For Father’s Day, I made Peach Stuffed French Toast as a special treat for my better half. He took one bite of it and said, “Yea, you can make this for me again.”  And I will.

Don’t be intimated by the list of ingredients. I just broke it up to make it more organized. This is easy to make folks and really super impressive to those who don’t know how easy it is to make!

Peach Stuffed French Toast

Ingredients for the French Toast:

1 loaf of Italian bread, cut into 1/2″ - 3/4 ” slices.
1/2 cup of cream
2 tablespoons of honey
4 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Ingredients for the Peach Stuffing:

2 cups of diced peaches
2-3 tablespoons of honey
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1/4 cup hot water–not boiling water

Ingredients for the Creamy Filling:

8 ounces of creme fraiche
lemon zest to taste
2 1/2 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

How to make:

1. Put honey in a mixing bowl add the hot water. Do not use boiling water. Stir until blended and then add the diced peaches. Set aside for a little bit,  you want the peaches to soften a little bit and the syrup to thicken.

2. Whip the creme fraiche,  lemon zest , sugar & vanilla together. Then add cinnamon and whip so it doesn’t clump. Place the creme fraiche mixture back in the fridge for at least 1/2 hour or until it hardens again.

3. Whip the eggs and cream together. Add honey and whip again. Then add the cinnamon. Pour into a shallow dish and dredge your bread slices on both sides. Let the bread get soppy.  Place in a skillet and cook until browned on both sides.

4. To assemble…Place one slice of French Toast on a plate, spread on some of the creme fraiche filling, spoon some of the peaches over that and top with another slice of French Toast. Top with some more peaches and homemade whipped cream.

Don’t eat too much!

We finally bought a grill after years and years of not having one and I’ve been on a grilling spree  If I can’t grill it, I don’t want to make it.

Last week, I experimented with grilling tofu. I tried different marinades and grilling techniques and I came up with several winners, but the Grilled Lemon Oregano Tofu was the definite #1. It’s so simple and fresh too.

Grilled Lemon Oregano Tofu

Ingredients:

1 8 ounce package of extra firm tofu
3 lemons, juiced
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons of fresh oregano, chopped
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons of olive oil (plus oil to brush on the grill and tofu)
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

How to make:

1. drain tofu and press the extra water out by squeezing the block between your hands. Too much water will make the tofu crumble on the grill.
2. Cube tofu into 1 inch x 2 inch cubes. Cubes work better than slices.
3. Whisk all the other ingredients together to combine and pour into a small shallow baking dish.
4. Place the tofu cubes in the marinade so that they are covered. Marinate for at least an hour. More is better if you have enough time.
5. If your tofu isn’t covered by the marinade turn them halfway through the marinating process.
6. To grill, coat your grill lightly with olive oil. Tofu sticks very easily. I brush on some olive oil before I light the grill.
7. Brush your cubed tofu lightly with olive oil and place on the grill. Medium to low heat.
8. Grill on each side for about 5 minutes.

I served my grilled tofu with Cous Cous and Grilled Insalata Caprese. Will share those recipes later.

This is refreshing and yummy!

Mojito Limeade

Ingredients:

2-3 leaves of fresh mint
1  lime, juiced
2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons hot water
ice and cold water

How to make:

1. Add mint leaves to a glass and crush with a wooden spoon to release minty goodness.
2. Add honey and hot water.  Mix well to incorporate the honey. Then add the lime juice and mix again.
3. Add ice and cold water and stir well. Drink and enjoy!

I saw this story on npr.org last week about updating the grilled cheese sandwich, something that I’ve already done here, and it reminded that I’ve been wanting  to do the same for Macaroni & Cheese, but I’d like your help. Plus, this sounds like a fantastic excuse to have a contest as well, don’t ya think?!

So, submit your best non-traditional Mac & Cheese recipe and you could win a prize! Depending on how many recipes I receive, I will either test them all out or just pick the ones that stand out. Whichever the case, three will be chosen for inclusion in a poll and the readers will decide the winner. Sound like fun? Awesome.

Here’s what you could win!

Apron from Able Mable
Tea towels from LAMA Designs
Printable recipe cards from Stephanie Fizer
Recipe cards from My Zoetrope
Cards from The Owls Nest
Child’s apron from Wendi Gratz

How to enter?

Send me an email with your recipe. If it’s original, then fantastic. If it’s not, please let me know where you found it, so I can give credit (I will be sharing selected recipes). I will collect entries for 2 weeks (until(June 4th) and will post the poll after I’ve had time to evaluate all the recipes.  More details will be coming about the poll. All are encouraged to enter. Foodies and non-foodies alike! Also, this challenge is open to international entrants as well.

***Please note, I am a vegetarian. But please feel free to ubmit recipes that contain meat and I will do my best to use a meat substitute to keep true to the recipe.

What’s for lunch? Well, I had a Dagwood Vegetable Sandwich with a Berry Banana Smoothie. Oh so, yummy.

Dagwood Vegetable Sandwich

Ingredients:

Dijon mustard
red onion, sliced
radish, sliced
red pepper, matchsticks
carrot, grated
tomato, sliced
mesclun lettuce
feta, sliced
avocado, sliced
rye bread
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

How to make:

Just stack, slice in half and eat!

Berry Banana Smoothie

Ingredients:

frozen strawberries, raspberries and blueberries
banana
Greek yogurt, plain
honey
soy milk

How to make:

Combine in the blender until smooth.

This is the best guacamole in the world, really. It’s chunky and garlicky and a little bit spicy. It’s adapted from John Robbins‘ recipe in May All Be Fed: Diet For a New World, one of the best vegan cookbooks around. My copy is truly falling apart.

The Best Guacamole in the World

Ingredients:

3 avocados, coarsely chopped
1/2 white onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 rib celery with leaves, chopped
1 small jalapeno, finely chopped
1 tomato, chopped
2  tablespoons of fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

How to make:

Mix all ingredients together and serve. Make sure to leave it chunky, it’s better that way. Easy peesy!

Okay, it’s Saturday night  and after a long day of working in the yard and running errands you are just chillin’ with your best homey (my hubby in my case). You both decide you want Sangria, but you didn’t really plan ahead and you don’t have all the ingredients or the time to let it sit in the fridge overnight. So, what do you do?

Well, you do what I did on Saturday night and you wing it with what you got…and in my case that wasn’t a lot. I did have some decent wine to use though…Tempranillo, which is a popular Spanish varietal. It worked to make this sorry woman’s Sangria not seem so sorry, but you could use any old red wine you happen to have.

Lazy Saturday Sangria (really lazy and last minute)

Ingredients:

2 cups of red wine
1 cup OJ
1 cup pomegranate  juice
1 lime, juiced
1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons of honey

How to make:

1. Mix the honey and the warm water. Add it to a pitcher and then add all the other ingredients.

2. Mix well, pour over ice and enjoy.

I like my mac & cheese lumpy and not creamy or at least that’s how I like my traditional regular ole mac & cheese. I also like my asparagus any way you want to cook…except with pork fat my dear mother-in-law.

Lumpy Bumpy Macaroni & Cheese

Ingredients:

2 cups of macaroni noodles, uncooked
2 cups of shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese
2 1/2 cups of skim milk
1/4 cup of butter, melted
1/4 cup of white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup of breadcrumbs

How to make:

1. Make your macaroni noodles.
2. Mix cooked noodles, melted butter and flour in a casserole dish.
3. Stir in the shredded cheese.
4. Add the milk and stir. Salt & pepper to taste.
5. Bake on 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
6. Top with breadcrumbs and bake for an additional 5 minutes.

Grilled Asparagus

Ingredients:

3 cloves of garlic.,crushed
3-4 tablespoons of olive oil
1 bunch of fresh asparagus

How to make:

1. Mix oil and crushed garlic in a shallow bowl.
2. Coat asparagus with the oil and garlic and place it on the your grill. Watch out for splattering.
3. Cook on each side for about 2-5 minutes depending on your grill. Indoor electric grills (which is what I used) do not get as hot as outdoor gas grills, so adjust the cooking time.

I lost my grandmother’s handwritten recipe for banana bread. :(  One of my few prized possessions in the world, I feel like a real jerk losing it. My grandmother’s banana bread was the best I’d ever tasted and it’s not like I can go call her up and get her to give me the recipe again. She had used that recipe for about 65 years and probably got it from her mother. It  wasn’t really all that complicated, but her bread was always made with love and that just made all the difference in the world.

My bread never tasted quite  as good as hers, but over the years I made little additions and omissions to her recipe and I think mine comes pretty darn close. I can’t believe I lost the recipe card with her original recipe and all my little notes. You’d think, as many times as I’ve made banana bread from that recipe that I’d have it all memorized. Not quite, but pretty darn close I think.

Here’s what I came up with. For you Grandmom…

My Grandmom’s Banana Bread Muffins

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
3-4 bananas, very, very ripe and mashed
1 cup of white whole wheat flour
3/4 cup of regular whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons of  half & half
1 cup of chopped Nuts, walnuts or pecans

How-to:

1. Cream the softened butter (room temp is best) and sugar together. Add egg and the vanilla and almond extracts.
2. Add the mashed bananas and blend well, but not too much. I like some chunky banana pieces in my bread.
3. In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients together. Incorporate into the banana mixture.
4. Then add the half & half.
5. Finally, add the chopped nuts, I prefer either pecans or walnuts.
6. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan or into a muffin pan. Bake on 350 for about 50-60 minutes if using a loaf pan or about 20-25 minutes for muffins.

I made perogies (just the frozen Trader Joe’s kind)  and fresh green beans for dinner last night and we are having the leftovers tonight. So, in an effort to jazz up our leftovers, I made some coleslaw from some cabbage that needed to be made into something soon.

I never really follow a recipe for coleslaw, but prefer to mix it up each time. I do stick to the trio of cabbage, carrot and onion though. Here’s what I came up with tonight.

Creamy Coleslaw with Cilantro

Ingredients:

1/2 small head of cabbage shredded and chopped
1/2 cup of shredded carrot
1/4 cup of diced red onion
3/4 cup of mayonnaise
4 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon of dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon of celery seed
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1 tablespoon of fresh chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons of agave nectar
salt and pepper to taste

How-to:

1. Shred the cabbage (I prefer to do mine by hand, rather than use the food processor. I like it a little bit chunkier), dice the onion, chop the cilantro and shred the carrot. Mix all four in a large bowl.
2. In another bowl, mix the remaining ingredients and whisk together.
3. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss to coat.