A Life in Food by real-life Chef Cheryl Bennett
Colorful fall panzanella salad is full of autumn vegetables like roasted butternut squash and Brussels sprouts. Fresh apples, pecans, and pumpkin seeds give it an extra bit of crunch.
Fall salads are some of my favorites. They get earthier, heartier and sometimes, a bit more interesting than their warm weather counterparts.
This one is no exception. There is a ton of flavor going on in this bowl and each bite is better than the one before.
Classic Chicken Noodle Soup is the epitome of the “cure all soup”. It is comforting and delicious, it reminds us of childhood, it is what we crave when we’re under the weather and knowing how to make a good pot of soup from scratch is a good skill to have in your arsenal. From easy lentil soup to langostino chowder, you’ll be able to create anything.
Once you master the basics of making a good pot of soup, it opens up infinite possibilities to all of the variations you can make.
Homemade chicken noodle soup isn’t exactly groundbreaking, earth-shattering, cutting-edge haute cuisine, but something everyone should have in their arsenal. When it’s good, it’s really good and it possesses inexplicable magic.
A good bowl of classic chicken noodle soup can make you feel so much better when you’re not feeling your best. It satisfies your soul and can warm you to the core on a bone-chilling day.
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Slow cooker bacon jam is the perfect mix of salty and sweet. It makes a great topping for a bagel and is absolutely delectable when paired with an egg. Make a batch of this slow cooker bacon jam for gift-giving this holiday season for all of your bacon-loving friends! If you really want to gild the lily, consider swapping out the sausage for bacon jam in this breakfast casserole.
I am an unapologetic lover of all things bacon. I’ve made this jam a handful of times and it each time it disappears before I know what happened. Everyone who tastes it, loves it.
This bacon jam makes a great homemade gift in pretty glass jars tied up with ribbon. It also makes a delicious crostini topping for holiday parties.
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Classic bread stuffing is as synonymous with Thanksgiving as turkey. Cubes of dried bread mixed with celery, onions and sage are baked in the oven until golden brown. It is my favorite Thanksgiving side dish, along with the easiest 5 ingredient corn casserole that everyone loves. 
As we are all gearing up for this holiday, the only one that is all about food, I am planning our Thanksgiving menu.
Butternut squash arugula salad, turkey, stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, melting potatoes with garlic and herbs, gravy, pumpkin pie and cranberry upside down cake.
I may even make a few pumpkin rum balls for after dinner. Can you really ask for anything else? Carbs with a side of carbs. (it’s one day, indulge!)
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This easy lentil soup recipe will have dinner on the table with little effort. If you are a soup lover like me, you’ll want to save this easy recipe for those evenings when a bowl of soup makes the perfect supper.
Lentil soup is a classic for a reason. It is an easy soup to make, it requires a bit of chopping and not much else. It’s full of vegetables and it is delicious. This soup is filling and satisfying, but does not leave you feeling heavy.
Are you a fellow soup lover? You can find more soup recipes here.
Cherry Chutney is a fantastic summer condiment. It is one of my favorite fresh cherry recipes. If you are unfamiliar with chutney, let me give you a quick description. It’s like a relish, it has sweet and sour ingredients, usually coming from sugar or fruits and vinegar. It is a blend of sweet and savory.
Chutney is a great condiment to use with grilled meat or vegetables and this cherry chutney went splendidly with a grilled flank steak.
During warm summer months, when stone fruit is at its peak, I make big batches of this chutney to put up for winter months when I need a bit of summer.
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Sage onion rolls are perfect for your holiday table. They are filled with a savory red onion mixture and adorned with fresh sage leaves, making them as pretty as they are tasty.
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Queso fundido is literally “melted cheese” and has many variations, but my favorite is the traditional onions and poblano peppers. This chicken queso fundido recipe combines a dinner staple with a restaurant favorite.
Queso Fundido is one of my favorite splurge foods when we go out. It is gooey, melted cheese with caramelized onions and strips of roasted poblano peppers.
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As many of you are fully aware, I have an exploding tomato population. I went a bit “Little House on the Prairie” thinking I needed to sow all my seeds to get me through the long, hard winter on the farm apparently. Well, now… I am reaping what I have sown. PUN. FULLY. INTENDED.
It’s mass chaos back there. I think the tomatoes get together in some sort of secret society at night while I’m sleeping, plotting to overthrow me. One day I may wake up to them all crouched down waiting to pounce (think: Lord of the Flies). OK, clearly I’ve gone off on a tangent……
Bacon, Eggs, Cheese, Pasta.
It seems every time I make pasta, I always have leftovers. Every. Single. Time. I used to hear the phrase “your eyes are bigger than your stomach” on an almost daily basis and I think it may still be true.
So, seeing that sad bit of pasta hanging out in the fridge I felt the need to rescue it. I’m not a fan of throwing food in the garbage (unless of course it has started to look like a science experiment gone horribly wrong). With that sense of resolve, I scanned the kitchen to see how this bit of leftover pasta could transcend its current state into something seriously good.
Staring into the refrigerator, I felt a bit like the woman from “Romper Room”… you remember her right? She would look through her looking glass and say the names of the kids she saw. Every week I waited and waited to hear my name. Never happened.
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