Tuna Salad

Do you have one of those meals or snacks that you've enjoyed since childhood? For as long as I can remember, my mom would always make tuna salad one specific way and serve it on toast. Once I got a little bit older I began to pair it with Cooler Ranch Doritos and to this day, I still prepare it the same way. It's almost like a comfort food for me.

I also enjoy tuna on toast with Doritos along with something else that makes most people crinkle up their nose and ask me to repeat what I just said. And that is cocktail onions but I prefer the huge ones you get from the deli. Yes, I really did just say cocktail onions, like the ones that are soaked in vinegar and are super sour. I've ate them my whole life and didn't have any idea until the 5th grade or so that I was considered incredibly strange for eating something so "gross" as others put it. Oh well!

Tuna Salad
Source: Mom
Servings: ~1 1/2 cups tuna salad
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Ingredients:
1 5 oz. can tuna in water, drained
1 stalk celery, minced
1/4 small onion, minced
1 tbsp. mayo
1/4 tsp. mustard
pinch of salt and pepper

Directions:
1. Combine all of the ingredients together in a plastic bowl with a lid. Stir well, breaking up the tuna into smaller pieces and mixing the mayo and mustard throughout.
2. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving on bread, toast or crackers.

I always feel kind of silly when posting simple recipes like this but then I realized its the simple recipes like this that people enjoy and typically are the ones that food bloggers tend to forget because they're either so common or so simple, we just expect everyone to make them in a certain way.
 

Edamame Fried Rice

You know yesterday when I said that I needed to start cooking and baking again because I only had recipes lined up on here until this Wednesday? Yeah. Well, I somehow forgot how to read while I was typing that because it wasn't correct at all. I only had recipes up until the previous Friday. So there was absolutely nothing ready to go for this week. Which, as someone who hopes her followers appreciate each recipe, was a serious UH-OH moment.

So after spending the day at my mom's pool I decided to come home and start blogging right away. I didn't even shower yet. Now that's dedication right? I hope you think so at least!

The first time I tried edamame was my 22nd birthday. Some friends and I went to dinner at a Japanese steak house and along with sushi, teppanyaki style food, sake and seaweed salad, I decided to try edamame and found it rather good but I never thought to make it myself. Then I came across this recipe and that changed!

Edamame Fried Rice
Adapted from: Skinny Taste
Servings: 4-6
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Ingredients:
2 egg whites
1 egg
1 tbsp. butter
3 green onions, chopped, green and white separated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 cup matchstick carrots
1 cup shelled edamame
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 cups cooked brown rice
non-stick cooking spray
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Whisk together the egg and egg whites and season with salt and pepper.
2. Spray a skillet with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add the eggs and cook, stirring frequently until they reach your desired done-ness. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
3. Add the butter to the skillet, and once melted, add the whites of the green onions, the onion, garlic, carrots and edamame. Stir frequently until the vegetables are just heated through.
4. Add the rice and the soy sauce and stir until combined. Return the egg to the pan and add the greens of the green onion. Stir frequently and cook for 3-4 minutes more.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Yum! The flavors of this mixed together nicely but I don't think the edamame was really the star of the fried rice here. It did add a nice change in flavor and a slight crunch to your typical fried rice. Since I always feel like I prepare side dishes exactly the same, I definitely think I'll keep this in the rotation to make again.

Weekly Menu 5/28 - 6/1

It's been a little over a week since we moved and I think I'm falling into a routine rather nicely. Last weekend was just absolutely exhausting. I'm still not ready to ever see a box again, but in happier news, I can now walk up and down the three flights of steps to and from the apartment without feeling like my legs are going to fall off.

We only have two or three things left to do, mostly because of my intense desire for organization. I will admit that it is completely driving me crazy that we still don't have the bookshelf/cabinet put together so I have boxes of things on the dining room floor and that I'm still waiting on another shelf for the pantry from maintenance which means my pantry is currently just stuff stacked on top of other things in a gigantic jumbled mess.

But I've had a very interesting thing happen over the past week. You know that relaxed no pressure to run errands or clean or constantly be doing something feeling that you have when you're on vacation? I have that. On Monday I had off work and had to leave for a doctor's appointment at 10. So at 9 I decided I'd run to the bank, dollar store and grocery store. Very unlike me. Another day during the week we randomly decided to go to Target and Ikea after work. Living in civilization is incredibly convenient!

I no longer feel any desire to rush around and clean or go to the grocery store instead of doing something fun. This is incredibly strange for me and I'm almost waiting for the feeling to go away, but I'd really prefer if it didn't. I'm also trying to figure out how having a larger apartment can take less time to clean. It's rather strange, but something that I definitely won't complain about!

I'm still getting used to the kitchen (and searching for things in the pantry) but confession: I don't have any more posts lined up after Wednesday, so I need to start making some new items!

Monday - Spicy Thai Noodles (they got bumped last week in favor of Chickfila)

Tuesday - Margarita Chicken Quesadillas

Wednesday - Caprese Burgers

Thursday - Pasta alla Erbe

Friday - Asian Flank Steak Skewers with Edamame Fried Rice 

We're going to my mom's to hang out by the pool today and hopefully will eat lunch late enough that I don't need to plan on a dinner for tonight.

I hope you're enjoying this holiday weekend!

Saturdays with Nichole: Favorite Summertime Foods

Even though summer doesn't officially start until June 21st, I consider Memorial weekend the beginning of summer. There are cookouts and barbecues, grilled foods and cold salads, fresh fruit and alcoholic beverages galore. Bathing suits, beach towels, sun block and pool floats. What in the world could be better than that?

Summer is absolutely 100% my favorite time of the year. Aside from all of the things above, flip flops are my shoe of choice. Iced coffee is even more delicious when its 80+ degrees out. Summer dresses. Free highlights in my hair from the sun. Weekends at the beach. I'm getting giddy just typing all of this out.

So in honor of the start to my favorite season, I wanted to share with you my favorite summertime foods.

Small Bites
Chicken Satay Skewers
Soft Pretzel Bites

Burgers and Sandwiches
Chicken & Onion Flatbread
Chicken Burgers
Corn & Black Bean Burgers
Crab Cakes
Jalapeno Pepperjack Burgers
Mango Habanero Chicken Sandwiches
Reuben Burgers
Sriracha Burgers
Tailgate Sliders

Desserts
Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Fruit Salsa
Fruit Trifle
Peach Blueberry Crisp
Raspberry Cheesecake Cupcakes
Strawberry Pizza

Drinks and Frozen Treats
Cherry Sorbet
Lemon Ice in a Lemon Cup
Orange Smoothie
Strawberry Lemonade
White Wine Sangria

Salads and Side Dishes
Bread and Butter Pickles
Corn, Tomato and Onion Salad
Garlic Parmesan Potato Chips
Korean Cucumber Salad
Onion Rings (Baked or Fried)
Parmesan Asparagus
Roasted Summer Veggies
Sesame Green Beans
Sugared Asparagus

Of course there are other things that I definitely enjoy during the summer months that I haven't made. Ice cream, popsicles, snowballs, just about anything on a grill, fresh fruit...the list goes on and on.

I hope you have a happy and safe Memorial weekend and a great start to summer!

Mozzarella Baked Gnocchi

Ever since I made gnocchi the first time, I've been kind of addicted to it. If I had known earlier how incredibly easy it is to make (pumpkin versions aside) I would have never waited as long as I did.

I had this recipe bookmarked forever but kept putting off making it because I wanted to try it with homemade gnocchi instead of packaged. Finally, one Sunday afternoon I had a little extra time so I decided to make a batch of home gnocchi so I could finally make this recipe the following week.

I have no idea what went wrong with that batch of gnocchi. They seemed okay while I was rolling them out and cutting them, but they didn't dry properly and completely fell apart into little balls of mush when I boiled them. I really should have stopped there but I continued on and completely this recipe. While it was great if you liked melted cheese, the gnocchi was completely lost. Since we had some busy weekends coming up I knew that I wouldn't have time to make another batch of gnocchi so I picked up the premade ones from the store.

Mozzarella Baked Gnocchi
Source: Cassie Craves, inspired by Food.com
Servings: 4
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Ingredients:
2 packages frozen gnocchi 
2 tbs. butter, divided
1 tbs. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, diced
15 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tbs. Italian seasoning
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella, sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Place paper towels or a clean kitchen towel over a wire rack.
3. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the gnocchi in batches until they float to the top. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on the wire rack to drain.
4. Heat a large skillet with 1 tbs. butter. Cook the gnocchi in batches until pan-fried and lightly golden. Transfer the gnocchi to the prepared baking dish.
5. Add the remaining butter and olive oil to the skillet. Then add the onion and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook for 3-5 minutes more or until heated through.
6. Pour the tomato mixture over the gnocchi and toss to coat/combine. Place slices of the mozzarella on top of the gnocchi and place the baking dish in the oven.
7. Bake for 5-6 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Increase the oven temperature to broil and cook until the cheese is browned. Serve immediately and season with salt and pepper to taste. 

I changed up this recipe a little bit by pan-frying the gnocchi before baking them. I wanted them to have a bit of texture since they were going to be combined with so many other soft ingredients. I think the pan searing added a nice slight crunch to go along with all that melty delicious cheese.

If you're ever craving some bubbly, crisp cheese I'd highly recommend this! 

Roasted Summer Veggies

There is just something about the flavor of roasted vegetables that makes me insanely happy. Aside from the occasional burger at a cookout or party, I'd be completely content to eat nothing but vegetables and seafood for the entire summer. Meat is just to heavy when its 90 some degrees outside. The carnivore I live with tends to disagree. But that's another story for another day. :-)

So any chance I get to make something that is a "Nichole Only" meal, I typically go for something full of veggies. In this case, I just needed to use up all of these vegetables before they went bad. Tom was planning on frying some fish and while I could have easily broiled or roasted a portion of fish for myself, a pile of roasted veggies just sounded so much more entertaining.

Roasted Summer Veggies
Source: A Cookaholic Wife Creation
Servings: 1
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Ingredients:
2 oz. mushrooms, sliced
2 oz. zucchini, sliced
2 oz. squash, sliced
4-6 cherry tomatoes, halved
non-stick cooking spray
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 475. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Arrange the vegetables onto the baking sheet in a single layer. Spray generously with the non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
3. Roast for 10-15 minutes or until the vegetables have reached your desired softness. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Roasting mushrooms is by far my absolute favorite way to make them. I'm not lying when I say I could easily eat an entire plate of mushrooms myself. And that delicious pop when you bite into a roasted tomato...

Sorry. No more descriptions here. I've successfully made myself hungry enough that I need to go roast some veggies. :-)

Kitchen Sink Frittata Bagel Sandwich

I'm a compulsive list-maker. I'm also one of those people who wants to get everything crossed off the list before doing something else. It's a bad habit I have. My typical weekend would start on Friday night where I'd clean the entire apartment. Saturday I'd finish up any cleaning and we'd go to the grocery store. Depending on what I planned to make for breakfast and what was on the menu for Sunday's dinner, sometimes I'd spend at least 4 hours in the kitchen on Saturday followed by a few more on Sunday.

Then Sunday night I'd get annoyed with myself that I spent the entire weekend doing a million things and never got to relax. So when the realization hit me that I'd no longer have a 45 minute each way commute, I decided I was going to become lazy. But not lazy like most people expect. Just lazy enough for me to where I wouldn't make a list and I surely wouldn't follow one on the weekends.

As the move got closer, I decided to test it out and see what it would be like. One Sunday morning after the cats decided 6 am was the appropriate time to wake me up, I took advantage of the On Demand exercises, showered and then plopped down in front of the television around 9. There wasn't much on, but I stopped on Food Network and ended up watching it until the Sandwich King came on at 11.

We've watched the last three seasons of The Next Food Network Star but I rarely remembered to tune in once the star has their own show. Usually its at a time where I'm right in the middle of something. Luckily I wasn't this time, because I heard one word, Sriracha and I was immediately hooked. I knew I was going to make this recipe one way or another.

And it just so happened there was an incredible amount of eggs in the refrigerator. I took it as a sign the Sriracha Gods wanted me to make this. :-)

Kitchen Sink Frittata Bagel Sandwich
Source: The Sandwich King
Servings: 6
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Ingredients:
1/4 cup sour cream
3 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tsp. Sriracha (or to taste)
1 green onion, minced 
4 Italian sausages, casing removed and crumbled
8 slices bacon, chopped
12 eggs
3 tbsp. half and half 
1 cup shredded Provolone cheese
1 cup shredded Asiago cheese
6 everything bagels, sliced
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, cream cheese, Sriracha and green onion until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
2. Lower the oven rack to the middle and preheat the oven to broil.
3. Cook the bacon over medium heat in an ovenproof skillet until crisp, stirring frequently. Remove the bacon from the skillet and add the sausage. Cook until the sausage is browned, stirring frequently and breaking it up.
4. Transfer the sausage to the plate with the bacon and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat.
5. In a large bowl, whisk together the half and half and eggs. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and cook, tilting the pan to coat the sides with the egg, until the bottom is set and the top is wet.
6. Stir the bacon, sausage and cheeses into the egg mixture. Season with salt and pepper and place in the oven for 2-4 minutes or until the top has become lightly golden brown. Remove the frittata from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, place the sliced bagels on a baking sheet and broil for 2-3 minutes or until lightly golden. Spread the cream cheese/sriracha mixture onto each side of the bagel.
8. Use a large round cookie cutter to cut circles out of the frittata. Place the frittata round on one side of the bagel and top with remaining bagel slice.

I was kind of surprised that Tom didn't like this as much as I expected him to. He said it was mostly the everything bagel part he wasn't a fan of.  I liked it, but would prefer a much healthier version, maybe with veggies in the frittata instead of meats, or one made with mostly egg whites instead of whole eggs.  The cream cheese/sriracha mixture was delicious though! I could easily eat that on just about anything.