 2025 ... We kicked off January with a trip to Hualtulco, Mexico with some of our family.🇲🇽 In February, our first grandchild made her grand entrance into this world.👶🏻 In March we celebrated 3 family birthdays.🎉 I got spent 2 weeks in Ohio in April. 🐣 The parties continued in May when we celebrated not 1, but 2 big graduations!!🎓 In June we moved our daughter to Savannah and our son's family to Dahlanoga.🏡 And in July, our daughter got engaged to her soulmate.🥰  We've had so much to celebrate in 2025 and we're only 2/3 of our way through the year! Thankful doesn't begin to describe my emotions about all these big events. We've also got some big things planned for the rest of the year and I'll wait to share those details until later.😉 With all of these reasons to celebrate - you know that I've had my fair share of celebratory meals and treats this year.🎂 In my family, we mark milestone events with a fancy desserts. Creme Brulee is one of those desserts that I usually save for special occasions. But truthfully, it's really not all that pretentious. It's actually fairly easy to make and I think this step by step recipe will have you wanting to make it for birthday parties and Tuesday night dinners. 😂  Creme Brulee 2 teaspoons vanilla 4 cups heavy cream 1 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 10 egg yolks
 Sprinkle with another teaspoon sugar and torch again, holding torch closer to custard to caramelize.  Ciao!
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 When I tell people that I have a garden they naturally assume that I've got bushels of tomatoes and baskets of fresh vegetables like beans, zucchini, squash and cucumbers.🍅🥒🫛 To be more accurate, I need to tell people that I have a fruit garden. I don't have a single vegetable in my "garden" this year.😅 But I do have pumpkins, watermelon, raspberries and blueberries.🎃🍉🫐
Do you need any more evidence that I have a raging sweet tooth? 🤣 When growing fruit became more appealing than planting peppers or eggplant I realized that I may have a sugar problem.😬😅 So in an attempt to justify my gardening decisions, I decided to use my fruit for good instead of evil and I made a batch of dairy free, whole wheat blueberry muffins. 🫐 💁🏻♀️😂  I've been gravitating towards one bowl muffin recipes lately. The kind of muffins that I can stir together in under 10 minutes and don't require a mixer. And there's no better time to whip up a batch of Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins than when I can go outside and pick the blueberries right off the bushes in my "garden".  Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins 3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoons whole wheat flour 3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon white flour ½ cup + 2 Tablespoons almond flour 1 Tablespoon baking powder ½ teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon salt 1 cup almond milk ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 eggs ½ cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1¼ cups blueberries, frozen and dusted with 1/2 t. flour
 Scoop batter into paper lined muffin cups. Sprinkle with raw sugar.  Bake 17 minutes at 350.
 Ciao!
 There's no doubt that crab rolls are a splurge. I normally expect to pay between $30.00 and $40.00 for a decent crab roll from a restaurant or even a food truck.🦀 I'm a giant crab fan and a self proclaimed foodie but even I have a hard time paying that price for a sandwich.🤷🏻♀️ I think that part of my issue is that I know that I make delicious crab rolls at a fraction of the cost in under 15 minutes in my own kitchen.😅 A can of crabmeat costs me $25.00 or $30.00 in the grocery store but it's enough to make 4 or 5 crab rolls at home. And if I want to limit the carbs - I skip the split top rolls and eat it like crab salad.🥗  Before I attempted my first crab roll at home, I did a little research into crab roll recipes. I learned that crab rolls come in 2 basic versions - a mayonnaise based (New England style crab roll) and a garlic butter version (Connecticut style crab roll). Both sound unbelievably delicious but I ultimately went for fresh jumbo lump crabmeat gently tossed with a seasoned mayonnaise-based dressing. These crab rolls were ahh..mazing!! They were super easy to put together and for this girl who lives in land locked Atlanta - a rare summer seafood treat. I don't think it needed quite as much dressing as I added but it was still delicious.  Crab Rolls 1 pound crabmeat 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1 celery rib, sliced thin 1 scallion, sliced thin 2 Tablespoons lemon juice 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon hot sauce 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 4 split top hot dog buns Lettuce
 Fold in crab.  Line each bun with a lettuce leaf.  Spoon crab salad into buns.  Ciao!
 I didn't grow up eating macaroni and cheese out of a box. Sure, we indulged in our fare share of pasta covered in melted cheese but it was something my mom always made from scratch.🧀 (Yes, I was spoiled with a mom who made amazing meals for us when I was growing up.😅) I'm fairly certain that it was after I moved away to college when I learned that macaroni and cheese was something that could be made from ingredients in a box.😳 I'm not a fan of boxed macaroni and cheese partly due to the lack of flavor but mostly because of the fact that it's full of ingredients that I don't like to consume.🥴 I'll admit that there have been days when I've experiences moments of weakness (and complete exhaustion) when I did succumb to the pleading of my two young children who begged for character shaped pasta with powdered cheese packets. It's undoubtedly simple to prepare and the kids really seemed to enjoy it. I didn't buy the boxed stuff very often though because I hold true to the belief that homemade macaroni and cheese is just so much better than anything that comes in a box.  Homemade macaroni and cheese really isn't hard to make and a lot of the time, I make it as a way to use up leftover bits of cheese that are taking up space in my refrigerator. I've been making a lot of charcuterie boards recently which means that I've bought lots of different kinds of cheeses. I toss all of the ends and pieces of the extra cheese that aren't pretty enough to end up on the charcuterie board into a bag and when it gets full, I know it's time to make my homemade macaroni and cheese. I wasn't sure how the Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese would go over with my husband with a heat sensitive pallete - but he loved it.😅 And so did the rest of us. I used a rotisserie chicken and a food processor to quickly grate my cheese which really made this a simple dish to put together. I also assembled my Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese and put it in the freezer for a couple of weeks before I pulled it out and baked it. So for anyone wondering if it can be made in advance: yes, and it's amazing. 😋  Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese 2 Tablespoons butter 1 onion, diced 3 garlic cloves, minced 1/4 tsp. black pepper 1 Tablespoon flour 2 1/2 cups whole milk 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese 1 1/2 cups grated Monterey jack cheese 1 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken 1/4 cup Buffalo-style hot sauce 2 Tablespoons buttermilk ranch dressing 1 pound dried pasta
 Add cooked pasta and stir to combine. Top with hot sauce to serve.   Ciao!
 Where are my fellow leftover eaters? My husband and I both work from home - he's in an office in the basement and I spend most of my days in our kitchen. Despite the hours each day that I dedicate to preparing food, I hardly ever stop what I'm doing in the middle of the day to prepare a gourmet lunch for us.🙅🏻♀️ The reality is that we rarely even eat our lunch in the same room during the week. The reality is that it's usually a race to see who gets the best leftovers first.😅 I think that most people have an unrealistic idea of how food bloggers eat. The truth is, most days I exist on leftovers from catering orders or my recipe failures as sustenance. I'm not complaining - I actually really enjoy taste testing recipes. I'm just trying to give you a glimpse into my reality that almost never involves me eating the picture perfect food that I post on my blog. It's mostly leftovers and mistakes for me.😂  Quick and easy is the name of the game to curb my mid day appetite which means grabbing something that I can warm in the microwave. This July heat has me wanting cool food instead of eating something warm for lunch though. For that reason, smoked chicken salad has been my go-to lunch this summer. It may not seem like a leftover but I've been smoking a lot of whole chickens this summer. I've used the meat for things like buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese and chicken calzones but I always end up with some extra chicken to use for my chicken salad. If you're a person who likes a lot of STUFF in their chicken salad, you might have to dress this recipe up a little.😅 My smoked chicken salad recipe is pretty basic and straight forward. I like my chicken salad plain - unless if I'm feeling fancy and then I sprinkle pistachios on top.😂 If you decide to add fruit or nuts, veggies or spice to my recipe - send me your creations, I'd love to hear your ideas.  Smoked Chicken Salad 1/2 cup mayonnaise 3 Tablespoons celery, chopped 3 Tablespoons dill pickles, chopped 2 scallions, sliced thin 4 teaspoons cider vinegar 4 teaspoon horseradish 2 teaspoons lemon juice 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1/4 teaspoon cayenne 2 cups smoked chicken, shredded  Combine all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.   Ciao!
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