Tips and Recipes

Have you ever noticed how the longer the days get, the shorter they seem? It's summer! And there are so many things to do, which doesn't always leave a lot of time for writing. So today, I thought that I would go the easy route and pass along a few tips and share some recipes from a some other great blogs that we've enjoyed.

Random Kitchen Tips

• I like celery, but it generally takes me a long time to use a whole head of it. Love this - wrap celery tightly in aluminum foil and it keeps for weeks! Really, it's true!

• Lately I find that I almost always have a little 2% Greek yogurt on hand. It's a great substitute for sour cream - with the added benefit of being lower in calories and fat than even light sour cream.

• I've been using white whole wheat flour in my baking. White whole wheat is made from white wheat berries instead of red wheat berries. I find that white whole wheat flour has a lighter texture and taste in my baked goods - so I can use more of it than I would regular whole wheat flour and still get desirable results. Like my pumpkin muffins? Try making them with 1 cup white whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup all purpose flour (or even go crazy and use ALL white whole wheat flour). Still light and delicious!

• Buy seeded instead of seedless watermelons. Granted, there are some tasty seedless watermelons on the market now, but their flavor still pales in comparison with a good seeded watermelon.
  

• Last, one from my mom...leave the skin on your sweet potatoes when making sweet potato fries. Simple, no? I always assumed that it would be papery and unappealing to leave the skin on, but my mom proved me wrong. Plus, the skins are the most nutrient packed part of the sweet potato. Next time you make sweet potato fries, leave the skin on!

What? You've never made sweet potato fries? It's easy! I like mine oven baked. Cut a sweet potato or two into thin fries. Toss with just enough olive oil to coat each fry (about a tablespoon). Season as desired (great with some salt, onion powder, and thyme). Place on a baking sheet in a single layer. (They'll crisp up better if they aren't piled on top of each other.) Bake at 400 F for 15 min. Use a spatula to flip the fries around and bake for another 15 min. Delicious!

Last a few favorite recipes compliments of some other fine blogs. Need a good red beans and rice recipe? This one is absolutely delicious (even for a non-bean lover like myself) and has a nice, authentic flavor. AND it's as easy as it gets! Go check out this Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice recipe from Life Should Be Beautiful.

Next, Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos from Our Best Bites! Nevermind that they're baked, these are some of the best taquitos that I've ever had. Mine didn't come out looking very pretty, but they made up for it in flavor. Serve with a little sour cream (or Greek yogurt) and some salsa - yum!

Last, a great one pot meal good for kids and adults. Picky Palate offers this great recipe for Chicken, Sausage, Broccoli, and Parmesan Brown Rice Dinner. Easy and delicious!