Mini Pumpkin Empanadas (Easy Recipe with Pie Dough)

These mini pumpkin empanadas brushed with a buttery, warming aromatic coating are fun and super easy to bake using pre-made sheets of pie dough and a spiced pumpkin filling.

“The Kringle 3000” Chicago Meets New England Hot Dogs

Inspired by the engine that fuels Santa’s sled on Christmas Eve in the movie Elf. Red Snapper hot dogs, bright green relish, sport peppers and yellow mustard.

Jovie’s Unforgettable Christmas Eve Ramen

In the movie Elf, Jovie forgets her plain bowl of ramen to find Buddy the Elf. Here are simple add-ins to make packaged ramen unforgettable.

Sonoran-Style Sardine Tacos

Sardine tacos with cabbage, red onion and mustard salsa on homemade blue corn tortillas by Sonoran cookbook author Jackie Alpers.

Cast Iron Roasted Mushrooms

Recipe for oven roasted mushrooms cooked in a cast iron skillet from The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Deli Bento Box Lunches

3 Mixed Up Deli Bento Box Lunches using scallion ranch cream cheese spread; Deli Cold Cut Tacos, DIY Macaroni Salad, and Deli Stuffed Mini Peppers.

Spicy Deviled Eggs With Caviar

These spicy, chipotle deviled eggs topped with caviar and capers are fancy yet simple. The perfect party food or indulgent yet healthy snack.

Sonoran Tortilla Pizza

Sonoran style thin and crispy tortilla-crust pizza with exotic mushrooms, lemon infused ricotta, garlic and parmesan from Taste of Tucson cookbook author Jackie Alpers.

Cadillac Margarita Recipe

Cadillac margarita recipe that’s handcrafted using less sugar, freshly squeezed juice, high-end tequila and Grand Marnier. Add a slice of jalapeno to make it spicy.

Super Lucky Texas Cowboy Caviar

You may know that eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s day brings good luck in the new year, but did you know that Texas Cowboy caviar was invented in the 1940’s by Helen Corbitt, head chef at the Zodiac Room, at the flagship Neiman Marcus Department Store in Dallas, Texas? Cowboy Caviar is the perfect mix of simple cowboy taste and upscale living which is why I had to include my version of the recipe in The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook. Everyone knows the Dutton family needs all the luck they can get.

Sonoran Tortilla Stars with Guacamole and Pomegranate Seeds

Topped with chunky guacamole and jewel-like pomegranate seeds, these crispy tortilla bites from The Unofficial Elf Cookbook by Jackie Alpers exude holiday joy. Use Jackie Alpers’ Sonoran-Style Chunky Guacamole Recipe or your favorite store-bought version.

Homemade Chile Powder

How to dehydrate and grind chile peppers, with recipes for chili powder and custom spice blends using fresh homegrown and/or exotic store bought chiles. Preserve expensive and/or hard to find chiles.

Linguine With Whole Canned Clams

A meaty yet lighter creamy, cheesy, linguine with white clam sauce made with whole canned clams, greek olives, and tomatoes.

Snack of the Day: Nacho Cheese, Slim Jims and Beer Nuts on a Bagel

This snack is best eaten very late at night, preferably after attending a party of some other festive gathering. It’s easily assembled and pleasant to look at, even when blurry.

Lentil Cowboy Caviar

Sonoran Lentil Cowboy Caviar made with is made with lentils, chile peppers and red onion in a spicy citrus vinaigrette. It’s similar to Texas Caviar made with black eyed peas and the lentils do resemble fish eggs.

Spicy Sonoran Coleslaw

This crunchy, salty, and spicy no-mayo Thai/Mexican coleslaw is an excellent companion to Sonoran style dishes. It’s inspired by Som Tum (green papaya salad).

Salsa Chicken Tacos

Chicken slow-simmered in salsa, then shredded for serving in as a filling for tacos, tostadas, enchiladas, and is keto when served in lettuce cups.

Spicy Sonoran Salsa Verde

Recipe for Sonoran Style hot green tomatillo salsa developed by Patricia Schwabe for her restaurant Penca. From the Taste of Tucson Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Mexican Chicken Salad Tacos

Mexican chicken salad tacos recipe served in lettuce wraps made with rotisserie chicken. Featured in the Glamour.com article, A Week of Delicious Chicken Recipes.

Beth Dutton’s Smoothie

How to make Beth Dutton’s famous “2 scoops of ice-cream, 3 shots of vodka” smoothie from the Yellowstone TV series from The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Easy Chile Colorado con Carne

Cubed beef simmered in red chile sauce for enchiladas, tacos, tostadas, salads or burritos. From the Taste of Tucson Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Tate’s Rattlesnake Sausage Chowder

This spicy rattlesnake sausage chowder has a bite, but at least it won’t take a bite out of you. Inspired by Tate Dutton’s brave move in a key episode of Yellowstone. This recipe is reprinted from The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook: Recipes Inspired by the Dutton Family Ranch, by Jackie Alpers.

Berry Tinted Irish Soda Bread

Recipe for Irish soda bread with blueberries and currants inspired by 1923 from The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook author Jackie Alpers.

Sheet Pan Garlic-Butter Green Beans

After a hard day’s work at the 6666 Ranch in Texas, Jimmy devoured a plate of Country Fried Steak smothered with gravy and a side of green beans. I’m sharing my recipe for Sheet Pan Roasted Green Beans to whet your appetite… you’ll have to wait for The Unofficial Yellowstone Cookbook for the main course.

Dry-Fried Asparagus

Dry-fried asparagus is charred and crispy on the outside, and tender on the inside. It has direct contact to the pan without oil or butter. Asparagus grows wild in Montana where the Yellowstone TV series is filmed.

Carne Asada CRUNCH Quesadillas

Sonoran carne asada, scallions, cheese and crunchy tortilla chips stuffed in quesadillas and grilled. Many years ago, Ben Galaz owner of BK Tacos taught me how to make Sonoran-style carne and cebollas asada. I’m using his recipe though he cooks the meat on a Santa Rita style grill with a wheel to adjust the height of the grate, and I use a Weber Kettle. If mesquite wood is not available, hickory, pecan or cherry are good substitutes.

Tortilla Snowflakes

Sweet and sparkly tortilla snowflakes – an edible version of the popular Mexican folk art, papel picado which will brighten any winter holiday table.

Elote en Vaso: Sonoran-Mexican Street Corn Cups

Recipe for Elote en Vaso, Mexican street corn in cups. Pan fried corn kernels tossed in a creamy sauce seasoned with chile and lime. From the Taste of Tucson Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Shrimp Cocktail, Sonoran Style: Coctel De Camaron

This easy Sonoran style Mexican shrimp cocktail with crisp cucumber, creamy avocado, red onion and hot sauce is ready in about 5 minutes.

Roasted Whole Baby Cauliflower with Herbs & Parmesan

I’m fascinated by the idea of roasting an entire head of cauliflower, so when I came across these adorable baby cauliflower at the market the wheels started turning. They make a visually stunning side dish, perfect on cold winter nights. You can substitute one large cauliflower if you can’t find the little ones.

BLT Lettuce Wraps | The Perfect Summer Meal

Tomatoes are at their best, and something about the heat and humidity of the Arizona monsoon season makes me almost totally inert and immobile. This is about all I can muster dinner-wise, so I’m lucky that it’s fairly healthy… It turns out that mayo and bacon are better for us than expected, and my versions is also low-carb.

Crustless Frico Parmesan Pepperoni Pizza

If you bake a layer of Parmesan cheese in the oven it will crackle and pop after a while, turning into a crispy, cheese cracker that’s much tastier than any pizza crust I’ve encountered. I topped this baked cheese crisp (which is a popular dish called Frico in Italy) with pizza spices and toppings before sliding it into the oven. The results: crustless pizza!

Sunny Parmesan Pepperoni Crisps

Bake a little sunshine into your life with these bright and happy two-ingredient pizza flavored cheese crisps.

Easy Sonoran Chicken Tortilla Soup

Make this Sonoran-Style Mexican chicken tortilla soup from the Taste of Tucson cookbook in 30 minutes or less!

Parmesan Crisps with Caviar

Festive enough for New Year’s Eve, this pretty appetizer only takes about 5 minutes to make. Bacon infused caviar adds a unique smokiness that will intrigue your guests and is fairly inexpensive, but any decent quality caviar will do. The one-ingredient parmesan crisps are a savory, no-carb alternative to blini.

Molletes Sonoran-Mexican Open-Faced Breakfast Sandwich

Molletes are open-faced breakfast sandwiches made by slathering refried beans onto toasted bolillo rolls and then heaping avocado slices, a fried egg, hot sauce, and lots of cheese on top.

Nachos Supreme Stuffed Bell Peppers

Sweet bell peppers stuffed with creamy nacho cheese, avocado, pickled jalapeños, black beans and crunchy tortilla chips.

Strawberry Habanero Infused Tequila

This infused Strawberry-Habanero tequila makes a mean margarita or straight-up sipper.

Chiltepin Hot Salsa Recipe

Chiltepin salsa is an all-purpose salsa that can be used for dipping, for seasoning, and as a taco sauce. A little goes a long way, so if you prefer a milder salsa, cut the amount of chiles down by a half or a third. This recipe is from the Taste of Tucson cookbook by Jackie Alpers.

Chorizo, Egg and Cheese Sonoran-Style Breakfast Taco

Sonoran-style breakfast taco with a crispy egg fried in chorizo and folded with cheese into a tortilla.

Matzoh Molletes Rancheros

This crispy matzoh based breakfast is a cross between molletes and huevos rancheros. I used beans from a can and my homemade chiltepin salsa.

Hibiscus Agua Fresca Cooler

This hibiscus agua fresca isn’t too sweet, so you can drink it all day long and even into the night (perhaps with vodka!) It’s healthy too.

The Moist Maker Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich

The Moist Maker Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich inspired by the classic episode of Friends, “The One Where Ross Loses it Over a Sandwich,” is made with a dinner roll soaked in gravy in the center, leftover turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce, proving that Monica is a culinary genius.

Quick and Easy