The weather here in Seattle is spectacular! Perfectly sunny 75-80 F degree days! Yippie! The kind of day, you want to get out in the yard for play or just plating a few extra flowers for a little pop! Wee Bear and I went to my daughter's house the other night for dinner, I made this delicious arugula salad....light and screaming Summer with the local sweet strawberries. I made a very light lemon vinaigrette to top this healthy light salad.
I love bananas! However, I’m particular about how I eat them, I like them yellow but, tinged with green. That way, they’re firm and sweet, but not too sweet from being over-ripened. When bananas start getting spots,
it’s time to bake or make a smoothie. We had three large over ripe
banana's after our children left last week. I could of thrown
them out, but, after thinking about it, I decided , another recipe for
over ripe banana's can't be a bad thing! I think we all end up with over ripe
banana's now and then...right? Lot's of great idea's popped into my head.... I thought about doing caramelized banana
cupcakes, I also thought about a breakfast smoothie with oatmeal and
banana's...yum! But, I been thinking of making a upside down pineapple cake lately(remembering a wonderful upside down pineapple cake my Mother used to make), then it hit me!! Why not combine my favorite salted caramel and a banana flavored cake? Okay! This is one of the best uses of over ripe banana's ever!
I like fun food at fun holidays! With Memorial Day approaching and 4th of July around the corner.....I'm thinking a fun pasta salad!
Asparagus like most fresh fruits or vegetables, begins to lose its natural sugars immediately when it is harvested. This loss is rapid, and unless used very soon after it
is picked it becomes less flavorful and sometimes even bitter. There is a
method to amend this, and it is very simple.....
Appreciation for Mom is shown in a lot of different ways in my family. It can be anything from flowers to a lovely piece of jewelry, but, it always includes food...good food!
When my children were young they would make me a course by course breakfast, with the first course being strawberries. I love strawberries, and these days you can buy fairly sweet ones all year long! Yum!
I decided to do a twist on the strawberry theme this year, I put them together with rhubarb and made a little mason jar pie! You can find these wide mouth 8 ounce Mason jars at most hardware stores, grocery stores or on Amazon, about $10.00 for 12. The acerbic punch of the rhubarb mellows out while it cooks and is the perfect complement to the ripe sweetness of the strawberries. Use my delicious, flaky pie crust recipe or keep it simple with a pre-made dough and customize with different cutout shapes or crimping styles around the edges.
Cinco de Mayo is May 5, a few days away! This is one of the most fun holidays! This year I have made a delicious "Roasted Red Pepper Tart" or quiche as you may say! I love this tart! Gruyere and Parmesan cheese make up the base of this delicious tart....what's not to like!! But really, this tart recipe is merely a canvas for you. You can
add absolutely anything that crosses your mind: asparagus, prosciutto,
diced ham, bacon, herbs, shrimp, sausage…and/or
any vegetable you want. You can make it for breakfast, lunch or dinner, it is delicious for any occasion! Let’s make this tart my friends!
Veal Scallops with basil butter and toasted pine nuts. When I explained to Wee Bear, what I was cooking, he was skeptical, but, he loves breaded veal and he loves butter....so he was "in"! Everything works here and the recipe is
perfect for a quick Sunday dinner like we had last night, or a dinner
party for eight. If you get all your prep stuff done ahead of time,
everything comes together in less than 10 minutes. The veal is super tender, and very mild flavored and is the perfect
vehicle for this wonderful basil butter! I love the flavor of basil and pine nuts, they complement each other perfectly. If you can’t find veal, or if it’s not your thing, the recipe
works just as well with chicken or pork. I hope you enjoy it much as I
do. I wish I would have recorded Wee Bear, he said, "This is the best veal I have ever eaten"! He loved the Basil butter in combo with the toasted pine nuts, and just couldn't quit saying, "Mmmmmmm, Ahhhhh, this is the best!"
