Football Sunday Wings

"Football Is an honest game. It's true to life . It's a game about sharing. Football is a team game. So is life." - Joe Namath


Football Sundays however, are about WINGS!

SRIRACHA HONEY WINGS

Although technically September 21st marks the beginning of fall, everyone knows it really starts once Sunday football begins! Its a time to get the family together, to get friends together, for couples to argue about whose team is better, a time for camaraderie at the local bars. More importantly however, its a time to EAT! A time to eat good! 

As you prepare your menu for Sunday football festivities, wings must be an important component. They should be a staple in every home. Now, your local bar/pub may claim to serve up the best wings in town, however nothing is better than homemade wings cooked fresh and hot! 

Now let me introduce to you these yummy, sticky, slightly spicy, yet slightly sweet oven baked wings. Its a super easy recipe that is sure to please every wing fan in your home! I hate spicy but my fiance loves it, and these were perfect for the both of us. 

I got this recipe from Damn Delicious. The recipe can be found here Most Awesome Wings! 

Enjoy!

Recipe Wednesday - Sausage and Peppers: The Remix

"All food is comfort food. Maybe I just like to chew." -Lewis Black

I have finally mastered my sausage and pepper recipe! Thick, saucy, and full of flavor. It is the perfect comfort food for those chilly nights when you just want to cuddle on the couch and binge watch Netflix. It is also incredibly easy and uses simple ingredients. For a remix on the classic, I decided to use Spinach and Feta chicken sausage for some added flavor, instead of the usual Italian sausage. POW!  

I'm not always the best with remembering to measure my ingredients but here we go: (*Note: I prepped this meal for 2, so please adjust measurements as you see fit)

1 pack sausage (this can be sweet or spicy Italian sausage, chicken sausage, etc., or any kind you fancy)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 green pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow onion
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder (i love garlic, so i actually probably put a little more than that)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup tomato sauce (or your favorite tomato sauce, if bottle is your thing. No judgement here)
1/2 cup red wine ( I used a Bordeaux)

What I've learned is that prepping ingredients beforehand will make your life so much easier. So the first step is slicing the peppers and onions. 

So Pretty! 

Next, cook sausage with olive oil in a skillet and brown each side. Once sausages are beautifully browned, remove them from the skillet. In the same skillet, add the onions, peppers, and salt and cook until onions are slightly brown and translucent. Then add tomato sauce, wine, oregano and garlic powder. Let simmer for about 2 minutes. 

In the meantime, cut each sausage into pieces (about 4 - 6 each). Then add the cut sausage back into the skillet and stir to combine. Cover the skillet and let simmer until sauce thickens.  

Voila! That is all. Meal complete. This can be served over rice, pasta, or on a sandwich roll. I served mine over quinoa and topped it with Parmesan cheese and avocado (I'm addicted to avocado). 

Bon Appetit! 

Breakfast - The Most Important Meal of the Day

"What nicer thing can you do for somebody than 

make them breakfast?" - Anthony Bourdain

Banana Pancakes

With fall right around the corner, what better way to enjoy a crisp Sunday morning than warm, sweet homemade banana pancakes? This easy recipe will give you a warm and fuzzy feeling that will help kick start your day!

It took two tries to master this recipe and combine just the right ingredients. After getting my fiance's seal of approval, I thought it would be the perfect recipe to jump start my blog again. You will never have to buy pre-made pancake mix again!

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 tablespoon coconut sugar (Trader Joe's Organic Coconut Sugar is divine)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup vanilla soy milk (regular whole milk can be used instead)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 large egg

1 1/2 medium ripe bananas

Directions

If using an electric griddle, heat to 375 degrees or heat a skillet over medium heat. 

Combine flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl combine milk, oil, vanilla and egg and whisk together. 

Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture and whisk until moistened. Lumps are good!! Once mixed, slice bananas and add to mixture. As you mix the bananas into the mixture, carefully crush them slightly into the batter.

Grease the skillet or griddle with butter, oil or Pam (I used Pam) and spoon batter on nice and round. (mine were more abstract round) Cook until the tops have some bubbles, flip and allow the other side to brown. 

Remove from the griddle or skillet and enjoy with your favorite topping! I added sliced bananas, honey and a sprinkle of coconut sugar to mine. Delicious!!!

Bon Appetit!

A Simple Obsession...

"If I had to give up cheese or chocolate, I'd give up chocolate in a heartbeat." ~ Amanda Peet

AMEN SISTER!!

Diets are so difficult when A: you're a lover of all things food, B: You're friends and boyfriend support this fat habit, C: You write a food blog =)

I enjoyed this wonderful beautiful Sunday in NYC with mi amor Don Pepe. We enjoyed a nice brunch in the East Village at Hot Devil Grill (Will be spotlighted on Spotlight Friday) and took a little stroll to walk off the calories! Of course ;-)

But a trip to the village on a beautiful Sunday afternoon would not be complete without a stop at S'Mac! Our favorite Mac n Cheese place. You can read my review Here.

Don Pepe choose the Cajun Mac n Cheese. Cheddar & Pepper Jack cheeses, andouille sausage, green pepper, onions, celery, garlic and cajun seasoning, he obviously was still in New Orleans mode!

Yummmmmm Fest!!!!!!

I chose the 4 cheese Mac n Cheese. Cheddar, Muenster, Gruyere and Pecorino. CHEESE FEST!!! I'm a fatty so I ate if before I could take a pic. Oops!!

Perfect Sunday!

I'll just spend an extra hour at the gym and it will all be worth it =)



I'm A Sinner

"Beware the hobby that eats" - Benjamin Franklin

I broke my weight loss commandments. I'm not going to spill all my bad eats this week, just the best one! When I ordered it, I felt guilty, but that feeling was soon suppressed once that first bite was taken.

FRIED MACARONI & CHEESE BALLS

Courtesy of Travelpod

Courtesy of The Worthy Shipmate

Yes, I blessed my mouth with these bad boys last night and I have no regrets. All it means is that I will have to add some extra hours at the gym, but that never hurt anyone!

I am currently on the look out for the perfect recipe for these delicious cheesy balls and will share soon! In the meantime, just continue to drool at your computer screen.

Salud! 

Family Time!!!!!!!

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them."  -- Desmond Tutu

I've always wished I was a part of those families where every Sunday they get together and have a big meal, talk about memories, and recap each others weeks. I used to think only TV families did that. I promised myself when I had a family, I would start that tradition. One that would last even when they were older and living on their own.

As you get older, you start to value family more. I'm beginning to learn on a day to day basis that NO ONE is going to love me like they do, and because of that I'm making an effort to spend more time with my lovely familia!

Yesterday I visited my aunt, uncle and 3 younger cousins for some Sunday Funday excitement! My aunt is a bigggggg cooking motivation for me. There's rarely a time I visit that she's NOT cooking for her family, and everything is deeeeeeelicious. I love her ability to take ingredients that you would not think of making together, and turn it into an amazing meal! It's nothing extravagant either, just very simple but delectable dishes. Proving, sometimes simplicity is better!

She made shrimp scampi over Spanish rice, with string beans and platano maduros (sweet plantains). It was a Yumfest!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here she is preparing the shrimp. Reason #1 why I hate cooking shrimp - cleaning them!! Yuck! I'm glad she took this mission on :-)

Maduros ready to be cooked!!! Cook them in oil and sprinkle some brown sugar over them. Yum! Reason #456 why I love being Puerto Rican - Having these bad boys with a meal!

Yum! Spanish rice waiting to be eaten...BY ME!!

Shrimp Scampi! I believe she added a little chicken broth, butter, garlic and oregano. So simple, yet sooo delicious!

String beans! She cooked them in chicken broth with a ham hock and salt, pepper and garlic for taste.

TaDa!! The finished product right before I happily devoured it. :-) And of course no meal is complete for me without my glass of wine.
Do you have any family traditions? Or want to share any of your favorite family recipes/meals!? I would love to know :-)

~Eat Up, Drink Up or Shut Up ~

"Everything you see I owe to spaghetti."  - Sophia Loren

How beautiful was Sophia Loren??

GORGEOUS! And you know what? She wouldn't be caught dead on a low carb diet. Such an awesome example of a woman who embraced her curves and knew how absolutely beautiful they were. Her confidence in her body is something we as women should all have. Don't stop eating what you love, like pasta. =) Eat what you want, when you want and enjoy it. Just watch your portions and and make sure not to over indulge!

Now to my recipe of the week!

I think I might have been Italian and Mexican in my past life. I could seriously eat pasta and enchiladas everyday if I could. Of course not together, that would be gross!

The other night I made a delicious Shrimp and Scallop Scampi over pasta and it was, as my friend Kristi likes to say, "amaze-balls!"

It was soooooo good that when my aunt, whom I was house sitting for, came home from Hawaii, I decided to make it for her too. This time, since I was out of shrimp, I added broccoli and chicken! Yum!

Scallop, Chicken & Broccoli Scampi over Pasta

Ingredients

Scallops

1 small head of Broccoli

Chicken (I used pre-cooked chicken from Trader Joes. Amazing!)

1 stick of butter (I didn't say this would be the most healthiest)

Garlic (I use the already chopped fresh garlic in olive oil. Its perfect for when you really dont have time to chop it yourself. You can find it at any supermarket)

Parsely

1 small chopped onion

Cayenne Pepper

Pasta (any kind will do)

Ok, so I apologize for not having exact measurements. I kind of just eye balled it with this one.

Directions:

Melt butter in a pan and add the chopped onion. Let onion cook for about 2-3 minutes. Then add all other ingredients. I would say about 1 1/2 tablespoons of chopped garlic, 1 tablespoon of parsely, and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper gives the sauce a nice little kick. Add about a handful and a half of scallops, the broccoli and the chicken and let it cook for about 5 - 8 minutes over medium heat, or enough to make it simmer. Stir the mixture often so the sauce doesn't thicken.

Cook pasta as you normally would then pour this deliciousness over it and EAT!!!!

Pair it with a Chardonnay and you are good to go. YUM!

Salud!

~ Eat Up, Drink Up, or Shut Up ~

So lately I've had so many situations that I've allowed to bring me down. So many things from the past that have scarred me and caused me to be afraid of living my life and following my own happiness! But I refuse to let outside influences control my happiness and the outcome of MY life! It is true what they say, you can't make someone else happy, unless you are happy with yourself.

So I've decided to take a completely different approach to my blog! I'm sure I am not the only person out there who falls into a low from time to time and we all need inspiration, positivity and joy in our lives! What brings me joy? Many things, but of course Food! So everything will still somehow incorporate this, but there will also be something inspirational to take from it!  I would also like anyone who reads to share their thoughts as well to the questions or ideas I share! Let's draw inspiration from each other!!

Don't worry, I will still keep my normal ~Eat Up Drink Up or Shut up~ and **Spotlight Fridays** posts!

This quote has inspired me so much today:

"When I get lonely these days, I think: So BE lonely! Learn your way around loneliness. Make a map of it. Sit with it, for once in your life. Welcome to the human experience. But never again use another person's body or emotions as a scratching post for your own unfulfilled yearnings." - Elizabeth Gilbert

I find that I am slowly but surely accepting the idea of loneliness! It doesn't have to be a bad thing! As a young woman, living on her own, working FT, going to school and trying to keep up with the day to day life, I need that time to unwind and bask in my own essence! Sipping on a good wine and eating some great comfort food are some ways I "Sit With" my loneliness.

Penne A La Vodka

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup vodka
1 pound penne pasta
1 pint heavy cream
Directions

1.In a large skillet over medium heat, cook garlic in olive oil until tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, breaking up a bit with fork. Stir in basil, salt and pepper and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in vodka and cook 15 minutes more.
2.Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
3.Stir cream into sauce and cook 10 minutes more. Toss with hot pasta.
 
I had this for dinner last night and it is one of my favorite comfort foods and so easy to make!!
 
Pair this with one of my favorite wines YellowTail Shiraz - Grenache!! A not too dry not too sweet Red.
 
 
 

What do you do when you're looking for some quality alone time? Please share!

 
 
 
 
More simple recipes can be found at Allrecipes.com