If you've never had a padron pepper, give this tasty little, green pepper a try. They're at lots of farmers' markets, pack tasty flavor, and are easy to cook. If you can cook them outside during the summer, even better. No hot kitchen for you! We love them for an appetizer and if you travel… Continue reading How to Cook Padron Peppers
Category: recipes
Real, whole food recipes.
A True Classic Spinach Salad
What's the quickest way to get a family to eat a healthy, real food dinner? What about getting a family of four to eat an entire pound of fresh spinach? Make spinach salad of course! This is a true classic, with boiled eggs, chopped bacon, and freshly made dressing. What's not to love? It is… Continue reading A True Classic Spinach Salad
Pantries, Peas, and Pasta
While I am an avid meal planner, I like to keep our pantry well stocked so when a need arises for a quick dinner - like practically every night with sports and active kids - one can come together in minutes. Keeping frozen vegetables on hand is one of my favorite tricks to make this… Continue reading Pantries, Peas, and Pasta
Easiest Ever Homemade Cocktail Sauce
Ever run out of something and had to improvise only to learn what you made tastes better than store bought? That happened to us recently. Getting ready for an evening with friends, we needed cocktail sauce for our avocado and lobster appetizer dish. Out of cocktail sauce, we stirred up something tasty. It couldn't be… Continue reading Easiest Ever Homemade Cocktail Sauce
Pasture to Plate and Fresh Tomato Salsa
It's not often that I get the opportunity to share with you about a company that cares about its customers, their employees, the environment, and is right in my hometown. So, when Pacific Foods invited me to their Pasture to Plate, I said yes immediately. Since 1997, Pacific Foods, which is based in Tualatin, Oregon,… Continue reading Pasture to Plate and Fresh Tomato Salsa
Chocolate Chip Coconut Cookies
I know coconut is all the rage right now but my daughter was ahead of the curve on it. She's always loved coconut - and she's had me baking coconut cake for her birthdays and granola with coconut. Why is she into coconut? When I asked her she wasn't sure - you can picture the… Continue reading Chocolate Chip Coconut Cookies
Cheddar Curry Cheese Spread
Oh, this cheddar curry cheese spread is a dip that is too good. I hadn't made it in years but when my kids started asking about it, I thought it was time to trot it back out. It's bold and flavorful - and the color makes it a nice addition to any appetizer spread. Be… Continue reading Cheddar Curry Cheese Spread
Broccolette for Dinner and Le Creuset Giveaway
Thanks to Earthbound Farm and Le Creuset for teaming up with me for this healthy dinner and special giveaway! "Mom, what is broccolette?" My daughter asked me this when she heard me talking about making it for dinner. She's a little leery of vegetables that are new. Most kids are, aren't they? Actually, sometimes grown-ups… Continue reading Broccolette for Dinner and Le Creuset Giveaway
Recipe: Grits and Greens
Growing up, I never had grits for breakfast. Being a west coast girl, grits weren't part of my repertoire. Oatmeal was our warm breakfast of choice. Then, I married an east coast boy. He's not from the south where grits are a regular breakfast staple but he spent plenty of time there. When we had… Continue reading Recipe: Grits and Greens
Make at Home Natural Pork Sausage Patties
Why does frozen food have preservatives in it? It's frozen. Isn't that enough? Clearly it's not enough if it's a breakfast meat that my family begs me to buy - in gigantic quantities while we're at Costco. My answer is always the same: read the ingredients. They turn over the package and without me having… Continue reading Make at Home Natural Pork Sausage Patties
Go Gingham 