Mal's Shadow Spare Ribs

Ribs aren't really my thing. Not bad, but usually just too messy to eat. And I think a lot of it ends up coming down to the sauce that's on them, so are the ribs really necessary? 

These were ok. You can tell they got a bit burned on the outside. Again, nothing special in my opinion, but not bad. Not worth the marinating and long cook time to me. 

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice wine
• 3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 4 lb beef short ribs or pork spareribs

Combine all the ingredients except the ribs in a plastic bag or bowl. Add the ribs and let marinate in the fridge for around 12 hours, or overnight.

When ready to cook, heat the oven to 350 degrees and set the ribs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake them slow for 1 1/2 hours, basing occasionally with the marinating juice. Serve hot.

Serves 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 1 1/2 hours, plus overnight marinating

Recipe from Firefly: The Big Damn Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel

Crab Quiche

Quiche is so good. Very filling and you can do so much with it. I'm sure this was not in my low-cholesterol-approved diet, but it was still yummy and not difficult to make either. 

• 1 sheet refrigerated pie crust
• 1 cup shredded Swiss cheese, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups half and half cream
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 3/4 cup flaked imitation crabmeat, chopped

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Unroll crust into a 9 inch pie plate; flute edge. Line unpricked pastry shell with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Bake for 5 minutes; remove foil. Bake 5 minutes longer. Immediately sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese over crust.

Reduce heat to 375 degrees. In a skillet, sauté red pepper and green onions in butter until tender. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, cream, salt, and pepper. Stir in crab, red pepper mixture, and remaining cheese. Pour into crust.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.

Serves 8

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes plus standing

Recipe from Taste of Home

Red Velvet Punch

As you can probably tell by the measurements, this is a GIGANTIC recipe. I have a very large punch bowl and it filled this completely. That said, we only had about 12 people at the party and it was all gone. So it must be good! You could definitely also make this an adult beverage with champagne instead of ginger ale, if you want. 

• 2 quarts cranberry juice
• 6 6-oz cans pineapple juice
• 1 6-oz can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
• 1 6-oz can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1 quart ginger ale

Mix all ingredients except ginger ale in a large container. Chill, covered, for 8-10 hours. Pour into a punch bowl. Stir in the ginger ale. Ladle into punch cups.

Serves 24

Total Time: 5 minutes plus chilling

NOTES: Not sure why you need to mix most of the ingredients ahead of time and have them take up a ton of space in your fridge. The second time I made this, I chilled all the ingredients separately and then mixed them right before I needed the punch. My punch bowl was just too large to be taking up all that space in my fridge for a day!

Also, after making the recipe again, Doug made ice cubes out of the leftovers. He has one of those ice ball trays. He put one in a glass, poured a little Squirt soda over it and said it was delicious.

Recipe from The Pampered Chef The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home cookbook 

Chicken Piccata Meatballs - People magazine edition

The original recipe was too lemony. I know, something you never thought you'd hear me say. But it was too much. So I adjusted the recipe down from 2 Tbsp to 1. We also served ours over Pasta Roni to add a little something. 

• 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1-2 soft white bread slices, crusts removed, slices torn into small pieces
• 1 large egg
• 2 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated (1/2 cup), plus more for serving
• 2 Tbsp whole milk
• 2 small shallots, finely chopped, divided
• 3 Tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
• 2 Tbsp drained capers, chopped, plus 1 1/2 Tbsp drained whole capers, divided
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp kosher salt, divided
• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups lower sodium chicken broth

Preheat oven to 450 degrees with rack in upper third position. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; drizzle with 1 Tbsp of the oil and set aside. 

Stir together bread, egg, cheese, and milk in a large bowl using a fork until thoroughly combined. Set aside for 5 minutes, allowing bread to absorb liquid. Add 1/4 cup of the shallots, 2 Tbsp of the parsley, 2 Tbsp of the chopped capers, lemon zest, and 1/2 tsp salt; stir together using a rubber spatula until mixture is smooth. Add chicken, breaking up into chunks. Using your fingertips, gently combine chicken with bread mixture just until blended. With damp hands, form mixture into 16 balls (about 1 1/2 Tbsp each); arrange 1 inch apart on baking sheet. 

Bake meatballs until tops are golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 Tbsp oil in a large deep skillet over medium. Add remaining shallots and 1/2 tsp salt; cook, stirring often, for 1 minute. Add flour, whisking until smooth. Continue to whisk, adding chicken broth and lemon juice; whisk until smooth. When sauce begins to bubble, reduce heat to low, and add 1 1/2 Tbsp whole capers; simmer for 5 minutes.

Add meatballs to skillet; cover and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in remaining 1 Tbsp parsley. Serve with additional cheese.

Serves 4

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Goat Cheese-Stuffed Jalapenos

If you know me, you know I'm not a spicy foods person. I really like the flavor of jalapeno, but if it's spicy, I die. I saw this item on a menu in Orlando and it just sounded too amazing so I had to try it and it did not disappoint (though it was, in fact, spicy). My variation turned out pretty well though it has been so long since I tried the original that I don't remember how close they tasted. What I can say is that their plating was way prettier than mine. 

• 1/4 cup tequila
• 4 slices uncooked bacon
• 4 jalapenos
• 4 oz goat cheese
• 1/3 cup cilantro 
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 5 cloves garlic
• Balsamic vinegar for drizzle

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, soak the slices of bacon in the tequila. Meanwhile, rinse the jalapenos and split in half lengthwise. Remove stem and seeds, taking care not to touch your face after handling the pepper.

Divide the cheese among half the slices of jalapenos and stuff it down the center as best you can. If needed, you can stuff all halves of jalapeno to use all the cheese. Place the halves of jalapenos back together, wrapping in bacon to hold in place.

Arrange jalapenos on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. While baking, assemble the cilantro garlic salsa. Using a blender, mix cilantro, mayonnaise, and garlic until smooth. Drizzle over cooked jalapenos with a little balsamic. Serve warm.

Serves 2

Total Time: 25 minutes

Recipe from Agave Azul Cocina

Macaroni and Cheese with Caramelized Onions

Ooooo cheese, bacon, and caramelized onion? What more could you ask for? Well, a little more flavor is what we found we could ask for. Doug added some crushed red pepper and said it was a lot better after that (I would also add garlic). There wasn't a massive amount of flavor but still, we both went back for seconds so there must be something there!

• 4 strips bacon
• 1 large sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 cups regular or multigrain dried elbow macaroni (6 oz)
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese (8 oz)
• 4 oz processed Gruyere cheese, shredded, or bleu cheese, crumbled
• 1 cup half and half or light cream
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

In a large skillet cook bacon on medium heat until crisp, turning once. Drain bacon on paper towels; crumble. Reserve bacon drippings in skillet. In a large saucepan, cook macaroni according to package directions. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Cook onion in reserved bacon drippings over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, or until onion is tender and golden brown. Set aside. Drain pasta and return to saucepan. Stir in the crumbled bacon, onion, and 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, the Gruyere cheese, half and half, and pepper. Toss gently to combine. Spoon into 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.

Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Stir gently. Top with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake about 10 minutes more or until top of casserole is brown and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes. 

Serves 4

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

2026 Oscars Bingo

For those of you who like to watch the Academy Awards, here's my annual Bingo cards you can use with your friends. There are 40 unique pages. Have fun!

2026 Oscars Bingo