Grilled Tandoori Chicken w/ Grilled Naan Bread

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My mother loves Indian cooking, and tonight I thought I’d try my hand at this. Indian cooking is so savory and rich. I just love how all the spices come together and make your whole kitchen smell amazing. The chicken tastes just as divine as the aroma, trust me! The overnight yogurt marinade makes the chicken so tender. Now most recipes use the legs and thighs but i used chicken breasts because I wanted to lighten this up and use skewers. We loved it!  The recipe has been adapted from Simply Recipes. Here is my try at Tandoori chicken.

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Stuffed Ground Beef Cabbage Rolls in Tomato Sauce

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IMG_3294Cabbage rolls bring back memories for me and I am not completely sure why. Ever have one of those dishes that left a impression on you but you can’t remember the events? This is one of them. I am fairly sure my grandmother made them for me once. I tend to remember everything she cooked as being there on the weekends with her and grandpa were some of my fondest memories. Taylor ham, Johnny and Hanges (the best hot dog joint in NJ), Carvel ice cream and trips in the car to magical places like Gingerbread Forest (now called the Fairy Tale Forest but long closed).

gingerbread forestAll I do know is when I make some of these dishes like the cabbage rolls, I feel warm and fuzzy inside and I crave to sit with her.  Everything you need is tucked right inside this cabbage leaf; veggies, rice, meat and a nice sauce to simmer in. What more could you want?

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Baked Cream Cheese & Cheddar Jalapeño Poppers

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IMG_3351I love poppers! These are perfect for a super bowl snack! I love them bacon wrapped, cheddar stuffed, cream cheese stuffed and basically at any meal. Yes, I am one of those people that can eat anything at any time of the day. I don’t need cereal to make me complete. I can remember being yelled at as a little girl for eating pickles and hot dogs in the morning. All I have to say in my defense is if you are not going to get up early enough to cook me breakfast, it’s all fair game! Now I don’t do that combination anymore but I do love leftovers in the morning. You all know you have grabbed a piece of pizza on the fly from the night before. Ok, back to the poppers! Being that we were under a freeze warning, I did not venture out to get much needed bacon but I didn’t let that stop me. I looked up alternatives and came up with my own concoction of filling and loved it! We had it as a side to soup. This soup. They were wonderful. A little tip: to make cutting, peeling and seeding ten times easier, have frozen jalapeño’s on hand. When I buy or pick a bunch, I freeze them whole in a freezer bag. I love how these came out, cheesy and warm with a nice toast on them and the best part is all the filling stayed in the little jalapeño boat!

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Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Quick and Easy

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I love soups during the winter. They are quick, easy and you can literally make anything to go along with it. Your favorite indulgence is ok as long as you have soup with it! Well that is what I tell myself and please don’t tell me any different as tonight I am making cheesy stuffed jalapenos pepper poppers. The creaminess of this soup and it’s easiness to make keeps me coming back winter after winter. I make mine silky smooth with a few pieces of broccoli chunks and a hint of white wine. Topped with cheddar and a tiny bit of bacon, this soup hits everyone’s notes in this house.

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Lemon, Orzo, Meatball Soup w/ Kale

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I love soup and right now I seem to be on a soup kick. Often, I like to invent one as I go along and sometimes end of making something wonderful. This was one of those times. I had intended on making just a typical Greek lemon soup and decided to add in kale and mini meatballs. The flavor came out better than I could have expected. I even felt inclined to bring some into my office mate. I only wish my Grandma could have tasted it. Maybe I will bring some next time I visit 🙂

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