Burrito Bowls

Some nights I just don't want to cook and this is the perfect dinner for just those kinds of nights! Usually I have homemade salsa ready to go in the fridge because we love it so much (although it doesn't last too long). All of these ingredients are pretty much staples in any household, even if you don't cook that much. So sit back, relax and enjoy your evening because you probably won't be doing many dishes. Feel free to omit or add anything that you prefer on your burrito's (ie guacamole, olives, etc)

Burrito Bowls

Inspired by: Annie's Eats and Qdoba's Naked Burrito

Tortilla chips (or rice if you prefer)

Black beans

Grilled chicken cubes

Salsa

Lettuce

Shredded Cheese

Sour Cream

Layer the ingredients however you see fit and enjoy!

Spicy Citrus Black Beans

Black beans really used to make me wanna gag. Now, I am pretty open to them since beans come on every item at Qdoba, one of my favorite "American Mexican" places to eat. I definitely prefer black over pinto beans for sure! I have never made them at home because I was just too lazy but this is quick, easy and makes for a wonderful side dish to any summer meal!

Spicy Citrus Black Beans

Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally Simply Recipes

1 large can black beans (28 oz)

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped or minced (you can also substitute for another bell or jalapeno)
1/2 - 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1.5 tsp oregano
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp chipotles in adobo, pureed
1.5 tsp ground cumin
1/4 cup orange juice
Juice of 2 limes (added lime zest, optional)
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
Chopped fresh cilantro, to taste, plus more for garnish (optional)

Rinse the beans well in a colander over the sink. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium-high heat. Begin to sauté onion and pepper until tender, about 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in the rinsed beans and mix in broth (use however much you would like to have more or less liquid). Bring to a simmer and add oregano, bay leaves, salt, chipotle puree, cumin, orange juice, lime juice and vinegar. Once simmering, reduce heat to medium-low and cover for 20-25 minutes. Stir occasionally. Once done, remove from heat and stir in cilantro (if using) and serve warm.

Jerk Chicken Kabobs

Lately I have been in desperate need of quick dinners because it's a busy time of the year for both my husband and myself. Although the chicken does sit in the marinade in the fridge for an hour (or so) beforehand, once on the kabobs, it's less than 10 minutes before you get to eat these all up. I'm usually not one to use a marinade either but I can't stand the taste of plain chicken (and I despise using salt and pepper alone). So I tried this recipe and it was absolutely amazing. It wasn't too spicy but it did have some kick to it. It also wasn't too overpowering of a taste .. it was just right! I also experimented with more fruits and veggies and I will tell you that the mango and pineapple went best with the kabobs. I won't be doing the onion again. The red pepper was okay, but to be fair I prefer green pepper.

Jerk Chicken Kabobs

Adapted from: Homemade by Holman

For the marinade:

juice of 1 lime

1/2 Tbsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp salt

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 Tbsp brown sugar

1/8 tsp cinnamon

For the kabobs:

1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 mango

1/4 whole pineapple

1 red bell pepper

Start the marinade about 1 hour before you plan on heating up the grill. Mix all marinade ingredients in a large tupperware container until uniform. Chop the chicken into 1-inch cubes and place into the tupperware containing the marinade. Toss to coat well (or put the lid on tight and shake vigorously). Place in the fridge and keep in there for at least 45-60 minutes. You can also use a large ziplock freezer bag for this, but I recommend tupperware because it is more eco-friendly and you can always reuse it.

While the chicken is in the refrigerator, chop the mango, pineapple and bell pepper to 1-inch pieces and set aside in separate bowls. If you are using wooden skewers, soak them in water for at least 30 minutes prior to grilling. I did this by using a 9x13 baking dish, putting a small amount of water in it and placing a small glass dish on top (to keep them from floating).

When the chicken is done in the fridge, place the cubes onto 4 wooden skewers leaving a slight gap in between each piece. Then, place the vegetables and fruit on four SEPARATE SKEWERS.

Begin by setting the grill on medium heat and placing the chicken on the bottom rack. Cook until they look almost done on the bottom side (about 3-5 minutes) and flip over. Then, add the fruit/vegetable kabobs to the top rack (if you have one) and leave there until chicken is done cooking and is no longer pink (about 3-5 minutes). Serves: 3-4.

TIP: You never want to make kabobs where the meat and the vegetables are on the same skewer because you will overcook the veggies and undercook the meat. They cook at different lengths of time (just as different meats do). Therefore, place all different kinds of meat on separate skewers from each other AND the veggies.

Strawberry Soup

There isn't much to say about this soup that isn't obvious from it's ingredients (or that delicious photo): strawberries, yogurt, yum! Anything with strawberries in it, I will try. I don't like chocolate, but I thoroughly make up for it with my love of strawberry. Unfortunately that doesn't help me to try new flavors at ice cream outings because if strawberry is an option, I will choose it every single time. Shakes? Strawberry, thank you. I guess you could say I do have a slight obsession with them, which makes it very surprising that I haven't posted more recipes. Usually I like to just eat them by the pound (oops) and so this was a change for me. As soon as I had that first bite of this soup, I knew it wouldn't last more than a day or two. My blender also made it to the sink pretty clean. ;)

Strawberry Soup

Adapted from: The Cooks Next Door, originally Food Network

1 lb strawberries, cleaned and hulled

3/4 cup whipping cream (or half & half)

3/4 cup plain yogurt (or sour cream)

1/4 cup sugar

4 tsp lemon juice

Puree strawberries in blender and pour into a medium-sized tupperware bowl. Add remaining ingredients one at a time to incorporate. Mix well. Chill before serving and garnish with strawberry or mint.

Lasagna Roll-Ups

I won't lie. These were messy. Messy usually means delicious in my book! I usually make a "normal" lasagna but I was feeling extra spicy this past week and so I was inspired by a fellow blogger to make lasagna in a different way. My husband knows his meat, and unfortunately he knew that it tasted "different". Well, I tried to sneak in some ground turkey but he cannot be fooled! It's back to ground beef .. for now. ;)

These were messy to make and messy to eat but they were a very traditional lasagna in an untraditional display. I love making things over again, but in a different way and these turned out great! I just used my regular lasagna recipe, halved (I didn't want too many leftovers) and it seemed to work perfectly.

Lasagna Roll-Ups

Inspired by: Homemade by Holman, Recipe original to Kelly's Kitch

1 pound ground beef
1 small can tomato/spaghetti sauce (14-16 oz)
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1 can tomato paste (6 oz)
1/3 cup water
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp oregano
1/4 lb lasagna noodles, cooked
1/2 tub racotta cheese
mozzarella cheese, for topping
parmesan cheese, for topping

Brown meat in large skillet. Add onion and cook until tender (about 4-5 minutes). Stir in tomato sauce, paste, water, garlic and seasonings. Cover and simmer on low 25 minutes. Once eveything is cooked, take lasagna noodles (halved) and spread 1-2 tsp ricotta on the noodle. Place 1-2 tsp of the skillet mixture on top and place in a 8x8 greased baking dish. Cover with remaining meat mixture and sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan cheese to cover. Cover with foil. Bake, covered, in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Rasberry Cheesecake Cupcakes

Good news! I found my camera. Even better news: this recipe! If you love cheesecake then be careful to not eat all of these. I had to make my husband take the cheesecakes to work so that I didn't inhale them all before he even got home that night. This was a fantastic idea and they turned out tasty. Not the prettiest cheesecake/cupcakes but definitely the best flavor ever!! I know on Annie's website she says that the water bath is not needed but if you want taste and presentation, I think it very much IS needed. Mine became concave after cooling and did crack on most of them. It wasn't too noticeable and they still tasted wonderful so it's totally up to the chef's preferences.

Rasberry Cheesecake Cupcakes

Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

For the crust

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs
4½ Tbsp butter, melted
3 Tbsp sugar

For the topping
6 oz fresh raspberries
2 Tbsp sugar

For the filling
2 lbs cream cheese, at room temperature (32 oz)
1½ cups sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place cupcake liners in muffin pan and lightly grease. Mix all ingredients well for the crust. Place 1 Tbsp of crust mixture in each paper liner. Press with cup (or I used my 1/4 cup measurer and that worked perfect) to press graham cracker crust into cup. Bake until crust is set, about 5 minutes, and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, mix cream cheese in stand mixer on medium-high until fluffy. Add in the sugar until fully incorporated. Repeat with salt and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. Be sure the mixture doesn't have any cream cheese chunks. This may require you to continue to mix and scrape the sides of the mixing bowl.

While mixer is blending, place rasberries and sugar in food processor and blend until it becomes a liquid consistency. Place a bowl under a mesh sieve and press liquid through to remove all the seeds. Set aside.

Place 1/4 cup of cheesecake mixture into muffin cups on top of crust. Drop a small amount of rasberry liquid on top (about 1/4-1/2 tsp) and swirl with a toothpick. Bake until cheescake is set, about 22 minutes, rotating halfway into the baking time. Cupcakes will be convex when removed from the oven but once they cool, they will go down. Leave in muffin pan for at least 5 minutes to cool then transfer to cooling rack. Note: I tried to remove them before the 5 minutes and they totally fell apart and were not "set" yet so I highly recommend waiting. Place in the fridge for at least 4 hours and enjoy!

Bacon, Egg and Toast Cups

I want to first apologize for the awful iPhone picture, but this recipe was so good I had to post it. Unfortunately I lost my camera so it might be a little while before I post again. Until that time, just know that I have found the ultimate breakfast .. even to-go! That is just perfect for my husband who hates to stop and eat breakfast in the morning (which I, of course, know is the most important meal of the day). This recipe is very simple, requires no prep and doesn't take more than 20-25 minutes to make.

Bacon, Egg and Toast Cups

Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally The Noshery

6 pieces of bread

6 bacon slices

4-5 eggs (beaten if you like scrambled eggs)

shredded cheese

salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Meanwhile, cook bacon on medium-high heat for about 4-6 minutes to slightly cook (you still want them to be flexible). Place bacon on plate with paper towels to cool. While the bacon is cooling, cut out a 3-inch round out of the bread slices. I used a plastic cup and that worked perfectly.

Take the bacon pieces and wrap them around the edges of the bread. Then, place the round bread pieces in each of 6 greased muffin cups so that it forms a little bowl.Note: The bread WILL stay in the muffin cups since it's not toasted yet. I was somewhat skeptical of that. Next, sprinkle a little cheese in the bottom of the cups and pour the egg into it until it almost fills up. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the egg is done (will not be liquidy anymore). Make sure you turn the pan 180-degrees about halfway through cooking.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste, and serve immediately!