Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s grad party weekend for my middle son and I’m pretty excited about it. We have family coming into town and friends coming over tomorrow. There is a whole lot of cooking and baking happening over here today. It’s going to be a fun time.

I’m having a bit of a “pinch me, I’m dreaming” moment at the realization that we have two kids done with high school and our youngest will be starting high school this fall. Parenting older kids has been my favorite part of it all. Who knew teens and young adults would be this much fun?? 

And let’s be honest, that might have something to do with the fact that there isn’t nearly so much active parenting required. Life with older kids is approximately 4,729 times less exhausting than actively parenting babies, toddlers, and younger kids. 

So, if you’re closer to the starting line of parenting, just know that young adults you enjoy and want to hang out with are the reward at the end of the parenting trenches. And the ability to sleep in on the weekends? It’s a beautiful thing. 

Now that I’ve been more sentimental than I planned to be this morning, let’s talk about this week’s eats!

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK:  Cheesy enchiladas filled with chicken and black beans in a green chile sauce is a hearty dinner that always gets two thumbs up from my crowd.

Creamy ranch dressing with a bit of heat and plenty of green chile flavor has become a family favorite over the past few years.

These quick and easy pizza sliders are made by layering marinara sauce, pepperoni, and mozzarella cheese into Hawaiian rolls and then brushing them with a garlicky melted butter.

Bite-size chunks of potatoes are tossed in a generous sprinkling of Cajun seasoning before roasting until tender perfection. Then they’re smothered in a blanket of cheese to finish off these cheesy Cajun potatoes.

Garlicky with a hint of sweetness, these simple buttered peas are about to become a favorite last-minute side dish for your dinner plans.

Creamy chocolate ice cream with a marshmallow swirl, crunchy almonds, and chocolate chips add up to a homemade heavenly hash ice cream.

This no-bake cherry cheesecake is a classic dessert, perfect for summer picnics and potlucks. This cheesecake has a graham cracker crust topped with a creamy no bake cheesecake layer and cherry pie filling on top.

What I’m CRAVING: These

Weekly Menu Plan – Jun. 3 to Jun. 9

We are busting out the grill and hitting all our favorite food groups this week…nachos, pizza, ribs, chicken and casserole. It’s going to be a great week wit this weekly menu plan!

Monday: Ultimate BBQ Brisket Nachos (using leftover brisket from previous Sunday)

Tuesday: Pesto Pepperoni & Sausage Grilled Pizza

Wednesday: Quick Weeknight Taco Casserole

Thursday: Smoked Chicken Thighs

Friday: Copycat JDawgs Sauce on Grilled Hot Dogs

Saturday: 10 Minute Sticky Mexican Chicken

Sunday: Grilled BBQ Baby Back Ribs

READ: Weekly Menu Plan – Jun. 3 to Jun. 9

Honey Lemon Basil Grilled Chicken [+ Video]

Grilled chicken is the perfect meal for summer! Add a simple marinade of the best flavors, and you’ll be making this Honey Lemon Basil Grilled Chicken all summer long! It is a healthy and easy chicken recipe your whole family will enjoy!

Our easy grilled lemon pepper asparagus or our simple roasted garlic veggies make the perfect side dishes for this easy grilled chicken.

The marinade is made with just 4 ingredients and produces tender, juicy and plump chicken that is delicious on its own, or it can be sliced up and added to your favorite salad or pasta. Try it in our Lemon Chicken Caesar Panzanella Salad or in our 20 Minute Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta! It is also great just over some simple white rice.

One thing I like about Utah is that there are definitely 4 distinct seasons. While I enjoy certain seasons more than others (winter, I’m looking at you!), there is at least one thing I love about each season. Grilling is one of the things I love about summer!

Pulling the grill out or the Traeger just makes me happy! I love the smoky flavor of food on the grill, and I love getting friends or family together for a fun BBQ. Let’s get to the details of making this simple grilled chicken!

How to Marinate Chicken?

Creating perfectly grilled chicken starts with a good marinade. A marinade infuses the chicken with flavor and helps the chicken stay tender. For this easy grilled chicken recipe, just a few simple ingredients are needed. You probably have them in your house already. No need for a trip to the grocery store!

• Lemon zest: adds bright fresh flavor
• Fresh lemon juice: helps tenderize the chicken
• Honey: adds natural sweetness and helps caramelize the chicken
• Montreal seasoning: adds flavor

Combine all the marinade ingredients together and reserve a couple of tablespoons for later. Place the chicken thighs in a glass dish and pour the marinade over the chicken. Flip the thighs over so they get coated on each side. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least an hour (up to overnight).

Is It Healthy to Eat Grilled Chicken?

Yes! Skinless chicken is a healthy protein, though a chicken thigh is going to have more fat than a chicken breast. If you want a lean meal, go with a chicken breast. Our motto is balance and moderation in all things. Eating grilled chicken for every meal everyday wouldn’t be a healthy practice and pretty extreme, but a nice piece of grilled chicken paired with some healthy fruits and veggie

Creamy chocolate ice cream with a marshmallow swirl, crunchy almonds, and chocolate chips add up to a homemade heavenly hash ice cream.

What’s the difference between Rocky Road and Heavenly Hash?

At their heart, both of these chocolate ice creams contain marshmallows and almonds. Heavenly Hash often contains an additional chocolate add-in, either chocolate chips, flakes, or chunks.

Rocky Road is usually a chunkier ice cream, typically with whole nuts and mini marshmallows, and Heavenly Hash might have smaller pieces of nuts, a marshmallow swirl, and chocolate pieces mixed throughout.

Heavenly Hash Ice Cream

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this recipe:

Chocolate Ice Cream Base

• heavy cream
• cocoa powder
• sugar
• kosher salt
• chocolate chips
• milk

Mustard Carolina BBQ Sauce Instant Pot Beef Short Ribs

Beef short ribs that fall apart and are bathed in a tangy mustard based BBQ sauce from South Carolina! And you only need 30 minutes and an Instant Pot!

Cade grew up in South Carolina so we are always trying to find new ways to get back to his roots through delicious Southern food. These Instant pot beef short ribs smothered in mustard Carolina sauce is our latest and greatest! And our mustard sauce is the best with a couple of surprising ingredients you won’t believe!

You all have loved our world’s best Carolina pulled pork, so you’re going to go crazy for these short ribs! Pile them on top of some steakhouse smashed potatoes!

So make a side of Southern macaroni and cheese or this Southern English pea salad, and get all your favorite people around the table the for this one!

Ingredients for Mustard BBQ Beef Short Ribs

Before we jump into the recipe for these Instant Pot short ribs, you need to make the Carolina Barbecue Sauce. It is the most fabulous combination of ingredients you’re already going to have on hand. Here is what you need:

• Yellow Mustard
• Honey
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Ketchup
• Brown Sugar
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Texas Pete’s or Franks Hot Sauce
• Butter
• Nutmeg
• Liquid Smoke

Those surprise ingredients…melted butter and nutmeg! I could almost drink this stuff it’s so good! Once the mustard sauce is made, you just need a few more ingredients…

• Beef Short Ribs
• Pineapple Juice: braising liquid
• BBQ Rub: Kosher Salt, Brown Sugar, Black Pepper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Chili Powder, Smoked Paprika, Thyme, Ground Cumin and Nutmeg

The measurements and details for the all the ingredients can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

We love our BBQ rub because it’s the best ever, but feel free to use whatever your favorite BBQ rub is! Once the sauce and rub are ready, then we can start the ribs!

How to Make Mustard Carolina BBQ Short Ribs

Our oven braised beef short ribs has been a popular recipe on the site for years, so we are speeding things up with this recipe and cooking them in the I