You know what this is :D I've had it before this year. It's shrimp scampi, heavy on the lemon, please. It's one of the few things both my husband and I will eat, though he prefers his without lemon or parsley. And why, yes! That is parsley from my garden :D (See how much I am loving all the freshness from the garden?) Yum! I just can't wait for the veggies now!

I grabbed this recipe from one of my cookbooks that I really do need to spend more time with. It's Jeanne Lemlin's Simple Vegetarian Pleasures. I've done some of the recipes, but really, everything does look really good. Tonight's dinner was a spinach and roasted red pepper enchilada. I grabbed two, but my eyes were bigger than my stomach, as my dad would say, and I ended up leaving the other on my plate. I doused these good with some plain yogurt, too- I love that tang! I only wish I had used spicier salsa. I was trying a new variety and I didn't realize I grabbed mild. Never again. I love my spice! Just ask my husband who recently planted a dozen habenero plants in the garden.

Another repeat. Beet and balsamic salad. Though, to be fair I used feta instead of goat cheese, and I didn't have a chance to toast the walnuts, so it's not like it's identical to the last beet salads ;) It's always yummy and great to throw together at the last minute; as was the case after a day of playing outside.

Summer Fare! Yes, the hot temperatures make me want to bring out the cold entrees! And here I did just that with a tabbouleh and cucumber salad. Delicious! My two year old didn't quite agree, but maybe next time.

Erm, what can I say about this? It was delicious. I think it was haddock? The whole shopping trip was a blur and I think I told the fish monger to hand over any white fish, and she did. I think it was haddock, though. And the sauce? Don't press! I really can't even remember. I was cleaning my pantry and came across a curry simmer sauce. It was something and mango, I remember, but really, that's all I can remember! I know, not the most appetizing of photos, but after cleaning my pantry all day I just wanted to hurry things along ;)

This dish right here? It was so delicious I am considering having it as part of a weekly rotation! Those of you that know me, know this is BIG! I don't much like to have the same thing twice in one month. Four times in a month? It has to be good! I grabbed the recipe from allrecipes.com; avocado and tuna tapas. It was just so fresh and yummy. I will be having it again this week for sure!

What can I say? Sometimes it's just the right mood for a grilled cheese. I was making one for my oldest daughter and decided it was a good idea, so here's mine. Just plain ol' American cheese here.

So I've finally caught up! Yay! And today I also joined the Daring Kitchen! Just in case anyone from that community is checking out my lil' blog I wanted to say Hi!! I'm excited to try the new challenges and see just how far out of my comfort zone I am willing to go :D We'll see! And if anyone reading this isn't familiar with Daring Kitchen take a look, serious fun!

Doesn't this look yummy? I really like how this picture came out. I think the sun it coming through the kitchen window just right nowadays. It's "corny spaghetti" from allrecipes.com . While I was eating this I realized I think it was the first time all year I've had spaghetti. Not a big pasta eater here. But this might just convert me. And my girls since they ate quite a few helpings despite having their own "girl dinner" to chose from. Good thing I always make extra "just in case".

Polenta and black bean pie. It's gotten to be a bit of a stand by here. Have I posted it before? I always seem to have the ingredients on hand, ya know, black beans, polenta, cheese, corn onion and green pepper. I had it with some plain yogurt and chopped (underripe again!) avocado. Now. I think I will just mention that I know the avocados aren't ripe when I buy them. I realize they are rock hard when I am in teh store. I squeeze each one and buy the one that seems softest. Ya know, like comparing soapstone ro, say, granite. So I dutifully put the avocado in my paper bag, throw in a banana and hope for the best. This one was still quite hard, and quite unedible for the day I made this pie. But it was still a very good pie, regardless.

Sometimes I think it's "easier" to let the girls cook. Then I look at the disaster they've created in the kitchen when they are done and I remember, this is why I do all the cooking. They did enjoy making their own pizzas, one was cheese, another was black olive and the third was black olive and bacon. How much did each child eat of the pizza? exactly one bite. One had too crispy crust, the second apparently doesn't like tomato sauce- a fact that I knew when I told her not to put any sauce on it, and the third, well, she doesn't talk much yet, so who knows, but it probably has something to do with seeing her sisters handly the pizza as if it contained poison, so she followed suit. I ate a few pieces, anyway, so it was all for naught, but next time, I am making the pizza.

Arugula salad! Have I used up that package of arugula yet?!? Yes, this was the last of it ;) I served it with some chopped pears (not just any pears, my favorite, Abate Fetel- yummy, yummy, yummy!), walnuts avocado and parmesan. I topped it all with a splash of raspberry vinegrette.

Here's a problem from getting behind in my blogging. This dish. It was just wondrous. It was the kind of dish I would go to a restaurant and order again. So what's the problem? I can't remember which cookbook or online source I used to get the recipe! It was scallops with a mustard sauce but who knows from where. I will have to track it down for sure. It was that good. The recipe, I think had it served over rice? But I chose some refreshing arugula instead and it was just lovely.

I think I should tell you what this is... well, it's a cake. My mothers day cake. At least, that is what is under the three pounds of assorted sprinkles. Funfetti cake to be exact, ya know, to make sure there is more than 100 sprinkles in everybite. Did I mention the rainbow chip frosting? My girls made this for me. They were so excited. Twizzler ropes divide the cake into three equal decorating parts so each girl could decorate a piece for me. Each girl also thought I would eat a piece of their cake, but no. I did spin it roulette style, and I thought of the irony of that. Death by sugar. But the amount of love they put into this cake cannot be overshadowed by their use of sprinkles. There certainly was love in every bite. Happy mothers day!

Spring vegetable minestrone. Should I say it again, this time with a "rah-rah-rah". I could cheer this soup all day long. With tomatoes, zucchini, and onions. I also threw in some mushrooms, ya know, since I didn't use the whole package (thankfully) on the nastiness from yesterday. My kids are not fans of soup- one refuses to even try soup and opts for vomiting at the prospect instead. They did, however, devour the breadsticks I made for alongside my soup. I managed to pull away one before the riot began.

What you are looking at here is nasty. Nasty on a plate. With a side of peas. Now, if you know me, you know that I will pretty much eat anything, even if it tastes not that good. I'll eat it. But this? No, no, no. I did make an effort. I had four bites. It tasted like... well. salt. It was salt covered solidified vomit. Yes, that was the texture exactly. I really wish I had liked it, though. It was supposed to be tempeh saltimbocca with a mushroom sauce. It was also mu first time trying tempeh, so I am not really jumping up and down at the prospect of trying it again. Maybe sometime, but not until the texture and taste had been a long forgotten memory in my brain. Oh, and lookie- I have this digital memior to always remind me of my feelings on this particular tepeh ;)

And here is a summer side dish that I just couldn't wait until summer to make. Close enough, right? At least I did wait for a warm day to break out my first Caprese salad of the season! I swear, the ball of mozzerlla was sheer perfection! I went on and on about this ball of chese to my husband, he just rolled his eyes. Guess he doesn't fully appreciate it. But oh, I did! And see those little flakes of basil? Grown in my kitchen :D plucked from the stems just moments prior to the photo being snapped. Delicious!

Honestly, I had some leftover hummus and some extra arugula. Sounds great to me, so I chopped up a not yet ripe avocado (darn the grocery!) and tomato and threw the lot on some bread. I did manage to get my girls to try this, but none of them liked the sandwich much. I even was able to get my husband to try a piece of arugula. Apparently he's not a fan. I, on the other hand, love this leaf and hope to be growing quite a bit of it in my garden this summer. An announcement to all my summer visitors? I hope you like arugula!

Is there anything that tastes better on a cold night than a nice, flaky spanikopita? Or, at least spanikopita filling inside puff pastry? I know, traditionally it's phyllo dough, but without my trusted sidekick (Mom) I don't cook much with phyllo. I really should though. But then I woudln't have this little puff pastry of goodness that you see right here.

Spinach Timbales! From the Victory Garden cookbook. I must say, I think these are my first ever timbales. I figured it was like a crustless quiche. They did take a lot longer to cook, and I finally gave up and cranked up the oven. That did the trick. And surprisingly enough I didn't rubber-ize the whole dish with the temperature increase. It was light and fluffy and still moist. A very good timbale, but, alas, I am not sure I will make them again. I did miss the crust.

Soup! I really should make more soup, it's so good! And easy to make, too. This one was a chickpea and ginger stew. Quite good, I must add. I did wallop mine with a bit of sour cream, too. That little dairy island you see in the picture there is a little bit of butter melting into creamy goodness. I just wish I'd had a nice slice of bread with my soup, though. That would have definitely made the meal.
Now, doesn't this look divine? Imagine waking up to the smell of fresh banana bread. Now imagine picking up that nice thick slice, and having it be so moist, and soft... oh yeah. It was good! But don't tell any of my kids that. They all hated it! I have no idea where I've gone wrong. Ah, at least I was able to eat half of it before I came to my senses and put it in the freezer away from my greedy (and banana bread crumbed) paws!

Ok, now, no one have any adverse reactions when I tell you this is cauliflower and cashew croquettes. The last person I told about these ended up gagging away from me. Really, they were good!! It was my attempt to get my daughter, who is in a "phase" to eat more variety. Her proclaimed favorite food is cashews, so here ya go. Yeah, that was a big strike out. I liked it, though! The cauliflower and cashews were held together with some egg and cheese. I did prefer them cold, though, and will have to remember these the next time I go on a picnic.

I was just talking to my mom (Hi Mom!) last night about this scrumptious little bites. I think it was a library recipe? Anyway, mushrooms filled with feta, walnuts, dill, butter and breadcrumbs. I think there was some onion and garlic in there, too. But these actually weren't the best part! I chopped up the stems and mixed them up with the leftover stuffing and made a casserole thing out of it. That was the yummy part! If I make this again I will just save myself the hassle of stuffing the caps and made the casserole.

Mmmm. chocolate cookies made with brownie batter. My daughter wanted some M&Ms in there, too, so in they went. Then she wanted some chocolate chips in there, too, so in they went. A very yummy concoction of chocolate! My other daughter turned up her nose, though, and claimed that these cookies are, "too hard". Erm, more for me!

An eggplant tart that turned out pretty good. I picked this to make to clear out some freezer and pantry space. A puff pastry crust? got it. A can of tomatoes? got it. I did have to buy an eggplant, though, but I did have the egg, cheese and green pepper on hand. I love it when it works out that way.


Can you almost smell the herbs from your computer screen? This is my wee little collection in my kitchen. I just picked these up at the local greenhouse. I don't want you all going and thinking I am a good gardener or anything. Not just yet, anyway; check back in the summer ;) Anyway, here I've got some parsley, rosemary, sage and chives. You can't see the basil in the photo, though. Below this there is another shelf where I planted some cilantro and scallions. We will see how those turn out (especially after the two year old ransacked it already).

Green curry with tofu. It was more of a last minute thing when I realized I never planned anything for me for dinner. Oopsies. But I had these things on hand, and you all know how much I love (read, am addicted to) curry!

My old standby. A baby green salad with beets, goat cheese, caramelized pecans and a balsamic vinaigrette. I swear I can't get enough of this salad.

Leftovers! My husband and I actually went on a date! It was just Applebees since we wanted to get to Home Depot for a bit, but it was still great time alone with the hubs! I had a veggie quesadillas, which apparently is made from two discs of pizza dough, but still, it was tasty with the sour cream and avocado!

Ah, yum. Just looking at this photo makes me wish I had more of this soup!! It's mushroom barley soup from "100 Best Vegetarian recipes". And really, there are quite a few very yummy recipes in there. After paying so many late fees to the library I finally went and bought myself a copy!!

Holy Smackerel! I really thought it had only been about a week since I had not updated the blog and lookie at this whole stack of photos I have to upload! I've been a bad, bad blogger. Of course, I am sure it will happen again, after all, the weather is getting warmer and this little beings I share my house with will actually want to go outside and play! Ah, it will be nice- and hopefully I will have more pictures of salads in the summer!