How’s your pandemic cooking fatigue? Yes, it’s a real thing. Chances are even if you dove into cooking projects with gusto back in March, it’s not bringing the same joy.
You know what? It’s okay. It’s okay to dial back. It’s okay to ask to share the load. It’s okay to take the easiest option.
I found myself burning out hard a little more than a month ago, so I made a conscious effort to switch up my meal planning. After I pick our meals for the week, I sit with the list and go though asking – what can I do to make this easier? In many cases, that means putting off new blog experiments for things I know will work.
How’s life lately? I mean really – are you hanging on?
I’m hearing from so many friends that they’re overwhelmed. There are so many balls in the air that things like dinner just get pushed to the back burner. They want to make dinner but they can’t handle more work.
This is a great meal for those nights.
Hot sandwiches make a great, easy dinner. These are individually wrapped – making them easily customizable for each family member – and warmed in the slow cooker – which makes the cook time flexible.
How do you turn enchiladas into a breakfast food? Wrap your favorite omelette fillings in tortillas, then pour egg over the top and bake. The result are these brunch-perfect enchiladas.
The egg mixture flows into the tortillas making each a perfect little bundle. They’re perfectly portioned and easy to serve for company – but they also reheat like a dream so you can make them for yourself and enjoy all week!
This post is sponsored – I received a complimentary copy of A Place At The Table for review. All opinions are mine alone.
How many of you are cooking up a dish tomorrow that’s been passed down? One that celebrates your heritage? It’s no secret that America is a melting pot and one of the places it’s most evident is in our culinary culture – and that’s exactly what’s on display in The Vilcek Foundation‘s new cookbook.
A Place at the Table is a beautiful celebration of the diversity that makes America such a beautiful place.
There are few things my kids like more than tiny sandwiches. Seriously. Anything tiny and they’ll eat it.
Which obviously means I make my favorite sandwiches into mini versions so everyone is happy. These are the perfect quick, easy dinner or a great dish for a party!
Disclosure: I received this product for free as part of #RecipeMakeover week. All opinions are my own.
We are grill-obsessed in the summer, so when the opportunity came up to work with Smokin-Os, I was beyond excited. I tend to slather my grill creations in sauce – usually one that’s loaded with sugar. Barbecue, teriyaki, and sweet and sour sauces end up in heavy rotation. With Smokin-Os, though, that’s not necessary.
Smokin-Os are a ridiculously easy way to get all the flavor of smoking with minimal effort. They pack a huge flavor punch without adding any calories. You can see how to use them here.
When I started brainstorming what I wanted to try and makeover for #RecipeMakeover week, I kept coming back to Chicken Cordon Bleu. I love it, but it’s usually fried and often comes with a heavy sauce. As soon as I got my hands on the Smokin-Os, I knew they’d be a great way to pack a lot of flavor into my dish, while ditching the frying. I was so excited how these turned out!
Grilled Chicken Cordon Bleu with Smokin-Os (a Kate’s Recipe Box original Serves 4
4 thin-cut, boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt, pepper, and oregano, to taste
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. honey
1 tsp. olive oil
4 slices deli ham
4 slices Swiss cheese
1 Original Smokin-Os
Prepare the grill according to the Smokin-Os package directions.
Season chicken breasts to taste with salt, pepper, and oregano. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, honey, and olive oil.
When the grill is ready, spray with non-stick spray and add chicken breasts. Cook for 3-4 minutes, then flip, brushing the top with the honey-mustard mixture. Cook another 3-4 minutes, flip and brush again. Add 1 slice of ham, topped with one slice of Swiss cheese to each chicken breast and cook for another minute, until the cheese melts.
This What’s Baking? round was all about quiche – which was pretty perfect since it overlapped with Easter. I’m just getting this up now (because, life) but this was our Easter breakfast, along with fruit salad and Easter bread. It’s a great breakfast or brunch dish because it can be made ahead and reheated easily. It’s also a great way to use up some extra ham!
The host for this round is Liz from Books ‘n Cooks. Be sure to check out her blog later this month for a full roundup of all the delicious quiches bloggers made!
Ham and Cheese Quiche (a Kate’s Recipe Box original) Makes 1 quiche
1 refrigerated sheet of pie dough
1 cup ham, diced
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 eggs
1 cup 1/2 and 1/2
Salt and pepper
3 Tbsp. chopped green onions
Preheat the oven to 450F degrees. Grease a pie dish and press the pie dough into the pan, pinching the edge as needed. Prick the bottom several times with a fork and bake for about 8 minutes, until slightly golden. Remove from oven and turn the temperature down to 350F degrees.
Spread the ham evenly on the bottom of the pie shell. Top with cheese. Whisk together the eggs and 1/2 and 1/2 and season with salt and pepper. Pour evenly over the top. Sprinkle with chopped green onions. Bake for an additional 45-minutes, until slightly wiggly, but set. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
I’ve got these filed under “easy enough to throw together with a super fussy baby in tow”. Because that’s totally a file in our house right now. Teething, man.
As simple as these are, they took all day to make. I caramelized the onions during the first (30 minute) nap. Fried up the bacon during the second (20 minute) nap. Assembled and wrapped them in foil while I wore him on my back and then threw them in the fridge until ready to bake. It was just one of those days.
On another note, every time I make caramelized onions I have an oh-goodness-I love-these-so-much moment. I’m thinking I need to start just keeping caramelized onions in the fridge so I can put them on, like, everything.
Baked Ham and Cheese Sandwiches with Caramelized Onions and Bacon (slightly adapted from Pinch of Yum) Serves 3
1 large yellow onion, sliced into thin rings
4 Tbsp. butter, divided
6 slices of bacon
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 package of King’s Hawaiian sub rolls (6 rolls)
1 lb. deli-sliced ham
6 slices Swiss cheese
In a frying pan over medium-low heat, melt 1 Tbsp. of butter and then add onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized. When done, transfer to a bowl and wipe out the pan. Cook the bacon in the same pan, removing to a paper-towel lined plate when done.
In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the remaining butter. Whisk in the mustard and Worcestershire.
To assemble the sandwiches, brush some of the mustard mixture on the cut side of each roll. Divide ham between rolls and top with caramelized onions, a slice of bacon and a slice of cheese.
Wrap assembled sandwiches in foil. Bake at 350F degrees for 10 minutes or until warm and melty.
I was still undecided about what to make for Christmas dinner the week before. The week before was also the annual Christmas party for my Mom’s side of the family. Her cousin, Suzie, gave us all jars of homemade fig jam. When I saw this recipe, it was a Eureka! moment.
Included below are the instructions for glazing a half ham. I took a shortcut and cut slices off our spiral ham, laid them in a baking dish and then spooned the glaze over. I preferred it this way for two reasons 1) it would heat up quicker and 2) every slice got more glazed goodness like this.
Fig and Orange Glazed Ham (from Food Network) Makes enough glaze for 1 Spiral Sliced Half Ham
1 c. fig jam
2 T. dijon mustard
Grated zest of 1 orange
1/3 c. fresh orange juice
Combine the jam, mustard, and orange zest and juice in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, just until the jam melts (do not boil).
For ham slices, layer in pan and spread glaze over. Cover with foil and bake at 350F degrees until warmed through.
For a half ham, preheat the oven as directed on the ham package and follow the instructions for baking the ham. Remove the ham from the oven about 30 minutes before the end of the warming time. Spoon half of the glaze over the ham and bake for the remaining 30 minutes. Remove the ham from the oven and spoon the remaining glaze on top. Transfer to a cutting board and carve.
