FOODILY

Last night I was catching up on one of my favorite blogs, LA in BLOOM, when I made a game changing discovery. Heather, who constantly makes seriously beautiful food, posted about a new(ish) site Foodily- Food I Love You. Her description was basically Pinterest, but for food........SOLD!

Foodily is (ta-da) a food site. More accurately, we are the world’s largest recipe network, bringing together a continuous feed of recipes from across the web that your friends have discovered.

I am finally at the point that I can go to the grocery without writing a full meal plan beforehand. It is so much more enjoyable to browse the food and pick up what looks fresh and delicious, without worrying about forgetting a key ingredient for a recipe. The problem with this is that once home, with all of my delicious food, I sometimes/often am at a loss of what to make with it. I wish I could just throw it all together to invent some magical new creation......but it is just not that easy for me. Not yet anyway.

Foodily might just be the answer I was looking for. The site has a search engine for ingredients you may have on hand and want to include, and another area to write ingredients you may be missing or would prefer to avoid. The best part is that you can easily browse the site for great inspiration, mark your favorites, follow certain people and share recipes with friends.

In addition to the site they have a Facebook app here to follow friends, food bloggers and famous chefs. Plus, a blog of their own here loaded with great giveaways and tons of articles on all things food.

It is nothing short of amazing really, you must check if you haven't already!

House Special: The Mater Sammy

Step One: cut the crusts off your WHITE bread.

Step Two: lather with REAL full fat mayo.

Step Three: salt LIBERALLY.

Step Four: EAT!

Step Five: wash down with a glass of COLD milk.

If you have been out to the Lawless Ranch during the summer, you have had a mater sandwich.....or five. They are AMAZING!

Sadly it is not possible to replicate this dish. It absolutely must be my fathers tomatoes, nothing else tastes the same. (sorry Ness)

Enjoy.

images: photos styled by Mr. Sam Lawless, well done dad!

One Pot Wonder: A Crawfish Boil

The victims.

The Chef, Mr. Nick.

The assistant, Mrs. Ashley.

Assistant #2, Mr. Matt.

Wash , purge, repeat. (A glutton for punishment, Macey.)

The spice, the large bag.

The salt.

The ingredients.

Chop.

Pour.

Boil.

Retrieve your garlic, mushrooms, corn, onions, and sausage. Yum!

Add to the pot.

Bring to a rolling boil for 3 mintues.

Turn off the heat and cover.

Pull the straining basket out.

Shovel onto a paper covered table.

Serve with saltine crackers and special sauce and dig in.

Special Sauce:
Mayo
Ketchup
Mustard
Horseradish

What do you do when your power is out, your house is a mess, and you have out-of-town guests on the way in? Throw an impromptu Crawfish Boil, hooray!

On Friday night we lost power half way through Pinocchio, boo! Saturday morning we went to our favorite breakfast spot and spent the rest of the morning at the library waiting for the power to come back on. No such luck, but......... the day got much better when we got a call from our friends the Lufts, Nick and Ashley.

Nick is a spectacular cook! He is from Louisiana and serves the most wonderful southern dishes. Fried grits for brunch and Jambalaya for Super Bowl, Out of control!

Sorry I don't have a real recipe for this one, but you know how guys cook...... a little of this, a little of that, and boom turns out amazingly delicious. Basically Nick and Ashley showed up with a cooler full of crawfish, the biggest pot you have ever seen, an oar to stir, and bags of veggies and seasoning. The rest is history.

The food was not just tasty, but incredibly beautiful! The colors were so vibrant, I had to share. We ate until the table was clear and our bellies were stuffed full. There was great fun had by all! Thanks again friends!

One Pot Wonder: Turkey Enchilada Casserole

Preheat oven to 375.

Prep: brown 1 LB of ground turkey and season, to taste. (I use 1-2 tsp of grill seasoning) Set aside.

In a heavy bottom oven safe pan, heat 2 TBS of EVOO and 1 TBS of Butter.

Chop: 1 onion, 1 jalepeno pepper, and 2 cloves of garlic. (I like to grate mine)

Drop in pan and season with 1 heaping tsp of ground cumin and salt, to taste. No need for pepper. Brown until tender and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

Drain and rinse a can of black beans. Chop 6-8 corn tortillas into pieces. Drain, rinse, and chop half a can of black olives. Not crazy for black olives? Eliminate them.....I only added them to original recipe because Cuyler requests them in EVERYTHING that I cook.

Stir in the chopped tortillas, browned turkey, beans, and halved olives.

Pour in a jar of tomatillo salsa or 3 7oz cans of tomatilla sauce, if your grocery doesnt have a good green salsa. Bring to a boil.

Chop a handful of cilantro and grate 2 cups of cheese. I use a mix of Monterey Jack and Cheddar.

Turn off the heat and mix in the cilantro and half the cheese.

Top with the rest of the cheese and pop it straight into the oven. Be sure your using a pan that is oven safe. Bake for 20 minutes.

Garnish: sour cream (I use Greek Yogurt instead, as a low fat option) and some cilantro leaves. I have it pictured here with a salsa filled avocado......a perfect low carb option. No chips! Salt and eat with a spoon....yum! Costco makes a really good organic red salsa that is super affordable.

Hope you like this! It's easy and delicious!

Anyone try to make the chili from a few weeks ago? More one pot wonders go come.

One Pot Wonder: Turkey Chili

I was on the phone with my little sister today giving her some ideas of new things to cook when I realized it would be a great topic to post a little series on. What is better then a recipe where you chop and drop into a single pot and then simmer?

Over the years I have collected lots of simple affordable recipes like this. These are meals that are easy to make at the end of a long day, perfect for leftover lunches for Cuyler the next day, kind to my grocery budget, and typically pretty healthy for my family to eat. Most importantly........they are delicious! (At least we think they are)

30 Minute Turkey Chili:

The original recipe is from Food Network Kitchens Making it Easy.

2-3 TBS of extra virgin olive oil in a large pot. A yellow onion chopped. 5 cloves of garlic grated or chopped.

Season with 1 TBS kosher salt, 2 Tsp Chipotle Chili Powder (or regular if you don't like it spicy), & 1 Tsp Oregano.

Saute and add 1 small can of tomato sauce. Add 1 lb of ground turkey, brown.

Pour 1 Mexican Beer and reduce by half.

Prepare toppings: green onion (I found these gorgeous locally grown salad vidalia onions- yum), shredded cheddar, and greek yogurt (in place of sour cream).

Add 1 lg can of whole tomatoes. Break them up with your spoon and add 1 can of kidney beans. Simmer for 10 minutes.

I serve my chili with a scoop of organic brown rice. I always have a bowl of it made in the fridge.

For dessert- seasonal fruit: honey tangerines and strawberries, yum!!!