Recipes We're Lovin'

I love to cook and bake and if I can grab some time in the kitchen (with or without a toddler "helper") it is definitely one of my favorite ways to spend some downtime. We have a lot of picky eaters in our house (guilty as charged) so when I find something that works, it feels majorly victorious.

I thought I would share a few of the recipes we have been loving lately!

-A few weeks back I was really craving potatoes au gratin but didn't want the boxed kind. I searched for recipes and came across this one. Holy WOW....these are amazing. They are decadent and would be amazing with Thanksgiving dinner. The whole house smelled incredible when I made them. Definitely a dish that makes my mouth water to even think about.....

Potato prep - the onion slivers help give a little space for the cheese to hit everyyyyy potato

I cannot even describe how delicious this was- Let's just say there were a lot of "happy plates" that night

-I make these little energy bites every single week. They hit the spot when you need something a little sweet to hold you over and I love having a few with coffee in the morning. The kiddos adore them and I love that they are made with clean ingredients vs. processed junk. I omit the vanilla extract because I don't feel it adds anything taste-wise.

Energy bites ready to go! I store them in the fridge in an air-tight container

-Speaking of a taste of something sweet, if I am really craving some baked goods I make these flourless cookies. I use M&Ms in place of chocolate chips for a fun-factor. They're delish and hit the spot when you have a craving for cookies. (Side note: I feel like they turn out better if you chill the dough for a bit before baking. Press down the balls before putting into the oven because the lack of butter won't flatten them out enough on their own).

Such a treat - Charlie loves to help make these!

-We love paninis with fresh mozzarella every once in a while on a busy weeknight. They are a great, easy meatless meal. I was finding myself getting sick of the same old tomato-moz-basil panini, so last week I sauteed the tomatoes with some sliced onion, garlic powder, EVOO, and balsamic vinegar before adding them to the sammies. It totally gave the sandwiches the kick they needed- YUM!!

The roasted tomato / onion mixture smelled sooo good

Added a little more moz to seal it all together...

Yummy paninis! So easy and quick for a busy weeknight

-A few weeks back I searched for one-pan meal ideas and found this one for a cheddar broccoli chicken dish. I tried it and we all liked it enough but I didn't feel like it was anything special. Fast forward a few weeks and I found myself actually craving it again. It is truly SO easy and creates very few dishes/messes. Leftovers are also awesome for work/weekday lunches. Not the absolute healthiest meal but Maddie ate a ton of it so I felt like it was a success. This has officially been added to the rotation :)

NOT the prettiest meal but so easy and really hits the spot

-One-pan meals are kind of addicting (cleanup is SO easy) so I did a chicken and veggie sheet pan dinner, too. I just used what we had but it ended up being a hit with our little fam. I did serve some rice with it for the kiddos' plates. I used a super hot oven (450) and did the veggies first (seasoned + EVOO), adding some diced + seasoned chicken breasts halfway through. It's so easy and you can really just use whatever's in the fridge plus whatever seasonings you like (paprika, garlic power, onion powder, whatever!).

The veggies we had on-hand were potato, zucchini, bell pepper and onion. Hearty yet healthy!

-The other night, Tim was really craving a good steak. I don't eat beef so I rarely if ever make it so he whipped up this awesome steak-n-potatoes dinner for himself and Charlie. It was a grass-fed steak soaked in soy sauce for a bit before it hit the grill. I helped with the potato and after mashing the inside added some salt and paprika (I'm a little paprika obsessed, OK!?) before topping with a mixture of cheeses (colby jack, moz, cheddar) and some chives. He said it hit the spot!!

Grilled steak + veg + a baked potato with the 'works'  = Happy Tim

What's cookin' in your house?? My next mission is to find a good soup everyone will eat, specifically with lots of veggies!