Christmas in July: Apple-Cranberry Stuffing

I have always been a fan of the combination of apples and cranberries.  They're just so wintery.  And I do realize at 109 degrees outside, that this is most definitely not winter.  However, for the sake of Christmas in July, I shut my eyes, and pretend that its nice and cold outside.  I have made this stuffing once before.  When I was in college, I once asked, begged (I didn't have to do much in the way of begging,) my mom if I could make the Christmas dinner that year.  She told me that I could, and every thing that I made had apples involved in some way.

This delicious bread crumb stuffing is loaded with yummy apple pieces, cranberries, and sausage.  This side was a favorite of Chef Matt's.

Christmas in July--Reader Suggested Dish: Updated Version of Green Bean Casserole

Believe it or not, this is one Christmas dinner staple that I have never had before.  So, when I asked my wonderful facebook fans for their suggestions of dishes to make, Debbie suggested an updated version of the classic green bean casserole.  I have given this dish a slight twist by using apple juice, sauteed mushrooms, and fresh green beans, as well as a couple of updated ingredients.  This dish turned out wonderfully, and I will definitely be adding this delicious side to my holiday menu.  Thank you Debbie for such a great suggestion!

Stir-Fry With Tasty Homemade Teriyaki Sauce

You can't go wrong with a some good stir-fry.  Pair it with some dumplings, wontons, or egg rolls, and you've got yourself one great meal. Or one great meal evolves from another as I always like to say. This stir fry is evolved because this is actually an update on one of the first posts ever created on this blog! It was a stir fry that I used to eat in a previous life that used frozen veggies from a bulk wholesale place. I decided to dump the frozen veggies in place of choosing my own fresh (non frozen) produce to put in this stir fry. Not only that but the teriyaki sauce that we used before had HFCS. Needless to say, we axed that, in place of making our own without that unnecessary and unhealthy ingredient. After all, in a lot of cases making stuff from scratch is more cost effective anyway. The results are day and night over that instant stir fry we made before.

Seriously Funny Sounding Dishes: Toad In The Hole

Today I've decided to introduce a new a category of posts to this site I call a food blog. "Seriously Funny Sounding Dishes" it will be called. That's because if you're like me, you may have always wondered what dishes like, "Toad In The Hole" in the were.

Now, you're in luck because occasionally we might post a "Spotted Dick" or a variation of. Not today though because up to bat right now is one I know I've always wondered about. It's the one and only Toad In The Hole hailing all the way from our friends across the sea, none other than the English. It is very English indeed, from Yorkshire to be exact. There's apparently some history to this dish as it goes all the way back to 1861 and no there are no toad parts in this dish so you can all breathe a sigh of relief. Although, truth be toad.. (forgive my crazy sense of humor) those sausages in the batter could almost be mistaken for a toad. Without further ado I present to you the recipe for Toad In The Hole.

Chicken Juliette

Recently, I went to a Italian restaurant, and got this amazing dish consisting of a delicious ragout on top of grilled chicken and goat cheese mashed potatoes.  I loved this dish so much, that I did something that I normally am not able to do, I completely cleaned my plate.   In the following weeks, I literally was dreaming about having this meal again.  That was not a very realistic dream seeing as this dish was 1) on the pricier side, 2) only available for a limited time.  So, I headed on over to my local Whole Foods and got everything that needed.  I made this yumminess on a plate for Chef Matt's Birthday, and at the end of the day, he told me that my dinner was the highlight of his day; that's quite a compliment!