No More Sushi Hana

I was very unimpressed with Sushi Hana. For one, I don't like taking the time to drag my child to a restaurant, pay a decent amount of money for my food, and then not have it be spectacular. This is why I have about five or six different places that I eat at and I rarely venture elsewhere, because it usually results in disappointment. I know that most of you would probably say "it happens, get over it," but I take food very seriously. I have seen billboards up all over Tulsa advertising this new sushi place and I could not wait to sink my teeth into their rolls. For starters, I was mildly irritated when they brought out the sushi and I saw that two of the rolls only had five pieces, considering they were $12-15 per roll. I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt IF they were scrumptious. They were not. I personally prefer the sushi from Sushi House in Broken Arrow over this and you can get four to five rolls for under $40. Oh well, you live and you learn. When you learn, you let others know so they don't make the same mistake. I understand that everyone has different taste buds, such as my husband who actually enjoyed it, and that some may disagree with me on this, but if you know me then you know that I know food and this food isn't worth your money. Enough said.

Shammy Says "I've had better"

Baked Fried Pickles? Oh Yes.

Fresh out of the oven

I was bored one afternoon last week so I decided to go on Pinterest in search for the perfect new snack to try. I stumbled upon these, which I had seen before but whizzed right past them because they looked too good to be true. I was right. I had all the ingredients on hand, they were entirely too easy to throw together, and they tasted scrumptious. Now I've got real problems. Now I am going to want to make these every day, which means I will just have to stop buying pickles for a while.  If you are in the mood for some greasy comfort food then these will fit the bill, just don't make too many of them ;)

Shammy Says "At least they are baked right??"

Put Up Your Duke's

The Smoked Turkey Club with Peach Aioli--FABULOUS

I had never heard of Duke's Southern Kitchen when my friend Fawna recommended it for dinner one evening. I have yet to dislike anything that she has recommended so I didn't ask questions. The first thing I noticed when we walked in was the enormous height of the ceilings and the chill atmosphere, I immediately loved it. As I was perusing the menu trying to find the perfect thing to order Fawna suggested the Smoked Turkey Club, among other items that she had tried. I was in the mood for a sandwich so that's what I went with. I remember wanting french fries badly but Fawna vehemently insisted that I get the side of the homemade crispy potato chips. I wasn't as enthused about those as I was the fries, but I took her advice. When my food arrived, I could do nothing but stare at it for a few moments, and then of course snap a picture for you all to see;) We ate there about a month or so ago and I am STILL in awe of how delicious the food was. The Smoked Turkey Club was the best sandwich I have ever had, with the peach aioli as the star of the show. I believe it was the secret ingredient, along with the bacon and avocado. The chips were phenomenal and I will definitely order them when I return, which will be very soon. If you have never heard of this place then I suggest you check it out!

Shammy Says "If I had three thumbs I would give Duke's three thumbs up"

Salsa Magnifico!

I am extremely well-known for my homemade salsa. Every time there is a party I am asked to make it, along with my unbeatable guacamole. For this reason I have never stepped out of my box to look for new salsa recipes, why would I? If it ain't broke...right? WRONG. I discovered this recipe the other day on Pinterest and it appealed to me for this reason alone: it looked incredibly easy. This is THE best salsa I have ever had, EVER. It was super cheap, super easy, and super delicious. I had seen a few other recipes that looked amazing but they all involved boiling and peeling your own tomatoes, which I'm sure makes the salsa quite tasty but who wants to go through all that work just for salsa? Not me. Especially when the canned tomatoes taste just as good. I am retiring my salsa recipe and replacing it with this one. Recipe is below, you are welcome!

Shammy Says "You say 'tomato' I say 'salsa'"

Salsa Recipe

2 cans of diced tomatoes

1 small can of diced green chiles

1/2 bunch of cilantro chopped

1 clove of garlic minced or garlic powder

3-4 whole green onions(stem included) chopped

Few shakes of red pepper flakes

1 tsp of salt(you can add a little more if you like salt)

Blend it all together minus the tomatoes, then add the tomatoes and blend a little to mince the tomatoes.

Notes: The great thing about salsa is that you can adjust it to satisfy your own taste buds, so if there is anything that you want to add or replace, just do so! I used garlic powder since I didn't feel like mincing garlic, I was lazy today ;)

Jalapeno. Popper. Dip.

Jalapeno Popper Dip. Need I say more? Didn't think so. I have been perusing this recipe for 4 months now but haven't yet justified making a 4,000 calorie dip and eating it as my lunch...until today. I was foolish in thinking that this dip would be good, it was SPECTACULAR. So spectacular that I could not stop eating it, literally. I found myself digging for more chips as I was putting the dish in the sink, scraping the bowl hoping that the bottom would magically open up, and that there would be more below. I almost couldn't handle the deliciousness, blacking out for a period of time, similar to a state of euphoria. I wasn't the least bit surprised though, can you really go wrong with cream cheese, mayo, jalapenos, cheddar cheese, and parmesan cheese? NO. My one adjustment next time I make this will be to add less jalapenos. I love heat but I think it had a bit too much, taking away from the creamy cheesiness of it. My insides are burning, but it was so worth it.

Jalapeno Popper Dip Recipe

Shammy Says "Un-freaking-believable"

Pumpkin Everything...

Yes, they tasted as good as they looked

Pumpkin Donuts. Two words that go together like nacho and cheese, or Doritos and sour cream. These were not the easiest thing to make, but they sure were worth the effort. I actually enjoyed the cinnamon sugar over the glazed but I'm pretty weird about donuts. They literally melted in my mouth and rocked my world, and I also have a few people that can attest for me on that. This is yet another Pinterest success that I can add to the list. The ingredients were fairly simple but like I said, it was quite time consuming so you will need about five to six hours total to make them. But if you decide to make them, you won't regret it!

Pumpkin Donut Recipe

Shammy Says "Pumpkin deliciousness"

Creamy Delicious Taquitos

Like QT's, only INFINITELY better

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos. Everything about this recipe makes sense. I'm surprised I've never tried to make taquitos until now, but I sure am glad that I stumbled upon this recipe. The filling is definitely the secret weapon, it is a perfect blend of ingredients to make your taste buds do a dance in your mouth. I had most of the ingredients on hand, and ended up skipping the cilantro, simply because mine went bad. I also made a giant batch of queso to use as a dipping sauce, or to serve as bathwater for my taquitos. I also served them with sour cream(I can tell you're surprised,) and some Picante sauce. Bottom line is these babies were TASTY and you should make them too.

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos Recipe

Shammy Says "These taquitos are a triple threat: easy, cheap, delicious"