Food – Page 4 – Unlikely Martha

Food

Strawberry Butter

This post was sponsored by Fresh From Florida as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central, however all opinions expressed are my own

Going strawberry picking as a kid signaled two things for me: spring was coming, and my mom was going to cut and freeze the strawberries we picked to eat on throughout the year. I’ll never forget the year that she insisted on getting into canning them for jellies. This is why I know as much as I do about Ball jars, and something or the other about sealing the tops with a special pressure pot that she boiled them in.

Listen, I’m not there yet… at least not with the canning part, but we have strawberry picked, and I’ve had the kids clean and store them in freezer bags for smoothies and such. One of her recipes to quickly make use of our over abundance of strawberries was strawberry butter.

Even with a strawberry patch right down the road, our strawberries in Georgia aren’t quite ripe for picking, however Florida strawberries are in season, and popping up in our grocery stores!

If you live in a cold climate you already know locally grown fruits and produce are only available at certain times of the year. Fresh from Florida farmers offer us the luxury of having fresh produce year-round. When I saw strawberries in the store recently, for some reason I thought of my mother’s strawberry butter recipe and thought I’d give it a whirl.

This recipe is super simple. Butter is involved… a whole cup to be exact. Then there are strawberries and honey. That’s it.

Strawberry Butter

8 Sliced Strawberries
1/4 Cup Honey
1 Cup Softened Butter

Beat softened butter on high until fluffy. Will take about 2-3 minutes depending on how soft it is.
Smash strawberries with a fork while beating the butter.
Once the butter is fluffy, pour the strawberries in. Include the juice if there is any.
Once the strawberries are well mixed with the butter, add in the honey and beat for another 2-3 minutes.
Once the mixture is fully mixed, add to a jar and store in the refrigerator.

Strawberry butter can be used on a number of things. I prefer it with breakfast, it melts beautifully on a warm croissant, bagel, or piece of toast. That’s the thing about strawberries, their sweetness makes them great for a multitude of things. The Fresh from Florida site has some simple and tasty recipes that I can’t wait to try.

No matter where you are in the U.S. keep a look out for food, produce, seafood and strawberries with the Fresh from Florida label. And if you need some recipe inspiration for everyday meals or entertaining, follow Fresh from Florida on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

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Food

Cheesy Herb + Bell Pepper Quiche

During Kwanzaa one of my neighbors hosted a pot luck gathering and I signed up to bring a quiche. In all honesty, I originally planned to purchase one until I found myself on New Year’s Eve searching for a heat and eat option with no luck. Instead of showing up empty handed, at the last minute I thought it noble of me to make one from scratch.

I’ve spoken before about the many recipes my other left me. I dug in and found one for a very simple quiche. I have since made this recipe no less than three times.

Cheesy Herb + Bell Pepper Quiche

1 Large Onion
1 Bell Pepper
2 Cloves Garlic
4 Large Eggs
3/4 Cup Whole Milk
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
Kosher salt + Pepper
1/4 Cup Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley
4 Oz. Grated Sharp Chedder
1 TBSP Olive oil

Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Add your pie crust to a standard 9 inch pie pan. Bake the pie crust until lightly golden. Should take no more than 10 minutes. Remove, and let cool. Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees F. (please don’t forget this step… ask me why)
While the pie crust is baking, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté onions for about 5 minutes, then add in chopped bell pepper and cook until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes more. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute; remove from heat.
Whisk together your eggs, milk, sour cream, nutmeg, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and Cheddar.
Pour the onion and bell pepper mixture into the bottom of the crust. Next, pour the egg mixture on top and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes. (Before removing, stick a fork in the center to make sure the egg is fully cooked.)

As if this one isn’t tasty enough, my girl MJ made a Bacon Mozzarella Quiche with Sweet Potato Crust. I can’t wait to try that one, but you don’t have to wait on me. Get her recipe here!

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Food• Living

Chicken Tikka Masala Meal Kit

“This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits. All opinions are 100% mine”

My children spent three weeks away with their grandmother this summer. The entire time they were away, I made sure to steer clear of the kitchen, as in no cleaning or cooking. My kitchen hiatus is over and it’s time for me to ease back into cooking nightly meals. New at Publix, FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits are making my transition back into cooking a little bit easier.

We are into the new school year, I’ve begun planning meals and mostly decluttered the house to ensure things move smoothly during the week. Thinking about all of the ripping and running we’ll being doing starting next week with each child having to be somewhere in the evenings EVERY. DAY. OF. THE. WEEK. has me exhausted already.

The reality of the situation is it will take a lot of team work and everyone pulling their load to make sure this house doesn’t turn into a den of chaos now that school is back in session.

While the kids are back in school, make no mistake about it, I’m still in summer chill mode. Chill mode consists of doing the least, which means meals need to be quick and preferably prepared in one pot. FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits fit the criteria and are one of my quick, go to meal options. The flavor is robust, chef-level quality and food is ready in 30 minutes.

These FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits are made with real ingredients, and come in additional flavors such as Tuscan-Style Mushroom Risotto, Shrimp Scampi and Spicy Szechuan-Style Chicken & Rice. Just add in the stated ingredients found on the back of the box, which you can pick up at your neighborhood Publix, and you are on your way to a tasty, 30-minute meal.

One thing I’ve learned in this process of learning to give myself grace is to embrace easy….and in this case tasty. As much as I would love to whip up a home cooked meal every day, I know my limitations and items like the FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits are the next best thing. Just because my time is limited, our dinner options shouldn’t be.

Let’s not forget I have a pre-teen who loves to cook. I think I’ll assign him a night to cook dinner, with my supervision of course!

Y’all know I’m all for sharing resources to make life easy, and the FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits are worth a try. I’ll be stacking them up, they are perfect to have on hand for those nights you feel like cooking a quick and easy meal.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of FOOD NETWORK KITCHEN™ Inspirations Meal Kits.

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Food• Recipes

Instant Pot Beef Recipes Pepper Steak

This post contains affiliate links. If you click-through and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Learn more here.

If you watch my Instagram stories you already know I’m smitten with my Instant Pot. What other pot is so forgiving that it will convert your straight out of the freezer dinner meat into a tender tasty meal in less than 30 minutes. Today I’m going to treat you to one of my favorite instant pot beef recipes… Pepper Steak.

Clearly there is a lot of fear in these streets about the safety of pressure cookers, apparently back in the day they weren’t so savvy and the tops would blow off or whatever. I’ll say, all of the buttons and rules to using an Instant Pot can be a little intimidating and confusing but once you get the idea of how it works ie. make sure to add liquid you’ll never doubt it again.

Last week after forgetting to take something out for dinner I came up with an Instant Pot Pepper Steak recipe that was on the table in less than 30 minutes.

Instant Pot Pepper Steak

I literally tossed freshly chopped vegetables, a block of frozen organic beef strips, beef broth and a few spices into the Instant Pot. Fast forward 18 minutes and dinner was ready but tasted like it simmered for at least an hour.

The key with the Instant Pot is to make sure you have adequate liquid in the bottom. I’m not sure what the liquid has to do with anything but don’t leave it out, I generally use a cup of liquid. Use chicken or beef broth in lieu of water for more flavor.

There is no excuse to stop at the drive thru on the way home during the week. Literally your dinner in the Instant Pot will be ready quicker than the time it takes to order and grab a pizza or anything else. Add this quick, easy, and delicious recipe to your weeknight rotation.

Instant Pot Beef Recipes – Pepper Steak

Instant Pot Pepper Steak

Author: Mimi

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Total time: 25 mins

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

2lbs beef strips
1 cup beef broth
2 cups coarsely chopped peppers and onion
1 TBSP Vegetable oil
1/4 cup ground ginger
2 TBSPS brown sugar
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
2 TBSPS cold water
2 TBSPS cornstarch
Kosher salt

Instructions

Season beef strips to taste with kosher salt and pepper
Utilizing the “Saute” feature on the Instant Pot, add vegetable oil and brown the beef strips, onion and peppers
Once the strips have browned switch to manual setting and add in broth, soy sauce, ground ginger and brown sugar
Stir well
Lock the top on the pot, set the nozzle to seal and set for 15 minutes of high pressure
Once the cook time has completed, carefully release the steam before removing the top
Mix the cornstarch and water together until well blended
Add the cornstarch and water mixture to the pot and stir to thicken the sauce
Serve over rice, noodles, or vegetable zoodles

Want another beef recipe? This quick and easy beef and broccoli recipe is one of the most popular recipes on the blog. Make it and you will never order beef and broccoli from the Chinese takeout again.

Here’s the Instant Pot I have. Add it to your must have appliances. You won’t regret it.

What’s are some of your favorite Instant Pot beef recipes?

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