Spanish everything rice

Last night's dinner was Rachael Ray's Spanish everything rice. This recipe has a lot of ingredients, and I eliminated some because of personal preference - no olives or green peas in my version, but we added cayenne pepper for a little heat. This dish was full of flavor - Robert went back for seconds, which is always a good sign!

Welsh rarebit burger

We made Rachael Ray's welsh rarebit burgers this week (link to follow later, it isn't up on her site yet). It's an open-face burger, served on a slice of bread and covered in a cheese sauce - what's not to love??

Hoisin pork tenderloin

We made Cooking Light's hoisin pork tenderloin last week and it was a big hit! Our tenderloin was pretty thick, so our cook time was longer than what the recipe called for. It was delicious!

Garlic Hasselback potatoes

We made these garlic Hasselback potatoes last week, and they were fantastic! I followed other reviewers advice and stuffed ours with garlic AND shallots, and the herbed sour cream is a must to go on top.

Chicken tostadas

Dinner last night was chicken tostadas from Mexican Made Easy on the Food Network. We agreed with the other reviewers - the tomatillo sauce made these tostadas shine! These are super-simple to make, and require no cooking if you buy a rotisserie chicken. Easy and delicious - that's a great combination!

Toffee blondies

This week was the premiere of the new Bachelor, and our group was chomping at the bit for another season of treats and trivia on Monday nights. I made these toffee blondies served with vanilla ice cream, and they were a big hit! I disregarded the fact that the recipe is from Cooking Light, and used an egg instead of egg substitute and doubled the amount of toffee bits on top. The batter was thick and sticky, and I wasn't sure they would turn out right, but surprise- they were perfect!

Ginger and garlic braised brisket

We spent New Year's Day on the couch watching football, so I thought this slow-cooked ginger and garlic braised brisket would be a great addition to our lazy day. The spices are unique (cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom) and delicious! My sauce never thickened to gravy status, so we just topped ours with the onions. Yum!

Shepherd's pie stuffed potatoes

We made Rachael Ray's shepherd's pie stuffed potatoes last week. I'm not a fan of traditional shepherd's pie, so I was surprised at how much I liked this version. I omitted the mushrooms, but followed the rest of the recipe as is. These hot potatoes were delicious!

Almost Tandoori chicken

We tried Rachael Ray's almost Tandoori chicken tonight. This is so simple to make and has yummy Indian flavors! I couldn't find Naan at Kroger today (but I swear I've seen it there before) so I used mini-pita pockets, and I subbed chicken breasts instead of thighs (just a personal preference). I'll definitely be making this one again!

Hot and tangy NY strip steak

We made this hot and tangy NY strip steak from Bobby Flay's new Throwdown cookbook. This combined two of Robert's favorite things - Asian sauces and a big hunk of meat. It was a winner!!

Chicken parmesan with pepperoni

We made chicken parmesan with pepperoni from Food + Wine magazine for Sunday dinner this week. It was a huge hit - everyone loved the addition of pepperoni to this classic dish. Robert said it was the best chicken parmesan he's ever had, and will probably be asking for a repeat next week!

Roast beef sandwich

We made these roast beef sandwiches from Rachael Ray this weekend. They are very simple to make - the only thing you have to cook is the sandwich! The horseradish sauce is tangy, and the red pepper adds a lot of heat. We used deli roast beef and skipped the watercress (because we didn't have any), and the sandwiches were delicious!