 I don't know a whole lot about "AI" and how it's able to target specific audiences with marketing campaigns. I just know that when I log onto my social media accounts, I see adds that are directly aimed at women in the 50+ range. I tend to forget that the ads that I see are different from everyone else's, until my husband jumps on my Facebook page. He scrolled my Facebook for 2 minutes last week and the look on his face said it all. In that amount of time, he saw ads for the best strapless bra, hormone replacement therapy and home wine delivery services. 🍷😅  I feel like I should be targeting specific audiences with my Facebook blog shares too. If only I knew how this worked. 🤣 My recipes are all over the place. Just think if I could send my dessert recipes to those people interested in baking and my Big Green Egg recipes to those people interested in grilling on a BGE. Who can teach me how to do this? 😬 If I were to categorize this particular recipe, I would send it out to healthy eaters, Keto dieters and cooks with a limited amount of time. So if that's you - consider yourself targeted and personally invited to give this recipe a try. Making chicken breasts in a homemade Italian dressing is easier than you might think and their super versatile. Serve this chicken with a side of rice, on top of a fresh green salad or on a bun with melted cheese as a sandwich.  Italian Dressing Chicken Breasts 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated 1/4 cup olive oil 3 garlic cloves, minced 2 teaspoons lemon zest, grated 1 Tablespoon lemon juice 1 3/4 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1/2 teaspoon pepper 4 bone in chicken breasts 1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, minced Italian Seasoning Blend 2 1/2 Tablespoons oregano 2 1/2 Tablespoons thyme 1 Tablespoon basil 1 Tablespoon rosemary 1 Tablespoon sage
 Slice each chicken breast crosswise into 1/2" slices. Serve with pan juices.  This Spring weather has me all excited get outside and fire up the grill so I can see this recipe in my near future - next time cooked on the grill. Enjoy!
Ciao!
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 Every single year. I get lured in by the promises of longer days and warmer weather in early March, and I plant tender, young plants in my garden. And without fail, every year, I spend at least one weekend running around the yard with pillowcases and sheets at dusk to try and protect those very plants from the cruel dagger of frost. 🪴 This year, I had every intention of waiting until the end of April, to put my precious plants in the ground. And I really tried ... I did. 😬 Then we had 3 consecutive days of nearly 80 degree temperatures and I caught a massive case of Spring fever. 😂 Before I knew it, I was driving to the nursery, picking out plants and putting them in the garden - in early March. 🤦🏻♀️
Why do I do this to myself? I'm fairly certain that repeating an act over and over and expecting different results is a definition of insanity. 😅 🤷🏻♀️ I just got so excited about Spring gardening that I couldn't wait even a couple extra weeks. 🤦🏻♀️  I love having fresh herbs to cook with in the summer. They make pastas, marinades, not to mention salads, taste so much better - and fresher. And being able to pick those herbs from my own backyard is so rewarding. A simple green salad with romaine lettuce, fresh basil and tomatoes and a classic vinaigrette is one of my all time favorite springtime treats. 🥗 Maybe it's the Italian in me but, I feel like a simple, vinaigrette recipe is something that everyone should have in their back pocket. (not literally🤣) It's so easy to whip up a homemade vinaigrette that there's really no excuse NOT too. I make this so often that this Italian vinaigrette is one of the only recipe that I've committed to memory. It truly is super simple and simply delicious.  Italian Vinaigrette 1 Tablespoon wine vinegar 1 1/2 teaspoons minced shallot 1/2 teaspoon mayonnaise 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard 1/8 teaspoon salt pepper 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  Here's to tucking in my new plants under the sheets for the next several nights to protect them from frost. 🥶 Reminding myself that it will all be worth it when I have fresh basil to put in my salads next week. 🤣 🌿
Ciao!  It's Soup-er bowl Sunday. 🍲 You didn't think I was going to let this day pass without making that pun, did you? 😅 I don't have a personal investment in either team this year but that doesn't stop me from exploiting the event for selfish purposes. I mean, it's a great excuse to eat your favorite treats and gather together with friends. Like I said, I don't have a vested interest in this particular football game. 🏈As a whole, professional football isn't really my thing. I used to look forward to the halftime show but in the last few years, I haven't even enjoyed the Super Bowl performances of the musical guests. Now I participate in Superbowl festivities for 2 specific purposes: commercials and food. If you ask me, those are the best parts of any professional football game anyway. 😂  I want to know - What are your favorite football watching snacks? Are you a wings and pizza kind of fan? Or are you team nachos and burgers? 🍔 Dips and chips more your style or are you a sit in front of the tv with a bowl of chili kind of person? Just conducting an informal survey about what everyone is eating today. 😅 If you need a last minute idea for a Soup-er bowl meal - and no, I can't resist saying it like that - check out my recipe for Healthy Baked Potato Soup. Truth is, with a few simple swaps, you can make this soup as healthy - or unhealthy - as you wish. Put out bowls of toppings for everyone to dress up their own bowl of soup.  Healthy Baked Potato Soup 4 yukon Gold potatoes, cubed with skin on 1 Tablespoon water 7 strips bacon or turkey bacon 1 shallot, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 4 green onions chopped 3 Tbsp flour 1 tsp salt 1 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp dried oregano 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 2 1/2 cups milk or unsweetened almond milk 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth 3/4 cup full fat plain Greek yogurt 1/2 cup cheddar cheese grated
 Prepare toppings: broccoli, bacon, sour cream, yogurt, cheese, green onions.  Season with salt and pepper. Have a Soup-er Bowl Sunday!
Ciao!  What did I ever talk about before I started a kitchen remodeling project? Two weeks into this massive project and I can officially say that it's consumed my life. 🤣I think about my kitchen all day - every day. I've even started dreaming about my new kitchen. No joke. 😅 The other night I had a dream that I forgot to put shelves in the new pantry. So today, I'm giving you - and me - a much needed break from all the kitchen talk. There will be no pictures of cabinet hardware, floating shelves or knife block discussions on today's blog. I'm choosing to focus on the delicious food that I will soon be able to make in my new and improved kitchen. Oops, I did it again. 🤦🏻♀️  I don't know if this happens to other people, but I've spent way too many hours standing in the granola bar aisle of the grocery store, comparing brands. If you've ever looked at the nutritional information on a box of granola bars, you know that they can range from a fancy rice cake to candy bar status. 🍫 I love a good granola bar loaded with chocolate chips but if Im going to eat something chocolatey with 14 grams of fat - I'm going to go all in and eat a snickers bar. 🤷🏻♀️ Making homemade granola bars is really the only way that I can know exactly what goes into my favorite snack. Being able to choose all of the ingredients and having control over the sweetness is ideal and it's actually way easier than you think to make granola bars at home. Fall Harvest Granola Bars are the perfect no-bake, energy boosting snack that everyone in your house will love.  Fall Harvest Granola Bars 2 cups old-fashioned oats 1 cup whole almonds, roughly chopped ½ cup pumpkin seeds 1 cup packed pitted Medjool dates ⅓ cup maple syrup ¼ cup creamy almond butter ½ cup dried cherries ¼ teaspoon salt
 Scoop into an 8x8" square pan with a parchment sling. Freeze 20 minutes.  Remove bars with sling.  Cut into 16 bars.  You have full permission to take this recipe and make it your own. Customize it with your favorite nuts, fruits, nut butter and oats. Then send me a picture of your creation, of course. I'd love to see what kinds granola bars you make too.
Ciao!  My love of charcuterie boards is boarderline obsessive. 🤣Little bits of lots of different kinds of foods - what's not to like? 💁🏻♀️There's no better way to serve a big crowd or even a few picky family members than to offer everyone choices. The only real issue with making charcuterie boards is that I only use small amounts of each item so I end up with a lot of "extras." I have a constant supply of half used jars of jam, open boxes of crackers, leftover meats and small bits of cheeses. I've gotten pretty good at using up most of the charcuterie surplus but then there are things like half eaten cheese balls and half jars of fig jam. 🤷🏻♀️  Sometimes those charcuterie leftovers work to my advantage though. I'd been staring at the aforementioned opened fig jam jar in my refrigerator for several weeks which is what led me to this gem of a recipe. The thought of letting the jam go to waste was more than I could bear so I did a little research on fig jam recipes. I was shocked at how many recipes there were and luckily, I stumbled on this amazing, balsamic and fig glazed chicken recipe. I'm a sucker for a great grilled chicken recipe and this one did not disappoint. I love the combination of the sweet jam and the acidity of the balsamic vinegar. It really makes a perfect glaze for this summer barbecue standout.  Balsamic Fig Glazed Chicken 3-4 Bone In Chicken Breasts 1 Tablespoon butter 1 medium shallot 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 clove garlic, minced 1 (12 oz) jar fig preserves 2 Tablespoons honey 3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar 5 sprigs thyme ½ cup walnuts ½ cup gorgonzola – crumbled (optional)
 Spoon glaze over chicken. Top with more fresh thyme.  Bake 44-55 minutes in a 350 oven.  Sprinkle nuts and cheese over chicken if desired. Serve. In case your wondering why my chicken has no nuts or cheese - In short, I got a little too excited about eating this and I dove right in the minute that it was cool enough to eat. 🤣 Apparently, I was hungry. I'm sure that it would be absolutely delicious with walnuts and blue cheese, too.
Ciao! |
