I will gladly admit it, even though I eat meat, I LOVE a good veggie burger. LOVE.
Sometimes when you don't want a heavy hamburger, a good ol' veggie burger with all of the fixings totally hits the spot. When I first moved to Nashville I had a version of this veggie burger a local vegan restaurant Avo. I loved their use of lentils and walnuts to create a savory vegetable based burger.
I often get asked what are the staples that I always have in my pantry. Well one of these days I am going to put together a list but this recipe includes three ingredients that I always have: sweet potatoes, chickpeas, and curry paste. I know curry paste seems super random but since it is so flavorful and rich, you can create pretty much something out of nothing with it and it will always taste good. It is a great way to create a base of a dish that uses every last vegetable in your fridge.
Read MoreBreakfast for dinner is always a good idea! This week on fridge foraging you all chose the breakfast tacos and it was a great decision. Tacos topped with black beans, bacon, pickled corn and most importantly a fried egg. One of my secret weapons in the kitchen is to always have a carton of eggs around. If you have an egg, you can fry it, poach it, hard boil it and even grate it. So if you have an egg are halfway to a healthy and delicious home cooked meal.
Read MoreIf you have been following along long enough, you know that I love cooking with what I already have. I really don't like the idea of going to the grocery store just for one recipe and think we all can make so much more than we know with just the simple ingredients in our pantry. This idea rings true when it comes to savory cooking because you can riff and experiment so much more easily with savory ingredients.
Read MoreI have never been able to just eat chicken breasts on their own. To me, they are really hard to prepare and unless they are fried plain chicken breasts just don't have a lot of taste. I am always looking for toppings or pan sauces that will put the flavor into the chicken. Enter this week's choice in fridge foraging - chicken bruschetta.
It took me a minute to get this recipe developed and posted. I kept threatening to make it for Fridge Foraging but it was never chosen. Since there was a lot of feedback that people still wanted it, I decided to finally develop it.
We had it on a Friday night and watched a movie and I swear it tasted just like takeout, only a little healthier.
Read MoreWhen I first started teaching myself to cook (before cooking school) I basically cooked all of Ina's recipes. Her recipes are so well written and tested that it was a great way for me to learn the basics. One of the recipes that I kept on going back to during those days was her Lobster Baked Paella. It was just so easy. I don't think I ever used the lobster in there but the base recipe was delicious.
Read MoreAlmost all of my food inspiration comes from dishes that I have eaten or experienced in some way. I then take those flavors and put my own spin on them. I recently had the chance to experience a street corn Caesar salad at 1000 North in Jupiter Florida. I am a huge fan of Caesar salads and who doesn't love Mexican Street corn! Loved the two flavors together so I decide to come up with my own version.
I don't always do this, but in yesterday's Fridge Foraging I got so many requests to make the asparagus tart (which lost in the poll) that I decided to make it and share it the next day.
This is one of those looks fancy but is really easy recipes. Phyllo dough can be found at most grocery stores in the frozen food section. Let it defrost in the fridge overnight before using. The hardest part of this recipe is spreading oil between the layers of phyllo. Since phyllo is so delicate they may break a little but don't worry, that is all part of the rustic charm of this recipe.
Read MoreThis week's fridge foraging was a competition between an asparagus tart and these zucchini and corn fritters. Obviously the fritters won out, creating a really simple and light summer dish.
I have been making a version of these fritters for many many years. When I first was learning how to cook, years before cooking school, i would go to the farmer's market, buy some vegetables and fruit and see what I could create with it. I came home with pounds and pounds of zucchini one morning and discovered all the ways to eat zucchini, including Ina Garten's amazing zucchini pancakes.
Read MoreI started the concept of fridge foraging because I wanted to show people that you could make delicious food by just using the ingredients already in your house. I was so sick of seeing recipes that necessitated 4 trips to different grocery stores and the use of unconventional ingredients that will only get used once.
Read MoreI don't eat a ton of red meat but when I do, I want to make it count. I recently discovered Porter Road Butcher here in Nashville and absolutely love their products and what they stand for. Since I had an extra skirt steak I thought I would throw that into Fridge Foraging and see what I could make of it.
I have gotten a couple requests for fridge foraging dessert style. I will admit fridge foraging for sweet dessert recipes is a lot harder than creating a savory recipe out of what is in your refrigerator. This past weekend though I realized I had a ton of leftover fruit, both fresh and frozen, and decided to make a fridge foraged dessert in the form of a summertime crisp.
Read MoreThe fridge foraging showdown this week was between gazpacho and orzo salad with grilled shrimp. To be honest, I actually thought the gazpacho was going to win out but am sure glad the orzo salad with grilled shrimp was the victor because it sure was tasty. Also my husband announced that he hates gazpacho so that is lucky for him we didn't have that for dinner.
Read MoreI have mentioned it here before but a couple summers ago (well 9 summers ago but it seems like yesterday) I was fortunate enough to backpack around Southeast Asia. The timing worked out that both my husband (then fiance) and I could take the time off and get lost in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. The trip will always be one of my favorites for many reasons, but one of the main reasons was the culinary awakening I had during our travels. We ate so many new flavors and new dishes that I completely fell in love with all of the Southeast Asian cuisine. We had many food moments that were life changing but one in particular was our first banh mi sandwich in Vietnam.
Read MoreI love a good cheese board - I mean who doesn't. They are the perfect appetizer for when you have company over, or sometimes in my case, just dinner!
What I don't love is the half eaten cheese after all of your guests have gone. Do you save it? Do you toss it? Are you really going to use up that quarter of goat cheese? The answer is to save it and make mac n cheese!
Read MoreI find that food tastes exponentially better when made and eaten outside, especially on a warm summer night. It is pretty hard to beat a summer BBQ. And I know when people think about BBQs they think of heavy (but delicious) cuts of slow cooked meat. Well I am all for that, but sometimes I love using the grill (specifically our Traeger ) to take vegetables to the next level. Enter romaine lettuce. A somewhat boring salad green that is elevated to the next level when lightly charred.
Read MoreMy fridge is filled with summer flavors these days. I pretty much only want to eat corn, zucchini and tomatoes for the next couple of months.
Read MoreShrimp are one of the things that I keep on hand in my freezer. Since they defrost so well they create so many different easy weeknight dinners.
In today's fridge foraging you all chose shrimp scampi. Shrimp scampi is one of those classic dishes that comes together really easily and taste like a millions dollars. It is pretty hard to beat the garlic, wine, and butter trifecta.
Read MoreI swear that most of the food that I eat comes in bowl form. Who needs a plate when you can just pile everything into a huge bowl!
In this week’s fridge foraging you all chose the smoked salmon bowl over the coconut curry stuffed sweet potatoes. The bowl is filled with brown rice, smoked salmon, pickled vegetables, avocado, and served with Sriracha mayo. Hearty and healthy and proves that food in bowl form just tastes better.
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