School started last Thursday and look at this I am already in the cooking mode. I could not wait. Schedule changes have not even been finalized and I just had to show this group of very interested teens what was in store for them. Anytime that I bake with cinnamon everyone appears at my door. MMM it smells so good. There is nothing like a little sensory blackmail to get them into my class and then there is no turning back! Some of them are so funny. They made comments like this, ” This class is just like being in the audience of a Food Network Show. Do you feel like your on TV, Mrs. Lupo?” I am telling you I had their undivided attention for the entire class period.
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You could say that I go a little overboard sometimes when I cook. When asked to bring a certain food I have been known to bring more than was expected. Why would someone who cooks as much as I do act so insane? I need help. I know I do. But where do you go when you are an overachiever in the kitchen? While trying out this new recipe GI Joe said to me, “Just how many more times are you going to make those bars?” The truth is I was making them to take with me to the lake last month and wasn’t sure if they were good enough so I tried two recipes. Guess what they were both good so I took both with me. 
I love this recipe! It is a super fast one from Cooking Light that I have run in the ground at my house because it take no time to pull together. Salmon is so versatile. Pair it with most any of your favorite side dishes. I like asparagus , broccoli or squash. Maybe even a combination of all three. For that matter I like it right out of the pan on top of a big salad that is both delicious and nutritious. You don’t need a lot of ingredients. Another reason to love it. Just pick up salmon, salt, pepper, orange juice and olive oil. The recipe calls for fresh orange juice, but Minute Maid out of the carton will work fine. So here’s what you do.
Are you ready for a burger that will knock your socks off? I have just the one for you. It has been in my repertoire for about four years and I am just here to tell you that it is everything that you want in a burger. It is juicy and flavorful. The kind that you might want to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is one to write home about. Oh, my gosh the spicy sauce that you see dripping down the side of the burger is to die for. You will want to make it for more that just these burgers or just take a spoonful and savor it! It is that good. The burgers and the sauce go together. Don’t make one without the other or you will be disappointed. We don’t want that.
You either love it or hate it. Canned tuna that is. In my case I love it. When I was in college my mother would make a Tuna Noodle Casserole for me every time I came home. It was comfort food for me. It made me feel loved and at home. Some of you are probably thinking that I was probably starving and I would have loved anything that mother made for me, but that was not the case. We had great food in the college cafeteria and believe me I ate my share of it. We never had dessert growing up and I quickly learned after eating dessert after every meal in college that I had to give it up because I was too broke to buy new clothes! 
This is one of my all time favorite recipes. It is easy to put together and it taste great. To me it is comfort food. Rich gravy made with white wine added mushrooms over rice. Heaven on a plate! The recipe came from my long ago friend Cile that lives in Baton Rouge where great food runs rampant. It is one of those dishes that you can throw together in 20 minutes and leave it alone for about an hour. When you return to check on it the flavors are unbelievable. Trust me if you like a nice rich gravy with tender strips of steak this is it!
If you have never roasted vegetables you do not know what you are missing. Roasting vegetables caramelizes the sugar and intensifies the flavors. In my CSA package this week were the most beautiful carrots and brussel sprouts. I did not want just any run of the mill brussel sprouts. So this is what I did and they were amazing. 