Grilled Chipotle Rhubarb Pork & Provolone Rosemary Quesadilla

I can now sympathize with Macaulay Culkin for I, my friends and readers, am home alone.  Take away the tarantula, shoplifting and Michael Jordan cut-out, and you have me.  

However, in the spirit of a true foodie, I am taking inspiration from Macaulay by indulging in my favorite foods while the hubs is away.  And while cheese pizza was the delicacy that abated his loneliness, I am getting creative and dreaming up new food possibilities to distract and comfort me.  

That, and overindulging in red wine.

Green Goddess Breakfast Toasts

About a month or so ago, when blogging around Pinterest, I did a double-take at this Green Goddess Grilled Cheese Sandwich from tastespotting.  Avocado, cheese, pesto grilled to melty perfection?  Yes please.  But as excited as I was to try her recipe, I just kept thinking, "If it only had eggs....."  I mean, who wouldn't want to wake up to that?

Blue Cheese & Peach Burgers

I know, I know, this is a ridiculous post-Mazatlan post.  But after a week of seafood, spice and sangria, a beefy burger sounded quite bueno.  Hence, the peach & blue cheese burger was born.  Featuring our favorite recurring star, charred kale.  Es verdad.

Mazatlan - la Tardía Luna de Miel

Echo de menos Mazatlán. Es cierto.

The sudden drop off in posting was difícil.  But at the same time, very necessary.  Almost one year ago, my wonderful hubs and I became one in holy matrimony.  And though we had a lovely mini-moon, it was about time that we took a full-fledged honeymoon to celebrate.

Grilled Salmon with Blackberry Shallot Chutney & Fried Basil

The boards are over....hooray!  The hubs made it through and felt wonderful about his performance.  Needless to say, a celebration was necessary.  And for two Pacific Northwesterners, no celebration is complete without fresh Alaskan King Salmon.  However, a big celebration calls for a bit of flair, so we pulled out the stops with an amazing blackberry shallot topping and wow....were our taste buds happy.

Chickpea Avocado Toasts with Roasted Red Peppers

It is coming to my attention that I'm slightly obsessed with open-faced sandwiches.  And why not?  A great toasty base piled so high with goodness that has no guarantee of not squishing out the side if made a sandwich...there's nothing wrong with that!

We are also big fans of dip in this household.  My nickname is the condiment queen.  Some people dip a chip....I dunk, scoop and slather.  Two of our all-time favorite dips are guacamole and hummus.  We make both all the time, and had great success when we brought hummus avocado toasts with oven roasted tomatoes to a party a while back.  So rather than mixing up the guac and hummus separately, I figured I'd save myself some dishes and bring the two together in one delicious dip.

And put it on toast.

Lemon Garlic Tilapia Bagel Sandwich with Whipped Dill Cream Cheese

Now that you've made those delicious Double Poppy Seed Bagels, let me give you an idea on how to eat them.  An easy little spin on bagels and lox, this delicious little sandwich was dinner last night.  And on a 90+ degree day, this light, flavorful sandwich is a great way to fill up without overheating.

Double Poppy Seed Bagels

When I married my husband, I married into a familial passion for poppy seed bagels.  His entire immediate family goes nuts for these things.  But not any old poppy seed bagel.  They must be crusty on the outside, soft on the inside, and they must be boiled.  Every time we get together, it seems we go to the best local bagel shop and get a dozen poppy seed, only to discuss how they aren't quite right.  They have high bagel standards.

Raspberry Rhubarb & Goat Cheese Hand Pies

I am a pie person.  While all the other kids had birthday cakes, I always asked for birthday pie.  Marion berry and rhubarb are my favorite summer pies.  Fresh, tangy and flavor fillings surrounded by a flaky crisp crust....what's not to love?  And they hold a candle just as well as any cake.

This weekend, I had a big time hankering for rhubarb pie.  However, this Saturday, the hubs and I are leaving for a week in Mazatlan...yippee!  I had one lonely little leftover stalk in my refrigerator, so rather than going out and buying more, I decided to miniaturize my craving into a hand pie.  But not just any hand pie.....

Blackberry Lamb Mini Pizzas

I am a huge fan of homemade pizza.  At home, the only limitations to what you can create are your imagination and refrigerator contents.  There are no rules, no expectations and no additional fees for extra toppings.  The only judge is your tummy and, in my home, that of the hubs.  The possibilities of pizza are endless.  I could go on forever listing potential sauces, meats, fruits, vegetables, herbs, nuts and so on and so fourth.  And I'm not even mentioning the cheese.

With such a plethora of possibilities, pizza is the perfect foodie playmate.  Not to mention, the perfect vessel to turn random bits of leftovers into something new, creative and tasty.

S'more Samoa Squares (a.k.a. Boards Bars)

As of today, it is only 11 days until the hubs takes his medical board exam.  Needless to say, more and more food is coming out of my tiny kitchen.  Not only does it keep me busy and distracted, but it provides my hubs a little pleasure during his day-long studies.  I'm doing my best to make the tastiest bites I can, much to both of our tummy's delight.

With less than 2 weeks, we've entered the high stress zone.  And stress in our home equals sweets.  Chocolate and cookies have been pouring out of the kitchen.  The rationed bags of Cadbury Mini Eggs that I hid away at Easter are being rationed out and donuts have a microscopic shelf life.  But today, the hubs threw out a request for marshmallows.  Hmmm...what to bake?

Cajun Grilled Tilapia with Black Bean Salsa

The recipe I bring you today is courtesy of my friend, Leslie.  She is my favorite foodie co-worker, and between all the busy-ness at work, we constantly talk about food.  Healthy foods, not-so-healthy foods, summer foods, comfort foods....pretty much anything you can imagine.  This recipe is one she was good enough to share with not only myself, but our entire department at our monthly carry-in.  This dip is phenomenal.  It never fails that at the end of the day, though there are remnants of sweets spread across the counter, her bean dip bowl is always scraped clean.