• Smoked Turkey

    Turkey Day (aka Thanksgiving) will be here before we know it (like next week) and it is time we talk smoked turkey!   let’s talk SMOKED TURKEY I know most of us will roast or fry our Thanksgiving turkeys but this Smoked Turkey is the only way my family does it now.  My brother and his Father-in-Law have perfected this recipe and it is just amazing!! To be safe you want to have between 3/4 – 1 pound per person (or more for leftovers).  Also make sure you give it enough time to thaw, We thaw our turkey in an ice water bath in a cooler (still in the plastic wrapping)…

  • Veggie Enchilada Stack

    It is a Veggie Enchilada Stack kinda night.  Veggies, chicken, beans, cheese and tortillas sound like a must make dinner. It’s all about the veggies… The beauty of this recipe is you can use whatever veggies you have on hand (or whatever ones your family will eat).  This time around I stuck with squash, zucchini and peppers.  Next time I am going to throw in some eggplant and possibly mushrooms for even more heartiness.   One of the secrets of this dish is to season every layer, including the veggies.  I kept it simple with just some salt, pepper and chili powder but made sure there was enough to make…

  • Air Fryer Veggies

    I am obsessed with my Air Fryer.  I know I am kinda late to the game but I am 100% on board now and love trying new recipes … but one of my go to ones I make every week are these Air Fryer Veggies. Let’s talk veggies… One of my favorite parts of going to the grocery store is walking through the produce area and finding what veggies I am going to cook for the week.  Almost every Sunday I roast, or now air fry, a large batch of veggies and use them in salads all week long or as quick fix sides for dinner. This last week as…

  • Skillet Salsa Chicken

    Ready for a quick and easy dinner everyone is sure to love?  This Skillet Salsa Chicken is a super quick dinner perfect for even the busiest of nights (like tonight). It all starts with the skillet… Like I mentioned above this Skillet Salsa Chicken is the perfect quick fix dinner.  It starts with browning the chicken, then adding in the salsa, then roasting it for a little bit and then topping with cheese and voila you are done.  Quick & easy!! The key to this dish is getting your skillet hot in the beginning so the chicken gets a great sear on it, this help build the flavor and keep…

  • Reuben Grilled Cheese

    Are you a reuben fan? Are you a fan of grilled cheese.  I love them… they can be simple… some with meat, some with multiple types of cheese, thick bread, thin bread, fancy bread.  However…I just love grilled cheese. Closed or Open? There is a great delicatessen here is Houston call Kenny & Ziggy’s.  This is the first place I ever experienced The Rueban.  I am almost embarrassed to admit this but it was about 12 years ago that I fell in love with this amazing sandwich.   It all started with a shopping trip to the Galleria with my brother for my sis-in-love.  Afterwards we went to Kenny &…

  • Teriyaki Salmon

    Teriyaki Salmon will turn anyone into a salmon lover in no time.  Perfectly cooked salmon covered in a delicious homemade teriyaki sauce that comes together in NO TIME!   Ain’t your momma’s salmon Growing up the closest we got to salmon was the canned version made into croquette patties.  As much as I loved those croquettes as I grew up I started to appreciate just how good fresh salmon really could be.  There are so many options from grilling to roasting to pan searing. For some fun recipes, check out this Grilled Salmon or this Chili Rubbed Salmon for a little extra kick.  I will say though this Teriyaki version is quickly…

  • Queso Burger

    I am all about a yummy burger and this Queso Burger is everything! It all starts with the queso What makes this burger super special is the combo of your favorite mexican inspired yummies and a traditional burger.  the star for me is the Queso.  Growing up in Texas I have been blessed with amazing Mexican/Tex Mex food my whole life.  One of the staples of tex max is queso, aka cheese dip.  After many attempts I have found one that I love and I can make at home in no time. This queso blanco is so good and perfect on this burger or at your next party! Now let’s…

  • Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas

    Black Eyed Peas are a must every New Years Day & this should be your go to recipe.  This year I decided to try a new recipe & let me tell you it is so, so good and all made in the Instant Pot. Black Eyed Pea tradition… Every year my parents would make black eyed peas for New Years Day with cornbread, this is my favorite cornbread recipe.  My mom would always use the leftover ham from Christmas which made the black eyed peas AMAZING!  For this recipe I used ham and smoked sausage.  I mean why not make them even better. What is your New Year’s Day tradition?…

  • Roasted Rib Roast

    My brother blew it out of the park this past Christmas with the Roasted Rib Roast… trust me you need to make this ASAP! It all starts with the seasoning Having a good crust on a prime rib is everything and this recipe gives you a great crust but with just a few ingredients.  To make the rub it is just Montreal Steak Seasoning and some extra pepper and that’s all.  Seriously, it is all we use and just look at that crust! If you do not have Montreal steak seasoning you can use any all purpose seasoning you have, I highly recommend a course seasoning though for a pretty…

  • Beer Braised Short Ribs

    Short ribs = comfort food for me and when it is cool outside ALL I want is comfort food.  Plus the calories don’t count in December… right? Let’s prep… The key to this dish is building flavors upon flavors.   It starts with browning the short ribs, then the veggies & herbs and then the braising liquid and then the gravy.   It starts with the ribs.  For this dish I used boneless as that it what looked the best at the butcher.  They were about 3-4 inches long, and about 1 – 1 1/2 inches thick.  If you wanted to use bone in you can, just may need to…