I like improvising when cooking and I try to use what I have on hand as much as possible, so I ended up making a Grilled Avocado with Tomato and Corn Salsa. It’s sort of fun to force yourself to work with whatever ingredients you have in the kitchen without running to the grocery store! It makes it more of a challenge

Here’s what I used:

• 1/2 of a ripe avocado, pitted and peeled
• 2 ears of fresh corn, kernels removed from cob
• 3 grape tomatoes, diced
• dash of cumin
• finely diced red onion (use your discretion, add as much or as little as you like!)
• squirt of fresh lime juice
• Athenos Feta
• salt and pepper to taste

Here’s what I did:

• In a grill pan, I added a bit of olive oil, the corn, onion, and cumin and let that cook until the corn was nicely browned.

• Added the diced tomatoes and a spritz of fresh lime juice to the mix and refrigerated while I prepared the avocado.

• I drizzled some olive oil directly on the flat side of the avocado and grilled it for about 3 minutes on one side and rotated the avocado to create a cross-hatch grill mark for an additional minute.

• Once the avocado was grilled, I topped it with the tomato and corn salsa and a generous amount Athenos Feta.

The thing I like best about avocados is how substantial they are. I had this for lunch along with a handful of peanuts and I’m definitely thinking this will hold me over nicely until dinner time. The smoothness from the avocado and the fresh Summery crunch from the corn mixed with the crumbly traditional Athenos feta was music to my taste buds! This one is a keeper!

What’s the best thing you’ve created using ONLY what you’ve had in your kitchen?

[Chels]

When he asked me if WANM had a “killer” guacamole recipe, I said “mayyybe” in an effort to see what he was getting at. He told us about an event he was throwing called Guacaholics Anonymous. And would we like to participate by making our own guacamole? We obviously said yes without hesitation.

And then we started freaking out a bit. After all, it was guacamole for 100 people! 100! But after learning a serving was simply a chip-full, we calmed down a bit. The event consisted of Boston restaurants (like our favorite Poe’s Kitchen at the Rattlesnake!) and some local “amateurs” making their own guacamole. Oh, and a whole lot of people eating it. All of the money raised (tickets were only $10) went to Lovin’ Spoonfuls, Share our Strength, and Community Servings; 3 fabulous organizations.

So, what did Chels and I make? Come on, you know us. We made a bacon guacamole! It was a pretty traditional guac consisting of avocados (obviously), chopped tomato, finely diced red onion, lime, salt and pepper, and red chili flakes. Then we chopped up some bacon and stirred it in.

Neither of us have ever had bacon in our guacamole before, but we knew it HAD to be good. We also decided to leave our guac pretty chunky since neither of us really love super pureed guacamole. We tested it before tonight’s event and decided it was a definite go.

We got a really awesome response to our guacamole and lots of people even told us it was the best they had. Yay! Of course, we really have to thank bacon. Because bacon can do no wrong (unless you’re a vegetarian, of course). But this was definitely a guacamole we’ll be making for events in the future!

The turn-out for the event was great and the Fenway Cantina was the perfect space to hold it.

We wore our aprons, of course

Another decision we made was to prep all our fixings at home and then make the actual guacamole when we arrived; right before the event started. We wanted it to be as fresh as possible! And we kind of felt like we were preparing a dish on TopChef while we were doing it!

A HUGE thank you to Aaron of @EatBoston for asking us to participate in Guacaholics Anonymous and for throwing another amazing event.

He also informed us that he has lots of fun food event planned for the future, so definitely stay tuned

I don’t know why that made us so sad… Also, I was sure I looked super sad in this photo; but I really just look weird.

Oh, you’re probably wondering about the feta, right? While we seriously considered adding feta to our guacamole (it’s kinda close to cotija, right?!), we decided not to. Though I have a feeling it could have been awesome.

But for lunch I made a tuna salad with feta. I actually made the tuna with simply Greek yogurt and Athenos feta cheese. No mayo! And really, you couldn’t even tell there was no mayo.

I toasted some bread and made an open-faced sandwich with it, putting the tuna on top of some tomato. Greek yogurt and feta may be my two new tuna salad go-to ingredients! And of course, I put celery in the salad too, for a little crunch.

Oh, and for anyone who met me at Guacaholics Anonymous and thought, “wow, that’s not what I pictured her to sound like,” I swear I usually don’t sound like an 80-year-old smoker (or Lindsay Lohan as Chris so kindly told me later this evening). I came down with an awful cold (obviously on the week I’m moving!) and woke up this morning with no voice. I rested it all day and managed to have it working albeit in a super raspy way for tonight’s event.

I definitely talked too much (and too loudly) all evening long, so I need to finish my hot tea and head to bed. Here’s to hoping I’m all better by Friday!

Don’t forget, you can still enter our giveaway for a Gap jeans gift certificate (up to a $69.50) value through Friday! I could use any last minute moving tips you have up your sleeves

Do you have a favorite guacamole add-in?

[Sues]

I did make a few changes to the recipe… I used more cucumber than it called for. And I kept the peel on and seeds in, since a cucumber is not a cucumber without (at least to me). But like David recommended, I served the salad with some baked pita chips.

Enjoy the recipe, but also make sure you read to the end of this post to see a fun, Gap giveaway!

Cucumber and Feta Salad:

• 2 medium cucumbers, diced into pea-sized pieces
• Coarse salt
• 8 oz. Athenos feta cheese (I used half cracked black pepper and half traditional)
• 1/4 C olive oil
• 2-3 T freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• 1 T water
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 small red onion, peeled and finely-diced
• 1 T fresh mint
• 1 T fresh parsley
• 1 T fresh dill

After chopping my cucumbers, I put them in a colander with some salt and let them drain for about 30 minutes, shaking the colander from time to time.

I crumbled the feta in a medium bowl and mixed together with olive oil, lemon juice, water, and some black pepper.

Then mixed in the onion and herbs.

And the cucumber, too!

And mixed it all together.

I kept the salad in the fridge, while I baked my pita chips. I simply cut whole wheat pita bread into triangles, brushed some olive oil on them, sprinkled salt on them, and baked them for about 8 minutes at 375 degrees.

Perfection!

I served the salad in a smaller bowl.

With the pita chips.

And piled a bit of the cucumber feta salad on some of the pita chips.

This would be a great little hors d’oeuvres for a party.

Or you could just serve the salad and pita chips separately and let guests dip the chips themselves.

Chels came over to enjoy the salad (she’s not sick of feta salads either!). And then we headed out to see our friends’ band at the Middle East in Cambridge. They band is called The Timberfakes and they’re a Justin Timberlake cover band!

They’re pretty awesome and you should definitely check them out at their upcoming shows.

We had a blast… The Timberfakes sold out the Middle East, which is absolutely amazing!!

And now for the giveaway! Remember when I had that Gap Born to Fit party last year? Well I’m still a Gap brand enthusiast and I still get lovely presents from them and Brand About Town in the mail every so often. They recently sent me this super cute faded denim jacket. I never ever ever thought I would be a fan of faded denim (especially in jacket form), but I love this!

It’s super lightweight and perfect to throw on over a summer outfit. But could also actually be worn as a button-up shirt.

Anyway, since they sent me this cute jacket, I wanted to do something for you guys, too! They also gave me a gift certificate for a free pair of Gap jeans! And I’m, of course, giving it to one of you lucky readers.

Want a chance to win? All you have to do is give me your best moving tip. I’m moving this Friday, for the first time in 5 years, and I’m welcoming all moving advice.

You have until Friday, July 30, at 11:59 p.m. to enter. And you can get extra entries by tweeting about the giveaway and referencing @wearenotmartha and/or blogging about it.

Good luck!! And wish me luck on a super crazy busy week, during which I also have to finish packing my life up!

[Sues]

Speaking of spices, a little side story. For as long as I can remember my mom has had her spices alphabetized in our pantry. And since I’m a total scatter brain I never really thought alphabetizing my spices would be something I’d do. So fast forward, through my entire life, up until a couple months ago. I was on vacation and my roommate sends me a text saying she was cleaning out her shelves in the pantry and asked if it was okay if she alphabetized my spices. I was all “uhhh, sure? I mean, if you really want to?” thinking it would last all of a day once I came home and messed them up. I was also thinking I’d never offer to alphabetize anything for anyone since I still recite the alphabet out loud to figure out which letter comes next. You do it too… don’t kid yourself. Let me just say this now, besides organizing your jewelry in a really cool way, alphabetizing spices is probably the best way to make your life easier. It’s been months and I can’t imagine how I ever cooked with them all scattered about.

Back to the chickpeas…

Here’s what you need:

• 1 can of chickpeas
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Moroccan Spice Mix (to follow)
• salt to taste

Moroccan Spice Mix
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (which I didn’t have)
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper  

Here’s what you do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Drain the beans in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Let the beans drain for about 5-10 minutes then pat dry.

While you’re waiting for the beans to dry mix together your spices to create the Moroccan Spice Mix.

Spread the beans in a single layer on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil, Moroccan Spice Mix, and salt.

Roast for 30-40 minutes or until slightly browned and as Kayln says “until they make a rattling sound when you shake the baking sheet”. Serve fresh out of the oven or let them cool a bit.

As someone with a nut allergy these are the perfect substitution… The texture and consistency actually reminded me a bit of a roasted peanut. I was also thinking they’d be the perfect little snack to serve at a party. All of the warm flavors from the spices reminded me a bit of Fall too!

For dinner dessert this evening I made a spinach salad with grilled salmon, roasted red peppers, Athenos feta cheese, and I tossed on a handful of the Crispy Roasted Chickpeas with a squirt of lemon juice!

You’re probably wondering why a salad was my dessert. It’s because my real dinner was this:

Key lime pie frozen yogurt, graham cracker crust topping, and raspberries from Red Mango. Obviously the best dinner known to mankind.

And it’s obviously Summer

Do you alphabetize your spices?

Or do you eat dessert for dinner and dinner for dessert?

[Chels]

So, while this salad did have plenty of veggie-goodness, it wasn’t exactly totally healthy. But like I said, it’s Monday, and we have to ease into this week slowly. So, yes, there are corn and tomatoes. But yes, there is also butter. The good news? I got my salad inspiration from this recipe on the Food Channel website, but I changed it a bit. And cut way down on the butter it called for. And the olive oil too (though there’s nothing I hate more than people who bash olive oil. In moderation, it’s SO good for you!!).

Pan-Roasted Corn Salad with Tomatoes and Feta:

• 4 ears of corn, husks and silks removed and shucked off cob (about 3.5 C of kernels)
• 1.5 T unsalted butter
• 2.5 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 t thyme, freshly chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 C halved cherry tomatoes
• 4 oz. Athenos feta cheese, crumbled (I used Athenos Roasted Bell Pepper and Garlic. OMG!)
• Juice from 1/2 lime
• 2 T basil, slivered

To be honest, I am not a huge lover of corn on the cob. Never have been. I LOVE corn, especially in the summer, but I just HATE eating it on the cob. My dad has always removed it from the cob for me, or else I just plain ignore it on the dinner table. Sad because when it’s in season, it’s so, so awesome. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to make this recipe so badly. I get to eat fresh corn on the cob, but off the cob!! Now where was my dad when I was cutting it off??

I shucked all the cobs and used a knife to cut all the corn off (myself!).

Then I heated about 3/4 T of butter and 1 T of EVOO in a nonstick saute pan over medium-high heat. I warmed it until it was almost smoking and then added half my minced garlic, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds. Use as much butter and EVOO as you feel is necessary, but this amount seemed to work for me.

Then I added in half the corn and stirred occasionally until tender, about 4 minutes.

Then I added in half the green onion and half the thyme and sautéed for another minute before seasoning with salt and pepper.

I removed the corn mixture to a big bowl and repeated the whole process with the other half of the ingredients.

Add the second batch of corn to the bowl and let cool to room temperature (stirring occasionally) for about 30 mins. I put mine in the fridge.

I chopped all my cherry tomatoes. On that note, can someone tell me WHY I can never take a good photo of tomatoes? Ugh. It’s just awful.

Anyway, then add the feta cheese. You can obviously use whatever kind you want, but I was SO excited when Athenos sent me the Roasted Bell Pepper and Garlic variety. I didn’t even know it existed and figured it would go perfectly with the tomatoes and corn!

Can’t you just see the amazing flavors? I also threw in 1/2 T of the EVOO and some pepper (I didn’t think it would need any more salt). I put this in the fridge while the corn was cooling, too.

When the corn was cooled, I added the tomato/feta mixture to it. Plus I added in the basil and lime juice.

It’s one of those salads, that not only looks delicious, but it looks beautiful too! I LOVE bright summer salads.

Of course, I had a serving right away. And. This is exactly what I expect summer to taste like. I mean, come on, corn, tomatoes, basil? Does it get more summery than that? Oh, and the lime juice was a really awesome complement too.

I thought the flavored feta was the perfect touch. Though plain feta would have been totally fine.

Can you seriously blame me for not being sick of these feta salads yet? Even though I had this for lunch, I’ll probably have another serving later on. I’m planning on making tacos for dinner and think this salad will be the best side ever!

I really can’t think of any way this salad could have been any better. Unless I was sitting at a pool eating it… With a large glass of sangria in my hand. But I’m trying to be realistic here.

How do you like your corn on the cob? On the cob or off?

[Sues]

Here’s what you need:

• 19 oz. of chickpeas
• 4 lemons, juiced
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup tahini
• salt to taste
• 1/4 cup of olive oil to smooth (I actually forgot to put the olive oil in, because I’m brilliant and get distracted like a 3 year old, but it still tasted great!)

Here’s what you do:

The directions are very simple… Just blend all of the ingredients together in a food processor until smooth!

With the refreshing citrus hints from the lemons this is the perfect appetizer to bring to a Summer party or if you’re entertaining at home. I mean, we already know it’s a huge hit

Thanks for the recipe Mark! It’s definitely a keeper!

(Also, pardon the “ghost” in my pictures… looks like some steam or something is on my lens? Not having the best of luck with technology this past week!)

[Chels]

Then I realized I could make “baked sweet potato thins” and put them in a salad. Oh, and top them with feta, obviously. I’m still going to call them fries though. Because fries just have a way of attracting people.

Baked Sweet Potato Fry Salad with Feta:

• 3 medium sweet potatoes
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• ATHENOS Feta Cheese
• Whatever salad fixings you want… I used spinach (but didn’t photograph it because my thought process was so random).

Have you ever made sweet potato fries/thins before? They’re super easy and I highly recommend them. Normally I would use a mandoline to slice them, but I cut them by hand this time so you can see how easy it is.

First peel the potatoes. of course, I love my Chef’n Palm Peeler.

Once it’s peeled, cut off the ends.

Now, slice the potato in half the long way.

And then just cut slices along the side of the potato and you’ll end up with these:

You can try to make them all uniform shape or you can not worry so much about it. I like the variety of different sizes/widths. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and then coat and mix with olive oil.

I baked my sweet potato thins at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Then I took them out of the oven, turned them all over (with tongs) and put them back in the oven for 10 minutes.

As you can see, I like my sweet potato fries a little burnt. Sweet potatoes most definitely do not crisp up like regular potatoes (especially since we’re baking and not frying them), so I like to try my best to crisp them a little more.

You could most obviously eat them just like this. With ketchup if you like (I am a ketchup fiend!!).

I put mine over a bed of spinach and sprinkled some ATHENOS Feta on top.

I also drizzled a little balsamic vinaigrette on my salad once i served it. This was seriously an awesomely unique take on a salad. I loved that it was different, but still very simple and fresh.

Of course, if you’re not into the whole salad thing, you could melt some feta on your sweet potato fries, for some wicked awesome cheesy fries. And I’m sure that would also be just perfect. But, you know, have some spinach on the side for the nutrient-factor.

I paired this salad with an easy swordfish with citrus pesto, which I’ll post for you later today (we don’t want to give you salad overload here at WANM!).

Feta Friday Giveaway:

Since it’s Friday (YAY! WOOT!) we’re holding another Feta Friday Giveaway. Here’s the sweet prize pack you could win:

• Free ATHENOS Feta coupon

• 1-month membership to LIfeTime Fitness

• ATHENOS Feta water bottle

• ATHENOS Feta recipe booklet

• Fit & Fresh Salad Container

• Built NY Lunch Bag

To enter, just leave a comment on this post letting us know what you’ll be cooking/eating this weekend by Tuesday at 11:59 p.m.! Blog and tweet about the giveaway for extra entries!

Happy weekend!!

[Sues]

1) Dwight Schrute on The Office. Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica..

2) Doug Funny’s favorite band. You know, Killer Tofu.

3) Deliciousness.

#3 is all you really need to know for all intents and purposes of this post.

I just want to say that Athenos Summer Salad Month could not have come at a better time. At practically 100 degrees here in Boston, salads are definitely all I want to eat! OK, so this salad required me turning on my oven to 400 degrees (omg death), but it was worth it. Especially since I know just what I’m going to have for a snack today on this still sweltering afternoon.

Roasted Beet Salad with Feta and Mint:

• A bunch of beets (4-6)
• 3 T olive oil
• Sea salt
• 1/2 C fresh mint, chopped
• 1/2 C crumbled feta cheese (I used Athenos Black Peppercorn Feta)
• 2 t lemon zest
• 1 T maple syrup

This was actually my very first time preparing beets! I was kind of excited, and now I have a feeling I’ll be making them quite often because they’re just so delicious.

I covered the beets in olive oil (about 2 T of the 3) and sea salt and then I wrapped each of them in foil.

Then I set my oven to 400 degrees (ughhhhh) and roasted the beets for about an hour.

I let them cool for a bit. And then under cold running water, I peeled the skins off.

Call me crazy, but I love doing stuff like that. Give me some peppers to roast and peel the skin off of and I’m a happy girl. Beets were just as fun.

I chopped the beets into bite-sized pieces, and mixed them with the feta, mint, lemon zest, 1 T olive oil, and maple syrup.

Annnd perfect (and like the easiest thing ever)! I was kind of annoyed because my mint actually froze in the fridge (yes, froze! the fridge is on a medium setting, so I have no idea why it did this). So, when it thawed it was all non-fresh looking and watery. But still delicious. It happened to my basil, too. Which I was planning on making pesto with later this week. Wah wah.

You can serve this salad right away, but I liked it best after it sat in the fridge for a while- it cooled down and all the flavors melded together. Yummmm. Beets really just taste like summer to me. And they’re one of the prettiest foods ever.

Next time I’ll be utilizing the beet greens, too (so healthy!). But it’s so hot here, that after 5 minutes out of the fridge, they looked all wilty and sad.

Do you like beets? How do you like them prepared?

[Sues]

Boston.com is saying it’s 90 degrees outside (my iphone is saying 98!) but with the heat index it feels like I’m in a 350 degree oven… baking. So I made a vow to myself this morning that I wouldn’t leave the house, even to get food, so what’s in the fridge is what I’m eatin’! Let’s face it, nothing good happens when it’s this hot out. Fainting, dizzy spells, deodorant-less people… riots. I’ve kept myself parked at my desk all day. Indoors, with continuous glasses of ice water, and a fan blowing directly on my face.

When it came time to eat a late lunch this afternoon I looked in the fridge and found some lettuce, blueberries that I had to use before they went bad, and of course a fridge stocked with Athenos feta. I thought this sounded completely delicious but I obviously “had” to do some quick research just to make sure I wasn’t the only one. Or that I wasn’t going crazy in the heat thinking blueberries and feta sounded like a good idea. I found this recipe for exactly what I wanted to make on Table & Spoon, Pittsburgh’s Garden to Table Project. Feel free to use your own measurements, I sort of eyeballed everything and tasted the dressing as I made it.

Here’s what you need:

• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• A couple handfuls of lettuce or any other greens you have on hand
• A generous portion of feta (I used the traditional Athenos crumbled feta)
• Salt and pepper

For the Dressing:

• 1 Tablespoon cider vinegar (I used sherry vinegar since I had it on hand… it worked perfectly fine)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon honey (adds a nice touch of sweetness)
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper

Mix all of the dressing ingredients together…

And combine all of the salad ingredients.

With the dressing poured on top. Who am I kidding? It’s too hot out to dip each forkful into a separate bowl of dressing.

After taking these photos I added a small handful of dried sunflower seeds to up the crunch-factor and to get some vitamin E in my system Table and Spoon also suggests adding almonds or pecans.

This Athenos Change for the Feta challenge is giving me some great excuses to dilly dally in the kitchen and find some new and creative recipes and flavor combinations! Yet another go-to salad was created this afternoon and this basic dressing is one I’ll definitely be creating all the time. So simple, fresh, and refreshing to cool me down on this scorcher of a day!

[Chels]

Sangria while sitting in the sun at Brookline’s American Craft.

Along with a tomato, basil, and garlic mozzarella salad.

Chicken wings with honey mustard dipping sauce.

And fries with blue cheese fondue.

A 4th of July Red Sox game with my fabulous aunt and uncle.

The Sox lost 6-1, but we still had a good time. It was the most beautiful day for a Red Sox game. OK, mayyybe a little too hot, but there was a pretty nice little breeze.

Even Wally, the Green Monster, was dressed up.

I was wondering why Chris’s farmer’s tan looked like he was wearing a v-neck. Now I see why…

After the game, we met up with my sister and Adam for a delicious dinner on the patio at Bouchee. We indulged in some escargot.

And our very favorite flatbreads. Gruyere, Caramelized onion, and ham.

And sweet sausage, grape, and gorgonzola.

Then we met up with Chels and took a walk around the esplanade to watch Boston’s fireworks show.

Last year Chris and I got right up close for Neil Diamond’s show. We wanted to do the same this year to see Toby Keith, but we didn’t get there until pretty late. And I have horrible memories of the show ending last year and not even being able to move an inch for a half hour.

So, we kept a bit of distance, but had the perfect view of the fireworks.

And when the show was over, we weren’t stuck in huge mobs of people.

We kept saying how weird it was to be able to walk along Storrow Drive and walk along the exit we normally drive off of. Storrow is a really, really busy 3-lane road around Boston.

Monday has been all about relaxation (in the super hot weather!) and taking a HUGE trip to the grocery store. The fridge has been empty and desperately needed to be refilled.

Of course, the sweltering weather called for a light and refreshing salad. I decided to mix my feta with some fruit… If you’re apprehensive about the fruit/cheese together combo, don’t be! It’s one of the best things in the world. And since I’ve been craving mangoes lately, I made a mango feta salad.

Mango and Feta Salad:

• 1 ripe mango, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1/4 C crumbled Athenos feta
• 1 t minced basil
• 1 T extra-virgin olive oil
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

This was an incredibly simple and quick salad. I actually bough 2 mangoes to make a larger salad, but one was not ripe at all. So, this was definitely gobbled up by me in about 3 minutes (or less).

All you need to do is cube and peel the mango. And mix with the feta, basil, EVOO, salt, and pepper.

I sprinkled some more feta on top too. And this was PERFECT!! The combination of sweet and salty is to die for. And this totally tasted like summer in a bowl.

I’m pretty sure mango is going to be one of my new go-to summer fruits and I will definitely be whipping up this salad again very soon!

What did you do this 4th of July weekend?

[Sues]