recipes that are simple and delicious.

For the last week or so I have been thinking about New England clam chowder. I could not get my mind off of it, but then as I was flipping channels late one night, I came across a cooking show that had featured a place called The Clam Shack. This place had people lined up [...]

The croque monsieur. The sibling of the croque madame. A French style sandwich that, once made, will be in your memory for a very long time. It is a sandwich unlike no other. If you were to compare it to a hot brown sandwich, as awesome and amazing as those are, it still does not [...]

Torta what? If you have never had a Mexican torta, you should seek out a local Mexican restaurant, an authentic one, and try one of their tortas. They are Mexican sandwiches that can be made in a variety of different ways. One of my favorites, is one loaded with avocado, refried beans, lettuce, and carnitas. However, [...]

If you have never traveled through Kentucky, well, I am not sure what to tell you. Kentucky is a really beautiful state, and as many of us might know Kentucky for its Bluegrass music, or the Kentucky Derby, or better yet that Abraham Lincoln was born, I know it for the mint juleps and a [...]

I’ve probably told this story a time or two, but when I moved back to Milwaukee, one of the first restaurants my wife and I ate at, only taking a moment to open the door to our new apartment, was a Chinese/American restaurant on the east side of Milwaukee. The restaurant was slow on that [...]

There are many times when I often think to myself, ‘it would be nice to go out tonight and have an array of tapas’. Some times you just want to be cooked for, and further more, sample small bites. Small bites are typically not found in my household, primarily due to the fact that I [...]

You have probably heard this dish been called a handful of names depending on where you grew up. Often referred to as egg in the basket, egg in the hole, frog in the hole, or even toad in the hole, this simple breakfast dish is a real winner at the table. It was only a [...]

I will be up front with you, I have never been to Cuba. I had to get that off my chest. But that does not mean that I have not sampled Cuban food throughout my lifetime, or better yet food from the southern part of Florida. Ropa vieja, tamales, and fried plantains are only a [...]

The word ajvar is probably a word that many of us have never heard of before. It is a word that I bring to you today, and it is a word of Serbian decent. I am not too certain where I came across the name ajvar, but it did catch my attention when I began [...]

I am a sucker when it comes to olives. Simply put, I like them a lot. Olives have that perfect salty and briney flavor that goes perfect with certain dishes. I typically only have olives around the holidays for some odd reason, or used in a Greek salad, and with that said, I love kalamata [...]

I am a big fan of hummus. I believe I first encountered hummus at a Whole Foods in Dallas, Texas. I dabbled in the premade Middle Eastern dip, and immediately fell in love with the texture, flavor, and the fact that you could pretty much dip anything into it and have it still be just [...]

I will be up front with you. I do not consider myself a very good baker. I have enough knowledge to be dangerous, and I make a pretty great pizza dough, and I do love making bread, but it is something that I am not doing on a consistent basis. I will also admit that [...]

There is not a month that goes by when I think of our trip a couple years ago to New Orleans. It was our first time to the crescent city, and boy, did my wife and I have a wonderful time. We spent most of our time walking through the city, in particular, the French [...]

I will admit that there are things about cooking that excite me. One of those things, and yes you can call me a food nerd if you want, is going to the deli counter, and watching the folks slice meat to my desired thickness. It was not too long ago however, when I thought how [...]

It was my turn to host Christmas this year, and I have to say that I was excited by the fact. You probably know by now that I love cooking for people, and when it comes to having an intimate lunch or dinner with friends and family, well, then you know that you probably just [...]

For the last couple of weeks I have had a real craving for my homemade gyros on the grill. It is probably due to the reality that winter is on its way and my grill will soon be covered with snow, and that my friends is pretty sad. But the truth be told, I have [...]

While growing up in Kokomo, Indiana, there was not a whole lot in terms of restaurants, at least not that I remember. There was a great diner I recall where my mom just thought their egg cream, or cherry soda, or something on those lines, and the taco joint my dad loved, but a sign [...]

It is the season I most enjoy in Wisconsin. The cool weather, the smell of the air, and the beautiful fall colors. It is probably one of the reasons I want to stay in Wisconsin, and with that said, it is also one of my favorite cooking seasons. Fall brings out comfort and warmth in [...]

The other day I wanted to put a salad on the table. At first, I thought I would go with a standard green leaf, and mixture of raw vegetables so that the kids could chose from, but then I decided that I would quickly make a classic caesar salad, and see if they would nibble. [...]

The big question last week for the kids in the house was “would you like banana bread, or a coconut and banana egg roll?”. There was a long pause, then the response came back unanimously as banana bread. I was a bit bummed to be quite honest with you. I had this cool idea of [...]

Upon a recent visit to one of our local Sendiks market, I came across a really great deal on lobster tails. I am not one to normally buy lobster due to the price, but these were some fairly large lobster tails for only ten dollars. I could not pass them up, so I bought two [...]

Let me begin by saying that you will become addicted to this broth. Over the past couple of months, my family, as we do on average, pays visits to our cousin’s house to celebrate the long and stressful work week. We typically do this by eating great food, over glasses of wine or beer. Simply [...]

I’m a sucker when it comes to sandwiches. However simple or complex, the sandwich hits a home run every single time. Whether it be a simple grilled cheese sandwich, a peanut butter and jelly, or a banh mi, the sandwich typically consists of really great bread, a condiment, and packed full of excellent fixings. This [...]

As ironic as this might sound, and I am certain most parents have a child like this, but, I have one picky eater in my house. You all know the type. Chicken tenders and french fries could make this guy a happy camper for the rest of his life. He never gets tired of it. [...]

I have a lot of favorite sandwiches, however Bánh Mi has got to be up near the top of the list. If you have never had a Bánh Mi sandwich, you must seek one out. I will admit that while living in Dallas, Texas for a handful of years, I was blessed with great Vietnamese [...]

So like many of you, I was faced with what to prepare for last week’s Super Bowl game. I had plenty to choose from, however I wanted to do something a bit different for the party that our cousins were hosting. For some odd reason my first reaction was thinking about all of the great [...]

It’s that time of year. The annual celebration to see who is the best in the National Football League. The Super Bowl. New Orleans Saints versus Indiana Colts. As I am a Green Bay Packer fan, I am not really too concerned who will win this game, however I am concerned how happy it makes [...]

I have said it from time to time on my site, that my middle child, is starting to explore the hot lunch program in his elementary school. As that often frightens me, I am glad that he is exploring the idea of having a variety of different foods on his plate rather than the typical [...]

I had one of those days recently. You know the type, the day before my birthday. After reflecting on the past year, and looking forward, I was realizing that I was going to be a year older, and a bit of sadness came into play. Not sure why, but it did. Realizing that my kids [...]

The subject line could possibly be twisted and state America’s take on Mexico’s delicious, and simple baked bread. French bread pizza. What is a mollete anyway? A simple bolillo roll, sliced in half and topped with refried beans, cheese, and a variety of toppings, only to bake in the oven until lightly crisp. In my [...]

I recall growing up and my parents really loving a particular sandwich. I never really understood the love of the sandwich until I visited New Orleans last year. Sure, my wife and I made an attempt to try as much of the food in so little time, but simply got stuck on the wonderful shrimp [...]

I was in a real sandwich mode this past week. The holiday break allowed me to think a bit slower on what I wanted to consume. These are good times, because it means I can slow cook practically anything, and trust me, I did. I started off the week slow roasting beef that I encrusted [...]

The Christmas meal has left us with nothing but wonderful thoughts of kids opening their gifts early in the morning, to the celebration of an entire day. My Christmas morning was spent informing my kids at 5:45 in the morning that they really needed to get back to sleep. That did not work as I [...]

Killing two birds with one stone. Now that is the ticket to some good meals during a busy week. This past week I made some really fantastic cornish hens with a lot of mushrooms and a wine reduction that was just out of this world. As I thought I was going to make a pan [...]

This bacon could be sold in a candy store as it is just that good! As you know I have been tinkering with bacon for some time now, and for the most part, the experiments have been really amazing, but what bacon isn’t amazing? During the extended holiday break, I was able to experiment a [...]

I only know a few people who do not like olives, but I am not one of them. I love them. I love them stuffed, put in drinks, and placed in all kinds of foods. I think one of my favorite olives is the kalamata. Every time I pass by them in the market, I [...]

I am so fortunate that my mom turned me onto pepperoni rolls, and I still admit that they could possibly be one of my all time favorite snacks. There is one thing about those rolls, and that is the bread. The rising, smell, and texture of these rolls are just excellent, and yes, they can [...]

Yes, you heard right. Beer and Cheddar. When you hear that combination, one might immediately think of Wisconsin. I am cool with that. Beer and cheese is a great combination, however you place it. I have made a couple of dishes using beer and cheese (soup) (appetizer) in the past, and they were really delicious, [...]

I could have made some of the best carnitas this past weekend. Normally I stick with my standard recipe for making a slow roasted pork shoulder, however this time around I really wanted something different. I had some dried chili de arbol peppers that I wanted to use, and I thought how great they would [...]

Often times when people hear the word ‘Split Pea Soup’ their instinct is to be a bit grossed out by the idea of pea soup. Sure, the color of the soup has a bit of a brownish green color, but if you have never had this soup before, it is now time to try this [...]

Lately I have been craving a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. I think probably that is due because of the freshly picked tomatoes that have stared at me every day, asking me ‘What are you going to do with me?’. Growing up, the BLT was always around. Typically, plain old white bread, toasted, served with [...]

I don’t know if you are like me on this issue, but I am often disappointed when I buy halfway decent pita bread from the store, only to have it go bad in a couple of days. Not only that, but the texture and the thickness of the bread is not what I was expecting. [...]

There are times you want food to stick to your ribs. Hearty, flavorful, and dense. It is a cornbread unlike the light and fluffy cornbread that you might get at your local restaurant. This cornbread has mass. Not only is it perfect for sopping up sauce from a great barbecue dinner, but your leftovers can [...]

What more can be said about a great piece of bread, topped with a bit of olive oil? Literally, I could probably just have that for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but when you add in a couple of extra ingredients, and a grill? Come on now, you know you are ready for a real …

Here I was, at it again and thinking what could I make my kids for dessert. I thought of some usual suspects like cookies, brownies, and then a flash of fudge came into sight, but that was quickly invaded by thoughts of cinnamon rolls. I have been thinking about cinnamon rolls for some time, and [...]