‘Appetizers’ Recipes

My good friend Cheryl is having a baby, her third, so we are throwing her a baby shower. We are all of a certain age that baby shower games no longer interest us (if they ever did) and were thinking that Cheryl is going to need some pampering, so the theme is a Spa Party. [Continue...]

By this time of year our gardens are overflowing with tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and zucchini.  Unless of course you are looking at my garden.  Not exactly a bummper crop this year.  Between the extremely high temperatures and the critters that keep stealing my plants, I have not had a whole lot to harvest.  I currently [Continue...]

Sometimes the simplest of foods are the most delicious. I love going out to the garden and picking my dinner. On this particular night the kids were at Grandma’s and the husband was working.  A few fresh tomatoes and basil is what makes this simple meal outstanding.  I poured myself a nice glass of wine [Continue...]

I don’t like mushy guacamole, it’s a texture thing for me. So my guacamole is chunky. The key is to find the perfect avocado. If they are too ripe then it gets mushy no matter what. I like to use ones that is just slightly hard, this will keep the right consistency when you start [Continue...]

This dish works well for an appetizer as well as a main course. I serve with Cilantro Lime Rice and Grilled Corn Salad. Ingredients: 4 dried medium heat peppers, ancho work well and are fairly common 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro 3 garlic cloves, minced 2 tbsp pine nuts 1/2 cup olive [Continue...]

Garlic Basil Tart Dough 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour 1 stick cold butter, cut into small cubes 4-5 tbsp ice cold water 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil 2 cloves garlic, minced a pinch of kosher salt Ingredients: Directions: In the bowl of your stand mixer, add basil, garlic, flour and cold butter. Using a [Continue...]