Memorial Day Grilling Adventures...

So our memorial day grilling session was relatively simple this year- just a few burgers and dogs. The great thing about burgers and dogs is that the fun part is what you put on the bun with them- the meat portion is the easy part...

Burger with pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado, and tobasco-spiked mayo

Zio's Trattoria Pizzeria - Hillsborough, New Jersey

Zio's Brooklyn Style Pizza

It's been raining here in New Jersey for about a week straight- almost non-stop. So while today wasn't exactly the most pleasant day, it is the first time in a long time when there were not buckets of rain falling from the sky, so we took the kids to the park to play for a while, then stopped off for a little lunch.

Zio's Trattoria Pizzeria is a place we've been to a few times, and it's quickly become a favorite. Today we tried something we didn't notice the last few times we were there- the Brooklyn style pizza. And it was well worth the trip!

Grilled Cheese with Tomato on Bacon Bread

Grilled cheese with tomato on Bacon Bread

Grilled cheese with tomato and bacon is one of those classic combinations that everyone loves. So when you have a fresh batch of my Infamous Bacon Bread, this combination is just going to happen sooner or later. There's enough bacon flavor in the bread to be a good base without adding more bacon (not that more bacon is ever a bad thing!).

Rotini with Chicken and Snap Peas - made from leftovers

So you have a brick of frozen tomato sauce taking up space in the freezer left over from the Sunday Gravy. You have a mixed bag of leftover odds and ends in the fridge. You also have a box of pasta, and maybe 30 minutes to get dinner ready before the kids start having a meltdown... this is the answer...

Pasta dishes are a great way to turn a pile of leftovers into a good meal

Infamous Bacon Bread - not suitable for cardiac patients

Bacon bread- need I say more

If you have a prescription for medications such as lipitor, you should probably dose up before reading further. This is not "heart healthy" eating we are about to indulge in. Eating this stuff on a regular basis may actually shorten your lifespan, but you'll enjoy it so much that you probably won't care. This is...the infamous bacon bread.

Bologna Grilled Cheese on Garlic-Herb bread

There's something about a bologna and cheese sandwich that speaks to the kid inside us- it definitely speaks to my kids since they ask for them all the time. So if you, like me, are still in touch with your inner child, and have a documented mild obsession with grilled cheese sandwiches, a grilled bologna and cheese is bound to happen sooner or later.

Bologna and Cheese gets all grown up with some home-made bread and a hot grill

A Quick Flank Steak Fajita Dinner

So it's nice to be able to simmer a meal one the stove all day. Slow cooked comfort food reeks of homey goodness that hard to describe. The reality of modern life, however, means that it's not practical to prepare long-cooking dishes on a regular basis. This is why Rachael Ray was able to make a career out of hacking together meals in 30 minutes or less.

My "quick" dinner this past week was a quick and simple flank steak fajita, with rice and beans on the side.

Slapping together a few simple components can still come out greater than the sum of its parts

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