Have you ventured back out into actual restaurants? We haven’t done too much of that here in the Norman house…a few times here and there but for the most part we’ve been sticking to cooking. Pinterest and Half Baked Harvest have been giving me all the ideas lately. I wanted to share some of the better ones we’ve tried and made multiple times.
Alfredo Sauce
Stop buying the jar! It’s so simple to make and only with minimal effort. Seriously the most you do is grate some parmesan cheese. Easy peasy. Here’s the recipe I found on Pinterest. Double it if you want your pasta extra saucy. Here’s how we use it:
Brown ground meat of your choice (beef, turkey, venison), drain
Make pasta, when hot, add a bag of frozen broccoli.
Once broccoli is cooked, add in the cooked meat.
Boil pasta, drain, top with sauce.
Serve with a salad and garlic bread and call it Italian night.
Homemade Pizza
I pretty much stick to my Meatless White Pizza recipe except I can’t find that crust anymore. I just buy the refrigerated kind and keep going. Feeling extra ambitious? Make the above alfredo sauce and use it on the pizza. Scrumptious! In the photo, I added caramelized onions and chicken to make it a bit heartier.
Homemade Nachos
This is not a revolutionary recipe, but isn’t it awesome that I can make a sheet pan full of nachos at my own house? They were so delicious that we made them first with ground deer meat and then again with grilled chicken. I preferred the deer meat version. The flavor and texture was better.
Ingredients:
1 lb ground meat
Taco Seasoning
1 can refried beans, warmed
Tortilla chips
Mexican blend cheese
Jalapenos
Preferred toppings: sour cream, salsa, guacamole, etc.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Brown ground meat, drain.
3. Follow taco seasoning packet directions and add to cooked meat.
4. In the meantime, empty one can of refried beans into a saucepan and warm through on med-low heat, stirring occassionaly.
5. Arrange tortilla chips in a single layer on a sheet pan.
6. Top chips with refried beans. This step works best if beans are good and hot because they thin out and won’t be gloopy.
7. Top beans with taco meat.
8. Add jalapenos over meat.
9. Top with cheese.
10. Bake in 350 oven for 10 minutes.
11. Serve immediately and top with your favorite toppings.
Crinkle Top Brownies
Paul’s love language is brownies, so when I saw a fairly simple homemade brownie recipe on Half Baked Harvest, I knew I had to try them. They are ooey and gooey and perfect! I’ve made them several times, and they come out perfect each time. No, it’s not as easy a box mix, but it’s not much harder, and the extra effort is worth it. Get the recipe here.
Mashed Potato Hack
I am going to preface this by saying that I know this hack is not groundbreaking or perhaps even new to most of you reading this, but the day I discovered it is the day my life changed. After boiling my potatoes to make mashed potatoes, I always go after them with a potato masher. Well one day I was in a hurry and used the hand mixer on them. *Mind blown* I’ve never had such creamy mashed potatoes! Are you using a potato masher? Stop it immediately! Use the mixer!! Also, use Yukon Gold potatoes when making your mashed potatoes. And throw in some cream cheese, sour cream, and heavy cream. Oh, and butter! We don’t make them too often, but we love the way they turn out every single time. Here’s my mixer in case you need one.
Okay, I’m hungry now. Off to make the grocery list. Have a great one!
