Unthaw Yourself With These Healthy Cooking Alternatives

Do you often wish you could make delicious and flavorful meals at home but you assume that the recipe must incorporate a lot of butter, salt, and fats to taste good? Well there are ways to cook delicious, flavorful, and most importantly healthy meals throughout the week. I must say that it's easier just to pick up a frozen pizza or a "healthy option" frozen dinner at the supermarket, but you can make a much better version of these meals without taking much time.

The frozen dinners (even the supposedly healthier options) in the supermarket are loaded with fat, chemicals, calories, sugar, and most importantly salt. In order for these frozen meals to last and stay on the shelf they "need" these preservatives and chemicals in order to have a longer shelf life. Now I put the word need in quotes because honestly the food manufactures don't have to add a whole laundry list of chemicals and preservatives to preserve shelf life because these items are being purchased within a week, not years, or even decades! In my opinion there really isn't a need or purpose to add high fructose corn syrup or any other scientific chemical compound to preserve these frozen meals. The more preservatives the more sodium there is in the food. On average a frozen meal is over 50% of your daily recommended amount of sodium for the day and with many products the average amount of sodium is close to 100% of your whole days worth of sodium.

So in order to unthaw yourself from the frozen chains of the food manufacturers you have to learn and create healthier cooking alternatives. The most popular meals that I have at my house are pizza, chicken, salmon, and pasta. Now all of these meals are typically associated as being labeled as unhealthy food, but that's only because of the way the majority of the public prepares it. A lot of people enjoy cheesy pizza loaded with pepperoni and greasy sausage, deep fried chicken, farm raised salmon, and white pasta. You can still enjoy these foods and not feel the guilt that goes hand-in-hand with the fatty truth.

When you purchase a prepackaged frozen pizza it's convenient but you also have no control over what the ingredients are or how much of those ingredients are on the pizza. You can buy a package of multigrain or whole wheat dough from Whole Foods Market, that is loaded with fiber and only a few natural ingredients. After you roll out the dough you can make a great Margarita pizza. All you need is fresh basil, one whole onion, some fresh mozzarella (preferably the baseball form), and a can of no salt added crushed tomatoes. A lot of people use tomato sauce on their homemade pizza but the problem I have with jarred tomato sauce is the incredible amount of sugar in the sauce. When you pour almost a whole jar of tomato sauce you're getting a ton of added and hidden sugar and salt that you didn't expect to get. The can of crushed tomatoes gives the pizza a nice fresh, light, and refreshing taste.

Chicken is a very popular dish in many households but you have to be careful with the preparation of this bird. The one thing you want to avoid eating is the skin because it's just pure fat. When you're eating a chicken that's been deep fried you're eating all that fatty skin. In order to avoid the sinful skin of the chicken you can buy Belle and Evans organic skinless chicken breasts and bake it in the oven. You're probably thinking you still crave the crispy sensation from the deep fried skin, well you can still get that sensation without the fat! All you have to do is coat the chicken breasts with olive oil and then cover them with a mix of breadcrumbs (preferably Ian's Panko breadcrumbs), parsley, black pepper, and chopped garlic. Then all you have to do is bake the chicken in the oven and enjoy a great tasting and flavorful chicken dish without the added fat. If you're tired of having chicken you can always make falafel which is basically crushed chickpeas and parsley.

Salmon is a very healthy meal but if you're buying farm raised (Atlantic) salmon you're not getting all of the nutrients such as Omega 3 fatty acids as you would if you ate the wild salmon. Farmed raised salmon is very popular in restaurants but you can buy wild salmon in the frozen fish aisle in your supermarket. It's usually not much more money than farmed raised salmon and it has more Omega 3 fatty acids and less mercury and other potentially harmful compounds. I find it easy to buy and cook the wild salmon burger patties (found at Whole Foods Market). You can simply have it as a sandwich or in a salad (filled with fresh vegetables of course).

Good Morning Muffins, adapted from The Pioneer Woman

On most weekends, I like to make egg dishes for breakfast.  Thanks to Eggland's Best, I've been supplied with one year's worth of eggs! This morning, I had an urge to bake muffins. I was up earlier than usual, and I decided it was time to make a recipe that I bookmarked from one of my favorite food blogs-- The Pioneer Woman.  I assume that most of you food bloggers have visited her blog. If not, I'd do that when you have a few hours to spend. Ree Drummond is funny, and a very good writer. She takes beautiful photos. Her recipes are mostly "comfort food" and some of them are bathroom scale busters. This recipe has a couple of  "indulgence's-- one stick of butter and a sugary topping.  That's my kind of treat! What I decided I would not use is one of Ree's original ingredients-- shortening.  The orange marmalade and fresh squeezed orange juice is what most intrigued me about this recipe.  Plus, my family loves muffins.  I especially love them with my morning paper and a cup of freshly brewed dark roast coffee.  Muffins take about 10-15 minutes to prepare, and take less than 20 minutes to bake and you don't need to dig out a mixer. In fact, you want to make muffins by hand, or they'll turn out tough and full of holes because the gluten in the flour has been worked too much.  Trust me. Trust Alton Brown!

 
I decided to use Organic Pastry Flour. If you've never used this whole wheat, it's so worth trying. I have to say that I feel a tad bit less guilty about eating baked goods for breakfast, if incorporate this.  Let's begin!  For those of you who are new to my blog (and welcome...) I always have a printable recipe at the bottom of this post.  To start, the ratio I use is 25% pastry flour and 75% unbleached flour. I recently watched an Alton Brown episode of "Good Eats".  He uses his food processor to sift dry ingredients, because the blades aerates the dry ingredients, so that's exactly what I did-- because Alton Brown says s!. I added the flours, sugar and baking powder.  Next, I added the cold butter and pulse it until the mixture looked crumbly. I added the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl...

I love shopping at my local World Market! When I spotted this Blood Orange jam, it was destined to be in this recipe.  Truthfully, I don't like orange marmalade on toast. I do like orange marmalade in pan sauces, as glazes or in baked goods.  Next...

You need 1 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice.  I don't buy the stuff in the carton, or the frozen concentrates. I pay a couple of bucks, extra, because I don't want high fructose corn syrup. I want the real deal. End of sermon. Add the juice to the marmalade and one teaspoon of real vanilla. I'll spare you my sermon on artificial vanilla. You're welcome. Beat two eggs.

Pour the juice & marmalade into the dry ingredients...then the beaten eggs.  Now gently mix the ingredients.... gently. Seriously, I just fold them in. Remember what Alton Brown I said about not overworking the dough?
Preheat the oven to 375F and prep your muffin pans with non-stick baking spray. I use an ice cream scoop to easily measure each muffin. Look at those bits of blood orange!

I debated on adding the topping.  I'm so glad that I did. You need sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and 1 Tbsp of melted butter. This makes more topping that you need, though. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of topping on each muffin. Ree says to bake 20-22 minutes, until done. My rule of thumb is to bake at 2-3 minutes less than what a recipe says to do.  I can always bake it longer, but if too long-- well I'm out of luck. So I set the timer to 18 minutes. They were perfectly baked and smelled heavenly. My husband was anxiously waiting with a smile on his face.

These puffed up beautifully.  A trick I learned from King Arthur Flour is to run a knife around each muffin and carefully lay them at an angle. They're hot, so be careful. This prevents the bottoms of the muffins from becoming soggy. After a couple of minutes, I put them on a wire cooling rack.

These were steaming hot when I broke this one open...

VERDICT: Good morning!  I really liked the crunch of the topping.  These remind me of Snickerdoodles. The orange flavor was very mild; I am tempted to add some orange extract to enhance the flavor next time. I'm very tempted to try a version using olive oil, instead of butter.  The ratio of whole wheat to unbleached flour worked out well. The muffins were very slightly dense, but still tender enough to earn a spot in my "keeper file".  I got exactly 18 muffins from this recipe.  The rest will be packed and shipped off to my husband's office.  The last thing I need are a dozen of these babies in my kitchen. I'd eat them all, and that's not good. It is swim season, after all!

I'll share this recipe on my neglected sister blog, "Foodie Fans of the Pioneer Woman".  As of late, I have been so scarce on this blog and in visiting so many of yours. My job has drained most of my energy and I do miss being able to visit blogs daily.  Hopefully, someone who is as much a fan of The Pioneer Woman as I am will take over the hosting of it. Still, I won't abandon it all together.  I think a lot of people are traveling for summer, so blogsophere gets a bit quieter anyway.

If you missed the Giveaway that is being sponsored by Magic Bullet-- this company is giving away Magic Bullet's to four of my readers.

All you have to do is.... well, just click here to find out. The deadline is June 18th.  The printable recipe is below:

Happy Summer!

Win a Magic Bullet by submitting your favorite snack recipe! Four winners will be chosen!

 **THIS GIVEAWAY PASS ENDED. THANKS FOR ENTERING. WINNING RECIPES ARE POSTED HERE**
Magic Bullet wants to know what your favorite snack food recipe is! 

Father's Day is right around the corner! Magic Bullet wants to help you celebrate the fathers in your lives by giving you a Magic Bullet to Go. Summertime is in full swing and you know what that means - delicious snacks. Magic Bullet wants to hear all of your delicious recipes! If you think you have the best snack recipe, share your recipe with the blogosphere – you might just win a Magic Bullet To Go along with the travel bag.

Just leave a comment sharing your snack food recipe and who knows maybe your recipe will influence a future Magic Bullet Recipes book! Also, in order to win you must become of fan of the Magic Bullet - The Official Page on facebook. Here is the link:
http://www.facebook.com/MagicBulletTheOfficialPage

The nice folks at Magic Bullet have offered a chance for FOUR of my followers to win a a Magic Bullet!  Leave your recipe as a comment, below, and you could be one of the lucky winners-- courtesy of Magic Bullet and A Feast for the Eyes.  The deadline to enter is 5pm EST on June 18th.  Magic Bullet will pick the lucky winners. One more thing-- this is only open to residents of the USA!

****All Entries have closed. Thanks for you recipes. Good luck, and the Magic Bullet folks will let me know who the winners are-- I will post the winners names, so stay tuned.***

Good luck! 

Strawberry & Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast. Would you like Strawberry Sauce with that?

I admit that my family and I have  become "Strawberry food snobs".  We like our berries fresh from the fields. We live near a local farmstand that grows organic berries, picked fresh daily.  They are the best I've ever tasted! We never wash them until right before eating them (lest they spoil faster).  We like berries that are dark red in the center, and we like them sweet.   Sometimes I buy strawberries elsewhere, and I am disappointed. They're tart and just not up to our standards. Such was the fate of some berries that I found in my fridge-- they were looking a little worse for wear.  These didn't come from our local farmstand, so they were shoved aside. I don't like to waste food, so I had to make a decision on how to use them.  I surveyed my kitchen and noticed a loaf of French bread that had gone a bit stale.  I originally bought it to make the Pioneer Woman's Cheesy Garlic Bread, but that never happened.  I also have a generous supply of free farm fresh eggs, courtesy of my horse's ranch where she lives.   An idea was born!

Borrowing a method I use to make homemade strawberry jam, I cooked the berries with sugar, a pinch of kosher salt, lemon zest, lemon juice and a pat of butter (the butter prevents foam from building).  I added 1/4 cup of water and brought this to a rolling boil.

One the cooked strawberries coat the back of  a spoon, I used my immersion blender to puree' the sauce. you could do this, in batches, with a blender.  After pouring it into a bowl, I decided to place it on a layer of ice and put it into the fridge.  Now, for the filling.  For inspiration, I borrowed the components I used to make Strawberry Blintzes. I didn't have ricotta cheese, but I figured that cream cheese would do the trick-- otherwise, I would have used a combo of both.

These berries are huge! My son bought them at a road stand, and I thought they looked a little worn for wear. These would be perfect.  I used an 8 oz package of cream cheese, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, the zest of an orange, real vanilla, a pinch of kosher salt and, of course, strawberries. I chose six HUGE berries.  My food processor did the hard work for me. I set that aside.

For six slices of French bread, I used four eggs, about 1 cup of whole milk, and a splash of vanilla.  In my honest opinion, using fresh French bread doesn't work well, and the French toast can turn out really soggy. The bread soaked up all the custard!  I like to lightly oil my grill and then add a pat of butter for flavor. You can use all butter, if you wish.  Who doesn' t know how to cook French toast?!  Once I had a cooked side, I filled every other slice with the cream cheese spread, then put a slice right on top.  I only used 1/4 of the strawberry filling, but that's okay... I'm sure I'll think of a way to use it up! 

Now, to plate this... by the way, I'm one of those fanatics who pre-heats her plates! I like to serve things hot!

You could add maple syrup to this, or leave this plain.  This morning, I wanted to use the strawberry sauce, which had thickened up very nicely...

VERDICT:  I felt a sense of accomplishment that I didn't let any food go to waste. The stale bread was "custardy" and had softened just right. My family loved this brunch dish, and my son said that it tasted like my Strawberry Blintzes. I agreed, and it was a lot less work than making crepes. The next time I make this, I will use a combination of cream cheese and ricotta cheese. 

I have two pints of freshly picked strawberries in my fridge.  I think it's time to make Strawberry Ice Cream... wait, maybe strawberry sorbet.  Then again, my son keeps asking me to make Strawberry Cream Cake.  See what I mean?  I seriously doubt that my family could ever tire of strawberries.  Thank goodness they are growing just three miles down our road!

The printable recipes are at the bottom of this post.

Enjoy, from my kitchen to yours!

Grilled Flank Steak with Garlic-Shallot-Rosemary Marinade

Dear Loyal Readers, Followers, Fan Page Subscribers, Family and Friends,

I am in-love.  Deeply in-love. I am so smitten with an 800 pound senior horse, that I have little time to spend on my food blog, let alone anything else!  When I sent my horse to a distant ranch (125 miles away), to enjoy her golden years in retirement, I had no idea how much I'd pine for her.  Memories of watching "Savvy" pinning her ears, while being judged, in cutting (cattle) competitions and proving how she could work a cow by running circles around it and her athletic moves, still makes me smile with fond memories. I was too competitive nervous for me to do the cattle classes-- instead, I had a trainer who loved that horse almost as much as me.

That was before my son was born-- who turns 22 in November. Savannah Sue turns 27 years old this August, and she is still looking great.  Once I retired her from the show ring, she became my faithful trail horse. Nowadays, the  two of us have arthritis, so we both walk with a bit of a limp. I don't have the strength to climb up in her saddle anymore (unless I have a mounting block) and she's also a bit stiff in her joints. It's time for her to just be a horse, though I still find her to be that beautiful Arabian that I bought when she was just a yearling. How time flies!  Now that she's home again,  I find that I am anxious to get home from work, and in in a hurry to whip up a quick dinner. I'm looking for shortcuts to have enough daylight so that I can head down to the ranch to brush my girl, feed her carrots and enjoy the beautiful view where she resides in an enormous paddock. Just this week, I had thawed a flank steak and I happened to catch an episode of America's Test Kitchen, a couple of days earlier.  Thankfully, I had all of the ingredients and I was so pleased that it took all of 5 minutes to prep the meat:

You need olive oil, fresh rosemary (not dried, please), garlic and a shallot.  I used a mini chopper but a blender is fine, too.   I actually did a rough chop on the veggies and put the whole garlic clove in-- I figured the mini food processor would break it down just fine-- which it did!

Place steak on rimmed baking sheet or in large baking dish. Using dinner fork, prick steak about 20 times on each side. Rub both sides of steak evenly with salt and then with paste. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.  This is when I raced down to the ranch to check on my horse...

There was not a soul around-- just a few horses, some goats and the evening Salinas Valley (CA) wind.... 

So much for brushing Savvy's mane....

ADDENDUM:  I lost my beloved mare on June 19, 2010.  For reasons we will never know, she colicked. The vet could not save her, and she was in great pain.  I'm thankful to have brought her home, closer to me. I will never forget my sweet family member.  Thank you, Savannah.

I returned home about 7:15pm and it was too late to start the charcoals on our Weber grill.  Fortunately, we have a gas grill, so I took a chance and gave my husband instructions on what to do-- first, get the grill nice a hot:

Using paper towels, wipe paste off steak; season both sides with pepper. Grill steak directly over coals (or a gas grill) until well browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Using tongs, flip steak; grill until second side is well browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Using paring knife, make small cut into thickest part of meat; if meat is slightly less done than desired, transfer steak to cutting board (meat will continue to cook as it rests). If steak is significantly underdone, position so that thinner side is over cool side of grill and thicker side is over hot side; continue to cook until thickest part is slightly less done than desired, then transfer steak to cutting board.
NOTE: The meat was ready in 9 minutes. I thought it seemed strange to cut a hole in the middle of the steak, but now I understand... you want a shallow hole-- not enough to allow the juices to escape (thus dry steak).  One more minute and the steak would have been overdone.

Loosely tent steak with foil; let rest 5 to 10 minutes. Using sharp chef's knife or carving knife, slice steak about ¼ inch thick against grain and on bias. Serve immediately.

I took this one, very  fast shot,  and we enjoyed this with grilled vegetables and a baked potato.  The meat was simple to make and flavorful. Had I marinated this overnight, I think it would have been even better. I do apologize that my photos aren't my best, but like I said... I'm so smitten with my horse, that I am taking a modified break from blogging recipes-- please forgive me, if I haven't been on your blog lately.  I will, but I need to enjoy the novelty of having a big pet that follows me around like a puppy dog.  My horse has given me 26 years of loyalty, beautiful trail rides, trophies, ribbons and joy.  She deserves a big welcome home, lots of carrots and the best quality of life.  People ask me how long horses live-- my answer is that I have known horses who lived to be in their thirties!  I'll be posting more photos of the ranch, because it is a very beautiful place to be.  In fact, I'm on my way as soon as I hit SEND.

I'll be back, with lots more recipes.  My vacation begins in two weeks and I'll have more time. The printable recipes is at the bottom of this post.

California Black Bean Huevos Rancheros with homemade salsa

Saturday was a very special day for me.  My Arabian horse came home, after two years of living on a ranch in Paso Robles.  It was a matter of economics, and an offer I couldn't refuse, to move her 120 miles away.  "Savvy" has been well looked after and she was doing well. The problem was, I wasn't.  I found myself longing to brush her, feed her carrots, nuzzle her mane and to appreciate what only a true horse person can understand-- that "equine smell" of horse sweat, with notes of mustiness and ... well, horse. As luck would have it, someone I have known for decades owns a ranch about 12 miles from my home.  Charlene graciously offered to trailer my mare for the two-hour long haul back to Salinas, California. Excitedly, I called out to my girl, "Savvy!!" and I could hear her whinny as the trailer pulled in to her new home.  She unloaded a bit stiffly, so we took her into the arena.  It took less than a minute for her to sniff, paw and find just the right place to buckle her front knees and plop down for a good roll.

Savannah Sue, has officially checked out her new home and I was grinning from ear to ear. I missed that 27 year old horse more than I imagined!   Her new digs are quite lovely, I must say.  It's also a good 20-30 degrees cooler. I wilt in weather that is higher than my coastal 70-80 degrees. While Savvy got to sniff around, and her new neighbors came to check her out....

...we drove up to the main house. The owners are away at their second home in Hawaii. Nice, huh?

The top right photo is not a small house. It's a "Chicken Condo".  I'd say that there won't be a coyotes, foxes nor or any kind of predator that can get to these chickens!  Next door, is a more typical chicken coop with Mr. Rooster. The caretaker handed me a carton of fresh eggs, freshly laid that day!  Score!!  After brushing my horse, and feeding her carrots, we headed home.  I felt like all is right with my world, just  knowing that my horse was 15 minutes away from home.  

This morning, I pondered how to enjoy these eggs.  If you've never tried farm fresh eggs, I can tell you that the yolks are more yellow. I personally believe that they taste better.  Huevos Rancheros, I decided, would be perfect. I fact, just last week, I had  received a box of California Grown Avocados-- courtesy of the Foodbuzz  Tastemaker Program.  I've been enjoying them a few different ways (which I will blog very soon).  All I needed was salsa, but my homegrown tomatoes aren't ready.  Pioneer Woman to the rescue! Fortunately, I stockpile canned tomatoes in all size, shapes and flavors.  You need a 28 ounce can of tomatoes, a can of Rotel Tomatoes-- which I didn't have. I simply added minced mild green chilis, which are a pantry staple in my home. A food processor makes this a breeze to make:

You also need onion, fresh jalapeno, fresh cilantro and a garlic clove.  If you've never worked with jalapenos, just remember a few things-- the membrane holds all the heat. Remove the seeds, too, and wash your hands! If you accidentally rub your eyes, you will be very sorry! If you hate cilantro (Chinese Parsley), leave it out. Thankfully, we love cilantro and grow it in my own backyard.

Toss all of your ingredients into the food processor. Add 1/4 tsp of cumin (or more, if you wish), a pinch of sugar and salt, and fresh lime juice.  I coarsely cut the canned mild green chilis and then pulsed these ingredients about 3 times-- we don't want puree!

Now add the undrained tomatoes and pulse this a few more times. Taste with a tortilla chip. Mine needed more salt. Yummy!
TASTING NOTES: I see no reason for me to buy salsa in the deli section nor jars at the grocery store.  This is much easier to make, and you can adjust the "heat".  1 whole jalapeno gave this some kick.  1/2 jalapeno would be more my preference, but my boys like it hot. If you want mild,leave out the jalapenos, altogether but don't skip the minced green onion. If you have Rotel tomatoes (which are tomatoes with mild green chili peppers, and some seasonsings) that works, too.  Salsa is ready. Next, you need eggs, a can of black beans (drained and rinsed), corn tortillas and cheese. I used Cotija cheese.

I lightly cooked each tortilla in a little vegetable oil, until soft. Then I drained and patted it with paper towels.
Now for those lovely eggs-- sunny side up.  To the black beans I added a bit of chicken stock to make them a little moist,  and mashed them just a little bit-- or, you could puree them.  Since the salsa has kick to it, I didn't season the beans. Let's build it-- layer 2-3 corn tortillas. Next, some beans and a little bit of Cotija cheese. I decided to broil it for about 30 seconds, to melt the cheese. Next the salsa, then the eggs.  Sprinkle with a little more cheese and slices of avocado.

We were so hungry that I didn't photograph the egg-- which was cooked perfectly, with just the right amount of beautiful yolk.  I've provided printable recipes for the Huevos Rancheros and the Homemade Salsa, at the very bottom of this post. I hope you'll try this. We loved it.  I'm submitting this recipe to my sister blog, "Foodie Fans of the Pioneer Woman", since Ree Drummond inspired me to make my own salsa. It's so easy!  .

I was supposed to publish a round-up, today, but...well, I'm distracted by a four-legged creature that I've owned for 26 years.  I'll publish it in the next day or two. I promise!

I'm looking forward to spending more time with my horse-- and more fresh farm eggs wouldn't be so bad, either!

Happy Summer!

Grilling Season Family Favorites

Tomorrow is a holiday that has been marked as a time to remember our fallen soldiers-- men and women-- who have given their lives for our country.  Second to that, it's a time for us to officially remove our winter covers from our Weber or gas grills.  I am so enjoying grilled steaks, chicken, salmon and vegetables.  I thought I'd share with you some grilling recipes, side dishes and desserts that I plan to make for my family-- now that the late California rains have stopped and we are enjoying 70 degree weather. Perfect.  The photo you see, above, is Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip-- which is one of my top viewed recipes.  Next to brisket (which I have yet to master grilling), this is my husband's very favorite grilled meal of all time.  Is this a little to rare for you?  Just cook it a bit longer!  I love this best between two slices of grilled bread with a schmear of mayo and Dijon. If you like the flavor of garlic, this recipe is for you! 

Ina Garten's Butterflied Grilled Chicken  (Spatchcock chicken) -- juicy & flavorful. 

It's a little too early for my homegrown tomatoes to be ready, but when they are...

Bruschetta Burgers are just around the corner!

Mmmm, Grilled Chicken Teriyaki Burgers with fresh pineapple rings.  I also show you a pretty cool gadget that makes slicing pineapples really easy.  How about some side dishes?

If you want break away from traditional American potato salad, with mayonnaise, my mother's German Potato Salad will be a hit at your party. 

This Antipasto Salad feeds a crowd, and isn't too complicated to make.  The quick marinated mushrooms are out of this world-- don't bother with buying these in a jar. I could have eaten a huge bowl of these, all by myself!

This classic Broccoli salad is a sure hit!

Strawberry season is in full swing This beautiful salad is a tribute to our locally grown fresh spinach, too.  The poppy seed dressing is out of this world-- one of my very favorite dressings.  I also use it as a slaw dressing. So good!

I'm going to be making the Pioneer Woman's Cheesy Garlic Bread, tomorrow, for two reasons-- #1 this is one of my earliest photos (before I discovered my macro button and natural lighting) and #2 This is the best garlic bread ever-- fattening as all get out, but delicious!  I want to take new photographs that will do this recipe more justice.

Cook's Illustrated Strawberry Cream Cake will be our weekend dessert. So good!

 Just click on each recipe name, and you will find the printable recipes.  Happy Grilling!

I hate to cut this round-up short, but my horse is twenty minutes from arriving at her new ranch.  I haven't seen her for nine months, so I am going to race out the door with a bag of fresh carrots for Savannah Sue.  I'm so excited!  Enjoy your weekend, everyone!  I know that I will!

A very happy,