Coconut Lemon Bars

July 11, 2013January 25, 2014 by Jessica | 7 Comments

I love lemon desserts! They’re tangy and sweet at the same time, and not too rich, like a piece of flourless chocolate cake would be. Plus, every time we go to the fruit store, my son picks up a lemon and just HAS to buy it. This means we have a lot of lemons in the house. So when I was racking my brains for a great summer dessert, of course something with lemons came to mind. Of course, lemon meringue pie was possible, but I wanted something that travels well. While flipping through the “bar cookies and brownies” section of my Bon Appetit Desserts book, I came across this recipe, and was happy to see I had all the ingredients to make the dessert! Decision made. Continue reading …

Strawberry and Apricot Crisp

May 27, 2013 by Jessica | 8 Comments

I love fruit crisps. I love fruit in general, but something about cooking fruit and bringing out the natural sugars just makes it extra delicious. Usually we make crisps and pies all summer, but with peaches, apples, cherries, and blueberries. So when I saw this recipe for strawberries and apricots, two of my favorite fruits, I knew I had to try it. The only problem? Pine nuts! They are just way too expensive and I didn’t have any in my kitchen, so I changed up the recipe a little bit and came up with my own variation. The result? A shabbat dessert that we finished that night! Next time, I’m doubling the recipe. Continue reading …

Blueberry Pie

August 16, 2012 by Jessica | 7 Comments

I told you I like baking pies! While I usually stick with whatever fruit has been on the counter a little too long, or my go-to recipe of peach pie with a few blueberries thrown in, there’s always something special about blueberry pie. Yes, it takes a little longer to make, since you have to cook the blueberries separately, but since there’s no cutting or chopping involved, it probably evens out.

Salad Nicoise

August 12, 2012 by Jessica | 4 Comments

Sometimes, the best lunch is just a big giant salad. But not just a boring lettuce and veggies salad, a delicious one with tons of protein, carbs, veggies, and lots of flavor. So when my mom was having company at the pool, I decided to do just that. A giant salad for lunch. It was easy to make, though it took a while to do all the steps, and was definitely worth it. For dinner I would sear tuna steaks, but for lunch, 2 cans of tuna is perfect.

Quinoa with Beets and Spinach

March 27, 2012 by Jessica | Leave a comment

I’m always looking for new and interesting quinoa recipes. It gets boring to only put roasted vegetables or canned corn with dressing. So when I found a recipe for quinoa with golden beets and raisins, I knew I wanted to try it out, just tweaked a little bit. First of all, I can never find golden beets in the fruit store or supermarket! So I used the regular red ones. Anyway, I like red ones better anyway. Also, the original recipe called for feta cheese. And I don’t like feta cheese, so I left it out. Continue reading …

Salmon in Lemon Broth with Pea Puree

December 12, 2011 by Jessica | 6 Comments

When Stephanie sent me this recipe to try, I giggled. And then I knew I had to make it. Pea puree! I decided to make this on my next day off. It’s a perfect Thursday night dinner, in my opinion, and since I already had all the ingredients, except for the salmon, wouldn’t take much thinking (Yes, you should always have peas in your freezer). Also, good thing I live pretty close to a fish store. If I didn’t, who knows if this would have ended up on the menu. We loved this. The broth was lemony and fresh, and really added a nice flavor to the salmon. The pea puree was just delicious, and oh-so-easy. I love peas. They are delicious in a puree. The salmon was great dipped in the puree. Just a good combination altogether.

Meatless Mondays: Lemon and Artichoke Pasta

August 8, 2011 by Stephanie | 4 Comments

Mm, artichokes! This week, Meatless Monday goes vegan with this easy and flavorful dinner. Lemon and shallots bring out the flavor of these frozen hearts, so you can enjoy the flavor all year ’round.

Pizza with Baby Artichokes and Lemon Ricotta

May 23, 2011 by Stephanie | 4 Comments

Springtime means artichokes, a vegetable I’ve gotten familiar with these past few years, but this spring marks the first time I’ve ever made baby artichokes.

Baby artichokes are a smaller, fully mature variety of the globe artichoke. The fun part about them is that there’s no choke to be found in these little guys, so with a little bit of trimming, the whole thing is edible. I guess they should really be called artis?

Lemon Bars

February 15, 2011 by Stephanie | Leave a comment

We both tried to make lemon bars about a million years ago, but we failed. First the custard didn’t gel, and then we tried making it with raw sugar (not a pretty picture), and then we forgot about it and went on with our other baking projects. Fast forward to now, when I had some sour cream left over in our fridge and remembered how good it was in baking.

So, upon googling different baking recipes using sour cream, I found this. I knew I had to make it over all of the other possibilities, which would be added to my virtual recipe pile. Why? 1) Lemon bars! We neglected you all these years, but we said we’d try again and we meant it! 2) It’s a recipe written for a Baker’s Edge Pan! As you know, I own one of those, and I love the crispy edges that it produces. If you don’t, you can still bake these bars in an 9×13 baking dish. Continue reading …

Meatless Mondays: Broiled Black Pepper Tofu with Ginger Lemon Dipping Sauce

August 22, 2010 by Stephanie | Leave a comment

Soooo remember when I was freaking out about that almost-exploding tofu package? I had been preparing to make this meal. And I made it anyway, but I bought a new package of tofu, because I didn’t want to risk anything.

Think you don’t like tofu? That’s probably not true; I’ve made a slimy tofu before, but you just have to cook it the right way and it’s great! And it’s as easy as broiling it for less than 10 minutes. This is a great start to a Meatless Monday meal!