Author: Ellen

  • Avocado, Orange, and Sunflower Seed Salad

    Avocado, Orange, and Sunflower Seed Salad

    I love salads but get uninspired sometimes. But a couple of good friends of mine are always coming up with the most amazing combinations of things. When they came for dinner over the weekend, they brought a salad with: mixed greens mandarin orange sections chunks of avocado roasted sunflower seeds Topped with a delicious vinaigrette.…

  • Simple Flank Steak Marinade

    Simple Flank Steak Marinade

    My mother’s simple flank steak marinade is still one of my favorites. My parents were not big barbecue people but hamburgers and flank steaks were almost always grilled outside. This simple marinade adds a lot of flavor to the flank steak even though it’s only got a few ingredients. You can use fresh or dried…

  • Small Batch Eggplant Parmesan from the Freezer

    Small Batch Eggplant Parmesan from the Freezer

    Remember that fried eggplant I made up and froze a while back? I used some of it to make a small batch  eggplant Parmesan last night. I had not frozen it before so I was curious as to how it would turn out. I could not taste the difference between freshly cooking the eggplant and…

  • Chinese Chicken Salad for One

    Chinese Chicken Salad for One

    I was alone for dinner last night and got a craving for a Chinese Chicken Salad. Scoured some cookbooks and couldn’t find anything that sounded right, though. The dressing was the crucial part for me and all I could find was one that had mayonnaise in it! Not at all what I think of for…

  • Steak, Fried Onions, and Quick Baked Potatoes

    Splurged on some tri-tip steaks that I saw marked down at the meat counter so instead of our Friday pizzas we had barbecued steaks, baked potatoes, and sautéed onions–definitely easier to make than a pizza! For the steaks, I sprinkled garlic salt and seasoned pepper on both sides. I microwaved the potatoes until they were…