Month: August 2016

#SundaySupper: Summer Corn

~ lk529 ~ 18 Comments

I have been waiting all year for fresh summer corn! I couldn’t have been more excited to see the theme for today’s #SundaySupper. I can’t wait to check out everyone’s incredible recipes to find new and exciting ways to prepare one of my favorite grains (corn isn’t a vegetable, you know)! Be sure to scroll past my recipe to check out what everyone made. Thanks to Ellen Folkman from Family Around the Table for hosting this weekend.

I do have to say, fresh corn is something that California just doesn’t have right. I have been disappointed in what pops up at the grocery stores. It’s probably the only thing (other than our friends) I miss about Ohio. Sigh. When I go visit my parents at the lake next month they better be prepared for lots of corn dishes made with Wisconsin grown corn on the cob. Now if only I could get it back to Cali.

Our farmers market near our home doesn’t have corn so I planned on driving to the larger one to see what was available. But. My excursion was halted before I got out of the driveway. I’d loaded up the boys and promised a trip to the farmers market and to a friends’ house for a playdate. Neither of those things were able to come to fruition thanks to our garage door.

The garage door broke. It’s had sticking problems since we moved in, but nothing that couldn’t be overcome by pushing the button a couple of extra times. But now, here I was with the car out of the garage and a baby screaming bloody murder. The garage door was neither up nor down and I couldn’t get it to go all the way up so I could return the van to its parking place. Luckily a neighbor was just leaving and he took the time to help me out. We discovered that the cable was completely off the pulley. I grabbed a step stool and he put it back for me. Unfortunately, it still didn’t do the trick. He was able to get the door completely open for me and I put the car back. I then had to do a mental exercise and take anything and everything I would need out of the trunk as I wouldn’t be able to get into it once I muscled the garage door closed. I took out the big double stroller, the beach blanket, and some sand toys.

I had to cancel with our friends. Instead, she kindly offered to pick up whatever I needed from the market and to come over to our house. She brought me some fresh white corn so I could still make my dish for today’s event!

The dish I’d been dreaming about was one in Rachael Ray’s Look + Cook Cookbook. How could I pass up cream, corn, and pasta!? Oh, and there’s bacon involved, too. I made this dinner when we invited over one of my husband’s coworkers and his girlfriend. The pasta was a hit and there wasn’t any leftover. Funnily enough, Firecracker fell asleep in my husband’s arms at the table and Treat fell asleep shortly thereafter, allowing us adults to enjoy the sunset with a cocktail in hand. (We’ve told them they need to come to dinner every day!)

Fresh Corn Fettuccine

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb fettuccine
  • 5 ears corn on the cob, sucked and kernels cut off the cob
  • 1 C heavy cream
  • 5 strips center-cut bacon, diced
  • 2 large shallots, diced
  • 1 bell pepper (I used 2 very small green ones we picked), diced
  • 1/2 C vegetable stock
  • 2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 tomato, diced
  • hot sauce (to taste)
  • 1/2 – 1 C shredded parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 C fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1/2 C fresh basil, chopped

Steps:

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
  2. Put 1/4 of the corn kernels in a food processor with the cream. Blend until smooth, season with S+P.
  3. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining corn, shallots, bell pepper, S+P, cook another 5 minutes until veggies are tender. Stir in the stock, thyme, and corn/cream mixture. Reduce the heat and simmer until slightly thickened. Gently stir in the tomato. Season to taste with hot sauce, S+P.
  4. Toss cooked pasta into the sauce with 1/2 C Parmesan cheese and the parsley. Garnish with basil and extra cheese.

*This recipe is adapted from Rachael Ray’s Look + Cook*

Fresh Corn Fettuccini for #SundaySupper from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Appetizer

Breakfast

Salad

Main Dish

Side Dish

Dessert

Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Three Bean Salad

~ lk529 ~ 10 Comments

You guys, I have a story to share.

And it has absolutely nothing to do with the side dish I’m sharing with you. A dish that’s perfect for potlucks and looks like summer.

Today was a rough day. Tempers were running both short and high. The day started 45 minutes too early (when you have two energetic little boys at home, that 45 minutes is precious!), the broken garage door (full story on that Sunday) was being uncooperative putting me in a bad mood I couldn’t snap out of, and naps were not taken. My 2 year old didn’t listen even a little bit at the playground, and I have a “three strikes you’re out” rule which cut our trip quite short.

IMG_2621

When we got home all he wanted to do was play in his Duck Pond Water Table patio. I told him he had to prove to me that he could listen. He was charged with going into his room, getting a book, and sitting still while I read to him. My kid came back with a Chick-fil-A kid’s meal board book – a 4 sentence novel! FullSizeRender (1)Seriously, is my child that smart or was it simply coincidental? After some time playing in the water the boys had their first shared bath. Firecracker asked for dinner, which he didn’t eat. Treat was fussy, so I assumed he was also hungry (he did eat). At 6:20pm both boys were asleep at the table. Thankfully my husband was on his way home and I didn’t have to figure out how I was going to wriggle us out of our position. (See photo. –>)

It’s now 9pm and the boys are still sleeping in their beds! I’m a little nervous for what that means my tomorrow will look like. But I’m grateful for the date my husband and I ended up getting. We cooked dinner together and ate it on the patio. We then shared the kitchen clean up, and watched non-cartoon television. Ah, the exciting life of parents of young children.

Firecracker ended up waking around 9:30. He needed to come upstairs for a cup of water and to watch his nighttime programming. He then snuggled in our bed for a little bit before asking to go lay down in his room. Treat stayed asleep until his typical midnight awakening, and 4, and both were up between 6-6:30.

Three Bean Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb fresh green beans, cut in 1/2″ pieces
  • 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 bell pepper, diced (I used a combination of orange and red)
  • 1/2 red onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (I used Gourmet Garden lightly dried parsley)
  • 1/4 C + 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 C canola oil
  • 3 tbsp agave

Steps: 

  1. Cook green beans in a pot of boiling salted water for 4 minutes, or until desired tenderness is achieved. Drain and place the beans in a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain.
  2. Toss green beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, pepper, and parsley in a large bowl.
  3. In a measuring cup, whisk together the vinegar, oil, and agave. Season to taste with S+P. Dress bean salad with as much dressing as desired.

*This recipe is adapted from Marcie at http://flavorthemoments.com/fresh-and-easy-three-bean-salad/*

Three Bean Salad - Sew You Think You Can Cook

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

#FoodieExtravaganza: Lemonade

~ lk529 ~ 15 Comments

foodieextravaganza-300

Happy August, everyone! August is a great month, although there aren’t any legal holidays to get you a day or two off of work. August is the final month of summer, the month when most people are taking family vacations, and the month that holds my birthday!

August also has some of the best foodie holidays. It’s National Brownies At Brunch Month (say, whaaat?!), National S’mores Day is the 10th, and the last day of the month is Eat Outdoors Day (what a fun family tradition to start!). Two years ago #FoodieExtravaganza celebrated waffles and last year potatoes.

The Foodie Extravaganza is a monthly party hosted by bloggers who love food! Each month we incorporate one main ingredient or theme into recipes to share with you. We take turns hosting and this month, it’s my turn! I decided on Lemonade Day, which falls on the 20th. Why? Because lemonade is one of my favorite summertime treats. I make a minimum of 2 homemade lemonades once summer hits. (You can read more about my citrus juicing love here.)

I decided to take a different approach with this year’s new lemonade. No sugar! Instead, this lemonade gets its sweetness from honey. You can alter how cloyingly sweet you want your beverage to be by playing around with different honey varieties. (About.com has a great resource for describing the different flavor profiles of each type of honey.)

Honey Mint Lemonade Sew You Think You Can Cook

Honey Mint Lemonade

Ingredients:

  • 2 C freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 3 lb lemons)
  • 9 C water, divided use
  • 1/4 C honey (any variety of your choosing)
  • 3 sprigs fresh mint
  • sparkling water for serving (optional)

Steps:

  1. Microwave 1 C water for 1 minute, or until hot but not boiling. Stir honey into hot water until dissolved. Add mint and steep 5 minutes. Remove mint and discard.
  2. Combine honey mixture, lemon juice, and remaining 8 C water in a pitcher.
  3. Option to add a splash of sparkling water to serve.

*This recipe was inspired by SkinnyMs at http://skinnyms.com/homemade-honey-lemonade-with-fresh-mint-recipe/*

Honey Mint Lemonade for #FoodieExtravaganza from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Be sure to check out these other lemonades:

Dairy-Free Frosted Lemonade by Cookaholic Wife

Frosty Raw Strawberry Lemonade by Fearlessly Creative Mammas

Lemony White Sangria by Hardly A Goddess

Papaya Lemonade (or cocktail!) by Caroline’s Cooking

Passion Tea Lemonade by Making Miracles

Peachy Lemonade by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Pineapple Pink Lemonade Shaved Ice by Food Lust People Love

Shikanji (Indian Lemonade) by Tara’s Multicultural Table

Sparkling Apple and Watermelon Lemonade Spritzers by Sneha’s Recipe

Sparkling Blue Basil Lemonade by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Sparkling Milk Lemonade by Our Good Life

If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you’re a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out HERE.

Peanut Butter Crepes

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

Last month we went strawberry picking. Battling traffic for 2 1/2 hours (one way) for 50 minutes of picking time was absolutely worth it! These strawberries had the sweetest scent I’d ever sniffed. We had 4 1/2 pounds of strawberries making the road trip back home with us. Some green bell peppers, green beans, cherry tomatoes, and local honey hitched a ride, too.

13700220_10103887059219031_4812882046928772575_n

I’d put out a request to some of my local SoCal bloggers for their best strawberry recipes. And then, I didn’t use a single one! These strawberries barely made it a week. (To be fair, I froze about a third of them right away.) When something is just that good you almost don’t want to waste it as an ingredient. Instead, I decided to do crepes for dinner, filling them with our freshly picked strawberries.

I was quite hesitant with the crepe batter. It’s essentially all egg white and some peanut butter. I thought, “There’s no way!” But, I found the recipe from Natural Noshing’s Secret Recipe Club reveal of my dear friend Tara’s blog. I told myself that, if two people can succeed with these crepes, then it’s bound to work!

The first crepe is always a throw away – me, I ended up with a severely burnt crepe due to a child required my immediate attention. I told myself, “one more try”. And if it doesn’t work, I’ll throw in a bunch of flour and just make regular pancakes. Plan B was never needed. The only problem is that this recipe doesn’t make very many crepes! However, the use of peanut butter actually makes them filling and satisfying enough to feed 2 (and a half) people. You can always stretch out the crepes with whatever fillings you decide.

My crepes were filled with softened cream cheese, cinnamon sugar, and fresh sliced strawberries. Stuart filled his crepes with Nutella, fresh sliced strawberries, and honey. Firecracker had his with Nutella and fresh sliced strawberries.

Other filling options could include banana, jelly, chocolate chips, and/or maple syrup.

Peanut Butter Crepes

Ingredients:

  • 1 whole egg
  • 6 egg whites
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 heaping tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp creamy peanut butter

Steps:

  1. Using a hand mixer, whisk the egg and egg whites until frothy. Add in the vanilla, sugar, and peanut butter until smooth.
  2. Pour 1/4 C batter into a small greased skillet. (I used 1-2 tsp butter between each crepe) Swirl the pan around to create an even crepe. Once the surface bubbles flip and cook another minute. Remove, repeat with remaining batter.
  3. Serve with desired fillings.

*This recipe is adapted from Nora at https://naturalnoshing.wordpress.com/2015/07/26/peanut-butter-crepes-with-cinnamon-cream-cheese-filling-grain-free-src/*

Peanut Butter Crepes Sew You Think You Can Cook

And if you need an idea for all those leftover egg yolks, might I suggest chocolate frozen custard?