Black Bean and Corn Salad

I was thinking about a side dish for a Mexican meal one night and after looking at the ingredients in my pantry, I came up with this black bean and corn salad.  It has many of my favorite ingredients and flavors and they go so well together.  It’s just spicy enough and makes the perfect [...]

Twiced Baked Potatoes with Broccoli and Cheddar

I just love potatoes in any form- scalloped, baked, mashed, roasted, and whatever else you can come up with, but my I think my favorite way is twice-baked.  This was the first time I actually made them myself, but my mom has made them many times, mostly as a side for special meals like Easter [...]

Homemade Baked Beans

I have always loved baked beans, and I have wanted to try a homemade version for a while now.  In the past, I’ve alwasy gotten a can of Bush’s Baked Beans and doctored them up a little bit, but I wanted to see if the homemade version was much different.  I have also been trying [...]

Maple-Roasted Butternut Squash

Ina Garten’s latest book, Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics, is becoming one of my favorite cookbooks for dinner ideas.  There are so many things that I want to make, and I can’t wait to try it!  The other night I made roasted chicken, and thought this butternut squash dish would be a perfect side.  I [...]

Mexican Rice

David and I are big fans of Mexican food. We eat at Mexican restaurants often, but lately have been making more Mexican food at home. One of the things we love most at Mexican restaurants is the rice.  I love eating rice and refried beans together along with a delicious, warm Mexican dish [...]

Chicken Fingers with Ranch Dip and Seasoned Fries

The cooking board that I frequent had a recipe exchange for January and February. We all submitted recipes to one of the members and she was in charge of assigning everyone a recipe to make. The theme of this exchange was healthy meals. The recipe I was assigned to make was Chicken [...]

Macaroni and Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese. I’ve never gotten sick of it. I was searching for a recipe that would be a bit different, and I came upon this one from Emeril. I love the way the Essence adds some kick to the topping and the bread crumb and cheese mixture adds a [...]

Pineapple Casserole

I never had Pineapple Casserole until David’s mom made it one year for Thanksgiving. With pinapple, cheese, and Ritz crackers, I knew it has to be good! This dish became one of my new favorites. It often makes an appearance at Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter dinners, and I like to make it [...]