Make Ahead Egg Bites

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There are so many wonderful things about these Make Ahead Egg Bites. You can make lots of different kinds all at the same time. They travel very well, so you can make them the night before and eat them for breakfast on the way to school or work. You can also freeze them so they are great for making ahead for camping trips. And they are super – SUPER – easy to make!

Make Ahead Egg Bites
Make Ahead Egg Bites

I use this pan from Pampered Chef called the Brownie Bites Pan. It is so perfect for this recipe but also so much more. But if you don’t have this pan – don’t despair – you can use a regular cupcake/muffin pan.

Brownie Bites Pan by Pampered Chef

Step 1: Preheat oven to 400F. Start with a dozen eggs (mine are from my backyard chickens – you don’t have to use brown eggs, if you prefer white). Crack them all into a mixing bowl and whisk together. Add in 1 tsp Sea Salt and 1 tsp Black Pepper.

Egg Preparation

Step 2: Evenly divide the mixed eggs into the your Bites or Muffin pan. You want to be sure not fill each space more than half way – once you add the mix-ins it will be full.

Step 2: Fill the pan with eggs

Step 3: Pick your mix-ins. You can make the whole pan the same, or make every single bite different. I usually like to make 3 varieties (resulting in 4 each). You can really use just about anything. I try to do a cheese, a veggie and then either a meat or second veggie. For this batch I went with 1) Bacon Jalapeno Cheddar, 2) Swiss Onion Ham and 3) Mozzarella Spinach Sweet Pepper.

Egg Bites Mix-ins

Step 4: Add a few pinches of each mix-in to each bite/muffin slot. Then use a fork to combine it a little.

Step 4: Mix in the Mix-ins

Step 5: Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. You will be able to see which slots you over filled – but they will all be tasty I promise!

Cooked Egg Bites

Step 6: Remove to a cooling rack. If eating right away – serve it up! If saving for the next day, let cool and then put in a storage container and into the fridge. You can reheat in the microwave for 30 seconds. If you are planning to freeze them for a later date, let them cool completely then place in a freezer bag. To reheat frozen ones, you need to microwave for 1 minutes.

My kids absolutely love these – especially since they can all have their “own kind”. I love that they are getting protein and veggies in! These are great for breakfast but also make an awesome afternoon snack too.

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Creamy Red Enchiladas

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Every kitchen needs a great enchilada recipe. This one is mine! Creamy Red Enchiladas are so tasty and super versatile. You can make them with any type of filling – shredded chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, or cheese. You can also get extra fancy with fillings like cream cheese with green chilies and shredded chicken or Greek yogurt with shredded beef and jalapenos.

The homemade sauce is the real star of this dish – and it’s really simple to make. Like I have said so many times – sauces from scratch are amazing and super easy! Stop reaching for the cans and jars and make your own sauces!

Creamy Red Enchiladas

In our house, we rotate between enchiladas and tacos almost every week. When you make it that often you start to get creative. This recipe started as wanting to learn to make regular enchilada sauce from scratch. I always thought the stuff from a can has a “tinny” flavor to it so I didn’t want to use it often. One I had figured out how to make the regular red enchilada sauce (you can find that recipe in the cookbook too!), I started to play around with it and came up with this Creamy Red Sauce variation.

I usually pair these with a simple side of rice and beans (another recipe you can find in the cookbook!). But it also would be great with a Southwest style side salad to add some veggies to the mix. They also freeze nicely if you want to make this ahead of time (prepare as directed and let cool complete then wrap for freezing). And if you are lucky enough to have leftovers – they make excellent lunch the next day!

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Creamy Red Enchiladas

If enchiladas are not already a staple on your family dinner table, you have been missing out. This recipe gives a great variation on the classic dish by adding a layer of creaminess to the homemade enchilada sauce. It is also super versatile because you can use any meat you like, or you can just fill your tortillas with cheese.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword creamy enchiladas, dinner, enchilada recipes, enchiladas
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 15oz Tomato Sauce
  • 1 qt Chicken Bone Broth
  • 3 tbsp Avocado Oil
  • 1 cup Sour Cream
  • 3 Garlic Clove minced
  • ½ White Onion minced
  • 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
  • 2 tsp Ground Cumin
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp Coarse Black Pepper
  • 12-15 Tortillas (Flour or Corn) taco sized
  • 1 lb Filling of Choice chicken, beef, pork or cheese
  • 2 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese shredded
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Instructions

  • Prepare all of the ingredients. Preheat Oven to 375 deg
  • In a saucepan over medium high heat, add oil, onion, and garlic, and cook for 3 minutes. Add the Broth, and all the seasonings. Whisk together until all the oil is incorporated and let it cook for 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and slowly whisk in the Tomato Sauce. Once a smooth sauce, let it come just to a bubble. Using a slotted spoon, remove any larger pieces of onion and garlic that did not break down. Then reduce heat to low and simmer while you prepare your enchiladas.
  • Fill each tortilla with desired meat and small amount of cheese (or all cheese) and line them up in a 13×9 baking dish.
  • Whisk in the sour cream into the red sauce. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes then pour over your pan of enchiladas. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of the sauce. Bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cook about 5 minutes before serving.

This recipe is from the Ethnic Adventures Section of the cookbook. You can purchase the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook in Paperback or Kindle (eBook) versions through Amazon to get all of the recipes from the Ethnic Adventures collection.

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Chicken Burrito Bowls (video)

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This is what I call a “cheater dinner” because all you actually have to cook up is rice. I use a rotisserie chicken from my grocer’s deli to make this super quick meal of Chicken Burrito Bowls for my family. And by saying quick I am not exaggerating at all – the whole thing takes less than 20 minutes to be ready – it takes less than a minute to build each bowl (trust me I filmed it for this video!).

Chicken Burrito Bowls

You can make burrito bowls a million different ways – you can use different proteins – like the Shrimp Burrito Bowl you will find in the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook (available in Paperback or Kindle versions). You can use different types of salsa – like the basic one in this video, or you could do mango or pineapple salsa. Or you can use Black Beans or Pinto Beans. Also you could add cheese or sour cream. You can add lettuce or not. I mean, really, you can do a lot when it comes to burrito bowls.

The basic premise of Chicken Burrito Bowls is that it has everything a burrito has without the tortilla. This video uses a basic salsa mixed with black beans and corn. A simple rice preparation using chicken broth instead of water (it gives it so much more flavor). And rotisserie chicken mixed with a few spices to give it more flavor.

Plating is huge part of this dish. You have to start with the right bowl – I, personally, love these super classic and just white bowls from Corelle. They are the perfect size and depth for all dishes that need to be plated in something more than a plate but not quite a full bowl.

What’s great about burrito bowls is they are a great carb cutting meal and you can totally customize them to each persons likes and dislikes. You will notice in the video that I made two without avocado for myself and my oldest son because we just don’t care for it. If you love to have you dinner all in one bowl – you should check out the Soups, Salads & Bowls section of the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook.

What do you like to put into your burrito bowls?

Estelle Forrest self-published this cookbook after a lot of playing around in the kitchen. You can purchase your own copy here:

AVAILABLE IN PRINT OR KINDLE eBOOK VERSIONS

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Featured on Happy Now Blog

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So exciting to be one of the Host picks on the Happy Now Blog Link-up Party this week! Thank you so much Jen from JENerrally Informed for selecting my Caesar Salad Burger as you favorite recipe from the last week!

Happy Now Blog Feature – Host Favorites

It is so exciting to get featured on other people’s blogs. Especially for something you are so proud of! I have been obsessed with burgers lately and loved this one so very much. I am actually working on a Burger Collection that I will post soon!

Here is the recipe card for the Caesar Burger in case you missed it!

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Caesar Burger

Putting the classic flavors of Caesar Salad on a Bun
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword burger, dinner, hamburger, main dish
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

For the Burger

  • 2 lb Ground Beef
  • 1 Egg beaten
  • 3 Garlic Cloves minced
  • ½ cup Parmesan Cheese shredded
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp Coarse Black Pepper
  • 6 Brioce Hamburger Buns
  • 4 tbsp Butter
  • 1 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tsp Parsley

For the Salad

  • 2 Romaine Hearts chopped
  • ½ cup Parmesan Cheese Shredded
  • ½ cup Caesar Dressing
  • 1 tsp Coarse Black Pepper
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

  • Prepare all of the ingredients. Preheat Grill to 400deg. Preheat oven to 450deg
  • In a mixing bowl, combine ingredients for the burgers (beef, Parmesan, egg, garlic, salt and pepper). Then shape into patties roughly 3½ inches wide by ¾ inch tall.
  • Once the grill is heated up, put burgers on and cook for 8-10 minutes on each side. Remove from grill and let rest at least 5 minutes before building burgers.
  • While the burgers are grilling, place buns, face up, on a cookie sheet. Combine melted butter, garlic powder and parsley and brush on to buns. Put in oven for 8 minutes (or until golden toasted)
  • In a salad bowl, combine the ingredient for the salad and place in fridge until ready to build burgers.
  • To build the burger, simple take bottom bun, top with burger, then some of the Caesar salad and the top bun. Enjoy!

Notes

You can also pan fry the burgers if you don’t have a grill. Use a medium-high heat pan with about a tbsp of oil. Same cook time. 

Citrus & Herb Whipped Cauliflower (video)

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Summer time calls for bright and light meals that can be made quickly and go well with anything on the BBQ. When I think bright and light, citrus flavors always come to mind first. And this is how I developed this Citrus & Herb Whipped Cauliflower.

Citrus & Herb Whipped Cauliflower

I actually got the inspiration from one of our very favorite places to eat out – 10 Barrel Brewery. My husband had ordered a meal that came with Citrus Mashed Potatoes and he absolutely loved them. So I took a few bites in an effort to work out the flavor profile. Then I decided that I wanted to make it a little healthier by doing it with Cauliflower instead of potatoes and I think I totally nailed it with this one!

This side dish would go so good with this Caesar Salad Burger (full recipe)! You will get so much flavor and brightness with the zesty citrus of the cauliflower and the salty goodness of the Parmesan cheese in the burger.

Whipped Cauliflower

The key to making great whipped cauliflower is using an immersion blender (this is the one I have). It really breaks the cauliflower down and mixes in the liquids well so that you get a smooth and creamy consistency – something you just can’t get by hand. You can also use a blender to get the same results, but you have to do it in smaller batches, which can make you lose your consistent flavor over the whole dish.

If you like this recipe and want to get more like it, you can purchase the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook in Paperback or Kindle (eBook) versions through Amazon.

Now let’s get cookin’!

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Citrus & Herb Whipped Cauliflower

Summer time calls for bright and light meals that can be made quickly and go well with anything on the BBQ. When I think bright and light, citrus flavors always come to mind first. And this is how I developed this Citrus & Herb Whipped Cauliflower.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword caulfiflower, citrus, Side Dish, side dish ideas, whipped cauliflower
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 2 heads Cauliflower cut into florets
  • 3 tbsp Butter melted
  • 1 Lemon zest & juice
  • 1 Lime zest & juice
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp White Pepper
  • ⅔ cup Heavy Cream
  • ½ cup Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

  • Prepare all of the ingredients.
  • In a large pot, bring enough water to boil to cover cauliflower. Once at a full rolling boil, add the cauliflower, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Drain in colander, then transfer to mixing bowl.
  • Using an immersion blender, begin to whip the cauliflower for 2-3 minutes (until larger chunks are gone). Then add in lemon zest, lime zest, butter, salt and pepper. Whip another 2-3 minutes to combine well. Then add in lemon juice, lime juice, and heavy cream. Whip until you reach a creamy consistency. Using a serving spoon, fold in parsley.

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Weekly Meal Planner – Week 2

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A Meal Planner is a part of my weekly routine. I sit down each Sunday and create my meal plan for my family so that I have one less thing to worry about!

Each week I will be sharing one Weekly Meal Planner each Sunday to help you get a jump start on your meal planning. I also want to provide you with the blank version of the Meal Planner so that you can make your own menu using other recipes (egads!) than those from my cookbook! Maybe even incorporate some of the free recipes I provide right here on this blog

Hopefully by now you have purchased your copy of the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook – if you haven’t you can get it as a Paperback or an eBook on Amazon! All of the full recipes for these meals are found in the cookbook. As mentioned in the cookbook, you can easily create weekly mean plans by simply selecting a recipe from each of the five categories in the book:

Here is the free printable Blank Homemade on a Weeknight Meal Planner (pdf):

HomemadeonaWeeknight-Meal-Planner-BlankDownload
Homemade on a Weeknight Blank Menu Planner

And here is this week’s Meal Plan!

HomemadeonaWeeknight-Meal-Planner-Wk2Download

This Week’s Meal Planner

Meal Planner Week 2 Printable

Parma Rosa

Parma Rosa

Pork Chops in Dijon Sauce

Pork Chops in Dijon Sauce

Korean Beef Bowl

Korean Beef Rice Bowl

Chopped Cobb Salad

Chopped Cobb Salad

Chicken Salad Sandwiches (get the full recipe here!)

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Why Meal Plan?

To be honest, unless you live alone, you are probably in need to meal plans each week. Whether you use them to decide who is cooking on which nights, or just so that you can better plan out your grocery list – they are a huge time saver. And for my family it serves as a reminder of what might be going on that evening. My kiddos know that if the dish is more involving then we probably don’t have anything on the calendar for that night. Conversely, if it is one of my super quick dishes, then they better see who has a game or concert or if we are going to a movie or something.

Salsa Chicken – try it for dinner tonight!

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This cheesy chicken dish is seriously a fiesta in your mouth. The fresh and chunky salsa you put right on top of the chicken infuses so much flavor into the chicken and then topping it with a layer of mozzarella – just WOW! This dish is so tasty and pretty to boot! Salsa Chicken is going to make the top of your weekly meal plan rotation!

Salsa Chicken

You can use the Salsa portion of the recipe to make a quick fresh Salsa for Taco night too. You may want to add some salt if you are going to us it on it’s own. That helps to break down the tomatoes a little which helps to mingle the flavors better. Baking it with the chicken has the same effect, that’s why you don’t need the extra salt.

Sometimes I serve this with Rice & Beans (there is a recipe that I use in the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook) or you could do a Southwest style salad or even just over white rice.

This dish is pretty mild in terms of spiciness – mostly because it’s for the whole family to eat. But it still packs some bold flavors. You can kick it up a few notches by not taking out the seeds like I did. You can see my whole method in the video below.

By using mozzarella cheese instead of cheddar, you knock the calorie count down as well. And adding that super food fresh avocado on the side makes it a healthy dinner choice for sure.

This recipe can be found in the Healthier Fare section of my cookbook – Homemade on a Weeknight (which is available from Amazon in either Paperback or Kindle versions). If you are looking for more recipes for your family – definitely get yourself a copy asap!

Now let’s get cookin’

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Featured on The Weekend Potluck!

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It is any food blogger/cookbook author’s dream to have one of their recipes featured on a hugely popular site. And today that happened to me!!! The Country Cook hosts the Weekend Potluck along with South Your Mouth, Sweet Little Bluebird and Served up with Love. And this week I was one of the Recipes that Caught their eye with my Turkey Club Wraps!

Weekend Potluck #438 The Country Cook

This is so exciting and encouraging and I am so grateful to be included! This recipes is such a family favorite in my home and it’s super versatile. They work so well for lunches too because they really travel well.

You can use the basic concept of these wraps to make a vast variety of wraps with whatever you have on hand – they don’t have to be Turkey Club Wraps every time. The cream cheese and the combo of veggies and meat are the essentials – after that you can go wild with ingredients. Some great things to try are Chicken Strips, Alfalfa Sprouts, Ham, Cucumbers, Bell Peppers, Ranch Dressing, Grilled Chicken, Avocado, Romaine Lettuce, Carrots, Steak strips…the list goes on and on. They also make a great meal to use of leftovers.

If you haven’t had a chance to see the Turkey Club Wrap Video yet, here it is!

Turkey Club Wrap

If you like this recipe and want to get more like it, you can purchase the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook in Paperback or Kindle (eBook) versions through Amazon.

Beer Battered Onion Rings

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Sometimes you just really need that good ol’ pub food to go with your steak or burger. And, man do we love burgers in my house! I have always loved onion rings and prefer the beer battered variety. But you can only really find panko style ones from the freezer section. So what’s a home chef to do? Figure out how to make them at home, of course!

Beer Battered Onion Rings

A Few Pointers

I learned a few things in the process. You gotta make sure that your batter is liquid enough not to cake on and solid enough not to slide off – it’s a delicate balance. If you have something close to pancake batter, you will be good. You want to make sure the oil is hot enough to sizzle when you drop the ring in, but not so hot that it cooks batter all the way through before it gets to the onion. You want the onion to be just a little soft, so that all the crunch comes from the batter.

Beer Battered Onion Rings

Whenever you cook with alcohol, you want to follow the rule “If you wouldn’t drink it, don’t cook with it”. Whenever you cook with alcohol, like beer, it tends to intensify the flavor, so make sure you enjoy it. By using a beer in this batter, you get a nice light airy batter. Make sure not to over stir the batter, as you will lose the bubbles. You want it to be just mixed together, when you start battering the onions.

And you need the right tools for the job. I found that you can use either cooking chopsticks (if you know how) or these sort of skinny tongs that I ordered from Amazon. They made it so super easy to dip the ring in the batter, flip them in the oil and then remove them to the rack. Speaking of the rack – make sure it is paper towel covered, to soak up any excess oil from the pan.

Skinny Cooking Tongs

We also discovered a new dipping sauce the last time I made them. We took a favorite BBQ sauce – it is a tangy variety – and mixed it with sour cream! It was a real zippy almost fry sauce and so good with these onion rings!

If you like this recipe and want to get more like it, you can purchase the Homemade on a Weeknight Cookbook in Paperback or Kindle (eBook) versions through Amazon.

Now let’s get cookin’!

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Beer Battered Onion Rings

Super crispy, super easy and the perfect side to a tasty burger!
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword burger, onion rings, Side Dish
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 Yellow Onion cut into rings no more than ½ in thick
  • 1½ cup Flour
  • 2 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 12 oz Beer (Lager is best)
  • 4 cups Oil
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

  • Prepare all of the ingredients. Add oil to large wide pan (like a large saute pan). Bring oil up to 400 deg.
  • Mix flour, salt, paprika and baking soda together. Coat each onion ring in the flour and set aside.
  • Mix beer into flour mixture. It should be the consistency of pancake batter
  • Once oil is hot enough, dip a floured onion ring in the beer batter and coat completely. Gently drop into oil and let cook until brown then flip and cook until brown again. Remove to a cooking rack over paper towels. Serve immediately.

Yes! I really cook dinner ~ almost ~ every day!

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The entire Homemade on a Weeknight concept was born of me returning to home cooked meals every night. I get asked all the time, “Do you really cook dinner every night?” The answer is YES! ~ almost ~ every night!

Estelle Forrest

I wanted to start eating healthier myself, as well as make that I was teaching my kids good eating habits from a young age. We stopped eating fast food (both from a drive thru and from a box) and started eating meals made from real ingredients.

Zuppa Toscana

A love of pretty plates

I also really started to enjoy making the plates beautiful. I had figured out that when the plate looked visually appealing my kids were willing to try things that they hadn’t eaten before. Then, I started to plan ahead on how I would plate the dishes. Then I started taking photos and posting them to my personal Instagram and Facebook. My friends and family started to comment on things and asking for recipes.

Creamy Asparagus Chicken

This was when the trouble started…because while I would look through several recipes on Pinterest for inspiration, I never really followed one recipe to a “T”. I usually took ideas from one and ingredients from another and added or subtracted what I had on hand or had access to. In the end it was a totally different recipe because maybe I changed it from ground beef to ground turkey or I used different veggies like sweet potatoes instead of russets.

Stuffed Shells

And a cookbook was written…

So then I found myself typing out a whole new recipe in the comments section of the post….crazy, huh? Now just over a year later I have written a cookbook with over 100 dinner recipes in it and I still cook – almost – every night. And people still can’t believe it. But cooking dinner has become my calm in the day. When I start making dinner it helps me ease out of my work day and into my home day. I’m not sure how, but it flips some switch for me. And even on the days when I think “I don’t have the energy for this”, once I get started I am relaxing and calming with each minute that passes. You can check out new recipes regularly by following along with the Homemade on a Weeknight Blog.

Homemade on a Weeknight: A Family Cookbook by Estelle Forrest

There is also just such a sense of accomplishment when you present you family with a pretty plate of delicious food that you crafted from real ingredients. Don’t get me wrong – I have days that I cannot even make a meal. Some days I plan for it – we plan to go out to dinner or order take out. Some days, the remodel business just takes it all out of me and I cave to takeout. But for the most part I really am able to make a home-cooked meal – almost – every day!

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