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  • Blog Posts,  Main Dishes,  Recipes

    Sweet Corn and Basil Risotto

    This is the epitome of Summer in a bowl. If you are like me and cannot get enough of that sweet summer corn, but want more ways to enjoy it than just right off the cob. Well, then this recipe is for you. This sweet corn and basil risotto is a wonderful twist on the classic risotto. Instead of finishing with butter, we finish this with some creamy mascarpone cheese. Along with some savory, salty grated Parmesan, of course. Garden fresh basil is the absolute kicker in this delicious dish. What kind of rice is best risotto? You want to make sure that you use a very starchy, short grain rice such as…

  • Blog Posts,  Main Dishes,  Recipes

    Spaghetti alla Checca

    This is the absolute perfect summer pasta dish. It is light and completely vegetarian. You can eat a whole bowl of this pasta and still feel like you can get your swimsuit on and look amazing! 🙂   What is Spaghetti alla Checca? This is simple, but very flavorful vegetarian dish from Rome. This dish classically doesn’t have the burrata cheese in here. I add that because, I mean, why not? Isn’t everything better with burrata cheese?   Classic ingredients of Pasta alla Checca Pasta – I love spaghetti here, especially homemade spaghetti. I think it really keeps the lightness of this dish beautifully. You can use any pasta you prefer though. Tomatoes- Tomatoes…

  • Blog Posts,  Desserts,  Entertaining Tips and Tricks,  Happy Little Chefs,  Recipes

    Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes

    Here are the perfect cupcakes for Summertime events!   I used to own a cupcake shop, so I have a lot of cupcake recipes in my arsenal. I feel like now more than ever with having kids, we make more cupcakes than I have in a long time. They are such a great dessert to bring to cookouts, summer parties and any get together. They are also the best way to get your favorite dessert into bite sized. This past weekend we had three different parties in three days. I made these in minis and regular size, and they were an absolute hit at every event!   What is Strawberry Shortcake? Traditionally, strawberry…

  • Blog Posts,  Entertaining Tips and Tricks,  Main Dishes,  Recipes,  Salads

    Grilled Steak Salad

    This Grilled Steak Salad is AMAZING!! It is salty, creamy, tangy, smokey and will satisfy every grilling craving you have!!       I am so excited to be in grilling season again. When you live in the suburbs of Chicago, as we do… or anywhere that is cold a good part of the year. You get very excited when it is not cold anymore! I long for Summer days of being outside with the kids, having the sun still be out at 7p, playing in the water, and most exciting of all… Grilling! I feel like there is nothing like the smell of a grill heating up or charcoal burning. There is…

  • Blog Posts,  Main Dishes,  Recipes

    Homemade Spaghetti Pasta

    This is a simple and straight forward recipe that we all love. This pasta is perfect with classic Bolognese sauce or even simple marinara sauce. My girls love this pasta with my classic marinara sauce and some fresh Parmesan cheese. Marinara Sauce These noodles also hold up really nicely with heavier sauces. They are perfect with pesto or bolognese sauce. This is a great dough for spaghetti, fettuccine, linguine or even to make lasagna noodle sheets for stuffing or rolling. The trick is to let it rest before rolling.   My favorite pasta maker I love the old fashioned hand crank pasta makers. I prefer them to the kitchen aid attachment, but in…

  • Blog Posts,  Main Dishes,  Recipes

    Chili Cheese Enchiladas

    My hubs loves enchiladas and so I make them sometimes for him. I have never been a huge fan of traditional enchiladas. I have tried several different traditional sauces and I just always feel like they are okay. There is nothing really wrong with them, but I feel like they just are not like WOW, that is so good. I have tried traditional red sauces, traditional green sauces, spicy sauces. I have always just felt, ehh, about them. Then I had an idea to stop being so traditional about them. I was like, why not make them more me. Make them more something I would really enjoy too. So, I thought about what…

  • Blog Posts,  Main Dishes,  Recipes

    Homemade Ricotta Gnudi

    So, this is something you may not have heard of before. It is one of those amazing old timey recipes that has started making a come back, but not overly done. If you love ravioli, you will love gnudi. If you love gnocchi, you will love gnudi. It is sort of like a gnocchi and a ravioli had a love child. In Italian, gnudi literally means naked. What a ricotta gnudi is, is basically the ravioli without the pasta shell. It is “naked”. Yet, it is formed and boiled like little dumplings or the same as gnocchi. I don’t know which the girls liked more… saying gnudi or eating the gnudi! They thought…

  • Blog Posts,  Happy Little Chefs

    Kid’s Printables Are Here!!

    I am so excited about these little activities! I use printables so much with my kiddos! I use them for everything for birthday party decor to activities and so much in between. If your kiddos are anything like mine, when you are cooking or baking with them you lose them the minute the item goes into the oven. They do NOT have the attention span to wait around while it bakes. Then they are playing around, or monkeying around like mine do… while you finish up the baking project!   How can you keep them interested while the cookies bake??? I created these fun little food printables for my girls and they love…

  • Blog Posts,  Desserts,  Happy Little Chefs,  Recipes

    Kitchen Sink Cookies

    These cookies are inspired by Milk Bar’s Compost cookies. I absolutely love and have so much respect for Christina Tosi, owner/chef of Milk Bar. She is an amazing, once in a lifetime pastry chef with off the wall, once in a lifetime ideas. I mean who would think to start a bakery and ice cream shop based around cereal milk! Anyway, as you can see, I geek out on her and her recipes. So, anytime I can take inspiration from her recipes, I do!! Why kitchen sink cookies? I call these kitchen sink cookies versus compost cookies for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I did not come up with the recipe…

  • Blog Posts,  Breakfast,  Happy Little Chefs,  Recipes

    Healthy Double Chocolate Muffins

    I am always looking for ways to make fun treats in the kitchen with the kiddos. I am also always looking for ways to make those fun treats a little more healthy. This recipe checks all the boxes. You will satisfy yours and your kids chocolate cravings, while giving yourself and your family a more healthy breakfast or snack option. These double chocolate muffins are fun to make with the kids. All while giving a healthy alternative to sugary, white flour snacks.     How are these better? In this recipe I have swapped out the white flour for wheat flour. Added in Greek yogurt and honey to swap out the sugars and…

About Me

I am Chef Steph, aka The Happy Chef Mama. I am a pofessional chef and mama of three littles. I am a recipe creator, executive chef, busy mama, full of energy lady! I love to share my recipes, pro chef tips, kiddos and life with you here on my corner of the web.

Contact Me
Email: happychefmama@gmail.com

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