I was introduced to delicata squash by my mom 7 years ago when she brought some to my house after receiving it in her weekly CSA basket from one of her local farms. At the time, both of us didn’t eat a lot of meat and she was excited to share this vegetarian stuffed delicata squash recipe she pulled together with me. My mom has always been good at pulling together meals with whatever she has on hand – I like to think I got those skills from her.

This Stuffed Delicata Squash recipe was originally posted in January of 2011 (see below). Ironically, my mom was here “saving the day” again a couple of weeks ago, just as I picked up a few delicata squash at Trader Joe’s. I love how Trader Joe’s can make an ingredient so popular, especially when it’s a fruit or vegetable. If you don’t have a Trader Joe’s near you, no worries, you can find delicata squash mixed in with the selection of hard squashes (spaghetti squash, acorn squash, butternut squash) at most grocery stores.

The filling in this recipe is made with garlic, onion, spinach and white beans. If you prefer to include meat, swap out the beans for cooked crumbled Italian sausage.

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There are two foods my kids are obsessed with right now – potatoes and rice. This is a new thing for us. And it’s keeping things interesting for me because before this obsession I really didn’t cook potatoes and rice regularly. Now I find myself bookmarking recipes like this homemade rice-a-roni from Heather because I just know it will be a hit amongst the fam.

Now if I could get sweet potatoes onto this obsession wagon I would be a very happy cooking mama. Something about the orange is making the kiddos turn away from their plate. If they only knew and remembered how much they loved that weird orange food just a couple of years ago when they ate them all the time.

Oven Roasted Potatoes

There are a million ways you can season and roast potatoes in the oven. This little roasted red potatoes with smoked paprika recipe has become quite popular on Pinterest. I’ve made it plenty of times, as I have already made this dill version a few times in the past month. I like to change up the shape of how I’m cutting them (crinkle cut is fun like in my perfectly baked Italian herb French fries) as well as the combination of spices every time I cook them.

When you are cutting your potatoes make sure you are using a strong, sharp knife (like a chef’s knife or santuko knife). If you’re looking for a crinkle cutter to change up the shape of your fries, there are some great ones out there!

You all loved these grilled bison burgers, and that made me (and my hubby) happy. We think you’ll also love these potato wedges that are perfect alongside any burger you cook up this summer.

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Click here to Pin these Oven Baked Black Bean and Cheese Quesadillas!

This sheet pan quesadilla recipe was created in partnership with Bush’s Beans.

For the last few weeks I’ve been really making an effort to write out, shop for, and follow a meal plan during the week. It’s worked wonders for us. The question of what to make for dinner is no longer an issue, and I feel more prepared each day. It’s definitely a habit I’m trying to stick with.

At least one night a week we squeeze in a Mexican themed meal. If it’s a particularly busy night I’ll even turn that Mexican meal into a meatless one to save the extra steps involved to cook up the meat. I always have cans of beans on hand, and if it was up to me, it would be my protein of choice on most nights. Mexican nights are the perfect nights for a good, easy meatless recipe if you ask me!

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We’ve entered the time of year where I am seeing requests for recipes using zucchini everywhere I turn. Zucchini seems to take over gardens, farmer’s markets and produce sections for a good part of summer and I love finding new ways to incorporate it into everyday recipes to keep things interesting.

When my kids were little, I always sliced a zucchini and sprinkled it with salt to give them as a snack on the counter while I cooked dinner. They never questioned what they were eating, and they finished up their healthy raw zucchini snack without complaining every single time (this made me so happy!!). I started eating it this way with them too and over the years started adding raw zucchini (and yellow squash) into salads more regularly. I think it makes a great healthy addition to a salad, especially when you add in some crunch from nuts and sweetness from raisins like in this Zucchini and Walnut Arugula Salad.

Walnuts are one of my favorite nuts to throw into salads. They have a ton of flavor when roasted (or quickly toasted up in a skillet) but I find myself eating them raw more often due to a bit of laziness but more importantly for added health benefits. Whether they are roasted or raw, they are an absolute must in almost every salad I make, especially in the summer time!

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I shared these baked old bay fries on the blog a few years back but wanted to share the recipe again because they are one of my husband’s favorites. Before my husband and I got together, I honestly don’t think I knew what Old Bay seasoning was. My husband and his family introduced me to the world of Old Bay (through crab cakes, crab and shrimp boils, salmon cakes, shrimp salad and these fries). I’m thinking if you are from the Maryland area you are pretty familiar with it as well. 😉

The best part of these easy baked up french fries (other than the Old Bay)? The splash of malt vinegar right before serving. They make the perfect side to grilled burgers or broiled fish. Enjoy!

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Over Spring Break my sister in law, my niece and I spent a morning out on Park Avenue in Winter Park. If you are from Central Florida then you probably are familiar with this part of town. It’s a perfectly quaint and cozy brick lined street full of shops and restaurants, perfect for walking – especially on a gorgeous Spring day in Florida. You seriously can’t beat it.

I’m not much of a “shopper” (I like to get in and out of stores, no lingering for me), but something about Park Avenue always draws me in. The stores are different, there is something for everyone – it’s a very relaxing way of shopping in my opinion, I think the scenery and walking in the open air have a lot to do with it. On this particular day of shopping spices and jewelry were on the agenda.

I treated myself to my first Alex and Ani bracelet ensemble…perfect for spring and summer don’t ya think?

and a spontaneous stop at one of my favorite places to eat happened too.

(Lunch at Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine: we ordered their famous Lavas bread, hummus plate and 2 lunch specials to share – Doner Kebap and Chicken Adana Kebap – so delicious and SO MUCH FOOD!)

On that shopping trip I came home with a new spice blend that combined cayenne & ground black pepper. I’ve been sprinkling it on so much stuff (eggs, tuna, salads) and it was even more awesome on these potatoes. I made them a second time making them without the spice “blend” but with actual measurements of cayenne and black pepper just so I can share it with you.

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Eggs are a staple in our house. When I mentioned in my last post that panic starts to set in when we get down to the last two eggs I wasn’t kidding.

Growing up my grandfather was always frying up thinly sliced potatoes and adding eggs to them for breakfast. Potatoes and eggs just go together don’t they? I started making this potato frittata a couple of years ago for a quick and easy dinner and every time I make it it reminds me of my grandfather. Our methods of cooking this up are a little different (he used more oil and I don’t remember him ever putting it under the broiler) but the concept is the same – fried potatoes and eggs. And a touch of Parmesan in my version. I’ll have to ask him if he ever puts Parm in his eggs, I’m thinking not.

When I look at this Parmesan Potato Frittata photo I laugh because it looks like such a fancy brunch plate, but in reality it’s such a simple “peasant” dish. It has just a small handful of ingredients and the recipe cooks in about 15 minutes. It makes a great breakfast for dinner or lunch or of course breakfast or brunch. I actually cooked myself one for lunch just yesterday, cut it in quarters to keep in the fridge and enjoyed it cold as a protein packed late afternoon snack. You can even throw it between two slices of bread or in a wrap and call it a sandwich! Good stuff.

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I’ve been on a granola making kick for the last couple of months. Apparently my kids are into it because they pretty much ask me for granola as a snack almost every afternoon as well as at breakfast. They love having it in a bowl with a bit of Greek yogurt and honestly it couldn’t make me happier to hear them ask for it, even when I’m not necessarily in the mood to make it.

I took the last couple of weeks off from making it but since this week is my daughter’s birthday week I decided to surprise the kids with a fresh batch when they get home from school today. When I make our granola I keep it on the counter in a pretty glass jar, it’s nice to look at as well as easy to serve – just spoon into a bowl for a quick healthy snack!

Making granola at home is super simple (if you haven’t tried it yet please do!) and each time I make it I try to add something a little different to it to keep things interesting. One thing that always stays the same is the nuts – my granola has to have plenty of nuts in it for texture, protein and nutrients. This time I used honey instead of my normal maple syrup and I added a little dark chocolate for fun.

It turned out seriously delicious!

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We love breakfast for dinner in our house (and breakfast for breakfast of course!) so anytime I can squeeze a BFD in is good! I have always been more of a savory breakfast gal so if I had my choice of BFD foods it would definitely be eggs, a breakfast turkey sausage and some sort of potato dish…and a little fruit on the side for good measure. 🙂

Eggs are quick to whip up obviously so when we go the eggs route a hasbrown side dish recipe like these Cheesy Pepper and Onion Hashbrowns recipe is a perfect addition. All I did was quickly saute peppers and onions, then add half a package of frozen Alexia hashbrowns (this is NOT a sponsored post btw) to the mix and brown it all up. Before serving throw in some cheese and voila – you’ve got yourself a fancy hashbrown dish to eat up alongside your favorite eggs.

Don’t forget the hot sauce!

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I’ve mentioned this before on the blog, but when my kids go back to school, I get back what I refer to as my special lunchtime meal. Cooking for your family is obviously part of a mom’s job, yes, but it’s so nice to have the chance for one meal to be entirely yours every now and then. Lunch during the school week is that meal where I can really have whatever I’m craving or wanting and not worrying about who likes what and who will eat what. It can be a treat, really.

Avocado toast is one of my favorite lunches. It’s quick, easy, healthy and tastes absolutely delicious (if you are an avocado lover of course!). The last time I made avocado toast for lunch I decided to play around and change things up a bit. I gently added a little crumbled feta to the smashed avocado and sprinkled it liberally with my new favorite seasoning za’atar (last year I was obsessed with lemon pepper, apparently this year that obsession has evolved into za’atar). The toast was topped with slices of ripe summer tomatoes that turned this into one of my most favorite lunches ever!

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