It doesn't have to look pretty – It just has to taste good Part 2

I’m sick of seeing these blogs with perfectly presented platters of food.  On fancy dishes. With fancy garnishes. Guess what world, I’m 24 I don’t have fancy dishes. Or the money for fancy garnishes, (if you’re like me and wondered “what the hell is garnish” click here) So here is my REAL –middle-class-I’m-still-in-my-twenties-and-broke food blog post. First off I can’t eat half off the world, (more on this in a future post I'm sure) so my recipes are pretty healthy and pretty simple.  
Sunday: Zucchini-Potato Fritters
Ingredients:
1 jar of Salsa1 bag of frozen corn2 cups of frozen hash brown potatoes thawed1 1/2 cups of shredded zucchini ( I used a cheese grater and grated 2 zucchinis until I got to the seeds)  1 egg¼ cup flour I used gluten free flour)2 Tbs. chopped onion2 Tbs. chopped green onionPinch of saltPinch of pepper
How to make it
1)Prepare Warm Corn Salsa. Keep warm. (mix the corn with the salsa and put it over heat, add cilantro at the end)2)Combine potatoes, zucchini, egg substitute, flour, onion, bell pepper, salt and black pepper in a medium bowl until well blended.3)Spray a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat until hot. Drop potato mixture by ¼ cupfuls into skillet. Cook pancakes, four or six at a time, about 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Serving size is 1 pancake and 1/4 cup of corn salsa. Place 1 pancakes onto a plate; top with 1/4 cup of Warm Corn Salsa. Tuesday: Stir Fry


Ingredients:
Veggies that you enjoy cooked I used:
2 zucchinis1 red pepper1 yellow pepper1 crown of broccoli1 red onion
Cashews(other ideas: peas, carrots, green or orange peppers, yellow squash, cauliflower, spring onions, beans, almonds…)
 Stir-Fry Spices:Garlic powder (a lot)Salt
Ginger (a lot)
Cayenne pepper (just a tiny bit of this)4 tablespoons Honey2-3 tablespoons Sesame oil
4 tablespoons Rice Vinegar       Wednesday: Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients 3 pounds of Gold potatoes, thinly sliced (I used red skin potatoes because I thought it wouldn’t matter, turns out I was probably wrong)1-2 teaspoons of salt3 tbsps. butter2 tbsps. of flour (I used gluten free flour of course)
1 cup of greek yogurt1-2 tablespoon of garlic powder (or a clove or two garlic chopped up finely)1 cup of grated cheese (I use Colby jack for just about anything)
 Directions Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a 3-quart baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the potatoes and cook until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the pot.Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour, yogurt, garlic and salt stir constantly, for about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese (save a little cheese for just topping if you’d like). Pour the sauce over the potatoes and gently toss to coat.Transfer the potato mixture to the prepared baking dish and add some cheese to the top. Bake until heated through, about 10 minutes. Switch the oven to the broiler setting and broil potatoes until browned on top, about 5 minutes. Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving (I never actually do this but it sounds good). Thursday: Left Over NightFriday: Avocado Tuna Pasta Salad
Ingredients:1 medium sized ripe Avocado1 can of tuna 1/2 lemon’s juice ( I leave this out because I can’t eat citrus and it still tastes great)2-3 garlic cloves, to taste (or garlic powder if you don’t feel like having your fingers smell like garlic for three days)1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste (regular salt works fine too) 1/4 cup Fresh Basil, (you don’t need this but its yummy) 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (if you don’t like olive oil use hummus)
2 servings/6 oz of your choice of pasta ( I use gluten free pasta for myself and regular for the hubs)
 What to Do:1.       Cook the pasta, if you’re totally lost on how to do this call any college student or twelve year old tween girl.
2.       Meanwhile, make the sauce by mashing up all the other ingredients in a bowl. Feel free to use a food processor if you’re lucky enough to own one. (If you use the food processor leave the tuna out until the end and add it to the sauce right before step three)
3.       When pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse in a strainer and place pasta into a large bowl. Pour on sauce and toss until fully combined. Serve immediately because avocados have a tendency to turn brown and gross looking fast.

  I’ve never written out my recipes, I’m pretty much an eyeballer when it comes to cooking, so if you happen to want to make any of these recipes, email me or comment and I’ll re-explain everything. 

Two cardinal rules of cooking at home, that some how turned into 4 while I was typing this:

1. Make it, how you  like it (if you like garlic add more garlic)

2.  Recipes are meant to be tinkered with (so tinker with them)

3. Only Tinker with recipes when only you and your closest friends or family are going to be eating it, stick with tried and true recipes when cooking for a big gathering. NEVER  TRY A NEW RECIPE WHEN YOU’RE TRYING TO IMPRESS SOMEONE, YOU WILL FAIL 92% of the time. I have no clue what happens the other 8% of the time.

4.   It doesn't have to look pretty, it just has to taste good. (Unless you’re trying to impress a large gathering, then this rule could be null and void)