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.