I've had such a wonderful year writing Everything Erica! Between finally figuring out how to leave my career in Real Estate to work on this full-time and all the incredible opportunities I've been afforded, I feel truly lucky. Since there has been so many yummy dishes that have come out of my blog this year, I thought it might be fun to go through my site stats and pull out the 10 most popular recipes of 2014! Here we go... #10 - Drunken Caramelized Brussels Sprouts: Since brussels ... [ Read More ]
Balsamic Grilled Chicken & Eggplant w/ Goat Cheese Couscous
Last week, I asked my followers via Facebook to name 6 ingredients and I would figure out a way to combine them and make a cohesive and delicious dish. With-in seconds of posting, here were the first ones that I received: Chickpeas Eggplant Chicken Breast Couscous Capers Goat Cheese Here was my thought process on creating the dish... 1) Immediately when I saw the couscous and the chickpeas, I knew I had to go Mediterranean. I had been dying to make this Turkish hummus I ... [ Read More ]
Candy Cane Martini
Last week I had a super fun holiday party with some of my favorite Chicago foodie ladies. Since this was a heavy hitting group of foodies, I knew I wanted to impress. I thought, "what better what to start the evening off then with a fun and festive martini?" I recently got a bottle of Ice Fox Vodka as a gift and thought it would be the perfect base to start my Candy Cane Martini's! Since I'm not much of a mixologist, I invited my incredibly cool friend, Kelly Rizzo (www.eattravelrock.com) ... [ Read More ]
Roasted Garlic Turkish Hummus
If you're a big hummus lover like me, then you must try this delicious roasted garlic Turkish hummus. I stumbled across this variation last month when I was visiting my friend, Holley, in Philadelphia. She took me to this great Israeli restaurant called, Zahav, and we decided to start with one of their house specialities, the Turkish Hummus. If you haven't heard of it before (I hadn't), it's made with butter instead of tahini and served warm out of the oven. It's complete heaven and I would ... [ Read More ]
5 Spiced-Up Thanksgiving Side Dishes
For me, Thanksgiving is less about the turkey and more about the delicious side dishes (if you're a turkey lover, don't judge me). Real talk though, Thanksgiving is a culinary opportunity to entertain and wow your guests. It's my biggest pet peeve when people just succumb to laziness and make the same, boring and traditional side dishes (I'm looking at you mashed potatoes). This year, I challenge you to step outside of your culinary comfort zone and spice up at least one of your ... [ Read More ]
Fruity Pebbles French Toast
Yesterday, I had brunch with my friend, Chloe, at Flo in the Ukrainian Village of Chicago. If you haven't check this place out...you simply need to. They had this insanely unique Fruity Pebble french toast that felt like a huge mashup of all my childhood favorites. After leaving brunch, I felt like I just had to recreate (not only for myself, but for all my readers living outside of Chicago)! So, after brunch, off to the grocery store I went to figure out how to make this delicious dish and ... [ Read More ]
Finnish Pancakes
If you haven't tried (or heard of) a Finnish Pancake, you are probably reading this a little bit confused. If you HAVE had one of these delicious beauties, then you a reading this with excitement in hopes of scoring the recipe! For those of you who don't know what a Finnish Pancake is, the best way I can describe it is if a crepe, pancake and omelet had a baby, it would be this pancake. It's baked in the oven and super easy to make for large brunch. My recipe feeds 4 people, but it can easily ... [ Read More ]
The Perfect Seared Scallops
Let's be honest here...who doesn't love perfect seared scallops? Lately, I've been on a high protein kick and experimenting in the kitchen with lots of different sources. For whatever reason, I've always been scared to cook scallops, but when I found out there was 17g of protein in each one, I knew I had to get over this fear and learn. Over the last month I've been trying out all different cooking methods so that I can get that delicious crust on the outside (while still keeping it soft ... [ Read More ]
The Best (and Healthiest) 3 Ingredient Eggplant Parmesan
So, I've been trying this whole, "low carb", thing again and I've been finding it easier than ever. With all the versatile vegetables out there, I've been able to satisfy my crazy cravings without breaking the calorie bank. The other night, I literally struck gold with my new recipe. It all started whenI found myself with a HUGE craving for eggplant parmesan, but knew that the breadcrumbs and fried eggplant probably wouldn't be on my diet. I ended up buying the ingredients anyways and ... [ Read More ]
Guilt Free Peanut Butter & Chocolate Balls (No Bake)
Lately, my sweet tooth has gotten out of control. With my wedding on the horizon, I simply can not succumb to my usual scoop of ice cream or fresh baked cookie after dinner. Honestly, the thought of cutting out sweets gives me a major panic attack. That's why I called up my gorgeous friend Tiffany. This chic has a huge sweet tooth, but somehow manages to look like a sports illustrated super model (if you think I'm kidding, check her out). I asked her how she stays so fit while still ... [ Read More ]