 I get so excited about strawberry season that I've become somewhat of a strawberry stalker. (Is that even a thing?) It just so happens that the strawberry fields are along my route to several of my favorite grocery stores. Not that I need another excuse to hit up Sprouts but I do like doing drive bys of the strawberry field to check the progress of the berries. From the time that the tender green plants are carefully planted in the field, I drive by at old lady pace so that I can monitor their progress. Cars go speeding around me while I creep past and strain my neck out the window to catch of glimpse of the first delicate white flowers on the plants.
I had my first bright red berry sighting a few weeks ago and ever since that day, I've been obsessively checking my inbox - waiting on the opening day announcement from the owners of the farm. It took me about 24 hours to get to the strawberry field after receiving word that strawberries were ready to pick. To say that I was excited was an understatement. The juicy red berries that I had been watching all year, did not disappoint. The berries were huge and super plentiful so it took me less than 15 minutes to fill my bucket.  Strawberry Shortcake Strawberries 6 cups strawberries, sliced 1/4 cup sugar 2 teaspoons lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch Cake 4 Tablespoons butter, melted and cooled 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest 1 1/4 cups cake flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 5 eggs 3/4 cup sugar Whipped Cream 1 cup heavy cream 1/3 cup creme fraiche 3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
Remove from oven and cool completely. (2 hours) 
Whip cream and creme fraiche in bowl of standing mixer for 1 minute. Add sugar and whip until soft peaks form.
Dollop 2 T. whipped cream onto center of cake. Serve with remaining whipped cream.
A slice of strawberry shortcake with fresh picked berries and homemade whipped cream makes any meal even sweeter.
Ciao!
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 To say that I'm not a morning person is putting it mildly. I've accepted that fact and I'm actually okay with it. The problem is, that I live with an EXTREME morning person. Only my fellow non-morning followers will understand my frustration with the whistling, singing and general merriment that happens in my house before 7:00 AM. Uuuggg. The struggle is real. The fact that I don't drink coffee in the morning doesn't help my situation either. (I'm starting to see the connection now.) It occurs to me that this resistance to mornings may actually be a genetic trait. I've got one child who thrives in the early morning hours and another who takes after her mom, and is, let's just say is less than gleeful in the morning.  I like breakfast food but because I prefer to sit quietly and eat my breakfast while sipping my hot tea and scrolling through email rather than cook breakfast at 7:00 am, I don't often eat a hot breakfast. Eggs, french toast, pancakes and oatmeal all sound like great ideas - if I could hold off until 10:00 to eat my breakfast. (Which we all know - is NOT going to happen.) My solution is to make my breakfast before I go to bed. Overnight oats are a game changer for anyone who doesn't love early morning cooking - or is just pressed for time in the morning. There are literally thousands of recipes for overnight oats on the internet. Everything from tropical fruit oats, to carrot cake oats to strawberry cheesecake oats. My goal is to try as many as I possibly can. Mason Jar Overnight Oats 1/2 cup rolled oats 1 Tablespoon flaxseed 2/3 cup milk 1/3 cup plain yogurt 1 Tablespoon brown sugar pinch of salt pinch of cinnamon 1 Tablespoon cocoa powder 1 Tablespoon mini chocolate chips, almonds or coconut
Pour ingredients into a mason jar. Seal and refrigerate overnight.  In the morning, warm oats in the microwave, stir in chocolate chips, almonds or coconut and enjoy.
You can make these gluten free by using gluten free oats. You can make them sugar free by swapping out the brown sugar for mashed banana. You can use milk alternatives like coconut, soy or almond milk in place of cows milk. You can also experiment with different sweeteners like maple syrup, honey or agave. I love that these are totally customizable.
Be sure and send me your fabulous flavor combinations. I want to try them all. Ciao!  Is there anything better than a bowl full of ooey gooey cheesy homemade macaroni and cheese? Half moon shaped carbohydrates covered in buttery, smooth, creamy melted cheese is my idea of comfort food. I'm fairly confident in saying that to date, my mom has NEVER made macaroni and cheese from a box. She would grate the cheese by hand and she serve her homemade creation to our family regularly. It wasn't until I went to college and started to do my own grocery shopping that I realized that there was a cheese in powdered form!?! Talk about an eye opener.  I've said it before but it bears repeating, my mom is the best of the best when it comes to making ordinary food - extraordinary. With just a few simple ingredients, she can turn a classic dish like macaroni and cheese into a gourmet feast. Trust me, as the girl who didn't even tasted boxed macaroni and cheese until I was 20, I knew what really great homemade macaroni and cheese was supposed to tasted like. This version of macaroni and cheese is really pretty simple but it's also really tasty. It doesn't hold a candle to the memory of my mom's made from scratch macaroni and cheese but I still really love this recipe for the cheesy American classic.  Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese 1 1/2 cups water 1 cup milk 8 ounces elbow macaroni 1 cup (4 ounces) American cheese, shredded 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 cup (4 ounces) Cheddar cheese 1/3 cup panko 1 Tablespoon olive oil 2 Tablespoons Parmesan
Season macaroni with salt and pepper. Stir to combine.  Transfer macaroni to serving bowl. Sprinkle panko over top. Serve.
 I served my macaroni and cheese with ham, steamed broccoli, sliced baguette and a green salad.
 One of my pet peeves is when I find a recipe that I want make and I have to go on a supermarket search for ambiguous ingredients. When I first looked at this recipe, none of the ingredients stood out as being potentially difficult to find so I made my list, headed to the store and started to fill my cart.  Have you ever tried to buy a block of American cheese? I went to THREE different grocery stores in search of the elusive cheese and came up empty handed. There were plenty of American cheese slices (the processed kind packaged in plastic wrappers) and giant logs filling the deli cases but there was hardly a single brick of American cheese anywhere.
In the end, I swapped the illusive American cheese for a block of Gruyere and hoped for the best. I am super happy about the way that my Gruyere and Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese turned out but if I do ever run across a block of American cheese, I'm going to remake the recipe as written. Ciao!  Why is it that we make a distinction between company food and everyday food? Shouldn't our everyday meals be good enough to serve special guests? Perhaps we're overestimating the expectations of our guests. Is it possible that they're appreciative for even the simplest of meals? I hardly ever serve uncomplicated and simple meals to my guests. It's not that I'm trying to prove myself as a qualified cook, food is just my way of showing my guests that they're worth the time and effort that it took for me to prepare a complex meal. I recognize that not everyone shares my theory that a sophisticated meal is an act of genuine love, humility and appreciation but I still can't seem to stop myself from pulling out all the stops when guests come for dinner.  As much as I would like for the meal that I serve to guests to not be a reflection of my affection, I feel like they're linked too closely in my mind to separate. Food = Love. That's just how I roll and it's not likely that that will ever change. Most of my guests will never get served meatloaf and it's not because I have snooty, uptight dinner guests. It's simply because I love them and I'm able to express my affection through pork roast better than I can through meatloaf. I would categorize most of the recipes that I share on my blog as everyday foods but today I'm sharing a company food recipe. My roasted pork with apples and potatoes takes just the right amount of effort and care to really set it apart as company food.  Roasted Pork with Apples and Potatoes 1 pound pork tenderloin 3 Tablespoons olive oil 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 3/4 teaspoon pepper 1 pound yukon gold potatoes, cut into 2 inch wedges 1 large braeburn apple, sliced 6 ounces haricots verts 3 Tablespoons chicken stock 3 Tablespoons butter 1 1/2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Slice pork and arrange over vegetables. Drizzle pan sauce over pork.
What better side dish for a roasted pork, apple and potato dinner than homemade applesauce?
 This recipe just screams Fall comfort food but who says you can't eat roasted pork and apples in the Spring? This recipe was a big hit and I will be making it again when the weather turns cooler after our annual trip to the apple orchard.
Ciao!  I may be a food blogger but I still don't feel like have this whole meal planning thing down 100% of the time. Even if I know what I SHOULD be eating, sometimes I need a little motivation and direction when it comes to planning dinners. I can't tell you how many times I've wandered around the grocery store aimlessly looking for dinner inspiration instead of doing my meal planning ahead of time. I'll be the first to admit that the occasional kick in the pants helps to get me back on track. And who better to give me the proverbial kick in the pants than my own family? I'll admit that I've slacked off on the meal planning since our youngest went off to college last Fall. It's way easier to "wing it" at dinner time when it's just the two of us than when I was cooking for 3 or 4. My wonderful husband has recently jumped on the fitness bandwagon and started exercising and trying to eat healthier. What better motivation to plan nutritious meals than a husband who's trying to eat healthier? If I'm being perfectly honest, we could both use a little fitness boost.  With my new found motivation, I'm sticking to a diet of lean meats, fish and lots of vegetables for our dinners this week. I feel like stir fry is a great way to incorporate more vegetables into our diet. I'm not a huge fan of Chinese take out food but I do like at home Asian cooking. I like to have the flexibility to modify sauces and salt to make my Asian meals as healthy or unhealthy as I wish.  Shrimp and Broccoli Stir Fry 1 pound peeled shrimp 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup + 2 Tablespoons sherry 2 Tablespoons oyster sauce 1 Tablespoon soy sauce 1 Tablespoon Asian chili - garlic sauce 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar 2 teaspoons cornstarch 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil 1 pound broccoli florets 1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated 2 cloves garlic, minced
Return broccoli to skillet and toss to coat.  Serve with white or brown rice.
 This shrimp and broccoli stir fry is perfect for our healthy eating plan. Fresh shrimp, lots of broccoli in a really tasty, gingery sauce makes this a great dinner for anyone. The best part about any stir fry is that you can substitute just about any lean meat or vegetables that suit you. Make this your own.
Ciao! |
