Turkey Meatloaf You’ll ‘loaf’ this lightened-up classic dish for dinner

There are a few dishes that feel specifically American. Meatloaf is one of those, despite it also being the butt of many sitcom jokes over the years. According to an article by Erica Martinez for “Food Republic,” meatloaf has been on recipe cards since the 1870s, but it may be even older than that. “[F]ood …

Brownie Cookies Earn brownie points with your friends with these awesome cookies

Last weekend, our house was the scene of an end-of-season party for Joey’s bowling team. I always love when that crew comes over. They are a super nice group, and it’s always fun to share a big meal and hear them tell stories and tease each other about their bowling gaffes. It’s also a great …

German Chocolate Cupcakes Cupcakes the best way to say ‘auf Wiedersehn’ to a good friend

Someone told me last week that I don’t really qualify as an amateur baker, since I’ve been writing this column way too long for that, but I still claim the title, especially after taking on a recent huge project. A dear friend of the newspaper, Debbie Pierce, celebrated her retirement last week, and since we …

Chorizo Poblano Chili Think you can’t eat chili in summer? That’s your ‘poblano’

There is really only one part of winter that I like: getting to eat soup. But then I realized one day that you really don’t have to reserve having a big bowl of soup, stew or chili to the cold months. Honestly, despite being a warm food, it’s not an awful summer meal. You don’t …

Pressure Cooker Pork Carnitas You ‘nita’ stop what you’re doing and try this pressure cooker recipe

Any time I find pork shoulder at a great price at our local grocery store, it’s a no-brainer for me to put it in the cart and let Joey know that I wouldn’t mind if he threw it on his smoker over the weekend. That’s why it was a little weird last week when Joey …

Asparagus Pasta Sauce A fresh veggie-based pasta sauce will keep them ‘aspara’guessing

According to the website “The Kitchen Project,” asparagus is a very old vegetable. Historical records show it was grown in ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt. It takes a few years to get a plant going, but once you have an asparagus plant established, the growing season will last about three months, and a healthy plant …