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Ingredients 
  • Sandwich bread 
  • Butter 
  • Cheese 

Directions 
  • Put butter on one side of the bread 
  • Put buttered side on pan with cheese on top 
  • Grill until lightly browned 
  • Flip over 

​Video 
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​Ingredients
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  • potatoes
  • olive oil
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Method
  1. To prepare and cook your potato wedges:
    Preheat your oven to 400˚F. Put a large pan of salted water on to boil.

  2. Scrub the potatoes clean and get rid of any gnarly bits. Cut the potatoes into chunky wedges (or think fries). Add to the pan of boiling water and parboil for 8 minutes. Drain and leave to steam dry for a couple of minutes.

  3. Transfer to a roasting tray and add a good amount of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss together so all the wedges are coated in the oil then spread out in one layer.

  4. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes until golden, crisp and cooked through. Delicious served with steak or chicken.
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INGREDIENTS
  •     6 small to medium sized russet baking potatoes (total 3 pounds)
  •     Extra virgin olive oil
  •     Kosher salt
  •     Freshly ground pepper
  •     6 strips of bacon
  •     4 ounces grated cheddar cheese
  •     1/2 cup sour cream
  •     2 green onions, thinly sliced, including the greens of the onions

1 Bake the potatoes: Scrub the potatoes clean then bake the potatoes using your favorite method, either oven or microwave. If using an oven, pierce a few times with a sharp knife or the tines of a fork, rub with olive oil and bake in a 400°F oven for about an hour until the potatoes are cooked through and give a little when pressed.
If using a microwave, pierce the potato a few times with a sharp knife of the tines of a fork, rub all over with olive oil and cook on the high setting for about 5 minutes per potato.
I have found that baking the potatoes in a conventional oven yields potatoes that are easier to work with (cut and scoop out), the potato seems to adhere to the skins a little better, but there is hardly a discernible difference in the final product.

2 Cook the bacon: While the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon strips in a frying pan on medium low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Let cool. Crumble.

3 Cut potatoes in half and scoop out the insides: Remove the potatoes from the oven and let cool enough to handle. Cut in half horizontally. Use a spoon to carefully scoop out the insides, reserving the scooped potatoes for another use, leaving about 1/4 of an inch of potato on the skin.

4 Bake the potato skins: Increase the heat of the oven to 450°F. Brush or rub olive oil all over the potato skins, outside and in. Sprinkle with salt.
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Place on a baking rack in a roasting pan (don't use a cookie sheet, it will warp, use a roasting pan or broiler pan that can take the heat).

Cook for 10 minutes on one side, then flip the skins over and cook for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool enough to handle.

5 Add cheese and bacon and bake again: Arrange the potato skins skin-side down on the roasting pan or rack. Sprinkle the insides with freshly ground black pepper, cheddar cheese, and crumbled bacon.
Return to the oven. Broil for an additional 2 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Remove from oven.​

6 Top with sour cream and green onions to serve: Use tongs to place skins on a serving plate. Add a dollop of sour cream to each skin, sprinkle with green onions.
Serve immediately.

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Grandma used 2 part Campbell's cream of mushroom soup to one part sour cream, but I like it more one to one ratio of soup to cream.
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  • If you use 2 cans of soup
  • I use about head and a half of broccoli. Grandma used frozen boxes broccoli, I use fresh.
  • About a dozen to 15 button mushrooms sliced.
  • About 400 to 500 cc of shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
  • I use tons of onion flakes about 150 cc of it. Grandma used much less. 100 cc should do it.
 
  • Mix all of that together and have a taste and add more or less of onion flakes and cheese as your buds like. 
  • Put in a casserole pan/bowl and bake at 375 for about an hour covered. 
  • Take out, uncover and put some cheese and fried onions on top and let it sit out for about 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
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INGREDIENTS
  • 2 cups long grain rice (uncooked)
  • Early Harvest Greek extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped (just over 1 cup chopped onions)
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/2 cup orzo pasta
  • 2 lemons, juice of (PLUS zest of 1 lemon)
  • 2 cups low sodium broth (chicken or vegetable broth will work)
  • Pinch salt
  • Large handful chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tsp dill weed (dry dill)

INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Wash rice well and then soak it for about 15 to 20 minutes in plenty of cold water (enough to cover the rice by 1 inch). You should be able to easily break a grain of rice by simply placing it between your thumb and index finger. Drain well.
  2. Heat about 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a large sauce pan with a lid (like this one) until oil is shimmering but not smoking.  Add onions and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and orzo pasta. Toss around for a bit until the orzo has gained some color then stir in the rice. Toss to coat.
  3. Now add lemon juice and broth. Bring liquid to a rolling boil (it should reduce a little), then turn heat to low. Cover and let cook for about 20 minutes or until rice is done (liquid should be fully absorbed and rice should be tender but not sticky.)
  4. Remove rice from heat. For best results, leave it covered and do not disturb rice for about 10 minutes or so.
  5. Uncover and stir in parsley, dill weed and lemon zest. If you like, add a few slices of lemon on top for garnish. Enjoy!

NOTES
  • Cook’s tip #1: Do not skip washing and soaking the rice well, this is important to help get rid of excess starch which causes rice to be sticky (this rice is not meant to be sticky). Soaking the rice here also shortens the cooking time, making sure the interior of the grain actually cooks before the exterior looses its shape.
  • Cook’s Tip # 2: Once rice is finished, leave it covered and undisturbed in the pot for about 10 minutes before adding the herbs etc. Again, this helps maintain the texture and integrity of the rice.


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INGREDIENTS
  • 2 cloves garlic, grated
  • 2" piece ginger, peeled and grated
  • 2 tbsp. brown sugar
  • 1/4 c. soy sauce
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Canola oil, for searing
  • 1 lb. flank steak, cut into ½-inch slices
  • 1 head broccoli florets
  • 4 c. cooked brown rice
  • 4 green onions, thinly sliced
  • White and black sesame seeds, for garnish

DIRECTIONS
  • In a small jar, combine garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce, and lime juice, then season with pepper and shake well.
  • Over high heat, coat a medium skillet with canola oil. When the oil is nearly smoking, add the steak and cook, turning frequently, until cooked through, about 3 minutes per side.
  • Transfer steak to a cutting board, season with salt and pepper, and let rest.
  • Reduce heat to medium, then add sauce to skillet and deglaze pan, then add broccoli. Season generously with salt and pepper, and let simmer for a few minutes.
  • Meanwhile, divide rice between bowls, then add steak.
  • When the broccoli is cooked through, add it next to the steak and drizzle the sauce over both the steak and broccoli.
  • Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.
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Ingredients
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
Directions
  • In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Stir in water and oil. Turn onto a floured surface; knead 10-12 times, adding a little flour or water if needed to achieve a smooth dough. Let rest for 10 minutes.
  • Divide dough into 8 portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a 7-in. circle.
  • In a greased cast-iron or other heavy skillet, cook tortillas over medium heat until lightly browned, 1 minute on each side. Keep warm.
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Ingredients
  • 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 lemon, juice and zest
  • 1 tablespoon yogurt
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Directions
  1. Marinate the chicken in the mixture of the remaining ingredients in the fridge for 30 minutes to overnight.
  2. Grill the chicken over medium-high heat until cooked, about 2-4 minutes per side.
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INGREDIENTS
  • 1/2 of a large cucumber, unpeeled
  • 1 1/2 cups plain full-fat Greek yogurt
  • 2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
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​INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Grate the cucumber and drain through a fine mesh sieve overnight in the fridge.
  2. Combine the yogurt, garlic, oil, vinegar, and salt in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
  3. Transfer the grated cucumber and fresh dill to the yogurt mixture and stir to combine. Serve chilled with pita bread for dipping.

Recipes

Journaling my cooking journey