When I was a kid, I loved reading stories. We had these academic books that contained short stories. We always purchased them before classes started because there’s a need to cover them in plastic so they wouldn’t easily get destroyed. Anyway, one of my favorite stories was about the happiest man on earth and how a sick emperor tried to find him. One of the advisers of the emperor told him that the only way he could ever get well was if he found the happiest man on earth and wear his shoes. So he searched far and wide to find him. He almost gave up until he came across a man resting under a tree. He seemed really happy and was whistling a tune that was so carefree. The emperor asked him the usual questions and confirmed that he was indeed the happiest man on earth. However, when he asked the man if he could have his shoes, the man didn’t have any shoes! He was too happy with his life that having no shoes didn’t really bother him.

I told this story to my niece as we shared some cheesy chicken meatballs. She was so fascinated that she was able to eat most of the meatballs. It was fortunate that I was able to scoop a few to my plate before it was too late. Please check out the recipe for these wonderful cheesy meatballs that might just make you the happiest people on earth!

Recipe courtesy of Confessions of a Confectionista. Image courtesy of Olga’s Flavor Factory.

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Quick Tip: Serve with pasta or rice.

Our family had an outing once to this town where they have the the best and freshest seafood. They had this restaurant in the middle of the village where there were aquariums everywhere, full of all types of fish and other creatures of the sea. We got to choose the seafood and the type of recipe and the local chefs would cook them in front of us. Guaranteed fresh and real! We enjoyed it because we got to watch how the locals took pride in cooking their products. Also, my Mom and her sisters got a lot of recipe ideas from the exhibition. We could see the enthusiasm in their faces. When we got back from the trip, we all gathered in my aunt’s house and they made us dinner full of seafood goodness.

As much as I love eating seafood, I don’t cook it much. They need to be prepared in a very particular way or else they will not taste as good. And time combined with thoroughness are not something that I could always afford. Except maybe if it’s casserole because we all know how convenient casseroles are—they make our busy lives so much easier. Just like this casserole recipe that I found which introduces a dish that screams of seafood yet is very convenient to make.

Photo courtesy of Food.com. Recipe courtesy of Taste of Home.

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Quick Tip: Serve with garden salad on the side.

I took a lot of psychology classes in college because I found it interesting to learn how people’s minds worked. There was this one activity where everyone in class had to bring something that described him or her. One of my classmates, the “heartthrob” in class, was called first. He brought his backpack in front and took out a plastic bag. He didn’t open it, saying it would stink. It happened to be cordon bleu. Something that he bought two weeks ago and never took out from his backpack.

He said he was like the cordon bleu. He “tasted” so good with all the goodness inside him, but everyone always appreciated just his looks. And because of that, what was inside him remained hidden. It would soon rot because no one dared to look at what’s in there. All I could say was—I’d never look at cordon bleu the same way again.

Photo courtesy of Food.com. Recipe courtesy of Mr.Food.

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Quick Tip: Serve with your favorite wine.

Pasta salad. The bowl of glorious ingredients that graces every summer picnic table from here to the southern hemisphere. We all make it and we all love it. However, I found that making  the same pasta salad over and over again using the same monotonous ingredients can get a tad, dare I say, “boring.”

So, on my wild goose chase for the perfect pasta salad, I came across this recipe for BLT ranch pasta salad. Now, I don’t know about you, but I love me some BLT sandwiches, and I also love ranch dressing. So, as you can probably imagine, this pasta salad recipe was a major hit with me. I anticipate that it’ll be a major hit with you as well.

Recipe courtesy of Pumpkin ‘n Spice.

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Quick Tip: Use your favorite dry Ranch dressing mixes such as Hidden Valley Ranch or Kraft. I sometimes mix up my own using herbs and my blender.

Are you still eating your chicken salad with *just* mayonnaise? It’s time to dress up the blandness and take this lunch staple to the next level.

Adding in juicy grapes give you a little pop of sweetness and using romaine lettuce prevents it from being overly mushy. Add in some other goodies like tomato, cheddar cheese, and a mixture of ranch with the mayonnaise for an extra boost of flavor. This recipe calls for using canned chicken, however feel free to use rotisserie chicken for a fresher alternative! Make this for a brunch get-together, or as an everyday midday meal – you’ll love it!

Image courtesy of Oh, Sweet Basil

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