teacher by day - chef by night
What better gift for a Sweet 16 than a Sweet Bouquet!? We have all seen the beautiful edible arrangements that you can buy (or make those on your own too – I have done that too and actually featured one as my first post!). Although …
These may look really pretty (ok, really pretty for my first time – at least maybe give me that?) but the taste is just ‘eh’. I was not a fan of any of the “boxed” flavors and the fondant tastes like worn out bubble gum. I am usually a taste over looks kinda girl (you can’t just be a pretty face) so overall, I give these a thumb down… even though they did look nice on the dessert part of the table.
Since I bought my house in 2009, every year at the end of April and through May I get very excited. You see, the wonderful woman that I bought my house from was a wonderful gardener and had a green thumb with her flowers – both things that I struggle with (Rich is a half-way-decent-ish gardener and I am working on the flower thing). Because of Marie’s skills (she was 89 and still living well and happily on her own – may be all be so lucky) I end up with quite a few bunches of asparagus, during the season we get at least a dozen pieces every day
We eat most of our asparagus fresh (& warm from the sun) right after picking it. We love it grilled as well.
This week I was craving some soup – so whipped up this Cream of Asparagus Soup. Putting some toasted garlic bread with fresh butter & parmesan on the side, we had a fresh, light, healthy, filling, quick, tasty dinner.
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Just because its spring doesn’t mean that you need to give up ‘soup days’ – just come up with different ways to enjoy it.
SO – How do you enjoy your spring/summer soups!?
[adapted from Simple Bites]
Melt the butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat. When melted, add the leeks and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté an additional minute.
Stir in the flour, mixing well with the butter, and cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in the white wine. Make sure to scrape up any browned bits. Cook for 1 minute. Add 3 cups of broth, whisking to eliminate any lumps. Bring liquid to a simmer over medium-heat. Add the asparagus pieces and the bay leaf. Reduce to medium-low heat and cook for 7-10 minutes, or until the asparagus is tender.
Discard the bay leaf. Add the mixture to a food processor (or use that great immersion blender), working in batches if needed, and purée until soup is very smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup of broth, if needed. Pour the soup back into the pot over low heat. Stir in the cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg and lemon juice. Heat the soup for 2-3 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste, and add extra liquid until preferred consistency is reached. If desired, grate a bit of fresh Parmesan on top.
I also want to try this raw asparagus salad from Geny Foodie later this season too!
This is the make at home, do it yourself, whatever, whenever, whoever, version of those ‘instant’ cakes and they are just TOO GOOD! You are now just 10 minutes from warm Chocolate Cake
It is now that time of year when the weather starts to turn warmer (in theory it should be at least), the days are get longer, we start thinking of shorts, tanks, & swim suits (yikes), and yearn for lighter spring flavors to go along with the lightless of our spring… These muffins fit the ‘light-spring-flavor-bill’ & have no butter: just heart-healthy olive oil!
You are less than a 1/2 hour away from a delicious & healthy breakfast made to please! Use all those fresh veggies you have from the market, or the garden and enjoy a breakfast to thrill.
You can even switch out veggies and meats in this recipe to make this your go-to frittata that you can change your flavors as you and your family want. This was amazing as-is and was the perfect starter (with some garlic bread) to our Mother’s Day celebration this year. Get your fresh ingredients & enjoy breakfast to thrill… oh yeah – this would make a great “Breakfast for Dinner” meal too!
Not much to write – simple, clean, fresh flavors speak for themselves…
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crack the eggs into a bowl, add the milk, sun dried tomato and Parmigiano. Whisk together until well combined. Season with salt and pepper, set aside. Into a cast iron pan (or other oven safe pan) add the olive oil and onion and saute approx 2 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently. Add mushrooms, reduce heat to low and continue to stir while cooking until mushrooms have released their water. Add spinach and cook just until just wilted. Season with salt and pepper.
Pour egg mixture into pan and stir gently to combine. Allow to cook until the sides begin to set up. Transfer to oven and cook until eggs are no longer giggly. Approx 15 mins {check it every so often} Transfer to serving plate & enjoy immediately.