Category Archives: Salads

Easter Guinea Pigs

No, not actual guinea pigs for Easter dinner, how horrific! We were just pig sittin’ (and yes, when you are pig sittin’, you don’t use the second g). But I’m talking about the humans who tested my practice Easter dishes. Though the thought did scare the April Fool’s Day donuts!

So for one of the practice Easters, I made up my own ham glaze with 1 10 ounce jar peach preserves and 1 tablespoon each brown sugar and dijon mustard. Now this was a tiny spiral ham for only 5 people and it still took approximately a jillion hours to get to the safe internal temperature. The glaze was great, but I think I’m gonna start the Easter ham this Thursday.

I might have accidentally bought this bunny with a light up egg. Ok, two. But, you’ll see come actual Easter, there is….a theme! (name that movie).

I made Cooking Light’s Artichoke and Spinach STUFFING. Yes, that’s right, stuffing. Because any reasonable 10 year old would know that if this were called a strata, it would be disgusting. And heaven forbid if one called it bread pudding, then it would be straight-up G-ROSS. But when it is a stuffing, well then, we’re in familiar territory. And it was delightful.

The only thing I did differently was used a mix of Gruyere and Fontina cheeses because that’s what I had handy. And I used canned artichokes hearts and just chopped them up a little, which I would definitely suggest.

Ok, let’s talk about this amazing simple Asparagus and Arugula Salad, also from Cooking Light. Just greens (I used Spring mix), asparagus and hard boiled egg.

I grated one egg over the salad, tossed, and then grated another one. Also added 1/2 teaspoon mustard to the dressing. Don’t be tempted to add more to the dressing, I had thought about dill but then was very glad I didn’t add it. It is luscious as is.

Kevin doesn’t like asparagus so he picked it out, but still liked the salad. I guess I could make it with other green vegetables instead like peas (Kevin – Nope), pea pods (Kevin – Nope), broccoli (Kevin – Nope). But why mess with a classic?

Does anyone want a cocktail? Will be making the Porch Punch from Imbibe Magazine though I cut the proportions down significantly from the 21 cups of tea and 2 bottles of bourbon! How many people does Imbibe Magazine’s porch hold?

Porch Punch

WHAT YOU NEED
5 cups boiling water
3 Earl Grey tea bags
1 mint tea bag
1 cup sugar
.25 ounces orange bitters
.125 ounces orange blossom water
juice of one lime
lemon and lime slices

WHAT YOU DO
Put the sugar and tea bags in the boiling water and stir to dissolve sugar. Steep the tea about 7 minutes then strain into a pitcher and cool. When cool, add the bitters, orange water and lime juice. Refrigerate until ready. Serve with lemon and lime slices over ice. If you had fresh mint, that would be a lovely garnish, but don’t go out and get it just for this.

When buying the boys Easter shirts at TJ Maxx I might have also accidentally purchased these rose gold sandals.

January, We Hardly Knew Ye

How did January go by so fast? Where does the time go? Where is the Fitbit charging cord (seriously, if anyone knows…).

Not a ton of events hosted during this bleak month. We did have one momentous occasion. Guitar Boy entered the realm of teenager.

Neither Hallmark nor Target carries violent video game cake toppers, you have to make your own. Weird.

January definitely is for comfort food. So it was a big soup month around here. I made Smitten Kitchen’s Ultimate Chicken Soup.

I made Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup from Two Peas and Their Pod.

With Italian Grilled Cheese from Stanley Tucci’s cookbook.

Basically it is fresh mozzarella sliced thin on Italian bread, dipped in a slightly beaten egg and grilled. I rubbed the bread with a cut garlic clove and added a pinch of salt to the egg mixture. It was gooey and good, but it needed a little somethin’ somethin’. If I did it again, at MBork’s suggestion I would add grated parmesan to the egg dip to give it a frico type of texture. Or I might make it two cheese with Fontina or another strong but melty cheese. But hey, grilled cheese, no complaining!

Made the easiest Stovetop Mac and Cheese from The Food Lab at Serious Eats.

This was really good. And it heats up well the next day. The only tip I’d offer is don’t add the salt until you taste it. Cheese varies in saltiness. PS, that’s in a clear glass bowl. I don’t just put piles of mac-n-cheese directly on the table. Well, not often.

Drummer Boy advanced to the Battle of the Books semi-finals. They read 7 books in two months. They didn’t win the whole thing but not for lack of preparation. So proud.

Taking a step away from clothespin-on-the-aorta type of recipes, I also made this Detox Salad from Gimme Some Oven.

I didn’t have miso though so I substituted with this Ginger Sesame Dressing from Epicurious. Delicious. Though if you are going to store it in the refrigerator for a day, don’t add the almonds. They get super soggy.

So what food is going to the Superbowly party today? Oh, wait no, it’s Superbowl LI. My bad.

You know how you are walking through Trader Joe’s and they are handing out samples of food and drink. Fatefully one day I was walking through and they had taken their Pub Cheese and warmed it. Just warmed it. And then put it on pretzel bread. And then handed it to me. And then I ate it. And then my whole family ate it. And now Imma gonna eat it again.

Seriously, all you do is warm it up for 30 seconds or so in the microwave and put it over a warmer and slice the bread. As Ina would say, “how easy is that?”. Also bringing the always popular and totally low calorie Muffins That Taste Like Donuts from Tasty Kitchen.

And my 90’s classic – Crab Dip.

Old School Crab Dip

WHAT YOU NEED
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sour cream
1 TBSP mayonnaise
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced (or use 2 cubes of Trader Joe’s crushed, frozen garlic. I heart you Trader Joe’s!)
Hearty pinches of kosher salt and a grind of black pepper
3 green onions minced or 2 TBSP of finely minced white onion
6 oz crab meat (canned or refrigerated, but fully cooked)

WHAT YOU DO
Combine the everything except the onion and crab meat in a bowl. Blend with a hand mixer until smooth. Stir in the crab meat and onion with a rubber spatula until fully combined. Put it into serving bowl, cover and chill at least an hour.

And so we’re off to enjoy the ~~commercials~~ big game. Have a great week everyone!

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Autumn

My sister made fun of me because I bought this cute little mustard mug at Cost Plus World Market last weekend

Then decorated for fall with Skunk the Cat (#nothelpful).

and then arranged a whole Oktoberfest dinner around the mustard. Is that so wrong?

Mostly, I just wanted fall to begin and by using my condiment talisman, I was successful. So successful, in fact, that it was 44 degrees at Drummer Boy’s soccer game Friday night. Let me know if anyone needs any spells cast. Because I’m on it. And, speaking of witches, HALLOWEEEEEEEN time!

So what’s new this year?

Lots more skeletons in the yard.

This guy!

Not new but still fun for cats to bite the tails

Accidentally went to TJ Maxx/Homegoods and came home with this skull

and his friend (helpful cat for scale).

Did I mention Skunk the Cat sleeps in a shark head now. Yep. But only if it’s on a pillow. He’s got cable in there, but I didn’t get him HBO. That’s where I draw the line. #notspoiled

Oh and some fun swirling ghost lights, but they are really hard to get a picture of what with all their haunting. So if you are in the neighborhood, swing by and take a look.

But what to make, now that we can turn on the oven again?

I have always wanted to try to make Momofuku’s Compost Cookie because I see it referenced so many places on the internet. However, the recipes posted are vastly different. The most common one calls for using a 6 ounce scoop to form the dough. That is almost a cup of dough per cookie! Seems a bit much. So I kind of borrowed from this recipe from Amateur Gourmet and this one posted by the original chef. The point is to use up whatever you have a little bit of, balancing the sweet and the savory.

The Momofuku Milk Bar Compost Cookie

WHAT YOU NEED
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 TBSP corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt (note: Adjust if your savory ingredients are extra salty)
1 1/2 cups total mini chocolate chips and crushed KitKats
1 1/2 cups total your favorite salty snack. I used potato chips, pretzels (crushed with my hands so there were still large lumps of pretzels) and Rice Krispies.

WHAT YOU DO
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine the butter, sugars, and corn syrup in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for 10 minutes. I’m serious, don’t skip this, let it go 10 minutes. It will get all puffy.

Reduce the speed to really low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Pour in the sweet items and mix on low just until broken up a little and combined. Then add your salty ingredients and mix by hand until incorporated.

Now here’s where some experimenting comes in. Some recipes said to chill as scoops, some said press down lightly. Some said freeze, some said refrigerate. I did both. The scoops (as pictures below left) didn’t cook in the middle. And the pan you cook it on also needs to be cold. And the first batch burnt on the bottom (I say burnt, Fake Sister’s dad says they are just crispy – so that batch goes to him!)

Here’s what I did: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Using an ice cream scoop, portion the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Flatten the scoops into a disc like the one on the right.

Cover tightly with plastic and put in freezer for 30 minutes. Remove and put in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or up to a week. You have to cook these from cold or they dissolve.

Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment or silicone baking mat-lined sheet pan. To prevent burning bottoms, I put one sheet pan on top of another. Bake for 15 minutes turning the pan at the middle mark. The cookies will spread a lot. You want them browned on the edges but looking almost not done (but yet done). You can add a minute or two if not done. Cool completely on the pan.

And voila! Ginormous sweet/salty cookies.

I made this Autumn Bliss Salad with Stuffing Croutons from A Beautiful Mess. The only thing I did differently is that instead of cooking the celery I put it in the salad crispy and cold, but added 1/8 of a teaspoon of celery salt to the crouton mixture. You could seriously serve these croutons as a snack and no one would judge you. Certainly not me!

I also added two squirts of honey to the dressing. I would suggest dressing the lettuce before adding pumpkins seeds and cranberries, otherwise they sink to the bottom when you toss.

I’m thinking maybe next up some apple loaves are in order. And in honor of the fall weather we’re having Soup-a-palooza at work, so this coming weekend I need to make two gallons of creamy tomato soup. You say prizes, I say how many gallons you need?? More on that later.

Over the weekend we made a mandatory pumpkin farm visit.

But didn’t get any big pumpkins because (a) last year they all rotted almost instantly, with a black moss type thing growing in them, so those strobe lights in there were sacrificed to the Pumpkin King and (2) they were out of wagons to carry them. Grocery store pumpkins it is!

There will be both a costume October birthday party and a costume pizza night coming up, along with actual Halloween. So don’t think this is the end, because the Halloween storage bins, they are CALLING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE!!!!!!

Have a great rest of the week everyone.

Turns Out They Don’t Make Candles That Say 103

So my grandmother turned 103 this month. Passed her drivers test. Still lives in her condo. Still likes to go to parties. Still needs help with the iPad. Still better dressed than me.

So we had a 103rd birthday party. Which required (yes, required) commemorative menu cards.

Made easier with the Avery template design tool. I also used it to make the cake topper signs.

So, let’s get this party started with a cocktail. An Orange Crush Cocktail from Kitchen Konfidence to be precise.

In an official Pittsburgh Pirates Old Fashioned glass. It’s the right thing to do.

The only thing I changed was to double the orange juice and add sliced oranges. I used the suggested Olmeca Altos Tequila and though I’m not usually down with the brown liquor, it was very good. Those with more discriminating palates than mine thought it was good neat as well.

As you can read from the menu card, we had roasted beef tenderloin which I discuss in this post. Though I didn’t use the garlic, just rubbed with olive oil and cracked pepper before putting it in the oven and made a herb sauce. We also had Waldorf Salad Cups where I used the recipe for the salad, but then used whole butter lettuce leaves and spooned some salad onto each leaf. People were hungry so we ravaged and thus, I forgot to take a picture. Oh, well, just imagine it looked delicious.

Made this Jeweled Tabbouleh side salad.

Jeweled Grain Tabbouleh
Adapted just barely from A View From Great Island

WHAT YOU NEED
4 cups cooked grains. I’ve used quinoa (keeps the dish gluten free) and freekeh (the picture is freekeh). The original recipe called for 2 cups each cracked wheat and wheat berries.
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1 large bunch minced fresh parsley, stems removed
1 small bunch of fresh mint leaves, finely chopped (I used half of one of those grocery store plastic containers)
1/2 English cucumber, finely diced
1/2 medium red onion, finely diced
1/2 cup raw pistachios, rough chopped
1/2 cup dried apricots, finely diced
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup Craisins or dried cherries

WHAT YOU DO
Mix the dressing by shaking the olive oil, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste in a jar. Pour it over the grains and toss to combine. Mix in the the minced parsley, mint, cucumber, and red onion. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour. Mix in the nuts and fruit just before serving.

And cake from Kirschbaums, because that’s how we roll in the Wes’ Subs.

A little help from some of the great grandchildren.

Baby D recommends the frosting as a side dish. And a way to power through no-nap all the way until 9 p.m.

But the true frosting on the cake was GG’s grandchildren and great grandchildren teaching her to use Snapchat. This is her skeptical reaction to seeing this essential piece of technology:

But then she got more comfortable breathing fire.

But perhaps most disturbing was the face swap with P.

But, in the end, everyone was satisfied.

Very satisfied.

Have a great week everyone.

Well, That Went By Fast

People, I cannot believe it is December 29th. What happened? There was no snow before Christmas (note – hating on the snow now). There was a Wednesday night Pizza Night. There were holidays rendered in cheese.

Ok. I promise, that’s it. No more cheese sculptures. Until it’s time for cheese hearts, cheese shamrocks…. Although I will say that after Cheese Snowman was mangled I made a joke on Instagram about zombies and Darryl Dixon/Norman Reedus’ body double liked my picture. Swoon.

Moving on, I made a lot of different food that wasn’t cheese based. I made these easy Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs from Shutterbean on one busy weeknight. Super fast and super delicious. Didn’t take a picture because, well, we’ve been over how my brown food photography skills are. So you’ll just have to trust me and make it soon.

This Big Italian Salad from Once Upon a Chef:

The dressing for this salad was really good. I think it would go well with any type of salad you want. And probably fantastic during summer with freshly grown herbs.

For Christmas Eve dinner, I did what I always do, Smitten Kitchen’s Braised Short Ribs with mashed potatoes. The crowd demands it. Plus you can make it the day before.

In the treats category, How Sweet Eats Peppermint Pattie Brownies

Smitten Kitchen’s Easy Roasted Sugar and Spice Candied Nuts.

Smitten Kitchen’s Mom’s Apple Cake – Guitar Boy’s favorite.

Gluten Free Chocolate Pan Cake from King Arthur Flour. With their Easy Chocolate Frosting. It was good. LIght and fluffy. I used milk and not water as we aren’t watching dairy.

For both Neighbors Christmas and Mac Christmas I made everyone sprinkles mix using Avery design website again.

My favorite one was “Bears on the Glen” mix with green sprinkles on the bottom and orange and blue on the top. Get it? Fun, right? I’ll understand if you want to leave and click back over to Facebook now.

As to presents, we had a very llama/narwhal-heavy Christmas. Want some salt or pepper? No probllama!

And of course, Star Wars figured prominently. Went to the movie too and it was great.

One of my favorite gifts was this handmade artwork by Fake Sister.

Or from my Nerd collection of gifts, maybe my very-hard-to-photograph Mother of Dragons wine glasses.

Or maybe this?

Ah yes, just like my childhood, when my mom would make 2001: A Space Odyssey pancakes every Sunday.

There were Christmas carols at GG’s.

And we did some Christmas Crackers this year (the English party favor kind, not the snowflake-shaped Ritz kind). Then the kids put on a musical number with bells that were in the crackers, as expertly directed by me. Well, “expertly” might be a bit of a stretch. As is “musical number.” A clanging mess just might be slightly more accurate. At least they all cooperated for the picture.

Mmmmmngh.

So I’ll take a one day breather, and then on to New Year’s Eve, Guitar Boy’s New Year’s Day family party brunch and then some classmates coming over to celebrate his birthday with Nerf and Halo–as one does as a tween–on Saturday. There will be some Avery projects and a significant amount of puff pastry goin’ on the next few days. I’ll report back as soon as I dig out.

Have a safe and happy New Year everyone. Peace out 2015.

A Nod to Phineas and Ferb

In the last week before school started, the boys lamented that we hardly did anything this summer. I think all the blog posts that precede this one might disagree.

Nonetheless, for this last week, we jammed in some swimming, tennis, multiple birthday/pool parties, Pizza Night, trying out new instruments –

Visiting with cousins

And, on the very last day, when surely no more fun could be had in the last throes of summer – Wizard World Comic Con!!!!

Meet the Nerdfoiles:

Ok. Geekfest over. What did we make for this last hurrah?

Drizzled olive oil, salt and pepper over halved cherry and grape tomatoes (from Mbork garden) and sprinkled with rosemary (from yours truly’s garden) and slow roasted them in a 275 degree oven. Toasted slices of baguette, topped with provolone in a 350 oven and then topped with the tomatoes.

And this salad, THIS SALAD.

This salad could be anything it wants to be if it just puts its mind to it. Add Asian flank steak, chicken, shrimp or whatever protein you desire and it’s dinner. Otherwise it is quite a side to grilled chicken. It can be served room temp or cold so it would be good for a late summer block party.

Asian Noodle Salad
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman and Foodie with Family. Serves 6 with some leftovers for lunch.

WHAT YOU NEED
For the Dressing
1 whole Lime, Juiced
8 TBSP olive oil
8 TBSP low sodium soy sauce
3 TBSP toasted sesame oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 TBSP chopped or minced fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Jalapeño pepper, chopped
1 large handful fresh parsley, chopped

For the Salad
1/2 package linguine, cooked al dente (seriously, don’t overcook) rinsed and cooled – -if doing ahead toss with a dash of sesame oil and refrigerate. Both PW and FwF called for a full pound of pasta, but I thought it was a bit much for our crew.
2/3 bag of coleslaw mix (or you can chop up 1/2 a head each of Napa and purple cabbage)
1 clamshell or 10 oz bag baby spinach
1 red bell pepper thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper thinly sliced
4 green onions, white and light green parts, sliced
1 hothouse cucumber, thinly sliced
1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped
6 TBSP toasted sesame seeds

WHAT YOU DO
Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar and shake, shake, shake until it’s all combined.

Toss all salad ingredients except sesame seeds in a bowl and toss with dressing until fully dressed (you may not need all the dressing). Top with sesame seeds. You could also add some peanuts or cashews if desired.

And for dessert:

Rainbow Krispie Treats

WHAT YOU NEED
6 cups Fruity Pebbles
6 cups Rice Krispies
1/2 cup butter, plus more for pan
20 oz. mini marshmallows

WHAT YOU DO
Butter a 9×13 pan and butter a piece of parchment paper cut so there is overhang on the sides of the pan. Melt butter over medium low heat in a large saucepan. Once butter is melted, add marshmallows and stir until fully melted. Add in cereal and stir until combined. Plop it all in dish and using a butter covered spatula or the the actual wrappers from the butter, press into the pan until all flat. Once cool, lift sides of parchment to remove and cut into uniform squares. Use a protractor if you have to, they’ll be ruined if not uniform. No, not really.

All in all, a really fun week to end the summer. In between all these activities, we MAY have watched some American Ninja Warrior and played a few video games. Someone was very tired out by all that.

Happy Back-to-School week everyone. See you on the playground.

Happy Birthday Dodd-Frank Act!

You share a birthday with my husband. However, Dodd-Frank, so far you have not shown me how you are useful or done anything to impress me. So you, Dodd-Frank, do not get a custom can koozie. Kevin, on the other hand, has done all that and more. So he gets one for his birthday:

Step up your game, Dodd-Frank.

My friend receives a monthly box of fair trade food/ingredients, similar to the Hatchery box I get. We’ll call her Mbork to protect her identity. She wasn’t sure what to do with the California peach vinegar she received and Jbork agreed. So they dropped it off over here. Challenge accepted!

What, what?! That’s right, first up is Pineapple Salsa

WHAT YOU NEED
1.5 lb fresh pineapple, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups diced)
1/2 cup finely diced red onion
1 jalapeño pepper, ribs and seeds removed, finely diced
1 cup finely diced red pepper
4 tablespoons chopped parsley or cilantro
1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 TBSP peach vinegar
2 TBSP fresh lime juice
3/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground cumin

WHAT YOU DO
Whisk last 5 ingredients in a bowl. Add first 5 ingredients and stir. Cover and let chill at least 2 hours for flavors to meld. Serve with tortilla chips when you get to a 9 year old’s birthday party

Or save it as a topping for grilled fish.

What’s that you say? Big deal, so the bottle is missing about two tablespoons worth of vinegar? Not going to concede? Alllllrighty then.

Heirloom Tomato Salad with Peach Vinegar Dressing

WHAT YOU NEED
4 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP peach vinegar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 heirloom tomatoes
2 TBSP sliced basil
1 ball burrata or mozzarella cheese

WHAT YOU DO
Combine first 4 ingredients in a jar and shake well to combine. Slice tomatoes and place on platter. Slice cheese and place under tomatoes (if burrata – cuz it’s messy) or on top of tomatoes (if mozzarella). Drizzle dressing over and scatter basil on top.

Had enough?! No? Prepare your face.

Pork Tenderloin with Peach and Ginger Sauce
adapted from Epicurious‘ recipe

WHAT YOU NEED
1 TBSP canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
6 TBSP sugar
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
3/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup PEACH VINEGAR (Bam!)
2 TBSP minced or chopped ginger
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 16 oz pork tenderloin
12 slices frozen peaches, thawed.

WHAT YOU DO
Heat vegetable oil in a pot on medium heat. Add onions and sugar and sauté until only slightly golden brown. Add remaining ingredients up to pepper and boil 2 minutes. Remove sauce from heat and cool. Once cool, add about a cup of the sauce to the pork tenderloins in a gallon size bag and refrigerate 6 hours or overnight. Store remaining sauce in refrigerator.

When ready, heat grill to medium. Remove pork from marinade and grill until done. “Done” is a subject of intense debate here at Lucky Rhino headquarters. Some members would defer to the USDA which lowered the pork safety temperature to 145 degrees with 3 minutes of resting time. Others of us feel that we aren’t going to be tricked by some shadowy government agency who is likely trying to grow a tapeworm army with humans as hosts and insist there not even be a hint of pink. Thus, 155 and 10 minutes of rest time it is.

Anyhoo, boil remaining sauce (don’t use the marinade) until reduced by half, about 5 minutes or so. Add the peaches and cook another two minutes. Slice pork and serve sauce over pork.

Sorry, pork simply doesn’t photograph well.

And, since today is National Ice Cream Day (yep!) I also made this S’mores Ice Cream Pie from Two Peas and Their Pod. Don’t worry, I didn’t put vinegar in it.

The only thing I changed, albeit inadvertently, is that I forgot to mix the cracker crumbs into the ice cream, but I don’t think anyone noticed.

And I also drizzled the top with Hershey’s chocolate syrup. Because, why not?

And of course, then we went next door to Fake Sister’s house to make actual s’mores. Because, why not?

Have a great week everyone.

A Perfect Summer Sunday

Finally, a perfect summer day. Hot but not too hot. No rain, no hail, no 50 degrees (hello, it’s July). Just a great day to play outside. And The Block did just that.

But what to eat on this fine day? I subscribe to the Hatchery Box which sends a monthly box of various ingredients and sauces made by American businesses. Here was July’s selection:

So tonight I used the 4 Rivers Smokehouse All Purpose Rub on grilled chicken – delish, but spicy.

And made Cucumber Dill Potato Salad with the cucumber vinegar from Olivelle.

Cucumber Dill Potato Salad

WHAT YOU NEED
3 lbs. small potatoes (either red or Yukon gold), scrubbed, cut in half or quarters depending on size
2 TBSP cucumber vinegar
1/2 cup mayonaisse
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup thinly sliced, diced red onion
1/2 cup diced celery
1/4 heaping cup of fresh chopped dill
1 tsp kosher salt
ground black pepper

WHAT YOU DO
Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water 1 inch above potatoes. Bring potatoes to a boil and boil 9-12 minutes until potatoes can be pierce with a fork. Drain and rinse potatoes.

Whisk the remaining ingredients in bowl in which you intend to serve the salad. Add potatoes and toss gently with rubber spatula to distribute the dressing. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Back outside. You know what is even better that neighbors that became dear friends who have a huge side yard that they let us use? Neighbors that became dear friends who have a huge side yard that they let us use when they put up a big, jumpy water slide.

And you know what is better than that? Neighbors that became dear friends who have a huge side yard that they let us use when they put up a big, jumpy water slide and serve Bourbon Slush Punch from Smitten Kitchen.

Here are some of my other favorite things this week:

Pixi Endless Silky Glide on Eye Pen

I was in Target and as I was on my knees, sobbing and cursing almighty Odin that Neutrogena had discontinued my bronzer/powder (I’m fun to shop with!), a beauty consultant suggested the Pixi by Petra line as a similar type product. She also offered me a free sample of their eye pencil which she said would not come off until I took it off. Challenge accepted.

Pixi Pencil 1, me 0. Seriously, put it on at 7:00 a.m. on an 85 degree/90% humidity day. Power-shopped the Nordstrom anniversary sale, cleaned the kitchen, put together appetizers, went to my step-nephew’s going away to the Navy party, dealt with my mother’s definition of air-conditioning vs my definition of air-conditioning, sat outside in the rain, binge-watched Bloodline until 11 p.m (do it, DO IT!) and consarnit if I didn’t need to get out the make-up remover. Target beauty consultant, I salute you.

You need to watch this video by Studio C right now. And you need to do so on either a TV or at least a computer (i.e., not your phone). This has become required viewing at our house. If you walk in, even if only for 5 minutes after dropping your college car off on return from South Bend before you catch the train to the city,

you will be shown this video by one of the boys. It is made by BYU students and is pretty hilarious. Who knew BYU had such a high production budget? Scott Sterling!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a great week everyone. I’m off to NY for meetings for a couple of days, so nothing cookin’ on the horizon. So you’re on your own. Unless you want pasta with jarred marinara, in which case, I will ask Kevin to guest post.

Happy 4th of July!

It doesn’t get more patriotic than:

Red, white and blue mustaches,

Pringles,

Place settings (may have accidentally gone to Homegoods for new tablecloth and napkins)

Patriotic looking salad (more on that on Instagram),

Candles,

And fireworks (being filmed on a iPhone):

Have a safe and happy 4th everyone. Vacation pics and best things to cook in a rental house coming soon.

Rainy Days on Sundays Always Get Me Down

The rain, the rain. All games washed out yesterday (and for the foreseeable future). Thus, plans were torn asunder and I ended up going to my sister’s to get my hair done before the conference in D.C. But food was already purchased and prepped for dinner here. No worries, a traveling feast it is.

I forget I have this market bag. It is awesome and can be wiped down in case that dressing in the corner spills a little. In case.

But nonetheless, to honor summer I made:

Salad with Stone Fruit and Burrata
Adapted from Stone Fruit and Burrata Salad by What’s Gaby Cooking. Feeds 8

WHAT YOU NEED
Salad
4 ripe plums
4 ripe peaches
4 ripe nectarines
2 heirloom tomatoes
1 cup orange and yellow cherry tomatoes
3 cups baby lettuce from your garden (ok, just showing off that I actually grew lettuce!). You can also use a bag of Spring mix or baby lettuce)
1 container of burrata cheese (2-3 balls)
fresh mint
1 cup pistachio meats

Dressing — I pretty much used Gaby’s recipe completely except did every measure as “heaping” and a less red pepper — and still got complaints of “mouth on fire” from the kids!

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

WHAT YOU DO
Combine all dressing ingredients in jar and shake until emulsified. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. I like this just a touch sweet.

Wash fruits and slice stone fruits into thin wedges. Slice large tomatoes and cut cherry tomatoes in half. Place lettuce in bowl and toss with a couple of tablespoons of the dressing. Arrange fruit and tomatoes (I KNOW, tomatoes are fruit, but sometimes that gets confusing) on top of lettuce. Tear burrata into pieces and scatter on salad. Drizzle with another tablespoon or two of dressing, depending on your tastes. Top with chopped mint and pistachios.

Served with steak topped with roasted garlic butter that I had in the freezer, corn on the cob, and roasted Trader Joe’s Teensy Tiny Potatoes.

Today was the first day of summer camp. And the crew lived large, because it was also someone’s golden birthday, so they were picked up from camp in style.

PARTY BUS!!!!!!!!!!

And on another front, certain members of the household were not in the party mood.

Let’s Go Hawks!