My Favorite Recipes

I know you've seen that collection of most popular recipes on my sidebar. They are all great recipes, but they are not truly the best. The same few recipes continue to be the most viewed because they are easy to access, therefore getting the most hits. So in honor of my 1 year anniversary of the birth of this blog, I want to do this little segment on my favorite recipes from my archive. I often will go back to recipes so that I can re-make them. I probably use this blog to cook from as much as (or more than) anyone else does.

1. Possibly my favorite recipe actually came from the creative brain of my boyfriend, Tom. I'm not sure if I could ever go back to Manwich.

Homemade Sloppy Joes

2. Ok, this recipe is a contender with the Sloppy Joes. Because it involves bacon.

Chicken Wrapped in Bacon

3. This one has changed how I will make burgers forever. Onion juice is a magical ingredient.

Onion Burgers with Avocado Dressing








4. Another one credited to Tom--I use this recipe all the time when I'm especially broke or not feeling creative.

Easy Pasta Alfredo








5. When the veggies in the garden are ready, I am going to make this all the time. This one has even been published.


Ratatoullie








6. I have finally found the cole slaw recipe that is no-fail perfection.


Cole Slaw
















7. I haven't made this one a second time yet, but I really really want to.

Five Layer Dip








8. Stir fry is a gift from God for poor college students. I don't like the stir fry in the dining commons, but when it's homemade you can make it any way you like.

Sweet and Sour Stir Fry







9. My cousin Jessi's recipe for guacamole is THE BEST.

Jessi's Guac









10. Aaaand for dessert we have these mini cherry cheesecakes.

Cherry Cheesecake Tarts

Alfredo Like You've Never Seen It Before

Nothing beats a good alfredo sauce. When you are cooking at home, however; it can often be difficult to get it to the perfect creamy-ness. And if you are being spontaneous and don't just have heavy cream on hand, a real alfredo sauce can seem a little out of reach.

Fortunately, there is a little known solution to all these problems.

An egg. Who would have thought of so simple an ingredient to make a perfectly creamy dish? You won't believe it until you try it for yourself.

I am giving my boyfriend total credit for this recipe. I went over his house one day after he had been watching the Food Network and he came up this dish. He said he had seen a segment on a restaurant that finished making your plate in front of you--in this case it was this alfredo dinner and they cracked the egg at your table. There was no recipe he followed, I just helped him do a makeshift alfredo and he added the egg. It was better than any other alfredo sauces I had tried before.


1/2 lb angel hair pasta
1/4 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp flour
1/2 cup shredded cheese (Tom prefers mozzarella, while I prefer Parmesan for a more classic flavor)
1 tbsp garlic
1 egg
salt pepper

makes 2 servings

Boil the pasta until cooked. Meanwhile, in a pan over med-low heat, melt the butter (or oil if you wish) and add the garlic. Once the garlic has begun to cook, add the milk, flour, salt and pepper and stir. When your pasta is just about ready, add the cheese and stir constantly. Drain the pasta and then add it to the pan, still stirring. Finally, once the pasta and sauce are mixed well, crack an egg over the dish. Stir until the egg is completely combined and then your dish is ready to serve.

Green Pasta Salad

Itching for the summer?

So am I, which is why I came up with this recipe for pasta salad. Although it always tastes better by a pool/at a BBQ/in the sun/with a cold beer/while wearing shorts, it will bring a little bit of sunshine to these cold winter days.

The recipe mostly came from my own head, aside from scanning through some different pasta salad recipes that I could find to see which parts I'd like to use for mine. I call this green pasta salad because those were the only colored veggies I used.

1/2 lb pasta
8oz frozen peas
1/2 cup chopped spinach
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp parsley
1/8 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Makes about 4 servings

Boil the pasta according to directions on package. This pasta salad would work best with a shaped pasta rather than a vermicelli or fettuccine type. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables by defrosting, cutting, etc. Add the sugar and spices to the veggies and mix. Once the pasta is drained and cooled, add the vegetables to the pasta. Then add the mayonnaise and the vinegar and mix well. Refrigerate until serving.

This recipe is very versatile. Next time I make this, I might just omit the spinach because it didn't do a whole lot that I could taste, it was just something in my freezer to give it more bulk. You could also use a bit less mayo and I think it would still taste relatively the same. My roommate said she really likes it! I hope you enjoy your taste of summer as much as I did. 

Creamy Spinach Pasta

I had a very similar recipe to this one that I posted on my blog a while ago. But I do not think either should replace the other. Even though this one does taste infinitely more yummy, my older recipe was a good out-of-the-fridge/no grocery shopping involved type of quick version of alfredo sauce. This recipe also involves a lot more butter and heavy cream, so I am going to take a guess that the old one is healthier.

Once again with the ruining of your New Years' diets with another dish you will not want to pass up. I apologize.

Tom and I did a variation of a recipe we found online. All I knew that day was that I really wanted to eat spinach, and Tom decided in what way we would eat it. He really does know how to pick the most unhealthy but most incredible meals.

1/2 lb pasta (we used penne)
1 stick butter (you can definitely use oil if you'd prefer to rescue the thighs)
1/2 lb frozen spinach
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp minced garlic
1/8 tsp Italian seasoning

In a pan, on medium heat, melt half the stick of butter. Then add the onion and garlic and cook until the onions are caramelized. Heat the spinach in the pan until it is no longer frozen, along with the other half of the butter. Stir in heavy cream on low heat. Slowly add the cheese, stirring constantly so that it does not clump together. Meanwhile, boil the pasta. After draining the cooked pasta, place it in the pan with the sauce and stir together. Serve with more Parmesan cheese and some crushed red pepper on top.

Marinara Sauce

In my family, pasta is frequent. Being 50% Italian, I've been blessed with a family of great cooks and lots of homemade dinners. My memory of growing up was pasta for dinner half of the days out of the week (though I don't know how accurate my memory is). I've always been taught there were two types of red sauce: marinara and "meat" sauce. I can't choose a favorite; it really depends on what mood I'm in. Our other nickname for marinara is "quick" sauce. It's the one that can be made without hours of sitting in a big pot. My mom recently emailed me the recipe so I thought I'd share it with everyone. Think of yourselves as pretty lucky, because this is a cherished family recipe. My grandmother, the great Italian cook my dad inherited his skills from, is the original source of this recipe.

1 28oz can of canned tomatoes (we use Pastene "Kitchen Ready" brand)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
3-5 cloves of garlic, crushed
6-8 leaves of fresh basil (or a couple tbsps of dried basil)
2 tsp sugar

Saute onion and garlic in oil over medium heat in a 3 quart pan. Then add basil, tomatoes and sugar. Continue to heat until it begins to bubble, then reduce the heat to medium-low or low. Let simmer for 20-30 minutes. Serve over pasta.

If your sauce tastes too acidic, add more sugar!