Giuseppepaolo

Some dinners just hit the spot. In more ways than one. Whether it's just what your taste buds were craving, or it's exactly what your crazy, unpredictable life needed. Taco salads have always been a quick and tasty solution for crazy day dinners. Toss together some taco-like veggies and cook up some ground beef.... Oh wait..ground beef....that takes a bit more time to prepare. And what if you're like me and rarely have ground beef on hand, let alone defrosted? Although just about any kind of leftover meat works wonderfully in a taco salad. If you have any leftover. I received a wonderful cooler full of Del Real Foods that saved the day more than once this week. Actually more than twice. The past 2 weeks have been challenging on many levels. Least of all, I had taken the October Unprocessed challenge , which I'm totally loving. But sometimes, something has to give and so often it's our food. We tend to cave into the fast, convenient foods. Well, let me tell you a l...

Today we are celebrating International Picnic Day by bringing you a basket packed with goodies from A to Z, in the style of the picnic game !  Drop by the Sunday Supper Movement to see the whole picnic spread out on our virtual blanket. I'm going on a picnic and I'm bringing...   Asian Chicken Salad from Try Anything Once Culinary  Beautiful Beet Salad from Small Wallet, Big Appetite  Chicken Muffuletta from Marlene Baird Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups  from The Dinner-Mom  Aaaaaaand...Elote Wait...what?! Elote? Yes, Elote...as in Mexican Street Corn. Totally yummy grilled corn on the cob with seasonings and cheese and stuff. The first time I tried (or even heard of) Elote was not that long ago, at a Dodger game. And I fell in love! Its super easy. way delicious, and perfect for picnics. Simply get your grill on And get your cleaned corn on the grill I grilled them on a lower heat at first, turning often until they were just about cooked, then added...

I'm excited to say that I have joined the #SundaySupper Movement! And this is my first participating post. Wouldn't you know it....it's all about Man Food! Is there much out there that men won't eat? I think not. At the bottom, you will find a list of other #SundaySupper blogger's Man Food recipes and links. You can check them all out and see what you find that'll make your man happy. What man doesn't like pizza? There might be a few out there but I've never met one. This Father's Day, to celebrate the man in your life, rather than turning on the oven to bake your pizza (and getting the house all hot and uncomfortable), why not take a shot at it on the grill? The flavor that's imparted is wonderful, just like anything else that's BBQ'd. You know that tell-tale smokey flavor that announces 'summer' loud and clear. Grilled pizza is fun, quick, and so darned good! As with all pizzas, there are 3 components: the dough/crust, the sauce...

These are not your typical meatballs. Not because they're flavored with a Mexican flair. And not because they were put inside a quesadilla. What makes them so unusual is that they are made from LEFTOVER meat. Cooked meat from the night before that I had leftover . This concept was brought to my attention as I was searching for a recipe to make of Chef Jacques Pepin's. Jacques Pepin is a world famous french Chef. He co-started in a series on PBS back in the day with Julia Child, called Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home. This is just one of his many achievements. This is the fifth and final recipe for my little Facebook challenge: 1.  Tyler Florence's Chicken Francese A quick and easy dinner, very similar to chicken piccata. Amazing flavor!  2.  Ann Burrell's Braised Chicken with Tomatillos and Jalapenos Easy to make, with amazing results. This is one of my favorites out of this bunch. 3. Ina Garten's (altered a tiny bit)  Apple Pear Pie in a Cast Iron Skillet In thi...

Yes, you heard right. Beef Tongue. It's in there. It's good. I swear. And you're talking to someone who went waaaaaaaaaay beyond hercomfort zone on this one. Before we go there, let me say a few things here. And I think you'll wanna hear them. First off, for the past 3 weeks, I've been participating in the  Muy Bueno  Cookbook  Spotlight & Cook-Off sponsored by  Hippocrene  and hosted at  girlichef    This cookbook is truly Muy Bueno. Here's a list of the recipes I've cooked during these wonderful three weeks: Mushroom, Jalapeno, and Cilantro Salsa Prickly Pear Margarita Capirotada - Mexican Bread Pudding You can go to   girlichef 's site and see what everyone else made. After all, I'm not the only one reviewing it. When the Muy Bueno Cookbook arrived, of course I instantly started browsing through the recipes. The first thing I thought was....wow, I've either made or eaten a lot of these recipes! Do you know why that is? No, not because...

Last week in reviewing the Muy Bueno Cookbook we had the option of making Mushroom, Jalapeno, and Cilantro Salsa and/or Capirotada (Mexican Bread Pudding). I had planned on doing both and posting both, last week. I only got to do the salsa. I had purchased all of the ingredients for Capirotada, and was ready to make it when I discovered it's not something you can just "whip up". Not that it's labor intensive but there is some time (prep and rest) needed. I had to wait until the following weekend to make it. If you're not familiar with Mexican Bread Pudding, let me start off by saying it's not a custardy bread putting. There are no eggs or cream in the recipe. The bread soaks in this wonderfully amazing syrup thats made with piloncillo,. cinnamon, cloves and water. Piloncillo is sorta, kinda like brown sugar. I found mine at the Mexican market. It's sold in cones and is very hard. Have you ever come across those brown sugar 'stones' before and they...

As I was thumbing through the recipes and reading the stories in Muy Bueno, I just happened to notice that 'Drinks' had a pretty thick chapter (A huge plus in my book) and when I saw this vibrant fuchsia margarita...I knew it was meant to be. I mean... look at that color! AND its a margarita. How perfect is that?! The Muy Bueno Cookbook is a complication of old-world northern Mexican recipes that span 3 generations. The stories and memories that are shared are touching and heart felt. They bring the recipes to life as the importance of family and tradition are expressed. The team that make up Muy Bueno include Evangilina and her daughters, Yvette and Veronica.  The three of them pay an incredible tribute to the grandmother in such a way that makes you wish you could've spent time in her kitchen, in her presence. Learning the old-world ways. But since that's not going to happen...lucky for us, Muy Bueno can bring those ways to your kitchen. This week I have chosen a re...