A Busy Kitchen

Lola MagazineJacqueline Anderson, Lola Shreveport

Hi, my name is Jackie!  I am the author, the hands and the creator of “A Busy Kitchen.”

I have always loved cooking. I also love a good party…whether it’s casual, formal or themed! Give me an occasion and I’ll find the perfect recipe to go along with it. Small, casual, informal get-togethers are my favorite! I love sharing recipes and my food creations with family, friends, and all of you.

I recently started my blog after losing my mom to early-onset dementia a form of Alzheimer’s disease. She had been sick for a long time, which was very hard, but the loss was even worse. I was in search of any distraction I could find that gave me a break from being so sad. Many people over the years suggested I should start a blog! I figured it was as good of a time as any. I spent a lot of the pandemic teaching myself how to create a blog by reading and watching videos. Putting my recipes into print was the perfect thing to give my mind a break, and “A Busy Kitchen” was born!

Growing up, Sloppy Joes made a regular rotation in our house. Whether it was made with sauce from a can, or my grandma’s Sloppy Joe she made from scratch every Christmas Eve, it was always a favorite of mine. Something about it brings me comfort. The recipe I used today, however, I can not take credit for. I wish I would’ve been able to get my Grandma’s recipe because it is equally as good as this one. She was a fabulous cook!

A bit of advice, if you have somebody in your family or somebody close to you that is a great cook, beg and plead for their recipes! It would bring me comfort to have some of those recipes.

I am lucky enough to still be surrounded by a great cook! She is too humble to ever even realize how spectacular her food is. My better half’s mom is THE MOST FABULOUS cook. She won’t give me all her secrets…at least not yet! I was blessed enough to get her homemade Sloppy Joe recipe (but even more blessed to have her in my life)! It is as fabulous as she is, so I must share it with you! I am so lucky to have somebody to share a passion for food with…I am so humbled each time she shares a tip or a recipe with me!

I like to make even the small holidays FUN! Presidents’ Day….I’ll find a themed dinner for it…there are more red, white, and blue dinner items out there than you think! Seriously though…themed food is a fun thing to do! With all the scary things going on in the world, it gives me something fun to focus on. And what’s Halloween, without some orange food? So sticking with tradition, I made my Halloween Sloppy Joe Sandwiches!

Coni’s Sloppy Joes

PREP TIME 30 mins |  COOK TIME 40 mins |  SERVINGS 4

INGREDIENTS

1 lb ground beef

½ cup chopped green pepper or celery (i use both)

1 medium chopped onion

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp dry mustard

¼ tsp salt

1⁄8 tsp pepper

8 oz can tomato sauce

½ cup ketchup

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS

  • In a large skillet cook onion, celery, and pepper until soft
  • Add ground beef and brown
  • Stir in remaining ingredients
  • Cover and simmer for 15 minutes

This oven-roasted citrus salmon recipe may seem basic, but I promise you it will be some of the best salmon you’ll ever have. This is so easy to prepare but is full of flavor and exceeds any salmon I’ve ever had from a restaurant. This is one of those recipes you will make over and over. I make this oven-roasted citrus salmon at least twice a week.

Oven Roasted Citrus Salmon

A delicious oven roasted citrus flavored salmon dish

PREP TIME 30 mins

EQUIPMENT

1 sheet tray

Foil

INGREDIENTS

4 5-6 oz skin off salmon filets

1 organic orange

1 organic lemon

2 tbsp brown sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Avocado Oil cooking spray

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Pre-heat oven to 400
  • Line baking sheet with foil. spray foil with avocado oil cooking spray
  • While the oven is pre-heating, prepare salmon.
  • Pat salmon dry on both sides and place on baking sheet. season both sides of salmon with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Sprinkle the tbsp of brown sugar on top of salmon filets
  • Using a citrus squeezer, squeeze the juice of the whole orange and whole lemon over the salmon filets.
  • Allow salmon to marinate in citrus juices and season for 30 minutes.
  • Roast salmon at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until cooked to 145-150 degrees.

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Email: abusykitchengirl@gmail.com

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