Sam's Place

Have you heard of Yummly?

I just signed up with this amazing recipe site, and I couldn’t be happier. I am so impressed with Yummly that I wanted to share it you all you.

This is a powerful recipe site that has been around since 2010, maybe you already know about it, and all they can do. With this site you can find and store recipes that you and your whole family will love.

Yummly has a powerful search tool that enables you to find whatever type of recipe you are looking for. You can search for a specific cooking technique, special diets, nutrition, recipes with specific ingredients, and much much more.

You can personalize your recipes into collections by your preferences and store them just for whenever you need them. You can use the Yummly App while you’re shopping to pick all of the ingredients for that favorite recipe.

Honestly I don’t know everything about the site, as I just got started, but I sure plan to learn fast.

Visit the Yummly home page here

or

You can visit my Yummly Publishers page here

You really don’t have to have a recipe blog to join Yummly, just join and take a look at all they have to offer. Start a collection of your favorite recipes. You can even tell them your preferences and they will find and recommend recipes for you.

I have added the yum button to all of my pages so feel free to yum away.

What are you waiting for start now and enjoy.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

Here is another one where you don’t have to turn on the oven. It’s still grilling season so why not get all you can get out of it before the weather turns on us.

My daughter prepared these sweet potatoes and I grilled them for a great side dish for the evening. Apparently sweet potatoes are one of the healthiest foods that you can eat, Loaded with vitamin “A”. I’m not any kind of expert on the health benefits of sweet potatoes I just know that I do enjoy them.

What you need:

2 or 3 sweet potatoes

Olive oil

Cinnamon

Nutmeg

Sugar (optional)

How to do this:

Peel and slice the sweet potatoes ¼” or ½ thick
Brush both sides lightly with olive oil
Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg over one side
Sugar is optional; you can add some if you like. We did not use sugar

I set the grill on the medium setting and grilled on each side for about 2 minutes. Then I moved them to the upper rack of the grill, closed the lid, and cooked until the sweet potatoes were tender. I would say about 15 minutes.


Sweet Potatoes on the grill

As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy

Hamilton Beach 25360 Indoor Flavor/Searing Grill

Blackstone 36 inch Outdoor Cooking Gas Grill Griddle Station

Char-Broil Classic 360 2-Burner Gas Grill

Grilled Italian Sausage Sandwiches

The other night my wife and my daughter took a trip out of town, and I knew they were going to have a late lunch. That left me wondering what I was going to have for dinner when I got home from work.

I had two Italian sausage links in the freezer; I took them out so they would be ready when I got home. I decided to fire up the grill for my sausage links, I set the grill to medium heat.

While the links were grilling I sliced up some red and green bell peppers, along with some onions and then just for some extra flavor I added some diced up garlic.

My Sliced peppers and onions with the garlic

I simmered these in my cast iron skillet covered, on medium heat on the stove. My wife picked up a couple of sausage rolls for me before she left so I was all set for my Italian sausage sandwiches.

Simmered over medium heat until tender

These are the kind of sausage sandwiches you love to buy when you go to the county fairs. There is always a vendor selling delicious sausage with peppers and onions. So just in case you missed the county fair with that favorite vendor, you can give this a try. These were quick and easy to make and Oh so good.

What you need:

2 Italian sausage links

½ of each red and green bell pepper sliced in strips

½ onions sliced

1 clove of garlic diced

2 nice sausage rolls

As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy

Hamilton Beach 25360 Indoor Flavor/Searing Grill

Char-Broil Performance TRU Infrared 500 3-Burner Cabinet Gas Grill

Crock Pot Country Ribs

My wife picked up a package of country ribs the other day, and I had all intentions of cooking these on the grill.

When I got home from work the house was filled with the smell of those country ribs cooking all day in the Slow Cooker. She decided to make them a Crock pot meal, and I’m so glad she did.

No real recipe here just put your ribs in the slow cooker add a couple of bottles of your favorite barbecue sauce and set it to the low setting. These cooked for about four hours on the low setting and they were fall off the bone delicious.

Served with sautéed vegetables and rice this made a nice meal for the both of us. The vegetables were simple, cut green and yellow peppers into slices, slice up an onion, and then add some spinach.

Drizzle olive oil into a 10” pan then add the cut up vegetables and sauté over medium heat until the veggies are tender. This turned out to be a great side dish to go along with these country ribs.

As always Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed :)

Calphalon Classic Hard-Anodized Nonstick Frying Pan Set, 8-Inch and 10-Inch Frying Pans Hamilton Beach 6-Quart Slow Cooker with 3 Cooking Settings, Dishwasher-Safe Stoneware Crock & Glass Lid, Silver (33665)

Holiday Cranberry Sauce

This freshly made cranberry sauce has become a staple at our Thanksgiving dinner. I was never a big fan of cranberry sauce until I tried this one.

Every Thanksgiving my dad had to have his cranberry sauce. The only problem was that he always bought the cranberry sauce in a can. I think this is why I never cared for it because to me it tasted like the can.

For fifteen years now my daughter has been making this delicious cranberry sauce from a recipe she found in a Williams-Sonoma Thanksgiving Guide.

I'm sure my dad would have loved this cranberry sauce, much better than out of a can, I know I do.

Holiday Cranberry Sauce Recipe:

2 cups of unfiltered apple cider
2 cups of sugar
1/4 cup of water
1 cinnamon stick
2 - 12oz. bags of fresh cranberries

Here is how you make it:

In a medium to a large non-aluminum saucepan, combine the apple cider, sugar water, and cinnamon stick
Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer a light boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar
Add the 2 bags of cranberries; bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the cranberries have burst (about 10 minutes)
Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool to room temperature, transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate for a least 24 hours
Remove the cinnamon stick and let the sauce come to room temperature before serving
The sauce must be prepared at least 24 hours in advance and can be prepared up to 3 days in advance.

As always Thanks for stopping by and hope you enjoy it.
The Best of Thanksgiving (Williams-Sonoma)

A Summer Salad

Sometimes it’s just too hot to cook inside even here in Western New York. We needed to come up with dinner the other night so we put together this salad with whatever we had on hand.

Fran started off with a mixture of greens that were in the refrigerator, some romaine, leaf, and iceberg lettuce, and filled up a large bowl. Then she crumbled up four strips of crispy bacon on top.

Next, she added some red onions, diced tomatoes, sliced fresh zucchini, and cucumber just picked from our friend’s garden, and to top it off shredded cheddar cheese.

While she was doing all of that I fired up the grill and grilled a boneless chicken breast. We cut up the chicken breast, whipped up some ranch dressing and created a nice summer salad with whatever was on hand.

I went a step further with my salad and added fresh ground black pepper, almonds and some raisins.

This made for a nice meal for just the two of us. So if you’re stuck for a quick dinner just put together what you have.

As always thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed.

Lipper International 8203-4 Bamboo Wood Salad Bowls, Small, 7

Lipper International 1174 Acacia Wave Serving Bowl for Fruits or Salads, Large, 12

Lipper International 294-3 Cherry Finished Wavy Rim Serving Bowl with 2 Salad Hands, Large, 13

Why I Love My KitchenAid Stand Mixer

In today’s busy world we need all the help we can muster, especially in the kitchen. My KitchenAid is a real time saver for me.

I have a passion for making homemade pizza, bread, and homemade pasta. My mixer makes short work of the dough for any of these.

Just add the ingredients attach the dough hook and turn it on. I have a nice batch of fresh dough for my homemade pizza in about 5 minutes.

There is nothing like the smell of homemade baked goods coming from the oven. What did you say? You like homemade cookies; well this mixer will help cut the time to mix your favorite cookie dough or batter.

With the time you save you could be helping the kids with their homework, or talking with a friend on phone. I love oatmeal raisin cookies, and mixing up a batch in the KitchenAid is really easy.

Here is my quick and easy pizza dough recipe:

5 1/2 to 6 cups of all-purpose flour
2 package of dry yeast
3 tablespoons of oil or Crisco
1 teaspoon of salt
2 1/4 cups of warm water

All I have to do now is put all of these ingredients into my Kitchen Aid bowl, attach the dough hook and turn it on. In about 3 minutes I have enough dough to make 2 fresh homemade pizzas.

Get the recipe for homemade pizza here

Some Features of My Mixer

I have the one pictured it's the 6-quart Professional Mixer, and it comes with a Flat Beater, Wire Wisk, and A Dough Hook. You'll find that these tools are able to take on many tasks to assist you in the kitchen.

Here is a fresh batch of dough for my homemade Cavatelli.

Get the recipe here for homemade Cavatelli.

A video of the many attachments and their uses

As always Thanks for stopping by and enjoy.

KitchenAid RRK150BK 5 Qt. Artisan Series Stand Mixer - Imperial Black (Renewed)KitchenAid NEW 7 Quart Bowl Lift Stand Mixer with Double Flex Edge Beater KSM70SK, Empire Red

Baked Parmesan Zucchini

Garden season brings so many healthy and fresh vegetables, and if you plant zucchini you already know it grows in abundance.

You can go online and find thousands of recipes for zucchini. This recipe my daughter cooked up just the other night, Baked Parmesan Zucchini Slices.

This is so easy to make with so few ingredients, and they make a healthy tasty snack or a side for any meal. When you slice them thin they're more like oven baked parmesan zucchini chips.

What you need:

2 or 3 zucchini of course sliced into rounds

Olive oil or our latest favorite coconut oil

Parmesan cheese

Italian seasoning

Minced garlic or garlic powder (Optional)

Here is all you have to do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Slice the zucchini into a bowl, (you can slice them to your desired thickness) I like the zucchini slices thin because they are so crispy right of the oven.

Drizzle some oil into the bowl and toss until the zucchini are all coated

Spread them out on a cookie sheet and add your seasonings, top off with a nice layer of Parmesan cheese

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 to 25 minutes, for extra crispy turn on the broiler for the last 5 minutes

Serve and enjoy this oven baked parmesan zucchini.

As always Thanks for stopping by and enjoy!

Bertolli Extra Light Olive Oil

Gia Russa Whole Grain Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs - 10 Ounce

Rachael Ray Oven Lovin' Nonstick Bakeware 3-Piece Baking and Cookie

Taco Pizza

When you have a large family good recipes are in abundance, and our family is no exception. This recipe for Taco pizza was created by my daughter-in-law's sister Melissa, and trust me Melissa knows how to feed a crowd.

At every family event, she is always cooking something special, so I’ll need to spend some time with her to see if I can’t convince her to keep them coming.

And if you’re looking for a meatless night for your dinner just leave out the meat.

Here is what Melissa says you need:

1 - 8oz Package sour cream

2-3 cups - Cheddar Cheese

4 cups - Shredded Lettuce

1-2 - Medium Size Tomatoes - Chopped

1-lb - Ground Beef, Sliced Chicken, Ground Turkey - pick one or none!

1 - Package Taco Seasoning

16oz - Can Refried Beans

2 - Bags Tortilla Chips and/or Scoops of your choice

Here is how she prepares it:

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees...
LAYER 1 - Spread Refried Beans on a cookie baking sheet - round pizza pan size or 9x12 cookie sheet - your choice! Bake for 10-12 min on 350 degrees. Beans will bubble when they're done.
While Refried Beans are baking, brown meat of your choice. Once meat is done, Add Taco Seasoning package with water as directed on package.
Let Refried beans cool for a few minutes 3-5min, while cooling...Chop tomatoes and prepare cheese and lettuce.
LAYER 2 - Spread Sour Cream on cooled Refried Beans.
LAYER 3 - Shake 1 cup Cheddar Cheese all over the dish.
LAYER 4 - Add chopped Lettuce all over the dish.
LAYER 5 - Add chopped Tomatoes all over the dish.
LAYER 6 - Sprinkle remaining Cheddar Cheese all over the dish.
Serve now or Heat 3-5 min in an oven to melt cheese.
Serve immediately - Can be a main course dish or appetizer - you decide!

* This will serve 6-8 people.

As always Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy

The Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

Recently my daughter has been cooking with coconut oil. When I asked why coconut oil, she replied because it’s healthy. So with that answer, I began to investigate, and here is what I learned.

Coconut Oil contains a unique combination of fatty acids with powerful medicinal properties. Although coconut oil is high in saturated fats, it’s not the same as the saturated fats in cheese and steak. The fatty acids are metabolized differently and are known to have therapeutic effects on brain disorders like epilepsy and Alzheimer’s.

The healthiest populations are the ones that consume coconuts. Studies show that populations in the South Pacific who eat 60% of their calories from coconuts are in excellent health with no evidence of heart disease.

Coconut Oil can increase your energy, helping you burn more fat. The Lauric acid in coconut oil can kill bacteria and help fight viruses.

It can kill hunger making you eat less without even trying, and can improve cholesterol levels lowering the risk of heart disease.

I also found coconut oil to be the best choice for frying foods, as it will hold the highest temperatures.

Coconut Oil is one of the foods that can be classified as a “superfood”. The unique combinations of fatty acids have positive health effects, including fat loss and better brain function. These benefits have been confirmed in human studies.

Don’t just take my word for it. Here is the link to my source of information. Please take some time to check this out, as you will find more details of these amazing benefits.

These studies were conducted by professionals in their field, It's always a good idea to check with your doctor first on the use of coconut oil.

As Always Thanks for stopping by, let me know if you have ever used coconut oil.