Presenting my new cookbook.... Dinner for a Year!

UPDATE - My cookbook is no longer available for purchase.  I am mulling over some new ideas to help you out when cooking in your kitchen so stay tuned....


I am so excited to announce that my new cookbook Dinner for a Year 52 Easy and Delicious Recipes to Spice Up Your Family Menu Planning has been published!! After many years of gathering my dinnertime recipes in binders, cookbooks and on my blog Dinners for a Year and Beyond, I have published my cookbook to help you add a little zip and zing to your weekly dinners.

Like most home cooks, I can fall into a rut of making the same dinners day after day and week after week. I decided to shake things up a bit by adding 1 new recipe a week to my dinner menu plan. It did not take much thought with all the amazing recipes floating around the internet, in magazines, in cookbooks, and in my head. It also did not take any more time as I was going to be making dinner for my family any way so why not spice it up a little bit.

 

So how will my new cookbook Dinner for a Year help you and your family??? Well, I have done the work of choosing one new recipe to add to your menu planning each week. The recipes are not difficult. They all use ingredients you can find at your local grocery store. And they are unique and will appeal to all memebers of your family.I arranged the recipes in the cookbook by the seasons to highlight the best ingredients available throughout the year.

The recipes fit into our eating styles at different times of the year with grilling recipes for the summer months and comfort food recipes for the winter months. I added a bonus chapter with 10 of my favorite desserts because no meal is complete without a sweet ending.

Also, I will be offering personalized and signed bookplates to download into your copy of Dinner for a Year in the near future. If you would like to have your copy of my cookbook signed just email me at amy@amycaseycooks.com and I will email back your bookplate to download in your copy as soon as it is available.

I Don't Want to Lose You

My desk

Nothing in life ever seems easy.  And for me, my computer is a magically and mystically beast.  At the speed of light, it does more for my food writing and personal chef business than I could ever do with telephones, faxes, and the good ole' US mail.  But along with the magic it performs comes the mystery of not knowing what is going to happen if I press a certain key or click a link.  I guess I should have paid more attention in my Computer Science 101 class and not had the guy sitting next to me write my programs.


So to all you loyal Feedburner subscribers, I am in the process of redirecting you to my new website amycaseycooks so you don't miss out on my recipes, cooking videos, and articles.  The feed to Dinners for a Year will be deleted and redirected to my new website.


Hopefully all will run smoothly and update your reader or prompt you to update to my new feed.

I am crossing my fingers and toes and saying the rosary a few times that it will work.


Stay tuned.......

amycaseycooks

Alert the media!!!

I am excited to announce my new website www.amycaseycooks.com.  The site is a combination of my blog Dinners for a Year and Beyond and my personal chef services website.  All new blog posts will be on my new website so sign up for my newsletter to receive updates.

To keep up with what is cooking in my kitchen, check out my cooking videos, read my articles, and see what my personal chef services are all about stop by www.amycaseycooks.com.

You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter.

Grilled Balsamic Glazed Mahi Mahi

Grilled Balsamic Glazed Mahi Mahi

With a few warm days interspersed with to cooler Spring weather, I decided it was time to venture outdoors and fire up the grill.  I am lucky to have a family of fish lovers and with mahi mahi on sale, last night was the night to introduce them to this firm, white fish. Grilled Balsamic Mahi Mahi is a super simple recipe that lends itself well to many different types of fish such as salmon, tuna, and halibut.

With the grill fired up, dinner was on the table in less than 15 minutes. I also served basmati rice and fruit salad. We all enjoyed the dinner. My Middle One did comment that mahi mahi was not her favorite type of fish. She is more of a salmon fan. The slightly caramelized balsamic vinegar glaze added just enough flavor to the fish without overpowering its delicate flavor. I grilled some extra fish which will be fish tacos for tomorrow's lunch.

If you are trying to serve more fish to your family, this is a good starter recipe to try. With fresh fish and a quick preparation, you can change those landlubbers into seafaring folks.


Grilled Balsamic Glazed Mahi Mahi

serves 4

1 1/2 pounds of mahi mahi fillets
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 medium tomato, diced
basil, chopped

Preheat grill and set it to medium high heat.

In a small bowl whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt and pepper.  Place the fish in a glass baking dish and drizzle with half the marinade.

Grill the fish for about 5 minutes. Flip the fish and brush with some of the reserved marinade. Grill for an additional 4 - 6 minutes and flip the fish one more time. Brush with more of the balsamic vinegar and remove to a platter. Top with the chopped tomato and the basil. Serve immediately.

Burgers with Fresh Tomato Relish

Burgers with Fresh Tomato Relish

I love a good burger.  Nothing fancy, just a good burger.  My favorite recipe comes from this cookbook of all places.  It was a gift from The Husband about 15 years ago, and I keep going back to the same burger recipe time and time again.

My usual burger toppings include American cheese, ketchup, mayonnaise, and a little pickle relish.  But I decided to whirl up a batch of fresh tomato relish in my food processor to change up tonight's dinner.  A chunky blend of grape tomatoes and onions is combined with vinegar, honey and a few pantry seasoning staples.  This sweet-tart and savory topping would also be ideal for a turkey sandwich or scrambled eggs.

With some recipes, you don't mess with perfection.  Keep it simple.

Burgers with Fresh Tomato Relish

makes 4 burgers
for fresh tomato relish --
1 pint grape tomatoes
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery salt

for burgers --
2 slices bread
about 1/4 cup milk
1 pound ground beef ( I use organic ground beef)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

4 buns

Heat grill to medium high heat.

For the fresh tomato relish, place ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse 10 - 12 times or until the tomatoes and onions are finely chopped but still chunky.  Set aside.

For the burgers, place the bread in a bowl and pour milk over it. After the bread has soaked up as much of the milk as possible, squeeze out the excess. Combine the soaked bread and the remaining burger ingredients in a large bowl. Form into 4 burgers.

Grill burgers about 3 - 4 minutes per side for medium rare or a little longer if you like your burgers more well done.  Serve on buns with a generous spoonful of the tomato relish.

Honey Ham and Fresh Pineapple Pizza

Honey Ham and Fresh Pineapple Pizza

Your Easter dinner was a success!

The guests ate and drank and ate and drank their fill of mimosas, honey glazed ham, twice baked cheesy potatoes, pineapple bread pudding, roasted asparagus, french silk pie and more peanut butter filled chocolate eggs than you can count.

Some of the leftover ham was sent home with your relatives, but there is still 3 pounds of the spiral cut beauty sitting in your refrigerator.  After ham sandwiches, omelets filled with ham, and split pea soup with ham, what will you make with all that ham?

Honey Ham and Fresh Pineapple Pizza is what will be for dinner tonight.  Flour tortillas stand in for the crust and are topped with a spicy marinara sauce, monterey jack cheese, diced ham and pineapple and a sprinkling of herbs.  A few minutes in the oven is all that is need to melt the cheese and crisp up the crust.

Your family will never know you are serving "leftover ham," and there is no need to tell them ;)

Honey Ham and Fresh Pineapple Pizza

serves 4

4 (9-inch) flour tortillas
1/2 cup marinara sauce
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
1 1/3 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
1 cup diced ham
1 cup diced fresh pineapple
dried oregano
dried basil
chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Place tortillas on 2 large baking sheets.  Combine the marinara and barbecue sauces and spread about 2 heaping tablespoons on top of each tortilla.  Sprinkle 1/3 cup of the cheese on top of the sauce followed by 1/4 cup each of the ham and the pineapple.  Sprinkle with a little oregano and basil.

Bake in oven for 6 - 8 minutes or until the cheese is melted and slightly golden brown and the tortillas are crispy.  Let cool 2 - 3 minutes before cutting in pieces and sprinkle with the parsley.

Lemon Barbecued Shrimp

Lemon Barbecued Shrimp

With a spell of warm Spring weather over the past couple weeks, I dusted off the Weber grill and made a few dinners in the great outdoors.  First up was a platter of Lemon Barbecued Shrimp.  I love grilling because...

1.  I spend time outside
2.  Dinner cooks by itself with little help from me
3. No dirty pots and pans to wash

Lemon Barbecued Shrimp includes a homemade marinade with ingredients most kitchens have on hand.  Making your own marinades is a quick proposition.  With a mason jar, you can add all the ingredients and give it a vigorous shake.  Also, you control the ingredients that go in so you can make your homemade marinade as healthy - or not - as you would like.

After spending about 30 minutes in the marinade, the shrimp get a a double flavor boost from the tangy lemon barbecue sauce and the char or the grill.  Head outside and prepare this is a quick meal for your family.  And you will get the added benefit of getting a dose of vitamin D from some time spent in the sun.

Lemon Barbecued Shrimp

serves 4

for the mariande --
1/4 cup ketchup
3 scallions, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 pounds extra large shrimp (16 - 20 count per pound), peeled and deveined with tails
12 inch wooden skewers

lemon wedges

In a mason jar with a lid, combine the marinade ingredients and shake well.  Place shrimp in a resealable bag and add about 2/3 of the marinade.  Place in refrigerator to marinate for about 30 minutes.

Heat grill to medium high.  While the grill is preheating, thread 4 shrimp on each skewer.  Grill for 3 - 4 minutes per side, brushing with remaining marinade during the last couple minutes.  Can be served straight from the grill or chilled with lemon wedges.