Category: Main Dish

Recipes for main dishes.

Rich garlic pasta is the ‘confit’ package

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date July 9, 2026

Garlic confit pasta is the perfect dinner for garlic lovers. Featuring both the cloves and infused olive oil from making slow-roasted garlic confit, this recipe is hearty and delicious.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about my adventures in making garlic confit.

After slow-roasting all those beautiful garlic cloves, making them soft and deeply flavorful, we’ve been using them on everything we could think of, but if you’re interested in using a boatload of cloves in one recipe, I have the perfect one to share with you.

The original recipe also included instructions for making garlic confit, if you want to check it out, but I opted to follow the procedure I shared with you a few weeks ago. It’s on my website (spiceupkitchen.net), if you missed it.

I found this recipe on the blog “Dang That’s Sweet.” You can see the original post at https://dangthatssweet.com/garlic-confit-pasta/. I added meatballs, mushrooms and spinach, along with a bit of extra cheese, to my version to really make it a meal.

Garlic Confit Pasta

Garlic confit pasta is the perfect dinner for garlic lovers. Featuring both the cloves and infused olive oil from making slow-roasted garlic confit, this recipe is hearty and delicious.

Course Main Course

Keyword baby bellas, bowtie pasta, butter, fresh spinach, frozen meatballs, garlic, garlic confit, roasted garlic

Ingredients

26 ounces frozen meatballs cooked according to package instructions
1 pound bow-tie or similarly shaped pasta cooked according to package instructions
1 tablespoon garlic-infused olive oil from making garlic confit
12 to 16 ounces fresh mushrooms sliced (I used baby bellas)
25 roasted cloves of garlic confit drain off the oil
8 tablespoons butter softened
3/4 cup heavy cream or milk
1/2 cup parmesan freshly grated (plus more for serving)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup fresh baby spinach roughly chopped

Instructions

Begin cooking your frozen meatballs according to package instructions.
In the meantime, boil your pasta, and be sure to reserve about one cup of the pasta water when it’s finished.
In a large, deep skillet, heat the garlic-infused oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute until they are softened to your liking.
Meanwhile, add the cloves of roasted garlic and the butter to a bowl, and mash until everything is well combined.
Add the cooked pasta, one-quarter cup pasta water, garlic butter, milk, parmesan, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to the mushrooms in the skillet, and stir to combine, letting the butter melt and the flavors marry.
Turn the heat to low, and stir regularly to keep the dairy from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Let the sauce thicken to your desired consistency. If it’s too thick, add pasta water until it thins to how you want it.
Stir in the fresh spinach until it wilts, and if you want to coat them in sauce, add the meatballs, or just serve them on top of the prepared pasta, topping with more grated parmesan.

This was absolutely delicious. The garlic was definitely the star, but adding in the extra ingredients helped to make it feel more balanced.

We ate our pasta with some crusty bread and fresh green beans (sauteed in garlic olive oil, of course), and it felt a bit fancy for how easy it was to make.

This would be a great meal to make for someone special, if you’re trying to impress them with your cooking skills.

Of course, make sure it’s someone you don’t mind having garlic breath around. Even a strong mint will be no match for this meal.

This piece appeared in print July 9, 2026.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Tags baby bellas, bowtie pasta, butter, fresh spinach, frozen meatballs, garlic, garlic confit, roasted garlic

Main Dish

It’s OK to wing it, even with classic French chicken dishes

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date June 18, 2026

Dijon roasted chicken and vegetables is a play on a classic French dish, known as poulet à la moutarde. It creates decadent crispy skin, juicy chicken and perfectly roasted vegetables for dinner.

When I go to try a recipe I think sounds tasty, I often follow the directions pretty closely, only deviating here and there to kick some of the flavors up a notch.

When Joey is inspired by a recipe, he looks up a few more versions of the same dish and then goes completely rogue, creating his own, unique interpretation.

That was the case recently, when he announced we were going to figure out our own path to making a French dish, poulet à la moutarde (or mustard chicken).

He volunteered to spatchcock the chicken (one of my least favorite kitchen chores) and told me to grab pen and paper, as he already watched several videos on making the classic French recipe and had ideas on how to do it his own way in our Kansas kitchen.

So, while I normally give you a source for these recipes, this one is a Joey Young creation. He was certainly inspired by the French, but if you look at their recipes and what we ended up making, you’ll see he improvised quite a bit.

The best part, though, was the experiment was absolutely delicious.

Dijon Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

Dijon roasted chicken and vegetables is a play on a classic French dish, known as poulet à la moutarde. It creates decadent crispy skin, juicy chicken and perfectly roasted vegetables for dinner.

Course Main Course

Cuisine French

Keyword celery, chicken, dijon mustard, fresh garlic, garlic, garlic salt, milk, onion, onion powder, paprika, parsley, potatoes, rosemary, whole chicken, yellow onion

Ingredients

1 whole chicken spatchcocked
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
leaves from one sprig fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried
about 1/4 to 1/2 cup dijon mustard
2 large potatoes cut into one-inch pieces
1 medium onion thinly sliced
3 stalks celery diced
1 bulb garlic cloves separated and peeled
1 tablespoon dried parsley
black pepper to taste

Sauce Ingredients

1/4 cup milk I used skim
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
garlic salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place the spatchcocked chicken on a cutting board while you prepare it.
Combine the garlic salt, paprika, onion powder and rosemary leaves in a small bowl, and then rub it evenly under the skin of the breast and along the bottom of the chicken.
Now, coat the entire outside of the chicken in a thin layer of dijon mustard.
Put the prepared potatoes, onion, celery and garlic, along with the parsley and black pepper into the bottom of a nine-by-13-inch baking dish, and stir to combine.
Add the chicken on top, breast side up.
Put the chicken in the oven and check the internal temperature after 45 minutes.
Let the chicken cook to 160 degrees, and then remove it from the oven. Carefully place the chicken on another dish or cutting board to rest while it up-cooks to 165 degrees.
While the chicken rests, mix the sauce ingredients in a small bowl, and then pour over the vegetables in the baking dish. Give it a stir and then place it back in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove the vegetables from the oven, and give them another stir.
When the chicken has reached 165, slice and serve it, along with the roasted vegetables.

This was moist and tender, and while Joey and I both expected the mustard to overpower the entire meal, it was actually just a really nice supporting character to the overall dish.

Plus, the mustard created a beautiful, crispy skin on the chicken, which was a great texture and flavor addition.

Everything also reheated well, which was nice, as we ate on this for leftovers.

And, luckily, I did manage to keep up with Joey as he explored our spice cabinet and added ingredients, or we’d never know exactly how to recreate this awesome dinner.

But who needs a recipe when you are this good at making it up as you go along?

This piece first appeared in print June 18, 2026.

Tags celery, chicken, dijon mustard, fresh garlic, garlic, garlic salt, milk, onion, onion powder, paprika, parsley, potatoes, rosemary, whole chicken, yellow onion

Main Dish

‘Rice’ to the occasion with tasty caramelized pork

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date May 21, 2026

Caramelized pork with rice is slow-cooked on the stove top, along with onions and plenty of Asian-inspired seasonings to make a hearty dinner, along with plenty of leftovers.

Until I really started exploring some Asian recipes during the pandemic, the ginger in my spice cabinet was pretty much only for baking sweets.

If you would have asked me, I would have said it was there merely for projects like pumpkin bread and ginger snaps.

Boy, was I missing out on an entire, delicious genre of ginger-filled recipes.

I was thinking about that recently when I made this week’s recipe for some delicious, Asian-inspired pork.

This comes from the blog “Berry & Maple.” You can find the original post at https://berrymaple.com/sweet-caramelized-pork-rice/. I added extra onion and soy sauce and added more seasonings in my version.

Caramelized Pork with Rice

Caramelized pork with rice is slow-cooked on the stove top, along with onions and plenty of Asian-inspired seasonings to make a hearty dinner, along with plenty of leftovers.

Course Main Course

Keyword brown sugar, dried ginger, fish sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, pork butt, pork shoulder, rice, soy sauce, white onion, white rice, yellow onion

Ingredients

1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow or white onion diced
2 pounds pork butt cut into one-inch pieces
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried ginger
2 teaspoons onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
prepared white rice and sesame seeds for serving

Instructions

Heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet.
Add the onions and saute until they are almost cooked through.
Add more oil, if necessary, and saute the pork in batches until it’s browned on all sides.
Add one cup of water to the skillet, along with the onion, pork, brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, garlic powder, dried ginger and onion powder. Stir to combine well.
Bring the mixture to a low boil, and then let the mixture simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring regularly, until the sauce reduces and becomes thick. Give it a taste, and add salt and pepper, if needed.
Serve the pork over white rice and topped with some sesame seeds.

In the past, I would have never thought to add ginger to a recipe like this, but it adds a lot of great flavor, so I highly recommend it.

It’s amazing how many applications different spices have, especially ones like ginger, cinnamon or even cayenne, when it comes to both sweet and savory dishes.

Something I take pride in is continuing to explore the entire grocery store aisle of herbs and spices. The good news is I don’t think I’ll ever get bored or actually conquer them all.

The better news is there’s always good old ginger snaps to come back to, as well.

This piece first appeared in print May 21, 2026.

Tags brown sugar, dried ginger, fish sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, pork butt, pork shoulder, rice, soy sauce, white onion, white rice, yellow onion

Crockpot Main Dish

This kick-butt crockpot recipe should be on your list

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date April 23, 2026

Crockpot mushroom pork butt is a home-y, simple dinner that is awesome over a big pile of mashed potatoes.

After finding a huge, eight-pound pork butt on sale a few weeks ago, our first inclination was for Joey to throw it on his smoker, as he normally would.

Instead, we debated a bit back and forth about what kind of new recipe we could try, and it turned into what we deemed to be a “pork butt face off.” (Which doesn’t sound very nice, but when you’re creating a weird competition in your own kitchen, you can call it whatever you like.)

We each chose a recipe, and we went to the grocery store to get our ingredients.

Thanks to our love of hosting, we have two large crockpots, so we each claimed one and got to work.

We chose distinctly different dishes for our respective halves of the pork butt.

For mine, I decided I wanted something that was in the comfort food genre—something that was filling, belly-warming and made for great leftovers.

So I landed on a recipe from the blog “The Kitchen Magpie.” You can find the original post at https://fastandslowcooking.com/mushroom-gravy-slow-cooker-pork-butt. This was simple enough that I didn’t do much outside of swapping out the kind of mushrooms and onion the recipe called for.

Crockpot Mushroom Pork Butt

Crockpot mushroom pork butt is a home-y, simple dinner that is awesome over a big pile of mashed potatoes.

Course Main Course

Keyword baby bellas, crockpot, fresh mushrooms, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy mix, onion, pork butt, pork gravy mix, pork roast, slow cooker, vegetable broth, vegetable stock, yellow onion

Ingredients

3 to 4 pounds pork butt roast
2 pounds large whole mushrooms (I used baby bellas)
1 large onion sliced (I used yellow)
2 cups vegetable broth or stock
21- gram packet mushroom gravy mix
21- gram packet pork gravy mix
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons cornstarch
mashed potatoes for serving

Instructions

Add the pork butt to a crockpot, and place the mushrooms and onion on and around the meat.
In a bowl or mixing cup, whisk the vegetable broth with the two gravy packets until it is well combined.
Pour the mixture on and around the pork in the crockpot. Add salt and pepper, to taste. (Don’t forget that the gravy will likely have some built-in sodium, too.)
Cook on low for eight to 10 hours or on high for four to five hours, until the pork butt is tender and easy to shred.
When you’re ready to serve, transfer the pork to a separate plate or dish and cover to keep it warm, and then add all of the liquid from the crockpot to a saucepan. Heat it over medium-high heat.
Whisk the cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water, and slowly whisk it into the drippings in the pan.
Once the gravy reaches your desired consistency, taste it and add more salt and pepper, if desired, and remove it from heat.
Shred the pork and serve it with the mushrooms and onions over top of mashed potatoes and drenched in the gravy.

This recipe was exactly what I wanted to create. The mushrooms added a great, meaty flavor to the pork, and adding creamy mashed potatoes with a really flavorful gravy was absolutely perfect.

So, did I win the face-off?

Well, yes and no.

Joey and I both really, really liked this, but we both really, really liked his recipe, too. (Don’t worry; I’ll be sharing it with you later.)

I guess a tie, when it comes to homemade dinners, is a pretty great outcome, too.

This piece first appeared in print April 23, 2026.

Tags baby bellas, crockpot, fresh mushrooms, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy mix, onion, pork butt, pork gravy mix, pork roast, slow cooker, vegetable broth, vegetable stock, yellow onion

Main Dish

This week’s dish is ravi‘whole’i made for someone with spare time

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date April 2, 2026

Beef and spinach ravioli can be made completely from scratch at home, and while it is a lot of work, the freshness and flavor are definitely worth it.

Something I love about Joey is that he is often quite willing to jump into a grand kitchen experiment with me.

Recently, that was when I pulled out my pasta roller, and instead of merely making noodles, as I have so far since I bought it, I proposed creating ravioli from scratch.

He was totally on board.

We did some troubleshooting together, trying to hone our technique, and by the end, we had some pretty nice looking stuffed pasta, ready to be made into dinner. (It might have also been after 8 p.m. by the time we finally accomplished this, but that’s not the point.)

This recipe is a combination of a beef ravioli recipe from the blog “Josie and Nina” (you can find their original post at https://josieandnina.com/italian-beef-ravioli/) and from “Easy Italian Cookbook” by Jennifer Donovan.

Beef and Spinach Ravioli

Beef and spinach ravioli can be made completely from scratch at home, and while it is a lot of work, the freshness and flavor are definitely worth it.

Course Main Course

Keyword baby spinach, breadcrumbs, fresh pasta, fresh spinach, ground beef, nutmeg, onion, panko, parmesan cheese, ravioli, ricotta cheese, white wine, yellow onion

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion diced
6-8 cloves garlic minced
1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup white wine
16 ounces fresh spinach
1 cup breadcrumbs I used panko
1/2 rounded cup parmesan cheese grated
garlic salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 ounces ricotta cheese
batch of fresh pasta dough

Instructions

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet.
Add the onion and saute until it is cooked through. Add in the garlic and saute for about a minute or until it just starts to be fragrant.
Add the ground beef to the pan and saute, breaking it apart as it cooks, until it’s cooked through. Remove any excess fat from the pan, and then pour in the wine, being sure to scrape up any bits from the bottom of the skillet. Add the spinach, and let everything cook for about two minutes, stirring to wilt the spinach into the mixture.
Add the meat mixture to a food processor and process for a bit, just to get things incorporated, and then add in the bread crumbs, parmesan, garlic salt, pepper and nutmeg, and process until the mixture is kind of a paste.
Mix the ricotta into the meat mixture.
Assemble your ravioli by rolling out the dough into long strips. Using the utensil you’ll use to cut the ravioli (I used a two-inch scalloped cookie cutter), gently make impressions along the dough where you’ll want to cut out each ravioli (you’re just marking it, not cutting the dough), and then scoop about one teaspoon of filling (or more, if your ravioli are larger) into the center of each of the spots. Using a pastry brush, brush a thin layer of water around the edges of each spot. Cover with another sheet of dough and press around each mound of filling with your fingers to seal them, working out as much air as possible, and firmly press your cutter to cut out each individual ravioli.
Set the finished ones off to the side.
To freeze, place them on a baking sheet lined with waxed or parchment paper, and place them in the freezer until they are frozen through. Then place them in a freezer-safe container or bag until you’re ready to cook them.
To cook them, fresh or frozen, boil a large pot of salted water, and carefully drop the ravioli in. Let them boil for a couple minutes until they float to the top and are warmed through. (You don’t need to thaw the frozen ones before cooking them.)
Serve with your favorite sauce.

We ate our ravioli with pesto, and they were really tasty. I did learn that it’s imperative to really flour your surface when you’re cutting out the ravioli so that you can get them to release without tearing.

These were a lot of work, and I’m sure many people would think it’s a waste of time to make your own ravioli, when there are excellent ones in the freezer section at the grocery store. But Joey and I had a great time cooking—and eating—together, and that made it worth it.

This piece first appeared in print April 2, 2026.

Tags baby spinach, breadcrumbs, fresh garlic, fresh pasta, fresh spinach, garlic, ground beef, minced garlic, nutmeg, onion, panko, parmesan cheese, ravioli, ricotta cheese, white wine, yellow onion

Main Dish

This classic casserole is entering a new school of ‘tot’

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date March 12, 2026

Chicken alfredo tater tot casserole puts an Italian twist on a classic casserole concept. It’s a creamy, delicious dinner that’s easy to make and easy to customize.

Back before my married days, one of my favorite dishes to make for myself was a big nine-by-13-inch pan of good, old-fashioned tater tot casserole.

Of course, being one person, that also meant I was dedicating one meal a day for the next week to eating plenty of leftovers.

I’m a sucker for leftovers, though, so while that might have driven some of you crazy, I always loved it.

When Joey and I married, I learned that he wasn’t against a tater tot casserole. It was just on his “it’s fine” list of foods, so I don’t make it too often these days. (Plus, with needing to try a new recipe every week, sometimes the old favorites take a backseat to something experimental.)

That means, when I found a recipe that is a big twist on tater tot casserole this week, you know I had to give it a try.

This comes from the blog “Inspire Spire.” You can find the original post at https://inspirespire.com/2025/07/18/chicken-alfredo-tater-tot-casserole-recipe/. I added extra seasonings and some veggies and mushrooms in my version.

Chicken Alfredo Tater Tot Casserole

Chicken alfredo tater tot casserole puts an Italian twist on a classic casserole concept. It’s a creamy, delicious dinner that’s easy to make and easy to customize.

Course Main Course

Keyword Alfredo sauce, baby bellas, basil, bell pepper, chicken, easy casserole, fresh mushrooms, garlic powder, mozzarella, onion, onion powder, oregano, parmesan, red pepper flakes, shredded chicken, tater tots, yellow onion

Ingredients

1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion diced
1 small bell pepper diced (any color)
1/2 cup diced mushrooms I used baby bellas
2 cups cooked chicken shredded
15 ounces alfredo sauce
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
32 ounce bag frozen tater tots
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded parmesan

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking dish by spraying it with cooking spray, and set it aside.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and mushrooms, and saute until everything is cooked through.
Add the chicken, alfredo sauce, and seasonings to a bowl and mix it well. (If your alfredo sauce is already seasoned the way you like, you don’t need to add all the extras. Just follow your heart.)
Evenly spread the chicken mixture into the bottom of your prepared pan.
Cover the top with a single layer of tater tots, and then top evenly with the cheese.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the cheese is lightly browned on top.

This was creamy and delicious, and the leftovers were fabulous. I will say that if you put a little extra cheese on it like I did, you might want to layer that under the tater tots so they get nice and crispy.

I definitely made this more complicated than the original, which honestly just included the sauce, chicken, tots and cheese, but I couldn’t resist adding the extra veggies and mushrooms to the mix, and they were really good.

I think Joey secretly knew I was trying to trick him into moving tater tot casserole up on his list with this twist, but he just has too many other meals he likes a lot more. He did like it, though.

Regardless, if I’m ever going to be at home by myself for several days, I might need to opt for this new tater tot casserole to sustain me through the week.

This piece first appeared in print March 12, 2026.

Tags Alfredo sauce, baby bellas, basil, bell pepper, chicken, easy casserole, fresh mushrooms, garlic powder, mozzarella, onion, onion powder, oregano, parmesan, red pepper flakes, shredded chicken, tater tots, yellow onion

Breakfast Main Dish

Oh, baby, are you going to love this Mexican-Dutch fusion

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date March 5, 2026

A Mexican Dutch baby combines the traditional puffy pancake with lots of great south-of-the-border flavors, like chorizo and salsa, to make a meal that’s great for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Sometimes I feel like I must try a recipe, just because it sounds too ridiculous or strange to ignore.

In this case, it was finding a guy online making a “Mexican Dutch baby.”

If you’re not familiar with a traditional Dutch baby, it’s basically a large, puffy pancake made in an already preheated pan in the oven.

I have generally only seen Dutch babies filled with fruit and powdered sugar once they come out of the oven, so the idea of a savory one—and a Mexican one, at that—intrigued me.

Now, I will warn you that I probably ruined this from being a true Dutch baby, because I beefed it up quite a bit, making it pretty impossible to puff up as much as a traditional one would, but just trust me that having this as a hearty, filling meal is totally worth whatever puffiness sacrifice you’re making.

I found this recipe on the YouTube channel @yaydadcooking. I doubled the recipe for my version, increased the amount of chorizo and paprika and also added garlic, onion and bell pepper.

Mexican Dutch Baby

A Mexican Dutch baby combines the traditional puffy pancake with lots of great south-of-the-border flavors, like chorizo and salsa, to make a meal that’s great for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Main Course

Keyword bell pepper, chorizo, Dutch baby, fresh garlic, garlic, minced garlic, oaxaca cheese, paprika, potatoes, queso fresco, Russet potato, salsa, yellow onion

Ingredients

9 ounces chorizo
1 large Russet potato diced
1 small yellow onion diced
1 bell pepper diced
6 to 8 cloves garlic minced
6 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons butter
Oaxaca cheese or queso fresco to taste
Your favorite salsa for serving

Instructions

Place a large, cast iron or oven-safe deep skillet in the oven and preheat to 425 degrees. (Mine is a 13-inch pan.)
While it preheats, heat a skillet over medium heat, and add the chorizo. Saute until it’s cooked through, and remove it from the pan, setting it aside.
In the leftover grease from the chorizo, saute the potato, onion and pepper until everything is cooked through (if there isn’t enough oil in the pan, add a little canola or vegetable oil to supplement). Add the garlic and saute for just a couple minutes or until it’s fragrant. Remove it from heat and stir the chorizo back into the mixture.
Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk or fork, and then stir in the flour, milk, paprika and salt and pepper. Whisk it some more until the mixture is lump free.
If the oven is preheated, carefully remove the hot pan and add the butter, letting it melt and swirling it to coat the bottom of the pan. Pour in the chorizo/veggie mixture and spread it evenly over the bottom of the pan, and then pour the batter mixture over the top of that.
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the batter is golden brown and set.
Top the Dutch baby with cheese and salsa, slice and serve immediately.

This was really tasty, and it reheated extremely well out of the fridge the next day.

This would make for a good dinner or breakfast, either one, and the neat thing is you can really control the spice level, based on what salsa you choose. We went with a spicy green salsa, and it was delicious.

And I’m pretty excited to see this Dutch-Mexican fusion. It combines the best of both types of recipes into one, and that’s the kind of culinary world I want to live in.

This piece first appeared in print March 5, 2026.

Tags bell pepper, chorizo, Dutch baby, fresh garlic, garlic, minced garlic, oaxaca cheese, onion, paprika, potatoes, queso fresco, Russet potato, salsa, yellow onion

Main Dish

I’ll give this recipe my ‘stamppot’ of approval

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date February 26, 2026

Stamppot is a traditional dish from the Netherlands, featuring creamy mashed potatoes, fresh kale and smoked sausage to create a hearty, but simple, meal.

I love finding recipes that claim to be “national dishes” or “traditional” ones.

But I will also confess that, more often than not, when I declare that something is “traditional,” there is someone who will email me (very nicely, mind you) to let me know that, actually, the recipe I found wasn’t quite right.

Inevitably, the person I found making that dish online or in a cookbook somewhere doesn’t quite live up to the food one of my readers grew up enjoying.

So, I am very cautiously introducing you to what is supposedly the Dutch national dish: stamppot.

Stamppot is a mashed-potato meal that is mixed with some vegetables and served with sausage. It’s hearty and simple, and while Joey swore it could really have benefitted from a bit of gravy, it’s delicious, too.

Plus, while you’re eating a big plate of mashed potatoes, you’re also getting a huge serving of veggies along with it. That seems like a win to me.

This comes from the blog “Gypsyplate” by Jason Beiser. You can find the original post at https://gypsyplate.com/stamppot/. I added extra kale and garlic in my version and substituted an onion in place of shallots.

Stamppot

Stamppot is a traditional dish from the Netherlands, featuring creamy mashed potatoes, fresh kale and smoked sausage to create a hearty, but simple, meal.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Dutch, Netherlands

Keyword bay leaves, comfort food, fresh garlic, garlic, kale, mashed potatoes, minced garlic, nutmeg, onion, smoked sausage, stamppot, yellow onion

Ingredients

3 pounds potatoes cubed
2 bay leaves
6 tablespoons butter divided
16 ounces kale cut into strips (a big bunch)
6 cloves garlic minced
1 small yellow onion diced
1 1/2 cups milk warmed
pinch nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound smoked rope sausage cut into bite-sized pieces

Instructions

Add the potatoes to a large stock pot and just cover them with cold water. Add the bay leaves and add a large pinch of salt.
Bring the water to a boil and cook until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain the water and discard the bay leaves.
While the potatoes cook, heat two tablespoons of butter in a large skillet with a lid over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until it’s tender. For the last couple of minutes, add the garlic and give it a quick saute until it’s fragrant.
Remove the onion and garlic and place it on a plate or bowl to the side, and add the kale to the skillet, along with one-half cup of water. Place the lid on the skillet to wilt the kale. Check on it after a few minutes and stir to help the kale cook down. Add more water if all of it evaporates, and continue that process until the kale is cooked to your liking.
Meanwhile, mash the potatoes with four tablespoons butter, the milk, nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. (This made a slightly looser mash than I would normally make, but it had a great consistency once it was combined with everything else.)
Add the kale and sauteed onions and garlic to the mashed potatoes and stir to combine.
Set the potatoes aside, keeping them warm.
In the same skillet as before, saute the sausage until it’s cooked through and has a little color on it.
Serve the stamppot by placing a layer of the mashed potato/kale mixture on the bottom and topping with some sausage.

The amount of kale was a bit intimidating at first, but it does cook down a lot, and the flavor actually melds in with the mashed potatoes really well. I was afraid it would take over, but it was just a nice compliment to the rest of the dish.

The leftovers also reheated nicely, which was nice later in the week.

And this recipe may or may not be exactly what someone from the Netherlands would expect, but regardless, it was a darn tasty meal.

This piece first appeared in print Feb. 26, 2026.

Tags bay leaves, comfort food, fresh garlic, garlic, kale, mashed potatoes, minced garlic, nutmeg, onion, smoked sausage, stamppot, yellow onion

Main Dish

Give yourself the green light to make spicy chile verde

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date February 12, 2026

Chile verde spends a lot of time simmering in a pot, but putting it together is really easy. With plenty of fresh pepper and onion flavors, it’s a filling and excellent meal.

With the Chiefs out of the Super Bowl this year, it felt like there was a lot less pressure for Joey and I in hosting our annual party.

But that also meant a lot of hemming and hawing from our friends and family about attending.

It’s tough to commit to a Sunday night when you don’t really have a dog in the fight and Monday morning is looming.

We ended up with a great crew of four guests to watch the game and, thanks to our smaller contingent, a fridge full of leftovers to enjoy throughout the week.

The recipe I made for the group comes from the blog “Kevin is Cooking.” You can find the original recipe at https://keviniscooking.com/pork-chile-verde/. I added extra garlic in my version and added the optional potatoes.

Chile Verde

Chile verde spends a lot of time simmering in a pot, but putting it together is really easy. With plenty of fresh pepper and onion flavors, it’s a filling and excellent meal.

Course Main Course

Keyword anaheim peppers, chile verde, cilantro, cumin, fresh cilantro, fresh garlic, jalapeno peppers, minced garlic, pork butt, pork shoulder, Serrano, slow cooking, tomatillos, white onion

Ingredients

1.5 pounds boneless pork shoulder/pork butt
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1.5 pounds tomatillos
6 anaheim chile peppers
2 jalapeno peppers
2 serrano peppers
1 large white onion
8 to 10 cloves garlic minced
1 bunch fresh cilantro around 2 cups, stems included

Instructions

Prepare the pork shoulder by cutting it into one-inch cubes. Add them to a large bowl and season with the cumin, salt and pepper. Mix to coat the meat, and then set it aside. (I put mine in a covered container in the fridge over night.)
Husk the tomatillos and slice the stems off the peppers and give them all a good rinse. Also cut the onion in half, and add the tomatillos, peppers and onion to a large stockpot, covering them with water. Boil for about 8 minutes, and then remove them with a slotted spoon directly into a blender or food processor, along with the garlic and cilantro, blending until the mixture is smooth.
Set the sauce aside.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large Dutch oven with a lid, and saute the pork cubes on all sides (do this in batches), just until each side has some nice color on it.
Add all the pork back into the pot, along with all but one cup of the sauce, and stir to coat.
Bring the mixture to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Place the lid on the pot and cook for about three hours (stirring occasionally) or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 180 to 190 degrees.
While the pork cooks, cube some Russet potatoes into one-inch pieces, and boil them until they are fork tender. Drain them and set them aside.
When the pork is done, add in the potatoes and the rest of the sauce, and stir to combine. Add more salt and pepper, to taste.
Serve with tortilla chips, with corn or flour tortillas or just in a bowl.

This was really, really good. It’s a bit spicy but not over the top. You could easily throw in a couple more anaheim peppers and skip the jalapenos and serranos, if you wanted to make it extremely mild.

We also threw a can of kidney beans in a few servings for leftovers, and that was great.

In the past, I made tomatillo sauces by roasting my vegetables under the broiler or in my air fryer and then blending them, and you could absolutely do that with this recipe, too.

The next time we make chile verde, if I decide to boil the veggies, I’m going to plan on making another soup at the same time to use the leftover water, because it smelled absolutely amazing.

And while I was bummed that we didn’t get to see some of our friends and family who didn’t get out on Sunday, at least I can drown my sorrows with some awesome food they didn’t get a chance to enjoy.

This piece first appeared in print Feb. 12, 2026.

Tags anaheim peppers, chile verde, cilantro, cumin, fresh cilantro, fresh garlic, jalapeno peppers, minced garlic, pork butt, pork shoulder, Serrano, slow cooking, tomatillos, white onion

Main Dish

Easy garlic pasta recipe is too ‘shrimp’le to fail

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date January 22, 2026

These easy garlic shrimp noodles features a sweet sauce, punctuated by fresh garlic and ginger, along with lots of tasty pasta to soak it all up.

The pantry clean-out continues this week.

Thanks to a stir-fry dish I shared with you back in June, I still had half of a package of lo mein noodles hanging out in the cupboard.

When Joey plopped a bag of shrimp in our cart on a recent grocery trip, I decided I needed to find something to make that could use both ingredients.

Then our week got really, really busy. There was no time to make anything fancy.

But the good news is that both shrimp and lo mein noodles are crazy quick to make.

So when I found a recipe for garlic shrimp noodles that promised to be done in 15 minutes, I jumped on it, and it wasn’t just great because it was a quick meal; it was great all on its own.

This comes from the blog “Lena’s Kitchen” by Lena Gladstone. You can find her original post at https://lenaskitchenblog.com/15-minute-garlic-shrimp-soba-noodles/. I added several spices and extra garlic in my version.

Easy Garlic Shrimp Noodles

These easy garlic shrimp noodles features a sweet sauce, punctuated by fresh garlic and ginger, along with lots of tasty pasta to soak it all up.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword 15-minute meal, dried ginger, easy dinner, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, garlic powder, ginger, hoisin sauce, honey, lime juice, lo mein, minced garlic, red chili flakes, sesame oil, sesame seeds, shrimp, soba noodles, soy sauce

Ingredients

1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried ginger
10 ounces soba or lo mein noodles
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound shrimp peeled
salt to taste
6 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger grated
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Instructions

Prepare a sauce by adding the soy sauce, sesame oil, lime juice, hoisin sauce, honey, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and dried ginger to a small bowl, and whisk until everything is well combined. Set it aside.
Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to the package instructions.
While the noodles cook, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the shrimp with salt, and then saute in the shrimp in the hot skillet. When the shrimp is nearly cooked through, toss in the minced garlic and grated ginger, and saute until the shrimp is finished.
Decrease the heat to low, and add the noodles and sauce to the skillet, stirring to coat everything in the sauce.
When everything is heated through, serve, topped with sesame seeds.

I added the hoisin sauce and some extra honey above, because I didn’t think the sauce had quite the sweetness that I wanted it to have. Otherwise, the sesame oil was a bit overpowering. If you don’t have hoisin, you could add a bit more honey or a bit of brown sugar, instead, until you get the sauce how you want it.

I also left out green onions as a garnish, because Joey isn’t generally keen on raw onions, but that would have been a great addition, as well.

Luckily, Joey wasn’t upset that I hijacked his shrimp purchase with my own dinner plans—mostly because he’s a sucker for anything with plenty of garlic.

And now there’s a tiny corner of my pantry that is ready to be filled with another mystery ingredient sometime in 2026.

This piece first appeared in print Jan. 22, 2026.

Tags 15-minute meal, dried ginger, easy dinner, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, garlic powder, ginger, hoisin sauce, honey, lime juice, lo mein, minced garlic, red chili flakes, sesame oil, sesame seeds, shrimp, soba noodles, soy sauce