Salad

TGIF, Melon Season and Little Buggers

August 17, 2018 by Christina Shoup Leave a Comment

Happy Friday, friends! I hope you all had a great week. If it’s 5 o’clock where you are, congrats! If you’re still a few hours away like we are, you can do it! I’m already thinking about the food and drinks I’ll be making this weekend- the recipe below is a perfect dish to make for family and friends. Let me know if you end up trying it and what you think!

It’s melon season and I cannot get enough of them. Recently, on a lovely date night to 31st Union in San Mateo, I had a melon salad that reminded me all that I love about eating local and in season. Beyond tasting super fresh, it was a perfect balance of sweet, spicy, salty and just plain delicious. And healthy! I ordered it on subsequent visits and finally decided to try my best to replicate it at home. Last weekend, I think I came pretty darn close. I always have about 3 melons of any kind sitting on the counter waiting for the perfect moment to cut open either for this salad, a melon-banana smoothie or just a sprinkling of Tajin or flaky salt.

Speaking of summer fruits (slight tangent)… the only, ONLY downside of beautiful summer fruit sitting on the counter is the invasion of fruit flies. Where do these things come from?! If I don’t take precautionary measures, these little buggers take over my fruit bowls which grosses me out. And even worse, they land in my wine glass, which really grosses me out.

Lots of customers!

TIP: During the summer months I keep a ramakin with a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and a drop of dish detergent sitting IN my fruit bowl basket. They are attracted to the vinegar and the dish soap somehow helps them not be able to get out of the liquid. To finish them off, I cover the little dish with plastic wrap with large holes so once they get in, they cannot get out. Eric calls these guys my customers and I can easily get a few dozen customers within an hour of placing my little contraption in the fruit bowl.

As for the melon salad that will make you a rockstar this weekend, it’s simple and ony takes a few ingredients. We enjoyed this salad as a side to Tomato Pie (just use the search bar or go to August 28, 2016 post for recipe) and sautéed Chicken Apple Sausage. A perfect summer meal.

Cheers!

Christina

Melon Salad with Feta, Jalapeno and Mint

This delicious summer salad, inspired by 31st Union in San Mateo, hits all the right notes- a great balance of tangy dressing, salty cheese, sweet melon and a kick from the jalapeño. Although this salad serves two people, the recipe makes about a pint jar of vinaigrette- enough for 8 bowls of melon salad. I like to keep a jar in the refrigerator to use all week long for all types of salads- Cobb, kale, or mixed green with grilled chicken.

Course Salad

Keyword salad, melon

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

Salad

3 cups melon cut into bite-size pieces (canteloupe, honeydew, watermelon)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 small jalapeño chili, stemmed, seeded and thinly sliced
6 mint leaves, thinly sliced or torn
Aleppo pepper and Tajin seasoning, to taste

Apple-Cider Vinaigrette

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Make vinaigrette:

Add all ingredients to a jar with a lid and shake until emulsified.

Assemble Salad:

In a medium bowl, gently toss melon with 1-2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Divide melon between two bowls.
Scatter jalapeño, mint and feta evenly over melon.
Drizzle additional dressing to taste. Season with Aleppo pepper and Tajin seasoning.

One holiday down…

November 27, 2017 by Christina Shoup Leave a Comment

File Nov 26, 9 08 04 PM

Happy Sunday! I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving. Whether it was a large group or small, you had turkey or tofu, and were at home or elsewhere, gathering around a table for a shared meal is always a beautiful thing. I look forward to it every single year. So much to be thankful for…

This year ~~we decided~~ I informed my family we were skipping the turkey and doing a pork tenderloin. My immediate family didn’t mind as they don’t care much for turkey and certainly don’t love the leftovers so that was an easy decision. As for the guests, it’s best to give them a head’s up on the main dish switch-a-roo upon extending the invitation. Expectations and traditions run deep. We still did several of the traditional sides and everyone around the table was pretty satisfied with the dinner. Actually, it was one of the best Thanksgiving meals I’ve ever had thanks to a great collaboration from our guests. I’ll share some of the recipes soon as they would make an excellent Christmas or holiday dinner.

And here we are- Thanksgiving all wrapped up and the first of December is not for many more days. It’s the biggest gift of the season- a bonus week! It can be a crazy time of year with lots of additional commitments, gatherings, festive parties, etc. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with a long list of to dos. For me, old school paper lists are the way to keep the crazy to a minimum. Similarly, a meal calendar posted in my kitchen gives me a sense of calm. Just knowing what we are having for dinner in the week ahead allows me to end each day with a little sanity, even if the day was a little nutty.

Below is what I have planned for this week. Days where I’m not planning on cooking are for leftovers or we use our freezer and pantry for something quick and easy. Go to meals for us include: bean and cheese tostadas, frozen Amy’s burritos, frozen Trader Joe’s pizza as well as TJ’s Mandarin orange chicken with frozen broccoli and rice. These items are almost always on hand and have saved us dozens of times from the more expensive and less healthy option of take out or delivery.

Have a great week!

~Christina

Curried Red Lentil and Swiss Chard with Garbanzo Beans

This is a super easy, healthy and satisfying meal. It calls for curry powder but has little to no heat. I add the full amount of cayenne and it still isn’t spicy. The plain/Greek yogurt is key for this dish. My kids all eat it and it fills them up so much that they don’t “need” a bowl of cereal an hour later. I’m sure that just happens in our household though… A few things: I add chopped carrot and saute with the onions, feel free to also chop the chard stems and add here as well, add 3 minced garlic cloves with the spices, and only add the chopped swiss chard in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Enjoy!

Asian Noodle Bowls

This is SO good! A huge hit and on regular rotation with my family. The Thai Kitchen brand has rice noodles and they can be found at Safeway or Amazon (6 box pack). You can easily leave out the shrimp (I cut each piece of shrimp into 3 pieces before sauteing) and add more veggies- I always add red bell pepper. Low-sodium soy sauce is a must and coconut oil is a great substitution for the grapeseed/high heat oil. Biggest tip for cooking this dish- have all ingredients prepped and ready, including the egg/sesame oil mixture. You can easily overcook or burn each step if you’re not ready with prepped ingredients. Trust me.

Cobb Salad (copied from earlier post!)

This has been a staple in our home for over 10 years. When the kids were little I began by making a deconstructed Cobb salad for them- basically putting chopped up hard-boiled egg, bacon, avocado, tomatoes and chicken right on their high chair tray. As they got older I’d make little piles on their plates (no foods touching each other, of course) and finally graduated into tossing all the components together with the lettuce and dressing and they gobbled it right up. I always left the crumbled goat or blue cheese on the side for anyone that wanted it. I tried to always stick to a rule that when we were eating tossed salads, stir fry, or other foods that had many ingredients all mixed up, that they could pick out one ingredient but had to eat the rest. I do believe this helped them to eat or at least try new foods when they would have otherwise turned their nose up to it. This trick might have ended up with food being thrown from a high chair or booster but for the most part it was a successful rule!

For this salad, I try to prep some of these ingredients on the weekend, in the morning or at least in the afternoon so that putting it all together in the evening is a piece of cake. You’ll need the following components:

Chopped romaine lettuce, sliced hard boiled egg, chopped tomato, crumbled bacon, diced rotisserie chicken, sliced avocado, and crumbled goat or blue cheese. Toss in a large bowl with the dressing below or a store-bought vinaigrette.

Homemade dressing:

2 tablespoons vinegar (apple cider, champagne, red wine or balsamic)

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Pinch of sugar or drizzle of maple syrup or honey

¼ teaspoon salt and a pinch of ground pepper

½ tablespoon mayonnaise

¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard

Shake ingredients in jar or plastic container with tight fitting lid.

A year later… and still meal planning

November 13, 2017 by Christina Shoup 4 Comments

Happy Fall everyone! It’s been just over a year since my last blog post. Anyone remember my last post about us suddenly buying a new home and putting our current one on the market? I’m happy to report all went well, we settled in fairly quickly, and we cruised right into the holiday season. Excited to share our new space with friends and family, we filled our calendar hosting gatherings that varied from 10 yr old birthday laser tag around the yard (crazy!), to Thanksgiving with family, Father Daughter Dance middle school pre-party, Christmas Eve dinner with friends, Memorial Day backyard fiesta, and many random taco bars to watch the “big game” and dinner parties in between. What I love about all of these events, both big and small, is that I can remember at least one memorable dish from each menu that stood out. The entire meal might have been good, but without fail, I can remember the one dish that everyone loved and was enjoyed by all. Funny enough, those are always the ones that I get an email or text about requesting the recipe for. I guess the takeaway is– don’t be afraid to have friends and family over! You can serve them a whole meal from your kitchen or someone else’s, and they will likely only remember one of those dishes.

A year later, which for me translates into my 11th year of meal calendars, I can look back on all the main events that occurred over the past year. So much of what’s on our monthly calendars show what life was like that particular month. As I have mentioned before, it’s my scrapbook of sorts.

January- predictably shows lots of salmon and veggies after the holiday sugar high. February- plenty of cold-weather dishes like chicken curry and soups as well as delicious, naughty super bowl treats. March/April- lots of standard go-to recipes like southwest chicken salad, chicken meatballs, and burrito bowls; showing little time with an epic ski season, flag football and baseball in full swing. May- with warmer weather and several family birthdays and holidays, the calendar shows special dishes like grilled scallops and asparagus, grilled tri tip with lots of yummy sides, and favorite restaurant reservations. June- early summer produce at the farmer’s market provided easy dinners like BLT sandwiches, shrimp tacos with corn, and quesadillas with grilled veggies. July- July was nothing short of crazytown. We lived at the ballpark the entire month and when our dinner wasn’t from the snack shack, it was in a container sitting in the stands. Thankfully, kale and couscous salad travels really well. Let’s be honest though, mostly it was snack shack dinner followed by a bowl of cereal at home or hotel. When it got really crazy, dinner came from a Chick Fil A drive through window- Ben’s first drive through! Maybe 3rd or 4th for Syd and Ry. I had never had a chicken sandwich from Chick Fil A, but now I know what all the fuss is about. Those things are delicious! August- summer’s bounty at the farmer’s market turned into delicious, healthy, easy dinners such as fresh tomato soup and homemade rosemary focaccia, ratatouille, summer veggie quinoa, and fresh basil pesto pasta. September- settling back into the school routine allowed for more predictable schedules and dinners at the table. On the calendar that month was roasted salmon and broccoli with a side of white beans and pancetta, a sheet pan dinner of braised chicken with tomatoes and bacon and an easy make-ahead stuffed shells dish. October- with good intentions to make cozy warm food and all things pumpkin, the weather suggested otherwise. We had a nice chilly fall week where beef chili, pork tenderloin, roasted brussels sprouts and acorn squash were on the menu, but then our heat wave came and we were back to grilled chicken pitas, veggie burgers and deli roasted chicken over mixed greens.

Here we are in November! After coming home from a much needed Mexican vacation with Eric, we had a few busy weeks and I was thankful for those go-to recipes that I practically have memorized. I can grab any scrap of paper in my purse, sit in my car in the local grocery store parking lot and meal plan for the next several days. Thank goodness for our little handheld computers where we can look up that recipe to ensure we have all the right ingredients and check our calendar to check for any late meetings, practices or games. There’s nothing worse than cooking a meal only to realize it’s only you and the cat home to eat it. Wait a minute… that doesn’t sound so bad afterall!

Some of those go to meals that we’ve had in the past two weeks include: Beef and Cheddar Hand Pies, Greek Chicken Pitas, and Baked Chicken Meatballs. All of the recipe links and notes are in previous posts, so just scroll down for those if you’re interested.

A new recipe I tried recently was from New York Times Cooking (usually a homerun!) that I sadly cannot recommend- Turkey Pork Sausage Meatloaf with Tomato Relish. It was very flavorful but the texture was so strange and heating it up the next day made it nearly inedible. I’ll stick to my other meatloaf recipes that are a big hit with my family. Bobby Flay’s Vegetable Meatloaf with Balsamic Glaze that uses beef and pork and Ina Garten’s Meatloaf that uses ground turkey.

As I have done in the past, and life allows going forward, I will try to post my meal plan for the week on Sunday or Monday morning at the latest. My hope is that it will inspire you to meal plan for the week and perhaps at least one of the recipes makes your mouth water enough to give it a try. I will let you know if any of the recipes are new to me, but 90% of the time, the recipes I recommend are those that are already a hit with my own family. Nobody needs another recipe in their “to try” file that may or may not be a hit- let me waste my time and money for you. 🙂

This week is full of commitments in the evening for most of our family so I am planning accordingly. All will either be made in advance or can be left on the stove to accommodate all the different schedules we have going on here. No need for frantic pizza orders or drive throughs when you have a plan. But, as always, use pencil because life happens and plans change!

Coconut Chicken Soup

This is a quick and easy soup that you can adapt to suit your preferences. I use full fat, unsweetened coconut milk. Thai Kitchen (now organic and at Costco!) is my favorite. My kids despise mushrooms so I may cut back on the quantity or they can pick them out. While I love the flavor of lemongrass, I don’t love the woodsy texture. I will use the lemongrass for the amazing flavor, but will make sure to finely dice or cut even cut in large chunks and simmer in the soup and skimming them out before the last step. Our side dish will be frozen potstickers from Trader Joe’s or Costco. Yum!

Paleo Chili

This became a hit a few years ago when we went on a ski weekend with another family and I was in charge of one of the dinners. Cold + mountains = chili! The problem (beyond the lack of snow during the drought and not all that cold temps) was I only had chili recipes that either had beans in it (one of our friends wasn’t a fan) or was a thick Texas-style chili with lots of spice (not exactly kid-friendly). So, I found this recipe with great reviews and decided to try it. As with all chili, it’s best made the day before and reheated. It was a hit! Only change I made was to use ground beef instead of ground bison (but now you can find bison at Costco if you’re interested in trying). And because most of us weren’t actually following a Paleo diet, we loaded it up with sour cream, shredded cheese and green onions. Don’t forget a side of cornbread and butter, too. Trader Joe’s is a good one to have on hand.

Nordstrom Nicoise Salad with Herb-Crusted Salmon and Tuscan Roast Potatoes

I’m planning on having this salad twice this week. Once with salmon and the other with grilled lemon-herb chicken. It may seem like a lot of components, but if you plan correctly, you can have most of this done ahead of time or cut back on some of the steps. For instance, if you don’t want to buy a bunch of fresh herbs, you can shake on a little Italian Seasoning on the salmon and potatoes before roasting and you will get plenty of flavor for your salad. If your people, especially the little ones don’t like salad because it’s all touchy on the plate, then separate any of the components that they will eat or you want them to try and you essentially have the same family dinner. I skip the vinaigrette in the linked recipe and use this Balsamic Vinaigrette with Basil. Btw, this recipe link doesn’t include thyme, but I have Danielle Walker’s cookbook Against All Grain and the original recipe uses chopped up thyme. Be sure to use fresh basil and thyme! It’s so delicious I could drink it. I try to have a mason jar of it in my refrigerator at all times. One recipe makes plenty for at least two, maybe three large salads for our family of five.

Ground Turkey Enchiladas

No link here because the “recipe” is written on a scrap of paper that is barely legible. We had this a few years back at a family get together and my sister-in-law who brought the dish gave me the recipe on the spot. Our family has enjoyed it many many times and I’m happy to pass it along to you. Easy, healthyish, and most importantly, my kids cheer when they see it on the calendar. Warning- it can be on the spicy side, which two out of my kids enjoy, but make sure to get the mild Hatch sauce and have sour cream on hand to help with the heat. A side of black or refried beans and chips is not a bad idea.

1 lb ground turkey thigh (dark meat)

1 small can of diced Ortega/Hatch mild green chilies

1 packet of taco seasoning

1 14oz. can of refried black beans

~2 c shredded cheddar, jack or colby jack cheese

1 large can of Hatch Enchilada sauce, mild

~12 corn or flour tortillas

Green onion

In a glass pyrex baking dish, spray non-stick oil and cover bottom with a thin layer of sauce. Brown ground turkey, drain oil, and mix in taco seasoning according to packet directions. Add refried beans and mix until combined. Divide meat and bean mixture among tortillas, top with cheese and roll up. Place rolled tortillas in the baking dish nice and tight and top with remaining sauce. Be sure to cover enchiladas completely and top with any remaining cheese. Bake at 300 degrees for about 30 minutes and top with sliced green onion before serving.

*When I make this dish later this week, I will pay attention to exactly how many enchiladas it makes. The reality is, depending on how many mouths I need to feed I can adapt the recipe accordingly. Need to stretch the recipe because the playdate went long and you’ve got more mouths to feed? Perfect- add another can of beans, add more cheese or use smaller fajita sized tortillas and serve with a fruit smoothie. Or if you use Kirkland Organic ground beef from Costco, those prepackaged squares are more than a pound (1.13lbs, I think) and you have more filling than you need. Or mix If you’ve got extra sauce, go ahead and dip your tortillas in sauce before adding the meat/bean mixture to make them extra delicious. Point is, this is a very adaptable dish that I make differently all the time. Bonus- it’s very freezer friendly, so make up a double batch!

Banana Flaxseed Muffins

These are tasty healthy banana muffins and are going in school lunches this week. I use almond milk and trade off between using coconut oil or melted butter, both are good. I often use toasted and chopped walnuts and mix in with the batter rather than sprinkle on top. Very adaptable with Cup for Cup flour to make gluten free or any dairy-free milk for allergies. All ingredients, including the ground flaxseed, are found at Trader Joe’s. (Swear I don’t have an impending job at TJ’s in their marketing department, it’s just a great store!)

Happy meal planning this week and please let me know if you have any questions or if you end up trying any of these recipes! Have a great week ~Christina

When you know better you do better

August 28, 2016 by Christina Shoup 5 Comments

Some farmer’s market love from Eric

Let me first say that I truly appreciate all the feedback since I’ve started this little blog. I have really appreciate our texts, emails, posts, and comments at school to let me know how much you’re enjoying it. It’s been fun for me and I am enjoying it more than I thought. So many of you have been kind enough to share your tips, suggest new recipes, and commiserate about the stress and hassle of getting dinner on the table each evening- thank you!!

For many of us, school and fall sports are well underway. I might have over-planned last week’s meal calendar just a bit. I stuck to the plan, and my family appreciated each meal, but I underestimated how busy and tired I’d be with school and sports starting all in the same week. I planned for one day of leftovers, but what I really needed was either another day of leftovers or something easy from the freezer. Rookie move. This week is looking a little nutty with busy days and several evening meetings. One of my favorite sayings- When you know better you do better! Here’s to an easier week of getting food on the table. And, let’s not forget we’ve got a nice long weekend ahead of us!

Turkey Chili with White Beans

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/turkey-chili-with-white-beans-3090

There are many chili recipes out there, and I’ve made several different kinds myself. Over the years I’ve tried many variations- beans vs. no beans, ground beef vs. cubed, tomato sauce vs. chicken/beef stock/beer, spicy vs. mild, quick and easy vs. simmer all day, etc. This week I am cooking my favorite turkey chili because it’s quick and easy, full of flavor and provides leftovers. It’s always a hit and the recipe is usually requested when I share it with family and friends. I serve it with all the toppings: cilantro, shredded cheese, green onion, avocado, and sour cream. A side of cornbread- Trader Joe’s box(!) or crushed up tortilla chips is yummy, too.

I make it as directed with these exceptions: I substitute the 3 cans of white beans for 1 can of white beans, 1 can of black beans and 1 can of dark red kidney beans. I like the variety but anything works. I also use dark turkey thigh instead of more lean turkey breast- it seems to have more flavor. Finally, I add about a cup of frozen corn in the last 10 minutes of cooking.

*Bonus- the leftovers are even better the next day after the flavors have had a chance to develop.

Frozen Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken

You’ll recall me saying a few weeks ago that once school starts you’ll see “Trader Joe’s frozen something” on my meal calendar more often. Well, this is one of those go-to meals for busy nights. I actually cook 2 packages for our entire family and there’s always a little leftover. I serve it with a side of broccoli and frozen jasmine or brown rice- all from Trader Joe’s. Not the healthiest meal, but it couldn’t be easier and my kids absolutely love this dish.

*Caution- Once I packed a few servings in Tupperware for Sydney and I to eat in the car on the way to a “birds and the bees” class. I figured we needed full tummies for the night we had ahead of us. The darn chicken dish didn’t sit for more than 30 minutes in the Tupperware before it steamed its crunchy outside right off and into a nasty mushy layer making our dinner nearly inedible. Lesson #1- do not make this ahead of time and certainly don’t package it! Lesson #2- if you’re going to take your kid to such a class, treat them to a nice juicy In & Out Burger, fries and shake.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/12/03/recipe-best-pulled-pork-crock-pot/

This is a household favorite and I’m excited to get it back into the rotation. Thankfully, my friend Marina reminded me of this dish and I am happy that she did! It’s a great dish for the crockpot that can cook all morning or afternoon and can sit until you’re ready to shred the pork and add BBQ sauce. We love the pork on Hawaiian rolls with a side of coleslaw (nothing fancy here- bagged shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, and Marie’s coleslaw or poppy seed dressing) and baked beans.

Labor Day Menu

Tomato Pie, Grilled Sausages, Corn Salad, Watermelon Wedges and Butterfinger Pie

I made a very similar menu when we had some friends over this summer and thought it would make a great Labor Day menu as well. Make one or all of these dishes and you won’t be sorry. At first glance, it probably doesn’t look like an easy menu, but each dish only has a few ingredients, very easy to prepare, and is full of summer flavor. Enjoy!

Tomato Pie

I know what you’re thinking… tomato what?! This has been a favorite of mine since childhood. My mom used to make this when we had company over and guests always requested the recipe. Years ago she gave my siblings and me a wonderful Christmas gift- a book of family recipes and this one made the cut. I make it several times each summer and this year is no different. It makes an impressive and delicious dish when you entertain but is simple and comforting enough to make and bring to a friend with a new baby.

Make it easy on yourself and buy pre-made pie dough and unroll it right into a pie dish. Poke a few holes in the dough and cook as instructed before filling your pie shell with the tomatoes and cheese mixture. And, don’t bother peeling the tomatoes, it’s unnecessary!

Right out of the family recipe collection

Strange looking crust but that didn’t affect the taste

Corn Salad

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/fresh-corn-salad-recipe.html

This is delicious, super easy, and I make it as directed. Fresh corn is really important here!

As disturbing as this photo seems, it’s a great way to cut corn off the cob and catch it in a bundt or angel food pan.

Butterfinger Pie

This is hardly a recipe but here’s another favorite from my childhood that was included in our family recipe book. My kids nearly died when they were at the grocery store with me and I asked them to go find 6 Butterfinger bars. One of them said, “What is this, Halloween or something?” My candy bar-deprived children declared this the best dessert ever and I’m pretty sure I’m going to need to include it in my very own family recipe book someday.

4 ingredients!

The Countdown…

August 14, 2016 by Christina Shoup 3 Comments

Where did summer go?? The first day of school is just around the corner for most of us and fall sports schedules are slowly trickling in. To parents and teachers, it seems September is just as or more important than January. In this “New Year” we all hold our breath, cross fingers, or say a little prayer that our kids’ schedules all don’t fall on one particular day of the week (always Wednesdays for us!). We might set goals for them (academic, personal, etc.) and we certainly set them for ourselves (I will say “no” more often or at least give my best “yes” to school committees and other community events). I can also feel myself tense up just a little at the idea of early mornings, packing lunches, and busy weeks ahead. But even with all the busyness of the start of another school year, as a teacher and now a parent, it’s still my favorite time of year.

This week, we’re thinking about getting back into routine and on a school schedule. I’m thinking about dinner and how to feed my family without the craziness – whether it occurs at the dining table, kitchen counter or in the car. To help with the busy days ahead, two of the recipes below would be great to double and freeze for another day. I also included a muffin recipe that our family loves and are great for a quick breakfast or school snack. They also freeze beautifully so you better believe I’m doubling this recipe and freezing at least half. I hope you enjoy the recipes below. Thank you for all your comments and feedback on the previous recipes- it means a lot!

Cobb Salad

Homemade dressing

2 tablespoons vinegar (apple cider, champagne, red wine or balsamic)

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Pinch of sugar or drizzle of maple syrup or honey

¼ teaspoon salt and a pinch of ground pepper

½ tablespoon mayonnaise

¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard

Shake ingredients in jar or plastic container with tight fitting lid.

Fresh Cream of Tomato Soup

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cream-of-fresh-tomato-soup-recipe.html

I know what you’re thinking… hot soup in the summer? Yes, and for two reasons. 1) I live in CA by the San Francisco Bay and it’s just not that hot. 2) With fresh tomatoes and basil, it’s like summer in a bowl. I haven’t made it yet this year and I’m so glad I looked back on my previous summer meal calendars and found it on there many times! It’s a good one to double and freeze in mason jars to enjoy when fresh tomatoes are long gone. Although it has some cream in it, I’ve never had any trouble freezing, defrosting and reheating it. Sometimes we eat soup with a simple green salad, but everyone is a lot happier if I serve the soup alongside a gooey grilled cheese sandwich. Choose your bread (we love sourdough), choose your cheese (very fond of white cheddar), but always use salted butter. It makes all the difference. I learned that from my mama and she’s so right.

**I use an immersion blender or my Vitamix to blend this soup. I actually prefer the immersion blender (stick blender- cheap and super useful for many soups I make) because I like the soup to have a bit of texture.

Beef and Cheddar Hand Pies

http://www.marthastewart.com/1104125/beef-and-cheddar-hand-pies

My kids go crazy for this! In fact, my 11 year old just walked by my computer and cheered that it was on the upcoming meal calendar. It’s a little bit naughty with buttery puff pastry, but I serve it with a side of roasted broccoli, maybe push a little harder on my workout that day and feel just fine about this delicious dinner. I also double it and freeze the hand pies uncooked in freezer bags with parchment paper in between. The best part? You can cook them frozen directly from the freezer on a busy night!

Taco Bar

No recipe here, but we switch between grilled chicken/ground beef or turkey with soft flour tortillas and all the fixings (cheese, shredded lettuce, tomato, salsa and sour cream) and grilled cod/sole (on a piece of foil) with some chili powder/lime seasoning in corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, lime and sour cream mixed with the adobe sauce from canned chipotle peppers. Chips, salsa and guacamole are always necessary and sometimes some refried or black beans, too. Yum!

*Short on time? Frozen Breaded Cod from Trader Joe’s are perfect to keep in your freezer for this easy weeknight dish- while they are in the oven, prep toppings and dinner is on the table in less than 20 minutes, I promise!

Grilled, Korean Style Steaks with Spicy Cilantro Sauce

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/grilled-korean-style-steaks-with-spicy-cilantro-sauce-105124

We don’t eat red meat very often around here but when we do, it’s got to be really flavorful! This recipe fits the bill… it’s full of spicy and bright flavors, though not super kid-friendly, ours eat a fair amount of spicy foods and can tolerate this dish. If yours don’t, make this anyway and throw some chicken apple sausages on the grill for those that don’t want the spice. I like to grill zucchini, red onion, and eggplant on the side as well as some couscous or jasmine rice. The best part about this is the leftovers! The next day, take a toasted roll and put some grilled veggies, sliced steak and sliced mozzarella on top. Drizzle with the spicy cilantro sauce and you have yourself a delicious steak sandwich.

** Use low-sodium soy sauce and be sure to not marinate for much longer than suggested or it can be a bit too salty.

Blueberry Bran Muffins

http://barefootcontessa.com/recipes.aspx?RecipeID=965&S=0

Easy, yummy, freezes nicely and my kids love them. Enough said! Wheat bran is not super easy to find, but Bob’s Red Mill makes an 8 oz. package and I buy several of them and put them in my freezer. Locally, Molly Stone’s and Whole Foods carries this product. Sadly, Safeway and Trader Joe’s do not. If you get a chance to make these, you won’t regret it!

**The first ingredient in this recipe is vegetable oil but it doesn’t tell you the amount until you get to the directions below- I almost made a mistake this morning making this recipe. Also, I often use pure maple syrup instead of honey. I buy it at Costco and it just seems easier to use than honey.