Finger Food

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Finger Food

A while back, shortly after ALT, Blurb asked me if they could use my book as a marketing piece for their brand, because they really liked what I made, and I of course said yes. So I was pretty excited when they contacted me again, this time because they have decided to throw a party to showcase some of their favorite food books, and they want me to cook for some folks, and maybe even shoot a little video. Yes, I'm pretty excited.  I had to pick something from the book, which only has a small food section, and because it makes a great finger food, and it's pretty fun to look at I chose the sushi hand-balls AKA temarazushi from this post.  I'm working on making them a little more visually interesting for the table so it's what's for dinner around here right now.  Here' a freshened up tutorial. 

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Old School: Making Fruit Roll-Ups

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Old School: Making Fruit Roll-Ups

Let me start with the fact that I've seen this idea popping up all over Pinterest lately and it was one of those things I just had to try for myself.  The fruit roll-up was something I always wanted to have in my own lunch growing up, because it seemed candy-like, and it probably was, because it wasn't ever in my lunch. Making an all fruit version yourself takes very little prep time, because all you need to do is puree fruit in a food processor or blender, but they take hours in the oven at a low temperature to dehydrate into fruit leather.  Two baking sheets yields 12-14 roll-ups, and they last for up to 4 months, so it's a worth-wile weekend project. Next time I think I'll try some more adventurous combos like spicy mango-chipotle, or a super tart lemon-apple. Whatever the ingredients, here's the technique:

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Fall Colors

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Fall Colors

One advantage of having whole grains and veggies prepped for the week is that lunch is a bit more exciting than the usual turkey sandwich (or peanut butter and jelly if you are a lazy daisy like me). We have kabocha squash on hand from our garden right now so I've been roasting it with a little olive oil and popping it into meals- we made enchiladas stuffed with mashed-roasted kabocha last weekend. Roasted kabocha also makes a great addition to a picnic salad like this.  The squash is nutty and soft, which works really well with sweet roasted beets and tangy fresh apple.  I think it would be delicious with figs too now that they are in season. To make yourself a "Rainbow Bowl" follow the recipe below.

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Clean Eating

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Clean Eating

With school back in session for all of us, I am becoming a domestically disorganized mess. Once an expert grocery shopper and menu planner, I seem to have no time or energy to commit to a routine which makes for a lot of rotting produce, last minute burrito runs, and consequently too tight jeans. This will not do. I finally sat down and made a plan over the weekend and we now have a refrigerator full of groceries intended for meals, healthy dinner plans, and a schedule (practices, classes, late work nights). Part of my reinstated food-planning routine will involve clean eating. This sounds like a Whole Foods trend, and it kind of is, but I really love the concept which is basically eating whole, simple foods, using locally sourced produce, humanely raised lean meats, exercising a little portion control and drinking lots of water (something I am prone not to do).  A really easy way to make this eating style easy is to make a lot of whole grains, lentils and beans ahead of time.

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Goat Cheese Macaroni

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Goat Cheese Macaroni

Oh it's that melancholy time of year. The summer abruptly comes to an end and school starts back up for our whole family. I began my classes on Monday, but for the men in the house today is the first day of school. It's our tradition to make comfort food on the eve of summer break's end, and this time around I really outdid myself- one can brag if their macaroni and cheese is considered "really yummy" and "I want this for breakfast" good. We've found that our dairy-free kid can tolerate goat cheese, so I used a goat cheddar for this dish (found at Trader Joes) and he was able to dig in with the rest of us. Here's our simple recipe that will hopefully become a comfort staple in your house all year round.

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