Easy-to-Make Vinaigrettes

There are some decent salad dressings available in stores. Look at the labels and read the list of ingredients carefully. There is so much added sugar. According to many nutritionists making salads is one area where someone can be unknowingly sabotaging their healthy eating habits. If you’re having a salad that means you are eating healthy. … Continue reading

Meatless Monday Pasta Dinner with a Tomato Pesto

Here’s a Meatless Monday dinner idea we use and it’s a hit with the guys. We came across this recipe in an issue of America’s Test Kitchen’s Cook’s Country or Cooks Illustrated. There are so many cooking magazines that land in the mailbox. This is an Italian recipe that is a riff on pesto replacing the … Continue reading

compound butters add layers of flavor

Compound butters are a delicious addition to your menu ideas all year long. The butter flecked with bits of cinnamon and flakes of brown sugar that make your waffles taste even better on a cold winter morning can also be the dab of delicious for your summer corn laced with the kick of ancho chile powder, … Continue reading

Frozen

The reality of seasonal ingredients is that when the time comes for your favorite fruit or vegetable to say good-bye they are gone until the next growing season. Some items have shorter windows than others. This is where your freezer can help extend your enjoyment. It’s a common misconception that frozen foods are inferior to … Continue reading

Get the Cheese on the Grill

The cherries in the market are still in supply. This is the time of year when we play with all sorts of ways to use this fruit. Last year during the blogathon of 2013 we made cherry bruschetta with goat cheese. There is something about the tang of goat cheese’s creamy texture and the sweetness … Continue reading

dinner revisted with new starring ingredients

Last night’s dinner took advantage of the herbs that are bursting in the garden. Farfalle is a favorite pasta shape for the guys. We picked some basil leaves, sprigs of thyme and a few chives for our pesto bow-tie pasta. The guys prefer a combination of green herbs to mix with the extra-virgin-olive-oil, cheese and pignolia nuts rather … Continue reading

memo from the grill and flying objects

This picture pretty much sums up summertime. Outside at the grill, kids in the pool, only to get out when dinner is ready. We use our grill for just about everything. People forget that a grill, with the oven closed, is just like an oven. Most gas grills will tell you what the internal temperature … Continue reading

iced tea and lemonade ideas

The warm weather makes you want to enjoy a cool and refreshing drink. Lemonade, iced tea, and flavored waters are all summer drinks. Here are some ideas for the months ahead. SUN TEA These containers are available in stores now to make sun tea this summer. You make a simple syrup and fill with water and … Continue reading

cherries and blueberry mini-tarts

The farmers’ market was packed with beautiful fruit lined up in neat rows on this sunny Sunday morning. Yesterday we talked about doing mini-versions of pies and tarts. If you’re not a baker these mini-tarts can be a great way to get you making dessert without sending flour all around your kitchen. These pre-baked shells are made … Continue reading