Posted in From My Kitchen

I Made The Viral Trader Joe’s Caramelized Onion Dip Pasta​, and It’s Amazing

If you love ridiculously easy dinners, this hack is for you. Like the viral Trader Joe’s pizza, the Trader Joe’s caramelized onion dip pasta doesn’t take much effort at all. For this rich, creamy pasta, you only need two ingredients: a box of spaghetti and a container of Trader Joe’s Caramelized Onion Dip. The dip can be found in a 10-ounce tub in the refrigerated section.

This recipe has been flying around Instagram and TikTok, and the reviews rave about the end result. I decided to pop a tub of the onion dip in a mini Trader Joe’s cooler bag and head straight home to cook. The result was reminiscent of a rich Alfredo sauce with a delightful added texture from caramelized onion pieces.

Taste of Home

Posted in From My Kitchen

28 Homemade Mediterranean Soup Recipes

Have you seen Netflix’s hit documentary Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zone? It offers a glimpse into the lives of the people who live in the Blue Zones, areas of the world where residents consistently live to over 100 years old. These residents are not only centenarians, but they also live without the burdens of chronic illness. Several factors are at play here, but diet plays a significant role. Foods like whole grains, vegetables, beans, fruit and seafood are prioritized—ingredients that are also found in many Mediterranean soup recipes.

Greece and Italy are home to two of these zones, so it’s no surprise that similar foods are found in the Mediterranean diet. You’ll find white beans, lentils, chickpeas, whole-wheat pasta, vegetables, seafood and lean proteins like chicken in these Mediterranean soup recipes. Many of them are heart-healthy Mediterranean recipes, but that’s not the only reason to enjoy them. All of these recipes taste delicious and contribute hearty flavor to your weekly meal plan.

Brothy soups made with Mediterranean herbs and spices are plentiful here, with a few creamy soups interspersed for those wanting something a bit richer. There are options for gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan soups, too, so there is a soup here for everyone. One thing they all have in common is that every recipe is easy to make. Even if time isn’t on your side, you can still whip up delicious Mediterranean recipes at home.

Taste of Home

Posted in From My Kitchen

Swedish Visiting Cake

We love a good, simple cake recipe, and this Swedish visiting cake may just be one of our new favorites. Each slice is bursting with almond flavor and coated with an irresistibly sweet and crunchy topping made with slivered nuts. It’s the perfect snack cake to serve with coffee or hot tea the next time you have company.

What we love most about this easy cake recipe is how quick it is to throw together. Mix the topping in one bowl and the almond-flavored cake batter in another. Bake it in a 9-inch baking pan until it’s lightly golden, and you have a totally delicious last-minute dessert or sweet breakfast treat you can serve on the fly. No fancy cake decorating skills are required; just dust the top with a generous amount of confectioners’ sugar and serve it. This Swedish visiting cake will become a fast favorite.

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Posted in From My Kitchen

Crescent Roll Taco Bake

Refrigerated crescent rolls are a busy cook’s “secret weapon,” and this taco pie with crescent rolls shows exactly why. Whether you separate the dough into individual rolls or use the whole sheet of dough as-is (as we do here), a simple can of rolls gives you a flaky, buttery crust that works equally well in savory meals, appetizers or even desserts.

Crescent roll taco pie is in the savory meals category. It combines the flavors you love in homemade tacos but turns them into a hearty and comforting casserole.

Ingredients for Taco Pie with Crescent Rolls

  • Crescent rolls: Many recipes begin with a can of refrigerated crescent rolls because they’re convenient and tasty. In this case, the taco pie needs a crust and crescent rolls provide one that’s light, flaky and easy.
  • Corn chips: The crushed corn chips give this crescent roll taco pie recipe texture and crunch.
  • Ground beef: Ground beef crumbles are the core ingredient in many homemade tacos and in taco-adjacent recipes like this taco pie. The beef provides enough protein to balance the carbs in the crust and corn chip topping.
  • Tomato sauce: The tomato sauce adds flavor, moisture and color to the pie and recalls the sauce you’ll drizzle over your homemade tacos.
  • Taco seasoning: Taco seasoning is what turns plain old ground beef into a taco filling, whether you spoon it into hard shells or layer it into a crescent roll taco pie, like this one.
  • Sour cream: Sour cream adds richness and its distinctive tang to the taco pie.
  • Cheddar cheese: The shredded cheddar melts over the remaining ingredients, combining with the crushed corn chip topping to give the pie a golden brown, crunchy and delicious crust.
  • Avocado, tomatoes, lettuce and cilantro (optional): The crescent roll taco pie is good all on its own, but it’s even better when you top it with some or all of these optional ingredients.

Taste of Home

Posted in From My Kitchen

Frikadellen

What happens when a meatball gets squished into a ground beef patty? It turns into frikadellen, a savory, pan-fried dish that’s popular in Germany. Depending on the region, they may be referred to by different names, including bulettenfleischpflanzerl and klopse.

This tasty beef dish would be a perfect Oktoberfest recipe or just a regular weeknight dinner. Serve frikadellen alongside German potato salad or spaetzle for a delicious German-inspired feast. A large stein of beer is optional!

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