Uncategorized

Main Dishes, Salads

Strawberry Chicken Salad with Candied Walnuts and Goat Cheese

Easy jam jar dressing and candied walnuts add amazing flavor to this crisp, fresh plate.  Leftover chicken makes it a satisfying, complete meal.   Friends and family provide some of the best recipe feedback, which often steers me towards sharing a particular dish sooner than later–or in some cases, going back to the drawing board.…

Breads and Baked Goods, Breakfast, Casseroles

Amish Baked Oatmeal

This wholesome family favorite can be prepared in advance and tastes a lot like a cinnamon oatmeal cookie. I typically take a minimalist approach, but the recipe is easy to customize through the addition of raisins, nuts, etc. Twenty years ago, when baked oatmeal was hardly a blip on anyone’s breakfast radar, a friend gave…

Breakfast, Condiments, Desserts, Sauces

Easy Blueberry Lemon (or Lime) Sauce

It’s easy to pass over “component” recipes like sauces, dressings, and other condiments in favor of recipes that produce the whole meal.  Time is always at a premium, and it can be hard enough to get dinner on the table without worrying about…blueberry sauce?  Well this easy, versatile recipe might just be reason to rethink.…

Condiments, Dressings

Creamy Balsamic Dressing

  Have you ever wondered how to perfectly poach an egg or whether mayonnaise is a better option that butter on a grilled cheese sandwich?  A sieve is your friend when poaching eggs, and mayo is easier to spread than cold butter, but there’s a little more to the story. A few months ago, Christine…

Condiments, Sauces

William’s Habanero Hot Sauce… and a hot sauce taste test

Though we often cheat and hope for no frost (or April snow, as was the case this year), the safe time for backyard planting where I live is always said to begin on Mother’s Day. Ever since my husband and I bought our first house, we’ve planted a garden. There is something so satisfying about…

Breakfast

Muesli Baked Oatmeal

If you were to choose your career all over again, what would you be?  I  love what I do, but I could have been very happy as a scientist.  Given my love of experimenting in the kitchen, a career in the lab would have suited me well. Though it’s not exactly research for a new…

Beverages, Cocktails

Beer Margaritas

This unconventional recipe makes a large pitcherful and tastes like the best version of the classic drink. Leftovers freeze well and become slushy-like!   Cinco de Mayo is the perfect reason to enjoy a favorite Mexican meal, but what exactly is the holiday all about? Cinco de Mayo—the fifth of May—commemorates the Mexican army’s 1862…

Breads and Baked Goods, Breakfast, Cookies, Desserts, Snacks

Coconut Quinoa Breakfast Cookies

Perhaps you’ve never tried them, but quinoa flakes are widely available and offer a wholesome alternative to flour in these lightly sweet, satisfying cookies. Cookies for breakfast anyone? When they’re loaded with wholesome ingredients, cookies for breakfast are a treat we can actually feel good about. Perfect to grab-and-go when time is running short too!…

Appetizers, Side Dishes

Spicy Sweet Potatoes with Smoked Paprika Aioli

Packed with flavor and so satisfying – I could make a meal out of these sweet potatoes. The easy aioli puts them over the top!   The mention of great sweet potato fries could lure me to any restaurant. A plateful of these alone could easily be my entire meal. My first taste of this…

Condiments, Dips, Sauces

Smoked Paprika Aioli

This 5-ingredient sauce is made bright and light through the addition of Greek yogurt and lime juice, while two simple spices add singular, smoky flavor. You won’t believe how easy and versatile it is!   My first introduction to paprika came as a young girl while helping my mom make deviled eggs. She always topped…

Main Dishes, Tacos

Easy Chicken Fajitas

These flavor-packed wraps come together in a snap and always garner rave reviews. As an option, serve the chicken fajita mixture over rice or salad greens.    Week to week, I find myself falling back on easy Mexican-inspired recipes for a variety of reasons. Tex-Mex cuisine often begins with a foundation of convenient pantry staples…

Appetizers, Side Dishes

Prosciutto-Wrapped Roasted Asparagus

For added convenience, these pretty little bundles of savory deliciousness may be wrapped several hours in advance. Simply cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.     In the final months of my second pregnancy, my legs were swollen to a rather extreme degree. My friends—and sometimes strangers—often noticed and offered advice based on personal…

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