‘Comfort Food’ Articles at Sweetnicks

Celebrating National Grilled Cheese Month

April 29, 2015 · Narrative

Even though National Grilled Cheese Month is nearly over, you still have one more day to celebrate it … and I’m gonna help with a few delicious recipes. Because #cheeseismyhappyplace.

If you need an excuse to make corned beef, this recipe for Corned Beef Grilled Cheese with Guinness Caramelized Onions would surely be it. It’s making my mouth water just thinking of it all over again.

This Grilled Cheese with Gouda, Roasted Mushrooms, and Onions from She Wears Many Hats is seriously divine. Gouda is one of my favorite cheeses to use when I’m looking for a slightly different sort of grilled cheese sandwich.

The year was 1999, and I was still married when I discovered, and subsequently fell in love with, this recipe for Grilled Pitas with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese. Not a traditional grilled cheese sandwich in any sense except for the fact that it features melted cheese, but don’t let that stop you from making this one.

This White Pizza Grilled Cheese from How Sweet Eats is pretty much the sandwich that dreams are made of.

Kevin from Closet Cooking highlighted thirty (30!) grilled cheese recipes in this post, each one more drool-inducing than the next.

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Recipe: Uber-Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese

February 4, 2015 · Narrative

The richest, most delicious cheese sauce accompanies cavatappi noodles in this delicious mac and cheese.

I hadn’t planned to have a Super Bowl party.

But we accidentally did.

It started with Nick asking to have a friend over.

And then I didn’t want Madeline to feel left out, so she invited her besties.

Twins.

And then one more.

And one more.

And so it goes.

But it was awesome.

Because I could spend the afternoon cooking a random array of delicious food and the game was punctuated by fits of giggles and rounds of Truth or Dare.

HOW DO SIX YEAR OLDS EVEN KNOW ABOUT TRUTH OR DARE?

I have no idea.

But luckily my eavesdropping revealed that it’s a pretty clean-cut version.

Good.

But ugh.

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Recipe: Very Veggie Sloppy Joes

October 21, 2014 · Ad-Free, Narrative

A delicious, filling, easy-to-make go-to dinner that will please everyone in your family, these Very Veggie Sloppy Joes are a one pot meal that screams old school comfort food.

Growing up, Sloppy Joes were a semi-frequent meal to hit our dinner table. And for good reason. It’s quick, healthy, and a sure-fire crowd pleaser. Once I had my own family, I started making Sloppy Joes as well, because as long as you have ground beef on hand, you can have this on the table, with a few other pantry staples, in under thirty minutes.

Take that, Rachael Ray.

A little of this, a little of that, I never really measure, I just make them and adjust it along the way.

As cooks are wont to do.

But lately, or at least the past dozen or so times I have made Sloppy Joes, I’ve been adding some vegetables to it. Because although I don’t subscribe to the hide-the-vegetables-and-deceive-your-kids program, if I can tuck them in here and there without altering the taste, then I will.

But make no mistake. The kids knew the vegetables were in there. And Madeline did her very best to carefully pick out as many bits of bell pepper as she could, until she realized she was fighting a losing battle.

So. #winning

And to think she didn’t even notice all the mushrooms she ate.

Besides the yellow and red bell peppers, the mushrooms, and the tomato sauce, I also used 93% lean ground beef, so it doesn’t get much healthier than this. Beef, even that lean, is an inexpensive way to feed a family, which means more money for peppers and mushrooms like these, right from the farmer’s market. When the meat is on sale, I stock up and freeze a bunch. Just remove the butcher/grocery store wrapping and put the beef in a freezer-safe bag. Make sure to squeeze out all the air, close it up, and pop it in the freezer. It will keep safely for 6-12 months uncooked, and 2-3 months cooked.

If you’re looking for more easy and delicious beef recipes, be sure to visit Beef, It’s What’s for Dinner, and their Pinterest page (and they also have good money saving tips here). Now, for serving these Sloppy Joes, anything goes. I usually either toast a slice of bread and spoon the Sloppy Joes over the bread or I put it inside a toasted roll. I like them topped with melted cheese, but I skipped that this round because 1) I’m trying to be virtuous and 2) the kids prefer it without. Mix and match and serve how you like it best.

Hungry for more Sloppy Joes recipes?
This recipe is full of mushrooms, and the kids inhaled it. Delicious stuff from Cooking Light.

Psst … my site was having caching problems yesterday, so in case you missed yesterday’s post, you’ll find some delicious little meatballs right here. …

Recipe: Ham and Cheddar Mashed Potato Patties {Betty Crocker}

November 22, 2013 · Narrative

Warm mashed potatoes fried up into a patty with bits of ham and Cheddar? Comfort food at its finest.

So I have good news and bad news. The bad news (I always want that first when someone has good and bad news for me) is that I don’t have a crescent recipe tonight as promised. Because I had mixed up some dates, and it won’t be coming until next week sometime. The good news, however, is that I still have a new recipe for you tonight.

And even better? It will make excellent use out of any leftover ham (or even turkey) you might have next week at your Thanksgiving Day feast.

The folks at Betty Crocker challenged me to come up with a new recipe using one of their boxed potato products. I had to confess that I had never even purchased from their potato product line before (and there is a ton of variety available), but they didn’t need to ask twice to get me to create something delicious with mashed potatoes.

I mean, let’s be real. It doesn’t get more comforting that warm mashed potatoes, does it?

And my mind started racing in all sorts of directions. What to do? What to do? And through some twists and turns, I suddenly arrived here.

Ham and Cheddar Mashed Potato Patties.

The Betty Crocker mashed potatoes couldn’t be simpler to make. Pour the contents in a bowl with water and microwave for a few minutes. To that, I added a few chopped scallions, chopped cooked ham, and Cheddar cheese. Form them into little patties, dunk in a coating of Panko, and fry ’em up.

So good. Like a hug from the inside out. A slight hint of onion from the scallions, a nice bite with the bits of ham, and a little bit of extra creaminess from the cheese.

I won’t lie. They’re a bit messy to make. But I promise you, totally worth it.

I mean … c’mon … Mashed Potato Patties for the win!

If there are Betty Crocker or Pillsbury items on your grocery list for next week’s holiday festivities, you can find lots of printable coupons right here.

And with that, I’m off. Wishing you a wonderful weekend! xo

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Recipe: Mini Double Onion Cheddar Patty Melts

October 16, 2012 · Narrative

One of my favorite places to eat, particularly during high school and the later years, is a good old-fashioned diner. Basic menu, something for everyone, reasonably priced … and comfort food to the nth degree. One of my favorite diners used to have jukeboxes at every booth and became one of our go-to spots when I was in my late teens and early twenties. We’d pile into a booth after a game. Or a school concert. Or Christmas play. Or to dissect a break-up. Or talk about our latest crush. We’d see and be seen. And our biggest cares would be our collection of rubber bracelets a la Madonna or the latest George Michael tune.

Sometimes that seems like so long ago. Sometimes I can visualize enough details that it could have been yesterday. Which is surprising because my memory sucks a lot of the times. Ask my kids.

The menu items I ordered rotated amongst a few favorites, depending on my mood. Grilled cheese with tomato and bacon. A juicy medium rare cheeseburger. Disco fries. As a young adult, my go-to dish was a gyro, with no lettuce, sauteed onions instead of raw, and extra tzatiki sauce on the side (for mixing with ketchup and dipping my fries into). My friend Allison and I would order our gyros nearly the same way, and the waiters quickly learned what we wanted as soon as we walked in the door.

I loved that.

And Patty Melts. Oh man, patty melts. Crispy bread. Perfectly caramelized onions. A juicy burger. And cheese. Oh yes.

When the folks at Pillsbury asked me to develop a recipe using their frozen biscuits, I knew exactly what I’d make. Something that reminded me of my diner days. But with a twist or two. How about a mini version Patty Melt? With double the onions? And adding mushrooms? And a different kind of cheese?

Well hello there.

The recipe is super simple to make, with the longest part going to caramelizing the onions, but even with that, you’re done lickety-split. Nick devoured his in nothing flat, so they’re kid-friendly in both size *and* taste, and he was looking for a second one when he came up for air. And I don’t blame him. Full-bodied burger flavor, a little sweetness from the onions, woodsiness from the mushrooms, and a slightly sharp bite from the Cheddar? You can’t go wrong. For realz.

The frozen biscuits, which I didn’t even know existed before this assignment, are a great thing to stash in your freezer, particularly if you want just a couple. Take out and bake what you need, and keep the rest in the freezer. I kind of love that. When I made this batch, I made extra burgers (but didn’t cook them), and wrapped them up individually and popped them into the freezer. Now with the biscuits on hand, and some pre-mixed, pre-formed burgers all ready, I’m more than halfway to another easy grab-and-go meal on a crazy weeknight.

And we all know how valuable THAT is.

Tomorrow? We talk pink.

PS One more day left to enter the Subway gift card giveaway – hop to it!

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Broiled Herb Chicken with Lemon Butter Sauce

October 8, 2009 · Narrative

When it comes to the timing aspect of cooking dinner, I’ve always been a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of girl. I’ve been lucky and usually everything just falls into place and different dishes get ready around the same time. My mom, on the other hand, is way more organized about it; usually when it’s a holiday or she’s otherwise entertaining, I’ll spy a nice, neat little timeline in a notebook on the kitchen counter, with each step meticulously calculated.

The timing gods were smiling on me when I made this dinner. This Broiled Herb Chicken with Lemon Butter Sauce was served alongside the Savory Vegetable Patties last week. The chicken literally takes minutes to put together, and as soon as I put it into the oven, I went to work on the vegetable patties. By the time the patties were done, so was the chicken. Absolutely perfect.

Broiling gives the chicken a nice, crispy skin and the meat inside ends up very tender. The seasoning on the chicken and the lemon butter sauce on top just finishes it off nicely. This is a great go-to recipe when you’re looking for something quick to get you in and out of the kitchen. Served alongside the vegetable patties or some nicely whipped mashed potatoes, you have the perfect comfort food meal to fight the slight chills of the Fall season.

Three years ago today … a beautiful sunset, a dreamy vacation and an introduction to escargots.

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