For a Crowd: Redneck Caviar

Who doesn’t love chips and dip? I mean seriously, I think chips and dip are like the best snack, appetizer, maybe even meal of all time…However, for outside events in the summer creating a perfect dip can be a little challenging due to the frequent usage of mayonnaise, cream cheese or sour cream in the recipes. Yesterday for tennis I made what I like to call Redneck Caviar. It was a huge hit and it is always a great choice for outside events because there is no refrigeration necessary, and OMG it couldn’t be any easier.

Redneck Caviar
2 cans Original Rotel
1 can Crisp Summer Corn, drained
1 can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
½ medium red onion, diced
1 Cup Zesty Italian Dressing (typically - about half a bottle)

Mix all ingredients together. Enjoy with tortilla chips!

See I told you it was totally easy. You can “dress it up” with some chopped cilantro or parsley, but there is so much flavor you really don’t need it. If you aren't crazy about black beans, you can use blackeyed peas instead, also delicious!  This can be kept in the refrigerator for like a week and the longer it sits the better. It is one of those recipes where the leftovers are better than the original. I like to make mine at least an hour before it is going to be served so all the flavors can mix, and for some reason I think the Tostitos Scoops are the best chips for it but that is probably all in my head.  I just think you get a much better salsa to chip ratio...

Not your Momma's Grilled Cheese

It’s the simple things in life…we have all heard this time and time again, and usually it is true. Last night a simple southern staple, pimento cheese, was the thing and boy was it delicious! Pimento cheese always makes a great sandwich, but I took it to the next level by adding bacon and toasting it grilled cheese style …I can’t even begin to explain how or why it was so good, but I will give you the recipe so you can become a believer!

For 2: Mini Turkey Meatloaves with Gravy

These individual meatloaves are one of my most favorite meals of all time! Like most good southerners I love meatloaf and like most twenty-somethings I take nutritional content and calories into consideration. The mushrooms and sage bring great flavor and the pan gravy adds that nostalgic touch, but since they are made with turkey instead of beef they are more figure friendly. The average package size for ground turkey is 1.3 lbs, so just half that and you will have the perfect amount for 2 people. My grocery store sells a package of “gourmet mushrooms” including shitake, oyster and cremini which is perfect, but if you can’t find something like that just use any combination of mushrooms, whatever you like and it will work. I know that it sort of stinks this recipe calls for half an egg, but a whole one is just too much. I usually break an egg into a small bowl, whisk it and reserve half in a small Tupperware to combine with another egg for breakfast the next day.  For sides I quickly steamed some green beans and made a box of scalloped potatoes (I know you might be gasping right now, but busy weeknights call for short cuts).  The combo of something green, a starch and a lean meat was the perfect week night meal!

Leftovers: Chorizo and Egg Empanadas and Egg and Spinach Quesdillas

Sunday morning was a little bonkers at my place and so was breakfast. So, that lead to 2 “Mexican Breakfast” offerings…The quesadilla was the same as the Egg and Spinach Burrito, but after scrambling the eggs and spinach I put them on a tortilla in a skillet added some cheddar cheese and cooked for 3 minutes on each side until the tortilla was crispy. (all the spinach is gone now, so you won’t see that for a while). The empanadas turned out better than expected. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Leftovers: Egg and Spinach Burrito

Yumm…breakfast. This morning I decided I wanted a little more than my normal cereal bar weekday breakfast. In the fridge, I had eggs, a tortilla and some left over Creamy Mozzarella Spinach – instant breakfast burrito. I scrambled 2 eggs and stirred in the spinach right before they were done; placed the scramble in a tortilla burrito style, wrapped it up in aluminum foil, threw it in my purse and had a delicious healthy breakfast at my desk. It only took like 6 minutes to throw this together and it was so worth it! It was so easy because the spinach was already seasoned and included cheese so it was really like 3 ingredients.  Simple and delicious - perfect for the "most important meal of the day!"

For 2: Horseradish Pork Loin and Creamy Mozzarella Spinach

As I have said before I love pork tenderloins for so many reasons, one of them being they hold up to freezing so well. Monday I pulled 2 small loins from the freezer to defrost and marinate for dinner Tuesday. These 2 loins were taken from a very large one that I bought on sale and then cut into small portions and froze individually; this method saves money and cuts down on defrost time. I loved the kick of the horseradish marinade paired with the creamy spinach and mashed potatoes, and since the pork and the spinch were homemade I didn’t feel bad using store bought mashed potatoes. Short cuts are our friend, especially for week night dinners!

For a Crowd: BBQ Chicken, Mac and Cheese with BACON and Grilled PTR Salad

This year I celebrated Memorial Day with good friends, had a blast at the lake, and ate delicious food off the grill all weekend long. I made dinner Sunday night and as I was planning the menu I thought, “What would Memorial Day be without BBQ Chicken and Mac and Cheese?” I stuck with these basics, added a salad, and took it to the next level with a few ingredient changes: balsamic vinegar in the BBQ sauce, bacon in the mac and cheese, and grilled romaine for the salad.