The other day Mike watched Julie & Julia with me. It was his first time and I wasn’t sure if he’d like it (since admittedly it is a bit girly), but he said he enjoyed it (he is the best hubby ever…I’m pretty sure he was just being sweet!). I think the best thing that came out of the movie for him is that it reminded me of the amazing bruschetta that Julie makes with heirloom tomatoes, basil, and bread that’s pan-seared in olive oil. Of course the movie gave me a serious craving for this bruschetta, which to me is the most delicious way you will ever […]...
Blueberry Cheesecake Dip with Thin and Chewy Graham Cracker Crumb Cookies For Dipping
A while ago I had a dream about cheesecake dip (believe it or not, I get a lot of my best recipe inspiration from dreams…on paper that sounds weird, but I can’t be alone in this, right?), and since then, it is one of the many cheesecake-y treats that has been on my mind/“to-make” list. Really, why fight it? Instead, I decided to make it. With silken tofu....
Cheeseburger Pie
A couple weeks ago I was stuck in a recipe rut. You know how it goes with dinner…sometimes you feel inspired to make a different meal each night for two weeks, and then other weeks you make the same thing for four nights in a row. (Lol, ok, maybe it’s just me who does that.) In any case, Mike and I were both ready for something new when the idea for this recipe struck me one night when I saw the fixings for a salad along with a little bit of leftover meat in my fridge, and a sheet of puff pastry in my freezer....
Roasted Carrot Red Lentil Dip
A while ago found myself gifted with five pounds of carrots. I wanted to make something unique and special with the carrots, and as I hemmed and hawed on what to make, they weren’t getting any fresher. Meaning, I had to think of a way to use a significant amount of carrots and I had to do it fast. I had a party coming up and I knew just what to do. I came up with this recipe, doubled it, and brought it to the party. This dip was the first thing to go and I ended up wishing I had made more!...
White Asparagus Risotto Cakes with Scallion Pistou
When Natasha of 5 Star Foodie and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks! announced that April’s 5 Star Makeover theme ingredient was white asparagus, my mind began racing with all the ideas of what to make. I had visions of almond-laced white chocolate white asparagus mousse, a delicate cream of white asparagus soup, white asparagus gratin, and the always delicious steamed white asparagus with hollandaise and fresh herbs....
Sicilian Chicken Wings
Pizza and wings are rare guilty pleasures of mine and Mike’s. Actually, I’m a pizza girl (New York-style for me, please!) and he’s crazy about wings. As you can imagine, we were both in our glory on our last trip to New York City. After a long day of shopping, sightseeing, and dining out, one of our favorite things to do in the evening was relax in our hotel room and order dinner in. (Which of course rejuvenated us so that we could go back out after dinner…after all, it is the city that never sleeps!)...
Garlicky Mashed Potato Cakes with Raspberry Ginger Mustard Chutney
If there were no such thing as calories, this is the food I would eat every day. Yes, even over dark chocolate. Ok, wait I take that back, that doesn’t count! (A girl needs her chocolate.) But still, if every food was healthy (or equally unhealthy), this would surely be a staple in my life. ...
Everything Crackers
Over the holidays there was many a festive gathering to attend, and towards the end of it all I was hard-pressed to find a unique finger food to bring. Of course there are the usuals, like three cheese stuffed mushrooms, zucchini fries with homemade ranch dressing, and salmon sliders, but I had my heart set on homemade crackers and some kind of dip. Why homemade crackers?, you ask. Let’s just say that along with macarons, making crackers has been a fear of mine for quite some time now....
Vegetable Cream Cheese Dip
You might remember me mentioning my love of everything bagels a while ago; what I didn’t tell you is that my favorite way to enjoy them is spread with veggie cream cheese. Such a perfect pair, those two; which is why when I recently made everything crackers (recipe coming soon!), the natural thing for me to make with them was this dip....
Turkish Cigarette Börek (Sigara Böreği) with Roasted Tomato Sauce
***There’s still time to enter my latest giveaway! For a chance to win a $65 CSN gift card, check out this post.*** Turkish Cigarette Böreks are a fast, delicious, and elegant-looking appetizer. They are cigarette-shaped phyllo pastries stuffed with cheese (usually feta) and herbs (such as dill and parsley); they can also contain veggies and/or meat. In this recipe, I lightened up the traditional version by baking the böreks instead of deep frying them. Also, because it’s what I had in my fridge, I used a mixture of spinach and garlic instead of parsley in the cheese stuffing and I thought they were fantastic. I […]...