Guest Blogger: "Go-To" Recipes with Lindsey

Today Lindsey Johnson is our guest blogger! Lindsey has two great blogs I love to visit: Cafe Johnsonia & Just Recipes (Lindsey is the source of those delicious Brownie Cookies I wrote about). Lindsey was recently a week-long guest blogger for the fabulous Design Mom as well. I'm so happy we get to have her here - thank you, Lindsey!

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Can I start by saying what an honor it is to be a Guest Blogger on the great TWFD blog? Jane is such a gracious host. Don't you just love her blog?

I'm sure you are like me and have your favorite recipes that are your "go-to" recipes. They are familiar and comfortable and hard to mess up. I love those kinds of recipes.

I've assembled my list of recipes that I "go-to" on a regular basis. I hope you will post your own "go-to" ideas and recipes in the comment section so we can all get some new ideas and maybe even find a few new favorites.

Main Dish/Casserole.
When I'm taking dinner to a friend that has just had a baby or when I haven't shopped, or when I just want to eat some good, old comfort food, I turn to Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping. I always have the ingredients on hand and I know that it will last a few days for leftovers. And it's really, really good. The recipe was originally a Cooks' Illustrated recipe that I've kind of made into my own.

Side dishes.
I'm a huge fan of simple meals. I like the occasional casserole (like the pot pie), but usually I am doing some kind of chicken, beef, or pork with two sides. The easiest sides, for me, are those that can be done quickly and cook while the main dish is being prepared.

Enter Roasted Veggies & Potatoes. Follow the recipe here and you will be eating your veggies like candy.

Green salad.
I adore green salads. (And most other salads, too, really.) Growing up, salad was that iceberg lettuce mix with shredded carrots and ranch. Hmm. Pretty boring. No wonder I didn't like salad much as a kid.

I love that you can find gourmet greens in most supermarkets now. And there are myriad ways to dress up those greens. You can add pretty much anything you want and have a great salad.

One of my favorite salads is very fruity and hearty. I also like to make my own dressing, but store-bought salad dressings are fine. Isn't it all about what you like anyway? (Click here to see what's in the salad)

I also have two favorite vinaigrettes/dressings, Raspberry Vinaigrette and Creamy Apple Poppy Seed Dressing.

Moving on to dessert…my favorite.
I try to only make dessert on Sunday night, but by Wednesday I find I gotta get me some chocolate. Two of my all-time favorite recipes have come from Martha Stewart.

This recipe for 'Carolyn's Chocolate Chip Cookies' was in the July 2003 issue of Martha Stewart Living. (It's not available on her website.) I like this recipe because it doesn't require any planning. You don't have to let the butter soften. You only need a whisk, no pulling out the mixer. And they are really soft, chewy and yummy. (I'm making myself hungry just thinking about them.)

It has taken about 26 years to really love chocolate. (I shouldn't tell you that because I don't want to lose my credibility.) There isn't a day that goes by that I don't have a handful of chocolate chips, or something chocolaty. But when I get really serious about my need/want for chocolate, I go straight for brownies.

I found this recipe for Brownie Cupcakes when I was searching for something else and there was no looking back. They are easy. It only requires one bag of semi-sweet chips—I always seem to have those on hand. And again, no mixer required. They are good with or without the chocolate frosting. But make sure you have a big glass of milk nearby. They are so rich and fudgy.

Now that I've shared my "go-to" recipes, I want to hear what your "go-to" favorites are!

images in this post courtesy of lindsey johnson