Peanut Butter Pretzel Treats

Every foodie loves a well stocked pantry.  Filled with packaged of dried beans, cans of tomatoes, cartons of broth and bags of bite-sized candies, it's a perfect little hidey-hole of tasty tidbits.  But as is the case with any hole, there's a dark little corner in the end that is rarely explored.  It goes undiscovered until you pull out calcified honey bears, half eaten bags of chips and melted chocolate chip blocks.  You've all been there....pulling out an item and thinking, "When did I even buy this?"  In my pantry, the two biggest culprits are pretzel sticks and mini marshmallows.  They have a tendency to flock to the corners and lurk for months before finally revealing their stale, pulverized remnants.  And I can never throw anything out.....ever.  So to battle my way back to a clean pantry, I've created several treats of pretzel and marshmallow for the hubs eating pleasure.

Croque Houmous

There are times in your life that call for comfort food.  Soup feeds a cold, flat coke settles and upset stomach and soft potatoes soothe a sore throat.  But when the hubs woke up this morning with a vicious inflamed lymph node, I was at an utter loss as to an appropriate comfort food.  All I knew what that it had to be  cheesy, hot and have some sort of sauce smeared on top.  Then it came to me....grilled cheese.  But not just any grilled cheese - his all time favorite grilled cheese.  Because sometimes cheese between two toasted slices of bread just isn't enough.  There are times when covering that deliciousness with a béchamel sauce is just what the doctor ordered.  That's me, the lower-case doctor....ya know, not in medical school to become a real Doctor.

Grilled Zucchini Pesto Roll-Ups

I spend a lot of time thinking about food.  In fact, most people I live with (a-hem) would call it an unhealthy obsession.  Along with my obsession, I also have a compulsion....to think up new flavor combos, try unique spins on the classics or just make something flipping delicious.  This recipe falls into the third category.  In fact, it wasn't something I had ever planned on blogging.  Rather, it was just a throw-together-from-random-refrigerator-ingredients well-planned appetizer that I made for a get-together with some friends one evening.  Before I could set down my toothpick, the hostess made me swear to post this on my blog.  So this one goes out to the lovely hostess...salut!

Breakfast Polenta

The first question of the weekend is simple:  Sweet or Savory?  You wake up Saturday morning, stretch, pet the pooch/pussycat/parakeet/pet, and immediately begin thinking what kind of breakfast is going to help your weekend start off on the right side of the bed.  It's the most important meal of the day and an equally important question.  Sometimes a little something sweet hits the spot - tender french toast, sweet cinnamon rolls, scones with fresh jam.  But other days you may crave something savory - rich bacon, salty cheddar, soft poached eggs.  We usually tend to split up our weekends with one sweet, one savory (girl vs. guy....guess who's who?!)  And if it's a savory day, we often go with Breakfast Polenta.

Hummus & Avocado Pasta

Happy Tuesday!  Sure, this weekday does not contain the same giddy delightedness as Friday, but it's one day closer than Monday.  And man oh man...have I been having some Mondays.  I've broken dishes, lost keys and collided with every knee-high piece of furniture in our house.  I even attempted to pull off the yogurt I spilled on my pants at work as the "new" hombre effect (so far, it hasn't caught on).  With all of these ridiculous mishaps, I've been enjoying the uneventful Tuesdays that follow.  But even with this lingering case of the Mondays, we've still managed to stay well fed.  I just opt for recipes that require less knife work and am sure to steer clear of deep fryers.

Grilled Ricotta Cakes

I have a new favorite patty.  Ms. Mayonnaise from Doug was a long time favorite of my younger years, while adulthood has been mostly dedicated to quinoa and black bean.  But now there's a new little patty in town...my yummy little ricotta patty.  You know that delicious, creamy ricotta that typically fills lasagna?  Well that's exactly what these taste like.  All the delicious tenderness of lasagna filling, but with a crispy exterior....yum.  Plus you don't have to make an entire casserole.  Super versatile, these little patties are my new favorite side.

Cinco De Mayo Baked Breakfast Peppers

Feliz Cinco de Mayo, todo el mundo!  (And thanks for your assist on that one, Google translate.)  I absolutely love this holiday.  I don't really need an excuse to eat Mexican food, but will take advantage of one when it comes strolling by every year.  We've been embracing the Mexi-spirit all weekend by sipping La Palomas and noshing on Chopped Guacamole.  But I would have to say that breakfast is my favorite time of day to head south of the border.  Nothing quite wakes you up like a side of spicy salsa with your eggs.  So in honor of today, we're sharing our Baked Breakfast Peppers with a Cinco de Mayo twist.

Spring Veggie Ricotta Pita - Two Ways

Meatless May is off to a delicious start!  Lunch on day one was a bit rocky due to a lack of planning prior to my trip to the market, but a quick extra ingredient stop quickly smoothed it all out.  Outside of snubbing a delectable-looking cheese ball at work and avoiding the chorizo samples at the store, we really haven't missed meat at all.  It's giving us lots of room to be creative with our cooking, and this little lunch is a perfect example of thinking outside the box done right.