This is one of the best Asian Shrimp dishes I have made in awhile. Szechuan shrimp may indeed even be better than my Szechuan chicken recipe! A few Chinese shrimp recipes I have tried have been rather disappointing but this was really a hit. Best of all, it calls for precooked shrimp so there is little to no work needed. All I had to do was remove the tails. This is a fantastic combination of sweet and spicy. I found the red pepper flakes gave it just the right amount of heat. You can adjust the spiciness of the dish by adding more of less red pepper flakes. It also uses classic Asian flavors like soy sauce, garlic and ginger. This is a very simple and very quick dish to prepare, perfect if you don’t have a lot of time. You could have this on the table in about 20 minutes. And best of all, there is no deep frying involved! Serve with white rice. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
12 ounces cooked large shrimp (with tails removed)
4 tablespoons water
2 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon honey
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
¼ cup green onions (sliced)
4 garlic cloves (minced)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a small bowl mix together water, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, honey, crushed red pepper flakes and ginger.
Step 2: Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add green onions and garlic. Stir fry for 30 seconds. Add shrimp and toss to coat with oil. Pour in sauce. Heat while sitting until sauce is thick and bubbly.
(Makes 2 servings)

Another great appetizer to go with your hamburgers or sandwiches is onion rings. Onion rings are sliced onions coated with a batter and fried. They can be found at nearly any restaurant or frozen in grocery stores. Of course these are way better than any frozen ones you will find. Some recipes use beer batter and things like that but I just prefer a crispy coat of breadcrumbs. A great idea to get a solid crispy texture is to use panko bread crumbs. Unfortunately I didn’t have any on hand but I wish I did! These onion rings are very easy to make and you will be enjoying them in no time at all. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 large onion (cut into ¼” thick slices)
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup milk
¾ cup dry breadcrumbs
seasoning salt (to taste)
Oil (for frying)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Heat oil in a deep fryer to 365 degrees. Separate onion slices into rings. In a large bowl stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Dip the onion ring slices into the flour mixture until they are well coated. Set aside.
Step 2: Whisk the eggs and milk into the flour mixture until a batter has formed. Dip the floured onion rings in the batter to coat. Place the coated onion rings on a wire rack until the batter stops dripping. You can place a sheet of aluminum foil under the wire rack to catch the drips. Pour the breadcrumbs into a shallow bowl or plate. Coat the onion rings with the bread crumbs until coated thoroughly.
Step 3: Deep fry onion rings in batches for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Season with seasoning salt.
(Makes 3 servings)

A delicious side dish for summer is potato salad. I have tried a few different potato salad recipes and found this one to be really good. I feel it is important to use red potatoes because they seem to have a better texture. It is also important not to overcook the potatoes because you don’t want them too soft either. What I really liked about this recipe is that it calls for 1 pound of crispy bacon. The bacon is a really nice addition and only adds to the amazing taste and texture of this salad. If you are not sure how to get your bacon crispy or how to perfectly hard boil eggs, you can read my tutorials on this blog. Unlike a lot of potato salad recipes, this recipe does not call for Dijon mustard but if you would like to add a little bit, go for it. This is the perfect side dish to go with your grilled chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, ect. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
2 pounds raw red potatoes (washed)
6 eggs
1 pound bacon
1 onion (finely chopped)
1 celery stalk (finely chopped)
2 cups mayonnaise
salt and pepper (to taste)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the red potatoes and cook until their tender but still firm (about 15 minutes). Drain potatoes and allow to cool in the refrigerator.
Step 2: Place eggs in a sauce pan, add water until the eggs are covered. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Cover and let eggs sit for 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat and plunge eggs into cold water. When eggs are cooled peel the shells off and chop.
Step 3: Cook bacon until crisp by your method of choice.  Place on paper towels to drain, cool and crumble it into bits.
Step 4: Chop the cooled potatoes, leaving the skin on. Place chopped potatoes in a large bowl. Add eggs, bacon, onion and celery. Add mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Mix well and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.
(Makes  10 servings)

French fries are popular in many countries and go by a bunch of different names. These are cut more like what you would consider potato wedges. I have tried a few different French fry recipes and have been fairly disappointed with each. Even though I wouldn’t consider this recipe the perfect French fry recipe… it’s still one of the better recipes I have tried. I feel what made the difference was the chili powder; it gave the fries a great flavor. This recipe doesn’t use any type of batter but only oil and various seasonings. These will go great with sandwiches or burgers. It is very important to turn the fries over half way through or they will burn. I have made the mistake of not turning them over before. These fries are baked in the oven and not deep fried. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
 1 large potato
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon salt

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to  400 degrees. Cut potato into wedges.
Step 2: In a large bowl mix olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, chili powder, onion powder and salt. Coat fries with the spice/oil mixture and place on a greased baking sheet.
Step 3: Bake for 30-35 minutes. Flip wedges on their other side half way through cooking.

The Greek burger is a fantastic choice if you enjoy outdoor grilling during the summer. Even if you don’t have an outdoor grill, an indoor grill pan will work as well. Traditionally this recipe would have called for ground lamb, but I didn’t have any luck finding it so I went with ground beef instead. I am not sure how authentic this is to Greek cuisine. I could always ask Ivy from Kopiaste, her blog is dedicated to authentic Greek recipes. A few ingredients such as slivered black olives, garlic and lots of feta cheese go into these burgers. I also decided to add a minced jalapeno pepper as well for a little spice. A few condiments I put on the burgers were extra feta cheese, lettuce, tomato and black olives. You could serve a nice salad as a side dish. These burgers are pretty big so you could probably get more than two if you made them a little smaller. If you are looking for a delicious and easy burger recipe, give this one a try. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1lb ground beef (or ground lamb)
½ cup feta cheese (crumbled)
½ cup black olives (slivered)
3 garlic cloves (chopped)
1 small jalapeno pepper (minced)
2 hamburger buns
Salt and pepper (to taste)
Optional Condiments-
Lettuce
Tomato
Feta cheese
Black olives (sliced)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a large bowl combine ground beef, feta cheese, black olives, garlic and minced jalapeno peppers. Mix well and form 2 large patties. Season patties with salt and pepper to taste.
Step 2: Grill on an outdoor grill or indoor grill pan until burgers are fully cooked.
Step 3: Place on a bun and add any condiments of your choice.
(Makes 2 burgers)

I don’t know why it took me so long to post this recipe because chocolate brownies are the best! The weather has been cold here in Michigan, so I decided to do a little baking. This is one of the best, if not the best recipe for chocolate brownies I have tried. These brownies are very moist, rich and full of that delicious sweet flavor. One of the best brownie tips I have is to line the baking dish with aluminum foil, when they are cooled, pull the foil out, lay them out flat and cut the brownies with a pizza cutter. This will give you perfectly shaped brownies. You could add a lot of things to these brownies such as chocolate chips, M&M’s, or even frost them. These brownies are so easy to make and will impress almost anyone. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
¾ cup cocoa powder
¾ cup shortening
2 ¼ cups white sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup walnuts or pecans (chopped)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9×13” baking pan with aluminum foil and grease it.
Step 2: In a sauce pan melt shortening and then stir in cocoa powder. Remove pan from heat. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl. Mix in sugar and vanilla extract. Mix in eggs one at a time. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold in chopped walnuts or pecans. Pour mixture into the baking dish and spread out evenly.
Step 3: Bake for 30 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.
(Makes about 14-28 brownies depending on the size you cut them)

Bruschetta has been around nearly forever. For those you not familiar with bruschetta, it is a popular Italian appetizer consisting of grilled bread slices topped with an assortment of different things. There any many different types of bruschetta (and I plan on making others) but this one is chicken. The French bread slices are first brushed with olive oil, grilled for a short period of time and then topped with a chicken and Italian dressing mixture.  I grilled the chicken, but if you have any left over chicken, this is a great way to make good use of it. Left over chicken will not have as much flavor because it is not marinated but it will still be good! You can also use the oven for the bread and the chicken instead of the grill if you want. Bruschetta makes a great appetizer for any party. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 ¼ cups Italian salad dressing (divided)
4 cups fresh spinach (torn)
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
8 sun dried tomatoes (packed without oil, chopped)
1 (16 ounce) loaf focaccia bread (or French bread, cut into ½” thick slices)
¼ cup olive oil

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Place chicken breasts and 1 cup of Italian salad dressing in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate. Marinate for 3 hours. Heat a grill, and discard and left over dressing from the chicken marinade. Grill chicken 7 minutes per side or until the juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink inside. Allow to cool and shred or cut into small pieces.

Step 2: In a large bowl mix cooked chicken, spinach, sun dried tomatoes and feta cheese. Toss with remaining salad dressing until well coated.
Step 3: Brush each bread slice on both sides with olive oil. On the same grill used to cook the chicken, grill bread slices 1 minute per side or until lightly toasted. Place portions of the chicken mixture on each bread slice and serve.

One of the greatest breakfast items is a gigantic stack of blueberry pancakes! These pancakes are very fluffy and delicious, and even better, they are also buttermilk pancakes. I tried a few recipes that used sour cream and was not very impressed, the buttermilk is so much better. One of these days I will have to get a griddle but for now, I am still cooking my pancakes in a cast iron pan. It is important to not over mix the batter. The batter should still have tiny lumps in it when it is going into the pan. This will give you fluffy pancakes. Another good tip if you want evenly distributed blueberries is to press them into the batter after you pour it into the pan. And, of course, its always a good idea to try not keep the heat under control so the pancakes don’t burn on one side J. If by some chance you don’t like blueberries, you can just leave them out, or maybe give my buttermilk pancakes or chocolate chip pancakes a try. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
2 cups white flour
¼ cup sugar
2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs (at room temperature)
2 cups buttermilk
¼ cup unsalted butter (melted)
1 cup fresh blueberries (can also use frozen)
Butter or cooking spray (for frying)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a large bowl sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Step 2: Allow melted butter to cool down and in another bowl beat eggs and buttermilk together. Whisk in the cooled down melted butter.
Step 3: With a spoon gently mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients. Combine until you have a lumpy batter. Do not over mix.
Step 4: Heat a pan or griddle to medium-high heat. Add a little butter or cooking spray. Pour ¼ cup of the batter into the skillet to form a pancake. Sprinkle the top with blueberries and lightly press them into the pancake. Cook each pancake for about 2 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet and repeat until all the batter is gone. Keep pancakes warm in the oven while you are making them.
(Makes 12 Pancakes)

Sorry, I know you guys are probably getting tired of all the stuffed shell recipes but I couldn’t resist… last one for awhile, I promise. Though, as you can see this recipe is much different than your normal stuffed pasta shells. Instead of the traditional spaghetti sauce and cheese, salad ingredients go into the shells. Some of the ingredients include romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, and much more. There is a little work required because everything needs to be chopped but its well worth it. If you don’t feel like stuffing the shells you could get a box of smaller shells and just make a pasta salad. These are served cold and are a great summer treat. They make a perfect appetizer for parties. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 (16 ounce) package jumbo pasta shells
4 cups romaine lettuce (chopped)
½ cup fresh basil (chopped)
1 cup tomatoes (chopped)
¾ cup cucumber (peeled and chopped)
1 cup cooked chicken (chopped)
3 ounces hard salami (chopped)
1/3 cup roasted garlic vinaigrette dressing

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Cook pasta shells according to package directions. Drain and allow to cool.
Step 2: Place lettuce, basil, tomatoes, cucumber, chicken and salami in a large bowl. Pour vinaigrette dressing over the salad mixture and toss to coat.
Step 3: Stuff each shell with the salad mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
(Makes about 20-25 shells)

One of the recipes that I made for Cinco de Mayo is pico de gallo. For those of you not familiar with this condiment, pico de gallo is a salsa from Mexican cuisine consisting of chopped tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, onions and cilantro. The chopped vegetables are then tossed with lime juice and salt. The lime juice is what really makes this salsa great. You can adjust the amount of lime juice and salt to fit your taste. I prefer this type of salsa over the cooked stuff and this is much healthier choice. I would recommend using this salsa the same day you make it. This goes great on many types of Mexican dishes such as tacos or burritos, or you can eat it with chips if you prefer. This recipe is very simple and is really only 1 step. I would recommend giving this a try with my recipe for Chicken Fajitas. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
4 plum tomatoes (seeded and diced)
1 small white onion (finely chopped)
2-3 jalapeño peppers (seeded and chopped)
½ cup fresh cilantro (chopped)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
salt (to taste)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a bowl combine tomatoes, onion, peppers and cilantro. Add lime juice and salt. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
(Makes about 2 ½ cups of salsa)