Category Archives: Damn Good Dinners

Sassy Fish

Posted on by

Hopefully everyone is full of chocolate from V-day and is now ready for eating better. As we know, fish is a staple to eating healthier, but I have a really a good twist on a basic pan seared fish recipe! I love it because its a lil sweet & spicy and I think it resonates with me/my personality. I’m a sassy girl! Overall I am sweet, but I have a lil fiery side to me as well. I also love this fish idea because it totally came out of no where when I was rummaging through my mom’s fridge over the holidays.

  • 2 5-6oz filets of a “meaty” fish (so think salmon, tuna, halibut and not tilapia or cod because they are more flaky)
  • 1 tbsp. minced garlic (3 cloves?)
  • 2 tbsp. minced onions (yellow, Spanish, shallots, whatever you want)
  • 1 tsp. sriracha (more if you like it spicier vs. sweeter)
  • 1 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tbsp. soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp. mango chutney (I use the brand Patak’s Major Grey Mango Chutney, but really any one would work)
  • Pinch of black pepper

In a small sauce saucepan simmer the chutney, soy, sriracha, garlic, and onions. This will not only marry all the flavors, but it will thin out the consistency since the chutney is chunky with pieces of mango in it. Think about 3-5 minutes. While that is happening coat the fish with olive oil and pepper (no salt really needed because of the sodium in the soy). Start to sear in a hot non-stick pan. Reduce the flame on the saute pan and add the sauce to the fish, finish cooking the filets with the sauce in pan. Approximately 10-12 min. of total cook time for fish.

Happy Eating, XO.

An Ode to Pittsburgh

Posted on by

Being that Jess and I were both home over the holidays, the Burgh has been on my mind…

I wanted to make a Yinzer classic and so I got to thinking what was the quickest way I can get a yummy, easy Pittsburgh-ese meal on the table. The inspiration came from my 12 hr. pub crawl on the Southside the day after Christmas! And despite how many beers, shots, wine, etc I drank, I remembered the amazing food I had. It truly was a taste of home in your mouth. Good ole’ kielbasa and pierogies…

Crock Pot Bourbon Glazed Kielbasa 

  • 1 pound Kielbasa, sliced
  • 1 cup apricot preserves (orange marmalade would work too, but this is way better)
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp. of bourbon (or apple juice, being cognizant of my knocked up friends)

Combine everything in the crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. While that is getting delish, I boiled a box of the frozen Mrs. T’s potato and onion pierogies. Now don’t hate that I didn’t make those from scratch, after all I live in Philly now and I will leave the scratch making to the Polish (just kidding, stay tuned for a quick- at home way, to make your own). In a bind though, it all tastes the same when you are washing it down with an ice cold Iron City.

Happy Eating, XO.

Homemade Gnocchi

Posted on by

Being Italian, I thought it was high time to learn how to make pasta from scratch. Although, with it being just after the holidays I can’t afford a pasta attachment. The next best thing? Hands! The second best thing? Pairing it with our homemade red sauce (or gravy, or whatever you want to call it). Pour yourself a nice glass of Chianti, turn up your best Italian Pandora station and get to it!

  • 2 russet potatoes
  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp salt

(that’s LITERALLY all you need!)

Peel the two potatoes while bringing a pot of water to boil. Boil the potatoes for about 30-40 minutes or until tender enough to mash. In a bowl, mash the potatoes until completely smooth. (I made the mistake of not mashing them enough the first time and the chunks create air pockets in the dough.) Once you have some smooth potatoes, add in the flour, egg, and salt until a dough begins to form. Kneed it until completely blended, but is still a little sticky. (Add a dab of water if it gets too dried out.) Take a fist size chunk of the dough and roll it into a long thin rope. Cut it into 1/2″ to 1″ pieces.

If you want to get fancy, with fork tines, make small indents in the pieces (another great fancy tip is adding a pinch of dried rosemary or chopped chives, both pair super well with gnocchi or any potato based dish). Boil another pot of water with a dash of salt in it and drop in the gnocchi pieces. You’ll know it’s done when the gnocchi starts to float to the top. In the words of Frankie Sinatra, now that’s amore!

Gnocchi

Happy Eating, XO.

“Suddenly Salad”, suddenly more delicious

Posted on by

In keeping with the theme of keeping it super simple (we know you’re still recovering from the holidays) here’s a way to cheat with your next lunch or dinner. Buy a box of the new Suddenly Salad and spruce it up with chic peas and kale. I used the Tuscan Grains flavor and it was seriously amazing. It’s already exploding with flavor, so adding in the kale and chic peas just adds some “oompf” to it.

  •  1 box of Suddenly Salad Tuscan Grains
  • 1 can of chic peas
  • 3-4 leaves of kale, chopped
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil

Make the Suddenly Salad according to the box instructions. In a separate pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Once hot, saute the kale. Add the chic peas to the kale to warm them up for roughly 5 five minutes. Once the Suddenly Salad is done, combine everything together and serve hot. (But honestly, if you want to make this ahead for an office lunch it works just as well cold.)

Suddenly salad remake

Happy Eating, XO.

The “I’m too tired to cook” pasta

Posted on by

This is one of those recipes that comes together when you A) need to clean out your fridge and B) are exhausted and can’t stand the idea of making some fancy pants dinner. Especially after you’ve just done the holiday marathon of hosting an ugly sweater party, attending an ugly sweater party, attending your office party, attending your significant others’ office party, and making the rounds to all of your relatives on Christmas day. We know. You need a break.

Change in to your comfiest sweats and start throwing it together.

  • 1/2 box of angel hair pasta
  • 1 small container of cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 3 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 chopped zucchini
  • 2-3 oz of goat cheese
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
  • Dash of salt and pepper (or Adobo)

Boil a pot of water for the pasta, and while that’s heating up, heat the olive oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot, add in the tomatoes, zucchini, and onion. Cook until soft and the zucchini is slightly browned. While that’s cooking, boil your pasta. Once the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot. Add in the pan of vegetables and toss with the goat cheese, salt, and pepper.

Tomato, zucchini, goat cheese pasta

 

Happy Eating, XO.