LolaGeek

Even though GG doesn’t seem to understand what Pinterest is, he does appreciate that I’m making new stuff for dinner every week, and has a few new favorites. Here’s some winners (and my modifications):

• Texas Cheese Fries: I would remove the “Skinny” from this title, because I do not make these in a very skinny way. I’m sure I’m using more cheese than the recipe calls for, and I dip in sour cream or regular ranch dressing, not the low-fat stuff. I also omit the pickled jalapeno. The seasoning for the potatoes is delicious, though.
  
  
  
• Spicy Bean and Rice Burritos: I make these with white rice, not brown, just because I had white rice at home and I wasn’t going to buy special rice for these. Also, I use sour cream, not Greek yogurt (though I’m sure that would be good – again, just using what I have on hand). The last time I did these, I left the salsa out completely, because GG doesn’t like tomatoes or chunky salsa, and wasn’t really into it when I used it the first time around. But I may need to add it back, maybe in a less chunky form, because without it they are a bit dry.
• Black Beans and Corn: Ignore the salmon part of this recipe – I just make the black bean and corn salad. GG has requested it for dinner almost every week since I first made it. I also took it to a Memorial Day cookout. It’s super easy to make, and tastes just like the corn salad they served at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants that closed years ago. I add cumin and chili powder when I make it, and probably use more than 2 cups of corn (I just dump in the whole bag of frozen corn). A couple times I’ve added chopped roasted red peppers (I just make my own under the broiler). Also, if you throw the corn under the broiler for a few minutes, it gets that nice grilled flavor.
• Linguine with Garlicky Breadcrumbs: The reviews on this recipe are pretty bad, but we love it. Instead of making breadcrumbs, I use panko (because that’s what I had on hand the first time), and toast it a little in a dry pan on the stove. Last time I made this, I omitted the fresh parsley, and added steamed asparagus (pro tip: cook the asparagus in a steamer basket over the pasta while it boils).
• Grilled Avocado with Melted Cheese and Hot Sauce: Do not be confused by this weird foreign recipe – when she says “grilled,” she means “broiled.” I would never make this for GG because he hates avocado and anything avocado-related, but I love them, so I made myself one for dinner tonight. For next time, I would probably score/cube the avocado first, rather than poking with a fork, because otherwise it’s hard to cut and eat after it’s topped and cooked. Instead of hot sauce, I used the sauce from a can of chipotle in adobo, which was delicious, but I bet Tabasco or something would be good too. Definitely doing this again (when GG is not around).
• Popsicle with Greek Yogurt, Raw Honey, and Mixed Berries: When I made these, we actually did have raw honey on hand! GG had gotten a jar of it as a gift a while ago and wasn’t sure what to do with it, so he wasn’t using it. Here’s a tip: if your raw honey contains honeycomb, do not include it in your popsicles. Otherwise, you end up with weird waxy bits that are not pleasant to eat. Other than that, they turned out to be pretty amazing. One container of Greek yogurt and one bag of frozen mixed berries filled up my six popsicle molds with a little extra left over (which I saved in the fridge and froze later after we’d eaten a couple).
  
  
  
• Crescent Cinnamon Rolls: I’m sure this recipe would be delicious as written, but I just used it as inspiration for this whole “crescent roll as dessert” thing, and made a Nutella version. I brushed melted butter on the unrolled rolls, then spread them with Nutella, rolled them up, and brushed a little more butter on top. They were delicious! My tip for this one: go a little light on the Nutella. When it oozes out of the rolls, it can get a little burnt, which is not a taste I like in my baked goods.

Happy pinning, and happy cooking!