Brussels Sprouts with Apples, Onions and Bacon

I was all set to tell you about my new favorite dessert today – a dessert that is fast, easy, and perfect for a weeknight treat.  So why, I’m sure you are asking, am I telling you about Brussels sprouts?  Because I made this recipe for Brussels Sprouts with Apples, Onions, and Bacon last night, and it rocked my world.  So much so that it jumped right to the head of the line.  You’re just going to have to trust me on this one.  (And trust that the dessert recipe won’t remain a mystery for long.)

But I digress.  Back to my new favorite veggie recipe… It all starts with a little bacon – just enough to make the whole dish smoky and incredible tasting.  Diced granny smith apples and red onion come next, cooked in the bacon drippings until they are softened and sweet.  Finally, shredded Brussels sprouts are mixed in, along with some great flavor from apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard.  All in all, the combination of flavors and textures is, as I said, kind of world-rocking.  At least for a vegetable recipe. 

Edamame Succotash

I know I’ve been giving you a lot of vegetable recipes lately.  I’m sure you’re wondering where the sugar and bread and meat have gone.  Or maybe where you live it’s also 123 degrees every day, and you can’t think much past lighter, veg-heavy dishes either – especially if they’re jazzed up with the good stuff.  Lately we’ve had vegetables with goat cheese, vegetables with Pecorino and almonds, and most recently, we’ve had vegetables with bacon.  You can handle another veggie recipe if it contains bacon, right?

I hope so, because today’s recipe for Edamame Succotash is a good one.  Succotash is a dish traditionally made with corn and lima beans, and sometimes tomatoes and bell peppers.  This recipe swaps out the usual lima beans for edamame – the bright green soybeans you eat straight from the pod at Japanese restaurants. 

This dish is quick-cooking, easy to make, and packed with great flavor and texture.  Fresh corn from the cob, juicy tomatoes, crunchy red bell pepper, sweet Vidalia onion, and those bright green soybeans come together in a colorful and delicious combination.  The crisp bacon and fresh basil added at the end take the succotash from ordinary to something pretty darn delicious.

Succotash is a great summer side that works well at barbecues and picnics since it doesn’t contain any mayo or dairy.   And, since edamame packs a big protein punch, you could also serve the succotash as a light entrée, with some great bread alongside.  However you serve it, I think you’ll like it.  I mean, c’mon, there’s bacon in there!

Ancho-Chipotle Turkey Chili

Lately, a lot of you have told me about your desire for some healthier recipes.  Whether it’s upcoming spring break vacations or a desire to refuel those New Year’s resolutions, a lot of you are thinking thinner. And so I have a confession to make.  A few weeks ago I made the decision to get healthier myself. I’m eating less and working out more.  I feel good, and I know I’m going to continue feeling even better.

I’ve held off on telling you guys about this for a couple of reasons.  First, I don’t want to scare any of you away.  I know some of you come here for your butter and sugar fix, and I don’t want you to fear a shift to all “health food” recipes. To you, I say don’t worry.  That’s just not going to happen.  I have no intention of turning this into a diet blog.  I have lots of guilty pleasures saved up waiting to be posted.

I was also afraid to say anything about my healthy-eating plans because the last time I mentioned going on a diet (way back I don’t even remember when), it lasted all of four days. An opportunity to try an El Salvadoran restaurant did me in. We’re talking lots of cheese.  When I fall off the wagon, I tend to fall hard, and that was the end of that!

Eating healthier doesn’t have to mean eating tasteless, boring food. I love the challenge of taking typically less-than-healthy dishes and turning them into guilt-free options I can enjoy without feeling like I’m giving anything up. Take today’s recipe for example. Chili is not always the best choice for cutting back. This one, however, is pretty darn healthy, and it is ridiculously tasty. The recipe uses ground turkey breast, which is virtually fat free, and kicks up the flavor with garlic and onions and lots of spices. There is a fantastic smoky taste from the chiles and a very small amount of bacon. Plus, I enjoyed how this chili is so different from the tomato-laden, bean-filled chili recipes I typically make. If this is what diet food tastes like, sign me up!

Beef Carbonnade

When the in-laws come to visit, it’s time to bust out the big guns. Of course we’re talking culinary guns here. No need for the real thing. Especially if you have in-laws you like, which I hope you do. And whether or not you are lucky enough to like your in-laws, or co-workers, or random visiting dignitaries, when you have important people coming to dinner, the pressure is on.

A few weeks back, my in-laws came to visit. (If you’ll recall, they were witness to the skin-frying, too-hot-to-handle incident.) While I knew they wouldn’t care one bit what I served for dinner, they know I cook all the time, so I felt a little bit of pressure to deliver the goods. Show them I’m a good wifey and all. I went back and forth for at least a week before they arrived. Chicken or beef? Make ahead or made to order? Eventually I settled on Beef Carbonnade.

Beef Carbonnade is a classic Belgian dish comprised of beef cooked low and slow with beer and onions. As it cooks, the beef becomes meltingly tender. The onions cook down to an almost creamy consistency and give the sauce sweet onion flavor that melds perfectly with the malty essence of the beer. After a couple of hours in the oven, the stew is rich, savory, and utterly delicious. It just begs to be ladled over hot, buttered egg noodles or a pile of fluffy mashed potatoes – something to cradle all of the luscious sauce you will want to lick off your plate. Try not to do that though. Especially if you’re cooking for visiting dignitaries. Or if your mother-in-law doesn’t like you. 

Chipotle Macaroni and Cheese with Bacon

Friends, I am in trouble. Big, calorie-laden, gut-busting trouble. You see, I have learned how to make baked macaroni and cheese in a whole new way. A you don’t have to cook the noodles, you don’t have to make a cheese sauce kind of way. And best of all, it is crazy delicious.

All you need for this miraculous mac and cheese is a blender – and your oven, of course. You take some milk and cottage cheese (weird I know, but trust me), whirl them up in a blender with some seasonings, and pour the mixture over dry pasta. All that’s left to do is stir in some cheese and bake it in the oven. That’s pretty much it.

Before trying this recipe, I’ll admit I was skeptical about how the finished product would turn out. Would the pasta be cooked all the way through? Would it be overcooked and mushy? Would the cheese sauce thicken up the way a proper baked macaroni and cheese sauce should? Yes, no, and yes. I don’t know how it happens, but this process, quick and easy as it is, results in some rockin’ macaroni and cheese.

You can use this basic method to make pretty much any kind of macaroni and cheese you desire. Stick with basic sharp cheddar cheese and standard seasonings for classic mac. Switch up the cheeses and spices for a French or Italian twist. Or try it out this way, with a little garlic and a smoky chipotle kick. The bacon on top is purely optional. I used turkey bacon because real bacon grease kind of freaks me out. All together, the flavor combination is so good I have had to force myself not to make it every week. Try it yourself and see what I mean. You may never make traditional baked macaroni and cheese again.