Chicken Parm Bake

Shame on me for not posting this earlier. I don't have any excuses, except that I simply forgot. A few weeks ago I wrote a guest post for Oven Love and shared this recipe, but I never told you about it. Whoops! Please make this and then forgive me.

I thought about it today because I was going to make it for dinner, but I ran out of croutons. The croutons, you see, takes this simple meal to a whole new level. I usually have an extra bag of croutons on hand, because it's my go-to meal when I really don't feel like cooking at night, so you can imagine my disappointment when I had to scrounge up something else for dinner. We're having steak, by the way.

The moral of this story is: the next time you're at the store, pick up two bags of croutons. You'll need a second bag for that one night when you have no idea what's for dinner and really don't feel like cooking.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go buy a couple bags of croutons!

Head over to Oven Love for the recipe and more gabbing from me about how much I love this meal!

Black-Eyed Pea Salad

This recipe has been in my family for years—I can't remember a year that my mom didn't make this black-eyed pea salad. Black-eyed peas are supposed to be eaten on New Year's Day for good luck in the coming year. (Truth be told, I usually have my first bite a few days into January, because I forget about having a spoonful on January 1st.)

This salad is full of fiber, flavorful, and is perfect to keep in the fridge for a quick, filling snack. The flavor of the salad gets better with time, so don't be surprised if you find yourself eating a huge bowl days after you make it. Black-eyed peas, if you haven't had them before, remind me more of beans than a pea. They're tiny, a little grainy, and pair nicely with the ingredients below. 

When I was younger, my brother and I would do anything and everything we could possibly do to not have a single taste of this salad (I guess black-eyed peas sounded gross back then?), but now I love this and would consider making it any time of the year.

Black-Eyed Pea Salad

Ingredients:
1 (16-ounce) bag frozen black-eyed peas
¼  teaspoon salt
1 (14.5-ounce) can vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 jalapeno, rinsed but left whole
1 bay leaf
4 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped (about 1 cup)
2 medium ripe tomatoes, diced
2 green onions

Directions:
In a medium pot, combine frozen black-eyed peas, salt, vegetable broth, water, sugar, jalapeno pepper, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Turn off heat and allow peas to cool in the cooking broth for two hours or overnight before finishing salad.

There should be about ¼ cup of cooking liquid left in the kettle. Discard the bay leaf and dice jalapeno (optional). Stir tin cider vinegar and olive oil into the cooking liquid. Add green pepper, tomato, green onion, and jalapeno (optional). Toss to mix; serve chilled or at room temperature.

*This is a guest post I wrote for Jolts & Jollies

Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake

A few weeks ago I saw a call-out on Twitter for people interested in guest posting on Culinary Covers. Lori Lange, aka RecipeGirl (fantastic recipes, go check out her site!) created Culinary Covers as a way to see if those recipes gracing the covers of magazines actually deserve to be a cover photo.

The second I saw her request on Twitter I knew exactly which recipe I wanted to try: the Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake from the December issue of Cooking Light magazine. Part of the deal with guest posting meant that I had to make the recipe exactly according to the directions, take a picture mirroring the cover, and write about the experience. Seeing as how I've never made a cheesecake before, I was more than up for this challenge.

The result was better than I expected, but I'll let you check out my post on Culinary Covers for  more of my notes. I will say, though, that if you need an easy holiday dessert that not only tastes good, looks great, and is somewhat healthier than regular cheesecake, make this. You won't be dissapointed.