Blueberries are IN!

While fruit is in season i HIGHLY encourage you to go crazzzzy!! blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and peaches are perfect for making any kind of cobbler, smoothie, bread, breakfast, snack, jams, sauces, etc! I had some extra blueberries in the fridge and was in the mood for some fluffy pancakes....mmmmm! these may look like ordinary blueberry pancakes but I added a little pizazzzz to the recipe to make them unforgettable!

One-Butt Recipe:

• Take pancake mix and make according to directions on package...hate to say it, but i didn't have time to make homemade pancake batter the night before
• To the mix I added a little lemon zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, plain greek yogurt, blueberries and a little brown sugar!
• make you don't "smush" the pancake when it's in the frying pan...let is sit on low heat until bubbles form on top to ensure they are perfect when you flip!
• it's a great idea to sneak some other fruit & veggies into these since the blueberry flavor is so strong (shaved carrots, diced strawberries, crushed nuts such as walnuts or almonds)
• powdered sugar makes the perfect topping, it tastes great and looks beautiful!

I'll eat breakfast ANY time of day!

What's better than a juicy, thick breakfast sandwich?? I was feeling creative last week and decided to make a little breakfast in bed on my day off. In addition to the sandwich I sliced some Georgia peaches and made some smooth, creamy cheese garlic grits!

Sandwich:

• toasted english muffins instead of toast--it holds flavor and the egg much better
• i prefer egg whites of 2 eggs, beat with a little milk, salt, pepper, fresh rosemary, little minced garlic, mozzarella cheese and cajun seasoning-->ROSEmary really adds GREAT flavor!
• I spread some pesto on one half of the sandwich and dijon mustard on the other
• stack sandwich with fresh spinach, 2 slices of tomato, some onion (preferably caramelized), eggs and 1 sliced of sharp cheddar cheese and 1 slice of pepper jack cheese
• I garnished with my favorite hot sauce on the side!
• great to serve open-faced as well....if I would've had the ingredients to make some hollandaise sauce that would be perfect to pour on top!

Spinach Pesto

There is nothing I love more than a great Pesto to use on pasta, sandwiches or toast! I used some of my homegrown Basil for this recipe & i could just taste the freshness!! I highly suggest storing in a small glass jar to preserve freshness longer in your 'frig...found the cute glass jar below at Goodwill for $.99! Just be sure to sanitize and clean a few times and these glass jars are good as new

One-Butt Recipe:

  *ingredients:

• Basil leaves
• pine nuts (about 2 tbsp)
• olive oil
• fresh spinach
• 2 cloves garlic
• parsley
• parmesan cheese

   *concoction:

   I put everything except the Parmesan cheese in the food processor and pulsed until smooth. I add lots of grated cheese and a little extra olive oil to get a smoother consistency! At first it may look like you've used too much olive oil but once it's in the refrigerator for a little bit this actually helps the consistency. 

Some great things to add to this recipe are:

• sun dried tomatoes
• asparagus
• little salt
• diced jalapeno if you like it hot:)

MUDDDDD Pie

    I was in a "need my chocolate fix" kind of mood this week and had been dying to try this new Mississippi Mud Pie recipe....homemade crust & all!!

     It really didn't take too long (besides baking in the oven for 45 minutes) and almost all the ingredients I already had in my cabinet! It also didn't have that much sugar, which was a bit comforting from a "healthy-dessert" perspective....

         It turned out SO smooth in the middle and the cool whip on top added just the right balance to all the chocolateeeee-rich goodness:) please comment below if you'd like the recipe!

Salsa, Anyone?

One of my favorite SALSA recipes I've made yet! 

     I was so anxious to make this delicious batch because I just picked up some fresh Georgia tomatoes, vidalia onions, and jalapenos at my favorite Amish produce stand, and have recently grown my own fresh cilantro! 

       It was so easy (& fun!) to make...I highly encourage you all to make your own fresh salsa to always keep in the 'frig! 

       It's great to serve with any of the following:

• tortilla chips
• sliced cold veggies (cucumber, celery, carrots)
• toasted focaccia or ciabata slices

         OR

• use as a marinade on your favorite meat or seafood:)
• throw on a salad instead of using dressing
• toss in some cold pasta salad

One-Butt Recipe:

    *ingredients:

• 2 garlic cloves
• handful of fresh cilantro
• 2 lbs of tomatoes, quartered
• 1 jalapeno, diced and seeded
• little more than a 1/4 of a vidalia onion
• salt
• 1 lime

    *the concoction:

• In a food processor I pulsed together the garlic cloves, cilantro, jalapeno, and onion!
• Slowly add the tomatoes into the food processor and pulse
• pour final mixture in food processor into a bowl-->I topped with some chopped tomatoes to make the salsa have more "chunk"
• fold in the juice of a entire lime and some salt...i probably put about 2 tsp of salt but you can eyeball it to taste!
• storing in a cute glass jar is a great way to "gift-it" to friends in the summer as a house-warming gift or summer cookout party favor! PLUS, I swear those glass jars make it tastes better!

Southern Living Inspiration!

I was inspired by a unique recipe I found in the recent issue of Southern Living--one of my FAVORITE magazines I can remember reading as a little girl. My mom always had stacks of them in baskets in (what seemed like) every room. 

This spiced peach-carrot bread was quite delicious and almost tasted more like a cobbler than a bread....unfortuantly my peaches were a little too ripe and the bread wasn't able to bake evenly:( I thought on a whim and transferred some slices of the bread to a small baking dish and baked an additional 10 minutes and threw some delicious vanilla ice cream on top:)!

Here is the link for the recipe...

  http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/spiced-peach-carrot-bread-50400000113922/

Try it out!!

And the result is.....

It was DELICIOUS! So i kind of just played along with the ingredients i had in my kitchen so it was fun seeing how it would actually turn out...This would be such a perfect dish to have while curled up by the fire on a cold winter day!

One-Butt Recipe... 

    *ingredients:

• 2 fresh tomatoes (thinly sliced)
• 1 ear fresh white corn (boiled & cut off the ear)
• 1 zucchini (sliced lengthwise)
• 1 squash (sliced lengthwise)
• 1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
• 4 gold potatoes (quartered & boiled)
• heavy whipping cream
• 1 vidalia onion (sauted with garlic)
• fresh thyme and rosemary
• salt & pepper
• garlic (minced)
• 3 tbsp butter
• carrots (blanched)
• shredded sharp cheddar

        *The concoction:

• I first mashed the boiled potatoes and mixed in some heavy whipping cream, butter, salt, pepper, about 2 cloves of garlic, chopped rosemary and thyme and a hint of almond milk...until it tasted good!
• I layered the tomatoes on the bottom of my nonstick casserole dish
• on top of the tomatoes I sprinkled the blanched carrots and the sauted onion, sprinkling some cracked pepper and rosemary on top
• I layered the zucchini slices and then the squash sliced and then sprinkled the white corn 
• It needed something more to hold it together so i added a whole can of fire-roasted tomatoes (juice and all)
• I sprinkled some shredded sharp cheddar (not a whole lot...but i do love cheese!)
• finally i layered the mashed potatoes to fill the casserole dish to the very top!
• baked at 350 degrees for about 35-40 minutes!

*Next time I'd like to add...

• peas
• vegetable broth
• more carrots (shredded)
• more corn....it was the perfect taste of "crunch" between all the layers of veggies, but could've used about 3 ears of corn instead of 1!

Vegetarian Shephard Somethin'

Tonight I'm making a homemade spin on a shepherds pie (i guess that's what you could call it!)...I stopped by the local Amish Produce stand tonight and decided I would make something out of whatever veggies looked delicious...I've got fresh white corn, garlic mashed potatoes, shredded zucchini, slices of tomato and slices of squash layered with flavor and spice! I'll update on how it turns out...along with (hopefully) a marvelously delicious pic:)