Winstead Wandering

Prone to Wander

Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette

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Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette is super easy to make, it’s cheaper than store-bought, and it can be used as a salad dressing, a marinade, a dip, and more!

Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette is super easy to make, it's cheaper than store-bought, and it can be used as a salad dressing, a marinade, a dip, and more!

A while back I shared my recipe for Cucumber Salad with Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette, but the recipe is just too good to not share in its own post.

This dressing has always been one of my favorites– tied with ranch — and it’s so much tastier when made at home.

Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette is super easy to make, it's cheaper than store-bought, and it can be used as a salad dressing, a marinade, a dip, and more!

With only six ingredients, Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette is super easy to make. The best part? It can be so much more than a salad dressing. It makes a great marinade for chicken and veggies, plus it’s perfect as a dip.

What’s your favorite salad dressing?

Homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette is super easy to make, it's cheaper than store-bought, and it can be used as a salad dressing, a marinade, a dip, and more!

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Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes

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Why not combine two of your all-time favorite party foods and make these perfectly cheesy and irresistibly savory Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes?

Why not combine two of your all-time favorite party foods and make these perfectly cheesy and irresistibly savory Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes?

Are you ever awed by your own brilliance?

I’m not, at least usually, but one exception would be these Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes. I can’t remember what led to that stroke of culinary genius, but I remember standing in front of the refrigerator, both doors open, and thinking, “I should make jalapeño popper twice-baked potatoes!”

And so I did.

Why not combine two of your all-time favorite party foods and make these perfectly cheesy and irresistibly savory Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes?

I poppered these puppies up in a few different ways. First, I added diced jalapeños to the potato filling. I tossed in some cream cheese, too. Lastly, I topped each potato half with a mixture of Parmesan and bread crumbs to give the whole dish that golden crunch you expect from good jalapeño poppers.

I know I’m not the first person to combine these two particular food favorites, but damn is it a good combo.

Why not combine two of your all-time favorite party foods and make these perfectly cheesy and irresistibly savory Jalapeño Popper Twice-Baked Potatoes?

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Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese

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If you aren’t using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

I remember the moment I knew I was in love with J. It was my freshman year in college, sometime in the fall after we’d talked on the phone every day during the summer and spent the first semester of school hanging out on campus. I remember texting him often during those months (from my camera-less flip phone because this was 2005), saying things like, “I really like you.” It hadn’t occurred to me yet that I more than liked him.

You might also like: Creamy Sausage Macaroni & Cheese

And then one day I headed to the mail room to check my tiny mailbox. I don’t even remember if I had mail that day, but I do know I was leaving the building because I was headed up the stairs that led back to the center of campus and toward my dorm. I had my phone out, texting J, and I tripped on the stairs. That part doesn’t have anything to do with my epiphany; I tripped at least once on every set of stairs on campus. But sometime during that walk from the mail room back to my dorm, I thought, “I think I love this guy.”

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

What does all this have to do with Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese? Not much, really, except I’m writing this on Valentine’s Day (busy few weeks + blog issues =  tight post turnaround) so I’m feeling a little mushy. Also, even though there are a ton of things J and I don’t have in common — he loves Top 40 music and I’m all about 90’s/early 00’s hip hop; he loves sci-fi, action, and comic book movies, while I want light and happy; he’s an incredibly picky eater, but I’m more adventurous — macaroni and cheese is something we agree on. We both love the stuff, including this super simple recipe.

You might also like: Five Cheese Macaroni & Cheese

If you’ve never made homemade macaroni and cheese, this recipe is the perfect place to start. It doesn’t require you to make any cheese sauces, and it certainly doesn’t call for any of that neon processed cheese junk (I love a good helping of Rotel Dip as much as the next Southerner, but please keep that fake stuff away from my mac ‘n’ cheese). The Instant Pot does all the noodle-boiling work, and they don’t even need to be drained. Just add the cheese and other ingredients to the cooked noodles, stir everything together, and everyone will think you spent a ton of time making a mouthwatering side dish.

If you aren't using your Instant Pot to experience the creamy, cheesy, gooey goodness of Easy Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese, what are you even doing with your life?

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Fried Pepper Rings with Spicy Dipping Sauce

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Wrapped in a crispy breading and served with a spicy dipping sauce, Fried Pepper Rings are the perfect crunchy side dish or appetizer.

Wrapped in a crispy breading and served with a spicy dipping sauce, Fried Pepper Rings are the perfect crunchy side dish or appetizer.

I spend approximately 73 percent of my time dreaming of new ways to cook with peppers. In addition to my poblano obsession, I’m a big fan of jalapenos and cubanelles. I bought a couple cubanelles at the grocery store a while back without any real plans for using them. They sat in the fridge for a few days, I brainstormed ideas, and then I had a light bulb moment.

Why had I never made fried pepper rings before? I’m talking onion rings, but with peppers. Genius, right? I’d had fried jalapeno slices, but I’d never seen it done with milder peppers. Once the idea came to me, I couldn’t get it out of my head. I had no choice to but to make them.

I chose to use mild peppers, but I still wanted a little kick of heat. I whipped up a spicy dipping sauce and, I’ve got to say, please don’t make this recipe without the sauce. Fried Pepper Rings were made for so much more than boring ketchup; let them swim in the spicy sauce they deserve.

Wrapped in a crispy breading and served with a spicy dipping sauce, Fried Pepper Rings are the perfect crunchy side dish or appetizer.

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Mexican Street Corn Salad

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With sweet and smoky charred corn, cool sour cream and citrus, and the perfect notes of spice, this Mexican Street Corn Salad will be a year-round hit at your house!

With sweet and smoky charred corn, cool sour cream and citrus, and the perfect notes of spice, this Mexican Street Corn Salad will be a year-round hit at your house!

I first made this Mexican Street Corn Salad a few months ago for guests. The adults and the teenagers all raved about it, and not in a just-being-polite kind of way, either. In fact, at least a couple of them went back for seconds and thirds. I made it recently for a church potluck and, again, the salad got rave reviews.

With sweet and smoky charred corn, cool sour cream and citrus, and the perfect notes of spice, this Mexican Street Corn Salad will be a year-round hit at your house!

It’s not hard to see why this recipe is such a hit. With the sweet and smoky notes of charred corn, the hit of spice from chipotle chili pepper and jalapeños, and the cooling notes of sour cream and citrus, you’ve got a perfect summer salad that will transition right into fall. Sure, grilled corn is typically a summer staple, but the beauty of this recipe is that you capture all the favorite flavors of Mexican street corn without leaving your kitchen.

With sweet and smoky charred corn, cool sour cream and citrus, and the perfect notes of spice, this Mexican Street Corn Salad will be a year-round hit at your house!

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Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad with Soy Lime Dressing

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Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad with Soy Lime Dressing is full of flavor and packed with fresh veggies. It’s the perfect healthy lunch recipe!

Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad with Soy Lime Dressing is full of flavor and packed with fresh veggies. It's the perfect healthy lunch recipe!

This dish is a riff on two not-quite-as-healthy recipes I shared last summer: Quinoa Pepper Pilaf and Pasta Salad with Sweet Tea Vinaigrette. Both of those recipes have healthy components, but neither is as packed with super foods as this one. From quinoa to edamame to sweet bell peppers, Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad is basically one big bowl of stuff you should be eating all the time.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients intimidate you. The chicken and the quinoa can both be cooking within minutes, and all the vegetables can be prepared while the chicken bakes and the quinoa simmers. After, just shake up the dressing, toss everything together, and enjoy!

Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad with Soy Lime Dressing is full of flavor and packed with fresh veggies. It's the perfect healthy lunch recipe!

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Southwestern Corn Cakes with Jalapeño Lime Cream

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Southwestern Corn Cakes with Jalapeño Lime Cream offer perfect lightly-fried bites of sweet corn, cheese, and peppers topped with a slightly-spicy citrus sour cream.

Southwestern Corn Cakes with Jalapeño Lime Cream offer perfect lightly-fried bites of sweet corn, cheese, and peppers topped with a slightly-spicy citrus sour cream.

My grandfather (Gramps) brought fresh corn to a family gathering last week. Like, picked-from-the-field-that-day fresh. He and my aunt tried cooking it using that cooler and boiling water hack. I’m not sure it worked, but seriously, it didn’t matter. The room temperature corn I devoured – sans butter, salt, or pepper – was divine. So divine, in fact, that I brought a bag of leftover ears home and immediately began dreaming of what I wanted to do with it.

I have several go-to corn recipes, but only one that I had all the ingredients for: Southwestern Corn Cakes with Jalapeño Lime Cream. Just like regular corn cakes, these guys are packed with juicy kernels and cheddar cheese. To add a Southwestern twist, I toss in sweet bell peppers and jalapeños. The resulting corn cakes are on the spicy side (I use a full tablespoon of diced jalapeño), so the jalapeño lime cream is the perfect cool relief.

Southwestern Corn Cakes with Jalapeño Lime Cream offer perfect lightly-fried bites of sweet corn, cheese, and peppers topped with a slightly-spicy citrus sour cream.

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Parmesan Roasted Carrots

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This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FeedYourFoodie #CollectiveBias

Whether you’re making a fancy spread or a quick meal, Parmesan roasted carrots are the perfect easy and tasty side dish.

Whether you're making a fancy spread or a quick meal, Parmesan roasted carrots are the perfect easy and tasty side dish.

Just a few months ago I had two preschoolers. Now, I have two elementary school students and an infant. If I thought life was busy before, I had no idea the craziness the world of dance classes and homework and parent meetings would bring. I know life will only get busier as the kids get older, which is why it’s so important to me to establish routines while they’re young.

One of those non-negotiable routines is family dinner time. It’s important to me that we begin this tradition now; I want it to be a habit so that, when the kids are older and even more active, it’ll already be something we’re used to doing.

Whether you're making a fancy spread or a quick meal, Parmesan roasted carrots are the perfect easy and tasty side dish.

Some nights this is more easily accomplished than others. Some nights, it seems I have to choose between cooking an elaborate dinner or sitting down to eat with the family. The choice is easy: I opt for family time and grab a frozen entree to eat, like LEAN CUISINE® MARKETPLACE Cheese & Fire-Roasted Chile Tamale, LEAN CUISINE® MARKETPLACE Chicken Tikka Masala, or LEAN CUISINE® MARKETPLACE Southwest-Style Potato Bake.

Whether you're making a fancy spread or a quick meal, Parmesan roasted carrots are the perfect easy and tasty side dish.

I love these meals because they’re genuinely so good. Not good-for-a-frozen-meal good, but good. Lean Cuisine Marketplace Cheese & Fire-Roasted Chile Tamale is my favorite, but the meals are unique enough to suit any mood. They’re all protein-packed, made with organic ingredient options, and full of flavor, which is why I usually toss a few in the cart nearly every time I’m at Walmart. To round out the meal and add a homemade component (because I just can’t resist), I like to pair my Lean Cuisine Marketplace meals with a simply-prepared vegetable, like these Parmesan roasted carrots.

They’re pretty simple to prepare and they roast in the oven in the time it takes to prepare the rest of your meal and whatever the family is eating. The carrots are bathed in garlic butter, roasted until tender, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese, and then roasted a little more. They’re the perfect complement to any of the Lean Cuisine Marketplace meals.

Whether you're making a fancy spread or a quick meal, Parmesan roasted carrots are the perfect easy and tasty side dish.

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Homemade Freezer Garlic Bread

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Don’t waste your money on the processed store-bought stuff. It only takes ten minutes and five ingredients to make your own homemade freezer garlic bread.

Don't waste your money on the processed store-bought stuff. It only takes ten minutes and five ingredients to make your own homemade freezer garlic bread.

I don’t love to admit it, but I have a weakness for store-bought frozen Texas toast. You know, the oval-shaped stuff you bake from frozen? It just pairs so perfectly with any sort of pasta dish. Of course, I much prefer homemade garlic bread, but we rarely buy any type of bread that isn’t regular whole wheat sandwich bread. You can bet if I make a loaf of French bread from scratch, I’ll be using at least a few slices to make homemade garlic bread.

Don't waste your money on the processed store-bought stuff. It only takes ten minutes and five ingredients to make your own homemade freezer garlic bread.

It occurred to me a while back that it wouldn’t be difficult at all to make homemade freezer garlic bread. It only took me a few minutes to put together the spread, butter the toast, and stick everything in the freezer. Now we have access to garlic bread any time we want it and we didn’t pay for the over-priced, over-processed version from the freezer section of the grocery store.

Don't waste your money on the processed store-bought stuff. It only takes ten minutes and five ingredients to make your own homemade freezer garlic bread.

One of the best things about this homemade freezer garlic bread- other than how awesome it tastes- is that it can totally be adapted to your own preferences. You can use any sort of homemade or store-bought bread. You can adjust the amounts of the seasonings I use, or you could add in your own favorites. You can even toss in some Parmesan cheese to kick it up a notch.

Don't waste your money on the processed store-bought stuff. It only takes ten minutes and five ingredients to make your own homemade freezer garlic bread.

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Greek Panzanella

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Colorful fresh veggies, tossed with vinaigrette and crispy homemade croutons, make this warm and hearty Greek Panzanella the perfect appetizer, salad, or meal.

Colorful fresh veggies, tossed with vinaigrette and crispy homemade croutons, make this warm and hearty Greek Panzanella the perfect appetizer, salad, or meal.

As much as I love cooking now, I didn’t do much of it when I was growing up. It wasn’t until I moved away to college that I began to appreciate the quality of cooking I grew up with, both from mom and from my stepmom. There’s nothing like bland cafeteria food to open your eyes to how good you had things.

I spent much of that first summer break trying new recipes, and this Greek Panzanella was one of them. It was  so easy to throw together, even with my amateur cook status. Now, years later, it’s still a favorite. The recipe is the perfect fun alternative to the typical veggies and dip found at so many showers and parties.

Colorful fresh veggies, tossed with vinaigrette and crispy homemade croutons, make this warm and hearty Greek Panzanella the perfect appetizer, salad, or meal.

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