creamy corn with cilantro

it shouldn't be all that surprising to hear how often we eat mexican food in my house. with all the burritos, tacos for breakfast and dinner, salsa, taco salad, rice, quesadillas, baked eggs, and fajitas, i am always on the lookout for something new to add to the mexican rotation. and in this case, another way to mix corn - one of my favorite vegetables, especially now, when it's finally in season - with queso fresco, one of my new favorite cheeses.

coconut lime pound cake

when i was a kid, i loved reaching my hand into a box of chocolates, taking a bite, and seeing what i got. and in our house, boxes of chocolate only came once a year, at christmas in the form of a four piece whitman's sampler, so you had better pick a good one. each and every year, as hard as i tried to avoid the coconut, it felt like i always chose it first. and the only thing worse to a kid with braces was the chewy chocolate covered caramel.

lucky for me, i grew up and discovered true coconut goodness - pina coladas, coconut popsicles, samoas. and now i can add this cake to the list. it's the perfect bite of tropical goodness, when instead of lying on the beach drinking a pina colada, you're stuck at your desk at work, day dreaming about your next island getaway. the only thing better? a real pina colada, sitting on the beach, in mid february.

dulce de leche brownies

remember the dulce de leche i made a couple weeks ago in my slow cooker? it's sole purpose was to end up in these brownies. a couple months after i started this blog, my cousin steve started his own blog dedicated to food. whereas i tend to steer clear of relatively complicated recipes most of the time, steve almost revels in them. he kicked off his blog with his own version of the alton brown smoker, a smoker built from terra cotta pots, a hot plate, and grill grate. but it doesn't stop there - there's strawberry rhubarb pie and italian style pizza. but what really gets me is his mexican - frijoles refritos and arroz a la mexicana & pork chile verde enchiladas - and these brownies.

great northern cornbread

along with those amazing peanut butter cookies, we had a huge spread of food for jason's birthday a couple weekends ago. i made another batch of homemade pickles and our good friend chris smoked pork and made cajun corn. this cornbread is the perfect accompaniment for barbecue - and i bet it would travel really well, also making it perfect for camping.

secret recipe club: minted pineapple lime agua fresca

this month, i have not one, but TWO recipes for the secret recipe club! since it's been abnormally hot and dry here - highs above 90 and 14+ days without rain - and from what i hear, it's hot everywhere, we could all use a nice, cold beverage. or a cold drink, if you live in our house.

secret recipe club: breakfast tacos

it's time again for the secret recipe club! each month, when my i receive my assigned blog, i click the link, and the first thing i do is read the about page. i like to see where people are from, what their background is. how are we alike? do they live near me? what do they do for a living? the basics, really.

and then i start reading through posts to find inspiration. i start by going back as far as i can in the history. and then i look through the posts in the same month i am cooking from them. that way, i get the best of both worlds - reinvent an old recipe and cook something that fits in with the time of year.

mushroom marsala fontina flatbread

when it's this hot, it has to be something pretty good for me to turn on the oven. which brings me to one of the most underutlized tools in my kitchen: the toaster oven. 

i bought a pack of premade flatbreads at the market last weekend for a dollar. topped with vegetables and cheese, they make the perfect quick, meatless meal. [not feeling mushrooms? tomatoes are finally in season. top a flatbread with sliced tomato, slices of fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil. perfection.]

peanut butter chocolate chip cookies

this is a year of big birthdays. i kicked it off with the last birthday of my twenties. then my dad turned "double nickels" with my mom following a couple months later. and now it's jason's turn.

crockpot dulce de leche

i finally conquered dulce de leche! without boiling cans, tending milk on the stove for hours, or turning on the oven. pour a couple of cans of sweetened condensed milk in your slow cooker, set it to low, stir ever hour or so, and in about six hours you've got rich, creamy dulce de leche. yes, it really is that easy.

easy english muffins

last weekend, between barbecues, fireworks, lazy drives for ice cream in the thing, yardwork, and 90+ degree days, i decided it was time to bake something yeasty. [and check something off the list at the same time!]

strawberry rolls

this is the last post of strawberry week! be sure to check out the other sweet treats here. 

most sunday mornings i get up first, make myself some coffee, pour a bowl of cereal/fruit with yogurt, and watch the food network for an hour or so. last weekend, i caught claire robinson pulling picture perfect blueberry strudels out of the oven to finish her elaborate weekend brunch. as much as i love all things strawberry, raspberry, and blackberry, one berry i've never really cared for was the blueberry. it does absolutely nothing for me. luckily i had a box of puff pastry dough sitting in the freezer and a few cups of fresh strawberries left and the strudel was mine!

strawberry sour cream ice cream

when i visited my parents a few weekends ago to make jam with my mom, she wanted to be sure we tried her strawberry ice cream - made from the same homegrown berries - before we left. not only was it the perfect shade of pink, but it was completely solid. when i was finally able to scoop it, the ice cream had an odd texture, almost brittle. rather than being smooth and creamy, it was harsh and brittle. sure, the flavor was great, but the texture was all wrong.

which brings me to this. sour cream ice cream. yea, it also sounds odd. but let me tell you, i've seen this recipe everywhere. and once you get the first taste, it's understandable why.