Category: Recipes

So, do me a favor. Try this recipe and then share with me the RAVE reviews you receive. No, REALLY! And, NEVER BUY a pre-packaged fajita mix again. K? ☺️ Thanks. Honestly, it is SOOOO flavorful and you can use it with shrimp or steak as well.

You will need ….

4 T of oil

the juice from 1/2 of a lemon or a whole lime (I prefer lime)

1/2 t chili powder

1 1/2 t ground cumin

1 t garlic powder

1/2 t kosher salt (can add more if you like)

1 1/2 t dried oregano

1/2 t paprika

1 t crushed red pepper flakes

1 onion sliced

1 green bell pepper, julienned

1 yellow pepper, julienned

1 red pepper, julienned

1 1/2 – 2 lbs of boneless; skinless chicken breasts, cut in 1/2 (lengthwise) and then into strips about the size of your peppers

flour or corn tortillas

In a large bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the oil, lemon or lime juice and all of the spices.  Mix to blend.  Add the chicken; cover and refrigerate up to four hours.  If you’re using shrimp, marinate for 15 minutes and the full 4 hours for steak.

In a large skillet, saute the peppers and onion in the remaining oil until just tender.  Remove from the pan and set aside.  Take the chicken out of the bowl and throw away the marinade.  In the same skillet, cook the chicken over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes or until no longer pink.  Return the onions and peppers to the pan, combine and continue cooking for 3-5 minutes.

Serve with tortillas, sour cream, avocado/guacamole or your favorite toppings.  These fajitas are really good over Spanish rice and black beans; topped with salsa, guacamole and sour cream … like a burrito bowl.

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#yumola

I saw this salad on ’30 minute meals’ (Rachael Ray) and wanted to try it. It was really good, but I wanted more flavor and a different pasta. So, like many of the recipes I make, I put my spin on it. However, the inspiration and original recipe props go to Rachael. It is GREAT for Summer time dining; especially with grilled chicken, but it is delicious any time of year! In fact, it is a staple on my buffet table at my annual ornament exchange party.  It looks SO festive in a red bowl and is a crowd pleaser. Whatever you do, DO NOT skip the feta, olives or artichoke hearts.  If you’re not a fan of these, keep scrolling.  They are the ROCK stars in this recipe.  TRULY!

You will need …

1/4 c extra virgin olive oil

3 T red wine vinegar (use a good quality one … trust me)

the juice of 1 lemon

6oz bag of baby spinach, chopped

1 – 2 cans of artichoke hearts packed in water, drained and chopped in half  (I use 2 because I love them!)

1/2 pound of feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup of pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped

1/2 of a medium red onion, chopped

1/2 cup of fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 lb of bow tie pasta, cooked al dente, well drained and cooled

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine the first three ingredients in the bottom of a large bowl and whisk. Add the remaining ingredients and toss to coat with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper.

 

#yumola

These potatoes pair well with my roasted garlic and rosemary chicken, but are a simple and delicious side dish for any meal.

You will need the following:

1 bag of small red new potatoes or 1 bag of baby yukon gold potatoes (washed and sliced in half or thirds)… you can do a mixture of both. Fingerling potatoes are also DELISH in this recipe.

1/4 cup olive oil

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

4-6 gloves of garlic minced

2-3 sprigs of fresh rosemary

1-2 tablespoons of dried rosemary

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary. Put potatoes on a cookie sheet or shallow dish and bake on 350 degrees for 45 min to an hour or until tender. Shake the potatoes from time to time to make sure they’re not sticking. If they appear to be too dry, drizzle some olive oil on top.

#yumola

Who doesn’t like macaroni and cheese? Okay, maybe there are a few of you that don’t. But, this recipe will even have YOU diving in! There are a ton of mac and cheese recipes out there. I even have a few variations that I make. However, this recipe is tried & true and has been in my family forever! If you’re looking for low fat; low cal or any other ‘low’, keep scrolling. This AIN’T that. 😊 But, if you want a YUMOLA; creamy and extra cheesy plate of absolute comfort & deliciousness, keep reading.

Seen here served with roasted chicken, cornbread dressing and roasted asparagus. SOOOO good!

1 pound of macaroni

kosher salt

4 cups of milk or evaporated milk

1 stick of unsalted butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

6 cups of extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (1/4 cup reserved to sprinkle on top)

1 teaspoon of kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook macaroni according to the package instructions for al dente. Drain well and set aside.

Heat the milk in a small saucepan, but do not allow it to boil. Melt the butter in a large pot (big enough to hold the milk and macaroni) and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Whisk in the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Remove from the heat and add the cheddar cheese, 1 tsp salt; pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and stir well. Pour into a baking dish. Sprinkle reserved cheese on top and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on top.

#yumola

We went to visit my Mom’s parents every Summer, the 3rd Sunday in August to be exact. Oh, how I looked forward to this yearly trip to Mississippi. My Mom came from a big family and all of my aunts and uncles came with their families too. Cousin time in full effect! We went to church revival, spent countless hours outside playing and eating some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life! I loved spending time with everyone, but really loved stealing moments, alone, with my grandfather. That was hard to do with so many people in the house. So, I would wake up very early so I could sit and have breakfast with him while everyone else was still sleeping. I have a painting in my home that reminds me of my ‘alone time’ with my grandpa. But, some of my fondest memories of those Summers was the time I spent with my grandmother in her garden picking vegetables for dinner or sitting at her feet on the porch as we shelled peas or right at her side as she made homemade biscuits and homemade peach preserves. This buttermilk biscuit recipe, after years of trying, is as close as I can get to my beloved grandmother’s biscuits.

2 cups of all purpose flour

2 T (heaping) of baking powder

1 t salt

1 T sugar

1 stick of very cold butter

1 cup of buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a bowl, whisk all of the dry ingredients together. Grate the ice cold butter into the flower mixture using a handheld grater. Using two knives, cut the butter into the flour. I prefer this method over using a pastry cutter. Pour in the buttermilk and mix just until the dough is formed. Do not overmix. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and turn over (in a kneading fashion, but be gentle) three times. Pat dough into a rectangle about 1 1/2 to 2″ thick.  Using a medium sized cutter or glass, cut the biscuits. Try to cut them as close as you can so that you don’t have any scraps left. The less you handle the dough, the lighter your biscuits will be. Brush off the excess flour and place biscuits on a cookie sheet. Bake for 13 minutes or until they just start to brown.

#yumola

This corn chowder recipe is my spin on a ‘Summer corn chowder’ I had in a restaurant. It was really good, but I felt it was a little too thin and needed to be more flavorful. I love recreating recipes at home because I know exactly what is going in them; can control the quality of ingredients (I try to use organic as much as possible) and can tweak them to cater to my/our taste buds. I hope you will give this chowder a try. It’s extra scrumpdiliocious with a grilled cheese sandwich!

3 potatoes, cubed

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 stalk of celery; tops included, chopped

3 T unsalted butter

2 T grape seed oil

3 T flour

5 cups of chicken stock (I prefer making my own, but there are some great store bought stocks. You could substitute with vegetable stock as well)

4 cups of fresh corn, cut off the cob OR frozen corn

1 cup of heavy cream

1/4 t of poultry seasoning

pinch of cayenne pepper

salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

fresh basil, rolled and cut into strips (chiffonade) or if you really want to take it to THE NEXT level … homemade bacon crumbles to garnish (shown in the picture below with a grilled cheese sandwich)

Heat the butter and grape seed oil in a heavy stock pot or dutch oven. Add the onion, celery, peppers, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over this mixture and cook for 3 minutes while stirring. Add the stock and potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook until the potatoes are tender. Add the corn, seasonings and cream. Continue to simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes until the soup thickens. For a creamier consistency, remove one cup of the soup and puree with an immersion blender (or traditional blender) then return to the pot. Garnish with the basil or bacon crumbles.

#yumola

This salad is a FAVE at my house!  Even my picky and, often times, NON veggie eating son likes it.  It doesn’t require a lot of cooking and is PACKED full of flavor! It is a ‘build your own Greek salad’, so you can put in as much or, in my son’s case, as little of any ingredient you like.  And, there are no exact amounts in this salad (2 cups of this or that).  Just put each ingredient in a separate bowl and allow each person to make their own salad.

romaine lettuce or mixed baby greens

red onion, sliced

tomato, sliced

feta cheese, crumbled

mixed kalamata olives

4-6 boneless; skinless chicken breasts

3 cloves of fresh garlic, minced

2 teaspoons of dried oregano

kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 lemon

olive oil

Season the chicken with the garlic, oregano, salt & pepper (approx 1 teaspoon each); drizzle with olive oil and cook on a grill pan or outdoor grill approximately 4 minutes per side.  Remove and immediately squeeze the juice from 1/2 of the lemon onto the chicken and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  Slice diagonally.

Assemble individual salads and top with the grilled chicken.  Drizzle with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.  NO other dressing is needed.  Your mouth is going to be HAPPY!!!!!!! And, your tummy will be too.

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4 whole chicken breasts that have been brined (4 hours) in 1/2 gallon of water and 1/4 cup of kosher salt, rinsed and thoroughly patted dry. ( see my note on brining under the “Tips” link)

olive oil

4 sprigs of fresh rosemary

4-6 cloves of garlic minced

1 T dried rosemary

kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1/2 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make a slit between the skin and the flesh of the chicken breast and put 1 spring of rosemary underneath the skin of each breast. Then, rub the olive oil all over the chicken. Sprinkle salt and pepper, liberally, all over the chicken. Do the same with the dried rosemary and minced garlic. Place on a baking sheet; skin side down and cook for 15 minutes. Turn the chicken and cook an additional 20-30 min or until the juices run clear and the internal temperature is 165 degrees. Remove from the oven; squeeze the juice of the lemon over the chicken; cover loosely with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.  This chicken is awesome paired with my roasted potatoes. Check out the recipe under the ‘Side Dishes’ link.

#yumola

Kimmie Bee’s Fried Chicken

1 whole fryer, cut in pieces (or your favorite pieces i.e. boneless; wings, etc.) that has been brined and patted dry.

1-4 T of your favorite spices (i.e. salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne, thyme)

1/4 cup of hot sauce

2 cups of all purpose flour

peanut oil (my fave) or your oil of choice

buttermilk (enough to cover chicken)

1-2 eggs

Note:  To save time and since you are marinating the chicken in buttermilk, you can skip the brining process in this recipe if you’d like. But if you don’t use the buttermilk, brine so that your chicken isn’t dry.

Place the chicken in a bowl and cover with the buttermilk and hot sauce. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Remove chicken and discard marinade. Season chicken with 1-2 tablespoons of the spices. Put flour in a separate bowl or zip lock bag. Season flour with 1-2 tablespoons of the spices. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with 3 tablespoons of water. Dredge the chicken in the flour, then into the egg wash and back into the flour. Set on a plate or platter while you prep the pan.

Heat oil (enough to come half way up the pan) on medium high. My FAVORITE pan to use is my Mom’s cast iron skillet. I use it for many things … cornbread; frying chicken & fish as well as roasting a whole chicken. Fry the chicken for approximately 8-12 minutes; turning once until golden brown. Bone in chicken will take longer than boneless; skinless.

I love serving this fried chicken with my homemade French toast. My twist on Chicken and Waffles. Initially, I was just improvising because I don’t own a waffle iron.  Gasp! But, we actually prefer it over waffles. It is one of my son’s favorite meals!

Kimmie Bee’s French Toast

8 slices of Brioche or Challah bread sliced thick

1/2 t of vanilla extract

1/4 t of ground nutmeg

1 t of cinnamon

2 T sugar

4 eggs

1/4 c milk

butter (unsalted)

powdered sugar

maple syrup

Combine the spices in a small bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the milk, eggs and vanilla. Add the spices to the egg mixture and then pour into a shallow dish. Dip the bread into the egg mixture and cook in a heated; buttered pan or griddle until brown on both sides. Remove and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with maple syrup or your favorite toppings.

#yumola

One of my favorite sandwiches is the BLT. I think I like it so much because my Dad loved a good BLT and I have yet to taste one that rivals his. Simple? Yes. But, even the simplest things can be delicious. It’s all about the quality of ingredients you use.

While on a business trip, close to my parents’ home, I opted to stay with them instead of a hotel. One of the best decisions EVER. It provided me with an opportunity to spend some quality; uninterrupted and ALL TO MYSELF morning time (Sorry, not sorry to my siblings ☺️) with my Dad. During that trip, he would get up every morning and make me breakfast. On some of those mornings … okay, maybe almost EVERY morning, he made me a BLT. He was a great cook and he loved bacon and tomatoes. So, it was only fitting that he made THE BEST EVER BLT’s. They always included non cured; thick slab bacon (he was ahead of his time on the organic, no nitrate, etc. thingy) and ALWAYS garden tomatoes (usually heirloom or beefsteak and often straight out of his own garden). So, this sandwich is in honor of my Daddy. Want to make it extra scrumpdiliocious? Add ripe avocado slices. Or, even better? Fried green tomato slices. (Stay tuned for the fried green tomato recipe later.)

To make this yumola sandwich, you will need:

4-6 slices of thick cut; uncured bacon or uncured turkey bacon cooked until crispy

country white, ciabatta or your favorite wheat bread (bake your own or get from a bakery that uses quality ingredients. Whole Foods has a great selection of breads)

beefsteak, campari or heirloom tomato sliced & seasoned with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

butter lettuce, green leaf or romaine lettuce (but PLEASE no iceberg 😩)

1 Tablespoon of mayonnaise (your favorite brand or my favorite … homemade ☺️)

1/4 of a ripe avocado; sliced

Toast your bread and then assemble the sandwich. Start by putting the mayo on each slice of bread. Next, layer the lettuce & tomato on one slice. On the other slice, layer the bacon and avocado. Carefully place one half on top of the other and get ready to have a party in your mouth!

#yumola