I married into a family of fine cooks (and wonderful people!). Jim’s dad used to grill salmon covered in Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and diced garlic. Everyone loved it. (It looks and sounds spicier than it is.) It’s easy, with just three simple ingredients. Most of the time I bake […]
With a name like Marry Me Chicken, you know it’s got to be good. It’s rumored to have inspired marriage proposals. When I started making this for my husband, he promised to keep me around. The marriage proposal came decades before I found this recipe. When friends recently shared their […]
My dear husband is one of those people who can toss a few ingredients together and come up with a delicious recipe. One year Jim decided to make ribeye tacos for a Super Bowl party. I never knew tacos could be so good. After the first bite, I grabbed a pencil […]
Prior to my introduction to pan-seared scallops with Cajun succotash, I always thought succotash was simply a boring vegetable dish with two ingredients: corn and lima beans. To my delight, Cajun succotash is made with andouille sausage, onion, roasted red bell peppers and heavy cream, as well as the expected […]
At Gabriella’s Italian Grill and Pizzeria in Oklahoma City, I ordered chicken piccata served over roasted Brussels sprouts. It was one of the gluten-free options on the menu. I thought it was the best restaurant meal I had all year. The menu described “pan seared ‘Airline’ chicken breast sautéed with […]
Carnitas poppers pack a lot of flavor with five ingredients: carnitas, cheddar cheese, cream cheese, peppers (sweet minis, jalapeños or poblanos), and bacon. When I’m looking for a quick meal, Del Real Carnitas hit the spot. This slow-cooked Mexican pork can be purchased at most grocery stores, including Walmart, King […]
Many years ago, we ate at Earl’s Restaurant in downtown Denver. I had a fabulous meal of halibut with Panang curry sauce, served with mushroom risotto and spinach. Red curry halibut is my attempt to recreate the recipe. My first experiments using store-bought curry sauces produced mediocre results. I played […]
Jim and I have this silly tradition (I love it, but it does get a bit ridiculous at times). We call it the 12 Hours of Christmas. It starts out like many traditional Christmas celebrations. First, there’s Christmas Eve services, followed by dinner with the family (several generations when our […]
It’s hard to say what I like best about this recipe: the barbecued shrimp itself or French bread dipped in the savory, buttery sauce. Twenty years ago, this was one of my favorite ways to cook shrimp. In 2003, after I eliminated gluten from my diet, I quit making it […]
Lobster! Who doesn’t love lobster? We’ve had three memorable lobster meals in our motorhome in Utah (what?!), Maine, and Colorado. I’ll tell you about all three, and share the recipe for the last one, a lobster grilled cheese sandwich. When we got our first motorhome in 2002, one of our […]
Hi! My name is Mary Zalmanek and I love to cook. My husband Jim and I also love to travel in our motorhome, which means I cook a lot of meals in the tiny one-butt kitchen in our motorhome. My recipes come from various sources: my family and friends, successful experiments, and inspiration from restaurant meals enjoyed during our travels, various cookbooks, and food blogs. All of my recipes are gluten-free.