Father’s Day is almost upon us- do you know what you’re making?
I love my husband. I’m grateful for his dedication to our family and our home. He works SO hard every day. He has put in our beautiful yard by himself, and he is currently working on putting in our basem*nt. He is patient with me, super helpful around the house, and all around a fantastic spouse. I love sharing my life with him :).
And though it doesn’t always feel like enough, as a bare minimum, I like to cook some of his favorite foods for Father’s Day. I try to eat relatively healthy, and that means that dinner is not always his favorite stuff. But on Sundays we like to try new things and/or go all out, and on Father’s Day in particular I want to make sure we are making something delicious!
If you’re trying to decide what to make for the man in your life, here are 3 of my husband’s all-time favorite dishes. They’re all very different from each other, so hopefully one of these will resonate and be something your man can get excited about!
Orange Chicken. On lazy date nights, my hubby loves to swing by Panda Express to get some orange chicken. A few years ago, we decided we needed to try and figure out how to make it at home. While you can now buy a jar of Panda Express’s orange sauce from your local grocery store, that feels kind of like cheating to me ;). I love trying to do things completely homemade if I can, and we found a recipe that I think I like even better than Panda Express! It’s spicy, sweet, and perfectly delicious. You even bread the chicken by hand, so it’s totally legit ;). This is hands-down one of my husband’s favorite meals. You can serve this with your favorite fried rice recipe, or try your hand at egg rolls or dumplings. Someday I hope to make asian lettuce wraps to go with it!
Doesn't taste like Panda Express- but I like it even better!
Prep time:
Yield: 6 serving(s)
Serving size: 6
Calories per serving: 221
Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoonssalt
dash white peppers (1/2 teaspoon is spicy and tasty!)
oil (for frying)
1/2 cupcornstarch, plus 1 tablespoon
1/4 cupflour
1 tablespoonginger root, minced
1 teaspoongarlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red hot chili peppers
1/4 cupgreen onions, chopped
1 tablespoonrice vinegar
1/4 cupwater
1/2 teaspoonsesame oil
Orange Sauce:
1 1/2 tablespoonssoy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoonswater
5 tablespoonssugar
5 tablespoonswhite vinegar
1 orange, zested
Directions:
Place chicken pieces in a large bowl and set aside. In another bowl, add egg, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon oil and mix well. In another bowl, stir 1/2 cup cornstarch and flour together. Mix the flour and egg mixture. Add chicken pieces, stirring to coat.
Heat oil for deep-frying in wok or deep-fryer to 375 degrees.
Add chicken to wok in small batches and fry for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown. (Do not overcook chicken). Remove chicken from oil with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels; set aside. Clean wok and heat 15 seconds over high heat.
FOR THE SAUCE:.
In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, water, sugar, vinegar, and orange zest. Set aside.
Clean wok and heat 15 seconds over high heat.
Add 1 tablespoon oil, the gingerroot, garlic, crushed red chili pepper flakes and green onions and stir-fry for just a few seconds until fragrant.
Now, add the rice wine and sauce mixture you set aside above.
Add cooked chicken, stirring until well mixed.
In a small bowl, stir together the water and cornstarch, then add it to the wok and stir until sauce has thickened. Add sesame oil if desired.
Source: food.com
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
Macaroni Grill’s Penne Rustica. When we were first married, and while dating, my husband and I frequented Macaroni Grill. While I personally preferred Olive Garden, my husband LOVED the bread at Macaroni Grill. I finally found a dish that I actually really liked- the Penne Rustica. I recently happened across a copycat recipe for this same dish, so of course we had to give it a try. My husband devoured it! He said it’s now definitely in one of his top 10 recipes. And even better, we have a copycat Macaroni Grill bread recipe that pairs perfectly with it! To complete this meal of bread and pasta, serve it with a green salad- and of course, an epic dessert! Fair warning- this pasta is extremely rich and heavy, so serve small portions!
This is super rich and very tasty! Try substituting with half-and-half to make it a little lighter.
Prep time:
Yield: 10 servings
Serving size: 10
Calories per serving: 536
Ingredients:
1 teaspoonbutter
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon chopped rosemary
1/2 teaspoonDijon style mustard
1/2 teaspoongarlic salt
4 cupsheavy cream
1 (8-ounce) packagecream cheese
1/2 cup real bacon bits
24 precooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 large chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
8 to 12 ouncespenna rigate pasta, cooked
1/2 teaspoon chopped green onions
pinch salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoonpaprika
Directions:
Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.
In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add garlic and rosemary and saute briefly, until garlic begins to brown. Quickly add Dijon mustard, garlic salt, heavy cream, and cream cheese. Stir until cream cheese melts and mixture is combined and bubbly; set aside while assembling pasta.
In a 9x13 inch baking pan, add bacon, shrimp, chicken, pasta, green onions, salt, and pepper, tossing to combine well. Pour sauce over top and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and paprika.
Bake10 to 15 minutes, until golden brown and bubbly.
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
This bread is fast, easy, and tastes just like the real thing! Just dip it in a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar and you'll be in heaven :).
Prep time:
Cook time:
Yield: 2 loaves
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 206
Ingredients:
1 packageyeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 tablespoonsugar
2 cups warm water
2 teaspoonssalt
4 cupsflour (wheat works, too!)
1 tablespoonItalian seasoning
melted butter
extra Italian seasoning for garnish
coarse salt for garnish
Directions:
Mix yeast, sugar, salt, and water until dissolved. Add flour and Italian seasoning. Mix with spoon. Spray hands with non-stick cooking spray. Divide dough into 2 balls and put on oiled/sprayed cookie sheet. Cover with towel and let raise 20-30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Pull in sides; brush top with melted butter. Sprinkle with salt and Italian seasoning. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 min; then bake at 375 degrees for 15 min. Dip in olive oil and balsamic vinegar and enjoy!
*I would knead it a couple times before letting it rise to smooth out all the wrinkles for a nice, even look.
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
Pretzel Crust Pizza with Honey Drizzle. My husband loves pizza. It’s definitely his favorite food. One night while picking up groceries for me, he happened across a pretzel crust frozen pizza- with honey. He wanted to give it a shot and immediately fell in love! Nothing beats homemade, so we tried pairing a few things together and we created our own pretzel crust pizza at home. It makes a very chewy crust- something I absolutely love! To complete this particular pizza, you drizzle honey all over your regular pepperoni pizza- and it is AMAZING. I don’t know if I can eat regular pepperoni pizza again. The honey makes everything just slightly sweeter, and it’s delicious! We’ve used regular honey, and we’ve also used Mesquite Honey from Trader Joe’s, which is my personal favorite because it gives it a little kick! Even if you don’t make this for your Father’s Day meal, definitely put this on your list of food to make for date night- it’s amazing!
The best pizza! Hubby's favorite recipe.
Yield: 8 servings
Serving size: 8
Calories per serving: 196
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cupswater
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons , instant yeast (original recipe uses active dry, so a swap would be fine)
coarse salt for sprinkling
1 cuppizza sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
15-16 slicespepperoni
2 tablespoons hot honey (or more if you want!)
additional butter for the crust
sesame seeds, if desired
Directions:
Use warm water and combine with yeast and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let sit 5 minutes until slightly frothy. Add the flour and knead (with a stand mixer or by hand) until smooth, 3-5 minutes. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise 1-1.5 hours until doubled.
Brush your skillet with ½ tsp oil and set it in the oven while it preheats to 425 degrees F.
Roll out a circle of pretzel dough to fit your skillet. Bake pretzel crust for 5 minutes without toppings.
Spread pretzel crust with sauce, cheese and pepperoni. Bake another 10 minutes until crust is golden and toppings are warmed through.
Brush the crust with additional melted, salted butter and sprinkle with coarse salt and sesame seeds if desired. Drizzle honey across the pizza and serve!
Notes
This makes a very thick crust. You can roll it thinner and make a smaller second pizza, or you can make a large thicker pizza. I also like to add a little salt to the dough to make it more flavorful
Source: thereciperebel.com
Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.
I’d love to hear what your Father’s Day meal plans are! Whatever you end up making, have a wonderful Father’s Day!
Camille Hoffmann
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2014
Email the author! camille@dvo.com
