Grilled Veggie & Goat Cheese Crostini

Summer is here people! I was looking for a light dinner and did not want to even step foot near my stove. I found this recipe on Whole Foods.com and I could not wait to get home and grill my dinner! These are what I would call a fancy open face sandwich and it could not be easier to cook! If you were looking for smaller portions for appetizer just use smaller portions of bread and slice veggies a bit smaller and this will wow your guests!

Less is More: Cacio e Pepe

I am starting to realize sometimes less is more. It is a rare event that I will actually make a recipe that has more than 10 ingredients so when I heard about this recipe from my friend Darci, I was ready to cook it immediately. She ate this when we went to  Eataly in NYC and once I saw ( and tasted) this simple dish I was hooked! I figured what better recipe to follow than Mario Batali's!

Zucchini & Feta Latkes

Hello easy and delicious breakfast,lunch or dinner! I suppose this is what Rachael Ray would call a BLD      ( Breakfast Lunch or Dinner) meal.  A really yummy restaurant in RI ( Crazy Burger !!!) makes amazing zucchini latkes, which they serve at breakfast and they are absolutely delicious! I think you can have these for any meal you want because I ate them for dinner and they were so good! They hit the spot! So whenever you want to cook these up, go for it!We won't judge what time you eat them at.

Portabello Mushroom Parmesan

I am so excited to tell you all about this recipe! I had 2 large portabello mushroom caps in my fridge and I wasn't sure what to do with them. Since I have been on an oven kick lately, I decided to use it again to cook this amazingly easy dinner- Portabello Parmesan.Enjoy chicken or veal parmesan? If you like those classic Italian dishes, you will certainly dig the meaty portabello baked until the panko is crunchy and the mozzarella is stringy and creamy. Hello delicious.

Moroccan Carrot-Chickpea Salad

Ever wanted to be transported to a Moroccan bazaar in ten minutes? Cue in this amazing and quick salad from Rachael Ray. This recipe is so versatile and you can whip it up in ten minutes or less! Can it get any better?

WIAW & Yummy Egg White Veggie Cups

This was a great week in food for me so my WIAW . I cooked some amazing dishes and ate some delicious ( and sometimes unhealthy dishes) out. I also have an yummy and quick breakfast recipe for you.

Breakfast: Kashi Fiber cereal with kiwi and almond milk

Lunch:  Breakfast burritto with cheese, hashbrowns, refried beans etc. It was insane and enormous.


Dinner: on two separate occasions
Caprese salad on Mother's Day with HUGE beefsteak tomatoes.

My second ever encounter with Five Guy's Burgers. I of course got a hot dog with bacon and cheese. They even cut the dog in half to make it extra crispy. MMmm pork on pork!!

Quinoa Mac & Cheese Revisited: Mexican Style

I have done it people! I have managed to make the most popular recipe on my blog....better. I was craving quinoa mac & cheese, but felt like it needed some... how do I put it? Uumph? I scanned my fridge and immediately got uber excited. Why didn't I think of this on Cinco de Mayo? Whatever.

Minty Basil Pesto Pasta

Pesto has officially been lifted to another delicious level. I found yet another moment to break out my food processor to make this delicious sauce. Adding mint to this pesto gives it such a bright, fresh flavor, which is perfect for Spring!  This would actually be a yummy sauce to marinate chicken or shrimp in also. I of course tossed this pesto with the last of our delicious pasta from Seattle.

Tangy Grilled Potato Salad

Carb lovers rejoice! A have found yet another potato salad recipe that is simple to prepare, but is different than your usual run of the mill potato salad. I saw this recipe on the Chew last week and I could not wait to fire up my grill! The grill will give this salad another layer of depth and flavor so try not to skip the grilling if you can. I even got more excited when I went to the market and found purple potatoes! I figured in addition to the potato salad being delicious it would also be beautiful!

Butternut Squash & Goat Cheese Stuffed Shells

First Off... Happy Birthday to the coolest chick I know, Katie!!!

Secondly, say hello my new favorite dish. I don't make stuffed shells very often because I think they are... how do I put it? Boring?  I saw this recipe on the blog Runs with Spatulas and I was intrigued. By stuffing the shells with something that isn't just ricotta cheese ( don't get me wrong, I love cheese) it makes these so much more interesting and delicious.

Cauliflower Nuggets

So I dubbed these cauliflower nuggets because they remind me of chicken nuggets and actually kind of look  and taste like them, but of course they are cauliflower florets. These are the base for baked bang bang cauliflower ( pre-sauce) and I came to the conclusion these are just as delicious and would be a great meal or snack any day!

Garlicky Hasselback Potatoes

So I have been wanting to make hasselback potatoes for awhile and let me tell you, you need to make these immediately. These are like simple baked potatoes, but with an outside that is super crispy and delicious. I took these to another level by adding chopped garlic,olive oil, and truffle salt. These look semi-fancy, but they are actually really simple to make.

Cheesy Veggie & Quinoa Burrittos

As an avid lover of Mexican cuisine in any form I was very excited when I saw this recipe. Since I am constantly on the run, I love those go to meals that I can put together fast, but are home cooked and delicious! Burritos are usually not so healthy. Don't get me wrong, I have had my share of burritos in the past. These burritos are healthier, but are just as tasty!

Recipe Swap: Giada's Roasted Stuffed Tomatoes

It's recipe swap time! Big thanks to Sarah from A Taste of Home Cooking for hosting the swap! This week's theme is recipes from celebrity chef's recipes. Well, let's just say it was quite easy to compile a list of recipes from celebrity chefs. I have about two million cookbooks from the likes of Mario Batali, Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay and even the Top Chef Cookbook! I always love watching  Giada De Laurentiis because she makes cooking look effortless and well she started off on Everyday Italian and I am about as Italian as they come. Part of me is jealous because of how beautiful ( and skinny) she is and she eats so much of her food. Oh well, I won't complain.

Power Up!!! Quinoa Salad

First off: A Big Happy 27th Birthday to my best friend Brittany!!

On to food. I cannot tell you how many times I eat some form of quinoa salad during the week. Since I go to school two nights a week I need to bring my dinner to class. God forbid I make myself a sandwich! I think this recipe is a winner. I call this Salad Power Up because it has all of the components of a healthy meal you need: Protein, Fiber, Veggies. I mean does it get any better?

Creamy Mushroom Linguini

Another purchase from Seattle paying it forward today. While at Pike Place Market, we bought about $20 worth of pasta from Papardelle's. I fell in love with porcini linguini a few years ago when I bought it there. On this trip I could not wait to buy more to take home to cook.

Caprese Calzone

Calzones are like these little pockets of love that some awesome Italian invented. Every culture has some version of a pocket of goodness. Samosas, meat hand pies, crepes(kind of?.) Whatever. Either way, I love calzones. This one came on a whim when I had leftover pizza dough and some veggies. I thought I had spinach so I was going to make a greek-zone after our friend Harold's favorite calzone at Mew's Tavern ( a favorite local watering hole.) Cute to my panic when I had no spinach. No worries. I had basil, mozzarella and tomatoes. Done. Caprese calzone.

Baked Bang Bang Cauliflower

I have literally never been so excited to write a blog post in my life! A few months ago I attempted baked bang bang shrimp, which I was so excited about because I baked the shrimp instead of frying. Well people, let me tell you- I have outdone myself! I found a recipe on the blog That's So Michelle and I could not have been any more excited to make a dish for this blog! I had some cauliflower florets left over so I thought this would be a great way to use it.

Goat Cheese & Potato Pizza

I am going to dub this pizza the carb-o-licious pizza. Not only are you eating a carbohydrate filled crust, you get to eat potatoes on top also! Hooray! I decided to add extra deliciousness to the pizza by adding goat cheese. I grew up eating a similar recipe of potato pizza that my mom would make. I love white pizza. Sometimes you just don't need sauce!

Falafel Burgers

Hello stack of fiber loving goodness

I would call it a goal of mine to make as many tasty variations of veggie burgers that I possibly can!Cue in Rachael Ray and her millions of burger recipes. I like veggie burgers because they are packed with fiber and protein and are way cheaper than making meat burgers. There are so many variations that you can make and change depending on what you have on hand. That is the best part! Let the creative juices flow!