What?? These Aren’t The Real Thing?!

A delicious snack is a must have when you are expecting company. It doesn’t matter if it’s a simple candy bar or if it’s something as well-prepared as a pasta dish or a casserole. You just have to have something to feed your friends because it’s the polite way of entertaining guests even if they are already very close to you. If it’s weekdays or weeknights, my friends have to resort to simple dishes. It’s during those nights that I could barely eat therefore I don’t have much time to even cook anything. My saving grace is this easy biscuit recipe.

The good thing about this is that it requires very few ingredients, with some of them you can even find in your pantry.

It also really tastes just like the Red Lobster original! My friends instantly loved it and I even had to make another batch. It wasn’t a hassle though because this is an easy recipe. I had another batch whipped up in no time!

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Quick Tip: You may use fresh garlic or garlic salt instead of garlic powder.

My friends are a crazy bunch. For one, all of them have these silly little quirks that would sometimes infuriate you but most of the time will make you love them more. I too have my silly quirks and in their eyes, I might look the same way. Nico, one of the older ones in the group, has this habit of “flying out of conversations”. He always zones out after the first few minutes of listening to our conversations. When you ask him about a certain point a little while later, he wouldn’t be able to answer because he wasn’t listening.

Every time he zones out, we would poke each other and one of us, the closest one, would be the one to poke him out of his thoughts. Usually, people say “penny for your thoughts”, but since Nico is part of my group and our group loves food a lot, we mostly say, “food for your thoughts”? These zucchini tots recipe reminds me of that simply because it rhymes with thoughts and these are Nico’s favorite things. He’s in love with anything that has zucchini in it. It’s probably one of his quirks. Most of us are not that much fond of zucchini. But then again, this recipe is so good anyone will forget there’s zucchini in it!

Photo and recipe courtesy of Confessions of a Confectionista.

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Quick Tip: These zucchini tots are perfect to bring to potlucks.

I thought these types of things only happen in books and movies, but it also happens in real life. A couple of weeks ago, my boyfriend and I both finally had a free weekend together so we wanted to spend it spoiling each other by relaxing together or doing favors for each other. One thing I always appreciated was when he cooked something special, something different that I hadn’t tasted before. He made this dish that he discovered over at Southern Bite. It was a version of what his mom used to cook before, but it has a different twist to it.

He used cauliflower, something that I wasn’t a fan of, but I always trusted him to make a special meal for me. He’s a much better cook than me! He grew up cooking while I just learned to cook in college. The wonderful aroma started infusing the air that I couldn’t wait to eat what he just cooked. When he called me to the kitchen, I was already excited. But even before I reached the kitchen, the doorbell rang and I answered it. It was one of our neighbors. She told us she has a mini impromptu party in her house and that we’re invited. I couldn’t say No. The dinner the boyfriend cooked for me ended up being shared by twenty people that night. I managed to get a taste though. And I wasn’t wrong when I said he’s one super home chef.

Photo and recipe courtesy of the Southern Lady Cooks.

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Quick Tip: Serve with a plate of salad.

Between me and my significant other, he cooks so much better than me. We rarely see each other because of his job, (which I can’t disclose because he’ll be embarrassed and I don’t know why), but when we do, he spoils me by cooking anything that I request. I don’t know how he does it, but all I have to is to tell him the ingredients I want, and he will whip up something made out of those ingredients.

He called it his Beefy Boyfie Recipe. I know. He lacks creativity and he’s not beefy. It’s a casserole made of cheese, beef, cream, and potatoes. There were some pieces of ham on it too. Nevertheless, it tasted great! And he might not be the Beefy Boyfie, but his kitchen talent makes him the buff-iest boyfie. Now that’s cheesy! This recipe that I found tasted just a tad better than his, but don’t tell him that.

Photo courtesy of All Recipes. Recipe courtesy of Mr.Food.

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Quick Tip: Serve with a glass of your favorite wine.

I am a huge fan of Japanese food. It was my first time to go to Japan a couple of years ago, and I was able to eat authentic sushi and ramen. There was this small shop at Shibuya, near Shibuya Crossing, that served the most delicious sushi and sashimi. I must have eaten a whole order! But the most memorable food that I have ever eaten was ramen. It really tasted different when you eat ramen in Japan. The noodles were so pliable and the soup was so perfectly seasoned that you would still love it even without the noodles. The best ramen I have tasted was at a shop called Ichiran Ramen. Its serving was huge, but you will eat everything because it’s that good.

And then there’s this recipe that gives ramen a western twist, combining it with my favorite American food of all time—the cheeseburger! What’s a girl to do? Ignore this one-of-a-kind combination of Western and Asian? Definitely not. It’s calling for my soul!

Photo courtesy of Food.com. Recipe courtesy of Mr.Food.

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Quick Tip: Serve with your favorite cold beer.

My favorite soup when I was a kid was a simple macaroni soup. It’s macaroni cooked in chicken broth along with shredded chicken, carrots, baby corns, sliced sausages or hotdogs, a little cabbage, and cheese. Milk was also added to make it creamier. It’s perfect with bread and a small plate of salad. I usually requested it whenever it’s cold and whenever I was sick. The hotness of the soup always soothed my aching throat; and the richness of the soup always added that extra warmth that comforted my icy cold body temperature.

I modified the recipe when I was old enough to cook it on my own. I saute the shredded chicken, carrots, sausages, and mushrooms in butter, before I add the broth. The butter and the mushroom give it a more distinct taste. And then I add more milk but go easy with the cheese. How about you? How do you love your soup?

Photo and recipe courtesy of Food.com.

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Quick Tip: Serve with your favorite wine or beer.

Sometimes I want to try to eat healthy.  That becomes really difficult when you love food as much as I do.  However, I have found there are ways to alter a recipe so it works in my favor when I’m trying to be healthy.  This is one of them.

Instead of layering on the bread with my burger, this casserole allows me to enjoy all the deliciousness of a juicy burger without adding on all those extra calories.  This casserole is as good as it looks and is wonderful to indulge in when you’re craving something hearty.

Recipe and photo courtesy of I Heart the Mart.

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Quick Tip: Buy your favorite burger toppings and layer them over your slice of casserole for the perfect burger effect.