One-Pot Mediterranean Pasta

This dinner is the ultimate meal for a busy night. With a few pantry staples and less than 30 minutes, you’ll have dinner on the table in no time! And my favorite part? There’s almost no chopping – it’s all just dump-and-go.

This one-pot pasta cooks the spaghetti right in the sauce, so it’s faster and results in fewer dishes. Add in a salad and some bread to complete the meal.

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Slow Cooker Cranberry Pork Roast

This comforting meal is perfect for a busy weeknight – with only five minutes of prep, you’ll have a dinner packed with fall flavors thanks to a few simple ingredients and the magic of the slow cooker.

The star of this recipe is the cranberry sauce – which also makes it an ideal use for any cranberry sauce leftover from Thanksgiving dinner!

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Pork Verde Stew with Cornbread Dumplings

I received product samples from Sam’s Fresh Salsa to help in the creation of this post. All opinions are my own.

Yes, it’s summer, but the weather here hasn’t felt like it the last week or so. All the dreary, rainy days have me craving comfort food so I took one of my summer staples – salsa! – and turned it into the perfect rainy-day dinner.

Tender chunks of pork are stewed in a couldn’t-be-easier verde sauce and then buried in piles of fluffy cornbread dumplings. Finish with a dollop of sour cream and you have the perfect meal!

A bowl with chunks of pork smothered in a verde chile sauce with a cornbread dumpling to the side. The bowl is on an orange napkin and a blue pot is in the background.

I created this recipe for Sam’s Fresh Salsa Blogger Recipe Challenge and couldn’t be happier with the way it turned out!

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Sautéed Spinach with Bacon

Have you made your Thanksgiving plans yet? We’ll be a party of four this year – which food-wise can be a little tricky. I’m excited for the challenge of sizing down and aiming to not spend all day in the kitchen – and this side nails both.

This spinach dish is sized for 4 and takes only 15 minutes, making it a great option to add to your holiday menu – or as a side for any busy night!

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Marinated Vegetable Sandwiches

If there’s one thing I could eat all summer, it would be sandwiches loaded with vegetables. All the vegetables. Usually toasted and loaded up with some melty cheese.

These sandwiches are one of my favorite variations – the veggies are marinated in a sweet-but-savory marinade for a few hours before being cooked, which gives them a really nice extra layer of flavor.

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Grilled Pierogies and Kielbasa with Mustard Sauce

In all honesty, I don’t mind cooking dinner every night during quarantine. Cooking calms me – and making dinner is part of my regular routine anyway.

What I do mind? All the dishes. I swear quarantine has tripled the number of dishes that need to washed. So, my new policy for summer to to just throw everything on the grill whenever humanly possible.

Sliced kielbasa, pierogies, and diced onions tossed in a mustard sauce in a white bowl.

This dish is the perfect summer dinner because it’s cooked entirely on the grill and then tossed with a simple sauce. It’s done in less than a half hour, and the dishes are minimal.

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Swiss Chard and Onion Frittata

This week is super exciting: it’s our first CSA pickup of the year.

Swiss Chard Frittata 1

I adore CSA season. Thursdays at the farm and a whole lot of fresh produce.

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Grilled Vegetables with Whipped Avocado Feta Dip

You know what I’ve noticed? Almost no one brings vegetables to a barbecue – but, when someone does, they always seem to get gobbled up.

Grilled Vegetables 1

I think a large part of their scarcity is that vegetables don’t have a great reputation for being an easy dish to take along. Let this one change your mind.

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Instant Pot Baked Beans #BBQWeek

We have three weeks left of school and I honestly couldn’t be more excited for this summer to start. Our last summer was crazy with the move, so I’m purposely leaving as much time wide open this summer as possible so we can all just play.

IP Baked Beans 3

Lazy backyard days capped off with dinner on the deck? That is totally my idea of a perfect summer.

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Buffalo Chicken Chowder

Originally published January 2012; Updated January 2021

What warms you better than a bowl of soup? A spicy bowl of soup, of course.

This combines the best flavors of the classic buffalo wings with the comforting winter classic – a perfect bowl. Chunks of chicken and potatoes are smothered in a spicy, creamy broth, topped with the bite of blue cheese.

A bowl of golden chowder, with visible chunks of chicken, potatoes, and carrots. It's topped with crumbles of blue cheese.

Whether you’re looking for a fun meal for the big game or just something to warm you after shoveling snow, this chowder will fit the bill.

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