Strawberry Apple Fruit-roll ups

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Strawberry Apple Fruit Roll-Ups

Strawberry Apple Fruit Roll-Ups

Now that summer has arrived we are constantly on the go.  Which means that we spend much more time in the car.  My daughter does surprisingly well on car rides, however, she does better if I am armed with plenty of games to fill her time, and of course snacks don’t hurt.  She is extremely fond of apple strings–apples that I run through my vegetable spiralizer on the spaghetti attachment, however they oxidize so quickly after making them, I like to save those for home snacks.  Enter fruit roll-ups, she loves them and they are extremely travel friendly.  If you follow this blog, then you know I have several recipes for fruit rolls ups my tropical punch fruit roll-ups are my absolute favorite, but the pineapple, or strawberry fruit roll ups are equally as delicious!

 

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Ingredients:

10 ounces of strawberries stems removed

2 medium sized apples, cores removed

Directions: Place the strawberries and apples in a blender and blend until smooth.

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Pour the mixture out onto a parchment lined sheet and smooth into a thin layer.

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Place in a dehydrator on 134 for 4-6 hours, or in a oven on the lowest setting for 4-6 hours.

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Fruit roll-ups are done when you can peel them off of the parchment without them sticking.

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How to make Cherry Lemonade–Made with Real Cherries

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Lemonade is as American–especially Southern American–as cherry pie–see my upcoming blog about that–and I’d be remiss if I didn’t share one of my favorite summertime drinks–Cherry Lemonade. Cherry season is almost at an end here, so I thought I’d give the last of my cherries a brilliant send off, by highlighting them in two recipes. If it’s too late in the season and you can’t find a fresh cherry anywhere–then use frozen cherries–skip thawing them, and blend them frozen with the lemon and the sugar. Doing so will allow you to omit the use of ice cubes.

Ingredients:
1 cup of fresh cherries (pits and stems removed)
1 cup of fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup of maple sugar (can sub other sugars, and if you like your lemonade on the sweet side use more sugar)
3 cups of water
ice for chilling

Directions: To a blender add the cherries, lemon juice, and sugar and blend until well combined. Add this mixture to a pitcher, with the water and some ice, mix well, serve and enjoy.

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D.I.Y. How to make Powdered Sugar–How to make Powdered Maple, Coconut, Date, and Palm Sugar

How to make you own powdered sugar–Yes even Powdered Maple, Coconut, Date, Palm, Agave, or Honey crystal Sugars

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How many times have you been in the middle of baking, and found that you were lacking one vital ingredient–Powdered Sugar. If you’re anything like me, the last thing you want to do is run out and buy a bag of powdered sugar. If you’re really like me, you probably prefer to use a less processed form of sugar, like maple sugar, coconut sugar, date sugar, or palm sugar but have failed to ever find a powdered version of either of those sugars in your local grocery store. Well now you will never have that problem again–unless of course you don’t have any form of granulated sugar in the house at all, then this can’t help you. But if you do have granulated sugar, then this DIY tutorial will help. All you need is sugar and a spice or coffee grinder –any type of granulated sugar will work–even Maple sugar, Coconut sugar, Date sugar, Palm sugar, Agave sugar, or honey crystal sugar. Watch this video and I’ll show you how. Then use the sugar to make my recipe for Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cookies

White Bean Salad with Lemon Cumin Vinaigrette

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White Bean Salad With Lemon Cumin Dressing

White Bean Salad With Lemon Cumin Dressing

This salad represents all that this blog is about.  It’s lazy in every sense of the word lazy and it’s fresh and vibrantly flavorful.  I was talking to a girl friend  of mine the other day about food and little ones.  She was in need of some advice about healthy choices for her little one. We went through the list of what she currently feeds her little one.  On her list was a simple salad of canned white beans drizzled with lemon juice and olive oil.  I thought it sounded delish, and I set out to make my own version of that salad.  I make a lentil salad that is similar to this, but I think this one is much better.  Pair this salad with a crusty piece of sourdough rubbed with a little garlic and grass-fed butter and you’ve got a rustic and delicious meal,which didn’t require you to turn on the stove.  Lazy–yes, absolutely! But it tastes anything but lazy–that counts right?;-)

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Ingredients:

15 ounce can of Organic White beans (drained and rinsed)

1/2 cup of feta cheese crumbled

1/2 cup of organic rainbow radish diced

1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes quartered

1/2  cup persian cucumbers diced

1/2 cup of red bell pepper diced

1 Tablespoon of fresh organic Thyme leaves

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

 

Vinaigrette

5 Tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

3 Tablespoons of olive oil

1/2 teaspoon of cumin

1 medium clove of garlic finely chopped

Sea salt to taste

Directions: Add all of the ingredients except for the sea salt to a large bowl and toss well.

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Add all the ingredients for the vinaigrette to a mason jar cover and shake until well combined.  If you don’t have a mason jar, just whisk together all the ingredients for the vinaigrette in a bowl, and set aside. Salt the salad ingredients just before serving, this will prevent the tomatoes and cucumbers from becoming soggy, toss, then drizzle with a generous amount of the vinaigrette, toss  again to combine, serve and enjoy!

Smokey Paprika and Lime Chicken Kabobos

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Smokey Paprika and Lime Chicken Kabobs

Smokey Paprika and Lime Chicken Kabobs

I think that there is definitely an art to marinades. I’m still learning that particular art. I recently purchased the highly acclaimed Modernist Cuisine book set. It’s massive and filled with information–extremely useful information. I’m only on the second book about 1000 pages into this probably 7000 page set, and the information that I’ve learned has completely changed the way that I view cooking.  This set is amazing! If you’re interested in the how’s and why’s of cooking, from a scientific perspective—then you want this set. If you can save the $550 plus dollars it costs to buy this book set then I highly recommend it.  Or just stay tuned to my blog, lot’s of changes are coming.  Not to mention appliances. One is the immersion circulator that I’ve been wanting for years.  Another is a vacuum chamber sealer.  I returned my Food saver in preparation for this machine.  This machine makes marination super easy, and effective.  It sucks out all of the air in the chamber and compresses everything in it. Thus making pickles in a matter of minutes, and  infusing steak or chicken and fish with marinades in minutes. Long gone will be my days of marinating anything over night.  I’m really excited for my vacuum chamber to arrive. Not having my Food Saver or a vacuum machine has been torture, but life goes on.  This particular marinade is a mixture of dry and wet ingredients.  It’s really delicious, and so flavorful, that it doesn’t need more than a few minutes to flavor the chicken–gotta love a quick marinade with no fancy equipment.

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Ingredients

1 teaspoon of onion powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon of smoked paprika

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 tablespoon of lime juice

1 lb of skinless boneless chicken thighs, cubed into one inch pieces

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

 

Directions: Add the onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, olive oil and lime juice to a small bowl and mix well.

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Season the chicken generously with sea salt and black pepper, add it to a large bowl.  Add the marinade paste to the chicken then toss well to cover the chicken with the marinade.

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Place chicken on skewers and grill cooking until chicken is cooked through about 10-12 minutes.  Serve and enjoy!

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Cucumber Tomato and Feta Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

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Cucumber Tomato and Feta Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

Salads are my go to lazy girl side.  They require minimum effort and absolutely no cooking.  It doesn’t get much better than that in my book, and salads are good for you.  Salads also go with practically everything.  My husband is a big fan of salads in general, he’s one of those people who has to have a meal anchored by vegetables or he doesn’t feel like he has gotten a complete meal.  I’m like that too.  When we traveled to Puerto Rico several years ago, we were both impressed with the food: steak, chicken, rice and beans, peppers, plantains. However, the food was always missing that anchor of vegetables, which we are both accustom to.  We always asked if there was a vegetable dish that we could order to round out our meal. We never found a vegetable dish, but they always had a basic salad.

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Prep time: 7-10 minutes

Cook time: none

Total time: 10 minutes

 

Ingredients:

1 medium cucumber sliced thinly or cubed

1/2 cup of organic cherry tomatoes sliced in half

1/4 cup of crumbled feta cheese

Ingredients Balsamic vinaigrette:

Sea salt to taste

Black pepper to taste

4 tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar

1 small clove of garlic chopped finely

3 tablespoons of olive oil

 

Directions: Add the cucumber and tomatoes to a medium sized bowl, top with feta and set aside. In a small bowl whisk the ingredient for the vinaigrette, spoon over the cucumber salad and enjoy!

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Grilled Asparagus

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Grilled Asparagus

 

Asparagus season is almost over here. If you are not paying attention the season can pass in the blink of an eye.  One of my favorite ways to make asparagus is on the grill.  The smokey flavor from the grill pairs well with the fresh crispness of this stalk green. Grilled asparagus has many fans in my house.

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Prep time: 2 minutes

Cook time: 8 minutes

Total time: 10 minutes

 

Ingredients:

1lb of asparagus bottom stalk portion removed

1 tablespoon of coconut oil

sea salt and black pepper to taste

1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

 

Directions:  Lay asparagus on a flat plate, drizzle with coconut oil, season with sea salt and black pepper, and roll to spread seasoning.  Place asparagus on a hot grill, and grill until done about 8 minutes. Remove from grill, drizzle with a little bit of lemon juice, or with my spicy mustard vinaigrette and enjoy!

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Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cookies

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Flourless Chocolate Merengue Cookies

Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cookies

 

This heat has definitely made me a Starbucks fan. Everyday I find myself going there to buy a shaken green iced tea, and since I’m there, I pick up  a treat–their flourless, gluten free, chocolate cookie. It’s probably the healthiest treat option in their refrigerated showcase, and my daughter and I love it. However, this afternoon tea and cookie thing is getting expensive, at $5 a day–$7 when we indulge at Disney–it’s getting a bit out of control. I love treating myself, but I hate mindless spending too. I’d much rather spend that $200/month on a new kitchen gadget–like a Searzall, or a chamber vacuum sealer to go along with the new immersion circulator that my husband got me for Mother’s Day.  So what’s a girl to do? Buy a box of organic green mint tea, and make the meringue cookies myself, of course!  The best thing about these cookies is that besides the cream of tar tar, I already had all of the ingredients.  These cookies are chewy, gooey and light all at the same time–just like the Starbucks cookies, but unlike the Starbucks version, these contain no added oil, so they are super low-fat, low-calorie and gluten free! Score!!!

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Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time : 10-12 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

2 egg whites

5 ounces of bitter sweet dark chocolate (60%)

1/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar

3/4 of powdered sugar(I used maple sugar see how to powder it here)

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/2 cup of chocolate chips

 

Directions:  Pre-heat the oven to 375.  Melt the 5 ounces of chocolate in a double boiler and set aside.

 

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Add the two egg whites to a stainless steel bowl and beat on low until bubbles form, add the cream of tar tar and beat on high, add in the sugar one tablespoon at a time, and beat until peaks are stiff and fluffy—-  you can turn the bowl upside down with out the mixture running.

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Pour in the melted chocolate and fold it into the egg white fluff–be gentle– fold until the white streaks disappear.

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Fold in the chocolate chips, then spoon onto  a parchment lined cookie sheet.

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Bake for 10-12 minutes, the cookies should be soft and pliable.

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Let them cool for 10 minutes, then move them to a cookie rack to continue cooling 5-7 minutes.

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Serve and enjoy with an ice cold glass of mint ice tea;-) Share with me some of your favorite afternoon snacks.

 

How To Make Lavender Lemonade

A video –How to make Lavender infused lemonade

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The heat certainly has me seeking out ways in which to keep cool. Almost nothing is more cooling on a hot day than a nice cold glass of lemonade. Infuse that glass of lemonade with a honey lavender syrup and you have the makings of heaven in a glass.

Ingredients
2.5 cups of water
1.5 cups of fresh lemon juice
2 Tablespoons of dried lavender
3/4 cups of honey
2 cups of ice

Directions:
Add the honey, and 1/2 cup of water to a sauce pan, and heat until honey melts, then add the lavender, and cook to just below a simmer, and you start to smell the lavender. Turn off the fire and allow to steep for 10-15 minutes. Strain the honey lavender syrup, and set aside. Add the remaining water, lemon juice, and the honey lavender syrup to a pitcher, stir well then add the ice, serve and enjoy!

Lavender lemonade

Lavender lemonade

Grilled Steak Salad with Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

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Grilled Steak Salad With Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

Grilled Steak Salad With Spicy Mustard Vinaigrette

Boy has it been hot here! For the past 2 weeks temperatures here have stayed above 100 degrees and that’s in the shade. When it gets this hot, the last thing I want to do is move, let alone cook. The grill has definitely been a life saver for us these past few weeks. It allows me to push all the work of cooking onto my husband. He loves grilling–thank The Lord! Since he is so happy to cook on the grill, I thought I’d make a steak salad, which requires little effort from me other than cutting veggies, and marinating the steak in my FoodSaver. Oh and making a vinaigrette to go on the salad. All easy, peasy, lemon queasy;-)

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Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 5-7 minutes

Total time: 17 minutes

Ingredients:

1lb of flank or skirt steak

3 cloves of garlic pasted

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

5 cups of mixed organic salad greens

1/2 cup of  organic cucumber cubed

1/2 cup of organic orange bell pepper sliced

2 small organic  heirloom tomatoes sliced and quartered

1/4 cup of radish sliced thinly

Ingredients for  Spicy mustard vinaigrette

1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)

1 small clove of grated garlic

4 tablespoons of olive oil

1/8 teaspoon of Worcester sauce (optional)

1/2 teaspoon of maple sugar (can sub with maple syrup, agave, or honey)

Sea salt to taste

Directions: in a small bowl whisk all the ingredients for the vinaigrette together and set aside.  In a large bowl toss together the mixed greens, cucumbers, bell peppers, and tomatoes and set aside. In another bowl Mix together the pasted garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil. Season the steak generously with sea salt and black pepper, then pour the lemon and garlic marinade over both sides of the steak. Grill the steak for 5-8 minutes on each side, let it rest for 5-7 minutes, then slice on a bias, and serve over the salad. Top with a few spoonfuls of mustard vinaigrette and enjoy.