In 1989 there was a restaurant in Farmington called Rueben’s Rueben which I ran with my family for 3 years. It has been many different places since then, and is currently Taqueria Victoria. Rueben’s Rueben featured sandwiches and subs, burgers and fries, and homemade chili and soups. I’m not 100% sure how or when it started, but sometimes on Wednesdays my mom (being the southern woman that she was) would make chicken and dumpling soup. It was an instant hit and became so popular we made it our regular Wednesday soup. It was so popular that people would call the day before to pre-order it for the following day. We only made a certain amount and some days we would run out before noon…and we opened at 10:30.

The Super Bowl is this weekend, and of course we are making some of our favorite fun food. Who doesn’t like nachos? Traditionally nachos are chips, cheese, maybe some meat or chili baked and topped with lettuce, tomato, onions etc. Nachos don’t have to be tortilla chips, cheese and seasoned ground beef. They can be so much more than that, and in our house they are! We have a favorite saying that applies to lots of things, not just food: NO RULES!

Christmas is always the time when families get together and celebrate and reconnect. For some, it may be the only time they see each other all year.  We all have memories of the Holiday season.  The lights, music, decorations, gifts . . . . and especially the food! Now, more than ever, we all need the warm and comforting feeling from past holiday traditions.

The big game between Michigan and Michigan State is tomorrow and we wanted to share some of our favorite tailgating food for the big day.  These recipes are not only delicious but also easy to make.  Teresa’s Buffalo Chicken Dip is super creamy and delicious and can be served with anything. The Chili is really hearty and not too sweet or spicy.  The Caprese is so good and refreshing as well as easy to make and the Philly Steak Quesadillas are a nice twist on an old classic.

Breakfast for dinner anyone? How about some homemade blueberry pancakes? We love eating breakfast food for dinner and blueberry pancakes are a household favorite. If blueberries aren’t your thing you can go plain or use other fresh fruit or chocolate chips. This is a delicious, quick and easy recipe that can be whipped up in about 10 minutes with ingredients kept in most pantries.

I have received a lot of suggestions to do a “Fun Food Friday “ fish-n-chips edition. I did do this in the past, featuring a different place each week for a good Friday fish fry. Most restaurants offer their fish-n-chips on Fridays - most in an “all you can eat” special. However…how about making your own at home?

The days are getting longer but it is still cold out and this is a good recipe for those cold winter evenings. Teresa and I are big fans of Cajun and creole style cooking. We decided to make Red Beans & Rice from scratch as a meal, not a side dish.

Teresa and I always try to have a seafood dish at least once a week. It could be a good grilled Salmon or Tilapia, a Grouper sandwich (yes Costco recently had some Grouper in stock) shrimp or maybe some crab cakes. this week we decided to make a Cioppino. For those of you who are not familiar with Cioppino it is basically a seafood stew made with a spicy tomato-based broth.

This week we made some Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps, but we substituted the chicken for ground turkey. Total prep and cook time is about 40 minutes, and they can be made the day before and heated up when you are ready to eat them.

Keeping with the quick and easy things to make at home this week, we are making Chicken Quesadillas. These are something we have often in the Becker household. They are quick, easy to make and most of all delicious!