Holiday Side Special: Cranberry Sauce

It's a really fun experience to make your own cranberry sauce instead of just taking it out of a can. With a basic recipe, the variations are endless. In this recipe, you can bump up the orange taste by adding the zest of an orange, if you like. Another variation you could do is by adding fresh grated ginger (from a two-inch knob) and ½ teaspoon cinnamon for a spicier sauce. For a sugar-free sauce, replace the sugar with an equal amount of Splenda®.

Holiday Side Special: Brussels Sprout Casserole

As you all know, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Currently, I am racking my brain trying to come up with some interesting side dishes for this year's feasting. I came across this recipe in the AHA Cookbook and tried it out last night. I have never cooked a Brussels sprout in my life and this dish turned out beautifully! For a great dinner for one, I cooked some brown rice and served the casserole over top. Serves 8.

Historically, the Brussels sprout has gotten a bum rap for being bitter and mushy. The real culprit is overcooking. Cooked properly, Brussels sprouts have a surprisingly mild flavor in comparison with their other cruciferous brethren. They contain good amounts of vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid and dietary fiber. Not to mention, the cruciferous family of vegetables are believed to have potent anti-cancer properties.

Vegetarian Enchiladas

Looking for a fast and healthy dinner? These enchiladas are vegetarian, gluten-free, and absolutely delicious. They are the perfect canvas for a wide variety of toppings and salsas, so customize to your palette's desire. This recipe was adapted from the American Heart Association cookbook. Serves 8-10.

Chicken Curry (Murgh Kari)

There's nothing better than a pot of hearty, spicy chicken curry to warm the spirit on a gloomy winter day. This amazing recipe is adapted from the Cook's Illustrated book, The Best International Recipe. With this recipe, it is very important to have your ingredients "pot ready"—all prepped and ready to go.

Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad

Whenever I visit Tacoma, I seem to always end up at Pho 38th. Their rice noodle salad with chicken is simply amazing. It's chock full of vegetables (and flavor!) and yet seems to last and last in your stomach. So, naturally, I find myself needing to recreate this dish at home. The result was so good and so authentic, I urge you to try this for yourself. This recipe serves 1.

Arroz con Pollo

This savory dish is chicken and rice, but even better. A Latin flavor profile with peppers, vinegar, cilantro, and tomato sauce give this dish an interesting bite. It tastes really great topped with extra cilantro, pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice, and served with a corn tortilla. This dish serves 4–6 people.

Turkey Meatloaf Revisited

Tonight, I am making turkey meatloaf, with an exciting brand-new side dish, however, I have found an egregious error. So, it turns out, on my first recipe post ever, I found an error that had even permeated my top-secret, hard-copy recipe book! Try my turkey meatloaf featuring ¼ cup of parsley instead of that measly ¼ teaspoon.

Turkey-Veggie Meatloaf

Chocolate-Orange Biscotti

Biscotti are those fantastic dry cookies you dunk in a good cup of coffee. The word biscotti originates from the Latin word biscoctus, meaning "twice-cooked/baked." Baking the biscotti twice makes them very dry and easily stored.

Blueberries and Cream Cheese Coffeecake

It's lovely, decadent, and it's for breakfast! This coffeecake is perfect for brunches. When serving, this cake tastes best when you've warmed it in the microwave for 20–30 sec.

Lentil & Collard Chili Soup

This lentil chili was great for when I was sick recently. It has a nice amount of heat and tastes great over a baked potato. The lentils impart an amazing amount of fiber to the soup—about 19g per serving! This recipe was adapted from an American Heart Association recipe.