My resolution this year was to cook more—especially healthy meals. I’m usually a pretty tame person when it comes to food, as I don’t have an adventurous palette, but this resolution has forced me to broaden my horizons. Over the year, I’ve had some definite hits, but also some misses. In this article, I’ve compiled a list of my favourite dishes from this year. Most of the recipes I found on Pinterest and I have hyperlinked each subtitle.
Creamy Mozzarella Shrimp Pasta
This pasta is absolutely delicious! This has a little cheese, which I love. Though, no matter how much cheese there is, I always find a way to add more. You’re welcome to customize the recipe to suit your own taste. I found this recipe on Pinterest. It is simple to make, and it tastes delicious. First, pan-fry the shrimp. In a separate pot, boil the cream along with cheese and spices. Boil the pasta accordingly, and then combine everything! At first, I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the shrimp because it sometimes has an overpowering fishy taste, but it turned out to be the perfect flavour to mix with the creamy mozzarella cheese sauce. I’ve made this recipe twice so far, and I would definitely make it again. This may not be the healthiest meal, but I’m always a sucker for pasta.
Yet another recipe found on Pinterest! These quesadillas are pretty simple to make: essentially, you combine cooked and shredded chicken, chopped vegetables, and bbq sauce in a pan. In a different pan, lay your tortilla down, sprinkle a layer of cheese, fill with chicken mixture, sprinkle more cheese, fold the quesadilla, and let the cheese glue it together. This is another easy recipe to make, and you can customize it by using whatever fillings you want, making it perfect for picky eaters like me. The healthiest part of this meal is the chicken and the vegetables of choice in the filling. To make it healthier, you could always serve with a side of vegetables.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
This is my favourite soup! The ingredients are pretty simple: potatoes, chicken stock, heavy cream, milk, and veggies of choice (I use celery, carrots, and green onions). This soup is quick and easy, and is perfect for cold winter nights. Be careful with the garlic, though! When I first made it, I added too much garlic and it was hard to accurately gauge the intended taste of the soup. I re-made it a couple of weeks ago and used less garlic, and it was much better. This recipe is not from Pinterest, rather it is from a cookbook called ‘Grilled Cheese Kitchen’ by Heidi Gibson and Nate Pollack.
Fish is brain food. However, you don’t need to be a brainiac to make this recipe! The recipe instructs you to lay the fillets over a bed of sliced lemons and then drizzle garlic butter over top and bake. Honestly, I would either use garlic or lemon, but not both. The lemon was very overpowering and, in my opinion, it did not mix well with the garlic butter flavour. However, I would definitely remake this fish! This is a healthy dish that tastes good and makes you feel good. I found this recipe from Pinterest. To make it even healthier, serve with a side of vegetables.
Meatballs
This recipe is actually my mom’s! Gather ground beef, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and honey garlic Diana sauce. Mix that all together, cook for approximately 20 minutes in the oven, and then throw them in the Crockpot with more sauce for a couple of hours to let them finish cooking and absorbing the flavour. Meatballs are delicious and easy, and are perfect for a cold evening. Again, while meatballs are not super unhealthy themselves, I serve with a side of veggies to make sure I get proper nutrients.
Roast Beef
I never really follow a recipe for this one. It’s easy enough to just toss the ingredients (roast, beef broth, desired spices, and desired vegetables) into the crockpot with some water, spices, and your favourite sauce. This meal is also perfect for a busy student like me because you can put it in the crockpot in the morning and let it slow cook all day with minimal maintenance. Again, it’s best to serve with veggies to get an extra health boost.
This is only a selection of the meals I’ve prepared since setting my new year’s resolution. Some were not hits, but the ones above are my favourite. Hopefully this has inspired some of you to cook up new things in the kitchen!