad and for dessert panna cotta.  Jackpot right?  I had already moved my bags in before we even got started on the wine.

My friend's corn salad was so simple and delicious that I decided to make some of my own.  It was a huge hit with the Husband (not to mention, ridiculously easy) and I think I will definitely be making this again!

Ingredients:

5 ears of sweet corn on the cob, shucked
10 oz. cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 of a small red (purple) onion, chopped
1 - 2 handfuls basil, chopped or julienned
5 - 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons lime juice
salt & pepper


Directions:

Cook your ears of corn by bringing a large pot of water to a boil.  Place your already shucked ears of corn in the boiling water and cover.  Bring the the water back up to a boil and boil the corn for about 2 - 4 minutes, depending on how soft you want it.  I like mine a little crispier so I only boil them for 2 minutes.  Once they've boiled, remove them and soak them in an ice bath to stop the cooking.

Take your olive oil, vinegar and lime juice and mix together until well combined.  Set aside.

Cut the corn off the cob and place in a large bowl. Add the halved tomatoes, chopped onion and basil.  Add the olive oil  mixture a bit at a time until it coats the corn mixture.  Season with salt and pepper to your desired taste.  Enjoy!

Sausage & Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls Recipe

This may be the easiest recipe in the entire world.  It may not even be suitable to be deemed a "recipe."  But I am sharing it for the sake of reaching someone out there who may not have tried this deliciousness yet.  And to them I say, "You're welcome."


Ingredients:
2 packages refrigerated crescent rolls
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 lb. of ground breakfast sausage, cooked and drained


Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350º F.
In a medium mixing bowl combine softened cream cheese and cooked (and drained) sausage until well combined.  Set aside.
Unroll your crescents and separate each triangle.  Take your cream cheese and sausage mixture and place approximately 1 - 2 tablespoons in the center of each triangle.  Roll up each one as you would a regular crescent.  Place on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake at 350º F for 10 minutes or until crescents are golden brown.

Enjoy!

My Favorite Salad

Wow!  The past month has been a wee bit crazy!

But more on that later ;)

I wanted to share with you my favorite salad - and what's even greater is that it only has 4 ingredients.

Here is what you will need:

Mixed baby greens

Goat cheese

Dried cranberries

Brianna's Asiago Caesar Dressing

Instructions:

Place mixed greens in a plate or bowl.  Top with goat cheese crumbles and dried cranberries.

Add a little bit of Brianna's dressing on top and you have a wonderful side salad.

You can even add some grilled chicken or shrimp on top to make it a complete meal!

Or pair it with a small tenderloin filet...

Recipe for the steak to come :)

Recipe: Double Cheese & Bacon Egg Biscuit

The second I saw this recipe from Picky Palate I knew I wanted to try it out!

It's the perfect breakfast recipe to have on hand during the week for those

of us who like to grab our breakfast and go in the morning.  Like yours truly ;)

It is such an easy recipe and it's absolutely delicious to boot!

Get the recipe for these Double Cheese & Bacon Egg Biscuits over at Picky Palate!

I will be enjoying mine every morning this week!  Bon appetit!

*Note: I doubled my recipe and reduced the amount of salt.  I also used turkey bacon.

Easy Cheddar & Bacon Drop Biscuits

Okay, this may be the easiest recipe EVER.

It's almost embarrassing how easy it is!

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cup Bisquick

2/3 cup Milk

(10) Pieces of bacon (I used turkey bacon for mine)

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 450 degree F.

Cook your bacon in a pan on the stove according to the package directions.

Remove from pan and let it cool.  Chop the bacon into small pieces

Combine bisquick, milk, chopped bacon and grated cheddar in a medium size

bowl until dough is sticky. Drop by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet.

Bake for 7 - 9 minutes or until tops are golden brown.

(or you could be like me and let them just be brown...wink!)

Bon apetit!

Enjoy!