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Hash Brown with Egg and Sriracha Cups

These are great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and are great leftovers. Spray muffin tins very well with non stick spray. I used store bought pre-shredded hash browns and filled muffin tins 2/3 full making room in middle for filling and pushing potatoes up the sides of tin to make cup. Bake or Traeger at 400-425 for about 30 minutes or until crispy and golden brown. I filled my cups with leftover pulled pork and an egg. When I baked the egg on top it got pretty messy but still tasted great. If you’re making these for guests I would suggest cooking the egg separately and putting on top. Garnish with green onion and Sriracha. *You can use anything you want in these cups..ham, turkey, cheese, scrambled eggs. Whatever you have in your fridge!

Chia Pudding

There is no right and wrong with Chia Seed Pudding. Be creative and make it your own. Here are a couple of my favorites! Chia seeds Your favorite milk (almond or coconut) Your favorite yogurt Vanilla extract Maple syrup Salt Fall chia pudding- Canned Pumpkin, dash of cinnamon, dash of fresh nutmeg Toppings- be creative! You’ll want to use 1/4 cup chia seeds per every 1 cup of yogurt and 1 cup milk. I throw it all in and never measure it out so you really can’t go wrong. Add a dash of salt, a tsp of vanilla, and about 2 Tb or as much maple syrup as you like. For the pumpkin pudding add a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg, and 1 to 2 Tb of canned pumpkin. The pumpkin isn’t that sweet so I would also add more maple syrup. Cover and refrigerate mixture for a couple of hours or overnight. Add any toppings you like. Some of my favorites are pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, and coconut. The possibilities are endless!

Thanksgiving Benedict

Thanksgiving is one week away! As much as I can’t wait for the big day, I love the leftovers just as much. Here is a yummy idea for lunch the next day. Add an egg or two to your stuffing and mix it all together to form a patty. Sauté the stuffing cake until brown and cooked through on both sides. Top with turkey and a poached egg. Drizzle leftover gravy and cranberry sauce.

French Onion Soup Cups

Greeting your guests with these individual French Onion Soup cups, will warm them right up on a chilly fall night. Ingredients 5 Tb butter 4 sweet yellow onions, sliced 2 garlic cloves, chopped 2 bay leaves 2 fresh thyme sprigs Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 3/4 apple cider 3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 quarts beef broth 1 baguette, sliced 1 block grated Gruyere Cheese Directions Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and s&p and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, ~25 minutes. Add 1/2 carton of broth and apple cider, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer about 5 minutes and get all bits of onion off the bottom of the pan. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low and cook for 10 minutes. Add the rest of the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10-15…

My Mom’s En Croute

I can’t go home for the holidays without having my Mom’s delicious En Croute. It’s a long standing family tradition that I’ve carried on with my own family. 2 eggs 1 T mustard 2 t lemon juice 1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained 4 hard-cooked eggs, chopped 1 cup chopped ham 2 oz shredded Swiss cheese 1 sheet puff pastry In large bowl, beat 2 eggs well. Set aside 2 t. Blend in mustard and lemon juice. Stir in remaining ingredients until well combined. On lightly floured surface, roll puff pastry into a 15 x 9 inch rectangle. Brush lightly with some of the reserved beaten eggs. Spoon egg/spinach mixture down center of pastry. Fold both sides over to cover. Pinch to seal edges and ends of pastry. Place seam side down on lightly greased baking sheet. Brush top and sides with remaining beaten eggs. Cut 5 diagonal slashes in top. Bake at 425 until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Avocado and Arugula Tartine

Oh my gosh. Christmas music and this Tartine for brunch today is making me so happy! Layer the following: Toasted wheat sourdough bread Smashed avocado with lemon juice s&p Arugula with shaved Parmesan and Maison dressing (evoo, lemon juice, garlic, s&p) Roasted Asparagus Pistachios Poached egg I’ll be eating this for lunch all week!

Tuna Salad with slivered almonds

Last nights dinner turned into lunch all week. I don’t make tuna very often, but when I do I love it! You can make this your own with whatever ingredients you have on hand. Here is one of my favorite combinations: Albacore in water Light mayo Spicy mustard Relish Diced purple onion Diced Clauson pickles Diced cucumbers Diced celery Lemon juice Lemon zest Kosher salt &pepper (I add Sriracha sometimes which adds a nice kick) Serve with bib lettuce instead of bread for lower carb. And I love avocado and toasted almonds on top.

3 Step Salad

My idea of the perfect salad comes in 3’s. You don’t have to have specific ingredients and you can be creative with it! 1. Toss in your favorite kind of cheese. What do you have on hand? Goat cheese, feta, or parmesan..are all great ideas. 2. Add fruit or veggies. Pear, apple, leftover asparagus? They all work! Cut them into different shapes and sizes for look and variety. 3. Add any nuts or seeds that you have in your freezer or cabinet. Cashews, pecans, or pistachios are all great ideas (make sure to toast them). Nuts keep great in the freezer so I always have at least four varieties on hand (same with cheeses). Finally, I always use at least 2 kinds of lettuce. I love the different texture and flavors it gives to the salad. In this case I used 3; spinach, arugula, and baby bibb lettuce. Your perfect salad can be done in 1,2,3!

Orange, Grapefruit, and Pistachio Salad

Are you having a dinner party or guests over for the New Year? If so, there is so much you can do ahead of time. Plastic bags can be your best friend when entertaining. When I’m throwing a party or having friends over, my refrigerator is full of party food in plastic baggies. They’re disposable when it’s “go” time and keep things fresh and ready to go. This is one of my favorite salads lately: Mixture of spinach and arugula Orange sections Grapefruit sections Pistachios Feta cheese Avocado.

Avocado Toast with Citrus and Chia Seeds

Light lunch before tonight’s festivities! Avocado Toast: Whole wheat bread, toasted Smashed avocado Citrus cumin salt Chia seeds Olive Oil Fresh squeezed lemon juice.