The leading authority on basketball cupcakes and Basil-Lime martinis…
This was the perfect light, Summer dinner. We had some pretty, fresh figs and cherries and some leftover rotisserie chicken. I put the chicken on a nice piece of Great Harvest Honey Whole Wheat bread and put a little cheese and tarragon on top and toasted it until the chicken was warmed through, the bread … Continue reading “Yummy light snacky Summer supper”
This was the perfect light, Summer dinner. We had some pretty, fresh figs and cherries and some leftover rotisserie chicken. I put the chicken on a nice piece of Great Harvest Honey Whole Wheat bread and put a little cheese and tarragon on top and toasted it until the chicken was warmed through, the bread was toasted and the cheese was melted. Add a nice glass of fresh-squeezed limeade and enjoy.
Mmmmm….
This is Boy’s idea of the perfect (made from leftovers) meal: protein (steak), protein (peanut butter and banana) and more protein (shrimp). I made him eat the green beans with it.
This is Boy’s idea of the perfect (made from leftovers) meal: protein (steak), protein (peanut butter and banana) and more protein (shrimp). I made him eat the green beans with it.
This is my idea of Summer Perfection. Great fresh bread, crispy bacon, juicy, farm-ripe tomatoes, crunchy, sweet lettuce and creamy, tangy mayonnaise. Simple, yet SO good. I LOVE this griddle attachment to my cooktop. I can cook a pound of bacon in a jiffy. Also great for making scads of pancakes.
This is my idea of Summer Perfection. Great fresh bread, crispy bacon, juicy, farm-ripe tomatoes, crunchy, sweet lettuce and creamy, tangy mayonnaise. Simple, yet SO good.
I LOVE this griddle attachment to my cooktop. I can cook a pound of bacon in a jiffy. Also great for making scads of pancakes.
We bought a cookie bouquet from this company for our new neighbors that just moved in across the street. While the kids and I were there to pick it up, we saw the cute “gadget-themed” Father’s Day basket above. We couldn’t pass it up for the sweet-toothed techno-gadget hound paternal unit that lives at our … Continue reading “Father’s Day Cookies”
We bought a cookie bouquet from this company for our new neighbors that just moved in across the street. While the kids and I were there to pick it up, we saw the cute “gadget-themed” Father’s Day basket above. We couldn’t pass it up for the sweet-toothed techno-gadget hound paternal unit that lives at our house. Although he loved it, the kids ended up (of course) eating most of the cookies. Hubby didn’t recognize the CD at first and wondered if it was an “all-seeing eye” – it is a little odd-looking. I normally like to make my own cookies, but, I have to admit, these are pretty yummy (almond extract?) and they do a great job of decorating them. It would have taken me HOURS and HOURS to create something even half as cute as what they are able to turn out.
High School Band friends: Me, Jill, Amy, Isabel, Monica The 20 year Reunion for my high school was this weekend. I was really nervous about going (I had skipped the 10th and don’t really keep up with anyone), but summoned up my courage and took the plunge (thanks, Staci!) and I’m SO very glad that … Continue reading “High School 20th Reunion”
High School Band friends: Me, Jill, Amy, Isabel, Monica
The 20 year Reunion for my high school was this weekend. I was really nervous about going (I had skipped the 10th and don’t really keep up with anyone), but summoned up my courage and took the plunge (thanks, Staci!) and I’m SO very glad that I did. I had a blast and plan to get together with some buddies soon. Overall, the ladies looked great, but a lot of the guys looked really different (some better, some not). A surprising number of us still live in Austin, or have returned to Austin after living elsewhere for a while (including us). Also noteworthy was how many of my classmates have turned out to be quite successful. I was proud – we seem to be a pretty well-adjusted group of upstanding citizens – lots of REALLY cute kids, too. Maybe just the “success stories” feel motivated to come to the reunion, who knows, but it did seem that most of us have done well for ourselves – that was nice to see.
This recipe (a HUGE favorite in our family) comes from my friend, Anita, in Northern Virginia. She also adapts this recipe to make Zucchini Bread, but I’m currently sans garden and subsequently, sans good, fresh zucchini, so we just stick with bananas. Banana Spice Muffins 1/3 cup softened butter 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1/4 … Continue reading “The BEST Banana Muffins”
This recipe (a HUGE favorite in our family) comes from my friend, Anita, in Northern Virginia. She also adapts this recipe to make Zucchini Bread, but I’m currently sans garden and subsequently, sans good, fresh zucchini, so we just stick with bananas.
Banana Spice Muffins
1/3 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup water
2 large (or 3 small) very ripe bananas, slightly mashed
1 2/3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
for optional cinnamon topping:
1 Tbsp. cinnamon-sugar (Optional)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts (Optional)
Stir butter, sugar, eggs and water together until well blended (I use a KitchenAid mixer). Stir in bananas. Mix in flour, soda, baking powder and spices. Pour into 12 muffin cups (lightly greased with Pam or lined with paper or foil muffin cups) or one regular-sized loaf pan. Top with nuts and cinnamon-sugar (if desired) and press topping lightly into batter. Bake at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes (or 40 minutes or so for a loaf pan) or until a toothpick comes out clean and tops are golden brown.
If you have decided that your idea of a good dessert is one that will make you gain 10 pounds and lose 10 teeth, this is definitely the recipe for you…. All I can say is that this sounded like a good idea, in theory, but God Almighty, this thing is rich.
If you have decided that your idea of a good dessert is one that will make you gain 10 pounds and lose 10 teeth, this is definitely the recipe for you….
All I can say is that this sounded like a good idea, in theory, but God Almighty, this thing is rich.
Pot-Sticker Dumplings with dipping sauces and Edamame Dumplings are one of our favorite “fast and easy” light meals. We slept in this morning and had both breakfast and lunch late. We also had a parade of children and snacks through the house and were munching things like popcorn and lemonade (fresh-squeezed, the kids set up … Continue reading “Chinese Snack Dinner for an All-American Holiday”
Pot-Sticker Dumplings with dipping sauces and Edamame
Dumplings are one of our favorite “fast and easy” light meals. We slept in this morning and had both breakfast and lunch late. We also had a parade of children and snacks through the house and were munching things like popcorn and lemonade (fresh-squeezed, the kids set up a lemonade booth today to raise money for Save the Tigers) all day, so were looking for something simple and semi-light for dinner. I also haven’t been to the grocery store in days and we are out of milk, fresh vegetables and fresh fruit, but we had a bag of frozen dumplings and some edamame in the freezer.
We like to pan-fry our dumplings a bit after boiling them. Sometimes we make our own dumplings, but these were store-bought, frozen ones. After boiling (usually about 8 minutes, but follow the package or recipe directions), fry them in a bit of canola oil (drizzle in a bit of toasted sesame oil, too, for extra flavor) until they are starting to turn golden on the bottoms.
Serve with your choice of dipping sauces. Usually the frozen dumplings come with either a soy sauce based dip or a sweet and sour sauce, or both. We also like to make our own dipping sauce, but it’s a bit spicy for the kids. Hubby LOVES it.
Dipping sauce for eggrolls or dumplings:
1 Tbsp. minced green onions
2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. duck sauce
1 tsp. sriracha hot sauce
Stir all ingredients together until well mixed.
Mmmm…. These are REALLY yummy – they have been a bit too “exotic” and spicy for the kids in the past, but I’m going to try them again tonight and see what they say. I’ll cut down a bit on the chile paste for them. Thai Chicken Pizzas (adapted from a recipe in the June … Continue reading “Thai Chicken Pizzas”
Mmmm….
These are REALLY yummy – they have been a bit too “exotic” and spicy for the kids in the past, but I’m going to try them again tonight and see what they say. I’ll cut down a bit on the chile paste for them.
Thai Chicken Pizzas
(adapted from a recipe in the June 2004 issue of Cooking Light magazine)
Peanut sauce and chile paste with garlic may be found on the ethnic food aisle of most large supermarkets. Chile paste is quite spicy, so adjust the amount to suit your personal taste. The original Cooking Light recipe called for pita breads, instead of pizza shells. I know that the pitas would make the recipe healthier (lower carb), but the pizza shells are better – you can decide which is more important to you – for us, it depends on the day……
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
3 Tbsp. peanut sauce
1 to 3 reaspoons chile paste with garlic
4 small pizza shells (such as 8″ Boboli)
2 cups sliced cooked chicken (I used chicken that was marinated overnight in Teriyaki sauce, then grilled)
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup fresh bean sprouts, optional
1/4 cup sliced green onions
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine first 3 ingredients, stir well. Place pizza shells on a large baking sheet. Spread 2 tablespoons sauce mixture on each pizza shell. Top each one with 1/2 cup chicken, 1/4 cup carrot, 1/4 cup bean sprouts, and 1 tablespoon green onions. Sprinkle cilantro and shredded cheese evenly over each pita.
Unbaked pizza.
Bake at 450 degrees for 8 – 12 minutes or until thoroughly heated and lightly browned around edges, or follow directions on pizza shell label. Remove from oven and cut each pizza into 4 wedges.
Yield: 4 (2 wedges each) servings.
I like to serve these with this Avocado and Mango Salad with Passion Fruit Vinaigrette from Bon Appetit. The passion fruit puree is hard to find, but you can mail order it from Amazon.com, or I have used a Welch’s frozen passion fruit juice concentrate blend (with apple and white grape juice in it, I think) with pretty good success.
Every year since Girl was in Kindergarten, I have prepared this meal as a “thank you” to the teachers. I usually prepare it for the last field trip of the school year (so they don’t have to worry about lunch packing in addition to trip-planning), but this year, that date got away from me, so … Continue reading “The Way to a Teacher’s Heart is Through Their Stomach”
Every year since Girl was in Kindergarten, I have prepared this meal as a “thank you” to the teachers. I usually prepare it for the last field trip of the school year (so they don’t have to worry about lunch packing in addition to trip-planning), but this year, that date got away from me, so I made it yesterday. Boy and Girl have both had a fabulous year (and Girl is leaving this school next year, so this was also a “goodbye” for her), so I expanded the list from just the classroom teachers (as I’ve done in the past), to include coaches, music and drama teachers, spanish & art teachers, etc. By the time the list was done, I found myself cooking for 21 very deserving educators. The entire menu was printed in the June 2000 issue of Bon Appetit and is also great for picnics. Click on the foods for recipes.
Deviled Eggs with Tarragon & Capers
Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken
This recipe calls for bone-in breasts, which are more flavorful than boneless, but are also more difficult to eat, especially in a “picnic”-type lunch where you might not have a proper plate, fork and knife. I prefer to use the boneless, skinless chicken breasts. You can marinate, bread and bake them according the regular recipe directions, or you can cut the breasts into smaller pieces and flatten them gently (like this), for even smaller (easy to pick up and eat with your fingers, like chicken strips for grownups) serving pieces.
Green Bean, Yellow Bean & Cherry Tomato Salad
Macaroni Salad with Peas & Ham
I always serve this lunch with “Triple Chocolate Peppermint Brownies” and Homemade Lemonade. This year, I served the lemonade in special water bottles that I purchased (and ran through the dishwasher beforehand) that have a freezable ice stick inside to keep the drinks cold.
For the brownies, I use Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie mix (it comes in a box from Costco, with 6 individual mixes in it – 2 mixes makes a 9 x 13 pan) and add 10 chopped (quartered) York Peppermint Patties (the small ones that are about 1.5 inches across) and 2 or 3 drops of peppermint extract per bag of mix. Bake according to the normal package directions.
For Homemade Lemonade: Mix together 2 quarts of water, 1 cup of sugar and 1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice.
Strawberry Lemonade Variation:
During strawberry season, I’ll run some fresh strawberries through my juicer and add about 1/2 cup of the juice to the the lemonade – Boy and Girl LOVE this!
I packed the lunches in individual bags with an ice pack, with little containers (from a restaurant supply) of each food. The chicken is in foil. The brownies were packed in little ziplocs, with one of my favorite mints (Perugina Glacia) taped to the side (this menu has lots of onion, so I thought the teachers might appreciate that after eating!). I also included a small, disposable plastic plate (better than eating out of containers!) and one of those packets with napkin, plastic knife, fork and spoon and some salt and pepper (also from the restaurant supply). Next year, I’m going to try to find some individual lunch boxes or inexpensive coolers, because the cold lemonade bottles and ice packs made the paper lunch sacks disintegrate a little as they got wet from condensation.