Cheesy Zucchini Rice

     I saw this recipe on a different blog and I thought to myself, "I can make that better." And so I did.

     If you're wondering what Cheesy Zucchini Rice is, you might not be that quick on the uptake. It's exactly what it sounds like and best of all you can customize this dish to your preference! Originally, this recipe had "shredded zucchini in it, but I prefer a crunch to my vegetables. So this time, we're going to get out the peeler and do our very best to peel a zucchini or two. And it just so happens that I GREW a HUGE zucchini in my very own garden this Summer, BAM!


You will need:

• 1 medium OR 2 small zucchini(s), peeled approximately 2 cups
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cups chicken broth OR 2 cups water and 2 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 cup sharp Cheddar cheese, OR go FANCY and use 1/3 cup Mozzarella, 1/3 cup Parmesan, and 1/3 cup Gruyere
• 1/2 TSP garlic powder
• salt and pepper to your liking
• 1-2 TBSP milk (optional if it comes out too thick)

     Start with the rice first. This whole process should take under 25 minutes. Boil the chicken broth in a small sauce pot and then add the rice. While the rice is cooking, we're going to prep everything else.







 
     Peel your zucchini, and then chop them up into bite-size pieces. Grate the cheese or cheeses of you choosing. This is where you can really customize this dish. It can be totally kid friendly or parent-pleasing. Either way, you will receive rounds of applause for this little jewel!

   
     When the rice is done after about 20 minutes, remove it from heat and quickly add all of the ingredients. All that remains is to stir it up until all of the cheese is melted.

     The heat from the rice actually cooks the zucchini just enough so that it's not raw but still crunchy! This is also an excellent way to sneak some vegetables into your diet without being overwhelmed by all that green. Don't judge me!


     Ok, well - I hope you like Cheesy Zucchini Rice as much as my people and I do. I've had to make it twice this week.

Love,

Liz

Lemon Mustard Pot Roast

Yeah, it's as good as it sounds.

I miss my Nanny. She's THE BEST at comfort foods. American Cop Suey, Shepherd's Pie, mashed potatoes with beef strips cooked in gravy, mmmmmmmmmm, and pot roast, she made it all! So when I miss her I cook.

You will need:

• 2-3 yellow potatoes
• 2-3 carrots
• 2-3 celery stalks
• 1 onion
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• salt
• pepper
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2-3 TBSP Dijon mustard
• beef roast (chuck, del monico, sirloin)

First preheat your oven to 350. Cut up your potatoes, carrots, onion, and celery stalks into quarters. Salt and pepper roast, then slather on the mustard with a knife (definitely avoid double dipping out of the mustard jar). Place the roast in a deep baking dish with a lid and surround with vegetables. Pour in water, then salt and pepper. Cut 2 slices of lemon and place them on the roast. Plop in the bouillon cube, slap on the lid, and slam that roast in the oven.

Cook 15- 20 minutes per pound and voila! It's great out of the oven and as leftovers. There's nothing quite like a pot roast sandwich with a little butter.

Love,

Liz

Turkey Wings and Stuffin': Home-Style Y'all!

I guess I got a little anxious for Thanksgiving and could NOT keep away from this recipe.

I found these Vigo Bread Crumbs with Romano cheese and couldn't wait to use them. Fortunately, I had a couple of turkey wings already thawed in the fridge. I recently realized that having turkey parts ample and ready int he grocery store isn't a nationwide phenomenon. Sorry, not my fault. Maybe it's YOUR responsibility to keep a turkey on-hand in case of any odd recipe.

For the turkey wings you'll need:

• butter
• 2 turkey wings
• salt
• pepper
• Romano cheese bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 400.
Wash off the wings, salt and pepper them on both sides.
Then pour about 1 1/2 cups of bread crumbs into a large plastic bag, like a big Ziploc or  grocery bag (with no holes, mind you).
Place the wings into the bag, seal, and shake it up!
Once the wings are coated in bread crumbs place them on a baking sheet covered in foil. If need be, add more bread crumbs and keep shaking.
Put about 2 pads of butter on each wings, and pop it in the oven until the skin is golden brown, about 30-45 minutes.
Now, flip over the wings so that the underside gets crispy, too, about another 20-35 minutes.

For the stuffing you need:

• butter
• celery
• onion
• box of Stove Top (can also be substituted for any kind of prepackaged stuffing)
  

Dice up the onion and celery.
In a large skillet, heat up a big pad of butter to saute the onion and celery in.
Once the vegetables are tender, add the Stove Top  and then pretty much follow the recipe on the box from there (add some water and butter, simmer for 10 minutes, fluff with a fork and let stand for 5 minutes, if I'm not mistaken).

Scrumpty.
For all you baby birds what just left the nest, take comfort in some quick home cooking, that is, until you go home for some REAL Mommy food. And I should know, my Mommy just flew down here to make me a chicken AND a roast beef for a belated Thanksgiving. Oops! I'm spoiled, my bad.

Love,

Liz

Lemon Garlic Lamb Chops

I never cooked with lamb until tonight and OH MY, GOD. These are so freaking fantastic. And easy AND cheap which is also important.

Ok, so, I got these three pretty good sized lamb chops for about $5, and the ears of corn were 3 for $1, and the Rice-A-Roni was something like $2-3. So that's a $7-8 meal with leftovers because there's no way you can finish all that Rice-A-Roni in one sitting by yourself.

Now for the recipe!

You Will Need:

• lamb chops
• garlic powder
• lemon pepper
• salt
• black pepper
• olive oil
• a lemon
  

Just take the lamb chops out of the packaging and plop 'em down on a cutting board. Cover each side with an even spread of garlic powder, lemon pepper, black pepper, and salt.

While you're seasoning the chops, get out a frying pan and pour some extra virgin olive oil in the bottom of the pan. I didn't measure anything in this recipe since I was flying by the seat of my pants, but I'd say about 3-4 TBSP of olive oil will do it. Set the heat on medium or medium-high.

Now, take your lemon and roll it around on the counter with the palm of your hand. Press kind of firmly. This with smoosh the lemon and make it more juicy. Cut it in half and squeeze it into the oil.

When the oil is hot, gently place the lamb chops into the frying pan. If you just plop them in there, the hot oil my fly up and burn you. I had to learn that the hard way and now I have a scar on my chin!
In this photo, they're not fully cooked, for me anyway. I don't really like my meat to be bloody. The time it takes to cook really depends on how rare you like your meat:


Rare: 3-4 minutes on each side
Medium-Rare: 5-6 minutes on each side
Medium: 7-8 minutes on each side
Well Done: 9-10 minutes on each side


Mmm, yummy. I ate one of the lamb chops while I was waiting for the corn and rice to cook. But, so, yeah, this was a very filling meal, my friends. And it was soooo good! I was actually startled at how good it came out so I hope you'll like this recipe, too.


Oh, by the way, to boil corn: boil the water first, duh, then corn. Boil for 3-4 minutes. Smother with butter and salt because that's the way it's done. Scrumpty!

Love,

Liz