Teenagers can be so hard to buy for. I rounded up a handful of things that my kids like that may help you too! I’ve bought a few things for my teenagers for Easter this year from this list - and taken inspiration from things they have either purchased in the last few months or told me they wanted. I hope this helps!
Teenagers can be so hard to buy for. I rounded up a handful of things that my kids like that may help you too! I’ve bought a few things for my teenagers for Easter this year from this list - and taken inspiration from things they have either purchased in the last few months or told me they wanted. I hope this helps!
Joe’s Special is a classic dish from San Francisco. It originated as a late night meal for bands at a little hole in the wall in the 1920s. It’s the perfect late night meal still!
When I was a kid, my dad would talk about the Joe’s Special he’d had in San Francisco and then make it for us at home. For me, without the mushrooms, but the rest of the family loves them, so I left them in for this recipe. It seems like most people like the mushrooms, I don’t see the allure. If you’re also not a fan, you can easily leave them out.
When I search the original recipes, the mushrooms and onions are optional. At my house growing up, they were not optional.
This is clearly a great breakfast, but better - it’s a late night dinner. As baseball season ramps up, late night dinners are going to be a regular thing for us. If it’s not a practice night, it’s a game night. I think we have one night a week without something happening that keeps dinner from being at a reasonable time!
Joe’s Special Frittata
Serves 4
8 eggs
2 cloves garlic
1 onion, chopped
8oz ground beef
4 cups spinach (OZ)
4 oz white mushrooms
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp oregano
Salt & Pepper
STEP 1
Preheat broiler to 500. In a large skillet, brown ground beef with onion, garlic, oregano. Season with salt and pepper.
STEP 2
Add spinach and mushrooms and cook until wilted.
STEP 3
Beat eggs and pour them into the pan. Stir until cooked about halfway through.
STEP 4
Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top and pop into the preheated broiler. Cook until bubbly and browned on top.
More for breakfast
Every year I make an Irish soda bread for St. Patrick’s Day and EVERY year I forget it takes 40 minutes (or more!) to make. Then, a few years ago, I thought about making mini loaves and that train of thought quickly went to scones. Scones are basically mini bread loaves - and when you’re making bread that’s based in buttermilk and cold butter - you are LITERALLY making scones!
Scones are buttermilk or cream + cold butter + flour + your favorite fruit. It could not be simpler. And the recipe could not read more like an Irish Soda Bread recipe - they are so close to the same recipe.
It makes turning one into the other painfully simple.
Here are the secrets
Use frozen butter and grate it on a cheese grater. You need tiny curls of butter
Don’t let the dough warm up - either work fast or pop them in the fridge before baking
Don’t overwork the dough. You’re going to knead it a few times and then let it go. They won’t be perfectly smooth and that’s ok.
Irish Soda Bread Scones
makes 8-12
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/2 cup frozen butter, grated
1/2 cup currants
1 tablespoon heavy cream (or an egg yolk) for brushing the top
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together the buttermilk, egg and egg yolk and set aside.
STEP 2
Combine flour, sugar, baking power, and currants in the bowl of a stand mixer. Grate the butter into the flour. Turn on the mixer and combine until almost mixed but there will still be some flour in the bowl (about 1/2 cup should be remaining.
STEP 3
Turn out the dough and knead it 5-6 times until the flour is combined into the dough. Form the dough into a 12 inch circle. Slice into 8-12 triangles.
STEP 4
If the dough does not feel cold to the touch, pop the scones into the fridge and let them rest for 10-15 minutes. If they are still cool, then place the scones on a baking sheet lined with parchment and brush the top with cream.
STEP 5
Bake 20 minutes until brown on the edges. Serve warm with butter.
More from St. Patrick's Day
I recently went on a streak where I made cookies with a variety of cereals. I literally raided the cabinet in the kitchen and made cookies - the kids have been big on Lucky Charms this last week. So I made cookies with them! With the white chocolate, the vanilla, the crushed up cereal, and the marshmallows - these are epic. And they are so simple you can whip them up just in time for classroom parties, friends coming over, or just to be festive in your own house!
The big lesson I learned is that these are definitely a margarine cookie. I never make margarine cookies if I have the option. Occasionally I make them for my dairy free kid so I don’t feel guilty when he eats them. These cookies are best with margarine. Let’s not get high and mighty about ingredients on these - we’re putting Lucky Charms in there too - these aren’t health food. There is no fooling ourselves that these are anything other than a junk food treat. But a delightful one. These are amazing. And trust me - with butter instead of margarine, these turn out flat and weird.
Lucky Charm Cookies
makes 24 cookies
1 cup Crisco (1 stick)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups flour
1 cup crushed Lucky Charms cereal (no marshmallows)
1 cup Lucky Charms marshmallows
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the margarine and sugar until smooth. The add eggs and vanilla. Whip until light in color.
STEP 2
Combine the dry ingredients and add them to the mixture. Do not add the marshmallows or the chocolate chips just yet. Blend the mixture until it’s just combined.
STEP 3
Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a spoon to stir in the chocolate chips.
STEP 4
Scoop onto a baking sheet and dot with at least three of the marshmallows. Bake 12-15 minutes, then remove from the oven. Let cool before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.
More for St. Patrick's Day
St. Patrick’s Day was made for girls like me. It’s a little bit goofy, has a fabulous theme, a color scheme, AND some built in menu items that are delicious! I can’t wait for it every year. Shopping for a few items that are thematic, but not cheesy is critical for me. Here are my picks for the year - click through and purchase them for yourselves.
St. Patrick's Day ideas for you!
I cannot believe I didn’t think of this before. It’s so simple. And so delicious! It tastes just like a boat drink, but without the booze. My kids love this one - and depending on your kids - you can you spicy ginger beer or the version that’s a little more sugary. I choose the spicy one because we like the zip of it all!
This would make an amazing pitcher cocktail too! Fill all of the ingredients in a pitcher, pop it on the counter (do not add ice) and let guests pour their own. I highly recommend this for Easter.
Pineapple Ginger Mocktail
serves 4
4 ounces pineapple juice
8 ounces ginger beer
lime wedge garnish
fresh ginger root
Divide the juice and ginger beer across four glasses filled with ice. Top with a garnish of fresh ginger and a squeeze of lime!
More pineapple recipe
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The first Oreo cookies I saw in a cookie had the batter wrapped around an Oreo and that seemed overly fussy. I made these several times before I figured out that what the tricks are:
White chocolate chips! It’s the same flavor as the filling so it’s PERFECT
Don’t stir in the Oreos until the last second
Make the cookies like you’re making a cake. It’s the only way to make them cake-y!
These are the perfect playdate, dinner out, kid’s night cookies - but if you try them with a roasted marshmallow inside, you will be SHOOK. I can’t even. Tell me what you think and what you make them for!
Cookies & Cream Cookies
makes 2 dozen
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups flour
1/4 cup milk
12 Oreo cookies, crushed
1 cup white chocolate chips
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip together the butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and whip until fluffy.
STEP 2
Combine cornstarch, baking soda, and flour in a separate bowl. Add half of the mixture to the butter mixture and combine.
STEP 3
Pour in milk and mix again.
STEP 4
Add remaining flour and mix until just combined. Then stir in the crushed Oreos and chips until just combined.
STEP 5
Scoop onto a baking sheet and bake 10-12 minutes until just browned around the edges. Let cool. Keep for up to one week in an airtight container.
More great cookies!
I buy loads of food on vacation. I love finding things that I might not usually cook with - and sometimes things I do - and pick them up somewhere unique. Artichoke hearts in Rome, tomato paste in Venice, salt in Hawaii, and preserved lemons from Palm Springs - but sometimes I’m at a loss for what to do with them once I get home.
Preserved lemons are surprisingly simple to cook with - they go with almost anything but can feel intimidating. This risotto is the perfect introduction to using preserved lemons. And then you can graduate to more complicated recipes later - or not.
Preserved Lemon Risotto
With asparagus and zucchini
Serves 4
1 bunch asparagus, chopped
½ preserved lemon, drained and chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1 onion, chopped
¼ cup butter, divided
¼ cup olive oil, divided
2 cup Arborio rice
6 cups room temperature vegetable stock
1 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
STEP 1
Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions zucchini, and asparagus. Cook 5 minutes until slightly browned and tender. Remove from the pan and set aside.
STEP 2
Add two tablespoons olive oil and rice to the pan - stir until coated with oil. Pour in one cup of chicken stock and stir until completely incorporated. When most of the stock has dissolved, add another cup of stock. Continue until all of the stock has been added. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
STEP 3
Remove from heat and stir in remaining butter, Parmesan cheese, and reserved asparagus and preserved lemons.
More spring menu ideas
I have three kids and a 100 pound dog. My house needs to be cleaned far too often. And it looks unclean far too often. I’ve found some products that have tremendously helped me to not look like a complete slob when people stop in - even though there’s still usually some dog hair somewhere…
I do receive a commission when you purchase directly from these links. I appreciate it so much if you even just click through. Thank you!
This time of year we start thinking about eating healthier and cutting out some foods. This would be a food lots of people may cut out – however, let me make a case for it. If this February is anything like last February, we should have at least one snow day! Can you think of anything more comforting on a snow day than Bacon Mac & Cheese? We can return to healthy eating after the snow melts.
This is the ultimate comfort food. Had a bad day? Bacon + cheese. Feeling sad? Bacon + cheese. Still dreary outside? Bacon + cheese. I make this regularly for my kids and I made it for the Robotics team last week - they devoured it. Once a week I make the high school Robotics team dinner and every week I try to outdo myself. So far I made ribs, pulled pork, and meatballs - but this is going to be the winner. I can feel it.
Bacon Mac & Cheese
serves 4
6 slices bacon
2 tbs flour
1 cup milk
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
½ cup parmesan cheese, grated
Salt & pepper
1 pound cooked noodles
STEP 1
Cook bacon over medium in a small skillet. Pull it out when crispy and let it cool on paper towel. Reserve 2 tbs of the bacon fat.
STEP 2
In a sauce pan over medium heat, whisk together 2 tbs bacon grease and flour. Pour in milk and continue whisking until the sauce thickens.
STEP 3
Pour in cheeses and whisk until they are melted. Add pasta and stir until completely covered in sauce. Crumble bacon over top.
Serve hot with extra parmesan cheese.
More pasta dinners