Raspberry Cream Cheese Muffins

These were a hands-down hit for my house last spring and early summer as we had raspberries ripening on our backyard bushes faster than we could eat them. But frozen berries work, as well. The beauty of this recipe is that the fruit provides much of the sweetness, so no need for a lot ofContinue reading “Raspberry Cream Cheese Muffins”

In-Season Veggie Pasta Salad

  When early spring begins to show her face and salads are again appealing, it’s time to throw together this dish. In summer, cherry tomatoes, banana peppers, cucumbers and green onions can easily be subbed for the veggies listed below. But just now, asparagus, kale and chives are all I’ve got growing, so olives and dried tomatoes orContinue reading “In-Season Veggie Pasta Salad”

Mediterranean Green Beans

  We grow several varieties of green beans in our garden and in a good summer, we harvest more than we can eat. I happily blanch, cool and freeze our garden bounty knowing that come January, I’m going to be thrilled to pull this taste of summer from our deep freeze. The olives and sun-driedContinue reading “Mediterranean Green Beans”

Peach Crisp

This is the recipe that almost didn’t come to be. I feel like I’ve been working on it all summer and only now have I circled around to something I’m happy with. It began with an old family recipe, one I’d made many times, a cobbler that I remember adoring as a child. But whenContinue reading “Peach Crisp”

Happy Summer!

Here’s hoping your garden is bursting with tomatoes and zucchini and green beans, cucumbers and peppers and melons. Maybe you’ve dug some potatoes. Or headed to a local farm to pick blueberries. Or stocked up at your farmers market, bringing home enough sweet corn to roast on the grill today, as well as cut offContinue reading “Happy Summer!”

Ginger Berry Smoothie Bowl

Smoothies are most often an after-school snack at our house. But these smoothie bowls combine the best of a smoothie and a bowl of cereal. They could be a great snack, but make an even better power breakfast. Feel free to mix and match both smoothie ingredients and toppings to keep things exciting and toContinue reading “Ginger Berry Smoothie Bowl”

Mixed Greens and Berry Salad

I created this recipe to hand out to participants of a class I taught on surprising ways to eat your berries. It was a hit. The biggest takeaway might have been how pleasing it is to mix all kinds of bold flavors in with your spinach or lettuce. Yes to arugula and to mustard andContinue reading “Mixed Greens and Berry Salad”

Make the Most of Your Herbs

I love herbs. All of them. Mint, oregano, rosemary, thyme, lavender, chives. We grow them as flowers and greenery, as bushes and ground cover. Some of them fill in as quiet background plants, others steal the show in their corner of the yard. I have a dedicated herb garden just outside the back door; the basilContinue reading “Make the Most of Your Herbs”

Linguine with Garden Herbs and Clams

We are seafood fans in our house, but we are also well-aware of how fragile the edible ocean is these days. For more than a decade, I’ve been referring to my Monterrey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide to help me find environmentally friendly seafood. In the past several years, as eating local has become my guiding principal,Continue reading “Linguine with Garden Herbs and Clams”

Beautiful Beet Salad

  When the greens stretch tall and the dusty roots swell into big burgundy orbs in my garden, I start to do a happy dance. It’s time to roast and grate and slice those sweet, juicy, earthy bulbs we know as beets. There are more varieties than ever available for harvesting or scoring at the farmers market. TryContinue reading “Beautiful Beet Salad”